SBS News In Depth

Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has won the country's election In a landslide victory, with her party expected to secure a more than two-thirds majority in the powerful lower house. Takaichi's government will push for greater defence spending, tougher immigration policies, and a stronger economy.

The rise of antibiotic resistance is threatening millions of lives worldwide, but “unconventional” Australian research could make obsolete medications effective again. Data released by the World Health Organization (WHO) has found that some of the most common illnesses in the world are becoming more resistant to treatment every year. Dr Maud Eijkenboom says the current approach of developing new antibiotics is losing the battle against ever-evolving viruses and bacteria. After her son struggled with a resistant disease, Dr Eijkenboom set on her own path to discover a better way eradicate the rising wave of lethal pathogens. In 2021, she founded Lixa, a Perth-based biotech company receiving international support for its “game-changing” research. In this edition of Weekend One on One, she speaks with SBS's Cameron Carr about the impact of her research, and started by explaining what Lixa is all about.

Growing speculation over a proposal to hand Australians' personal and biometric data to the United States is raising alarm among privacy and security experts. As other countries with visa-free arrangements with the U-S consider proposals to expand their data-sharing agreements, the Australian Government is yet to clarify if they're considering the move.

With the midterm elections due at the end of this year in the United States, Republicans and Democrats in some states are scrambling for an advantage. Republican President Donald Trump had hoped re-districting could help House Republicans hold on to their slim majority. But there are moves to introduce legislation that could also give the party an advantage, laws that the Democrats say are designed to shut out minority voters. And there are still election battles to be won in Texas - and Georgia.

The far northwestern city of Mildura is used to hot summers. But in January, the city and surrounds sweltered through an unusual heatwave, with temperatures breaking records throughout the region. SBS' Deborah Groarke spoke with the mayor of Mildura, Ali Cupper, on how the Council deals with hot weather, and its concerns around how worsening climate change patterns might affect its residents and agricultural economy.