Weekly News Roundup

Cher Will Return to Australia for Tour

Pop superstar Cher will return to Australia this year for her first tour in thirteen years. The Here We Go Again tour will draw from her 40-year-career, giving fans the chance to relive her biggest hits. Spanning September and October, her appearance comes just a few months after the 71-year-old performed at the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras.

Tour dates include:

September 26
Newcastle
Entertainment Centre

September 28
Brisbane
Entertainment Centre

October 3
Melbourne
Rod Laver Arena

October 9
Adelaide
Entertainment Centre

October 12
Perth
Perth Arena

October 18
Sydney
Qudos Bank Arena

Tickets go on sale Friday May 18, at 10am for Brisbane, Sydney, and Perth, and at 11am for Melbourne, Adelaide, and Newcastle.

Volcanic Eruption in Hawaii

Hawaii has been struck with a volcanic eruption, since last friday, the eruption of the Kilauea Volcano has destroyed at least 26 homes on the Big Island’s Leilani Estates, Puna.

A 5.4 earthquake also struck the island followed by a fifth eruption which spewed lava into the suburban streets of the estate. An hour later another quake hit, this time even bigger at 6.9.

This tremor is reportedly the largest in Hawaii since 1975 and was felt as far as Oahu, triggering several landslides on the Hamakua Coast.

On Sunday, residents were allowed a brief return to their homes to rescue pets and collect personal belongings and medication but because new fissures have been sighted, residents have been evacuated indefinitely.

According to Hawaii News Now, at least one fissure continued to spew lava throughout Sunday and only stopped at 4PM. Lava fountains reportedly reached heights of 100 feet (30 metres). Officials have warned residents not to return home without being granted access because of the dangerously high levels of sulphur dioxide currently present in the estate area. There are reportedly still 10 active lava fissures in Puna.

HNW reports Red Cross shelters have housed 240 residents and 90 pets while other residents have fled to family and friends.

Fashion Designer Diagnosed with Breast Cancer

Prominent Australian fashion designer Camilla Franks has been diagnosed with breast cancer, shortly after giving birth to her first child.

Taking to Instagram, the 42-year-old designer announced that she’s stepping away from her brand Camilla while she seeks treatment.

“This year, 18,000 women in this backyard of ours will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year. Today, I am one of them,” she wrote.

“Like anyone who has felt the unrelenting terror of being diagnosed, cancer was certainly never part of my plan. It’s something that JP [a.k.a. her fiancé, artist and musician JP Jones] and I have spent the last few days trying to process and confront. Like all life’s adversities, we are choosing to unite and face this one with acceptance, endurance and love. This is the only way – and I have the best kind of love by my side.”

Franks and Jones welcomed their first child together, Luna Gypsy, a few months ago. “It is her joy and warmth that remind me that this is a journey I will embark on with courage – for her and for us,” she wrote.

“The world of Camilla will continue to shine brightly, and while I won’t be stepping away completely, I know my tribe will continue to dance and bloom in my short absence. While I know I have your love and support, I also kindly request personal privacy whilst I enter the battlefield. This by no means is an easy chapter, but one I hope to share with you all once I am back on track.”

“I start on this journey humble but resilient; I would be lying if I said I wasn’t scared but I am fearlessly determined to do whatever it takes by focusing on my body, mind and spirit as I take my first trusting steps towards recovery,” she said.

More Federal MPs have Resigned

Four more federal MPs have resigned their seats in parliament following a High Court ruling disqualifying Labor Senator Katy Gallagher.

That’s the consequence of the High Court decision today that Labor’s Katy Gallagher had to quit the Senate because she was a dual citizen when elected, breaching eligibility rules in the Constitution.

Four MPs — three Labor members of the House of Representatives and a minor party MP — followed Senator Gallagher out of Parliament today.

Backbenchers Susan Lamb, Justine Keay and Josh Wilson delivered resignation speeches in the lower house on Wednesday afternoon, surrounded by party colleagues.

Budget Outcomes

Treasurer Scott Morrison has introduced the 2018 budget and according to ABC news there will differing benefits. Among the winners were taxpayers, older Australians and small businesses while the losers were welfare recipients, cash users and vacant land owners.

In relation to taxpayers, Scott Morrison’s plan would leave 94 per cent of taxpayers on the lowest or middle rate and only those earning more than $200,000 would pay the top tax rate.

It will cost $140 billion over 10 years.

Mr Morrison said it was evidence the Government is delivering on its promise to give a tax cut to lower and middle-income earners before big companies.