TRANSCRIPT
- Maine becomes the second US state to disqualify Donald Trump from next year's election ballot.
- Warning for extreme heatwave conditions in northern Australia.
- A boost in prize money for the winning players at next month's Australian Open.
Maine has become the second state to disqualify Donald Trump from the state ballot in next year's US presidential primary election, for his role in the attack on the Capitol.
Maine Secretary of State, Shenna Bellows, concluded that Trump incited an insurrection when he spread false claims about voter fraud in the 2020 election and then urged his supporters to march on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Bellows suspended her decision until the state supreme court ruled on Thursday that Trump should be disqualified based on a provision of the US Constitution that bars people from holding office if they engaged in "insurrection or rebellion" after previously swearing an oath to the United States.
The ruling, which can be appealed to a state court, applies only to the March primary election, but it could affect Trump's status for the November general election.
It likely will add to pressure on the US Supreme Court to resolve questions about Trump's eligibility nationwide under the constitutional provision known as Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.
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Temperatures are expected to soar across most of northern Australia over the coming days.
The Bureau of Meteorology warns parts of Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia face extreme to severe heatwave conditions from Friday.
It's predicted to reach 40C in Katherine and 43C in Tennant Creek today ((29 Dec)), and warm minimums in Darwin are likely to make for uncomfortable nights.
The Bureau of Meteorology Senior Meteorologist Sally Cutter says the heatwave conditions pose the biggest threat.
"Heatwaves is one of the biggest killers. You have very high temperatures during the day, very high temperatures during the night. So your body doesn't recover from those high day time temperatures. And once you string them together, if you've got anything that's heat sensitive, any illnesses, underlying conditions, the elderly, the young, you're more susceptible to the heat. And once we get into the extreme heatwave, it's even just the normal person will be affected."
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Queenslanders are bracing for a long recovery following storms, flooding and strong winds pummelled the state in the days after Christmas.
Tens of thousands of homes around the Gold Coast are entering a fourth day without power with heatwave conditions forecast on Friday.
Federal Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt said some suburbs' power networks have been "completely smashed".
Gold coast residents Kim and Steve Taylor left their home to visit family on Christmas Day, only to arrive back to a property destroyed by a gum tree that had fallen in the storms.
Mr Taylor told Channel Nine the family were very anxious when they heard of news about their home.
"And we were just really anxious and worried, and we decided to just jump in the car and head down and we got there at about midngiht or something like that. We had to drive through all the crazy weather to get there, and it was just hectic apocalyptic crazy scenes down there."
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There are concerns from health authorities and emergency services for safety around fireworks once again this New Year's Eve.
More than a million people are expected to flock to Sydney Harbour and its surrounding vantage points to catch a view of the iconic fireworks display, while a similar crowd is expected in Melbourne.
Narelle Beer is Executive Director of HEalth and Safety at WorkSafe Victoira.
She's concerned people are not getting the message that fireworks can cause serious injury.
This past financial year saw 23 people presenting at emergency departments in Victoria with injuries from fireworks - up from 16 in the previous year.
"It's deeply concerning to see the number of people seeking emergency treatment for fireworks-related injuries is again rising, for the first time in a number of years. In the wrong hands, fireworks are potentially deadly, and those caught using them illegaly face possible heavy fines, or even imprisonment."
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Winning players will receive a significant boost in prize money at next month's Australian Open, with the world's best contenders sharing a record pool of $86.5 million.
Singles winners will receive more than $3 million each.
Tournament organisers announced today ((29 Dec)) that prize money at Melbourne Park had been increased by 13 per cent - $10 million - for 2024.
The biggest boost goes to players who bow out in qualifying and in the early rounds of singles and doubles.
Players will collect collect $31,250 - up from $26,000 - just to make the first round of qualifiers while first-round losers in the main draw will net 13 per cent more than this year, earning $120,000.
Semi-finalists will net $990,000, losing finalists $1.725 million and the singles champions will receive $3.15 million each - an increase of $175,000.
