At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Victoria’s proposed work-from-home laws are set to expand, with casual and part-time employees also expected to gain the right to work remotely where their job allows. The Allan Government will introduce the legislation to Parliament this week, aiming to make working from home up to two days a week a protected workplace right under state law. Under the proposal, casual and part-time staff would receive work-from-home entitlements based on the hours they work. The government says the policy could help workers save thousands of dollars each year on commuting and other costs. If passed, the new laws will take effect from September 1, 2026. Small businesses with fewer than 15 employees will be given until July 2027 to comply. The legislation will also create a formal process for resolving disputes between employers and employees. Initial complaints will be handled by the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission, with unresolved cases referred to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal. Business groups have criticised the proposal, arguing workplace arrangements should remain flexible and negotiated directly between employers and staff. However, the government says the reforms will protect flexible work options and support workforce participation, particularly for families and carers. The Coalition is yet to confirm whether it will support the legislation when it reaches Parliament. Source : The Age News Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. විදේශගත ශ්‍රී ලාංකිකයන් සඳහා පැමිණිලි සහ ඉල්ලීම් කළමනාකරණය කිරීමේ නව ඩිජිටල් වේදිකාවක් වන “LankaKonect” ජංගම යෙදුම අද (16) දියත් කරන බව විදේශ කටයුතු අමාත්‍යාංශය නිවේදනය කර ඇත. විදේශ කටයුතු නියෝජ්‍ය අමාත්‍ය අරුණ හේමචන්ද්‍ර මහතා මෙම වැඩසටහන හඳුන්වා දෙමින් සඳහන් කළේ, මෙය වඩාත් ප්‍රවේශ විය හැකි, කඩිනම් ප්‍රතිචාර ලබාදෙන සහ ජනතා හිතකාමී කොන්සියුලර් සේවාවන් ස්ථාපිත කිරීමේ වැදගත් පියවරක් බවයි. වාර්තා වන අන්දමට, මෙම ජංගම යෙදුම විදේශගත ශ්‍රී ලාංකිකයන් විසින් ඉදිරිපත් කරන පැමිණිලි හා සේවා ඉල්ලීම් කාර්යක්ෂමව කළමනාකරණය කිරීම සඳහා නිර්මාණය කර ඇති අතර, ඒ මඟින් වඩාත් වේගවත් ප්‍රතිචාර ලබාදීම සහ කොන්සියුලර් සේවාවන්හි විනිවිදභාවය ඉහළ නැංවීම අපේක්ෂා කෙරේ. එමෙන්ම, විදේශගත ශ්‍රී ලාංකික ප්‍රජාව සහ ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ රාජ්‍ය ආයතන අතර සම්බන්ධතා ශක්තිමත් කරමින්, සේවා සැපයීමේ ක්‍රියාවලිය නවීකරණය කිරීම සඳහාද මෙම LankaKonect යෙදුම උපකාරී වනු ඇතැයි අපේක්ෂා කෙරේ. Source : Newswire More updates to come on AusNewsLanka.

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. The Federal Government is expected to decide within the next week whether to extend its temporary fuel tax cut, which is currently scheduled to end on June 30. The measure, introduced in April to ease cost-of-living pressures, has lowered petrol prices by around 32 cents per litre through a combination of excise reductions and rebates. Nationals leader Matt Canavan has criticised any potential extension, arguing that temporary fuel discounts do not address broader economic challenges. He has called on the government to focus on long-term economic growth and tax reform instead. Finance Minister Katy Gallagher said the fuel tax relief was always intended as a short-term response to global energy market disruptions linked to conflict in the Middle East. However, she confirmed the government is still considering whether further support is needed. The fuel price relief was introduced after global oil markets were impacted by tensions affecting key shipping routes in the region. Recent developments, including a reported peace agreement between the parties involved, may influence the government's final decision. Motorists are now awaiting confirmation on whether the petrol tax cut will continue beyond the end of this month. Source : News.com Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australia’s big four banks Westpac, ANZ, CBA and NAB are aligned in expecting no change to interest rates at the Reserve Bank of Australia’s meeting this week. The RBA board meets over the next two days, with all four banks forecasting the cash rate will remain at 4.35%, a level held for an extended period as the central bank continues its fight against inflation. This pause would follow a series of earlier rate hikes aimed at bringing inflation under control. Canstar.com.au insights director Sally Tindall said markets are now largely confident the RBA will keep rates steady, with attention shifting to when cuts might eventually begin. ANZ has recently revised its outlook, now expecting two rate cuts of 0.25% in 2027, bringing the cash rate down to 3.85%. That marks a shift from its earlier view that rates would stay unchanged for longer. Westpac takes a more cautious stance, forecasting possible rate increases later this year before any cuts are considered in 2028. For mortgage holders, the difference in outlook matters. A 0.25% rise in August could add about $92 a month in repayments on a $600,000 loan over 25 years. Further increases would push total monthly costs up by roughly $364 across 2026 so far. Despite some agreement on eventual rate cuts, economists remain split on timing, highlighting ongoing uncertainty in the economy. Inflation is still above target, and global risks continue to weigh on the outlook, keeping the RBA in a watchful position. Source : 9 News Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. ආර්ථික අර්බුදය හේතුවෙන් නතර කර තිබූ කටුනායක බණ්ඩාරනායක ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළේ (BIA) දෙවන මගී පර්යන්තයේ ඉදිකිරීම් කටයුතු මේ වසරේ නොවැම්බර් මාසයේදී නැවත ආරම්භ කිරීමට නියමිතය. නිවේදනයක් නිකුත් කරමින් වරාය හා සිවිල් ගුවන් සේවා අමාත්‍යාංශය පැවසුවේ ව්‍යාපෘතිය නැවත ආරම්භ කළ දින සිට මාස 30ක් ඇතුළත අවසන් කිරීමට අපේක්ෂා කරන බවයි. වරාය හා සිවිල් ගුවන් සේවා අමාත්‍ය අනුර කරුණාතිලක සහ ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ ජපන් තානාපති ඉසොමාටා අකියෝ අතර පැවති විශේෂ හමුවකදී මෙම කරුණ සාකච්ඡා කෙරිණි. ජපාන ජාත්‍යන්තර සහයෝගිතා ඒජන්සියේ (JICA) නියෝජිත පිරිසක් ද මෙම රැස්වීමට සහභාගී වූහ. සාකච්ඡාවේ ප්‍රධාන අරමුණ වූයේ ව්‍යාපෘතියට අදාළ ණය මුදල සහ කොන්ත්‍රාත් වටිනාකම අනුමත කිරීම කඩිනම් කිරීමයි. මෙම පියවරයන් අවසන් වූ පසු, ඉදිකිරීම් කටයුතු නොවැම්බර් මාසයේදී නැවත ආරම්භ කළ හැකි බව අමාත්‍යාංශය ප්‍රකාශ කළේය. දෙවන පර්යන්තයේ ඉදිකිරීම් මුලින් ආරම්භ වූයේ 2020 දෙසැම්බර් මාසයේදීය. ව්‍යාපෘතිය සඳහා ජපාන රජය යෙන් බිලියන 75 ක ණය පහසුකමක් ලබා දුන්නේය. කෙසේ වෙතත්, ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ ආර්ථික අර්බුදය හේතුවෙන්, 2022 අප්‍රේල් මාසයේදී ඉදිකිරීම් තාවකාලිකව අත්හිටුවන ලදී. ව්‍යාපෘතිය සඳහා ප්‍රසම්පාදන ක්‍රියාවලිය 2024 අගභාගයේදී නැවත ආරම්භ කරන ලද අතර, 2025 දී ලංසු තැබීම අවසන් කරන ලදී. අදාළ කොන්ත්‍රාත්කරුවන් තෝරා ගැනීමේ ක්‍රියාවලිය දැනට අවසන් අදියරේ පවතින බව එහි සඳහන් වේ. තවද, ශ්‍රී ලංකා රජය, ජපාන රජය සහ JICA අතර සාකච්ඡා වට කිහිපයකින් පසුව, වත්මන් රජය කෙරෙහි ඇති විශ්වාසය මත පදනම්ව, ව්‍යාපෘතිය සම්පූර්ණ කිරීම සඳහා අවශ්‍ය ණය පහසුකම් ලබා දීමට ජපන් පාර්ශවය එකඟතාව පළ කර ඇති බව එම නිවේදනයේ සඳහන් වේ. අවශ්‍ය ණය මුදල සඳහා අනුමැතිය ලබා ගැනීම සඳහා මුදල් අමාත්‍යාංශය සමඟ කඩිනම් සාකච්ඡා පැවැත්වීමට ද අමාත්‍යවරයා එකඟ විය. රැස්වීම අතරතුර, ණය මුදල අවසන් කිරීම සහ ණය ගිවිසුම අත්සන් කිරීම පළමු පියවර විය යුතු බවත්, සාකච්ඡා කළ මිල මත පදනම්ව කොන්ත්‍රාත්තුව ප්‍රදානය කිරීම පසුව සිදු කළ යුතු බවත් JICA නියෝජිත පිරිස යෝජනා කළහ. Source : Derena News More updates to come on AusNewsLanka.

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australia’s migration debate should focus not only on how many people arrive, but on how many are given the opportunity to build a long-term future in the country, according to a new analysis of the nation’s migration system. The report argues that Australia has shifted from a settlement-based migration model to one increasingly reliant on temporary visas. While permanent migrants made up the majority of long-term arrivals in the 1960s, temporary visa holders now account for most new arrivals. Supporters of a stronger permanent migration program say long-term visa certainty encourages migrants to invest in their communities, buy homes, start businesses and build careers in Australia. In contrast, temporary visa holders often face uncertainty about their future, making long-term planning more difficult. The analysis also highlights the role of international students, who contribute billions of dollars to the Australian economy each year through tuition fees and spending. It suggests that students studying in areas facing skills shortages, such as healthcare, education, engineering, construction and technology, should have clearer pathways to permanent residency. Advocates argue that graduates trained in Australia are already familiar with local workplaces, culture and community life, making them well positioned to fill future workforce gaps and integrate successfully into society. However, the report stresses that any expansion of permanent migration must be matched by increased housing supply, infrastructure investment and long-term planning. Without adequate housing and services, population growth could place further pressure on communities. The analysis concludes that Australia would benefit from reducing reliance on long-term temporary visas and creating more structured pathways to permanent residency for skilled migrants. It argues that a migration system focused on settlement, workforce needs and community integration would deliver stronger economic and social outcomes for the country in the years ahead. Source : Indaily News Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Woolworths says it is making structural changes across parts of its business as it looks to reduce costs and keep prices competitive amid rising living expenses and stronger international competition. The company says customers are under pressure from inflation and cost-of-living increases, and it is focusing on improving efficiency to maintain “low prices” and service standards. As part of the changes, Woolworths is reviewing its corporate operations, including proposals to expand global service arrangements and outsource some functions. Consultations with affected teams are expected to continue throughout the week. Woolworths says it already operates with overseas teams and external service partners, and regularly reviews these arrangements to cut costs and improve capability. The supermarket giant is also responding to growing competition from international players, including fast-expanding online retailers such as Amazon, which are putting pressure on pricing and delivery expectations. The company has invested heavily in its supply chain and digital operations in Australia to stay competitive, particularly in online grocery delivery. Despite the restructuring, Woolworths says it plans to open 24 new stores across Australia and New Zealand over the coming year, creating around 2,500 jobs. The changes come as the company continues to manage higher input costs across fuel, freight and agricultural supply chains, which it says are gradually flowing through to food prices such as fresh produce, dairy and bread. Source : 7 News Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australians can expect a mixed weather outlook over the coming days, with rain, thunderstorms and cooler conditions affecting several parts of the country. Queensland's coastline is set for the wettest weather, with widespread showers and thunderstorms forecast from the southeast to the tropical north. Brisbane is expected to reach 23°C. New South Wales will remain mostly dry, although isolated showers are possible in the northeast. Sydney is forecast to reach 20°C, while Canberra can expect a cooler day with a top of 17°C. Victoria and Tasmania will start with milder-than-average temperatures, but conditions are expected to turn cooler and windier later in the day. Melbourne is forecast to reach 19°C after a foggy morning, while Hobart will see sunshine before cloud increases, with a top of 16°C. South Australia is set for a change in conditions as a cold front moves across the state, bringing showers and cloud cover. Adelaide is forecast to reach 23°C. In Western Australia, a large cloud band is expected to deliver unseasonably heavy rainfall to parts of the Gascoyne and Pilbara regions before spreading further south and east. Perth is forecast to reach 17°C after early rain. Meanwhile, the Northern Territory's Top End will remain mostly sunny and dry, with Darwin expected to reach a warm 33°C. Weather authorities are urging residents and travellers in affected regions to stay updated with the latest forecasts and warnings. Source : News.com Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. ඔස්ට්‍රේලියාවේ සිඩ්නි නුවර බලා අද (12) අලුයම පිටත්ව ගිය ශ්‍රී ලංකන් ගුවන් සේවයට අයත් ගුවන් යානයක් ගමන් අතරතුර අකුණු සැරකට ලක්වීම හේතුවෙන් ආරක්ෂිත පියවරක් ලෙස නැවත බණ්ඩාරනායක ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන් තොටුපොළ (BIA) වෙත ගොඩබැස්වීමට සිදුව ඇති බව ගුවන් තොටුපොළ රාජකාරි නිලධාරියෙකු සඳහන් කළේය. ශ්‍රී ලංකන් ගුවන් සේවයට අයත් UL-606 දරන ගුවන් යානය අද අලුයම 1.00ට පමණ කටුනායක ගුවන් තොටුපොළෙන් සිඩ්නි බලා පිටත්ව ගොස් තිබුණි. සිද්ධිය සිදුවන අවස්ථාවේ එම පුළුල් දේහ වර්ගයේ Airbus A330 ගුවන් යානයේ මගීන් 217 දෙනෙකු සහ කාර්ය මණ්ඩල සාමාජිකයින් 16 දෙනෙකු ගමන් කරමින් සිට ඇත. ප්‍රදේශයේ පැවති අයහපත් කාලගුණික තත්ත්වයන් සහ අකුණු සහිත වැසි හේතුවෙන් ගුවන් යානය ගමන් අතරතුර අකුණු සැරකට ලක්ව ඇති බව වාර්තා වේ. ඒ අනුව, පූර්වාරක්ෂක පියවරක් ලෙස ගමන අත්හිටුවීමට තීරණය කළ ගුවන් නියමුවා ගුවන් යානය අද අලුයම 1.40ට පමණ නැවත බණ්ඩාරනායක ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන් තොටුපොළ වෙත ආරක්ෂිතව ගොඩබස්වා ඇති බව සඳහන් කළේය. පසුව, එම මගීන් සිඩ්නි බලා රැගෙන යාම සඳහා ශ්‍රී ලංකන් ගුවන් සේවය විසින් එම වර්ගයේම තවත් Airbus A330 ගුවන් යානයක් යොදවා තිබේ. ඒ අනුව, ආදේශක ගුවන් යානය අද පෙරවරු 6.06ට පමණ කටුනායක ගුවන් තොටුපොළෙන් සිඩ්නි බලා පිටත්ව ගොස් ඇත. මේ අතර, අකුණු සැර වැදී බලපෑමට ලක් වූ ගුවන් යානය පරීක්ෂා කිරීම් සහ අලුත්වැඩියා කටයුතු සඳහා කටුනායක පිහිටි ශ්‍රී ලංකන් ගුවන් සේවයේ නඩත්තු අංගනය වෙත රැගෙන ගොස් ඇති බවද වාර්තා වේ. Source - Ada Derena News More updates to come on AusNewsLanka.

They set the bar at a level that took some beating, but still, few can compare to the versatility, endurance and musical finesse of fabulous Misty. Sri Lanka's top dance band for a comprehensive entertainment package over the decades, are in Melbourne wowing their fans and proving their popularity has not waned despite the passing of time. Only the Gypsies and to a lesser degree Mirage have drawn rave reviews and sell-out capability over the years in Australia for their popularity, but Misty have in their own inimitable style drawn love and acclaim from a cross section of Australians, not just Sri Lankan expatriates, for their extraordinary talent. Rajitha Rupesinghe heads a close knit band that have established themselves as an entertainment unit that can entertain at any level in the music world. They are talented, they can provide entertainment at a level few can. But maintaining that acclaim and sustaining it for decades is the ultimate challenge they have achieved for two decades and continue to achieve that which makes it remarkable. The music industry, much like any other entertainment, is challenging to those in it, longevity therefore, is proof of continued passion and innovation to last the course and keep the fans interested. Let's not single out Rajitha and his clan as the only elite, in an Island gifted with wonderful musicians, but my practical assessment from a musical wannabe who, as a young aspiring musician at a tender age, suggests that longevity undoubtedly proves a resounding history of success as Misty has. Staying ahead of the pack in an ever evolving art and generational change proves that Rajitha and Misty are a proven talent with a great following of die-hards. That's Rajitha and his merry men at Misty who have ruled and established themselves as one of the most loved and much looked forward to bands in many parts of the world. They have toured Australia and drawn sell-out crowds every time they tour, and that does not look like changing anytime soon. Rajitha refused to be drawn unto comparisons to other venues in the world they have performed at for obvious reasons but he was emphatic that touring and entertaining in Australia draws few parallels. My assessment of Misty's success is to be fair, on a band that delivers musical versatility, and not a comparison with the only folk and Baila bands that tour Australia which has a selective and separate following. Misty's fabulous line-up has been a tight knit group of gifted musicians who have established and grown respect from the best in the business for their dedication and attention to delivery. Led by Rajitha, leader and lead vocals, Udaya Welikala keyboardsand vocals, magical Dennis Perera on drums, Sanjeewa on bass and Sudath on lead and vocals form a formidable combination. Radika Rajavelu provides the female input into the vocal delivery that takes it to the next level and giving the band that extra impetus and allround compatibility. Rajitha Rupesinghe was unquestionably emotional as he reflected on the band's success on a global basis saying grabbing opportunity and making the most of is key to the band's success. He said that several sponsors that gave him and his band opportunity down under will remain in their memory beginning from Indran Niles, Malik Zaveer, Bertie Ekanaike and many others from Sri Lanka schools who kept their ongoing success something they will cherish. Tributes flowed from Sri Lanka and around the globe from musicians who love and appreciate this popular set-up. From Melbourne, it came from touring leader of the Gypsies Piyal Perera, former Misty bassist Chris Mant who leads Melbourne band Cloud 9, female icons Noeline Honter and Alston Koch and Esric Jackson who have all had a part in their tours here. Misty has every reason to celebrate their success and achievement over the last two decades and more. And doing it in Australia to celebrate a country that has given them due creedence and appreciation with their sponsors and selected fans will be an unforgettable celebration. Unfortunately Anne and I are pre-commited to another event. But I'm sure it will surely be a night that will be memorable. Thanks for the music Rajitha and Misty. Looking forward to your continued success. Article by Trevine Rodrigo

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Millions of Australians are paying more income tax as inflation and wage growth continue to push workers into higher tax brackets, reigniting debate over so-called "bracket creep". New analysis suggests that if income tax thresholds had been adjusted for inflation since 2010, the top 45 per cent tax rate would not begin until an annual income of about $280,000, compared with the current threshold of $190,000. The findings highlight how more workers are being taxed at higher rates despite rising living costs reducing the real value of their income. According to the analysis, the current 30 per cent tax bracket would extend to around $124,000 under an indexed system, while the 37 per cent bracket would begin above that level and continue to nearly $280,000. The issue has resurfaced amid ongoing debate over Australia's tax system, including recent changes to capital gains tax and negative gearing. The Coalition has renewed calls for automatic tax threshold adjustments to prevent workers from being pushed into higher tax brackets over time. Labor, meanwhile, points to its revised Stage 3 tax cuts, arguing they provide greater benefits for low- and middle-income earners. The debate underscores growing pressure on governments to address rising tax burdens as Australians continue to face cost-of-living challenges. Source : News.com Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. ශ්‍රී ලංකන් ගුවන් සේවයේ නව සභාපතිවරයා ලෙස ඩිමාල් අරන්දර මහතා නිල වශයෙන් පත් කර තිබේ. වැඩබලන සභාපතිවරයා ලෙස කටයුතු කළ අරන්දර මහතා දැන් ස්ථිර පදනමක් මත එම තනතුර භාර ගනී. ජාතික ගුවන් සේවය තුළ සංසරණය වූ අභ්‍යන්තර නිවේදනයකින් තහවුරු වූයේ ඉහළ මට්ටමේ පත්වීම ජනාධිපතිවරයාගේ සෘජු එකඟතාවයෙන් සිදු කර ඇති බවයි. මෙම වසර මුලදී හිටපු සභාපති සරත් ගනේගොඩ මහතා ඉල්ලා අස්වීමෙන් පසු ගුවන් සේවය දැඩි මූල්‍ය අභියෝග සහ දීර්ඝ විධායක සංක්‍රාන්තියක් සමඟ පොරබදමින් සිටින බැවින්, දැඩි මහජන පරීක්ෂාවකට ලක්වන කාල පරිච්ඡේදයක් අතරතුර ඔහු රජයට අයත් ගුවන් සේවයේ නායකත්වය භාර ගනී. මෙම පත්වීම සිදුවන්නේ පාඩු ලබන ආයතනයට තීරණාත්මක අවස්ථාවක වන අතර, මෑතකදී එය අතිරේක රුපියල් බිලියන 100 ක රාජ්‍ය අරමුදල් අපේක්ෂා කරන බවට වාර්තා වීම හේතුවෙන් දැඩි විවේචනවලට ලක්ව ඇත. Source : Sri Lankan Mirror More updates to come on AusNewsLanka.