Category Archives: Australia news

Australia a ‘trusted global partner’ on climate again, Albanese to tell energy forum

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Prime minister will open international forum in Sydney, saying the Indo-Pacific faces ‘enormous’ challenges but also opportunities

Anthony Albanese will declare Australia has now rejoined the ranks of “trusted global partner” on climate action while committing his government to finding common ground across the Indo-Pacific to address both the climate crisis and the emerging economic opportunity of the clean energy revolution.

The prime minister will open the Sydney Energy Forum on Tuesday before travelling to the Pacific Islands Forum in Fiji, where he hopes to progress Australia’s proposal to co-host a United Nations climate summit with Pacific neighbours.

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Guardian Essential poll: Albanese’s approval wavering as honeymoon fades

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Disapproval of PM’s performance ticks up while 60% think masks should return to stop Covid’s winter spread

A majority of voters favour a return to mask wearing to help slow transmission during the Omicron third wave, according to the latest Guardian Essential poll, which also finds Anthony Albanese’s initial honeymoon with voters has moderated.

The latest survey of 1,097 respondents finds more than half of Guardian Essential respondents (56%) continued to approve of the prime minister’s performance (down three points since June), while 24% disapproved (up six points in a month).

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Fewer than 20% of alleged breaches of Queensland domestic violence orders result in charges

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Inquiry hears police lodged 50,704 applications for contraventions of orders, with 9,347 charges laid

Criminal charges have been laid in fewer than 20% of cases where Queensland police lodged an application for a contravention of a domestic violence order over the past year, a commission of inquiry has heard.

A public hearing on Monday heard police lodged 50,704 applications for contraventions of domestic violence protection orders in 2021-22, while 9,347 charges were laid for a range of domestic and family violence related criminal offences.

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Victoria’s move to restrict ‘silencing’ sexual harassment victims welcomed by unions and lawyers

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State government proposes reforms to use of nondisclosure agreements by employers in Australian first

The use of nondisclosure agreements will be restricted in sexual harassment cases to prevent victim-survivors being silenced, under reforms proposed by the Victorian government that are backed by employment lawyers and industry groups.

The move – an Australian first – was announced on Monday by Victoria’s workplace safety minister, Ingrid Stitt, who said the proposed reforms were a direct response to a ministerial taskforce investigating workplace sexual harassment, which made 26 recommendations. Most have already been accepted by the government.

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Some NSW flood warnings remain but relief for Sydney from extreme weather

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Moderate flooding on parts of Bogan and Darling and minor warnings for Wollombi Brook, Lachlan, Macquarie and Lower Hunter rivers

Flood warnings across several New South Wales rivers are still in place, but Sydney is beginning to experience some relief from weeks of extreme weather.

The Bureau of Meteorology issued minor flood warnings for the Wollombi Brook, Lachlan, Macquarie and Lower Hunter rivers on Monday.

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Home buybacks in flood-prone NSW ‘cheaper’ than plan to raise Warragamba Dam wall, experts say

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Infrastructure NSW says buybacks on Sydney’s fringe could cost $5.2bn but expert argues price would be ‘nowhere near’ that

A large-scale property buyback scheme in flood-affected parts of the Hawkesbury-Nepean valley would cost more than $5bn, according to the New South Wales government’s own estimates.

But experts have questioned the price tag, saying more targeted buybacks would be cheaper than the Coalition government’s plan to raise the Warragamba Dam wall.

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Nation records 13 Covid deaths as WA and ACT reduce official reinfection period – as it happened

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Police questioning three people after man’s body found near Brisbane train station

Three people are being questioned about the suspicious death of a man whose body was found near a train station in inner Brisbane, AAP reports.

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Indigenous boy featured in NDIS promotional material placed in state care after funding cut

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Disability royal commission begins hearings in Alice Springs focused on NDIS for First Nations people

An Indigenous teen once featured in national disability insurance scheme promotional material was placed in state care after the agency running the NDIS cut his funding package, an inquiry has heard.

The disability royal commission on Monday began five days of hearings in Alice Springs, focused on the experience of the NDIS for First Nations people with disability in remote communities.

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Australia ‘doesn’t respond to demands’, Anthony Albanese tells China

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PM reacts to Beijing’s four-point advice on improving relations following high-level G20 meeting between the two countries

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Anthony Albanese has said Australia “doesn’t respond to demands”, after China listed four ways the relationship between the two countries could be improved.

“We respond to our own national interest,” Australia’s prime minister said on Monday.

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Queenslanders encouraged to wear masks as nation records 13 Covid deaths – as it happened

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On pandemic leave payments – which are coming to an end – Speers asks Butler about the decision by the government not to extend them. Butler responds that ending these payments was necessary because of the budget.

This emergency payment was designed by the former government and the state governments. It’s a co-owned scheme that came to end an on 30 June. We are one trillion in debt and at some point emergency payments of this type have to be wound up as we move to a new phase. That’s the decision that former governments took and it’s a decision we have decided to follow as well.

There’s state rules to isolate. These emergency payments have to be wound up at some point.

I accept whenever you end an emergency payment of this type it’s going to impact people. I deeply regret that. But at some point these emergency payments simply have to be wound up. We don’t have the financial capacity to keep making them forever. They were intended to wind up on 30 June, that was the decision taken by the former government, and all state governments who are co-signatories to that scheme and it’s a decision we had to continue.

Butler: In this phase of the pandemic mask mandates and things like that are best done in a targeted way. There’s mask mandates in aged care, in health facilities, on public transport, in airplanes. And if you’re in a crowded indoor space with no ability to socially distance you should give strong consideration to wearing a mask.

Speers: Again... You only need to go to the movies or a shopping centre or the footy to see how ineffectual a recommendation is. So many people not wearing masks. Wasn’t one of the lessons of this pandemic, mask mandates for a fixed period, work?

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China’s foreign minister says Coalition government was ‘root cause’ of hostility to Australia

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In meeting with Penny Wong after G20 summit, Wang Yi urged Australia to treat China as a partner, not a threat

The Chinese foreign minister, Wang Yi, has urged his Australian counterpart, Penny Wong, to treat China as a partner, accusing previous governments of treating it as an opponent or threat.

On the sidelines of the G20 foreign ministers meeting in Bali on Friday, Wang expressed hope that Australia could “seize the opportunity, take concrete actions and come to a correct understanding of China” and accumulate “positive energy” towards it, according to a summary published late on Saturday by China’s foreign ministry.

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Queensland LNP pledges net zero 2050 target at next election amid ‘deeply troubling’ rise in emissions

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Leader David Crisafulli’s announcement drew immediate criticism from environmentalists saying the move is not science-based

Queensland’s opposition has announced it will bring a net zero emissions target by 2050 to the next state election at the LNP’s annual convention in Brisbane over the weekend.

LNP leader David Crisafulli said it was “deeply troubling” that emissions had increased in Queensland over the past several years.

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Kyrgios and Djokovic set dinner date side bet ahead of Wimbledon clash

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During an Instagram chat, the two tennis stars agreed to go for a meal after the grand slam final with the winner footing the bill

Nick Kyrgios and Novak Djokovic have agreed to a tasty side bet alongside the £2m ($A3.5m) they’ll be playing for in the Wimbledon final.

The unlikely but evidently blossoming “bromance” between the pair, which has come to light as they prepare to do battle in Sunday’s final, took a new tongue-in-cheek twist on the eve of the match when the pair indulged in an Instagram chat, doubtless to the delight of their millions of followers.

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Rising food prices hit every supermarket aisle putting pressure on low-income families

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Soaring cost of produce in Australia has ‘exacerbated health inequality’ and leads researchers to call for farmers to be subsidised

The price of food has continued to rise, with new data showing that every supermarket aisle has been hit by hikes, not just fruit and vegetables.

The soaring prices have led researchers to call on the federal government to help subsidise growers, amid concerns it’s costing some lower socioeconomic families 40% of their income to buy a week’s worth of healthy food.

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Greens to seek changes to Labor’s integrity commission legislation to protect whistleblowers

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David Shoebridge reveals suite of amendments including budgetary independence and lowering bar to investigations

The Greens will seek to amend Labor’s integrity commission legislation to protect whistleblowers and lower the bar for investigations, in a test for government cooperation with the crossbench.

On Sunday the Greens justice spokesperson, David Shoebridge, revealed the party in the Senate would adopt a suite of amendments requested by transparency experts to align the Labor proposal with the crossbench bill championed by independent MP Helen Haines in the last parliament.

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Australians over 70 granted access to Covid antiviral treatments

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From Monday, access will also be expanded to over 50s and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people over 30 with two or more risk factors

All Australians over 70 with Covid will be eligible to take antivirals from Monday, after the health minister, Mark Butler, expanded access to the treatments.

Butler revealed that access will also be expanded to people aged over 50 with two or more risk factors for severe disease and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged over 30 with two or more risk factors.

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Labor aims to legislate spending caps and truth in advertising, says Don Farrell

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Special minister of state signals ambitious suite of electoral reforms to be rolled out before next election

Labor will push to legislate spending caps and truth in political advertising, as well as promote adherence to the one-vote one-value principle in an ambitious suite of electoral reforms, Don Farrell said.

The special minister of state said that Labor will be “putting the case” to an inquiry into the 2022 election “as to why those things should be done”, signalling their likely inclusion in a government bill to be presented ahead of the next election.

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Executive bonuses will need to be justified in a review of NBN Co, new communications minister says

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In opposition, Michelle Rowland said publicly-owned firm ‘might have an incentive to set and surpass artificially low targets’

NBN Co will need to demonstrate that the targets it sets for bonus payments to executives represent actual performance, under a review brought on by the new Labor government.

Communications minister, Michelle Rowland, said NBN Co targets would be considered as part of the review of government-owned business bonuses initiated under the Albanese government, which also includes Australia Post.

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Sri Lanka offer resistance with bat against Australia amid protests in Galle

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  • Australia 364; Sri Lanka 184-2 (63 overs) at stumps on day two
  • Thousands march in protest during second and final Test

Sri Lanka rediscovered their fight amid the chaos of loud protests and firecrackers in Galle to go to stumps on day two at 184-2 in response to Australia’s 364.

Bolstered by their efforts to run through Australia’s tail and leave Steve Smith stranded on 145 not out, the hosts enjoyed their best day of the series in the second and final Test.

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Australia 17-25 England: second rugby union Test – as it happened

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Pretty much what you’d expect from Australia’s players and staff in front of the press.

England did the media rounds during the week, and I am full of admiration for Ellis Genge’s straightforward contribution. “We’ve got to be better everywhere,” he said. “We’ve got to be better because we lost.” Brilliant. More of this please media officers.

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