Author: DispatchTimes News Desk

South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas has defended Australia’s skilled migration programme, arguing in a speech at the Sydney Institute that migrants with valuable qualifications can deliver a greater economic benefit than Australian-born residents. Speaking in Sydney on Wednesday night, the Labor premier warned against reducing migration levels in response to pressure from One Nation and said decisions about immigration should be guided by economic needs rather than political competition. Mr Malinauskas said skilled migrants were typically of working age, able to enter well-paid employment and contribute to government revenues through taxation. He cited a 2021 Treasury calculation that placed the…

Jaclyn Smith has described the moment she discovered that her first husband, actor Roger Davis, had allegedly been having an affair with the couple’s real estate agent. The Charlie’s Angels star, now 80, recounts the episode in her memoir, I Once Knew a Guy Named Charlie, recalling how a chance encounter with Warren Beatty became entwined with the painful revelation. Smith married Davis in 1968 after meeting him at a casting call. She wrote that they had initially appeared to be perfectly matched, sharing an abstinence from alcohol, a love of architecture and similar tastes in food. “We both didn’t…

Relatives of an Arizona family of four killed in a head-on crash near Heber on Labor Day have spoken of their grief and the lives they shared. Kiah Jae Begaye and Giovanni Uballe Huerta, both 26, died alongside their two young children when their Nissan collided with a pickup truck on State Route 260 in Navajo County on 7 September. The crash happened at about 12.30pm near Camp Shadow Pines, a few miles west of Heber. The two children, Dakota, four, and Malakai, two, were travelling with their parents after a visit to Begaye’s grandparents. According to court documents, the…

A new private school on Queensland’s Gold Coast plans to divide its youngest pupils between morning and afternoon classes, creating a double-shift model intended to offer families greater flexibility. Village Yard Christian School in Mudgeeraba is due to open in 2027, initially catering for children from Prep to Year 2. Families will be able to nominate either a 7.30am-to-noon session or an 11am-to-3.30pm session. The school is being developed as a low-fee independent Christian school for pupils from Prep to Year 8. It is an initiative of Hillcrest Christian College and Queensland Baptists, and is planned for a site on…

Brad Pitt appeared at a screening of his new film Heart of the Beast in Los Angeles on Tuesday, 8 September, projecting a relaxed image as attention continued to focus on his strained relationship with several of his children. The 62-year-old actor took part in a discussion at Paramount Studios wearing a distressed indigo Maison Margiela sweatshirt, layered over two thinner tops. The garment featured white paint marks and the fashion house’s name stylised on the hem. Pitt completed the deliberately casual look with patched acid-wash jeans, lime-green trainers, a navy fedora and squared aviator-style glasses. He also wore a…

A large police presence was reported at the Motel 6 in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, on Wednesday night, 9 September, as the nearby Milwaukee Area Technical College campus was placed under a brief lockdown. Students and staff at MATC’s Oak Creek Campus were instructed to lock all doors and windows and remain in their current locations, according to an alert issued by the college. Authorities had not released details about what prompted the lockdown. It was also unclear whether the police operation at the Motel 6 was connected to the incident at the campus. The Oak Creek Campus is located on…

Moira Deeming will contest Victoria’s November state election as a Family First candidate after being removed from the Liberal ticket, saying she has no regrets about accusing former colleague Matthew Guy of putting her in a “headlock”. The former Liberal MP announced on Thursday that she had joined the conservative minor party and would stand as its lead candidate for the Western Metropolitan Region in the Legislative Council. Family First national director Lyle Shelton said the party’s federal executive had endorsed Ms Deeming, describing her as a “courageous” parliamentarian with the “resilience and tenacity” to represent families in Melbourne’s west.…

Marius Borg Høiby appeared to be kept at arm’s length by Queen Sonja during the funeral of her late husband, King Harald V, at Oslo Cathedral on Wednesday. The 29-year-old, who has no royal title or official duties, attended the service alongside his mother, Queen Mette-Marit, his stepfather King Haakon VIII and his half-siblings Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra and Prince Sverre Magnus. But Høiby was seated behind the senior members of the family, alongside his step-aunt Princess Märtha Louise and her daughters, rather than in the row with his mother, the new king and his children. Footage shared online appeared…

The Bank of Korea will assess domestic and international economic conditions before deciding the timing and pace of any further interest-rate increases, board member Kim Jong-hwa has said. Mr Kim said the central bank would examine the effects of its previous two rate rises, alongside changes in policy and economic conditions at home and abroad. His comments were released with the Bank of Korea’s semi-annual monetary policy report. “I think it is necessary to assess changes in external and internal conditions to determine the timing and pace of additional hikes,” Mr Kim said. South Korea’s central bank raised its benchmark…

Henry Winkler has revisited the long-running tension between himself and Tom Hanks, saying he is still trying to form a view of their relationship decades after he was dismissed as director of the 1989 film Turner & Hooch. The 80-year-old actor discussed the episode during an appearance on In Depth With Graham Bensinger, recalling how he was removed from the production after just 13 days. Hanks, now 70, starred in the Disney comedy as detective Scott Turner. Winkler said he had initially felt he was not the right person to direct the film, but accepted the opportunity after being personally…