Category Archives: Western Australia

Ruston will ‘take the universal out of universal healthcare’, Labor says – as it happened

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Labor says Anne Ruston as health minister if Coalition re-elected should ‘send a shiver down the spine’; WA records eight Covid deaths, NSW six, Victoria two and Tasmania one. This blog is now closed

Marise Payne has told the ABC’s Insiders she does not share the views expressed by Katherine Deves about transgender and gender diverse people that have prompted calls for her to be dropped as the candidate for Warringah.

She tells host David Speers:

I don’t share Ms Deves’ comments that she has made, but importantly she has apologised and withdrawn those views and as the prime minister said yesterday, in public life, we do have to be very careful about the way we express our opinions.

It is a matter for the organisation in New South Wales. I need to get on with my job, that’s what I’m doing. I don’t agree with the remarks she made, I’ve made that explicitly clear.

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Western Australia plane crash: one dead and another injured after aircraft catches fire

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Plane crashed as pilot tried to land at East Kimberley regional airport in Kununurra

A passenger has died and a pilot was seriously injured after a charter plane crashed in Western Australia’s remote north.

WA police confirmed the male in his 50s lost consciousness during the rescue efforts and could not be revived.

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Pork this way: which electorates have been promised the most in the election campaign?

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On a per-voter basis, Coalition-held seats of Bass in Tasmania and Canning in WA given biggest spending commitments so far

Voters in the Tasmanian marginal seat of Bass are the most spoilt in the country, with each voter promised the equivalent of almost $6,000 in spending commitments in the opening stages of the election campaign.

In the first week of the six-week campaign, almost $500m has been pledged by both major party leaders as they crisscross the country. The focus is on a handful of marginal seats that will decide the election.

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Western Australian Liberal senator Ben Small resigns over dual citizenship

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Small breached section 44 of the Australian constitution by also holding New Zealand citizenship, but still plans to contest the upcoming election

Western Australian Liberal senator Ben Small has been forced to resign due to his New Zealand heritage, the latest victim of the section 44 constitutional requirements, but has pledged to stand again at the looming election.

Small released a statement on Friday saying he had written to the Senate president to advise him he was resigning as a senator for WA.

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Plibersek says election ‘a test of leadership, not memory’ after Albanese mistake – As it happened

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The PM campaigned in Gilmore in NSW, while Labor leader is in Bass in Tasmania; Tanya Plibersek defends Anthony Albanese after opposition leader addresses his rates stumble; phone voting available for people in isolation on election day; NSW reports three Covid deaths and Victoria one. This blog is now closed

Scott Morrison just appeared on ABC breakfast TV, where he was asked about his relationship with the Liberal candidate for Gilmore, Andrew Constance.

Q: Andrew Constance said that you got the welcome that you deserved [in the region after the bushfires]. Emotions are still running deep in the bushfire-affected communities. Are you concerned about that being repeated today?

With Andrew Constance being part of my team and choosing to be part of that team, I think that that addresses it. Andrew and I spoke not long after the terrible experiences that particularly he and others and so many went through, and we worked the issue. We ensured that we addressed thing like small business payment and we got the money on the grouped and supported people in the areas that the federal government were responsible for. And I really thank Andrew for the way that we came together and really started to work together to address those issues. He’s a fine advocate for this part of Australia on the south coast of New South Wales.

He’s demonstrated that time again. And the fact that he wants to be part of my team and is running here as our Liberal candidate in Gilmore, I think that that addresses those issues fairly, squarely, that we’ve actually addressed the short comings that he was outlining at the time and we’ve gone forward with a strong plan to ensure that we’re providing that support. Not just in relation to the fires, but in relation to other natural disasters. And we’ve seen so many of those over the last three years.

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WA Aboriginal site near Rio Tinto mine more than 50,000 years old, new study reveals

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Mining giant funded latest excavation at Yirra, which yielded stone tools, charcoal and bone showing habitation during the last ice age

An Aboriginal sacred place located 65 metres from a land bridge used by Rio Tinto to haul iron ore is at least 50,000 years old, with new research finding evidence of occupation during the height of the last ice age.

The mining giant, which funded the latest excavation, has promised to ensure the site “is preserved for future generations”.

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Craig Kelly egged in Melbourne; Ukraine ambassador flags need for more support – as it happened

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Ukraine ambassador flags need for further support from Australia; RBA says potential rate rises to hit borrowers’ repayments; PM says election call ‘won’t be very long from now’; Russia bans 228 Australian officials; NSW records first ‘Deltacron’ cases as nation records at least 30 Covid deaths. This blog is now closed

Australian Border Force officials searched 822 travellers’ mobile phones in 2021, despite admitting it has no power to force arrivals to give them the passcode to their devices.

In January, Sydney software developer James told Guardian Australia that he and his partner were stopped on their return from Fiji by border force officials who asked them to write their phone passcodes on a piece of paper before taking the codes and their phones to another room to examine for half an hour. The phones were then returned and they were allowed to leave.

It will be a big win for the Ukrainian forces in their attempts to stare down the barbaric efforts of the Russian forces.

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Furious pensioner confronts Scott Morrison as Newcastle pub photo op backfires

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PM abused and mocked in Edgeworth pub hours after man interrupts Anthony Albanese’s Perth press conference

Scott Morrison has been berated at length by a man angry about pensions and his government’s failure to legislate a federal integrity commission, during a visit to a pub in regional New South Wales.

The prime minister on Thursday shrugged off the exchange from the night before, saying he was “keen to understand” the man’s issues and that he enjoyed hearing from people in the community.

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PM tight-lipped on election call – as it happened

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Matthew Camenzuli expelled from Liberal party after seeking leave to appeal preselections ruling in high court; Scott Morrison says he has been ‘upfront with Australian people’ about running full term; Albanese calls Berejiklian a ‘straight talker’ after second round of leaked texts; at least 23 Covid deaths recorded. This blog is now closed

New text messages from former NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian have emerged, building on former leaks and labelling Scott Morrison “obsessed with petty political pointscoring.”

News.com.au has reported it has received a second screenshot of text messages between Berejiklian and a mystery cabinet minister, in which she says she is “so, so disappointed,” in Morrison:

Thx. I’m just so so disappointed. Lives are at stake today and he is just obsessed with petty political pointscoring. So disappointed and gutted.

We’ve seen unprecedented collaboration with both the local government and state government, with support being delivered in record time … we were able to get $3bn of recovery support out, in just over the first three weeks – that’s a record number of people supported.

The PM has written to Premier Perrottet to say we’re very happy to share in costs of that program ... but the PM has made clear that it’s for the one-in-500-year flood event.

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Mark McGowan condemns ‘morons’ for displaying ads outside his home linking Labor with China

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Trucks with ads showing the Chinese president voting for Labor have been seen across Australia this week

The West Australian premier, Mark McGowan, has slammed the “idiots” and “morons” who parked a truck outside his home with a political ad linking Labor with the Chinese Communist party.

Large trucks with advertisements showing the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, voting for Labor have been seen in cities across Australia this week, depicting the CCP leader voting with a ballot reading “Labor 1” alongside the words “CCP SAYS VOTE Labor”.

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Coral bleaching under way at Ningaloo reef as Western Australia battles heat

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Every photograph of bleached corals a reminder we’re not doing enough to tackle climate crisis, conservationists say

Conservationists say they have have recorded evidence of coral bleaching under way at Ningaloo off Western Australia’s north-west coast.

It comes just as the Great Barrier Reef on the other side of the country undergoes another devastating mass bleaching event.

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Facebook a no-show in Andrew Forrest criminal case arguing West Australian court lacks jurisdiction

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Mining billionaire alleges social media giant failed to stop clickbait advertising scams using his image on its platform

Facebook believes an Australian court has no jurisdiction to hear a criminal case brought against it by mining magnate Andrew Forrest – who claims the tech giant failed to stop clickbait advertising scams using his image.

The case in the magistrates court of Western Australia is believed to represent the first time Facebook – owned by Meta Platforms – has faced criminal charges.

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Six people dead and three missing after Indonesian fishing boat capsizes off Australian coast

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Three crew members rescued by Singapore-flagged bulk carrier with one now in a critical condition in Broome hospital

Six people are dead and another three are believed to have drowned after an Indonesian fishing boat capsized off the north-west coast of Western Australia.

There were 12 people aboard when the boat, named Kuda Laut which translates to Horse Sea, capsized on Sunday evening about 180km west of Ashmore Reef.

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Labor demands Christian Porter resign before election after changes to ‘blind trust’ disclosure rules

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Porter had previously stepped down as minister after refusing to identify contributors to a trust that paid his legal fees in a defamation case

A rule change requiring federal politicians to list contributors to crowdfunding campaigns and financial trusts has reignited Labor’s call for Christian Porter to resign over his so-called “blind trust”.

But Porter has dismissed the latest Labor attack as “ridiculous”, arguing the changes are not retrospective.

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Fertiliser company urged to halt plans to remove Burrup Peninsula Indigenous rock art

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Environment minister Sussan Ley asks Perdaman not to go ahead until a review is carried out after traditional owners raise concerns

The federal government has asked a multinational fertiliser company to stop work on plans to remove Indigenous rock art from a world heritage-nominated area in the Burrup Peninsula after traditional owners raised concerns.

Perdaman is planning to build a $4.5bn fertiliser plant in Western Australia’s Burrup Peninsula. The company is already contracted to buy gas used to make the fertiliser from Woodside Energy’s Scarborough gas field.

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Australia news live updates: Palaszczuk says too late for emergency declaration in Qld; Rio Tinto ditching Russia; 21 Covid deaths

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Palaszczuk rejects Morrison’s move to declare national emergency in Queensland, where flood costs are ‘well into the billions’; Rio Tinto will terminate all contracts with Russian businesses; nation records at least 21 Covid deaths amid concerns over Omicron subvariant. Follow all the updates live

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg is being questioned about his promises to keep the cost of living down as he chats to ABC News Breakfast:

Well, we have been making policies that have been driving down the cost of living, for example, around electricity prices which are down by 8% in the last two years.

They doubled under our political opponents, but what I was referring to last night is the international events in the Ukraine have seen a spike in oil prices, and that is flowing through with some people paying more than $2 a litre.

This high and increasing burden of skin cancer emphasises the need for continued investment in skin cancer education and prevention.

We know what needs to be done. Now is the time to do it so that one day Australia is no longer considered the skin cancer capital of the world.

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WA premier described Clive Palmer as ‘the worst Australian who’s not in jail’ in text messages

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Mark McGowan also thanked media mogul Kerry Stokes for ‘marvellous front pages’ attacking Palmer in 2020, court hears in defamation case

The Western Australia premier, Mark McGowan, privately described mining billionaire Clive Palmer as “the worst Australian who’s not in jail” in text messages revealed in court during their defamation trial.

The premier was grilled on Wednesday about his personal communications regarding Palmer while being cross-examined in the federal court in Sydney.

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Australia news live updates: Qld and NSW flood death toll rises; WA Covid cases expected to surge; Japanese encephalitis cases suspected

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Queensland announces financial support of $558.5m for flood-affected communities as NSW insurance claims estimated to have hit $1bn. Follow live

There are 28 people in intensive care in Victoria at the moment, with eight on ventilators. There have been 5,721 new cases recorded in the past 24 hours.

There are 45 people in intensive care due to Covid in NSW. There were 10,017 new Covid cases recorded yesterday.

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Hugs and tears of joy at Perth airport as WA reopens its border

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‘Australia is now finally back together’ as final jurisdiction welcomes vaccinated travellers

The arrivals hall at Perth airport was filled with joy and hugs when the first planes to take advantage of Western Australia’s border reopening landed on Thursday.

After spending almost 700 days behind a hard border during the coronavirus pandemic, the “hermit” state of WA has finally welcomed vaccinated travellers.

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Australia news live updates: Perrottet urged to work with union over NSW train dispute; international border reopens; 17 Covid deaths

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Perrottet urged to work with union over NSW train dispute; Peter Dutton says all signs on Ukraine ‘pointing in one direction’; at least 17 Covid-related deaths; Australia’s international border reopen for the first time in nearly two years. Follow the latest updates live

AGL Energy has rejected a takeover bid by tech billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes and Canadian asset management giant Brookfield, saying the preliminary offer “materially undervalues the company”.

Brookfield and Cannon-Brookes’ Grok Ventures made the extraordinary offer to take over Australia’s most polluting company on Saturday, with a goal to shut its coal power plants earlier than planned.

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