News and politics live updates: Trump says Iran peace deal could be signed as Strait of Hormuz set to reopen

Pauline Hanson has escalated her war with Anthony Albanese, releasing what she says is an independent audit of One Nation’s multimillion-dollar fundraising campaign after the Prime Minister cast doubt on the legitimacy of the donations.

The One Nation leader challenged Labor to reveal how much it had raised through its own anti-Hanson fundraising drive, accusing Mr Albanese of trying to discredit thousands of supporters. “Albo claims the last 24hrs worth of donations are fake. He’s lying again.

Now, will the PM reveal how much his campaign has raised,” Senator Hanson wrote on social media. One Nation senator Sean Bell said the audit proved the money was “ridgey didge” and accused the Prime Minister of turning to “conspiracy theories” after being blindsided by the scale of the campaign.

“The people who donated are real and they’re mad. They’re mad at a terrible government, a bad prime minister because they’ve seen their standard of living collapse,” Senator Bell told Sky News.

Labor has sought to downplay One Nation’s extraordinary fundraising haul after the party raised more than $2.7 million in the wake of Anthony Albanese’s challenge for supporters to donate $27 to campaign against Pauline Hanson.

The fundraising drive has attracted more than 28,000 donors in just 24 hours, with One Nation claiming the average contribution was $59. But Health Minister Mark Butler dismissed suggestions the result represented a major political shift, arguing the bigger story was the evolving relationship between the Coalition and minor conservative parties ahead of the next election.

“At the end of the day, these online fundraising campaigns are pretty common,” Mr Butler told Sunrise.

“This will probably pale in comparison to the money that One Nation receives from a billionaire like Gina Rinehart.”

Pressed on whether millions of dollars raised from tens of thousands of Australians reflected growing voter frustration, Mr Butler insisted the focus should instead be on what he described as a reshaping of the conservative side of politics.

“What we’re seeing here is a remaking of the Coalition with some different faces, but the same agenda,” he said.

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UK Defence Minister John Healey has quit over a months-long dispute over military spending, accusing Prime Minister Keir Starmer of failing to commit the resources that are needed to keep the country safe from mounting threats.

A press conference Mr Healey was due to hold with Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles on a Portsmouth naval base on Thursday afternoon was cancelled at the last minute.

The resignation, accompanied by a scathing public letter, is another indication that Mr Starmer’s authority is draining away and exposes the crisis at the heart of the United Kingdom’s government - how it can ramp up defence spending when there is little money to spare and the welfare budget keeps rising.

Mr Healey had been locked in talks with Mr Starmer and finance minister Rachel Reeves over how to meet the additional military spending needed, delaying the UK’s Defence Investment Plan, which was due last year.

“You have been unable, and the Treasury has been unwilling, to commit the resources that the nation needs to defend the country,” Mr Healey said in his letter to Mr Starmer.

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Iran has poured cold water on suggestions a peace deal with the US is imminent, insisting no final decision has been made and warning Tehran will not back down on its key negotiating demands.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said reports about a signing ceremony and a completed agreement were premature, telling state-run IRNA that negotiations remained unresolved despite significant progress.

“Nothing had been finalised,” he said, while stressing Iran would not compromise on its “red lines”. Mr Baghaei acknowledged much of the negotiating text had been agreed to but accused Washington of repeatedly shifting its position throughout the talks.

Donald Trump has called off planned military strikes on Iran, claiming a breakthrough peace agreement could be signed within days and pave the way for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

In a post on Truth Social, the US President said he had cancelled scheduled attacks after negotiations with Iran reached the highest levels of Iran’s leadership and received approval from all parties involved.

“Based on the fact that discussions with the Islamic Republic of Iran have been brought to the highest level of Iranian leadership and approved, I have, as President of the United States of America, cancelled the scheduled strikes and bombings against Iran this evening,” Mr Trump wrote.

He said discussions had been approved “in both concept and great detail” by a broad coalition of regional nations, including Israel, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Turkey, Pakistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan and Egypt.

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Donald Trump says an agreement to end the conflict with Iran is now within reach, declaring a breakthrough has been achieved and suggesting a formal signing could take place within days.

Speaking at the White House, the US President said negotiators were now working through the final details of the deal after weeks of escalating tensions and military action across the Middle East.

“We just made a great settlement of the war with Iran, and we’re going to be subject to finalisation of documents, which should get done over the next few days,” Mr Trump said.

He added that Vice President JD Vance could attend a signing ceremony in Europe as soon as this weekend. “The documents are in pretty final shape,” he said, adding that the Strait of Hormuz “will officially open as soon as we sign, which could be soon, very soon.”