Author: DispatchTimes News Desk

England begin their World Cup play-off campaign against Greece this week with qualification for next summer’s tournament in Brazil the priority, but Sarina Wiegman’s side must also demonstrate that they have learned from their heavy defeat by Spain. The European champions narrowly missed out on automatic qualification, collecting 15 points from a possible 18. Their fate was sealed by a 4-0 loss to Spain in June — England’s heaviest defeat for 17 years and the largest suffered during Wiegman’s tenure. That result exposed a clear gap between the teams, with Spain dominating possession and controlling the match through a distinct…

A 32-year-old US Postal Service worker has been identified by his family as the man who was fatally shot outside the Vallejo apartment complex where he lived with relatives. Devaughn McBride was shot shortly before 8.30am on Tuesday, 6 October, on the 200 block of Marin Street near Curtola Parkway, according to police. He was taken to hospital but later died from his injuries. Family members said McBride had recently become a permanent employee with the postal service and was wearing his work uniform at the time of the shooting. They said he had left the building to visit a…

A 31-year-old man has been shot twice in a daylight attack near a laundromat in Broadmeadows, in Melbourne’s north. Police were called to Central Grove at about 4pm on Wednesday after the man was shot in the leg. He was taken to the Royal Melbourne Hospital. At least two men are understood to have been involved. They reportedly arrived in a dark-coloured Audi before fleeing the scene.

Kemi Badenoch is set to unveil a Conservative rescue package for young people out of work, including plans to halve employers’ National Insurance contributions for workers under 25. The Tory leader will argue that her party must focus on reviving entry-level employment and making economic growth the central priority of a future government. Under the proposal, employer National Insurance for workers aged between 21 and 24 would fall from 15 per cent to 7.5 per cent. The Conservatives say the change would allow businesses to retain an average of £1,545 for each young employee. The measure would cost £2.3 billion…

Property billionaire David Reuben has moved from his London home to Monaco, following changes to Britain’s tax regime that ended the non-domicile system and extended potential inheritance-tax exposure to long-term residents’ worldwide assets. The 88-year-old, who shares second place on the Sunday Times Rich List with his brother Simon, left his home in Holland Park this summer, a spokesman for the brothers confirmed. The spokesman declined to comment further on the reasons for the move. Simon Reuben has lived in Monaco for about 40 years, having moved there for health reasons. The brothers were previously reported to have been non-doms,…

Queensland’s highest-paid public servants received remuneration packages of up to $903,000 in the 2025-26 financial year, with more than half a dozen earning more than Premier David Crisafulli. The figures, drawn from more than 100 annual reports, show the scale of pay awarded to senior officials across the Queensland public sector, including non-monetary benefits. Queensland public servants’ pay packages David Rosengren, director-general of Queensland Health, received a total package worth $903,000. Damien Walker, Mr Crisafulli’s chosen head of the Department of the Premier and Cabinet, was paid $838,000, while Under-Treasurer Paul Williams received $810,000. John Sosso, who has since retired…

Two people have been killed in a Russian missile and drone attack on Kyiv as Vladimir Putin marked his 74th birthday, with residents sheltering in underground stations amid warnings of a major assault. Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said the deaths occurred after a fire in the densely populated Darnytskyi neighbourhood. Two other people were rescued while emergency crews tackled the blaze, he said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had warned that Russian forces were preparing “a massive strike”, urging people to remain alert for air raid sirens. He said Ukraine’s military was “ready to respond, to the extent that our defence…

Below Deck Mediterranean will return for season 12, with production already under way and the next series set to move the action to Greece. The Bravo reality show’s 11th season concluded on Monday October 5, following a run of relationship drama, guest and crew injuries and life aboard a yacht in Dubrovnik, Croatia. Although Bravo has not issued a formal renewal announcement, the network confirmed in August that filming had begun. The new season will also feature a crossover with Summer House, whose stars will appear as charter guests. Below Deck Mediterranean season 12 cast Captain Sandy Yawn and chief…

Australia’s Albanese government has been accused of “grey corruption” over a $6.05 million grant to a golf club in the prime minister’s electorate, with constitutional expert Anne Twomey describing the federal grants system as a “farce”. Twomey, professor emerita at the University of Sydney, told a parliamentary inquiry that Marrickville Golf Club had already received five federal grants totalling almost $58,000 before Anthony Albanese promised the larger sum during the 2025 election campaign. The earlier payments were made through schemes in which local MPs could nominate organisations for funding. They were classified as “closed, non-competitive” grants, meaning projects were not…

Rocks used to build the Great Sphinx of Giza may contain the fossilised remains of an ancient crocodile species, scientists have suggested after identifying a previously unknown predator in the same limestone formation. The crocodile, named Herugavialis cairensis, lived around 54 million years ago. Its remains were found in Egypt’s Mokattam Formation, the rocks quarried more than 4,000 years ago to create the famous monument. Dr Paul Burke, of the Swedish Museum of Natural History, said it was possible that fossils of the animal remained within the Sphinx itself. “It could! It was built from the same rocks where Herugavialis…