Liberal candidate in Kiama refuses to rule out preference deal with Gareth Ward

Melanie Gibbons faces awkward exchange with journalists a day after stunning Liberal insiders with preselection

The newly preselected Liberal candidate in Kiama, Melanie Gibbons, has refused to rule out striking a preference deal with the sitting MP Gareth Ward in the forthcoming New South Wales election, saying it is “up to the party”.

Gibbons, who is the outgoing MP in the southern Sydney seat of Holsworthy, endured an awkward exchange with journalists on Thursday after stunning Liberal insiders by lodging an 11th-hour nomination to run in Kiama.

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NSW to grant coalmines licences for water from Sydney and Illawarra drinking catchments

Perrottet government quietly gazetted rules day before caretaker period commenced for election campaign

The Perrottet government has introduced new rules that will grant coalmines licences for water from the drinking catchment for Sydney and the Illawarra region.

The government quietly gazetted the rules a day before the caretaker period commenced for the New South Wales election campaign.

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Australian Catholic order argues paedophile’s death shields it from abuse claims

Marist Brothers are accused of concealing Francis Cable’s crimes for decades but say they cannot receive a fair trial because they are unable obtain a witness statement from him

A Catholic order will argue on Friday it should be shielded from abuse claims relating to one of the worst paedophiles in the New South Wales Catholic school system because he is dead, despite allegedly concealing his crimes from authorities for decades.

The Marist Brothers allegedly knew of child abuse complaints about Brother Francis “Romuald” Cable from at least 1967, but did nothing to either eject him from the order or inform police, court documents obtained by the Guardian show.

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‘It is ginormous’: bushfire in NSW’s central west puts rural communities on edge

Rural Fire Service says blaze north of Hill End could burn for weeks as locals struggle to save properties

An out-of-control bushfire in New South Wales’s central west has blazed through properties and scorched bushland, with the NSW Rural Fire Service warning it could be “burning for weeks”.

Dozens of fires have been burning across NSW since Sunday as gusty winds and vegetation growth from last year’s high rainfall make it easier for flames to catch, according to Dean Narramore, a senior meteorologist at the Bureau of Meteorology.

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Queensland’s north hit by heavy rain and floods as tropical storm heads south

Widespread rainfall expected in state’s south-east this weekend but nowhere near the 500mm recorded in the north-west

The tropical storm that has caused widespread flooding across far north Queensland is heading south, but is expected to ease before it hits Brisbane, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.

Parts of Queensland’s north-west were hit with more than 500mm of rain in the 48 hours to Thursday morning, the BoM information specialist Danny Teece-Johnson said.

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‘Not good enough’: Perrottet vows to increase number of women preselected for Liberals in lower house

Just a third of candidates are women and NSW premier says he is open to all ideas, including quotas

Women account for just a third of the lower house candidates preselected by the Liberal party ahead of the 25 March state election – putting them behind Labor’s 45%, the Greens’ even split and their own target of 40%.

The premier, Dominic Perrottet, conceded his party was falling short and it was not good enough, saying he wanted half of all candidates pursued at the next election to be women, and insisting he was open to all ideas, including quotas.

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Australia politics live: NAB passes on full rate hike; pre-departure Covid testing to end for China, Hong Kong, Macau travellers

Covid measures had been in place since 5 January, after China halted a lot of its own protocols. Follow the day’s news live

Gallagher aware of funding issue on national partnership agreements

A lot of funding in Australia is tied up in national partnership agreements. They are usually for short periods – the commonwealth works with the states to come to an agreement on funding, but it often means that agreements almost come to an end (or indeed, do end) and need emergency funding to continue while the next national partnership is worked out.

That agreement, which this money flows through is part of the national housing and homelessness agreement. And we are in active negotiations with the states. I’m aware of the funding issue. This is, you know, to give appropriate remuneration funding for or funding for payment for staff and Julie Collins is working hard on it. I can’t give you an answer today because it is right literally on our table.

We certainly were aware of the inflation problem in October. So you saw that we were we had upside, revenue coming in to the budget that we banked that – I think it was 99% in the first two years and 94% of the upside revenue over the forward estimates.

Now that was an important message, not just from the fact that we’re going to be fiscally responsible, but that where we can, you know, show restraint in spending.

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Sydney train commuters to get free transport day after rail network outage causes chaos

Cybersecurity attack ruled out as rail shutdown puts pressure on NSW government before state election

The New South Wales premier, Dominic Perrottet, has apologised for a peak-hour meltdown of the Sydney rail network less than three weeks out from the state election.

The shutdown on Wednesday afternoon left tens of thousands of passengers stranded, with Uber fares spiking to hundreds of dollars in surge-price fees.

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Malka Leifer feigned ‘love and attention’ to groom and abuse Melbourne sisters, court told

Prosecutors close their sexual abuse case against former ultra-Orthodox Jewish principal, urging jurors to convict her of 27 charges

Using pretend love and concern, the former ultra-Orthodox Jewish principal Malka Leifer groomed and sexually abused three young students for her own gratification, jurors have been told.

Leifer, 56, is facing 27 charges over the alleged abuse of Melbourne sisters Nicole Meyer, Dassi Erlich and Elly Sapper when she was head of religion and principal of the Adass Israel School in the city’s eastern suburbs between 2003 and 2007.

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Aukus submarine deal: Australia expected to choose UK design, sources say

Rishi Sunak said to have been ‘buzzing’ about result of 18-month negotiations, part of Aukus defence pact with US

An enthusiastic Rishi Sunak has told ministers to expect a positive outcome next week when he travels to San Diego to unveil a deal to supply nuclear-powered submarines to Australia as part of the Aukus pact with the US.

Multiple sources said they believed the UK had succeeded in its bid to sell British-designed nuclear submarines to Australia, a deal that will safeguard the long-term future of the shipyard at Barrow-in-Furness.

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Labor meets Greens demand for ban on reconstruction fund investment in coal, gas and native logging

Deal secures passage of NRF bill through lower house and provides likely pathway to pass it in Senate

The Albanese government has agreed to the Greens’ demands to ban the national reconstruction fund from direct investment in coal, gas and native logging projects.

The deal secured the passage of the NRF bill through the lower house on Thursday and gives Labor a likely pathway to pass it in the Senate with the support of the Greens and crossbench in late March.

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Smoke from Australian bushfires depleted ozone layer by up to 5% in 2020, study finds

Lead researcher says destruction was similar to process of Antarctic ozone hole forming each spring ‘but at much warmer temperatures’

Particles in bushfire smoke can activate molecules that destroy the ozone layer, according to new research that suggests future ozone recovery may be delayed by increasingly intense and frequent fires.

A study published in the journal Nature has found that smoke from the 2019-20 Australian bushfires temporarily depleted the ozone layer by 3% to 5% in 2020.

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Australia will put nuclear safety ‘above all else’ as it builds submarines, vice admiral says

In interview with Guardian Australia, Jonathan Mead moves to allay concerns as Aukus partners prepare to announce detailed plans

Australia will put nuclear safety “above all else” as it begins the “generational challenge” of building and operating nuclear-powered submarines under the Aukus pact, the government’s top adviser has said.

Vice Admiral Jonathan Mead has moved to allay concerns – both at home and across the region – about nuclear safety as Australia, the US and the UK prepare to announce their detailed plans within days.

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Former robodebt investigator becomes emotional after learning documents were withheld by department

‘I find it upsetting,’ former senior assistant ombudsman Louise Macleod says to inquiry

A former investigator from the commonwealth ombudsman’s office broke down as she told a royal commission she feels like a “failure” because she could not convince her superiors to publish her legal criticisms of the robodebt scheme.

The commission is seeking to understand the role of the commonwealth ombudsman, whose report identified a number of process flaws in the scheme but stopped short of declaring the “income averaging” debt calculation process unlawful. The report was used by the Coalition to defend the scheme over several years.

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Malka Leifer took advantage of students’ vulnerability to sexually exploit them, prosecutor alleges

Justin Lewis began his closing address on Wednesday afternoon after four weeks of evidence about Leifer’s alleged abuse of three Melbourne sisters

Malka Leifer, the former principal of an ultra-Orthodox Jewish school, allegedly used her position of power to sexually exploit her teenage students, taking advantage of their vulnerability, a jury has been told.

Leifer, 56, is facing 27 charges over the alleged abuse of Melbourne sisters Nicole Meyer, Dassi Erlich and Elly Sapper when she was head of religion and principal of the Adass Israel School in the city’s eastern suburbs between 2003 and 2007.

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Brisbane watch house officer tells inquest she did not check if Aunty Sherry Tilberoo was breathing

Debra Haigh tells hearing she now understands she should have stood in front of cell for longer and used a torch to look for movement

A Brisbane watch house officer who was suspended after the death of First Nations woman Shiralee Tilberoo has admitted during an inquest that she did not check whether she was breathing or shine a torch into the darkened cell on nine occasions.

The Birri Gubba woman – also known as Aunty Sherry – died of a brain aneurysm in Brisbane City watch house in the early hours of the morning on 10 September 2020.

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Sydney trains delayed due to ‘communication issue’ – as it happened

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Facing up to financial distress

It is not just academic though – there have been increased reports of people feeling distressed because of financial pressures.

When people are under extreme financial pressure, that has implications for their wellbeing more broadly. I mean, I think that is understood. And I’m sure that the governor in accepting that meeting understands that.

What we want to do as government is make life a little bit easier for people where we can, whether it’s with energy bills, whether it’s with cheaper early childhood education, cheaper medicines, trying to get wages moving again, financial security is a big part of what we’re focused on, particularly when these cost-of-living pressures are so acute.

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Bruce Lehrmann to argue defamation proceedings delayed by legal advice, mental health and court case

Lehrmann is suing Network Ten and News Corp, and reporters Lisa Wilkinson and Samantha Maiden, for defamation outside the usual 12-month time limit

Bruce Lehrmann will argue he was delayed in launching defamation proceedings against Network Ten and News Corp because of his mental health, the high-profile criminal case against him and due to prior legal advice, a court has heard.

Lehrmann is suing the two media outlets and reporters Lisa Wilkinson and Samantha Maiden in the federal court, alleging he was defamed in stories reporting Brittany Higgins’ allegations of rape in February 2021.

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NSW Coalition accused of racism and paternalism after pledge to stop controversial development

Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council proposed to build 450 homes at Sydney’s Lizard Rock

The New South Wales Coalition has been accused of racist, paternalistic and politically expedient decision-making after it vowed to spike a proposal to build 450 homes in bushland on Sydney’s northern beaches by its Indigenous proponents.

The Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council’s chief executive, Nathan Moran, said the decision by the government to block its plan for the 71 hectare Lizard Rock site was an attempt to save three seats at risk from teal independents at the 25 March election.

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Why more Australian universities are outsourcing courses to for-profit providers

As courses go online, institutions are increasingly using external companies to deliver them, sparking concerns about quality and value for money

Australian universities have dramatically increased their use of third-party, for-profit companies to deliver courses, a Guardian investigation has found.

The companies, known as online program managers, or OPMs, offer a variety of services – from digital platforms for delivering courses through to total course management and support.

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