What we learned today, Tuesday 27 June
With that, we’ll wrap up our live coverage of the day’s news. Thanks for joining us today.
Here’s a summary of the main news developments:
A key figure in Australia’s cocaine trade was shot dead in his car in Sydney’s eastern suburbs today, with police treating the killing as an organised crime hit. Police believe two shooters were involved in the murder. The investigation remains ongoing.
A 14-year-old boy killed in suburban Melbourne was hit by a car and knifed by two attackers wearing masks, in what Victorian police called “a targeted assault”.
South Australian police have launched a murder investigation into the “suspicious death” of a 17-month-old baby named Ronan.
Greens housing spokesperson Max Chandler-Mather said that talk of a double dissolution in the Senate over a housing bill was “just politics”.
Modelling along the planned flight paths for Western Sydney airport suggest suburbs will face vacuum-level noise 100 times a day by 2040.
The Victorian government has declared Taylor Swift’s tour a major event, meaning ticket scalpers won’t be able to inflate the resale price of tickets.
Senator Katy Gallagher’s office was vandalised, and a man was arrested at the scene. She said her “office remained open”, and the Guardian understands no one was injured in the incident.
Parts of Australia’s outback are receiving months’ worth of rain over a couple of days as an unusual and extensive rain event douses what is typically the dry season.
Updated
PM launches Labor's Fadden byelection campaign
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, is speaking at the Labor campaign launch for the Fadden byelection.
Given outgoing MP Stuart Robert’s healthy 10.6% margin, the speech is big on the underdog rhetoric, with Albanese recognising “the odds we are up against” and “how hard this mountain will be to climb”.
While boosting Labor’s candidate Letitia Del Fabbro, Albanese also had a sizeable swing at Robert’s record on Robodebt.
He said:
Letitia Del Fabbro understands that running in a safe LNP seat is hard work at the best of times. In a federal byelection under the national spotlight, it’s even tougher. But Letitia has never been afraid of hard work. She doesn’t back down from tough challenges. She wants her community to have a genuine choice at this by-election – and she wants her community to be represented by someone with integrity.
After all, let’s remember why we are having this byelection. Stuart Robert is resigning from parliament having presided over one of the most shocking and cruel failures in the history of Australian politics: robodebt. Ripping the humanity out of human services. Stripping the social justice from social security. Targeting vulnerable people – and bragging about it. That’s the sort of person Peter Dutton thought was good enough for his shadow ministry. And that’s the sort of candidate the LNP thought was good enough for your community ...
Stuart Robert spent his time in parliament serving himself. Letitia Del Fabbro is running to serve her community. Stuart Robert personified all the worst qualities of Scott Morrison’s government. Letitia Del Fabbro exemplifies the very best of the Australian character.
At the robodebt royal commission, Robert admitted defending the program despite his personal misgivings, while the government sought legal advice. Robert denied any wrongdoing in the administration of the program.
Robert has also come under scrutiny in parliament over allegations he had helped lobbying firm Synergy 360 win contracts for its clients. Robert has previously denied any wrongdoing, rejecting any “implied imputation” that he had influenced procurement, declaring he had “zero involvement” and that departmental procurement was conducted with the “highest levels of probity”.
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The minister for emergency management, Senator Murray Watt, has tweeted in support of the Australians currently in Canada helping the nation fight disastrous wildfires:
Australians know the hardship and loss caused by bushfire.
— Senator Murray Watt (@MurrayWatt) June 27, 2023
That’s why right now there are hundreds of Australians in Canada helping to fight wildfires. pic.twitter.com/MhXup6Sjqg
The senator said:
To those who’ve made the trip, we thank you for your willingness to help our Canadian friends in their time of need. We can’t wait to welcome you back home after a tough few weeks.
Updated
African, Middle Eastern and Indigenous community leaders are calling for the Andrews government and Victoria police to review Covid fines after a report revealed ethnic minorities and First Nations people were more likely to receive infringements for breaching lockdown rules.
Read more from my colleagues Adeshola Ore and Benita Kolovos here:
Catch up on today’s biggest headlines so far with this wrap from my colleague Antoun Issa:
Pat Conroy to visit Pacific nation of Palau
The minister for the Pacific, Pat Conroy, says he will travel to Palau this week to deepen Australia’s relationship with the nation and celebrate key development project milestones.
In a statement, Conroy said:
I look forward to meeting President Surangel Whipps Jr and members of the government of Palau to discuss important bilateral and regional issues, including regional unity, connectivity and security.
I will visit two critical infrastructure projects supported by the Australian Infrastructure Financing Facility for the Pacific.
Australia is deeply committed to working in partnership with the Pacific family to achieve our shared vision of a peaceful, prosperous and resilient region.
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NSW premier addresses Bondi Junction shooting at parliament
The New South Wales premier, Chris Minns, has assured the public the “full force of the law” will be used to bring the criminals involved in the Bondi Junction shooting to justice.
Speaking at parliament on Tuesday, Minns said he had been distressed to hear that people had witnessed the aftermath of the crime:
This was a very public, violent crime and we’ve been assured by the NSW police that it will be met with the full force of the law. There is a major police investigation currently taking place in Sydney’s eastern suburbs and I’ve got no doubt that senior police in great numbers are focusing on this crime as we speak.
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Anthony Albanese has shared some photos on social media from today’s Gold Coast tourism roundtable:
Today's Gold Coast tourism roundtable hosted by Paul Donovan brought together so many of the industry leaders who make all that possible. @MayorTomTate and I discussed how we make sure even more people get to experience this beautiful part of the country for themselves. pic.twitter.com/bO5AKxOADc
— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) June 27, 2023
Updated
Defence still withholding politicians’ VIP jet use details as review over ‘security concerns’ continues
The Australian government is still trying to decide whether to resume publishing details about the use of taxpayer-funded VIP jets by politicians, two years after it ceased disclosing them to the public.
The defence force operates a fleet of VIP business jets, which can be used by the prime minister and ministers to travel the country. Ordinarily, defence tells parliament and the public how the jet fleet has been used to ensure transparency and accountability. The jets cost more than $4,000 an hour and have been the source of repeated controversies and travel rorts.
The defence department ceased publishing details of their use in mid-2021, citing a need to review the practice due to “security concerns”.
Guardian Australia understands that the review process, jointly undertaken with the finance department and federal police, is still not concluded, almost two years on.
The defence minister, Richard Marles, is waiting for the review before deciding whether to return transparency to the use of the jet fleet. In the meantime, the public has been left blind to how the VIP jets are being used by MPs and ministers.
The independent expenses watchdog, which recovers costs from MPs in cases where they were not entitled to free use of the aircraft, has also had information withheld by the defence department since 2021.
Updated
Staff pulled from Sydney’s strategic planning agencies
Two independent commissions tasked with overseeing and aligning city-shaping planning across the Sydney metropolis will soon be without most of their planners, AAP reports.
Almost 350 planners from the Greater Cities Commission and Western Parklands City Authority will soon be shifted to the state’s planning department.
It comes as NSW addresses a housing shortage made more stark by building fewer homes than Victoria and Queensland.
The NSW premier, Chris Minns, told reporters on Tuesday:
We’ve had more agencies and departments than ever before, yet processing times are at their slowest point in nearly a decade.
Something has to give and this rationalisation of the Department of Planning will make, we hope, a big difference in planning decisions in NSW.
He said the move would remove duplicity and focus planners on delivery.
Average planning processing times have recently blown out to 116 days, and the state’s productivity commission in May outlined how NSW had only built six homes per 1,000 residents in the past three decades.
Victoria and Queensland built about eight and nine homes per 1,000 residents respectively.
The Greater Cities Commission, formerly the Greater Sydney Commission, had been delivering a strategic plan for the Six Cities model, the future of the greater Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong metropolis.
Remaining staff and commissioners will continue that work.
Planning work for the new Bradfield city near the Western Sydney airport will shift to the planning department from the Western Parklands city authority, which retains responsibility for attracting fresh investment to the area.
No jobs will be lost as a result of the changes.
Updated
Offshore processing pricetag ‘up to governments of the day’: Lisa Chesters
Labor MP Lisa Chesters is asked about the $420m pricetag attached to maintaining offshore detention:
It is part of regional processing. The Labor party had this debate at our conference quite a few years ago and said we need to have regional processing.
Just seeing what is happening in Europe is a reminder – we don’t want people getting on to leaky boats and risking their lives, as we have seen tragically in Europe in the past few weeks.
The pricetag is up to governments of the day to negotiate, there are contracts in place … We don’t comment on the day-to-day operational sovereign borders but the principle is there that we have regional processing as a deterrent to move people through quickly.
That is what we have seen from our government since coming in. It is now resolved. Those other matters about the pricetag will be worked out government to government.
Updated
‘Ideally, you don’t want to see it utilised,’ says Bridget Archer on offshore detention
Liberal MP Bridget Archer tells the ABC that there is broad agreement that “we don’t really want to see people held in offshore detention”, but she is “not sure what the alternative is” as a “key plank” of Australia’s border policy.
When asked about the last refugee leaving Nauru, she said:
I think it is very pleasing to see people transferred from Nauru. I think there [is] broad agreement that we don’t really want to see people held in offshore detention … This is one of those areas of bipartisanship, that there is a commitment to offshore processing being a key part of sovereign borders.
Ideally, you don’t want to see it utilised, but at the same time, I think the flipside of that is it comes at a cost to maintain in the event it does needs to be used or that it’s used as a deterrent.
… I am not sure what the alternative is to continue to remain as a key plank of that sovereign borders.
Updated
Hawkeis not sent to Ukraine as they are ‘very new’ to Australian armed services, says Labor MP
The Labor MP Lisa Chesters is speaking on the ABC about Australia’s $110m support package for Ukraine, announced yesterday.
A critique from the opposition was that Australia’s support package didn’t include Hawkei vehicles, which Ukraine have been requesting. Chesters represents Bendigo, where Bushmasters and Hawkeis are manufactured, and said she has insight on the matter:
It’s a very new vehicle, the army commissioned Bendigo to build the Hawkei and it’s only just recently – and including up until today – being handed over to the army.
I can see why they were reticent about that particular vehicle, it’s only very new to our own Australian armed services.
Updated
Double dissolution talk over housing bill debate ‘just politics’: Chandler-Mather
Chandler-Mather is asked whether the Greens contemplated, when setting this date in October for the Senate to revisit the Haff bill, that this could be an initial step towards a double dissolution election trigger?
He replied:
No, I think a lot of that was just politics. The prime minister has now said governments should serve their full terms.
Jennett (host):
You can have both, can’t you? Double dissolution trigger and serve a full term.
Chandler-Mather:
Sure. I think our frustration is, what we would like to do is negotiate with the government in good faith to work out a plan that starts to tackle the scale of the housing crisis and does something for the one-third of this country who rent.
It is on them if they want to try and use this as some sort of political threat, but what I would point out is the vast majority of this country wants real substantial action on the housing crisis and do support caps on rent increases.
Updated
Rent freeze would give tenants ‘a bit of light at the end of the tunnel’: Chandler-Mather
Chandler-Mather said what the Greens want to see in October, when the Haff bill is debated, is a plan that caps and freezes rent increases to give people “a bit of light at the end of the tunnel”.
Afternoon Briefing host, Greg Jennett, asks:
How many states are you engaging with, if you want to carry forward this agenda with them?
Chandler-Mather:
We reached out to all the states [via letters]. Have not heard back from any of them yet.
But our point to the federal government is the prime minister chairs national cabinet, and national cabinet right now is considering harmonising national renters’ rights and what we’ve said to them is take leadership of that national cabinet where all but one of those seats on the table is held by the Labor party and do what you did with energy prices and coordinate caps on rent increases.
There is absolutely no reason – the vast majority of the country agrees we are in the worst rental crisis in generations. The Reserve Bank of Australia and Philip Lowe have said the rents are going to go up even faster over the next 12 months than they did over the previous 12 months.
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Labor ‘should be doing so much more’ on housing, Chandler-Mather says, citing 60% support for rent freeze
The Greens housing spokesperson Max Chandler-Mather is speaking on the ABC, arguing that there is “no real barrier” to the Labor party taking “serious action” on the housing crisis.
We know 60% of Australia now support a freeze on rent increases. 68% of Australians think the federal government is not doing nearly enough to tackle the scale of the housing crisis. I think that should give Labor confidence to come to the table with the Greens and negotiate a plan to cap rent increases and spend what amount of money on building public and affordable housing.
… Back in the day, federal government played a leading role in large-scale investment in public and affordable housing, which is why we were pleased we managed to get $2 billion out of a government over the next two years to build on social housing. But they should be doing so much more in the middle of the worst housing crisis in generations and look, the vast majority of Australians agree.
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Councils and state planning ministers must preserve noise buffers around airport: transport minister
The transport minister, Catherine King, is speaking on the ABC about Western Sydney’s proposed flight paths.
King says the first thing that must be taken into consideration is safety:
In terms of the design principles we have developed, we are particularly trying to minimise the amount of noise over residential areas as well as trying to keep the noise out of those late nights as much as we possibly could, bearing in mind this is a fairly constrained space given that there are already existing flight paths in the area.
King adds that it is up to local councils and state planning ministers to protect buffers around airports when planning housing developments:
When we are looking forward into any planning of housing development around this airport, this airport will continue to grow.
Over the next 30, 40, 50 years it will continue to grow, and it will be incumbent upon local councils and state planning ministers to really make sure we protect those buffers around this airport because otherwise you do get long-term problems with noise when you are developing airports.
But our job now is to try and make sure, as we go forward with these flight paths, as we get towards the opening of this airport in 2026, is to do the best job we can to lower the impact on people. Obviously, the impact is going to be louder or stronger for people who are closer to the runway, and again, we will work through with each of these residents as we go forward in the environmental impact statement process for this airport.
You can read more on the issue here:
Updated
'Suspicious death’ of 17-month-old being investigated by SA police
South Australian police have launched a murder investigation into the “suspicious death” of a 17-month-old baby named Ronan, officers from the major crime investigation unit announced on Tuesday afternoon.
About 6pm on Wednesday 7 June this year, Ronan was taken to the Women’s and Children’s hospital unconscious and in a critical condition, police said:
His injuries were not survivable and tragically Ronan died from those injuries on Friday the 9th of June, 2023.
In the lead up [to] Ronan [being taken to hospital] he was being cared for by friends of his parents … When Ronan was returned to his father on the Wednesday afternoon he was unable to be roused by his father …
The father called an ambulance, who attended and conveyed Ronan to the hospital in his unconscious state. Police said:
The medical examination of Ronan found that he had critical head injuries and other serious internal injuries.
It’s our belief that these injuries were caused from an assault and that the assault occurred sometime on the afternoon of Wednesday the 7th of June.
South Australian police said no one has been arrested or charged at this stage in relation to the death of baby Ronan.
The investigation is considered a murder investigation, and police are urging anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers.
Updated
Search continues for missing Belgian woman in Tasmania
Police are searching the Philosopher Falls Track area at Waratah for missing Belgian woman, Celine Cremer, who has not been in contact with family or friends since 12 June.
Yesterday, police received a concern for welfare report for Cremer, who is travelling Tasmania, driving a white Honda CRV (registration #E40TF).
Cremer’s vehicle has been located unattended in a car park at the Philosopher Falls Track.
Search and Rescue members, assisted by a police drone, have been conducting searches in the area.
Anyone who has been in the Philosopher Falls car park since 12 June is asked to contact police on 131 444 to advise if they saw Cremer car in the area when they were there.
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Update on Russian embassy site
It is relatively quiet this afternoon at Block 26, Section 44 in Canberra’s division of Yarralumla – better known as the site where Russia was planning to build its new Australian embassy.
In the wake of the high court yesterday rejecting Russia’s application attempt to temporarily hold on to the site of the proposed new embassy in Canberra, the Australian government has put up at least three do-not-enter signs along the makeshift fences on the perimeter saying:
This land belongs to the Commonwealth. Trespassing on this land is prohibited. Unauthorised entry on this land is prohibited. Crimes Act 1914, section 89.
An hour after the high court ruling yesterday, a Russian official who had been squatting in a demountable on the Yarralumla site left in a diplomatic vehicle and didn’t say anything to waiting reporters.
But that doesn’t mean that the diplomatic presence on or near the site has ended. This afternoon, a white Toyota HiAce van with diplomatic number plates remained parked outside the boundary of the site. The engine was running and the man in the driver’s seat raised his arms is a crossed gesture meaning “no comment” when approached by Guardian Australia.
Across the street, an officer in an Australian federal police vehicle monitored the scene.
The uneasy calm follows the passage of urgent legislation in the last sitting fortnight of the Australian parliament that terminated any lease held over Block 26, after the government said there were national security concerns over its presence so close to Parliament House.
As my colleague Christopher Knaus has reported, Russia expressed fears that the integrity of the partially completed embassy building, on which it has spent US$5.5m (A$8.2m) already, would be compromised if Australian officials were allowed on to the block.
It argued the loss of integrity to the building could force Russia to demolish the structure if it was successful in its high court challenge and was later allowed to hold on to the lease. While Russia’s initial application was dismissed, the substantive challenge has yet to be heard.
The presence of the diplomatic van may be an effort to monitor whether any Australian officials enter the site in the meantime. Australian officials are unlikely to have any luck if they issue the van with parking fines, given diplomatic immunity under the Vienna convention. My colleague Henry Belot reported last month that the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade was already chasing almost $90,000 from the Russian embassy for fines dating back to 2007.
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Tuvalu considers the digital clone of a country
A long read for your Tuesday afternoon, by Kalolaine Fainu:
As the climate emergency threatens its existence, the tiny Pacific nation of Tuvalu is not only trying to reclaim physical land but create a “twin” to survive in future.
Continue reading here:
Updated
BoM releases severe weather update as rain hits central Australia
The Bureau of Meteorology has released a severe weather update on the widespread rain affecting large parts of the country:
Severe Weather Update: Weather forecast. Find out what to expect across the country over the coming days. Video current at 1:00pm ACST, Tuesday 27 June 2023. Latest: https://t.co/4W35o8iFmh or the BOM Weather app. pic.twitter.com/nlhvYeRs4I
— Bureau of Meteorology, Australia (@BOM_au) June 27, 2023
The cloud band that has been hitting central Australia over the past 48 hours will start to push into NSW this afternoon; however, lower rainfall levels are forecast.
While the rain is forecast to clear on Wednesday and into Thursday, rain could intensify in central parts of the NT and the Kimberley on Friday.
Updated
Rent bidding outlawed in South Australia
Rent bidding has been outlawed in South Australia with the government hoping the change will help to ease soaring rental prices, AAP reports.
State parliament passed the new laws on Tuesday preventing landlords from advertising properties with a rent range, putting properties up for rent auction, or soliciting offers over the advertised rental price.
The change brings SA into line with a number of other states and comes at a time when the median rent in Adelaide has hit a record high of $450 a week and vacancy rates have plunged to 0.6%.
The consumer and business affairs minister, Andrea Michaels, said the state government understood how difficult the current rental market was for many tenants:
Rent bidding unfairly drives up prices and is contributing to the current rental crisis by making it more and more difficult for South Australians to find affordable rental accommodation.
Updated
Lawyer X special investigator’s office to be disbanded
The office of the special investigator appointed to build criminal cases against barrister Nicola Gobbo and Victoria police officers involved in the Lawyer X scandal will be disbanded after issuing an ultimatum to the government last week.
The special investigator Geoffrey Nettle called for his office to be disbanded or he would resign, citing frustration with the office of public prosecutions refusing to approve criminal charges.
The attorney general, Jaclyn Symes, confirmed she would take Nettle’s advice:
Both the Special Investigator and Royal Commission Implementation Monitor, Sir David Carruthers, have recommended the winding up of the Office of the Special Investigator (OSI) – and we have accepted their advice. I would like to thank Geoffrey Nettle for his work and wish him well for the future. Prosecutorial decisions are a matter for the DPP and it is critical that the Office of the Public Prosecutions operates independently of Government and statutory bodies like the OSI.
The government said staff would continue to be supported following this decision.
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Northern NSW councils demand flood disaster response overhaul
Disaster-hit northern NSW councils fear their communities will continue to see an inadequate response to flooding, AAP reports.
Richmond Valley and Byron shire council representatives say lessons have not been learned when it comes to disaster resilience and recovery, calling on state and federal governments to overhaul processes.
The Byron shire mayor, Michael Lyon, says if the rain fell again to the extent it did in 2022, many of the responses would likely repeat. He told a Senate inquiry today:
Ill-equipped evacuation centres would be stood up on sites that local people from our hinterland and other areas can’t access.
Those who access the evacuation centre may have to wade through flood waters in the night, floating small children through the streets on boogie boards.
The community will be first responders, risk assessors, technical specialists, volunteer coordinators, bearing the brunt and holding the risk.
Councils say they would welcome long-term funding for disaster resilience rather than waiting for governments to allocate money after the damage is done.
The Byron shire council general manager, Mark Arnold, said funding tended to dry up before the next event occurred.
The Senate inquiry met in the northern NSW town of Ballina.
Updated
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has shared some photos on social media from Coffs Harbour, where he gave a press conference earlier:
We're delivering projects that make a real difference to communities across Australia.
— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) June 27, 2023
And we're proud to partner with the NSW Government to get work started here in beautiful Coffs Harbour. pic.twitter.com/tJzyoyXLYn
He was there to talk about the Coffs Harbour Bypass project along the Pacific Highway.
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AFL removes Barry Cable from hall of fame and revokes legend status
Barry Cable, who was found earlier this month to have repeatedly sexually assaulted a girl during his playing career, is to be immediately removed from the Australian Football Hall of Fame and stripped of the game’s top honour.
In a civil trial, the district court of Western Australia also found there was compelling evidence Cable also abused other children.
Following an AFL Commission meeting today, chairperson Richard Goyder said the commission’s thoughts were with the victim and acknowledged the courage of the other women who came forward during the trial.
Cable would no longer be designated as one of the game’s official “legends”, Goyder said:
Once the court ruling was handed down it was incumbent on the Commission and the game to immediately examine the facts of this matter and the horrific nature of these events required that Barry Cable can no longer be considered for any honours that the Hall of Fame or football can bestow.
New rules introduced at the last commission meeting allow for the removal of any player “for conduct which brings the AFL, the Hall of Fame inductee, any AFL club or Australian football into disrepute”.
The Australian Football Hall of Fame induction dinner will be held in Melbourne tonight, the first time it has gone ahead since the Covid pandemic.
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Satellite animation shows formation of large cloud band that’s bringing heavy rain to Kimberley
Weatherzone has published this enhanced water vapour satellite animation, showing a large cloud band forming over Australia during the last 48 hours days:
This enhanced water vapour satellite animation shows a large northwest cloudband forming over Australia during the last two days.
— Ben Domensino (@Ben_Domensino) June 27, 2023
Thanks to this system, parts of the Kimberley just copped 7 times their average June monthly rainfall in 24 hours.
Details: https://t.co/0rkC1zhkMa pic.twitter.com/xN9y95COHZ
According to Weatherzone, this cloud band has caused parts of the Kimberley and red centre to receive several months’ rain in the last few days.
More widespread and heavy rain is forecast for the remainder of this week.
Development of the northwest cloud band ⬜️🟩 currently over Australia. A new upper low 🟨 emerging south of WA is expected to produce a second cloud band on the weekend, with the rainfall focus likely to be NT and QLD. pic.twitter.com/pzEWAHnUHb
— Andrew Miskelly (@andrewmiskelly) June 27, 2023
Updated
Police say they don’t believe there is any danger to the broader community at this stage:
With an increased police presence that will actually protect the community even more, we are hoping that the reassurance patrols will support the community with any concerns they may have. They can reach out to their local police or contact or speak to the police if they have concerns.
Updated
Police are asked why they believe this was a targeted attack rather than something random:
The fact that the car stopped, turned around and approached, we believe that they have been particularly targeted, as in that particular individual.
Stabbing death of Melbourne teenager ‘a targeted assault’, police say
Victorian police are now speaking about the death of a teenager in Melbourne’s north-west overnight.
Police say emergency services were called to Bailey Street in St Albans at approximately 11pm after reports a youth was injured and lying on the road:
The teen was treated at the scene but unfortunately died on the way to hospital.
Police say they are still working through the circumstances of what happened:
It is believed that the victim and his associates, his two friends, were in the CBD of Melbourne. They have then caught a train to the railway station and then after that they were walking home. As this occurred a vehicle has approached them. It has struck the victim on the road. After that has occurred, the vehicle has then stopped and two males have exited the vehicle. Two of the males were armed with knives and it appears they assaulted the victim and fatally wounded him. The two other boys who were with the victim at the time fled the scene. They were physically uninjured. We have spoken to those males and they provided us with information as to what happened on the night.
Police say it is very early in the investigation. They say there is no information at this stage to indicate it was gang-related, but “this was, however, a targeted assault on the victim”.
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Victoria declares Taylor Swift tour a major event in bid to tackle ticket scalpers
The Victorian government has declared Taylor Swift’s tour a major event, meaning ticket scalpers won’t be able to inflate the resale price of tickets.
Steve Dimopoulos, the minister for major events, announced the declaration on Tuesday afternoon, after tickets to see Swift perform live in Australia were being resold at vastly inflated prices within hours of presales opening.
Under the law, tickets to a declared major event can’t be advertised for resale or resold for more than 10% above their original value and sellers are required to be authorised by the event organiser. They also must include ticket and seating details in any advertising.
Any ticket seller who does not comply can be fined up to $554,760 depending on the nature of the offence.
Dimopoulos said Swift’s The Eras tour is “a global phenomenon and has sold out with unprecedented demand across the world”. He said crowds for Swift’s two Melbourne shows were expected to reach 180,000 over two nights, with fans travelling from across Australia and New Zealand to see the pop star perform.
He said:
As the live music capital of Australia, Melbourne is Taylor-made to host iconic events like this. By protecting our major events from ticket scalpers, we’re ensuring fans have the best chance possible of seeing their music idols. Our message to ticket scalpers is clear – don’t sell Taylor Swift tickets at inflated prices, otherwise you will be fined.
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Albanese hopes people in regional communities will campaign for yes vote
Finishing his press conference in Coffs Harbour, Anthony Albanese made an appeal for the Indigenous voice to parliament yes vote:
I notice as well, speaking of consulting people, here in Coffs Harbour there has been a yes campaign group formed and that is great news.
This is an idea which arose from the bottom up. It came from Indigenous Australians themselves, with the Uluru statement from the heart arising from the national First Nations Constitutional Convention that was held … in 2017 and all Australians will have the opportunity to vote yes, to vote for constitutional recognition and also to vote to consult people who are directly affected by decision-making.
That is a good idea. And it is one whose time has come. It won’t … be a right of veto, it won’t change our parliamentary structures, but it is a good thing, and I am very hopeful that people in regional communities in particular, who have such strong relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, will campaign for a yes vote and get it done.
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NSW government to redeploy 300 planning staff to help get more homes built quicker
More than 300 staff from two of the key planning bodies in New South Wales will be redeployed into the state’s planning department in a bid to get more homes built quicker and cut red tape.
The premier, Chris Minns, announced staff would move from the Greater Cities Commission and Western Parklands City Authority on Thursday to reduce the overlap and duplication between the agencies.
Minns said:
We made a firm commitment prior to the election to streamline planning accountabilities and within 100 days of taking office we’re making a clear and positive step in that direction.
There’s no point having housing targets if you can’t deliver the housing. This is about ensuring we have the right team in place to deliver the housing and infrastructure we so critically need in this state.
The premier and planning minister, Paul Scully, will address the media shortly.
Updated
Labor working to boost housing supply, Albanese says during Coffs Harbour visit
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, is speaking now in Coffs Harbour.
Taking questions from reporters, he is asked about housing:
We are doing our bit to increase housing supply. That’s what we can do by providing those tax incentives to the private sector, by providing direct funds for additional social housing, by making sure that planning is changed as well to make sure that dwellings can be approved faster.
We are working with every state and territory government to make sure that we can do that. There are pressures on housing, not just here in Coffs Harbour, but around Australia. What we’re doing is making sure we are putting in place measures to boost supply.
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Dutton says Labor ‘starving Ukraine forces of the necessary equipment’
The opposition leader, Peter Dutton, is in the electorate of Canning in Western Australia, a seat held by his defence spokesperson, Andrew Hastie.
Dutton continues to criticise the government over its latest $110m support package to Ukraine, arguing it should have included Hawkei vehicles sought by Kyiv.
Dutton tells reporters:
I don’t understand the prime minister’s response here and I think there are many respected journalists and military experts who have provided a frank assessment about the prime minister’s bad decision here.
And I hope that he can address it sooner than later because it’s our international reputation that’s adversely affected but more importantly we’re starving Ukraine forces of the necessary equipment that they need to keep their people safe.
Dutton says the Ukrainian government “understand the vehicle very well” and if there are problems with the vehicle they should be sorted out.
Yesterday, Anthony Albanese said the government had received advice from the ADF that offering Hawkei vehicles “would not be the best way to provide assistance to Ukraine”. Defence officials have previously told a Senate estimates committee that Australia was “still working through the rectification of an ABS braking issue” and supply chain and sustainment issues.
The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, told ABC radio this morning that Dutton’s “negativity” was disappointing. Asked about defence analyst Michael Shoebridge’s criticism that some of the other vehicles Australia would send to Ukraine were “obsolete” and “boneyard” vehicles, Wong said:
All I can say is I understand that people on the outside may come up with ideas. We work in the real world, and the ADF and the defence department have worked with Ukrainians in terms of what we have been able to provide them, and we’re pleased that President Zelenskiy and the ambassador have both responded to it positively.
Updated
EPA investigating reports of Yarra River oil slick at Docklands
The Environmental Protection Authority of Victoria says it is investigating reports of an oil slick on the surface of the Yarra River at Victoria Harbour, Docklands.
People are being urged to avoid contact with the water until further notice.
EPA Victoria is investigating a report from the public of an oil slick on the surface of the Yarra River at Victoria Harbour, Docklands. Avoid contact with the water until further notice. pic.twitter.com/CC7g5uA7F6
— Environment Protection Authority Victoria (@VicGovEPA) June 27, 2023
Updated
Police working ‘to make sure there’s no retaliation or escalation’
Wrapping up their press conference, police speak to reassure the community of Bondi Junction.
Police say that officers are working to make sure there is “no retaliation or escalation”:
I’d just like to allay the fears anyone in the Bondi Junction area, in this area. As we know this is Tuesday morning at Bondi Junction, we don’t expect it to happen, we don’t expect it to happen anywhere, but we’re working tirelessly with local police. But also, not only that, we have rapid squad and Operation Talon police doing suppression tactics as we speak.
There’s an investigation going on, there’s police out there now knocking on doors to make sure there’s no retaliation or escalation.
Updated
Shooting victim would have been the intended target, police say
Police say the deceased 48-year-old man would have been the intended target of the shooters due to his “high-level identity in the criminal network”:
We’re not going to speculate on every murder that’s happened in Sydney in the last couple of years. All we know is this person would have been the intended target of the shooting and that he was a high-level identity in the criminal network. So he was a high-level target for these shooters.
Updated
At least two people involved in shooting, police believe
Police believe there was more than one shooter, but emphasised that the investigation is still in its early stages:
We believe there’s more than one shooter. But we still, as I said, the investigation is in its infancy. We believe the initial information was there was at least two shooters or two people involved. But, again, we’re canvassing and making inquiries as we speak.
Updated
Shooting victim ‘had a big target on his back’, police say
Police say the 48-year-old man from Bondi Junction is well-known to police and “had a big target on his back”:
As I said, he hasn’t been formally identified. We believe he’s a 48-year-old man from Bondi Junction with an extensive criminal history, well-known to police.
He’s a high-level criminal identity. He’s a major player and because he’s a major player in the organised crime network and also has links to the Comancheros, high level, he also had a big target on his back.
Updated
Bondi Junction shooting was targeted, police say
Police say they are focusing all their efforts on obtaining CCTV and speaking to witnesses to gain as much information as they can.
Obviously the crime scenes are being examined as we speak … [We are] appealing to anyone who may have seen something or heard something not only at the time but in the days leading up to the shooting [and] immediately after the shooting.
And at this stage, you know, we’re working closely with eastern suburbs police area command and the metropolitan region to make sure the community of Bondi Junction is safe.
We believe this is a targeted shooting and we believe it’s a targeted shooting of a high-level organised crime identity.
Updated
'High-level organised crime identity' shot dead in Bondi Junction, police say
NSW police are now giving a press conference on the Bondi Junction shooting:
Just to recap, emergency services and police responded to Spring Street, Bondi Junction around 8.30am this morning to reports of a man being shot.
At the time police found a man, commenced CPR, tried to assist him with the assistance of paramedics, but he could not be revived.
At this stage the man has not been formally identified. He’s a 48-year-old Bondi Junction resident.
Police say that shortly after that, they commenced an investigation a short distance away in James Street, where officers found a partially burnt-out Porsche.
That’s now been examined as a crime scene. Later also police found a Holden Commodore burned-out in Cook Lane in Zetland. That’s also been forensically examined.
We’re both looking at the links in the shootings and the persons involved in the shooting … Homicide squad detectives are taking carriage of the matter. However, that’s with the assistance of the police area command who initially responded and did a great job in relation to the three crime scenes.
You can read more on the shooting here:
Updated
James Webb telescope detects crucial carbon compound in space
In case you missed it earlier, Nasa has released new images from the James Webb space telescope. The telescope was used to detect a new carbon compound in space for the first time:
Webb — constantly raising the (Orion) Bar for us all.
— NASA Webb Telescope (@NASAWebb) June 26, 2023
While observing the Orion Bar, Webb made the first detection ever of a crucial carbon molecule in space. This molecule was found inside a planet-forming disk surrounding a young star system: https://t.co/gBCH41jjdy pic.twitter.com/26EFaGsVwb
The molecule Webb discovered is called methyl cation (pronounced cat-eye-on). Carbon compounds are the foundation of life as we know it, and methyl cation (CH3+) plays an important role in forming more complex carbon-based molecules.
— NASA Webb Telescope (@NASAWebb) June 26, 2023
Updated
Garbage truck driver killed in Melbourne CBD laneway
A WorkSafe probe is under way after a garbage truck driver was hit and killed by his own vehicle in Melbourne’s CBD, AAP reports.
The truck rolled forward and pinned the 26-year-old against a post and a wall about 7am on Monday.
The incident happened in Hosier Lane, a popular laneway known for colourful graffiti artwork.
Updated
Thanks to Rafqa for taking us through the morning news! I’ll be with you for the remainder of the day.
That is all from me this morning – thanks for tuning in. Passing the blog over to Emily Wind, who will take you through the rest of the day’s news.
Gallagher says her electorate office remains open after being vandalised
The minister for finance, Katy Gallagher, confirms her office remains open after her electorate office was vandalised.
Yesterday afternoon my electorate office in Woden was vandalised.
— Katy Gallagher (@SenKatyG) June 27, 2023
The office remains open & my team is continuing its work to support Canberrans.
I want to thank my team, the officers from ACT Policing who responded to this incident & the officials in the Department of Finance who helped my team to secure the office so quickly following the incident.
— Katy Gallagher (@SenKatyG) June 27, 2023
The Guardian understands that no one was injured in the incident, and that Senator Gallagher was not in her office at the time.
Updated
Police to hold press conference on death of Sydney drug kingpin Alen Moradian
Police will hold a press conference at 1pm this afternoon following the fatal shooting of a man in Bondi Junction this morning.
Police have not released his identity however Guardian Australia has confirmed the man is drug kingpin Alen Moradian.
We will bring you the updates here.
Updated
New evidence stalls visa fraud case against Daryl Maguire
Tens of thousands of pages of new evidence have stalled a visa fraud case against ex-NSW Liberal MP Daryl Maguire, AAP reports.
Maguire’s solicitor Jim Harrowell asked the magistrate to adjourn the matter, to give his client time to read a 43,500-page report produced by crown prosecutors earlier this month.
The report relates to the contents of Maggie Ning Logan’s mobile phone.
Maguire allegedly conspired with Logan, a migration agent, to breach the Migration Act between January 2013 and August 2015.
Maguire could face prison time, or a maximum fine of $34,000.
Logan is accused of furnishing false or misleading information in visa documents on dozens of occasions over several years.
She will also need time to go through the report to redact sensitive information.
Maguire was charged in November, but has not yet entered a plea. His and Logan’s conditional bail was continued today. Maguire and Logan will sit down for a case conference with crown prosecutors on 12 September. Their matters will come before the Downing Centre local court on 19 September.
Delays in the case come just days ahead of Icac releasing its findings into a major inquiry into Maguire and former NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian, who were in a secret relationship.
Harrowell told reporters he would read the Icac report and said his client denied any allegations of corruption outside the Downing Centre local court:
My client denies that he’s behaved in a corrupt way.
With the legal system, people are presumed innocent until found guilty.”
– AAP report
Updated
Albanese defends not supplying Bushmaster and Hawkei vehicles to Ukraine in latest package
Prime minister, Anthony Albanese, defends the decision not to supply Bushmaster and Hawkei vehicles in his government’s latest military assistance package to Ukraine, AAP reports.
The $110m support package, including 70 military vehicles, does not include equipment specifically requested by Ukraine, such as Hawkei vehicles.
Albanese said the federal government was continuing to send equipment, with the Commonwealth providing $790m in military assistance since Russia’s invasion.
Albanese told ABC Radio:
It doesn’t assist people you’re trying to assist who are conducting a war to send them a piece of equipment that will not provide for the best assistance.
Defence minister, Richard Marles, said the equipment would make an impact on the ground in Ukraine, even though it does not include Hawkies.
Marles said:
We do feel that there were issues around Hawkeis, which is hard to go into publicly.
We took the Ukrainians through what we believed were the issues there, and what we wanted to do was make sure that the equipment we were giving to Ukraine would make a difference for them on the battlefield.
– AAP report
Updated
Full Story podcast callout
For an upcoming episode of our daily news podcast Full Story, our podcast team wants your questions on the referendum for a proposed Indigenous voice to parliament and for how it will work.
Please email your questions to voicequestions@theguardian.com
A panel of experts will answer select questions in a future episode.
Victorian frontbencher empathises with commuters put out by Melbourne’s West Gate Tunnel project
Andrews government frontbencher Gabrielle Williams says she has empathy for commuters in Melbourne’s west who have faced delays travelling to work due to infrastructure works.
Victoria’s West Gate Tunnel project has shut down trains and blocked roads that connect Melbourne’s west with the city centre over the next two weeks. The Andrews government had advised residents in the western suburbs to work from home over for the next fortnight. Residents have faced lengthy commutes using replacement bus services.
Williams said it was important to remember the project would help reduce road congestion in Victoria:
I want to acknowledge it is of course very disruptive for residents in the short term.
While I am very empathetic for those who are experiencing the hardship caused by these short-term delays, I do want to recognise that this is very important for us to be able to cater for the growth in the time ahead.
Updated
Man fatally shot in Bondi Junction
NSW police confirm a man has died after being shot at Bondi Junction today.
Emergency services were called to Spring Street, Bondi Junction, at 8.30am after reports of a man being shot while sitting in a stationary vehicle in a car park.
According to the police statement:
The male driver died at the scene. He has not been formally identified but is believed to be aged in his 40s.
Police believe a burnt-out Porsche located on James Street, Bondi Junction, about the same time, is linked to the shooting.”
Detectives are also investigating whether a second burnt-out vehicle – a Holden Commodore located on Cook Lane, Zetland – is potentially linked to the shooting.
Three crime scenes have been established, which will be forensically examined by specialist police. An investigation is under way.
Updated
National Union of Students condemn Aukus deal at annual conference
The National Union of Students has voted to condemn the Aukus deal at its annual education conference on Monday evening.
More than 150 students voted in favour of a motion, which led to about 60 members of a student faction exiting the room.
Xavier Dupé, who moved the motion, called Aukus an “aggressive pact” that escalated the possibility of violence.
Students are challenging this war drive. The Labor government is spending half a trillion dollars on nuclear-powered submarines while refusing to address the housing crisis. We should invest in welfare, not warfare.
Universities Australia has backed the Aukus deal, with its chief executive, Catriona Jackson, heading to the United States earlier this year to firm up arrangements for scaling up the workforce to deliver the nuclear submarine plan.
In March, she said Australian universities would be “key” to Australia’s defence efforts.
Updated
Victorian government to investigate scalping amid Taylor Swift ticket frenzy
Victorian government frontbencher Gabrielle Williams says the state is investigating ways to crack down on scalping amid a frenzy to nab tickets for Taylor Swift’s Australian tour.
Consumer advocates are calling for national laws against scalping after tickets for Swift’s Australian shows were being resold at inflated prices within hours of presales opening.
Williams said the Andrews government was working with the tour promoter on this issue:
I’m sure she won’t be the only cause of this sort of conduct. But if my Facebook feed is anything to go by, it is quite a competitive field out there. There’s a lot of stressed parents with high-anxiety young people wanting to get to that gig.
This is a conversation I know is live.
You can read more on it here:
Updated
Man who vandalised Gallagher’s office is charged with damaging commonwealth property
An ACT policing spokesperson has confirmed minister for finance, Katy Gallagher’s, Phillip office was vandalised, and a man was arrested shortly after:
About 1.40pm Monday, 26 June 2023, ACT policing responded to reports of a property damage incident at the office of an ACT senator.
A man was arrested at the scene shortly after the incident. He has been charged with damaging commonwealth property and will face court on 19 July 2023.
ACT policing urge anyone who witnessed the incident, or who may have dashcam footage of the area at the time of incident, contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000, or via the Crime Stoppers ACT website. The case number is: 7467389. Information can be provided anonymously.
Updated
VicForests appeal to stop ban on state logging by 2024 is dismissed
Victorian logging bans will probably stick around after an appeal by a forestry company was thrown out, AAP reports.
The state-owned VicForests had appealed a supreme court decision to stop logging in parts of the state after finding the forestry company failed to survey for protected glider species adequately.
Court of appeal president, Justice Karin Emerton, and Justices Cameron Macaulay and Stephen Kaye, dismissed the appeal and ordered VicForests to pay court costs.
In May, the Victorian state government announced plans to end native timber harvesting by 2024 – four years earlier than planned. They claimed the sector had become unviable due to ongoing legal action.
– AAP report
Updated
New data shows ‘shocking disparity’ between public and private school funding
The Australian Education Union (AEU) has called for urgent funding to address shortfalls in public education after the release of ACARA data which showed more than 98% of private schools were overfunded and more than 98% of public schools were underfunded.
The figures are according to the Schooling Resource Standard, agreed to by all Australian governments in 2012 as the minimum to provide a baseline education to students.
AEU deputy federal president, Meredith Peace, said the “shocking disparity” was all the more pertinent as public schools enrolled the majority of Australian students and a greater proportion of students with additional needs.
If all Australian public schools were fully funded, then students from all backgrounds would benefit from additional teachers, more classroom support and renewed, up-to-date resources.
The Albanese government must negotiate new funding agreements that lift funding for public schools in every state and territory to 100 per cent of the Schooling Resource Standard.”
Updated
The mining industry will get the ‘world to reach net zero’, CSIRO CEO says
Australia’s science agency says the mining industry will take the world to net zero, AAP reports.
CSIRO CEO, Larry Marshall, told the world mining congress in Brisbane:
It’s mining that accelerates global decarbonisation by unlocking the critical energy minerals the world desperately needs for solar panels, electric vehicles and batteries
It’s where we need to be heading, and it’s how we all need to be thinking – an industry that will enable the world to reach net zero.
More than 3500 have gathered in Brisbane for the summit of scientists, researchers, company executives and diplomats. This is the first time it is being held in Australia.
Energy economist Tim Gould said:
We’re not engaging in a race between countries but a race against time.
He said Australia was “extremely well-placed” with access to cheap renewable energy. And continued that like-minded countries are to combine their particular competitive advantages – including a large domestic market, highly skilled workforce or established auto and manufacturing sectors.
He said the result could be a reliable and affordable supply of critical minerals and rare earths, rather than scarcity and a new energy crisis.
– AAP report
Updated
Victoria’s First Peoples minister responds to minority groups being four times more likely to receive Covid fines
Victoria’s First Peoples minister, Gabrielle Williams, is responding to a report that reveals that people of African and Middle Eastern appearance were four times more likely to receive a Covid fine for breaching the state’s lockdown rules in 2020.
The inner Melbourne community legal centre, who released the report on Tuesday, says it is evidence of racial profiling by Victoria police. But the force has rejected this claim.
Williams refused to be drawn on the report’s findings that racial profiling occurred.
But she said if people were concerned about a Covid fine they could lodge an enforcement review application.
Operational matters are a matter for police command.
The report also found Indigenous people made up 30 per cent of Covid fines in some regional Victorian towns.
Asked about it Victoria should follow NSW in scrapping Covid fines, Williams said it was a policing operational matter.
Williams said she was confident the allegations of racial profiling would be taken seriously by Victoria police.
Updated
Consumers should use financial firms’ internal complaints processes, the Afca says
The Australian Financial Complaints Authority (Afca) – the non-government ombudsman service for the financial services sector – encourages consumers make the most of financial firms’ internal complaints processes.
An Afca spokesperson said:
We encourage people to complain directly to their financial firm first. Firms generally have 30 days to respond to a complaint.
If you are unhappy with the firm’s response to that internal complaint you can register a complaint.
This comes after yesterday’s major Commonwealth Bank outage, which prevented some customers from accessing their accounts.
Commbank confirmed “delays in receiving or sending payments” will be resolved “in the coming days”.
Guardian Australia asked Commbank about any plans to compensate customers hit by the outage. Commbank declined to comment specifically on this.
Updated
ACT senator Katy Gallagher’s office has been vandalised, man arrested at scene
Senator Katy Gallagher’s office has been vandalised, Canberra Times report.
Police received reports of property damage at the office on Corinna Street in Phillip at 1:40pm on Monday.
Police said a man was arrested at the scene soon after, according to Canberra Times. They report that he is charged with damaging commonwealth property, and is set to appear in court in July.
Police have not confirmed the identity of the man, or his motives.
More to come.
Updated
Potentially lethal batteries are being sold in products without warnings, the ACCC says
More than a third of products being sold in Australia with potentially lethal button batteries fail to include mandatory warnings, AAP reports.
These batteries are usually found in toys and other household items like keys and remote controls.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) deputy chair, Catriona Lowe, says three children died in Australia after inserting or ingesting the batteries, which can cause a chemical reaction that burns through tissue and seriously injures vital organs.
Lowe said:
If swallowed, a button battery can get stuck in a child’s throat and cause catastrophic injuries.
Last year, new regulations were introduced stipulating consumers must be warned about the dangers of these buttons. The ACCC found concerning levels of non-compliance with the new standards after surveying more than 400 businesses – 34% of products with tiny batteries and 28% of packs of button batteries didn’t include the mandatory warning information or symbols.
Although it was encouraging to see that most button battery products likely adhered to the accessibility requirements, we are concerned about the levels of compliance with the information and warning requirements.
– AAP report
Updated
Corporate profit increases made up about half of Europe’s inflation, IMF says
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has weighed into the ‘what’s causing inflation’ debate by declaring that companies were behind much of the continent’s jump in price rises.
Three researchers said in a blog post:
Rising corporate profits account for almost half the increase in Europe’s inflation over the past two years as companies increased prices by more than spiking costs of imported energy.
The IMF duly noted the post in a tweet, that shows the key chart in question.
Rising corporate profits were the largest contributor to Europe’s inflation over the past two years as companies increased prices by more than the spiking costs of imported energy. https://t.co/iEf6Emu0Rp pic.twitter.com/HYulCZgb8p
— IMF (@IMFNews) June 26, 2023
Now we should take a bit of care before declaring profit gouging was broad-based.
As the paper by the trio – Niels-Jakob Hansen, Frederik Toscani, Jing Zhou – notes:
The increase in nominal profits was largest in sectors benefiting from increasing international commodity prices and those exposed to recent supply-demand mismatches.
The authors’ state in the paper’s abstract:
While the results show that firms have passed on more than the nominal cost shock, and have fared relatively better than workers, the limited available data does not point to a widespread increase in markups.
The OECD came to a similar conclusion in their recent report. The mark-ups were mostly in the resources sector – and presumably that’s where policymakers (and the public) need to pay most attention to.
The Reserve Bank, meanwhile, is sticking to its view that profits have more to do with the overall tightness of the economy (while looking for evidence to the contrary).
We also look at some of the trends in this piece out just now, based on a Bank of International Settlements (the ‘central bank of central banks’) that is also out in the last couple of days:
Whatever the cause of the higher inflation, the question is who is going to bear the brunt of the pain in bringing it down. That remains to be seen but if the recent past is any guide, corporate profits have shown remarkable resilience.
Updated
Noise pollution with planned flight paths of the future Western Sydney airport is expected to impact a 20km stretch of land, with noise similar to or louder than a washing machine or vacuum cleaner, more than 100 times a day by 2040.
Residential chunks of some western Sydney suburbs, including a primary school, to be subjected to noise levels loud enough to disrupt indoor conversations up to 19 times a day, according to flight path analysis for the new western Sydney airport https://t.co/mWpSaeB4B9
— Elias Visontay (@EliasVisontay) June 26, 2023
You can read the full story from Elias Visontay here:
Birmingham questions the $110m valuation of government’s Ukraine support package
Shadow foreign minister, Simon Birmingham, questions the $110m valuation of the Albanese government’s new support package to Ukraine on ABC News this morning:
We think it is about responding particularly to the equipment. I’m not going to put a precise dollar figure on it because it is about what you provide. Even the valuation given of $110m is probably questionable given we’re talking about a lot of it quite old equipment and vehicles that are being sent. And the government isn’t replenishing the Australian defence force’s budget here, so it is unsurprising perhaps that the ADF is less inclined to provide its new and modern equipment that is coming in.
Updated
Police operation in Bondi Junction under way after reports of shots being fired
A police operation is under way on Spring Street, Bondi Junction in Sydney after reports of shots fired, a NSW Police spokesperson says.
Road closures are in place and motorists are urged to avoid the area. More information will be provided once it becomes available.
🚫 IMPORTANT UPDATE 🚫
— Waverley Council (@WaverleyCouncil) June 26, 2023
A police operation is taking place between Spring St (cnr Newland St) and Denison St in Bondi Junction.
This part of Bondi Junction is closed to all traffic, pedestrians and cyclists for the next few hours. Please avoid the area.
Updated
Data shows minority groups more likely to receive Covid fines from Victorian police
Victoria police officers have been accused of racial profiling, with a report showing they disproportionately targeted people of non-Anglo appearance during the pandemic.
African, Middle Eastern and First Nations people were up to four times more likely to be fined for Covid-19 breaches.
Read the full story here:
Updated
Flood-hit communities to be swarmed by flies this summer after wipe out of dung beetles
Flood-hit communities will be swarmed by flies this summer, after millions of dung beetles were wiped out, AAP reports.
Where the water lay on inundated soil, the dung beetles drowned. After a wet 2022 and more flooding into the beginning of this year, the beetle has been completely annihilated in some areas across southern parts of Australia.
Russ Barrow from the environmental research Gulbali Institute likened it to mass fish kills.
He said:
The lack of dung beetles caused by the waterlogging and inundation of vast areas is almost certainly going to lead to an increase in fly numbers this summer.
The flies then start spreading bacteria and you’ll get massive breeding populations of flies because the dung is on the surface and not being taken down under the ground.
The beetles are integral to farming ecosystems. They bury animal manure, produce fertiliser, and play a role in minimising livestock disease.
They remove the breeding ground for flies and parasites such as worms, which impact cattle and sheep.
Updated
Australia must provide ‘particular vehicles’ to Ukraine, says Dutton
Opposition leader, Peter Dutton, warns Ukrainian citizens could be left “high and dry” if Australia does not give further military aid, on Sunrise this morning.
The Australian public has been very supportive of President Zelensky and his cause, and by sending Vietnam era vehicles to Ukraine, it’s not what they asked for.
Ukraine military is very, very cognisant of what they need, they asked for particular vehicles, including the Hawkeis, they are the vehicles that should be sent because the Ukrainians know best what they need.”
Updated
Ukraine’s ambassador to Australia hopes for more armoured vehicles in new package
Ukraine’s ambassador to Australia, Vasyl Myroshnychenko, hopes armoured vehicles will come with future assistance from the Australian government.
He told Sky News:
I remain optimistic that these items will be included in our forthcoming packages and especially Bushmasters [which] have really demonstrated their efficiency in Ukraine.
Some of them got destroyed, they need to be substituted and I think Australia really has an opportunity.”
Myroshnychenko says he was reassured by Australia’s commitment to continue supporting Ukraine.
Updated
Birmingham tells RN he is ‘conflicted’ over voice to parliament
Shadow foreign minister, Simon Birmingham, avoids disclosing what he will vote in the voice referendum, dodging ABC RN’s Patricia Karvelas’ questions.
Karvelas asks:
Do you support the voice?
Birmingham says:
I’ve been clear that I don’t intend to actively campaign in the referendum.
Karvelas pushes:
Why aren’t you taking a position? I mean, you’re making it clear that you want it to be private. If it’s private, that means you are actually sitting on the fence.
Birmingham doesn’t budge:
Patricia, I think you can hear from my answer there, that I am, in some ways conflicted and think this is a very difficult situation the country has been put in, that we have got a question before a proposed change.
Updated
Birmingham criticises ‘Vietnam era’ military support for Ukraine
Shadow foreign minister, Simon Birmingham, says equipment provided to Ukraine in the new $110m support package goes “back to the Vietnam era” on ABC RN this morning.
We’re getting a situation where the government is not really directly responding to Ukraine’s requests for the Hawkei vehicles, or the Abrams tanks, nor the D mining equipment they’ve asked for.
Birmingham urges looking at “things that have been specifically requested, rather than going to military vehicles or equipment that some of them go back to the Vietnam era”.
[The Albanese government’s] contribution in terms of humanitarian assistance is simply $10m compared with the $65m that had been provided previously. So this is a concern …
Status as the leading non-Nato contributor to Ukraine has slipped away and the type of support being offered now doesn’t seem to be either meeting Ukraine’s requests, providing the modern equipment that they want or need, nor the type of scale that would seem to keep Australia commensurate support of our other parts.
Updated
Defence minister tells RN parliament land is ‘not appropriate’ for a Russian embassy
Defence minister Richard Marles says a plot of land right next to parliament is “not an appropriate place for the Russian embassy” on ABC RN this morning, after the Russian embassy lost its bid in the high court to hold on to the site of its proposed new embassy in Canberra yesterday.
What is clear is that that was not an appropriate place for the Russian embassy or an embassy actually. I mean, the block of land is literally right next to the parliament. And so that obviously informs whatever its future use will be. But one thing clear is that we will be thinking about its use in the context of our obvious national security needs.
Updated
Defence minister insists Ukraine package will 'make a difference'
On ABC RN this morning, defence minister, Richard Marles, says he is confident the new $110m package of assistance to Ukraine will “make a difference,” after criticism that the Albanese government’s support has declined in comparison to the former government.
Patricia Karvelas asked:
You talk about a menu but a lot of the menu items aren’t there?
Marles responded:
We’ve provided $610m worth of military assistance to Ukraine, most of that has come since May … Most of what has been provided has actually been provided by Labor.
This is the fourth package provided by the Labor government.
We make sure that the equipment that we were giving to Ukraine would make a difference for them on the battlefield in their context. And that’s how we’ve ended up with the package that we’ve provided.
We’re confident that it will make a difference. And, and we’re able to provide that.
All of this ultimately is a balance between what we’re able to provide. We want to make sure that we are one of the most generous providers to Ukraine, and the package that we’ve put in place has us as one of the largest non-Nato contributors to Ukraine.
We’re punching above our weight in respect of that.
Updated
Western Sydney airport flight paths revealed
Planned flight paths for the new Western Sydney airport have been released, AAP reports.
Construction has been under way for three years on the international airport, known as Nancy-Bird Walton airport. It is located at Badgerys Creek – 45km from Sydney CBD – and is expected to open in 2026. The project will cost $5.3bn.
It will be the first NSW airport that will operate with no curfew – seeing flights come in and out 24/7.
Preliminary flight paths – including information on expected altitude at location, daily aircraft numbers, and predicted aircraft noise – are available through an online interactive aircraft overflight noise tool.
The federal transport department will hold community information and feedback sessions across Western Sydney and the Blue Mountains in the coming months.
Communities can speak with the flight path design team at the sessions, transport minister Catherine King says.
The Albanese government is committed to balancing the needs of the community, environment, industry and users of the broader greater Sydney airspace, while maintaining safety as a priority, in the design of [the airport’s] flight paths.
Read more here:
Updated
Commonwealth Bank says service issues will take days to be resolved
A CBA spokesperson says delays in receiving or sending payments with Commonwealth bank’s online services will take “the coming days” to be resolved.
We can confirm all our customer services have recovered following the intermittent service issues experienced by some customers on Monday, 26 June 2023.
Some customers may experience delays in receiving or sending payments and these are expected to be resolved in the coming days.
We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience caused and thank our customers for their patience and understanding.
This comes after an outage hit its app and netbanking services yesterday, preventing customers from accessing their money.
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Teen dies after being found injured on Melbourne road
A teenage boy has died after being found injured on the road in St Albans, Melbourne, around 11pm on Monday.
Victoria Police were told a number of people were seen in the area who appeared to be armed with a knife.
The teenager died on the way to hospital.
A crime scene has been set up and homicide squad detectives are investigating.
– AAP reports
Updated
Good morning! I’m Rafqa Touma, and I’ll be taking the blog through the morning of news updates. Lets get into it.
Vulnerable Australians can't pay utility bills, says Salvos
More than half of financially vulnerable Australians cannot afford to pay utility bills on time, new Salvation Army research has found, as cost of living pressures continue to mount nationwide, Australian Associated Press reports.
The survey found 64% of those polled did not have enough money to pay bills on time, while 51% had hardship plans with energy providers.
To save on power, 74% of respondents pulled back on heating, 70% reduced use of lights and 60% cut down on showers.
Other measures included going to bed early to keep warm (34%) and stopping having guests over (36%).
Salvation Army’s David Collinson said in a statement:
Having to decide whether to put the heating on to stay warm in winter can literally be the difference between life and death.
The poll of 1700 charity-seekers comes as stubbornly high inflation and a housing crisis puts the squeeze on households and after the federal government promised a $14.6bn cost of living package in its May budget.
Earlier this week, analysis by Anglicare Australia showed a family of four with two full-time minimum wage workers was left with just $73 left after expenses.
Anglicare’s report also showed a single full-time minimum wage worker has $57 left after essential weekly expenses.
A single parent with one child on minimum wage fell $180 short on essentials after rent, transport, food, education and childcare, it found.
Updated
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to the live blog. My name’s Martin Farrer and I’m going to kick things off with some of the best overnight stories before my colleague Rafqa Touma gets into the main run of the day.
Senior government ministers are expected to hit the road to boost support for the voice to parliament, we’re reporting this morning, amid more evidence of flagging public support in the form of yesterday’s Newspoll showing 47% of voters are opposed to the plan. One of the leading yes campaigners, Marcus Stewart, a member of the government’s referendum working group and inaugural co-chair of the First People’s Assembly of Victoria, pleaded with voters to “keep the faith” in what promises to be a tough referendum campaign.
That’s not great for Anthony Albanese’s government as he tries to ensure one of his flagship policies gets over the line. And our latest Essential poll is not brilliant either because it shows his approval has fallen to its lowest level since the 2022 election (36%) and almost half of voters think Australia is heading in the wrong direction. Much of the negativity comes from concerns around rental affordability and the cost of living. That’s highlighted by a Salvos report this morning saying that more than half of vulnerable Australians can’t afford to pay their utility bills on time. More on that coming up.
The soaring resale cost of early-release tickets for Taylor Swift’s concerts in Australia next year have prompted calls for national anti-scalping laws after tickets appeared online with huge mark-ups on the face value. We’ve looked at the asking price on some sites for VIP packages for shows in Melbourne and Sydney, originally priced at $899.90 or $1,249.90, and found that they’re going for at least $1,779 on Viagogo in the case of Sydney, and a ticket for a Melbourne show listed as having just sold for $3,114.
