Editor Brian Harrod Provides Comprehensive up-to-date news coverage, with aggregated news from sources all over the world from the Roundup Newswires Network
Postmortem begins as MPs express devastation over unexpected and bruising result
The fight for the future of Australia’s Labor party has begun after it lost what was considered up until the final days of the campaign to be an unloseable election, in a result that Labor MPs said was “devastating”.
Coalition seeks final seats to form majority government after winning Australia election. Meanwhile Labor faces leadership contest and recriminations. Follow all the latest updates, live
The AEC has laid out its plan for the remaining count:
Our team is today progressing the count and undertaking the significant and essential large-scale task of sorting, securely packaging and transporting all declaration votes – votes cast outside of an elector’s home division. This involves millions of ballot papers and more than 40,000 transport routes.
“This logistical activity occurring today is huge and complex, and illustrative of the highly manual process we undertake in delivering the count for the federal election,” [AEC commissioner] Tom Rogers said.
The business community is turning its attention to a potential minority government. From AAP:
Business groups are hoping for a sensible approach to how the country is run after prime minister Scott Morrison unexpectedly won the federal election, albeit in a possible minority Coalition government.
Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry CEO, James Pearson, hopes the speeches made by Mr Morrison and outgoing Labor leader Bill Shorten on the importance of bringing Australians together will translate into a “sensible and calm approach” as government is formed.
Scott Morrison’s government set to hang on to power despite polls predicting his demise
It was billed as the climate change election, and the climate lost.
Despite enduring its hottest year on record and a series of environmental calamities that have brought the climate emergency into sharp relief, Australia has voted for the centre-right Liberal party and its coalition partner, and against taking forceful action on the climate crisis.
Australia’s government faces questions over secret deal with US in which the men were granted humanitarian visas
Just hours out from a federal election, the Australian government is facing questions over its decision to grant humanitarian visas to two Rwandan men accused of the brutal 1999 murder of tourists in Uganda.
The Australian prime minister, Scott Morrison, has said that the men were subject to – and cleared – security checks, and on Friday distanced himself further by suggesting the approvals occurred when his predecessor Malcolm Turnbull was prime minister.
Exclusive: US advice was that the men, who have refugee status and were accused of murdering tourists in Uganda in 1999, presented no security threat
The national security committee of cabinet was briefed about all aspects of the American refugee swap deal in late 2016, including the resettlement of two Rwandan men accused of murdering tourists in Uganda.
Guardian Australian understands the NSC was briefed, and the then treasurer, Scott Morrison, the home affairs minister, Peter Dutton, and the foreign affairs minister, Julie Bishop, were aware of all the elements of the agreement signed by Malcolm Turnbull and Barack Obama in 2016.
Gumatj leader and Yothu Yindi Foundation chair Galarrwuy Yunupingu worked with Hawke towards an Indigenous treaty, and presented him with the Barunga statement in 1988.
In a statement, he expressed his “deep sorrow” at Hawke’s passing.
Mr Hawke was a very popular leader, and a friend of the Yolngu people.
His efforts to bridge the gap between black and white Australia were always sincere, and continued after the end of his prime ministership.
Former PM Julia Gillard: “Without question, Bob was the greatest peacetime leader Australia has ever had. And up to his very last days, he remained both an inspiration and a friend.
“In many ways the true measure of Bob’s incredible ability is that he made the difficult look easy. Now more than thirty years after he smashed an old model and remade a country, everyone thinks they supported him at the time.
Bob Hawke was the greatest peacetime leader Australia has ever had.
As a teenager Bob inspired me, as a PM he guided me.
I will miss him. I wish so very much that Bob had been able to see one more election day.
Australia is now the wealthiest country in the world and yet our poverty rates have remained persistently high over decades of economic growth.
Why does poverty remain entrenched while overall wealth bounds on? How is it that this is tolerated, let alone reinforced, by government policies? The answer isn’t just about economics, it’s also about culture. There are dark forces at play that allow the experience of poverty to persist despite being surrounded by wealth.
Labor leader wants to bring together business groups and unions for meeting, as Bob Hawke calls Shorten a ‘consensus leader’. All the day’s events, live
Today the high court has released its full reasons for its decision in the case brought by former Liberal National Queensland president Gary Spence to challenge Queensland’s developer donation ban. Orders were delivered in April upholding Queensland’s ban, closing a loophole that would have allowed developers to donate to candidates in the federal election campaign.
The first thing to note is that Spence did not come close to winning on the point of whether the ban impermissibly burdens the implied freedom of political communication.
Caroline Danaher remains unapologetic after being charged with trespassing in front of Sarah Henderson’s office
A 76-year-old woman arrested and charged for trespassing at Liberal MP Sarah Henderson’s office said she’ll be back again to protest against political inaction on climate change, and that “every one in this country should be doing the same to their local representatives”.
Every Friday for the past four months, Caroline Danaher has sat outside Henderson’s office with two deck chairs. In 40C heat or in the rain, her goal is a meeting with Henderson, whose office is in the marginal Victorian seat of Corangamite.
The ALP’s candidate for Dawson confirms ‘scary incident’ where the fuel tank of her car was broken into. All the day’s events, live
And then it ends with this:
PK: Finally, you want to remove Josh Frydenberg, who fought hard for the National Energy Guarantee and for a compromise to move forward on climate change and energy. Is that a smart move?
Patricia Karvelas: One of the critiques of you is past involvement in Link Energy’s purchase of fossil fuel assets in 2010. Do you regret that?
Oliver Yates: I think the question is you need to see it was a company who bought them before I was even on the board. This is part of the Liberal dirt sheet. It’s round to everybody...
Chris Bowen says the opposition can afford the policy because it is ‘closing loopholes’ for the wealthy
Labor will match Scott Morrison’s election pitch to first home buyers, saying it can afford to support the government’s home deposit scheme because it is “closing loopholes” for the wealthy.
After the Coalition used its campaign launch on Sunday to announce the new housing affordability measure, Labor’s shadow treasurer, Chris Bowen, criticised the government for the 11th-hour decision, but supported the proposal.
Some of central bank’s new numbers match budget while others undermine it
The Reserve Bank’s quarterly economic forecast has been used as campaign fodder by both Scott Morrison and Bill Shorten after some predictions matched those of the government but some undermined it.
On Friday the central bank said it was now forecasting year-average growth of 2.25% for 2018-19 and 2.5% for 2019-20. The figures for this financial year are down on those given by the RBA three months ago, but are “consistent” with the Coalition government’s federal budget forecasts, Scott Morrison said.
Clive Palmer also sacks United Australia party hopeful Tony Pecora who peddled conspiracy theories about 9/11
A Liberal candidate in Melbourne’s northern suburbs has finally been dumped after new posts emerged where he dismissed a woman’s rape allegations, while Clive Palmer has jettisoned a United Australia party (UAP) hopeful who peddled conspiracy theories about the September 11 terrorist attacks.
The two candidates, the Liberals’ Gurpal Singh in the safe Labor seat of Scullin and Tony Pecora of the UAP, who was standing in the Greens’ seat of Melbourne, became the latest in a long line of fallen candidates this election when both were disendorsed late on Thursday night.
Home affairs minister makes rare appearance on the campaign trail while Tanya Plibersek says Labor is ‘not contemplating a royal commission’ into media monopolies. All the day’s events live
OMG the Sky ticker has actually changed to “Latham calls out political correctness”.
This has made my day.
The Sky ticker currently says “Latham criticises ‘leftist elites’” and truly, it is not just death and taxes we can rely on any more in this crazy world, and I for one am grateful for some sort of consistency. It’s comforting.
It would only be more obvious if the ticker said something like “Latham stands against political correctness”, but I guess we have to save some things for tomorrow.
This election for the Liberals has always been Morrison or bust because the party has nothing much left to offer
We are going to have to wait and see what Scott Morrison bowls up at his official campaign launch on Sunday, but the forward sizzle before the event has been, how can I say this politely? Unusual.
Over the past 24 hours, we’ve had the Liberal party leader and the campaign spokesman both out to stress that Sunday’s set-piece will not be about the Liberal party, which is odd, given a campaign launch is traditionally an event to launch the Liberal party’s campaign for re-election.
Prime minister blames ‘cowardly activists’ after egg misses his head. The economy is again in the spotlight, as both parties wait to hear if the bank will cut interest rates. All the day’s events, live
Prime Minister attacked by a protester at the Country Women’s Associations meeting in Albury. The egg missed his head, but the vision shows that her hand did not. @9NewsBorderNE#9NewsAt6pic.twitter.com/Bvg0rITray
AAP has also reported the woman accused of attempting to egg the prime minister was protesting against the government’s asylum seeker policies:
Outside the venue, the protester told reporters she didn’t mean to knock the other woman down.
“I don’t want to give a report, no thank you. I’ve got to go to work. No comment,” she told reporters.
Labor leader says he doesn’t share former PM’s concerns that the nation’s spy chiefs are damaging our relationship with China. All the day’s events, live
Well that looks like it answers that question
Don’t expect people like Peter Dutton and Tony Abbott at the Liberal campaign launch - they are busy defending their seats says @JoshFrydenberg who is on tv with me very soon #auspol19
It’s amazing the differences an election campaign can make to people’s positions.
From ABC Adelaide, where Georgina Downer is again trying to take the seat of Mayo off Rebekha Sharkie:
Mayo Liberal candidate Georgina Downer says the minimum wage is “about right” after previously pushing for it to be abolished along with penalty rates.
In an interview with ABC Radio Adelaide this morning, Ms Downer backtrackedon comments she made while working at the Institute of Public Affairs about the role of the Fair Work Commission.