Australian households face prospect of interest rate hike and petrol prices rising above $2 a litre 24. July 2026 (17:00) Economists’ warning comes as escalating Middle East crisis pushes global crude oil back above $US100 a barrelGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAustralian households face the prospect of a Reserve Bank interest rate hike and petrol prices above $2 a litre over the coming weeks, economists warn, as the escalating Middle East crisis pushes global crude back above $US100 a barrel.Financial markets now see an even chance the RBA board will deliver a fourth cash rate increase at the next meeting on 11 August. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Pauline Hanson’s domestic violence comments were no stumble 24. July 2026 (17:00) The One Nation leader has allied herself with men’s rights activists for years, consistently suggesting women routinely make false allegations of violence Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastFor a decade, Pauline Hanson has been beating the same drum.Her comments this week – suggesting domestic violence was a “two-way street” and questioning why women did not simply leave abusive relationships – have caused significant concern and been labelled “dangerous” by experts and other commentators. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
How dangerous are wildfires and how can we stop them from getting worse? 24. July 2026 (16:47) The conditions for ferocious fires are expected to worsen as the planet heats up, putting more people at riskFierce wildfires after back-to-back heatwaves have forced tens of thousands of people across southern Europe to flee their homes, while powerful infernos across Canada and the US choke big cities with thick smoke. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Confusing product recall adds to US cyclospora outbreak uncertainty 24. July 2026 (16:31) Explosive diarrhea infection detected in 41 states with at least 72 sickened by new, as yet unknown source of parasiteConfusion abounds in the cyclospora outbreak that has sickened thousands in at least 41 states, as officials identify a new cluster of cases and more potential products come under scrutiny.The recall of products during this outbreak of explosive diarrhea has been an unusual one, complicated by poor communication, politicization and the delay of a new regulatory rule could have helped trace the cyclosporiasis outbreak faster. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Parts of England under heat alert with 30C possible 24. July 2026 (16:14) Warning in place until Sunday morning in southern and central regions after drought declared in parts of WalesHeat alerts are in place across parts of England, with officials saying temperatures are likely to have an impact on health and wellbeing.The yellow heat health alerts issued for the East Midlands, east of England, London, south-east, south-west and West Midlands are in place until 9am on Sunday. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Justice Elena Kagan decries idea that US supreme court ‘rubber-stamps’ Trump’s agenda 24. July 2026 (15:59) Kagan rejects notion that high court ‘does whatever the administration wants’, pointing to tariffs ruling and moreThe liberal justice Elena Kagan has said it was “wrong” to accuse the US supreme court of becoming a rubber stamp for Donald Trump in his second term, amid criticism of its authorization of some of the president’s most controversial actions.Pointing to rulings against the president on key issues such as tariffs, Kagan – one of three liberals on a court that has in recent years been defined by rulings authored by members of its six-justice conservative majority – defended it at an annual gathering of attorneys and judges for the ninth judicial circuit in Bellevue, Washington, on Thursday. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Canadian government urged to block data-sharing deal between Thomson Reuters and US ICE 24. July 2026 (15:53) ICE will pay Canadian media giant US$125m to use its investigative database to identify ‘immigration fraud’A Canadian federal opposition party leader is calling on the Mark Carney government to block the latest data-sharing deal between US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Canadian media giant Thomson Reuters.Avi Lewis, the federal leader of the New Democratic party (NDP), demanded on Tuesday that Ottawa address the contract and further restrict Canadian corporations from doing business with ICE, after Canada’s National Observer reported on the deal. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Poland’s main rightwing opposition splits after loyalty pledge ultimatum 24. July 2026 (15:50) Former prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki and allies say they were forced out over factional disagreements Poland’s main opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party has split, after former prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki and his allies said they were forced out over factional disagreements on policy direction ahead of next year’s parliamentary election.Speaking at a press conference, the party’s longtime leader, Jarosław Kaczyński, said dozens of members of parliament effectively left the party after refusing to sign a loyalty oath. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Singer Chris Brown pleads guilty to affray over London club confrontation 24. July 2026 (14:53) Other charges, including assault against Abraham Diaw, dropped as guilty plea averts trialThe American singer and actor Chris Brown has admitted attacking a man in a private members’ club in London after playing a gig at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium in 2023.Brown will be sentenced in October for what prosecutors called an “unprovoked attack” with a bottle on the music producer Abraham Diaw at the Tape club in Hanover Square, Mayfair. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Trump’s new tariffs ‘a sales tax that will make life harder for Americans’, say Democrats – US politics live 24. July 2026 (14:37) Even some Republicans apparently expressing concern over measures against 85 countriesWhat to know about Trump’s new tariffs on more than 80 countriesSign up for the US Breaking News emailThe replanned White House correspondents’ dinner on Friday will only have around 700 guests, compared to the roughly 2,600 that attended in April.As my colleague Robert Tait reports, the event will go ahead with enhanced security after the original dinner was thrown into chaos when a California resident Cole Tomas Allen, unsuccessfully tried to force his way into the ballroom where hundreds of journalists, along with Trump and his cabinet, were eating. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
