Category Archives: Australian politics

‘Independent’ group Energy for Australians that ran anti-Labor ads received more than $1m from coal lobby

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Coal Australia denies its donations to the ‘community-driven association’ amount to astroturfing, but critics accuse the group of misleading the public

An “independent, community-driven association” that ran anti-Labor adverts during the last federal election was entirely funded by a coal industry lobby group, the Guardian can reveal.

Energy for Australians accepted more than $1m from Coal Australia – a group advocating for coal whose members include major miners Yancoal, Peabody, New Hope and Whitehaven.

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Australia news live: refinery fire will not lead to tougher fuel restrictions, PM says, though petrol production down by 40% at plant

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Australia secures extra fertilizer and 100m extra litres of fuel, PM says

Albanese has also provided an update on Australia’s talks with its allies in Asia to shore up imports of fuel and other goods affected by the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

The advice that we have received today is that 80% of diesel production is continuing, 80% of aviation fuel is continuing, ongoing.

It has been slowed down just slightly because of the circumstances which are there, but 60% of petrol production [is] proceeding today as well.

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Labor’s controversial algorithm tool for aged care under investigation by ombudsman

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Exclusive: It follows numerous complaints made to Guardian Australia, politicians and advocacy organisations about the Integrated Assessment Tool

The commonwealth ombudsman is investigating the government’s algorithm-based aged care assessment tool, which has been described by assessors as “cruel” and “inhumane” in its determination of home support funding for elderly Australians.

It follows hundreds of complaints made to Guardian Australia, politicians and advocacy organisations about the Integrated Assessment Tool (IAT), made mandatory in November by the Albanese government as part of aged care reforms.

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Susan Coyle to be first woman to lead Australian army in ‘deeply historic moment’

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Appointment part of senior defence changes as navy chief Mark Hammond promoted to chief of defence force

Lt Gen Susan Coyle, an officer of more than three decades standing, will become the first woman to lead the Australian army.

Coyle has been announced as the new chief of army, with her term beginning in July.

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Penny Wong calls failed peace talks between US and Iran ‘disappointing’ and urges resumption

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Australia’s foreign affairs minister says priority ‘must be to continue the ceasefire and return to negotiations’

Australia’s foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, has urged the US and Iran to continue the ceasefire and return to negotiations quickly, after peace talks failed to secure a deal or the re-opening of the strait of Hormuz.

Historic face-to-face meetings in Pakistan – marking the highest-level of direct engagement between Washington and Tehran in decades – seemingly broke down after a marathon 21-hour first day of talks.

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New relief for households being considered as Albanese government warns of ‘long tail’ from Iran war

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Catherine King says while peace talks were ‘best chance’ at lowering fuel prices, further help may be included in budget

The Albanese government is contemplating further relief for struggling households and businesses in next month’s federal budget, as peace talks continue between the US and Iran amid a fragile ceasefire.

The infrastructure minister, Catherine King, said the success of those talks was the “best chance” at bringing down fuel prices. But she warned there would be a “long tail” from the crisis even if the strait of Hormuz – which was still being blocked by Iran and strangling global oil supplies – reopened imminently.

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Chalmers warns of ‘more polarising politics’ – as it happened

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Seven-year-old girl drowns at swimming spot on Brisbane River

A seven-year-old girl has drowned at a popular swimming spot on the Brisbane River in the south-west of the city, AAP reports.

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Susan was forced out of a disability support job after speaking out. Are NDIS whistleblower laws still too weak?

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Human rights lawyers say NDIS workers and their clients remain at risk despite newly bolstered whistleblower protections

When Susan* came across wrongdoing at her disability support provider, she faced a choice.

Say nothing, and allow her highly vulnerable clients to be put at serious risk.

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Albanese didn’t return with shiploads of diesel. That doesn’t mean his Singapore visit wasn’t a success

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Having received assurances from Singapore over refined fuels, diesel supply will surely be next on the prime minister’s agenda

Anthony Albanese isn’t coming back from Singapore with a shipload of diesel in his checked baggage. That doesn’t mean his whistle-stop visit wasn’t a success, or that it won’t be seen in future as a pivotal moment if fuel stocks continue to be choked by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

The government never expected that the quick whip to Singapore, with just one full day on the ground, would elicit a new supply of petrol or diesel. Singapore already supplies 55% of Australia’s unleaded, 22% of jet fuel and 15% of diesel.

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Cutting fuel to Australia ‘won’t happen’, says Singapore PM, as Albanese secures pledge from our largest petrol source

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Australia and Singapore will ‘make maximum efforts to meet each other’s energy security needs’ in refined fuels and LNG, according to new agreement

Australia’s largest petrol source has pledged not to cut supplies, with Singapore’s prime minister telling Anthony Albanese that fuel will keep flowing despite the international crisis.

Albanese’s whistle-stop visit with his Singaporean counterpart, Lawrence Wong, culminated in a new agreement that the two countries would keep sending one another fuel and liquefied natural gas, amid the “acute energy crisis” caused by the war in the Middle East. Australia and Singapore will also add a legally binding addendum to their free trade agreement on essential supplies like energy.

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News live: Labor dismisses Tony Abbott’s calls for Australia to join war; Queensland MP Jimmy Sullivan found dead

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Former PM asks ‘What is the point of having armed forces if they’re not to be used to support our allies in a just cause.’ Follow updates live

Head of IMF says Iran war will permanently scar global economy even if peace is reached

The head of the International Monetary Fund has warned that the Iran war will permanently scar the global economy even if a durable peace deal in the Middle East can be reached.

But now, even our most hopeful scenario involves a growth downgrade. Even in a best case, there will be no neat and clean return to the status quo.

Penny Wong’s previous statements, whether it’s concerned or gravely concerned, have had no effect.

But cancelling more than a billion dollars in Israeli arms contracts – that would not only respond to the moral situation of the appalling Israeli military attacks, it would also have the benefit of putting a very real material pressure on Israel to pull back from what is a disastrous, illegal, immoral war in Lebanon that is threatening the entire globe’s peace.

We should not be buying weapons that have been tested by Israeli defence manufacturers in conflicts like Gaza and Lebanon, and we should not be contributing any weapons parts.

Right now it also would have the important additional benefit of making it clear to Israel that this comes at a direct and real cost to them.

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UK man jailed for sexually abusing nine-year-old step granddaughter has Australian visa reinstated by tribunal

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The man successfully appealed the automatic revocation of his permanent resident visa after being sentenced to 14 months in prison

An elderly UK man who served a prison sentence for sexually abusing his step granddaughter when she was nine years old has had his Australian visa reinstated by a tribunal because of his “strong ties to Australia”.

The man was sentenced to 14 months prison in the Western Australia district court in February 2024 for molesting the girl in the presence of another child.

In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. In the UK, Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123. Other international suicide helplines can be found at befrienders.org

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Confidential report found former home affairs boss Michael Pezzullo was ‘reckless’ in engagement with Liberal powerbroker

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Previously unreleased report obtained via freedom of information battle says Pezzullo exceeded ‘boundaries of normal public service practice’

The former head of the Department of Home Affairs’ engagement with a Liberal powerbroker was “reckless”, “ill-advised” and beyond the boundaries of normal public service practice, a previously unreleased confidential report found.

The independent probe led to the sacking of Michael Pezzullo as secretary of the Department of Home Affairs in November 2023 after it concluded he had breached the government’s code of conduct at least 14 times. This included using his power for personal benefit.

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‘Letting the algorithm rip’: no legal basis for lack of human override of aged care funding tool, inquiry hears

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Department says it’s received 834 requests for a review of tool’s assessments since it launched in November

There appears to be no legal barrier for a human to override a controversial algorithm that determines financial support for elderly Australians, a Senate inquiry has heard, despite government assessors being banned from doing so.

The Integrated Assessment Tool (IAT), introduced in November as part of aged care Support at Home reforms, is used to assess eligibility and assign funding levels for aged care services.

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Labor accused of avoiding promise to rein in controversial Morrison-era university fees scheme

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Greens amendments to force new watchdog to scrutinise uni fees and the Jobs-Ready Graduates scheme rejected by federal government

The federal government is being accused of dodging promised reforms to bring down soaring university fees, after rejecting efforts to have them scrutinised by a new watchdog.

On Monday, legislation to establish the independent Australian Tertiary Education Commission (Atec) passed the Senate with a number of amendments, including to improve its resourcing and ensuring it had a focus on research.

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Debit and credit card surcharges to be removed in Australia by October

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Treasurer Jim Chalmers says changes will help with cost of living and ‘Australians hate paying’ the surcharges

Debit and credit card surcharges will be gone by October under Reserve Bank reforms, with big banks likely to foot the bill for the cost-of-living measures.

The new rules, announced on Tuesday, will enable businesses to remove added fees on Mastercard, visa and eftpos card payments.

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Farmers plead for tax breaks, diesel guarantees and help buying fertiliser as national cabinet meets on fuel crisis

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State and federal leaders due to discuss assistance for business sectors but petrol rationing not expected to find backing

Farmers say the federal government must help them with tax breaks and underwriting fertiliser purchases to survive the fuel crisis, with Monday’s national cabinet expected to discuss more assistance to businesses amid ballooning petrol prices.

Federal and state governments have remained tight-lipped about what would be on the meeting’s agenda but state premiers have urged the Albanese government to take a stronger national coordination role in the crisis.

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Labor to underwrite Australian fuel imports under new security powers to ensure supply

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Albanese announces forthcoming legislation to guarantee private sector purchases of fuel and fertiliser

The Australian government will take on the financial risk of importing essential products affected by the war in the Middle East to get additional supplies of petrol, diesel, and fertiliser into the country.

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, announced the new fuel security powers on Saturday after a month of soaring diesel and petrol prices and widespread shortages at service stations, particularly in regional Australia.

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Albanese government says fuel supply ‘same, if not higher’ in coming weeks as Coalition calls for halving of excise

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Latest figures from ACCC show diesel and unleaded petrol prices across the five largest cities up 10% and 8% respectively

The prime minister and energy minister moved to reassure the public about normal or even higher levels of fuel supply in the coming weeks, as the Coalition escalated calls for a cut to the fuel excise and the government downplayed the prospect of any major restrictions on petrol sales.

It comes as the latest figures from the consumer watchdog showed diesel prices across Australia’s five largest cities have risen by an average of 10% over the last week, while unleaded petrol was up 8%.

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Hundreds of petrol stations across Australia run out of fuel as Albanese inks supply deal with Singapore

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Energy minister, Chris Bowen, says ‘we’re a long way’ from further action like fuel rationing despite shortages

Hundreds of service stations across Australia have run out of fuel, with the federal government inking a deal with Singapore, one of the country’s biggest sources of refined petroleum, to keep supplies of diesel and petrol flowing.

Concerns are now broadening to supplies of fertiliser and other chemicals, heaping more pressure on the Albanese government’s leveraging of overseas exports of coal and gas in a bid to handle of the crisis.

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