New Caledonia leader calls for France to grant independence vote to counter China’s ‘omnipresence’ in Pacific

Pro-independence parties boycotted last year’s referendum on a split from France, arguing Covid made campaigning too difficult

A prominent New Caledonian indigenous party has said that if France wants to have an economic and political stake in the Pacific – as China’s influence in the region rises to “omnipresence” – it needs to grant New Caledonia a fourth referendum on independence and treat the Pacific island as a partner, rather than a colony.

The calls come after a contentious referendum on independence last year which was boycotted by pro-independence parties, after they said holding a referendum during a severe Covid outbreak that disproportionately hit indigenous Kanak and Pasifika populations would not return a fair result.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/apr/11/new-caledonia-leader-calls-for-france-to-grant-independence-vote-to-counter-chinas-omnipresence-in-pacific

Chris Bailey, lead singer of Australian band the Saints, dies

‘Chris lived a life of poetry and music,’ band writes in a post announcing the singer and songwriter’s death

Chris Bailey, the lead singer of legendary Australian band the Saints, has died.

The band announced his death on Facebook on Monday.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/apr/11/chris-bailey-leader-singer-of-legendary-australian-band-the-saints-dies

Australia politics live updates: Scott Morrison and Anthony Albanese visit key seats as election campaign gets under way

The prime minister is in Gilmore, NSW, while the Labor leader travels to Bass in Tasmania. Follow all the day’s news

• Australian election voters’ guide: everything you need to know
• Interactive seat explorer: familiarise yourself with the state of play
• Read Guardian Australia’s full federal election coverage
• Get our free news app; get our morning email briefing

Speaking of Gilmore, our chief political correspondent, Sarah Martin spent some time in the electorate to get a feel for how locals felt about the election, given what they had been through in the 2019-20 bushfires

The Liberal campaign has begun in Nowra in New South Wales, while Labor has headed straight to Tasmania.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/live/2022/apr/11/australia-politics-live-updates-election-2022-scott-morrison-anthony-albanese-campaign-nsw-tasmania-victoria-qld-coronavirus-covid-weather

Morning mail: federal election called, people with disabilities left out of disaster planning, top songs by soap stars

Monday: Scott Morrison and Anthony Albanese kick off their election campaigns. Plus: affordable autumn food

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Good morning. Scott Morrison has called the federal election for 21 May. The prime minister will be out campaigning in Gilmore, NSW, on Monday, while Anthony Albanese will be in the marginal Tasmanian seat of Bass. The two parties began their six-week election campaigns on Sunday. In their pitch to voters, Scott Morrison warned them not to risk a change to an “uncertain” future under the opposition, while the Labor leader says now is the time to seize the opportunity for better times ahead.

The marginal seat of Gilmore, where roughly 80% of the electorate was devastated in the 2019-20 fires, is one of the few that the Liberals could win off Labor. But Morrison is proving divisive among locals. “Morrison? Oh, shit yeah. He is in big trouble,” Grant McLaurin says, happily calling him the “liar from the Shire” to rile up his drinking mates at the Heads Hotel. Meanwhile at the Coalition and Labor campaign headquarters, the parties’ election machines have been humming into gear for weeks. Here’s the who’s who of each operation. We also have a pork-o-meter to track all the barrelling action, a guide to every seat, and everything you need to know as a voter.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/apr/11/morning-mail-federal-election-called-people-with-disabilities-left-out-of-disaster-planning-top-songs-by-soap-stars

Nick Kyrgios blows up and bows out in Houston as umpire admits error

• Australian defeated 6-3 7-5 by Reilly Opelka in US Clay Court semi-final
• Kyrgios faces fine for torrent of obscenities fired at umpire

Nick Kyrgios has blown a gasket again, bowing out of a third successive US tournament in ugly meltdown mode.

The maverick Australian was fined a total of $A80,000 after losing in Indian Wells and Miami and could face a further financial penalty after getting knocked out of the US Men’s Clay Court Championship in Houston while spouting obscenities and rowing with the umpire.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2022/apr/10/nick-kyrgios-blows-up-and-bows-out-in-houston-as-umpire-admits-error

Major parties promise Queensland lion’s share of discretionary grants in bid to woo battleground state

Guardian Australia is tracking Coalition and Labor funding commitments and highlighting pork-barrelling during the election campaign

• Interactive: tracking Australian election promises
• Follow our Australia news live blog for the latest updates
• Get our free news app; get our morning email briefing

The Morrison government has promised more than $5.6bn in discretionary grants to projects across the country as part of a massive $28bn pre-election spending spree, with almost half directed to key marginal seats.

A Guardian Australia analysis of major party spending commitments from January to March this year shows Queensland as the biggest beneficiary of commitments from the Coalition and Labor, with the state a key battleground for parties to form government.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/apr/10/queensland-promised-most-amid-marginal-seat-spree-on-discretionary-grants-analysis-shows

After fires, floods and a pandemic, Australians once again head to national election

Will bullying claims against the PM, and independents demanding climate action, damage conservatives’ chances of holding on to power?

• Scott Morrison: frustrated, frazzled and under siege
• Labor’s lone wolf: Anthony Albanese in the fight of his life

Australia’s prime minister, Scott Morrison, has called a general election for May, hoping for a second victory against the odds as he faces accusations of lying and bullying from within his own party.

An informal campaign has been under way for weeks, but Morrison pulled the trigger on the election on Sunday, with opinion polls showing his personal popularity plummeting and his party losing ground with voters.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/apr/10/after-fires-floods-and-a-pandemic-australians-once-again-head-to-national-election