Australia information stay: Leonardo DiCaprio speaks up for WA forest; Wong warns Russia in opposition to ‘bullying behaviour’

Australia’s universities are being threatened by world competitors from Asia and the Center East, the QS World College Rankings by Topic has discovered.

This 12 months, 38 Australian universities earned practically 1,000 ranked entries throughout 60 disciplines, a rise of 5% on 2024. It had 13 entries on this planet’s prime 10 throughout eight topics – 4 fewer than final 12 months, reflecting “intensifying global competition”.

The College of Melbourne and the College of Sydney every ranked among the many world’s prime 100 in 52 of 55 topic areas, adopted by the College of Queensland, with 50 topics ranked.

However 65% of Australia’s ranked entries declined in employer fame scores, primarily based on suggestions from hiring managers. The decline was most prevalent in arts and humanities topics.

QS’s chief govt, Jessica Turner, mentioned for years Australia had “outperformed expectations” regardless of its geographic remoteness and smaller inhabitants.

Nonetheless, the panorama is shifting. Rising markets, significantly in Asia and the Center East, are investing closely in greater training, quickly bettering their establishments’ world standing.

Ben Sowter, QS senior vice-president, mentioned cuts to arts and humanities in Australia may have “profound long term consequences”.

If Australian establishments proceed to deprioritise these topics, they threat not solely diminishing their world standing but in addition weakening their potential to provide graduates who can navigate complicated, interconnected challenges.

Caitlin Cassidy

Victoria will grow to be the primary jurisdiction in Australia to ban machetes after police seized a file variety of knives from the state’s streets in 2024. It follows comparable reform in the UK, which took 18 months to go. The state authorities is assured it can go the ban in six.

Below the laws, machetes will likely be listed as a prohibited weapon with out an exemption, to take impact from 1 September 2025 with an amnesty interval of two months. Offenders will threat two years in jail or a wonderful of greater than $47,000 for being caught in possession of a machete.

Police can even have expanded knife search powers to declare a location a delegated space to randomly seek for weapons for as much as six months.

The premier, Jacinta Allan, will name on main retailers to right away cease inserting inventory orders for machetes and write to the federal authorities about motion on imports on the border – and a nationwide ban.

She mentioned there was “zero reason” for individuals to be carrying machetes with out a motive, including it constructed on the hardest bail legal guidelines within the nation, introduced on Wednesday.

We’ll all the time give police what they should maintain Victorians secure – we’ll construct on the additional powers we’ve already given them and assist members seek for extra knives.

Leonardo DiCaprio has drawn the world’s consideration to the federal government’s determination to permit the mining firm South32 to clear native forest in WA’s jarrah forests for bauxite mining.

The actor claimed the operation at Boddington may threaten the critically endangered woylie (or brush-tailed bettong) and that the federal government was prioritising “mining development over environmental protection”.

He posted on Instagram that:

The mining firm @south_32 is about to clear 9,600 acres of this previous progress forest, which is dwelling to threatened species just like the Critically Endangered Woylie. This operation will destroy crucial habitat for over 8,000 species, 80% of that are discovered nowhere else on Earth. Whereas native forest logging was banned in Western Australia in 2024, clearance of native forests for mining remains to be allowed as a result of separate authorities insurance policies that prioritize mining improvement over environmental safety.

DiCaprio is the co-founder of the group Earth Alliance, which funds on-line activism on environmental points.

Australia would not reply nicely to bullying, Wong warns Russia

Caitlin Cassidy

Australians is not going to reply nicely to “bullying behaviour” from Russia, the overseas minister, Penny Wong, has warned.

Talking on ABC’s 7.30 on Wednesday night, Wong was requested about threats from the Russian authorities of “serious consequences” for Australia if troops have been to hitch a peacekeeping drive in Ukraine.

She mentioned it was the “sensible thing” to make sure the worldwide rules-based order was maintained.

I don’t assume Australians reply very nicely to that type of bullying behaviour from anyone, and definitely not from Russia … we’d contemplate any request, and that’s the wise factor to do.

We have now an curiosity within the UN Constitution not being undermined by a everlasting member of the safety council. These are guidelines which maintain us all secure, and we’ve got to proceed to work to defend them. We proceed to advocate, alongside so many others within the worldwide neighborhood and in Europe for a simply and enduring peace, a good resolve for Ukraine.

Good morning and welcome to our stay information weblog. I’m Martin Farrer with the highest in a single day tales after which it will likely be Catie McLeod with the principle motion.

Our personal evaluation of parliamentary data reveals that Peter Dutton billed taxpayers for flights to Sydney on the times of three NRL grand finals, a rugby event and a Matildas World Cup recreation. Final night time, the Coalition was once more pressured to make clear its coverage on breaking apart the large insurance coverage firms, with Dutton now saying “certainly something has failed” available in the market.

Victoria will grow to be the primary jurisdiction in Australia to ban machetes after police seized a file variety of knives from the state’s streets in 2024. It follows comparable reform in the UK, which took 18 months to go. The state authorities is assured it can go the ban in six. It comes amid public concern about crime with the state authorities promising Australia’s hardest bail legal guidelines. Extra particulars arising.

The household of a surfer fatally mauled by a shark has paid tribute to him as authorities suspended the seek for his stays. Steven Payne, 37, was attacked at a distant seaside about midday on Monday at Wharton Seaside, east of Esperance in Western Australia. A big search failed to search out his stays and WA police yesterday mentioned it had been suspended “pending any new information being received”.

Plus: Leonardo DiCaprio has spoken out in opposition to mining in WA, and Penny Wong has a message for Russia. Extra on these tales arising.