Dozens of African youths trash Melbourne Airbnb before brawling in corridor of 37-floor apartment block and violently 'ransacking two units'

When are the Victoria police going to crack down on these animals?

A group of African youths trashed an Airbnb during a rampage in which two other apartments in the complex were ransacked and a violent brawl broke out, leaked police reports show.

Neo 200 is a residential building in Melbourne's inner city, and tenants were shocked to be awoken on Sunday morning to the commotion.

Dozens of partygoers fought in the corridors of the building, the Herald Sun reported. It is understood the same youths may be connected to two aggravated robberies in the same apartment building.

Police attended the 37-floor tower at 7am in response to noise complaints and accusations of violence.

While the party had dispersed by the time police arrived, they found the apartment that had been hired out in a shambles, with personal items strewn across corridors and much of the interiors destroyed.

Investigators will use CCTV from the building to identify the offenders.

An unnamed resident told the publication 'a fire alarm was pulled and police were called.' 

'I heard police and saw a bunch of young guys running on the other side of the street,' the resident said.

The incident is just the latest in a series of major infractions at Airbnbs across the state.

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Five arrested at Nigel Farage Melbourne protest

FIVE people have been arrested during a protest outside a Melbourne CBD hotel against conservative UK politician Nigel Farage’s speaking tour.

About 200 demonstrators gathered outside the Sofitel on Collins St on Friday night, where the former leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party gave his last Australian tour speech.

Far-right provocateur Neil Erikson was bundled away by police and Andrew Nolch, the man charged with defacing comedian Eurydice Dixon’s memorial, was in attendance.

Protesters tried to block guests from entering the event. Police had to form a human barrier around the guests and guide them through the crowd of protesters.

Five people were arrested, one for criminal damage, another for riotous behaviour and a third for covering their face and assaulting police, while two others were arrested for unrelated outstanding matters, police said.

Victoria Police previously billed tour organisers for right-wing activists Milos Yiannopoulos and Lauren Southern for security at their Melbourne events, at a cost of $50,000 and $68,000 respectively.

Its decision to charge for security came as news to the Farage event organiser Damien Costas. “I’ve had no discussions with VicPol regarding payment for police presence regarding Mr Farage’s speaking event in Melbourne,” he told The Australian.

“It’s an international disgrace if the police in Victoria charge for protection of a member of the European Parliament … I’m not expecting a bill.”

Protesters surrounded Mr Costas as he came out to address the media, and chanted “Muslims are welcome / Racists are not” and “Come on, Nigel, You can’t hide / Come show us your Nazi side.”

The ABC reports a 68-year-old woman was pushed to the ground by police, injuring her wrist in the fall. She expressed her concerns with what she believes to be a growing trend of far-right speakers coming to Australia.

“First we had Milo, then Lauren Southern and Stephen Molineux and now Nigel Farage,” she said. “We can’t allow these people to ruin our multicultural city. We are here to tell them they are not welcome.”

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AUSTRALIAN experts have called for a blanket ban on mobile phones in primary schools after France outlawed the devices

As a safety measure they should be usable as soon as school is out

EDUCATIONAL experts have called for a blanket ban on mobile phones in Australian primary schools to ensure children are no longer distracted, socially isolated, or bullied using the technology.

The call comes as the French Government banned all students under the age of 15 from using smartphones during school hours, and just months after one state launched an inquiry into whether Australia should follow its lead.

Currently, individual schools are allowed to set their own mobile phone guidelines in all Australian states, even though research has shown struggling students get better marks once smartphones are removed from schools.

About 89 per cent of Aussie students admit to using the devices in class.

Extend After School Care chief executive Darren Stevenson backed France’s ban on mobile phone use for young students, saying the devices were an unnecessary distraction for students and encouraged anti-social behaviour. “Mobile phones do not have a place in the school classroom,” he said.

“By and large, mobile phones should be banned from primary schools. Really, they should only be used as a telephone device, when necessary, so a young person can contact a parent or a caregiver. They’re not an effective learning tool.”

Mr Stevenson said he regularly witnessed young students isolate themselves from others to look at their phones and, without guidance or restrictions, the devices could see them fail to develop real-world social skills.

“The mobile phone is a device that can significantly influence the behaviour of a young person, so when they have opportunities to build relationships or work in a team, it takes that opportunity away from them,” he said.

“As adults and professional educators, allowing that is not responsible. That borders on issues around duty of care for young people.”

It’s a proposal backed by incoming University of New South Wales education professor Dr Pasi Sahlberg, who said a “clear ban” on smartphones in primary schools “would be the easiest for everyone,” though he also recommended educating students to regulate their use of technology.

“I have heard hundreds of stories from teachers here and abroad how having your smartphone in your pocket and sensing the incoming messages vibrating (distracts) students’ attention from learning,” he said.

“Many teachers are upset that they have to serve as police officers, hunting down misusers and those who violate in-school or classroom-based rules.”

Calls for Australian guidelines came after the French Government banned all students under 15 from using mobile phones during school hours, preventing children from using the devices between classes.

French Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer said the move was designed to limit distractions and cyber bullying, as well as encouraging children to socialise.

“These days the children don’t play at break time anymore,” he said. “They are just all in front of their smartphones and from an educational point of view that’s a problem.”

A study from youth advisory group Year13 found 89 per cent of Australian students had used their mobile phones in the classroom regardless of their school’s policy, and a report from the British Centre of Economic Performance found banning mobile phone in school improved students’ performance by more than six per cent.

“Banning mobile phones improves outcomes for the low-achieving students the most and has no significant impact on high achievers,” the authors concluded.

The NSW state government has also launched a study into the effect of banning mobile phones from schools, releasing terms of reference for the inquiry late last week.

The investigation, led by child psychologist Dr Michael Carr-Gregg, will consider phone bans in France and Albania, as well as the technology’s links to cyber bullying and sexting, with recommendations expected by the end of the year.

But Western Sydney University technology and learning researcher Dr Joanne Orlando said an outright ban on smartphones would not eliminate bullying behaviour and could have a chilling effect on students, particularly in high schools.

“When I talk to teenagers about these sort of bans, they normally saying something like ‘well, that just means I have to use my phone in a less obvious way’,” she said. “It can lead to children being more secretive in their phone use and that means adults and teachers might not be made aware when things go wrong.”

Dr Orlando said students of all ages should be taught about the safe use of technology, including smartphones, and “extensive research” was required before national guidelines could be set.

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Australia's IVF rates revealed: one in every 25 births an IVF baby

IVF success rates are climbing, with one in four embryo transfers resulting in a live birth, the latest IVF data from Australia and New Zealand shows.

More than 13,500 IVF babies were born in Australia in 2016/2017, the highest number ever recorded across the two countries, according to a new report released Sunday.

One in 25 Australian babies are now born via IVF, one in every classroom, said Professor Michael Chapman, President of the Fertility Society of Australia, which funded the report.

The success rate of IVF was greatly dependent on the age of the mother, confirmed the data compiled by UNSW’s National Perinatal Epidemiology and Statistics Unit (NPESU).

It also showed IVF mothers and babies having elevated rates of complications, including miscarriage, caesarean and premature births, though complication rates have decreased.

The rate of live deliveries per embryo transfer rose from 22.5 per cent in 2012 to 26.2 per cent in 2016.

The number of IVF treatment cycles rose by 4.3 per cent since 2015, with 81,062 cycles reported across Australian and New Zealand clinics in 2016. The report did not include individuals who travelled overseas for IVF.

Just under 18 per cent of all initiated IVF cycles resulted in a live birth.

The age of women undergoing IVF is creeping up, with patients aged over 40 now accounting for one in four IVF cycles. Their success rate had also crept up to 13 per cent.

For the first time, there were more frozen embryo transfers than fresh cycles, with almost 60 per cent of IVF babies born via frozen embryo transfers in 2016.

For women in their 20s, the live delivery rate per embryo transfer cycle was 36.9 per cent for fresh cycles and 33.3 per cent for frozen cycles using their own eggs.

For women aged 40 to 44, the chance of a live delivery per embryo transfer cycle was 9.5 per cent and 18.6 per cent for fresh and frozen cycles respectively.

For women aged over 44, the live delivery rate was markedly low using their own fresh eggs: 1.3 per cent (six babies from 463 embryo transfer cycles).

For frozen embryo cycles among women 44 and over, the live delivery rate was 11.8 per cent (42 babies from 355 embryo transfer cycles).

More than half of births after embryo transfer cycles were caesarean sections. This was likely driven by IVF mothers being on average five years older than other mothers, as well as the anxieties of mothers and obstetricians because these births are considered high risk, Professor Chapman said.

"Science" was to thank for the rise in success rates and drop in complications, Professor Chapman said. "We're getting better at it," he said. "When I started 35 years ago IVF was an experiment. Today it is a standard medical treatment."

The UNSW report also found pre-implanatation genetic testing for embryos increased by 200 per cent since 2012.

"These results confirm Australia's place as a leading provider of safe IVF, with multiple pregnancy rates amongst the lowest in the world," Professor Chapman said

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