The day that was, 8 Friday March
And that’s where we’ll leave you this Friday afternoon. Here’s a wrap of today’s headlines:
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has remembered Yankunytjatjara leader and activist Lowitja O’Donoghue as “one of the most remarkable leaders this country has ever known”.
The headteacher of the prestigious Cranbrook school in Sydney resigned after it emerged he had known that a current Cranbrook teacher had engaged in “extremely concerning past conduct” while at a previous school and kept him in his position.
“Diamond” Joe Gutnick, the mining magnate and former president of the Melbourne Demons AFL club, has been banned from managing corporations for four years by the financial regulator.
The high court has refused to hear the appeal of an Aboriginal man whose case to access the age pension three years early due to racial disadvantage failed in the federal court last year.
The National’s deputy leader, Perin Davey, has fended off a preselection challenge and will keep her Senate spot at the next election.
Amanda Rishworth paid tribute to soldier Jack Fitzgibbon, the son of former Labor MP Joel Fitzgibbon, who died in a parachuting incident.
A new report has revealed a growing crisis of women and children fleeing domestic and family violence into homelessness, prompting calls for an urgent funding package to provide pathways to safe housing.
The business at the centre of Sydney’s asbestos contamination scandal is seeking a trove of documents from the environmental watchdog as it begins its legal fight to overturn a ban preventing it from selling mulch.
North Melbourne AFL coach Alastair Clarkson is free to coach his side in round one after avoiding a suspension for an outburst in a trial match on the weekend which reportedly included a homophobic slur, but he was fined $20,000 for his tirade.
The Ballarat mayor says the arrest of a 22-year-old man in relation to the death of missing woman Samantha Murphy has brought some closure to the community.
Australia is supportive of any efforts to find the missing flight MH370, the foreign minister, Penny Wong, has said, a decade on from the disappearance of the plane.
New South Wales police have arrested a man after a woman’s body was discovered in the boot of a car.
And Victoria is in for a very hot weekend, with temperatures in the high 30s forecast until Monday in Melbourne and a heatwave warning issued by the Bureau of Meteorology for much of Victoria.
Thanks so much for your company today. Look after yourselves and stay cool this weekend.
Updated
Urgent action needed to protect sharks and rays from overfishing, study shows
One in seven deepwater sharks and rays are at risk of extinction due to overfishing, a study says.
The research has prompted calls for urgent action to police the international liver oil trade and protect the species that live in the ocean depths, including Australian waters, AAP reports.
Experts are also demanding fishing regulations for deepwater sharks and rays, which they claim are some of the species most vulnerable to overfishing.
Prof Colin Simpfendorfer, a James Cook University marine biology expert, is among the international team of scientists involved in the study. He said deepwater sharks could be found in all Australian waters below 200m.
Simpfendorfer said they needed protection, along with rays, around the world like similar marine mammals:
We have many species of sharks and rays in our deep waters. Deepwater sharks and rays have biological characteristics similar to marine mammals which were formerly exploited for their oils and are now highly protected.
For the study, the international team analysed data on 521 deepwater shark and ray species to model populations and used the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) list of threatened species categories and criteria to estimate the global extinction risk.
The study found overfishing, coupled with the slow development and reproduction of many deepwater shark and ray species, make them more susceptible to population decline.
The study has been published in the journal Science.
Updated
EV brand Polestar quits industry group over its anti-vehicle efficiency measures campaign
Electric car brand Polestar has become the second company to quit Australia’s main auto industry lobby group over frustrations at its campaign against the Albanese government’s plan to import environmentally cleaner cars.
On Friday – a day after Tesla announced it would cease being a member of the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) over the group’s opposition to the government’s proposed vehicle efficiency standard – Polestar Australia’s managing director, Samantha Johnson, wrote to FCAI’s CEO, Tony Weber, advising him the Volvo-owned brand was also cancelling its membership.
In the letter, Johnson echoed concerns from Tesla over claims the FCAI was warning the government’s preferred model for a national vehicle efficiency standard (NVES) could increase the price of popular utes by up to $13,000.
Johnson said the active campaigning against the standard by the FCAI and fellow member companies was not aligned with Polestar’s focus.
Get all the details on this story here:
Updated
If you need to catch up on today’s news quickly, our Afternoon Update has you covered:
Peter Dutton repeats calls for more resources to address NT crime
Peter Dutton has repeated earlier calls for “more federal resources” to address crime in Alice Springs and the Northern Territory, accusing the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, of focusing too heavily on “inner city” areas.
Police are investigating after a young man died in a crash involving an allegedly stolen car in Alice Springs overnight. Speaking at a press conference in Darwin, joined by Coalition NT senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, Dutton called for the federal government to do more in addressing social issues in the territory.
I think the prime minister really needs to roll up his sleeves here. You can do 100 welcome to countrys in Sydney and Melbourne, it doesn’t improve the situation on the ground in Alice Springs …
He [Albanese] is more interested in what’s going on in inner-city Sydney and Melbourne than he is what’s happening here in the Territory.
Asked by a journalist what the federal government could do about crime - which is generally a state and territory government responsibility, considering that level of government runs the local police forces - Dutton said there should be more “federal resources” for frontline services, calling for Canberra to put more money into police and social workers.
Dutton’s federal opposition has sought to focus on community safety and crime issues in recent times, attempting to paint these as federal government failings. Such a campaign failed to pay dividends in last weekend’s Dunkley byelection, where the Liberal candidate won a swing but fell short of winning a seat where the opposition was expected to do better.
Updated
AFL coach Alistair Clarkson fined $20k but avoids suspension
North Melbourne AFL coach Alastair Clarkson is free to coach his side in round one after avoiding a suspension for an outburst in a trial match on the weekend which reportedly included a homophobic slur.
The AFL issued a $20,000 fine to the Kangaroos coach for his tirade, targeted at St Kilda player Jimmy Webster, after he caused North Melbourne’s captain, Jy Simpkin, to suffer a concussion.
AFL’s general counsel, Stephen Meade, said the behaviour was unacceptable:
While we understand there are emotions attached to the heat of the contest, engaging with an opposition player during the quarter-time break and then using language that is both unacceptable and highly inappropriate is something the AFL does not want in the game.
Clarkson said he was disappointed in himself and had apologised to Webster and St Kilda’s coach, Ross Lyon:
This has been a significant reflective moment for me. My language was not used with any intent to vilify or marginalise, however through this incident I have begun to understand the impact of the use of casual language. I am fully committed to educating myself in this regard.
The sanction includes a suspended two-game ban that will be triggered if Clarkson re-offends in the next two seasons.
North Melbourne will start their season in Sydney against the Giants next Saturday.
Updated
It’s First Dog on the Moon time, which means time to simultaneously laugh and cry (and what else could you wish for on a Friday afternoon?):
Further industrial action planned for V/Line services in Victoria
An update on the Victorian public transport industrial action that we mentioned earlier: the Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) announced today it is planning further industrial action for its V/Line staff, AAP reports.
This will include two nine-hour stoppages from 3am until 12pm on 22 March and 28 March, for all non-driving operations staff – that’s the weekend of the Grand Prix and Easter weekend respectively.
As we noted, V/Line workers are seeking the same pay as staff on Melbourne’s Metro network, who received a 17% increase over four years. Other sticking points include boosting wages in line with inflation and conditions such as shift length.
Updated
Catch up on all the media events of the week with Amanda Meade’s column, Weekly Beast – the latest edition of which has just gone live:
Many thanks for joining me on the blog today, I’ll pass over to Stephanie Convery who will continue our live coverage this evening. Take care, and have a great weekend.
Tasmanian independents call for end to native forestry
Two independents who could hold balance-of-power positions in Tasmania’s new parliament have pledged to fight to end native forest logging, AAP reports.
The island state will head to the polls on 23 March after the Liberal minority government failed to resolve a standoff with two crossbench independents.
The Liberals have promised to open 40,000 hectares of previously protected native trees for logging if re-elected, prompting criticism from a major forestry industry group. The Bob Brown Foundation has flagged increased protests in opposition to the move.
Incumbent MP Kristie Johnston and former Liberal Sue Hickey were among seven candidates to sign a pledge spruiked by the Australia Institute to end native forestry.
Polling indicates neither the Liberals nor Labor, who have been in opposition for a decade, will have enough support to reach the 18 seats required to form majority government.
The Greens, who have two incumbent MPs, want to end native forestry and are hoping to win enough seats to hold a balance-of-power position.
Updated
Fears for koala habitat after coal mine assessed
A proposed Queensland coal mine has been referred for federal assessment, sparking fears almost 800 hectares of koala habitat will be cleared, AAP reports.
Environmentalists have taken aim at the federal environment minister, saying approval of central Queensland’s Vulcan South mine will fast-track the decline of the region’s struggling koala population.
They had urged Tanya Plibersek to block the development before discovering the mine was referred for federal assessment last week under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act.
The proposed mine’s status is “assessment active” on the EPBC Public Portal. Environmental Advocacy in Central Queensland’s director, Dr Coral Rowston, said:
We argued that the clearing of hundreds of hectares of habitat that is home to endangered animals like the koala and greater glider meant Vitrinite’s Vulcan South project should have been stopped at the first federal hurdle.
Unfortunately, last Friday Tanya Plibersek sided with a coal company against koalas.
Habitats for koalas, the endangered greater glider and the vulnerable glossy black cockatoo and squatter pigeon will be at risk if the Vulcan South project proceeds, environmentalists say.
Approval for the Vulcan South coal mine in the Bowen Basin was issued on 22 January by the Queensland Department of Environment, Science and Innovation (DESI).
A Desi spokesperson said in February all proposed projects underwent a rigorous environmental assessment to ensure they met legislative standards as part of the environmental authority process.
The site, southwest of Mackay, is set to fall short of requiring an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).
Updated
Continuing on from our last post: Nerita Waight, CEO of the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service, said of the case:
Successive governments have failed to deliver better living standards for our people through closing the gap, and the failure to close the life expectancy gap is particularly shameful.
Our people know what they need to improve their lives. Uncle Dennis is asking for this small change to the age pension so our people can have an opportunity for a more dignified retirement. It’s now for the commonwealth government to change the Social Security Act to make the pension system fairer for our Elders.
Updated
High court rejects appeal over Indigenous man’s attempt to access pension early
The high court has refused to hear the appeal of an Aboriginal man whose case to access the age pension three years early due to racial disadvantage failed in the federal court last year.
Uncle Dennis, a 66-year-old Wakka Wakka man, argued in his case that if retiring Indigenous men were expected to live for three fewer years than non-Indigenous men, then they should receive the pension three years earlier.
He had lodged a claim to receive the pension, but it had been rejected because he wasn’t old enough (for everyone born after 1957, that age is 67).
The federal court judgement, handed down in July, said the case should be rejected because Australia’s social security legislation was not inconsistent with “equality before the law”, and that life expectancy was an estimation of how a range of factors would influence a particular group, and not a characteristic of a race.
The high court’s refusal to hear his appeal yesterday means Uncle Dennis’s legal options are exhausted, but along with the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service and Human Rights Law Centre, he has called on the federal government to act.
Uncle Dennis, who asked that his full name not be published, said in a statement:
More than a decade ago, Australian governments promised to ‘Close the Gap’, but we are not making much progress. They are all talk and no action. If it were the other way around, and white people were dying too young, they would have fixed this already.
This case was asking the government to work together with us, to give our people the same chance in life as everyone else. The pension is an important part of caring for and looking after our people when they can’t work anymore.
I took this legal action because I wanted to stand up for my people. I am disappointed that the court won’t hear our case, but we will keep fighting because truth and accountability are important.
He was assisted in his case by the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service and Human Rights Law Centre.
Updated
PM says Lowitja O’Donoghues’s life could be measured in firsts ‘but her focus was on giving people a future’
Speaking at the state funeral of Lowitja O’Donoghue, the prime minister Anthony Albanese said her life can be measured in firsts:
She was the first Aboriginal trainee nurse at Royal Adelaide hospital.
The first woman to be a regional director of an Australian federal department.
The founding chairperson of the national Aboriginal conference.
The first Aboriginal woman to be made a member of the Order of Australia.
The inaugural chairperson of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander commission.
And in 1992, at the launch of the International Year of the Word’s Indigenous People, she became the first Aboriginal person to speak at the United Nations general assembly.
Albanese said while O’Donoghue was proud of being first, she was “determined to not be last”, and held a door open “for all who followed”.
She made history but her focus was on giving people a future.
Updated
Prime minister honours memory of Lowitja O’Donoghue
The prime minister Anthony Albanese has been giving a speech at the state funeral of Yankunytjatjara leader and activist, Lowitja O’Donoghue.
Albanese labelled her as “one of the most remarkable leaders this country has ever known”, and thanked her for the “better Australia she helped make possible”.
Perhaps even more importantly, we reflect on the possibility of an even better Australia, which she placed so clearly before us.
The prime minister said O’Donoghue’s “remarkable power” was built on an “abiding faith in the possibility of a more united Australia”, and said:
This was a faith she embodied with her efforts to bring about meaningful and lasting reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australia.
A faith underpinned by her unceasing work to improve the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Yet consider the stony ground in which this faith somehow took root.
O’Donoghue was a member of the stolen generation, Albanese noted, saying she “transcended the weight of her own experience and grew into a woman of grace, moral clarity and profound inner strength”.
Updated
Construction industry group launches policy platform to increase female participation on International Women’s Day
Master Builders Australia – the voice of the construction industry – has launched a policy platform to increase female participation in the building and construction industry.
Released to coincide with International Women’s Day, the breaking ground: women in building and construction policy platform makes a number of proposals, including:
Unbiased career guidance and more hands-on experience for young women in schools;
Access to information for parents;
The promotion of good culture and safety practices by industry leaders;
Better support and flexibility for tradies who are pregnant or caring for children; and
More funding for programs, education, facilities, information and forums that promote building and construction careers to women.
Master Builders Australia’s CEO, Denita Wawn, said:
As one of the biggest sectors in the economy, the building and construction industry employs over 1.3 million Australians but a female participation rate of 1% with only 3% on the tools is simply not good enough.
She said workplace shortages are putting “immense pressure on our ability to meet housing targets” and Master Builders believes women will play “a vital role in rectifying that”.
Cultural change is needed … We must do more to end the bias between universities and vocation education, and young women should be given the same opportunities as their male counterparts to pursue trade apprenticeships if they choose to do so.
Updated
Mining magnate Gutnick banned from managing businesses
“Diamond” Joe Gutnick, the former president of the Melbourne Demons AFL club, has been banned from managing corporations for four years by the financial regulator, AAP reports.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (Asic) found the mining magnate acted improperly and failed to meet his obligations as director of three companies between June 2016 and March 2020.
The three companies - Axis Consultants, Merlin Diamonds and Legend International Holdings - have all been deregistered or placed into liquidation.
Asic found he allowed a company to trade while insolvent, failed to ensure record-keeping requirements were met and failed to assist liquidators when requested.
Unless he successfully appeals Asic decision at the administrative appeals tribunal, Gutnick will be disqualified from managing corporations until March 3, 2028.
Updated
Weekend heatwave forecast over SA, Victoria and Tasmania
The Bureau of Meteorology has published its weather outlook for the weekend, detailing the heatwave set to hit the southern states:
Here's what to expect across Australia over the weekend, including the hot long weekend forecast for #SA, #Victoria & #Tasmania, & the storms set to continue in the west & north.
— Bureau of Meteorology, Australia (@BOM_au) March 8, 2024
Video current as of 11:30am AEDT, Friday 8 March 2024. Latest: https://t.co/4W35o8iFmh pic.twitter.com/uC3b8DgKkV
Updated
Four arrested in Victoria as police investigation over arson attacks continues
Four additional children have been arrested as Victoria police continue investigating incidents linked to the ongoing tobacco dispute.
Warrants were executed at five residential addresses in Springvale, Princess Hill, Cranbourne East, Brighton East and Preston about 7am this morning. Four boys have now been arrested and will be interviewed by police, a statement said. They include:
A 16-year-old Springvale boy
A 14-year-old Princess Hill boy
A 17-year-old Cranbourne East boy
A 16-year-old Preston boy.
In addition to four children previously charged, investigators will now interview the four boys about an aggravated burglary in Wonga Park, and two arson attacks at a Mill Park restaurant and a tobacconist in Ballarat last month.
A white Isuzu D Max and a silver Ford Ranger were stolen during an aggravated burglary in Wonga Park between 10pm on 19 February, and 7am on 20 February. The Ford Ranger was then used in an arson attack at a reception centre in Thomastown on the 22nd, police said. It was later located burnt out in Bundoora.
A 20-year-old St Albans man was charged last week in relation to that incident.
On 27 February, the Isuzu D Max was involved in an attempted arson at a Mill Park restaurant on The Link, police allege. It was then used the following day in an arson attack at a tobacconist in Ballarat, and the store was “significantly” damaged.
A short time later, the vehicle was located burnt out on Eureka Street.
The investigation remains ongoing.
Updated
Measles cases spark alerts for airport and university
A measles alert has been issued for a major airport, university, several flights and shops in Victoria, AAP reports.
Five people have been diagnosed with the highly infectious disease, including two people travelling on planes.
Melbourne Airport’s international terminal is an exposure site on the morning of 19 February, while the domestic terminal is an exposure site in both the morning and evening of 27 February.
Flights under the alert are:
Singapore Airlines flight SQ217 from Singapore to Melbourne on 14 February;
Virgin Australia flight VA815 from Melbourne to Sydney on 27 February; and
Qantas flight QF483 from Sydney to Melbourne on 27 February.
The alert also applies to the Craigieburn post office, several sites at Monash University’s Clayton campus, Clayton Woolworths and the Better Choice Werribee petrol station from 28 February to 1 March.
Victoria’s health department has urged anyone who may have come into contact with a case to look out for symptoms up to 18 days after they were exposed. Symptoms include a rash that starts on the face then spreads, feeling unwell, a fever, cough and sore throat.
Further details about exact exposure times can be found on the Victorian Department of Health website.
Updated
Regional transport chaos as train staff strike
Tens of thousands of Victorians will have their pre-long weekend train transport derailed as widespread strikes hammer the regional network, AAP reports.
Conductors, train controllers, ticket officers and customer service staff stopped work between 3am and 4pm on Friday due to industrial action led by the Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU).
The strike marks a major escalation in a long-running dispute between rail operator V/Line and the workers’ union over a new enterprise agreement, and comes on the eve of Victoria’s Labor Day long weekend
Buses will partially replace trains on the expansive network which operates throughout Victoria’s regions.
But V/Line’s chief executive, Matt Carrick, said the industrial action meant the vast majority of the trains’ usual passengers could not access public transport:
Normally on a day like today you could expect about 70,000 people to use our network, today we have had about 3,000. These delays will go on well into the evening which is why we encourage people to make new transport arrangements.
V/Line workers are seeking the same pay as staff on Melbourne’s Metro network, who received a 17% increase over four years. The union said other main sticking points include boosting wages in line with inflation and conditions such as shift length.
The RTBU’s branch secretary, Vik Sharma, urged the state government to get serious at the bargaining table to resolve the pay dispute.
Trains will progressively return on the Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo and Traralgon lines from 5pm but significant delays will be expected. Train drivers are not part of the strike.
Updated
Mulch company at centre of asbestos scandal seeks ‘hundreds’ of documents from EPA
The business at the centre of Sydney’s asbestos contamination scandal is seeking a trove of documents from the environmental watchdog as it begins its legal fight to overturn a ban preventing it from selling mulch.
At an initial hearing in the New South Wales land and environment court today, lawyers for Greenlife Resource Recovery and the Environment Protection Authority agreed to meet with their clients to attempt conciliation later this month.
Before then, the court has ordered the EPA to produce the documents being sought by Greenlife on a rolling basis, with a hard deadline of the end of next week.
Greenlife is challenging a prevention notice it was issued by the EPA in January after the business was identified as the supplier of recycled garden mulch found to be contaminated with bonded asbestos at the Rozelle parklands.
The EPA then launched a broader investigation which has led to the discovery of bonded and friable asbestos at 75 additional sites across greater Sydney, most of which has been linked to the Bringelly-based business.
Greenlife has consistently denied it is responsible for the contamination.
At the court hearing today, the EPA’s barrister, Henry El-Hage SC, said Greenlife was seeking a “plethora of materials” that amounted to “hundreds of documents, thousands of pages” as part of its attempt to have the prevention notice thrown out.
El-Hage told the court Greenlife was seeking documents obtained during the course of the EPA investigation including those recording or identifying the supplier of mulch as anyone other than Greenlife and those identifying potential alternative sources of asbestos contamination at various sites.
El-Hage said Greenlife was requesting some documents that the EPA considered beyond what was relevant but he did not detail what these were.
Greenlife’s barrister, Lauren Sims, had asked for the EPA to produce the documents by the end of Friday but El-Hage said it would be impossible to meet that deadline.
The parties will hold their conciliation hearing onsite at the Greenlife facility on 28 March.
If they can’t reach an agreement, the case is scheduled to return to court on 4 April.
Updated
Man arrested after woman’s body discovered in car boot
New South Wales police have arrested a man after a woman’s body was discovered in the boot of a car.
In a statement, police said emergency services were called to a unit in Evans Head about 8.10am today following reports of concern for welfare.
Officers arrived to find the body of a 60-year-old woman in the boot of a car.
A 39-year-old man, known to the woman, was arrested at the scene and taken to Ballina police station where he is assisting police with inquiries.
No charges have been laid.
Police have established a crime scene and launched an investigation into the incident.
Updated
Greenpeace says automative lobby group ‘out of step’ with demands of Australian consumers on EVs and efficiency standards
Greenpeace is calling for car companies that support the government’s proposed vehicle efficiency standard to resign from major lobby group, the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI).
This comes as Tesla quit the lobby group yesterday (full story below), and Polestar suggested it is “poised to leave”.
In a statement, Joe Rafalowicz, a Greenpeace Australia Pacific campaigner, said:
It has become clear that the FCAI is only interested in representing car brands who want to weaken emissions limits … The FCAI is so far out of step with the demands of Australian consumers, who we know want to see cleaner, more affordable electric cars on our roads, sooner.
Car makers that are serious about climate action stand to gain nothing by associating with this increasingly irrelevant lobby group.
Updated
Man charged following Wentworthville shooting last month
New South Wales police have charged a man with shooting with intent to murder during a shooting in Wentworthville last month.
On 20 February, emergency services responded to reports of shots fired into a business on Wentworth Avenue. There were no reports of injuries.
A short time later, emergency services were called to Fulton Avenue after reports a scooter was alight, police said.
Following extensive inquiries, a 19-year-old man was arrested at a shopping centre in Bankstown just after 12pm yesterday. He has been charged with shooting with intent to murder and discharging a firearm with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
He was refused bail to appear at Bankstown local court today.
Police will allege in court the man was part of a joint criminal enterprise responsible for the shooting, a statement said.
Updated
Comparisons between environmental activists and capitol rioters ‘odious’, protestors say
Comparisons between 14 largely retired environmental protesters unfurling banners in Queensland’s parliament and the January 6 US Capitol riots are “odious”, one of the protesters has said.
On Thursday, Queensland’s parliamentary ethics committee handed down its findings, which cleared Greens MP Michael Berkman of inciting or encouraging the Extinction Rebellion protest in November 2022, but described his conduct as “disgraceful”.
Fourteen people aged between 24 and 88 face the possibility of jail, if convicted, over their brief but raucous protest in which demonstrators unfurled banners with anti-fossil fuel slogans from the public gallery of parliament, interrupting question time with chants of “end fossil fuels now” and “stop coal, stop gas” for about three minutes.
In an interview with ABC Brisbane, Berkman later expressed shock at news the activists faced charges – not laid in more than 30 years – of disturbing the legislature during a protest.
He said the charges were “a really scary indicator of where we are up to”, and later posted on social media that the protesters were “absolutely right”.
Read more on this story from me and my colleague Eden Gillespie, here:
Updated
Nationals deputy leader Perin Davey fends off preselection challenge
The results are in and the Nationals deputy leader, Perin Davey, has fended off a preselection challenge and will keep her Senate spot at the next election.
The numbers are not confirmed as yet, but Davey came out on top, putting to bed the challenges surrounding her parliamentary career.
Updated
Advocates call for ‘more than platitudes’ as Australian women faced with ‘impossible choice’ between domestic violence and homelessness
Continuing from our last post: The report notes that lack of access to safe housing prevents many women from escaping violence and pushes women back to violent homes.
Kate Colvin, CEO of Homelessness Australia, said:
Thousands of Australian women are faced with an impossible choice - return to a violent home or confront homelessness. This is not a decision anyone should be forced to make, yet it’s happening more and more.
Pathways to safe housing are the missing piece in the government’s response to family violence, but can be addressed in the new five-year national housing and homelessness agreement that will soon be released.
This International Women’s Day it would be refreshing to see more than platitudes. We would like firm commitments to improve a desperate, parlous situation that puts the lives and safety of too many women and girls at risk.
Updated
New report shows 45% of homeless women and girls seeking assistance are fleeing domestic and family violence
A new report has revealed a growing crisis of women and children fleeing domestic and family violence into homelessness, prompting calls for an urgent funding package to provide pathways to safe housing.
Homelessness Australia’s state of response report for International Women’s Day analyses Australian Institute of Health and Welfare data and found 45% of women and girls seeking homelessness assistance do so due to family and domestic violence.
It finds that over the last decade:
The number of women and children sleeping rough or in a car at the end of homelessness support more than doubled, from 1,041 to 2,428; and
The number of women and children couch surfing at the end of support more than doubled from 3,465 to 7,214.
In the past year alone, the number of women and children sleeping rough or in a car after receiving homelessness support increased by 23%.
Updated
Following on from our last post, the environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, has posted this video on the mass coral bleaching occurring across the Great Barrier Reef:
An important update about the Great Barrier Reef. pic.twitter.com/DHbl9u3h3h
— Tanya Plibersek (@tanya_plibersek) March 8, 2024
Updated
Fifth mass coral bleaching event in eight years hits Great Barrier Reef, marine park authority confirms
The Great Barrier Reef is in the grip of a mass coral bleaching event driven by global heating – the fifth in only eight years – the marine park’s government authority has confirmed.
The authority, together with scientists from the Australian Institute of Marine Science, have completed aerial surveys across 300 reefs over two thirds of the reef, with more to come.
The authority said in an update:
These surveys confirm a widespread, often called mass coral bleaching event, is unfolding across the Great Barrier Reef.
Read the full story below:
Updated
Melbourne’s west yet to see promised public transport reform
Tomorrow will be 1,000 days since Victoria’s bus plan was released, with advocates arguing little has been done to ensure Melbourne’s west has a fast, frequent and reliable bus service.
In 2021, Victoria’s Labor government committed to a bus plan that promised to create a bus network to Victoria’s public transport needs and demands, including route reforms and improved accessibility and safety.
The lack of frequent and direct bus routes has been particularly difficult for communities such as those in Wyndham in Melbourne’s west, advocates say. In Hoppers Crossing, for example, the average bus trip takes four times longer than the same journey by car.
According to the government’s bus plan, 2023 was supposed to see the implementation of reforms to transform Victoria’s bus network to align it with growing demand.
Sustainable Cities spokesperson Elyse Cunningham said:
Victoria’s bus plan has no solid timeline, and no solid funding commitments. They’ve been sitting on this plan for 1,000 days, but the people of Melbourne’s west are still stuck waiting for better buses, and taking hours to get to uni, work or the shops.
In a cost-of-living crisis, families in the west are spending hundreds of dollars more on petrol just to get where they need to go.
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Full review to come into accidental release of inmate from correctional facility, NSW premier says
The NSW premier, Chris Minns, has commented on reports from earlier this morning that a man was accidentally released from a correctional facility yesterday, and located in a Bondi hotel this morning.
Minns told reporters in Sydney that there would be a full review to determine what went wrong:
There’s over 12,000 inmates across Corrective Services in the state ... when you put it against the mid-90s when there was over 100 inmate escapes or accidental releases per year, it’s well down.
But any inmate that’s released accidentally or earlier than they should be, is a major concern for Corrective Services and we want to make sure we get it right.
Earlier, Corrective Services said the man was released from Long Bay correctional complex due to an “administration error following a court appearance”, which is now being investigated.
- with AAP
Updated
NSW veterans minister says Jack Fitzgibbon’s death at RAAF base a ‘tragedy’
New South Wales’ veterans minister, David Harris, has released a statement on the death of soldier Jack Fitzgibbon in a parachuting incident.
Harris wrote:
This is a tragedy. Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this most difficult time and extend our deepest condolences.
Our thoughts are also with those who served alongside Lance Corporal Fitzgibbon – his friends and colleagues in uniform – and the broader defence community.
His service and sacrifice on behalf of our nation will not be forgotten.
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Good morning from Canberra
As you read this, the Nationals deputy leader, Senator Perin Davey, is fighting for her political survival as the NSW branch decides its senate ticket positions.
Davey is fighting off a very strong preselection challenge from federal secretary Juliana McArthur and academic and agricultural physicist professor David Lamb.
Davey recently came under fire for appearing to slur her words during a senate estimates hearing. While she admitted to having two wines before the evening hearing, she said a medical incident five years earlier was to blame.
We expect to hear the result very soon.
Insurance claim tally nears 20,000 after Victoria thunderstorms
Nearly 20,000 insurance claims have been lodged following the severe thunderstorms that lashed Victoria last month.
In February, intense rain hit Melbourne’s outer suburbs, causing flash flooding and fallen trees, all while bushfires were still burning. During the storms two transmission towers collapsed and about 500,000 lost power.
The Insurance Council of Australia says claims for the storm have risen to 19,932.
About 85% of claims are related to homes and contents damages. About 9,170 claims for damaged contents have been lodged, totalling $10m. Nearly 30% are already closed.
The estimated cost of the storm has reached $104m, the ICA said.
CEO Andrew Hall:
These storms caused extensive damage across Victoria and show us just how quickly and unexpectedly extreme weather events can occur.
The significant number of claims reflects the severity of the event, and insurers are working hard to support customers affected by this event.
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Hot weather ahead for Melbourne and Adelaide
Speaking of sweltering weather: Melbourne is in for a very hot weekend, with temperatures in the high 30s forecast until Monday.
According to the Bureau of Meteorology, the city is forecast to hit a maximum of 39C on Saturday, 38C on Sunday and 38C on Monday – before dropping down to a max of 26C on Tuesday.
Yesterday, the Bureau issued a heatwave warning for much of Victoria this weekend, and said:
Severe heatwave conditions are expected to peak across the long weekend with a prolonged run of heat. The expected passage of a trough on Tuesday should bring relief from the south.
Melbourne is included in the warning, and other locations likely to be affected include Ararat, Ballarat, Edenhope, Hamilton, Leongatha, Melton, Moe, Mallacoota, Traralgon and Warragul.
Meanwhile, Adelaide is forecast to hit a maximum of 40C on Saturday, with temperatures remaining above 30 for much of next week.
The city has a maximum forecast of 38C on Sunday, followed by 38C on Monday and 34C on Tuesday.
A heatwave warning has also been issued for southeast parts of the state, including Adelaide. Like with Victoria, a trough on Tuesday is expected to bring some relief.
As well as Adelaide, the following locations across South Australia are set to be affected by the heatwave: Kingscote, Maitland, Mount Gambier, Mount Barker, Murray Bridge, Narracoorte, Port Lincoln, Port Pirie and the Barossa Valley.
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Victoria urged to add cooling and insulation to minimum rental standards
NGO Sweltering Cities, along with 50 doctors and health organisations across Victoria, are calling on the government to follow through on its commitment to putting cooling in the minimum rental standards.
Sweltering Cities executive director Emma Bacon has said:
In just a few weeks, the government will begin its public consultations on updating the rental minimum standards with cooling and insulation. We need to ensure that the standards are fit for purpose in reducing the risk of heat related health impacts for renters.
Heatwaves kill more Australians than all other environmental disasters combined. Renters are more likely to live in homes with no insulation or air con, so are at higher risk of heat related illness on hot days and during heatwaves.
As we face increasingly hotter summers, the Victorian Government has the opportunity to make a real difference for residents across Victoria who are baking in dangerously hot homes.
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We flagged earlier that it is the ten-year anniversary of the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight MH370.
For the full story on this, including Australia’s offer of support for a renewed search, Elias Visontay has you covered:
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‘It’s shifted remarkably’: Wong hopeful on more women in politics
The foreign minister, Penny Wong – who became Australia’s longest-serving female cabinet minister on Wednesday – says while there has been progress on the number of women in senior positions, there is still a long way to go.
Marking International Women’s Day, Wong said there had been significant change to how women have been treated in politics since she first entered the Senate in 2002. She told Adelaide radio station 5AA:
It’s shifted remarkably, actually … it does make a difference when you have this many women in a cabinet.
There are many more women on both sides of politics, there are many more women in senior positions and I think that has changed things. We’ve still got some way to go, but it’s certainly better than it was.
Wong said she remained optimistic about the next generation of women wanting to enter politics:
Girls these days and younger women these days have a sense of their right to aspire to whatever they wish to be and to do, and they are not willing to accept some of the barriers and prejudices.
Young women are that empowered, and it’s wonderful to see. I mean, they are fearless.
Does the world enable that? Not as fully as we want, but I think we’re well down the path, and I’m very hopeful about the next generation of feminists and young women.
– from AAP
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PM posts to social media celebrating Australian government ‘where women are the majority’
In a post to social media for International Women’s Day, the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, said he is “proud to lead a government that is over 50% women”.
It’s the first time Australia has had a government where women are the majority.
I’m so proud to lead a government that is over 50% women.
— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) March 7, 2024
It’s the first time Australia has had a government where women are the majority.
And with more women at the table, we’re delivering for women across the country. pic.twitter.com/y40DJrHFsV
Albanese wrote that on IWD, “we reaffirm our commitment to gender equality and look for new ways to do better.”
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Driver charged after interstate truck pursuit from Queensland to NSW
A man has been charged after a truck was pursued across state borders from Queensland to New South Wales, allegedly hitting two police vehicles en route, before it was stopped near Moree overnight.
Officers in NSW were alerted by Queensland police around 6pm yesterday that a table-top truck, allegedly laden with a stolen bobcat, had crossed the border at Boggabilla and was travelling along the Newell highway.
NSW police were told the truck had been followed by Queensland police and a 27-year-old senior constable had sustained minor injuries when his vehicle was allegedly rammed at Millmerran.
Police attempted to intercept the truck 100km north of Moree but will allege the driver ignored directions and continued south, “frequently crossing to the incorrect side of the highway”, a statement said.
A pursuit was initiated and road spikes were deployed north of Moree. One front tyre deflated on the truck, but the driver continued south.
A fully marked police caged-truck, positioned to block northbound traffic as a precaution, was also clipped by the truck, police said. The truck continued and later hit a power pole, dislodging the bobcat and bringing powerlines down.
But the truck drove from the scene. The truck eventually stopped 30km south of Moree, “with the front nearside wheel ground down to the steel hub”. Police arrested the alleged driver, a 24-year-old man from Quirindi.
He was taken from Moree district hospital for assessment and mandatory testing before being transferred to Moree police station.
He was charged with using an offensive weapon to prevent lawful detention, driving while licence cancelled, receiving property stolen outside NSW, negligent and predatory driving, and driving recklessly/furiously or speed/manner dangerous.
He has been refused bail to appear at Inverell local court today.
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Bill Shorten says he will not ‘pile in’ on Sam Kerr case
Bill Shorten was asked about Sam Kerr while on the Today Show earlier, who has dominated headlines this week.
According to sources with knowledge of the case, Kerr allegedly called a UK police officer “a stupid white bastard” during a dispute over a taxi fare in southwest London on 30 January last year.
She is set to face trial in the UK over the alleged comment, but according to reports, her legal team is planning to have the charge downgraded or dismissed at an April hearing.
Shorten said he isn’t going to “pile in and be judge, jury” when Kerr has said she’s not guilty:
I’m just going to let her case take its way through. I’m not going to join in on that.
But the case, it appears, has brought up some memories for Shorten he would rather forget:
There’s one [sledge I’ve had] which I still remember. I was going for a jog; I was going for a jog on a country road. And this old digger, you know, he would have seen his 90th birthday already. And I’m running along, not Chariots of Fire speed, but nonetheless. And he rolls down the window. He rolls down the window and says, “and you can’t even effing run either!” Anyway, I just want to say, that bloke, I’ve never forgotten you.
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Simon Birmingham says MH370 disappearance investigation should be renewed
The shadow foreign minister, Simon Birmingham, said a renewed commitment is needed for investigation efforts into missing Malaysian Airlines flight MH370, on the ten-year anniversary since its disappearance.
As Daniel Hurst reported yesterday, the Malaysian prime minister Anwar Ibrahim said he was “inclined to support” the reopening of an investigation into the missing flight, while speaking in Canberra.
The foreign minister, Penny Wong, has said Australia is supportive of any renewed efforts to find MH370, according to AAP.
Writing on X today, Birmingham said:
10 years since the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370. The memory of those lost remains vivid. We honour the 239 passengers, including 6 Australians who boarded that fateful flight.
As we pause to remember, let’s renew our commitment to the pursuit of truth, the families who continue to seek answers, & the tireless efforts of search & investigation teams worldwide.
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Cranbrook principal Nicholas Sampson resigns
The headteacher of the prestigious Cranbrook school in Sydney has resigned after it emerged he had known that a current Cranbrook teacher had engaged in “extremely concerning past conduct” while at a previous school and kept him in his position.
An emergency meeting of the school council was held yesterday to investigate Nicholas Sampson’s response to the incident.
Geoff Lovell, the president of the school council, wrote in an email to parents at the school:
The circumstances of the matter and subsequently Mr Sampson’s failure to disclose the matter to the current school council … have led to an irrevocable breakdown of trust between the headmaster and the school council.
The school council communicated this to Mr Sampson and this morning received his resignation.
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Opposition leader Peter Dutton has also paid tribute to soldier Jack Fitzgibbon.
Speaking on the Today Show, Dutton noted that Jack’s parents – former Labor MP Joel Fitzgibbon and his wife, Diane – would be “devastated beyond words”, and that the regiment “will be heartbroken”.
Dutton said he had texted Joel yesterday, and has also reached out to defence minister Richard Marles.
He’ll be feeling it not only as a friend and … former colleague of Joel’s, but also as defence minister. You feel each one of those incidents and you have a special burden that you carry as defence minister, and Richard will certainly be feeling that.
Dutton was defence minister from March 2021-May 2022.
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Rishworth pays tribute to son of former MP who died in RAAF base incident
Amanda Rishworth paid tribute to soldier Jack Fitzgibbon, the son of former Labor MP Joel Fitzgibbon, who died in a parachuting incident.
She said the incident is “hitting home really hard”.
My thoughts are with Joel and his family and also all those in the ADF. A training incident such as this would have huge reverberations through those colleagues that perhaps were first responders and those that were around him. So, it’s absolutely tragic news and a reminder that serving in the defence force comes with risk.
And I’d just like to acknowledge Jack’s service to our country and really, though, mainly today, is my thoughts are with his grieving family, which is an absolute tragedy.
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Government has employed 17 full-time equivalent frontline domestic violence workers out of promised 500, Rishworth says
Speaking to ABC News Breakfast, Amanda Rishworth was asked about claims from the Coalition the government has only employed two of the promised 500 frontline domestic violence workers it promised in 2021.
She said the government has 17 full-time equivalent workers on board, but “we do need to work hard” to employ more workers.
She added that the states and territories have received two funding payments towards this and the government is working with them to recruit staff.
But I am disappointed that Sussan Ley has turned this into a political football. Of course, if they had been re-elected, we wouldn’t have seen any money for national partnerships, any money for these workers. We put the money in our budget and we’re working with the states and territories through paying them to employ these workers and get these workers on the ground.
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‘Still a lot to do’ on gender equality, social services minister says after status of women report card released
The minister for social services, Amanda Rishworth, was on ABC News Breakfast earlier today, discussing the release of the second annual status of women report card.
This was released yesterday, in time for International Women’s Day, today.
Host Michael Rowland noted that Australia is now ranked 26 globally for gender equality, compared to 43rd in last year’s report, and that 26% of women recently reported experiencing sexual harassment at work.
Rishworth responded “there is a lot still to do” to ensure not only economic equality for women, but also that they feel safe in our society.
Speaking on violence against women, Rishworth said one area the government is focused on is holding perpetrators to account.
That’s something that victim-survivors have said they want us to hear, changing the attitudes of men and boys, but also making sure that perpetrators are held to account for their behaviour. Men that choose violence do get held to account, so there is a lot of work going into that.
One of the biggest challenges in addressing attitudes towards women is online influences, Rishworth said.
There are many online influences that are encouraging negative stereotypes towards women and encouraging violence against women, people like Andrew Tate. And so we need to be tackling that with alternative, healthy role models so that we do not see that the progress we’ve made in terms of the attitude toward violence against women actually go backwards in the next generation.
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Bunnings replaces Woolworths as Australia’s most trusted brand
Bunnings has overtaken Woolworths as Australia’s most trusted brand, breaking the supermarket’s three-and-a-half year stronghold, according to new research from Roy Morgan.
Bunnings lost its title as Australia’s most trusted brand to Woolworths in May 2020, but since October 2022 has shown a strong recovery. Roy Morgan CEO, Michele Levine, said Bunnings is a brand with “a vast reservoir of goodwill” and its reputational strength is fed by “dramatically more trust than distrust”.
The research found that Australians’ distrust in companies has grown over the past year, with reasons including “corporate greed, poor customer service, unaffordable prices, dishonesty, unethical practices, and poor privacy practices”.
Both major supermarkets fell in the latest rankings: Woolworths slipping one place to second, and Coles slipping two places to fifth.
Aldi (third), Kmart (fourth) and Bunnings (first) each rose by one place. Apple came in at sixth, followed by Toyota, Myer, Big W and Australia Post consecutively.
Australia’s top five most distrusted brands were Optus, followed by Facebook/Meta, Qantas, Telstra and News Corp, according to the research. This was followed by Medibank in sixth, then Amazon, TikTok, Twitter/X and Nestlé.
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Arrest of man in relation to Samantha Murphy’s death has brought some ‘closure’, Ballarat mayor says
Ballarat mayor Des Hudson says the arrest of a 22-year-old man in relation to the death of missing woman Samantha Murphy has brought some closure to the community.
Speaking to ABC News Breakfast, Hudson said there has been “many questions” and an outpouring of community concern over the past month about what happened to Murphy, who “set off for an early morning run on Sunday morning, and then just didn’t come home to her family”:
I think the fact that Sam was a mum, had young kids, or young teenagers, and just disappeared without any trace, it really sparked the emotion of our community and communities from everywhere …
Samantha will never come home to her family [and] they will never have a beautiful mother, a beautiful wife to be with them as [they] go forward.
Hudson said that rumour-mongering and “speculation” has been “hurtful” for those involved, urging people to allow the investigation to “follow through to its natural conclusion”.
Hopefully in that we will get the answers to what happened to Samantha Murphy.
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MH370 mystery endures a decade after disappearance
Australia is supportive of any efforts to find the missing flight MH370, the foreign minister, Penny Wong, has said.
A decade on from the disappearance of flight MH370, families and loved ones of its 239 passengers are no closer to finding answers.
The Malaysia Airlines flight disappeared from radar on 8 March 2014 on its way to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur. Six Australian citizens and one New Zealand resident of Western Australia were on board.
Australia’s sympathies remained with the families and loved ones, Wong said.
We recognise their ongoing heartache and grief without the answers they seek.
As Daniel Hurst reported yesterday, the Malaysian prime minister Anwar Ibrahim said he was “inclined to support” the reopening of an investigation into the missing flight, while speaking in Canberra.
Australia was ready to assist the Malaysian government, Wong said:
While the searches have not been successful, and families continue to endure such heartache, the effort to find MH370 demonstrates the close cooperation between our countries through difficult times.
The Australian government is supportive of all practical efforts to find MH370.
– with AAP
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Man located at Bondi hotel after accidentally being released from correctional complex
A man who was accidentally released from a New South Wales correctional facility has been located in a Bondi hotel this morning.
Police said in a statement that the 30-year-old man was seen leaving the facility in Matraville about 1pm yesterday. Police located the man at a hotel in Bondi around 6am this morning.
He has been taking to Waverley police station and “arrangements are being conducted to return him to the correctional facility”, police said.
Corrective Services NSW said the man was released from Long Bay correctional complex due to an “administration error following a court appearance”, which is now being investigated.
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Scooter rider dies in crash in Sydney
A scooter rider has died following a crash at North Ryde in Sydney this morning.
New South Wales police said that just after 5am, emergency services were called to an intersection in North Ryde after reports of a crash involving a car and a motorised scooter.
The rider – who is yet to be formally identified – was treated by paramedics who performed CPR, but died at the scene.
The male driver was taken to Ryde hospital to undergo mandatory testing.
Officers established a crime scene and an investigation is under way into the circumstances surrounding the crash.
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Ten-year-old girl leaves ICU after car crash on the way to Taylor Swift concert
The 10-year-old girl who went into a coma following a horror crash on her way to see Taylor Swift has left the intensive care ward.
Freya Pokarier suffered serious injuries when the SUV her mum was driving collided with a semi-trailer, suffering brain injuries, a damaged pelvis and broken leg.
The crash occurred while the family was driving from the Gold Coast to Melbourne for the first night of the Eras tour.
Her 16-year-old sister Mieka died at the scene and the mother has since been discharged from hospital.
Karleigh Fox, Mieka’s godmother, began a GoFundMe page for the family. An update, penned by Freya’s mum yesterday, says that Freya has left the ICU and has moved to a rehabilitation ward:
We are yet to see her beautiful eyes open, however, she has shown some really positive signs that she may be hearing her loved ones.
She said things are progressing “one day at a time”, but any movements are “exciting and bring hopes of progress”.
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‘Not everybody is aligned to the FCAI’s narrative’: Polestar spokesperson says other industry players could ‘take a stand’
Polestar spokesperson Laurissa Mirabelli said the company had not had any conversations with the FCAI after suggesting they were poised to quit.
I think it’s a given, given Tesla’s move yesterday. I haven’t received any calls from the peak body either. I think that they are also just waiting for our response and for us to take the next … move from here.
And does Polestar expect more companies will leave the FCAI?
Mirabelli:
I don’t know how that will land. I thought that perhaps it would only be the electric vehicle companies that would take a bit of a stand but I understand that there’s other industry bodies or industry players who are still assessing their own position because obviously, not everybody is aligned to the FCAI’s current narrative …
There are some companies that are going to be able to meet these standards, and we can see that there are companies, even those that are suggesting that they can’t meet the standards, who are meeting them elsewhere in the world.
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Vehicle emissions standard would not be ‘that far from business as usual’: Polestar
The FCAI said it had encouraged successive governments to introduce an efficiency standard for more than a decade, but not the kind that the government has proposed.
If the government was to adopt the standards as proposed by the FCAI, Mirabelli said this would not be “that far from business as usual”.
Mirabelli noted the transport sector is the third largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in Australia and is “on track to become the largest” – with passenger cars and light commercial vehicles accounting for 60% of this.
So we have to address it. There are health issues, there are cost issues … There are other things to consider here, not just what importers want to do. We don’t have a local manufacturing industry any more, we’re not protecting anybody. We have to determine, you know, what kind of cars are we letting into this country and what’s best for Australians?
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Polestar says proposed standard about ‘cap on emissions’ for fleets, not ‘cherrypicking’
Q: So you don’t think that some of Australia’s most popular cars will see price increases under the proposed vehicle efficiency standard?
Polestar spokesperson Laurissa Mirabelli:
Well, I think it’s a different thing. It’s about a cap on the overall emissions of the brand’s entire fleet, it’s not about cherrypicking different products within a lineup and saying, well, that car is going to increase by x [amount].
The idea is that you’re trying to find balance, you’re trying to determine, you know, of your high emitting vehicles, are they over or are they under the target? And of your low emitting vehicles, how does that all balance? So it’s not about one car or another, it’s looking at the entire fleet.
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Polestar may join Tesla in quitting auto lobby FCAI over ‘false’ claims about vehicle emissions standard
Automotive manufacturer Polestar says it is “poised to leave” Australia’s main auto industry lobby group, one day after Tesla quit.
Yesterday, Tesla announced it was quitting the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI), asking the consumer watchdog to investigate what it says are the organisation’s “demonstrably false claims” about the impact of the Albanese government’s clean car policy.
You can read the full details from Adam Morton below:
Laurissa Mirabelli, a spokesperson for Polestar, told ABC radio today that the FCAI’s campaign against the government’s proposed vehicle efficiency standard “really doesn’t represent our position” on the shift to electric, and that the campaign has done “serious damage to consumer perception and trust”.
Polestar is currently a member of the FCAI. Mirabelli said that when you look overseas, the price increase that FCAI has been touting just has not been seen.
There’s no reason why Australia wouldn’t be able to introduce cost effective solutions to meet this standard, and closer to home, the Grattan Institute has actually said that they don’t think the prices will increase more than average of 1% and that even if that happens, the lower fuel and maintenance costs are really going to make consumers better off in the long term.
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Good morning, and happy Friday. I’m Emily Wind, and I’ll be bringing you our live coverage today.
See something that needs attention? You can get in touch via X, @emilywindwrites, or send me an email: emily.wind@theguardian.com.
Let’s get started.
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State funeral to be held for Lowitja O’Donoghue in Adelaide
Hundreds of mourners are expected to mark the loss of Aboriginal rights trailblazer Lowitja O’Donoghue at a state funeral in Adelaide today, AAP reports.
The Yankunytjatjara woman, who played a key role in the 1967 referendum, lobbied the Keating government to recognise Indigenous land ownership through native title laws and advised on the apology to the stolen generation, will be remembered at a ceremony at St Peter’s Cathedral.
She died on 4 February aged 91 on Kaurna Country in Adelaide with her immediate family by her side.
She gained prominence after becoming the first Aboriginal person to train as a nurse at Royal Adelaide hospital in 1954. After being denied the opportunity because of her Indigenous heritage, she successfully lobbied then-premier Thomas Playford to win her right to admission, setting her on a lifelong path of fighting for equality.
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, described her as one of the most remarkable leaders the country had known.
O’Donoghue became the inaugural chairperson of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission in 1990. One of her greatest achievements was lobbying the Keating government to recognise Aboriginal land ownership through the Native Title Act.
The non-profit Lowitja O’Donoghue Foundation was set up in 2022 to continue her legacy. Her family has asked mourners to donate to the foundation in lieu of flowers.
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Could the Coalition make nuclear power work?
We’ve already mentioned our piece today looking at some of the problems that might stand in the way of the Liberals’ new policy of building nuclear power stations in Australia.
You can read environment writer Graham Readfearn’s full piece here:
And the wider issue of what policies the Liberals will actually run on is the issue tackled in today’s Newsroom edition of the Full Story podcast.
Gabrielle Jackson talks with head of newsroom Mike Ticher and national news editor Patrick Keneally about how the Dunkley byelection exposed the problem.
Listen here:
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our end-of-week news blog. I’m Martin Farrer bringing you the best of the overnight stories before my colleague Emily Wind gets into the main business.
One of the big stories of the day will be the court hearing in Sydney where the company at the centre of the investigation into contaminated mulch will try to have an order preventing it from making mulch products quashed. In documents lodged with the court, the parent company of Greenlife Resource Recovery will point out today that the NSW environment court cannot be certain that the contamination took place at its facilities, and complain about the order’s “unjustified impact” on its business.
The Coalition appears set to commit itself to a policy of building nuclear reactors across Australia to replace ageing coal-fire generators. But is it practical? Graham Readfearn assesses the challenge.
The identity of the 22-year-old man charged with the murder of Ballarat woman Samantha Murphy could be revealed today as the search continues for her body. The Scotsburn man appeared in Ballarat magistrates court on Thursday but his name was concealed because his lawyer argued releasing the name could cause prejudice to the man’s right to a fair trial. That will be challenged at hearing at the court today, AAP reports. We’ll have all the details as the story develops.
And hundreds of mourners are expected at St Peter’s Cathedral in Adelaide today for the state funeral of Aboriginal rights trailblazer Lowitja O’Donoghue. More on that coming up.
