Department condemns ‘unsafe military conduct’ after laser detected coming from People’s Liberation Army Navy vessel
The lives of Australian Defence Force personnel could have been endangered after an aircraft detected a laser emanating from a Chinese ship, the Australian defence department says.
On Thursday 17 February, the P-8A Poseidon detected a laser illuminating the aircraft while in flight over Australia’s northern approaches, defence says.
Continue reading...The prime minister and the defence minister are imperilling Australia’s national security as they try to hang on to power
Too often, political journalism is the art of asking the wrong question.
We can preoccupy ourselves wondering whether or not a particular tactic will work. These are valid enough deductions, but the whole exercise can read like theatre criticism.
Continue reading...Under-pressure prime minister tells party room ‘you haven’t seen me as focused as I can be yet … I know what the path is’
Scott Morrison has urged colleagues to ramp up examples of “sharp contrast” with Labor as the opposition signalled it could support a strengthening of the character test legislation despite previously helping to scuttle the proposal in the Senate.
The prime minister has revived the Coalition’s character test bill in the hope of wedging Labor on national security in the final sitting weeks of the current parliament. Morrison is attempting to regroup politically after an internal revolt scuttled his signature religious discrimination legislation last week.
Continue reading...Uncertainty over jobs data due to Omicron; Mark McGowan says WA border reopening still to be decided; Daniel Andrews announces LGBTQ+ support package; Victoria’s Covid rules under review as nation records least 47 Covid-related deaths; Scott Morrison condemns ‘bullying’ on Ukraine border. This blog is now closed
Things get trickier when Speers asked Keneally whether Labor believes schools should be allowed to hire and fire teachers based on whether they are gay or transgender under the law.
Keneally started by saying that “Labor also supports the right of religious schools, faith-based schools to be able to hire staff, whether it is teachers or other staff, that support the mission and the values of the school.”
And so it’s straightforward with children, we think there are some slight complexities with teachers and staff that should be looked at by the Australian Law Reform Commission.”
David, let’s look at what Labor did in the parliament this week. We do believe that people of faith deserve protection from discrimination and extending the law to do that and we think that should not come at the expense of increasing discrimination to other groups of people. We also believe that students at school should be protected and that reflected in the amendments we moved and supported.
So we would like to see the government now accept that amendment that has been supported by the House of Representatives with those five Liberals crossing the floor, and they should just get this bill done. The prime minister promised some years ago to people of faith he would provide this legislative protection. He promised in writing that he would protect children. He is – if he is going to break that promise, he needs to explain it to the Australian people.
Continue reading...Debate over religious discrimination bill to continue as House of Representatives agrees to sit late; Brittany Higgins calls for Jenkins review to be implemented; nation records at least 68 deaths from Covid – follow all the day’s news
The Coalition has been sitting on a major report into the state of the care workforce in Australia since September last year, Sarah Martin reports. The report “set out to examine the needs of the care and support workforce for aged, disability, veteran and mental health care”:
I mentioned the Health Services Union’s survey earlier, in the context of the opposition hoping to wound the government over the aged care crisis.
Continue reading...Scott Morrison announces packages for aged care and NDIS as anti-vaccine protesters mass outside the National Press Club; 77 Covid deaths recorded across NSW, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia. Follow updates live
O’Neil:
A pay rise that lasts up until the next election is a cynical political ploy, because we know this plan ... will not do anything more than hold this thing together by a thread.
The truth is that the aged-care sector – the average experience of a person in aged care today is one of neglect.
The truth is that we have a crisis in aged care that has been eight years in the making.
Scott Morrison has cut aged-care funding personally as treasurer twice. One of the first actions of the incoming government was to cut the wages of aged-care staff and now we are expected to believe that this is going to make a difference?
Continue reading...Labor leader outlines election priorities; nation records 76 Covid deaths; Peter Dutton warns against Russia invasion of Ukraine; giant ram survives 4.7 magnitude earthquake in WA. Follow all the latest news
The benchmark ASX200 is set to fall 1.7% this morning, according to futures data, following further losses on overseas markets overnight.
In the US, the S&P500 fell 0.72% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq index dropped 0.43%, while London’s FTSE100 shed a whopping 2.63%.
Continue reading...Yang Hengjun was arrested in 2019 on espionage charges and his supporters fear he will be left to die of ‘medical neglect’
Australian writer and democracy activist Dr Yang Hengjun’s health is failing as he approaches three years imprisoned in China, say friends who fear he may not survive his incarceration.
Wednesday is the third anniversary of Yang’s arrest at Guangzhou airport on allegations of espionage on behalf of an unnamed foreign country. He maintains his innocence.
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Continue reading...Allies voice grave concerns about ‘erosion of democratic elements’ after overhaul of electoral system
China has accused the Australian government of “violently interfering” in its internal affairs after Australia joined with its Five Eyes allies to voice grave concerns about the “erosion of democratic elements” in Hong Kong.
Pro-Beijing candidates have been confirmed to occupy nearly every seat in Hong Kong’s new legislature after an overhaul of the electoral system that authorities said would ensure “patriots run Hong Kong”.
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Continue reading...Scott Morrison is opening the door to South Korean and Japanese travellers from Wednesday and has spoken of closer defence ties with the signing of a $1bn defence contract
Australia’s international border will open to more travellers on Wednesday, as the prime minister confirmed that his government would end the “pause” triggered by the emergence of the Omicron Covid variant.
Scott Morrison, welcoming the South Korean president, Moon Jae-in, to Canberra on Monday, said Australia would open to travellers from South Korea and Japan and also international students and skilled workers more broadly.
Continue reading...Scott Morrison says athletes will compete in next year’s Games because sport and politics should not mix
The prime minister, Scott Morrison, has confirmed Australian officials will not attend the Beijing Winter Olympics, joining the United States in a diplomatic boycott of next year’s Games and prompting accusations from Beijing of political posturing.
Morrison told reporters in Sydney it was “not surprising”, given the deterioration in the diplomatic relationship between Australia and China, that officials would not attend next year’s winter Games.
Continue reading...Honiara has awoken to a calmer scene but tension lingers as quelling the violent protests has not resolved their underlying causes
Unresolved tensions and geopolitical pressures are a volatile mix in Solomon Islands.
What began as a peaceful protest calling for the resignation of prime minister Manasseh Sogavare on Wednesday quickly descended into unrest as the crowd of about 1,000 people, many of whom travelled from the neighbouring Malaita province, grew agitated and set fire to a leaf hut in the capital Honiara’s parliamentary complex.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Acting ambassador to Australia, Wang Xining, says politicians including Peter Dutton and Tony Abbott are not serving Australia’s interests
A top Chinese diplomat has likened Australia to “a naughty guy” over the Aukus nuclear submarine deal, saying it jeopardises Australia’s peace-loving reputation and the Australian people “should be more worried”.
China’s acting ambassador to Australia, Wang Xining, said Australia would be branded as a “sabre wielder” rather than a “peace defender” as a result of the plan to acquire at least eight nuclear-powered submarines, which would also affect the nuclear non-proliferation system.
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Continue reading...Dozens of West Papuans were tortured and thrown into the sea 23 years ago. Days later, Australia knew details of the attack, yet remained silent. Evening news editor Julian Drape introduces this story about survivors and campaigners still fighting for accountability
You can read the original article here: ‘Killed like animals’: documents reveal how Australia turned a blind eye to a West Papuan massacre
China’s aggression destabilises the region and threatens democratic freedoms, Taipei says
Taiwan has hit back at the former Australian prime minister Paul Keating after he said Taiwan was “not a vital Australian interest” and labelled it a “civil matter” for China.
In an appearance at the National Press Club on Wednesday, Keating dismissed global concerns about China’s aggression towards Taiwan and criticised Australia’s growing bipartisan pushback.
Continue reading...Former Australian prime minister also says Britain ‘like an old theme park sliding into the Atlantic’ compared to modern China
The former Australian prime minister Paul Keating has denounced the US- and UK-backed plan for nuclear-powered submarines as “like throwing a handful of toothpicks at the mountain”, declaring Australia should avoid being drawn into a war with China.
The former Labor leader on Wednesday accused the major Australian political parties of losing their way on foreign policy, while dismissing the credibility of the UK’s “tilt” to the Indo-Pacific region.
Continue reading...French president criticises Scott Morrison and expresses scepticism that Aukus pact will deliver on schedule
Emmanuel Macron has accused the Australian prime minister, Scott Morrison, of lying to him over an abandoned $90bn submarine contract, in a significant escalation of tensions between Paris and Canberra.
The French president levelled the accusation in impromptu comments to Australian journalists on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Rome. He said he had a lot of “respect and friendship” for Australia and Australians, but that respect between nations needed to be reciprocated.
Continue reading...Andrew Shearer’s unreported meeting in April with Joe Biden’s top Indo-Pacific adviser may have been the clincher for the Aukus security agreement
It was late April when one of Australia’s top intelligence chiefs arrived in Washington for important talks with key officials in the relatively new Biden administration.
Andrew Shearer, a longtime foreign policy hawk and one of Scott Morrison’s most influential advisers on how Australia should position itself at a time of rising tensions with China, met with Joe Biden’s top Indo-Pacific adviser, Kurt Campbell, in the building next to the White House on 30 April.
Continue reading...Embassy in Canberra describes former Australian PM as ‘a failed and pitiful politician’ after he raised concerns that Beijing ‘could lash out disastrously’
China’s embassy in Canberra has denounced the former Australian prime minister Tony Abbott for what it called a “despicable and insane performance in Taiwan”.
On a visit to Taipei to address a regional forum last week, Abbott raised concerns that Beijing “could lash out disastrously very soon” amid growing tensions over the future of Taiwan – and argued the US and Australia could not stand idly by.
Continue reading...The former Australian prime minister uses a speech in Taipei to call on Beijing to ‘scale back the aggression’
The former Australian prime minister Tony Abbott has raised fears Beijing “could lash out disastrously very soon” amid growing tensions over the future of Taiwan – and argued the US and Australia could not stand idly by.
Delivering two high profile addresses to a regional forum in Taipei on Friday, Abbott dismissed claims that Australian officials were beating the “drums of war”, while calling on Beijing to “scale back the aggression”.
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