What we learned, 29 September 2024
With that we’re wrapping up the blog. Before we go, here are the major stories from Sunday:
The environment minister Tanya Plibersek has told Australians in Lebanon to “come home immediately” before hostilities along the Israeli border grow worse;
Rallies to mark the one-year anniversary of the 7 October Hamas attacks are being planned around the country;
Bridget McKenzie has condemned Penny Wong over a speech to the UN calling for a ceasefire;
Wild weather has prompted more than 600 calls for help from the New South Wales State Emergency Service in the state’s north-east;
Barnaby Joyce has pointed to the exploding communications devices used to attack Hezbollah to promote scepticism of Chinese-made EVs and solar panels.
And Australian Federal Police officers have seized millions of dollars in cocaine and methamphetamine at Sydney airport across two days.
We’ll pick things up again tomorrow.
Updated
Clearance rates down as auction activity slows nationally
Auction activity has dropped this weekend with 1,828 auctions to be held. This is lower than the 2,781 auctions held last week, but a substantial improvement on the 1,198 auctions that occurred at the same time last year.
Based on results collected so far, CoreLogic’s summary found that the preliminary clearance rate was 64.5% across the country, which is lower than the 68.2% preliminary rate recorded last week but well above the 60.7% actual rate on final numbers.
Across the capital cities:
Sydney: 895 of 1,195 auctions with a preliminary clearance rate of 66.1%
Melbourne: 187 of 237 auctions with a preliminary clearance rate of 56.7%
Brisbane: 111 0f 151 auctions with a preliminary clearance rate of 55%
Adelaide: 71 of 130 auctions with a preliminary clearance rate of 74.6%
Canberra: 73 of 103 auctions with a preliminary clearance rate of 65.8%
Tasmania: One auction to be held.
Perth: Four of ten auctions held.
Updated
Retail sales expected to tick up in latest figures
Retail sales figures should show the Australian economy continues to “muddle along” without setting off too many alarm bells about an imminent recession or inflation kicking off again.
Economists expect the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday to reveal retail trade picked up 0.4 per cent in August after a softer July reading in which turnover failed to grow.
The retail print leads a quieter week on the data front domestically after softer monthly inflation figures on Wednesday raised hopes the Reserve Bank of Australia could start cutting rates before the end of the year.
The slight uptick in retail sales, as well as modest expected growth in the household spending indicator on Friday, should not give the central bank any concern that inflation is again getting out of hand.
The RBA’s US counterpart, the Federal Reserve, kicked off its rate-easing cycle with a bumper 50-basis point cut earlier in September.
Non-farm payroll jobs figures could raise expectations of another 0.5 percentage point cut if employment growth is weaker than expected.
- AAP
Updated
The claims made against members of Queensland Police also included 46 allegations of sexual offences of which 24 were dismissed, 61 allegations involved drug-related offences, of which 25 were dismissed, 15 allegations of bribery of which 12 were dismissed, and seven allegations of extortion of which six were dismissed.
The complaints were made both by Queensland Police staff and members of the public about both police officers and civilian staff.
The report also discloses that of the 2,698 complaints reviewed by police, 1,844 human rights violations were identified and only 31 instances where human rights were “unreasonably” violated that resulted in 5 apologies, 5 managerial resolutions, 5 explanations and 16 disciplinary actions.
There were 848 complaints still open as of 30 June 2024.
Queensland police received 8302 complaints in the past year. Most were dismissed
Most complaints against Queensland police officers have been dismissed despite 8302 allegations logged in the past year.
Those arose from 2,698 complaints, which often led to multiple allegations within each case. Most were resolved with “local management action”, a conversation about professional development with senior personnel.
These allegations were disclosed in the law enforcement agencies annual report and involved:
2769 allegations of failure of duty, of which 1,858 received no further action, 233 resulted in local management action, 17 moved to hearings, and only one resulted in an abbreviated discipline process;
1214 allegations of unprofessional conduct, of which 760 were dismissed, 106 resulted in local management action, 34 moved to a hearing, and none resulted in an abbreviated discipline process;
902 allegations of misuse of authority, of which 527 were dismissed, 12 resulted in local management action, 11 moved to a hearing, and none resulted in an abbreviated discipline process;
689 allegations of assault or excessive use of force, of which 519 were dismissed, 20 resulted in local management action, two moved to a hearing, and none resulted in an abbreviated discipline process;
534 allegations of interfering with or undermining an investigation, legal process or conduct matter, of which 392 were dismissed, 20 resulted in local management action, two were moved to hearings, and none resulted in an abbreviated discipline process;
516 allegations of misuse of information, of which 277 were dismissed, 39 resulted in local management action, 15 were moved to hearings, and none resulted in an abbreviated discipline process;
120 allegations of domestic violence, of which 40 were dismissed, one resulted in local management action, three were moved to hearings, and none resulted in an abbreviated discipline process.
Updated
And here are a few images from the pro-Palestine rally in Sydney on Sunday:
Huge huge crowds here at Sydney Town Hall to protest Israel's assassination of Hezbollah's leader Nasrallahand its illegal mass bombing and occupation. Lebanon will never give up on Palestine. Long live the Resistance!🇵🇸🇱🇧🇸🇾 pic.twitter.com/cNtmM4yOLx
— Eleanor Makepeace (@EllyMakepeace) September 29, 2024
Thousands of people at the Sydney Gaza rally. Hands off Lebanon, stop arming Israel, free Palestine. pic.twitter.com/JkvuIhv2Bm
— Nick Riemer (@NickRiemer1) September 29, 2024
Large crowd at todays - Hands off Lebanon, Hands of Palestine rally at Sydney Townhall pic.twitter.com/iQaULn79qB
— matthew abbott 🔥🌏 (@mattabbottphoto) September 29, 2024
Protesters chant for an end to Israel’s attacks on Gaza and Lebanon: video
Rallies are under way in Sydney and Melbourne calling for an end to Israel’s attacks on Gaza and Lebanon.
Here are some images from the rally in Melbourne on Sunday:
Naarm Melbourne rallying for Palestine and Lebanon today <3 pic.twitter.com/IQKxWcuoxA
— Chris Woods 🏳️⚧️🇵🇸 (@tophermwoods) September 29, 2024
Week 51 Naarm/Melbourne for Palestine and Lebanon 🇵🇸❤️🔥🇱🇧 pic.twitter.com/gubsf8ORwu
— gnostic bf 🌶🇵🇸 (@gnostic_bf) September 29, 2024
Pix: Free Palestine Rally Melbourne pic.twitter.com/AcIbiqeMwd
— AAP Photos (@aap_photos) September 29, 2024
Updated
Councils burning rubbish for energy to avoid sending it to landfill, sparking concern from environmentalists
Australia’s first major waste-to-energy power plant has begun accepting rubbish, marking the start of a contentious nationwide shift towards burning household refuse to generate electricity.
At least 10 developments are under way across the country, sparking concern from some conservationists who argue the trend will be environmentally damaging and at odds with plans to develop a circular economy.
Local councils have started sending truckloads of garbage to the Kwinana Energy Recovery facility, south of Perth, as the country’s first commercial-scale project heads towards full operation.
The Kwinana plant is designed to burn up to 460,000 tonnes of non-recyclable waste annually – about a quarter of the amount Perth sends to landfill.
For more on this story, read the full feature by Guardian Australia’s Petra Stock:
Updated
Lion’s captain Lachie Neale ‘doesn’t give [a] shit’ about severe leg injury, he says is worth GF win
Dual Brownlow medallist Lachie Neale will be in for a long recovery after hearing something “pop” in the final quarter against the Swans but says he “doesn’t give [a] shit”.
The Lion’s captain turned up to the Lions’ Melbourne family day at Brunswick Street Oval in Fitzroy today with his left leg in a moon boot.
Neale said the pain was worth it after finally becoming a premiership player in his 13th AFL season.
I couldn’t give a shit. It’s a little bit sore this morning but that’s probably because I was up until 6am on it, so the physio has put me in a boot.
Neale described finally becoming a premiership winner as being “way better” than he thought it would be.
You always imagine that moment and think it’s going to be incredible.
Words can’t really describe how incredible the last (period of time) since that final siren.
I can’t really say the best moment of my life, otherwise my wife will kill me, but very close.
- AAP
Updated
Man found with 6kg of cocaine concealed in his underwear, among millions seized in AFP drug busts over two days
Australian Federal Police (AFP) have seized millions of dollars in cocaine and methamphetamine at Sydney airport in two days – including one man with a package of cocaine concealed in his underwear.
The first bust came when Australian Border Force (ABF) officers stopped a Canadian-Ecuadorian dual national, 41, with 6kg of cocaine concealed in his underwear on 21 September.
Officers first grew suspicious over irregularities with the man’s visa application. He was then searched, where a package was allegedly found concealed between two pairs of underwear and secured with electrical tape.
The package was said to contain a liquid substance which, when tested, returned a positive for cocaine.
The matter was referred to the AFP where he was charged with importing a commercial quantity of a border controlled drug.
He appeared in the Downing Centre local court on 22 September, where he was refused bail. He will return to the same court on 21 November.
Two days later, a second man, a 23-year-old US national, was charged with importing 21kg of cocaine and 21kg of methamphetamine concealed in two large suitcases.
Upon his arrival from Los Angeles, ABF officers allegedly found 28 suspicious packages during a routine inspection.
The AFP seized the suitcases, arrested the 23-year-old and charged him with two counts of importing a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug.
The man appeared in the Downing Centre local court on Tuesday, where he was refused bail. He will return to the same court on 27 November.
The ABF Acting Supt, Andrew Snook, said criminal organisations were “exploiting young travellers who may not understand the risks of importing border controlled drugs into Australia, all for their own financial gain”.
The quantities alleged to have been stopped at Sydney Airport would have resulted in millions of street deals flooded into the illicit drug market and put thousands of lives at risk.
We as border protection and law enforcement agencies must do all we can to disrupt the distribution and importation of these harmful substances into our community.
Updated
Police ‘pleased’ after more than 600 tests turn up just 10 drink drivers leaving AFL GF
Victoria police say they are “pleased” at driver behaviourafter the 2024 AFL Grand Final.
Road police officers operating in the state’s south on Saturday night conducted evermore than 600 random breath tests but found only 10 drink drivers.
Officers also identified two people affected by controlled substances and two people driving while disqualified.
Disappointingly, 3 of those drink drivers were driving [while] three times over the legal limit.
Updated
Passengers call south-west Sydney train line closures ‘extremely annoying and frustrating’
While it only took Alexander Saroussidis 20 minutes to get to uni this week, he is frustrated his commute could balloon out to more than 90 minutes come Monday.
The 19-year-old is among thousands of residents affected by the closure of the T3 train line from Bankstown to Sydenham, and is not looking forward to depending on replacement buses.
Rather than a direct train to central, I will have to take two buses and a train, with significant wait times in between. The alternative would be to drive every day to and from university, which would cost me hundreds of dollars a year in parking fees and petrol.
It’s extremely annoying and frustrating. It’s so tedious to hear how long my commute will be, and honestly demotivates me from my studies knowing how much added time I have to put in.
The line is being closed to allow work to begin converting it to a metro line, which will eventually connect with the recently completed M1 line from Chatswood to Sydenham, which opened in August.
It is estimated the conversion will be completed in late 2025, however that date is only an estimate, with delays to such a complex project likely.
For more on this story, read the full report by Guardian Australia’s Mostafa Rachwani:
Updated
Barnaby Joyce invokes Hezbollah device blasts in criticism of Chinese-made EVs
Shadow minister Barnaby Joyce has appeared to draw a link between Chinese-made electric vehicles and the pager attack on Hezbollah members, which killed dozens in Lebanon last week.
In a Sky News interview on Sunday, the former deputy prime minister said the pager attack illustrated an issue with technology he claimed could be made with a “malevolent purpose” by a “totalitarian state”, harshly criticising the decision of the Labor government not to follow the United States in banning Chinese EVs.
But barely an hour later, on the ABC, shadow transport minister Bridget McKenzie said the Coalition would also not ban Chinese EVs, putting her at odds with her Nationals colleague.
On Sky, Joyce was asked about the US decision to ban foreign-made EVs, over concerns about data collection and security issues. The Australia’s energy minister, Chris Bowen, said the federal government wouldn’t follow that example.
Joyce joked that Bowen had “boldly stated that he knows more about issues pertinent to electric vehicles than the United States of America does”, accusing the minister of “catastrophic decisions” previously.
On a more serious note, after the pager issue, the pagers basically blowing up around terrorists in southern Lebanon, the penny dropped for so many people that there is a capacity remotely to create massive pain, massive hurt, maybe at the least to create a complete breakdown and chaos.
People have got to start asking the questions like ‘if you can update the software, if you can track these vehicles, if they’re made in China, if there was a malevolent purpose behind it from a totalitarian state, what might be the consequences of that?’
Thousands of pagers and walkie-talkie radios belonging to members of Hezbollah detonated across Lebanon in simultaneous explosions last week, killing at least 26 people and wounding thousands of others.
A senior Lebanese security source and another source told Reuters that Israel’s the Mossad spy agency planted a small amount of explosives inside 5,000 Taiwan-made pagers ordered by Lebanese group Hezbollah months before Tuesday’s detonations.
Updated
A First Nations artist, a human rights activist and a DJ are among eight Australian ambassadors chosen for this year’s disability day
Eight Australians with diverse backgrounds and experiences with disability have been chosen to serve as ambassadors for the 2024 International Day of People with Disability.
The minister for social services, Amanda Rishworth, said the ambassadors provided different perspectives of what it meant to live with a disability. She said in a statement:
This year’s Ambassadors particularly highlight how disability can intersect with other factors such as age, gender identity, sexual orientation and cultural background.
Intersectionality can compound discrimination experienced by people with disability, which is why there is no one-size fits all approach to disability matters.
We hope to dismantle stereotypes and challenge misconceptions by providing a platform for people with disability to stand up as influential voices for the disability community.
Risworth said the program was also important for young people with disabilities to get an “honest, accurate representation” when they were growing up to help “establish their own unique sense of identity”.
The minister for thenationalisability insurance scheme and government services, Bill Shorten, said more had to be done to “support people with disability in positions of leadership and representation”.
The Ambassadors are First Nations artist Uncle Paul Constable-Calcott, NSW farmer Marcus Dadd, human rights activist Khadija Gbla, dancer and writer, Hayden Moon, model and healthcare professional Sara Shams, DJ and music producer Cooper Smith, and influencers Sean Skeels and Marley Whatarau.
The day is a United Nations-observed day held annually on 3 December, aimed at raising understanding and acceptance of people with disabilities.
More than one in five Australians – or 5.5 million people – identify as having a disability.
Updated
New federal Labor plan to recruit and train more school teachers receives $70.9m
A government plan to grow the number of teachers in schools has received a $70.9m investment.
The Albanese government is seeking to get almost 1,500 teachers from diverse backgrounds into schools by tripling the number allowed into the high achieving teachers program.
Education Minister Jason Clare said good teachers changed lives.
We don’t remember much about when we are little, but most of us remember our teachers’ names.
That shows just how important our teachers are, and the impact they have on us. And we don’t have enough of them.
This program targets recruiting and training more school teachers in schools that need them the most.
The program provides financial assistance, mentoring and training.
Participants receive a salary and split their time between practical teaching in the classroom and studying.
The new school teachers will be placed into schools that need them the most in 2025.
The program focuses on attracting new teachers, including with a STEM background, First Nations peoples, people with disability, teacher aides and people based in remote locations.
They will teach across all states and territories, in government and non-government schools, and across primary and secondary schools.
Updated
Award-winning journalist or Liberal party player: will the real Peta Credlin please stand up?
Sky News host and newspaper columnist Peta Credlin has a swag of awards for journalism, a prime time nightly TV show and occupies significant real estate in the Murdoch press twice a week.
In addition to her various platforms, according to evidence heard in the federal court, Credlin has been described as a “Liberal party mentor”, dispensing advice from the sidelines.
Ousted Liberal MP Moira Deeming told the defamation trial she brought against the Victorian opposition leader, John Pesutto, that she has kept Credlin “in the loop, in general, at all times”.
Deeming alleges Pesutto falsely portrayed her as a Nazi sympathiser after she helped organise and spoke at the “Let Women Speak” rally in March 2023, which was gatecrashed by neo-Nazis. She was expelled from the party less than two months later after an initial suspension in the days after the rally.
In more than 30 pages of texts, Credlin is seen advising Deeming how to wrangle the party and the media. This week, the court heard Credlin had also helped Pesutto, who confirmed under cross examination he contacted her to help his former chief of staff in early 2023.
On becoming leader, I was reaching out widely to as many in the party as I could … I recognised Mrs Credlin had served in senior roles.
For more on this story, read the full feature from Guardian Australia’s Amanda Meade:
Updated
Penny Wong concerned about violence escalation in Lebanon as Hezbollah leader killed in Israeli strike
The foreign minister, Penny Wong, is worried about the escalation of violence in Lebanon, as Hezbollah confirms its leader was killed by an Israeli strike.
Senator Wong reiterated her call for Australians to leave Lebanon as soon as they can.
Speaking to Sky News on Sunday, Wong said the region was caught in a “cycle of violence”.
The continued retribution … will not bring peace and it will not bring security, which is why Australia and others, including the United States and the United Kingdom, have called for a ceasefire in Lebanon and diplomacy to try and resolve this.
Because we have seen so many people, so many people die.
- AAP
Updated
Labor lashes LNP’s GP tax policy as ‘more nonsense’
Treasurer and designated Labor attack dog Cameron Dick has hit out at the opposition’s GP tax policy.
Dick said the opposition had failed to say “how much this is going to cost and how they’re going to pay for it”.
They’ve already racked up billions of dollars in unfunded promises to Queenslanders, but they won’t be honest about how they’re going to pay for it. So, until the LNP can tell Queenslanders how they’re going to pay for this, Queenslanders know one thing: the LNP will have to cut doctors and nurses from hospitals, just like they’re going to have to cut housing to pay for their unfunded promises.
The opposition claimed in its press conference it would pay for the $100m policy by cancelling the gigantic Pioneer-Burdekin pumped hydro scheme in central Queensland.
This is more nonsense from David Crisafulli. He’s mixing capital expenditure up with operating expenditure. That’s just the truth. That doesn’t work in government.
Updated
GP clinics to be exempt from payroll tax under LNP, Queensland party pledges
Queensland’s LNP has promised to introduce a law exempting GP clinics from payroll tax.
Clinics historically have been not required to pay the tax for contracted doctors. But the federal court ruled in 2022 that they were employees for payroll tax purposes.
“This plan means that it will be cheaper for patients to see a GP under the LNP,” health spokesperson Ros Bates said.
And this is another combined component of providing health services when you need them.
The LNP’s plan will save bulk billing, and it will keep GPS open, and it will stop Labor’s patient tax.
If bulk billing collapses in GPS, the health system itself will collapse.
Shadow treasurer David Janetzki said the policy would cost about $100m in tax not levied.
The Labor state government imposed an amnesty until June next year to allow clinics to make new financial arrangements.
Under the government’s policy, clinics could avoid paying the tax where patients directly pay a doctor, who then pays a fee for practising as part of a clinic.
Updated
Wild weather prompts more than 600 calls to SES for help in north-east NSW
The SES responded to more than 270 calls for help in the 24 hours to 9am on Sunday, receiving 628 calls for assistance since the wild weather began on Friday.
Rain areas in north-east New South Wales will begin to ease to patchier showers today, although flood impacts continue. Showers developing across western and southern inland parts as a front crosses.
SES volunteers doorknocked homes in Lismore on Saturday night, warning residents to prepare to evacuate.
Two adults and a baby had to be rescued from rising flood waters in Cougal, west of Tweed Heads, while there was another rescue in nearby Uki as a car towing a vehicle got stuck on a causeway.
Two others were rescued after driving into flood waters late on Saturday and early Sunday morning.
About 4,300 energy customers in the region were without power on Saturday night, and hundreds are still without power. Easing conditions are expected to make it easier for workers to restore it.
- AAP
Updated
Reprieve for NSW north coast as flood warnings downgraded
Flood warnings have been downgraded along the NSW north coast, giving locals a reprieve from the wild winds and heavy rains that smashed the region.
People on the NSW north coast are breathing a collective sigh of relief, with flood warnings in the area downgraded after heavy rains lashed the region.
Calmer conditions are forecast for Sunday, but the NSW State Emergency Service (SES) has warned everyone should remain vigilant and steer clear of flood waters.
The SES downgraded warnings to “advice” from “watch and act” and “prepare to evacuate” on Sunday morning after heavy rain and flooding in areas around Lismore.
The flood risk remains, but at minor levels.
Minor flooding is also expected in the Tweed and Rous Rivers, Wilsons River, Richmond River and Orara River.
A minor-to-moderate flood warning is current for the Bellinger River.
Not only have flood warnings in the area been downgraded, but severe weather warnings have been cancelled for the Northern Rivers and Northern Tablelands districts, giving locals a reprieve from wild winds that also smashed the region.
- AAP
Updated
Data breaches surge at Service Australia as scammers try to hack customers using stolen details
Services Australia has seen a massive surge in data breaches by scammers harvesting information from previous hacks and using it to access customer accounts, Guardian Australia can reveal.
Data obtained under freedom of information by a user, known as CR, on the transparency website Right to Know reveals that, as of 5 July, Services Australia had reported 49 data breaches in 2024 due to social engineering – where people call an agency pretending to be someone in order to access information.
The figure was more than 440% higher than the nine social engineering-related reports across the whole of 2023. Just one report of such a breach was recorded in each of the previous three years.
The agency also reported four instances where data was compromised by people using stolen or compromised credentials – indicating they were logging into Services Australia’s system under someone else’s login – in 2022 and 2023.
For more on this Guardian exclusive, read the full report by Josh Taylor:
Updated
Fierce weather prompts evacuation warnings in Northern Rivers
Wild weather across northern New South Wales has prompted state emergency services to warn someNorthern Rivers residents to monitor conditions and prepare to evacuate in the event of flooding.
Heavy rain, strong winds and thunderstorms lashed the region on Friday and Saturday, with the NSW State Emergency Service (SES) advising Lismore residents to monitor moderate flooding on the Wilson’s River.
Lowernorth Lismore residents, outside the levee and surrounding areas, were issued a prepare-to-vacuate warning overnight.
Authorities issued 14 alerts for the region before Sunday morning, some involving fallen trees and debris.
The Northern Rivers was subject to catastrophic flooding in 2022 that completely inundated towns such as Lismore.
Updated
Coalition rules out Chinese EVs ban, says McKenzie
McKenzie says the Coalition has no plans to ban Chinese electric vehicles from entering the market.
It’s not the Coalition’s plan. We won’t be banning EVs.
McKenzie says the Coalition is working out its transport policy – but would not be drawn on whether the party plans to scrap vehicle emissions standards.
I will have more to say closer to the election.
Asked whether she would support a road user charge for EV drivers, McKenzie says “It is only petrol excise that is actually funding those roads and again doing nothing.”
Petrol excise does not directly fund road construction but is taken into general revenue.
The Coalition oversaw the collapse of the Australian car industry in 2014 when former Treasurer Joe Hockey demanded General Motors Holden “come clean” about its plans to continue in the country.
Since then, Australia has one of the most competitive car markets in a developed country with it entirely reliant on imports.
Updated
McKenzie sidesteps question about divestiture powers for airlines
McKenzie is asked about the Coalition’s duopoly-busting position with regards to the major supermarkets. She is asked – several times – whether the Coalition would expand the divestiture power from supermarkets to airlines.
McKenzie doesn’t this directly but does say a lack of choice is hurting consumers.
I want a robust competition framework that delivers for the Australian people and that means more choice and lower prices.
Updated
Immigration partly to blame for housing supply issues: McKenzie
Asked what voters may think about political figures with a string of negatively geared properties, McKenzie there is a “very real” housing crisis “not just for renters and first home buyers but indeed for those trying to hold onto their home as interest rates stay incredibly high”.
McKenzie says that supply is the issue and says that local governments need to open up new developments, efforts to address costs in the construction industry, and that too many big builds in the public sector has “sucked that skilled workforce that could be used for housing construction”.
She also suggested immigration was to blame:
If you are going to pour more demand in to the tune of 1.1 million additional people, that will cause supply issues.
Asked whether the Coalition would end these “big builds”, McKenzie says they will look at “the unions’ hold on the migration skills list”.
Construction has been screaming for workforce for a long time, not just in public infrastructure builds, but in our housing constructor and residential sector, and the unions have made sure that despite the demand and need for that skilled workforce of tradies in our community, they’re not allowed to come in. Of the 1.1 million people coming in, we’re not allowed to say we need more chippies, plumbers or sparkies.
Challenged on the Coalition’s plan to actually cut migration, McKenzie says “that is actually a bottleneck on one of the key issues of why we can’t build the houses quick enough”.
The point the Senator is making is not entirely clear.
Updated
Fix housing supply, not negative gearing, to solve crisis: McKenzie
McKenzie is asked about her position on negative gearing or capital gains tax.
She says voters have already shot down changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax “in recent elections with quite a resounding result”.
McKenzie also discloses that she is a property investor.
The fact that 2.2 million Australians invest in property and some of them use negative gearing in order to not have to pass those losses onto renters, is an important fact. I myself, in a declaration, am a property investor. So there would be a vast majority, as you know, are nurses, coppers, tradies and 75% of them have two or less homes, so that is the reality and all the research says that if we want to fix the housing crisis that we’re seeing in this country, then we actually need to fix supply.
Updated
Australia should list Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps as terrorist group: McKenzie
Asked about calls from the US, European states and several Arab countries for an immediate ceasefire, McKenzie says she supports “upholding the UN’s resolution to get Hezbollah out from the northern border of Israel”.
We either uphold international law or we don’t. We can’t pick and choose which bits we want depending on what’s happening in western Sydney.
McKenzie also suggested that the government list the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, a branch of the Iranian Armed Forces, as a terrorist organisation.
Updated
Bridget McKenzie condemns Penny Wong over UN speech on two-state solution
The Coalition senator Bridget McKenzie says the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah “had to be done to show force” in order to prevent an “escalation”.
McKenzie also criticised those calling for an end to Israel’s military campaign in the Gaza strip and bombing of southern Lebanon, saying that she believed “Israel has a right to defend itself.”
The reality is that Hezbollah is incredibly active on that Lebanese-Israeli border, continually attacking Israel and I think it has been – it’s all good and well for us to say we believe in Israel’s right to self-defence, but every single time they defend themselves, we somehow seek to minimise that or criticise them.
McKenzie said Israel is “feeling incredibly insecure at the moment and with good cause”. She also criticised Penny Wong for her address to the United Nations where she called for a ceasefire, accusing the foreign minister of “trashing our decades-long bipartisan approach to a negotiated two-state solution in the Middle East”.
And this isn’t the first time she has done it. She is actually wanting to recognise a state of Palestine before we’ve got a negotiated settlement, and now she is calling for timelines to be put in place before conditions for settlement.
Updated
Rallies to mark one year since 7 October attacks
Palestinian groups are calling on Australians to stand in solidarity with Gazans on a national day of action ahead of commemorations marking the first anniversary of the latest Middle East conflict.
Demonstrators are preparing to gather on Sunday at the State Library in Melbourne and Sydney Town Hall, and in smaller cities and towns, to protest the escalation of the conflict.
The Australia Palestine Advocacy Network (APAN) is calling on Australians to support the Palestinian people on a National Day of Action for Gaza, featuring rallies in major cities and the launch of a month of action.
The APA president Nasser Mashni said Australia had dragged its feet in responding decisively to the conflict.
People of good conscience across this continent will come together to demand the Australian government act with integrity and immediacy to help put an end to Israel’s brutality.
Jewish communities will hold a series of events to observe the anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attack, which Zionist Federation of Australia chief executive Alon Cassuto said carried an immense weight of grief and despair.
As a community, we will come together to mourn the greatest loss of Jewish life in a single day since the Holocaust, and, as we have done every single day since October 7, call for the remaining 101 hostages to be freed from Hamas captivity.
- AAP
Updated
Labor announce plan to tackle food waste
Tanya Plibersek has announced the start of a campaign to help Australian households tackle food waste.
Householders waste about twice as much food as they think they do each week, with one in every five shopping bags brought home ending up in the trash.
The campaign – “the Great Unwaste” – seeks to help households manage this problem.
Plibersek:
The best thing about this campaign is that I’m a busy working mum, you know, it’s actually hard to be the one – the only one in the family that cares that there’s something that’s near its use-by date in the fridge. What I hope it will do is actually activate some of the teenagers and kids in their 20s that are still living at home and care about the environment to do their share in actually keeping an eye on what’s in the fridge, too.
Updated
‘It is a hard transition to make, but we are making it’: Plibersek
Plibersek says the coalmine approvals are not inconsistent with calls from Australia’s Pacific neighbours for the country to stop expanding its fossil fuel production.
Pacific islands are uniquely susceptible to climate change, with nations such as Tuvalu already grappling with rising sea levels. Pacific nations have repeatedly asked the Australian government to commit to stopping fossil fuel production as part of maintaining diplomatic relations.
Plibersek said the “government have a plan that brings carbon emissions in Australia down by 43% by 2030”.
Well, we have a plan that brings carbon emissions in Australia down by 43% by 2030. And gets us to net zero by 2050. It’s hard to do that in an economy like Australia. As well as building all of the 60 renewable energy projects that we’re building right now, big solar, big wind, big battery farms, we need to build the transmission lines.
We need to actually change our economy. The idea that we can do that overnight is people fooling themselves. It is a hard transition to make, but we are making it. That’s what the safeguard mechanism is all about. And I’d remind people that the Greens at the time we legislated the safeguard mechanism said – it means pollution in Australia will now go down – not up. That is the key here.
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Plibersek defends renewables rollout after approving coalmine expansions
Tanya Plibersek has sought to defend the Albanese government’s track record on climate change after she approved the expansion of three coalmines that will continue to operate beyond 2050.
Labor has approved “10 times more” renewable energy projects than coal projects while in government than the Coalition, Plibersek said, with more than 60 projects getting the green light.
Nobody imagines that a transition can happen overnight, but we have achieved 40% renewable energy in our energy grid, and as I say, 10 times as many renewable energy projects as coal.
The environment minister said the new coal projects “fit within the safeguard mechanism” – the Albanese government’s approach to reducing carbon dioxide emissions over time.
This is a massive transformation that is under way in our economy. This is as big as the industrial revolution. And people who imagine that you can flick a switch and it happens overnight are fooling themselves. This is the transition in action. Ten times more renewable energy projects than coal projects. But it can’t happen overnight.
The government has come under attack from the Coalition, which says the decision shows Labor’s renewable energy policies have failed – a claim strongly rejected by Plibersek.
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Plibersek to Australians in Lebanon: 'come home immediately'
The environment minister Tanya Plibersek has urged Australians still in Lebanon to “come home immediately” over fears hostilities will escalate.
Speaking to the ABC on Sunday morning, Plibersek reiterated federal government warnings for Australians to come home while it is still possible for people to get out of the country.
If Australians here have relatives in Lebanon who are Australian citizens, they should urge them to come home. It’s a very dangerous situation. It’s changing on the ground very quickly. And, of course, we would always try to get Australians home, but it becomes very difficult if the airport there closes, as it may, unexpectedly – it may close for long periods of time, it would be very difficult to get everybody home.
The calls come in the wake of confirmation that the Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli strike.
The foreign minister Penny Wong is in New York where she is meeting world leaders at the United Nations in response to the escalating violence in the Middle East.
Updated
With Penny Wong in New York to appear at the United Nations, the environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, has given an early-morning interview to ABC news about the situation in the Middle East.
The shadow transport and infrastructure minister, Bridget McKenzie, will speak to the ABC Insiders host David Speers shortly.
Coming up on #ABCInsiders with @David_Speers
— ABC News (@abcnews) September 28, 2024
• Shadow Transport & Infrastructure Minister Bridget McKenzie interviewed🔎
• 📸 Megan Herbert
• 🛋️ Karen Middleton, Greg Sheridan and John Kehoe.
See you at 9am #auspol pic.twitter.com/vfoLlg6WY8
We will bring you all the latest.
Updated
Good Morning
And welcome to another Sunday Guardian live blog.
The environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, has told Australians in Lebanon to “come home now” as the Middle East crisis escalates after Israel’s assassination of the Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, on Saturday. Plibersek has repeated calls for residents to return home while they can as efforts to evacuate them “would be very difficult.”
In Australia demonstrators around the country are preparing to protest Israel’s escalation of the conflict in Gaza into Lebanon. The national day of action is being held ahead of the one-year anniversary of the October 7 attacks by Hamas, which triggered an Israeli offensive into the Gaza Strip that has so far killed an estimated 42,000 Palestinians.
I’m Royce Kurmelovs and I’ll be taking the blog through the day.
With that, let’s get started ...
