Category Archives: Australia news

Qantas calls cash compensation for delayed flights a ‘backwards step’ – as it happened

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Jimmy Barnes recovering after open heart surgery

Jimmy Barnes has made it through his open heart surgery and is recovering in the ICU, supported by his wife Jane.

I’m happy to let you know that our Jimmy has made it through his surgery and is now recovering in the ICU. We’re so grateful for the incredible medical team looking after him. Thank you all.

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Ex-Cyclone Jasper: warning of ‘life-threatening’ flooding as storm batters far north Queensland

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More than 36,000 homes without power but BoM downgrades storm to tropical low despite warning of more rain and high winds

Far north Queenslanders faced damaging winds and life-threatening flooding after Tropical Cyclone Jasper made landfall and moved inland.

Minor flood warnings were issued for the Daintree, Tully, and Mulgrave rivers on Wednesday but the Bureau of Meteorology downgraded the storm to a tropical low.

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‘They are so convincing’: Vera Gazzard lost her life savings to HyperVerse

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Australians who were convinced to put money into the Hyper group investment schemes say no one has been held to account for their losses

Geelong woman Vera Gazzard had plans for her $50,000 in savings. Elective surgery was on the list, as was help for her daughter who was expecting a second child.

But when an acquaintance recommended an investment opportunity called HyperVerse offering daily returns of 0.5% she jumped at the opportunity.

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‘The age of fossil fuels will end’: Australia’s Chris Bowen hails Cop28 agreement

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Climate change minister says deal is not perfect but ‘transition away’ from oil and gas sends clear message to investors

Climate change minister Chris Bowen says the Cop28 climate summit sent a clear message that “our future is in clean energy and the age of fossil fuels will end”, but acknowledged it did not go as far as most countries wanted.

Nearly 200 countries agreed to a deal that for the first time called on all nations to transition away from fossil fuels to avert the worst effects of the climate crisis.

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Suppliers of unusable PPE should pay back taxpayer money, Australian peak doctors’ group says

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Australian health department spokesperson says it is ‘exploring options for viable cost-recovery’

Australia’s peak doctors’ group says the government should recover taxpayer funds from PPE suppliers who provided defective equipment at the height of the pandemic.

Guardian Australia revealed last month that the former government handed a PPE contract worth more than $100m to a small, relatively unknown online retailer, whose previous experience involved selling robot vacuum cleaners, massage guns, bedding, and air fryers.

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More than 520 NSW taxi drivers disciplined in six months for overcharging or refusing to use their meter

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Exclusive: Freedom of information documents reveal which cab companies have received most complaints, with one getting more than 300 in six months

More than 520 taxi drivers in New South Wales have been disciplined for refusing to use their meters or overcharging, with authorities progressing more than 300 cases against just one operator in six months.

As the NSW taxi watchdog warns of an expected uptick in rogue behaviour from new taxi drivers entering the workforce, Guardian Australia can reveal the new taxi fare hotline has been flooded with hundreds of complaints in its first six months.

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Tropical Cyclone Jasper live update tracker: category 2 storm hits North Qld, more than 14,000 homes lose power, BoM radar track map – latest

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BoM tracker map shows forecast path of category 2 cyclone will hit north of Cairns and Port Douglas on the Queensland coast at about 1pm with heavy rain, 140km/h winds and storm surge predicted. Follow the latest Australia news and weather updates today

Ceasefire ‘can’t be one-sided’

Emergency management minister Murray Watt is also speaking to ABC RN this morning, and was asked about the PM’s joint letter with his New Zealand and Canadian counterparts urging a ceasefire.

[It] shows that we want to work with like-minded countries towards what would be a just and enduring peace. I think the whole world has been pleased to see the release of hostages and the pause in hostilities that we’ve seen over the last couple of weeks, but what we need to do is move towards a sustainable ceasefire …

I think everyone who watches this conflict unfolds on their television screens, is really disturbed about the loss of life that we’re seeing go on at the moment.

I think that’s the value that a country like Australia can play here by really taking that even-handed approach that does call out the abhorrent behaviour by Hamas, but also as a friend of Israel, calls on them to respect international humanitarian law.

We are alarmed at the diminishing safe space for civilians in Gaza. The price of defeating Hamas cannot be the continuous suffering of all Palestinian civilians.

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Bruce Lehrmann defamation trial live: David Sharaz told Lisa Wilkinson in email ‘we just don’t know who might be keeping a close eye’ on Brittany Higgins

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Lehrmann has sued Network Ten and Lisa Wilkinson for defamation in the federal court of Australia. Follow the latest news and updates from the trial today

The court has adjourned for lunch and will resume at 2pm when Llewellyn will return to the witness box.

Lisa Wilkinson has not begun her evidence yet – she was expected today but may not start until tomorrow.

As I said there were very good reasons for not doing that at that time.

I had a very, very strong duty of care to someone who is clearly a suffering trauma victim.

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‘Dangerous product’: Australian ban on engineered stone benchtops to begin next year

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Most states and territories to ban product on 1 July, with Commonwealth flagging an import prohibition

Australia will ban engineered stone from 1 July 2024, following a meeting of state and federal workplace ministers.

According to Queensland and Victorian governments, ministers on Wednesday agreed to ban the material, which is commonly used in kitchen and bathroom benchtops.

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Cyclone Jasper intensifies to category 2 as thousands lose power in far north Queensland

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BoM issues warnings as radar forecasts intense rain, destructive winds and possible flash flooding in parts of Queensland

Tropical Cyclone Jasper has intensified into a category 2 system and is producing damaging wind gusts that will increase as it continues to approach the north Queensland coast.

The cyclone, which was situated 125km off the coast of Cairns on Wednesday afternoon, has left thousands of homes without power and caused heavy rain and strong winds in the state’s far north.

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Bruce Lehrmann’s lawyers to challenge witnesses in bid to prevent Toowoomba rape case proceeding to trial

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Lehrmann, 28, is accused of raping a woman twice in October 2021 but denies the allegations

Former Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann’s lawyers intend to cross-examine witnesses in an attempt to prevent allegations he raped a woman in Toowoomba from proceeding to trial.

Lehrmann, 28, is accused of twice raping the woman in October 2021, and the charges have been subject to a committal process since January to determine if there are sufficient grounds for a trial.

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New Queensland Labor leadership hits pause on $2.7bn Gabba stadium rebuild

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Independent body to review plans for Olympic and Paralympic games as new premier and deputy distance themselves from Palaszczuk-era policies

Queensland’s new leadership team have signalled a “pause” on the controversial $2.7bn Gabba rebuild while they reconsider their approach to the 2032 Olympics.

In a backflip announced on Tuesday, premier-to-be Steven Miles said he would establish an independent body to oversee infrastructure for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic games amid mounting criticism of the Palaszczuk government’s in-house alternative.

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Stronger than expected budget position to fuel calls for cost of living relief, economists say

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Majority of additional revenue disclosed in mid-year budget update likely to be banked to avoid further stoking inflation

The Albanese government’s mid-year budget update will reveal a fiscal “sweet spot” fuelled by strong commodity prices, population growth and a resilient labour market, economists say.

But experts believe the government is likely to play down the positive budget position in order to curb calls for more cost of living relief that could stoke inflation and keep interest rates higher for longer.

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Can’t read a map or use a first aid kit: Australians lack hiking skills, survey shows

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The nation’s outdoorsy reputation may not be fully deserved, according to the AllTrails app study, with many too scared to go on walks

Australians’ outdoorsy reputation may not be earned when it comes to survival skills, according to a new survey.

Just one in three Australians know how to deal with getting lost, while two in three Australians entirely reconsider going on trail walks due to safety concerns, according to research commissioned by popular hiking app AllTrails.

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‘Stop the rapid loss of nature’: Labor warned to clamp down on biodiversity offsets in environment law overhaul

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Biodiversity Council says offsets should be a last resort and only used for ‘nature that we can replace’

The federal government should significantly constrain the use of biodiversity offsets under its environmental law reform agenda and stop them being used for critically endangered wildlife, according to a report by a partnership of 11 universities.

The Biodiversity Council also called on the Albanese government to define its so-called “nature positive plan” in law and set targets for what it will mean in practice, warning that without a clear mandate in legislation the term “will simply become another political slogan”.

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With Cyclone Jasper looming over Queensland Steven Miles opts for an unfamiliar new tone

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Having built a public reputation as a wisecracking political warrior, the premier designate is attempting to show he’s up to the task

At his first press conference as Queensland’s premier-in-waiting, Steven Miles came across as a man fighting his own instincts.

Miles, who built a public reputation as a wisecracking political warrior, spoke about the approaching Tropical Cyclone Jasper and his plans for government with little emotion or animation.

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Albanese’s high-speed rail body yet to appoint CEO or begin planning any train projects

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Opposition accuses Labor of achieving ‘absolutely nothing’ towards its fast rail ambition

Six months after its establishment, the Albanese government’s high-speed rail body is yet to appoint a chief executive or begin planning any train projects, as the opposition accuses it of achieving “absolutely nothing” towards its fast rail ambition.

Labor took its renewed push for high-speed rail along Australia’s east coast to the 2022 election, along with a commitment of $500m for planning and early works for the first stage of the corridor from Sydney to Newcastle.

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Up to 220 Indonesians could be compensated after children wrongly jailed in Australia as people smugglers

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The children were wrongly deemed to be adults by federal police and Australian courts, who were relying on a wildly inaccurate technique

Up to 220 Indonesians could receive compensation after they were wrongfully prosecuted and detained as adult people smugglers in Australia despite being children at the time.

Earlier this year, the federal government agreed to settle a significant class action brought by a group of Indonesian children who were falsely prosecuted as adult people smugglers between 2010 and 2012.

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Tropical Cyclone Jasper to become more severe, prompting Queensland weather warnings for 500mm rain, heavy winds

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BoM expects storm to strengthen into category 2 cyclone on Tuesday before arriving near Cairns in far north Qld on Wednesday afternoon

Residents in north Queensland have been told to prepare for up to five days without power, amid warnings that the approaching tropical cyclone Jasper could dump 500mm of rain in 24 hours.

Jasper is expected to intensify on Tuesday, ahead of making landfall north of Cairns on Wednesday afternoon.

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Australia news live: ABC cancels The Drum; two feared dead in NSW plane crash

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Follow the day’s news live

Education review due

Education minister Jason Clare spoke to ABC News Breakfast just earlier about the much-anticipated review into Australia’s education system, released today.

You talk about entrenched disadvantage in our schools, this report tells us we’ve got one of the most segregated school systems in the OECD, not by the colour of your skin but the size of your parents’ pay packet. Children are more likely to fall behind at school if they’re from a poor family and from the bush, but if they’re at a school where a lot of people are experiencing disadvantage it’s even harder to catch up. There’s a number of things we need to do to turn that around.

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