logo
ENFRع
#

Latest news with #AAPImage

Australian lawmaker convicted of rape quits moments before vote to expel him from Parliament
Australian lawmaker convicted of rape quits moments before vote to expel him from Parliament

CTV News

timea day ago

  • Politics
  • CTV News

Australian lawmaker convicted of rape quits moments before vote to expel him from Parliament

Gareth Ward walks through waiting media as arrives at the Darlinghurst Courthouse in Sydney, Wednesday, July 30, 2025. (Dan Himbrechts/AAP Image via AP) WELLINGTON, New Zealand — An Australian state lawmaker and convicted rapist, who is in jail awaiting his sentence, quit his seat Friday moments before a vote scheduled by his former colleagues to eject him. Gareth Ward, an independent member of parliament in New South Wales state, earlier refused to resign despite his July convictions by a jury for sex crimes against two young men. He failed in a legal bid Thursday to stop his peers taking rare action to expel him. Ward, 44, sexually assaulted a political staffer after a parliamentary event in 2015 and abused an 18-year-old at the politician's home in 2013. His sentencing on one count of sexual intercourse without consent and three counts of indecent assault is scheduled for September. Jailed lawmaker tries to stop ouster vote In a bizarre and unusual episode for Australian politics, Ward refused to resign even after his bail was revoked last week following the convictions. He has said he plans to appeal and to keep his seat from jail in the meantime, prompting derision from his peers. 'If you're convicted of some of the most serious charges, sexual assault in New South Wales, you can't sit as a serving member of parliament drawing a parliamentary salary,' state Premier Chris Minns told reporters Friday. 'How can you represent your community from behind bars in Cessnock?' Ward on Monday launched a legal challenge to an expulsion vote planned for Tuesday. The bid was dismissed by an appeals court Thursday, allowing a new parliamentary vote against him to be scheduled. Resignation comes as lawmakers readied to vote As lawmakers assembled to oust him from Parliament Friday morning — a measure expected to draw cross-party support — Ward wrote to the speaker of the house tendering his resignation. He would have been the first lawmaker to be expelled from the lower house of the state parliament in more than a century. Leader of the House Ron Hoenig told reporters it was 'shameful' that Ward had taken so long to quit. 'I would have thought being a convicted rapist is enough infamy without going down in history as both a convicted rapist as well as the first person in a century to be expelled,' Hoenig said. Expulsions from Australian legislatures are rare and only lawmakers in New South Wales and Victoria have ever exercised their powers to oust their peers by vote. The last lawmaker expelled from New South Wales' lower house for 'unworthy conduct' was in 1917. Constituents reelected Ward despite the charges Ward had held the seat of Kiama since 2011, first with the center-right Liberal Party and then as an independent after he quit the group when the charges against him emerged. A date has not been set for a byelection in his seat. His constituents reelected him in 2023, despite his 2022 suspension from Parliament awaiting trial. Ward's lawyer argued in the state's appeals court Thursday that the fact of his convictions alone did not automatically mean his conduct was unworthy. In a scathing decision rejecting his legal bid, the court ordered Ward to pay costs. The former lawmaker faces a prison term of up to 14 years. He did not comment publicly Friday. Ward was the state's minister for families, communities and disability services between 2019 and 2021. He served an eight-year term as a local council member before entering Parliament. Charlotte Graham-mclay, The Associated Press

Swimming: Lewis Clareburt to go head-to-head with Olympic champion in Singapore
Swimming: Lewis Clareburt to go head-to-head with Olympic champion in Singapore

RNZ News

time30-07-2025

  • Sport
  • RNZ News

Swimming: Lewis Clareburt to go head-to-head with Olympic champion in Singapore

Lewis Clareburt into semi-finals at World Aquatic Championships. Photo: AAP Image/Dave Hunt/Photosport Leon Marchand was fastest in the 200 metres individual medley (IM) heats at the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore on Wednesday as France's Olympic hero made his long-awaited return to the world stage. The four-times Olympic champion glided to a time of one minute, 57.63 seconds, 0.11 ahead of Japan's Kosuke Makino, in an encouraging start to his bid for a third world title in the event and a possible world record. Exhausted after the Paris Games, Marchand skipped the short course world championships in Hungary last December and suffered injuries before returning to the pool for the TYR Pro Series in Florida in May. He is swimming a reduced programme in Singapore, focusing on the 200 and 400 IM alone for individual events as he works through what he calls a "transition year". Aqua Black Lewis Clareburt was ninth fastest after the 200 IM heats and will race in the same semi-final as Marchand on Thursday morning (NZT). Summer McIntosh is on the other end of the spectrum as she looks to match Michael Phelps's record of five individual gold medals from a single world championships. Having already won two of them, the 200 IM and 400 freestyle, the 18-year-old Canadian started her bid for the third in the 200 butterfly on day four with the fastest swim in the heats (2:07.07). American Regan Smith was third quickest into the semi-finals, more than a second behind McIntosh, while China's 12-year-old wunderkind Yu Zidi was fifth fastest (2:08.95). Three years after winning the 100 and 200 freestyle in Budapest, Romania's David Popovici is eyeing another double in the sprints. The 20-year-old Olympic bronze medallist was fastest in the 100 heats in 47.41, the morning after his 200 triumph in Singapore. Olympic champion and world record holder Pan Zhanle (47.86), and runner-up Kyle Chalmers (47.48) were among eight swimmers under the 48-second barrier on the way to the evening semi-finals. Canada's Kylie Masse qualified fastest for the women's 50 backstroke semi-finals with a time of 27.46. Regan Smith and fellow American Katharine Berkoff, who medalled in the 100 behind winner Kaylee McKeown, were also safely through. Australia's world record holder McKeown skipped the event. The session finished with a shock as Olympic champions the United States failed to reach the final of the 4x100 mixed medley. Several U.S. swimmers have not been at their best in Singapore after a bout of food poisoning swept through the team's pre-meet camp in Thailand. France and Britain also missed out but Italy emerged quickest in the heats in a time of 3:42.19, ahead of the Netherlands and China. Fourth-quickest Australia are also a chance for a medal in the evening final. Five golds will be up for grabs in the evening session, with Australian Olympic champion Mollie O'Callaghan bidding for a second 200 freestyle title in a final in which Aqua Black Erika Fairweather will also be competing. The men's 800 freestyle final will feature Ireland's Olympic champion Daniel Wiffen battling a stacked field including Australian Sam Short and Tunisia's Ahmed Jaouadi. - Reuters/RNZ

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store