Australia sees the largest monthly drop in home values in more than three years; almost two thousand confirmed dead after twin Venezuelan earthquakes; France beats Sweden 3-nil led by star player Kylian Mbappé.
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TRANSCRIPT
- Australia sees the largest monthly drop in home values in more than three years
- Almost two thousand confirmed dead after twin Venezuelan earthquakes
- France beats Sweden 3-nil led by star player Kylian Mbappé
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Coalition MPs are warning Australians who bought homes under Labor's five per cent deposit scheme could soon have mortgages that are worth more than their homes.
A new report by Cotality has found national home values falling 0.4 per cent in June, the biggest monthly decline since December of 2022.
The report identified factors including cost-of-living pressures, interest rates and new changes to tax policy as driving prices lower.
Shadow Assistant Minister for Infrastructure, Ben Small, says the Albanese government’s failure to manage migration levels has largely caused rising property prices.
"And they've been trying to slap bandaids over it with billions of dollars in tax payer money and all of a sudden it is going to be those poor souls who they've just shovelled into the market on very skinny deposits who are going to pay the price."
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The federal government says the biggest overhaul of Australia’s veteran support system in decades has taken effect today.
The new Veteran and Family Wellbeing Agency has opened, with Veterans’ Affairs Minister Matt Keogh saying it is designed to better connect veterans and their families with support services, with a strong focus on suicide prevention, early intervention and the transition from military to civilian life.
“So today we start a new journey with a new agency. It's not every day you get to create a new agency in government. We've already created the Defence and Veterans Service Commission as an oversight body that was recommended by the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran suicide, and today we start the work of the Veterans and Families Wellbeing Agency.”
From today, all new compensation and rehabilitation claims will be made under a single legislative system, replacing the previous multi‑system process.
The government says the reforms will simplify claims, improve consistency and form a key part of its response to the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide, with more than $2 billion committed so far.
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Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the military has been ordered to dismantle all Hezbollah infrastructure in southern Lebanon, targeting tunnels, weapons sites and other facilities used in attacks on Israel.
During a visit to troops near the border, he said soldiers have clear instructions to act immediately if threatened, and ruled out any withdrawal until Hezbollah is disarmed.
"These security zones - this is a change in perception. It means that we do not allow an army of terrorists to sit on our border. And we keep them away - this is what you are doing. And we are destroying everything above ground and underground, which actually served them as a means of attack against us. Infiltration, attack, terror tunnels, terror villages - all of this goes. This is the directive: do not leave, and you are doing it."
Both Lebanon and Hezbollah say Israel’s “security zone” amounts to an illegal occupation.
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The death toll from twin earthquakes in Venezuela has risen to at least 1943, with around 10,000 people still missing in the La Guaira region.
In two towns in La Guaira, around 30,000 people were estimated to be present when the quakes struck and around 10,000 remain unaccounted for.
Nearly a week after the earthquakes struck, hopes of finding survivors beneath the rubble is dwindling.
Director of the World Food Programme in Venezuela Stephanie Hochstetter says while attention may fade, the needs do not.
“And this is why we are calling from the onset for sustained support to ensure that families are not trapped in a prolonged cycle of food insecurity. Our initial appeal is of $50 million to provide life-saving food assistance up to half a million people over the next three months along with critical logistics and emergency communication support.”
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France's Kylian Mbappé put the Les Blues ahead with his second-half goal in his World Cup knockout round scoring record, as his side beat Sweden 3-nil.
His six goals for the tournament - including his 17th and 18th World Cup goals today - is a tie with Argentina's forward Lionel Messi in the tournament, one shy of Messi’s record.
French coach Didier Deschamps side will now face Paraguay in the Round of 16, who shockingly knocked Germany out yesterday.
Speaking after the match, Sweden coach Graham Potter shares although it's a disappointing result, he's proud of his team.
"I thought the first period was quite stable, I thought we just stepped a little bit too much in the second period of the first half, it's not easy with the quality they have to maintain as much as we wanted but we probably got pushed back. And it's just disappointing that we couldn't hold on at nil-nil half time we could've got to maybe regroup but that obviously makes the game a bit more difficult for us."
