By Fengfei Li, Senior Lecturer in Finance, Deakin University
Since Australia’s card surcharge ban took effect on October 1, social media users have questioned new “service fees” and “daily surcharges” appearing on their bills. Some businesses have simply raised their prices.
A recent Reddit discussion captures some of this frustration.
So are these new fees illegal?
Not necessarily. But a business cannot make a card surcharge permissible simply by giving it a different name.
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By Terry Goldsworthy, Associate Professor in Criminal Justice and Criminology, Bond University
More than 40,000 fake notes – mostly $50 and $100 in cash – were detected in the past year alone. Authorities warn of a ‘concerning improvement’ in quality.
(Full Story)
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By Jamie Q. Roberts, Lecturer in Politics and International Relations, University of Sydney
The enduring value of The God Delusion lies in its championing of reasoning and evidence, free speech and thinking for oneself.
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By Kumuthini Sivathas, Postdoctoral Researcher in Economics, Adelaide University
Susan Stone, Credit Union SA Chair of Economics, Adelaide University
Solar and batteries are powering ahead – but wind farms are struggling. There are multiple reasons for this, from politics to construction costs.
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By Human Rights Watch
The UN Human Rights Council on October 6 extended the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Russia for another year. Russia withdrew its amendment that attempted to delete renewal of the mandate. Click to expand Image The "Broken Chair” in front of the Palais Nations, Geneva, September 22, 2026. © 2026 Tanya Lokshina/Human Rights Watch The extension is welcome news. The Russia mandate provides an essential independent voice to document the Russian government’s grave human rights violations and serves as a lifeline for the country’s besieged civil society.The…
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By Amnesty International
In response to the UN Human Rights Council’s vote today adopting the resolution that renews the mandate of the Fact-Finding Mission on Venezuela, as well as of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, for another two years, Amnesty International’s Americas director, Ana Piquer, said: “We welcome this decision to continue the scrutiny […] The post Venezuela: Renewal of UN scrutiny supports victim’s rights in the face of persisting impunity appeared first on Amnesty International. ]]>
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By Paola Vesco, Senior Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
Amber Deniz, Senior Analyst, Uppsala University
David Randahl, Associate Senior Lecturer in War Studies, Swedish Defence University
Johan Brosché, Associate Professor, Department of Peace and Conflict Research, Uppsala University
Magnus Öberg, Director of the Uppsala Conflict Data Program, Uppsala University
Estimates of the number of people directly killed in Sudan’s civil war vary widely, in part because counting casualties in active conflict zones is extremely difficult. In 2025, for instance, one conflict monitoring organisation reported around 19,000 direct deaths from political violence across Sudan. Other research teams put the toll at more than 70,000.
Conflict researcher Paola…
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By Murray Leibbrandt, UCT Emeritus Professor and Senior Research Scholar; Director of ARUA's African Centre of Excellence for Inequality Research within SALDRU., University of Cape Town
Anda David, Senior researcher, Agence Française de Développement (AFD)
Frameworks built mainly on the data and institutions of the global north risk being least accurate where inequality is most severe.
(Full Story)
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By Hope Magidimisha-Chipungu, Full Professor, University of KwaZulu-Natal
Potholes and water outages often begin with bad planning. A town planner explains seven ways South Africans can push municipalities to do better.
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By Nevena Radoynovska, Associate Professor of Strategy, Organizations and Social Innovation, EM Lyon Business School
Tim Weiss, Assistant Professor, Department of Management and Entrepreneurship, Imperial College London
Researchers look at how the EU’s proposed framework to harmonise and boost business registration across member states can avoid the pitfalls of startup fraud.
(Full Story)
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