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A new report has found housing is the biggest cost faced by Australians, with average rents rising more than 50 per cent since 2020.
The latest Anglicare cost of living report has called for a major increase to JobSeeker payments, suggesting a family of four on payments can’t afford essential costs.
It has found a single parent on the Parenting Payment has just $24 left after basic living costs.
Anglicare director Kasy Chambers says the numbers show the goverment needs to raise the rate of Centrelink payments and build more social housing.
Opposition leader Peter Dutton says he would introduce an online age verification system for social media if he won the next federal election.
The coalition would increase the age limit for using social media to 16, and would introduce the age verification system within 100 days of taking office.
He said actions needs to be taken to protect children from online harms.
“The question is, what do we do about it? The one option that you can take is just to do nothing, and allow a lawless environment to prosper and allow these companies to continue to profit at the expense of Australian children and their future. Or you can take the path that we’re proposing now, and that is that there is age verification in place that we don’t allow young impressionable minds onto social media without any guardrails.”
Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said the government supports age limits for social media, and is committed to trialling age verification technology in other areas before looking at changing the minimum age for social media.
Cabinet Minister Ed Husic says he welcomes the release of hostages, but the killing of more than 270 Palestinians in an Israeli military operation is a tragedy.
Mr Husic has raised concerns about a “failure” by Israel and its military to observe international law and the protection of innocent lives.
The United Nations has found both Israel and Hamas committed war crimes in the early stages of the conflict, and Israel’s actions in Gaza were also crimes against humanity because of the immense civilian losses of life.
Mr Husic has told the ABC he’s concerned about the loss of Palestinian lives.
“The fact that you had so many people killed in that operation speaks to a broader thing, as well, of the way in which as I’ve said previously, the Israeli government is observing international humanitarian law and being able to distinguish between combatant and civilian. I’ve said that, you know, weeks ago that that was my concern that there was a systemic failure to observe international humanitarian law.”
United States President Joe Biden is expected to sign a security agreement with Ukraine for long-term support during his meeting with leaders of the G7 nations in Italy.
The annual gathering of the G7 major democracies includes the United States, Japan, Canada, Germany, France, Italy and the United Kingdom, while Australia is often invited as a guest.
Mr Biden wants to increase pressure on Russia over its war against Ukraine and on China for its political support of the Russian President Vladimir Putin.
US national security advisor Jake Sullivan says the agreement will show US support will last long into the future.
“Our goal here is straightforward. We want to demonstrate that the US supports the people of Ukraine, that we stand with them, and that we’ll continue to help address their security needs not just tomorrow, but out into the future. We outline a clear vision of work with our allies and partners with Ukraine, in order to continue to strengthen Ukraine’s credible defence and deterrence capability. Any lasting peace in Ukraine has to be underwritten by Ukraine’s own ability to defend itself.”
The federal government has announced it will pledge $15 million toward the Women’s Asia Cup in 2026, which Australia is hosting.
The funding will aim to provide more opportunities for Australians to see matches, with the government hoping to use sport as a way to increase gender equality.
Sports Minister Anika Wells says it’s essential to build on the momentum from the Women’s World Cup.
“Last year, the World Cup created a 92 per cent increase in visibility for women’s sport. It generated 324 million in decreased healthcare costs, and all up it had a 1.3 billion economic impact. It is brilliant, but we have to capitalize now that World Cup was a start and we have to go on. So now we’re investing $15 million in the Women’s Asian Cup.”
Sarah Wilson is your guide to the latest trends, viral sensations, and internet phenomena. With a finger on the pulse of digital culture, she explores what’s trending across social media and pop culture, keeping readers in the know about the latest online sensations.
