news

Monday's news in 5 minutes.

1. Majority of religious Australians to vote ‘yes’ for marriage equality, poll finds.

The latest independent poll commissioned by The Equality Campaign reveals the majority of Australians who are members of the largest religious groups across the nation intend to vote ‘YES’ in support of marriage equality, a press release from the campaign group revealed.

This comes a day after a mass marriage ceremony, held as part of a ‘vote yes’ rally, drew up to 20,000 people in Melbourne on Sunday – an event that saw speeches from comedians and politicians in support of marriage equality.

According to The Equality Campaign, polls carried out by Newgate Research showed 66 per cent of Catholic Australians would vote ‘yes’, along with 67 per cent of Australians from non-Christian religions and 59 per cent of Australians from a diverse group of Christian churches including Uniting, Anglican and Church of England.

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The poll also revealed 79 per cent of non-religious Australians surveyed said they would vote ‘YES’ to allowing same sex couples to marry.

2. The reason behind Jay Z and Beyonce’s baby names Rumi and Sir have finally been explained.

Sir Carter and Rumi 1 month today. ????????❤️????????????????????????????????????????

A post shared by Beyoncé (@beyonce) on

Rap artist Jay Z has  revealed the reasoning behind the names he and Queen Bey chose for their twins Rumi and Sir Carter, born June 14.

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Talking to Rap Radar podcast, the 47-year-old father of three explained Rumi is named after the couple’s favourite poet.

And Sir… Well Sir sort of named himself.

“Sir was like, man, come out the gate. He carries himself like that. He just came out, like, Sir,” Jay Z explained.

Um, yes. Of course.

3. Snapshot of women’s health for 2017 reveals worrying findings on mental wellbeing.

A survey of more than 10,000 Australian women found 40 per cent of women have been professionally diagnosed with depression or anxiety.

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The Jean Hailes Women’s Health Survey 2017, released on Sunday, also found 60 per cent did not meet the recommended 2.5 hours of weekly physical activity because for many they were “too tired” or it was too “hard” to find the time.

Two out of five women considered themselves slightly overweight, while 20 per cent said they were quite overweight, AAP reports.

Only a quarter had been screened for sexually transmitted infections in the last five years.

4. Employers are denying workers time off for caring responsibilities, unions say.

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Workers should be able to reduce their hours on a temporary basis so they can cope with their caring responsibilities rather being forced into part-time or casual work, unions are urging.

A survey conducted for the Australian Council of Trade Unions found 85 per cent of working Australians have significant family caring or parenting responsibilities, AAP reports.

The survey of more than 5400 Australians also found 40 per cent of workers have asked their employer for reduced hours for caring but almost a quarter of these had been knocked back.

The ACTU is launching a new campaign ‘Change the Rules for Working Women & Families’.

“We think people should really have the right to be able to reduce their hours on a temporary basis so they can actually fulfil their caring responsibilities,” ACTU president Ged Kearney told ABC radio on Sunday.

“At the moment you can ask your employer but your employer can simply say no and you have no right to appeal that.”

5. Breast implant-related cancer cases on the rise, health experts warn.

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The number of Australian women diagnosed with a rare but deadly form of blood cancer linked to breast implants has risen, leading to calls from health experts for greater awareness.

In late 2016, the Therapeutic Goods Administration confirmed 46 cases of breast implant-associated (BIA) ALCL, including three deaths.

The number of cases has since risen to 53, according to a paper published in the Medical Journal of Australia.

Professor Sanchia Aranda, CEO of the Cancer Council Australia, says while the risk is low it’s important that women who’ve had breast enhancement to clarify with their surgeon the type of implants used, AAP reports.

“Analysis shows that there is a link between a particular type of breast implants with an either textured or polyurethane surface and anaplastic large cell lymphoma,” said Prof Aranda.

“Women who are concerned about their breast implants may wish to speak to their surgeon to verify what type of implant they have,” she added.