TRANSCRIPT
- A Telstra outage affects triple-zero calls
- Iftar dinners cancelled after protests over the Gaza conflict
- Australians are being encouraged to submit their ideas for a new five-dollar bill
Telstra is investigating what caused an outage this morning that prevented Telstra operators from transferring triple-zero calls to emergency service operators.
Triple Zero Victoria says the issue occurred between 3.30 and 4.45am - and was resolved within 90 minutes.
Telstra operators could answer calls but could not redirect them to all triple-0 call centres, affecting multiple states - including Victoria and New South Wales.
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New South Wales Premier Chris Minns says the decision to cancel the Iftar dinner with the state's Muslim community, respects their wishes.
The state is the second to cancel an official Iftar event after Victoria, following a decision by Islamic groups in NSW and Victoria who said they would skip the Iftar dinners.
They cited as reasons the suffering and oppression of Palestinians, and the planned assault on Rafah by Israel coinciding with Ramadan.
Mr Minns says he has heard and is responded to the requests of community leaders.
"We've made it really clear, our priority is about community cohesion and safety in the community. When it comes to the war in the Middle East and the complexity in relation to that. It's happening right around the world. Cities, community leaders, government leaders are in, if not an identical situation - a very similar one. I don't pretend I can solve it quickly. And my responsibility right now is about community cohesion, peace and safety."
Victoria's Premier Jacinta Allan says the decision to cancel the Iftar dinner with Victoria's Muslim community is the right one - and she is focused on providing support to those who are grieving, as the Gaza war continues.
Ms Allan says she still intends to attend private Ramadan events.
She says her focus has been on supporting communities as the impact of the Gaza war unfolds.
"And we will continue to provide support to communities here. Particularly focusing on the mental health issues because they are significant. In the Islamic community, in the Jewish community, I have had so many members of both communities tell me about the difficulties that they are facing personally through their own grief. But also too - how that has added extra distress."
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Survivors of the 2019 White Island volcano eruption in New Zealand have been awarded 9.3 million dollars [[NZ$10 million]] in total reparations.
A judge in the Auckland District Court has said the amount would be paid by the islands' owner Whakaari Management Limited, White Island Tours and the helicopter company, Volcanic Air Safaris.
He announced fines totalling $2.4 million dollars [[NZ$2.6 million]].
22 people died in the deadly eruption - and 25 others were injured.
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Facebook will no longer pay for news in Australia.
Meta, who own Facebook and Instagram, says it will not renew commercial deals with Australian news and media companies, that bring in millions in extra revenue.
Three years ago, Meta agreed to pay outlets for news after laws requiring technology companies to pay for news content displayed on their platforms were introduced.
In a statement, government ministers Stephen Jones and Michelle Rowland say the decision to no longer pay for news is a "dereliction of its commitment to the sustainability of Australian news media".
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Australians are being encouraged to submit their ideas for a new five-dollar bill.
The Reserve Bank of Australia launched the campaign to help redesign the bill today, seeking public input on ideas that celebrate First Nations' culture in Australia.
The new design will replace the depiction of Queen Elizabeth II on the bill, while the reverse side will remain an image of Parliament House.
Submissions close on the 30th of April, with a final design for the note expected to be released by the end of the year.
