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SBS News in Easy English 4 May 2023

A high-angle photo shows a small inflatable boat with people in it, positioned next to a large whale. The whale is partially tangled in a fishing net, and a rescue effort appears to be underway.

Rescuers help a whale caught in a shark net off the coast of Queensland. Source: AAP / Jerome Delay

A daily five-minute news wrap for English learners and people with a disability.


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Presented by Claire Slattery

Source: SBS News


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A daily five-minute news wrap for English learners and people with a disability.


This is SBS News in Easy English... I'm Claire Slattery...

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The federal government will allocate $11.3 billion in next week's budget to pay for a 15 percent pay rise for aged care workers.

The pay rise will cover registered nurses, head chefs and cooks, and home care workers.

It comes in response to a ruling from the Fairwork Commission, as well as being a recommendation from the Aged Care Royal Commission.

Aged Care Minister Anika Wells has called it a seismic shift for the aged care sector in Australia.

" What that means for aged care workers is that if you are a personal care worker who is watching this morning on your way to the afternoon shift tonight, for you, nearly $140 week extra, or $7,000 a year extra in your pay packet."

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The government has secured the votes of two Senate crossbenchers to pass its affordable housing bill.

The Jacqui Lambie Network has agreed to support the Housing Australia Future Fund Bill, in return for a guarantee that every state and territory will receive at least 1,200 affordable homes in the next five years.

The Government still needs the support of the Greens and one other Senator, likely to be A-C-T Independent Senator David Pocock.

Greens Leader Adam Bandt says the government needs to put a national freeze on rental prices and directly invest $5 billion a year in social and affordable housing.

"Labor's housing plan doesn't guarantee a single dollar will be spent or a single home will even be built, let alone a spend that meets the scale of the crisis we are facing."

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Indigenous Australians have joined first nations leaders across the Commonwealth to ask King Charles III to apologise for the effects of colonisation.

Representatives from 12 countries have signed a joint letter calling for the apology ahead of the King's coronation this weekend.

The letter also asks for reparations, an acknowledgement of the impact of slavery, and the return of the remains of Indigenous people and cultural artefacts from British institutions.

Australian signatories of the letter include the first Indigenous woman elected to the federal parliament Nova Peris, and Victorian independent senator Lidia Thorpe.

Other countries represented include New Zealand, the Bahamas, Canada, Papua New Guinea and Jamaica.

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The Kremlin is accusing Ukraine of trying to kill Vladimir Putin in an alleged drone attack.

The Kremlin says it shot down two Ukrainian drones targeting the Russian President.

Mr Putin was not injured and Kremlin buildings were not damaged.

Unverified footage on social media shows smoke rising over the Kremlin in Moscow early Wednesday morning.

The Kremlin says it considers the attack to be a planned terrorist action and it reserves the right to retaliate.

Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy denies his country's involvement.

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You've been listening to SBS News in Easy English... I'm Claire Slattery.


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