Australia

Data collected by Oxfam shows 48 billionaires hold more wealth than bottom 40% of the population – 11 million people – combined

cross-posted from: https://aussie.zone/post/28756788

Please excuse Sky News link, they are the only source I've found so far that actually includes the letter in full.

SBS Article

The Guardian Article

Archived

China’s ambassador to Australia has urged Canberra to prepare for dealing with a “reunified China”, declaring Chinese people “will not forgive” countries that seek to obstruct Beijing’s push to bring Taiwan under its control.

In remarks that frame re­unification as inevitable and resistance as unforgivable, Xiao Qian likened Taiwan’s status to that of Tasmania and warned that any attempt of “compromising or openly distorting” Beijing’s one-China principle would constitute a retreat from prior commitments and erode trust.

He said Australia could not keep reaping the benefits of trade with China while seeking to block reunification, signalling economic consequences for ­resisting Beijing’s aims.

[...]

Mr Xiao also lashed a recent [Australian] Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade statement that described China’s military and coast guard drills around Taiwan as “deeply concerning, destabilising and risk inflaming regional tensions”, and reiterated that Canberra opposed any unilateral attempt to change the status quo.

[...]

He also cautioned governments, including Australia’s, against pursuing dialogue on Taiwan unless they were committed to reunification.

[...]

While the region is no stranger to grassfires, Natimuk itself has never burned.

But on Friday, January 9, on the back of days of intense heat, a ferocious, fast-moving grass fire flattened 17 homes and tore through 8,000-hectares of land.

Fire crews could not match the speed of the blaze as it ran straight towards the small town.

The anatomy of this fire offers a glimpse into a new and faster kind of bushfire — and the growing vulnerability of communities as climate change fuels dangerous conditions.

It's worth opening the article for the graphics. Scary stuff, how fast this fire moved.

Australians love hopping over to Europe [and Europeans over to Australia] for a holiday, but actually moving there isn’t so easy, at least for now.

That could soon change, with the European Union offering to make it easier for Australians to live and work across the bloc as part of a long-awaited trade deal with Canberra, sources familiar with the proposal say.

The plan would make it simpler for Australians to take up work in EU member states without needing to secure employment beforehand, with the same rules applying to Europeans heading to Australia.

Four-year limits have reportedly been floated, along with potential settlement pathways, one European source said.

...

The Albanese Government is weighing the offer, with Australian officials noting it could help fill labour shortages in sectors with comparable training standards, such as construction.

NewsWire reports the initiative was presented as a “sweetener” to bring Canberra over the line on a free-trade agreement.

A majority of EU nations last week backed a trade deal with a five-member bloc in South America, ending 25 years of talks and fuelling optimism that an agreement with Australia could be next.

European insiders said a pact with Canberra now ranks as Brussels’ “top priority,” with one adding it was “the next cab off the rank.”

...

Web archive link

Also covered by the Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/jan/15/aboriginal-steve-irwin-ai-character-created-new-zealand

cross-posted from: https://aussie.zone/post/28631237

Don't worry though, if you view the package from above (very natural for something hung at eye level) and ignore all the deceptive graphics implying 2 sticks are in there then it technically does state that it is a "starter kit"

This is obviously designed to decieve right? Like no matter what they technically say it is deliberately printed to obscure that the sheath is not around the tube and is actually the second tube, while placing the description in a hidden way. Isn't this sort of anti-customer packaging like specifically not allowed here?

I saw this little guy in a nest on the way through Gympie. With a dead sibling in the nest too...