Live: Rush Hour

On news.com.au today, Labor is set to abolish a $8 billion a year tax loophole for the wealthy, unions are calling to raise the minimum wage by $50 a week, and dash cam footage has emerged revealing the moments leading up to Friday’s deadly M1 crash.

8:35am

Report into Robert Doyle sexual harassment claims to be revealed

Melbourne City councillors are today expected to reveal the findings of an investigation into sexual harassment claims made against former lord mayor Robert Doyle.

Councillors are to be briefed on the report before council CEO Ben Rimmer provides an update at a special meeting open to the public at 4pm.

Last week, Mr Rimmer gave Mr Doyle a final chance to respond, saying his aim was to release the “outcomes” of the investigation.

The announcement comes following delays in the investigation after Mr Doyle’s resignation and hospitalisation for stress-related issues in February.

Former councillor Tessa Sullivan has accused Mr Doyle of sexual harassment and indecent assault against herself and fellow councillor Cathy Oke.

A third woman later alleged Mr Doyle touched her leg and made inappropriate comments to her at a 2016 Melbourne Health awards ceremony.

He strenuously denies allegations of sexual misconduct.

8:10am

Family appeal to solve Victorian mum’s death

The family of a Melbourne woman whose decomposing body was found in her bathtub eight months after she was allegedly murdered will make a public appeal to help solve the case.

The body of 40-year-old Sarah Gatt was discovered in a Kensington unit on January 3 this year, with police saying she died between April 20-24, 2017. Forensic evidence indicates a violent assault took place and investigators believe efforts were made to conceal the mother-of-four’s fate and fool people into thinking she was still alive.

Three men and two women were questioned in January about the death but weren’t charged and remain persons of interest.

Ms Gatt’s father will on Tuesday join with Victoria Police to make an appeal for information on anyone seen coming and going from the unit after April 20 last year.

“It’s disturbing and concerning to investigators that it appears someone has deliberately attempted to make it look as though Sarah was still alive,” Homicide Squad Detective Inspector Tim Day said.

“There are people out there who know what happened to Sarah and we are urging them to come forward and speak to police.”

—AAP

7:45am

Dashcam footage reveals lead up to deadly M1 crash

Shocking dashcam footage has emerged of Friday’s deadly M1 crash that claimed the life of a 46-year-old man.

The footage reveals what happened in the moments before two utes and a semi-trailer collided near Mount White at about 4.45pm last week.

The ute driven by the 46-year-old man can be seen driving next to the Coles truck, when a black Ford Ranger drives up quickly behind him.



The driver of the Ford Ranger attempts to pull into a small gap between to cars in the right lane, before jerking back into the middle.



This causes the other ute collide with the Coles truck, sending both vehicles crashing off the road.

The driver of the Ford Ranger was alleged to have fled the scene, with a 25-year-old man later being arrested at a Wyong home.

Police now want to speak to the truck driver whose dashcam captured the moment of impact.

Dash cam footage reveals cause of deadly Sydney M1 crash Dash cam footage reveals cause of deadly Sydney M1 crash

7:20am

Man suffers serious injuries after hang glider crash

A man has been injured after falling 20m to the ground in a hang gliding crash in the NSW Illawarra region.

The 52-year-old man was planning to hang glide from Bald Hill to Stanwell Park Beach on Monday afternoon.

During the flight he stalled and clipped trees at about 30-40m in the air, causing him to crash at Stanwell Park.

The man sustained suspected head, jaw and lung injuries and was treated at the scene by paramedics and lifeguards before being flown to St George Hospital in a serious condition.

A man is in a serious condition following a horror hang glider crash south of Sydney. #9News pic.twitter.com/kh5oumx6SC — Nine News Sydney (@9NewsSyd) 12 March 2018

6:55am

Calls to raise minimum wage by $50 a week

Unions are calling for a raise in the minimum wage, suggesting that it should be increased by $50 a week.

The minimum wage is currently just under $695 a week, making it roughly $36,000 a year, but under the Australian Council of Trade Unions’ (ACTU) proposal that would be bumped up to $744.90 a week, or about $38,700 a year.

“That will be a significant amount to help people deal with the cost of living increases because at the moment working families are struggling to pay the bills,” ACTU secretary Sally McManus said.

She also added that many minimum wage workers are facing penalty rate cuts.

“These are exactly the same people who are facing a penalty rates pay cut on the 1st of July as well,” she said.

6:35am

Grandma shocked after receiving ‘horrible’ Mother’s Day card

A great grandmother in the UK has been left shocked and upset after discovering a Mother’s Day card sent by her daughter had been defaced with a “horrible” message.

When Dorothy Hopkins received the card she noticed that it had already been opened and had a new message on it calling her a “dirty old sl*t”.

The full message read: “I wanna go back to my birth hole spread ‘em you dirty old sl*t. From the loving sorting office. Best mum in the world hate you lots, Mandy. You wh**e. Suck my hairy sack you b**ch.”

Ms Hopkins has said she is so shocked that she “hasn’t been able to bring [herself] to read the message fully”, according to Metro News.

”It is an absolute disgrace. If it was someone’s idea of a joke, it was in terribly bad taste and has left me really upset,” she said.

“I have six children, eight grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren and I was really pleased to receive six Mother’s Day cards — but I can only put up five because Mandy’s has been defaced by someone at the Royal Mail.”

UK postal service, Royal Mail, has promised to investigate the incident.

A poor great-grandmother got a Mother's Day card that called her a dirty old sl*thttps://t.co/pogLO8V1K2 pic.twitter.com/iwcDFGJsIn — Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) March 12, 2018

6:10am

Labor to abolish tax loophole

It is an $8 billion-a-year tax loophole for the wealthy and Labor wants it closed.

In the process it wants the new policy, essentially a tax rise for the rich, to contrast with the Government’s proposed tax cuts for big companies.

Labor in government would eliminate the concession for investors related to dividend imputation which has been operating since the Coalition government of John Howard.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten today says the savings from ending the “tidy little arrangement” would go towards fixing the Budget bottom line expected to be hit by a $24 billion deficit this financial year.

Politically the Labor policy will be used to challenge the $65 billion the Government wants to cut from the corporate tax bill over 10 years.

“Every dollar that slips through these loopholes is a dollar that cannot be invested in the Australian people and their potential,” Mr Shorten says in a speech prepared for today.

“Every dollar allocated to tidy little arrangements for people who already have millions of dollars, is a dollar that can’t be used to repair the budget and bring Australia back to surplus.”

–Malcolm Farr, read more.

5:45am

Migration in spotlight as population booms

Sydney could become a city full of high rise towers if a cap isn’t put on Australia’s migrant intake, the NSW opposition leader says.

Sydney’s pull as the largest city and a job magnet has contributed to one third of the nation’s migrants coming to the city, Luke Foley says.

One year out from a state election, Mr Foley has called for a set number to be placed on Australia’s migrant intake — to be made in consultation with all states and territories and the federal government.

“Sydney full of towers is the inevitable consequence of the current very large migrant intake,” Mr Foley told 2GB radio.

It follows similar calls by former prime minister Tony Abbott to cut migration rates.

The comments come as Australia’s population is expected to tick over 25 million this year — a figure the nation wasn’t meant to reach for decades.

Former NSW premier Bob Carr told ABC’s Four Corners program the consequences could mean restricting access to recreational spaces by erecting fences and turnstiles around Sydney’s beaches.

—AAP