Category Archives: Sydney

Key documents relating to John Barilaro’s appointment to a New York trade role to be released

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The opposition had successfully moved to recall the upper house over the delayed release of documents

Key documents relating to the appointment of former New South Wales deputy premier John Barilaro to a New York trade role will be released as the government scrambles to head off a recalling of parliament.

The opposition moved to recall the upper house for a Friday sitting over the delayed release of documents requested by an inquiry into the appointment, before the Department of Enterprise, Investment and Trade agreed to hand some over on Monday afternoon.

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Australia news live; treasurer says fuel excise cut ‘too expensive to continue’; Denis Napthine resigns as NDIA chair; 31 Covid deaths

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Gorgeous images coming through from Tasmania where snow has fallen this morning.

NSW premier Dominic Perrottet is on ABC Radio following the national cabinet meeting which has seen emergency isolation payments reinstated.

If the state is taking away people’s liberty, then the state has an obligation to provide financial support.

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Fan who appeared to urinate from SCG roof given life ban by Rugby Australia

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Wallabies fan who made his way to roof during third Test against England charged by police and condemned for ‘deplorable’ behaviour

Rugby Australia has condemned the “deplorable” behaviour of a Wallabies fan who climbed up the big screen during Saturday’s third Test against England and appeared to urinate from the roof of the SCG.

The intruder, who made his way to the roof of the Bill O’Reilly stand during the second half of the series decider, was charged by police after the game in Sydney and on Monday RA handed him a lifetime ban.

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Sydney’s North Cronulla beach almost vanishes after wild weather causes severe erosion

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A lifeguard tower was left teetering on a cliff edge and had to be relocated, after constant huge swells battered the shoreline

Part of Cronulla beach has been closed to the public for safety reasons after a lifeguard tower was left teetering on a cliff edge and had to be relocated, after constant huge swells eroded the beach.

Weeks of rain and wild weather have severely eroded beaches in some coastal regions of New South Wales.

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End of rapid Covid test and telehealth subsidies criticised – as it happened

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Payments extended to eight more local government areas and sped up to prioritise victims over auditing; free Covid rapid tests for concession card holders to end this month. This blog is now closed

A new campaign has launched today to tackle racism by the Australian Human Rights Commission.

Chin Tan, the race discrimination commissioner, was on ABC Radio this morning discussing the campaign he says calls on all Australians to reflect on the causes and impacts of racism, not only on its victims but Australia’s collective wellbeing as a society.

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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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At least 77 Covid deaths; Albanese pays tribute to Abe; NSW counts cost of floods – as it happened

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Foreign minister Penny Wong meets her Chinese counterpart in Bali, breaking three years of diplomatic hostility. This blog is now closed

Collaery case: ‘only stress if you’re being shot at’

One of the biggest stories of the week was the announcement from the attorney general, Mark Dreyfus, that the government would drop its long-running case against lawyer Bernard Collaery.

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NSW floods: government names recovery coordinators as rain and big surf set to return

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Sunshine broke over flood clean-up efforts in areas west and north of Sydney and Sunday rainfall is unlikely to cause further flooding

Flood waters and river levels dropped in areas west and north of Sydney on Saturday as sunshine broke over clean-up efforts at thousands of homes and businesses.

The New South Wales government named two coordinators to oversee recovery efforts and said inspections of 2,285 premises so far had found 239 were not liveable.

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Man charged after nine-year-old girl is shot and injured in Sydney

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Girl suffers non-life-threatening injuries after being shot outside her home in the southern suburb of Connells Point

A man has been charged after a nine-year-old girl was shot outside a home in Sydney’s south.

The child was rushed to hospital with non-life threatening injuries as the state’s anti-bikie and organised crime squad hunted for the alleged gunman.

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Federal government pledges $1,000 disaster payment for NSW flood victims as threat moves north

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Deluge moves to Hunter and mid-north coast as Anthony Albanese announces one-off payment to people in 23 areas

The federal government will provide one-off $1,000 payments for people in 23 flood-affected areas across New South Wales, the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, announced on Wednesday, as the flood threat moved north.

Rain eased in areas of Sydney hit by flooding but concern remained for the state’s Hunter and mid-north coast regions, with flooding expected to continue into Wednesday evening.

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More major warnings issued as focus turns to mid-north coast – as it happened

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Sussan Ley criticises Labor over flood response

Deputy Liberal leader Sussan Ley is upping the Coalition’s attacks on the Labor government over the floods, asking why they haven’t activated disaster recovery payments for affected residents.

We have already announced a wide range of support for people but I think it’s fair to assume that there will be more coming.

I can’t commit to anything specific like that but what I can tell you is that from the weekend, I began talking with our authorities about what we could do to make sure that any disaster support we approved got out the door quickly.

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Rain relief for Sydney as storms move north, but BoM still forecasts wetter than average winter

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Conditions set to ease from Thursday as scientists predict ‘increasingly common’ intense weather events as a result of global heating

Sydneysiders can expect some much-needed relief from the deluge that has swamped the city, as conditions begin to settle from Thursday, but the north of the state may be next in line for a drenching.

Record rainfalls have been hammering the NSW coastline all week, resulting in more than 100 evacuation orders being issued and 23 local government areas being declared natural disaster zones.

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Australia live news: Jacinda Ardern meets Daniel Andrews; NSW floods ‘far from over’ as Sydney rain continues; RBA interest rates announcement

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Jacinda Ardern meets with Daniel Andrews; Dominic Perrottet warns heavy rain forecast in NSW; federal disaster payments available to 23 flood-affected areas; RBA interest rate decision due; Victoria records 16 Covid deaths, NSW records 14, Queensland records 11. Follow the day’s news live

The federal government is making disaster relief payments available to 23 flood-affected areas in NSW, with emergency management minister Murray Watt saying the assistance would be “uncapped”.

Watt announced early on Tuesday that the federal and NSW governments were making assistance available through the commonwealth-state disaster recovery funding arrangements.

These are uncapped payments, they are demand-driven and they will be available for anyone who qualifies.

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Efforts to move cargo ship stranded off Sydney suspended after tow lines snap in wild weather

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MV Portland Bay anchored in a sheltered position after wind and torrential rain prevented towing the ship to safety

Efforts to tow the stricken cargo ship MV Portland Bay to deeper waters were suspended overnight after lines being used to pull the vessel broke in extreme weather.

As wild winds and torrential rains continued to lash Sydney’s coast, it could be Wednesday before it was safe to tow the 170-metre ship into port.

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NSW floods: Sydney braces for two more days of flooding as state smashed by rain and wind

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SES perform 252 flood rescues overnight and thousands urged to evacuate as threat of inundation remains in Hawkesbury and Nepean

The New South Wales State Emergency Service reported more than 5,300 requests for assistance on Monday night, including 252 flood rescues, mainly of drivers stuck in cars and residents needing to be relocated.

The wild weather continued in NSW through the night, with heavy rain and strong winds lashing the state.

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Australia news live: man drowns as Sydney floods continue; NSW SES commissioner warns area dams above 100% capacity

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Man drowns after boat capsizes in Abbotsford; vaccination mandates to ease on international flights; PM says ADF available as thousands are urged to evacuate in Sydney flood crisis; 30 Covid deaths recorded nationwide. Follow all today’s news, live

Karvelas asks about that time Pocock was arrested for chaining himself to mining equipment to protest against a coalmine expansion in New South Wales and whether, given this history, whether he could support legislation that would allow the construction of new mines.

Pocock answers that the IPCC was “very clear” that keeping warming below 2C means “we can’t approve and open up new fossil fuel projects” but adds “we have to actually be getting targets in place and then having the policy to have an orderly transition to renewables”.

My sense is that the community does want something legislated. We actually have to be able to legislate something and move forward and so I’m committed to being constructive when it comes to action to make sure we legislate something, and look at other ways how to ramp that up over time but crucially to be looking after regional communities who have relied on fossil fuels for generations.

In terms of the 43%, I have been very open saying that I’d like to see a higher target, but my sense is that what Australians really want is a target to be legislated. We have to actually bank some of these gains and I want to see a target with integrity. There’s some real concerns about the way that we’re actually getting to whatever target we set and that will be my focus.

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Sydney flooding: communities evacuated and residents rescued as torrential rain batters region

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NSW State Emergency Service issues emergency alert text messages as severe weather threatens low-lying areas

Thousands of people in low-lying areas around Sydney are being asked to evacuate as residents and holiday-makers face “dangers on multiple fronts” in the region’s third major flooding event since March.

Emergency services minister Steph Cooke warned affected communities between Newcastle and Batemans Bay needed to be prepared to evacuate “at short notice” and should reconsider travel plans as an east coast low set in.

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Driving rain batters NSW coast as authorities warn of flooding and landslips

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WaterNSW is preparing for Warragamba Dam to spill after days of persistent rain pushes water levels to capacity

New South Wales residents are being warned the current bout of wet weather hitting the east coast is only going to get worse, with more rain, powerful winds and surging seas on the way.

Two Australian Defence Force helicopters have been made available to assist with rescues as areas of the state brace for intense rainfall and possible flooding.

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Airport chaos disrupts holiday plans of hundreds of thousands of Australians

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Technical issues, wet weather, school holidays and staff shortages blamed for long queues

As airport queues stretched out the door on Saturday wreaking havoc on the holiday plans of hundreds of thousands of travellers, Sydney airport said people arriving too far in advance for their flight was exacerbating problems caused by wet weather, school holidays and continuing staff shortages.

In Sydney, Guardian Australia understands there were technical issues with luggage check-in systems across several domestic airlines on Friday and Saturday, which have contributed to long queues at baggage drops.

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