In this bulletin, Anthony Albanese calls on Barnaby Joyce to be sacked; Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro wins a third term in office with the opposition expected to contest results; And in canoeing, Jess Fox makes history at the Paris games.
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TRANSCRIPT
In this bulletin,
- Anthony Albanese calls on Barnaby Joyce to be sacked;
- Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro wins a third term in office with the opposition expected to contest results;
- And in canoeing, Jess Fox makes history at the Paris games.
The Prime Minister is calling on Nationals frontbencher Barnaby Joyce to be sacked over comments he made comparing voting to using a bullet.
Barnaby Joyce has since apologised for the comments he made during anti-wind farm rally in Lake Illawarra over the weekend.
Mr Joyce told the audience that the "bullet [they] have is that little piece of paper", urging voters to "turn up in numbers" in Sydney and Canberra.
Anthony Albanese says the comments made were unacceptable.
Federal Health Minister Mark Butler says given recent security threats facing politicians, the comments were disappointing.
"At a time where as I said, the head of the Federal Police has testified to this parliament that there's a sharp, worrying rise in threat levels against members of parliament. We've seen only in the last fortnight, in the United States a failed assassination attempt against former President Trump the idea that a former deputy prime minister would use explicit language at a public rally about bullets, and magazines being loaded to say goodbye to the Prime Minister and other senior political leaders is simply extraordinary and utterly unacceptable."
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Electoral authorities in Venezuela say President Nicolas Maduro has won a third term in office, despite multiple exit polls pointing to his defeat.
The authority says Mr Maduro has secured 51 per cent of the vote and the opposition Edmundo Gonzales has secured just 44 per cent.
Earlier, the opposition told reporters it had reason to celebrate, with Mr Gonzalez saying in a post on social media "the results cannot be hidden. The country has peacefully chosen a change."
Mr Gonzalez is standing in for opposition powerhouse Maria Corina Machado as candidate after President Maduro barred her from running.
Almost 8 million Venezuelans have left the country in recent years as voters blame Maduro's policies for crushing wages, spurring hunger, crippling the oil industry and separating families due to migration.
Former opposition leader Maria Corina Machado reiterated a call for the country's military to uphold the results of the vote.
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New research shows that Covid-19 is still driving Australia's above average mortality rate as experts warn the impact of the disease will continue for years to come.
Research from the Australian Actuaries Institute says five per cent more people died in 2023 than was expected, with 8,400 excess deaths.
Covid-19 was the ninth leading cause of death last year, with 4,600 directly attributed to the virus.
Non-Covid-19 excess deaths however were particularly apparent in Australians over 75-years-old, with healthcare interruptions during the pandemic increasing risks related to heart disease, stroke, diabetes and dementia.
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To canoeing,
French-born Australian Jessica Fox has become the only Australian ever to win four consecutive medals in the same event.
Clinching gold in the women's canoe slalom K-1 Fox now has five individual medals and joins Ian Thorpe, Leisel Jones, Shirley Strickland and Anna Meares as the only Australians to have achieved this.
The 30-year-old - one of the flag-bearers at the opening ceremony - is the only Australian ever to win four consecutive medals in the same event.
Speaking to reporters after the win, Fox says the post-win feeling was amazing.
"I think hugging mum, hugging my sister and dad and and then also, you know the podium was extremely special. Seeing so many Aussies in the crowd was unbelievable. I had some family and friends there but then you know there were so many others that there was such a big Aussie contingent and they were so loud and it was amazing. They were singing the anthem. They did some Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi and it was just the most special day."
