Pope Leo XIV has celebrated his first mass as pontiff, presiding in the Sistine Chapel alongside the cardinals who elected him to succeed Pope Francis. The first North American pope spoke in English at the mass held on Friday, local time. He said he hoped that his election could help the Catholic Church bring light to the “dark nights of this …

Last night was a big one in Australian news, with the federal election being called, so here’s a quick recap of what happened. Let’s get up to speed on the results. Who won the election? The Labor Party. While counting is still underway, Labor has won enough seats to rule as a majority government. Who is the prime minister? Anthony Albanese. Anthony Albanese …

Anthony Albanese has entered the Labor pantheon. While the count is still preliminary, Labor looks to have beaten the two-party preferred result of Kevin Rudd in 2007 (52.7 per cent), of Bob Hawke in 1983 (53.2 per cent), Gough Whitlam in 1972 (52.7 per cent) and Ben Chifley in 1946 (54.1 per cent). Rudd, Hawke, Whitlam, Chifley. A list of …

Every iPhone comes with a label which tells you it was designed in California. While the sleek rectangle that runs many of our lives is indeed designed in the United States, it is likely to have come to life thousands of miles away in China: the country hit hardest by US President Donald Trump’s tariffs, now rising to 245% on …

The budget bottom line would be worse in the first two years of a Dutton government than under Labor, according to the Coalition’s own costings, despite sweeping cuts to the public service to fund the party’s election promises. The costings, released two days before the federal election, show a deterioration of $7.9 billion over the next two financial years, compared …

House prices are on track to continue rising across the country as interest rates fall and supply continues to remain tight. As voters head to the ballot box prepared to cast votes on the issue of housing affordability, data from Cotality (formerly CoreLogic) shows that house prices trended higher in April. Its national Home Value Index recorded a third straight …

Voters are split on whether Anthony Albanese or Peter Dutton is better equipped to deal with Donald Trump, according to a new poll, as Australians’ trust in the United States drops to two-decade lows following the president’s return to the White House. The Lowy Institute survey found 34 per cent of respondents thought Mr Albanese would be better at managing …

This year marks a special Easter for Australia’s Christian community, with Catholics celebrating a Jubilee Year and both Western and Orthodox churches sharing, rather unusually, the same dates for the religious holiday. And of course, it wouldn’t be Good Friday without a seafood feast. Good Friday on a Catholic Jubilee Year In the City of Churches, Catholic parishioners gathered at …

Opposition leader Peter Dutton has confirmed he will help his children with a housing deposit “at some stage”, while acknowledging many Australians won’t have that luxury. On Monday, Dutton took his son Harry out on the campaign trail and appeared to dodge questions from reporters about whether he would provide his children with financial support to help them buy a …

Insurance companies have collectively banked $6.1 billion in annual profit after raising premiums and facing fewer significant weather events. Australia’s insurance industry recorded an annual after-tax profit of $6.1 billion in 2024, according to financial consultancy firm KPMG’s annual review of the sector. That’s three times higher than the five-year average of $2 billion. There were no weather catastrophes in …