Maltesers are now the latest victims of the curse of shrinkflation.
Sharing packs – in the UK at least – are now seven lighter chocolates, in a trend which sees manufacturers reduce sizes while keeping prices the same.
The tactic has been used on everything from teabags to toilet rolls.
The packs have shrunk from 189g to 175g – a fall of seven per cent, or seven chocolates – but still cost £2 in most UK supermarkets.
A spokesman for brand owner Mars Wrigley said: “We have been absorbing the rising costs of raw materials and operations for some time, but the growing pressures we are facing mean that more needs to be done.”
Last month, the company reduced its Twix bars by one per cent, to just a third of its original size.
Meanwhile Cadburys slashed the size of Dairy Milk bars by 10 per cent in March.
A spokesman for its owner Mondelez said: “Our products are much more expensive to make.”
Mars Wrigley media representatives in Australia have been contacted for comment.
Last month Aussies were rocked by the news that the price of a snag and bread at Bunnings was set to increase for the first time in 15 years.
A Bunnings sausage sizzle will go up from $2.50 to $3.50 at stores across Australia from July 23, it was revealed, as community groups struggle to cover the rising cost of ingredients.
Last month it was also revealed that Coles and Woolworths will charge more for home-brand milk from in yet another hit to household budgets.
Forest Whitaker reprises his role as veteran freedom fighter Saw Gerrera. Although most audiences likely know him best as the paranoid leader of the Partisans terrorist cell from rogue oneand the rebel who raised Jyn Erso after she was separated from her father as a child, Gerrera actually made his first appearance in Clone Wars animatedseries.
Since Andor takes place five years before the events of rogue one, it doesn’t look like the Partisans have yet settled on Jedha to sabotage the Imperial kyber crystal mining operation, which is why their base looks a bit different in this trailer. Interestingly enough, this is also around the time that Saw abandoned Jyn to fend for herself. She was only 16 when the Partisans abandoned her, and since she was 21 when she died in rogue onethat would mean Gerrera parted ways with her around five years before the film as well.
Does this mean we might get a Felicity Jones cameo when Stellan Skarsgard’s Luthen Rael comes to recruit the group for the Rebel Alliance he’s trying to build with Mon Mothma? Let us know you predictions in the comments!
yes
Stellan Skarsgard as Luthen Rael
We also see more of Stellan Skarsgard’s new character Luthen Rael, who seems to be another character working against the Empire from the inside. In the trailer, we watch him not only meeting with Genevieve O’Reilly’s Mon Mothma on Coruscant but also trying to recruit Saw Gerrera and Cassian to his new cause of him. It seems Luthen is being set up as a previously unknown founder of the Rebel Alliance, and also doesn’t seem afraid to get his own hands dirty by the way he shoots at TIE fighters in one scene.
Ben Miles as Chancellor Valorum?
Some fans jumped to Twitter to celebrate the return of Terence Stamp as disgraced former Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum from The Phantom Menace. But that’s actually actor Ben Miles (The Crown) as what looks like an Imperial senator whom Mon Mothma trusts enough to confide in.
Yes, from this angle, it does kind of look like Miles is playing Valorum, but we’ve learned in the past few years that Disney isn’t super fond of recasting characters, especially after Only (which wasn’t actually Alden Ehrenreich’s fault, no matter how much anyone tries to spin that). But, assuming Stamp wasn’t interested in returning to starwars, would Lucasfilm have no other choice but to recast the character? We’ll just have to wait and see.
English swimming goliath Adam Peaty has apologized over an “arrogant” interview that followed his incredible collapse at the Commonwealth Games on Monday.
Peaty’s defeat in the event he has owned for 10 years left Aussie legend Ian Thorpe staggered. It was a result almost nobody saw coming.
The world record holder had been undefeated in the 100m breaststroke at major meets since 2014. He had qualified fastest for the final and led the event with 25m to go. However, English teammate James Wilby pushed ahead of him to take the gold.
The magnitude of the boilover was written all over Wilby’s stunned face as he looked up to the big screen to see that he had won. With Aussies Zac Stubblety-Cook and Sam Williamson exploding at the death, Peaty suddenly went from the gold medal position to missing out on the podium completely.
It has been an explosive fall-out to the result with the 27-year-old declaring he won’t be coming back to the Commonwealth Games in four years’ time. It followed a social media backlash over comments that have been branded “arrogant” by fans.
Peaty spoke to the BBC on the pooldeck after finishing outside the medals and said losing in the Commonwealth Games meant little to him after already scooping up three Olympic gold medals.
“It doesn’t feel amazing, but it doesn’t feel bad either,” Peaty said.
“It’ll probably be my last attempt tomorrow, but I’m not bothered about it. The Commonwealths to me, in the grand scheme of things… it’s about two years time (the Olympics).
“That’s no disrespect. I’m still four weeks into my program, I can’t put that expectation on myself.”
Retired English swimmer Mark Foster responded to Peaty’s comments, saying: “I think he’s trying to say it doesn’t matter, but it does matter.
“It’s the Commonwealth Games, it’s a multi-sport event and I think when he was growing up, the Commonwealth Games would have been a big deal.
“But the fact that he’s won lots of Worlds and Olympic Games, maybe he’s trying to play it down to himself that it doesn’t matter.”
The Birmingham Mail reported fans on social media said Peaty’s comments were “arrogant” and “disrespectful”.
“Adam peaty is disrespectful to every other athlete at the Commonwealth Games Acting like he doesn’t care While all the other athletes are trying they best to win medals,” one Twitter user wrote.
Another posted: “Adam Peaty, I think you need to take a deep breath, have a word with yourself and take a look at the para swimmers. Used to really respect you and what you were trying to achieve but feel let down by tonight’s comments.”
World record-holder Peaty qualified second-fastest for the 50m breaststroke final, scheduled for Wednesday morning, behind Australia’s Sam Williamson.
After moving through to the end, Peaty appeared to apologize for his comments.
He wrote on Twitter: “Thankful for all the supportful messages I’m getting at the moment. It has been an incredibly hard time the past few months, but mostly the last few days.
“Sometimes in the heat of the moment my emotions better me and I can’t speak with a clear mind.
“These championships mean a lot to me being a home games but I have to think bigger picture to keep my spirits high. It really, really isn’t easy. My last Commonwealth Games race will be tomorrow.”
Peaty said he simply hasn’t had the time to return to his best shape as a result of a lengthy rehabilitation from several foot injuries. He said he didn’t have the aerobic fitness to challenge for the 100m breaststroke and even said he needs to lose 4kg before competing at the Olympics in Paris in 2024.
He said he has a long way to go before Paris.
“It’s heartbreaking,” Peaty said.
“I don’t see the point in doing something I wouldn’t do that well at, at the moment. We’ll see.
“I don’t know what went wrong. With 25m to go I had nothing in the tank. Maybe that’s overexposure on the foot. Sometimes you just have a bad race, I can’t pinpoint where I went wrong. There’s a lot of debriefing to do. I need a full reset now.
“It was a slow ending, I can’t remember the last time I went that slow. It just didn’t go right. Of course, I’m disappointed, but that’s what makes you go faster next time.
“I’ve kind of lost that spark, whether it’s with my foot, but I’ll be looking to find that over the next months and into the next two years.”
Mining tycoon Clive Palmer and WA Premier Mark McGowan defamed each other, the Federal Court has found, in a war of words over WA’s hard border and a damage claim for a failed mining project worth up to $30 billion.
Key points:
Both Clive Palmer and Mark McGowan were awarded damages
The case related to comments made after the closing of WA’s borders
Costs will be assessed at a later court hearing
Mr Palmer was awarded $5,000 while Mr McGowan won a counter-claim of $20,000, in a judgment handed down by Justice Michael Lee today.
Mr Palmer launched legal action against Mr McGowan after a series of comments made at press conferences in 2020, during the early days of the coronavirus pandemic.
The Queensland mining magnate told the Federal Court he was brought into “hatred, ridiculous and contempt” after Mr McGowan called him an “enemy of the state” over his challenge that sought to overturn WA’s hard border policy.
Mr McGowan counter-sued Mr Palmer over comments centered on legislation that prevented the Queensland businessman from claiming up to $30 billion in damages over a mining development by his firm Mineralogy.
Justice Lee said when assessing damages, he considered the fact much of the public would already have “well-entrenched perceptions” as to the character and reputations of political figures.
However, when deciding damages for Mr McGowan, Justice Lee said although the damage to his reputation was “non-existent”, “Mr McGowan’s evidence as to an aspect of the subjective hurt he suffered was compelling”.
In delivering his judgement, Justice Lee noted the significant costs incurred in prosecuting this case.
“The game has not been worth the candle,” he said.
“These proceedings have not only involved considerable expenditure by Mr Palmer and the taxpayers of Western Australia, but have also consumed considerable resources of the Commonwealth,” he said.
“Importantly (they have) diverted court time from resolving controversies of real importance to persons who have a pressing need to litigate.”
At a press conference, Mr McGowan said the last thing he wanted to be doing was fighting a defamation action, adding the start of the pandemic was a “highly anxious time”.
But he defended the steps he took in putting in place the hard border and mineralology legislation.
“I’ll go to my grave proud of what we did,” he said.
“I actually think it was one of the proudest moments, that and the hard border, in recent West Australian history.”
The court will reconvene at a later date to assess costs, which are expected to far outstrip the damages awarded.
McGowan, Palmer chose ‘hurly burly’ of political life
In his ruling, Justice Lee referred to conservative British MP Enoch Powell’s remark “for a politician to complain about the press is like a ship’s captain complaining about the sea”.
“As these proceedings demonstrate, a politician litigating over the barbs of a political adversary might be considered a similarly futile exercise,” Justice Lee said.
The judge said Mr McGowan and Mr Palmer chose to be part of the “hurly burly” of political life, despite Mr Palmer resisting characterization as a political figure.
He described Mr Palmer as an “indefatigable litigant”.
The public spat between mining magnate Clive Palmer (pictured) and Mark McGowan erupted at the start of the coronavirus pandemic.(ABC News: Steve Keen)
“This was evidently not his first experience in a witness box … he carried himself with the unmistakable aura of a man assured as to the correctness of his own opinions,” Justice Lee noted.
The judge described Mr Palmer as a generally “combative and evasive witness” who on more than one occasion was unwilling to make obvious concessions.
He also rubbished Mr Palmer’s claim he feared for his, his family’s and his employee’s safety and lives, after the Mineralogy legislation was passed.
“To even his most-rusted on partisans, Mr McGowan would be unlikely to have thought to resemble Ian Fleming’s fictional MI6 character James Bond,” Justice Lee said.
Justice Lee described Mr Palmer’s evidence that Mr McGowan had been given a “license to kill” as “fanciful”.
Feud erupts over WA hard border
The stoush began whenWA shut its border to the rest of the country in 2020, which Clive Palmer challenged in the High Court, drawing the ire of Mr McGowan.
The court heard Mr McGowan made comments about an alleged plan by Mr Palmer to promote the drug hydroxychloroquine, which in the early days of the pandemic was briefly touted as a potential treatment.
Mr Palmer brought the defamation action against Mr McGowan over his comments about the mining magnate’s attempt to enter the state in 2020.(Facebook: Clive Palmer, Mark McGowan)
After a series of trials, it became clear the drug was not effective.
Mr McGowan told a press conference in August 2020 that Mr Palmer was coming to “promote” hydroxychloroquine, when all the evidence showed it was not a cure and was in fact dangerous.
In the defamation proceedings, Mr Palmer argued this implied he sought to harm the people of Western Australia by providing them with a drug he knew was dangerous and dishonestly promoted it as a cure for COVID-19.
Justice Lee did not accept this, saying “it is too much of a stretch to say that vehement disagreement with Mr Palmer’s view conveys that Mr Palmer subjectively intended to cause harm or behaved dishonestly”.
Multi-billion dollar mining damages claim at heart of case
The defamation proceedings also examined a state agreement held by Mr Palmer’s company Mineralogy for the Balmoral South iron ore project.
Mr Palmer sought to develop that site in 2012 but was knocked back by the then-Barnett government, prompting him to launch legal action against the WA Government seeking damages for what he said was a breach of the state agreement.
The WA Government then passed extraordinary legislation that prevented Mr Palmer from succeeding in that claim, which was estimated at $30 billion, amounting to the state government’s 2020 annual budget.
Mr Palmer lashed out at Mr McGowan as the architect of that legislation.
Mark McGowan said Mr Palmer’s comments had aroused “anger and madness” in the community. (ABC News: Cecilia Connell)
The court heard in an August 2020 interview with ABC radio, Mr Palmer described Mr McGowan as “an outlaw swinging his gun around to protect him and his Attorney General from the criminal law”.
“What crime did you commit Mark, that you want to be immune from?”
Mr McGowan countered Mr Palmer on those and other comments, which he said suggested he had acted corruptly.
Palmer defamed McGowan for claiming he ‘lied’
Mr McGowan also argued Mr Palmer had defamed him when he claimed he had lied about the health advice he relied on when deciding to close the state’s border.
Justice Lee upheld that claim.
However, the judge said while Mr McGowan was generally an impressive witness, he “skirted” around the substantive question as to whether Dr Robertson, the Chief Health Officer, had given advice to this effect.
Justice Lee noted however that the impact on Mr McGowan’s reputation was “inconsequential”, citing his personal approval polling of 89 per cent and Labor’s sweeping victory in the 2021 state election, in which he increased the margin in his seat of Rockingham to 37.7 per cent .
WA government’s behavior ‘highly disturbing’: Palmer
Mr Palmer responded to Tuesday’s finding by saying it highlighted the extent to which the WA Premier and Attorney-General had conspired in secrecy to change legislation.
This was designed to deprive Mineralogy of its property, according to Mr Palmer.
“Today’s judgment in Sydney from Justice Michael Lee revealed that Mark McGowan and John Quigley plotted between themselves with late-night texts to have legislation changed,” he said.
“It is highly disturbing that this is how the WA government acts.”
Premier’s relationship with media mogul under microscope
The very public spat played out in the Federal Court has also revealed aspects of Mr McGowan’s relationship with the state’s only daily newspaper owner, Kerry Stokes.
Texts between Mr McGowan and Mr Stokes were read in court regarding the introduction of legislation that prevented Mr Palmer from claiming damages in relation to the failed Balmoral South mining project.
A text from Mr McGowan flagged the legislation in question, which was a closely-guarded secret, just minutes before it was introduced to Parliament, saying he would call Mr Stokes to discuss.
Subsequent front pages of The West Australian newspaper featured images of Mr Palmer digitally manipulated to appear as a cane toad and a cockroach, prompting Mr McGowan to thank him for the “marvelous front pages”.
At a press conference, Mr McGowan was asked a series of questions about the nature of his relationship with Mr Stokes.
Mr McGowan defended his decision to let Mr Stokes know about the legislation before it was read into parliament.(ABC News: James Carmody)
He denied Mr Stokes was one of the few people informed of the legislation before it was introduced, saying he had told the expenditure cabinet review committee on the previous Friday.
He said he briefed a number of people before the legislation went before the Upper House, including senior members of the federal government, state opposition, former Premier Colin Barnett, industry associations and groups and a “range of journalists”.
The Premier said he rarely contacted Mr Stokes for advice or discussion around state issues, and could not remember if he called him that day.
Justice Lee also noted WA Attorney General John Quigley’s evidence was “confusing” but he did not believe he was trying to be dishonest.
Mr Quigley later corrected evidence he gave at the trial, while insisting his evidence could be relied upon.
Opposition slams McGowan over trial
Opposition Leader Mia Davies said the trial was a “waste of money and the government’s time.”
Mia Davies says Mr McGowan should have been attending to issues affecting WA rather than spending time in court. (ABC News: Keane Bourke)
“This case wasted time that the Premier could have spent dealing with the multitude of crises on the home front in health, housing and easing the cost of living for everyday West Australians,” Ms Davies said.
She called for Mr Quigley to be given the boot, saying the Premier “needs to wake up and take responsibility for his embattled Cabinet”.
WA Liberals leader David Honey said the defamation trial was an insult to the WA taxpayer, who were “undeservedly footing the bill for Premier McGowan’s bruised ego.”
“WA’s Premier needs to be leading the state, not embarking on unnecessary legal action,” he said.
“The vanity exercise by the Premier has wasted considerable public money but also wasted, as Justice Lee highlighted, valuable court time for far more pressing legal matters affecting the lives of everyday Australians.”
Dr Honey also called for the Attorney General’s role to be immediately reviewed following his “memory failure” in court.
MADISON – Four days before former President Donald Trump is scheduled to host a rally in Wisconsin for Tim Michels, Trump’s endorsed candidate for governor would not commit to supporting Trump for president in 2024.
Michels and his top two opponents in the Republican primary for governor on Monday distanced themselves from Trump during a town hall candidate forum in Milwaukee in their final meeting before voters decide which candidate will compete against Democratic incumbent Gov. Tony Evers in November.
Former Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch and state Rep. Tim Ramthun joined Michels in declining to say they would back Trump for president in two years when asked by a Republican voter whether to support another run for president in light of his actions by him during the attack on the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
More:Bice: Trump endorsed Tim Michels after ranting about 2019 tweets of Kleefisch and Brian Hagedorn’s teens
“It hasn’t changed a single thing that I’ve been doing since I’ve been in this race,” Michels said at the forum hosted by WISN (Channel 12) about his endorsement from Trump.
“Now, 2024 — I’m focused on this election right now. I have made no commitments to any candidates in 2024. What I’m focusing on is beating Tony Evers.”
Kleefisch said she is committing to supporting the Republican nominee for president, “and it looks like we have an assortment to choose from.”
Ramthun, who has been praised publicly by Trump for his unsuccessful effort to persuade his colleagues in the state Legislature to overturn his 2020 election loss, said he had Trump’s phone number but has never called it.
“People can throw their hat into the ring like we did and we are going to be vetted by the people, whether there’s three or 13 or 33 people run for president in 2024, he’s going to have to go through (it) — if he throws his hat into the ring,” Ramthun said.
“He’s going to have to go through that process again and to be honest with you, I’m not exactly sure where the nation is, right now with regard to whether or not they would vote for him again.”
The candidates’ comments represent a significant shift away from Trump since all three traveled to Trump’s Mara-a-Lago Florida resort earlier this year, in two cases to interview for an endorsement.
Since those meetings, congressional leaders have presented findings of their investigation into the Jan. 6 attack on the US Capitol, an assault spawned in part from Trump’s false claims of election fraud in Wisconsin and other states.
More:Wisconsin’s ties to Jan. 6 may become clearer as select committee focuses on effort to stop certification
Some of the testimony has revealed Trump likely knew his efforts in Wisconsin to overturn the results of the presidential election were baseless but pressed on anyway.
Trump also has in recent weeks issued a series of angry statements directed at Assembly Speaker Robin Vos for his refusal to entertain proposals to decertify the 2020 election, which is an impossible request nearly two years after the results have been finalized.
The three candidates were again asked Monday, in their last debate of the primary, whether they would sign legislation to accomplish the goal that legal scholars and constitutional experts have called a fantasy.
Only Kleefisch said no.
Michels said “everything will be on the table” if he’s elected while Ramthun said he would sign the legislation, which he has proposed himself, in a “nanosecond.”
Trump said last week on his Truth Social website that Michels would have “no chance” at becoming governor if he did not remain “strong on the Rigged and Stolen Election.”
The former president plans to hold a rally at the Waukesha County fairgrounds at 7 pm Friday.
As the US Department of Justice (DOJ) works to convince a federal judge that a merger of Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster would damage the careers of some of the world’s most popular authors, it is leaning in part on the testimony of a writer who has thrived like few others — Stephen King.
Key points:
The DOJ is suing to block a merger between Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster in a key test of the Biden administration’s antitrust policy
Their star witness, bestselling author Stephen King, is expected to testify at the trial
King’s works are currently published by Simon & Schuster, but he has voice opposition to the merger
The author of Carrie, The Shining and many other favourites, King has willingly—even eagerly—placed himself in opposition to Simon & Schuster, his longtime publisher.
He was not chosen by the government just for his fame, but for his public criticism of the US$2.2 billion (more than $2.8 billion) deal, announced in late 2021, to join two of the world’s biggest publishers into what rival CEO Michael Pietsch of Hachette Book Group called a “gigantically prominent” entity.
“The more the publishers consolidate, the harder it is for indie publishers to survive,” King tweeted last year.
One of the few widely recognizable authors, King is expected to take the witness stand on Tuesday, the second day of a federal antitrust trial anticipated to last two to three weeks.
Simon & Schuster is Stephen King’s longtime publisher.(AP: Jenny Kane)
He may not have the business knowledge of Mr Pietsch, the DOJ’s first witness, but he has been a published novelist for nearly 50 years and knows well how much the industry has changed: Some of his former publishers were acquired by larger companies.
Carrie, for instance, was published by Doubleday, which in 2009 merged with Knopf Publishing Group, and is now part of Penguin Random House.
Another former King publisher, Viking Press, was a Penguin imprint that joined Penguin Random House when Penguin and Random House merged in 2013.
King’s affinity for smaller publishers is personal. Even while continuing to publish with the Simon & Schuster imprint Scribner, he has written thrillers for the independent Hard Case Crime.
Years ago, the publisher asked him to contribute a blurb, but King instead offered to write a novel for them, The Colorado Kid, released in 2005.
“Inside I was turning cartwheels,” Hard Case co-founder Charles Ardai would remember thinking when King contacted him.
King would likely benefit from the Penguin Random House-Simon & Schuster deal, but he has a history of favoring other priorities beyond his material wellbeing.
He has long been a critic of tax cuts for the rich, and has openly called for the government to raise his taxes.
“In America, we should all have to pay our fair share,” he wrote for The Daily Beast in 2012.
On Monday, attorneys for the two sides offered contrasting views of the book industry.
Government attorney John Read pointed to what he said was a dangerously narrow market, ruled tightly by the “Big Five” — Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, HarperCollins Publishing, Macmillan and Hachette — with little chance for smaller or start-up publishers to break through.
Attorney Daniel Petrocelli argued for the defense that the industry was actually diverse, profitable and open to newcomers.
Publishing means not just the Big Five, but also such medium-size companies as WW Norton & Co and Grove Atlantic.
The merger, he contended, would in no way up-end the ambitions so many hold for literary success.
“Every book starts out as an anticipated bestseller in the gleam of an author’s or an editor’s eye,” he said.
Netflix drops trailer for upcoming Heartbreak High reboot featuring non-binary roles and a bisexual character who ‘has slept with half the girls – and even a few boys – at school’
By A. James For Daily Mail Australia
Published: | Updated:
Netflix has announced that the reboot of the beloved Aussie series Heartbreak High will drop on the streaming giant’s platform on September 14.
Set in the fictional Hartley High, the eight-episode series is an update of the ’90s high school drama which made Callan Mulvey, who played bad boy Bogdan Drazic, and Home and Away star Ada Nicodemou household names.
A flashy new trailer featuring a line-up of gay and non-binary characters gives fans a taste of the show’s 21st century makeover.
Netflix has announced that the reboot of the beloved Aussie series Heartbreak High will drop on the streaming giant’s platform on September 14
The show is the first major locally produced drama series from Netflix since the pandemic.
In the preview, characters are seen partying, doing drag and being chased by police.
They will navigate sex, romance and violence as they come of age.
One scene shows a character whose face has been badly beaten, while in another a female character vandalizes a car.
A flashy new trailer featuring a line-up of gay and non-binary characters gives fans a taste of the show’s 21st century makeover
A more comical moment shows a boy and girl’s chess game interrupted when they are ‘pranked’ by a giant pink paper mache sex toy.
Meanwhile, there are brief glimpses of teenagers engaging in same-sex lovemaking.
The trailer finishes with one character looking out into the schoolyard saying, ‘honey we’re home.’
In the preview, characters are seen partying, doing drag and being chased by police
Produced by Netflix and Freemantle, the cast features Actor James Majoos as Darren, who goes by they/them pronouns and is described as ‘snarky’ and ‘brash’.
Bryn Chapman-Parish meanwhile plays Spider, who is described as ‘a sprinkling of incel’ and ‘class clown’.
Gemma Chua-Tran plays Sasha, an ‘out lesbian at the school’ who goes by both she/her and they/them pronouns.
The creators of the Netflix re-boot say they want the new version to ‘have life of their own’
Josh Heuston will depict Dusty, a bisexual character who ‘has slept with half the girls – and even a few boys – at school’.
The creator of the new series, Hannah Carroll Chapman, says the reboot has a ‘life of its own’.
Speaking at the Screen Forever trade conference in March she talked about the importance of the show being relevant to today’s teens.
The Heartbreak High reboot will give be relevant to today’s teens say its creators
She said wanted to avoid the show being a nostalgia piece for grown-ups.
‘I’m hoping that there’s a nice balance there, that people who love the original show feel the essence of that show,’ Chapman said, according to Variety. ‘But that’s very much for a younger generation.
Itself a spin-off of the 1993 film The Heartbreak Kid, the original series was praised for its multicultural cast, as well as its willingness to tackle gritty issues, from drugs to romance to religion to shoplifting and homelessness.
Salvatore Coco and Ada Nicodemou in the original Heartbreak High
The Sharks’ friendly run home gives them every chance to grab a top-four spot and their surge to September starts on Saturday against old rivals the Dragons.
Sitting third on 28 competition points, the Sharks play the sides coming 11th, 15th, 10th, 12th and 14th in the final five games so a home final at PointsBet Stadium beckons.
The Dragons hit a major hurdle on Sunday when they were totally outplayed by the Cowboys and their misfiring attack must be a huge concern to coach Anthony Griffin.
Given that Cronulla boast the third best defensive record in the NRL the Dragons will need to find a whole lot more with ball in hand if they are to topple the Sharks for the first time since round five, 2020.
The Rundown
teamnews
Sharks: A blow for the Sharks with fullback Will Kennedy facing 5-6 weeks on the sideline after undergoing ankle surgery. His place of him is taken by Kade Dykes on debut. Royce Hunt is out with a shoulder injury so Braden Hamlin-Uele will start and Braydon Trindall joins the bench.
Dragons: Coach Anthony Griffin has stuck with the same 17 that went down to the Cowboys on Sunday. Fullback Cody Ramsey is expected back on deck in Round 22 from a knee injury.
key match-up
Siosifa Talakai v Zac Lomax: The wrecking ball Talakai squaring off with the fleet footed Lomax provides an intriguing contrast in styles. With 86 tackle breaks to his name so far this season Talakai has proven almost unstoppable at times, while his tally of 13 line break assists shows he can create opportunities for team-mates as well. Lomax has busted 56 tackles and been at the heart of plenty of Red V raids and he’s a man the Sharks will need to watch closely.
Stat Attack
Nicho Hynes, Siosifa Talakai and William Kennedy have 44 line break assists between them for the season to all sit inside the top 10 in that category. The Dragons’ best is Ben Hunt with 11, closely followed by Talatau Amone and Jack Bird with 10 each.
The ACT government has today released its 2022-23 budget, setting out its spending for the coming year.
There are few surprises enclosed in the documents, with major announcements for health and housing already made in the past week.
But what the papers do reveal is an ACT economy that is thriving, despite outside forces continuing to threaten Canberrans’ hip pockets.
1. Things are better than we thought
First, the good news: the territory is faring better than expected.
In October last year, ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr delivered an economic update. An outbreak of the Delta variant of COVID-19 had forced a lengthy lockdown, leading to a $951.5 million deficit.
But, according to the budget papers released today, that position has improved, with the deficit now sitting at $580.4 million.
“The ACT economy has outperformed expectations, demonstrating resilience and flexibility in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic and other adverse global and national events,” the budget papers state.
Today, Mr Barr, who is also the ACT’s Treasurer, credited that improved economic position largely to a surging population.
“Revenue has driven that improved situation, which is largely a reflection of the territory’s increased population,” he said.
The ACT economy’s recovery from the effects of lockdowns has been stronger than expected.(ABC News: Ian Cutmore)
But it’s not all good news — that boom in people also has a downside.
“The fact that our population has grown by nearly 90,000 people demonstrates that people want to live in Canberra,” Mr Barr said.
“And that explains why we have seen such strong demand for housing, such strong enrollments in our schools and pressure on our health system.”
And it’s that growth and demand that has guided much of the budget spending announced today.
2. Costs are going up, but the government says we can afford it
Some costs are expected to increase, including parking fees and gas bills.(ABC Everyday: Fiona Purcell)
Over the past two years, many costs have been mitigated or put on pause by the government to ease financial pressures brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.
But those measures are gradually ending.
A pause on an increase to government paid parking is set to end, which means Canberrans will notice a jump in prices.
Home owners will also notice an increase in household rates of 3.75 per cent on average.
For homes, that means $111 more per year and, for units, an extra $67.
Other levies will also go up — the fire and emergency services levy by 3.25 per cent and the safer families levy by $5.
A trip to Access Canberra will also incur a greater cost, with car registration fees set to increase by $27.
One cost that won’t go up, however, is public transport fares.
Of course, the cost of living overall is being impacted by pressures further afield — the ongoing pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine having the greatest effect.
Weighing on many Canberrans’ minds is the announcement of yet another interest rate rise, but the ACT projects government Canberrans can weather the storm better than most other Australian jurisdictions.
“These effects are expected to be temporary, with the economy expected to continue to grow at 3 per cent over the coming years, supported by population, employment and wage growth,” the budget papers state.
While there are some relief measures outlined in the budget, such as a utilities concession increase of $50 for more than 31,000 low-income households, overwhelmingly, these are costs the government says most Canberrans are expected to manage well thanks to higher than average incomes.
3. The long shadow of COVID-19 remains
The ACT budget shows the risk COVID-19 still poses to the economy.(ABC News: Mark Leonardi)
Canberra is experiencing strong economic growth. And, as industry booms, there are a lot of jobs up for grabs.
But budget papers reveal China’s ongoing lockdowns to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 are having far-reaching effects, including on the ACT’s economy by limiting the arrival of workers.
And with Omicron sub-variants running rampant, this lack of workers is being felt especially harshly across the healthcare system.
The ACT government’s “upside scenario” in the latest budget papers assumes that these pressures will ease in the near future and the flow of migrants will increase steadily.
The government is also cautiously optimistic that the number of international students and tourists coming into the ACT will increase — two important revenue streams for the territory.
But the government’s optimistic budget forecasts have been wrong before and the potential risks posed to the ACT’s economy, from a myriad of external forces beyond the control of local government — including COVID-19, are also laid bare in the budget papers.
4. Another budget devoted to health
Health is a major part of the ACT budget, as the government aims to create more jobs and continue expanding the hospital campus.(ABC News: Penny McLintock)
Healthcare is, predictably, a major focus of this budget.
Record levels of COVID-19 patients, illness within the healthcare workforce, long emergency department wait times and a shortage of specialist doctors are not new problems for the government.
But how to solve them remains less of a sure thing.
The budget papers list a number of funding announcements—some already unveiled—aimed at addressing these issues.
$59 million has been set aside in the 2022-23 budget solely for the ACT’s COVID-19 response.
Further investments are also aimed at boosting the workforce, with plans to employ an additional 400 healthcare workers “ahead of schedule”, the budget papers reveal.
And with eight per cent of Canberrans surveyed reporting experiencing high levels of psychological distress in late 2021, the budget named mental health as an area of community concern.
As a result, $70 million will go towards mental health over four years.
There are few surprises in the budget spending, as the same projects that have been underway for some months continue to be funded.
This includes the Canberra Hospital master plan, which was launched late last year, and will see the existing facility expanded over 20 years.
5. A necessary debt, but cautious optimism
Chief Minister Andrew Barr said the ACT was accruing necessary debt in order to grow.
Throughout the pandemic, the government drove economic growth through infrastructure, and the zest for building shows no signs of slowing down.
Mr Barr said the government was prioritizing a few key areas as part of a $7 billion five-year infrastructure program — $1.4 billion in 2022-23 — including health, education, and emergency services.
“These are assets that will be enjoyed by generations of Canberrans,” Mr Barr said.
But they’re assets that come with a large price tag, with the ACT debt expected to grow from an estimated $4.9 billion to $9.8 billion over the next four years.
“They’re assets that we need to build now, and so it is appropriate to borrow in order to build those assets, and that the users of those assets over the decades and sometimes centuries ahead will make a contribution to that cost over time, Mr Barr said.
He said that debt was “sustainable” and would be financed largely through land releases.
The budget details plans for 30,000 extra dwellings in Canberra over the next five years.
But there’s no quick fix — at least, not in this budget — for the ongoing crisis in housing affordability and rental availability.
Two Erics are top contenders in Tuesday’s GOP primary for an open US Senate seat in Missouri.
But it wasn’t clear who former President Donald Trump backed even after he issued an endorsement in the race where Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt and former Governor Eric Greitens are both running.
On the eve of the election, Trump said in a statement he was “proud to announce that ERIC has my Complete and Total Endorsement!”
“There is a BIG Election in the Great State of Missouri, and we must send a MAGA Champion and True Warrior to the US Senate, someone who will fight for Border Security, Election Integrity, our Military and Great Veterans, together with having powerful toughness on Crime and the Border,” Trump stated.
“We need a person who will not go back down to the Radical Left Lunatics who are destroying our Country.
“I trust the Great People of Missouri, on this one, to make up their own minds, much as they did when gave me landside victories in the 2016 and 2020 Elections, and I am therefore proud to announce that ERIC has my Complete and Total Endorsement!”
Both candidates were quick to claim and tout Trump’s support.
Schmitt, in a tweet, wrote, “I’m grateful for President Trump’s endorsement. As the only America First candidate who has actually fought for election integrity, border security & against the Left’s indoctrination of our kids – I’ll take that fight to the Senate to SAVE AMERICA!”
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt was quick to claim Trump’s support after the former president’s confusing statement was released. AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File
Greitens also wrote he was “honored to receive President Trump’s endorsement.”
“From the beginning, I’ve been the true MAGA Champion fighting against the RINO establishment backing Schmitt,” I have tweeted.
He also bragged about being backed by Donald Trump Jr. and his girlfriend, media personality Kimberly Guilfoyle, in a separate tweet.
Greitens also claimed he “just had a GREAT phone call with President Trump” and thanked him for the support.
Former Governor Eric Greitens also interpreted Trump’s statement as a sure endorsement of him. AP Photo/Jeff Robersob
Schmitt hit back by reposting a tweet from conservative media personality Dan Bongino commenting on Greitens’ claim.
“Bulls—t. Read the endorsement. This dude is a FRAUD,” Bongino said in reference to Greitens.
Schmitt and Greitens are both vying to replace outgoing Sen. Roy Blunt. Schmitt is the favorite with an Emerson College poll last week showing him with about 33% of the predicted vote. After that, Rep. Vicky Hartzler had 21% and Greitens was in third with 16%.
Many national Republicans want Greitens to lose because of past scandals he was involved in, including charges of domestic abuse by his ex-wife.
While there’s a third candidate named Eric — Eric McElroy — also running, he is a long shot contender.
Still, Hartzler threw congratulations his way Monday.
“Congratulations to Eric McElroy. He’s having a big night,” she said in statement, according to CBS News.
