Act also received more donations in 2025 than Labour.

An Australian passenger aboard the nightmare cruise ship hit by a hantavirus outbreak has reportedly returned home.

Another passenger told Spanish newspaper El Pais that a group of 23 people left the MV Hondius at St Helena on April 21 and began their journeys home, about 10 days after the first death.

"There are 23 people wandering around there, and until three days ago, no one had contacted them," the passenger, who asked the newspaper to remain anonymous, said. 

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"The Australian went back to Australia, the one from Taiwan to Taiwan, the Americans to all corners of North America. The Englishman to England, the Dutch to their homes… I don't remember the rest, but no Spaniards."

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is aware four Australians are among the 88 passengers and 68 crew on board the ship but is not aware that any have been affected by the hantavirus outbreak.

"Owing to privacy obligations we are unable to comment further," a spokesperson said.

"DFAT stands ready to provide consular assistance if required."

The luxury cruise ship has been suspended in waters off Cape Verde on the African coast, which was meant to be the ship's final destination, since May 3 following the outbreak.

Eight cases of hantavirus have been recorded, but only five of those were confirmed by laboratory testing.

Three people have died. One body remains on the ship, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). 

The ship is destined for the Canary Islands, a plan which has been met with local objections.

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One patient with hantavirus returned to Switzerland 

The passenger also told El Pais that at least one of the members of the group appeared to have been infected with hantavirus and was admitted to a hospital in Switzerland. 

The Swiss government confirmed one patient was being treated for hantavirus in hospital after returning to Switzerland from the Dutch-flagged cruise ship MV Hondius, which is in the midst of a deadly outbreak of the rodent-borne disease.

"The man had returned from a trip to South America with his wife at the end of April," the government said in a statement.

"Having noticed symptoms, he telephoned his GP and went to the University Hospital Zurich for further assessment."

The man was "immediately placed in isolation" in hospital, before lab tests revealed a positive test for the American-strained hantavirus variant.

The man's wife, who accompanied him on the cruise, is not showing any symptoms of the virus but is self-isolating as a precaution.

The WHO says the risk to the global population from this outbreak is low.

"This is not the next Covid, but it is a serious infectious disease," the WHO's top epidemic expert, Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, said.

"Most people will never be exposed to this."

The Swiss health department said while person-to-person transmission has been documented in some rare cases it only occurs through close contact.

"The FOPH therefore considers the occurrence of further cases in Switzerland unlikely," the department said.

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Three evacuated 

Three people suspected of having hantavirus were evacuated from Cape Verde and will travel to the Netherlands, WHO chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said yesterday.

One of those individuals is the ship's British doctor, who was originally bound for the Canary Islands but is headed for the Netherlands now that his condition has improved, the Spanish health ministry said.

Two specialist doctors from the Netherlands will also arrive and remain with the vessel after it leaves Cape Verde, the tour operator said on Wednesday. Another doctor is already on board.

The cruise ship had been cleared to continue its voyage and the three patients were evacuated from the country "with maximum safety", National Director of Health Angela Gomes said in a statement this morning.

Plans to dock at Canary Islands met with objections

The Spanish government has said it would allow the ship to dock at the secondary port of Granadilla de Abona in Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands.

This was because it had been asked by the WHO and the European Union to take MV Hondius "in accordance with international law and humanitarian principles", according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

But Fernando Clavijo, the Spanish archipelago's leader, yesterday said he was opposed to the ship docking there and requested an urgent meeting with Spanish Prime Minister Sánchez.

"This decision ​is not based on any technical criteria, nor is there sufficient information to reassure the ​public or guarantee their safety," ​Clavijo told radio station COPE, according to Reuters.

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Investors in the radio giant which aired Kyle Sandilands and Jackie 'O' Henderson's now-defunct show have delivered an overwhelming backlash against the network's executive pay packets, as share prices plummet over the ugly legal fight between the former hosts.

More than 90 per cent of ARN shareholders voted against the company's latest executive pay report at its annual general meeting (AGM) this morning.

That makes it the largest remuneration strike in recent Australian corporate history – bigger than the 83 per cent rejection Qantas received at the nadir of the airline's popularity in 2023, and the 88 per cent for NAB in 2018, in the wake of the banking royal commission.

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ARN's remuneration report included a $1.1 million pay packet for relatively new chief executive Michael Stephenson.

The strike means it will need to deliver an amended remuneration report taking investor concerns into account.

A second strike would occur if 25 per cent or more vote against the next executive pay report, which would force a vote on whether to spill the ARN board.

During the meeting, ARN chair Hamish McLennan addressed the ongoing $170 million combined lawsuits filed by Henderson and Sandilands and assured investors that ARN is "committed to defending these claims and actively pursuing the cross-claims".

"As these matters are now before the courts, we do not intend to comment further," he said.

McLennan was re-elected as chair with an 80 per cent majority vote, despite earlier investor calls to resign over ARN's handling of the Sandilands and Henderson fallout.

He told the board he would be investing $500,000 into the company as a show of confidence.

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Stephenson spoke before the AGM and addressed the network's decline in revenue and noted a $26 million dip in advertising dollars last year was mostly due to client concerns over "brand safety".

He said $22 million in advertising revenue was directly related to "clients who had chosen not to advertise with ARN because of issues relating to brand safety".

"Over time, I expect that a significant percentage of the $26 million of revenue that was lost through the year because of brand safety concerns to return," Stephenson said.

ARN is currently locked in a combined $170 million in courtroom showdowns its two former leading stars, Sandilands and Henderson.

Both Sandilands and Henderson are suing ARN following an on-air spat that blew up their top-rated show in early March.

The pair are both seeking the full payout of the remainder of their 10-year, $100 million contracts signed at the end of 2023.

The contracts were due to expire in 2034.

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One of the country's greatest batsmen was both foolish and reckless when he drove after sharing a few glasses of wine with friends on Easter Sunday, his lawyer says.

David Warner returned a positive result for alcohol after he stopped short of a roadside test in Sydney's east on April 5, police said.

When he was taken to Maroubra Police Station for a secondary test, the 39-year-old allegedly blew 0.104 – more than double the legal blood alcohol limit.

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The former Australian Test opener and current Sydney Thunder Big Bash captain was charged with mid-range drink driving.

He was not required to appear in Waverley Local Court on Thursday when his matter was first mentioned and quickly adjourned.

Warner has not yet entered a plea but his lawyer Bobby Hill foreshadowed a guilty plea at a later date when speaking outside court.

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"He knows what he did was wrong," he said.

"He accepts that was a reckless decision, a foolish decision to get in his car instead of taking an Uber."

The Fox Cricket commentator had enjoyed three glasses of wine at a friend's apartment before making that decision, Hill said.

"It's not a crime to have a glass of wine on the day of the lord's resurrection. In fact, some would consider that completely appropriate," he told reporters.

"His crime is, as I said, choosing a foolish plan A instead of a plan B."

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Hill said Warner's last drink had been 11 minutes before he was pulled over by police, who are accused of taking 52 minutes to administer the second breathalyser.

The cricket star is remorseful, which is why he will ask for leniency but expect to be punished as any other NSW citizen would be, Hill explained.

"This case before the court is a reminder to everyone in the public about the dangers of self-assessments," he said.

"I know David is looking forward to putting this matter behind him and focusing his efforts on recontributing to those people in the community".

The charge has cast doubt on his Thunder captaincy.

"The allegations are of course concerning and we take them very seriously", Cricket NSW chief executive Lee Germon said after his arrest.

"At Cricket NSW, we are strong advocates for safe driving, not drink-driving."

Warner was arrested while he was on an Easter trip home from the subcontinent, where he captained the Karachi Kings in the Pakistan Super League.

He returned to Pakistan after being charged to resume the T20 tournament, where he averaged an impressive 51.2 with the bat.

Warner was a swashbuckling opening batsman and aggressive run-scorer for the national side until his retirement from Test cricket in 2024.

He scored 8786 runs at an average of more than 44 across his 112 Tests, with a career high score of 335 not out against Pakistan.

But Warner created headlines for the wrong reasons when he was one of three Australian players suspended after a 2018 ball-tampering scandal in South Africa that shook the cricketing world.

A Cricket Australia investigation found Warner, who was vice-captain at the time, masterminded a plan to alter the condition of the match ball with sandpaper and enlisted rookie batsman Cameron Bancroft to carry it out.

Warner was banned from international and domestic cricket for 12 months and made permanently ineligible for team leadership positions.

Warner's matter will return to court on June 24.

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The organisation behind of Australia's largest and longest-standing early stage start-up communities has collapsed into voluntary administration.

KPMG Australia's Gayle Dickerson and Phil Quinlan will oversee a strategic restructing of not-for-profit Fishburners, which has fostered more than 35,000 entrepreneurs since 2011, including furniture company Koala and pet-sitting service Mad Paws.

The Sydney-based hub supports tech founders by providing co-working spaces, programs and networking opportunities to help start-ups grow from idea to revenue.

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The voluntary administrators have assumed day-to-day control of the operations of the organisation.

The company will continue to trade as usual as the administrators assess the business, in conjuction with an accelerated sale and recapitalisation process.

Dickerson said Fishburners had been a pillar of the Australian start-up ecosystem.

"We will seek expressions of interest from parties within the innovation and technology sectors and work with all stakeholders, including the board, employees and founders, to maximise the outcome," Dickerson said.

The Fishburners board said in a statement members have determined a formal restructuring would be the most effective way to achieve a sustainable future.

"The board have been actively engaging in consolidation and investment discussions, which the Administrator will now pursue," the board said.

A first creditors meeting for Fishburners will be held on May 18.

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Australia's financial watchdog has launched a money laundering investigation against the country's biggest gambling company.

In a statement to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), Tabcorp confirmed they were subject to a compliance assessment from AUSTRAC over several "serious concerns".

These include doubts over its ability to prevent illegal activity on the platform, including money laundering and financing of terrorism.

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Tabcorp said the initial investigation would focus on the company's compliance with rules and regulations, and insisted the investigation was at an early stage.

"AUSTRAC has also advised that all potential outcomes remain open, including the possibility that no further enforcement action will be taken," the statement said.

However, despite no assertion of guilt, the company's share price took a battering, dropping nearly 23 per cent when the markets opened at 10am.

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"Tabcorp takes its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing obligations very seriously," Chairman Brett Chenoweth said, adding the company was fully cooperating with the investigation.

Managing Director and CEO Gillon McLachlan, formerly head of the AFL, said his goal was to lead a company that falls within the law.

"I am committed to leading a compliant and safe company that understands its risk obligations," he said.

"Uplifting our risk capability has been an ongoing part of the Company's transformation and we will work constructively with AUSTRAC through this process."

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A cybersecurity breach affecting 200 million people and more than 9000 institutions worldwide has hit students and teachers across Queensland's education sector.

Queensland Education Minister John-Paul Langbroek announced the cyber breach involved Instructure, a third-party provider that has delivered the state's Department of Education's online learning platform Qlearn since 2020.

"This incident has impacted thousands of educational institutions, including state schools and universities within Queensland, across Australia and overseas, and early advice is this will impact more than 200 million people and more than 9000 institutions worldwide," he said.

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Early indications suggest that students and staff working or studying at Queensland schools since 2020 have been affected by the breach.

"Advice at this stage is names, email addresses and school locations have been compromised in the international data breach," Langbroek said.

"No evidence of passwords, dates of birth or financial information being accessed in the data breach.

"School principals are in the process of contacting families and teachers to advise them of the breach."

More to come.

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Liberal Senator and Shadow Defence Minister James Paterson has been involved in a scuffle with a One Nation volunteer at a poll booth in the electorate of Farrer.

In a video captured by Paterson on his phone, as well as a separate angle caught by a bystander, the volunteer is seen grabbing Paterson's phone after the pair were involved in a verbal debate about One Nation's candidate David Farley outside a polling booth in Albury.

It came as Paterson claimed Farley, who is running for One Nation, previously attempted to stand for the Labor Party in the seat.

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Paterson said voters had a right to know Farley's previous politicalhistory, which the volunteer claimed was defamatory.

"Liberal-National mob, you wouldn't spend the money if you didn't think it was going to be defamatory to change the vote," the volunteer said, calling Paterson a "lying prick."

The volunteer then realised Paterson was filming the exchange, and reacted angrily by attempting to snatch his phone.

"Don't video me without my bloody knowledge," he said, to which Paterson claimed the volunteer had just assaulted him.

"That's assault, you've just committed an assault… you just grabbed my phone off me, that's an assault."

The volunteer was eventually separated from Paterson by other people witnessing the exchange, including other One Nation volunteers.

In a statement on Facebook, which included two videos of the altercation, Farley said the incident was unacceptable.

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"I condemn in the strongest terms aggression of any form on the campaign trail, and I will not hesitate to act when made aware of bad behaviour," he said.

"I want to reaffirm my commitment to respectful behaviour and inclusive participation in our democratic process," he added, saying he had also spoken to Paterson to ensure he is okay.

In a statement to Nine.com.au, Paterson said he accepted debate in politics as healthy, but said a line had been crossed.

"Robust debate on polling booths is a healthy thing but it should never get physical," he said.

"Anyone standing for public office has to accept legitimate scrutiny about their record, including One Nation.

"Voters have a right to know David Farley was a Labor member, aspiring candidate and donor before they make their decision about who represents them in Farrer."

The by-election to replace previous Liberal leader Sussan Ley will take place on Saturday, with the Liberal Party, Nationals and One Nation all running candidates, as well as an independent campaign from Michelle Milthorpe.

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