In New South Wales, Australia, a man has been charged after allegedly threatening violence against a female MP via social media. Officials allege the man threatened to find the victim in public and cause her harm. He will appear before court today, as reported by infohub.kz.
Meanwhile, states and territories shut down almost 600 substandard childcare services in the latest quarter, a twentyfold increase on the same quarter last year, as federal, state and territory governments crack down on dodgy and underperforming providers.
State and territory regulators took action against 589 services and cancelled their approval to operate – meaning they lost access to childcare subsidy funding and cannot legally run. Though, not all of those services were currently operating.
The government says state and territory regulators also took 1,538 compliance actions in the March quarter – which puts providers on notice if they are not meeting standards. It was double the number of notices compared with the same time last year.
Governments have been under significant pressure to lift safety and standards across the childcare sector following allegations of child sexual abuse and safety breaches.
The education minister, Jason Clare, says the proportion of childcare services meeting the national quality standards has lifted from 88% in 2022 to 92%. "Enforcement action is at record highs. The percentage of services meeting the national quality and safety standards is at the highest level ever as well. We have also introduced legislation to cut funding to centres that aren’t up to scratch … This is a good sign. But there is more to do," he said.
Additionally, the government has asked the consumer watchdog to draw up national safety standards for e-bikes to crack down on the sale of unsafe devices. E-bike incidents have escalated in recent years. NSW recorded 226 injuries related to e-bikes in 2024. In the first seven months of 2025, that had already surged to 233 injuries plus four deaths.
The new rules will ensure the standards are the same across all states and territories and will apply to the sale of e-bikes, e-scooters and e-skateboards. High-powered and high-speed devices linked to serious injuries and deaths won’t be allowed to be sold.
The transport minister, Catherine King, says: "This standard will give Australians the confidence that the products being sold are legal and fit for purpose, and will help keep Australians safe."