What we learned: Thursday, 6 March
That’s where we’ll leave the Australia news live blog for today – thank-you for joining me. Our separate Tropical Cyclone Alfred live blog will continue until late this evening. It will return on Friday morning and run all through the weekend.
Here is what made the news headlines today:
Anthony Albanese would not say whether he intends to call an election this weekend, or early next week, and that his focus remains on TC Alfred.
The shadow attorney general, Michaelia Cash, accused the PM of “playing a game of cat and mouse” and urged him to rule out calling an election amid the cyclone.
The WA premier, Roger Cook, said his labelling of JD Vance as a “knob” was a “poor” but “extremely popular choice of words” as he apologised for any offence.
Victoria’s premier, Jacinta Allan, said the state would tighten its bail laws.
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, defended Australia’s defence spending as already going up “considerably” amid suggestions from the Trump administration Australia should spend more.
Chalmers also said the US had not yet made a decision around giving Australia an exemption from tariffs.
A man was shot dead by Queensland police on the Gold Coast after he allegedly “presented a firearm at police” and fled in a stolen vehicle.
Updated
PM pushes for fixed terms amid election date speculation
Anthony Albanese says repeated questions on the election date, which must be held by 17 May, reinforced the need for certainty on when Australians go to the polls in the future.
As AAP reports, the prime minister told Sky News earlier:
These are questions that have been asked this week, this month, last month, the month before. They’ve been asked for a long period of time. This is why we need four-year fixed terms to provide certainty.
12 April was firming as the most likely date for this year’s election, ahead of a Monday deadline for Albanese to make the call.
If the election is not called for 12 April, Australians are likely to head to the ballot box in May. This is because the only other Saturdays in April – the 19th and 26th – have been ruled out because of the Easter holidays and the Anzac Day long weekend.
Updated
New home approvals surge
A surge in apartment approvals in NSW has lifted new dwelling consents to the highest level in more than two years, AAP reports.
Australia-wide, 16,579 dwellings were approved in January, up 6.3% on the month prior, the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed.
That’s still well below the 20,000 dwellings needed on average each month to meet the government’s target of 1.2m new homes by mid-2029 – and doesn’t factor in a drop-out rate of about 1% to 2% of homes that gain approval but don’t end up being constructed.
But today’s update confirms the trend is certainly heading in the right direction, up 30% from the low of 12,836 dwellings approved in April 2023.
January’s bounce was driven by a 12.7% rise in private attached dwellings, like apartments and townhouses, said ABS’s head of construction statistics, Daniel Rossi.
NSW led the way, with an increase in state-significant developments and policies like height bonuses for affordable housing and train station rezonings potentially contributing to the rise in apartments coming through the pipeline, Oxford Economics’ Michael Dyer said – but it was still too early to tell, given apartment approvals tend to be pretty lumpy:
We expect further modest improvement over 2025. Cash rate cuts are now in play. This is set to aid the release of pent-up housing demand, supporting a more meaningful double-digit recovery from 2026.
Updated
Victoria urged to embrace electric homes over gas
The Victorian Trades Hall Council, Environment Victoria and Victorian Council of Social Services (Vcoss) have called on the government to end the state’s reliance on gas.
The Victorian government’s building electrification regulatory impact statement is open for submissions. Juanita Pope, the CEO of Vcoss, said in a statement:
Vcoss is a strong supporter of Victoria’s electrification agenda. Electric homes powered by renewables are better for people’s health, their wallets and the planet. Research shows that an all-electric home has less than half the running costs of a fossil fuel home.
In a global cost-of-living crisis and climate emergency, now is the time to support Victorian households to make the switch.
We know that some Victorians – particularly low-income households and renters – will need help to manage the upfront cost of transition to safer, more efficient electric appliances. Prioritising support for these households will mean that all Victorians can enjoy the health benefits and bill savings of electrification.
Updated
Heatwave conditions remain for parts of WA, NT and Queensland
While much of the weather focus right now is on Tropical Cyclone Alfred, heatwave warnings persist for parts of Western Australia, the Northern Territory and Queensland.
According to the Bureau of Meteorology, severe heatwave conditions in WA will gradually ease in the north over the next few days.
Exmouth is set to reach a top of 43C today before dropping to 36C on Monday.
In the NT, severe heatwave conditions are forecast to ease towards the end of the week and into the weekend – but low intensity heatwave conditions may persit for some time.
And in Queensland, further north from where Tropical Cyclone Alfred is expected to cross, heatwave conditions are set to ease into the weekend.
Gladstone is set to reach a top of 37C tomorrow, and Yeppoon 34C.
⚠️🌡️ Severe #Heatwave Warning for: North Tropical Coast and Tablelands, Herbert and Lower Burdekin and Capricornia Districts
— Bureau of Meteorology, Queensland (@BOM_Qld) March 6, 2025
Warning details: https://t.co/DVcIVq49qK
Stay heat safe: https://t.co/Uyhj1UMykj pic.twitter.com/vC8qmmjUNw
Government has approved enough renewables to power nearly every household, Plibersek says
The environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, says the government has now approved enough renewable energy projects to power “nearly every single household in Australia” as demand for the projects grows.
In a statement, she said three new renewables projects in NSW had been given the green light, including:
The 1,332 megawatt Liverpool Range wind farm near Coolah, within the Central West Orana renewable energy cone;
The 700 megawatt Spicers Creek wind farm project near Gulgong, within the Central West Orana renewable energy zone; and
The 372 megawatt Hills of Gold wind farm near Nundle.
Plibersek said the three projects would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 6.5m tonnes – “equivalent to taking more than 2m passenger cars off the road every year”.
She said the government had approved 77 renewables projects, equivalent to powering over 10m homes and the “most renewable energy any government has ticked off in Australian history”:
Unlike the climate deniers and environmental vandals of the Liberal and National party, Labor is getting on with the job of transforming Australia into a renewable energy superpower … This is what action on cost of living and climate change looks like.
Updated
Liberal fundraiser cancelled amid cyclone preparations and reports Dutton attended Justin Hemmes event
A fundraising event at the Melbourne headquarters of Macquarie Bank featuring Peter Dutton and several Liberal MPs was cancelled at the last minute last night without explanation, as a major storm bore down on the opposition leader’s home state.
Yesterday, the Australian Financial Review published a story claiming Dutton left what he described as a “very serious” cyclone situation in Queensland for a fundraising soiree at the harbourside home of hospitality entrepreneur Justin Hemmes in Sydney on Tuesday night.
Dutton was scheduled to provide a keynote address to the Melbourne event shortly after 5pm yesterday. The reason for cancelling the event, and who made the decision, was not made clear, although sources speculated it may have been due to Tropical Cyclone Alfred.
You can read the full story below:
Updated
ASX slides lower as oil price weighs on energy stocks
The Australian share market has continued lower, AAP reports.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index had dropped 38.7 points, or 0.47%, to 8102.7, while the broader All Ordinaries had fallen 31.5 points, or 0.38%, to 8330.4 during early trading.
Only one of the local index’s 11 sectors were trading higher and energy stocks were leading the losses and trading more than 2% lower in early trading. Consumer staples stocks were in the green, but only just, up 0.1%.
Oil and gas giant Woodside was the worst performer in the top 200, down 4.4% to $23.07 per share in early trading.
With iron ore futures holding around $US100, mining giants BHP and Rio Tinto were both in the red, with BHP 0.3% lower and Rio down 1.3%.
The big four banks were mostly flat this morning, except for CBA, which gave up 0.3% to trade at $155.91 after going ex-dividend.
The Australian dollar was buying 63.35 US cents, up from 62.54 US cents yesterday afternoon.
Health alert as Victorian factory destroyed in suspicious blaze
A health alert has been sent out for locals near a suspicious fire that ripped through a factory near Melbourne airport, which we reported on earlier in the blog.
AAP reports that Victoria police believe a car was driven into the premises at Tullamarine, in the city’s north-west, and set alight about 3.30am Thursday morning. The building was completely alight when 80 firefighters arrived.
Crews managed to stop flames from destroying nearby businesses at the industrial park on Barrie Road. No one was inside the building at the time and there are no reports of injuries related to the fire.
Fire Rescue Victoria commander and incident controller, John Zuccarelli, said a car detailing business operated from the factory. Crews have not been able to enter the building due to the risk of the structure collapsing, so he could not reveal what was stored inside.
The damage is quite extensive and it be won’t be salvageable.
Gas and electricity to the site were switched off during the fire fight, with nearby power lines posing a danger.
The blaze sparked a health alert for smoke for residents living up to 2km away and locals were told to avoid the area. An arson chemist is investigating what took place and a crime scene has been set up at the site.
The fire is being probed by local investigators and not taskforce Lunar, a specialist squad investigating more than 100 firebombings linked to conflict between crime gangs over the profits of illegal tobacco.
Updated
Green fuel cash injection prepares market for take-off
An Australian low-carbon fuels industry could be closer to launching after a $250m investment in developing environmentally friendly fuels for planes, trucks and ships.
As AAP reports, the federal government announced the investment package today as part of its $1.7bn Future Made in Australia fund, to be put towards early-stage fuel innovations, demonstrations and deployment.
The eco-friendly fuel investment comes amid growing demand for sustainable aviation fuel worldwide and a recent report by the nation’s science agency, CSIRO, found Australia had the potential to lead the industry.
The $250m fund would be divided into grants administered by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, the energy minister, Chris Bowen, said, in order to foster Australia’s production of low-carbon fuels.
Australia has the knowhow and the skills to meet the crucial task of decarbonising hard-to-abate sectors such as aviation, heavy transport and mining that rely on liquid fuels.
Updated
Trump slight causes New Zealand to sack top diplomat
In some news from across the ditch via AAP: New Zealand’s high commissioner to the UK, Phil Goff, has been sacked for questioning the US president, Donald Trump’s, grasp of history.
Goff, the foreign and defence minister in Helen Clark’s government, will leave the role under orders from New Zealand’s foreign minister, Winston Peters.
The 71-year-old appeared at an event in London on Tuesday with Finland’s foreign minister, Elina Valtonen, when he made a thinly veiled attack on Trump:
President Trump has restored the bust of Churchill to the Oval Office. But do you think he really understands history?
Made aware of the comments by Wellington newspaper The Post, Peters’ office confirmed he would be removed from the job for the slight. A spokesperson said:
Phil Goff’s comments are deeply disappointing. They do not represent the views of the NZ government and make his position as high commissioner to London untenable.
We have asked the secretary of foreign affairs and trade, Bede Corry, to now work through with Mr Goff the upcoming leadership transition at the New Zealand high commission in London.
Goff is yet to comment on the matter. But on social media, Clark said it was a “a very thin excuse for sacking a highly respected former [New Zealand foreign minister] from his post”.
Updated
Assistant minister to PM reiterates Albanese focused on cyclone response, not election
The assistant minister to the PM, Patrick Gorman, was also on Sky News where he reiterated Anthony Albanese’s focus is on Tropical Cyclone Alfred amid election speculation.
Gorman said the only person who can call an election is the sitting prime minister, and this was “not really something he’s spending time considering right now.”
Asked if Albanese should publicly rule out calling it this weekend, amid the cyclone, Gorman said:
[The PM] is focused, appropriately, on making sure that we get the support that Queensland and NSW needs. That’s where our focus is.
You can continue to speculate, I respect that that’s an important part of our democratic process, but it’s not something that we’re focused on right now.
Updated
Man shot dead by police in Queensland
Queensland police have shot a man on the Gold Coast after he allegedly “presented a firearm at police” and fled in a stolen vehicle.
Queensland police said about 8.15am today, a man wanted by police was sighted at Calvary Court in Labrador.
Police allege the man presented a firearm at police before fleeing in a stolen vehicle, which came to a stop on Brisbane Road in Arundel.
At 9.30am, police said a second confrontation occurred between the man and officers, and the man was shot by police.
Medical assistance was immediately rendered by police and paramedics who attended the scene. The man died from his injuries at the scene.
Police said there is no further information available at this stage.
Updated
Cash says PM playing ‘cat and mouse game’ over whether or not he is calling election
The shadow attorney general, Michaelia Cash, has accused the prime minister of playing a “cat and mouse game” over whether or not he will call an election.
Anthony Albanese fielded questions this morning over whether he would call an election this weekend, or early next week, but said his focus was firmly on the Tropical Cyclone Alfred response.
Speaking on Sky News, Cash accused the PM of “campaigning” and said:
I think the prime minister should give a very clear message to Australians, but in particular to Queenslanders, they don’t need to worry about our federal election over the next few weeks.
We are scheduled to go back to the parliament. March 25 is when the government has scheduled to bring down the budget. There’s a lot of work that needs to be done …
She said Albanese has the “opportunity to rule out calling an election.”
Stop playing a game of cat and mouse. Be clear. Don’t call an election.
Updated
Podcast: how do the major parties plan to win your vote?
Has the interest rate cut made any difference to how people intend to vote at the upcoming federal election?
In today’s podcast, Guardian Australia’s political reporter Dan Jervis-Bardy and Essential Media’s executive director, Peter Lewis, discuss how voters are responding to major political parties’ campaign rhetoric on key issues affecting their lives.
You can have a listen to the episode below:
Updated
Out of control bushfire south of Ballarat grows to 47 hectares
A watch and act alert has been issued for Buninyong and Scotsburn, south of Ballarat in Victoria, amid an out of control bushfire.
The alert, issued by Forest Fire Management Victoria, says the bushfire at Mount Buninyong has now grown to 47 hectares in size.
An alert was first issued yesterday for the same bushfire, which has since grown due to “steep terrain and exceptional dry fuel loads”.
Firefighters remain on scene with support from aircraft.
The situation can change at anytime. You must monitor conditions, remain vigilant and be ready to act.
Watch and Act - Bushfire - Monitor Conditions As They Are Changing for Buninyong, Scotsburn.
— VicEmergency (@vicemergency) March 5, 2025
The situation can change at any time. You must monitor conditions, remain vigilant and be ready to act.
More details at https://t.co/OYD1vejMDd pic.twitter.com/4vMxj2GgUn
Updated
Steggall says ‘flexibility is important’ amid speculation over when election will be called
Independent MP Zali Steggall said “flexibility is important” when it comes to calling an election, amid Tropical Cyclone Alfred.
Speaking on Sky News, she was asked about the timing of Anthony Albanese calling the election, and said she was assuming a 12 April poll date:
I think flexibility is important, and there is a very significant disaster unfolding … I welcome the fact that he and his government are currently focusing on the communities impacted, and they are preparing.
What I would say, though, is in the last budget, very little money was invested by his government on preparation, and so, this is a great opportunity to commit to investing in significant adaptation and preparation system.
Steggall has been making the rounds this morning, calling for both major parties to commit to legislating national climate risk and adaptation plans.
La Trobe enters enforceable undertaking over staff underpayments
La Trobe has become the sixth university to enter an enforceable undertaking with the Fair Work Ombudsman after identifying more than $10.7m in staff underpayments.
About 6,700 staff were underpaid, performing across the university’s 10 schools as casual academics and professional staff between 2015 and 2022.
The ombudsman said the underpayments were caused by “systemic failures in compliance, central oversight and governance processes”, including incorrectly applying its enterprise agreements.
Individual underpayments range from $2 to $91,837, while 35 employees were underpaid more than $20,000.
A spokesperson for La Trobe said the casual staff underpayments were identified by the university through an independent review in 2020, and self reported to the ombudsman the following year.
Affected current staff had been fully compensated, while La Trobe continued to “proactively seek” some former staff who hadn’t responded.
The underpayments were unintentional, resulting from complex industrial agreements, inefficient and outdated systems and processes. La Trobe has since improved and simplified these systems and processes to prevent future errors.
Updated
Allan says Victoria’s bail laws need to be tightened
Also asked about the front page of the Herald Sun, which reported a youth offender had been bailed despite the magistrate admitting the public would want him remanded, Jacinta Allan said she could not comment on individual cases.
But she conceded the state’s bail laws needed to be tightened:
What is clear to me is that our current settings need to be changed, and also don’t align with community expectations.
She said she would be introducing legislation to “bring about that change … very soon”.
Updated
Allan says Metro Tunnel on track to open ‘a year ahead of schedule’
Continuing from our last post: Jacinta Allan was asked why the station was behind Anzac, Parkville and Arden stations, which have been completed and are undergoing testing. She replied:
You can get a real sense of the complexity of this station and also the next station along the line at the State Library. These are stations that are being constructed deep underground ...
These sites have been through really quite narrow portals at ground levels. This has been a hugely complex part of the project, which is why these stations are where they are, in terms of the journey of the entire project.
She said the entire tunnel is on track to open “a year ahead of schedule” later this year.
Allan holds press conference on Metro Tunnel project
The Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, has held a press conference in the town hall concourse of her government’s Metro Tunnel project which she says will open later this year.
In her media release, Allan said the concourse – which will feature new shops and cafes – would be free to public access without touching on.
She said the project – 40 metres below the CBD – was challenging to build. Instead of “opening a massive hole” over Swanston Street, the station has been built using “deep shafts at either side”, which Allan said was akin to “keyhole surgery”. At the press conference, she said:
Just as we can’t imagine Melbourne today without the City Loop, in years to come, we won’t be able to imagine Melbourne without the Metro Tunnel, without stations like town hall, because of what it means to be able to get more people in and out of the CBD but also connect people to where they want to go … Doing this complex construction work deep underneath the ground while the city kept moving above ground, and standing here today in this concourse area, you can see the complexity. You can see the size and the enormity of this project.
Updated
Albanese touts latest GDP figures as he fields another election timing question
Anthony Albanese was again asked if he is planning to call an election in the next week – but pointed to Tropical Cyclone Alfred as his focus.
I refuse to be engaged in the game that has gone on for one year. For one year ago Peter Dutton called for an election to be held in order to stop our tax cuts. Our tax cuts went through. Ever since then, what I’m focused on is governing.
He pointed to yesterday’s GDP figures as “extremely positive” and exceeding market expectations:
What that shows is that our coherent, orderly plan for responsible economic management is making a positive difference.
With that, the press conference wrapped up.
Updated
Albanese on Trump’s position on Ukraine and Russia
Sticking with international politics, Anthony Albanese was asked about Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw military aid from Ukraine.
A reporter said: “Do you worry that Donald Trump is about to hand Ukraine on a platter to Putin?”
The prime minister said it is in Australia’s national interest to support “the brave struggle of the people of Ukraine, led so ably by President Zelenskyy”.
This is a struggle of a people who have suffered from an illegal and immoral invasion of Ukraine by Russia. Vladimir Putin is an authoritarian leader who leads a regime that has imperialist designs, not just on Ukraine but on the region. That’s why we need to stand with Ukraine in support of their national sovereignty, but also in support of the international rule of law.
The PM said the war could stop tomorrow if Russia withdraws and “back[s] off from its illegal and immoral invasion”.
Updated
Tariff negotiations with US ongoing, PM says
A reporter asked whether Australia is on track to receive tariff exemptions from the United States.
Anthony Albanese said the government was “continuing to engage with the US administration”.
We think that tariffs are not in Australia’s interest and not in the United States’s interest. The United States enjoys a trade surplus with Australia.
Updated
Does cyclone rule out election being called this weekend?
At the press conference in Canberra, Anthony Albanese has been asked whether Tropical Cyclone Alfred rules out an election being called this weekend, or early next week?
But the prime minister said his focus was on the cyclone, and that this “isn’t a time to for party politics”.
I’m just focused on doing my job in governing and that’s something I’ve been focused on since the 23 May 2022, [when] I was sworn in as prime minister.
Updated
Follow PM’s press conference on cyclone in our separate live blog
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, is speaking to reporters ahead of Tropical Cyclone Alfred.
You can follow all the updates on our separate live blog below, and I’ll bring you any non-cyclone related issues that get raised right here.
WA premier faces ‘big test’ at state election despite Labor dominance
Circling back to the West Australian election this Saturday: AAP reports that the ruling Labor party may be the favourite to win, but the premier, Roger Cook, still faces a hefty challenge.
Cook is attempting to win a historic third term for his party and an election off his own back, having replaced Mark McGowan when he stood down midterm in 2023.
Prof John Phillimore, the executive director of Curtin University’s John Curtin Institute of Public Policy, said this was a “big test” for Cook as it “gives him a chance to walk out of the shadow of McGowan and be his own man and win an election in his own right.”
Experts are tipping a comfortable win for Labor in Saturday’s contest. The party holds 53 of 59 seats in the lower house after an unprecedented landslide victory in 2021 under McGowan.
But the party’s massive majority is likely to shrink as the conservatives claim back seats lost in the past two elections. Phillimore said that while it was important for Cook to establish himself as the elected leader “given McGowan’s complete dominance”, he also had to manage expectations about the likely result:
When you’ve got 53 out of 59 seats and 70% two-party preferred of the vote and a majority in your own right in the upper house for the first time in 150 years, guess what – the only way is down.
Updated
Steggall says insurance premiums have risen ‘exorbitant’ amount since 2022
New research from the Australia Institute shows one in five households are either underinsured or has no insurance at all due to soaring premiums – and if you don’t have insurance, you’re likely to lose three-quarters of your wealth.
Independent MP Zali Steggall told ABC News Breakfast this was an “iceberg issue where the scale is probably much greater than what we think”.
[The research shows] when events like [Tropical] Cyclone Alfred hit, a huge proportion of the community stand to lose the bulk of their assets and wealth they have accumulated over their lifetime.
Steggall said it was important to address the “underlying factor around why insurance is so expensive – which is climate risk”.
These events happen more and more often. That’s why governments of all persuasions need to do much more to invest in preparation, adaptation, to mitigate the climate risk.
As Krishani Dhanji reported earlier in the blog, Steggall is calling for Labor and the Coalition to commit to legislating national climate risk and adaptation plans.
Steggall said, on average, insurance premiums had risen 32% across the country since 2022 – an “exorbitant” amount.
It’s simply unaffordable. And it’s not just households being impacted, it’s local government areas – they are facing increasing clean-up [and] disaster emergency costs.
Updated
Medications out of reach for women as living costs bite
Women are twice as likely as men to say they cannot afford a prescription for themselves or their families, AAP reports, as pharmacists urge greater funding to help patients access life-saving medication.
One in four women could not afford a script over the past three years amid cost-of-living pressures, according to research commissioned by the Pharmacy Guild.
This rose to one-in-three women for those aged 35-54, according to a survey of more than 2,800 people. The number reporting money as a barrier to accessing medication has also risen by one-third since 2022.
Overall, one in five Australians reported skipping a prescription, which increases to one-in-three people in regional areas.
The findings have prompted the pharmacy sector to call for the prescription co-payment to be reduced from $30 to $19.
Sydney pharmacist and Pharmacy Guild national councillor Catherine Bronger said she saw women every day who struggle to pay for prescriptions:
You shouldn’t have to choose between medication, it shouldn’t be a luxury and we shouldn’t be having this conversation.
Women tend to be the ones that come into the pharmacy, for their families and for themselves. It can be for a chronic condition like preventative asthma medications, where they would wait a little longer and stretch out their meds a little bit.
Updated
Canavan says there is ‘no way election should be called’ amid cyclone
Nationals MP Matt Canavan says there is “no way the election should be called” right now amid Tropical Cyclone Alfred.
Speaking on the Today show, Canavan said Anthony Albanese should keep “the focus firmly on helping Queenslanders to get through this event”.
The election will be called when it’s called. The PM’s been playing games on this all year, so he’s only got himself to blame to backing himself into this corner.
We can have it in May. I think the priority should be on what’s best for the people impacted by Cyclone Alfred, not what’s best to suit the political circumstances of the prime minister.
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, said earlier this morning that the election timing was a matter “for another day” amid the cyclone.
Updated
Chalmers says US has not made decision yet on Australian tariff exemption
Jim Chalmers was asked about Donald Trump’s address to Congress yesterday and the indication reciprocal tariffs would begin on 2 April – there was no direct mention of Australia, so are we safe?
The treasurer said the government had been “engaging at every level” on this, however:
I suspect the decision on Australian exemptions has not been made, so we’ll continue to make our case.
Chalmers said any decision had not been “conveyed to us”, so discussions are continuing.
Updated
Chalmers welcomes ‘heavy lifting’ of private sector in economy growth
Jim Chalmers also weighed in on yesterday’s GDP numbers and was asked how much of the improvement is due to population growth and people working longer hours.
The treasurer said yesterday’s numbers were “encouraging” and show the “economy has turned the corner”.
It is growing solidly, we did see a solid rebound in growth, and that’s not primarily because of the two things that you mentioned. Per capita growth is positive again after a period of softness in our economy, but the most encouraging thing – from my point of view – in those numbers yesterday was the fact that the private sector is doing some of the heavy lifting.
We want the private sector to take its rightful place as the primary driver of growth in our economy. There are good reasons why public spending was helping to keep the economy ticking over over the last couple of years, but the private sector is rebounding strongly. Growth in our economy is broader. That’s a very good thing.
For more analysis on the GDP figures, you can read more from Greg Jericho below:
Updated
Chalmers says budget was reoriented towards mitigation for disasters, which are ‘becoming more frequent and severe’
Let’s circle back to Jim Chalmers, who also spoke with ABC RN this morning about climate mitigation efforts.
Specifically, is enough being done in terms of the budget for climate adaptation to keep up with the disasters the nation is seeing?
The treasurer said $1bn over five years had been spent on this:
We’ve tried to reorient the budget towards preparation and mitigation as well as responding to natural disasters, and that’s because these disasters are unfortunately becoming more frequent and they’re becoming more severe.
I think that’s just a scientific fact and so the onus is on us, the responsibility is on us, and we’ve embraced that responsibility to try and do more where we can to make our communities a bit more resilient.
Chalmers said there would “always be more that needs to be done” and the government would “find as much resources as we can for what is a really important task”.
Updated
Cook says WA Labor aiming for ‘50% plus one’ at this weekend’s election
The Western Australian election this Saturday will be Roger Cook’s first as leader of the state Labor party.
Former leader Mark McGowan won the last two state elections in landslides, but it’s expected Cook will lose seats. Asked what number of seat losses would be acceptable, the premier said “we’re not taking anything for granted in this election”.
We certainly don’t believe that, you know, we are a shoo-in. We’ve committed to testing every single seat.
We’re not counting seats. All we want is to have … 50% plus one … and we’ll work day in day out, as we have been right up until the eighth of March, to make sure that we can put our plan to the people of Western Australia, to keep the economy the strongest in the country.
Updated
Does WA premier trust Donald Trump to honour Aukus deal?
Roger Cook warned last year that Donald Trump was an economic threat to Western Australia and, if he was elected, it would be a “dark road” for the world.
Asked if that “dark road” is now rolling out, Cook said no – but it “underpins the point … that we do live in uncertain times”.
And the point that I’ve been making is that in uncertain times you need experienced leadership, someone who has the skills and the team behind them to be able to navigate troubled waters.
Western Australia is a key part of the Aukus agreement between Australia, the US and the UK. Asked if he trusts Trump to honour the deal, Cook said he wasn’t in the federal government but had been assured by the deputy PM, Richard Marles, that “there is still a lot of strength in the relationship, and that the US government considers itself a very strong and long-term ally in relation to these matters”.
Now, people should also remember that the Aukus arrangements had their birthplace during the time of the Trump government. These things aren’t put together overnight.
And so I think it’s probably true to say that the Trump government probably feels as much ownership of the Aukus arrangements as other administrations of the US government.
But Trump didn’t seem to know what Aukus was last week? Cook said he “won’t criticise him for not understanding every acronym that’s thrown at him”.
Updated
Cook apologises for JD Vance ‘knob’ remark as ‘poor’ but ‘popular’ choice of words
The Western Australian premier, Roger Cook, was up on ABC RN just earlier before this weekend’s state election.
He was asked about his comment labelling the US vice-president, JD Vance, as a “knob” during a pre-election event in Perth. Having previously apologised for the remark, he said:
I made an offhand remark in a lighthearted moment during an event, and withdrew it as quickly as I could. Fairly unprofessional remark, and I apologise for anyone who has offended. I think it’s fair to say that it was an extremely poor choice of words but also an extremely popular choice of words.
Updated
Suspicious fire in Tullamarine overnight being investigated
Emergency services have responded to a suspicious fire in Tullamarine overnight.
Victoria police believe a car was driven into a premises on Barrie Road before being set alight and “causing significant structural damage”. A spokesperson said:
No one was inside at the time. A crime scene is currently in place and an arson chemist will attend later this morning.
Any witnesses, or those with dashcam or CCTV footage, are urged to contact Crime Stoppers.
Updated
Chalmers says election timing matter ‘for another day’ amid Tropical Cyclone Alfred
Jim Chalmers was also asked about the timing of Anthony Albanese calling a federal election, and if he has paused this amid Tropical Cyclone Alfred?
But the treasurer said the focus was on the severe weather event:
We haven’t been focused on the timing for the election for obvious reasons. Queensland and northern NSW is about to be hit by what could be a devastating weather event and so considerations about election timing and all the rest of it – they are matters, in my view, for another day. The focus today is on helping people prepare for a difficult couple of days, and then some difficult weeks and months to follow.
A reminder that you can read all the latest cyclone updates on our separate liveblog with Natasha May:
Updated
Chalmers defends Australian defence spending as Trump administration says nation should spend more
Jim Chalmers has defended Australia’s defence spending as having already gone up “considerably”, amid suggestions from the Donald Trump administration that Australia should spend more.
Speaking on ABC News Breakfast, the treasurer was asked if Australia should spend more – and if the Trump administration should be using comments like this to dictate Australia’s policy?
He said Australia’s defence spend will increase around $50bn between now and 2033, and as a percentage of the economy, will go from “around 2% to 2.3%, from memory, in 2033”.
That is a very, very substantial pick-up in defend spending and one of the reasons we’re doing that is to be able to work more effectively with our allies and partners like the United States … We do pay our own way on defence. We are substantially increasing defence spending.
We have got a good relationship with the Americans, particularly that economic relationship which is of mutual benefit, and these are the sorts of things that we have been talking about with our American counterparts as they finalise some of the policies on things like tariffs.
Updated
Good morning
And hello – Emily Wind here, signing on for blogging duties. I’ll be bringing you our rolling coverage for most of today.
As always, you can reach out with any tips or questions via email: emily.wind@theguardian.com. Let’s go.
This post has been removed temporarily while we seek further details.
Updated
WhatsApp, Reddit and Threads took more than 24hrs to respond to user reports of terror content
Continuing from our last post: Julia Inman Grant said there were also inconsistencies with how tech companies applied so-called hashing technology to detect when such content was re-uploaded to its services, with Google only using exact matches, not matches on altered versions uploaded.
Telegram also reportedly did not use external databases of known terror content in its detection scheme.
The report also found that WhatsApp, Reddit and Threads took over 24 hours to respond to user reports of terror content, including up to 2.5 days for Threads.
Google also reported that between 1 April 2023 and 29 February 2024, there were 258 user reports of suspected AI-generated deepfake terrorist content generated by its AI system Gemini, and 86 user reports of suspected AI generated child abuse content.
eSafety regulator warns tech companies haven’t got tech to automatically detect terror content
The Australian online safety regulator has warned that tech companies have not implemented technology to automatically detect when terror content is being livestreamed on their services, six years on from the Christchurch terror attacks.
The warning came with the release of the transparency reports from Google, Meta, WhatsApp (a Meta company), Telegram and Reddit on what the platforms are doing to tackle terror and child abuse content.
The eSafety commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, said of the responses:
Telegram, WhatsApp and Meta’s Messenger did not employ measures to detect livestreamed terrorist and violent extremism despite the fact that the 2019 Christchurch attack was livestreamed on another of Meta’s services, Facebook Live.
We are concerned about the safety deficiencies that still exist in Facebook today, with users unable to report livestreamed [terror content] in-service if they are watching without being logged in. A user not logged in to YouTube faces the same hurdle.
Aussie dollar up this morning
The Aussie dollar is up this morning at US63.02c, or 0.58%, as the US dollar fell back.
Having said that, the picture could change around quite quickly with reports that the Trump administration is alraady considering watering down its newly imposed tariffs on Canada and Mexico because of concern about their impact on the US economy.
On the other side of the Atlantic, European shares soared after the German government tore up its fiscal rules and announced a huge increase in defence and infrastructure spending.
So an interesting day awaits for the ASX. Further reading here from our economic editor in London:
Updated
Independent calling on major parties to commit to legislating national climate risk
Independent MP Zali Steggall is calling for Labor and the Coalition to commit to legislating national climate risk and adaptation plans, that would unlock more funding for climate mitigation infrastructure.
As Tropical Cyclone Alfred threatens thousands of homes across south-east Queensland (see our separate live blog), Steggall said families are at risk of “financial ruin” from soaring insurance costs.
The government is preparing its national climate resilience and adaptation strategy with the current strategy, released in 2021, expiring this year.
Steggall said there’s not enough investment in climate resilience, and wants billions of dollars to be available for climate mitigation projects, that would also help lower insurance costs.
She also wants legislation to more regularly update climate risk and adaptation plans and for them to be done independently of government.
Australians are being forced to gamble with their future because escalating climate risk is making insurance unaffordable. Families, businesses and our entire economy are all at risk.
We have a clear choice: act now to build resilience, lower insurance costs and protect lives and livelihoods, or leave Australians and our economy vulnerable to financial ruin... Every dollar spent on resilience saves up to eleven dollars in recovery costs.
$1bn fund for domestic violence victims opens
A $1bn fund for crisis accommodation for women and children fleeing domestic violence will open this week, as Labor pledges more support for homelessness advocacy groups if it wins the federal election.
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, emerged from a national cabinet meeting last May with a major commitment to boost emergency housing for victims of family violence. Almost 12 months on, Housing Australia will open applications for funding to build or convert existing properties into crisis accommodation.
The housing and homelessness minister, Clare O’Neil, said:
The biggest reason women and children don’t leave dangerous situations is because they don’t have stable and secure housing to go to. That’s not good enough. Labor is committed to helping some of the most vulnerable Australians secure that most fundamental need – a roof over their heads.
Labor has also pledged $6.2m for homelessness peak bodies to continue their advocacy if it wins the upcoming federal election. O’Neil said:
There is more work to do, but these two announcements today will make a real difference to women and children escaping family and domestic violence, and people at risk of homelessness.
Telstra fined over spam law breaches
Telstra has paid a $626,000 penalty after sending more than 10 million text messages that breached Australia’s spam laws, the telecommunications regulator said today.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (Acma) said most of the texts required recipients to provide personal information in order to opt out. Acma member Samantha Yorke said:
Consumers must be able to unsubscribe without giving businesses more personal information than is required.
Australian laws generally prevent businesses from requiring consumers to log into accounts or provide personal information in order to unsubscribe from receiving commercial messages.
The regulator said Telstra had self-reported the matter.
Acma said its subsequent investigation found that Telstra sent 10,433,812 texts between 2022 and 2024 that breached the relevant spam laws.
Updated
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories before Emily Wind picks up the slack.
We’ve got another blog going with all your latest Tropical Cyclone Alfred updates – you can find that here:
A $1bn fund for crisis accommodation for women and children fleeing domestic violence will open this week, as Labor pledges more support for homelessness advocacy groups if it wins the federal election. We’ll have more on that soon.
One of our top stories this morning reveals that the top 16 tech companies are collectively making $26.7bn in revenue each year from Australians, prompting the Greens to call for a 3% tax on the biggest players.
It comes as the online safety regulator announces that the top tech firms have not implemented technology to automatically detect when terror content is being livestreamed on their services, six years on from the Christchurch terror attacks. More coming up, plus Telstra has been fined $600,000 after spamming Australians with more than 10 million texts.
Updated
