TRANSCRIPT
- The US Supreme Court grants Donald Trump substantial immunity from prosecution
- New data shows Australians are living longer compared to 20 years ago
- In cycling, Biniam Girmay makes history as the first Eritrean to win a Tour de France stage
The Supreme Court in the United States has ruled for the first time that former presidents have substantial immunity from prosecution, extending the delay in the criminal case against Donald Trump on charges he plotted to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss.
It has all but ends the chances of the former president being tried before the November election.
In a historic 6-3 ruling, the court's conservative majority, including the three justices appointed by Trump, narrowed the case against him and returned it to the trial court to determine what is left of special counsel Jack Smith's indictment.
A spokesman for the White House Counsel’s Office, Ian Sams, says "nobody is above the law".
In a statement, the Democratic House minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries, says the decision "sets a dangerous precedent for the future of our nation".
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has stood by Labor's decision to indefinitely suspend Senator Fatima Payman from the party's caucus.
Ms Payman's suspension comes after she insisted she would cross the floor again if need be, following her earlier support of a Greens motion on Palestinian statehood.
In a statement, the first-term senator claims she had been "exiled" by her colleagues and believes some members of the senate are seeking to intimidate her into resigning.
Mr Albanese has reiterated the position of the Australian government on conflict in Gaza, after Senator Payman said she had voted according to Labor principles.
"We support hostages being released. We support civilians being protected. We continue to call for increased humanitarian aid. We continue to argue that every single innocent life matters, whether Israeli or Palestinian. By her own actions, Senator Payman has placed herself outside the privilege that comes with participating in the federal parliamentary Labor party caucus, and I informed her of that yesterday (June 30)."
Senator Payman has said she will abstain from voting in the Senate this week while she considers her parliamentary future.
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Australians are living longer compared to 20 years ago, but are spending more time battling health conditions.
That's according to a study by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, which also found no improvement in First Nations infant and child death rates in the past decade.
Life expectancy dropped by 0.1 years for both men and women, but that is still 0.3 years above pre-pandemic levels.
The life expectancy for men is 81.2 years, and for women it is 85.3 years.
Since the start of the 20th century, Australian life expectancy has soared more than 40 per cent.
The nation now ranks fourth among OECD countries, coming behind Japan, Korea and Switzerland.
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Advocates are speaking out about a practice in the business world known as “black cladding”.
The practice happens when a non-indigenous business appoints First Nations owners or directors to create a company which qualifies as indigenous for the purpose of winning government contracts.
That can leave Indigenous company directors with huge tax bills if company collapses and they are held liable.
Koolyn Briggs, a Yorta Yorta man and an electrician, told NITV's Living Black this happened to him after he was asked to become director of the indigenous section of an electrical contracting company.
"The debts totalled just a little under $730,000. So when I saw that it felt like I was just in a deep, deep dark hole."
The Federal Government is reviewing its First Nations procurement program and is expected to raise the minimum ownership standard for indigenous businesses to at least 51 per cent.
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In cycling, Eritrea's Biniam Girmay became the first Black African rider to win a Tour de France stage when he sprinted to victory in the third stage.
Meanwhile, Mark Cavendish's pursuit of a record-breaking 35th stage win was postponed, and Olympic champion Richard Carapaz took the yellow jersey from Tadej Pogacar.
Carapaz is the first Ecuadorian to wear the race leader’s yellow jersey.
Girmay says the stage win is a victory for him and for Africa.
"I never dreaming to be part of Tour de France, but now I can't believe it. To be in Tour de France second year in the big brunch sprint. For me, it was unbelievable. I just want to say thank you to my family, my wife, all the Eritrean we must be proud. Now we are really part of the big races, so now it is our moment, it is our time."
