Police make arrest and seize water pistol after incident outside NSW parliament
NSW police have issued an update about the incident reported earlier, saying they had arrested a person and seized a water pistol, after a man was believed to have discharged a replica firearm in the Sydney CBD, near NSW parliament building today.
About 1pm today, officers attached to Sydney City Police Area Command responded to reports of a man discharging what was believed to be a replica firearm on Hospital Road, Sydney.
The man left the location in a vehicle, prior to police arrival.
Acting on information provided, police arrested a male ride share driver in Mascot about 5.10pm today.
Police say a water pistol was seized and will be subject to further examination.
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What we learned, Thursday 14 November
We’re going to leave it here for the evening. Here’s what happened today:
The Victorian man accused of murdering missing Ballarat woman Samantha Murphy has pleaded not guilty. Patrick Stephenson, 23, appeared in the Ballarat magistrates court via video link, charged with the murder of the mother of three. Murphy, 51, was last seen more than nine months ago when she left her Ballarat East home to go for a run.
Australia’s unemployment rate held steady in October with fewer jobs created than expected. The country’s unemployment rate was 4.1% in October, dousing hopes of a near-term interest rate cut.
Acting prime minister Richard Marles has backed Australia’s ambassador to the US, former prime minister Kevin Rudd, suggesting he will be staying in the job. Rudd’s past personal criticisms of president-elect Donald Trump have prompted speculation – including from some in Trump’s inner circle, as well as from Peter Dutton – about whether he should remain as ambassador under the new US administration.
Fire ants have been detected in northern New South Wales after turf delivery from south-east Queensland, the Invasive Species Council has announced. The latest detection raises concerns around the growing build up of fire ants within suppression zones, with the ant one of the world’s worst super pests.
NDIS provider JewishCare NSW has warned clients their personal information, including credit card details, ID documents, court documents and health information could be posted to the dark web after the organisation suffered a cyber-attack last week.
Thanks for reading and see you back here tomorrow.
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Court hearing into non-citizens contesting immigration detention
The high court has today heard the case of two non-citizens who are seeking to show that detention while the government considers protection visa applications is unlawful.
In Thursday’s hearing, David Hooke SC, argued that this was a “very narrow” extension of the court’s NZYQ decision that indefinite immigration detention is unlawful where removal is not possible, which would only benefit people who have already had protection findings in their favour.
Non-citizens awaiting a decision have a “right to liberty” because they will need to be let out whichever way the decision goes, if they are granted a visa or if it is refused (because the NZYQ decision then kicks in and says their detention is unlawful).
Hooke was peppered with questions about what the basis was for extending this only to people with protection findings. He replied that in their case it is “inevitable” that they will need to be let out because removal isn’t possible.
The solicitor general, Stephen Donaghue, submitted that the period where a non-citizen is seeking admission to Australia is distinct from the removal period. The high court’s NZYQ decision applied to removal, but has no application to people seeking admission – because their application has not been “finally determined” and the Migration Act creates no power to remove them yet.
Donaghue argued detention had legitimate non-punitive purposes, including preventing non-citizens from absconding (as one of the applicants did) so that they can answer questions about their identity, possible criminal record and other matters.
Donaghue said that the applicants’ case “sounded a lot like” it brought the entire mandatory detention regime into question and that when challenged Hooke could provide no “workable, stable criteria” for why people with protection findings should be let out but not other non-citizens who bring a habeas application.
In reply, Hooke said that a non-citizen who brought an application as soon as they were detained, before the government had established their identity or conducted legitimate inquiries would have a case “going nowhere”. “There are very practical solutions to all the spectres the commonwealth puts against us,” he said.
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VCE exam papers reviewed to ensure questions were different from those published online, official says
The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) chief executive, Kylie White, has held a press conference in Melbourne after it was revealed some students were able to access exam answers in cheat sheets ahead of time.
White said:
Examinations for the VCE this year have not been compromised. All exams have been prepared with comprehensive quality assurance. This was a production issue where sample material was inadvertently included in the published sample … The VCAA discovered this issue before the written VCE examinations commenced. We reviewed the examinations to ensure the questions were different.
White said the exams would be “similar” to the practice material because they were based on the VCE study design, which has remained the same for several years. She said:
If students have seen the sample material before sitting the examination, this will not advantage a student’s ability to respond to the questions as they were different. I acknowledge, though, that students may be feeling some concern, but I would like to say to all students that they can feel confident about completing their examinations and there will be no adverse impacts to their results.
The answers were published by VCAA online for eight exams, including three that have already been sat.
They were on the cover page of the practice exams, which to the eye looked blank. But when the pages were pasted into a Word document, it revealed a series of questions and answers.
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‘Systemic issues’ in Nacc’s handling of corruption complaint, inspector finds in first report
The National Anti-Corruption Commission’s Inspector – AKA the watchdog’s watchdog – has released its first annual report, revealing some of the federal integrity body’s teething issues.
Tabled on Thursday, the inspector, Gail Furness SC, revealed it had received more than 1,300 complaints in its inaugural year to the end of June with 1,164 related to the Nacc’s decision not to investigate six robodebt referrals.
The other non-robodebt complaints highlighted some of the new anti-corruption body’s growing pains.
In one example highlighted by the inspector, the Nacc declined to investigate a complaint made in January 2024 after it could not identify a corruption issue.
The inspector assessed the complaint independently and identified two corruption issues. Upon reassessment, the Nacc identified the corruption issues, “albeit on a slightly different basis”.
The inspector said there were “systemic issues arising from the inadequate and flawed handling of the referral by the commission”. It added the Nacc commissioner, Paul Brereton, did not take issue with that characterisation.
The inspector’s assessment identified the Nacc needed a more accurate case management system, a pathway for more complex referrals, that letters to complainants must be signed and for better training for the Nacc’s intake and triage officers.
Brereton agreed with the inspector’s observations. The inspector said it didn’t believe the Nacc’s handling of the complaint amounted to agency maladministration.
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Almost one in 10 Victorians facing ‘severe’ food insecurity, parliamentary inquiry finds
A parliamentary inquiry has found almost one in 10 Victorians are struggling with “severe” food insecurity.
The upper house’s legal and social issues committee says the figure could even be higher, with low‑income earners, Aboriginal people and young Victorians most disadvantaged amid the cost of living crisis.
Committee chair, Liberal MP Trung Luu, said most responsibility for the crisis lies with the federal government:
This includes how corporations and competition are regulated as well as the levels of income support provided by JobSeeker and the age pension. Accordingly, the committee has recommended the Victorian government advocate for an increase in Federal income support, to try and break the link between poverty and food insecurity.
However, the state government also had the power to act. Among the committee’s 25 recommendations is a trial of a comprehensive, universal school meal program in areas of disadvantage, which would provide food throughout the day for students. It also recommended an expansion of its schools breakfast program to all schools on an opt-in basis.
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NAB pushes back forecast for first RBA rate cut after jobs data
As we noted in our report on the labour market earlier today, the October figures pointed to “tight” conditions, dousing hopes of a near-term interest rate cut.
To be sure, those hopes would have been slim before the numbers landed. When they did, there was little to give cause for the Reserve Bank to start considering an interest rate cut.
Well, NAB, one of the big four banks, seems to agree. It had pencilled in the first RBA rate cut for February (i.e. the meeting after next), and now expects it won’t come until May.
“We also note that there is a real risk that policy rates stay on hold even deeper into 2025 should the labour market remain tight and services inflation remain elevated,” the bank said.
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National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) members will rally at the Australian National University (ANU) today in opposition to a request from management to give up their December pay rise.
ANU will put a vote to staff on Monday to relinquish the scheduled 2.5% rise, less than a year into the life of the enterprise agreement.
Division secretary of the NTEU’s ANU branch, Dr Lachlan Clohesy, said ANU’s financial issues had been brought about by “financial mismanagement, poor governance, and as they admitted to Senate Estimates - ‘erroneous’ budgeting”.
ANU staff should not have to pay the price of management’s mistakes.
The university has taken a hard hit from the government’s proposed international student cap, with its yearly allocation to be slashed by 14%.
A spokesperson for ANU said it had been in an operating deficit for several years and was working to reduce total costs by $250m, adding that foregoing the pay increase would only go ahead if approved by a majority.
Forgoing the upcoming 2.5% salary increase … would save up to $15m, with every dollar saved from the bottom line helping us to retain jobs. This change proposal has not been taken lightly, but these are changes we have to make. Without structural intervention, the University will not be financially sustainable.
And with that, I leave the blog with Kate Lyons. Thanks for reading.
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Labor’s proposed anti-money laundering changes will force lawyers to become ‘covert informers’, law council says
The Law Council of Australia has come out swinging against the federal government’s proposed changes to anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws, saying they will force lawyers to become “covert informers” and small law firms could close their doors.
A Labor-chaired committee delivered its report on Wednesday, recommending the regime be expanded to extend reporting obligations about suspicious transactions to lawyers as well as accountants and real estate agents.
However, Coalition members of the committee said they couldn’t support the bill in its current form, pointing to higher cost burdens for small businesses.
Australia remains one of the few jurisdictions in the world not to force those working in client services to report suspicions to a financial intelligence agency.
In 2015, the global financial watchdog, the Financial Action Task Force, found that Australia was at risk of being “greylisted” – a move that puts a country under increased scrutiny and monitoring – alongside countries such as Burkina Faso, Democratic Republic of Congo and Mali.
But the Law Council has warned the changes could impact those in the profession by limiting a “person’s ability to trust and confide in their lawyer”.
In a statement on Thursday, the council said:
Under this bill, lawyers will be forced to become covert informers on their clients. This undermines the vital, fundamental and long accepted right for Australians to be able to consult their lawyer in privacy. Insufficient thought has been given to the impact of the bill on the criminal justice system.
The Law Council said it believes the “costs and red tape” associated will increase fees at small law firms or cause them to close up shop. It added Australian law firms do not impose a “substantial risk”.
According to a recent impact analysis, the government’s preferred option is expected to cost businesses $13.9bn over 10 years and would simplify the laws while including the new reporting obligations.
It estimated the flow-on customer burden was around $209m over the decade.
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People subject to visa cancellation in prison ‘pipelined’ to detention and deportation: HRLC
The Human Rights Law Centre is calling for the repeal of mandatory visa cancellation provisions in a new report that finds people subject to visa cancellation in prison are “pipelined” to detention and deportation.
Cancellations on “character” grounds have “increased more than tenfold” since 2014, when mandatory character-based visa cancellation powers were introduced in an amendment to the Migration Act, the report says.
Any visa held by a non-citizen could be mandatorily cancelled if the visa-holder was serving a full-time sentence of imprisonment and if they failed the ‘character test’ – most commonly on the grounds they had been sentenced to serve a prison term of 12 or more months.
Visa cancellations jumped from 76 in 2013/14 to 579 the following year, according to the report. There were more than 900 visa cancellations a year from 2015/2016 to 2020/2021. The report says:
Because Australian law requires the detention of people who do not hold a valid visa, the increase in character-based visa cancellations has led directly to a growth in the number of people held in immigration detention for this reason. People subject to character-based cancellation are often held in detention for prolonged periods, sometimes indefinitely, while they attempt to have their visa reinstated.
While Australian citizens are granted liberty after serving a sentence, people who are subject to visa cancellation are ‘pipelined’ from prison to immigration detention and deportation from Australia.
The report also finds visa-holders face discriminatory treatment in prison “with limited access to parole, rehabilitation, and education hindering their ability to have their visas reinstated”.
Answers were found on cover page of practice exams published by VCAA
The answers were published by VCAA online for some eight exams, including three that have already been sat.
They were on the cover page of the practice exams, which to the eye looked blank. But when the pages were pasted into a Word document, it revealed a series of questions and answers.
White said it was not known how this occurred but suggested it may be due to using similar formatting to the actual exams.
The sample covers normally do not have sample material, though, sample material is often used in the way we format exams. That sample material was inadvertently included and it shouldn’t have been there. As I mentioned, the sample covers are really just for familiarising students for what their exams will look like.
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VCEs ‘have not been compromised’, official says after some students able to access answers ahead of time
The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) chief executive, Kylie White, has held a press conference in Melbourne after it was revealed some students were able to access exam answers in cheat sheets ahead of time.
She said:
Examinations for the VCE this year have not been compromised. All exams have been prepared with comprehensive quality assurance. This was a production issue where sample material was inadvertently included in the published sample … The VCAA discovered this issue before the written VCE examinations commenced. We reviewed the examinations to ensure the questions were different.
White said the exams would be “similar” to the practice material because they were based on the VCE study design, which has remained the same for several years. She said;
If students have seen the sample material before sitting the examination, this will not advantage a student’s ability to respond to the questions as they were different. I acknowledge, though, that students may be feeling some concern, but I would like to say to all students that they can feel confident about completing their examinations and there will be no adverse impacts to their results.
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Man allegedly discharges replica gun behind NSW parliament building
An investigation is under way after reports a man was seen discharging a replica firearm in the Sydney CBD.
About 1pm, officers attached to Sydney City Police Area Command responded to reports of a man discharging what is believed to be a replica firearm on Hospital Road, Sydney, near the NSW parliament.
Initial inquiries suggest the replica firearm, may be a gel blaster, which was discharged several times into the ground.
The man left the location in a vehicle, prior to police arrival.
No reports of injuries have been reported. A crime scene has been established.
The investigation is ongoing.
Police have urged anyone with information in relation to the incident to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
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Climate change minister hails instalment of solar panels on 4m Australian homes
The climate change minister, Chris Bowen, has held a media event in Sydney to mark a moment in the renewable energy transition: that solar panels have now been installed on 4m homes across Australia.
It means roughly one in three Australian homes have rooftop solar. Bowen said the average home with panels saved more than $1,500 a year on power bills.
Aussie homeowners know rooftop solar is a no-brainer when it comes to bringing down bills, which is why we have been installing about 300,000 rooftop systems a year and there is no sign of that slowing down.
We have looked at the globe-leading success of Australian household solar, and what we might learn from it, before. For example, see this piece:
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Marles throws support behind Kevin Rudd amid speculation over ambassador role
The acting prime minister Richard Marles has backed Australia’s ambassador to the US, former prime minister Kevin Rudd, suggesting he will be staying in the job.
Marles said on Thursday that Rudd had been doing a great job representing Australia and its interests in the United States.
In that role, he has been working across the political spectrum, again, with Democrats, Republicans, Trump Republicans, and Kevin was really central to seeing the legislation passed through the Congress this time last year. He worked really closely with members of Congress right across the political spectrum, and I’ve got no doubt that Kevin will ably represent Australia when we see the swearing in of the next Trump administration.
Earlier, the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, sharpened his rhetoric about Rudd, saying Australia needs a “functioning, stable relationship” with the US, based on “mutual respect” and that it was important Australia’s ambassador could work well with the host government.
I guess the difficulty that the prime minister’s in at the moment is that if he sacks Kevin Rudd, then what does he do with Penny Wong? And if he sacks Penny Wong, what does he do given he’s made his own disparaging remarks about president-elect Trump as well? Look, these are issues for the prime minister.
Rudd’s past personal criticisms of president-elect Donald Trump, which have prompted speculation – including from some in Trump’s inner circle – about whether he should remain as ambassador under the new US administration.
Dutton said any difficulties Albanese now faced over his “captain’s call” in appointing Rudd were “all of his own making”.
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Access system fault after 3G shutdown to blame for locking firefighters out of stations
Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) has blamed a fault with an access system during the upgrade from 3G for firefighters being unable to unlock gates since the 3G network was shut down at the start of this month.
The United Firefighters Union said on Thursday firefighters were locked out of stations due to the phone system used by firefighters going offline after the 3G network shutdown.
United Firefighters Union secretary Peter Marshall said FRV had more than a year to prepare and it was “simply bewildering” there was an issue:
With the fire service spread ever thinner, firefighters and trucks are being moved between stations more often to fill larger gaps.
A spokesperson for Fire Rescue Victoria said when a property can’t be accessed through regular means, personnel know to contact their officer in charge so that access can be gained through alternative means. The spokesperson said FRV was aware of the 3G shutdown, but the issue came in the transition to 4G and 5G:
During the transition, a fault with a station access system occurred. Interim measures were quickly implemented, and all staff can now gain access to fire stations. We expect the issue to be fully resolved in the coming days.
The 3G shutdown did not remove FRV’s ability to track its vehicles.
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Kyle and Jackie O win Sydney radio ratings but slump further in Melbourne
The Kyle & Jackie O Show has slipped further in the ratings in Melbourne, continuing its downward slide since expanding to the Victorian capital, according to the latest survey figures.
The show, hosted by the “king and queen of commercial radio”, Kyle Sandilands and Jackie “O” Henderson, had just 5.1% of the breakfast market in Melbourne, down from 5.2% last survey and eighth in the rankings.
The Kyle & Jackie Show has lost nearly 150,000 listeners in Melbourne since its launch at the end of April, compared with ratings last year under the previous breakfast hosts on KiisFM.
It is a different story in Sydney, however, where the show was still the leader in the breakfast slot, in this ratings period with 13.1% of the audience. The show has won the FM breakfast slot in the Sydney ratings survey for the past 47 survey periods. However, its share of listeners slipped in Sydney as well, down from 13.7 to 13.1% (39,000 listeners) in this ratings period.
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Victoria’s health services post $1bn loss
Victoria’s health services have posted a combined loss of $1bn for the 2023/24 financial year.
Out of the 68 annual reports tabled in parliament on Thursday, 52 health services recorded deficits including Austin Health, Eastern Health, Monash Health and Northern Health.
However, the health minister, Mary-Anne Thomas, says the reports do not take into account $1.5bn of additional funding she announced in August, or $8.8bn in the budget.
She told reporters at parliament:
I’m really confident that with the reforms that we’ve implemented, with the record funding that we’ve delivered, and with the processes that we’ve now got in place, that we will see much better financial management within our health service system.
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Jewish Care NSW suffers cyber-attack
NDIS provider JewishCare NSW has warned clients their personal information, including credit card details, ID documents, court documents and health information could be posted to the dark web after the organisation suffered a cyber-attack last week.
The organisation posted on its website that it became aware that it had “experienced a cyber incident affecting its systems and data” on 28 October:
Since becoming aware of the incident, JewishCare has been working tirelessly with our cyber experts and partners to investigate the incident, identify what information has been impacted, and to ensure we can continue providing essential frontline services to our many clients, while protecting the security of the information we hold.
We have also been engaging with federal and state government authorities, including the Australian Cyber Security Centre, the Australian federal police, NSW police, the National Office of Cyber Security, and the office of the Australian information commissioner.
Our priority has been to try to minimise the impact on our clients, our donors and other stakeholders and our people, and to remediate and restore our systems for safe use.
The organisation has said it has informed those affected. JewishCare NSW did not respond to requests for comment on the number of people affected but said it did not have evidence at this time that it was a targeted attack on the Jewish community:
At this stage there is nothing to suggest this is a targeted attack on the Jewish community but we are continuing to engage with relevant agencies and law enforcement in connection with this matter.
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Fire ants detected in northern NSW
Fire ants have been detected in northern New South Wales after turf delivery from south-east Queensland, the Invasive Species Council has announced.
The latest detection raises concerns around the growing build up of fire ants within suppression zones, with the ant one of the world’s worst super pests. Left unchecked, they will spread and bring with them economic damage greater than that caused by cane toads, rabbits, feral cats, and foxes combined.
The Invasive Species Council advocacy manager, Reece Pianta, said what is currently happening is “a recipe for a national fire ant disaster.”
We call on the state government to urgently conduct a suppression and compliance blitz to prevent the spread of these tiny killers.
I’ve been to fields with hundreds of fire ant nests less than 50 metres from turf farm production areas. This is a recipe for a national fire ant disaster.
To eradicate fire ants we can’t kill most of them, we must systematically treat 100% of the land in the infestation zone.
If fire ants spread to other parts of Australia it will undermine eradication efforts and put humans and animals at risk.
This is a stark reminder to the Queensland LNP government: strengthening the fire ant eradication program must be a first 100 day priority. An immediate boost in 2025 can get eradication on track and long term eradication funding after the 2027 expiry date can get the job done.
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A 32 year old woman has died after being hit by a four wheel drive near Goulburn this morning.
Emergency services were called to the Hume Highway, near Sydney Road, Boxers Creek at around 4am this morning following reports a pedestrian had been hit by a car.
Officers attached to The Hume Police District attended the scene and were told a woman had been on the road when she was hit by a four wheel drive travelling in a northbound lane.
NSW Ambulance paramedics treated the 32-year-old at the scene, before she was taken to Goulburn Base Hospital where she later died.
The 63 year old male driver has been taken to hospital for mandatory testing. Police have established a crime scene, and are investigating the incident.
A report will be prepared for the information of the Coroner.
No charges have been laid over the incident.
Virgin, Qantas and Jetstar restart flights to Denpasar
Virgin, Qantas and Jetstar have resumed normal flights to Denpasar, after delays and cancellations after due to ash clouds from Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki’s eruption.
Flights in and out of Denpasar were largely cancelled yesterday, but a Qantas Group spokesperson has confirmed things have returned to normal:
In good news, conditions this morning have improved allowing us to resume operations from today between Australia and Denpasar on both Jetstar and Qantas.
We will continue to monitor the changing conditions and volcanic activity and work on plans to operate more recovery flights using aircraft from across the group so that we can get customers on their way as quickly as possible.
This is an evolving situation and we recommend customers to check their flight status at Jetstar.com and Qantas.com before coming to the airport.
Six return Jetstar flights will leave today to Denpasar from a number of ports around Australia, which includes four scheduled services and two ad-hoc recovery flights.
Qantas will operate three flights from Australia today including two delayed flights from yesterday (Melbourne and Sydney) and today’s scheduled flight from Sydney.
Two of the flights will leave Denpasar tonight and the other on Friday morning local time.
Full story here:
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ACT has lowest unemployment rate in Australia
A bit more on the jobs data that just landed. Bragging rights for the lowest unemployment rate in the land again went to the ACT, with 3.1% – a full percentage point below the national average. It was also down from 3.4% in September.
At the other end of the scale was thethe Northern Territory with an October jobless rate now at 4.6%, up from 4.2% in the previous month.
New South Wales and Victoria, which together account for about half the economy (and jobs), both saw the jobless rate tick a bit higher to 4% and 4.5%, respectively.
Queensland, which held state elections last month, saw its unemployment rate ease to 3.9% from 4.1% in September. Western Australia went the other way, with a notable jump to 4% from 3.6%. (They have elections next March.)
South Australia was also performing a bit better, with the jobless rate also easing 0.1 percentage points to 4.2%. Tasmania, in case you’re wondering, was bang on the national average at 4.1% (up 0.1pp).
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The labour market basically moved sideways last month. A small drop in the participation rate from a record 67.2% in September to 67.1% in October helped to explain why the unemployment rate didn’t budge from 4.1%.
Investors took a similar view with the Australian dollar little changed in the immediate aftermath, at just under US65c. Stocks, meanwhile, held on to most of their gains for the day.
As mentioned earlier, investors weren’t expecting a Reserve Bank interest rate cut until mid-2025 (or even a bit later), and today’s employment numbers probably won’t shift that view much.
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Unemployment rate holds steady
Australia’s unemployment rate held steady in October with fewer jobs created than expected.
The country’s unemployment rate was 4.1% in October with employers adding about 16,000 new jobs for the month.
The result was close to what economists had expected, although the new jobs numbers lagged the forecasts of a net 25,000 gain.
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Man charged over alleged ‘pink cocaine’ importation plot
A 21-year-old man has been charged for his alleged involvement in a plot to import 252kg of “pink cocaine.”
The substance, also named “tusi”, is a drug cocktail and contains a mixture of ketamine, MDMA and other adulterants, and rarely contains any cocaine.
The Australian federal police will allege that the man was attempting to import the drug into Australia via international air cargo.
The AFP began an investigation in October 2024 into a transnational drug-trafficking syndicate targeting Australia after 252kg of “pink cocaine” was seized in an air cargo consignment – labelled as containing an industrial saw – destined for Castle Hill, NSW.
The AFP undertook a controlled delivery operation and on 6 November 2024, the consignment was delivered to the Castle Hill address and allegedly accessed by the 21-year-old.
He was arrested by AFP investigators in Coogee a short time later and was subsequently charged with attempting to possess a commercial quantity of an unlawfully imported border controlled drug, contrary to sections 307.5 and 11.1 of the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth). The maximum penalty for this offence is life imprisonment.
He appeared before Downing Centre local court on Thursday 7 November 2024, where he was formally refused bail. He is expected to next return to court on 29 January 2025.
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Lawyers’ groups are lobbying for urgent reforms to help abuse survivors in the wake of a landmark high court decision limiting the liability of the Catholic church to compensation claims.
The high court on Wednesday delivered a ruling that the Ballarat diocese was not vicariously liable for the actions of an assistant priest because he was not directly employed by the church. That overturned a Victorian court of appeal decision that found the diocese was liable because the priest, despite not being a formal church employee, was a “servant of the church” whose position gave him access and power over children.
The high court decision has sparked fears that institutions, including church and non-church bodies, will be able to evade vicarious liability for abuse by individuals within their ranks.
The Australian Lawyers Alliance described the decision as a “significant and unexpected setback for survivors”.
Michelle James, national president of the ALA, said:
We are very concerned that as a result of this ruling, it is likely that other organisations where child sexual abuse has occurred will similarly avoid vicarious liability for abuse committed by non-employed members, such as clergy, Scout leaders, and sports coaches.
We are disappointed to see that the Catholic Church in Australia once again escapes liability due to legal technicalities, mirroring the practical outcome in the Ellis case, and concerned that this will have broader implications for other survivors of child sexual abuse.
‘Not jumping at shadows’: RBA’s Bullock says it’s too early to gauge Trump impacts
A range of senior officials have been addressing Asic’s annual forum in Sydney this morning with Donald Trump’s election as US president high on the list of talking points.
The Reserve Bank governor, Michele Bullock, told the audience that it was too early to tell what the impacts would be for Australia, interest rates and so on. (The Trump administration II doesn’t take office until 20 January after all.)
“We don’t actually know what will happen,” Bullock said. “We can’t be jumping at shadows”, adding the RBA can’t set policy now based on “what we think he might do”.
So far, though, there was “not much action” in the bond markets that might portend “dramatic things in the US”.
“They were pretty well-behaved,” she said.
Still, there would be more US debt out there (which would nudge global borrowing costs higher, all else equal), and there’s the looming threat of tariffs particularly aimed at China (if Trump’s comments were to be taken on face value).
“Ultimately if it’s not good for the Chinese economy it’s not good for us either,” Bullock said. (China is by far Australia’s biggest export market, taking more than a third of our shipments/services that we sell abroad.)
As for Australia’s interest rates, Bullock said “we’re going to stay restrictive enough” until the RBA is confident that inflation will “sustainably” return to its 2%-3% target band. (She’s said that previously.)
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NSW housing minister defends ‘garbled’ comment about cost of renting in Sydney
The NSW housing minister, Rose Jackson, has attempted to explain an interview she gave yesterday where she claimed Sydneysiders could rent two-bedroom apartments in Sydney for “a couple of hundred bucks”.
Jackson was speaking to Hamish Macdonald on ABC Radio yesterday when she made the claim, after being asked what she thinks is a reasonable price to pay in rent in Sydney.
She was asked where rentals at that price were located, and responded: “I don’t know, there are places in Sydney you can”. She later accused Macdonald of “putting words in my mouth” and acknowledged Sydney was an expensive place to live.
ABC reports the Tenants’ Union of NSW identified 25 rental properties in Sydney for this price or less.
This morning, Jackson took to Instagram, where she claimed (among many things) that the answer was taken out of context, that she gave a “garbled” response because it was live radio, and then denied saying rent in Sydney could be $200.
I did a live radio interview in which I was asked ‘what’s the reasonable rent someone should pay in Sydney?’ not ‘what are people in Sydney actually truly paying?’
And in the course of a admittedly somewhat garbled answer, talking about different types of apartments and where they’re located in Sydney and all of that, I said a couple of hundred bucks a week. I know that that’s not what people are actually paying in rent in Sydney, but that wasn’t the question that was asked.
And live radio is a hard format. You’re on the phone, you can’t see the other person. Sometimes you get a bit garbled. Sometimes your words get a bit mangled. I mean, you know, you’re only kind of human, and I can be a pretty intense person whose words don’t always come out nice and succinct. But obviously I know that rent in Sydney is hundreds and hundreds, if not thousands of dollars. That’s why I talk about the housing crisis all the time. I wouldn’t do that if I thought that rent was affordable.
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Man accused of murdering Samantha Murphy pleads not guilty
The Victorian man accused of murdering missing Ballarat woman Samantha Murphy has pleaded not guilty to the offence, a court has heard.
Patrick Stephenson, 23, has appeared in the Ballarat magistrates court via video link, charged with the murder of the mother of three.
Murphy, 51, was last seen more than nine months ago when she left her Ballarat East home to go for a run
Stephenson’s defence team has told the court their client has opted to waive committal proceedings and have his case fast-tracked to the Victorian supreme court.
Stephenson will appear for a directions hearing in the supreme court on 27 November.
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Mark Butler says Australia choosing ambassador an ‘important principle’
I just wanted to return to health minister Mark Butler’s appearance on RN Breakfast earlier this morning, where he backed Kevin Rudd to continue as Australia’s ambassador to the United States.
Rudd has a history of being critical of Trump, and his appointment has come under scrutiny after Dan Scavino, a senior adviser to Trump, reposted Rudd’s congratulatory statement to the president-elect on social media with a gif of an hourglass.
But Butler said Rudd was a “serious ambassador” and that it was an “important principle” that Australia picks who its ambassador is:
It’s a pretty important principle that Australia chooses who its ambassador is, the US and chooses who their ambassador are. Every other country does that.
The point I think I’ve tried to make, and many others on both sides of politics here in Australia have made, is that Kevin Rudd is a very serious ambassador.
I mean, he’s a former prime minister, is regarded around the world, including in the US, across political divides, as a very serious world authority on our region, the Asia Pacific, and, in particular, on China and the Chinese president.
And he’s done a whole lot of really important work for our country over the last little while, particularly in relation to Aukus, and he’s done that work across the political aisle, both with Republicans and Democrats.
So we’re very convinced that Kevin is the right person for this job.
It’s obviously going to be a job of work, because there’s a change of administration that’s going to be a big job for every ambassador who is posted to Washington.
But you know, at the end of the day, we choose who our ambassador is, as every country does … There’s a lot of confidence that having someone of Kevin’s work ethic, intellect and experience in Washington at this time is good for our country.
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Victorian premier says stronger anti-vilification protections to be introduced to parliament next week
With just four sittings days left of the year, Allan confirmed the government will be introducing to parliament next week stronger anti-vilification protections but would not say whether rental reforms would go ahead as promised. She said:
We’ll provide further information on our legislative program for the next sitting week but I can say that we will be bringing the anti-vilification legislation to the parliament next sitting week. There’s been a huge amount of work to bring it to this point ... We are seeing, particularly over the past year, that there are some who want to pull at that thread who want to fray our strong, socially cohesive state. For some, it’s for their own political benefit. For others, they’re driven by hate, and we have to absolutely look at ways that we can strengthen the laws, strengthen the powers [and send the message that] there is no place for this sort of hateful behavior in our community. People should have the right to practise their faith, to pray to their God, to have their identity, to love who they want to love. That’s what makes us a great place now and we want to look at making sure that we can strengthen that into the future and send a very, very clear message to those who want to drive hate … there’s no place for that here in Victoria.
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Jacinta Allan says community safety won’t be affected by police walkout
Allan is also asked about police officers who are striking for the first time in more than 20 years, demanding better pay and working conditions.
The strike will see officers stop work at the police academy in Glen Waverley and Broadmeadows police station for 30 minutes.
She says she supports Victoria police and had been negotiating their pay deal in good faith:
Victoria police do deserve a pay rise. And on the back of that belief and the negotiations that were done with the Police Association, we had reached an agreement. The government reached an agreement with the Police Association to provide Victoria police with a pay rise. We reached that agreement some months ago. We are now in the situation where the matter is before the Fair Work Commission and so taken there by the leadership of Victoria police, and as part of that process we need to wait for the next set of advice to come from the Fair Work Commission.
The action comes just two months after police rejected the government’s offer, which offered a 3% pay rise and a nine-day fortnight.
Allan said she had been assured community safety would not be affected by the walkout.
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Victorian premier says VE students reportedly accessing cheat sheets ‘disappointing’
At her press conference this morning, Jacinta Allan was also asked about a report in the Herald Sun, which said thousands of VCE students were able to access cheat sheets containing almost identical questions and case studies to those in their final exams.
The cheat sheets were for eight subjects, including business management, specialist maths and legal studies, which have already been sat.
It comes after the government was forced to conduct a review into errors in last year’s exams, which included five mistakes in maths tests and one in chemistry.
Asked how this could happen after the review, the premier replied:
“That’s a really fair question, and they’re the questions that the deputy premier and the minister for education, [Ben Carroll], is asking right now. He’s being briefed right now, and he’ll have more to say off the back of that briefing.”
Allan said it was incredibly disappointing:
It is disappointing, particularly anyone who knows a year 12 or a VCE student, they might have one in their family, they just know how hard those young people work … to get to this point of the school year to sit their exams. So this is really frustrating for those parents and teachers and students and young people, and that is why the deputy premier is getting advice this morning and will provide further information off the back of that advice.
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The Victorian minister for women, Natalie Hutchins, gave a demonstration of the vending machines, which distribute either a pad or six tampons at a time. She says once the program is rolled out there will be four machines in every local government area across the state:
They’ll be in public areas, like train stations, libraries, swim centres. We really did a lot of consultation with local government, and they got to nominate spots within their LGA. And if we could make it happen, we have.
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Jobs data will provide fresh insights into strength of Australia’s economy
The first of the important October stats land today even before the full September quarter ones are in (eg GDP) with labour market figures out from the ABS.
The jobs story is reliably tricky. It’s possible the economy can shed jobs but if the participation rate also drops (from record levels), we can get a lower unemployment rate.
And, unlike inflation, prior months can be revised so the previous month’s jobless rate can suddenly be lowered or raised. (Since a lot of payments hang off CPI, it would be tough to revise and either give out more money or try to claw some back.)
Anyway, the labour market has been surprisingly strong really since the Covid lockdowns. Most months have seen jobs added even as the labour force has swollen, leaving the jobless rate not that far above the lows seen in the mid-70s.
Today might be more of the same, with economists expecting employers added 25,000 net jobs last month, enough to keep the unemployment rate at 4.1%.
Still, this is a dataset that can surprise and we’re probably due for a worse-than-expected month (given the forecasting errors have generally been the other way).
Stay tuned here at 11.30am Aedt for when they drop.
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Cbus to be questioned by Senate committee
The industry super giant Cbus will today face a Senate grilling, just days after the corporate watchdog announced court action over lengthy delays in paying death and disability benefits.
On Tuesday, the deputy chair of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, Sarah Court, said delays in processing claims from grieving families were causing “real harm to families who may be relying on the payments to meet critical expenses”:
This adds to difficult personal circumstances, whether grieving for a loved one or dealing with severe injury or illness. The additional anxiety and pain these delays caused compounded the issues these members and their families faced.
According to Asic, more than 6,000 Cbus members and claimants had to wait more than 12 months for their payments. The watchdog alleges more than 10,000 members and claimants waited more than 90 days for their death benefits and disability insurance claims to be processed.
Here’s Court:
We allege they are yet to completely rectify these issues.
Earlier this week, Cbus apologised for the delays and said it had established a compensation program for affected members:
Cbus Super is sorry that delays have been experienced in the processing of insurance claims made by our members. Regrettably this has added to the distress of members and their families. We apologise to our affected members and their families without reservation and promise to do better.
The fund’s chief executive, Kristian Fok, is due to appear before the economics reference committee at 10.30am.
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Dutton delays decision on tax cuts
Dutton was speaking to reporters in Melbourne earlier and he also addressed comments he made yesterday, where he distanced himself from the Coalition’s pledge to reinstate further tax cuts for high-income earners.
Dutton this morning essentially delayed making a decision on the tax cuts, saying his highest priority is bringing down inflation:
The Liberal party will always be the party of lower taxes and lower interest rates because we manage the economy more efficiently. I think that’s a really important point to make.
Next point is that we have a look at the numbers in a pre-budget context and decide what it is we can afford for our country. Because the highest priority at the moment is to bring down inflation.
We’ll see how much money is in the bank. I want to make sure we provide our policies in a responsible way.
The most irresponsible thing would be to go out and promise billions and billions of dollars’ worth of spending, whether it’s on tax cuts or something else, if it’s going to be inflationary, therefore counterproductive.
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Dutton says Rudd’s ambassador role a ‘mess’ Albanese has to deal with
The opposition leader, Peter Dutton, has waded into the discussions around Kevin Rudd’s role as ambassador to the US, saying this was a “mess” the prime minister has to “deal with.”
Dutton said the government was in a “difficult position” on Rudd’s role, considering previous criticisms he has made of the incoming US president, Donald Trump:
The government’s in a difficult position. The prime minister’s made a number of captain’s calls, and they’ve been at odds with the advice that he’s received from his closest advisers and colleagues. And I suppose that’s a question about the prime minister’s judgment.
The prime minister’s got a lot of messes to deal with at the moment, all of his own making.
I want what is best for our country. I want us to have a functioning, stable relationship with our most important partner. I want to make sure that there is mutual respect toward Australia and toward the United States. I want to make sure that we can have an ambassador that who can work effectively with the government, whether that’s the US or wherever an ambassador might be appointed.
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Plibersek says Rudd should stay as ambassador to the US
The environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, has backed former boss Kevin Rudd to remain on as ambassador to the United States, amid suggestions he could be fired by the incoming president, Donald Trump.
Rudd has a history of criticising Trump, and this week Dan Scavino, a senior adviser to Trump, reposted Rudd’s congratulatory statement to the president-elect on social media with a gif of an hourglass.
But Plibersek told Sky News she was “not at all” concerned about the situation and that Rudd has “distinguished himself as ambassador.”
He’s widely recognised as one of the world’s pre-eminent experts on China and particularly on the time of Xi Jinping as leader.
We know that people like Malcolm Turnbull, a former Liberal prime minister, and other prominent Liberals, including former ambassadors, have said that it’s important for Kevin Rudd to remain as ambassador and it shows Australia’s strength.
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Rowland says Snapchat could be excluded from social media regulations
The communications minister has continued doing the media rounds this morning, speaking on 2GB about the government’s move to regulate social media companies.
She said that part of the plan was to encourage “low-risk services” like YouTube Kids.
Rowland also said Snapchat could also be excluded, and that some platforms “present themselves in different way”:
We will go through, in a methodical way, having these criteria and the eSafety commissioner applying what will be a very transparent process.
Some of these platforms do present themselves in different way.
They will argue, for example, that they are messaging services and not social media services. We need to assess that objectively against a transparent set of criteria.
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Natalie Hutchins says free period products will be introduced in regional Victoria next year
The minister for women, Natalie Hutchins, says there will be two types of machines rolled out.
There are more static machines that will be regularly topped up, maybe on a weekly or fortnightly basis. But we know where machines are in high traffic areas, they may need a supply top up more often, and so we need those hi-tech machines to be able to feed back to us [information]. In stage-two of next year’s roll out, we’ll be rolling out into regional areas and beyond libraries into train stations, and health services, as well.
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Storms set to batter south-east Queensland
Queensland is bracing for some severe thunderstorms that are set to batter the south-east coast, amid warnings from the Bureau of Meteorology that residents should remain up-to-date and monitor conditions.
Hail of up to 5cm, alongside heavy rainfall and damaging winds, are forecast over the south-east coast, eastern parts of the Darling Downs, the Wyatt Bay, and the Burnett area at around midday today.
Christie Johnson, meteorologist at the bureau, said storms had already been kicking off over the Gulf Country:
There’s a trough line between the Gulf Country and south-east Queensland, so storms are likely or possible anywhere, sort of along that line extending from the north-west down to the south-east.
There could be, could be severe thunderstorms and warnings, obviously, will be issued as soon as we see any storms that are likely to produce severe weather.
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Jacinta Allan introduces free period products in public spaces
The Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, is at the State Library of Victoria to launch the rollout of free pads and tampons in public spaces.
The library has three of the first 50 vending machines, with 1,500 to eventually be installed in 700 public places.
She says:
Women and girls know that feeling – there’s nothing worse than being out and about and being caught short. We also know that for many women and girls, access to these period products is a cost of living pressure for them, it’s a significant cost of living pressure, because for too long, too often these items are seeing as a luxury and a priced accordingly but they’re a necessity. My government, the minister, myself, we understand this.
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Mark Butler says national anti-vaping program to be introduced in high schools in 2025
The health minister, Mark Butler, was on RN Breakfast earlier, where he said the national anti-vaping program will be rolled out in high schools next year.
Butler said a trial of the program showed “really good results.” Earlier this year, the government said they would be leaning on social media influencers to get the message out, with Butler saying they have to “go where they are”:
Well that’s something we’re going to have to work through.
We have to go where they are. And you know, they’re not watching TV in a traditional way that you and I were at high school. They’re certainly not reading newspapers by and large.
So we have to go where they are. At the moment, they’re on social media.
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Man, 32, charged over 3D firearm
A man has been charged in New South Wales for allegedly 3D printing a firearm.
A 32-year-old was charged with three counts of possession of an unauthorised firearm, the manufacture of a prohibited weapon without a permit, two counts of possession of a digital blueprint for making prohibited weapons, among other charges.
In November 2024, officers attached to Moree proactive crime team and crime prevention unit commenced investigations into the manufacturing of firearms via 3D printing.
Following investigations, at about 3.40pm yesterday, officers from the New England police district executed a search warrant on a home on Amaroo Drive, Moree.
During a search of the property, officers allegedly located and seized a 3D printer, firearms and parts, ammunition, computers and telecommunication devices.
The man was refused bail and will appear in Inverell local court today.
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Could Donald Trump really fire Kevin Rudd?
The former prime minister’s criticism of Donald Trump has drawn the ire of those in the president elect’s inner circle, and prompted renewed debate about whether the incoming administration could seek retribution.
Karen Middleton has the latest:
Monique Ryan warns against putting billionaire like Gina Rinehart in Musk-style ‘government efficiency’ role
Independent MP Monique Ryan has dismissed the idea Australia should appoint an Elon Musk-style billionaire into a “government efficiency” position.
Musk has been appointed into the newly created position in the Trump administration, and Ryan was asked on the Today show if Australian billionaires like Gina Rinehart should be appointed into such a position in Australia.
I’d be very much opposed to that.
You’ve got the world’s richest man, and you’ve given him this position of incredible influence in the American government. I think jobs for mates is a very bad idea. I don’t think that politicians should be putting their friends, their dear friends into positions of great influence in this country.
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It’s time for the Reserve Bank to admit that it’s got it wrong on inflation and start cutting rates, according to our economics columnist Greg Jericho.
Figures out yesterday showed that in the past year private sector wages rose 3.5%, down from 4.1% in the June quarter, Greg writes, in the biggest one quarter fall since the GFC in 2009. He notes that six years ago he wrote a piece asking what had happened to pay rises in Australia and it it’s “annoying” how well it holds up with earnings still subdued.
Here’s Greg’s column today:
The October jobs figures out at 11.30am this morning will give the latest update on what we can expect from the economy going forward and we might even get some more insight from Reserve Bank governor Michele Bullock when she appears at a panel discussion in Sydney today.
As mentioned at the start we have an exclusive interview with the former Liberal MP John Alexander, a keen advocate of high-speed rail between Newcastle and Sydney.
He chaired parliamentary inquiries into the feasibility of the project but he fears that plans to position two of the stop-off points at Central Station and the centre of Gosford would make it impossible to recoup the costs from value capture – a tax on the future sale of land and homes in the vicinity of stations where the value has skyrocketed due to the new infrastructure.
It is essential, he argues, that the stations are located outside the densest population centres – for example, in greenfield areas 15 minutes outside Gosford’s centre, or between Sydney’s eastern CBD and Parramatta – on land that can allow for development of significant new housing.
He warns:
Without value capture you’re concentrating wealth among speculators and lucky landowners at taxpayers’ expense. It’s a very close cousin to negative gearing. It will become a mechanism to concentrate wealth.
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Good morning, Mostafa Rachwani with you to take you through the rest of the day’s news.
More from Sarah on the money-laundering bill.
Australia remains one of the few jurisdictions in the world not to force accountants, real estate agents and lawyers to report suspicious transactions – including unexplained wealth used to purchase property – to a financial intelligence agency.
In 2015, the global financial watchdog, the Financial Action Task Force, found that Australia had failed to comply with a number of critical standards and was at risk of being “greylisted” – a move that puts a country under increased scrutiny and monitoring.
The attorney general, Mark Dreyfus, delivered a scorching rebuke of the Coalition’s position, saying opposition to the bill would aid criminal networks.
Dreyfus said:
Opposing these reforms means aiding and abetting the criminal abuse of our financial system by drug traffickers, human trafficking, cybercriminals, terrorists and those who exploit and abuse children. Opposing these reforms enables criminals to continue to engage in and profit from those serious crimes. If the Liberal party continues to oppose this bill, it is aiding the criminal networks who engage in despicable acts that hurt our whole community.
Read more here:
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Liberals object to parts of anti-money laundering proposal
A Labor-chaired committee has given its seal of approval on the federal government’s proposal to toughen anti-money laundering and terrorism financing laws forcing lawyers, accountants and real estate agents to report suspicious transactions.
But doubt has been cast over whether it will sail through parliament into law after Liberal members of the committee said they couldn’t support the bill in its current form, pointing to higher cost burdens for small businesses.
The changes would extend reporting obligations to those in “second tranche” roles that help clients with services, such as lawyers, accountants and real estate agents.
The government’s preferred option is expected to cost $13.9bn over 10 years, according to a recent impact analysis, and would simplify the laws while including the new reporting obligations.
The Liberal senator Paul Scarr said the bill must be changed to “remove or substantially minimise” the cost burden for business, which he said would be passed on to consumers.
“During the Albanese government’s cost of living crisis, this is something Australians can ill-afford,” Scarr said in the committee report’s additional comments.
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Clare O’Neil renews attack on Coalition and Greens for refusing to support housing plans
The housing minister, Clare O’Neil, has declared that enabling Australians to buy a home is “an article of faith” and that secure housing, whether for buyers or renters, is what gives people “choice and control” over their lives.
Before parliament’s final fortnight of sittings next week, when another showdown looms over blocked government legislation, O’Neil used a speech in Melbourne last night in memory of the late Victorian Labor premier John Cain to renew the government’s attack on the federal Coalition and Greens for refusing to support its housing plans.
O’Neil said the government’s Build to Rent and Help to Buy bills were being blocked by “an unholy, destructive, anti-housing coalition built of the conservatives and the Greens”.
“Labor wants Australians to have choice and control so they can build a life that’s meaningful for them. For those that are renting, we want you to have a secure and affordable home, not just a place to live – to have a family when it suits you. We want Australians to have choice about where they live and how they live, over where their kids grow up, on the jobs they have access to and how long they commute.”
She particularly emphasised home ownership, which she said too many people now saw as “a luxury”.
“After all, we are a home-owning nation. If you work hard, you should have the security of owning your own home.”
She flagged more federal government measures on housing between now and next year’s federal election.
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Social media platforms to be bound by ‘duty of care
The federal government will require social media platforms to assume a “digital duty of care” for users, with plans to put the onus on digital companies to take proactive steps to safeguard the mental health of its customers.
The communications minister, Michelle Rowland, made the announcement last night at a speech to the Sydney Institute. It will put the legal responsibility for keeping Australians safe on to the platforms themselves, including obligating social media platforms to identify and mitigate potential risks as the services and society changes.
She said:
To my mind, what’s required is a shift away from reacting to harms by relying on content regulation alone, and moving towards systems-based prevention, accompanied by a broadening of our perspective of what online harms are.
The minister, a former lawyer, said a duty of care was “a common law concept and statutory obligation that places a legal obligation to take reasonable steps to protect others from harm”.
Where platforms seriously and systemically breach their duty of care we will ensure the regulator can draw on strong penalty arrangements.
We don’t have a lot of information about how it will work, with Rowland’s office only releasing broad details about the proposal, but we will expect to hear more in coming weeks. It is understood the digital duty of care was a key recommendation of an independent review of the Online Safety Act, which was handed to government weeks ago but which hasn’t been released yet.
It adds to the government’s already-bulging set of proposed and looming reforms in the tech and social media space, including the ban on social media for under-16s, the mis- and disinformation laws, and potential changes to the news media bargaining code. It potentially opens up another front in a conflict with the social media companies, some of whom are already unhappy with growing government regulation and new rules on how their systems operate.
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Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news coverage. I’m Martin Farrer, bringing you some of the best overnight stories before my colleague Mostafa Rachwani guides you through the main action of the day.
The commonwealth will argue in two high court challenges today that the constitution allows the government to detain non-citizens while their protection visa applications are processed, even if they will be released after a decision either way. It will urge the court to reject the cases that seek to extend the landmark NZYQ decision on indefinite detention to a new cohort of people in immigration detention. We will bring you the latest when it happens.
The federal government will require social media platforms to assume a “digital duty of care” for users, with plans to put the onus on digital companies to take proactive steps to safeguard the mental health of its customers. Speaking in Sydney last night, Michelle Rowland, the communications minister, said the changes were needed to put the legal responsibility for safeguarding on to the companies and away from just a regulatory approach. More coming up.
The October jobs figures out at 11.30am this morning will give the latest update on what we can expect from the economy and we might even get some more insight from the Reserve Bank governor, Michele Bullock, when she appears at a panel discussion on the state of the economy at an Asic forum in Sydney at 10am this morning. More coming up.
Australia’s push for high-speed rail is ignoring expert advice and parliamentary findings, according to a former MP who chaired the inquiries, warning planners are pursuing expensive station locations where recouping costs will be so difficult it could derail the project. In an interview with Guardian Australia, John Alexander pleads with the High Speed Rail Authority to place stations outside the Sydney and Gosford CBDs in order to maximise land value capture and therefore secure future funding of the scheme.
