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The federal government says it will allocate $2.9 million over three years in next week's federal budget to help suppliers to Australia's supermarkets, following the release of the first report into the sector in 17 years.
The competition regulator has released its final report from a 12-month inquiry into the pricing strategies of the country's supermarkets, describing them as as among the most profitable in the world.
The report by Australian Competition and Consumer Commission makes 20 recommendations for reform, including forcing supermarkets to notify consumers when a package size change makes them worse off.
It also recommends the supermarkets provide more transparency in their negotiations with fresh produce suppliers.
Assistant Minister for Competition Andrew Leigh says the federal government agrees in-principle with the recommendations.
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New South Wales Premier Chris Minns says the full force of the law will be brought to bear to investigate an online threat targeting a mosque in Western Sydney.
Lakemba Mosque has urged stronger action against Islamophobia, after a person posted a comment on one of its TikTok posts with a reference to the 2019 Christchurch mosque shootings in New Zealand that resulted in 51 deaths.
New South Wales Police has started an investigation into the threat.
Mr Minns says the police have his full support to get to the bottom of this.
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British leader Keir Starmer says plans for allied countries to safeguard a potential Ukraine ceasefire are "coming together".
Leaders and senior military officers from more than 30 countries, including Australia, have met in London [[Thu 20 Mar local time]] to finalise plans for an international peacekeeping in Ukraine [[that could include as many as 30,000 troops]].
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says he remains open to making a "small" contribution to a peacekeeping force in Ukraine.
Another meeting is scheduled in Paris next week [[Thu 27 Mar]].
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Treasurer Jim Chalmers has announced a plan to promote innovation in the country’s cryptocurrency sector.
He says the framework sets out the next steps to develop a digital asset industry in Australia that considers business innovation and the protection of consumers.
The government's digital assets platforms policy also includes moves to regulate what's called stablecoins, a form of cryptocurrency with a value linked to government-issued currency.
ould be overseen by the regulator of the financial services industry, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority.
Dr Chalmers says wider benefits for the economy.
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Australia's Olympic bosses say the appointment of Kirsty Coventry as the new president of the International Olympic Committee is a watershed moment.
The 41-year-old former champion Zimbabwean swimmer, is the first woman, first African and youngest-ever holder of sport's most powerful position.
She beat six male candidates, including World Athletics president Sebastian Coe, for the role.
She says she does see her appointment as an opportunity to improve the outreach and options for countries in Africa to potentially host future Olympic events, including the confirmed Youth Olympic Games next year in Senegal.
It will be the first Olympic event to be hosted in the African region.
Coventry will take over from Thomas Bach in June
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Socceroos midfielder Jackson Irvine is praising the team's ability to stay calm, after their five goals to one World Cup qualifying win over Indonesia in Sydney.
Australia won comfortably in the end, but was almost down two goals to nil very early in the match, with captain Mat Ryan forced into a good save by his Indonesian counterpart, and then Indonesia missing a penalty.
Irvine says the team's resilience is one of its key attributes.
The win puts Australia in second place in their group with three games to go, heading into next Tuesday's [[25 Mar]] match against China in Hangzhou.
The first two teams in each group get automatic qualification to next year's World Cup.
First-placed Japan has become the first Asian country to book a spot at the World Cup, with a two goals-to-nil victory over Bahrain.
