Prince Harry has arrived at a London court to testify against a tabloid publisher he accuses of phone hacking and other unlawful snooping.

Harry alleges that journalists at the Daily Mirror and its sister papers used unlawful techniques on an "industrial scale" to get scoops.

Publisher Mirror Group Newspapers is contesting the claims. Harry faces cross-examination by the company’s lawyer when he enters the witness box at the High Court in London today.

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The 38-year-old son of King Charles III will be the first British royal since the 19th century to face questioning in a court. An ancestor, the future King Edward VII, appeared as a witness in a trial over a gambling scandal in 1891.

Harry has made a mission of holding the UK press to account for what he sees as its hounding of him and his family.

Setting out the prince’s case in court on Monday, his lawyer, David Sherborne, said that from Harry's childhood, British newspapers used hacking and subterfuge to mine snippets of information that could be turned into front-page scoops.

He said stories about Harry were big sellers for the newspapers, and some 2500 articles had covered all facets of his life during the time period of the case — 1996 to 2011 — from injuries at school to experimenting with marijuana and cocaine to ups and downs with girlfriends.

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“Nothing was sacrosanct or out of bounds” for the tabloids, the lawyer said.

Mirror Group's attorney, Andrew Green, said there was “simply no evidence capable of supporting the finding that the Duke of Sussex was hacked, let alone on a habitual basis".

Green said he plans to question Harry for a day and a half.

Harry has been expected in court Monday for the opening of the hacking case, the first of his several lawsuits against the media to go to a full trial.

He was absent because he’d taken a flight Sunday from Los Angeles after the birthday of his two-year-old daughter Lilibet, Sherborne said — to the evident chagrin of the judge, Timothy Fancourt.

“I’m a little surprised,” said Fancourt, noting he had directed Harry to be prepared to testify.

Harry’s fury at the UK press — and sometimes at his own royal relatives for what he sees as their collusion with the media — runs through his memoir, Spare, and interviews conducted by Oprah Winfrey and others.

He has blamed paparazzi for causing the car crash that killed his mother, Princess Diana, and said harassment and intrusion by the UK press, including allegedly racist articles, led him and his wife, Meghan, to flee to the US in 2020 and leave royal life behind.

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A man named Dave and a dog named Thor held the key.

An ex-Australian Olympian has pleaded guilty to harassing his former partner in Melbourne last year.

Gary Neiwand, 56, appeared before Broadmeadows Magistrates Court today, where he pleaded guilty to using a carriage service to menace, harass or cause offence.

The court heard over a period of two days in July, Neiwand bombarded his victim with dozens of phone calls, emails and messages from social media accounts.

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The defence told the court Neiwand attempted to make contact because he was worried about the victim's mental health after breaking up with the woman because he had been seeing someone else.

His victim, who remains anonymous, told 9News that it was three days of "absolute hell".

"It's not fair," the victim said.

"I knew he had a past, but I thought the better of it. I thought he was a changed man and it wouldn't happen to me."

The 56-year-old is a four-time track cycling Olympian who won medals in three of the four Games he participated in.

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He also won three Commonwealth Games gold medals.

Neiwand was previously sentenced to 18 months for stalking a former girlfriend and four other people in 2006. He has also previously breached a court order.

Six years later, he was convicted and given a two-year good behaviour bond after admitting he flashed two women. He was then spared jail time.

The court heard the father of two lives with his parents and has a good relationship with his kids. 

The former Olympian also faced a stalking charge but that was dropped.

Neiwand will reappear for sentencing in September.

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He shares how he is overcoming challenges and finding solace in his passion.

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Bruce Lehrmann claims the ABC broadcast a speech by Brittany Higgins about an alleged rape because it intended to "hurt and harm" him.

Lehrmann is suing for defamation over the ABC's live reporting of a joint speech by Higgins and former Australian of the Year Grace Tame in February 2021 at the National Press Club.

While the address never named the law student directly, he claims he was defamed because it invited viewers to speculate about the identity of the person accused.

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In a document filed with the Federal Court on Monday, the former Liberal staffer accuses the ABC of being "actuated by malice" for allowing the uncensored live speech to be broadcast six months after he was hit with criminal charges.

"It was not only reasonably foreseeable and high risk but quite inevitable that Ms Higgins would, during the NPC address, repeat her allegation that she was sexually assaulted by an unnamed work colleague in Parliament House," he wrote.

Higgins accused Lehrmann of raping her inside the office of then minister Linda Reynolds, who they both worked for in March 2019.

He denies the allegation, maintaining the pair never had any sexual interaction.

A large number of viewers would have identified Lehrmann as the alleged offender despite Higgins leaving him unidentified, he said.

He accused the public broadcaster of being "recklessly indifferent, negligent and wilfully blind" to the likelihood that Higgins' statements would be defamatory and prejudice his right to a fair trial.

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"The whole point of the NPC address was that Ms Higgins was telling the truth and that cultural and other change ought to follow," he wrote.

"It is to be inferred that the (ABC) published that matter with the intention to hurt and harm (Lehrmann) by publishing defamatory matter (sic) about him."

Responding to the ABC's defamation defences, Lehrmann rejected claims the broadcast was in the public interest, was a fair report of an issue of public concern, or was published honestly.

As well as the ABC, the law student is also suing Network Ten and journalist Lisa Wilkinson over an interview with Higgins on The Project in February 2021.

A separate lawsuit brought by Lehrmann against News Corp and journalist Samantha Maiden settled last month with the publisher paying part of Lehrmann's legal costs but not being required to pay him any damages.

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A criminal trial brought against Lehrmann in the ACT Supreme Court was derailed in October because of juror misconduct.

In December, the prosecutor dropped the charges due to impacts a second trial would have on Higgins' mental health.

The ACT government also launched an inquiry into how the justice system responded to Higgins' allegations.

A report is being prepared and will be delivered to Chief Minister Andrew Barr by the end of July.

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Westpac has become the first of the big four banks to pass on today's interest rate rise, just hours after the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) hiked the cash rate.

Westpac announced on Tuesday evening that it will increase its variable home loan rates by 0.25 per cent, in line with the RBA's decisions. The increase will come into effect on June 20.

It has not, however, increased its savings rates, instead saying they are under review, while offering a term deposit offer of 4.50 per cent for select customers.

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"We understand interest rate increases put more pressure on household budgets," Westpac chief executive consumer and business banking Chris de Bruin said.

"The majority of our customers are managing okay, but we know with each rate change it's getting more challenging.

"We're reaching out to some customers who may need additional support and have competitive rates available for those rolling off fixed loans to make the change easier.

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"For customers in financial difficulty we are here to help and encourage them to call us early if they're concerned."

The RBA earlier on Tuesday announced it would increase the cash rate by 0.25 per cent, defying market predictions which had anticipated a pause.

It was the 12th rate hike since May last year.

For the average Australian mortgage, today's rate hike represents an additional $1,264 in mortgage repayments since the cash rate was 0.10 per cent in April 2022.

The other major banks – NAB, Commonwealth Bank and ANZ – are yet to pass on the rate hike.

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A major dam in Russian-occupied southern Ukraine has been destroyed, prompting mass evacuations and fears for large-scale devastation as Ukraine accused Moscow's forces of committing an act of "ecocide".

Residents downstream from the Nova Kakhova dam on the Dnipro River in Kherson were told to "do everything you can to save your life," according to the head of Ukraine's Kherson region military administration, as video showed a deluge of water gushing from a huge breach in the dam.

Two videos posted to social media and geolocated by CNN showed the destroyed dam wall and fast-moving torrents of water flowing out into the river. Multiple buildings at the entrance to the dam were also heavily damaged.

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The critical Nova Kakhova dam spans the Dnipro River, a major waterway running through southeastern Ukraine, and there are multiple towns and cities downstream, including Kherson, a city of some 300,000 people before Moscow's invasion of its neighbour.

Ukraine's Operational Command South on Tuesday confirmed the dam's destruction in a post on its official Facebook page, saying they were assessing the scale of the damage and calculating likely areas of flooding.

Following the dam breach, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said its destruction "only confirms for the whole world" that Russian forces "must be expelled from every corner of Ukrainian land".

He also convened an emergency meeting of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine.

Other senior Ukrainian officials blamed Russia.

"This is ecocide," Andriy Yermak, the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, said of the dam's destruction.

"The Russians will be responsible for the possible deprivation of drinking water for people in the south of Kherson region and in Crimea, the possible destruction of some settlements and the biosphere," he added.

'Save your life'

In a video statement posted on Telegram, Oleksandr Prokudin, the Ukraine-appointed head of the Kherson region military administration, said the water "will reach critical level in five hours".

"The Russian Army has committed another act of terror. It has blown up Kakhovka Hydro Power Plant… Evacuation in the area of danger has started," he said.

Prokudin said evacuations in the "area of danger" around the dam had started and asked citizens to "collect your documents and most needed belongings and wait for evacuation buses".

"I ask you to do everything you can to save your life. Leave the dangerous areas immediately," he added.

Units of Ukraine's National Police and the state emergency service of the Kherson region have been put on alert to warn and evacuate civilians from potential flood zones, Ukraine's Ministry of Internal Affairs said.

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Those zones are on the west bank of the Dnipro River, including "the villages of Mykolaivka, Olhivka, Liovo, Tiahynka, Poniativka, Ivanivka, Tokarivka, Poniativka, Prydniprovske, Sadove, and part of the city of Kherson – Korabel Island," the ministry said.

With the water level rising, authorities urged everyone in the flood zone to turn off all electrical appliances, take documents and essentials, take care of loved ones and pets, and follow the instructions of rescuers and police.

The Russian-installed mayor of Nova Kakhovka, Vladimir Leontiev, initially on Tuesday denied information about the dam collapsing in an interview with Russian state media RIA Novosti, calling it "nonsense".

He later confirmed the destruction of parts of the dam in what he called "a serious terrorist act" but said there was "no need to evacuate".

"Overnight strikes on the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant destroyed gate valves, causing water to be spilled downstream uncontrollably," Leontyev said.

CNN was not immediately able to verify the claims made by Ukrainian and Russian officials attributing blame.

Throughout the course of the war in Ukraine, both Moscow and Kyiv have accused each other of plotting to blow up the Soviet-era dam.

The escaping torrent of water has the potential to cause major destruction around Kherson city and other populated areas along the Dnipro River, according to analysts who have been fearing a breach could occur in the fighting.

And President Zelenskyy had previously warned that a breach of the dam could have catastrophic consequences for those living downstream.

"Destroying the dam would mean a large-scale disaster," he said in October last year.

However, a Russian-installed Kherson official Andrey Alekseenko said the situation along the areas of the banks of Dnipro was "under control."

"There is no threat to people's lives," Alekseenko said, adding that Ministry of Emergency Situation staff are in control of water levels in the river.

"If necessary, we are ready to evacuate the residents of embankment villages, buses are prepared," Alekseenko added.

'No immediate nuclear safety risk'

The dam is a critical piece of infrastructure, holding around 18 cubic kilometres in the Kakhovka Reservoir, about equal to the Great Salt Lake in the US state of Utah, according to Reuters news agency.

The 30-metre-high, 3.2-kilometre-long structure is one of six dams along the Dnipro and supplies water for much of southeastern Ukraine and the Crimean peninsula which was annexed by Russia in 2014.

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It also supplies water for the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, which lies upstream and is also under Russian control.

On Tuesday, a spokeswoman for Ukraine's southern command said the dam's destruction will "certainly" affect the operation of the nuclear power plant but there was "no need to escalate the situation now and draw the most critical conclusions."

"Because all experts are involved and will try to create better conditions to avoid the next technogenic catastrophe," said Natalia Humeniuk, adding that "the situation is currently under control."

And the International Atomic Energy Agency said "no immediate nuclear safety risk" exists at the Zaporizhzhia plant and their experts are "closely monitoring the situation".

In November, the Nova Kakhovka dam was damaged in shelling and satellite images from Maxar Technologies obtained by CNN showed water flowing out of three sluice gates at the dam.

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