Category Archives: Queensland

Queensland police discipline system ‘failed’ officers sexually assaulted by colleagues, minister says

Posted on by

Mark Ryan says he is appalled by ‘disgraceful’ evidence heard at inquiry and calls for changes to system

Queensland’s police minister has acknowledged that the force’s disciplinary system has “failed” officers subjected to sexual assaults by their police colleagues.

The commission of inquiry into police responses to domestic violence last week heard how officers who perpetrated sexual assault, sexually harassed junior female colleagues or made racist or misogynistic comments often faced little to no consequences for their behaviour.

Continue reading...

Man shot dead by police in Brisbane – as it happened

Posted on by

Queensland police say officers had been called to Edmonstone Street in South Brisbane around 3pm. This blog is now closed

Treasurer says surging electricity costs will make inflation ‘hang around longer’

We brought you the grim news on the blog yesterday that the head of Alinta energy has predicated a 35% increase to retail electricity bills next year, as energy providers juggle phasing out fossil fuels alongside investment in renewables.

I think one of the reasons this inflation will hang around longer than we want it to is because there are expectations around these electricity price rises being more problematic for longer.

You’ve said the government would put the economy above politics, can you really say that’s what you doing if you leave the stage-three tax cuts in place as they are?

I can say that, and I think what people will see in the budget in two weeks’ time is some difficult decisions in difficult times.

Our job is to make sure that our budgets are perfectly calibrated to the economic conditions as we confront them.

Continue reading...

Australia news live: increased risk of floods, tropical cyclones and heatwaves, long-range forecast warns

Posted on by

The Bureau of Meteorology has released its long-range forecast for Australia’s coming severe weather season. Follow all the day’s news live

‘It’s time to move on now’: Tanya Plibersek on Andrew Thorburn saga

On Sunrise, environment minister Tanya Plibersek was asked about a war of words between Victoria premier Daniel Andrews and Andrew Thorburn, the would-be CEO of Essendon who resigned following criticism about his role as chairman of City on a Hill.

When it comes to rampant homophobia, when I lead the pride march every year, I do that with a sense of genuine concern, support and commitment.

I think the important thing here is that the fellow in question has resigned from the position, it really is a matter for the football club. It seems like they are moving on from a national perspective, the government is committed to making sure that we introduce religious discrimination laws, as we said we would. I think it’s time to move on now.

I think that his personal views should be separated from the overarching views of the church that he is involved with … I’m in the Catholic Church, it doesn’t mean I believe in every tenet of the Catholic Church. This is completely out of order and Mr Thorburn should get his job back. The whole thing looks like a total mess.

I think you always look back and think I could have done this or not. I tried to do as much as I could as prime minister in the sense that every day was precious, every day we were trying to drive big reforms forward. On sexism and misogyny I specifically regret not calling it out earlier.

I had thought when I first became prime minister that the maximum reaction to me being the first woman would be in the early days and it would wash away … I was clearly wrong on that. Knowing what I know now it was going to gather and get worse. Potentially if I called it out earlier it could have been a bit easier. You never get to run the control test in politics.

I think things have changed, I think it’s impossible to imagine a prominent woman in Australian politics would be called the things I was without it having huge negative consequences today … but we’ve still got a way to go.

Continue reading...

Extinction Rebellion protesters glue hands to prized Picasso – as it happened

Posted on by

This blog is now closed

Dutton on his answer to filling the gap should stage-three tax cuts go through

Dutton:

If you look at even post lockdowns on a month by month basis, you can see months where we’ve gone back into surplus, so the settings we have in government, our instinct as Liberals, as a Coalition when it comes to budget management are vindicated.

When you look at where we are with a 50-year low unemployment, when you look at the strength of the underlying indicators here in Australia, that is a very significant contrast to where the UK or US budget is, and this government inherited a very strong position after nine years of Coalition management.

David, we went to the last election with a promise and I’m not in the business of breaking promises. The prime minister can contemplate it. He looked the Australian public in the eye and it seems he wasn’t so genuine and that he was prepared to make that statement.

I want to see the prime minister honour his commitment and not lie to the Australian people.

Continue reading...

NSW floods: SES performs six rescues amid 63 flood warnings and continuing rainfall

Posted on by

Four defence force helicopters on standby as low-pressure system, forecast to persist until Sunday, brings flash flooding, landslides and damaging winds

Rivers in New South Wales are overflowing and emergency services have had to perform six flood rescues in 24 hours as another battering of heavy rain and thunderstorms descends on the east coast.

The third low-pressure system was forecast to persist until Sunday morning, bringing flash flooding, landslides and damaging winds strong enough to bring down powerlines and trees.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Dominic Perrottet urges people in NSW to stay out of flood water – as it happened

Posted on by

Trough tracking over NSW towards the coast is bringing intense rainfall and the risk of flash flooding, Bureau of Meteorology says. This blog is now closed

Storey warned despite blue skies in some areas this morning, heavy rain will set in from the afternoon through to tomorrow.

That heavy rain coming on top of saturated soils and catchments and dams that are already full and overflowing [we] can really see that flooding risk escalate really, really quickly. Not only riverine flooding risk, which we’re monitoring closely, but that flash flooding risk, in particular. A lot of roads may see flash flooding affecting them very, very quickly and catching people unawares.

There is definitely a flood fatigue situation across many, many parts of the state. And in particular in the west and the south of the state as well, who have been experiencing major flooding now for what feels like the best part of a year. Many areas in the west and south are still subject to major flooding as we speak, and with the heavy rains continuing in those areas in the coming days, that’s going to exacerbate that risk.

Unfortunately, the bureau’s forecasting an above-average rainfall storm and flood season, so we’re probably gonna see many more events like this over the coming months.

With the expected heavy rainfall impacting the Hunter, Greater Sydney, and Illawarra over the next sort of 24 hours, so our key focus is on that flash flooding risk in those areas.

If you are in those affected areas or travelling through those affected areas, monitor those conditions and never drive through floodwaters. A lot of roads are already flooded in many parts of the state and will be flooded in the coming 24 hours. So, make those smart decisions for yourselves and your families. And the smartest decision you can make is to never drive through those floodwaters.

Continue reading...

Third person arrested in fatal Brisbane shooting while two suspects remain on the run

Posted on by

A 38-year-old man died after being shot in the chest at close range at a home in Oxley in the early hours of Tuesday morning

A third person has been arrested after a man was shot dead in the front yard of a home in south-west Brisbane as two male suspects remain on the run.

Officers from the Acacia Ridge criminal investigation branch and homicide unit arrested the 30-year-old east Brisbane man on Friday evening after he was intercepted in a vehicle at Riverview.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Woodchipper murder trial: ‘Thou shalt not kill’ message left in letterbox of accused, Brisbane court hears

Posted on by

In recordings played in court, Sharon Graham says to co-accused ‘I don’t want to be in this house any more’

The message “thou shalt not kill” was left in a shaken Sharon Graham’s letterbox during a woodchipper death investigation, a Brisbane court has heard.

Graham, 61, and partner Gregory Lee Roser, 63, have pleaded not guilty to murder after Bruce Saunders died while working on a property north of Brisbane in November 2017.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Queensland police inquiry hears allegations of recruits being taught racism, officers being raped

Posted on by

State’s police commissioner reveals she too suffered sexual assault and harassment early in her career

Senior Queensland police officers taught racist attitudes to academy recruits, including comments about Indigenous people that “you can smell them before you see them”, recordings obtained by an inquiry have revealed.

The “distressing” evidence given to the inquiry into Queensland police service (QPS) responses to domestic violence included revelations the police service failed to discipline officers in cases where they were found to have racially abused colleagues, or made racist remarks.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is on 13 11 14 and the national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732. In the UK, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123 and the domestic abuse helpline is 0808 2000 247. In the US, the suicide prevention lifeline is 1-800-273-8255 and the domestic violence hotline is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). Other international helplines can be found via www.befrienders.org

Continue reading...

Star ‘unsuitable’ to hold a casino licence in Queensland, state government says

Posted on by

Independent review found a ‘serious dereliction’ of anti-money laundering responsibilities

Star Entertainment has been declared unfit to hold a casino licence in Queensland and will be issued with a notice to explain why it should continue to operate in the state.

Former judge Robert Gotterson’s report into the ASX-listed casino operator was released on Thursday after a public investigation into Star’s conduct in Queensland.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Australia news live: flood warnings issued as east coast braces for heavy rain and storms

Posted on by

Kieren Perkins has backed diversity in sport at the national press club and Manasseh Sogavare, the PM of Solomon Islands, is due to arrive in Australia this afternoon on a flight from Singapore. Follow the day’s news live

Fire extinguished in Sydney shopping centre

Maria Kovacic elected NSW Liberals president

The election next March will be hard fought.

Our party will be talking directly to our community, including western Sydney and the regions, about how the Perrottet Government can improve their lives and help their families.

Continue reading...

‘Fear of speaking out’: Queensland police officer’s sexual assaults went unreported for years, inquiry told

Posted on by

Counsel assisting the inquiry Ruth O’Gorman KC suggests system is ‘stacked against female victims’

A Queensland senior sergeant who was found by an internal police investigation to have committed nine sexual assaults of junior female officers engaged in unchecked problematic conduct for 16 years due to a culture that discouraged complaints, an inquiry has heard.

The commission of inquiry into Queensland police responses to domestic violence heard the man’s conduct included touching the breasts of a female subordinate, and following another into a toilet and suggesting he had come “for a blowjob”.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Sydney on track for record annual rainfall of 2.2 metres as eastern states brace for flooding

Posted on by

Flood watch alerts issued for almost 40 waterways in NSW and severe weather warning in western parts of state

Sydney is on track to set a new record for its wettest ever year, with more than two months still to go, as the city braces for another 100mm of rain over the next few days.

The soggy city has recorded 2,129mm of rain between 1 January and 4 October – just 65mm shy of the record set in 1950, when the annual total reached 2,194mm.

Continue reading...

Image of Bruce Saunders’ legs in woodchipper kept murder accused awake at night, court hears

Posted on by

Gregory Lee Roser denies feeding friend into chipper and told police in 2018 it wasn’t in his nature ‘to be nasty to people’

The image of Bruce Saunders’ legs in a woodchipper kept Gregory Lee Roser awake at night, a Queensland court has been told.

Roser, now 63, told police he “felt responsible” after Saunders died while working on a property north of Brisbane in November 2017. But Roser, in a 2018 police interview played in court on Tuesday, denied feeding his friend into the chipper, saying it was not in his nature.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

‘Shocked and saddened’: Queensland attorney general concerned by police failure to investigate alleged gang rape

Posted on by

Shannon Fentiman says she will meet with Karen Iles after raising the matter with the police minister

Queensland’s attorney general says she was “shocked and saddened” by revelations that police failed to investigate a series of alleged sexual assaults against a 14-year-old girl, and has raised the matter with the state’s police minister.

Guardian Australia revealed on Tuesday that police failed to investigate the case, lost key documents, and later wrongly told the complainant that her 2004 statement had been destroyed.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organisations. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 802 9999. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html

Continue reading...

‘Dark ages’: Brisbane lord mayor pushes for Queensland to adopt daylight savings

Posted on by

Adrian Schrinner promotes economic benefits in latest bid to change clocks, saying state is ‘letting good daylight hours go to waste’

In Hervey Bay, Paul unwittingly switched on Sunday night’s NRL grand final 60 minutes after kick-off. The game he was watching had a half to go but the result had already been decided.

Paul was among those suffering after Queensland’s reluctance to join much of the country in winding clocks forward an hour for the annual introduction of daylight savings.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Queensland government pledges to end reliance on coal-fired power by 2035

Posted on by

Annastacia Palaszczuk says state is facing a ‘climate emergency’ while unveiling $62bn energy plan

Queensland will end its reliance on coal-fired power by 2035 under a 10-year $62bn energy plan to create a clean “super-grid” of solar, wind and hydroelectric power.

In a historic announcement for a state known for its coal mining, the premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, said Queensland was facing a “climate emergency” and a bold vision was needed.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Queensland lab failed to identify DNA from nine semen samples in rape case, inquiry told

Posted on by

Commission of Inquiry into Forensic DNA Testing hears police demanded retesting, resulting in profile found to match offender

Fears crucial evidence was being missed by the government-run forensic lab prompted Queensland police to call for a thorough review of DNA thresholds.

A public hearing of the Commission of Inquiry into Forensic DNA Testing heard on Wednesday the relationship between police and the facility deteriorated as serious questions arose over testing results.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

‘Early signs get missed’: moves to support Australian families whose children refuse to go to school

Posted on by

Expert says it’s vital to change how student absences are recorded to better track school refusal

Teachers across New South Wales will learn to deal with families struggling with school refusal, with about a third of students in years 1 to 10 missing more than 90% of classes over the course of a semester last year.

But an expert on the problem said it is vital that all states and territories change how student absences are recorded to better track school refusal.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Murder accused had premonition about ‘terrible accident’ before man found in woodchipper, Brisbane court hears

Posted on by

Barry Collins says his ex-wife Sharon Graham told him someone was ‘going to get hurt’ while clearing land

Weeks before Bruce Saunders was found dead in a woodchipper, Sharon Graham had a premonition about a terrible accident, a Brisbane court has been told.

Graham, 61, and Gregory Lee Roser, 63, are on trial having pleaded not guilty to murder after the 54-year-old Saunders died when working on a property north of Brisbane in November 2017.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...