TRANSCRIPT:
Australia's governor general Sam Mostyn is among the dignitaries expected to attend the funeral for Pope Francis this weekend.
Ms Mostyn will join a host of other world leaders and royal figures at the service, including Spain's King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia.
The Vatican has confirmed the funeral for Pope Francis will take place on April 26 at St Peter's Basilica.
He will then be buried in Rome's Basilica of Saint Mary Major in a break with tradition.
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Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton have wrapped up a contentious third leaders' debate ahead of the federal election on May 3.
Things got off to a quiet start as both leaders extended condolences to Catholic Australians following a break in campaign activities in response to the death of Pope Francis.
But the debate then took a pugilistic turn, as Peter Dutton accused the Prime Minister of dishonesty.
Albanese: "In the budget, prior to you coming to office, you ripped $80 billion out of those two items in 2014."
Dutton: "Prime Minister, you couldn't lie straight in bed. Honestly, this is unbelievable."
Albanese: "Well, you can go to abuse. You can go to personal abuse. that's a sign of desperation."
Dutton: "Well as is lying."
Albanese: "That's a sign of desperation, go to the 2014 budget papers. People can do that online. It's all available for all to see."
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More than 230,000 people have already attended voting centres to cast their ballots ahead of the main election day.
570 early voting centres are now open around the country, with the Australian Electoral Commission predicting at least half of the electorate will vote in them before May 3.
AEC officials have also paid a visit to remote and isolated communities - including Pirlangimpi in the marginal seat of Lingiari - in order to ensure they have an opportunity to vote in person.
This voter has told N-I-T-V he hopes to see positive change in the area, no matter who wins.
"Hopefully the government will, you know, change their mind and bring some money to the Tiwi Islands, and like I said, the roads, housing - we're living in an overcrowded house. Move those COVID containers, so that way when there's COVID we get to spend more times at our homeland rather than in that community."
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New figures show that legal action for reported car thefts, burglaries and robberies have doubled in NSW since 2009.
But the latest figures from the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research has found improvements have been seen for assaults, including those related to domestic violence, even though closure rates for sexual assault cases have declined.
The report has been released amid debate about crime rates in several states including antisemitic attacks, gangland wars and violent youth crime.
Concerns about re-offending youths has prompted Victoria to introduce a two year electronic monitoring trial for some youths in Melbourne, which Youth Justice Commissioner Andrea Davidson says will give them an extra incentive to take their situation seriously.
"The electronic monitoring trial represents a new way to support young people and help them to turn their lives around... We know that there is a small but very complex group of young people responsible for repeat offending including whilst on bail... We're committed to providing the best possible outcomes for young people in Victoria, using an evidence-based understanding of what works to address offending behaviour and divert young people away from the community justice system."
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Police say the youngest son of a woman kidnapped from her Sydney home last week will likely experience lifelong complications from the injuries he received during the alleged attack.
The eight-year-old was allegedly hit with a baseball bat during the incident that saw his 45-year-old mother taken from their home in Bankstown last Thursday, with her body later found in a burnt out car.
Detective Superintendent Joe Doueihi says their inquiries have established the woman and children were innocent victims of her partner's activities.
"He is known to police for minor drug crimes... Motivation for this type of crime? We believe that the motivation is a clear result of the male partner's involvement with an organised crime network. It appears the male was in some form of conflict with members of that particular organised crime group. We believe that this organised crime group are based in Victoria."
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No injuries have been reported from an earthquake on Australia's east coast early this morning.
Geoscience Australia says the 4.6 magnitude quake struck just before 3am near Singleton in the New South Wales Hunter Valley, about 200 kilometres north of Sydney.
Senior seismologist Phil Cummins says the tremor was felt between Port Macquarie and Wollongong, on the state's south coast.
