Category Archives: Australia news

Detained while we decide: Australian government fights for power to detain protection visa applicants

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Two non-citizens want landmark NZYQ decision extended to people who remain in detention while their visa applications are processed

Australia’s constitution allows the government to detain non-citizens while their protection visa applications are processed, even if they will be released after a decision either way.

That is what the commonwealth will argue in two challenges before the high court on Thursday, urging it to reject the cases that seek to extend the landmark NZYQ decision on indefinite detention to a new cohort of people in immigration detention.

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Hobart, Darwin and Canberra ranked among top 10 global cities with lowest air pollution

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Sydney the worst-ranked Australian city at 150th, receiving a poorer score than London

Three Australian cities are among the top 10 global cities with the lowest levels of air pollution, according to analysis of nearly 400 cities worldwide.

Hobart (third), Darwin (fourth) and Canberra (10th) topped the list, based on air pollution data analysed by Auto Trader, an online vehicle trading site.

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Australia’s gambling giants spent $240,000 on Facebook ads for US election bets

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Guessing the colour of Trump’s tie among bets promoted by TAB, Ladbrokes, Sportsbet and Neds in the week leading up to the election

Australia’s big online gambling operators poured at least $240,000 into Facebook ads promoting novelty bets on the US election last week, including whether Donald Trump’s speech would mention fraud or what colour his tie would be, just weeks before the government is expected to announce its long-awaited plans to restrict wagering ads.

Between 31 October and 6 November – the day of the US election in Australia – TAB, Ladbrokes, Sportsbet and Neds were the top four Facebook advertisers in the country on Meta’s ad library tool, spending a combined $229,789 on politics-related ads.

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News live: Birmingham says Australia could learn lessons from ‘disrupter’ Trump in making government more efficient

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The treasurer, Jim Chalmers will today announce funding of $900m for states and territories through a new national productivity fund to boost competition and productivity across the economy.

Launching the plan in a speech to the Australian Business Economists in Sydney, Chalmers is hoping the plan will will incentivise states to achieve productivity gains through pro-competitive policies such as streamlining commercial planning and zoning, and removing barriers to the uptake of modern construction methods.

In March this year, on behalf of the Council on Federal Financial Relations, I asked the Productivity Commission to model the potential impacts of a revitalised NCP.

Its final report landed this month and the benefits on offer are substantial, if not staggering. The PC found a revitalised NCP could boost GDP by up to $45bn a year and reduce prices by 1.45 percentage points. That GDP boost represents about $5,000 per household, per year.

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Fears for local news diversity if rightwing startup buys Southern Cross regional TV network

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Fringe news streaming channel ADH TV, which launched with Alan Jones at the helm, confirms offer for 93 regional free-to-air stations

Diversity of local news may be at risk if a rightwing startup, ADH TV, is given the green light to purchase Southern Cross Austereo’s regional television network, an expert has warned.

Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) has confirmed it has received an offer from the fringe streaming news channel to buy its 93 regional free-to-air TV stations. The digital broadcaster, which is chaired by the former ABC chair Maurice Newman, was launched in December 2021 with the former 2GB broadcaster Alan Jones at the helm.

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Police ‘should have done more’ to save Melbourne woman stabbed to death by ex-partner in front of children

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Family violence unit officers missed opportunities to protect Noeline Dalzell before James Fairhall murdered her, Victoria’s coroner says

Police missed an opportunity to protect a woman who was stabbed to death by her ex-partner in front of their three children, Victoria’s state coroner has found.

Noeline Dalzell was murdered by James Fairhall at her home in Melbourne’s south-east in February 2020, three months after he was released from custody for breaching a family violence intervention order.

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Police to charge man who allegedly carjacked 70-year-old and held father and toddler in Melbourne siege

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The 26-year-old Snake Valley man remains in hospital with police expecting to charge him on Wednesday afternoon

A man will be charged after allegedly carjacking a 70-year-old woman before breaking into a Melbourne home and holding a father and his toddler inside in an hours-long siege.

A 26-year-old Snake Valley man, known to police, allegedly carjacked the woman in the western Victorian town about 2.30pm on Tuesday.

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Senior Trump adviser suggests Rudd’s time as US ambassador could be up with hourglass gif

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Anthony Albanese, Peter Dutton and Tony Abbott defend suitability of former PM after Dan Scavino social media post, despite Rudd’s past criticism of president-elect

A senior adviser to US president-elect Donald Trump has fuelled speculation about the future of Australia’s ambassador to Washington, former prime minister Kevin Rudd, by reposting Rudd’s congratulatory statement to Trump on social media with a gif of an hourglass.

The provocative time-is-running-out post by former Trump deputy chief of staff for communications Dan Scavino reignited suggestions that the incoming president may prefer another Australian representative in Washington when he takes office in January.

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Flights to Bali cancelled after volcano spews dangerous ash cloud 9km into air

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Jetstar, Qantas and Virgin flights in and out of Australia were cancelled after Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki erupted

Three Australian airlines have cancelled flights to and from Bali after a volcanic eruption near the Indonesian holiday spot created a dangerous ash cloud.

The groundings affected Jetstar, Qantas and Virgin Australia flights on Tuesday and Wednesday, leaving passengers stranded.

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German backpacker was probably killed by her boyfriend, NSW inquest hears

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Investigator of 2005 cold case says it was ‘probable’ Tobias Moran killed Simone Strobel, despite charges being dropped

The lead investigator in the cold case of backpacker Simone Strobel has told an inquest he still believes she was probably killed by her boyfriend.

Strobel’s naked body was found hidden under palm fronds at a sports ground in Lismore in the New South Wales northern rivers region in February 2005, six days after she was reported missing.

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Man charged with murder after woman’s body found in Penrith hotel – as it happened

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This blog is now closed

Meteorologists are forecasting that thunderstorms will develop over large swathes of the country every day this week, and likely into next.

Ben Domensino from Weatherzone has outlined the forecast as follows:

Early in the week, showers and thunderstorms will target central, eastern, southern and southeastern Australia on Monday and Tuesday. Severe thunderstorms are likely in parts of NSW and [Queensland] on both days and are also possible in other states.

Storms will become more focussed on a broad arc stretching across Australia’s eastern and northern states and down into the WA interior through the middle of the week. Sydney, Brisbane and Canberra will all be at risk of severe thunderstorm activity on Wednesday.

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Magnitude-4.1 earthquake near Muswellbrook likely part of ‘swarm’ that could see ‘hundreds to thousands’ of shocks

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Seismologist says it is ‘too early’ to link fourth event of sequence to mining activity in the Hunter region

A 4.1-magnitude earthquake that rocked the New South Wales town of Muswellbrook is likely part of an “earthquake swarm” that could see “hundreds to thousands” of small to moderate shocks over the coming months, according to a government seismologist.

The earthquake, which hit around midday on Tuesday and was shallow at 3km deep, is the fourth event over magnitude four in three months in the Hunter region. On 23 August, a 4.7-magnitude earthquake hit Muswellbrook, damaging homes and businesses.

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Man who ‘discarded’ wife after tricking her into leaving Australia jailed for exit trafficking

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Victorian sentenced to more than four years in prison after leaving wife ‘grief-stricken and traumatised’ in Sudan

A Victorian man who tricked his wife into travelling to Sudan before taking her children and passport back to Australia has been sentenced to four and a half years in prison.

After a county court trial, the 52-year-old man in April became the first Victorian convicted of exit trafficking – where someone is coerced, threatened or tricked into leaving Australia against their will.

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If you or someone you know is a victim of human trafficking, contact the AFP on 131 237.

Information and confidential advice are also available from the Australian Red Cross, by calling 03 9345 1800 or visiting the Red Cross website.

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Four foreign nationals removed from Australia after reportedly being found on remote NT island

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Australian government won’t say if four reportedly found on Croker Island have been taken to country of departure, of origin, or to regional processing centre on Nauru

Four non-citizens reportedly found on remote Croker Island in the Northern Territory have been removed from Australia.

The ABC reported the four foreign nationals were found on Monday on the island north of Garig Gunak Barlu national park, near Arnhem land.

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‘Tragic death’ of toddler at Melbourne hotel pool while mother used phone prompts coroner’s call for better supervision

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The boy, known as Master K for inquest, floated to surface and was undiscovered for more than nine minutes

A two-year-old who drowned in a pool while his mother looked at her mobile phone and cared for another infant two metres away highlights the need for close supervision around water, a Victorian inquest has heard.

The boy had been playing in a toddlers’ pool adjoined to an adult pool at Crown Towers, a luxury hotel in central Melbourne, in 2021 when he slipped and fell into the deeper pool.

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LED lights on underside of surfboards may deter great white shark attacks

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An Australian-led study using seal-shaped decoys found underside lighting disrupted ability of great whites to see silhouettes against sunlight above

Using LED lighting on the underside of surfboards or kayaks could deter great white shark attacks, new research suggests.

In an Australian-led study using seal-shaped decoys, underside lighting disrupted the ability of great whites to see silhouettes against the sunlight above, reducing the rates at which the sharks followed and attacked the artificial prey. The brighter the lights, the more effective the deterrent was.

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Australia news live: Antic claims misinformation bill is bid to stop young Australians being ‘red pilled’ on social media

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Matt Keogh on Aukus, second Trump presidency

Matt Keogh was also questioned on what he thinks the challenges will be for the Australian government amid a second Trump presidency?

We understand regardless of who is in charge of the White House or what is happening across the globe, what matters to Australians is being able to make ends meet themselves.

We expect that to continue even under a Trump Presidency.

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Sydney’s ‘little school project’ named World Building of the Year ahead of towering skyscrapers

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Darlington public school in Chippendale wins major building design prize at 2024 World Architectural festival in Singapore

An inner-city Sydney public school has been crowned the World Building of the Year, beating competition from towering skyscrapers, museums and major transport hubs to claim the title.

Darlington public school in Chippendale won the major building design prize at the 2024 World Architectural Festival in Singapore, claiming the gong ahead of more than 200 shortlisted entrants.

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Australia ‘not immune from trade tensions’, Chalmers says of incoming Trump presidency

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Treasurer says he spoke about tariffs to a ‘key member’ of Republican’s economic team before the US election

Australia’s economy will not be immune from escalating trade tensions, Jim Chalmers has warned, as the Albanese government prepares itself for an incoming Donald Trump administration.

In a speech to be delivered on Monday , the treasurer will outline the risks of an “uncertain world characterised by economic vulnerability and volatility” but will say the Australian government is “well-placed and well-prepared”.

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Former Labor senator to be Australia’s first anti-slavery commissioner

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With an estimated 41,000 people living in modern slavery in Australia, Chris Evans’ role to address exploitative practices such as forced marriage and deceptive recruiting

The former Labor minister Chris Evans will be Australia’s first anti-slavery commissioner, with the attorney general, Mark Dreyfus, announcing that the longtime senator will take up a five-year term in December.

Evans served as immigration and workplace relations minister under the Rudd and Gillard governments, and is a former chief executive of anti-slavery group Walk Free’s faith-based arm Global Freedom Network.

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