Australia news: Government will consider carveout in CGT legislation for start-up owners; Trump was ‘an hour away’ from striking Iran, warns of attack within days

The last two bodies of Italian divers killed in a scuba diving accident in the Maldives have been recovered, the media office of the Maldives president said on Wednesday, completing recovery efforts after the island nation’s deadliest diving tragedy.

Five Italian divers died last week after entering a deepwater cave for exploration.

Maldivian authorities are probing all causes, including whether the group descended far deeper than expected.

Reuters

Doctors battling a rare strain of Ebola in central Africa will probably need to wait many months for a vaccine to be ready for human trials, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations said, underscoring the challenges health authorities face in combating the outbreak.

CEPI and its partners will start the vaccine development process immediately for multiple candidates, Chief Executive Officer Richard Hatchett said in an interview overnight. However, lab testing and evidence from animal trials will be needed before human studies can begin, he said. Some potential candidates have undergone initial animal testing.

“These are very, very early-stage vaccines,” Hatchett said. “These are not vaccines that have been developed and tested in animals and had any human work that’s been done.”

A World Health Organization technical advisory group is meeting on Tuesday to discuss and provide recommendations on which potential vaccines should be prioritized, WHO said. The rare Bundibugyo strain implicated in this outbreak has no approved treatment and no vaccine. It’s believed to have circulated for weeks before being officially confirmed on May 15, complicating efforts to stop its spread.

Bloomberg

A former Nationals candidate has been accused of the hit-and-run death of a high school teacher in the West Australian town of Katanning, about 280 kilometres south-east of Perth.

Luke Russell, 49, was found unresponsive and bleeding by a passerby on Marri Road in the early hours of May 13. The passerby called for help, but Russell died a short time later.

Police, including homicide detectives, launched a search for witnesses and scoured nearby CCTV cameras. Days later, they arrested local labourer Benjamin Thomas Simpkins.

Police allege the 26-year-old was on his way to work in Gnowangerup from Katanning when he hit Russell before driving away without stopping to help or call emergency services.

Simpkins appeared today in Perth Magistrates Court, where prosecutors said his driving licence was suspended at the time of the incident.

Read the full story here.

A diphtheria outbreak spreading around the country has been caused by factors including lower vaccination rates and increased vaccination hesitancy, experts say.

Global biosecurity professor Raina MacIntyre spoke to ABC Radio this morning, and said vaccination rates had decreased in recent years, including for the combination diphtheria shot.

“We have more people who are incompletely vaccinated … as well as vaccine hesitancy that is caused by all the misinformation and disinformation that’s spreading.”

MacIntyre said a holistic approach was required to improve confidence in vaccines and reduce hesitancy.

Yesterday, Health Minister Mark Butler said the outbreak was the worst Australia had seen for diphtheria in decades.

The prime minister has warned the Northern Territory government, led by Country Liberal Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro, to be more inclusive so as to improve outcomes for child protection in Indigenous communities.

“I would say to the Northern Territory government that you’ll get better outcomes if you have an inclusive approach and you have buy-in to these issues, and that’s why that consultation and engagement is so important,” Albanese told journalists in Alice Springs.

“We want to see, though, outcomes which are appropriate. We do think that everything possible should be done, of course, to keep children safe. That’s the No.1 priority,” he said.

“Tragedies such as Kumanjayi Little Baby, should never occur. Every child has a right to live in safety and to be treated with respect.”