Category Archives: Chris Bowen

Opposition calls for Australia to develop missiles, warning ‘lucky country’ era is over

Posted on by

Shadow defence minister Andrew Hastie warns of ‘bleak’ outlook in region as Chinese embassy condemns Australia’s ‘finger-pointing’

• Get our free news app, morning email briefing and daily news podcast

The shadow defence minister, Andrew Hastie, has called for Australia to develop and operate its own missiles, warning the era of the “lucky country” is over.

On Sunday, Hastie argued Australia needs greater deterrents given the “very bleak” strategic outlook, with a “rising China” displaying “revisionist and expansionist ambitions”.

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

Continue reading...

Labor’s climate bill set to pass with support from Greens and Bridget Archer

Posted on by

Adam Bandt says Greens will back legislation but signals further fight on new fossil fuel projects, while the Liberal MP says she’ll cross the floor

The House of Representatives is moving towards passage of Labor’s bill enshrining emissions reductions targets for 2030 and 2050 after the Greens signalled they would support the legislation and Liberal MP Bridget Archer confirmed she would cross the floor.

After weeks of negotiations, the Greens leader, Adam Bandt, confirmed on Wednesday his party would back the Albanese government’s legislation in both chambers, and king-making Senate independent, David Pocock, confirmed his priority was “getting a target locked in and legislated”.

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

Continue reading...

Labor to reshape carbon credit committee as Coalition-appointed members resign

Posted on by

Climate change minister Chris Bowen has accepted the resignation of three members of the Emissions Reduction Assurance Committee

Labor will make substantial changes to a committee responsible for ensuring the integrity of the national carbon credit system after the departure of three members appointed by the Coalition, including the chair.

A spokesperson for the climate change minister, Chris Bowen, confirmed he had accepted the resignation of three members of the Emissions Reduction Assurance Committee.

Continue reading...

Chris Bowen shares draft climate bill as independents and Greens turn up heat for more ambitious action

Posted on by

Greens call for moratorium on new oil and gas projects as some independents urge Labor not to rush major policy for political reasons

The minister for climate change, Chris Bowen, is under intensifying pressure to beef up the government’s proposed legislation enshrining emissions reduction targets, with the Greens and some independents declaring the current commitments inadequate.

Bowen met on Thursday with climate focused independent MPs and representatives from the Greens to share a draft of the bill he will introduce during the first sitting week of the new parliament. He has invited MPs and senators to suggest amendments or ideas over the coming days.

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

Continue reading...

Breaking from China’s clean energy dominance ‘imperative’, US and Australia say after new climate tech deal

Posted on by

New agreement to fast-track climate solutions signed as countries underscore need for diversified supply chains

The US and Australia have stressed the importance of breaking the near-complete reliance on China for zero emissions technology supplies while signing a new agreement that promises to accelerate the development of climate solutions.

In a joint press conference in Sydney, the US energy secretary, Jennifer Granholm, and the Australian climate change and energy minister, Chris Bowen, announced a “net zero technology acceleration partnership”, including an initial focus on long-duration energy storage and digitising power grids.

Continue reading...

Nation records 33 Covid deaths as Victoria reports fifth monkeypox case – as it happened

Posted on by

Mark Butler urges Australians to get boosters as new subvariant circulates; nation records 33 Covid deaths. This blog is now closed

Australia ‘deeply concerned by continuing erosion of Hong Kong’s rights’

Penny Wong, minister for foreign affairs, released a statement last night saying Australia remains “deeply concerned” by the continuing erosion of Hong Kong’s rights.

Australia remains deeply concerned by the continuing erosion of Hong Kong’s rights, freedoms and autonomy, two years since the imposition of the National Security Law.

The National Security Law has been applied broadly to arrest or pressure pro-democracy figures, opposition groups, the media, trade unions and civil society. The electoral reforms imposed by Beijing in 2021 have further eroded Hong Kong’s democratic governance.

This will be the fourth time the government has offered to make the changes, announced the changes, and then backtracked as a result of internal politics.

I’m just not sure where we go from here but our members are resolute. We are going to continue fighting to get these trains made safe, and we’ll do whatever it takes to make that happen.

It’s going to be a very messy day. It’ll be a weekend timetable with other trains taken out of it.

The families of the railway workers right now could be having $3,000 deposited in their account, instead of having that money spent on modifying perfectly good trains.

Continue reading...

Australia news live updates: ‘optimistic in the extreme’ to expect operational nuclear submarine by the 2030s, says Marles

Posted on by

Defence minister blames Coalition for submarine delay; NSW parliamentary inquiry into Barilaro appointment begins; David Hurley apologises for promoting builder; Chris Bowen addresses National Press Club; NSW records 11 Covid deaths, Tasmania one. Follow live

Turnbull says Albanese ‘is not Scott Morrison and that’s a big advantage’

Australia’s new prime minister will have an easier time mending relations with the French “because he is not Scott Morrison and that’s a big advantage”, the former leader Malcolm Turnbull has told journalists in Paris.

Continue reading...

Paying coal and gas plants to supply back-up energy a ‘retrograde step’, Clean Energy Council says

Posted on by

‘It’s the wrong policy debate at the wrong time,’ industry says of capacity mechanism

Australia’s peak renewable industry groups say paying coal and gas plants to remain in the electricity market as back-up capacity would be “a retrograde step”, and a lengthy debate about changes could stall much-needed new investment.

Kane Thornton, the chief executive of the Clean Energy Council, said his organisation had “real concerns” about the proposal by the Energy Security Board for a so-called capacity mechanism to be introduced after 2025. Such a scheme would charge consumers for idle generation or supply to reduce risks of potential power shortages, as experienced across eastern Australia this month.

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

Continue reading...

Senior ministers to retire before Victoria’s election – as it happened

Posted on by

Housing market posts first monthly decline since September 2020; at least 52 Covid deaths recorded. This blog is now closed

Australian scientists celebrate world first

AAP is reporting that in a world first, Australian scientists have developed a device with “exquisite precision” that they say is a huge step towards a commercial quantum computer.

This is a remarkable piece of engineering. This experiment paves the way for larger and more complex quantum systems to be emulated in future.

It won’t be long before we can start to realise new materials that have never existed before.

All of this is just a fantasy because they don’t understand what actually happens at the bargaining table.

I think the Reserve Bank governor has weirdly changed his tune, he was the one who said so long as wages keep up with inflation and productivity, they are not inflationary.

Continue reading...

National electricity market suspended as NSW residents told to conserve power to reduce blackout risk

Posted on by

Australian Energy Market Operator suspends spot market after it became ‘impossible to operate’ amid projected energy shortfalls

Australia’s main wholesale electricity market has been suspended by regulators in the latest sign that the crisis threatening the stability of energy supplies is deepening.

The Australian Energy Market Operator (Aemo) took the drastic step of suspending the entire national electricity market for the first time in its history on Wednesday.

Continue reading...

Chris Bowen warns energy generators against market manipulation amid crisis

Posted on by

Minister say he’s not aware of any specific allegations but ‘would not tolerate’ inappropriate behaviour

The energy minister, Chris Bowen, has declared any power generator using the cover of the current energy crisis to engage in market manipulation will face action from regulators wielding the “full force of their powers”.

In a wide-ranging interview with Guardian Australia’s political podcast, the new federal minister said he was not aware of any specific allegations, but he acknowledged there was often speculation about inappropriate behaviour in Australia’s energy market.

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

Continue reading...

As the temperature cools, the heat is on Chris Bowen

Posted on by

Gas shortages, reported delays to major projects and coal-fired power woes are among the gifts handed to the new energy minister

It’s a shame Chris Bowen can’t harness some of the heat from his baptism of fire as new energy minister because it could come in handy this winter.

Even before he’d been sworn in, Victoria nearly ran out of gas. This week, there were more coal-fired power woes – with AGL Energy down to six of its 11 units operating – and a new winter demand record in Queensland for electricity.

Continue reading...

Australia live news update: Wong condemns ‘reckless’ North Korea missile launches; Nine overturns order to hand over drafts

Posted on by

NSW Appeals Court throws out order requiring Nine Entertainment to hand over draft material; foreign affairs minister labels North Korean ballistic launches ‘reckless and destabilising behaviour’; stripping dual nationals of citizenship unlawful, high court rules; National Disability Insurance Agency chief resigns; Victoria records 25 Covid deaths, Queensland 15, NSW records 10 deaths, WA records eight, ACT records one. Follow all the day’s news

China’s warning to Australia

China has warned Australia to stop “provocations” or face “serious consequences” after the federal government said a Chinese jet plane was intercepted, the AFP and Guardian staff report.

The Australian military plane seriously threatened China’s sovereignty and security and the measures taken by the Chinese military were professional, safe, reasonable and legal.

We can trace Australia’s celebrated connection to the space industry back to the 1950s and as a nation we have to build on that legacy.

Continue reading...

Chris Bowen says Labor ‘actively managing’ energy crisis as Dutton criticises response

Posted on by

Bowen blames decade of inaction on renewables and limitations on gas trigger for preventing a swifter fix

Chris Bowen has rejected Coalition claims Labor is not doing enough to fix the energy crisis, labelling its input “as effective as advice from the captain of the Titanic on navigation skills”.

The climate change and energy minister told Sky News on Sunday the new government was “actively managing” the crisis but a decade of inaction on renewables and limitations on the gas trigger was preventing swifter fixes.

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

Continue reading...

Matt Canavan declares net zero by 2050 is ‘all over bar the shouting’ after PM tries to quell divisions

Posted on by

Labor earlier jumped on climate crisis split between Liberals and Nationals after Colin Boyce said emissions target had ‘wiggle room’

Queensland Nationals senator Matt Canavan has declared net zero by 2050 “all over bar the shouting” only hours after Scott Morrison attempted to hose down internal divisions – insisting the mid-century target was “absolutely” Coalition policy.

Labor criticised the “spectacular” split between inner-city Liberals and rural Nationals on the policy, criticising the Coalition for running a “fear campaign” on the opposition’s policy around coal jobs.

Continue reading...

‘Massive policy failure’: retired judges blast Morrison’s broken promise on federal Icac

Posted on by

Former supreme court judge Anthony Whealy says Coalition’s explanation for not legislating a promised anti-corruption commission is ‘spurious’

Retired judges have criticised the Morrison government’s broken promise on the federal anti-corruption commission as a “massive policy failure”, saying the Coalition’s explanation for walking away from the pledge was “spurious”.

The Coalition is under pressure over its failure to introduce legislation establishing its proposed anti-corruption commission, despite promising to do so prior to the last election.

Continue reading...

Labor leadership: Queensland MP Jim Chalmers still considering run against Albanese

Posted on by

Chalmers declares himself a possible candidate to run against Albanese after Chris Bowen pulls out of the race

The Queensland Labor rightwinger Jim Chalmers is continuing to mull whether to run for the party leadership after a coordinated show of force from the frontrunner, Anthony Albanese, prompted an early withdrawal from the ballot by Chris Bowen.

Bowen withdrew from contention and encouraged Chalmers to throw his hat in the ring only 24 hours after entering the field following a string of endorsements for Albanese from both the right and left factions over the course of Wednesday.

Continue reading...

Federal election 2019: Penny Wong and Kristina Keneally join Labor MPs backing Albanese for leadership – politics live

Posted on by

ALP searches for a new leader to replace Bill Shorten as Palaszczuk seeks Adani approval timeline by Friday. All the day’s events, live

Prime Minister @ScottMorrisonMP & I met with Reserve Bank Governor Philip Lowe in Sydney this morning.

The independent @RBAInfo helps maintain stability of our currency as well as the employment, economic prosperity & welfare of the people of Australia. pic.twitter.com/moLeByzxbK

I'm not saying "economic anxiety" isn't often a euphemism for racism. But we prob should stop wondering why Townsville people are receptive to any hope of jobs pic.twitter.com/W4ir9Xa2Di

You’ll notice how often jobs comes up in this piece. Townsville is absolutely struggling. And minor parties did make all the difference.

Related: The story behind Herbert, the most marginal seat in the country – Australian politics live podcast

Continue reading...

Federal election 2019: Labor’s Belinda Hassan target of suspected arson attack – politics live

Posted on by

The ALP’s candidate for Dawson confirms ‘scary incident’ where the fuel tank of her car was broken into. All the day’s events, live

And then it ends with this:

PK: Finally, you want to remove Josh Frydenberg, who fought hard for the National Energy Guarantee and for a compromise to move forward on climate change and energy. Is that a smart move?

Patricia Karvelas: One of the critiques of you is past involvement in Link Energy’s purchase of fossil fuel assets in 2010. Do you regret that?

Oliver Yates: I think the question is you need to see it was a company who bought them before I was even on the board. This is part of the Liberal dirt sheet. It’s round to everybody...

Continue reading...

Labor says it will match Coalition’s deposit scheme for first home buyers

Posted on by

Chris Bowen says the opposition can afford the policy because it is ‘closing loopholes’ for the wealthy

Labor will match Scott Morrison’s election pitch to first home buyers, saying it can afford to support the government’s home deposit scheme because it is “closing loopholes” for the wealthy.

After the Coalition used its campaign launch on Sunday to announce the new housing affordability measure, Labor’s shadow treasurer, Chris Bowen, criticised the government for the 11th-hour decision, but supported the proposal.

Continue reading...