Angus Taylor supporters expect him to challenge Sussan Ley for Liberal leadership within days 09. February 2026 (04:42) Leadership challenge by conservative MP is a matter of when, not if, they sayFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAngus Taylor is expected to challenge Sussan Ley for the Liberal leadership within days, according to supporters who argue “something has to change” after a horror opinion poll and the chaos of the Coalition split.While no decision has been made, conservative MPs believe it is a matter of when, not if, Taylor brings on a leadership vote this week after the latest Newspoll showed the Coalition’s primary vote had collapsed to a historic low of 18% – nine percentage points behind Pauline Hanson’s One Nation. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
ABC to air Four Corners episode on Bondi terror attack despite preemptive criticism by Asio 09. February 2026 (04:19) Intelligence agency takes unusual step of publicly releasing statement and says it will ‘reserve our right to take further action’ if the ABC makes false claimsFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA Four Corners investigation into the secret lives of the alleged Bondi shooters in the lead-up to the nation’s worst terrorist attack will go to air on Monday night despite a preemptive claim by Asio that the episode contains “significant errors of fact”.Path to Terror examines whether there were failures in intelligence and counter-terrorism leading up to the antisemitic massacre on Bondi beach on 14 December, and tracks the paths to radicalisation of father and son Sajid and Naveed Akram. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘Blame me’: what the UK papers say as Morgan McSweeney quits over Mandelson-Epstein scandal 09. February 2026 (04:17) British papers explore what’s next for prime minister Keir Starmer after the loss of his longtime adviser over the Mandelson-Epstein files scandalThe fate of prime minister Keir Starmer dominates the UK front pages on Monday after his embattled chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, resigned over the appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to Washington.In standing down, McSweeney admitted the decision to advise sending Mandelson to the US despite his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein “was wrong”. “I advised the prime minister to make that appointment and I take full responsibility for that advice,” he said, after a Sunday phone call with Starmer. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Jon Kudelka, much-loved Australian political cartoonist, dies aged 53 09. February 2026 (02:57) Award-winning Tasmanian artist’s work was published by the Australian, the Saturday Paper and the Hobart MercuryFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastJon Kudelka, the Australian political cartoonist, has died at the age of 53.His wife, Margaret Kudelka, announced the news in a statement on Monday: “We are sad to tell you that our beloved, brilliant Jon Kudelka died peacefully in South Hobart on Sunday afternoon, surrounded by his family and friends.” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Jimmy Lai sentencing: Hong Kong court to rule on pro-democracy media mogul after conviction – live updates 09. February 2026 (02:52) Observers fear that conviction under national security law could attract the most severe penalty band of 10 years to life imprisonment. Follow the latest developments, liveJimmy Lai faces sentencing over national security chargesHere are some images of Jimmy Lai at pro-democracy protests across Hong Kong over the years:Progressing from child labourer to billionaire, Jimmy Lai used his power and wealth to promote democracy, which ultimately pitted him against authorities in Beijing. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Christchurch gunman seeks to appeal convictions and withdraw guilty plea 09. February 2026 (02:07) NZ court to consider an appeal from Australian white supremacist who pleaded guilty in March 2020 to murdering 51 people in mosque attackThe Australian white supremacist who murdered 51 Muslim worshippers at two mosques in Christchurch in 2019, in the worst mass shooting in the New Zealand’s history, is asking one of the country’s highest courts to vacate his guilty pleas and hold a new trial.Brenton Tarrant pleaded guilty in March 2020 to 51 counts of murder, 40 counts of attempted murder and a terrorism charge, after initially saying he would defend the charges. In August 2020, Tarrant became the first person in New Zealand under current laws to be sentenced to life in prison without the chance of ever walking free. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Jimmy Lai, Hong Kong pro-democracy figure, faces sentencing over national security charges 09. February 2026 (01:57) The media tycoon, who was first arrested in 2020, could face life in prison in blow for press freedom following conviction in DecemberJimmy Lai, the Hong Kong media tycoon and pro-democracy figure, is set to be sentenced on Monday in the financial hub’s most high-profile national security case, amid growing calls to free the longstanding critic of the Chinese Communist party whose health is frail.The sentence comes after a legal saga spanning almost five years for the founder of the now-shuttered Apple Daily newspaper after he was convicted in December of two counts of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and one count of publishing seditious materials. He was first arrested in 2020. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Isaac Herzog meets survivors of Bondi terror attack saying ‘when one Jew is hurt, all Jews feel their pain’ 09. February 2026 (01:37) Israeli president will meet with prime minister Anthony Albanese in Canberra and travel to Melbourne as pro-Palestine supporters stage protestsFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastIsrael’s president, Isaac Herzog, has told members of the Jewish community “when one Jew is hurt, all Jews feel their pain” as he begins a four-day visit to Australia to speak with survivors of the Bondi terror attack and the victims’ families.Herzog, who arrived in Sydney on Monday morning, laid a wreath at the site of the antisemitic attack alongside the NSW premier, Chris Minns. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘Pulling up the drawbridge’: Alf Dubs criticises Shabana Mahmood’s plans for child refugees 09. February 2026 (01:00) Exclusive: Labour peer, who came to UK as a refugee, says some ministers try to show they won’t ‘just do things because of their background’Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary, whose parents migrated to the UK from Pakistan, is facing the suggestion from a veteran Labour peer that she is “pulling up the drawbridge once inside” when considering the plight of refugee children trapped abroad.Alf Dubs, who came to the UK aged six in 1939 fleeing the persecution of Jews in Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia, said the home secretary and other ministers had “kowtowed” to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK by preventing unaccompanied children from seeking refuge with UK-based family members. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘Take the vaccine, please,’ Dr Oz urges amid rising measles cases in US 09. February 2026 (00:52) Health official’s endorsement comes as South Carolina faces hundreds of cases and US risks losing elimination statusA senior US public health official called on Americans to get vaccinated against measles as outbreaks continue in multiple states and concerns grow that the country could lose its measles elimination designation. Dr Mehmet Oz, a cardiothoracic surgeon, spoke in support on Sunday of the measles vaccine.“Take the vaccine, please,” said Oz, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. “We have a solution for our problem.” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
