Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth slammed President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for defense secretary Pete Hegseth’s military record as ‘pretty low rank’ as he faces scrutiny for controversial comments he made about women serving in combat. Duckworth, who is a combat veteran who lost both her legs and mobility in one arm serving in Iraq, appeared on CBS News’ Face the Nation where she was asked about the TV personality tapped to head the Pentagon. She said his comments about women in combat show he does not understand where the military is and called him unqualified for the role.

A celebrity bishop appeared to suffer a medical emergency mid-sermon at his megachurch in Dallas. Bishop TD Jakes, 67, was filmed involuntarily shaking during the ordeal, at The Potter’s House megachurch Sunday. The place of worship has a capacity of about 8,000, and the crowd was seen reacting to Jakes’ episode in real-time.

A young Australian has slammed the country’s housing crisis as ‘genuinely ridiculous’ after receiving a flyer from a real estate agency that showcased ordinary properties that all sold for more than $1million. Matt, a 19-year-old from Sydney, expressed his frustration with the state of Australia’s property market after seeing the flyer, which highlighted 53 homes sold in October. The properties were located in suburbs about one hour west of Sydney’s CBD, including Quakers Hill, Box Hill, Blacktown, and Riverstone.

Shoppers who have their mobile phones stolen on the fashionable King’s Road, like Christine Lampard, won’t get them back, say security guards who work in the upmarket boutiques targeted by street thieves. After the Loose Women presenter Christine revealed how a security guard shrugged and said, ‘there’s at least 30 a day stolen out here,’ after she had her phone snatched while shopping along the exclusive road in Chelsea, southwest London, others warned they are powerless to stop the thefts. Christine, 45 described being the victim of the mobile phone crime wave sweeping the capital while speaking with fellow Loose Women, Olivia Attwood, Judi Love, and Brenda Edwards, about policing and Keir Starmer’s right to prioritise ‘physical crime’ after journalists were arrested over social media posts.

The poor priorities and inconsistencies of Anthony Albanese’s government are nearly summed up by the political manoeuvres taking place as we enter the final parliamentary sitting period before the summer break. They are tangible evidence for why Labor is floundering in the polls in just its first term in power. On the one hand, Labor spent months telling us its misinformation bill was a vital reform aimed at stamping out… you guessed it, misinformation in public discourse.

A former MI6 spy chief has accused Labour of putting national security at risk following its ‘deeply’ worrying cuts to defence spending. Sir Richard Dearlove, who was head of MI6 between 1999 and 2004, has claimed the new government is showing no urgency in the face of international crises. In words reported by the Daily Telegraph, Sir Richard said: ‘I’m deeply worried about aspects of this new Government, particularly when it comes to national security – and these are ultimately issues of national security.