South Australian premier told gun lobby he wouldn’t tighten firearm laws despite agreeing to federal crackdown 18. March 2026 (15:00) Hopes for uniform nationwide gun control reform fade as states walk back federal cabinet commitment after Bondi beach massacreGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe South Australian premier, Peter Malinauskas, assured gun lobbyists that he had no plans to strengthen firearm laws in the state despite agreeing to a national crackdown after the Bondi beach massacre.In a letter signed a day before the government entered caretaker mode for the state election on 21 March, Malinauskas told a peak shooters group that SA had some of the strictest gun laws in the country and there was “currently … no plans to amend” them. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘It’s not panic-buying’: farmers defend stockpiling as regional Australia bears brunt of fuel crisis 18. March 2026 (15:00) Independent retailers are struggling to get fuel from the majors and say farmers have only responded to soaring prices and lack of availabilityGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastRural fuel distributor Paul McCallum hopes the worst is over.At the start of the month, as fuel prices surged after the US and Israel bombed Iran, farmers started bringing their diesel orders forward, requesting “a boisterous but not over the top” 1.5m litres from his company Inland Petroleum. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘Where have all our front gardens gone?’: Sydney’s supersized driveways eat into yards 18. March 2026 (15:00) Research shows average front garden size has declined by 46% in areas where older low-density homes have been replaced by larger, modern housesFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSydney’s increasingly supersized driveways are shrinking suburban front yards as residential redevelopment accelerates, a research paper has found.The research, which details the loss of private tree space due to knock-down-rebuilds, lays bare the gaps in the planning system for minimum private green space standards. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Ancient skeleton discovered sitting upright in France 18. March 2026 (14:58) Body is latest in series to be found in Dijon. Scientists trying to work out why Gauls buried some of their dead in this wayChildren at a primary school in eastern France found a strange attraction next to their playground this week: a skeleton sitting upright, peeking out the top of a circular pit.It is the latest in a series of bodies discovered in the city of Dijon that were buried in a seated position facing west. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Republican chair immediately goes after Mullin at DHS nomination hearing; Trump blames Democrats for partial shutdown – live 18. March 2026 (14:53) Rand Paul probes Markwayne Mulling for past vote on funding for refugee welfare programs; Trump claims ongoing shutdown is ‘causing chaos at the airports’Mullin never served in military but talks as if he didSign up for Breaking US News US emailsRand Paul seemed immediately frustrated with Mullin as he opened the hearing. While he was speaking, he suggested that Mullin wasn’t listening to his remarks, where he pushed Trump’s nominee on his vote against Paul’s amendment to stop all funding for refugee welfare programs.“You decided to transfer the blame. You told the media that I was a ‘freaking snake’ and that you completely understood why I had been assaulted,” Paul said, referring to when he was attacked by a neighbor in Kentucky in 2017, which resulted in Paul breaking several ribs and developing pneumonia. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Zack Polanski says Greens would ditch GDP targets and focus on wellbeing instead 18. March 2026 (14:45) Leader uses first major economic speech to prioritise public services and reduction of inequality over growthUK politics live – latest updatesA government led by the Green party would not set targets for GDP growth but would instead focus on people’s mental health, social cohesion and community welfare, Zack Polanski has said in a major speech to set out his plans for the economy.In his first policy address since taking over as leader of the Greens in England and Wales six months ago, Polanski condemned what he called “rip-off Britain”, where a minority of asset owners benefited at the expense of people obliged to pay unaffordable sums for housing and other basics. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘Put him on trial’: pro-Kremlin loyalist turns on Putin in rare outburst 18. March 2026 (14:39) Ilya Remeslo sends Telegram post titled ‘Five reasons why I stopped supporting Vladimir Putin’ to his 90,000 followersFor years, Ilya Remeslo was a reliable pro-Kremlin operator, going after critics of the regime and smearing independent journalists, bloggers and opposition politicians.Then the 42-year-old lawyer abruptly turned on the country’s most powerful man. Late on Tuesday, Remeslo posted a manifesto to his 90,000 Telegram followers titled: “Five reasons why I stopped supporting Vladimir Putin.” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Oscars ratings in US dip to four-year low, defying expectations 18. March 2026 (14:31) Hopes that Sinners and One Battle After Another would bring in a big audience dashed as viewers fell to 17.9m, a 9% drop on last year’s 19.7mHopes had been high that the popularity of big hitters Sinners and One Battle After Another would translate into a bigger audience for the Oscars ceremony telecast. Yet numbers hit a four-year-low in the US, where the show reached 17.9 million viewers on ABC and Hulu, down about 9% from last year’s 19.7 million.Many had presumed the five-year high that 2025 represented was the product of interest in cinema bouncing back post-Covid – all the more cheering given that the movie that dominated, Sean Baker’s Anora, had not been a major box office player. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Former Conservative MP Crispin Blunt charged with four drugs offences 18. March 2026 (14:27) Ex-MP for Reigate, 65, accused of one count of possessing a class A drug and three of possessing a class B drugThe former MP Crispin Blunt has been charged with four drugs offences, prosecutors said.The 65-year-old, who represented Reigate from 1997 to 2024, is accused of one count of possessing a class A drug and three of possessing a class B drug. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
US contractors stranded in Iraq under threat of imminent attack: ‘We are sitting ducks’ 18. March 2026 (14:19) More than 200 Americans at Balad site say they have no evacuation plan as fears grow of a post-Ramadan assaultSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxHundreds of US contractors are stranded on a major military base near Baghdad, Iraq, with no evacuation plan, while local Iran-backed militants are possibly making plans to attack the base, three sources said.The contractors are employed on the Martyr Brigadier General Ali Flaih Air Base, formerly Balad Air Base, to support the Iraqi government’s F-16 fighter jet program. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
