Live: PM backs 'standout' first woman as permanent defence secretary
Anthony Albanese has confirmed Meghan Quinn will be the first female secretary of the Department of Defence, calling her a "standout candidate". Follow live.

Anthony Albanese has confirmed Meghan Quinn will be the first female secretary of the Department of Defence, calling her a "standout candidate". Follow live.

A nationwide Telstra network outage has caused widespread disruption to regional train services in Victoria, suspending lines including Bendigo, Seymour, Gippsland, Geelong, and Ballarat. Train services to and from Canberra were also shut down due to communication losses. Millions of Australians were affected by the Telstra outage, impacting phone calls and internet access.

A nationwide Telstra network outage has caused the suspension of all regional train services in Victoria, including Bendigo, Seymour, Gippsland, Geelong, and Ballarat lines. Train services to and from Canberra were also suspended due to communication losses. Millions of Australians were affected by the Telstra outage, impacting phone calls and internet access.

Australian shares dropped, with the ASX 200 down 1.4%, influenced by Middle East hostilities and a Wall Street tech sell-off. A nationwide Telstra outage disrupted services, impacting businesses and leading to a 2.8% fall in Telstra's share price. G8 Education faces a lawsuit for allegedly underpaying workers over $2 million.

Marc Polmans and Storm Hunter advance to the mixed doubles final at Wimbledon, while Thanasi Kokkinakis and Aleksandar Kovacevic reach the men's doubles semifinals. This success continues a trend of Australian doubles players performing well in Grand Slams.

Australian shares opened sharply lower, with the ASX 200 down 1.4% due to Middle East hostilities and a Wall Street tech sell-off. Telstra shares also fell following a nationwide outage affecting services and train networks. G8 Education faces a lawsuit for allegedly underpaying staff over $2 million.

Australian house prices fell 0.7% in the June quarter to $937,000, following a peak in March. Despite recent drops and bank predictions of further declines, a decade of significant price acceleration means affordability remains a major long-term challenge, with median prices still costing over 15 years of disposable income.