Australia’s peak motor neurone disease advocacy body has welcomed a state’s move to make the disorder a notifiable condition, calling for an expansion of the nation-first initiative. 

The law change in NSW will enforce the collection and reporting of key data from those with the disease to assist researchers working on MND preventions, treatments and cures.

Cases of the debilitating disease, which affects eight in every 100,000 Australians, will be fed into a central system from Tuesday.

The move marked a significant step in understanding the disease, MND Australia chief executive Clare Sullivan said.

“Better data means better planning, better care and more informed research,” she told AAP. 

But Ms Sullivan called on other states and territories to commit to the initiative.

“While this is good progress, people living with MND across Australia deserve the same commitment, that’s why we’re working on developing a comprehensive national data approach,” she said.

“MND doesn’t stop at state borders and neither should our understanding of it.”

State health ministers are expected to discuss the development on Friday.

Federal Health Minister Mark Butler, who will attend the meeting, said a nationally consistent system was the Commonwealth’s preference.

A notifiable disease is a medical condition that by law must be reported to NSW Health by medical practitioners, hospitals, laboratories and schools or childcare facilities, to help prevent and control the spread.

Data, including age, gender, country of birth, and occupations, will be collected and kept confidential. It will also include details about the referring doctor.

Discrepancies in the appearance of MND meant it was crucial to study cases at a “granular” level, Macquarie University expert Dominic Rowe said.

More data would help researchers to isolate any environmental factors behind case clusters, Professor Rowe said. 

NSW Health Minister Ryan Park conceded it was a “bit unusual” to include a disease such as MND as a notifiable illness.

“We don’t have enough answers to this piece of the question,” he said. 

“And the question is: how we can cure and better treat people and give them a longer life and a better quality of life for those suffering from MND? We need to do better.”

MND is a rare, progressive neurological disorder that causes rapid degeneration of muscle activity and can impair walking, talking, breathing and general functioning.

About 90 per cent of cases occur sporadically, without apparent reasons or hereditary links. There is no cure.

Awareness of the crippling disease has grown in Australia because of the late AFL legend Neale Daniher’s trailblazing FightMND foundation and the tragic recent diagnosis of 30-year-old NRL star Jai Arrow.

Their devastating battles have united the public and sporting codes, driving unprecedented awareness and research funding to fight the disease.

Australia’s share market is off to a shaky start to the week, after the US Federal Reserve flagged higher borrowing costs and renewed conflict in Iran sent oil prices higher.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index inched 0.7 points higher, or 0.01 per cent, to 9,093, as the broader All Ordinaries lost 5.1 points, or 0.09 per cent, to 9,286 by noon on Monday.

The move followed a weak finish for US equities on Friday, after hawkish comments from Federal Reserve chair Kevin Warsh prompted markets to brace for a US interest rate hike as soon as September.

Brent crude has jumped at the open to above $US90 a barrel, following reports that the US has targeted Iranian rocket launchers in the Strait of Hormuz, sparking retaliation strikes in the first such attacks in a month.

Local energy stocks gained 0.8 per cent, led by strong upticks in refinery operators Viva and Ampol, which each gained more than two per cent.

Rebounding banks helped keep the bourse out of the red, with financials up 1.6 per cent as Westpac led the big four higher.

It would mark a second straight positive session for the sector, which had fallen more than 10 per cent in roughly three weeks after housing sector concerns hammered earnings expectations.

Non-energy miners were a sea of red, the heavyweight segment down two per cent as precious metals retreated and copper eased from near all-time highs following the Federal Reserve’s hawkish pivot.

Gold bullion is trading at $US4,443 ($A6,200) an ounce, falling for a third session from its recent rally.

Iron ore futures defied the trend, soaring to five-week highs of $US99.40 a tonne.

The traditionally defensive consumer staples sector gained 1.3 per cent as investors continued to pick up Woolworths and Coles stocks.

Buying in consumer cyclicals was more measured, with the segment improving by 0.6 per cent amid a strong performance from Domino’s Pizza and some dip buying in Smiggle owner Premier Investments.

August earnings season has almost wound up, with a handful of names reporting on Monday.

Shares in Star Entertainment dipped almost four per cent after the casino giant narrowed its bottom-line annual loss to $307 million, from $480 million in 2024/25.

Liontown’s share price swung in the other direction after the lithium miner handed down a maiden post-tax net profit of $93 million for the financial year.

Monash IVF also advanced despite softer revenue weighing on its profit result.

Looking ahead, the Australian Bureau of Statistics will deliver third-quarter economic growth figures on Wednesday.

The Australian dollar was buying 71.66 US cents, down from 71.99 US cents on Friday at 5pm, after the Federal Reserve’s hawkish pivot narrowed the divergence in Australian and US interest rate expectations.

Pauline Hanson has accused the prime minister of inciting political violence against her after he called One Nation dangerous and dishonest.

Anthony Albanese used a speech at Queensland’s Labor conference to criticise One Nation as a threat to democracy.

“(They are) peddling politics that is dangerous, divisive and downright dishonest. We simply must defeat them. We owe it to history,” he told the conference on Sunday.

“They’ll say anything and do anything to win votes. Bend any facts, peddle misinformation and disinformation, turn Australian against Australian.”

But One Nation’s leader said Mr Albanese was inciting violence against her through the comments.

“He’s never called anyone else out as being dangerous and a lot of people are in fear of it,” she told reporters in Victoria on Monday.

“I’ve been getting that many death threats, and that’s happening …. a prime minister should know better than that.”

The comments were made following One Nation’s rise in the latest Newspoll, published on Sunday night, which showed Senator Hanson’s party taking the lead on primary votes at 30 per cent, compared to Labor’s 29 per cent.

One Nation also made in-roads at a WA by-election, winning the former Labor safe seat of Secret Harbour on Saturday to gain a seat in the state’s lower house.

Senator Hanson said the criticism from the prime minister showed the government was concerned about the rise of One Nation.

“You don’t go out saying these things, and they’re all scared,” she said.

“They’re scared because now we’ve won a safe Labor seat, and this is worrying them.”

Labor assistant minister Patrick Gorman rejected claims the prime minister was inciting violence against One Nation.

“(One Nation) are dangerous, populist and dishonest, and I can give you a whole range of examples as how I think their policies would be dangerous for the Australian people,” he told News24.

The Newspoll also showed the coalition on 19 per cent, with the Greens nudging down to 13 per cent.

One Nation MP Barnaby Joyce said a sense of “dry pragmatism” has attracted voters to the party.

“They don’t like this idea that you have two people who sort of have a closed shop, a political closed shop, and you you can only go to one or the other, and there’s nothing to really shake the show up,” Mr Joyce told the ABC.

Less than a quarter of those surveyed picked Liberal leader Angus Taylor as their first choice for prime minister, with Anthony Albanese maintaining a healthy lead of 46 per cent.

The poll also found 31 per cent of those surveyed preferred Senator Hanson as prime minister.

The minor party faced open criticism and booing at anti-migration protests on Sunday after a week of confusion over its own migration targets.

One Nation’s newest MP David Farley went against pledges to cut net overseas migration by 130,000 triggering reports he may look to quit the party.

Mr Joyce dismissed the speculation.

“David’s got very broad shoulders,” he said.

“He’s been in, you know, tough corporate environments, and he’s more than capable to hold his own and to express his views within the One Nation Party room.”

Focus now turns to Victoria ahead of its state election in November where One Nation is hoping to win multiple seats.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will encourage G20 members to re-examine their terms of trade with China ‌to shrink global imbalances and press Beijing to rebalance its economy away from exports and toward domestic consumption.

The flood of ‌exports from China was unsustainable, even though the US direct trade position with China was “rapidly improving”, Bessent said in an interview on Sunday ahead of a G20 finance leaders meeting.

“The world cannot have a China with a $US1.2 ($A1.7) trillion trade surplus,” Bessent said. 

“In China, the economy is quite weak, and they are trying to export their way out of it, and they need to rebalance their economy.”

Bessent’s push to mobilise a co-ordinated trade response to China comes as legal setbacks force the US to rebuild its tariff policy, which had sharply reduced imports from China but led to an influx of Chinese imports elsewhere, especially to Europe and Latin America.

The US has walled ‌off its economy from ‌many Chinese goods with high ⁠tariffs and outright bans on some products including autos.

Bessent said he told other industrial economies last year they would face ​pressures from the China import surge and that “now they are confronted with some very stark choices”.

It will be up to other countries to give China an incentive to shift away from exports and strengthen its chronically weak domestic demand.

“The rest of the world is going to have to examine their terms of trade with China,” Bessent said.

The US is pushing for a G20 joint statement on reducing trade and current account imbalances. China’s embassy in Washington could not immediately be reached for comment on its view of the effort.

Tariffs imposed since US President Donald Trump ⁠returned to office in 2025 have helped cut the US trade deficit with China for the first six ‌months of 2026 by ​a third from the same period of 2025, to $US73.9 billion ($A103.2 billion), according to US Census Bureau data. Some acceleration of Chinese imports occurred in January of the year-earlier period as importers tried ​to beat anticipated tariffs.

Although ‌some economists and European leaders have called for a co-ordinated effort to strengthen China’s yuan, Bessent questioned the effectiveness of such a move. The International Monetary Fund has assessed the yuan ​to be undervalued by as much as 21 per cent.

Suggestions that a new “Plaza Accord” –  the 1985 agreement to strengthen currencies against the dollar – was the answer to reducing imbalances are misguided, he said, calling this “an easy way to get around dealing with the real trade problem,” which he said was excessive Chinese industrial subsidies and weak domestic demand.

Bessent ​said it ​was unclear whether he would meet with his Chinese counterpart, Chinese Vice ​Premier He Lifeng, in person ahead of a White House meeting between President Trump and Chinese President ‌Xi Jinping slated for late September.

Ahead of the summit, US and Chinese officials will press forward with dialogues on potential tariff reductions on non-strategic goods and artificial intelligence guardrails aimed at keeping powerful AI models from falling into the hands of non-state actors, Bessent said.

Star Entertainment is on the road to “suitability” after narrowing its full-year loss, as it navigates debt refinancing, new major shareholders and licensing issues.

The casino company posted a $307.3 million loss in the year to June 30, down from $471.5 million in 2025/26, and $1.7 billion a year earlier.

Its normalised loss after tax was $158.9 million, before significant items of $144.3 million and discontinued operations of $4.1 million.

After a raft of scandals and license suspensions over alleged money laundering, organised crime infiltration and governance failures, the company was more accountable, focused and responsible, chief executive officer and managing director Bruce Mathieson Jr said.

“Returning to suitability remains critical to future, and the work required to achieve that objective has and is being increasingly embedded in how we operate every day,” Mr Mathieson Jr said in a statement.

Star handed down its results two business days later than forecast, and did not hold an earnings briefing for analysts or shareholders.

Operating losses fell to $16.1 million from $76.2 million a year earlier, while a more than 10 per cent slump in revenue to $1.1 billion was attributed to weaker table game income.

Significant items bottom line impacts included a $55.9 million settlement with the Australian Tax Office, $25.4 million in regulator fines and associated costs, $36.2 million on reorganisation and employment costs, and $17.3 million in debt refinancing.

“The group has successfully refinanced its corporate debt and continued the work of strengthening its balance sheet with a strong liquidity position,” Mr Mathieson Jr said.

The Star received a $300 million investment from US casino giant Bally’s and pub baron Bruce Mathieson’s Investment Holdings over the past two financial years to keep it afloat, along with a USD $390 million ($544.4 million) secured term loan from WhiteHawk Capital Partners.

Bally’s now owns 38 per cent of The Star’s issued capital, while Investment Holdings owns 28 per cent.

Regulatory fines have continued to roll in for the casino operator and former leaders, including a $10 million penalty for breaches including exceeding game time limits and failing to vet patrons for criminal and terrorist links.

Matthias Bekier, Star’s boss between 2014 and early 2022, was fined $700,000 in June and banned from managing corporations for six years for failing to inform the company board of suspicious junket operator conduct.

Those times were behind the company according Mr Mathieson Jr, who will celebrate one year at the helm on Tuesday.

“We have welcomed many new leaders to The Star over the past year, bringing fresh perspectives, deep industry experience and a shared commitment to improving patron experience, profitable operating performance and responsible operations,” Mr Mathieson Jr said.

Star Entertainment shares fell almost four per cent in early trade to 12.5 cents per share.

People’s faces should automatically be blurred when being filmed by smart glasses as part of greater privacy measures, the online safety watchdog has urged.

In advice to industry, the eSafety Commission has called for extra protections to be put in place for smart glasses, or glasses with cameras attached to them.

The growing take up of the technology, prompted by cheaper versions of the products being sold in places like Kmart, has increased concerns about privacy and people being filmed without their consent.

The commission said faces of people being filmed should blurred by default if they have not given consent, with clearer indicators being given for when the glasses are recording video.

“Companies selling smart glasses must balance the benefits of the technology with the need to protect users and the public,” the commission said.

“As smart glasses become more common, they may create new ways to perpetrate harms.”

The eSafety Commission said the rapid evolution of the technology meant there was still a chance for extra safety features to be baked in to the products before harms became more widespread.

“They may become increasingly interconnected with and create new ways to perpetrate different types of harms, such as image-based abuse, adult cyber abuse, cyberbullying of children, or the livestreaming of violent or other harmful content,” the advice said.

“The harms linked to covert recording are not hypothetical. They are real and already occurring.”

Among the concerns listed by the commission was how the glasses could be used by “pick-up artists” who use the glasses to film women without their knowledge.

“Most of the women do not realise they are being filmed. These posts often attract misogynistic comments, compounding the harm,” the commission said.

“Used in this way, smart glasses can reinforce and normalise watching, recording and controlling women in public without their knowledge.”

The commission has also called for livestreaming from the glasses to operate on a delay, as well as recording being disabled when the glasses are not being worn.

Attorney-General Michelle Rowland earlier in August wrote to the privacy commission to investigate whether extra regulations for smart glasses were needed.

The Greens have called for a ban for 12 months on importing smart glasses.

Under changes the minor party will bring to parliament, the filming, storing or sharing of footage from the glasses without consent would be a breach of privacy laws.

Ms Rowland on Monday is also set to outline further changes to privacy laws, including the right to erasure.

The policy would mean social media users can request tech companies delete their personal information published online or held by the platforms.

The draft laws will not apply to media organisations publishing news articles.

Ms Rowland said the privacy laws were needed to keep up with technology changes.

“The right to erasure will help put more control in the hands of Australians, allowing personal information to be destroyed from large digital platforms,” she said.

“We must ensure appropriate safeguards are placed around technology and stop the erosion of our privacy protections.”

The federal government will also roll out extra protections for identity documents online.

A service called IDLock will allow people to block or unblock the use of identity documents such as passports.

IDLock will be made available through the government’s MyGov platform from 2027 after a small-scale trial in late 2026.

“Australians deserve to have control over how their personal identity information, such as their driver licence or passport, is used to verify their identity online,” Ms Rowland said.

“As data breaches, scams and cyber-enabled crime continue to evolve, Australia’s approach must evolve with them.”

Share markets ‌have slipped in Asia as fresh fighting broke out between the United States and Iran, lifting oil prices, while bond yields stayed elevated after investors narrowed the odds ‌on a US rate hike.

Brent futures climbed 1.4 per cent to $US89.38 ($A124.85) a barrel after US forces struck two of Iran’s launchers on its island of Larak on Sunday. In response, Iran ‌was attacking US forces stationed in Jordan, Fox News said.

The resulting risk to inflation kept bond markets on edge after Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh emphasised on Friday the central bank had work to do to control inflation.

Markets reacted by lifting the probability of a September rate increase to 57 per cent, shoving short-term Treasury yields sharply higher and flattening the curve.

“We continue to expect that a hike won’t come until December, though agree that the September meeting is live,” said Michael Feroli, chief US economist ‌at JPMorgan.

“Moreover, regardless of ‌the exact timing of ⁠hikes, Warsh’s speech suggested a chair more willing to translate his concern about inflation into a policy tightening.”

Key ​to the chance of an early hike will be the outcome of Friday’s August payrolls report and consumer price data due on September 11.

Analysts are forecasting a bounce of 58,000 in jobs, following July’s shock drop of 23,000, with unemployment holding at 4.1 per cent. It would probably need a much weaker outcome to greatly lessen the risk of a September rate move.

The inflation threat is expected to spur New Zealand’s central bank to hike rates for a second straight meeting on Wednesday, while the Bank of Canada is ⁠seen on hold, given the damage a trade war with the US could do ‌to the economy.

Higher ​yields combined with geopolitical stress to push Japan’s Nikkei down 2.1 per cent on Monday, while South Korean stocks fell 2.4 per cent. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan lost 0.7 per cent.

In Europe, ​EUROSTOXX 50 futures ‌dropped 0.5 per cent, while DAX futures eased 0.4 per cent. On Wall Street, S&P 500 futures dipped 0.3 per cent and Nasdaq futures shed 0.5 per cent.

Inflation and interest ​rates will be high on the menu when G20 finance ministers and central bankers meet in North Carolina on Monday and Tuesday.

In an interview with Reuters on Sunday, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he planned to meet the head of the Bank of Japan amid speculation that it, too, ​will ​raise interest rates in September.

Analysts argue a series of hikes are ​needed to shore up the yen, which again slid past 160.00 per dollar on ‌Friday.

Asked about the yen, Bessent said the move was “pretty well contained”, suggesting the slide was not disorderly enough to trigger a repeat of joint Japan-US intervention.

The dollar was steady at 160.00 yen, still some way from the July top of 163.99.

Two-year Treasury yields held at 4.36 per cent, after jumping almost 12 basis points on Friday. Yields on 30-year bonds were more contained at 5.2080 per cent, with investors taking some comfort from Warsh’s emphasis on fighting inflation.

The euro was a shade firmer at $1.1591, having slipped 0.6 per cent on ​Friday after Warsh’s speech.

Data on EU inflation due this week is expected to cement market pricing for another hike from the European Central Bank when it ​meets on September 10.

In commodity markets, US ⁠crude rose 1.3 per cent to $US84.50 ($A118.03) a barrel. Gold was a fraction firmer at $US4,454 ($A6,221) an ounce, having shed 3.2 per cent on Friday ​as yields spiked.

Australia’s second-largest fertility services provider has suffered a drop in annual profit after a fall in the number of IVF treatment cycles started by patients.

But Monash IVF also said it’s picked up about one per cent more of the assisted reproduction market, giving it momentum running into the new financial year.

The group, which now has a market share of about 20 per cent, on Monday reported a 2025/26 bottom line net profit of $8.3 million, down 67.6 per cent from the previous year.

The result followed softer domestic stimulated cycle volumes, partially offset by growth in its international, genetics and ancillary revenue streams.

It also faced higher wages and supplier cost inflation, and clinic operating costs.

The underlying net profit was $16.1 million, below its recent guidance of a result between $17-$18 million, on revenue of $269.5 million.

But the second half of the year saw a pick-up in stimulated cycle volumes, as clinical pregnancy rates for women under 43 rose 1.8 per cent to 42.1 per cent over the year.

“Financial year 2026 was a year of two halves,” chief executive Victoria Atkinson said.

“While the first half was challenging, we exited the year with improved momentum, with domestic stimulated cycle volumes trends strengthening, market share increasing through the second half, and our international business delivering a record performance.”

Looking ahead, Dr Atkinson said the group was focused on growing cycle volumes and market share.

About 20,000 babies conceived by IVF are born in Australia each year, according to the latest figure from the Australian and New Zealand Assisted Reproduction database.

This represents about one in 18 children, rising to one in 10 for those born to mothers aged 35 and older.

In April, Monash IVF rejected a takeover offer of 90 cents per share from investment vehicle WHSP Holdings and private equity group Genesis Capital, saying that it undervalued the group.

It was not the first time the pair had cast their eyes over Monash IVF. They first pursued the target in November, when it was under pressure over an embryo implant scandal.

A patient at a laboratory in Melbourne’s southeast was implanted with her own embryo in June 2025 rather than one from her partner, as requested.

The company later blamed human error and IT limitations for the incident.

At the time, WHSP and Genesis offered 80 cents per share for all the stock in Monash IVF, which has struggled to trade above 90 cents for more than 12 months.

Its shares closed on Friday at 68 cents.

Monash IVF declared a final dividend of 1.3 cents, taking the total for the year to 2.5 cents.

President Donald Trump’s administration plans to impose sanctions on another bank this week as it intensifies efforts to economically isolate Iran.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent spoke with the AP on Sunday ahead of Group of 20 meetings in Asheville, North Carolina, where he will meet individually with his counterparts from the world’s major and developing economies to encourage co-operation against Iran.

“This is going to be financial violence if we have to,” Bessent said.

“We are showing people that we know who you are, you know who you are, and this has got to stop.”

The Trump administration recently signalled that it would shift from military strikes to economic pressure during a war that recently reached the six-month mark, promising what it called an “economic D-Day” against a country that has already weathered decades of punishing sanctions.

However, hostilities between the US and Iran flared on Sunday.

US forces struck Iranian rocket launchers on the Strait of Hormuz in their first military action in a month, breaking a lull in fighting. Iran vowed to retaliate for what it called a deadly attack.

In addition, the administration has mostly relied on warnings rather than new sanctions against Iran’s trading partners. There’s also the question of how Trump will handle China, which is Iran’s biggest trading partner and leading buyer of its oil.

Bessent said he would speak to his Chinese counterparts at the G20 meeting and “all options are on the table” in terms of sanctioning Beijing for its continued purchases.

But he rejected the idea that the administration was reluctant to confront China, calling it “a completely false narrative that the media picked up on”.

He insisted that China and the US agree on the need to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.

Treasury’s first official action in this campaign of economic pressure was a proposed rulemaking on Friday, which would, if finalised, sever the Emirati branches of Banque Misr, Egypt’s second-largest bank, from access to the US financial system.

In stopping short of imposing sanctions on the Egyptian bank, the US appeared to be signalling its reluctance to penalise major trading partners that do business with Iran, including China and India.

The partner of an Australian man missing in Nepal after devastating floods has called on Canberra to send troops to the area, as the total number of Australians unaccounted for rises to 43.

Around 800 deaths have been reported and at least 3000 people are still missing after the disaster, triggered by a glacier collapse in the Himalayas near the Nepal-China border on Wednesday.

Australia has sent 12 response team personnel and pledged millions in aid, including hygiene kits and solar lights to be delivered by the defence force later in the week.

Among the Australians still missing are four members of the Isaah Yeo family, Sreedharan, Lakshmi and their sons, Rudra and Rishabh.

Rishabh’s partner, Sarada Vishwanathan, said the family are upset, disappointed and very scared.

“The main thing we want now is to try and get the Australian government to go over there, send their troops over to find our people,” Ms Vishwanathan told Nine’s Today program.

“It’s been five days now, and we know that the critical window of survival is getting slimmer and slimmer as the days pass. And we just have no answers.

With Nepal a “third world country” lacking critical support, “we need to send our Australians there to try and find our family”, she said.

Ms Vishwanathan’s partner and family were visiting the area for a religious pilgramage in Mount Kailash in Nepal, but had not been seen or heard since Wednesday morning. 

“Which has been most hard hit by these Nepal floods and we know that those areas have been cut off by all communication,” she said.

“But we’ve heard reports that maybe they could have run up the hill. Maybe they could have fled. We know that it’s a very mountainous and forested area, but we still have hope. We have hope every single day that they’re up there somewhere, but they just can’t reach us.”

Assistant Foreign Affairs Minister Matt Thistlethwaite on Monday confirmed the number of Australian’s unaccounted for in the disaster had risen to 43 overnight. 

“Our embassy staff in Kathmandu are working around the clock, and we’ve actually sent an additional 12 personnel to Kathmandu to assist yesterday our ambassador,” Mr Thistlethwaite told ABC’s Radio National.

“We remain hopeful of rescuing and returning them safely.”

He said while the Chinese government had refused an offer for assistance from Australia, the Nepalese government had requested additional support, which includes an additional $3 million, taking the total support package to $8 million. 

Most of that support is in the form of hygiene kits and solar lights. 

On top of that, Australians have raised millions of dollars to assist survivors, with many forced into temporary shelters amid mud and chaos.

The survivors remain in desperate need of basic amenities like clean drinking water and medical supplies.

Among them, Rabindra Hamal told AAP he and his colleagues working at a dam site were told to flee just minutes before the flood hit their area on Wednesday. 

They made their escape by car, but as they later tried to reach higher ground by foot, two of the group were swept away. 

“It was completely terrifying,” he said. “We couldn’t believe it.”

The group continued to scramble to safety but were forced to wait until the following day to be rescued.

They flown by helicopter to a nearby army barracks and then evacuated to Kathmandu. 

Mr Hamal said of the several thousand people who were working on the hydro project, about 500 people were still missing.

A public candlelight vigil will be held at Melbourne’s Federation Square on Monday evening, in memory of those lost in the disaster.