TRANSCRIPT:
- Housing dominates the official election campaign launches of the major parties;
- Another earthquake strikes Myanmar, two weeks after a tremor that killed thousands;
- The NRL's Dolphins and Newcastle agree on a player exchange.
Police are investigating after a man was shot in the centre of Melbourne earlier this morning.
The 20-year-old victim has been taken to hospital where he's recovering from non-life-threatening injuries.
Victoria Police say they believe the people involved are known to each other.
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Another earthquake has struck Myanmar, just two weeks after another tremor that killed more than 3600 people in the military-ruled nation.
The European Mediterranean Seismological Centre says the quake struck at a depth of 35km, measuring 5.6 in magnitude.
The quake has raised concerns about how the impoverished nation will cope, given it has not been long since the initial 7.7 tremor, and the country also remains embroiled in a civil war.
Ye Mint says 4000 villagers from Inle Lake have been left without government assistance for the past fortnight, while individual donors and volunteers have also reportedly struggled to gain access to the Lake due to flooding in the area.
"My house completely collapsed. I am now homeless. And no aid comes to us, not at all. I am too depressed as we are getting in trouble. We are staying all day under the sun without any help. I am concerned about my children getting infectious disease. And also we could not sleep last night because it was raining and windy the whole night."
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The United States has confirmed it will hold more talks next week with Tehran over Iran's rapidly advancing nuclear program.
The first round of talks wrapped up after just two hours.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi posted on his Telegram channel that his delegation had a brief encounter with its US counterpart, headed by Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, after they exited the indirect talks mediated by Oman.
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Opposition leader Peter Dutton has officially launched the Liberal Party's election campaign at the Liverpool Catholic Club in the Labor-held seat of Werriwa.
He's led the launch with a plan to allow first home buyers to deduct mortgage interest payments from their taxes, though the means-tested scheme would only apply to first-time buyers of newly built homes and be limited to the first five years and the first $650,000 of a mortgage.
Mr Dutton says the policy reflects the reality that servicing a new mortgage requires much greater income today than a generation ago.
"So we will be a government that restores the dream of home ownership for young Australians so that they can get on to the property ladder and that they can have that security as they raise a family, as they use that house to anchor a small business growth - somebody who has the option now available to them to start a small business in their back bedroom or in their garage. That's what home ownership can mean for millions of Australians."
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Labor has also launched its official election campaign with a big-ticket housing announcement.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has told followers at the Perth Convention Centre that under a Labor government, first homebuyers would need only a 5 per cent deposit on a mortgage, with the government stepping up to guarantee the other 15 per cent.
Mr Albanese has also promised to build 100,000 new homes which would be reserved for first home buyers only.
He says the government says it will build the homes on vacant or under-utilised government land by working with the states to fast-track release and planning approvals, starting next year.
"No competition from property investors, just a fair crack of young Australians. We have seen this work in South Australia. We will bring it to the national level with national leadership, because we want Australians to be able to afford a home where they want to live, close to their family, friends, work and community."
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Flowers have been left near the shopping centre in Sydney's east where one of Australia's worst mass killings unfolded one year ago.
The bouquets have been placed in Bondi Junction's Oxford Street Mall, where community condolences and photos from a candlelight vigil have been included on commemorative display boards.
Leaders including New South Wales Premier Chris Minns, federal Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus and Police Commissioner Karen Webb have also left flowers at the site.
Commissioner Webb has paid tribute to the emergency services and civilians who were involved in the initial response to the attack.
"I also want to say thank you to all the first responders. It's not just the police officers and the paramedics. It's all those members of the community that jumped in to assist those people who were being attacked and injured on the day. There's hundreds of people who played a role. So we think of them today. This is another tough day for them too."
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To sport,
The Dolphins and Newcastle have agreed on a player swap that allows Mason Teague and Sebastian Su'a to make early-season transfers.
It means Newcastle prop Sebastian Su'a will join the Dolphins effective immediately.
