Opposition Leader Peter Dutton announced the Coalition's new shadow frontbench on Sunday afternoon.
High-profile changes include Angus Taylor as the shadow treasurer and Barnaby Joyce as veterans affairs spokesman. There will be 24 people in the shadow cabinet, including 10 women.
Meanwhile, Anthony Albanese remains confident of maintaining positive relationships with Indonesia, ahead of his three-day trip to the country.
The Prime Minister will hold key talks with President Joko Widodo in Jakarta. Mr Albanese will also visit the city of Makassar in the country's east, saying it was critical that relations with Indonesia extended to all of the country.
In COVID news, oral antiviral drug treatments approved for use in Australia could reduce the severity and lethality of COVID-19, according to international research.
Studies in Israel and Hong Kong have suggested the antivirals could improve outcomes, particularly in older people. But the studies have yet to be published or peer-reviewed.
Those looking for getaways have snow trips covered with the snow season underway early in NSW. Perisher, in southern NSW, started its lifts a week earlier than anticipated after a dump of snow made for great ski conditions.
Another icy blast is expected to hit the region on Sunday evening. The Queen's Birthday long weekend is also expected to deliver for skiers and snowboarders, with another 50-centimetres predicted before then.
But if you would like to go beyond the snow, you can get an out of this world trip without leaving home this June - all you have to do is look upwards.
Five planets - Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Venus and Mercury - will be visible throughout most of the month, that is if you can drag yourself out of your nice warm bed.
While on the topic of keeping warm, Fire and Rescure NSW and the NSW Rural Fire Service have launched their annual winter fire safety campaign.
Tiffany Rapley-Adams can testify to the importance of this year's winter fire safety campaign theme: "Be safe, not sorry".
When Tiffany's son Cayden was 12 months old, in June 2019, he walked into an open fireplace, captivated by the flames. He suffered serious burns to his hands, arms and face and spent three months in hospital.
Ms Rapley-Adams has urged parents to child-proof their fireplaces and be mindful of fire danger this winter.
THE NEWS YOU NEED TO KNOW:
- China Sea incident very dangerous: Marles
- 'Uninsurable' lakeside homes deemed too big a gamble
- Police investigate 'white supremacy, neo-Nazi' flyers found at uni
- Jaymi Morris soars to new heights at NSW State Powerlifting
- Hunter Valley breathing 'extreme' levels of air pollution
- Ski season starts early with more significant snowfall forecast
- Roll up your sleeves to donate blood as nation suffers from supply shortage
- 'Porn has become a default sex education' for young people
Lucy Bladen
Lucy Bladen has been a journalist at The Canberra Times since 2019. She is an ACT politics and health reporter. Email: l.bladen@canberratimes.com.au
Lucy Bladen has been a journalist at The Canberra Times since 2019. She is an ACT politics and health reporter. Email: l.bladen@canberratimes.com.au
