New research from the University of Queensland has revealed that human-induced climate change has led to a 20% rise in heatwave-related deaths. And if you live in a city, you’re at an even higher risk. The study, the largest of its kind in Australia, found that people in urban areas—especially those with lower incomes, less education, or existing health conditions—are more vulnerable to extreme heat compared to those in regional areas. That’s because of the urban heat island effect —where roads, buildings, and railway lines absorb and trap heat, making cities significantly hotter than surrounding rural areas. PhD candidate Patrick Amoatey, who led the study, said even lower-intensity heatwaves were linked to an increase in deaths. He believes a Heatwave Vulnerability Index , already used in other countries, could help Australian authorities predict spikes in ambulance callouts and mortality rates during extreme heat events. “We already have useful tools and state-based action plans, but a vulnerability index could help communities better plan and build resilience,” he said. So, what exactly counts as a heatwave? According to experts, it's three consecutive days where the maximum temperature sits in the top five percent for that area. And these events are only going to become more common. "Our results suggest heatwaves with higher mortality rates will happen more often in the future," said Associate Professor Nicholas Osborne. "From a public health perspective, our studies can help guide decisions on health infrastructure and the workforce needed to cope with rising demand during heatwaves." A separate study by researchers from UQ and the Australian National University looked at Victoria’s extreme heatwave in January 2009. During that five-day event, temperatures soared 12–15°C above normal , leading to an estimated 374 excess deaths . Dr. Osborne said climate change had increased the death toll of that event by 20% . “These findings align with other research showing heat-related deaths are rising due to human-induced climate change,” he said. With cities home to 70% of Australia’s population , the study highlights the urgent need for better planning, public health strategies, and infrastructure to help communities withstand future heatwaves.

ශ්‍රී ලංකාව මධ්‍යකාලීනව 5%ක ආර්ථික වර්ධනයක් අපේක්ෂා කරන බව ජනාධිපති අනුර කුමාර දිසානායක මහතා 2025 අයවැය ඉදිරිපත් කරමින් පැවසීය. ජාත්‍යන්තර නියෝජිතායතනවලට අනුව, ශ්‍රී ලංකාව 2024 දී බලාපොරොත්තු වූවාට වඩා හොඳින් ක්‍රියාත්මක වන බැවින්, මේ වසරේ ඉහළ වර්ධනයක් අත්විඳිනු ඇත. ඒ අනුව, ඉදිරි මාසවලදී නිකුත් කිරීමට අපේක්ෂා කරන විවිධ ජාත්‍යන්තර නියෝජිතායතනවල ඉදිරි දැක්ම තුළ දිවයින ජාතිය ඉහළ ආර්ථික වර්ධන ප්‍රක්ෂේපණයක් දකිනු ඇත.

A terrifying plane crash at Toronto Pearson Airport has left three people critically injured and several others hurt after a Delta Air Lines commuter jet flipped over on the runway. The Mitsubishi CRJ-900LR, carrying 80 people, crash-landed around 2:45 p.m. local time on Monday (Tuesday AEDT), with emergency crews rushing to the scene. A medical helicopter pilot in the area described the chaos unfolding on the runway. "The aircraft is upside down and burning,"  the pilot reported in audio recorded by LiveATC . Air traffic control confirmed that passengers were seen walking around the wreckage, with emergency teams scrambling to assist. Injuries and Response Delta Airlines confirmed that at least 18 passengers were injured, with three in critical condition—including one child. The rest suffered minor to moderate injuries. Thankfully, all crew and passengers have been accounted for. The quick response from first responders was praised for preventing a loss of life. Deborah Flint, CEO of Toronto Pearson Airport, called it a “textbook response” , crediting trained professionals for the swift evacuation and emergency efforts. Possible Cause: Harsh Weather Investigators are still piecing together what caused the plane to crash, but rough weather conditions may have played a role. At the time of the crash, the airport was experiencing blowing snow, strong winds gusting up to 65 km/h, and freezing temperatures of -8°C. A Troubling Pattern in Aviation This latest crash comes just weeks after an American Airlines plane collided midair with a US Army Black Hawk helicopter near Washington, D.C., and follows other recent accidents involving Jeju Air and Azerbaijan Airlines. With safety concerns in the spotlight, investigators will now work to determine exactly what went wrong in Toronto.

An Australian family has been hit with a shocking $116,000 land tax bill after a technicality involving residency requirements. Sydney parents James and Susan, who have two young daughters, shared their story on 2GB’s Ben Fordham Live , revealing how they received the hefty tax bill on their family home due to Susan’s residency status. Susan, originally from Scotland and a permanent resident of Australia, had to leave the country to care for her sick mother. Unfortunately, Susan spent over nine months in Scotland, which meant she was out of Australia for more than 270 days—breaking the rule that requires permanent residents to spend at least 200 continuous days in the country to avoid the land tax surcharge. According to NSW law, "foreign buyers" who own property in the state must pay an extra land tax based on the value of their property—8% if the property was purchased between July 1, 2017, and December 31, 2024. However, permanent residents are exempt from this tax if they meet the 200-day rule. Susan explained to Fordham, “We certainly didn’t know anything about it. We went to care for Mum… we had no choice.” She added that her mother had been diagnosed in Australia, and Susan had to fly her back to Scotland for 24-hour care. “When we came back… it was already a traumatic time, and three days later, we landed with a letter saying that we owed this fine.” The family was blindsided by the tax bill and Susan applied to have it waived, citing "exceptional circumstances," but her request was rejected by Revenue NSW. James, who is Australian-born, said he never imagined his wife would be considered a "foreigner" under the law. "We don’t consider ourselves foreigners, so it’s not something we thought about, really," he said. Susan echoed that sentiment, saying, “It’s a beautiful country. We call it our home. I don’t consider ourselves foreigners. It’s certainly not an investment property, it’s our family home.” Now, the couple is facing the challenge of paying off the bill, with $11,000 due each month, and they’ve already paid $33,000 so far. James said, “I don’t understand why our situation isn’t exceptional, because I can’t think of anything worse.” It’s a tough situation for the family, and they're hoping for some resolution soon.

In a move that will impact the housing market, Australian residents won’t have to compete with foreign investors at auctions or when buying existing homes, regardless of who wins the upcoming election. The Albanese government announced today that it will mirror a pledge from the Coalition, banning foreign buyers from purchasing already built homes for two years, starting April 1. Housing Minister Clare O'Neil explained that the policy is aimed at “freeing up thousands of properties for Australians.” She emphasized the need for more homes, saying, “We’re in the midst of a housing crisis because for 30 years governments around the country haven’t built enough homes for the Australians who need it.” Opposition Leader Peter Dutton had actually proposed the idea in his budget reply last year, but now the government’s adopting the same approach. Michael Sukkar, the opposition’s housing spokesman, wasn’t happy about the timing, saying, “They absolutely bucketed this policy for the last 12 months and now five minutes before the election, they copy it.” The Greens also jumped on the bandwagon, criticizing the policy, with housing spokesman Max Chandler-Mather saying it “will not touch the sides of the housing crisis.” She argues that the policy won’t make a real difference. Meanwhile, the Coalition is sticking to its plan to allow first home buyers to access up to $50,000 from their superannuation to help with buying a home. Dutton defended the idea, saying, “I want to see Australians first into housing, and that includes first-generation Australian citizens.” But the Greens have also hit back at this, with Chandler-Mather pointing out, “Are they seriously suggesting the new deal for young people is you might get to buy a home, but you have to drain your retirement savings to do it?” In the latest polling, the Coalition is currently ahead of Labor, with YouGov’s poll of 40,000 voters showing them leading 51.1% to 48.9%. But even with this lead, Dutton would still need to negotiate with crossbenchers if those numbers hold up in the election. Some of these independents are looking for more changes in how Parliament operates. Independent Allegra Spender shared her views with Insiders , saying it’s not just about forming a government but also about how decisions are made in Parliament. Looks like the housing debate isn’t the only thing heating up!

රට පුරා පවතින අධික වියළි කාලගුණික තත්ත්වය මෙම මාසය පුරාවටම පවතිනු ඇතැයි අපේක්ෂා කරන බව කාලගුණ විද්‍යා දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව පවසයි. කාලගුණ විද්‍යාඥ මලිත් ප්‍රනාන්දු ප්‍රකාශ කළේ ඉදිරි දිනවලදීත් ප්‍රදේශ රැසකට වියළි කාලගුණ තත්ත්වයක් පැවතිය හැකි බවයි. පෙර සතිය හා සසඳන විට, විශේෂයෙන් මධ්‍යහ්න වේලාවන්හිදී, අධික තාපය දිගටම පවතිනු ඇතැයි අපේක්ෂා කරන ලද, වටහාගත් උෂ්ණත්ව මට්ටම් සැලකිය යුතු ලෙස ඉහළ ගොස් ඇත. අධික උෂ්ණත්වයට එරෙහිව පූර්ව ආරක්ෂණ පියවර - පෙරවරු 11.00 සිට පස්වරු 3.00 දක්වා සෘජු හිරු එළියට නිරාවරණය වීමෙන් වළකින්න. - වියළි ආහාර පරිභෝජනයට වඩා තරල පරිභෝජනය වැඩි කිරීම සහ සජලනය වීම. - වායු ප්රවාහය පවත්වා ගැනීම සඳහා නිවාස සහ සේවා ස්ථානවල නිසි වාතාශ්රය සහතික කිරීම. - කුඩා දරුවන්, වැඩිහිටියන් සහ රෝගී තත්වයන් ඇති අය සඳහා අමතර සැලකිල්ලක් දැක්විය යුතුය. - වියලි තත්ත්‍වයේ දී සුපරීක්ෂාකාරීව කටයුතු කිරීමෙන් ලැව් ගිනි වැළැක්වීම. අධික උණුසුම සහ වියලි කාලගුණය මාසය පුරා පවතිනු ඇතැයි අපේක්ෂා කරන බැවින් තම සෞඛ්‍යය සහ යහපැවැත්ම ආරක්ෂා කර ගැනීමට අවශ්‍ය පියවර ගන්නා ලෙස මහජනතාවගෙන් ඉල්ලා සිටී.

Mortgage holders across Australia are keeping a close eye on the Reserve Bank’s first meeting of the year, hoping for the first interest rate cut in five years. The RBA board will announce its decision at 2:30 PM tomorrow, after weeks of speculation from economists. Many predict a 25-basis-point cut, which would bring the cash rate down to 4.1%. But not everyone is convinced. John Kehoe, economics editor at the Australian Financial Review , told Today  this morning that he’s not entirely sold on the idea. "It's a finely balanced call for the Reserve Bank tomorrow. The markets are saying there’s a 90% chance of a cut, but I’m more in the 60-40 camp,” he said. Even if the RBA does decide to lower rates, Kehoe says it won’t be a game-changer for mortgage holders or the ongoing housing shortage. "It might help a little bit with confidence and construction costs, but I don't think it’s going to make a big difference to home building in the short term." Since November 2023, the official cash rate has been stuck at 4.35%, putting pressure on households and businesses. But with inflation easing, economists believe the RBA now has the space to provide some relief. Last month’s consumer price index data for the December quarter showed inflation dropping to 2.4%, with the RBA’s preferred underlying measure sitting at 3.2%—well within the target range. If the RBA does cut rates, the next big question will be whether banks pass those savings on to mortgage holders. Beyond household budgets, the RBA’s decision will also be closely watched by the federal government. With Prime Minister Anthony Albanese needing to call an election by May, a rate cut could bolster his government’s economic track record just in time for the campaign. For now, mortgage holders are just hoping for some good news.

Heavy rain and flooding are on the way for parts of WA as ex-Tropical Cyclone Zelia moves southwest, bringing wet and stormy conditions across the state. A major flood warning is in place for the De Grey River catchment in Port Hedland, one of the worst-hit areas in the Pilbara. Flooding is also expected in the Sandy Desert, which stretches across the Pilbara and Kimberley regions. On top of that, showers and gusty thunderstorms are forecast for the Kimberley, Interior, southeast Gascoyne, Goldfields, and Eucla, with the wild weather expected to stick around until Thursday. Zelia, which slammed into WA’s northwest a week ago, was officially downgraded to a tropical low on Saturday as the gale-force winds died down. However, flooding is still a concern, with moderate warnings in place for the Nullagine and Coongan Rivers in Port Hedland. In Marble Bar, floodwaters in the Shaw and Oakover Rivers are finally starting to ease. Things should calm down in the Pilbara as the week goes on, with flooding in the De Grey River catchment expected to subside soon. Over on the east coast, things are much quieter. Queensland’s North Tropical Coast and Tablelands are seeing calmer conditions as rain and storms move inland, making way for hot weather. There’s still a major flood warning for the Lower Flinders River in the state’s interior, while minor flooding is easing in the Herbert, Albert, and lower Burdekin rivers. Flooding is also expected for the Diamantina, Norman, and Gilbert Rivers, with showers lingering in the region until Wednesday before easing on Thursday. Heatwave warnings for the North Tropical Coast and Tablelands, as well as the Herbert and Lower Burdekin Districts, are expected to ease up by mid-week, according to the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM). In the meantime, daytime temperatures are hovering in the low to mid-30s. So, if you're in WA, brace for more wet weather, and if you're in Queensland, get ready for the heat!

Today, Sydney's rail network is in chaos with around 465 train services, about a quarter of what's scheduled, being Cancelled due to more than 350 missing drivers and guards. Sydney Trains CEO Matthew Longland has warned the situation could get worse as it's still unclear how many staff on the afternoon shift will be absent. Commuters are facing yet another rough day on the trains, with talks on a new bargaining agreement breaking down last night. It's still uncertain whether this stand-off will stretch into the weekend, according to Transport Minister John Graham. The government is even considering legal action, possibly taking the matter to the Fair Work Commission today. At the heart of the issue is a dispute over a $4500 sign-on bonus for rail workers, which the union says can't just be erased, while the government insists it was meant to be a one-time deal. Negotiations over this have been tense, with the government valuing the bonus at $60 million for the entire workforce. Treasurer Daniel Mookhey suggested that the union was essentially fighting for that $60 million. There's also confusion about what’s causing the disruptions. The government claims it's “industrial action” after the union agreed to a “go-slow” day, which slows down the trains, following the breakdown in talks. Mookhey has even accused the union of “gaslighting” Sydney. However, RTBU NSW secretary Toby Warnes says the union called off the action after receiving "lock-out" notices for 5000 workers from the government. The government argues that this isn't a lockout, but a policy of not paying workers who are participating in industrial action. Longland echoed this, saying it’s "in no way, shape, or form" a lockout. In the meantime, commuters are being told to avoid non-urgent travel and find other transport options. A limited coach service is running between Central and Sydney Airport, and the Metro, light rail, and other public transport options are still operating normally.

බිලියනපති ව්‍යාපාරික එලොන් මස්ක් මහතාගේ රාජ්‍ය කාර්යක්ෂමතා දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව  (DOGE) අපහසු සහ අවශ්‍ය නොවන වියදම් ලෙස සැලකුණු කිහිපයක් අවසන් කර තිබේ. මෙයට ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ කළමනාකරණ ව්‍යාපෘතියක්ද අයත්ය. ‘X’ වෙත පල කළ පෝස්ට් පණිවිඩයක් තුළ, මෙම දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව ව්‍යාපෘති 199 ක් අවසන් කර ඇති අතර, ඒ අතරින් දෙකක් නමින් සඳහන් කර තිබේ. “පසුගිය දින 2 තුළ, ආයතන 35 ක් අතර විශිෂ්ට සම්මුතියක් ඇති කිරීම සඳහා, අඩුම $250 මිලියනක මුදලක් ඉතිරි කිරීමට, වියදම් වැඩසටහන් 199 ක් අවසන් කළහ. ඒ අතර: “ආසියා-ශාන්තිකා මුහුද - ශ්‍රී ලංකා දේශගුණීය වෙනස්කම් හැසිරවීමේ හැකියාවන් සහ කාළගුණ ප්‍රතිරෝධය සඳහා වන වන සේවා කට්ටලය” “අන්තර සංස්කෘතික සන්නිවේදන විවිධත්ව සංවාද චක්‍රය: වෙනස්කම් හරහා සන්නිවේදනය” වැඩමුළුව එලොන් මස්ක් මහතාගේ අදහසට අනූව, ‘දේශගුණීය විකල්පවාදී ව්‍යාපෘති’  ඔහු පාලනය කිරීමට කැමති ප්‍රධාන ක්ෂේත්‍රයක් වන අතර. ඔහුගේ දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව, රාජ්‍ය ආයතනවල අවශ්‍ය නොවන වියදම් අඩු කිරීමේ දැක්මකට මුල පුරන බවයි.

Here's something interesting for Aussie homeowners—there’s a growing buzz around a potential interest rate cut from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) next week. If it happens, it could finally bring some much-needed relief for mortgage holders. The RBA is set to meet on Monday and Tuesday, with the big decision dropping Tuesday afternoon (AEDT). And according to a Finder survey of 37 economic experts, nearly three-quarters (73%) believe the central bank will announce a rate cut. If the RBA pulls the trigger, we could see the cash rate drop by 25 basis points to 4.1%. That might not sound like much, but for homeowners, it could mean real savings on monthly mortgage repayments. What the experts are saying Finder’s head of consumer research, Graham Cooke, says the pressure is on for a rate cut. “Headline inflation is within the target range, and has been for a while. With trimmed mean inflation falling, this has heaped pressure on the RBA to cut,” Cooke said. But not everyone is convinced. QUT Adjunct Professor Noel Whittaker believes the RBA will hold off a little longer. “The problem is inflation in the building industry remains massive, labour shortages are severe, and the job market is still strong—keeping inflationary pressure on the economy,” Whittaker said. “It’s a sad system when mortgage holders bear the brunt of the fight against inflation.” On the flip side, AMP’s Shane Oliver is firmly in the rate-cut camp. “Underlying inflation is falling faster than the RBA expected, and has been running around target for the last six months,” Oliver explained. “Economic activity is a bit weaker than expected, and Trump’s trade war poses more risks to Australian growth than inflation.” What a rate cut could mean for you If the RBA cuts the rate and your lender passes on the savings in full, homeowners with the average loan of $641,416  could see their mortgage payments drop from $3,887 to $3,784 —a saving of $103 per month . For those who recently bought a home, the savings could be even bigger. Sydney buyers with an average mortgage of $1.13 million  could save $145 per month  ($1,740 per year). Perth buyers with an average loan of $724,679  could save $93 per month  ($1,116 per year). Time to shop around? Even if rates don’t drop next week, Cooke says it’s the perfect time to review your mortgage. “If you’re not getting the most competitive rate, why stick with your current lender?” he said. “Call your bank and ask for a better deal. If they can’t help, it might be time to go home loan shopping.” With more than one in three homeowners (38%) struggling  to meet their mortgage payments in January, any relief would be a welcome change. Let’s see what the RBA has in store next Tuesday!

පෙබරවාරි 17 වැනිදා පාර්ලිමේන්තුවට ඉදිරිපත් කිරීමට නියමිත 2025 අයවැය කෙටුම්පත් කිරීමේ අවසන් අදියර පිළිබඳ මූලික සාකච්ඡාවක් ජනාධිපති අනුර කුමාර දිසානායක මහතාගේ ප්‍රධානත්වයෙන් ජනාධිපති ලේකම් කාර්යාලයේදී පැවැත්විණි. මෙම සාකච්ඡාවට කෘෂිකර්ම, පශු සම්පත්, ඉඩම් හා වාරිමාර්ග අමාත්‍ය කේ.ඩී. ලාල්කාන්ත, වෙළෙඳ, වාණිජ, ආහාර සුරක්ෂිතතාව සහ සමුපකාර සංවර්ධන අමාත්‍ය වසන්ත සමරසිංහ, කම්කරු අමාත්‍ය සහ ආර්ථික සංවර්ධන නියෝජ්‍ය අමාත්‍ය ආචාර්ය අනිල් ජයන්ත ප්‍රනාන්දු, ජනාධිපති ලේකම් ආචාර්ය නන්දික සනත් කුමානායක, මුදල් අමාත්‍යාංශයේ ලේකම් මහින්ද සිරිවර්ධන යන මහත්වරුන් ඇතුළු රාජ්‍ය ජ්‍යෙෂ්ඨ නිලධාරීන් රැසක් එක්ව සිටියහ.