Author: DispatchTimes News Desk

Anthony Albanese’s six-week overseas travel schedule has drawn criticism as Australians face continuing cost-of-living pressures and the prospect of another interest rate rise. The Australian Prime Minister left for Antigua and Barbuda on Saturday to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, saying he had made the journey at the personal request of King Charles. He is not expected to return until next Friday evening, leaving Treasurer Jim Chalmers to handle any political fallout if the Reserve Bank raises rates on Melbourne Cup Day. Economists expect the bank to increase its cash rate by 0.25 percentage points to 4.85 per…

Nine people were killed when a Learjet 60 plunged into a residential area of Palm Beach County, Florida, after the pilots reported icing, turbulence and heavy precipitation, newly released cockpit audio shows. The private jet crashed at about 12.50pm local time on Sunday, 1 November, near Cresthaven in the Greenacres area. It had taken off from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas and was bound for North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas. Recordings of communications with air traffic control capture the crew describing worsening conditions before the aircraft began losing altitude rapidly. The pilot said the plane was descending at 10,000ft…

A farmer has been fined $225,000 after being convicted of unlawfully clearing almost 950 hectares of native vegetation in central New South Wales, telling the court he was unable to document regeneration work because of fears about a fugitive believed to be hiding nearby. Sheldon Jeffrey Dalton cleared the land at Wallanthery between May and October 2023 using machinery and fire. The area, roughly equivalent to 570 Sydney Cricket Grounds, contained habitat for the threatened malleefowl. NSW Land and Environment Court Justice Sarah Pritchard convicted Dalton on two charges, finding that he had caused “actual environmental harm”. Dalton admitted knowing…

Small-boat migrants working illegally in Britain may bring harassment claims against their employers under Labour’s strengthened workers’ rights laws, according to new guidance from the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC). The guidance was issued after Angela Rayner’s Employment Rights Act came into force on Friday. It sets out employers’ legal obligations to prevent sexual and other forms of harassment in the workplace. Businesses must now take “all reasonable steps” to protect employees, rather than simply “reasonable steps”. The EHRC says an employment tribunal can hear a harassment claim even where the worker does not hold a valid work permit.…

Gigi Hadid has marked the opening of her new Guest in Residence store on New York’s Madison Avenue, posing outside the venue with a cake before welcoming guests to the brand’s latest location. The 31-year-old model attended the opening party on Friday evening, 30 October, wearing pieces from the luxury knitwear and apparel label, which she founded in 2022 and leads as creative director. The Madison Avenue shop is Guest in Residence’s second in New York and fourth overall. The brand also has stores in Beverly Hills and Malibu, California, where Hadid grew up. Hadid told Vogue that the aim…

Tampa police are investigating after the windows of two businesses in Seminole Heights were damaged in the early hours of Sunday, 1 November, with detectives examining whether the incidents were connected. The first damage was reported at Hourglass Pilates on North Central Avenue, where owner Brittany discovered the shattered window after a client alerted her. She later reviewed surveillance footage and said the incident appeared to have taken place at about 2.30am. Footage showed a vehicle approaching the studio before the glass broke. Brittany said the recording captured a sound resembling a gunshot, although police have not confirmed whether a…

Reality television contestant Tamika Chesser is to mount a mental health defence after pleading not guilty to murdering her partner and destroying human remains to pervert the course of justice. Chesser, 36, appeared by video link from a wheelchair at an arraignment hearing in the South Australian Supreme Court on Monday. She confirmed her not guilty pleas twice during the hearing. She is accused of killing Julian Story, 39, and dismembering his body at the couple’s home in Port Lincoln on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula in June 2025. Prosecutors told the court they had received a medical report from the…

El-Sayed has dismissed Haley Stevens’ backing of a Republican Senate candidate, setting up a clash over her support for a political rival. The remarks centre on Stevens’ decision to support the Republican candidate, which El-Sayed has rejected.

China’s shift to a new policy rate is signalling easier funding conditions, marking a change in the way monetary policy is communicated. The move points to a potential easing in access to finance, with the new policy rate becoming a key indicator of the country’s funding environment.

Shay Mitchell has explained why she and her long-term partner Matte Babel are not married, telling their daughters that their relationship is based on being “partners” rather than having a wedding. The actress, 39, and former television host Babel, 46, have been together since 2017, after years of friendship. They have two daughters, Atlas, eight, and Rome, four. Speaking on Khloe in Wonder Land with Khloe Kardashian, Mitchell said her children regularly ask why their parents have not married. “They ask me all the time why aren’t we married,” she said. “Mommy and Daddy are like partners, and I just…