The World Today

Later tonight, British Prime Minister Theresa May will ask the House of Commons to endorse her proposal for a June election - a campaign that's likely to be fought over her plans for Brexit. It's a remarkable about-face from Mrs May, who had consistently told her party, and the public, that there'd be no election until 2020. The Prime Minister says she reluctantly changed her mind after witnessing the divisions in the parliament over her plans for leaving the European Union.

Management of an IT company that also serves as a recruitment firm has cautiously welcomed changes to 457 visas. Weploy connects job seekers with work across a range of industries. Tony Wu is the head of growth with the company. He believes the changes could encourage businesses to better rely on Australian workers, which will lead to long-term benefits. However, he cautions that the effectiveness or otherwise of the program will rely on how the overhaul is managed. Mr Wu says that part of the changes need to include a promise from the Government to better invest in high level education and training.

Australia's banks will be forced to overhaul the way they reward staff and their managers for selling products to customers, after a major review into banking practices. The report by former public service commissioner Stephen Sedgwick makes 21 recommendations that urge banks to make a sharp break with the past. The review, commissioned by the Australian Bankers Association, says incentives for bank staff should no longer be based on sales performance alone.

A Queensland corruption hearing has heard a four term Mayor of a major Council identifies as independent, despite being a member of the Labor party for the past 25 years. Queensland's Crime and Corruption Commission is investigating allegations that Council candidates have formed unregistered groups and failed to declare allegiances and funding sources. The independent Ipswich Mayor has denied any wrongdoing, including in relation to payments to his daughter's communications company.

The American man who allegedly murdered a retiree in cold-blood and then posted the video to Facebook has killed himself after a police chase. Steve Stephens had been the subject of a national search in the US after apparently slaying the man in the cold blood and then confessing to it on the social media platform. The incident has raised concerns about the powers of live-streaming, but Australian experts say it's an unavoidable risk in this day and age.

Calling a June election was a stunning decision that had been kept very close to the prime-ministerial chest, but close observers of Westminster think it's probably the smartest move UK Prime Minister Theresa May could have made. The deputy director of the Institute for Government, Julian McCrae, says people will be 'a little bit annoyed' about voting again, but this election will be of real substance where the British people will be able to vote on the detail, rather than a yes-no question.

It seems like unbelievably self-destructive move, but could it be that netball is considering rolling back its widely-praised pay and conditions for players that saw it revelling in praise just months ago? That's the talk behind the scenes according to netball great Liz Ellis, as the sport grapples with a civil war within management ranks. The chair of Netball Australia Anne-Marie Corboy stepped aside from her position in late March, then was dumped as a director last week, in what Ellis describes as an attempted revolution by some state associations, particularly those of Queensland and New South Wales.

For the first time in 15 years, a South Australian built satellite has been launched into space by NASA. The nano satellite, is one of three developed at universities across Australia, as part of a global project collecting climate data. The 'CubeSat' will investigate the outer layer of the earth's atmosphere to help scientists better understand climate and weather modelling.

A massive chunk of space debris the size of the Rock of Gibraltar is hurtling towards a close encounter with Earth this week. NASA scientists say it will be the Earth's closest brush with an asteroid of this size in years. But with it passing the Earth at a distance of close to two million kilometres, there's no reason to worry about a collision.

The military regime in North Korea has warned again of 'all out war' if the United States launches a pre-emptive military strike against its nuclear and long range missile systems. It came a day after the US Vice President declared that the 'era of strategic patience' with Pyongyang was over during a high-level visit to neighbouring South Korea.