TRANSCRIPT
- The Reserve Bank holds interest rates steady in final decision of the year
- Over a thousand Australian women lose a class action against a contraceptive manufacturer.
- Football Australia announces crucial World Cup qualifier will be played in Sydney.
Borrowers hoping for mortgage relief before the new year have been left disappointed as the Reserve Bank of Australia keeps its key interest rate unchanged.
The somewhat expected call marks more than twelve months at 4.35 per cent, with the central bank on hold since it last lifted the cash rate 25 basis points in November 2023.
This comes despite Australia's annual headline inflation rate now lying within the RBA's two-to-three per cent target range.
However, in the post-meeting statement, the board says underlying inflation remains too high.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers says the government is doing its best to address inflation while considering the affects on Australian families.
"We're making good progress in the fight against inflation. We're making good progress when it comes to the key economic indicators but we know that doesn't always translate into how people are feeling or fairing in the economy. We know the economy is soft. We know that people are under substantial pressure and that's why our responsible economic management is so important."
Over a thousand women have lost a lawsuit after a judge ruled a contraceptive device did not directly cause chronic pelvic pain and abnormal uterine bleeding in women.
Victorian Supreme Court Justice Andrew Keogh handed down his decision today marking the end of a years-long class action against Bayer Australia and five other companies.
The class action, led by Victorian Patrice Turner, claimed women had suffered harm as a direct result of the Essure device being implanted into their bodies.
Ms Turner underwent a hysterectomy at 32, five years after the device was inserted into both of her fallopian tubes.
Outside court, another class action member Tanya Davidson says she's disappointed by the result but was glad women like her were able to have their stories heard.
"I'm a bit disappointed honestly but we had our day in court, that's all we could ask. We made it to the Supreme Court which is more than I every thought we could get to. I've gone from it's all in my head to the Supreme Court so, though disappointing, it's a good outcome. We were heard so we're grateful, extremely grateful. Especially to Slater & Gordon. It was an amazing team. They did well."
Justice Keogh ultimately found the women could not sufficiently demonstrate their claims against the Essure device.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has visited the Adass Israel Synagogue to show his support to Melbourne's Jewish community after the place of worship was firebombed on Friday.
The Labor government has announced a taskforce investigating a rise in antisemitism in Australia following news that the arson attack would be treated as a likely terrorism incident.
Mr Albanese's visit to the Melbourne synagogue, which was badly damaged in the Friday fires, follows criticism from the coalition at his apparent absence after the attack.
He says his government has condemned what it considers an act of antisemitic terrorism and will do what it can to support the Jewish community.
"This arson attack is an act of terrorism, it was fuelled by antisemitism and it was stoked by hatred. I also want to commit on behalf of my government that I lead into doing what we need to do to restore this synagogue, including providing whatever support is necessary financially to make sure those who perpetrated this evil crime get the message that Australia is not a country that will tolerate such an act."
US authorities have arrested 26-year-old Luigi Mangione and charged him with the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York.
This comes after a quick-thinking McDonald's customer in Pennsylvania spotted a man who officers found with a gun, mask and writings linking him to the ambush.
The killing of the insurance executive has cut to the heart of the health care issue in the U-S with support for the suspected shooter from both sides of politics seen on social media.
The American Journal of Public Health estimated in 2009 that up to 45,000 Americans die each year due to a lack of health insurance.
But Pennysylvania Governor Josh Shapiro has condemned the positive sentiment towards Mr Mangione online, saying no political disagreement should ever be resolved with violence.
"Violence can never be used to address political differences or address a substantive difference or to prove some ideological point. That is not what we do in a civilised society. The suspect here who shot at that C-E-O and killed that CEO is a coward, not a hero."
Football Australia says it expects the Socceroos to qualify directly for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The governing body has announced the side's next qualifier against Indonesia in March will be played at the Sydney Football Stadium.
It's the first time the team will be playing the venue since 2016.
The Socceroos are currently occupying an automatic qualifying spot, but only one point separates Australia from last place in the group with four matches still to play.
CEO of Football Australia, James Johnson, says the March 20 match with Indonesia will be crucial.
