Queensland MP pens ‘White Men Can Sprint’ social media post after Lachlan Kennedy takes silver in Glasgow 30. July 2026 (04:28) LNP member Llew O’Brien says ‘there is nothing wrong with being proud of your heritage’, leading Angus Taylor to state: ‘I congratulate all Australians’Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastFederal Coalition MP Llew O’Brien has declared it’s “encouraging to see a White Australian” win a sprinting medal at the Commonwealth Games, after Lachlan Kennedy took silver when setting a new national record in Glasgow.O’Brien, the member for Wide Bay in Queensland, wrote on social media on Wednesday: “White Men Can Sprint!” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Ben Carroll will not rule out redirecting Suburban Rail Loop funds to other projects 30. July 2026 (04:11) New Victorian premier also considering ‘sensible changes’ to laws that would enshrine right to work from home two days a weekFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastVictoria’s new premier has not ruled out redirecting billions of dollars earmarked for the controversial Suburban Rail Loop to other projects, saying he’s seeking to pursue the “greatest value for Victorians”.Ben Carroll also used his second day in the top job to flag “sensible changes” to nation-leading laws that would enshrine the right to work from home two days a week, as he tries to distance himself from predecessors Jacinta Allan and Daniel Andrews. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Middle East crisis live: US launches fresh strikes on Iran after days-long pause in attacks 30. July 2026 (02:48) US announces attacks early on Thursday, as experts say strikes carried out by both sides in previous day increase risk of return to all-out war US-Saudi strikes in Iraq push region into ‘uncharted territory’, analysts warnBefore Wednesday’s flare-up of hostilities, mediators had expressed optimism about bringing the US and Iran back to the negotiating table following the collapse of an interim agreement amid renewed fighting over the strait of Hormuz.A regional official quoted by the AP said mediators were “still trying with both sides” to restore calm and get the ceasefire back on track. He gave no details on whether progress was being made. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Bullets that killed two at Seattle food festival do not match teen shooter’s gun, police say 30. July 2026 (02:39) Police link shooting to gang violence but have not said who might have fired bullets that killed bystanders on SundayBullets that fatally struck two bystanders during a shootout at a Seattle food festival last weekend do not appear to have come from the gun that a 15-year-old arrested at the scene was firing, police said in court documents filed on Wednesday.The teen sprayed an untraceable “ghost gun” into a crowd, authorities say. Preliminary ballistics testing did not match the bullets recovered from the deceased bystanders to that weapon. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Elon Musk’s xAI sues Minnesota over law banning ‘nudification’ technology 30. July 2026 (02:02) First-in-nation law sets up test on states’ power to regulate use of AI as it tries to outlaw fake nude images of real peopleElon Musk’s company xAI has sued Minnesota over the state’s first-in-the-nation law banning “nudification” technology on websites and apps, potentially providing a test for how far states can go in constitutionally regulating the use of artificial intelligence.Musk’s company sued on Monday in federal court, days before the law is set to take effect on Saturday and make Minnesota the first state to try to outlaw the increasingly proliferating technology that lets people use AI to create fake nude images of real people. The law was signed in May. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Gina Rinehart lobbied for controversial plan to move 2032 Olympic rowing to crocodile-inhabited river 30. July 2026 (01:23) Decision to host event on Fitzroy River at Rockhampton, 600km north of host city Brisbane, prompted significant backlashFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAustralia’s richest person, Gina Rinehart, lobbied for controversial plans to host 2032 Olympic rowing events on the Fitzroy River at Rockhampton, documents released by the Queensland government show.The plans to send rowers 600km north of host city Brisbane – to a river that is natural habitat for saltwater crocodiles, and which prompted significant backlash among the rowing and broader Olympic communities – were announced by the Queensland government in March last year. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Australia news live: McCarthy welcomes ‘milestone’ as one Closing the Gap target reached; three dead in Sydney house fire 29. July 2026 (23:43) Early childhood education enrolment for First Nations children reaches 95% across the country. Follow updates liveGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastFinance minister says inflation figures ‘encouraging’, but ‘uncertain times’ will likely have ongoing impact on economyKaty Gallagher, the federal minister for finance, said yesterday’s inflation numbers were “encouraging”, but the country still had a “job ahead of us”.I think we are living in very uncertain times. There’s a lot of global instability. … We saw it the last time the Middle East war increased. We saw that impact on inflation … We will see some of what’s happened in the last month flow through [into the economy]. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Trident renewal central to defence spending, says Andy Burnham 29. July 2026 (23:30) Prime minister to highlight investment in communities as he launches next phase of nuclear submarine replacementAndy Burnham will place the renewal of Trident at the heart of his vision of a reindustrialised Britain on Thursday when he travels to Barrow-in-Furness to launch the next phase of the nuclear submarine replacement programme.The new prime minister intends to emphasise that defence spending on projects such as the £31bn Dreadnought-class boats built in the Cumbrian town is a case study of taxpayer investment revitalising communities around the UK. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Meta misses earnings forecasts after Zuckerberg media push to promote AI 29. July 2026 (23:26) Stock tumbles nearly 8% after weaker-than-expected results, despite CEO’s blitz to tout positive effects of AIMeta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg’s media spree touting the positive impacts of artificial intelligence did little to cushion the blow of its second-quarter earnings, which sent its stock tumbling on Wednesday.In a Wall Street Journal op-ed published on Tuesday, Zuckerberg expressed his optimism for a world where everyone has access to a super-intelligent machine. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Senate unanimously passes resolution opposing pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell 29. July 2026 (23:19) Longtime Epstein associate serving 20-year sentence for sex-trafficking crimes has exhausted series of appeals The US Senate on Wednesday unanimously passed a resolution declaring its opposition to any presidential pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell, the longtime Jeffrey Epstein associate who is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex-trafficking crimes.Introduced by Senator Jacky Rosen, a Democrat of Nevada, the resolution states that Maxwell “should not be granted a Presidential pardon or any form of clemency for her crimes with Jeffrey Epstein relating to the sexual exploitation and abuse of minors”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
