Australia

    Yesterday was Australia's hottest day on record, according to preliminary data from the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM). The average temperature across the country was 40.9 degrees Celsius, breaking the mark of 40.3C set in January 2013, but it's a record unlikely to last for long. Temperatures were well over 45C for much of the interior — the location record (50.7C at Oodnadatta) is still safe — but the wide spread of exceptional heat meant the national average record was broken. The heat is expected to keep building over the next few days as the air mass moves across the country. A few of the standout temperatures yesterday included: - Ceduna (SA) – 46.5 - Birdsville (Qld) – 46.1 - Lajamanu (NT) – 46 - Rabbit Flat (NT) – 45.8 - Jervois (NT) – 45.6 - Longreach ...

    Jacinda Ardern has revealed more details about her romantic surprise proposal and why she doesn't wear her engagement ring on the correct finger. The New Zealand prime minister confirmed last week that long time partner Clarke Gayford popped the question over the Easter break after she was spotted wearing what appeared to be an engagement ring on her left hand. A coy Ms Ardern was unable to dodge reporters questions about her recent proposal during a post-cabinet press conference in Wellington on Monday, where she was reluctant to spill too many intimate details. There are some things I don't mind keeping for ourselves, Ms Ardern told reporters. This is a very public job and I'm quite happy to put quite a bit of ourselves out there. But there are some things I wou...

    The egging, captured on video, raced through social media. In the days since, thousands of people around the world have embraced Mr. Connolly’s actions, and the teenager has been offered concert tickets for life, captured in street art, and honored by basketball players and talk show hosts. Mr. Anning has refused to apologize for his comments and said the teenager deserved what he got. The Australian teenager known as Egg Boy has spoken publicly to the media for the first time since he cracked an egg on a far-right politician’s head, becoming an international symbol against bigotry in the process. I understand what I did was not the right thing to do, Will Connolly, 17, said in an interview with Channel 10, an Australian television channel expected to air on Monday...

    Australian Brenton Tarrant, 28, plans to represent himself when he stands trial for the shootings that killed 50 on Friday. There are fears the self-confessed white supremacist, who referenced Norwegian mass killer Anders Behring Breivik in his 'manifesto', could use the legal process to espouse extremist views. Ms Ardern, who opened parliament on Tuesday with a Muslim prayer, said efforts should be made to prevent giving the gunman the attention he wanted. He is a terrorist. He is a criminal. He is an extremist. But he will, when I speak, be nameless, she said. He obviously had a range or reasons for committing this atrocious terrorist attacks. Lifting his profile was one them and that's something we can absolutely deny him, she said. One thing I can assure you, ...

    A 5-year-old boy tugged Prince Harry's red beard and scored big hugs from the British royal and his wife, Meghan, after they touched down on Wednesday in the rural Australian city of Dubbo, where farmers are struggling with drought. Harry and Meghan delighted a long line of school children at the airport in Dubbo, about 300 km (185 miles) northwest of Sydney, shaking hands and posing for selfies. Meghan, who is expecting the royal couple's first child in the northern spring, wore skinny black jeans, a white shirt, long grey jacket and black boots with her hair tied back in a pony tail. But it was Luke Vincent, who has Down Syndrome and adores Santa Claus, who stole the show, throwing his arms around Meghan when she knelt down to greet him and grabbing Harry's beard...

    Harper Nielsen’s parents said they were proud of her for the protest, which earned her a detention and reportedly the threat of suspension from school. But the child was attacked by politicians, including her state senator, Pauline Hanson, the leader of the rightwing One Nation party. Take her out of school, Hanson said in a video posted on Facebook, in which she also labelled her a brat. She attacked the nine-year-old’s parents, saying: I tell you what, I’d give her a kick up the backside. Her choice of language was echoed by Jarrod Bleijie, a shadow minister in the local parliament and a member of the centre-right Liberal National Party of Queensland. The politician claimed the child’s parents were using her as a political pawn, called her protest silly and dema...

    Up to five bodies, including those of a woman and children, have been found in a house in a suburb of Perth, according to police in Western Australia. The discovery was made at a home in Bedford after a man alerted officers at a regional police station. The man, aged in his 20s, is in custody. It is not yet known whether the victims are related. Western Australia Police Assistant Commissioner Paul Steel described the scene as tragic. Police carry out an investigation at the property in Bedford, Perth (EPA) He told a news conference: This is early and we've not yet fully examined the scene. We understand that there are adults and children involved. Mr Steel said up to five bodies were found at the scene in Coode Street when police arrived and that an investigatio...

    Australia’s new prime minister Scott Morrison, a staunch conservative and devout evangelical Christian, yesterday pledged to heal the ruling Liberal party after  a week of infighting that outgoing leader Malcolm Turnbull said left his nation dumbstruck and so appalled. Following a brutal party brawl, Mr Morrison emerged victorious as leader in a 45-40 party-room vote against Peter Dutton, a hardliner who led a coup against Mr Turnbull. Mr Morrison, formerly the treasurer, equivalent to Chancellor of the Exchequer, was sworn in on Friday by the Governor-General, the Queen’s representative, to become Australia’s sixth prime minister in eight years. There has been a lot of talk this week about whose side people are on in this building, he said. As the new generation ...

    A young girl is among five people injured after a car collided with pedestrians in Melbourne. A second child was also hurt amid unconfirmed reports that an Uber was involved in a crash with an RACV roadside assistance van. The Australian network 9News reports that five people were injured in the crash on the corner of William Street and La Trobe Street, after one of the vehicles lost control at roughly 3.45pm local time (6.45am BST). The exact cause of the crash is unclear, but it is reportedly being treated as accidental. 9News claims that the RACV driver is expected to be charged. A man in his 30s is in a serious condition with leg injuries, ABC News reports. 9News adds that two women, also in their 30s, are in a stable condition with leg, back and chest injurie...

    Doomed Flight MH370 has been 'found' on Google Earth, according to an Australian amateur expert in air crash investigations. The flight, carrying 239 people, vanished en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8, 2014. A massive search operation by China, Australia and Malaysia, costing £115m, came to an end in January 2017 without success. But Peter McMahon, 64, insists he has found the plane. In one snap, the outline of what appears to be an aircraft is visible below the water’s surface. McMahon told Daily Star Online : Four Americans were sent to Australia to oversee the findings of MH370. They have made sure that all information received has been hidden from the public, even our government – but why? McMahon says authorities do not want it found as it’s...