Australian stargazers will be able to spot a rare comet if they look to the night sky in the weeks ahead. The so-called ‘Devil’s Comet’ is making its first appearance in 71 years. The comet is around 34 kilometres in diameter and is essentially made up of ice, rock, space dust and debris. “Over the coming weeks, it's going to gradually get higher and higher in the sky every single evening," says UNSIQ Professor of Astrophysics Jonti Horner. “It’s going to get a little bit fainter, but it is actually going to get a little bit easier to spot because the moon will get out of the way.”

Nearly 900,000 Australians are now receiving either JobSeeker or Youth Allowance payments. Government data reveals that 16,000 people moved onto welfare payments in March. This amounted to 66,000 people since September. It’s the largest monthly increase since the Albanese government was elected in 2022. There are concerns jobless welfare numbers will rise further this year after flat economic growth and a weak labour market.

Voting has taken place in the second stage of India’s general election. The election had lower voter turnout than expected. Voters casted their ballots as part of seven rounds of staggered polls. India's current Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third straight term on the back of his economic record, strong policies, and personal popularity. His opponent Rahul Gandhi has attacked the Prime Minister, calling him a threat to democracy.

The world’s first personalised skin cancer vaccine is being tested on patients in the United Kingdom. It’s tailored to each patient to search for their cancer cells and prevent the disease from returning. Developed by Moderna and MSD the jab is now being rolled out for a final trial after promising results. “I think this whole area of immunotherapy for cancer is probably one of the most exciting developments in modern cancer therapy,” says University of Warwick UK Molecular Oncology Professor Lawrence Young. “It comes after many, many years of fundamental research into how the body's immune system is regulated.”

Queensland Premier Steven Miles is predicting it is ‘very likely’ the Coalition will win the next state election. The admission follows polling by YouGov which shows Labor trailing the Liberal National Party 56 to 44 per cent on a two-party preferred basis. The Premier says the polls indicate Opposition Leader David Crisafulli will most likely be elected as leader in October. He has used the polling to call out the Opposition’s lack of policies, saying he has not detailed a ‘single action plan’. Some of the Premier’s ministers are coming to his defence.

Financial Planner and Author Patricia Howard says the whole world is looking at a “fairly dismal outlook” when it comes to inflation. Ms Howard said we are seeing inflation “break out” in the United States. “People over there are now talking about the prospect of stagflation, which is an economic term we really haven’t heard about since the 70s,” she told Sky News Australia. “That’s the situation here the central government can’t get inflation under control and in their efforts to do that they bring the economy to a halt. “That’s the worst outcome for all economies.”

Financial Planner and Author Patricia Howard says Australia has a “situation” where inflation is “rising”. “We also have substantial wage growth of about four per cent,” she told Sky News Australia. Ms Howard said “we’re also looking at a federal government budget which by every indication” is “going to be inflationary”. “There’s going to be more defence spending, more spending on the NDIS, then it’s going to be followed in quick succession by the stage three tax cuts. “That’s going to put even more money into the economy and with that more pressure on prices.”

Financial Planner and Author Patricia Howard says the rate of inflation is “stubbornly staying” above three per cent. Ms Howard said the Reserve Bank of Australia wants to get the rate “back into its preferred trading range” between two and three per cent. ‘It’s stubbornly staying above 3 per cent,” she said. “The most recent figures for March are suggesting that inflation is actually about to increase. “Certainly, increased during the March quarter and there are every indications that it will continue to rise.”

A couple of finance experts are forecasting possible interest rate rises this year. This comes as the ABS this week published worse-than-expected inflation figures as the price of rentals and insurance increase. Financial Planner and Author Patricia Howard joined Sky News Australia to discuss the possibility of interest rate rises. “I think there’ll be a lot of people holding their breaths waiting for the reserve bank to announce their decision in May,” Ms Howard said. “I think all signs are showing that there’s a possibility that the reserve bank will lift interest rates … in order to get the rate of inflation under control.”

Cartoonist Mark Knight explains the “political analogy” behind the sketch of an iconic WWII photo on the Kokoda Trail and its “similarity” to Anthony Albanese and James Marape. Mr Knight’s ‘Walking Kokoda … Then and Now’ illustration shows an injured Australian Prime Minister being assisted along the path by his PNG counterpart in a mirror image from a WWII digger guided by a local tribesman. “Albo does have a few little injuries from opinion polls lately,” Mr Knight said. “So, I had James helping him down the track. “And if you look closely, Albo has that hole in his foot which is where he shot himself in the foot during the Voice referendum.”

Paramedics are treating two people at the scene of a plane crash at Mount Beauty near Falls Creek in the Victorian Alps. Emergency services responded to reports a light aircraft had crashed around 1:30pm on Saturday afternoon. The Country Fire Authority has confirmed two people were onboard the plane and are currently being assessed. Victoria Police have also arrived to assist with the situation. The incident has been announced as under control as emergency crews continue to go through their respective operations.

Small Business Women Australia’s Amanda Rose says she hopes Scott Morrison “shows some compassion” to the people who “suffered depression during the COVID-19 pandemic after the former prime minister revealed his own mental health struggles. Ms Rose’s comments come after former prime minister Scott Morrison is set to reveal details in an upcoming book on his mental health struggles. “Politics can be quite nasty,” she told Sky News Australia host Steve Price. “Show some compassion to all the people that have been impacted by his decisions and by politics. “We had a lot of people suffering depression say from the lockdowns during COVID and so forth.”

Sky News contributor Joe Hildebrand has called for the “brutality of politics” to come to an end. Mr Hildebrand’s comments come after former prime minister Scott Morrison is set to reveal details in an upcoming book on his mental health struggles. “This is why I was very dark on people smashing him up for going to Hawaii on that ill-fated family holiday,” Mr Hildebrand told Sky News Australia host Steve Price. “Sooner or later, you have got to draw a line and say these people are human beings. “It is time to lay off.”

Sky News contributor Emily Carver has blasted Meghan Markle following revelations on why she snubbed King Charles' coronation. According to reports it's alleged Meghan was unimpressed with the Royal Family’s reaction to the bombshell allegations made during her explosive Oprah Winfrey interview. “I mean this is quite incredible, what a privilege it is to be invited to the coronation … and for her to potentially have snubbed this simply because she wasn’t happy with the King’s response to what was a pretty awful interview not just rude but arrogant, dismissive,” Ms Carver told Sky News host Danica De Giorgio. “This woman clearly has no deference, no sense of authority, no sense of duty, no sense of how to communicate with the family. “She clearly feels like she was not heard enough.”

Queensland opposition likely to win election, tech issues cause delays at Melbourne’s international airport, gardener charged with murder after dispute, South Australian train drivers call off strike action, Chinese hackers targeting Australian systems, Andrew Tate to face trial in Romania. Plus, Olympic flame passed to Paris delegation. See omnystudio.com/listener (https://omnystudio.com/listener) for privacy information.

A prominent Melbourne squash coach has praised his student for recognising an unusual sign of prostate cancer that has prolonged his life. New research suggests prostate cancer cases will double in Australia in two decades, prompting calls for more men to get tested. The 63-year-old father of three had been experiencing heat pain for more than a year but brushed it off as a sports injury. “I had this pain in my right hip, and I just thought oh it’s a typical injury you get from squash and it would just not go away, it just nagged and nagged and was keeping me awake at night and it getting worse,” Malcolm Mc Clarty said. His student and friend of 16 years Niall Tebbutt encouraged him to take action. “I never thought something like this would happen to me,” Mr Mc Clarty said.

New data shows Australians are gravitating to feel-good brands and marketing. Speaker and Author Amanda Stevens has joined Sky News Australia to discuss the latest consumer confidence data. “Even though consumer confidence is low, it's actually up significantly on the same time last year,” Ms Stevens said. “So, when we dig a little bit deeper into the data we're seeing, given the cost of living pressures, interest rates relatively consumer confidence is quite high. “We're certainly seeing that smart marketers are really dialling into the positive messaging, feel-good nature almost sort of escapism … and those kinds of themes and messages are really resonating with consumers right now .”

Train drivers in South Australia have called off a strike which was due to affect next week's AFL Showdown. The result comes after a breakthrough in pay negotiations. The Footy Express was one of many services that have been affected by industrial action and overtime bans in recent weeks. Unions had been seeking a 20 per cent pay increase over four years but were offered a 14 per cent increase over the same period. Members will now vote on a new draft two-year deal.

Uber has announced a service for teenagers which will be launched in several Australian states, says Tech Guide Editor Stephen Fenech. “Parents are quite busy, they are taxi drivers for kids,” Mr Fenech told Sky News Australia. “What Uber has launched here is a service where the child can actually access their parents’ Uber account, book a ride, their parent gets a notification, they approve it. “They can only be picked up by highly rated drivers, they have got working with children checks as well and they are able then to track the ride. “So all the ride details are shared – there are even safety features so if the ride goes off course or stops early, parents get a notification, you can even record the audio during the ride.”

The Albanese government has announced a $161.3 million national firearms registry in partnership with all state governments. Attorney General Mark Dreyfus fronted the media on Saturday morning to announce the development. “The national firearms register is the most significant advance in Australia’s gun safety regimes since the 1996 national firearms agreement,” Mr Dreyfus told media. “This national firearms register will help ensure that police know guns are in the community, where they are and who owns them. “It will help keep all Australians, especially police officers, safe from gun violence.”