AAP Rolling News Bulletin for June 15 at 2000
Housing (CANBERRA)
Diminishing value for the ballooning cost of a university degree could prove a windfall for the construction industry as it's hoped more young people are steered towards in-demand trades, a Senate hearing has been told.
Industry peak bodies fronted a parliamentary inquiry on Monday to discuss how to make it easier for young people to enter the housing market.
Tackling chronic worker shortages to help increase housing supply was chief among the builders' concerns.
An additional 83,000 skilled trades workers were needed to meet the National Housing Accord's target of 1.2 million homes in five years, according to the Housing Industry Association.
Master Builder's Australia national director Darren Disney put that gap even higher at 116,000.
The peak body's chief economist Shane Garrett said the perception better jobs were only available via university historically kept young people out of apprenticeships, but that idea was being dismantled.
Legal: AHMAD (MELBOURNE)
An accused "ISIS bride" rejects Islamic extremism and considers her time in Syria to have been 11 years of hell.
Zeinab Ahmad's lawyer made the assertions on her behalf on Monday as her application for bail entered its third day.
"My client does not support Islamic State," barrister Grace Morgan told Melbourne Magistrates Court.
"She rejects Islamic State. She has a deep anger towards it and to those men who enforced its ideals upon her."
Ahmad, 31, was charged with slavery offences in May after returning to Australia with other so-called "ISIS brides" and their children.
It's alleged Ahmad moved to Syria with her first husband Dawod in January 2015 and he became a member of Islamic State before he was killed in a drone strike in May 2016.
Legal: Polymiadis (ADELAIDE)
A diabetic woman accused of killing her elderly parents with her insulin told a former partner the medication was the "perfect murder weapon", a jury has heard.
Raelene Polymiadis, 65, is on trial in the South Australian Supreme Court charged with murdering Brenda and Lynton Anderson, who were both aged 94 when they died a year apart.
Opening the trial on Monday, prosecutor Michael Foundas said the "precious time" the couple had left together was deliberately cut short by their youngest daughter.
"Polymiadis deliberately administered fatal doses of insulin to her parents, killing them," Mr Foundas said.
"She poisoned them to death - she murdered them."
Polymiadis, a type-1 diabetic who requires insulin injections, was the last family member to see her parents alive, Mr Foundas said.
Legal: Stevens (MELBOURNE)
A former AFL star has been jailed for defrauding multiple families who paid him to install pools, leaving some with giant holes in their backyard.
Ex-Carlton and Port Adelaide footballer Nick Stevens, 46, was convicted by a jury on 12 charges of obtaining a financial advantage by deception and one of using a false document.
He was acquitted of one charge.
Stevens stole about $158,000 from six families in regional areas through his pool business in 2017.
While he installed six legally compliant pools under the supervision of a registered builder, he then went out on his own without the required licence, registration, permits or insurance.
He took money from the families, but left some with non-compliant pools and for others failed to install a pool at all, leaving them with unfilled holes in their yards.
Accent (SYDNEY)
A British retailer has lobbed a zero-premium takeover offer at Australia's largest shoe store chain after their partnership went south, in hopes of at least gaining more influence over its board.
Frasers Group is offering 65 cents a share for Accent Group in an on-market takeover offer that values the Platypus, Hype DC and The Athlete's Foot owner at $390 million.
Accent Group shares, which closed at 65 cents on Friday, jumped almost 12 per cent to 73 cents by noon on Monday.
Frasers owns the UK-based sporting goods giant Sports Direct, which Accent began launching in Australia in 2025 in partnership with Frasers as part of what was initially going to be a 50-store rollout over six years.
That target was downgraded in May to eight stores by December and 30 stores within three years, with the 50-store goal deferred to an undefined time frame, apparently disappointing Frasers executives.
Legal: Bentley (SYDNEY)
A high-flying AI executive has lost his job and gained two criminal convictions after assaulting two musicians during a drunken night out.
Timothy Bentley faced Sydney's Downing Centre Local Court on Monday when his barrister was unable to convince the judge the cybersecurity expert should not attract marks on his previously faultless criminal record.
The former vice president of sales for Asia Pacific at tech behemoth Abnormal AI pleaded guilty to punching two musicians at the Ramblin' Rascal Tavern in the city centre in February.
He socked The Grand Union guitarist Stu Greenwood in the face after having had several drinks, according to the agreed facts.
When another musician, John Flaws of Bloody Legend, tried to intervene and stop the fracas, he copped a punch from Bentley directly on his mouth, the court was told.
Federal (CANBERRA)
The opposition leader has dismissed the latest diabolical opinion polling for the coalition, despite Pauline Hanson surging ahead to become preferred prime minister.
One in three respondents to a survey on Sunday said they wanted the One Nation leader to run the country.
The coalition's primary vote has also plunged to a record low, the poll shows, while Labor's has also dropped slightly off the back of an unpopular budget.
Asked about the poor showing, Angus Taylor said he'd been meeting with business leaders and they weren't concerned about opinion surveys.
"In that room just a moment ago, no one was talking about polls. They were talking about the future of our country," he told reporters in Sydney on Monday.
Legal: Norway Royals (OSLO)
The stepson of Norway's Crown Prince Haakon will soon learn if he has been found guilty of charges of rape, domestic violence, assault and drug possession, among other crimes, in a case that has transfixed the Nordic country.
Marius Borg Hoiby, 29, who joined the royal family when his mother Mette-Marit married Haakon in 2001, pleaded not guilty to the most severe accusations against him, including those of rape, while admitting to some lesser charges.
If found guilty on all counts by the Oslo district court, he could be sentenced to seven years and seven months in prison, as requested by the prosecution, though the court can increase or decrease the length of the sentence sought.
The seven-week trial has gripped the country, detailing Hoiby's drug addiction, self-made videos of sexual encounters and more than 800 electronic messages entered into evidence. One alleged rape took place in the basement of the crown prince's family home, the court heard.
In finance ...
Tax (CANBERRA)
A snap inquiry is not enough to properly investigate looming tax reforms, business groups say, as contentious budget measures go under the spotlight.
A Senate inquiry into the tax changes is holding the first of two days of hearings on Monday.
Under the changes, the 50 per cent discount for capital gains tax will be replaced with a rate tied to inflation and a 30 per cent minimum, while negative gearing will be limited to new houses only from July 2027.
In a joint statement, business peak bodies warned the measures would lower productivity and make Australia less competitive globally.
AI Group chief executive Innes Willox said the changes were being rushed through and a two-day hearing was not enough to adequately examine them.
SpaceX Aust (SYDNEY)
Gina Rinehart's Hancock Prospecting has snared a huge stake in Elon Musk's SpaceX during its out-of-this-world initial public offering.
The company did not specify the amount it invested, but Ms Rinehart said it was "significant investment for Hancock" and the company was pleased to get an allotment during the oversubscribed IPO.
The Wall Street Journal reported the stake was more than $US1 billion ($1.4 billion).
Referring to SpaceX and Tesla, Australia's richest woman noted Mr Musk had built two of the world's 10-most valuable companies by market capitalisation, an extraordinary achievement.
"Elon has done what very few people in history have done," Ms Rinehart said.
"He has not just imagined the future, he has built companies capable of delivering it, and helped to keep American technology at the forefront."
In entertainment ...
Brazil Helicopter (RIO DE JANEIRO)
US singer and comedian Oliver Tree is believed to be among six people who died when two helicopters collided over Rio de Janeiro, crashing in the city's western zone.
Rio de Janeiro's Military Fire Department said that one of the helicopters crashed on Sunday into the parking lot of a car dealership, where several electric vehicles were parked, igniting a fire that was extinguished.
Officials said an investigation was underway to determine the cause of the collision.
Police said 32-year-old Tree was on the list of passengers handed to aviation authorities but the bodies had yet to be formally identified.
Recognisable by his signature bowl cut, Tree was known for his songs Life Goes On and When I'm Down.
He released his fourth studio album, Love You Madly, Hate You Badly in April.
Beckham (LONDON)
Brooklyn Beckham has accused David and Victoria Beckham of "choreographing" their daughter's visit to his house.
The 27-year-old chef - who is estranged from his famous family - and wife Nicola Peltz Beckham have hit out after his 14-year-old sister Harper was pictured arriving at his house in Los Angeles in an SUV on Friday (12.06.26), insisting the circumstances surrounding her trip raised questions.
Photos obtained by PageSix.com showed her approaching the house in the same pink outfit she had worn to see her father awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame earlier in the day, but she left seconds later without seeing the couple, who it later emerged were in New York.
"[The fact] that photographers were in place as the letter was hand delivered says it all - this was choreographed for the cameras," representatives for the couple said in a statement:
In sport ...
AFL Suns (MELBOURNE)
Gold Coast coach Damien Hardwick has been put on notice and the Suns face a potentially costly AFL tribunal case in the fallout from their latest loss.
Friday night's away loss to Geelong is the third straight defeat for the slumping Suns.
Hardwick was fuming post-match and took aim at the umpires, claiming they were influenced by the crowd and the "Roman Colosseum" atmosphere at GMHBA Stadium.
That prompted a pointed phone call to Hardwick from AFL football operations boss Greg Swann. While Hardwick avoided a fine or a "please explain", it is understood he accepted Swann's point.
"It was like the Roman Colosseum," Hardwick said post-match when asked about his frustrations.
"I reckon they (the umpires) were waiting for the crowd to do this one (thumb down) then, all of a sudden, free kick.
Com26 Swi (SYDNEY)
The lure of a home Olympics could be the driving force to convince Australian swim star Kaylee McKeown to keep competing.
Five-time Olympic gold medallist McKeown will head to Glasgow in July for her final Commonwealth Games as she mulls on her future beyond the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
Competing at her third Commonwealth Games, the 24-year-old backstroke ace had cited the need for a mental reset.
McKeown - the 50m and 200m backstroke world record holder - has previously spoken about suffering through severe mental lows after her successful Paris Olympics campaign.
In 2024, McKeown became the first swimmer to successfully defend Olympic 100m and 200m backstroke titles and the first Australian to win four individual Olympic gold medals.
She heads to Glasgow looking to defend her 100m and 200m crowns won at the 2022 Birmingham Games.
Ends Bulletin
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