The World Today

The Lord Mayor of Hobart says her council is still going to try to get support from other councils around Australia to look at the idea of changing the date of Australia's national holiday. That is despite the Prime Minister saying that Australia Day should remain on January 26th, and the Government warning the council not to change citizenship ceremonies for political reasons.

As the Melbourne city council grapples with how to support people sleeping rough, more than 50 agencies have joined forces to come up with a solution. In February, there was outrage when the council voted to change local laws to better control rough sleepers on the streets. A committee looking into the issue will meet today to hear submissions. The plan from housing agencies suggests the council offer more lockers, safe spaces at night and extra support workers.

The US President Donald Trump will meet the Chinese President Xi Jinping for the first time tomorrow. And while North Korea and Syria will no doubt come up, trade is likely to dominate.

Infectious disease experts are warning that the world could be on the brink of an influenza pandemic on the scale of the Spanish flu outbreak a century ago, that killed 50 million people around the world. Research from the University of New South Wales' School of Public Health has found that outbreaks of new flu strains are becoming more frequent and more serious. More than a third of the 19 strains of the virus to appear over the last century have emerged in the last five years.

A leading infectious diseases expert is warning a measles outbreak in Western Sydney could wreak havoc if it spreads to areas with low immunisation rates. There have been ten cases of measles recorded in Western Sydney over the past fortnight. Health authorities say almost all those affected caught the virus in Sydney and it's expected more cases will emerge. One doctor says the outbreak has the potential to spread to other areas of the country and cause many problems for people who aren't inoculated.

Dozens of people, including children, have been killed in a suspected chemical weapons attack in Syria. The US blames the government of Bashar al-Assad. The UN Security Council will meet later today to discuss how to respond to the attack. (Warning: This report contains some distressing audio.)

Rebecca Hersman, former US deputy assistant secretary of defence for countering weapons of mass destruction, says she thinks Assad is responsible for the attack and that he has been emboldened by a lack of international action.

The High Court has ruled Family First Senator Bob Day was not validly elected at last year's election. It found the Senator's office lease arrangements breached the Constitution. With the ruling handed down, the focus now turns to who will replace Mr Day.

As we just heard a recount will be ordered to fill Bob Day's vacated senate seat. It will mean a special recount of Senate ballots in South Australia to determine his replacement. Kenyan born lawyer Lucy Gichuhi was Family First's second on the ballot in the 2016 federal election and could fill that role.

In Rockhampton residents are bracing for the full impact from ex- Cyclone Debbie as the Fitzroy River swells. They are expecting the river to peak at nine metres in the early hours of tomorrow morning.