Category Archives: Anthony Albanese

Labor to move quickly on special envoy’s plan to combat antisemitism

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Jillian Segal to present recommendations urging government to take stronger action against abuse toward Jewish Australians

The federal government will move quickly to adopt new recommendations from the special envoy to combat antisemitism, with a suite of measures expected to include education and online safety in response to the arson attack at a Melbourne synagogue.

Jillian Segal is expected to appear alongside Anthony Albanese at an event on Thursday to present recommendations urging the government to take stronger action against abuse toward Jewish Australians.

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PM condemns ‘shocking acts’ after suspicious fire at Melbourne synagogue with 20 people inside

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Police allege a man entered the grounds at about 8pm on Friday and poured a flammable liquid on the front door

Anthony Albanese has pledged federal support for Victorian authorities after police reported a suspicious fire was lit at a synagogue in East Melbourne on Friday night.

Victoria police alleged an unknown man entered the grounds of the East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation on Albert Street at about 8pm on Friday and poured a flammable liquid on the front door of the building and set it on fire.

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Federal Labor ministers at odds over contentious NT gas pipeline decision, internal document shows

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Exclusive: Agriculture minister Julie Collins and Indigenous affairs minister Malarndirri McCarthy expressed concern over Sturt Plateau pipeline’s construction

Senior Albanese government ministers disagreed over whether a controversial Northern Territory gas pipeline should be allowed to go ahead without being fully assessed under national environment laws, an internal document shows.

An environment department brief from February shows representatives for the agriculture minister, Julie Collins, and the Indigenous affairs minister, Malarndirri McCarthy, were concerned about the impact of the Sturt Plateau pipeline’s construction on threatened species and First Nations communities.

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News live: PM secures meeting with Trump; Australian man killed in Bali

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Albanese says he will meet with US president Donald Trump to discuss tariffs. Follow today’s news live

Good morning, and welcome to today’s blog. And if you were hoping to ease into it, apologies – there’s quite a bit going on.

Prime minister Anthony Albanese has managed to shore up a meeting with US president Donald Trump. They’ll catch up on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Canada on Tuesday. Tariffs are top of the agenda, but the Aukus deal is now looking shaky so that will likely feature as well. Albanese said:

Obviously, there are issues that the US president is dealing with at the moment, but I expect that we will be able to have a constructive engagement.

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Albanese says footage of Nine journalist Lauren Tomasi being shot by LA police with rubber bullet is ‘horrific’

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The PM says he has expressed his concern to the US government over the incident that occurred during protests against immigration raids in Los Angeles

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Anthony Albanese says footage of the Nine correspondent Lauren Tomasi being shot by a rubber bullet live on air is “horrific” and he has expressed his concern to the US government.

Tomasi was shot while reporting on protests against immigration raids in Los Angeles, with the incident caught live on camera. Footage showed an officer taking aim in the direction of Tomasi and her camera operator and then firing.

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Lidia Thorpe urges Albanese to ‘do his homework’ as PM insists Dorinda Cox allegations have been ‘dealt with’

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Independent senator – who made complaint about Cox – says Labor needs to take bullying allegations in the workplace seriously

Lidia Thorpe has urged Anthony Albanese to “do his homework” on bullying allegations against Greens turned Labor senator Dorinda Cox, claiming the prime minister was “wrong” to publicly declare the matters had been dealt with.

The independent Victorian senator – previously a member of the Greens – revealed on Wednesday she had formally filed a bullying complaint against Cox in March 2023, months after she first notified the then Greens leader, Adam Bandt.

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‘We’ll determine our defence policy’: Albanese responds to US push for huge rise in spending as Hegseth stokes China fears

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Prime minister also reaffirms policy on Taiwan while hitting back at Donald Trump’s doubling of tariffs on steel and aluminium imports

Anthony Albanese has responded to the United States’ calls for a huge rise in defence spending amid fears about China, while hitting back at Donald Trump’s move to double tariffs on steel and aluminium.

On Saturday US secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, urged US allies in the region, including Australia, to “share the burden” and lift defence spending to 5% of GDP, warning that “Beijing is credibly preparing to potentially use military force to alter the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific”.

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Australia’s emissions up slightly in 2024 as Labor faces heat over ‘climate-wrecking’ gas project

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Greens leader accuses Albanese government of failing two climate tests: pollution on the rise and approving extension for North West Shelf

Australia’s climate-heating emissions increased fractionally last year as pollution from fossil fuel power plants rose for the first time in a decade, and domestic air travel and use of diesel-powered cars and trucks hit record highs.

The jump in emissions was small – just 0.05% – due to falls in pollution from other sectors. But the direction was at odds with the Albanese government’s pledge to cut pollution to reach targets for 2030 and 2050.

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Albanese to meet von der Leyen in Rome amid hopes EU free-trade deal can be revived – as it happened

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Liberals must ‘build from the bottom up’ after election disaster – Ruston

Asked why the Liberals were now reviewing their embrace of the Paris climate agreement under the former government of Scott Morrison, Ruston says the walloping voters handed the party meant “absolutely everything” was up for review.

To be quite frank, we have to build from the bottom up again because that election result was quite disastrous for the Liberal party and we need to be open and honest with ourselves about what we need to take forward so that we are meeting Australia where they are and not talking about where we are.

Clearly we need to be doing something different. I think, you know, keeping an open mind, making sure we’re honest and open with that analysis of what went wrong, and actually come out with a policy proposal and a modern Liberal party, still maintaining all of the values that we hold so dearly.

Oh God, no, no, anything but, please. We have been there before many times over the past 20 years or so and to reopen the climate wars, as you aptly describe them, is like reopening an old wound.

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‘Tears blur my vision’: Australian writer jailed in Beijing thanks Albanese for support in emotional letter

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Yang Hengjun writes he can ‘only use a silent voice to thank you and all the people who care for and love me’

Jailed Chinese-Australian academic Yang Hengjun has written to Anthony Albanese from his prison cell in Beijing, thanking him for repeatedly expressing Australia’s “grave concerns” about his deteriorating health to Chinese officials.

Yang, who was given a suspended death sentence by a Chinese court in February 2024 after already serving five years in detention on espionage charges that he denies, told the prime minister “words are now failing me”.

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Guardian Essential poll: PM’s approval rating surges amid calls to hurry upd housing and health reform

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More than 40% of voters say Labor’s large majority should encourage Anthony Albanese to get more ambitious with policies in key areas

Anthony Albanese’s personal approval rating has spiked off the back of his election win, as an overwhelming majority of Australians call on Labor to rapidly initiate health, housing and energy reform.

More than 40% of voters say Labor’s large parliamentary majority should encourage Albanese to set out an even more ambitious schedule of reform, according to the latest Guardian Essential poll. The prime minister’s popularity has risen to its highest level for a year, the poll showed.

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Australia news live: Anthony Albanese says Tanya Plibersek ‘very positive’ about new role after being shifted from environment portfolio

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Labor’s Tanya Plibersek has avoided comment about her ministerial desires or expectations, offering little other than general remarks when pressed this morning on the issue of the forthcoming cabinet announcement from Anthony Albanese.

Plibersek, who previously held the environment portfolio, told Sunrise this morning that cabinet decisions were “completely a matter for the prime minister” and that she was just “very grateful” to be on the front bench, and to have won the election, and to get to do “a good job for the government and for the people of Australia” again … and, well, you get the idea.

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Anthony Albanese reveals new cabinet with Tanya Plibersek named as minister for social services

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PM has named his new frontbench, including Michelle Rowland as the new attorney-general, after a factional brawl over positions

Tanya Plibersek has been named the minister for social services as the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, revealed his new frontbench after Labor’s emphatic election victory.

The biggest changes in the new cabinet include Michelle Rowland, as the new attorney-general; health minister Mark Butler getting the NDIS added to his portfolio; Amanda Rishworth being named the new employment and workplace relations minister; Anika Wells being promoted to the communications portfolio; and Murray Watt taking on the environment portfolio.

Richard Marles – deputy prime minister, minister for defence

Penny Wong – minister for foreign affairs

Jim Chalmers – treasurer

Katy Gallagher – minister for finance, minister for the public service, minister for women, minister for government services

Don Farrell – minister for trade and tourism, special minister of state

Tony Burke – minister for home affairs, minister for immigration and citizenship, minister for cybersecurity, minister for the arts

Mark Butler – minister for health and ageing, minister for disability and the national disability insurance scheme

Chris Bowen – minister for climate change and energy

Catherine King – minister for infrastructure, transport, regional development and local government

Amanda Rishworth – minister for employment and workplace relations.

Jason Clare – minister for education

Michelle Rowland - attorney general.

Tanya Plibersek – minister for social services.

Julie Collins – minister for agriculture, fisheries and forestry

Clare O’Neil – minister for housing, minister for homelessness and minister for cities

Madeleine King – minister for resources, minister for northern Australia

Murray Watt – minister for the environment and water

Malarndirri McCarthy – minister for Indigenous Australians

Anika Wells – minister for communications, minister for sport

Pat Conroy – minister for defence industry, minister for Pacific Island affairs

Anne Aly – minister for small business, minister for international development, minister for multicultural affairs

Tim Ayres – minister for industry and innovation, minister for science

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Australia news live: Littleproud says Canavan leadership challenge ‘healthy’; teen caught with knife and fake gun outside AFL match

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Nationals leader applauds his colleague for having the courage to put up his hand. Follow today’s news live

Nationals leader David Littleproud is backing his record to hold on to the party’s top job as he faces a challenge from a fellow Queenslander.

The minor Coalition party faces a leadership tussle after Queensland senator Matt Canavan threw his hat in the ring.

We shouldn’t get upset about democracy taking place.

This is healthy for our democracy.

From my perspective, I still think I have a contribution to make and I want to do so. Someone once said that success isn’t final, failure isn’t fatal and the courage to continue is what matters. Here I am, a Labor MP quoting Churchill on Insiders. That’s where we’ve got to.

Indeed. Can I say, the party has given me great opportunities. Its faith in me, particularly with my faith, allowed me in part to make and break records, I’ve challenged the status quo and conservativism. It provides hope and aspiration for others. I want to be part of that.

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Sarah Witty v Adam Bandt: how an unlikely Labor champion took down a Greens giant

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Melbourne was barely on the ALP’s radar as a seat it could win – but a sparsely funded campaign proved powerful

Labor could hardly be considered a metaphorical David in most federal election contests. But in the progressive seat of Melbourne, where the now-beaten Greens leader Adam Bandt had reigned for 15 years, there are similarities to the oft-told biblical story.

On 28 March, when Anthony Albanese called an election date for May, Melbourne appeared on no one’s list as a battle to watch.

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Victorian Labor was bracing for a federal backlash – now Jacinta Allan sees vindication

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Despite relentless commentary about the premier’s unpopularity, the state swung even harder to Labor than in 2022, while the Liberal party blame game has begun

If anyone is as happy as Anthony Albanese right now, it’s Jacinta Allan.

As the federal election results rolled in on Saturday night, one of the biggest surprises came in Victoria – where Labor defied months of grim predictions to strengthen its grip on the state.

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Simon Birmingham calls out ‘broken’ Liberal party model as Sussan Ley says Coalition reflecting on results ‘with humility’ – as it happened

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Littleproud on Labor: ‘They’re a slick machine’

Finally, David Littleproud is asked about what impact Donald Trump had on the outcome after Labor sought to tie Peter Dutton to the US president throughout the campaign.

What Anthony Albanese and the Labor team were able to was to really tap into these sorts of issues and then paint a bigger picture and destroy his character.

I think there’s a lesson in how they (Labor) did politics. They did it a lot better than us, and you’ve got to acknowledge that they’re a slick machine.

I think it’s part of the contagion of the way in which American politics has infused its way in to Australian politics, but very few people would have seen this coming and would have seen it coming certainly to the extent that it has happened.

My own view is that it’s an awful influence on Australian politics and something that we would do well to repudiate. Notwithstanding, you know the strength and the warmth and the importance of the relationship with the United States, in my opinion, Donald Trump does not have a role in relation to Australian domestic politics and we would do well to make that clear.

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Australian election: Anthony Albanese claims a piece of history as scale of Labor victory stuns raucous crowd | Josh Butler

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The Australian prime minister is the first to be re-elected since John Howard – and becomes one of Labor’s biggest heroes

It might have been the surprise packet of the night, but Labor picked up as early as January that it had a sniff in Dickson.

Early in the evening – hours before Anthony Albanese raised workers’ rights, housing, gender equality, childcare, the NDIS and Indigenous reconciliation as the priorities of his second-term Labor government – the hundreds-strong crowd at his election night party grew round-eyed as results from Dickson started pouring in on the television screens.

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As Australia heads to the polls, big parties brace for rise of independents

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The soft, undecided and swinging voters are at an all-time high in Australia, while support for the centre-left Labor and conservative-leaning Coalition is low

More than 18 million Australians will head to the polls this Saturday to choose between the incumbent centre-left Labor party and its conservative-leaning Liberal/National Coalition challenger.

But about one in three voters will brush off the major contenders – led by the current prime minister, Anthony Albanese, and the opposition leader, Peter Dutton – in favour of someone else altogether, in an election marked by a cost of living crisis and the spectre of Donald Trump.

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Australia election 2025 live: Peter Dutton to reveal Coalition policy costings; house prices rise again

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Coalition claims it will save $10bn more over four years compared with Labor. Follow today’s news live

Good morning and welcome to our live election blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then Krishani Dhanji will take over.

Our top story this morning is on the “handshake” deal by the Nationals to move One Nation up its preference list that could help win the New South Wales electorate of Hunter. The deal has been made despite Pauline Hanson’s candidate being known for calling public health officials “little Hitlers” and promoting a conspiracy theory that the climate crisis has been used to control every aspect of people’s lives.

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