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National weather forecasts
Sticking with the weather, here’s a look at the forecasts across Australia’s capital cities today:
Continue reading...New data also shows auction figures softening while rent rises are at their slowest pace in years
Australia’s housing crisis may be starting to ease with dwelling price rises tapering off and rents increasing at their slowest pace in four years, data groups say.
Property values increased 0.4% in September, close to the 0.3% rise recorded for both the previous two months, CoreLogic reported. PropTrack’s housing index was basically flat, rising just 0.04% for the month.
Continue reading...Those in the top tax bracket three times more likely to be negatively geared property investor, says economist
Negative gearing helps high-earning Australians the most, with those with income of more than $180,000 annually snaring almost one-quarter of the benefits, despite numbering just 5% of taxpayers.
Data from the Australian Taxation Office showed people who earn more than $180,000 were able to lower their collective tax bill by $1.3bn in 2021-2022 through negative gearing. The $1.3bn was roughly 25% of all the losses on rental properties claimed by taxpayers in that financial year.
Continue reading...The BoM has issued a severe weather update for parts of north-east NSW and south-east Queensland as wet and windy weather continues to batter the east coast. Follow today’s news headlines live
Dutton says PM ‘desperately hoping’ interest rates will fall
Opposition leader Peter Dutton believes Western Australia will play a crucial role in the election. He told the West Australian:
My judgment is that we’re waiting for the results to come in from WA before we know the outcome of the election this time around.
It depends on whether the prime minister’s waiting to see if interest rates come down.
He’d be desperately hoping that they come down in February of next year and he can go from there.
We live in the territory. This is our home. We are fighting to protect our water from the dangers of fracking.
Continue reading...Treasurer says it’s ‘not unusual’ for governments to get advice on ‘contentious issues’ but stresses changes to housing tax breaks are not in the works
Treasurer Jim Chalmers has conceded he did ask his department for information about possible changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax concessions, but the government insists any reform to the controversial tax breaks are not yet on the agenda.
The Independent senator David Pocock said the government had multiple options to make the system more equitable through moderate changes while still protecting investments made by ordinary families.
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The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, has joined an international push “to hold the Taliban to account” under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.
Wong says:
We know the women and girls of Afghanistan are effectively being erased from public life by the various edicts the Taliban … have issued.
The steps we are taking with Germany, Canada and the Netherlands are unprecedented. We are intending to use the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, to which Afghanistan is a party, to take action.
If I can … say again to the Australian Lebanese community. This is a deeply distressing situation for so many of you. I know that there are many Australians in Lebanon. There are many Australians who have relatives, family and friends in Lebanon. I again urge Australians in Lebanon to leave now. There are flight cancelations and disruptions, and there is a risk that Beirut airport may close for an extended period of time.
Please do not wait for a preferred route. Please take the first option you can to leave. We continue to monitor the situation closely. We have been working with partners on contingency plans now for many months but I again say to anyone who any Australian who is in Lebanon: please leave now.
Continue reading...Some politicians welcome a fresh and bold response to address affordability, while others wary of resurrecting a debate lost at the 2019 election
Some Labor MPs say the government shouldn’t be afraid of considering reforms to negative gearing, with several caucus members saying they were “open” to fresh and bolder responses to the housing crisis.
But others are wary of reopening a debate lost at the 2019 election, calling for caution amid concerns of an election scare campaign.
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Plibersek approves three coalmine expansions
We have more on environment minister Tanya Plibersek’s approval of three coalmine expansions on Tuesday from Graham Readfearn here.
There’s a range of everyday common health conditions that are unnecessarily blocking up our emergency departments and contributing to those wait times to see our precious general practitioners.
We would love to see more GPs. Who doesn’t love their local family doctor? My wife and I and our children certainly do. But we all know how difficult it is to not only find one, find one that bulk-bills, but find one that hasn’t closed their books and can take an appointment. That’s not just in the bush, that’s in our major capital cities as well, whether it’s after 6pm or on a weekend, when your local pharmacy is open.
Continue reading...There was good news and bad news as Australia’s central bank held the interest rate steady for the seventh time in a row
The good news is the Reserve Bank is all but done lifting interest rates. Less good news is that the central bank is also not about to cut them.
Those were probably the key takeaways from the RBA’s sixth board meeting of 2024 and the seventh since it last slugged borrowers with it’s last cash rate hike.
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Peter Hannam is Guardian Australia’s economics correspondent
Continue reading...Reserve Bank leaves interest rate on hold for seventh meeting in a row. Follow all the days’s headlines live
Tony Armstrong is leaving ABC News Breakfast for a new show screening in 2025. He told viewers this morning:
I just want to thank Brekky and the broader ABC News team for welcoming me in with open arms and helping me grow over the past few years. I love live TV and those moments that are unplanned and unpredictable where anything can happen. I’ve been so lucky to be surrounded by an incredible team and it’s those friendships that I’m going to cherish the most.
How blessed we’ve been to have Tone on our screens every morning, bringing the sparkle, joy and heart that only Tony can! Tony is a wonderful friend and everyone at News Breakfast is going to miss his infectious and caring nature. I know it’s meant so much to me and to thousands upon thousands of First Nations viewers waking up to see Tony representing us on the daily. Can’t wait to see what you do next, Tone! Maybe sleep?!
Continue reading...RBA decision was in line with economists’ forecasts as economy endures persistent inflationary pressures
The governor of the Reserve Bank, Michele Bullock, says she does not see interest rate cuts “in the near term” as the central bank waits for clearer evidence inflation is in retreat before it begins cutting borrowing costs.
The RBA ended its latest two-day board meeting on Tuesday by keeping its cash rate at 4.35%, the level its remained since November. The decision was as economists had expected.
Continue reading...Economic activity was ‘a little bit softer’ than central bank had predicted, one expert notes, but a rate cut still seems unlikely
How soon the Reserve Bank might cut interest rates will be the focus for borrowers and economists alike when the central bank wraps up its latest meeting on Tuesday.
Governor Michele Bullock is expected to keep the RBA’s key rate unchanged for a seventh meeting in a row, according to a survey of 45 economists by Reuters. The bank lifted the rate 13 times between May 2022 and last November.
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Gallagher says government ‘not going to be threatened’ by Greens on RBA reform
Host Patricia Karvelas:
The two groups you need talking to you are not going to deliver what you’ve asked, so [the RBA reforms are] essentially dead. I mean, you might be keeping them on the table, but no one’s picking up what you’ve got on the table.
Well, we remain committed to them, PK, and you know if – and I would say the more likely path is if Peter Dutton stops being stubborn and engages with us – there is a way through on this. I don’t know why they have dealt themselves out on this…
They know this is good, sensible policy, and I would urge them to reconsider their opinion, their position, because we’re not going to go around being threatened, having the finger wave by Nick McKim saying that the government should rip up the way the bank the fiscal and monetary policy systems have worked in this country very successfully without political interference on the monetary policy side for decades.
Well, I just think the Greens are out of control at the moment, full of self importance and out seeking populist approach to everything. It’s crazy what they’re saying to us.
So if that’s their ultimatum – and you know, it’s a bit unseemly, Nick McKim going around issuing ultimatums – you know, no, we won’t work with that, because that is crazy. It’s economically irresponsible, and we won’t do it.
They remain on the table. We’re pretty keen on them. So is the bank, and we certainly thought that the Reserve Bank support for these reforms would sway the Liberal Party… The treasurer has been working with the shadow treasurer closely on it, but they’ve dealt themselves out, for whatever reason…
Continue reading...‘It will cost more, it will push prices up, it will take longer,’ treasurer says of opposition leader’s ‘fantasy’
Coalition plans to build seven nuclear power plants are “economic insanity”, Jim Chalmers has said, in the lead-up to a speech by Peter Dutton that is expected to provide new details of the policy.
The federal opposition has outlined plans to build seven nuclear reactors across five states, should it win the next election, with the first to be built by 2035 to 2037 at the earliest.
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Continue reading...Saul Eslake says decades of ‘bad policies’ have inflated demand as report finds about 20% of households effectively ‘locked out’ of the market
Housing affordability has deteriorated over the past year to reach its worst level since records began in 1995. First home buyers now rely on wealthy families or high-income jobs to enter the market, according to the latest housing affordability report from PropTrack.
Driven by high mortgage rates and increasing home prices, affordability further deteriorated this financial year to the point where a median-income household earning about $112,000 could afford just 14% of homes sold – the smallest share since records began. This share has declined from 43% in just three years.
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Australia’s ‘sex report card’ released
The latest Australian Study of Health and Relationships was revealed at a conference in Sydney this week held by the International Union Against Sexually Transmitted Infections.
Rent assistance went up by $25 and … average rents have gone up by more than $100. What might look like a big percentage increase is, frankly, fuck all, and that’s one of the reasons that this is so upsetting.
When CRA is indexed, the amount of rent that you have to pay before you get any rent assistance increases. So the proportion of your rent, where you qualify for it, reduces if you aren’t receiving the maximum payment.
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Australia “abstained with great disappointment” on the Palestinian-drafted resolution at the United Nations general assembly in New York early this morning, the Australian ambassador to the UN has said.
The resolution – which sought to act on a recent advisory opinion of the international court of justice – was passed with 124 votes in favour and 14 against. Australia was one of 43 countries to abstain, including the UK, Canada and Germany.
That is why we abstained with great disappointment.
We wanted to vote for a resolution that directly reflected the ICJ Advisory Opinion.
Continue reading...Follow today’s news live
On the double-dissolution threat floated by Anthony Albanese yesterday, Sarah Hanson-Young says:
Again, why, why be so bullish about this? The Australian people don’t need a panicked prime minister who wants to press the exit button because he can’t get his own way.
They want a government that’s willing to work across the parliament. Now, a third of Australians voted for parties other than Labor or Liberal at the last election. And they did that because they want a parliament that works for them.
We want to fix it. We want to give the government the opportunity to fix it. I’m not just interested in saying no to things. I want to get outcomes. I guess that’s my concern.
This prime minister seems to have such a chip on his shoulder, doesn’t want to work with anyone. Just wants to do it all his way. I don’t think this is a very good sign for the future. Come on, come on, prime minister, you know, let’s put – put aside the politics and get on with getting some outcomes.
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White House marks three years since signing of Aukus agreement
Happy three-year anniversary of the signing of Aukus, to those who observe.
Three years ago, President Biden and our Australian and United Kingdom partners committed to Aukus, an enhanced security partnership that promotes a free and open Indo-Pacific that is secure and stable.
As this partnership has grown, it has strengthened the security of our allies in the region as well as our own security here at home. Over the past three years, our countries have made significant strides in supporting Australia’s acquisition of a conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarine capability.
That is bad news for Australian solar homes.
To create space for inflexible nuclear power plants ramming energy into the grid, millions of household solar systems will be the first casualty.
Solar power is already being switched off in South Australia when it makes so much free power available that it exceeds electricity demand.
Continue reading...Follow today’s headlines live
Albanese says it’s a ‘good thing’ Trump is safe after apparent assassination attempt
Anthony Albanese has responded to news about an apparent assassination attempt on Donald Trump.
Everyone wants the democratic process to be peaceful and to be orderly. This incident in the United States is of concern, again. It is good that President Trump has said that he is safe and that the incident, the details of which are still coming out, so it’s not quite clear all of those details but what is clear is that President Trump is safe. That is a good thing.
The first round of Labor’s Housing Australia Future Fund and National Housing Accord programs will deliver 4,220 social and 9,522 affordable homes, including 1,267 homes for women and children escaping domestic violence and older women at risk of homelessness.
In just the first round of these programs, the Albanese Government is directly supporting more social and affordable housing than the Liberals and Nationals did in their entire nine years in office.
Housing Australia has recommended contract negotiations for 185 projects, with construction on almost 40 per cent of the 13,742 dwellings forecast to get underway this financial year.
Round one of the programs’ funding will unlock $9.2 billion of investment in social and affordable housing across Commonwealth, State and Territory government, and the private and community housing sectors.