The Coalition debates using super as collateral for a mortgage; Australia assisting a US investigation into F-35 fighter jet parts mistakenly sent to Hong Kong; And in soccer, Sydney FC's teen star Akol Akon signs multi-million dollar deal with Colorado Rapids.
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TRANSCRIPT
- The Coalition debates using super as collateral for a mortgage
- Australia assisting a US investigation into F-35 fighter jet parts mistakenly sent to Hong Kong
- Sydney FC's teen star Akol Akon signs multi-million dollar deal with Colorado Rapids
Opposition leader Angus Taylor says the idea of using superannuation as collateral for a mortgage or for a house deposit is not Coalition policy.
It follows comments made by Coalition Housing Minister Andrew Bragg, who earlier floated the proposals, saying he would provide details in a speech later in the day.
[[Senator Bragg told ABC NewsRadio the Coalition is considering options for people to be able to use their savings to boost home ownership.]]
Mr Taylor insists no decisions have been made on such a policy.
"Superannuation is Australians' money. It's Australians' money. They should have choice in it. That's why we so strongly support self-managed super funds. But, but the proposal you're talking about there is not our policy. We'll say more, we'll, we'll say more about, uh, housing policy more generally over, over the next little while."
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Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles says Australia is assisting with a US investigation into a shipment of F-35 fighter jet parts which were mistakenly sent to Hong Kong earlier this year.
Over the weekend, Politico reported the shipment of components from Australia was bound for the United States for repairs, but was unexpectedly diverted to Hong Kong, where some parts went missing.
The report has sparked concerns that sensitive weapons technology may have been accessed by China.
Mr Marles says Australia is working with the US to determine the cause of the mishap, but says no secret information was compromised.
"We are confident about the way in which we've engaged with the program, um, and through the US' prime contractor, Lockheed. Uh, my understanding is that, you know, there, there is a, uh, a, a sense of comfort that we're, we're not talking about sensitive, uh, equipment here or sensitive parts. Uh, ultimately though, this is, uh, an issue which is gonna be managed by the United States and by Lockheed in terms of what has occurred."
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On the second day of a double murder trial at the NSW supreme court, a former New South Wales police officer has told the court he killed two men in self-defence,
Beau Lamarre-Condon has pleaded not-guilty to two counts of murder.
Prosecutors allege the 31-year-old fatally shot Jesse Baird and his partner Luke Davies with his police service weapon in February of 2024, after entering Mr Baird's house disguised as an Uber Eats rider.
The defence is arguing Mr Lamarre-Condon entered Mr Baird's house with a key he had previously been given.
Mr Lamarre-Condon's barrister has told the court his client was surprised by the presence of Mr Baird in the house and Mr Baird was killed in an ensuing struggle.
The defence argues Mr Davies then emerged from the bedroom holding a knife, before a second deadly struggle occurred.
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Independent experts appointed by the U-N Human Rights Council say there are reasonable grounds to believe two U-S airstrikes in Iran amounted to war crimes.
The fact-finding mission says two cruise missiles struck a primary school in Minab, killing 157 people, including 123 children.
It concluded the school was "the intended target", and not accidentally hit in an attack on a nearby Revolutionary Guard compound.
The US State Department says it does not consider the mission’s findings credible.
The mission’s chair, jurist Sara Hossain, says the school attack breached the laws of war.
"This building, a readily identifiable primary school, was struck by two cruise missiles, resulting we have found in 157 people killed, including 123 boys and girls, according to credible sources. We found reasonable grounds to believe that the airstrike conducted by the United States amounted to the war crime of making a civilian object the object of an attack."
A second US strike on a sports centre in a residential area of Lamerd killed 22 people.
The team also found killings by Iranian security forces occurred on a “staggering scale”, calling them “gross human rights violations and crimes against humanity”.
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To sport, Sydney FC's teen star Akol Akon has signed a multi-million dollar deal with U-S Major League Soccer club Colorado Rapids.
The deal is also understood to be among the largest transfers in A-League history, with a reported initial value of $1.5 million Australian dollars that is set to rise to $2.5 million Australian dollars.
The 17-year-old will remain with Sydney FC on loan for the remainder of the season, before travelling to the US to join the Colorado Rapids in from July next year.
Akon says he is excited to see what the future brings.
"I am feeling excited, buzzin'. I finally got it done. But just focus on training to be honest. I think they reached out a couple of months ago - to my agent. He let me know. He was more happy than I was (initially) to be honest because I didn't really believe that at first. And then he told me and then he rang me. And then I started to believe it. And I couldn't really explain the feeling - to be honest."
The contract is for 2030-31, with an option for 2031-32.
Akon also holds the record as Sydney FC’s youngest-ever men’s player, having made his debut at 16 years, two months and 20 days.
