Category Archives: Australia news

Palestinian peak body refused leave to appear at royal commission on antisemitism and social cohesion

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Australia Palestine Advocacy Network says criticism of Israel is routinely misrepresented as antisemitic – and that Palestinian voices are being excluded from debate

Palestinian voices are being excluded from the debate on social cohesion, the peak body for Palestinians in Australia has said after it was refused leave to appear before the royal commission on antisemitism and social cohesion.

The Australia Palestine Advocacy Network (Apan) made detailed submissions on the issues of antisemitism – including how it is defined – as well as on racism and social cohesion, but was told it did not have a “direct and substantial” interest in the public hearings, which are under way in Sydney.

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Inquest into death of Clare Nowland after Tasering by NSW police aims to answer ‘outstanding questions’

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Coroner will examine 95-year-old’s death and look at dementia training for aged care staff, police and ambulance officers

Three years after police fatally Tasered an aged care resident, an inquest could save lives by improving training for first responders dealing with aggressive dementia patients.

Then-senior constable Kristian James Samuel White fired his Taser at 95-year-old Clare Nowland after being called to Yallambee Lodge nursing home in Cooma in southern New South Wales on 17 May 2023.

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A Zara dress, the Jim Reaper and a communist state: how Australia’s media interpreted the budget

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The Murdoch papers sharpened their sickles and hammered Jim Chalmers’ budget for ‘the most radical redistribution of wealth since the Whitlam era’

The voters of New South Wales woke up in a communist state on Wednesday – at least according to the Daily Telegraph, which claimed that “Lying Jim” Chalmers was cackling like the devil as he gouged them with big taxes in the federal budget.

To underline this apparent sharp turn to the left, the Tele added a red hammer and sickle and used a red background.

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Aukus costs balloon with more cash and staff for submarine agency amid ongoing search for nuclear waste dump

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Labor has announced funding for Australian Submarine Agency will jump to $512m in next financial year amid concerns the sovereign submarine fleet may never arrive

The budget for Australia’s contentious Aukus deal has ballooned by more than $430m over four years, with the agency charged with securing the country’s nuclear-powered submarines requiring a massive injection of funding and staffing.

The Australian Submarine Agency’s resourcing for next financial year will jump by a third – from $385m to $512m.

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Federal budget 2026 winners and losers: rich families, overseas travellers and illegal tobacco – summary

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Taxpayers and first home buyers are the winners in Labor’s 2026 budget, while rich families could be among the losers. Find out who is better off and who is worse off in Chalmers’ budget

Being a winner or a loser from the federal budget can be the difference between hundreds of dollars – or tightening your belt even further.

Tuesday’s federal budget comes at a strange time. Donald Trump is waging a war on Iran that is impacting fuel supplies globally, including Australia. Inflation is still causing havoc on household budgets. Government programs are costing more than ever.

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Huge cuts to national disability insurance scheme aim to save more than $36bn in budget’s largest single measure

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NDIS changes foreshadowed by health minister Mark Butler will drastically reduce access to the scheme, with nearly 700 staff positions to go at NDIA

The government expects to recoup $36.2bn by curbing the national disability insurance scheme’s growth over the next four years as it looks to return to the NDIS’s “original purpose” of supporting people with “significant and permanent disability”.

The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, said the budget’s savings package amounted to genuine economic reform, beyond the “usual nips and tucks”.

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Supermarket foods claiming to be ‘natural’ or ‘sustainable’ mostly just using marketing terms, researchers find

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Survey of 27,000 Australian supermarket items found some products boasting environmental benefits had significantly higher emissions than unlabelled counterparts

Foods in supermarkets boasting environmental terms such as “natural” or “sustainable” are mostly just using marketing speak, rather than verified claims, Australian researchers have found.

More than 27,000 packaged foods sold at Coles, Woolworths, Aldi, IGA and Harris Farm supermarkets in Sydney were assessed by researchers from the George Institute for Global Health.

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Victorian politics still exposed to ‘dark money’ and foreign donations as MPs struggle to agree on urgent reforms

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Exclusive: state is now without caps on political donations or disclosure requirements, months out from November election

“Unlimited dark money” will keep flooding into Victorian politics after Labor failed to reach agreement with the Liberals or the Greens about donation reforms the Allan government vowed to fast-track through parliament.

Victoria is now without caps on political donations or disclosure requirements, months out from the November election after the high court struck down the state’s donation laws last month.

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Muslim Votes Matter says anonymous bid to create political party under same name an attempt to ‘mislead’ voters

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Exclusive: Push to register unaffiliated party with identical name to grassroots group follows Avi Yemini’s plan to use ‘Free Palestine party’ to funnel votes to One Nation

Muslim Votes Matter (MVM) has complained to the Victorian Electoral Commission over an anonymous bid to register a political party under the same name ahead of the state election, accusing it of deliberately misleading voters.

MVM was established before the 2025 federal election as a grassroots advocacy and lobbying movement, responding to concerns about the lack of political representation for Muslim and minority groups in Australia.

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Antony Catalano: media mogul accused of assaulting wife excused from attending court due to fears over press scrutiny

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Catalano’s lawyer says press attention ‘potentially detrimental’ to Australian Community Media co-owner’s mental health

A media mogul charged with assaulting his wife has avoided facing court in person over concerns growing media attention could be detrimental to his mental health.

Antony Catalano, 59, was charged with assault, false imprisonment and making threats to kill over an incident in the early hours of March 13.

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Nationals MP Colin Boyce says he’s considering move to One Nation after ‘wake-up call’ in Farrer byelection

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Exclusive: Queensland MP says ‘I think everybody should be thinking about their political future’ after devastating result for Coalition

Nationals MP Colin Boyce is considering shifting to One Nation after the Farrer byelection saw the Coalition’s vote tank to about 20% of the primary vote.

Speaking to the Guardian in Albury after One Nation recorded its historic victory in the House of Representatives, the MP for the central Queensland seat of Flynn said the result was a “wake-up call”.

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Budget to include extra $2bn for infrastructure – as it happened

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Wilson promises Coalition will be ‘very clear’ on migration

Wilson is asked about comments made by the opposition leader, Angus Taylor, after the byelection that hinted at a rightward shift toward “ending mass migration” and stopping net zero policies.

I can assure you in the coming weeks we’re going to make it very clear what we’re for. Australians need to know that we’re in favour of families, community, small business and self-starters.

My focus on migration is how we make sure we get new Australians integrated successfully.

One of the reasons Australians have become very nervous about migration is they feel that people are coming to Australia and getting the benefits without making the contribution. And I want the best, boldest, most confident new Australians we can have.

There would be some nervous Labor MPs because what people want to see is change.

One of the most consistent messages is that people want someone who is going to fight for them and their future.

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‘A sobering indictment’: 14 homeless people die a year in public parks or countryside in Australia, analysis finds

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‘In just a few weeks homelessness has killed a baby, a young mother and a student,’ head of advocacy group says, calling for more investment in upcoming budget

Fourteen rough sleepers are dying in public parks or countryside areas each year on average in Australia, an analysis of hidden death reports reveals.

The deaths of a young international student sleeping rough in Hyde Park, a young homeless mother who died of sepsis in Western Australia, and a newborn baby at a makeshift homeless camp near Wagga beach have prompted an outpouring of grief and shock in recent weeks.

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Mysterious disappearance of man on popular WA hiking track sparks police search

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Samuel Whitsed, 27, is believed to have travelled from Victoria to hike Bibbulmun Track near outskirts of Perth

Three months after a hiker was last seen at a popular walking track, police have become increasingly concerned for the missing man’s welfare.

Police have scoured dense bushland for a Victorian man after he disappeared from a popular hiking trail on the other side of the country.

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David Pocock applauds $387m in extra funding for CSIRO after tens of thousands sign petition

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Analysis commissioned by independent senator found national science agency’s funding is at its lowest since 1978

The Albanese government will boost funding to CSIRO by $387.4m in a bid to meet the long-term costs of the national science agency.

It follows months of advocacy by scientists and staff after hundreds of job cuts and cost-cutting measures.

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Rebel Wilson is a ‘fantastical liar’ who ‘made up terrible allegations against multiple people’, court told

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Barrister for actor Charlotte MacInnes, who is suing the Pitch Perfect star for defamation, also accused Wilson of ‘a complete revision of history’. Wilson has rejected defamation claims

Rebel Wilson has been accused in court of being a liar who made up terrible claims about her colleagues and completely rewrote history.

The Pitch Perfect star copped the blunt assessment in the dying hours of a fiery defamation battle where she is being sued by Charlotte MacInnes, the lead actor in musical comedy The Deb which Wilson directed, co-produced and starred in.

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One Nation candidate David Farley sought involvement with independent ‘Voices’ movement

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Exclusive: Farley discussed preferences and suggested platform before Voices group endorsed his rival Michelle Milthorpe as its candidate

One Nation’s Farrer candidate, David Farley, sought to cooperate with the community independent “Voices” movement before the last election, including discussing preferences and suggesting a platform for a House and Senate campaign, before the group endorsed Michelle Milthorpe as their candidate.

Documents seen by Guardian Australia show Farley – who is expected to win the Farrer byelection ahead of Milthorpe on Saturday – had been keen to meet with the independent Voices campaign in 2023 and 2024, including buying a ticket to their event, sharing ideas, and even discussing election preferences.

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Water flows to parched NSW wetlands could be turned back on within weeks as drought fears loom

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Water minister Rose Jackson calls drying in Gwydir region ‘devastating’ as bill passes upper house

Water flows to parched New South Wales wetlands where an urgent rescue mission to save dying wildlife unfolded are a step closer to resuming after legislation passed the state parliament’s upper house.

The water minister, Rose Jackson, told the parliament on Thursday night the impact of a halt to environmental flows in the internationally significant Gwydir region had been “devastating” as she introduced legislative amendments she said would allow flows to resume.

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Antisemitism has become ‘almost fashionable’ among Australians, Jillian Segal tells royal commission

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On its fourth day of public hearings, royal commission into antisemitism also hears Jewish Australians have been pressured to resign and verbally abused

Jewish Australians have been told to use “less obviously Jewish” names, felt pressure to resign and been verbally abused by colleagues in the wake of 7 October 2023.

On its fourth day of public hearings, the antisemitism royal commission also heard evidence from Australia’s antisemitism envoy, who said hatred towards Jews had become “almost fashionable”, while a Sydney nurse said New South Wales Health was “not safe for Jewish people”.

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Australian director Phillip Noyce shoots feature film for Saudi Arabia celebrating ‘heroism of security men in combating drugs’

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Exclusive: Regime, which executed 243 people last year for drug offences, accused of investing in entertainment to whitewash its human rights record

The acclaimed Australian film-maker Phillip Noyce is being paid by the Saudi regime to make a feature film portraying the repressive state’s narcotics officers as heroes.

The Watchful Eyes, based on a real Saudi ministry of interior narcotics case, is billed as a dramatic depiction of the “heroism of security men in combating drugs”.

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