CANBERRA, Australia — Australian customers owed compensation for financial services rip-offs are expected to benefit from laws earmarked to come into force early next year. The federal government on July 16 released draft laws for comment stemming from the royal banking commission, which exposed misconduct and shoddy practices in the sector. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said the compensation scheme of last resort would enable payments to people who have received a determination for compensation from the Australian Financial Complaints Authority, which remains unpaid. The scheme would pay compensation consistent with the terms of the Australian Financial Complaints Authority determination, including for any direct financial loss,…
Author: zenger.news
PERTH, Australia — Western Australia will reintroduce a hard border to the state of Victoria, effectively blocking residents of the entire east coast from traveling west. From midnight on July 16, Western Australia will reclassify Victoria as a “medium risk” jurisdiction under its controlled border regime. The change denies entry to non-exempt travelers and applies to anyone who has been in Victoria since the start of its Covid-19 exposure period on July 8. West Australians are urged to return home immediately and will be required to undergo 14 days quarantine upon arrival. The state already has hard borders in place for…
CANBERRA, Australia — A 10-year road safety strategy will focus on driver behavior and safer cars and will seek to cut South Australia’s road toll in half. The draft plan hopes to reduce the current three-year average of 96 annual deaths to less than 47 by 2031 and also bring serious injuries down 30 percent to just over 500. Road Safety Minister Vincent Tarzia said the targets are the first steps towards achieving the state’s vision of zero lives lost by 2050. “Our goals are ambitious, but they must be, to put an end to preventable tragedies on our roads,” he said. The…
SYDNEY — New South Wales is in the grips of an escalating Covid-19 outbreak as it infiltrates Sydney’s healthcare system, with at least 70 paramedics isolating and cases linked to two major hospitals and an aged care home. The state of New South Wales recorded 65 new local Covid-19 cases in the 24 hours to 8 pm on July 14, but Premier Gladys Berejiklian warned the number of infected people in the community was yet to decline, despite stay-at-home orders. Of the new cases, at least 35 people were out in the community for part or all of their infectious period…
MELBOURNE, Australia — A Victorian police officer who was filmed stomping on an Australian man’s head during his arrest was using “lawful” force, the state’s anti-corruption watchdog has found in a probe. The senior constable was suspended with pay last year after footage on social media appeared to show him kick Timothy Atkins’ head while he was on the ground during an arrest. Another dramatic video shows him weaving through traffic and allegedly punching into the window of a squad car before a crossover rammed him, sending the man flying many feet down the road. Police treatment of the 32-year-old father…
A tabletop mountain that inspired a 19th-century artist is for sale on eBay for a fraction of its original $1.2 million price tag. The Zirkelstein, the smallest table hill of Saxon Switzerland, was listed for sale on the online platform on July 15. The current owners hope to get at least $235,000 for the hill, which rises about 1,261 feet above the Elbe Sandstone Mountains, also known as the Elbe Sandstone Highlands. The peak, which is wooded and cone-shaped, with a notable 130 foot-table-top summit of sandstone, gained fame after German landscape artist Caspar David Friedrich painted it in the…
WASHINGTON — As per a new study, incorporating evaluations of the healthiness of others’ food choices can be a tool to fight unhealthy eating lifestyles. The findings of the study appeared in the journal “Child Development.” As per the World Health Organization, over 340 million children and adolescents (aged 5 to 10 years old) were classified as overweight or obese in 2016, a statistic that has risen from 14 percent since 1975. Childhood obesity is associated with a wide range of severe health complications and an increased risk of premature onset of illnesses, including diabetes and heart disease. Without intervention, children and…
Scientists are still trying to identify what has been killing an unknown number of young wild birds in several regions of the United States in the past couple of months. The die-off has slowed markedly in recent weeks, but its cause remains a mystery. In a July 9 notice, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) ruled out deadly avian flu and West Nile viruses as the cause, as well other diseases affecting birds and humans. Most of the dead birds were fledglings or young. According to a news release from Virginia wildlife officials, between May 23 and June 30, there were…
NEW DELHI — Actor Shilpa Shetty’s look in “Chura Ke Dil Mera 2.0” has already set the internet ablaze. Now it is Shahid Kapoor’s wife, Mira Rajput, who is starstruck after seeing the diva in the revamped version of the ’90s iconic song. Fans have been heaping praises on Shetty after watching her stunning look in the song “Chura Ke Dil Mera 2.0” from the upcoming rom-com “Hungama 2.” Rajput could also not resist from channeling her love for the diva and the fashion goals she has set in the hit song that originally starred Akshay Kumar and Shetty. Taking to her Instagram story, Rajput shared…
It’s impossible not to smile when looking at Eitan Bernat’s portraits of Israeli celebrity fathers with their sons. These 40 striking black-and-white photos capture in a moment the special and sometimes complex connection between male parents and children. They are on exhibit in the Tel Aviv suburb of Holon, in the plaza outside the Israeli Cartoon Museum, from July 23 to October 9. Curated by Rafael Vazana — director of the Culture and Art Department in the Holon municipality and father of a son named Jonathan — the exhibit features some men whose faces are well known in Israel. Here’s…