Failure to protect free speech could cost Labour votes at next election, says Liberty

Polling for rights group shows issue is concern for voters and many feel recent policies have had negative effect

Free speech will be a big concern for voters at the next general election, with the government’s current approach on the issue perceived by many to be bad for Britain, polling suggests.

Three in five people said a political party’s position on free speech would affect how they voted at a general election. The human rights organisation Liberty, which commissioned the polling from More in Common, claimed the results showed that Labour’s failure to protect free speech could cost it votes.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/sep/28/protect-free-speech-labour-liberty-poll

Trump Offered to Sell Arms to China, U.S. Ambassador Says #wanitaxigo

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Australia news live: Chalmers and Gallagher to present final budget outcome; RBA interest rate hike looms

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Rising unemployment, stubbornly high inflation and a looming interest rate hike are piling misery onto Australian consumers, but Labor insists better days are on the horizon, Australian Associated Press reports.

The pinch of optimism comes as mortgage holders brace for the Reserve Bank of Australia to lift the official interest rate to a near-15-year high of 4.6% on Tuesday, an outcome money markets are treating as largely a foregone conclusion.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/live/2026/sep/28/labor-anthony-albanese-openai-ai-hacks-coalition-one-nation-medicare-budget-ntwnfb

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‘Cash grab’: One Nation demands up to $630,000 from Victorian election candidates

Exclusive: Many applicants left feeling ‘used, lied to, misled and gaslit’, complaint letter seen by Guardian Australia says

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One Nation could collect as much as $633,000 from people who have put their hand up to run in the Victorian state election, with potential candidates questioning whether the party is staging a “cash grab”.

Guardian Australia has spoken to multiple former councillors, mayors and deputy mayors who expressed an interest in running for the party. They claim they went through what one called a “pay-to-play” application process, after which they were rejected.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/sep/27/one-nation-to-demand-thousands-from-victorian-election-candidates-ntwnfb

Australia news live: Albanese says announcement of Medicare hack ‘purely in national interest’

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Good morning

Welcome to our Sunday live blog. Flight delays and cancellations caused frustration and heartache for some footy fans racing to make it to Saturday’s AFL grand final before the first bounce. And the PM says the timing of his announcement of OpenAI’s Medicare hack was made “purely in the national interest”. More on both those stories shortly.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/live/2026/sep/27/australia-news-live-anthony-albanese-openai-medicare-hack-united-nations-richard-marles-jane-hume-liberal-coalition-one-nation-pauline-hanson-ntwnfb