And with that, we are going to put the blog to bed. Thank you so much for spending part of your day with us. Before we go, let’s recap the headlines:
Melbourne airport issues major backdown, paving way for airport train link
Payman to tour WA to speak to constituents ‘without … restrictions of party rules’
Payman says media backgrounding on her sets ‘precedent that is not constructive to modern Australia’
Three Queensland children found at service station after being reported missing
Malcolm Turnbull denounces nuclear energy as ‘not the right fit’ for Australia
Melbourne airport train link delayed by four years, premier says
NSW ‘deeply wounded’ by death of three children in Sydney house fire, premier says
Newcastle climate protester sentenced to three months in prison
NT police chief announces three-night curfew in Alice Springs
Alice Springs curfews an effective ‘circuit breaker’: Eva Lawler
Lawler defends Alice Springs curfew citing ‘disgraceful acts’
We will be back tomorrow – until then, stay safe.
Cait
Human rights and legal organisations condemn climate protester’s prison sentence
Human rights and legal organisations have condemned the three-month prison sentence imposed on a climate protester today. This is the first time NSW’s 2022 anti-protest laws have been used to jail a peaceful protester.
Alice Drury, acting legal director, Human Rights Law Centre:
The NSW government is on the wrong path. Instead of doing everything it can to mitigate the climate crisis, it is putting its efforts into imprisoning peaceful protester Laura Davy.
These laws are bad for climate activists, and they are bad for democracy in NSW. Yet again, we call on the Minns government to scrap these laws and protect the right to protest.
Katie Green, CEO, Inner City Legal Centre:
The Inner City Legal Centre is extremely concerned about the chilling effect of this sentence upon activists within our community.
Protest has always been a means for our community to achieve meaningful change; the 78’ers, the Aboriginal tent embassy, the Me Too movement and Black Lives Matter are a few examples of protests movements that have achieved significant and positive change in our community.
We will continue to fight for the right to fight for our rights.
Updated
Queensland opposition’s youth crime policy ‘a purely political response’
A Queensland opposition plan for children to serve adult sentences for serious crimes has been dismissed as a “purely political response” that will not stop reoffending, AAP has reported.
Liberal National party leader David Crisafulli unveiled the policy at the weekend’s LNP convention, announcing that juveniles convicted of serious crimes would be treated as harshly as adults if he was elected premier in October.
However, he has come under fire for the “adult crime, adult time” pitch with advocate groups saying it will not make the community safer.
Youth Advocacy Centre CEO Katherine Hayes said:
It is a purely political response which doesn’t provide a meaningful response.
There is no evidence which shows that longer sentences reduce offending.
Updated
Police seek Sydney woman’s partner over alleged stabbing death
Police in NSW are giving a media conference in Sydney about the woman who has died from a stabbing this afternoon.
They are seeking the woman’s partner, a 22-year-old man, over her death.
While it is considered that this was a targeted incident, I would urge the public in the first instance, not to approach him.
If they do see this person or have any information, in relation to this person to contact triple zero.
Updated
Continued from previous post:
Transport Workers Union NSW/QLD state secretary Richard Olsen claimed Ampol workers were ultimately on worse conditions due to major airlines such as Qantas pressuring Ampol when signing contracts for their refuelling services.
Demand for aviation is booming but jobs have become second-rate, led by an obsession by privatised airlines and airports with obscene profits. Workers are looking for better hours for part-timers and more full-time positions so they have job security for themselves and their families.
At airports nationwide, workers are overburdened and exhausted as they strive to keep flights running smoothly, yet they continue to struggle with wages barely above the legal minimum and few guarantees around rostered hours. The aviation industry’s short-term, profit-driven focus driven by Qantas’ race to the bottom has brought us to crisis point in aviation.
Updated
Ampol aircraft refuellers threaten strike action
Workers who refuel Virgin Australia’s fleet and some Qantas planes are threatening to strike in the coming weeks and months unless their pay and conditions improve.
On Monday, aircraft refuellers working for Ampol, which exclusively services Virgin aircraft and has contracts with other airlines including Qantas, held a vote to take protected industrial action over their pay and conditions dispute.
Participation was high, with 92% of workers casting a vote, and 100% of votes in favour of taking industrial actions that includes four, eight and 24 hour stoppages as well as strikes for seven days and up to an unlimited period. The notice period for stoppages is three days.
The workers are asking for Ampol to return to negotiations – set for Tuesday – and meet their demands to be paid comparably to competitors, more job security including guaranteed part-time hours and preference for full-time positions, as well as more consultation and better dispute processes.
1/2
Updated
Stock market dips
From AAP:
The local share market has started the week on a losing note, dragged down in part by losses from the energy and materials sectors following a drop in iron ore and oil prices.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index on Monday dropped 59.1 points, or 0.76%, to 7,763.2, while the broader All Ordinaries fell 57.9 points, or 0.72%, to 8,012.2.
The Australian dollar was near a fresh six-month high against its US counterpart, buying 67.45 US cents, from 67.32 US cents at Friday’s ASX close.
Updated
Australia’s given Kyiv ‘too little too late’, Ukrainian council says
Australia can afford to be more generous in supplying Ukraine with military aid as it has benefited financially from the war through higher grain, mineral and energy exports, the president of the Ukrainian Council of NSW has said.
Speaking on Monday to a parliamentary hearing into Australia’s provision of aid to Ukraine, Daniel Wolody said:
Words aren’t matched by deeds pretty much across the world.
It’s not that Australia has done nothing, we’re thankful for the help we’ve received, but it’s a case of too little too late.
Australia has given about $1bn in military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine and has joined a British-led coalition of forces helping train soldiers in the UK.
Wolody said:
The west is giving just enough to Ukraine so that it doesn’t lose, but not enough so that it can win, and what this really means is the war has to drag on.
Australia is a net beneficiary of the war and it can afford to be far more generous right now.
Updated
Sydney woman dies after suspected stabbing
A woman has died following a suspected stabbing at Kingswood this afternoon.
In a statement NSW police said:
About 1.40pm today (Monday 8 July 2024), emergency services were called to a home at Great Western Highway, Kingswood, following reports of a stabbing.
Officers attached to Nepean police area command attended and found a woman, believed to be aged in her 20s, with two stab wounds to her chest.
NSW Ambulance paramedics treated the woman; however she died at the scene.
The woman is yet to be formally identified.
Officers have been told a 22-year-old man was seen running from the area.
Police have established a crime scene and commenced inquiries into the circumstances surrounding the incident.
There is no ongoing threat to the public.
Updated
Lawler defends Alice Springs curfew citing ‘disgraceful acts’
Northern Territory’s chief minister has defended the curfew and her connection to the town. Lawler says:
I’ve lived there. I still own a home there. I have large family in Alice Springs, but I’m also on the ground. I was at the show on Friday.
And the vast majority of people in Alice Springs do the right thing every single day. Small business operators who are trying to make a living, tourism operators who are trying to make a living in Alice Springs.
And then we have a small number of people that bring that town down by doing some, you know, disgraceful acts that we’ve seen.
Updated
Potter says there is no discussion of an extension yet:
I mean, it hasn’t even started yet. It’ll start at 10 tonight and run through for the three days, the 72 hours.
But I’ll continue to engage with the police commissioner as we go, as I have before, because every individual incident is a concern for us as government.
Updated
Lawler says it was the police commissioner who called the curfew, and he is on the ground in Alice Springs. She says there were possibly 5,000 extra people in the town for the show.
The police commissioner says police minister Brent Potter says:
In this instance we’ve seen 72 hours of different types, but all arguably related to some form of violence.
We saw the 20 individuals assault off-duty police officers, but there were Territorians walking home that were assaulted and we had the police officer who was run over during a point-of-sale intervention. And we’ve had some fighting at the Natick event.
Updated
Lawler:
I love Alice Springs, but the offending and behaviour that we have seen over the last 96 hours will not be tolerated.
We will back our police to enact this curfew and do what is needed to improve community safety in Alice Springs. Territory police are doing an incredible job in very difficult circumstances and I want to personally thank the police commissioner, Michael Murphy.
Updated
Alice Springs curfews an effective ‘circuit breaker’: Eva Lawler
The Northern Territory’s chief minister, Eva Lawler, has been talking about the Alice Springs curfew.
The offending in Alice Springs over the last few days has been unacceptable. The curfew will provide police extra powers to get on top of the situation on the ground in Alice Springs.
This is exactly why my government passed curfew legislation in May. We want police to use the curfew powers when it’s needed, and that time is right now.
After the first Alice Springs youth curfew, we’ve seen how effective curfews can be as a circuit breaker. We believe a broader curfew for Alice Springs right now will have a similar effect.
Updated
Many thanks for joining me on the blog today, Cait Kelly will be here to guide you through the rest of our rolling coverage. Take care!
Record fine after potent greenhouse gas intercepted at borders
A company that imported electrical equipment containing the world’s most potent greenhouse gas has been hit with a record fine of almost half a million dollars, AAP reports.
The Australian arm of the unnamed company was fined after importing equipment containing sulphur hexafluoride (SF6) – the most potent synthetic greenhouse gas – without a licence.
Investigators from the Australian Border Force and the Department for Climate Change, Energy and the Environment and Water intercepted the equipment at every major port in Australia between September last year and March.
More than $3m worth of equipment was seized, containing an estimated 517kg of SF6, which is considered a serious contributing factor to global warming.
If released to the atmosphere, that would have a climate impact equivalent to running nearly 5,000 cars for a year. As a result the company was fined a record $465,480.
It is illegal to import equipment containing a scheduled substance such as SF6 into Australia without a licence under both the Ozone Protection and Synthetic Greenhouse Gas Management Act 1989 and the Customs Act 1901.
Updated
More on the weather: records set for high pressure last week, but not the big one
As you may recall, there was a bit of excitement about the latest slow-moving high pressure in the southern Australian region (including this well-read article last Thursday).
There was some conjecture about whether Australia would set a record for mean sea-level pressure during the event. Early readings of a fresh record at Sheffield in Tasmania looked a little unlikely given nearby sites weren’t anyway as high, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.
Anyway, we noted meteorologists were watching closely as there was a chance the national record might fall over the weekend. Well, weather nerds may be interested to know the following, from a BoM spokesperson:
Almost all Bureau weather stations in Tasmania, and in Victoria south of the Dividing Range had their highest mean sea-level pressure on record [for any month] on 4 July 2024.
Many areas saw a range from 1040-1044 hectopascals, with the highest observations at Ouse of 1043.9 hPa beating its previous record of 1042.6 hPa on 4 July (coincidence!) five years earlier.
That leaves Australia’s highest reliably observed pressure from 7 June 1967 at Launceston as the as-yet unmatched record.
For now at least. If we keep energising the atmosphere by pumping out greenhouse gas emissions, don’t be surprised if all manner of records eventually tumble. (Hurricane Beryl now battering Texas is one such record-breaking tempest.)
Updated
Angus Hines from the Bureau of Meteorology has provided a national weather update, with rain forecast across both east and west Australia – but temperatures not expected to get as cold as they were last week.
Here's your weather update including a look at the Rain across both east and west Australia. Video current: 12pm AEST 8 July 2024. For the latest forecasts and warnings go to our website: https://t.co/4W35o8iFmh pic.twitter.com/sh64ngCJJ2
— Bureau of Meteorology, Australia (@BOM_au) July 8, 2024
Brisbane bus war ends in $75m compromise
The Brisbane council and state government have ended a war of words over buses.
Mayor Adrian Schrinner and premier Steven Miles inked a new deal for the state to spend $75m on the city’s bus network. It means an end to a billboard campaign launched by the city council last month demanding more money.
Schrinner said:
I want to thank premier Steven Miles for working closely with us to deliver a better deal for all Brisbane residents. We need to make public transport services more frequent and the introduction of Brisbane Metro along with the additional services this agreement funds ensures that happens.
Shrinner confirmed the first stage of the Brisbane Metro service would open in October, with the second northern section to open “in the lead-up to December”. The council has also committed to reform of the city’s ancient bus network.
Transport minister Bart Mellish said:
At the moment, unlike a lot of other capital cities, we have a number of buses running parallel to train services, essentially. So we really want to reduce that amount. Reducing that amount means having buses that connect to rail services, so having a more integrated network.
Under the deal, the state government will pay for 75% of the cost of the system, with the Brisbane city council responsible for 25%. Fares on Queensland’s public transport system will be cut to just 50c from 5 August.
Updated
Frontline workers ‘not properly valued’ under award – union
Continuing from our last post: Australian Services Union assistant national secretary Emeline Gaske said its research showed one in three frontline workers in essential social and community services are relying on financial support from family and friends, due to their employment being under-classified and underpaid.
This is the best opportunity we’ve had since the Equal Pay case to life wages in the community sector and address shortcomings in the award that mean these workers are undervalued, under-classified and underpaid.
The review of the award is an opportunity to close the loopholes that continue to permit widespread underpayment of workers and ensure those who support people in some of the most vulnerable situations are paid fairly.
These are highly skilled, experienced frontline workers doing complex work in our communities – yet their duties, skills, qualifications and experience are not properly valued or recognised in the award.
Updated
Union lodges case saying workers underpaid
The Australian Services Union will today lodge its case with the Fair Work Commission to fix widespread under-classification issues and protect the pay rises granted to community and disability workers.
A recent study between the ASU and the UNSW showed that 67% of workers are under-classified in their roles, meaning they are being paid below their qualifications, skills and level of experience.
A previous equal pay case, which addressed the gender-based undervaluation of the community services sector, was lodged by the ASU in 2010 and resulted in real wage increases of between 23% and 45% over eight years. But the union says they have continued to see workers underpaid.
One community worker, Isabella, who did not want to be named, said she has worked at a community legal centre for over a year and everyone in her team was on band 1, but believed they should be on band 3.
We deserve to have enough money to live and be warm. Level 1 is not a liveable wage. Especially during winter, gas and electricity bills are so high.
There is a disregard for the critical work that we do. Not only are we facing challenges with assisting the clients, but simultaneously being told by employer that we don’t speak to distressed and suicidal clients so they can continue to underclassify us.
Updated
Murphy: shutdown of licensed venues is ‘an option we’re exploring’
Are police considering a cessation of alcohol sales in Alice Springs over the coming three nights, in line with the curfew?
Michael Murphy:
We’ve got pretty stringent controls at the moment but if we can still see really massive impacts upon harm that are directly attributed to alcohol, we need to do something.
[We’re probably not exploring] a total cessation but we are looking at some other options available to us.
Murphy says some decisions around this matter would be for the government, and some for police. The shutdown of licensed venues is “an option we’re exploring”, he says.
Updated
Murphy: ‘a huge influx of people in town can cause issues’
A reporter notes that the NT police minister has speculated that there may have been incidents in the past 72 hours involving people who are from out of town. How do police deal with that going forward over the next three nights?
Michael Murphy responds:
A really good point. It is about identifying where people are from, what the problem is, and helping remedy that.
We do know that a huge influx of people in town can cause issues and what we do see is there’s a connection to the availability of alcohol as well, so that’s another option we are exploring.
Updated
‘Whether they are adults or children, we will do our job,’ Murphy says
Do police anticipate a curfew on adults will be more difficult to enforce, as opposed to the previous curfew which only covered youths?
Michael Murphy:
Resourcing is a challenge and we have got a good team committed to public safety and making a difference in protecting territorians. The aim is to engage. What police do is deal with the public really well. That’s what we’re trained to do and whether they are adults or children, we will do our job. If they commit crimes, we’ll address it where we have to. The primary area here is discretion, communication, education and making a difference to avoid harms [from] occurring.
Updated
Michael Murphy also says the alleged assault of four off-duty police officers in Alice Springs at the weekend involved predominantly adults. It was initially reported by police as allegedly involving “20 male youths”.
Updated
Murphy says he will request curfew extension if required
Under the legislation, the police commissioner would need to go to the minister for the curfew to be extended beyond 72 hours.
Michael Murphy says: “If I believe an extension is required I will put that in writing to the minister about the reasons why I think that should occur.”
If there is a continuation of harmful conduct, which I hope there is not, we apply some measures now and use the community to help us we should see a turnaround. If that continues and there’s some behaviour that still concern me, I can apply for a 72-hour [extension] for a different area or go to the minister for another seven days.
Updated
NT police commissioner: ‘between 10pm and 6am you can’t come into the declared area unless it is for certain reasons’
Michael Murphy says he is mindful of the declaration during Naidoc Week, and continues:
It’s more important than ever that we need community support to solve longer-term issues of Alice Springs and the answer is not in the criminal justice system, it’s in the community and the leadership.
From 10pm tonight until 6am, the confines between Anzac Hill, Shorts Crescent down to the hospital from the Stuart Highway, across to Leichhardt and Stock Terrace will be in the declared area. Anyone coming into the zone can be engaged by police and asked to leave, or alternatively they can be asked to stay if there is another disturbance and they need to be contained for their own safety.
A failure to abide to a request by police can lead to an offence and it can lead to an infringement notice or arrest, so please be mindful and be alive to the fact between 10pm and 6am you can’t come into the declared area unless it is for certain reasons.
Some of those reasons are if you’re fleeing from domestic violence, visiting family, if you have to care for someone, if you are here for employment purposes, going to a fast food restaurant or some lawful purpose I can assure you police will use discretion and have a conversation with you and make sure you are here for the right reasons.
Updated
NT police chief announces three-night curfew in Alice Springs
Northern Territory police commissioner Michael Murphy is speaking to the media following news he was considering a second youth curfew in Alice Springs (you can read more about this earlier in the blog).
He says:
New legislation was introduced on the first of June into parliament into the Police Administration Act which allows me to make a determination into prevention, how to stop and reduce associated harm in the community, particularly around civil disturbances.
Like I said, I had to carefully consider a lot of things about policing activity, Northern Territory government activity, the impact on the community, but this afternoon I signed off on a public social disorder declaration. It will be effective now, but only come into operation between 10pm and 6am over the next three nights.
Updated
‘Plain medieval’ to avoid sexuality as part of disability support, advocate says
Disability sector advocate River Night has also weighed in on the matter, arguing that avoiding sexuality as part of the support setting for people with significant disability is “plain medieval”.
In a statement, Night said:
The real story, each time we hear people say NDIS funding is being used for sex and drugs, is that our politicians want to set up blanket yes and no rules for a scheme that is designed completely, at its core, as an individualised funding program, that requires professional judgement and flexibility …
NDIS providers are required to provide ‘holistic’ approaches to service delivery. That includes not just medical support but support for identity, community, relationships and all those things that every human being has a right to.
Avoiding sexuality as part of any full-time, 24-hour support setting to people with complex and significant disability, is plain medieval and shows a huge lack of contemporary and educated insight into human services. I might understand this 60 years ago, but not now.
Updated
Sex work and the NDIS, continued
Just circling back to our earlier post: The NDIS minister, Bill Shorten, may have only heard of one instance of funding being allocated to sex workers under the scheme several years ago, but the Guardian covered a more recent instance last month.
Speaking to Kitty Drake for “This is how we do it around the world: a sex special” series, Susan, 59, a paraplegic Brisbane woman, described an ongoing arrangement with sex worker Samuel*.
Trying to date as a wheelchair user makes you very vulnerable. If I go home with someone and he takes advantage of me, I can’t run away or fight back.
Being paraplegic, I feel exposed – but also invisible. I’m a sexual person, but a lot of men simply look through me. Samuel sees me as a sexual being.
At the end of each session, Samuel sends an invoice marked “support worker” to my plan manager at the national disability insurance scheme.
You can read the full piece in Susan’s words below:
A similar conversation is currently taking place within aged care, which you can read about here.
*Not his real name.
Updated
Newcastle climate protester sentenced to three months in prison
A 21-year-old who took part in a protest in New South Wales has been sentenced to three months in prison after she climbed atop machinery at the Port of Newcastle.
The protest, which is ongoing and is now in its 14th day, was organised by Blockade Australia to call for a change to the economic and political system to achieve meaningful climate action. At least 30 people have been arrested since the protest began on 25 June, for actions that have included people standing atop trains and hanging suspended above railway lines.
Laura Davy, who faced Newcastle local court today, pleaded guilty to entering a major facility to disrupt use and was sentenced to three months in prison. An appeal on the sentence has been filed.
Brad Homewood, a spokesperson for Blockade Australia, said it was the harshest penalty faced by the protesters yet, with most of those arrested facing fines between $750 to $1,500.
We’re shocked but not surprised because this is what we expect the state to do, to repress people in what we would call lawful protest and direct action.
On Thursday, the Australian Rail Track Corporation confirmed that 200 passenger trains had been cancelled since the protests began, and condemned the actions as “illegal and dangerous”. More on the protests here:
Updated
Plan to rein in pricey groceries in remote communities
Remote communities tend to fork out much more on their weekly shop than their urban counterparts, putting pressure on First Nation communities.
That’s prompted the federal government to pull together a strategy for food security in remote Indigenous communities, with consultation to start this week and a final plan expected in two years.
Shoppers in remote areas can pay upwards of 50% more for food and other essentials at regional supermarkets. Food can also be of poorer quality and availability can be patchy.
Indigenous Australians minister Linda Burney said everyone should have access to affordable, fresh and healthy food, especially children and older people.
We want people to have their say on what will work to improve the price, quality of food and other essential groceries in remote communities.
The final strategy is expected in 2026, with $11.8m committed by the federal government for the plan and early projects.
- from AAP
Updated
New home loans down 1.7% in May but longer-term trend up
May saw a modest 1.7% decline in the value of new home loans in Australia, according to the ABS. The tally dropped 1.7% compared with expectations of a gain in the month by about that scale.
Home lending slipped in May, dropping 1.7%. However, since May 2023, the value of new loans to investors alone has generally risen rapidly, including almost 75% in WA, almost half in Qld and about a quarter in NSW. (Via @ABSStats) pic.twitter.com/K2gLQ5sk37
— @phannam@mastodon.green (@p_hannam) July 8, 2024
All categories dropped, including first home buyers borrowing $5.2bn, down 2.9%, while owner occupiers took out $12.9bn in loans, down 1.6%. Investors, meanwhile, forked out $10.7bn, or 1.3% less than in April.
The longer term view, though, remains mostly an upward trend, with the total value of new home loans up 18% in the past 12 months even as interest rates rose. Investors took the lead.
In Western Australia, new loans for investors buying up properties were up 73.9%, those in Queensland up 48.2% and 24.8% in New South Wales. The splurge meant Queensland investors spent more than Victoria to buy real estate for a third month in a row with the tally reaching a record $2.4bn in May, the ABS said.
The average loan to buy an investment property is up 14.3% in Queensland but down 3.2% in Victoria. To the extent housing costs make a difference in where people want to move to for work and so forth, Victoria is starting to look relatively cheap:
Victoria has been a relative laggard of late, with the average property loan taken out by investors now about 40% more expensive in NSW. (Via @ABSStats ) pic.twitter.com/csVlEA9bC5
— @phannam@mastodon.green (@p_hannam) July 8, 2024
Updated
Preliminary auction clearance rate rises to 74.7%
The preliminary auction clearance rate stepped higher last week, rising to 74.7%, the highest early result since the first week of April (75.9%), CoreLogic has reported:
From a volume perspective, 1,747 auctions were recorded last week, the lowest count since the Kings Birthday long weekend in mid-June. However, the number of auctions continues to track well ahead of levels recorded at the same time last year (+22%) when 1,428 auctions were held.
Both of the major auction markets recorded a rise in the preliminary clearance rate.
In Sydney, 76.7% of auctions have returned a successful result so far, up 4.7 percentage points from the prior week and the strongest early result since the first week of May (78.1%).
Melbourne’s preliminary clearance rate came in at 70.2% last week, up 2.0 percentage points from the previous week (68.2%) and roughly in line with the average preliminary clearance rate through the year to-date.
Updated
Cybersecurity course for women and gender-diverse candidates
From AAP:
Only women and gender-diverse candidates will be invited to participate in the latest cybersecurity course from one of Australia’s largest security providers as part of an effort to address inequality in the sector.
CyberCX launched its first full-time, women-only training course on Monday, offering 40 paid roles that will begin in November.
The announcement comes after research from Per Capita revealed women made up just 21% of Australia’s cybersecurity workforce, and a study from Engineers Australia showed only 13% of qualified engineers were female.
Updated
Bill Shorten and Barnaby Joyce on alleged NDIS waste
Continuing from our last post: Bill Shorten hopped on Sunrise opposite the former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce to discuss some of where this alleged waste is happening.
Cryptocurrency, steam rooms and “toys of a sexual nature” are some of the supports the minister said would no longer be available once he was able to pass the bill.
Joyce said he would “put his ass” on it that the Coalition would support changes to curb any claimed wastage.
And I agree 100% that the sooner this is fixed the better, because I do not want to pay. You don’t want to pay for someone to have a wild all night[er] between the sheets on the taxpayers’ ticket, when it actually comes with a bill. I think we’re all on a unity ticket for that.
But Shorten clarified sex workers – despite making a good headline for some politicians and the media – aren’t actually being claimed on the scheme that often.
I just want to also reassure people today who are thinking about the NDIS – there are 380,000 transactions or invoices a day, there’s about 100 million transactions a year. I’m aware of one sex worker being paid for about three years ago.
Updated
Shorten continues criticism of Greens and opposition over NDIS
The NDIS minister, Bill Shorten, is continuing his rampage against the Greens and the opposition after the unlikely bedfellows teamed up to delay passing changes to the scheme until at least August.
In a nutshell, the NDIS bill is the first legislative response to a major review into the scheme last year, which recommended changes to refocus on supporting those with a functional impairment, rather than those with a diagnosis.
The bill itself will target intraplan inflation – where participants request more funds for supports within a period than originally budgeted for – along with clarifying the two pathways for entry to the scheme, and what items and supports can be funded by participants. It’s been sent back to a parliamentary committee until 5 August for further consideration.
As we’ve reported before, Shorten has already launched a “waste” tracker website - which visualises the claimed “wastage” each second the changes aren’t passed - has brought along One Nation senator Pauline Hanson, and hired a billboard truck to drive around Parliament House and condemn his political foes.
Hell hath no fury like a NDIS minister scorned. And that brings us to this morning.
Updated
NSW ‘deeply wounded’ by death of three children in Sydney house fire, premier says
New South Wales has been “deeply wounded” by the devastating death of three young children, after their father allegedly frustrated attempts to rescue them from their burning home.
As AAP reports, premier Chris Minns forecasts a 28-year-old man will be hit with “the most serious charges on offer” after children aged six, three and 10 months were killed in the fire at Lalor Park, in Sydney’s west on Sunday night.
The NSW premier said the “horrifying and senseless act” had outraged the entire state.
These children deserved a loving home with safety and security, and instead, they’re gone.
I can imagine the people of NSW feel enormous sorrow and deep sympathy with the surviving family members this morning, as we also show enormous care and gratitude to our emergency service workers … this is going to leave a deep wound on the state of NSW.
Updated
Jacinta Allan says issue of compensation ‘a very, very big question’
Jacinta Allan also raised comments by Melbourne airport this morning regarding possible “redress” from the government for the use of airport land during construction works.
She said this is yet to be negotiated:
What we also have seen this morning is another unresolved issue placed on the table by the airport themselves. So we still clearly have some further negotiation, some further discussions to have with the commonwealth and with the airport as to how we can progress this project because that’s a very, very big question that the airport has raised today – asking for compensation from the government for land that is leased by the government to them for their private operation.
Updated
Melbourne airport train link delayed by four years, premier says
Jacinta Allan was asked about the airport’s change of heart. She said:
I certainly welcome the news … [that the] airport’s unreasonable demands that they’ve held for a number of years now to pursue an underground station [do not] stack up. We’re pleased to see that acknowledged, but the consequence of the unreasonable position that has been taken for a number of years now is that this project has been delayed by four years.
That’s the simple fact and consequence of what we have been trying for years to negotiate with the airport. We needed their approval to be able to get into the airport footprint itself to be able to do early works site investigations. We haven’t been able to do that.
Allan all but said it’s unlikely the project will be complete by 2030, as the airport had suggested:
Their position has only changed in the last 24 hours and that does not wash away years of delay that has been caused by the previous insistence [for] an underground station.
Victorian government selects preferred builder for second tunnelling contract as part of suburban rail loop
The Victorian government has announced it has selected a preferred builder for its second tunnelling contract for the suburban rail loop project.
The premier, Jacinta Allan, announced a consortium made up of WeBuild SpA, GS Engineering and Construction Australia and Bouygues Construction Australia had been selected to construct the 10km northern twin tunnels between Glen Waverley and Box Hill.
It comes after the government late last year signed a $3.6bn contract for the tunnels between Cheltenham and Glen Waverley.
There’s no price tag yet for this contract.
Allan says another contract to build a new fleet of trains, fit out the tunnels, install signalling and operate the network will be awarded next year. Two contracts to build six new tunnels will also follow.
We’re expecting plenty of questions why the government is focusing on this end of the rail loop, rather than the western half, which will include the Melbourne airport station. The airport’s operator’s this morning confirmed it will support the government’s plans for an above-ground station, ending a years-long impasse.
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Turnbull says he ‘can’t think of anyone less suited to be prime minister’ than Dutton
Malcolm Turnbull’s nuclear energy comments come after he lashed Peter Dutton as a “thug” on The Project last night.
During an interview, Turnbull was asked what kind of prime minister Dutton would make if elected and responded:
I think that’s something we should contemplate with dread.
Well he’s a thug [and] Peter’s got one tune that he plays, [and has] all his political life, and that is division and animosity, generally targeted at immigrants.
I couldn’t think of anyone less suited to be prime minister of a multicultural society like Australia.
Asked if he would vote Labor in the next election, Turnbull responded: “It’s always a chance, I haven’t done so, but you know – there are all sorts of options. It is a secret ballot.”
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This isn’t the first time Malcolm Turnbull has denounced the Coalition’s nuclear energy plan. Writing for Guardian Australia last month, the former PM stated:
A nuclear power plant would face the same economic challenges that coal-fired generators do now – for much of the day it would be unable to compete with solar and wind. During those times of excess supply the nuclear plant would add to the excess. That surplus electricity would be taken up by batteries and pumped hydro which would then compete with the nuclear plant during the night.
So the only way the economics of a nuclear plant could be assured in our market would be for the rollout of solar and wind to be constrained. That seems to be [Peter] Dutton’s intention. In other words, the Coalition is planning to intervene in the market to constrain the cheapest form of new generation and use taxpayers’ money to build the most expensive form.
You can read his entire piece below:
Malcolm Turnbull then turned to Aukus:
The reference to nuclear powered subs is fatuous. The submarines to be acquired under Aukus will use weapons grade uranium in sealed reactors which deliberately cannot be maintained in Australia – [former prime minister Scott] Morrison cited this as a positive.
If Australia had opted for naval nuclear propulsion with France using low enriched uranium (comparable to that used in civilian reactors) then a limited civil nuclear industry could have been justified here to support the navy’s nuclear propulsion.
Malcolm Turnbull denounces nuclear energy as 'not the right fit' for Australia
Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull has denounced nuclear energy as being an option for Australia’s energy mix, stating it is “NOT the right fit.”
In a series of posts to X, Turnbull said Australia’s “big advantage” is solar and wind, plus batteries and pumped hydro “to store excess electricity when it is in abundance and use it when it is not”.
Turnbull argued gas peaking plants can also be useful but “while they can turn on and off they don’t soak up surplus electricity during sunny days or windy nights”.
In short to complement renewables you need flexible and despatchable generation (which you can turn on and off).
Nuclear plants do none of that. They run continuously. Cannot be turned on and off at the flick of a switch. Thus even if they weren’t hugely expensive and take decades to build they are NOT the right fit for Australia’s energy mix.
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Liberal senator Dave Sharma said the short range weapon system – which could be used between 10 to 15 kilometres – could be effective but didn’t tackle the bigger challenges the defence force faced.
The defence minister needed to be focused on frigates, destroyers, submarines “and the capability gaps we’ve got emerging there”, he said.
It’s an important addition for us but I think the bigger challenges we face as the Australian Defence Force are some of the bigger platforms.
- from AAP
More details on the lethal kamikaze drones being added to defence arsenal
As AAP reports, the Albanese government has announced it will acquire the loitering munition Switchblade 300 to boost the defence force’s arsenal (You can read all the details earlier in the blog here).
The defence industry minister, Pat Conroy, told AAP they can be “carried by a single person and they can obviously be deployed to devastating effect as they have been in Ukraine”.
The acquisition is the first stage of the plan to buy more loitering munitions, with between $500m and $1bn allocated for army drones. Conroy said:
We’re running programs right now to develop Australian drones. And we’re hoping to get them into the inventory as soon as possible.
Nationals senator Ross Cadell welcomed the purchase but said they were “a long way from a game changer”. It couldn’t take out tanks or armoured vehicles but was good against infantry, he told Sky News.
It can take out personnel but between $90,000 and $120,000 a hit, it is a very expensive way of doing that … This is more of an announcement to pretend we’re doing something than actually changing the battlefield.
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Further charges laid against man accused of producing online bestiality content
A man who police allege is one of New South Wales’s biggest self-producers of online bestiality content has had an additional 29 charges laid against him.
In February, strike force detectives executed search warrants across Sydney targeting the online sharing of child abuse material, which led them to the online profile of a user under the pseudonym “Beast Boy”.
“Beast Boy” had a large online presence and allegedly used encrypted messaging to share bestiality material, which police say featured the sexual abuse of various animals such as dogs, sheep, goats, chickens and a dead kangaroo.
In April detectives executed a search warrant in Moorland, around 30km north of Taree, and arrested a 38-year-old man.
A dog that was missing from the Grafton area for around five years was seized by the RSPCA and returned to its owner. The man was charged with 20 offences and remains before the courts.
Following further investigation of the seized hard drives, investigators allegedly identified “thousands” of videos and images of bestiality and child abuse material. An additional 29 charges will be laid at court today.
The additional charges include seven counts of bestiality, five count of possessing and disseminating bestiality material, committing an act of cruelty upon an animal, as well as possessing child abuse material and 15 counts of using a carriage service to access, transmit and solicit child abuse material.
The man remains on remand and is due to appear at Taree local court.
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PNG to appoint acting petroleum minister after MP’s Australian arrest
Papua New Guinea will appoint an acting petroleum minister after Jimmy Maladina stepped down while he faces charges over an alleged domestic assault in Australia, AAP reports.
The 58-year-old was charged over an alleged domestic dispute after police were called to an address in Sydney’s eastern suburb of Bondi and found a 31-year-old woman with facial injuries on Saturday.
He was arrested and taken to Waverley police station where he was charged and will appear before the local court on Thursday.
Maladina has been granted bail, with conditions including not contacting the alleged victim or anyone she has a domestic relationship with, assaulting or threatening her or stalking, harassing or intimidating her.
“You must not approach or be in the company of [the alleged victim] for at least 12 hours after drinking alcohol or taking illicit drugs,” the bail conditions state.
A PNG governor said he was “deeply embarrassed” at the arrest and expressed sympathy for the alleged victim.
Governor of East Sepik province, Allan Bird, said the allegation was deeply concerning given “violence against women in PNG has reached pandemic proportions and our women and girls continue to live in fear”.
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Kylea Tink says office ‘inundated’ with concerned calls about proposed redistribution
A petition to save the North Sydney electorate from the chopping block at the next election has garnered nearly 1500 signatures, after being launched a few days ago.
As Amy Remeikis reported last month, the Australian Electoral Commission proposed North Sydney – one of the country’s oldest electorates – be abolished in a boundary shake-up that could have far-reaching consequences for the major parties.
Independent North Sydney MP Kylea Tink said her office has been “inundated” with calls and emails from “hundreds of passionate North Sydney residents” concerned about the proposed boundary redistribution.
While the major parties have been silent after the AEC’s draft plans were announced, and seem quietly happy to see North Sydney abolished, many in the community are not.
It’s clear that people are worried about losing our voice, our unique sense of identity and social cohesion, while many have said they are concerned about being disconnected from sports facilities, schools, businesses, and community groups.
The growing North Sydney community, as well the 28,000 businesses that call the area home, have unique perspectives and needs that differ from the surrounding electorates we are proposed to be absorbed into.
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Three Queensland children found at service station after being reported missing
Three children who had gone missing at the weekend were located safe this morning.
An amber alert was issued this morning after a three-year-old girl, five-year-old boy and six-year-old boy went missing from the Gold Coast yesterday afternoon.
Police believe the children were with a man known to them earlier in the day when they left a Paradise Point address around 4.30pm in a blue Hyundai i30.
Queensland police were advised that the children were found at a service station in Mount Warren Park around 7am this morning, and the blue Hyundai was located nearby a short time later.
A 27-year-old man is in police custody on other unrelated charges and is scheduled to appear in court today. Police said the man arrested is the children’s father. Investigations are ongoing.
Police are continuing to appeal for anyone who may have seen the blue Hyundai i30 travelling between the Gold Coast and Logan areas between 4.30pm and 10pm last night.
At a press conference early this morning, police alleged the children were inside the vehicle overnight by themselves, before walking to a nearby 7-Eleven where an employee contacted police.
Updated
NT police commissioner yet to make a decision on new curfew, union says
Nathan Finn, president of the Northern Territory Police Association, spoke with ABC News Breakfast earlier amid discussions around a second youth curfew in Alice Springs.
We had more on this earlier in the blog here, in case you missed it.
Finn said at this stage the association was not anticipating a curfew to be announced, but that the police commissioner was yet to make a decision.
I have spoken to the commissioner this morning, he’s relayed his concerns of obviously what’s occurred in the Alice Springs in the last 72 hours. He’s in consultation with his command team to make that determination whether the curfew is required.
Finn said there are a number of considerations around whether to call a curfew, including “whether we’ve got enough resources to actually police this curfew”.
It’s sad we’re talking about this only three months prior to the previous one made in Alice Springs … It’s a tough decision to make but a decision that needs to be made by the commissioner and local command team in respect to obviously placing that curfew in. We need those resources, though, to make sure we can police the curfew if that’s the decision that’s made.
Updated
Melbourne airport CEO wants to see rail link moved up to 2030
Asked about the construction timeline for the rail link, Lori Argus said the airport would work with the state government to “have this built as quickly as possible”.
Recent state announcements were delayed till 2033. I’d love to see that pulled forward now. If we can pick up the pen quickly and get it built quickly, I’d love to see it in place – if not at the same time, just after our runway – by 2030. But we recognise that that might not be realistic, we need to let the state work that through. But we will not be difficult, we will work with them to build to have this built as quickly as possible.
Asked if there were any conditions for building the above-ground station, Argus said there was the challenge of “constructing in a 24-7 environment” that needs to be considered, plus getting terminal access right and working out how to transfer the land over to the state.
Argus said the airport had written to the premier, Jacinta Allan, this morning and “we’re really confident that will happen.”
Updated
‘Any rail is better than no rail’, Melbourne airport CEO says
Lori Argus said the suggestion any delay on the rail link has been about “raking in more money” through underground parking was “staggering”.
The reality is our car parks are full today, pretty much full. And we do have a lot more people on the roads, and so our problem is going to be full regardless of the rail or not. Because doubling our passenger growth in the next 20 years means that it would be mayhem if we didn’t have other transport solutions.
The Melbourne airport CEO also disagreed with one local mayor, who reportedly labelled negotiations with the airport as “obstructionist”.
Argus:
Again, we were working constructively with the state when the project was paused. We didn’t ask for the project to be paused and we didn’t ask for the project to go into the federal review.
Argus said plans for an underground station were in the airport’s plans for “at least 30 years” so “this shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone that we had long-term plans for future proofing, which we think makes sense.”
We’re now at a point where we think, well, any rail is better than no rail, and so a compromise is necessary and we’re willing to do that.
Updated
Melbourne airport CEO says it’s time to ‘just get on with it’ regarding rail link
The CEO of Melbourne airport, Lori Argus, says that “now’s the time to compromise” and “accept” the above-ground rail link.
As we reported earlier, Melbourne airport has made a major backdown and said it would support an above-ground station – rather than the costlier underground one it was insisting on – in a move that could see works finally begin.
Speaking with ABC RN earlier, Argus said “another one or two years without the certainty of support for underground means that it’s just going to take too long.”
We were in a process with the state government with their above-ground station last year when it was paused. It then went into the federal review, and then the minister requested an independent review. So a number of reviews for all the different parties, that’s just taking a little bit of time. But the reality is when that report came out some weeks ago, and said there was more review required for underground to be considered, we just thought we need to just get on with it.
Updated
Coalition advances on Labor in NSW and Queensland: poll
The Coalition has notched up higher voter support than Labor for the first time in the critical campaign battleground state of NSW, according to new Newspoll analysis.
As AAP reports, the April to June analysis published in The Australian newspaper today showed the Coalition ahead 51–49 on a two-party basis in Australia’s largest state by population.
The Liberal National party has also improved its lead in Queensland with 54% support to Labor’s 46% on a two-party basis.
Support for Labor remains strong in South Australia and Victoria. Overall, Labor is ahead of the Coalition 51% to 49%. In the primary vote stakes, Labor is losing support among younger voters to the Greens, the analysis shows.
Federal MPs are on a winter break and the analysis shows Anthony Albanese has 48% approval compared to Peter Dutton’s 36%. Dutton is leading Albanese as preferred prime minister in his home state of Queensland for the first time, the analysis shows.
The next federal election is due to be held in 2025. The analysis was based on Newspoll surveys with almost 5,000 voters across Australia between April and June.
Peter Dutton to travel to the United States for the next week
The opposition leader, Peter Dutton, will be in the United States for the next week, attending the Australian American Leadership Dialogue conference and then taking some personal leave.
The defence minister, Richard Marles, will attend the same conference, then head on to the Nato summit as Australia’s representative.
Dutton’s office announced this morning he would be at the AALD in Washington DC from 8–12 July, where he will speak in various forums. He will then take three days’ personal leave after that event, the statement said.
“The Liberal Party is covering the cost of the flights,” Dutton’s office said.
In these precarious times where new threats challenge civilisation on multiple fronts, the [Australia-US] Alliance matters more than ever.
Sussan Ley will be acting opposition leader for that period.
During Marles’ trip to the US, his office said he would “undertake a number of engagements with representatives of the US Congress and senior officials in Washington to discuss our Alliance and advancing cooperation under the AUKUS partnership”.
The partnership between Australian and NATO reinforces our shared commitment to the rules-based international order.
Updated
Pacific leaders gather in Brisbane over banking woes
Pacific leaders, ministers and central bank governors will gather in Brisbane today to discuss the withdrawal of banking services from many Pacific island countries.
The two-day forum is part of a joint effort by Australia and the US to help the Pacific with its financial services at a time of growing competition for influence in the region. Western officials fear that any void in banking services in the region will be filled by China.
Officials say the Pacific has “borne the brunt of a global trend of financial institutions reducing or withdrawing banking services, with the fastest withdrawal of correspondent banking relationships anywhere in the world”.
More than 300 people will discuss how to reverse that trend when they participate in the two-day Pacific Banking Forum in Brisbane.
The US is sending its Treasury under-secretary, Brian Nelson, to participate. Nauru is sending its president, David Adeang, and the Cook Islands will be represented by its prime minister, Mark Brown, while numerous others are sending finance ministers and central bank governors.
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, said Australia had “a strong connection with our brothers and sisters in the Pacific” and wanted to “help them prosper into the future”.
Chalmers said helping to prevent the loss of banking services in the Pacific was “vital to the safety, security and economic development of our region”.
Gaza death toll ‘impacting each and every person with a conscience’, Payman says
Wrapping up the interview, Fatima Payman was asked what she is hearing from her community about the human toll of what has been occurring in Gaza over the past ten months. She said:
It’s no longer just the Muslim community or the pro-Palestinian community that’s hurting. It’s been impacting each and every person with a conscience and a heart out there.
The amount of overwhelming sentiments that I have received in terms of the heartache, the pain, the loss of hope, not knowing, you know – seeing the devastation, the destruction.
I know it’s quite early to be talking about this, but seeing limbs of young children being blown off and, you know, amputations taking place without any anaesthetics, these are live-streamed. The genocide that’s taking place in Gaza and impacting Palestinians is being live-streamed and it’s impacting so many Australians who are a people of a fair go, who are a people that want to see freedom, want to see Palestinians have the right to self-determination and statehood.
So it’s been a very heartbreaking last 10 months and hopefully I will continue to use my voice in spaces and platforms that I get granted to raise concerns because these are universal principles of justice, equality and freedom that we all should share and advocate for.
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Payman says media backgrounding on her sets ‘precedent that is not constructive to modern Australia’
Fatima Payman was also asked to weigh in on the backgrounding that’s been happening over the last few days from her now ex-colleagues in the media.
She said it was “bizarre that this may set a precedent that is not really constructive to our modern-day Australia that we’re living in”.
But in saying that, I’m not going to dwell on what people have been doing. It’s quite flattering that people still want to talk about me and give, you know, information that I’d given to them in confidence, but I’m really focused on what’s to come, you know, what is going to serve the best interests of Western Australians in my capacity as their independent senator.
Payman said there are friendships she has formed over the past two years as a Labor senator that she hopes to maintain. As for whether the government can rely on her vote on crucial issues going forward, Payman said “it will depend on the bills that are brought forward”.
Updated
Fatima Payman was asked to give a message to voters who supported her because she was with the Labor party:
I know that throughout this whole process, a lot of Western Australians have been reaching out to me wanting to share their experience, but also their thoughts and sentiments on the ground that the Australian Labor party that they elected were not serving their best interests.
They voted for a change in government, they wanted to see values of justice, equality and freedom upheld, and they’re just not seeing that. So for me, it’s important to prove myself, which I will, and in that I will be consulting with people on the ground to hear [what] their concerns are and how I can best represent them.
Updated
Payman to tour WA to speak to constituents ‘without … restrictions of party rules’
Independent senator Fatima Payman has been speaking with ABC News Breakfast following her decision to quit the Labor party last week.
Payman said it had been a “hectic past few weeks” but she has now travelled home to Perth, receiving a big reception at the airport and spending time with family.
Asked about her future in parliament as a now-independent senator, Payman said she plans to “try going to every single town” and visiting as many West Australians as she can to “find out what’s important to them … without any boundaries or restrictions of party rules and confinements”.
Payman also said she hadn’t thought about forming any coalitions “at this stage.”
Updated
Australians feel ‘crushing burden’ from humanitarian crises
Many Australians are feeling a “crushing burden” as they see images from multiple humanitarian crises around the world, a prominent charity says.
The chief executive of World Vision Australia, Daniel Wordsworth, made the comment as he warned that about nine million children were on the brink of famine in Sudan.
In an interview with Guardian Australia, Wordsworth said the situation in Sudan had “been worsening over the last 12 months, and, frankly, is going to get much worse over the next few months”. He said:
I think sometimes people see this stuff on the news or read about it in the newspaper and they feel like they have to carry this burden on their own shoulder, and so they have nothing in between crisis and themselves.
And they look at something like what’s happening in Gaza and Israel, what’s happening in Ukraine, what’s happening now in Sudan, and think how can they possibly make a difference? What can they possibly do to make that situation better? And so it feels like a crushing burden.
But Wordsworth said Australians could make a tangible difference through humanitarian organisations.
His comments coincide with the launch of World Vision’s Sudan child hunger crisis appeal. The organisation says it has about 200 staff on the ground who are helping about 1.3 million people in Sudan, including delivery of clean water, food, cash assistance and medical support.
Queensland to expand abortion services across state
The Queensland state government will spend tens of millions to expand abortion access across the state, including a brand-new counselling service.
The health minister, Shannon Fentiman, announced a $41.8m spend on the sector on the weekend.
The Labor government legalised abortion in 2018, but residents of regional parts of the state have long struggled to get access to the health service, a problem described as a “postcode lottery”.
The state is spending $20m recruiting 22 health staff, including nurses and midwives.
Nurses will be permitted to perform an abortion using the drug later this year when legislation passed in March comes into effect in the second half of the year.
Each hospital and health service will receive between $1m and $1.6m to pay for the new specialist positions. Fentiman said the funding would mean fewer people would need to travel for healthcare:
Abortion is a very personal choice, and every Queenslander deserves the level of support and care we are offering with this investment.
Queensland not-for-profit organisation Children by Choice will receive $8m to provide advice, counselling and referrals to every corner of the state. Its CEO, Jill McKay, said the service is pleased at the state government’s “significant investment to support more equitable access to abortion”.
Alice Springs ‘will welcome another curfew’, Jacinta Nampijinpa Price says
Northern Territory senator and shadow Indigenous Australians minister, Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, spoke with ABC Radio earlier this morning about the potential youth curfew in Alice Springs and described it as a “temporary measure”.
While I’m sure the town will welcome another curfew, there are underlying issues taking place … Indigenous children [in] my community and throughout the Northern Territory experience the highest rates of domestic and family violence, child sexual abuse, and it’s no wonder that we have circumstances these children come out of dysfunction where we’re seeing again, another rise in violent crime in the community.
Amid the previous youth curfew earlier this year, CEO of Snaicc – National Voice for Our Children, Catherine Liddle, said it was “no accident” there was a growing rate of youth crime as rates of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander child removals grow.
She said at the time, “We can stop the conveyor belt that sees our children in the child protection system ending up in the youth justice system.”
You can read more below:
Updated
Melbourne airport issues major backdown, paving way for airport train link
Melbourne airport has made a major backdown that could see works finally begin on the last rail link.
The long-promised train to Melbourne airport was stalled over the state government’s insistence it would only finance a cheaper, above-ground train station instead of the costlier underground option demanded by the airport.
But in a statement today, the airport said it would support an above-ground station, paving way for works to begin. The airport’s CEO, Lorie Argus, said the airport recognised the need to get on with the rail link in the interests of travellers, the city, Victoria and the airport’s expansion:
Victorians have waited long enough for an airport rail line. We will work with the Victorian government to deliver their preferred above-ground station at the airport so the rail line can become reality.
While Melbourne Airport has consistently advocated for an underground station, we are prepared to compromise on our position to ensure we have more transport options in place for the millions of new passengers that will visit Victoria and the airport precinct’s expanding workforce.
The airport said it would welcome the “immediate recommencement” of discussions with the government over the airport station.
Updated
Police say missing Gold Coast children have been found
Queensland police says that three children who had been alerted as missing have been located safe this morning. We will bring you the latest shortly.
Updated
Looking back at the previous youth curfew in Alice Springs
The Northern Territory government imposed a two-week youth curfew for the Alice Springs CBD on 27 March, following reports of escalating violence in the red centre. This was later extended by six days to cover the NT school holidays.
At the time, the chief minister, Eva Lawler, and federal Indigenous affairs minister, Linda Burney, described the measure as a “circuit breaker” to improve community safety. However, critics of the curfew labelled it a “kneejerk reaction” and questioned its legality.
In May, the Northern Territory introduced new laws allowing the police commissioner to declare three-day snap curfews in response to “public disorder”.
Updated
NT government considering second Alice Springs youth curfew
The Northern Territory police commissioner is considering a second youth curfew in Alice Springs after a string of recent incidents including the alleged assault of four off-duty police officers.
Police say the off-duty officers – three women and a man – were walking along the Todd River walkway about 2.15am on Sunday morning when they were allegedly approached from behind by around 20 young men who proceeded to assault them.
Police allege that one woman was pulled to the ground and had her bag stolen, another woman was punched in the face, kicked “multiple times” and had her mobile phone taken, while the man was also punched and kicked several times.
The group of 20 then left the area as the four alleged victims returned to their accomodation and called police, a statement alleged. Two of the women were later taken to Alice Springs hospital for the treatment of minor wounds.
The Northern Territory police minister, Brent Potter, told the media the alleged assault was the latest in a string of incidents over the past few days, and that the state’s police commissioner, Michael Murphy, was “looking at every option”.
[Murphy has] told me he is looking at the curfew. It is a power that he has within his means … He’ll make that deduction, that’s up to him, and I’m likely to hear back from him later.
Police are appealing for any information relating to the alleged incident on Sunday morning, with witnesses urged to contact Crime Stoppers.
Updated
Queensland police searching for three missing children
Queensland police are seeking urgent public assistance to help locate a three-year-old girl, five-year-old boy and six-year-old boy who went missing from the Gold Coast yesterday afternoon and “may be at significant risk”.
Police believe the children were with a man known to them earlier in the day when they left a Paradise Point address around 4.30pm in a blue Hyundai i30.
The children and vehicle remain outstanding. The children are described as Caucasian, slim build with blonde hair.
Defence adds lethal kamikaze drones to its arsenal
Killer drones that crash kamikaze-like into the enemy will be used by the nation’s elite soldiers under plans to boost the Australian defence force’s arsenal of lethal unmanned capabilities, AAP reports.
The Albanese government will today announce it has acquired the loitering munition Switchblade 300, for an amount which it said cannot be disclosed for strategic reasons. The drones will be delivered later this year with the government saying it would also not disclose the number of Switchblade 300s it was buying.
Unlike other traditional drones, which are used for reconnaissance, loitering munitions are aerial weapons designed to stay around the area of a target before attacking it directly by crashing into it and exploding.
They are carried in a backpack before being fired into the air where the wings flick out, hence the name switchblade.
The defence industry minister, Pat Conroy, said a defence review had made clear that new technology and “asymmetric advantage” were important priorities in modern warfare.
Any suggestion that we are not investing in drones is factually incorrect. The numbers speak for themselves. The Albanese government, in fact, is investing more than $10bn on drones, including at least $4.3bn on uncrewed aerial systems.
The government is set to make a further announcement in the coming weeks for the acquisition of more unmanned aerial systems.
Welcome
Good morning, and welcome back to a new week on the Australia news live blog. I’m Emily Wind, and I’ll be taking you through our rolling coverage for most of today. Here’s what is making news overnight before we get started.
AAP is reporting that killer drones that crash kamikaze-like into the enemy will be used by the nation’s elite soldiers, under plans to boost the Australian defence force’s arsenal of lethal unmanned capabilities.
The Albanese government will today announce it has acquired the loitering munition Switchblade 300, for an amount which it said cannot be disclosed for strategic reasons. The drones will be delivered later this year with the government saying it would also not disclose the number of Switchblade 300s it was buying.
Queensland police are seeking urgent public assistance to help locate a three-year-old girl, five-year-old boy and six-year-old boy who went missing from Paradise Point on the Gold Coast yesterday afternoon and “may be at significant risk”.
Police believe the children were with a man known to them earlier in the day when they left a Paradise Point address around 4.30pm in a blue Hyundai i30. The children and vehicle remain outstanding.
We’ll have more on both these stories shortly.
As always, you can get in touch with any story tips, thoughts and feedbacks through X, @emilywindwrites, or you can send me an email: emily.wind@theguardian.com.
Let’s get started.
