This is The Loop, your quick catch-up for this morning's news as it happens.
Live updates
By Kelsie Iorio
Stay in The Loop
Thanks for reading this morning's live wrap of key news headlines.
You can stay up to date on the ABC News website and by subscribing to our mobile alerts.
If you're just joining us, here's what you need to know:
- Multiple flood warnings and evacuation orders remain in place in parts of New South Wales and Victoria. Follow live updates here
-
Nearly 30 per cent of Medicare's annual budget is being lost to fraud and waste, with inappropriate billing across the whole sector
-
Australia has defeated the US 58-55 to win the Wheelchair Rugby World Championship in Denmark
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy there's been heavy fighting around two towns in the Donbas region
-
Russian authorities say a criminal investigation has been launched after gunmen reportedly shot and killed 11 people at a military training ground near the Ukrainian border
See you tomorrow.
By Kelsie Iorio
PSA: Come and hang out with us on our Q&A about all things scams
Scams, online privacy and data breaches have been on a lot of our minds lately — so we're gonna talk about it.
We'll have an expert panel answering all your questions live and in real-time on our live Q&A blog later this morning.
It all kicks off at 11:30am AEDT — check out the ABC News website to join in.
By Kelsie Iorio
Update: World champ Ryley Batt talks winning gold, preparing for Paris
By Kelsie Iorio
Watch live: Anthony Albanese and Dominic Perrottet are speaking about the floods in Forbes
By Kelsie Iorio
Just in: Treasurer responds to Medicare reports
ICYMI earlier, doctors have revealed that Medicare system misuse is costing Australians billions of dollars a year.
The joint ABC 7.30/Sydney Morning Herald/Age investigation found inappropriate billing hs an issue in all areas of the health sector.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers was asked about the investigation at a press conference just a couple of minutes ago, and said the reports contained "very troubling revelations".
Here's what he said:
"If these numbers are true, it's absolutely atrocious.
"Every dollar rorted, whether it's Medicare or the NDIS, is a dollar thieved from people who need and deserve good healthcare. And so, the health minister will have more to say about this. Bill Shorten has been talking about this in the context of the NDIS as well.
We do need to do more work here. To make sure that our defences against people who want to rort and thieve from government programs a cracked down on. We'll do that work."
By Kelsie Iorio
Overnight: At least seven hurt in suspected gas explosion in Spain
Officials say a suspected gas explosion wounded seven people, with two suffering serious injuries, at a Japanese restaurant in the northeastern Spanish city of Tarragona.
Tarragona mayor Pau Ricoma told reporters that the blast happened around 4pm local time on Sunday, when the restaurant was closed.
"It is not clear what caused the explosion but it is almost certainly gas," he said.
The incident is being investigated by the Catalan regional police.
By Kelsie Iorio
Watch live: Treasurer Jim Chalmers to speak ahead of federal budget
Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers is due to speak to the media at 9:30am AEDT (so in about five minutes, if all goes to plan) after returning from meetings in Washington DC with the International Monetary Fund and G20 finance ministers.
You can watch along live on the YouTube stream below.
By Kelsie Iorio
Just in: An update from Victoria's Emergency Management Commissioner
By Kelsie Iorio
Overnight: What on earth is going on in the House of Commons
UK media has reported rumours that politicians could try to oust Prime Minister Liz Truss this week.
Crispin Blunt says Ms Truss' reputation has been "fatally damaged," and she cannot win nor sustain the confidence of Conservative MPs.
He told Britain's Channel Four that "the game is up".
"It's now a question as to how the succession is managed," he said.
By Kelsie Iorio
PSA: It's National Carers Week
Have you ever been a carer?
More than 2 million Australians are providing care right now, so odds are you either are one, have one or know one.
National Carers Week officially kicked off for 2022 yesterday to "raise community awareness among all Australians about the diversity of carers and their caring roles".
There's more info and resources on National Carers Week here.
By Kelsie Iorio
Quiz: Are you smarter than a scammer?
Later today, we have a panel of experts on hand to take you inside the mind of a scammer and how to avoid their tricks.
But before that, try our interactive quiz and see if you can actually pick the legit from the dodgy.
Give it a go here:
By Kelsie Iorio
Happening now: Latest emergency warning for Murchison
Things are happening quite quickly in flooding areas of Victoria and NSW.
Follow our live blog here.
By Kelsie Iorio
Overnight: Heavy fighting in Ukrainian 'hot spots'
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says heavy fighting is ongoing around two towns in the Donbas region.
He said in his nightly address that Soledar and Bakhmut were the "key hot spots".
"Very heavy fighting is going on there," he said.
The town of Bakhmut has been the next target of Russia's armed forces in the region since taking the key industrial towns of Lysychansk and Sievierodonetsk in June and July.
By Kelsie Iorio
Overnight: Steelers win 2022 Wheelchair Rugby World Championship
In some excellent news, Australia has defeated the US 58-55 to win the Wheelchair Rugby World Championship in Denmark.
Ccoach Brad Dubberley says the team wants to keep the strong momentum as preparations continue for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
"I’m feeling so proud. It’s hard to put into words actually," he says.
By Kelsie Iorio
Overnight: RnB musician Joyce Sims dies aged 63
American RnB singer-songwriter Joyce Sims has died at the age of 63.
She was best known for her soulful 1987 hit Come Into My Life, which reached the top 10 in both the US and UK.
Sims had recently been touring and was due to release a new album this year.
Her songs have been sampled by the likes of Snoop Dogg, Randy Crawford and Angie Stone.
By Kelsie Iorio
Coming up: How group therapy saved Parkway Drive
The team over at Australian Story has spoken to Aussie band Parkway Drive this week.
They've revealed how the high-pressure world of the industry and years of touring almost broke up the band — so they turned to group therapy to get through it.
Check out the full story here, and catch tonight's episode of Australian Story for more:
By Kelsie Iorio
Coming up: Government working on relief packages for flooded farms
The federal government is working out what support might be offered to farmers who have lost crops in recent floods.
Large parts of Victoria and New South Wales have been seriously flood-affected in recent weeks, in some cases damaging crops just weeks before harvest.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is expected to visit flood-affected Forbes in central-western New South Wales today after a trip to some hard-hit areas of Victoria over the weekend.
By Kelsie Iorio
People are searching online for: The T20 World Cup
ICYMI yesterday, Sri Lanka made a disastrous start to its men's T20 World Cup campaign — and Namibia has provided one of the biggest upsets we could see for the entire tournament.
Former champions Sri Lanka crashed to a 55-run loss against Namibia in Geelong after huge success in the Asia Cup.
Namibia all-rounder Jan Frylinck was named player of the match, top-scoring with 44 from 28 balls as his side put on a respectable total on a drop-in wicket.
The Netherlands beat the United Arab Emirates by three wickets in the second match of the group stage yesterday.
Later today, the West Indies will play Scotland and Zimbabwe face Ireland as the group stages continue.
By Kelsie Iorio
Just in: Doctors estimate $8 billion a year lost to Medicare fraud and waste
A joint investigation by ABC's 7.30 program, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age has uncovered flaws in Medicare's systems that make it easy to rort and almost impossible to detect fraud, incorrect payments and errors.
Here's more on this story:
