Shadow Defense Minister Andrew Hastie says Australian people need “strong national security leadership”. Mr Hastie joined Sky News host Sharri Markson to discuss the Labor government’s handling of national security. “Australia is a young democracy, we’re only 123 years, and this is probably our most severe test when it comes to social cohesion. “Anthony Albanese is giving weak national security leadership. “He’s using weak language, he’s using weak values, he’s not articulating Australian values, and our community needs strong direction from him.”

Sky News host Sharri Markson discusses the Albanese Labor government’s “shocking policy” surrounding the Nature Positive laws. “Speaking of shocking policy from the Albanese government,” she said. “The Environmental Protection Agency is now going to be able to issue stop work orders. “To anyone breaking green laws. “It will also have the power to audit businesses, penalties for offenders will be hiked too.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has told a French national he is “welcome to stay” in Australia after he fought the Bondi Westfield attacker with a bollard. Mr Albanese said during a press conference the man is “welcome here”. “You are welcome to stay as long as you like,” Mr Albanese said. “This is someone we would welcome becoming an Australian citizen. “We thank him for his extraordinary bravery.”

Mathematic skills across the country have been falling for two decades, according to Sky News host Rita Panahi. “At the end of last year, almost half of Australia’s 15-year-olds were failing to achieve national standards in key areas of math, science and reading,” Ms Panahi said. “It is math that is declining most rapidly of the three over the past 20 years.” Ms Panahi’s comments come as ANU is set to introduce professors to teach ‘Indigenous mathematics’. “Since the original curriculum was apparently too racist and Western-centric,” she said.

Questions have been raised over whether people with psychiatric disorders should be forced to undergo treatment after a man stabbed several people in Bondi Junction in a shopping centre. Joel Cauchi was shot dead on Saturday by a police officer after he stabbed several shoppers in a Westfield. Police are still investigating whether there were signs which could have been detected to prevent the tragedy and a possible motive for the terror attack. “I think the question here is more to say being mentally unwell – having a psychiatric disorder is not illegal,” says Child and Adolescent Psychologist Clare Rowe. “Unless you are scheduled under the Mental Health Act of which there is several reasons that you can schedule someone – that is hold them against their will and treat them,” she told Sky News host Rita Panahi.

Victoria has recorded the lowest-performing math students in the country, according to The Age. “It is not just Victoria,” Institute of Public Affairs Colleen Harkin told Sky News host Rita Panahi. “Our results across the board are astoundingly poor. “We have a third of the nation’s children who are not meeting the minimum benchmark in the core skills of literacy and numeracy. “We only have 15 per cent of our students who are considered to be exceeding expectations.”

Sky News Business Editor Ross Greenwood says car marker Tesla’s shares have “slumped heavily overnight”. Tesla said it will cut ten per cent of its global workforce in the “face of falling sales and tighter margins,” Mr Greenwood said. “At the end of last year, Tesla had 140,000 employees,” he said. “It is being squeezed by falling demand in the US. “The Tesla share price, which is down 35 per cent this year, fell 5.59 per cent overnight and even further in after-hours trading.”

Tesla is set to lay off more than ten per cent of its workforce after a fall in electric vehicle sales. “Nobody saw this coming,” The Daily Telegraph’s Tim Blair told Sky News host Danica De Giorgio. “Except everyone with a brain. “It’s as though they’ve reached a market cap. “Everyone who’s able to recharge their electric vehicles at home, everyone who’s able to afford electric vehicles in the first place … they might have just hit about every person who’s in those sort of sectors.”

Nationals Senate leader Bridget McKenzie says the Greens lashing out at outgoing Woolworths CEO Brad Banducci's threatening contempt is “technically allowable”. “These are really good, serious questions; indeed, the Senate can hold people in contempt,” she said. “It can also attach penalties to that, being civil and indeed jail time. “I think the last time one of the houses of parliament did this was back in the 50s and sent some guys to jail. “It is technically allowable.”

Social media users have reacted to former US president Donald Trump releasing a "powerful" election ad ahead of the first day of his Manhattan hush money trial on Monday. Donald Trump's campaign released a video ahead of his hush money trial in Manhattan court. Trump posted the video to Truth Social ahead of his criminal trial, framing it as a battle for the freedom of all Americans. In the video, Trump is quoted: “they’re not coming after me, they’re coming after you, and I just happen to be standing in their way". No jurors were confirmed on the first day; 50 were dismissed for potential bias, with 32 remaining from an initial pool of 96. Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts related to the alleged cover-up of the $130,000 payment to Daniels.

Outgoing Woolworths Chief Executive Brad Banducci is probably “not going to end up in jail,” says competition lawyer and former ACCC chair Allan Fels. Mr Fels’ comments come after the Woolworth boss was warned by Greens Senator Nick McKim during the supermarket Senate inquiry that he could face prison time for being in contempt. “He’s not going to end up in jail – he shouldn’t have a sleepless night,” Mr Fels told Sky News Australia. “I think the ultimate answers to these questions will be found in another inquiry – the ACCC inquiry. “Which has got much deeper powers to it to investigate, to get to the bottom of things, to measure profits and markups and so on.”

Former Labor senator Stephen Conroy says a lot of Australians are “hurting” with cost-of-living. The chief executives of Coles and Woolworths have been grilled in a Senate inquiry in Canberra. This comes amid accusations and whistleblower testimony of the big supermarkets’ price gauging of both customers and suppliers. The inquiry’s focus is on whether these supermarkets are benefitting from the cost-of-living crisis. Mr Conroy told Sky News Australia that people are looking for “answers” on the supermarket prices.

A new word has been created to describe gender-neutral Latino people. The previous word that was made to describe the gender-neutral Latino community was Latinx, and it has now been changed to Latine. Author of Black Victim to Black Victor and the founder of Wrong Speak Publishing, Adam Coleman, discusses whether the term will become popular. “Thee big problem that the media has is that they have an elitist problem and an ideology problem, and often those two things mix,” Mr Coleman told Sky News Australia. “So, what we’re seeing here is that the media pushing something that adheres to the ideology – makes the non-conforming, gender non-conforming people feel comfortable, when in reality it makes 99 per cent of the population squirm,” Mr Coleman said. “This is ridiculous – it’s absurd, and nobody asked for it except for the ideologues, so this is rightfully being mocked."

Shadow Environment Minister Jonathon Duniam says the Labor government’s Nature Positive Plan is going to be a “disaster”. It includes establishing an independent Environment Protection Agency, armed with the power to immediately halt any activity in breach of environmental law. Penalties for the worst offenders could be as much as $780 million or seven years behind bars. Mr Duniam said the government has only announced a “new bureaucracy” and is “in over its head”. “It is going to be a disaster when they do eventually bring laws in,” he told Sky News Australia.

Shadow Environment Minister Jonathon Duniam says the Labor government is “in over its head” with its Nature Positive Plan. It includes establishing an independent Environment Protection Agency, armed with the power to immediately halt any activity in breach of environmental law. Penalties for the worst offenders could be as much as $780 million or seven years behind bars. “Today the minister [Tanya Plibersek] has embarrassingly stepped out to announce a new bureaucracy – administering the laws that were in place for the last 20 years,” Mr Duniam told Sky News Australia. “When asked today in her press conference, would we have them in this term of parliament – it was a big fat no.”

Shadow Environment Minister Jonathon Duniam says there are plenty of ways to improve the Labor government’s Nature Positive Plan “all over the shop”. Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek announced the new reforms on Tuesday. “There are better ways of doing this all over the shop,” Mr Duniam told Sky News Australia. “Providing certainty upfront about where you can and can’t commission new projects, I think, is a good way of doing it. “But I would not trust Canberra to get it right.”

NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb has officially declared the Sydney church stabbing a terrorist act. A religious leader was stabbed multiple times at his pulpit by a teenager in Southwest Sydney on Monday Night. At least four people are believed to be injured, and currently undergoing treatment in hospital. Ms Webb told media Monday that following “consideration of all the material” she has declared the incident a terrorist act. Ms Webb also confirmed that Strike Force Petrina has been established to investigate the terrorist element to the incident.

Greens Senator Nick McKim has told Woolworths Group Chief Executive Brad Banducci he is “not interested” in his “bulls**t” after Mr Banducci claimed he had answered Mr McKim’s question. The chief executives of Coles and Woolworths are facing a Senate inquiry today as the government continues its investigation into price gouging. Mr McKim advised Mr Banducci that it is “open to the Senate to hold a witness in contempt when they refuse to answer a legitimate question,” to which Mr Banducci said he had answered the question “many times”. Mr McKim responded, “You have not answered the question, Mr Banducci. “Honestly, I’m not in interested in your spin or your bulls**t – this is a Senate Inquiry; answer the question.”

Prince Harry has lost an initial bid to appeal against a High Court ruling over his security when he’s in the UK. The Duke of Sussex plans to continue the legal fight. "The Duke of Sussex will be seeking permission from the Court of Appeal to challenge the decision of Mr Justice Lane," his legal team said. The internet is reacting to the development with many criticising Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. “If there was a more nauseating couple on the planet I’d love to see it,” one user posted on X.

Nationals Leader David Littleproud says Australia’s major supermarkets aren’t showing fairness and transparency “from the farmgate to your plate”. Mr Littleproud’s remarks come as the Coles and Woolworths CEOs face a Senate inquiry into price gouging. “We produce enough food and fibre for … a nation of 27 million people, and there is not fairness and transparency from the farmgate to your plate,” he told Sky News Australia. “We’ve got a responsibility of the privileged position as legislators to do something about that and make sure there is fairness and transparency. “The Nationals have said that; Labor’s turned their back on it.”