
Australia to mandate cash payments for essential purchases from 2026
Australia will introduce a nationwide cash mandate requiring major grocery and fuel retailers to accept cash payments from January 1, 2026, in a move aimed at protecting consumers who rely on physical currency for everyday

Liberal MP breaks ranks to call for increase to Newstart
Liberal senator Dean Smith has broken ranks with the federal government to call for an increase to the Newstart payment. WA Senator Dean Smith has become the first Liberal MP to publicly back an increase

Aged care homes spending as little as $7 a day on residents food
Some aged care homes spend as little as $7 a day on food for each resident, a royal commission has been told. Celebrity chef Maggie Beer says that sort of budget is inadequate to prepare

Vic wants federal funds to remove cladding
The Commonwealth is being asked to stump up $300 million to help remove dangerous cladding from hundreds of buildings across Victoria. The state Labor government is establishing a $600 million fund, to be overseen by

Asylum seeker tries to set himself on fire at Melbourne detention facility
Another incident of self-harm has occurred in an Australian detention centre. An asylum seeker detained in the Melbourne Immigration Transit Accommodation facility has been taken to hospital after trying to set himself on fire, according

No paperwork, increasing rent: Sydney landlords exploiting international students
International students are being exploited by landlords in Sydney’s tight housing market, a new report has found. International students in Sydney are falling victim to financial exploitation by dodgy landlords, who are overcharging on bonds,

Record number of Aussies rush to file tax returns
A record number of Australians have lodged their tax returns in the hope of getting their hands on a hefty refund. About 650,000 people have already filed their tax returns, with this year’s early rush

Mitsotakis unveils major housing, loan and farming measures during Budget speech
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis used his address to Parliament during the debate on the State Budget to announce a series of significant policy initiatives targeting housing affordability, Swiss franc loan holders, and farmers. The announcements were described as some of the most substantial interventions of the current parliamentary term.

Mothers in Greece Mark World Breastfeeding Week
Hundreds of mothers breastfed their infants in public places in major cities across Greece on Sunday to mark World Breastfeeding Week celebrated throughout the globe. Mothers in Athens, Thessaloniki, Patra, Argos, Nafplio, Messolonghi Nafpaktos and

Albanian journalist says Albania’s PM Rama gave the go-ahead to kill Katsifas
The Albanian Prime Minister’s office gave the go-ahead to kill 35-year-old Greek man Konstantinos Katsifas, with the approval of Turkey, said Albanian journalist Kastriot Miftairi on mainstream television. The execution of Katsifas has cast a

Albanian Police kill Greek who raised Greece’s flag in Northern Epirus
A 35-year-old Greek, named Konstantinos Katsifas, was shot dead by the Albanian special forces near the village Bularat (Vouliarates) in Albania’s northern Epirus region, 6 kilometers (4 miles) from the Greek-Albanian border. According to Albania’s

Libya parliament speaker declares Turkey–Libya memorandum invalid, opens door to talks with Greece, Egypt and Turkey
Libya’s House of Representatives Speaker, Aqila Saleh, has publicly declared the 2019 Turkey–Libya maritime memorandum “invalid,” marking the first such statement in six years and signalling a potential shift in Libya’s approach to maritime disputes in the Eastern Mediterranean. Speaking to the Libyan News Agency, just days after an official
Barnier: EU ready to respond to Turkish provocations
Michel Barnier, the European Union’s chief negotiator for Brexit, reiterated on Monday EU readiness to respond accordingly in case Turkey carries out illegal hydrocarbon drilling activities, noting that the EU stands clearly behind Cyprus. Barnier,

100 Years of Silence
Pontus (“sea” in Greek),is an historical Greek designation for a region on the southern coast of the Black Sea, located in modern-day northeastern Anatolia, Turkey. The name was applied to the coastal region and its

EU warns Turkey against ‘illegal’ Cyprus drilling
The EU on Monday warned Turkey not to press ahead with exploratory drilling for oil and gas off Cyprus, calling the plan illegal and vowing to “respond appropriately”. The bloc’s diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini said

Venezuela – another failed coup attempt – What’s next?
In the early morning hours of 30 April, 2019, the self-declare “Interim President”, Juan Guaidó, launched what at first sight appeared to be a military coup – Guaidó calls it “Operation Freedom” (sounds very much

The largest natural deposit in the world in Crete
NATURAL GAS worth € 600.000.000.000 An Amazing scientific proven discovery that could mean enormous economic benefits to Greece, a solution to the pension insurance and securing tens/hundreds of thousands of jobs for at least 50

Turkey drills for gas in Cyprus’ waters, prompting EU outcry
The EU and US have urged Turkey to stop drilling for gas in Cyprus’ maritime zone – but Ankara has told its allies it would do so anyway. Brussels and Washington spoke out over the

