Author: Press Room

The Victorian Government has finally announced its pandemic declaration, which kept residents under strict COVID-19 requirements, will come to an end.More than 930 days after the first state of emergency was announced Premier Daniel Andrews has decided the pandemic declaration will not be extended.The orders, which ensured residents wore face masks in certain settings and limited their ability to visit care facilities, were most recently extended on September 22.The government’s announcement comes a week after the National Cabinet decided to end mandatory COVID-19 isolation and testing requirements for all Australians from October 14.Stream more national news live & on demand…

Anthony Albanese has responded to questions about whether Labor will seek to amend the stage three tax cuts by saying: “The Government hasn’t changed our position”.    The Prime Minister was grilled about the measure on Friday amid growing concerns his government is looking at going back on its election promise to keep the legislated cuts in place. Mr Albanese was quizzed on the issue several times when he faced reporters after delivering a speech to the Western Sydney Leadership Dialogue.In his address, the Labor leader touched on this week’s interest rate rise – the sixth consecutive monthly increase – and noted…

Treasurer Jim Chalmers says the Labor government’s position on stage three tax cuts “hasn’t changed”. “Our position hasn’t changed as we said throughout the week,” Mr Chalmers said to the media on Friday. “I’m making a broader point that all of this spending in the budget needs to be defensible on economic grounds.“Particularly when you consider the really quite extreme pressure on our economy and on our budget because of that combination of inflation and global conditions and persistent structural pressures on the budget.” Source: Sky News

CNN  —  In granting pardons for federal marijuana possession convictions, President Joe Biden is taking a historic step that is likely to be widely popular and could energize core Democratic constituencies just over a month from the midterm elections. It would change the lives of thousands of Americans convicted of marijuana possession, especially if governors follow the President’s lead. But it also risks playing into searing Republican attacks branding Democrats as soft on crime, which are rocking multiple key contests ahead of elections that could hand control of the Senate and the House of Representatives to the GOP. The President’s…

Source: YouTube

Source: YouTube

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says investing into infrastructure “rewards aspiration” and “powers productivity”.“We share an understanding that infrastructure isn’t an end in itself,” Mr Albanese said during a luncheon hosted by the Western Sydney Leadership Dialogue on Friday. “We don’t build for the sake of it … we build to last for the long-term.“We invest in infrastructure because we know it powers productivity, it supports growing communities, it creates jobs, it rewards aspiration, it boosts access to services, and it improves quality of life.” Source: Sky News

Source: YouTube

A Michigan man who plotted with others to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in 2020 was sentenced to four years in prison Thursday, federal prosecutors said.Kaleb Franks, 28, is the second person sentenced in the plan to abduct Whitmer, a Democrat, which the government has said was orchestrated by anti-government extremists.He pleaded guilty to kidnapping conspiracy in February and cooperated with prosecutors, testifying at a trial in August that resulted in the convictions of two men accused of being the ringleaders, Adam Fox and Barry Croft Jr.Federal prosecutors said in court documents that the plan went beyond abducting the governor.“The…

Laying it all out on the table! The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills stars are reliving the drama during their season 12 reunion – and no one is holding back.  In a sneak peek trailer that dropped Thursday, October 6, the Housewives — including Kyle Richards, Lisa Rinna, Erika Jayne, Dorit Kemsley, Garcelle Beauvais, Sutton Stracke, Crystal Kung Minkoff, Diana Jenkins and Kathy Hilton — sit down to rehash the events that occurred over the past 21 episodes.  The explosive teaser opens with Richards, 53, breaking down in tears. “I’m really not OK right now,” she tells host Andy Cohen…