Category Archives: Australia news

Federal election ‘will be won or lost in the suburbs’, Chalmers says

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Treasurer is scathing of Coalition’s pledge to repeal Labor’s tax cuts but admits he is ‘very concerned’ about global trade war

The federal election will be a battle of the suburbs, the treasurer says, declaring Labor’s budget and economic plan is focused squarely on the outer suburban areas which may decide the next prime minister.

In an interview with Guardian Australia’s Full Story podcast, Jim Chalmers also dismissed Peter Dutton’s budget reply centrepiece, a temporary fuel excise cut, as providing “no ongoing help with the cost of living”.

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Labor’s grassroots environmental group dismayed by rushed bill protecting salmon industry

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The Labor Environment Action Network says it won’t ‘sugar coat’ its reaction after working ‘so hard’ on obtaining commitment for EPA

Labor’s grassroots environment action network has told its members it does not support legislation that Anthony Albanese rushed through parliament this week to protect salmon farming in Tasmania, describing it as “frustrating and disappointing”.

In an email on Thursday, the Labor Environment Action Network (Lean) said it would not “sugar coat” its reaction to a bill that was introduced to end a formal government reconsideration of whether an expansion of fish farming in Macquarie Harbour, on the state’s west coast, in 2012 was properly approved.

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Muslim groups reject push for new Islamophobia definition at Australian universities

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Groups call for a unified anti-racism standard and say separate definition would ‘shield’ universities from criticism of the antisemitism definition

A coalition of Muslim and Palestinian organisations have rejected a push by universities to adopt a new definition of Islamophobia, arguing it would “shield” the institutions from criticism of their contentious new antisemitism definition, and that a unified standard that rejects all racism is what is needed.

Last month, Australia’s universities confirmed they would unilaterally enforce a new definition of antisemitism on campuses after an inquiry recommended higher education providers “closely align” with the contentious International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition.

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Stinging deaths, back yard poisons and billions spent: model predicts Australia’s fire ants future

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Exclusive: Cost blow-out has experts worried people will use ‘huge’ volumes of pesticides to protect themselves from ‘tiny killers’

Australian households will spend $1.03bn every year to suppress fire ants and cover related medical and veterinary costs, with about 570,800 people needing medical attention and 30 likely deaths from the invasive pest’s stings, new modelling shows.

The Australia Institute research breaks down the impact of red imported fire ants (Rifa) by electorate, with the seats of Durack and O’Connor in Western Australia, Mayo in South Australia and Blair in Queensland the hardest hit if the ants become endemic.

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Blair: $1.7m in medical costs, $1.5m in vet costs and $5.1m in household pesticide costs.

Dickson: $1.4m in medical costs, $1.2m in vet costs and $4m in household pesticide costs.

Ryan: $1.5m in medical costs, $1.3m in vet costs and $3.4m in household pesticide costs.

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Australian home affairs secretary admits to using disappearing messages on Signal for work

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In wake of Trump administration group chat scandal, department’s chief operating officer tells Senate there is no ban on staff using the feature

The department of home affairs secretary, Stephanie Foster, has admitted to using disappearing messages on Signal, but says she complies with record-keeping obligations, as officials face scrutiny of their use of encrypted messaging apps in the wake of the Trump administration group chat scandal.

The editor of the Atlantic, Jeff Goldberg, published a story this week saying he was accidentally added to a Signal group chat of top US officials discussing operational details on a plan to strike Yemen.

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Domestic violence survivors urged to take safety precautions after NSW justice department data breach

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Attorney general says hacker gained unlawful entry to state’s Justice Link system and accessed 9,000 files, which could include victim details

Domestic and family violence victim-survivors who are concerned their safety may have been compromised have been advised to take precautions after a major data breach at the New South Wales Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ).

The state attorney general, Michael Daley, said on Thursday that the hacker gained unlawful entry to part of the state’s secure online court registry system via a registered account and accessed 9,000 files.

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Audience member dies during opening night of Melbourne international comedy festival

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A man watching a comedy gig has died after suffering a medical emergency in a packed theatre on the opening night of a major festival

A crowd of ticketholders watched on in horror as good Samaritans rushed to help a man who died on the opening night of a major comedy festival.

An audience member suffered a medical episode at the Palais Theatre in St Kilda on Wednesday night, organisers of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival said in a statement.

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Canada’s ex-spy chief says White House response to Signal leak threatens ‘Five Eyes’ security

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Former intelligence head said leak and White House response was ‘very worrying’ to allies of the US

Canada’s former spy chief has said the Trump administration’s attempts to downplay the leak of top-secret attack plans is a “very worrying” development, with implications for broader intelligence sharing among US allies.

On Wednesday, the Atlantic magazine published new and detailed messages from a group chat, including plans for US bombings, drone launches and targeting information of the assault, including descriptions of weather conditions. Among the recipients of the messages was a prominent journalist, who was inadvertently added to the group.

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Aboriginal women are scared to seek help for fear their children will be taken, report finds

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Human Rights Watch spoke to 33 Aboriginal parents who between them have had 114 children removed and placed in out-of-home care

Warning: this story contains distressing descriptions of violence

Briana* was just starting to get a handle on the unpredictability of feeding, bottles and all that comes with a newborn when she received an email informing her she had lost custody of her three-month-old son.

Days later, child protection authorities took her child. With him, they took many of the milestones the 36-year-old first-time mother was looking forward to. “I’m going to miss those first words, the first rollover, everything,” she says.

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Groceries are getting more expensive at Woolworths but cheaper at Coles, report finds

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Choice price tracker finds cost of shopping at Aldi barely changed between March and December 2024 in quarterly assessment of 14 common items

The cost of groceries at Woolworths has gone up even when factoring in specials, while prices at Coles decreased and Aldi’s remained relatively stable, according to Choice’s latest supermarket price tracker.

The consumer advocacy group has released its fourth quarterly report, funded by the federal government, into supermarket prices, which it assesses by purchasing a basket of 14 common grocery items from different stores.

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Brisbane Olympics infrastructure body urges LNP to fast-track controversial venues with special laws

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Save Victoria Park says it has briefed barristers and could launch a legal challenge to protect the site

The infrastructure authority for the 2032 Brisbane Olympic Games is pushing the Queensland government to suspend normal procurement rules and consider special planning laws to fast-track the approval and construction of controversial new venues.

The Queensland government announced its venues plan for the Olympics on Tuesday, including plans to build a new stadium in the heritage-listed Victoria Park, Brisbane’s largest inner-city parkland.

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Controversial bill to protect Tasmanian salmon industry passes despite environmental concerns

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Critics say industry threatens the endangered Maugean skate and laws were rushed through with ’no proper process’

Controversial legislation to protect the Tasmanian salmon industry has passed parliament after the government guillotined debate to bring on a vote in the Senate on Wednesday night.

Government and Coalition senators voted in favour of the bill, which was designed to bring an end to a formal reconsideration by the environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, into whether an expansion of fish farming in Macquarie harbour in 2012 was properly approved.

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Rugby League Ashes: Australia’s tour to feature Test at Everton’s new stadium

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  • Three-match series will be first since 2003
  • Bramley-Moore Dock, Wembley and Headingley to host

Australia will tour England for the first time since 2003 this autumn, with Everton’s new stadium to stage one of the three Tests. The Kangaroos will take on Shaun Wane’s side in three matches at Wembley, Bramley-Moore Dock and Headingley on 25 October, 1 November and 8 November, respectively.

England have not faced Australia since the 2017 World Cup final, which the Kangaroos won 6-0, with Samoa shocking the hosts in the semi-finals in 2022 at the Emirates Stadium.

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Wong calls ‘reprehensible’ letter targeting Hong Kong activist in Australia a ‘threat to national sovereignty’

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Ted Hui received letter offering reward for information about his family after China accused Australia of interfering with its internal affairs

The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, has described another threatening letter sent to an exiled Hong Kong dissident in Australia as “reprehensible”, a “threat to our national sovereignty” and “the safety and security of Australians”.

The anonymous letter, mailed from Hong Kong and sent to Ted Hui’s Adelaide office, offered his colleagues $203,000 for information on his whereabouts and his family. It arrived just days after China’s foreign ministry accused the Albanese government of interfering with its internal affairs.

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Australia to redirect $100m in foreign aid to Indo-Pacific region after Trump pulls funding

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Foreign affairs minister Penny Wong says ‘hard strategic decisions’ need to be made

Australia will redirect more than $100m in foreign aid toward the Indo-Pacific region to urgently plug funding gaps after Donald Trump announced the US would cancel around $US54bn worth in overseas development assistance programs.

The official development assistance budget for 2025-26 will reach $5.1bn, an increase of $135.9m from 2024-25, but $119m will be reprioritised to support economic, health, humanitarian and climate responses in the neighbouring regions.

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Methane emissions from Queensland mine may be gross underestimates, UN research finds

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Data collected by two planes suggests large open-cut coalmine in Bowen Basin is releasing methane at higher rates than official estimates

Emissions of the potent greenhouse gas methane at a Queensland coalmine were likely between three and eight times higher than officially reported, according to UN-backed research that flew aircraft over the site.

Queensland’s open-cut coalmines are known to be a major source of methane and experts are worried that official figures could be a gross underestimation of actual emissions.

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Australians can now use Apple AirPods Pro as hearing aids – but experts warn they’re not for everyone

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Experts hope the use of the headphones for mild to moderate hearing loss will reduce stigma and persuade people to test their hearing

Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 can for the first time be used as hearing aids for moderate hearing loss in Australia – but despite benefits, such as reducing social stigma and lowering costs, experts warn they are not suitable for everyone.

After approval from the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) in December, Apple on Wednesday pushed out an update to AirPods Pro 2 devices in Australia allowing users to test their hearing and use the Bluetooth headphones as hearing aids for mild to moderate hearing loss. It is only TGA approved for people aged 18 and older.

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Coalition may rethink rules that push car markers to create cheaper EVs and hybrids for Australians

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Opposition says Labor’s national vehicle emission standard is ‘poorly designed’, despite data showing uptick in green vehicle sales

Australia’s love-hate relationship with fuel-guzzling utes and SUVs is now a looming election issue, after the Coalition indicated it may rethink Labor’s vehicle emission standard.

On Tuesday the shadow transport minister, Bridget McKenzie, called Labor’s vehicle emission standard “poorly designed” and said the Coalition will have “more to say” about it when the opposition releases its own transport policy before the election.

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The ‘hot mess’ Olympics? How Queensland’s 2032 Games planning descended into farce

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The LNP’s vision is for an Olympics held in venues rather than a city – and guarantees controversy across Brisbane and beyond

Few people in Queensland disagreed with the former state premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, when she described plans for the 2032 Olympic Games in Brisbane as a “hot mess”.

Tuesday’s announcement by the new LNP government was framed as an end to the sort of disarray that has plagued Olympic planning during the past four years.

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Perth mayor and former journalist Basil Zempilas’s bid to lead Liberals to power in Labor-faithful WA

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Zempilas admitted he would continue to write unpaid for his former employer Kerry Stokes’ Seven West Media and appear on Channel 7’s Sunrise program

Basil Zempilas’ punt for leadership has sailed straight through the goalposts, in a gameplay by Western Australia’s Liberals that surprised nobody.

As the nation waited for the federal budget to drop, Zempilas took centre stage on the steps of the state parliament to announce his unopposed appointment as opposition leader.

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