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Love thy neighbour? Homeowners urged to merge their blocks and build up
A council in Melbourne’s shady outer east hopes new planning laws permitting the merging of lots to build new medium-density housing could save its tree cover.
The Melbourne suburbs where it’s now a buyers’ market
Melbourne property prices have been rising this year and buyers have faced tough competition. For some, that’s started to change.
Sixth ex-immigration detainee arrested after High Court ruling
The man was charged under amendments to the Migration Act that Labor and the Coalition teamed up to pass last month.
Doctors, journalists and sport stars: Meet the 52 people who rocked Australia - for better or worse
Inspiring, elating and, in some cases, frustrating: meet the people who rocked the nation this year – for better or worse.
‘Love Story’ actor Ryan O’Neal dies at 82
The 1970s Hollywood heartthrob starred in such important films as What’s Up, Doc? and Paper Moon.
Dingoes face being wiped out in Victoria. A legal challenge hopes to stop their extinction
Dingoes are in an “extinction vortex” in Victoria, and Animals Australia is challenging the government in court to protect them.
Breaking
Australian Open
Nick Kyrgios pulls out of the Australian Open
Nick Kyrgios has made official the Australian Open’s worst fears, announcing he will not play in next month’s grand slam as he recovers from a serious wrist injury.
‘Mum got sick of us hitting our heads’: Why Australia’s tallest NBA prospect lives in a shipping container
Rocco Zikarsky is one of the most exciting young talents in Australian basketball. He outgrew the family home, literally, and is on course for the NBA draft in 2025.
Young gun: Piastri named FIA rookie of the year after stunning season
Australian F1 driver Oscar Piastri is determined to build on his strong finish to the 2023 season, after capping a superb debut campaign.
Exclusive
Victorian Parliament
Support for Allan dips as growing list of scandals has voters peeling away
The gap between Labor and the Coalition in Victoria is at its tightest since last year’s state election, but Labor is still well ahead.
‘Humanitarian nightmare’: US vetoes UN resolution demanding ceasefire in Gaza
US deputy ambassador Robert Wood criticised the council after the vote for its failure to condemn Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel.
Tony Wright’s Column
Israeli-Palestinian conflict
There are worse things stolen from children than the colour of the sea
The TV at home is tuned to Bluey instead of the news when my granddaughter is around, for the images of children suffering are too ghastly for a child.
The NDIS saved Angelique’s family. But in another world, she would not have needed it
NDIS 2.0 will aim to establish a new disability system that picks up children’s developmental challenges earlier and delivers a range of supports at home, childcare or school.
Opinion
Financial planners
Better financial advice is a Christmas gift for all – especially retirees
There’s lots of talk about what the new changes this week will do for the industry, but here’s what it really means for everyday Australians.
Bec Wilson
Money contributor
Opinion
Australian economy
Why the Reserve Bank’s wishes might land it on the naughty list
One quarter of weaker growth won’t worry the Reserve Bank, but consumers are weakening, and waking up to the start of a recession would be an unwelcome gift.
Millie Muroi
Business Reporter
At 22, I was looking for oblivion. But would Mongolia help me forget?
With notebook lost and photographs ruined, there was nothing left but unreliable memories from a trip on the Trans-Mongolian Railway.
★★★★
Review
The comedy designed to put the fear of God in you
Simon Bird of The Inbetweeners plays the patriarch of a fundamentalist Christian family that can’t wait for the end times in a delightful British comedy series.
Till death do us part: I don’t want to be buried next to my husband
If joint plots are anything like sharing a bed, our Modern Guru’s wife agrees.
WEEKEND READS
How Kirsha Kaechele brought the logging industry’s most powerful players together
Everyone is curious about Mona founder David Walsh and his American wife Kirsha Kaechele, an artist and curator. As word got out that she was planning a conference about the logging industry, people were immediately intrigued.
Analysis
Hands up if you know which is the state’s most powerful union
It is flush with cash, has assets of more than $100 million and a membership of 98 per cent of its workforce. And it’s about to flex its muscles.
Victoria
Andrews’ attack on corruption watchdogs stuns integrity experts
In one of his first interviews since stepping down, the former premier said there was “not an accountability officer that doesn’t want more money, more power”.
Two charged after biggest alleged illegal steroid bust in Victorian history
The steroids and prescription medications seized are worth millions and the syndicate counted organised crime identities among its hundreds of customers, police say.
Despite a forecast El Nino, Heavy rain and wild wind have lashed the state
Farmers remain puzzled by the unusually wet conditions and are wondering when the prolonged dry weather will arrive.
Exclusive
Inflation
Victorians haven’t been this strapped for cash since 2014
The last time that people in the state had so little disposable income, Tony Abbott threatened to shirtfront Vladimir Putin and iPhone 6 was all the rage.
Most of the city’s statues are of dead, white men. This is beginning to change
The City of Melbourne will commission and erect a statue of the first woman to run for parliament in Australia as the city pushes to redress its statue gender imbalance.
See & Do
Best reads of the year: The books that writers loved in 2023
We asked writers from Australia and overseas to tell us which books had knocked their socks off in the past year.
Men v machines: Kraftwerk come to Melbourne
This wrap of shows around Melbourne includes Kraftwerk at Margaret Court Arena, Possum Magic the Ballet and Maria Callas: A Concert in Hologram.
Politics
Ten has win on lip-reader’s report in Lehrmann defamation case
Former federal Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann’s legal team lost a bid to have a report by an expert lip-reader excluded from evidence in his defamation case.
Business
Updated
Energy
‘Let’s talk about Meg’: Woodside wants Twiggy’s Meg O’Neill remarks condemned
The WA mining billionaire fired a broadside directly at Woodside chief executive Meg O’Neill and her history as an ExxonMobil executive.
World
Vladimir Putin looks to extend rule with 2024 presidential run
Vladimir Putin says he will run for Russian president in 2024, a move that could see the former KGB spy stay in power until at least 2030.
Opinion
‘Good story’ for workers but will Labor’s fair go agenda pay off?
Peter Hartcher
Political and international editor
Hot air: The COP climate conference is a fossilised racket
Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
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Property
Nine of our favourite Melbourne homes on the market
Looking for your next home in Melbourne? We’ve rounded up some of the best, from a South Yarra penthouse to a stylishly renovated Californian Bungalow.
Hot coastal towns where property prices have almost doubled in five years
Buyer interest has eased since the height of remote work but is still outpacing the number of homes for sale in many hotspots.
Good Food
Recipe collection
Best of
Five no-bake cheesecakes to make this weekend
Lifestyle
Should the truth about affairs always come out? It depends
According to a couples counsellor, there are a few things to consider before hiding or revealing infidelity.
Culture
He is one of Australia’s most famous authors, but five of his books were never even published here
Derham Groves was curating an exhibition about Australian crime literature when he stumbled across five books featuring an eccentric amateur sleuth.
Traveller
Drivedrive
From Our Partners
Sport
Breaking
Australian Open
Nick Kyrgios pulls out of the Australian Open
Nick Kyrgios has made official the Australian Open’s worst fears, announcing he will not play in next month’s grand slam as he recovers from a serious wrist injury.
‘Protect his rights’: NBA commissioner opens up on Josh Giddey probe
NBA commissioner Adam Silver has broken his silence over a league and police investigation into allegations Australian basketballer Josh Giddey had an inappropriate relationship with a minor.
Young gun: Piastri named FIA rookie of the year after stunning season
Australian F1 driver Oscar Piastri is determined to build on his strong finish to the 2023 season, after capping a superb debut campaign with the FIA rookie of the year award.
‘Prepare spinning wickets at your own demise’: New skipper Healy dares India
Newly appointed Australian captain Alyssa Healy believes her spinners can match India’s if they prepare a spinning pitch for this month’s Test.
A Spur for change: A lesson for Sam Mitchell from Postecoglou trip
Sam Mitchell’s post-season sojourn to Tottenham Hotspur’s extraordinary facility north of London has already influenced the Hawthorn coach’s handling of training. He has returned with a clear picture of what AFL teams can and can’t learn from top-level soccer.
‘Mum got sick of us hitting our heads’: Why Australia’s tallest NBA prospect lives in a shipping container
Rocco Zikarsky is one of the most exciting young talents in Australian basketball. He outgrew the family home, literally, and is on course for the NBA draft in 2025.
Updated
Australian cricket
‘Devil’ Warner breaks silence on Mitchell Johnson feud
Almost a week after Mitchell Johnson claimed David Warner showed “arrogance and disrespect” towards Australian cricket, the veteran opener has responded.
Have Your Say
‘Complete madness’: The backroom changes behind Australia’s victorious year
Usman Khawaja and Glenn Maxwell believe a revolution led by Andrew McDonald and George Bailey is key to Australia’s year of success.
