Iran hands out an ultimatum

The EU, UK, France and Germany have expressed great concern with Iran’s latest announcement that they would immediately stop the sales of enriched uranium and heavy water, breaking two commitments under the 2015 international accord.

The ultimatum was delivered by Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, who called on the international partners of the 2015 Iran Deal to fulfill their commitment to protect Iran's banking and oil sectors from US sanctions.

Power prices to be cut by Morrison government

The Morrison government is promising to cut power prices by 25 per cent, saving the average household up to $185 a year.

Energy Minister Angus Taylor will on Friday vow to reduce the spot price in the national electricity market to less than $70 per Megawatt-hour by the end of 2021.

The savings are less than those promised under the coalition’s dumped National Energy Guarantee, which the government claims would have driven prices down by $550.

 

Youth Justice Supervision rising

The rate of Indigenous people aged 10-17 in youth justice supervision has been found by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare to be 15 times higher compared to 2012-13.

AIHW spokesperson Anna Ritson says while there has been a drop in the rate of Indigenous young people under supervision in recent years, the decline for non-Indigenous young people was proportionally greater, effectively increasing Indigenous overrepresentation in the youth justice system.

New water facility opens in Cairns today

A new state of the art water laboratory officially opened today in Cairns.

Member for Cairns Michael Healy at the official opening, said the Cairns Regional Council Laboratory Service would provide crucial water testing services for Far North Queensland.

Mr Healy says the new facility replaces the old laboratory building which has been in operation since 1994, enabling continued water quality testing across the Far North to ensure everyone’s health and safety

Pedestrian Council of Australia call for a ban of the electric scooters

The death of a 50-year-old man in a Lime Scooter related accident has prompted the Pedestrian Council of Australia to call for a ban of the electric scooters in Brisbane.

Council chief Harold Scruby says ‘the risk to riders and pedestrians can’t be adequately managed’ and Brisbane City Council should not ‘be looking to issue a second company an operating license.’

The Brisbane City Council has expressed sympathy for the man’s family and says it won’t be commenting further, pending a police investigation into the death.

British road workers discover underground Anglo-Saxon chamber

Road workers in Britain have accidently discovered an underground chamber that is believed to be the site of the earliest christian burial with archaeologists calling it the Anglo-Saxon equivalent of King Tutankhanmun’s tomb.

The chamber, originally uncovered between a road and a railway line in the south-eastern English village of Prittlewell in 2003, has turned out to be a 1,400-year-old tomb.

North Korea fire two short-range missiles in weapons test

North Korea has fired two short-range missiles in its second weapons test in less than a week, the South Korean military says.

The missiles fired from the north-western city of Kusong hours after the top US envoy arrived in South Korea for talks on how to revive nuclear negotiations.

The continuing development of North Korea’s nuclear program and missile advancement is seen as a way to apply continued pressure on the US after their failure to make concession in ongoing denuclearisation negotiation.

New Treaty Negotiation electoral roll in Victoria

Aboriginal Victorians aged 16 and over will be eligible to enrol and vote for a new electoral roll dedicated to help shape the rules for treaty negotiations.

Treaty Advancement Commissioner Jill Gallagher says ‘the community felt it was important that youth play a major role in whatever we design and go forward because it will probably be them that will be negotiating treaties.’

The First People’s Assembly will replace the Treaty Advancement Commission and work with the state to prepare for negotiations, including ground rules.

AEC closes 26 rural VIC polling booths, doesn’t notify residents

The Australian Electoral Commission has closed 26 polling booths in regional Victoria but has failed to  communicate the closes with residents regarding the decision.

Former Mayor of Horsham Rural City Council David Grimble says to close the polling booths ‘without notification and so close to the election is extremely disappointing.’

The AEC says it closed the polling booths because of low voting numbers and the difficulty involved in attracting electoral staff.