Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Nino Bucci and Emily Wind (earlier)

Bonza fleet’s grounding extended – as it happened

Molly Ticehurst Australia Chris Barrie Forbes (Geopolitical Entity) Australian Defence Force Climate Change
A Bonza 737 MAX aircraft in Melbourne.
A Bonza 737 MAX aircraft in Melbourne. Photograph: Joel Carrett/AAP

That's it for today, thanks for reading

Here are the main stories on Thursday, 2 May:

We look forward to seeing you here for more news tomorrow.

Updated

Parliamentary report calls for new law enshrining trade principles

The Australian government should enshrine in law some key principles for negotiating trade agreements, according to a new report from the parliamentary joint standing committee on trade and investment growth.

The report stems from a request made by the trade minister, Don Farrell, shortly before Labor held its national conference in Brisbane last August. He asked the committee to conduct an inquiry into the process for negotiating trade deals. Unions have long been critical of key parts in the process, including the lack of legislated safeguards and transparency before free trade agreements are signed.

The committee, chaired by Labor MP Steve Georganas, has made eight recommendations that it argued would “strengthen Australia’s approach to negotiating trade and investment agreements, contributing to better outcomes and ensuring that agreements are of greatest benefit to the Australian community”.

These recommendations include that the Australian government “require an independent review, including modelling and analysis, to be undertaken on each proposed or under review trade and investment agreement”. Australia should “seek to include human rights, labour and environmental chapters in its trade agreements” and should “seek to not include provisions in trade and investment agreements that waive labour market and skills testing or include investor state dispute settlement (ISDS) provisions”.

ISDS provisions are controversial because of the potential for foreign investors to sue Australia over the impact of policy decisions.

The committee also called on the government to “establish a legislative framework for the negotiation of Australia’s trade and investment agreements” - a recommendation that could be contentious because of the potential to bind future Coalition governments.

The final report said elements of the process for negotiating trade deals, including stakeholder consultation and reviews of its impact, could be enshrined in law.

It said it would not be appropriate to be “highly prescriptive in ruling certain provisions in or out of future trade and investment agreements” but there were “certain exceptional commitments that are fundamental to the public interest that could be appropriately enshrined in a legislative framework”. That could include “broad principles in relation to maintaining consistency with international rights and standards, and retaining the ability to regulate in the public interest across key policy areas”.

Bonza was almost bought by Australian buyer before administration: report

As administrators determine the future of Bonza following the abrupt repossession of its aircraft on Tuesday, the company that provided maintenance services to the budget airline has said a local buyer was on the cusp of taking the airline over from US private investment firm 777 Partners.

Speaking to the industry news outlet Australian Aviation, Bradley Davren, the CEO of AVCRO which has provided maintenance, repairs and overhaul to Bonza since it launched last year, said the airline had developed a sustainable business model before entering administration.

Davren told Australian Aviation that a “very serious commitment” had been made by the unnamed local backer before the airline’s five remaining Boeing 737-Max 8 aircraft – procured through lease deals part owned by 777 Partners – were repossessed on Tuesday morning by a new company set up in April, Phoenix Aviation Capital, that owned a controlling stake in the aircraft leases. Davren said:

They were in a position where ultimately the current owner could have just shifted that liability away from themselves and the airline would have kept moving fat, dumb and happy without issue ... The lead backer, to my understanding, is very well-known and would absolutely do wonders for multiple reasons.

Yet to be seen if that eventuates, but had that outcome come to fruition, I suspect you would have seen Bonza kick into overdrive.

Davren also sought to rubbish suggestions Bonza’s business model had been unviable or that it had issues with finances:

The airline was trading with absolutely no credit issues. Obviously, we would be one of their largest creditors. They were never on stop credit with us. They never even appeared to be trending in that direction, and in fact, it’s unfair to the employees if this is wound up, to suggest that this is the reason why ... Their load factors are fantastic.

Earlier on Thursday, administrators announced Bonza would remain grounded up to and including Tuesday 7 May. Discussions are continuing to find a potential buyer to save the airline. A further update is scheduled today.

You can read more here:

Updated

US official warns on nuclear “shortcuts”

A senior US official has warned against “shortcuts” to nuclear disarmament as the Australian government considers signing a treaty imposing a blanket ban on nuclear weapons.

There is no sign that the government is about to join the relatively new agreement, known as the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), and it is not supported by any of the existing nuclear weapons states.

But Labor committed in its party platform to sign and ratify the TPNW after taking account of several factors. Earlier this week MPs and senators from across the political spectrum vowed to press the government to join the TPNW, saying “history is calling”.

Paul Dean, the principal deputy assistant secretary in the US State Department’s bureau of arms control, deterrence and stability, held a virtual press briefing today. Guardian Australia asked him whether he had any message for the Australian government as it considered whether it could sign the TPNW.

Dean replied that he understood “the frustration globally with the pace of disarmament” but added that it was “important to really understand that there are no shortcuts available in nuclear stability and nuclear disarmament”.

He said the US was committed to pursuing “negotiations in good faith toward disarmament”, but said this would require Russia “to engage constructively in arms control”. He added:

I think, by the same token, we need a good-faith interlocutor on the side of the PRC [People’s Republic of China] to make some progress in managing a complicated nuclear deterrence relationship in a way that really minimises the risk of misunderstanding, misimpression, miscalculation that can lead to poor decision-making and unnecessary and costly arms races.

Updated

Faruqi v Hanson case adjourned

As part of his closing arguments, Mehreen Faruqi’s counsel, Saul Holt, has addressed his earlier accusation that Pauline Hanson was “lying under oath” when she said she did not know that Faruqi was a Muslim at the time she sent her tweet telling her to “piss off back to Pakistan”.

Hanson gave evidence that she did not know Faruqi’s religion in September 2022, and only learnt it sometime before she submitted her affidavit to the court in January this year.

Holt put to Hanson that was “a lie”, given Faruqi was the first female Muslim senator, 97% of the Pakistani population are Muslim and Faruqi has worn Muslim “garb” in the senate.

Hanson said she did not know, had not seen Faruqi in a burqa or hijab, had never asked Faruqi or anyone their religious status and it “didn’t cross her mind” to include that she didn’t know Faruqi’s religion when she dictated her tweet in her affidavit.

Justice Angus Stewart makes reference to a Guardian article which covered Faruqi’s first speech to the parliament, which included she was Muslim. The article has not been accepted into evidence (thus far) and Justice Stewart says he “wouldn’t infer that Senator Hanson reads the Guardian” but that it might have been reported more widely.

Holt says that he believes Hanson wasn’t telling the truth about not knowing Faruqi’s religious status for three reasons:

  • that the pair are colleagues in the Senate and “the likelihood of her knowing something about Senator Faruqi would have that kind of an inferential case would be high”;

  • that Hanson knew Faruqi was from Pakistan; and

  • that Hanson has demonstrated “an intense interest in Islam, Muslims and particularly Muslims in power” and therefore bearing in mind “all of those things” “the notion that she didn’t know that Senator Faruqi was a Muslim in that case is is so unlikely that your Honor would would at least not accept her evidence”.

Hanson’s counsel has since submitted that “it would be wrong to assume that Senator Hanson was at the speech in question” [Faruqi’s first speech] but he can’t go further than that (and say that she absolutely wasn’t) because anything that happened in the chamber is not allowed in this court case.

The court is adjourned. Justice Angus Stewart will deliver his judgement at a date to be set.

Updated

Priya Nadesalingam, who spent four years in detention with her family, is speaking to ABC Afternoon Briefing about the government’s proposed deportation bill.

The family has been back in Biloela for two years now, and was asked about her reaction to the proposed legislation:

I am very sad, my heart is broken… There are thousands of people like me and my family. Please do not force people to leave Australia, put [them] in jail… These people are part of the Australian community, just like we are.

Bonza’s grounding extended amid uncertainty over future

As we flagged earlier, budget airline Bonza’s planes will remain grounded for a further five days at the least, after it entered voluntary administration.

All Bonza flights up to and including Tuesday, 7 May have been cancelled. In a statement, the administrators said:

Whilst the administrators are continually in discussions with the lessor of the company’s fleet and relevant parties regarding resumption of operations, those discussions are occurring daily and will continue to take place over the forthcoming days and into next week.

The administrators and the company appreciate the impact this is having on customers and employees.

A further update is scheduled to be issued later today.

You can read more below:

Updated

Many thanks for joining me on the blog today, Nino Bucci will be with you for the next little while. Take care.

Returning to the vaping Senate inquiry

Scott Weber, the CEO of the Police Federation of Australia, is telling the Senate vaping inquiry that the sale of illegal vapes is a “huge issue” but police do not have the capability or numbers to tackle it.

Weber says vapes present a “health issue that has now turned into a criminal one”. However, police “don’t know what to do”.

Weber says a clearer national licensing scheme is needed so that police can enforce it in the same way they do liquor, which reverses the onus on the vendor to prove that they have the right to sell it. He says police need more training, education and capability to be able to address illegal vapes - but at the moment police officers don’t have the time either.

The federal government would need to fund dedicated police officers to the issue as currently there are police shortages across the country whose priorities are issues like violence, he said.

Updated

Birmingham said government should plan to visit Solomon Islands soon

The shadow foreign minister, Simon Birmingham, says Penny Wong should visit the Solomon Islands “where appropriate” and he would be prepared to visit, too, following the election of its new prime minister, Jeremiah Manele.

Speaking to ABC Afternoon Briefing, he said:

Ultimately we would expect the Albanese government to want to, and to seek to, engage with a new government in the Solomon Islands as quickly as they reasonably can – respectful of the need for [a] new prime minister to get their feet under the table and respectful of the timelines they may have in mind … We will be willing as an opposition to cooperate in any engagements where appropriate.

Updated

Social services minister responds to data showing 50% of people applying for domestic violence payment are rejected

The social services minister, Amanda Rishworth, was asked about data published by Guardian Australia that half of people trying to access emergency financial support for domestic and family violence are having their claims rejected:

Speaking to Afternoon Briefing on the ABC, Rishworth said it was “not the only payment that’s available” and added:

… The eligibility is deliberately focused on people when they are leaving a violent circumstance.

Q: So are you concerned that 50% of people are still being knocked back?

Rishworth said the program will assess eligibility and “if someone is not eligible for the program, they will be diverted to other services and support”.

There are many reasons people [are not] eligible for the program. Some reasons are people withdraw their application, they no longer need the financial support. So – lots of reasons people may not progress. But this is an important part of the system, but not the only part of support in the system.

Updated

Andrew Wilkie wants ACCC to investigate Qantas ‘carrier charges’

The independent MP Andrew Wilkie has written to the ACCC calling on it to investigate Qantas “carrier charges” on frequent flyer tickets.

In a letter to the ACCC’s chair, Gina Cass-Gottlieb, Wilkie said he was concerned the charges are “an underhand[ed] means for the airline to actually charge for flights despite the customer’s understanding that such flights are paid for with points”.

He said carrier charges are “not itemised or explained” and “vary considerably with the route, class of travel and airport of origin”:

Customers can only find out how much they will be when making a booking as they are not listed anywhere. I would not be surprised if many loyal Qantas customers do not realise they are being charged by the airline for using their well-earned loyalty points.

Wilkie called for the ACCC to investigate the carrier charges “with the view to banning” them or “at least ensuring they are published and readily available to customers prior to booking flights”.

Updated

Faruqi agrees with commonwealth arguments that Hanson tweet not political communication

Continuing from our last post: Leneham finishes and Faruqi’s counsel, Saul Holt, is now making his arguments on these issues.

Holt mostly agrees with the commonwealth, arguing Hanson’s tweet was not political communication just because she is a senator. Holt:

It is an angry slur that could have been written by anyone regardless of their status as a senator or otherwise. And the way in which that was justified was by [Hanson’s counsel] Mr Smark was to make a rhetorical submission that politics … involve[s] a silencing of one’s opponents and assaulting one’s opponents or offending one’s opponents as part of the persuasive process.

And it might be accepted that Australian politics is no different from politics in many other parts of the world in that respect. But:

... Is there some inherent component of it which requires it to be racially abusive? And the answer is no.

Updated

Commonwealth wrapping up arguments at Faruqi v Hanson case

At the end of his submission to the federal court, the barrister representing the commonwealth attorney-general Craig Leneham has just finished his arguments on why the constitutional validity of section 18c or 18d of the racial discrimination act does not apply in this case.

What does it come down to according to the commonwealth? After going through all the precedents, Leneham says:

We say [it] would comfortably lead your honour to reject any suggestion that the very high threshold test is satisfied in this case by our friends [Hanson’s counsel]. They just haven’t met that significant burden.

The burden being, how Pauline Hanson’s tweet to Mehreen Faruqi telling her to ‘piss off back to Pakistan’ was protected political speech, or falling under the implied right of freedom of speech.

The commonwealth says, in our view, it’s not. And therefore Hanson’s argument that the legislation Faruqi brought this case with is a block to her freedom of speech, or political communication, should be rejected.

More to come in a moment.

Youth minister responds to pro-Palestine encampments

The minister for youth, Anne Aly, has responded to the growing number of pro-Palestine encampments being established at universities across the country. Speaking to ABC’s Afternoon Briefing just now, she said:

The right to protest is a cornerstone of our democracy and something that I support, however I draw the line at where protests become intimidating or violent and it concerns me that there are students on campuses that are feeling unsafe on-campus. It concerns me as a former academic who has worked at university campuses for much of my working life ...

The education minister, Jason Clare, has written to vice chancellors – all universities have a code of conduct for students and staff and it is important that the universities enforce the code of conduct. If these protests are becoming violent or are making people on-campus feel unsafe in any way, it is absolutely unacceptable and there has to be a line in the sand here.

Updated

The Bureau of Meteorology has published a weather update for the weekend, flagging widespread rain for NSW and thunderstorms spread across large parts of the state:

Bonza passengers in limbo as planes grounded for longer

Bonza passengers will be grounded for almost another week as the budget airline’s administrators talk with the lessor of its fleet, AAP reports.

Administrators Hall Chadwick confirmed today there would be no flights until at least Wednesday – five more days than previously expected.

The firm would continue to talk with the lessor of Bonza’s fleet and other parties about the “resumption of operations” into next week, a spokesman said.

Customers with bookings during this period are advised not to travel to the airport. Customers scheduled to travel during this time are requested to make alternative arrangements with other airline carriers.

Hall Chadwick was expected to give another update later today.

Returning to the Faruqi v Hanson federal court case

The barrister representing the commonwealth case in the Mehreen Farqui racial discrimination case against Pauline Hanson is summing up why the commonwealth does not believe Hanson’s defence (or at least part of it) – that s18c and 18d of the Racial Discrimination Act impede the implied right of freedom of speech and political communication

Craig Leneham, representing the commonwealth, has moved through a lot of case law in his reasoning for why Hanson’s defence doesn’t apply in terms of legal precedents. In coming to the conclusion of his arguments, he says it’s not difficult to navigate s18c and s18d of the Racial Discrimination Act for a couple of reasons:

The first is: don’t engage in really seriously offensive conduct because of the person’s race. The second proposition is: … if you do, you better have a good reason for it. That’s not a particularly difficult set of concepts to absorb or apply.

Those concepts, Leneham tells the federal court justice, Angus Stewart, are something Australian courts have had little difficulty in dealing with in the past.

And again, there is nothing to suggest that either people in the position of our friends’ client [Hanson] or other members of the public have had problems, leading them to reduce their speech because of these provisions.

The short version of this is “the challenges to s18c and 18d in this case can be put to bed, as they don’t apply” – at least in the commonwealth’s view.

Updated

Businesses impacted by proposed vaping laws front Senate inquiry

The Senate inquiry into the new vaping laws is hearing from a panel of independent vaping store owners who will be forced to close their businesses if the legislation is passed.

Jacqeline Munn, the owner of the The Vape Store, Craig Jackman, the owner of Vape4life and Greg Isaacs, the owner of Flavourhype Distribution, have all told the inquiry their businesses were set up to help adults give up cigarettes after personal experiences of either themselves or their partners being addicted to tobacco cigarettes.

Munn, who opened her business in 2013 because her partner was a heavy smoker, said she had “no interest selling to young people” and always adhered to the rules - never selling nicotine or disposable vapes.

It’s unfortunate once the black market took off our business suffered greatly.

Munn said it is frustrating and disappointing that without policing, kids became addicted.

We did the right thing and are now paying the ultimate price.

Jackman, who described himself as smoking 60 packs a day before taking up vaping, estimated he has helped over 50,000 people quit tobacco smoking since he opened his shop 11 years ago.

Jackman and Munn both said that as well as requiring ID for anyone who looked under 25, they would also ask consumers about their history of use and for adults who were only wanting to try a vape out of curiosity, would talk them out of their purchase.

Munn said the only reason their sales are good at the moment is because “people are panic-buying, trying to get ahead of the game”.

Updated

April rooftop solar installations retreat but remain near record levels, market firm says

New South Wales, as it happens, is one of the states where new rooftop solar installations are starting to drop a bit.

According to SunWiz, a market data group, national installations of rooftop PV totalled just over 260 megawatts last month, down 2% on March. (March was down by about the same amount on February.)

Easter’s timing didn’t help the April numbers but compared with recent Aprils, the month wasn’t so bad. In fact, the installations were close to the highest for the month.

Among the major states, NSW saw installations slide 7% for the month, and Victoria’s fell 5%.

Queensland and South Australia reported gains for the month of 6% and 3%, respectively. (Queensland seems to be boosting clean energy more than most states of late, and the October elections might see more competition to rev-up renewables further.)

More than a few commentators, meanwhile, reckon the commercial and industrial market is one area where a lot more solar PV can go up.

SunWiz’s figures indicate that at least for systems of 15-100 kilowatt size, the market continues to report record volumes.

Updated

IT company Outabox assisting police with inquiries into alleged breach

Police said they are following “very strong lines of inquiry”, and are currently focussing their investigation within Australia:

But we most certainly are engaging other agencies, other companies and website controllers in other countries throughout the world.

Q: So arrests could be made in relation to this?

We hope so, yes.

Police said there could be a number of motives – “one may be for money, one be may be to sabotage or to ruin the reputation of a particular company or brand”. Police are following up both lines of inquiry, the spokesperson said.

Police also said that the IT provider Outabox – who have blamed an unauthorised third party for the breach – is assisting with inquiries.

They are helping the police, law enforcement, and helping to limit the amount of data that’s being released to the public.

Updated

Police comment on high-profile people potentially being impacted in alleged breach

Police do not believe the alleged data breach was a hack or attack but rather a breach of a third-party provider “in relation to their ability to obtain that information and release it unlawfully.”

The spokesperson said anyone impacted should not change their licence details but await further advice.

He also commented on high-profile people potentially being impacted in the breach:

No doubt with with a million people’s names being within those 17 to 19 clubs throughout New South Wales, there is no doubt there is individuals of some prominence in that total set of people.

I’m not going to go into specifics of any particular individual. Suffice to say that we’re engaging people that we need to engage at very early stages and alerting them to the fact that their names may have been released to the public.

Updated

Further advice on security measures

The spokesperson said the cybercrime squad was investigating a number of different types of offences in relation to the alleged cyber breach. This includes blackmail, and possession of data and personal information for unlawful purposes.

He urged the wider community to remain “eternally vigilant” in regards to data and information.

Detective acting superintendent Gillian Lister provided the following advice:

Never click on suspicious links via email or text. Ensure that you have a strong password with special characters and always use two-factor authentication … If you suspect that your security has been compromised, change your password immediately and contact police.

Updated

Police front media about investigation into alleged pubs and clubs data breach

NSW police are now speaking to the media about its investigation into an alleged data breach which has impacted more than one million patrons of pubs and clubs across the state.

We flagged this investigation in the blog earlier, here.

A spokesperson said portions of people’s drivers licenses were published to an internet website police believe was “established by the perpetrators of this data breach”.

That internet site was established a number of days ago and only really become known to the public in the last 24 hours to 48 hours.

We’ve been working with our state and federal partners, and also international partners, in order to take down that website and at the very least, to disrupt that website and to stifle the ability for information of members of the public who have utilised those clubs and their data to be released to the wider community.

He said police hope to see the website shut down very soon, but “at the moment it is very much limited to very set data and not the totality of the data that was able to be looked at earlier”.

Updated

Back to the Faruqi v Hanson federal court case

Acting for the commonwealth, Craig Leneham is going through the arguments of why the attorney general does not believe that this case is a challenge to s18c of the Racial Discrimination Act.

As part of her defence against the racial discrimination case Mehreen Faruqi has brought against Pauline Hanson, Hanson’s legal team raised that s18c and s18d of the Racial Discrimination Act are a barrier or burden to the implied protections of freedom of speech and political communication.

The commonwealth has intervened in the case only on these points and are saying, respectfully, thank you but no, it’s not.

Leneham has gone through a lot of case law of why it isn’t a challenge to s18c or s18d. He quotes from one of the previous case judgements (Tobin) where it was decided:

A diverse society that seeks to maintain respectful and harmonious relations between racial and religious groups and one that seeks to minimise violence and contemptuous behaviour directed towards minorities, including those based on sexual orientation and is entitled to require civility or reason and good faith in the discussion of certain topics. And those topics are at least in the first instance for parliament to choose …

And so we say that is a good encapsulation of really why this sort of legislation [the Racial Discrimination Act] serves a legitimate purpose.

Leneham then goes on to mention the “unwilling listener doctrine” – a US supreme court ruling on an exemption to the first amendment (freedom of speech). The doctrine centres around the idea that in certain circumstances, people should not be exposed to offensive speech but may find themselves “captive” to it.

The US supreme court has allowed the banning of picketing in some cases, as an exception to the general rule that offended parties can “avert their eyes and ears” from speech that might offend them.

Leneham says the unwilling listener doctrine, while not part of Australian law, shows that there are exceptions to freedom of speech, even when those rights are enshrined (like in America – as opposed to implied, as they are here).

Updated

Alcohol foundations support vaping laws but concerned about unintended consequences

Circling back to the vaping senate inquiry into new vaping laws: The Alcohol and Drug Foundation and the Australian Alcohol & Other Drugs Council have both told the inquiry that they are supportive of the legislation, but are worried about unintended consequences.

The laws currently before parliament are intended to target commercial actors selling illegal vapes, forcing vape stores to close by preventing the domestic manufacture, advertisement, supply and commercial possession of non-prescription vapes.

However, Dr Erin Lalor, CEO of the foundation, said it was worried about unintended consequences penalising individuals through misapplication of the laws.

Lalor said the foundation would like to see the government amend the legislation to explicitly remove any penalties for criminal possession for possession under commercial quantity and come up with thresholds definitions for a commercial quantity.

Updated

NSW energy minister in ‘briefing session’ amid speculation over Eraring power plant extension

Earlier this week, we reported that the New South Wales government was close to agreeing a deal with Origin Energy to extend the life of Australia’s biggest coal-fired power plant.

Government officials weren’t happy with the report, saying negotiations were still ongoing over the future of the 2,880-megawatt Eraring plant. (They didn’t seem too chuffed, either, about having to deal with the flood of media inquiries the report set off.)

The energy minister, Penny Sharpe, met with environment and climate groups for about an hour today. She was keen to repeat that negotiations were yet to conclude, but gave little else away, so we hear. (Her office declined to comment.)

Instead, the groups provided briefings on a lengthy list of alternatives, such as speeding up the roll-out of renewable energy rather than forking out potentially hundreds of millions of dollars to subsidise Eraring’s extension.

Too little, too late, perhaps. Still, most expect the Eraring extension beyond its present August 2025 closure date to be accompanied by complementary policies to counter some of the carbon emissions boost.

Updated

Victoria premier lashes opposition for calling her ‘nasty’ during heated question time

The Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, has lashed the opposition for calling her “nasty” during question time debate.

As she was answering a question about the upcoming state budget, the opposition’s manager of businesses in the lower house, James Newbury, raised a point of order on relevance, stating: “This was an important question, not [an opportunity] for the premier to be nasty again”.

Allan responded: “As if I needed any more evidence as [to] how out of touch the opposition is speaker.”

That point of order demonstrates it … For months now, women have been demanding a better conversation, a better culture, about respect for women, and that starts with all of us, speaker.

And when you only call women in this place nasty, when you only call women in this place tawdry, you are not demonstrating the sort of leadership we all need to be showing about what respect for women looks like and what happens when you don’t.

Updated

Commonwealth weighs in on Faruqi v Hanson case

Back in the federal court, Justice Angus Stewart is hearing the last arguments in the racial discrimination case Mehreen Faruqi has brought against Pauline Hanson.

After hearing from Faruqi and Hanson’s counsels yesterday and today, this afternoon is dedicated to hearing from the commonwealth. The attorney general has intervened in this case, in relation to how it might impact the Racial Discrimination Act and particularly section 18, which is what Faruqi has used to bring the case.

Hanson’s defence included that s18c is too broad and therefore impedes on the implied right to freedom of speech and the implied right to freedom of political communication, as well as that s18d – which makes allowances for freedom of speech – has too high a bar.

Most of Hanson’s defence centred around reasons for Hanson’s original tweet and the phrase “piss off back to Pakistan” as being a strongly held opinion in good faith, which used a “standard rhetorical device” to convey emotion but did not actually mean for Faruqi to leave Australia.

But there has also been the constitutional argument around whether s18c and s18d of the Racial Discrimination Act acts as a block to the implied right of freedom of speech and political communication.

Craig Leneham SC, representing the commonwealth, has argued that this is not a case where 18c or 18d are part of the equation.

The commonwealth’s submission can be found here, but the main gist of it is that the high court has previously ruled that there can be exceptions to the implied right of freedom of speech to protect people against discrimination; that there is no burden on political speech as Hanson’s tweet isn’t necessarily classified as “political speech” (which the court will ultimately decide); and even if it was, deterring discrimination can actually promote political communication because discrimination or vilification can discourage groups of people from taking part in political communication.

Those arguments come down to this: “A law is to be regarded as adequate in its balance unless the benefit sought to be achieved by the law is manifestly outweighed by its adverse effect on the implied freedom”.

All sides in this case agree that Justice Stewart should not trouble himself with the constitutional questions here in the first instance, and only go into this area if he deems it necessary.

Updated

Dutton says PM should 'call for an end' to pro-Palestine encampments at universities

Peter Dutton believes Anthony Albanese should “call for an end” to pro-Palestine protests on university campuses. The former police officer has also again taken aim at officers, saying law enforcement response to the protests around the nation has been “weak”.

Dutton dialled in for his regular chat with 2GB’s Ray Hadley this morning. The weekly segment quickly took on its usual flavour as the two men rushed to furiously agree with each other on all points, with Hadley expressing particular incense over the Palestine protests popping up on uni campuses.

Dutton claimed the Jewish community was “being ostracised and vilified”, saying similar protests wouldn’t be tolerated “against people of Indigenous heritage or people of the Islamic community or people of tall stature or if they were Catholic or they were Indian or Chinese or whatever it would be”.

But somehow, the government’s – and even the response of the police, I think – has been weak on these campuses as well.

I think the prime minister really needs to stand up and show some backbone here and call for an end to these nonsense protests. They’re racist, they’re antisemitic and we shouldn’t be tolerating it for one moment and I think most decent Australians have that same view.

Hadley then began a long contribution of his own, appearing to draw parallels between the university protests and the 1938 Kristallnacht, where Nazi German forces ransacked and destroyed Jewish businesses, homes and other properties, as well as assaulting Jewish people. Hadley claimed:

They were targeted because they were Jewish. And in a clear definition of what happened in 1938, the same thing, the same type of thing, without the same level of vandalism and of course destruction is being portrayed and played out in Australia in 2024. We need to learn the lesson of history and we haven’t.

Dutton replied: “Absolutely right.”

Updated

Cybercrime squad investigating alleged data breach affecting more than one million people

Cybercrime squad detectives have begun investigating an alleged data breach that has impacted more than one million patrons of pubs and clubs across NSW.

In a statement, NSW police said officers were first alerted yesterday to a website which had published the personal information of patrons, who had used their drivers’ licences to sign-in at specific premises across the state.

The data breach is now being investigated, with the aim to “uncover how the data breach occurred and which, if any, criminal offences are connected to such a breach.”

Detectives are working closely with other federal and state agencies to contain the breach and have the site taken offline as a matter of priority.

Commander of the cybercrime squad, detective acting superintendent Gillian Lister, said:

Now is the optimal time to make sure your cyber hygiene is good; you have strong passwords and are using two-factor authentication where possible. If you think your details may have been compromised, use extra caution when reviewing emails or texts and never click on a suspicious or unfamiliar link.

Updated

Increase in parents contacting helpline after children ingest nicotine or batteries from vapes

Scott Phillips, the CEO of Kidsafe WA, said his organisation has seen huge increases in parents and carers contacting their helpline because their baby or child had ingested nicotine or batteries from vapes.

Phillips said the example of the 18-month-old who died after consuming liquid nicotine while the mother’s head was turned was just one example of how children in their first two years of life are being exposed to nicotine.

Children watch parents and they think if we put something in our mouth, it is safe.

Nicotine can be absorbed through the skin and be inhaled, Phillips said.

Updated

Australian Parents Council says ‘crisis point’ reached with children’s vaping use

The Australian Council of State School Organisations has told the vaping Senate inquiry that rising anxiety levels amongst young people are part of the reason young people are turning to vapes along with other reasons including curiosity, the flavours on offer, attractive packaging and easy accessibility.

Damien Ellwood, the president of the council, said children are using vapes to manage stress but it’s not a healthy coping mechanism with alternative resources needed.

Vapes are becoming normalised in youth populations in unexpected places such as 16- and 17-year-olds coming off the soccer field reaching for their vape, rather than their drink bottle.

Jenny Branch-Allen, the president of the Australian Parents Council, said as numbers rise “we are at a crisis point”.

Updated

Second day of Senate inquiring into vaping kicks off

The second day of the Senate inquiry into new vaping laws currently before parliament has kicked off, with the first panellists giving evidence about the effects vapes have on Australian children.

Vaping laws came into effect in March banning the importation of vapes unless the importer has a licence and permit. The next round of reforms currently before the parliament would force vape stores to close by preventing the domestic manufacture, advertisement, supply and commercial possession of non-prescription vapes.

The idea is that vapes will only be able to be bought from a pharmacy with a prescription from a doctor.

The Australian Council of State School Organisations has told the inquiry that so far schools’ only recourse to stop students from vaping has been a punitive approach, as has been seen in some of the most extreme circumstances with teachers closing school bathrooms.

Dianne Giblin, the CEO of the council, said taking vapes away causes conflict between teachers and students, and wrap-around support for the student isn’t available.

Better education around vapes is a much better way to help children get off vapes, she said; but there are currently limited resources for teachers. The only official material provided by the education department is animated material which isn’t appropriate for some of the older students vaping, she said.

Teenagers need personal stories of the health harms people their age have experienced in order to relate to someone their age and the impacts vapes are having on them, according to Giblin.

Many children still think of vapes as they were originally marketed – as a healthier alternative to smoking. Teachers need to be upskilled to be able to help the students who come to them seeking information about vapes, she said:

If teachers are not knowing or understanding, children will turn to social media and algorithms will point them to the wrong responses.

Updated

Surfer dies on NSW coast after being found with stab wounds

A surfer has died after being found with stab wounds near a Coffs Harbour beach on the mid-north coast of New South Wales.

The 22-year-old is believed to have been stabbed moments after leaving the water and was found in Park Beach Reserve at about 6.40am this morning.

Chief inspector detective Guy Flaherty said the man suffered multiple stab wounds and confirmed police had launched a homicide investigation. He told the ABC:

We believe he recently came out of the surf and was wearing a black wetsuit at the time. The 22-year-old male has been found with significant stab wounds.

He was taken to hospital but died shortly after. A crime scene has been established close to Coffs Harbour Surf Lifesaving Club and Park Beach, a popular surf spot. Flaherty said:

Our search at the car park and the waterfront around Coffs Harbour beach will continue for some time.

Updated

Purple bin rollout continues in Victoria

Three more Victorian councils will soon begin using purple-lidded bins for glass recycling.

The Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action said Shepparton, Mildura and Corangamite were the latest local government areas to be provided with the service.

By separating glass, Victorians can prevent broken glass from contaminating other recyclables, and help ensure more materials from household recycling are remade into new products. All Victorians will have access to a separate glass service by 2027.

Updated

Queensland ends 20-year cabinet rule for release of documents

For the first time in an Australian jurisdiction, Queensland parliament has released cabinet documents after a matter of days, rather than years.

The principle of cabinet secrecy is many centuries old; the logic is that members of government need it to be able to conduct honest debate in private. In Queensland documents are kept for 20 years and it is a criminal offence to leak them.

But in a 2022 review of public sector accountability, Peter Coaldrake recommended getting rid of it. Under premiers Annastacia Paluszczuk and Steven Miles, the government committed to a 30-day release schedule.

The Labor government released two cabinet submissions today: the integrity reform implementation final report and status of the integrity reform taskforce, and Our Place: a First Nations housing and homelessness roadmap to 2031 and action plan 2024-2027.

Miles said:

Our government is now the most transparent government in Australia and the only government in the country to release cabinet records after 30 business days.

While the first release was not due until 10 May, I have decided to publish the first documents early in recognition of our commitment to transparency.

Documents released today outline the final implementation report for the integrity reform taskforce, and the First Nations Housing and homelessness roadmap announced earlier this month.

Proactive release material will include submissions, decisions, and all attachments for matters where cabinet has made a final decision.

Updated

Two Australian brothers missing in Mexico

Two Australian brothers have gone missing in Mexico, with their mother pleading for information about them after they failed to make contact for several days.

Jake and Callum Robinson were travelling with an American friend and had likely been surfing in Baja California when they went missing, according to a social media post shared online by their mother, Debra Robinson.

She said she had not heard from them since 27 April. The brothers were due to book into an Airbnb in Rosarito earlier this week but did not show up.

She said Callum was a diabetic and “this is a very dire situation”, posting on Facebook groups for people in Baja California to provide any information they could. She also shared an image of a Chevrolet ute the brothers had been travelling in, and mentioned in a comment that the family hoped to travel to Mexico as soon as possible.

Unconfirmed reports from local media indicated that police had arrested a woman who was found with the phone of one of the brothers. The brothers are reportedly from Perth.

WA’s premier, Roger Cook, said he was aware of the “really quite distressing” situation, the ABC reported.

This must be very worrying for the families involved. I share (the) concerns of all Western Australians in terms of their welfare.

Dfat confirmed it is providing consular assistance to the family of the two men, but could not comment further due to privacy reasons.

Updated

Anthony Albanese congratulates new Solomon Islands prime minister

In some international news: Solomon Islands lawmakers have elected Jeremiah Manele as their new prime minister.

Manele is a former foreign minister who has pledged to continue the Pacific island nation’s policy of embracing China. You can read the full story from Charley Piringi below:

Anthony Albanese has congratulated Manale, writing in a post to X:

Congratulations to Jeremiah Manele on his election as Prime Minister of Solomon Islands. I look forward to working closely with him. Australia and Solomon Islands are close friends and our futures are connected.

Central Coast Leagues Club emails patrons after news of widespread breach impacting NSW pubs and clubs

The Central Coast Leagues Club has sent an email to patrons, following news that more than one million patrons of NSW pubs and clubs have had their data breached.

Personal data including names and addresses were accessed as part of the incident involving Outabox, an IT provider used by dozens of hospitality venues across the state.

The club’s CEO, Edward Camilleri, said the club had been “made aware” of the issue, but have not used the impacted provider since February 2023:

The impacted provider supplied technology and services to assist us with our club sign-in process from June 2021 to February 2023… The products used have been removed from the club.

Camilleri said it understands some “personal information of members and visitors of clubs may have been compromised”.

We are of course concerned and are taking urgent action to protect our members, guests and patrons … We wish to assure club members and guests that additional updates will be provided once further details are confirmed. In the interim, club patrons are advised to take extra caution when reviewing emails or texts and to avoid clicking on any suspicious or unfamiliar links.

Updated

Specialist police team created to target Alice Springs youth crime

More than a dozen additional police officers will be sent to Alice Springs after a series of violent brawls that led local authorities to impose a three-week curfew on the Red Centre, AAP reports.

A team of 18 officers will form the Alice Springs Territory Safety Division, tasked with targeting youth crime, high-visibility policing and rapid response to public order situations.

Northern Territory police minister Brent Potter said the specialist unit would improve community safety and reduce crime and anti-social behaviour.

“We have seen the positive impact high-visibility policing has made across Alice Springs,” he said today, in reference to officers patrolling the town’s streets during and since the curfew.

The officers and four extra police vehicles will be based at Alice Springs police station from June, in addition to extra officers already sent to the town.

Justice advocates have previously warned punitive measures such as curfews and increased police numbers often fail to address root causes of crime and instead funnel more people into the criminal justice system.

Updated

Commonwealth to make states provide nationally consistent road safety data

The infrastructure minister, Catherine King, has announced that for the first time the commonwealth will insert into funding agreements with the states a requirement on them to provide nationally consistent road safety data.

This responds to the Data Saves Lives campaign from the Automobile Association of Australia which argued that without transparency around the quality of roads around the country there can’t be political accountability that governments are spending infrastructure funding where it will make the most difference to avert fatal accidents.

Guardian Australia understands the data to be collected will include details about road usage; the road condition including risk ratings; details of crashes on the road, and of drivers and passengers in accidents; and about whether risky behaviour – drug, alcohol, speed, distraction, fatigue - played any part.

King said:

We are increasing investments in transport infrastructure because we know that better roads boost efficiency, productivity and safety. Better roads get us home quickly and safely, they keep trucks moving, and they get goods to market. Addressing the absence of consistent road safety data will complement the work we have already done since we came to government to improve road safety.

The Australian Automobile Association welcomed the announcement. Its managing director, Michael Bradley, said:

With more than 100 people killed on Australian roads each month and the toll rising, we need data about the causes of crashes, the condition of roads and the effectiveness of traffic policing to better understand what is going wrong.

Such data exists, but for too long it has been held by states and territories, rather than being made public and used to create more effective responses to our worsening road safety problems.

This reform will also clip the wings of politicians who are tempted to invest scarce public money on road projects to win votes in marginal electorates, rather than projects that can save lives.

Updated

Doctors flag shortage in women’s medicines and medical devices

Medicines and medical devices used by women, including medicines used during pregnancy and menopause treatment, are either unavailable in Australia or in short supply.

The peak body for obstetricians and gynaecologists is convening an expert-led roundtable today to workshop solutions.

These shortages have been attributed to rising demand, global supply chain issues and regulatory barriers. The shortages disproportionately affect First Nations women, and those living in rural areas, who are served by smaller pharmacies and healthcare facilities which lack a steady supply of medicines.

The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG) has called for essential medicines – such as newer oral contraceptives – to be subsidised by the government through the pharmaceutical benefits scheme.

They say women currently pay out of pocket for unaffordable medicines, accept less effective alternatives or go without medication altogether.

Dr Anna Clare, RANZCOG WA councillor and co-chair of the roundtable, said the shortage was “extremely concerning and … not something we can tolerate”.

As doctors dedicated to providing the best possible care to our patients, it’s imperative that we are provided with the tools to do our jobs well. Medicines and devices are those tools.

We wouldn’t expect a carpenter to build a house without timber or a nail gun, so why do we expect care providers to provide treatment for our patients whilst facing persistent shortages of key medicines and devices?

Updated

Father convicted of murdering his three sons to launch new appeal in Victoria

A father convicted of murdering his three young sons is preparing a fresh legal appeal, AAP reports.

Robert Farquharson’s car plunged into a dam at Winchelsea in southern Victoria on Father’s Day 2005. He swam free but his three sons Jai, 10, Tyler, seven and two-year-old Bailey drowned.

He was found guilty of their murder in 2007 before his conviction was quashed on appeal in December 2009. He was again found guilty in 2010 and sentenced to life with a minimum of 33 years, with a further two appeals later rejected.

Farquharson will base his latest appeal bid, scheduled for later this year, on Victorian laws introduced in 2019 that relate to new evidence that there has been a miscarriage of justice, his lawyer Luke McMahon confirmed with AAP.

McMahon said he intended to file the appeal in the coming months and had the evidence he believed would satisfy the standard. Farquharson’s lawyers were considering research showing how cars sank in deep water.

McMahon said his client stood by his story of what up led to the children’s deaths.

Farquharson has always maintained his innocence and two doctors diagnosed him with cough syncope, a condition that causes a person to pass out after a coughing fit. That was contested by the prosecution and another medical expert who gave evidence in court.

Updated

Returning to the Faruqi v Hanson case at the federal court

We are now at the part of Pauline Hanson’s defence against Mehreen Faruqi’s racial discrimination case which impacts section 18c.

This had been suggested prior to the case reaching the court – that part of Hanson’s defence would be that section 18c of the racial discrimination act, the legislation Faruqi has used to bring this case, impedes on the implied freedom of political communication in the constitution.

Australia doesn’t have an enshrined right to freedom of speech, but the high court has found that there is an implied constitutional freedom of political communication. So there is a protection within that expectation, at least according to the high court.

Hanson, through her counsel, is arguing that 18c impedes on that right. You can find the whole submission on that here in the court file, but her barrister, Kieran Smark, is taking federal court judge Angus Stewart through the main parts of the argument.

There is a lot of legalese here, but essentially one of the arguments is that section 18c is too broad. Under the legislation, something can be unlawful if it is likely to offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate a person or group of people, and the act is done because of the race, colour, nationality or ethnic group of the other person or group.

Smark says that section 18d of that same act, which allows for protections under freedom of speech, doesn’t go far enough in protecting people who wish to make fair comment or state opinions.

Smark uses the housing debate as an example and says that the issue of housing has been linked to migration, which could in certain circumstances trigger 18c.

He says that the burden of 18c is an impediment to freedom of speech and political expression, and limits opinions. He says that 18d is a very high bar for protections and increases the burden on people, not lessens it. Hanson’s case has focused on political communication and has defended Hanson’s tweet as political communication.

The commonwealth solicitor has intervened in this case, because of this very argument. The commonwealth view, which can also be found in the court documents, is that this case is not a challenge to 18c or 18d. Faruqi’s legal counsel agrees with the commonwealth.

Updated

Queensland introduces legislation allowing federal Help to Buy scheme

Queensland Labor has introduced laws permitting the federal government to operate its Help to Buy housing subsidy scheme.

Under the constitution, states have authority over that area of law, so state parliaments need to pass legislation permitting the Commonwealth operating within their borders.

Housing minister Meaghan Scanlon said the scheme will help about 2,000 Queenslanders a year for four years to purchase their own home with an equity contribution of up to 40% for new homes. They would need to pay a deposit of just 2%.

There is a strong advantage for Queensland to be the lead participating state as this will ensure Queenslanders can access places in the scheme as soon as it becomes operational. and will be able to share in the unallocated places in the first year of operation.

Updated

Building approvals rose mostly in March while trade surplus shrank, ABS says

The latest monthly ABS figures show dwelling approvals increased 1.9% in March, rebounding from the (revised) 0.9% fall in February.

While any increase will be welcomed, economists had been looking for a 3.4% monthly increase. (The level of their miffedness will be eased as the first February reading had been a 1.9% fall so that month wasn’t quite so bad.)

Mind you, February approvals were at a 12-year low – as we reported here – and remain well shy of the Albanese government’s plan of 1.2m new homes over five years from 1 July.

Presumably there will be a ramping out at some point – perhaps when interest rates start to fall. For now, markets are expecting the RBA is more likely to be hiking than cutting in 2024, but that view can gyrate a bit with the news.

The other ABS data on Thursday covered the goods trade balance in March. The month posted another surplus at just over $5bn, but that was down just over $1.5bn from February. A jump in imports made the difference.

Economists had pencilled in a goods trade surplus of $7.3bn

Queensland government rushes $1,000 power bill rebate bill into parliament

The Queensland government has rushed a budget bill into parliament today to legislate their planned $1,000 rebate on power bills.

Premier Steven Miles said this morning:

I’ve foreshadowed for some time that the budget would include measures like this, but we’ve also decided that the cost of living crisis makes it too urgent to wait for the budget. And so we will bring this forward and do it immediately.

We will introduce a special appropriation bill today that we will pass through parliament as quickly as we can.

The bill – cleverly titled the “cheaper power bill” – is two months early for the state budget, which is in June.

The rebate will take effect from July 1, assuming it passes parliament.

Updated

Pauline Hanson’s counsel wrapping up summation of defence

Pauline Hanson’s counsel is getting towards the end of his summation of Hanson’s defence against the racial discrimination case Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi has brought against her.

Hanson’s counsel, Kieran Smark, is now looking at the tweet itself from September 2022 where Hanson told Faruqi to “piss off back to Pakistan”.

Smark is saying that while the tweet is “not nice” or a “polite tweet” it “wasn’t meant to be a polite tweet”. He says that Hanson was attempting to convey her depth of feeling at Faruqi tweeting something political on the day the Queen died.

Senator Hanson was angry and she thought she had reason to be angry and she wanted readers evidently, objectively speaking, and subjectively speaking, to be aware of her anger, and the reason why, or the reasons why [she was angry].

That, Smark says, shows Hanson tweeted an honest opinion, in good faith, and therefore meets the bar set by 18D of the racial discrimination act, which allows protections for freedom of speech.

Smark is asked by the judge why Hanson made reference to Faruqi returning to Pakistan and responds:

All of those are part of her conveying the depth of how she felt and wanted people to know how she felt.

Smark says Hanson was using a “standard rhetorical device” to convey emotion, and the intensity because of how she truly felt.

Three out of four people who vape want to quit, survey shows

Three out of four vapers say they want to quit, according to a new survey from Quit and the Cancer Council.

In a survey of 2,015 people, almost three quarters who vaped at least once a week and two thirds of respondents who vape monthly planned to stop or reduce the amount they vape in the next three months.

About one in 10 (12%) who vaped daily planned to quit and half planned to reduce the amount they vaped.

More than 60% of participants were concerned about poisonous chemicals in their lungs, lung damage leading to shortness of breath and becoming dependent on vapes.

The Cancer Council CEO, Prof Tanya Buchanan, said the next round of vaping laws currently before parliament will both stop people starting to vape and help others quit smoking and vaping.

Vaping laws came into effect in March, banning the importation of vapes unless the importer has a licence and permit. The next round of reforms, if passed, will force vape stores to close by preventing the domestic manufacture, advertisement, supply and commercial possession of non-prescription vapes.

Buchanan said:

Federal Parliament has a rapidly closing window to act, to support this vaping legislation and the many people who want to stop vaping. If we can stop the domestic sale and manufacture of non-therapeutic vapes now, the only legal place to sell a vape will be in a pharmacy.

Updated

More on Woolworths’ financial results: ‘a noticeable shift in customer sentiment’

Continuing from our previous post: With a modest rise in sales, customers were feeling the shock of material increases in mortgages, rent, utilities, insurance and other key household expenses, Woolworths CEO Brad Banducci said.

It was a challenging quarter across the group with a noticeable shift in customer sentiment and shopping behaviours since Christmas.

Affluent customers were shopping more often and buying less in each shop. For non-food based items – including household care and pet care – customers are becoming much more promotionally sensitive and were looking at rival retailers, including Bunnings and Kmart, when buying those “higher ticket price” items.

He said there was a trend towards dining in, and, while promotions were working well, they were “not a panacea for how we should deliver value to consumers.”

Investors viewed the results poorly, sending Woolworths shares 4% lower in morning trading compared with a 0.3% increase for the overall market.

Updated

Woolworths records worse than expected March quarter financial results

In his first public comments since his hostile Senate appearance, the outgoing CEO of Woolworths Brad Banducci has delivered worse than expected March quarter financial results and admitted the supermarket can “unequivocally improve”.

Sales across the group, which includes New Zealand and Big W stores, increased by 2.8% to $16.8bn in the quarter, while its Australian supermarket sales were up 1.5% to $12.6 billion. Average prices dropped 0.2%.

Having been threatened with jail at a Senate inquiry for answering questions about profits, Banducci said Woolworths took the federal inquiry “very seriously”. He told reporters on a call:

Reading all of the submissions, I took some very practical actions as to how Woolworths can deliver value to customers.

Clearly communicating unit prices was a key area that needed improvement, he said, as was focusing on providing price transparency to fruit and vegetable growers to enable them to make better decisions.

The only way to approach it is constructively and there are clear learnings and areas that we can unequivocally improve.

More to come …

Updated

Severe thunderstorms rolling over southwest Western Australia

Communities in parts of southwest WA are being urged to take action now as a severe thunderstorm lashes the region.

The department of fire and emergency services said affected locations may include Bunbury, Busselton, Manjimup, Margaret River, Dunsborough and Pemberton.

This weather is not unusual for this time of year, but could damage homes and make travel dangerous.

Pauline Hanson was being ‘rhetorical’ not racist, court told

Pauline Hanson’s counsel says that Hanson was being “rhetorical” when she tweeted Mehreen Faruqi should “piss off back to Pakistan” and didn’t actually want Faruqi to return to Pakistan.

Justice Angus Stewart wants to know where that was said, as most of the questioning of Hanson around that issue was “in the present” as in, how she felt now, rather than how she felt in September 2022 when she sent the tweet.

Hanson’s barrister Kieran Smark says:

Her evidence more generally was she didn’t have a problem with the applicant, and that she didn’t regard the applicant as an extremist.

And unconnected with that, there’s no history, other than presumably the type you’re just referred to of people seeing each other in the [Senate] chamber between these senators.

I shouldn’t just say senators, with no disrespect between these women, because they live lives outside politics – they just don’t have a history between them. They don’t have an antagonistic history. They don’t they don’t have a collegiate history. They just haven’t dealt with each other other than in the chamber.

The court can not deal with anything that has occurred within the Senate chamber, as that is considered protected speech and has not formed any part of this case.

Smark says that Hanson is “unafraid” to criticise Islam when she feels there is something to say, and that the absence of Islam or Faruqi as a Muslim in the tweet is important, as it shows that Hanson was not targeting Faruqi as a Muslim.

(Hanson gave evidence that she did not know Faruqi was Muslim until after she sent the tweet and it had “never crossed her mind” what Faruqi’s religious status may be).

Smark is also arguing that the reference to Pakistan is divorced from any attack on a person of colour.

I would say that in an Australian context, go back to Pakistan, it simply meant, go back to where you came from.

Smark says that phrase might carry it’s own weight, but doesn’t necessarily meet the benchmark for section 18c of the racial discrimination act, which is the legislation Faruqi is using to bring this case.

Updated

Bonza passengers flock to hotline as airline teeters

More than 1,700 stranded Bonza passengers reached out for help the day the budget airline suddenly grounded flights, AAP reports.

Passengers were left scrambling with little notice as Bonza cancelled flights on Tuesday morning and fell into voluntary administration.

Its fleet will stay grounded until at least tomorrow as administrators hold talks with stakeholders, however it’s unclear what will happen to the planes after that.

Federal transport minister Catherine King said the government’s hotline received 1,700 calls the day it was created and people continue to reach out for help.

Qantas, Virgin and Jetstar offered free flights for stranded passengers where available, however AAP spoke to multiple customers who spent hundreds of dollars to secure flights home.

The Transport Workers Union says it’s in talks about the future of 150 Bonza staff with other players in the industry.

Updated

Hanson’s lawyer says colour and religion do not come into Hanson’s tweet

Pauline Hanson’s counsel, Kieren Smark, is still summing up Hanson’s defence.

We are getting a bit into the weeds of legal arguments here, but Smark is going through whether or not Mehreen Faruqi’s case meets the bar set by 18c of the racial discrimination act.

Smark says of Faruqi’s case in terms of how it meets 18c:

What we can see on the face of the tweet is clearly a reference to immigration and to her being from Pakistan … and from it we understand it’s [Faruqi’s case] is clearly put on Muslim.

Smark then gets to Australian law precedent, which has previously found that while Jewish people have been found (in previous cases) to be of one ethnic group, Muslims have not. (18c deals with “groups” which is what Smark is getting at here, whether the Hanson tweet meets the bar of offending or vilifying a group).

Smark is saying that the tweet would only meet 18c in terms of its reference to Pakistan, which he says is only “nation of origin”.

Smark says colour and religion do not come into it with Hanson’s tweet.

That, like everything else in this case, will be for Justice Stewart to decide.

Updated

Final arguments in Faruqi v Hanson case being heard in federal court

Good morning and welcome back to the federal court where the final arguments are being heard in the racial discrimination case brought by the Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi against the One Nation founder Pauline Hanson.

Faruqi took Hanson to the federal court alleging racial discrimination and vilification over a September 2022 tweet that told Faruqi to “piss off back to Pakistan”. Hanson had responded to a tweet Faruqi that critiqued colonisation. All this happened on the day the Queen died. Hanson says she was “upset, angry and offended” by Faruqi’s tweet and dictated a response to her staff who sent it out.

(Hanson had told the court on Tuesday she was a “paper girl” and didn’t have Twitter on her phone or her computer, and that her account was largely run by one staff member. She said her staff member phoned her to tell her about Faruqi’s tweet).

Hanson’s counsel, Kieran Smark SC, who has taken over from Sue Chrysthanou SC who was pulled into another hearing (the costs hearing for the Bruce Lehrmann vs Network Ten matter) is completing the final submissions for Hanson’s case.

The court opened with Justice Angus Stewart asking Hanson’s team for the wider context of a 2018 Sunrise interview they submitted, which showed Hanson telling the former senator Derryn Hinch to “go back to New Zealand”.

The clip was submitted by Hanson’s team as proof that Hanson had told a white migrant to go back to where they came from (Hanson had told the court that she was sure she had told a white person that, but couldn’t give an example, after she was shown numerous examples of her telling migrants of colour to go back to where they came from).

Stewart wants to know why he only has that small section of the clip and not what proceeded it (from the small section of clip which was shown, Hanson had been telling someone else to go back to where they came from, which Hinch objected to, leading to the exchange between the two). Hanson’s team will get on that and provide the judge with the wider clip.

Updated

Hunter MP hoping to become second sitting federal politician to compete at Olympics

This great piece from Josh Butler is well worth a read while you’re grabbing your morning tea today.

He has detailed Hunter MP Dan Repacholi’s journey to potentially becoming the second sitting federal MP to compete at an Olympic Games.

The first-term parliamentarian has flown to Azerbaijan chasing the historic feat, and will tomorrow seek qualification in the men’s 10-metre air pistol shooting event for the Paris Games in August.

The MP has already competed at Athens 2004, Beijing 2008, London 2012, Rio 2016, and Tokyo 2020. You can read the entire piece below:

Updated

‘We won’t be signing up to a dud deal’: NSW health minister says commonwealth hospital offer not good enough

The New South Wales health minister says an offer from the commonwealth to increase public hospital spending from 40% to 45% over the next decade isn’t good enough.

Speaking to reporters today, Ryan Park was asked about the offer and said nothing had been finalised yet:

We are still in discussions and I’ve said from the very beginning of these discussions, NSW has to get a better deal. There is no other health system under the pressure in the country that this one is and we’ve made it very clear – I’ve made it very clear to minister [Mark] Butler, the treasurer and the premier have made it clear – we need to get a better deal from the commonwealth…

Park said NSW’s primary care system is “stretched” and the federal government needs to “really lean in and listen and understand the pressures that are uniquely on NSW hospitals and health services”, due to the growing population and increased demand.

We can’t have people using emergency departments as medical centres…

We will continue those discussions but I’ve been very clear: we won’t be signing up to a dud deal. We’ll be getting a good deal for the people of NSW because this inter-government agreement is absolutely critical in the way in which we deliver health services over the next five years or so.

Updated

Those caught in NSW data breach should get new driver’s licences, cybersecurity expert says

AAP has more details on the data breach affecting NSW clubs and pubs patrons, which we reported earlier in the blog here.

Australian cybersecurity expert Troy Hunt said it was not clear if photos and signatures captured by the system upon sign-in were exposed in every case. But he posted on X:

Driver’s licenses, however, is Optus redux: they all need replacing now.

Signatures and photos are obviously immutable (by any practical measure) and combined with the other personal identities (name, phone, address), are *very* useful for criminals.

One club caught up in the breach told members it was deeply concerned about the security of the data.

“We have met with ClubsNSW and they are providing whatever support they can, noting again that the incident relates to an external provider,” Club Terrigal said.

The state’s gaming and racing minister David Harris also said:

We’re really concerned about the potential impact on individuals and we will encourage clubs and hospitality venues to notify patrons whose information might be affected.

Updated

Australian red meat industry recorded 78% reduction in emissions since 2005, report shows

The Australian red meat industry has recorded a 78% reduction in net greenhouse gas emissions since 2005 due to reduced rates of land clearing and increased forest regrowth, a CSIRO report commissioned by Meat and Livestock Australia has found.

The report, released today, found that net greenhouse gas emissions from the red meat industry were equivalent to 31m tonnes of carbon dioxide in 2021.

But the emissions data was derived from the Australian National Greenhouse Gas Inventory, which analysis suggests may be significantly underreporting land clearing in Queensland, making any claims based on that data “not reliable”.

The report said high rainfall in 2020-21 resulted in a large increase in carbon sequestration due to increased vegetation growth on land managed by the red meat sector, an area equivalent to about half Australia’s landmass.

Continue reading below:

Former Liberal MP Nicolle Flint hoping to return to seat of Boothby

Former Liberal MP Nicolle Flint is hoping to make a comeback in the marginal South Australian seat of Boothby.

Flint was first elected to Boothby in 2016, but decided not to recontest the seat at the 2022 election because of sexist abuse and health issues. Labor’s Louise Miller-Frost won the seat and sits on a 3.3% margin.

Flint said she had a “major health breakthrough” with her stage four endometriosis:

I finally found medication that has literally changed my life. So I’m running again because my health is on track, but the nation isn’t.

She also said there had been “a lot of work” undertaken to make the public space and politics safer and more respectful.

Opposition leader Peter Dutton said Flint had been subjected to “disgraceful” and “misogynistic” attacks. He also announced that Amy Grantham would run in Adelaide and Irena Zagladov would run in Makin – both safe Labor seats.

Updated

Parents warned of child abuse risk in sharing photos on social media

A shocking new federal government report has warned about parents receiving requests for child sexual exploitation after sharing photos of their kids on social media.

The attorney general, Mark Dreyfus, says parents should limit what they’re posting online, after the Australian Institute of Criminology report found child predators are seeking to groom parents posting photos of their kids.

Dreyfus’s office said in a statement:

The report by the AIC, in collaboration with the eSafety Commissioner, finds 2.8% of the 4,011 Australians it surveyed reported receiving a request for facilitated child sexual exploitation in the past year

This includes requests for sexual images and questions of a sexual nature about children they knew or offers to pay for sexual images of children.

The AIC report found that requests for facilitated child abuse material “were significantly higher among those who had shared a photo of or information about children publicly online.” It said:

The results highlight the need for increased awareness of the potential harms of posting photos of and information about children publicly online, and place onus on platforms to warn users of these potential harms.

Dreyfus said parents should consider limiting their privacy settings online to make sure only friends and family can see their posts.

The AG’s office said anyone who receives such requests should immediately report the issue to police. There are also resources available on the website thinkuknow.org.au.

Updated

‘Just wrong’: Victorian energy minister rubbishes news report on wind delay

Victoria’s energy minister, Lily D’Ambrosio, has rubbished a report in the Australian newspaper this morning, which said the state government was considering a year-long delay to the rollout of its offshore wind industry, the centrepiece of its plans to transition to 95% renewables by 2035.

Speaking outside parliament, she said:

The claims that were made in the Australian this morning are just wrong. We are absolutely on track to deliver the nation’s first offshore wind energy industry and on time.

We said in our implementation statement that we would kick off the expression of interest process in 2024 and that’s exactly what we’ll be doing from later this year.

And next year, we’ll be going into our formal auction process to have contracts awarded by the end of 2026. We said that’s what we were going to do and we’re absolutely on track to deliver that.

She denied an auction to operate the wind farms would attract few if any bids:

Absolutely not … We’ve got a six projects that have already got feasibility license approvals with a further six awaiting approval.

Updated

University of Sydney investigating actions of protestors on campus

The University of Sydney is cooperating with police and conducting its own investigations in relation to the “completely unacceptable” actions of pro-Palestinian protestors on campus.

The vice chancellor of the university, Prof Mark Scott, wrote to colleagues yesterday evening reiterating the institution’s commitment to freedom of expression and zero tolerance for hate speech.

He said the university had made it clear it would take “firm and decisive action” if unacceptable conduct occurred, pointing to actions in recent days including slogans being graffitied on the quadrangle, protestors entering buildings and allegedly harassing staff and protestors blocking roads and allegedly endangering “health and wellbeing” of others.

I want to assure you the university considers these alleged behaviours completely unacceptable and that we take violations of our Student Charter and our Code of Conduct very seriously. We are investigating these violations of our policies in the usual way, including cooperating with police investigations where alleged unacceptable conduct might have broken the law.

From time to time, in the interests of safety, some buildings may be placed in secure mode meaning a valid student or staff card will be required to enter.

A spokesperson for New South Wales police said it was “aware” of an ongoing demonstration however no arrests had been made.

Updated

Jewish students to hold counter rally at University of Melbourne

The Australasian Union of Jewish Students (AUJS) will hold a “rally against hate” at the University of Melbourne today in opposition to encampments set up at universities in support of Gaza.

A camp initially began at the University of Sydney last week in solidarity with similar movements in the US and has since spread to a string of campuses including the Australian National University and the University of Queensland.

In a statement, the AUJS said it had been in correspondence with the federal education minister, shadow education minister and vice chancellors calling for a roundtable and the requirement of student identification to ensure “external extremist actors” didn’t “hijack our campuses”.

The counter rally, to begin at 1pm, will be attended by the Zionist Federation of Australia who warned it was deeply concerned about antisemitism on campuses.

Its CEO, Alon Cassuto, said it was “crucial” for university leaders to implement and enforce policies that protected all members of the academic community.

Every student deserves to learn in a space free from fear and intimidation.

Updated

Organisations pen letter in support of University of Sydney pro-Palestine encampment

A number of trade unions, civil groups and faith organisations have signed a letter in support of the pro-Palestine encampment established at the University of Sydney.

The letter – signed by 12 organisations including the NSW Council for Civil Liberties, NSW Greens and Young Labor Left – reads:

We will always stand together to defend the right to protest in New South Wales. Justice, peace and solidarity are our shared values …

We stand in solidarity with the activists at the [University of Sydney encampment] and are planning to send a contingent with food and supplies as a means of providing immediate and practical assistance. We are also in close contact with the activists and legal observers and are monitoring the welfare of the activists.

The groups are calling on the federal government to “seriously consider the calls” of the protesters, which includes the end of government ties to the Jewish state.

Over 34,000 innocent Palestinian civilians, the majority of which are women and children, have died in the most horrific circumstances. Over 50% of the civilian population have been displaced. All of the University campuses in Gaza have been destroyed. Both Israel and Egypt are blocking humanitarian aid whilst civilians are starving.

The calls from the growing protest movements across Australia and internationally are united in one simple message: You must do more.

The other signatories include the Palestine Justice Movement, Maritime Union of Australia, Tzedek Collective, CFMEU, Jews Against the Occupation, the Australia Palestine Advocacy Network, Muslim Women Australia, National Imams Council and Alliance of Australian Muslims.

Updated

Four men charged over allegedly deliberately lit house fire

Four men have been charged over an allegedly deliberately lit house fire in New South Wales that left two people injured.

Emergency services responded to reports of the fire in Fairfield West on 23 March. The property was destroyed in the blaze and the occupants – a 28-year-old man and 33-year-old woman – were treated for second and third degree burns sustained while fleeing.

Inquiries revealed the fire was allegedly lit in a targeted case of mistaken identity, as the occupants had lived at the home for less than a year.

Further investigations linked the fire to another allegedly deliberately lit fire at a barber shop in Wetherill Park three days earlier. Police will allege the fires were lit in retaliation to a shooting incident in Fairfield West on 17 March this year.

Yesterday detectives executes search warrants in Chester Hill, Rhodes and Rydalmere.

At Chester Hill police arrested two men aged 25 and 21. The 25-year-old was charged with destroy/damage property with intent to endanger life, destroy etc property in company use fire etc >$5000, possess housebreaking implements and fail to comply digital evidence access order direction. He was refused bail and appeared before Bankstown local court yesterday.

The 21-year-old was charged with destroy/damage property with intent to endanger life and fail to comply digital evidence access order direction. He was refused bail and appeared before Bankstown local court yesterday.

At the search warrant in Rhodes, detectives arrested two men aged 25 and 23. The 25-year-old was charged with destroy/damage property with intent to endanger life, destroy etc property in company use fire etc >$5000, two counts of possess housebreaking implements, and fail to comply digital evidence access order direction. He was refused bail to appear in Burwood local court today.

The 23-year-old was charged with destroy etc property in company use fire etc >$5000, possess housebreaking implements and owner not disclose identity of driver/passenger. He was refused bail and appeared in Burwood local court yesterday.

Updated

Interim report to be released showing conditions children in care are kept in

Children have described the woeful and unsafe conditions they were kept in by private providers of New South Wales’s expensive emergency state care accommodation system, AAP reports.

The Advocate for Children and Young People report to be released today compiles first-hand accounts of youth in emergency accommodation after they were removed from their families.

At any one time, between 400 and 500 children are in emergency accommodation. Each arrangement costs taxpayers more than $38,000 a week.

The advocate’s report exposes how the children live far from a life of luxury. One person described how, from before they turned 13, they were moved through motels, caravan parks, $99/night rooms or whatever providers could find. Another described being shuttled through facilities made them feel like a “dog being moved from cage to cage”.

The state families minister Kate Washington is launching an urgent review of the foster care system. It will examine the over-reliance on emergency accommodation and investigate how taxpayer money is being spent by non-government providers:

Our urgent review will uncover ways we can give vulnerable kids the future they deserve, starting with a stable, loving home instead of hotels and motels with rotating shift workers.

The interim report will be released today, with a final report due mid-year.

Updated

Family violence commissioner to continue raising housing measures with government

Domestic, family and sexual violence commissioner Micaela Cronin says she will continue to advocate for housing measures with the federal government, after yesterday’s national cabinet.

Speaking to ABC News Breakfast, she noted that homelessness is a “critical issue” and for the majority of women facing homelessness, it is “because of family violence”.

It was discussed in national cabinet. I know it’s on everybody’s minds. We have a national crisis around housing and homelessness and everybody that I’ve talked to has clearly said that stable, secure, appropriate housing is a critical factor in helping people both prevent violence but also in their healing and recovery.

So, it is something that I will continue to raise. Part of my role is providing strategic policy advice to government around where the critical areas are, and absolutely housing is one of them.

Updated

More than a million NSW club patrons reportedly involved in data breach

There are reports this morning that more than one million people who have visited pubs and clubs across New South Wales have been involved in a third-party data breach.

The incident involves Outabox, the IT provider used by some hospitality venues, which includes the front-of-venue sign-in systems.

Outabox said in a statement it had “become aware of a potential breach of data by an unauthorised third party from a sign in system used by our clients”.

We are working as a priority to determine the facts around this incident, have notified the relevant authorities and are investigating in cooperation with law enforcement.

We are restricted by how much information we are able to provide at this stage given it is currently under active police investigation. We will provide further details as soon as we are able to.

We understand this news may cause concern to our staff, clients and their customers, and we thank them for their support and patience as we work to resolve this as swiftly as possible.

It is understood the breach involves people’s information such as their names, birth dates and addresses.

Updated

State government to pay Queenslanders' power bills with $1000 credit

Every Queenslander will get a $1000 credit on their energy bills this year, courtesy of the state government.

Labor premier Steven Miles claims it is the biggest cost-of-living initiative by a state government - ever.

The government says most households won’t have to pay anything towards their next power bill, and many won’t have to pay one until 2025. Miles:

This follows the success of the current $550 rebate provided to households this year, which has helped lower electricity bills by 9.5% and bring down inflation.

A lower energy bill puts more money back in the pockets of Queenslanders.

It will cost $2.5bn and be paid for with coal royalties, and is clearly aimed at buying love in advance of the October state election.

Updated

Next national cabinet meeting to discuss data, information sharing between states, PM says

The prime minister is asked if he would fund a national toll of women killed by violence, like Australia has a road toll?

Anthony Albanese told ABC RN the topic of data was discussed at national cabinet yesterday, and “a range of measures” will be examined ahead of the next meeting, in the next quarter.

So we’re not kicking this can down the road, and one of the issues to be examined is data collection.

Q: So you do want to fund the publishing of official data of the toll of women killed?

Albanese:

We want to work with state and territory governments on data collection. We want to work on cross border issues as well, to make sure – just as we worked on a national firearms register – what we want to make sure that is if there are perpetrators who are crossing state boundaries, that data and appropriate information is available.

Updated

PM responds to figures showing half of women applying for DV payment are rejected

The prime minister is asked about figures published by Guardian Australia showing less than half of applications to the payment for women escaping violence between July and September last year were approved – effectively half of women applying.

Will that change so every woman who applies will gets it?

Anthony Albanese responded that when you’re handling taxpayer money you have to ensure “some processes [are] in place” to make sure it “goes to the people who are eligible”.

I think that we need to make sure that people who deserve it, people who need it, get this payment. And I think overwhelmingly we need to make sure that any gap which is there goes towards the person making the application, is absolutely critical that people get this payment …

Q: You don’t mind the rejection rate at the moment?

Well, I don’t like the idea that anyone who should be getting this payment hasn’t got this payment, to be very clear.

He said the leaving violence payment is an initial support measure, with other payments to be available afterwards like “supporting pathways for housing” to ensure “that people can get back on their feet”.

Updated

‘Not free speech to promote hatred and violence and misogyny’: prime minister

Speaking about online content, Anthony Albanese spoke about “one particular fellow who’s become quite famous for his misogynistic, violent” content – but did not name the person.

The prime minister said this person’s content is having an impact in Australia as well as Europe, having “an impact on young minds and shaping what is normal”.

The tragedy here is that has a devastating impact on young people, but particularly of course on young girls and young women, and then women, mums and families. It also is denigrating the nature of our relationships …

That’s what we as a society, [we] need to have that debate about it. You have a debate at times about freedom of information, and those issues [around] free speech. This isn’t free speech to promote hatred and violence and misogyny. We need to have that debate as a society as well.

Updated

Concern over inappropriate online content raised by parents with PM ‘more than any other issue’

A pilot of age assurance technology will be funded in the May budget. The prime minister is asked what sort of content the government is trying to stop young people from accessing?

Anthony Albanese responded:

Inappropriate material, such as violent pornography, a range of material that you as a parent or parents listening to your program today would not want their children to just be able to click a couple of buttons and … end up having access or being exposed to material which is damaging for them.

This is a change that is occurring. One of the tragedies of courses, the way the algorithms work, is that it’s not like a young person has to go searching for this some time – now, it’s [everywhere]. It’s the material searching for them, and that is a very dangerous circumstance.

It is something that is raised with me by parents probably more than any other issue and it’s accelerated over a period of time since since my son was was young, is that parents are worried about the time that their kids spend [online and] they’re worried about what they have been exposed to.

Updated

Albanese asked whether jobseeker should be raised to help women fleeing violence

ABC RN host Patricia Karvelas spoke to a former Labor minister Jenny Macklin who recommended increasing jobseeker, saying it is “needed for women fleeing violence”.

Karvelas: Do you agree with her that women who are fleeing violence need that payment to be increased?

Anthony Albanese:

I agree that we’ll have a budget on May 14.

The prime minister continued:

You’re asking me to make a bunch of announcements today and I won’t be doing that. We’ve received the report along with a whole range of other submissions, and we make budget announcements on budget night.

Updated

Prime minister says trial ongoing into funding for women escaping violence

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, is speaking to ABC RN about yesterday’s announcements after national cabinet.

Asked about the funding for women escaping domestic violence, he was asked why this won’t be delivered until the middle of next year? The PM said:

Well, there is already a trial going ahead. We want to make sure that the processes are in place [so] that they will begin within the next financial year as a permanent program, not just offering financial support, but as well as offering support for referral services, risk assessments, safety planning, and other support …

This isn’t something that you solve with a meeting on one day. This is something that governments are determined to take action on. For some of us this is deeply personal, for others, it is incredibly important.

Updated

$1m reward announced for information regarding 1996 murder of Toni Tiki

The NSW government and police force will announce a $1m reward for information regarding the murder of Toni Tiki nearly 30 years ago.

Tiki, then aged 26, was last seen leaving a New Year’s Eve party at the South Maroubra surf life saving club about 1.30am on 1 January 1996.

Police say she had left the party with a male friend who agreed to walk her home, before he decided to remain at the party and they parted ways. When Tiki could not be found or located she was reported missing the following day.

Her body was discovered in scrubland near the surf club on 5 January and a postmortem indicated she died as a result of severe injuries.

Detectives from the state crime command’s homicide squad took over the investigation but the case remains unsolved.

As inquiries continue, a $1m reward will be announced for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for Tiki’s murder.

Updated

Budget should include funding for national toll of women killed by violence, Waters says

Greens senator Larissa Waters said she wants to see more money for frontline family and domestic violence services in the upcoming federal budget.

But she also called for the budget to include funding for a national toll of women killed by violence:

We don’t even really know the number of women who have been killed because the government doesn’t keep those statistics. We’ve got two volunteer organisations that are tracking women killed by violence, and that’s harrowing and heavy work, and good on them for doing it, but it should be something that our government deems important enough for them to collect that information themselves.

We’ve got a road toll but we don’t have a national toll of women killed by violence. And we need that and I’d love to see that announced in the Budget as well.

Greens concerned about lack of funding for frontline services after national cabinet

Greens senator and spokesperson for women, Larissa Waters, says she was “extremely underwhelmed” with the outcome of yesterday’s national cabinet.

An urgent national cabinet meeting was held yesterday to address growing rates of violence against women. You can read all the details of what was announced – including $925m to help victims leave abusive relationships and a ban on deepfake pornography – below:

Waters told ABC News Breakfast she thought the measures announced were “tokenistic, small gestures”.

I was genuinely shocked and really disappointed that all we saw out of national cabinet, all we saw and heard from the prime minister, was the extension of a program that was set up under Scott Morrison, that’s been plagued with maladministration and delays, an extension of that program, that doesn’t even start for another year, and that is merely referring people to services but not actually giving any additional money to those services …

Yes, of course, people need money to escape violence – no problem there. But those services that could then help them, they need that funding so that they can help. And I’m worried that the extension of this program, without increasing the support to those services, will simply increase demand, and more people who reach out for help will have to be turned away because frontline family and domestic violence services are already stretched.

Updated

Police investigate second alleged drive-by shooting in two days

NSW police are investigating the second drive-by shooting in Sydney in two days.

About 7.15pm yesterday, emergency services were called to St Helens Park in south-west Sydney after reports of shots fired into a house.

On arrival police allegedly found a house and car had been damaged. Officers were told a dark-coloured sedan was seen leaving the location after the alleged shooting.

Three people were inside the home at the time, but no one was reported injured.

Police have established a crime scene and are investigating the incident.

This comes after officers were called to a Myall Street home in western Sydney on Tuesday night, and allegedly found several shots fired at a home.

Updated

Good morning

And happy Thursday. I’m Emily Wind and I’ll be with you on the live blog today, many thanks to Martin for kicking things off.

Have any thoughts, tips or questions? You can get in touch via X, @emilywindwrites, or you can send me an email: emily.wind@theguardian.com.

Let’s get started.

Woolworths to report third-quarter sales results

Woolworths will announce its third-quarter sales results amid cooling inflation, a continuing cost-of-living crisis and scrutiny from Canberra, AAP reports.

The group will release its results this morning, two days after Coles reported better-than-expected supermarket sales growth of 5.1% in the third quarter.

Coles and Woolworths have faced heavy scrutiny as they have raked in billion-dollar profits while Australian consumers struggle with rising prices.

Woolworths chief executive Brad Banducci announced in February he would leave in September after eight and a half years in the role, denying that his walk-out during a Four Corners interview over supermarket price gouging was a factor in his exit.

Banducci told reporters at the time:

I do believe in the circle of life.

The group’s half-year results released in February were mixed, with “challenging trading environments” not stymieing a 4.4% increase in sales, with profits increasing 2.5% to $929m.

Updated

‘Molly mattered’: heartbroken town farewells loving mum

Molly Ticehurst was a loving mum, daughter, sister and a treasured educator to many young children in her small country town.

That is how her family want the 28-year-old to be remembered - for the way she lived and the happy memories she created - ahead of her funeral this afternoon, AAP reports.

She will be farewelled in a public service at the rugby grounds in Forbes, central west New South Wales, 10 days after her former boyfriend allegedly murdered her in her home in the early hours of April 22.

“On Thursday, let’s not think of him or have vengeance in our hearts,” Ticehurst’s father Tony wrote under the online funeral notice.

Instead, think of the good memories Molly gave us.

The town of 9000 people has rallied around the Ticehurst family, with nearly $60,000 raised in a public fundraiser for her funeral.

Locals launched a campaign urging people across Australia to leave their front porch lights on throughout Wednesday night in her honour.

The town will also hold a “Molly Mattered” walk around Lake Forbes on Mother’s Day, with attendees asked to wear bright colours.

Updated

Government not taking security threat from climate change seriously enough, say military experts

Military experts say the Australian government is ignoring or hiding the security threat posed by climate change, and have called for greater transparency on climate risks.

A former Australian defence force chief, Chris Barrie, and other former defence and security leaders said the government gave only two paragraphs to climate change impacts in its national defence strategy, released two weeks ago, proving it was not taking climate security risks seriously.

They also called for the government to establish a dedicated climate threat intelligence unit.

The former leaders said the government’s plan to bolster bases in northern Australia at a cost of up to $18bn, announced in the same defence strategy, didn’t account for the fact that rising temperatures would make the area “practically unliveable”.

Despite governments’ pledges to cut emissions, the Climate Action Tracker says the world is projected to warm to 2.7C above pre-industrial levels based on policies currently in place around the world.

The new report by the Australian Security Leaders Climate Group suggests that defence bases planned or operating in Australia’s north could face daytime temperatures over 35C for the majority of the year once global warming reaches 2.7C, potentially making military operations and preparation impossible.

The experts also renewed their calls for public access to a still-hidden assessment of climate risks given to the federal government in 2022. Barrie said:

It appears that the government either doesn’t understand what our scientists are telling them, or they are deliberately hiding the facts from the Australian community.

Updated

Welcome

Good morning and welcome to our rolling news coverage. I’m Martin Farrer and I’ll be bringing you some of our top overnight stories before making way for Emily Wind.

Crown prosecutors are being urged to ask for female judges to hear cases involving Indigenous women who are victims of violent crime. It comes as a Senate inquiry seeks ways to improve justice system outcomes for First Nations people. Our data crunchers show that Indigenous people are disproportionately affected by family and domestic violence.

Meanwhile, the New South Wales town of Forbes is expected to be out in force today for the funeral of Molly Ticehurst 10 days after she was allegedly murdered by her former boyfriend, a case that energised the push for action against male violence.

Despite budget deficits and jobs cuts at our universities, six out of the eight vice-chancellors of Victoria’s top universities are earning more than $1m. The 2023 annual reports of Victorian universities have revealed that six vice-chancellors had their salaries boosted last year, including separate rises of more than $50,000. At the same time, five universities have posted annual deficits blamed on financial recovery from the pandemic, bringing a claim from the federal education minister that “we are acting”.

Australia is failing to give enough consideration to how climate change will affect food and water security and change the strategic environment in the future, according to senior former defence and security leaders. The Australian Security Leaders Climate Group, which includes former Australian defence force chief Chris Barrie, also said the government should set up a dedicated climate threat intelligence unit to present annual and declassified briefings to parliament. More coming up.

Updated

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
“I said, Don’t f**k with me, Phillip! You can’t pull that s**t on me, you a**hole. This is me, Cher, okay?” That time producer Phil Spector pulled a gun on Cher, and Cher was in absolutely no mood for his nonsense
A Public Service Announcement for anyone who needs to hear it: Do not, under any circumstances, attempt to f**k with Cher, ever
Louder
Louder
NBA Champ Jason Williams Says Marijuana Enhances Creativity On Court But Not 'Good Idea' Before Game
The National Basketball Association (NBA) has not been testing players for marijuana use since April 2023. Some questioned the move, while others praised it, including rapper, cannabis entrepreneur and advocate Snoop Dogg. Former NBA player Jason Williams, who played from 1998 to 2011, said even if marijuana had been legal…
Benzinga
Benzinga
Why Ariana Grande will never return The Voice as a coach
The singer was on one season of ‘The Voice’ in 2021
The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Sean Penn accuses Academy Awards of cowardice at Marrakech Film Festival
Sean Penn has blasted the organizers of the Oscars of being cowards who, in effect, limit the kind of films that can be funded and made
The Independent UK
The Independent UK
"They wouldn't have a clue." Kiss bassist Gene Simmons believes that no-one aged 20 or younger can name a single song by Nirvana or Pearl Jam
Gene Simmons: "Ask the first young person you meet, 'Name me anybody in Pearl Jam.' Good luck with that"
Metal Hammer
Metal Hammer
Daddy Yankee and Mireddys González divorcing after 29 years of marriage
Daddy Yankee confirmed his wife Mireddys González filed for divorce.
BANG Premier
BANG Premier
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.
Download on the AppStore Get it on Google Play