Category Archives: Australia news

One Nation senators and David Pocock granted second adviser amid backlash over crossbench staff cuts

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More senators and MPs due to meet Anthony Albanese next week after crossbenchers warned cuts could slow Labor’s legislative agenda

One Nation senators and independent David Pocock have been granted an extra adviser each, as the Albanese government softens cuts to crossbench staff.

But the decision to give Pauline Hanson, Malcolm Roberts and Pocock six staff each instead of the slated five is unlikely to stem demands from independent MPs in the lower house that they need more staff too.

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NT minister says deaths of Indigenous woman and baby should have been ‘all over the news’

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Deaths prompt renewed calls for attention on First Nations domestic violence victims and needs-based funding

The shooting of an Indigenous woman and her infant child should have been “all over the news”, the Northern Territory’s police minister has said, in a push for needs-based domestic violence prevention funding in the region.

The bodies of a 41-year-old man, a 30-year-old woman and a baby were found at an outstation 25km north of Alice Springs on Sunday, prompting renewed calls for more attention on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander victims of domestic violence.

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Government establishes new measures at airports to stop FMD; 63 Covid deaths – as it happened

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US ambassador arrives in Australia

The new US ambassador to Australia, Caroline Kennedy, has arrived this morning and told the media she feels “lucky … to serve here and to live here.”

There’s a big agenda and I can’t wait to get started. Personally this means a great deal to me. My my husband is here with me. We first came to Australia on our honeymoon 36 years ago, almost exactly, because three days ago was our anniversary. Then we are were fortunate to come back with our children when we were in Japan. So we met so many wonderful people and I can’t believe that I’m lucky enough to get a chance to serve here and to live here and get to know even more people.

The weather and staff shortages were all worse than expected.

We are doing the best we can – the show will go on rain, hail or shine.

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‘Disgraceful’: report reveals Morrison government pressured border force to promote election day boat arrival

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Labor says action by former government ‘sabotaged’ protocols for political gain and was ‘without precedent’ in Australian history

Morrison government staff pressured the Australian Border Force to draft and issue a statement about an asylum seeker boat intercepted on election day before the operation had finished, a damning departmental report has found.

Labor’s home affairs minister, Clare O’Neil, released the report on Friday and accused the former Coalition government of having “sabotaged the protocols that protect Operation Sovereign Borders for political gain” in an incident “without precedent”.

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Woman jailed for attempting to suffocate father in Queensland aged care home

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Rebecca Burden was visiting her brain-injured dad for the first time in six months when she says he asked her to kill him

A Brisbane woman has been jailed for at least 10 months after admitting a lapse of judgment when she tried to suffocate her brain-injured father.

Rebecca Louise Burden was visiting 68-year-old Steven Burden for the first time she was permitted after Covid-19 restrictions lifted at his aged care home when she says he asked her to kill him.

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Federal government under pressure to increase EV uptake after ACT announces petrol car ban

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Electric vehicle advocates and auto industry say Australia needs nationally mandated fuel efficiency standards

The federal government is under pressure to act to increase the uptake of electric vehicles after the Australian Capital Territory became the first state or territory to announce an end to the sale of petrol cars.

The Zero Emission Vehicle strategy was announced by the ACT chief minister, Andrew Barr, on Tuesday and commits the territory to phasing out internal combustion engines by 2035. This means no new petrol engine vehicles could be sold in the territory past that date.

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Jobseeker asked to choose between work and job agency appointments under Workforce Australia system

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Multiple complaints of baffling and unrealistic requirements have been reported as being set by employment agencies under the new program

To go to work, or to attend an appointment to “find” work – that’s the question one worker is asking himself under the federal government’s new Workforce Australia employment services system.

The 62-year-old is the latest jobseeker in the new $1.3bn-a-year Workforce Australia program to complain about the baffling mutual obligations he must fulfil.

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Rushed consultation for NSW coercive control laws could result in flawed legislation, experts say

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Domestic violence advocates warn drafted laws could be discriminatory if pushed through by government

Domestic violence and legal experts say the New South Wales government’s attempt to push through new coercive control laws before the end of the year could result in flawed legislation that unwittingly discriminates against migrant and First Nations communities.

The state’s attorney general, Mark Speakman, released a draft of the new laws on Wednesday with consultation open for six weeks.

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Australian birthrate falls to lowest in over a decade

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Data shows average age of mothers has increased, though stillborn and neonatal death rates remain unchanged

Australia has seen its lowest birthrate in more than a decade but stillborn rates have remained stubborn, based on the latest mothers and babies data.

In 2020, there were 295,796 babies born to 291,712 mothers. This represents a fall from 66 women per 1,000 giving birth in 2007 to 56 per 1,000 in 2020, according to the Australia’s mothers and babies report from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare [AIHW], published on Friday.

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Medicare reforms are essential for creating fairer national abortion system, say advocates

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Health experts are calling for Medicare item numbers for abortions and pregnancy counselling ahead of women’s safety ministers’ meeting

Medicare item numbers for abortions and pregnancy counselling along with specific funding for reproductive health are needed to create a fairer national abortion system, according to MSI Australia, formerly known as Marie Stopes.

State and federal women’s safety ministers are meeting on Friday for the first time since the Albanese government was elected. A 10-year plan to end violence against women and children, gender equity issues and the need for a specific plan for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women are expected to be discussed.

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Plea for Queensland to resume publishing vaccination status of Covid fatalities

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Experts say data could help convince public to get booster shots as state’s Covid hospitalisations reach record levels

A leading infectious disease expert has questioned why Queensland has stopped releasing the vaccination status of Covid fatalities, as the state struggles to convince residents to get booster shots, despite record hospitalisations from the virus.

Queensland has the lowest rate of Covid booster shots in the country, with less than half the state having received a third dose.

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Labor resists calls to close border to Indonesia after foot-and-mouth viral fragments detected in SA

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Agriculture minister Murray Watt says federal government confident new biosecurity measures enough to protect livestock industry

The federal government is resisting calls to close Australia’s border to Indonesia over the foot-and-mouth disease threat, after more fragments of the potentially devastating livestock virus were detected in South Australia.

The agriculture minister, Murray Watt, said he was confident that new federal biosecurity measures would be sufficient to keep out foot-and-mouth disease, which could threaten Australia’s entire meat industry, as farmers call on the government to not overreact.

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Australia news live: childcare workers announce strike; election violence in PNG; Frydenberg joins Goldman Sachs

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Childcare workers have voted to strike in September, after years of poor pay and conditions

Linda Burney says she’s ‘not going to be rushed’ on Indigenous voice referendum

Linda Burney, the minister for Indigenous Australians, is on ABC radio speaking about the enshrinement of the Indigenous voice in the constitution.

This is not just symbolic, it is going to have real impacts on the lives of First Nations people.

I am not going to be rushed into timelines. We are going to do this properly.

I would find it incredulous for people not to support what is a very generous and gracious ask.

Remember that this is an advisory body only. It is not usurping the sovereignty of the parliament. Is is not a third chamber.

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Victoria demands AEMO maintain minimum gas storage levels as supplies dwindle

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Gas supplies at the Iona storage facility have fallen due to high demand amid the state’s price cap

The national market operator needs to implement “immediate measures” that address the state’s gas shortage crisis, Victoria’s energy minister says.

Lily D’Ambrosio said the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) must establish a viable plan to control gas supply levels at national storage facilities after it was revealed that the Iona facility near Port Campbell recently dropped to record lows.

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Albanese labels Morrison’s comments about not trusting government ‘astonishing’

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PM accuses his predecessor of making ‘nonsense throwaway conspiracy’ claims about the UN at a church in Perth

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has accused his predecessor Scott Morrison of making “nonsense throwaway conspiracy” claims about the United Nations that were unworthy of a national leader.

Albanese branded Morrison’s comments during a church sermon on the weekend as “astonishing”, after the defeated Coalition leader said: “We don’t trust in governments. We don’t trust in the United Nations, thank goodness.”

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Former advisor tells inquiry John Barilaro expedited change to New York trade job

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Joseph Brayford tells inquiry former NSW deputy premier wanted to turn trade roles into ministerial appointments ‘ASAP’

Former New South Wales deputy premier John Barilaro fast-tracked a cabinet submission to turn the senior trade jobs now at the centre of a political scandal into ministerial appointments, instructing a staff member to get it done “ASAP”, an inquiry has heard.

A transcript of evidence given by former advisor Joseph Brayford to the parliamentary inquiry probing Barilaro’s appointment to a $500,000-a-year New York trade posting also suggests Barilaro planned to discuss the change with his ministerial colleagues in the NSW government.

On Thursday the committee running the probe released a transcript of evidence given by Brayford in a secret hearing held earlier this week.

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Health department defends Australian Covid vaccine ads criticised as ‘very hard to find’

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Health expert says health videos contain key messages but it’s difficult to find and share them

The Department of Health has defended its $11m advertising campaign for Covid vaccine boosters in response to concerns the communication began too late and is not prominent enough.

The health minister, Mark Butler, last month launched a six-week winter advertising campaign to encourage Australians to get vaccinated for Covid and influenza, and to raise awareness of antiviral medication for those who contract Covid.

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Jock Campbell handed Wallabies call-up as Rory Arnold returns for Argentina Tests

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  • Full-back on 36-man list for next month’s two-match tour
  • Lock Arnold one of three overseas-based players in squad

Full-back Jock Campbell has earned his first call-up while lock Rory Arnold returned to the Wallabies fold for their two-Test Rugby Championship tour of Argentina. Coach Dave Rennie will reveal a 36-player squad on Thursday ahead of their first Test against the Michael Cheika-coached Pumas in Mendoza on 7 August (AEDT), with the second in nearby San Juan a week later.

The Australians are looking to rebound after losing the three-Test series against England, going down 21-17 in the decider last Saturday in Sydney.

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Australia news live updates: Greens aim to ‘improve and pass’ Labor climate bill; Andrews rules out mask mandates as nation records 90 Covid deaths;

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No change in Operation Sovereign Borders policy

Clare O’Neil is asked about the desperate situation in Sri Lanka, where many people are trying to find a way out.

Operation Sovereign Borders is Australian government policy.

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Mortgage holders should brace for short-term pain as RBA signals steady interest rate rises to tackle inflation

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Philip Lowe says reserve bank looking for its ‘neutral rate’ which could see cash rate almost double in coming months

Mortgage holders should brace themselves for interest rate rises of at least another 1.15 percentage points before the end of the year as the Reserve Bank of Australia attempts to hose down inflation before it takes hold of the economy.

The RBA governor, Philip Lowe, said he believed inflation was on track to hit 7% by the end of 2022, with an unemployment rate of 3.5% but said the bank was confident inflation would return to the “target range” of between 2% and 3% in a “short while”.

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