Category Archives: Australia news

The Ross and Rachel of Australian politics are still on a break – but the Coalition will probably give things another go

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The Liberals and Nationals are likely to get back together – not because the bickering exes are a perfect match, but because there’s too much to lose in the divorce

Take the Taylor Swift songs off your Spotify queue, put the ice-cream back in the freezer and hold fire on the angry diary entries: the Liberals and Nationals might not be breaking up after all.

The extraordinary conscious uncoupling of the Liberals and Nationals – their plans to go their separate ways and work on themselves – lasted exactly 48 hours and 30 minutes: the time between 11.45am on Tuesday, when David Littleproud said he needed time to think, and 12.15pm on Thursday, when he told a hastily convened press conference that he was willing to give things another go.

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Cauchi at ‘significant’ risk of relapsing into psychosis when discharged into doctor’s care, Bondi Junction inquest hears

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Joel Cauchi suffered deterioration in ‘performance IQ’ and some cognitive functions leading up to attack, expert tells Sydney coroner’s court

Joel Cauchi’s psychiatrist of eight years discharged him into the care of his doctor at a time when he was at “significant risk” of relapsing into psychosis, an expert has said amid a probe into the mental health and care of Cauchi.

On Thursday, the coronial inquest examining the fatal stabbing of six people by Cauchi at Westfield Bondi Junction in April 2024 heard from a panel of psychiatrists who provided expert opinions on Cauchi’s treatment.

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‘Sick of this’: Erin Patterson told friends she wanted ‘nothing to do’ with in-laws, mushroom lunch trial hears

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Victorian supreme court shown Facebook messages in which murder accused vents frustration at estranged husband’s parents

Erin Patterson told a Facebook group chat “this family I swear to fucking god” and said she wanted “nothing to do” with her parents-in-law, according to messages shown in a Victorian court.

Messages written by the user Erin ErinErin, which the court has previously heard was one of three Facebook names used by Patterson, also included saying she was ““sick of this shit” and “fuck em” about the parents of her estranged husband, Simon.

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Australia news live: Nationals’ decision to break up Coalition not unanimous; ‘treacherous’ weather hampering chopper NSW flood rescues

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Nationals leader hints there might still be a possibility of joint tickets in 2028 if state officials from the two parties can come to agreement. Follow today’s news live

People trapped by flooding as river rise breaks record

Intense falls and major flooding have hit Australia’s most populous state as a slow-moving system dumps rain, causing a major river to rise to the highest level in almost 100 years.

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NSW floods: BoM warns of ‘lots of flooding to come’ amid wet weather on mid-north coast

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Two days of heavy rainfall still on way as SES carries out 130 rescues amid floods in Taree and nearby areas

Residents of the mid-north coast of New South Wales have described anxious waits for rescue in the dark as unprecedented flooding inundates homes and businesses across the region.

The State Emergency Service has performed 130 rescues in the past 24 hours, the bulk of those occurring in Taree, Wingham and Glenthorne.

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Queensland to restrict good character references in sentencing of accused rapists

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Good character references from friends and families of accused rapists had previously been a consideration in a judge’s sentencing decision

The consideration of good character references for accused rapists will be restricted under major Queensland court reforms but some advocates say it does not go far enough.

The changes introduced to Queensland parliament this week are among the recommendations made by a Queensland Sentencing Advisory Council report into rape and sexual assault.

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Pacific must not become a ‘military zone’ amid rise of China, New Zealand’s deputy PM warns

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In an interview with the Guardian, Winston Peters says the world faces the ‘most uncertain time’ in 80 years ahead of talks with Australia's foreign minister

The Pacific must be protected from becoming a military zone amid China’s growing push for influence in the region, New Zealand’s top diplomat Winston Peters has warned ahead of a meeting with his Australian counterpart Penny Wong.

Peters, who is New Zealand’s deputy prime minister and foreign affairs minister, told the Guardian that his country has a good relationship with China.

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New Australian free-to-air TV rules could allow alcohol ads from 10am, even on weekends and school holidays

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Media authority mulls Free TV Australia’s proposed revised code of practice to expand daytime hours when M programming is permitted

Free-to-air broadcasters want classification rules changed to allow an additional 800 hours of alcohol ads every year despite one in three children already being exposed to liquor commercials on television.

Despite laws banning alcohol marketing during children’s viewing hours, broadcasters have a “sports loophole” in their code of practice, which permits the airing of alcohol ads during televised sporting events.

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Reeves eyes Gulf trade pact as ‘next deal,’ Bank of England’s Pill says pace of interest rate cuts ‘too rapid’ – as it happened

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China and Australia cut interest rates; Shell faces protests calling for clean-up in Niger Delta

Here’s our full story on Greggs.

Sales at Greggs have picked up after the UK’s biggest bakery chain branched out into iced drinks, pizza boxes and a macaroni cheese that has gone viral on social media.

These are important issues and we respect the right of people to express their view. But for many years the vast majority of spills in the Niger Delta have been caused by third parties acting unlawfully, such as oil thieves who drill holes in pipelines, or saboteurs.

These challenges are managed by a joint venture which Shell’s former Nigerian subsidiary, SPDC, operated, cleaning up every spill from the joint venture’s facilities.

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Australia demands Israel allow aid into Gaza, stating ‘the population faces starvation’ in joint statement

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‘Palestinian territory must not be reduced nor subjected to any demographic change,’ joint statement declares after Israel announces military expansion

Australia has joined 22 other nations in condemning Israel over its decision to allow limited aid into Gaza while announcing a military expansion to “take control” of the besieged strip.

The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said his troops were “making progress” on taking control of Gaza after Israel’s military had earlier declared a central city a combat zone and killed more than 60 people in airstrikes, while a senior minister said Israel’s army would “wipe out” what remains of Palestinian Gaza.

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Passengers freed from stranded train – as it happened

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Liberals question role of advocacy group Advance

We have an exclusive story this morning about the bitter aftermath within the Liberal party after its election defeat with some senior Liberal sources questioning the impact of Advance Australia, the rightwing advocacy that campaigned for the party.

We are absolutely deeply and gravely concerned about the situation in Gaza. For anyone who is watching the images or reading about what is happening there, we have been calling to ensure that aid is getting through and this is something that the Australian government keeps a watching brief on.

I will leave it to the foreign minister to make any further updates, but we … certainly … are seeking support for the people of Gaza and for Israel to allow that support to be provided.

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NSW flash flooding and weather warnings: intense rain leads to evacuation orders, school closures and rescues

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Mid-north coast and Hunter region cops barrage of extreme weather, with more than 30 schools closed and people in Taree advised to take shelter

Persistent and heavy rain that has brought significant flash flooding to New South Wales is showing no signs of stopping, after forcing a stack of emergency calls and evacuations.

Much of NSW’s mid-north coast and Hunter region has copped the barrage, with 22 flood rescues performed overnight in those areas.

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Scientists recommend limits on urban beekeeping to protect Australia’s native bees from honeybees

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Introduced bees could be harming native species and risk driving them to extinction, researchers say

Scientists have recommended limits on urban beekeeping after a peer-reviewed study found introduced honeybees could be harming Australian native bees and risked driving them to extinction.

The Australian research, published in Frontiers in Bee Science, found native bees living in areas with high densities of introduced honeybees had fewer female offspring and a higher death rate in their first year of life.

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Health to get $11.1bn boost in Victorian budget, with pharmacist prescribing powers made permanent

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Cash injection includes $9.3bn for public hospitals and nearly $50m to expand trial prescribing program

Victoria’s health system will receive an $11.1bn cash injection in the state budget, with hospitals to receive more funding and pharmacists given greater powers to prescribe medications without the need for a GP visit.

The budget, which will be handed down by the state’s treasurer, Jaclyn Symes, on Tuesday, includes a $9.3bn boost for public hospitals.

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Australia news live: Bradfield goes to automatic recount after independent defeats Liberal candidate by 40 votes

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Nicolette Boele declared provisional winner over Liberal candidate Gisele Kapterian. Follow today’s news live

Flood watches in place for rivers in Hunter and mid-north coast

Due to the prolonged period of wet weather for New South Wales – with rain expected to fall across the same regions for several days in a row – flood watches are in place for many rivers through the Hunter and the mid-north coast districts, where minor to moderate flooding is anticipated throughout the week, Hines says.

… and we can’t rule out the chance that one or two of them could see major flooding in the coming days.

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Independent Nicolette Boele declared provisional winner in Bradfield by 40 votes

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AEC vote recount expected in Sydney north shore seat after Liberal candidate Gisele Kapterian overtaken in final surge

Nicolette Boele has been declared the provisional winner of Bradfield in Sydney’s north shore after a nail-biting count which saw her take a last-minute 40-vote lead over the Liberal candidate, Gisele Kapterian.

Counting continued on Monday as the final postal votes were processed in the former blue ribbon seat.

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Erin Patterson murder trial live: mobile data shows Patterson’s device could have been in area where death cap mushrooms reportedly sighted

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Australian woman, 50, faces three murder charges and one charge of attempted murder over lethal mushroom lunch. Follow live updates

Patterson’s defence lawyer, Sophie Stafford, is cross-examining McKenzie.

She agrees she removed and disposed of every death cap mushroom she could find when she spotted the mushrooms.

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Security guard’s Bondi Junction triple-zero call could have confused police, inquest hears

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Counter-terrorism expert tells inquest into 2024 stabbing attack by Joel Cauchi guard ‘talks about shots being fired with an armed offender’ in triple-zero call

A triple-zero call made by a security control room operator on duty at Westfield Bondi Junction was made too late and was so unclear it risked confusing police into thinking there was another attacker armed with a gun still at large inside the shopping centre, a counter-terrorism expert has said.

The security officer, who cannot be named, had left the control room for a toilet break when Joel Cauchi, 40, launched his stabbing attack that killed six people and injured 10 others at the Sydney shopping centre in April 2024.

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Albanese to meet von der Leyen in Rome amid hopes EU free-trade deal can be revived – as it happened

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Liberals must ‘build from the bottom up’ after election disaster – Ruston

Asked why the Liberals were now reviewing their embrace of the Paris climate agreement under the former government of Scott Morrison, Ruston says the walloping voters handed the party meant “absolutely everything” was up for review.

To be quite frank, we have to build from the bottom up again because that election result was quite disastrous for the Liberal party and we need to be open and honest with ourselves about what we need to take forward so that we are meeting Australia where they are and not talking about where we are.

Clearly we need to be doing something different. I think, you know, keeping an open mind, making sure we’re honest and open with that analysis of what went wrong, and actually come out with a policy proposal and a modern Liberal party, still maintaining all of the values that we hold so dearly.

Oh God, no, no, anything but, please. We have been there before many times over the past 20 years or so and to reopen the climate wars, as you aptly describe them, is like reopening an old wound.

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Victoria announces free public transport for under-18s, as state’s debt projected to rise

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The Jacinta Allan government says more than 1 million children and their families will benefit from the $318m program

Every Victorian child will get free public transport from 1 January next year, the state government has pledged.

A new youth Myki, valid across the state, will save families up to $755 a year (the cost of a yearly student pass) under the scheme. Anyone under 18 in non-Myki areas will also be eligible to travel for free.

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