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Scott Morrison says he will not resign from federal parliament after his five secret ministry self-appointments were revealed, defending his decision to keep those ministries concealed because he says he never exercised the powers he had.Morrison, at a press conference in Sydney on Wednesday afternoon, struck a defiant tone and said he would remain as the member for Cook, despite growing calls from even some inside his own party for him to quit.“I believed it was necessary to have authority, to have what were effectively emergency powers, to exercise in extreme situations that would be unforeseen, that would enable me to act in the national interests,” he said of his decision to secretly appoint himself to some of the most powerful portfolios in the government.“I didn't consider it at t...

Morrison presser begins in SydneyScott Morrison has taken to the microphone for his first media conference since revelations emerged of his secret ministerial appointments.Updated at 03.21 BSTKey eventsShow key events onlyPlease turn on JavaScript to use this featureMorrison:These were emergency effectively reserve powers. I think there was a great risk that in the midst of that crisis those powers could be misinterpreted and misunderstood, which would have caused unnecessary angst in the middle of a pandemic and could have impacted on the day-to-day functioning of the government I said there was a possibility of this being misinterpreted… I think the events of the last few days have highlighted how this could have happened.Morrison is asked if he is maintaining that he did nothing ...

Liz Cheney has paid the price for her staunch opposition to Donald Trump's assault on US democracy by losing her seat in Congress to a challenger backed by the former president.The vice-chair of the January 6 committee was beaten by a conservative lawyer, Hageman – who has echoed Trump's false claims of widespread voter fraud – in a Republican primary election to decide Wyoming's lone member in the House of Representatives.Conceding defeat in a speech in Jackson, she said: “No House seats, no office in this land is more important than the principles we are all sworn to protect. And I well understood the potential political consequences of abiding by my duty.“Our republic relies upon the goodwill of all candidates for office to honorably accept the outcome of elections. And tonight, Ha...

Vice Chair US Representative Liz Cheney (R-WY) speaks during a public hearing of the US House Select Committee to investigate the January 6 Attack on the US Capitol, on Capitol Hill, in Washington, US, July 21, 2022.Jonathan Ernst | ReutersRep. Liz Cheney, former President Donald Trump's highest-profile Republican critic and a leading figure in the investigation of his role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, will lose her Wyoming primary race, NBC News projected.The outcome of the primary for Wyoming's sole House seat was widely expected, as recent polls showed Cheney trailing her top rival, Harriet Hageman, by double-digit margins. Hageman was projected to win the GOP primary by NBC News. But Cheney's political future had seemed much brighter until fairly recently. The daughter of a former...

Taiwan is home to more than 90% of the manufacturing capacity for the world's most advanced semiconductors, according to a 2021 Boston Consulting Group report. Pictured here is a TSMC building in Taiwan on April 8, 2022.Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesBEIJING — When it comes to semiconductors, China needs Taiwan more than the other way around.Beijing halted some trade with the island this month after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's controversial trip to Taiwan.Notably, the bans didn't touch electronics. Taiwan is home to more than 90% of the manufacturing capacity for the world's most advanced semiconductors, according to a 2021 Boston Consulting Group report.Pelosi's itinerary included a visit with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, the world's largest and most critica...

Even in the face of all-time greatness and unprecedented longevity that has spanned 27 remarkable years, time is undefeated and it will eventually come for us all. With every passing day, the end of Serena Williams' professional tennis career draws alarmingly closer and the chances of one final, spectacular result fades.In what is likely the penultimate tournament of her great career, Williams bowed out of the Western and Southern Open in her opening round match with a grim performance, emphatically losing 6-4, 6-0 to a spotless Emma Raducanu who did not put a foot wrong throughout.“I think we all need to just honor Serena and her amazing career,” said Raducanu. “I'm so grateful for this experience to play her de ella and for our careers to have crossed over. Everything she achieved ...

Key Zelenskiy adviser says counteroffensive will aim to create 'chaos within Russian forces'; Ukraine hints it was behind a series of recent strikes in occupied Crimea See all our Ukraine war coverageThere could be more attacks in the “next two or three months” similar to the strikes in Crimea, a key adviser to Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said in an exclusive interview with the Guardian. Mykhailo Podolyak said Ukraine is engaged in a counteroffensive aimed at creating “chaos within Russian forces” by striking at the invaders' supply lines deep into occupied territories.Ukraine has hinted it was behind a series of mysterious and devastating strikes in occupied Crimea that destroyed a key railway junction used for supplying Russian troops and a military airbase. Several e...

Wind turbines in Australia. Earlier this year, a report from Australia's Clean Energy Council said renewables were responsible for 32.5% of the country's electricity generation in 2021.Josh Hawley | Moment | Getty ImagesA fund under the management of BlackRock Real Assets is set to acquire Akaysha Energy, an Australian firm that develops battery storage and renewable energy projects.In an announcement Tuesday, BlackRock said it intended to commit in excess of 1 billion Australian dollars (around $700 million) of capital "to support the build-out" of more than 1 gigawatt of battery storage assets.Looking ahead, BlackRock said Akaysha had plans to develop energy storage projects in a range of Asia-Pacific markets, including Japan and Taiwan in the near-term.Effective, large-scale stora...