Author: DispatchTimes News Desk

Queensland’s decision to extend the lives of coal-fired power stations and abandon firm renewable energy targets risks making new generation harder to finance, the chief executive of the Smart Energy Council has warned. David McElrea said the state’s energy policy had created uncertainty over when replacement electricity would be required, threatening investment in wind, solar, batteries and transmission infrastructure. The criticism follows the Queensland Government’s Energy Roadmap, released in October 2025, which removed the previous plan to phase out state-owned coal generation by 2035. Under the new approach, coal stations will operate for as long as they are needed, subject…

American farmers are selling cattle herds as drought and high feed costs make it increasingly difficult to keep livestock, with some producers forced to reduce their operations to survive. Dry conditions have reduced the availability of pasture and forage, leaving farmers facing the choice of paying more for feed or sending animals to market. For some, selling part or all of a herd has become the only way to limit mounting losses. The pressure is being felt across the US cattle industry. Figures from the US Department of Agriculture show that the number of beef cows stood at 28.5 million…

Sadiq Farhad Azad, 33, has been charged with raping a 14-year-old boy in an alleyway off London Road in Portsmouth and is due to appear at the city’s Crown Court. Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary said the alleged incident happened between 7pm and 8pm on Thursday 6 August, after the boy spoke to a man on a bus who was not previously known to him. Police received a report about the alleged rape on Tuesday 11 August and launched an investigation. Azad, an Iraqi national of no fixed address, was subsequently arrested and charged with rape of a boy…

Trevor Nelson returned to his BBC Radio 2 afternoon programme on Monday after undergoing surgery for a brain tumour, describing the past few months as an emotional and difficult summer. The 62-year-old broadcaster was back behind the microphone for his regular 2pm to 4pm slot after stepping away from his work commitments in June to deal with health issues. Nelson later revealed that doctors had discovered a brain tumour and that he had undergone what he described as very serious surgery. He said the operation had gone incredibly well and that he had spent the following weeks recovering at home…

More than one million people have been affected by a data breach at online maths learning platform Mathspace after attackers accessed an internal reporting system and downloaded personal information belonging to students, school staff and parents or guardians. Mathspace said 1,079,819 people were affected by the incident, which was limited to individuals in Australia and New Zealand. The company is used by thousands of schools in Australia, New Zealand, the United States and the UK. The attackers exploited a vulnerability in a self-hosted installation of Metabase, the software Mathspace uses for internal reporting. The flaw enabled them to obtain administrator…

Arsenal are prioritising new contracts for Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard and Jurrien Timber as the Premier League champions look to secure the core of Mikel Arteta’s squad. Talks over improved terms for the trio are understood to be progressing, with all three players currently tied to the club until the summer of 2028. Arsenal are keen to avoid allowing their positions to become uncertain as they continue to build on last season’s title success. Rice has established himself as a central figure in Arteta’s midfield since joining from West Ham, while Odegaard remains captain and one of the team’s principal…

A recovery operation was due to begin at Tempe Town Lake in Arizona on Monday morning after a person went underwater near the Rural Road bridge, officials said. Police and fire crews were called to the lake at about 1am on 7 September after witnesses reported seeing the person enter the water. Tempe Fire Medical Rescue said emergency crews searched the area before the operation changed from a rescue effort to a recovery operation. Divers were expected to begin searching for the body at around 8am. The circumstances leading to the incident remained unclear, while the person’s identity had not…

North Melbourne’s decision to sack Alastair Clarkson was shaped by player feedback gathered during end-of-season exit meetings and follow-up discussions with members of the football department. The meetings reportedly left club officials concerned that Clarkson’s instructions had become overly detailed and difficult for players to translate into a consistent game plan. North’s football boss, Todd Viney, said the former Hawthorn coach had tried to correct weaknesses in the team’s performances, but that the response had created further uncertainty. “One thing that Clarko did, he tried too hard, in trying to fix that and therefore we get into more meetings, more…

Angela Rayner has halted parts of the Government’s local government reorganisation programme after the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government withdrew decisions affecting a number of council areas and ordered a review of the plans. The move follows a series of legal challenges from councils opposed to the proposed shake-up, which is intended to replace two-tier systems of county and district councils with new unitary authorities. MHCLG said decisions had been withdrawn across a swathe of areas while officials reassessed the proposals. The department did not immediately set out a new timetable for reaching fresh conclusions. The Government has…

Fourteen people were taken to hospital after medical emergencies broke out at The Chainsmokers’ outdoor concert in San Jose, California. The San José Fire Department said crews were called to Discovery Meadow at about 8.22pm on Friday, September 4, following reports of several people needing medical attention. An ambulance task force, two additional advanced life-support units and a battalion chief were sent to the venue as the response was stepped up. In total, 14 ambulances attended and 14 patients were transported to local hospitals. San Jose police told local media that some concertgoers were treated for suspected alcohol intoxication and…