news

(The rest of) Sunday's news in under 2 minutes.

Details about flight MH17 continue to emerge.

For the latest updates and details on flight MH17 please click here. 

Al Gore and Clive Palmer at a press conference.

Al Gore criticises Australia’s decision to repeal the Carbon tax.

Former US Vice President and environmental activist Al Gore has called the repeal of the Carbon Tax by Australia a “disappointing step”.

He added this was particularly devastating move “for a country that continues to experience the worsening consequences of the climate crisis”.

Gore additionally highlighted the positive efforts of programs run by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency and the Climate Change Authority, before outlining his hopes Australia adopts an Emissions Trading Scheme soon.

Aids researchers vow to find cure in memory of those on board flight MH17.

Organisers of an AIDS conference in Melbourne have confirmed that at least six delegates were onboard flight MH17 when it was shot down.

International AIDS society president, Francoise Barre-Sinouss, said the loss of his friends and colleagues was “hard to comprehend or express”.

“Our colleagues were travelling because of their dedication to bringing an end to AIDS. We will honour their commitment and keep them in our hearts as we begin our program on Sunday,” he said.

Professor Rob Moodie added, “If anything it will inspire people even more to work towards finding a cure”.

School teacher and family of five amongst Australian lives lost on board MH17.

School teacher Emma Bell was one of the 28 Australians believed to have died on board flight MH17 when it was shot down earlier this week. She was believed to have been returning to a remote Indigenous community, Maningrida, when the tragedy occurred.

A family of five from Melbourne returning from a holiday in Amsterdam were also amongst those Australians killed. Shaliza Zain Dewa, her husband Johannes van den Hende, and their three children Piers, 15, Marnix, 12, and Margaux, 8, did not survive the crash.

Teachers out-of-pocket expenses for school resources is on the rise.

A new study has found that NSW teachers spend on average $1848 on out-of-pocket expenses to fund classroom activities and resources for their students.

ADVERTISEMENT

Principals spent on average $2601, while primary school teachers spent $1953, higher than their secondary school teacher counterparts spending approximately $1503.

Expenses included drawing materials, exercise books, craft supplies, furniture and the costs of accompanying students on excursions.

New calls to have increased government subsidies to cover the cost of childcare.

A new study by the National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling has found that a woman on a low income with two children would lose most of her wage if she chose to return to full-time work and subsequently place her children in childcare.

The study highlights how a woman earning the minimum wage of $43,000 and working full-time would retain 36 per cent of her income if one child remains in childcare. However, if two children are placed in childcare, her retained income drops to around 1 per cent.

Goodstart Early Learning Centre’s advocacy manager, John Cherry, said, “Australia’s subsidies for childcare are well below those of most other developed countries”.

“Increased investment in childcare assistance for low-income families will save the government many billions of dollars in the longer term and boost Australia’s productivity and economic growth,” Mr Cherry told Fairfax.

 

A teenager who ran away from home to fight in Syria has been found.

A 16-year-old from Bankstown, known only as ‘Feiz’, has been found after running away with his friend to join the war in Syria and Iraq.

It is understood he has now been taken to Lebanon by his father. The pair will be assisted by the Australian Federal Police in making the trip back home to Australia.

The whereabouts of his friend, 17-year-old Abdullah Elmir, are still unknown. His family have told the public Elmir is bright, academically gifted, enjoyed playing X-Box and hanging out with his siblings.