Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Cait Kelly and Natasha May

Penny Wong walks out on Russian speech; nation records 82 Covid deaths – as it happened

Police Australia Anthony Albanese
Nadesalingam family
Tharnicaa Nadesalingam (centre) celebrates her fifth birthday with her parents Priya and Nades and her sister Kopika in Biloela in June. The family of Tamil asylum seekers have been granted permanent residency in Australia. Photograph: Darren England/AAP

What we learned – Friday 5 August

Ok, that was a busy Friday! We are going to put this blog to bed now – but before we go, let’s recap the main stories:

Thank you for spending some of your day with us – we absolutely love having you. Stay safe, and dry – we will see you tomorrow!

Updated

The New South Wales Department of Education has released a statement after a man died earlier today after scaffolding fell on him at Sydney school.

A spokesperson said:

Fort Street High School closed early today in consultation with NSW Police following the tragic death of a construction worker on the school site. We are deeply saddened by this incident and extend our sympathies to his family and friends.

The incident occurred in an area cordoned off for building works. No students or school staff were injured. All students left the school site before 1.30pm.

Wellbeing support is being provided to students and staff.

Updated

Jacqui Lambie speaks at the inquiry into veteran suicide – video

If you haven’t already, you should watch the video of Tasmanian senator Jacqui Lambie appearing at the royal commission into defence and veteran suicide.

I’ve got it for you in this story - it is very moving.

Updated

Indigenous artist Margaret Rarru Garrawurra wins prestigious prize

Margaret Rarru Garrawurra, a senior Yolngu artist from Lanarra in Arnhem Land, created the stunning 2.8m-high hand-woven pandanus sail over several months of daily work.

Updated

Pauline Hanson’s ‘no’ campaign is off to an interesting start

Earlier today One Nation’s Pauline Hanson launched the “no” campaign against the Indigenous voice to federal parliament ... and so far it is going, well – yeah ...

Updated

UNE vice chancellor resigns after alleged assault

We have the story here:

Updated

Penny Wong ‘deeply concerned’ about China’s actions in Taiwan Strait

Updated

Alex is the chief economist at IFM Investors and he is here to ruin your Friday, with this graph:

Updated

Social justice expert questions whether QPS domestic violence training will work

From AAP:

Changing the “canteen culture” in the Queensland Police Service that fails to condemn racist, homophobic and sexist comments will take money and commitment, an inquiry has been told.

As the commission of inquiry into the Queensland police responses to domestic and family violence wraps up the fourth week of evidence, an international social justice campaigner has voiced reservations about what will ultimately be achieved.

Dr David Singh has worked on several high-profile racial justice campaigns, including a brutal UK murder that captured international headlines.

Stephen Lawrence was just 18 when he was stabbed to death in south-east London by a gang of white youths in an unprovoked attack in 1993.

Charges against five white young people were initially dropped due to “lack of evidence” and it would be almost two decades before two of his killers were finally brought to justice.

The crime and the investigation and inquiry that followed exposed the institutional racism of London’s Metropolitan Police.

But Singh said despite inquiries and reviews that followed, there had been negligible impact.

“We’ve had certainly here in Queensland [Police] Facebook groups where racist, homophobic and sexist comments are traded freely without censure,” Singh said.

“There is a particular canteen culture where this training simply doesn’t permeate more or kind of advance police understanding in any sustained way.

Updated

For those following the news out of Biloela this afternoon – my colleague Eden Gillespie has the reaction from the family in her story here:

Updated

Man charged with three counts of murder over Queensland shooting

A 59-year-old man has been charged with three counts of murder following a shooting incident in Bogie yesterday.

In a statement Queensland police said:

It will be alleged around 9am, police received a report three people had been fatally shot at a property on Shannonvale Road and another man had suffered a gunshot wound to the abdomen.

A 71-year-old man and 59-year-old woman, both from The Gums and a 35-year-old man from Bogie, all died from gunshot wounds.

The injured man remains in Mackay base hospital in a stable condition with a single gunshot wound to the stomach.

Detectives have charged a 59-year-old Bogie man with three counts of murder and one of attempted murder.

He will appear in the Proserpine magistrates court on Monday 8 August.

Updated

Karen Andrews says Nadesalingam decision undermines border policy

The shadow home affairs minister, Karen Andrews, has reacted to the decision to let the Nadesalingam family stay permanently in the country, saying it has undermined Australia’s strict border policy.

She said:

Actions have consequences and this sets a high profile precedent. It undermines the policy that if you come here illegally you will never settle in Australia. Last time Labor was in government, more than 50,000 people arrived here illegally on more than 820 boats.

Tragically, at least 1,200 people died at sea.

Together with Labor’s policy to abolish temporary protection visas, this gives people smugglers a product to sell to desperate families and people.

Updated

Penny Wong walks out on Russian speech at summit

The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, has walked out during her Russian counterpart’s address to the East Asia summit in Cambodia.

It is understood an Australian official was still present while the Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, spoke, and that it was not a pre-planned protest from Wong.

“Minister Wong could not sit through Mr Lavrov’s attempt to justify the murder of innocent Ukrainians,” a spokesperson said.

Last month, at the G20 in Indonesia, Wong said:

Russia’s unprovoked, unjustified and illegal invasion of Ukraine is not only the cause of untold loss of life and damage.

It is not only a primary cause of the global energy and food security crisis wreaking havoc on our economies and pushing millions more of the world’s people into severe food insecurity.

It is also a profound breach of trust. And it is up to all nations to hold this breach to account, or the cost will be borne by all of us.

This is why Russia’s aggression cannot be normalised and it cannot be minimised.

Updated

Immigration minister confirms Nadesalingam family’s permanent residency

The immigration minister, Andrew Giles, has released a statement about the news this afternoon he has granted the Nadesalingam family permanent residency.

This government made a commitment before the election that, if elected, we would allow the family to return to Biloela and resolve the family’s immigration status. Today, the government has delivered on that promise.

This decision follows careful consideration of the Nadesalingam family’s complex and specific circumstances.

I extend my best wishes to the Nadesalingam family.

In case anyone was hoping this would herald a change in Australia’s immigration policy, Giles had this point to make:

During the past two months, the government has demonstrated we will continue to intercept and return any unauthorised vessels seeking to reach Australia.

For anyone who attempts to migrate via an unauthorised boat to Australia – you will be caught, returned or sent to a regional processing country.

I do not want people to die in a boat on a journey when there is zero chance of settling in Australia.

This has not changed since the last government. We are not considering changing this policy.

Updated

And we’ve got some pics!

Barilaro inquiry hears concerns over ‘problematic’ treatment of third candidate

This is quite explosive evidence from public service commissioner Kathrina Lo at the Barilaro inquiry.

She’s also raising concerns about what she calls the “problematic” treatment of a third candidate, Rob Fitzpatrick, during the selection panel for the New York trade job.

Fitzpatrick had applied for the job in the first round of recruitment, and while he was deemed a suitable candidate, ran second to the initial choice, Jenny West.

Lo, who was not on the first selection panel, said she was told by Investment NSW chief, Amy Brown, that rather than re-interview Fitzpatrick, his report would be carried over into the second recruitment drive.

But she said she has since learned that some of it had been “edited to make it more negative”.

She said she didn’t check the first report, something she “deeply” regrets:

With the benefit of hindsight I should have asked to see the first panel report and I deeply regret not doing so and I’ve learned a hard lesson here.

Updated

NSW public service commissioner didn’t have ‘relevant information’ before hiring Barilaro, inquiry hears

One of the members of the interview panel that selected John Barilaro for a lucrative New York trade job said she wouldn’t have signed off on his hiring if she “knew then what I know now” about the involvement of senior government figures in the recruitment process.

The New South Wales public service commissioner, Kathrina Lo, was an independent panel member during the second round of recruitment for the New York job and is giving evidence to the upper house inquiry investigating the appointment.

In explosive evidence, she told the inquiry she was not aware of “the number and nature” of interactions between former minister Stuart Ayres and the head of Investment NSW, Amy Brown, during the recruitment process.

She said she didn’t know “relevant information” including that Ayres had input into the shortlist for the interviews, and that he had met with Kimberly Cole, who was initially the top-ranked candidate from the interview panel. She said she did not know that Brown had used Ayres as an “informal reference” for Barilaro.

Lo said:

Had I known on 15 June what I know now I would not have endorsed the report.

Lo said the other independent panel member, Warwick Smith, had asked her to “put on the record [that had] he known then what he knows now he also would not have endorsed the report”.

Updated

Supporters react to Nadesalingam family news

I’ve got some reactions from Twitter for you – to the news the Nadesalingam family have been granted permanent visas. There is lots of celebration:

And lots of people making this point:

Updated

Penny Wong walks out on Russian speech at summit – reports

The Australian is reporting that the foreign minister, Penny Wong, has walked out of the East Asia Summit during the speech by Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov.

Wong is in Phnom Penh in Cambodia at the regional foreign ministers’ meeting and reportedly walked out in protest of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

We have not independently verified this yet – so will bring you more as I know it.

Updated

Nadesalingam family granted permanent visas

The Nadesalingam family have been granted permanent visas a month after they were released from community detention on bridging visas and allowed to return home to Biloela in Queensland, according to friends of the family.

Family friend Bronwyn Dendle said the Tamil asylum seeker family is “grateful to the Albanese Labor government, for acting swiftly and decisively to return this family home to the community that fought for them for so long”.

Updated

NSW police seize and destroy more than 25,000 cannabis plants

More than $80m of cannabis has been seized near Parkes following a five-month investigation from New South Wales police.

Police said:

Following extensive inquiries, strike force investigators attended a rural property at Trundle – about 53km north-west of Parkes – on Wednesday.

Upon police arrival, several people fled the property into nearby bushland, officers were unable to locate them.

Officers then applied for and were granted a crime scene warrant, which was held overnight.

The following day [4 August], strike force investigators and specialist forensic police attended and located a number of large greenhouses being used for cannabis cultivation.

Police located and seized 27,484 cannabis plants, which have all been destroyed.

It’s estimated the potential street value of the cannabis was more than $80m.

Investigations under Strike Force Burria are ongoing to identify those involved.

Updated

While we are on Taiwan, the country’s ministry of foreign affairs has praised former PM Tony Abbott over Twitter, thanking him for his friendship.

Updated

Penny Wong calls for de-escalation in Taiwan Strait

The Australian foreign minister, Penny Wong, has called for de-escalation in the Taiwan Strait and warned against the risk of miscalculation. “All parties should consider how they can contribute to de-escalating current tensions,” Wong told Agence France Presse.

“One of the risks the region is concerned about is the risk of miscalculation,” she said. Wong will join the Asean Regional Forum (ARF) on Friday, a 27-member body set up to discuss security issues.

You can find the live coverage of the situation here:

Updated

Assistant treasurer signals move on superannuation disclosures

The assistant treasurer, Stephen Jones, has spoken to the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees foreshadowing he may move on super disclosure rules that were controversial in parliament this week.

Labor has proposed changing the disclosure at annual members meetings from an itemised list of what super funds spend on marketing, advertising, political and industrial donations to an aggregate total for those categories. This prompted backlash from the Coalition, MP Monique Ryan, and senators Jacqui Lambie, Ralph Babet and David Pocock.

Jones accused the Coalition of a “conspiracy theory for many years that industry funds are donating to the Labor party” which he said was “impervious to evidence”.

He said:

The [previous Coalition] regulations are poorly written, requiring funds to provide information in a format that is misleading and inconsistent with national accounting standards. We are committed to resolving this issue and ensuring that the details of all relevant information is disclosed in a clear format for fund members.

Jones defended Labor’s proposal which he said “streamlines existing disclosure requirements and align the definition of ‘related party’ with that used in the Australian accounting standards”.

But he also signalled possible movement:

I will consider the feedback given on the draft regulations carefully, including the consideration of the feedback from crossbench members and senators. The government’s aim is to ensure that the information provided to members includes an accurate picture of the payments made by trustees in the administration of their funds. The Albanese government supports a high level of meaningful disclosure and transparency for members.

Updated

Hospitals remain under pressure as Covid wave passes – health minister

Hospitals across the country have been experiencing enormous pressure from Covid-19 despite the peak of the recent Omicron wave passing, AAP reports.

The health minister, Mark Butler, said the number of cases in hospital have been falling for several days and are now several hundred below the high recorded a few weeks earlier.

“But still there are close to 5,000 Australians in the hospital with Covid,” he told ABC radio on Friday. “That’s close to one-in-12 public hospital beds, so there’s no question that our doctors, and nurses and other hospital workers are still under enormous pressure.”

Butler said the peak of the recent Omicron wave had appeared earlier than expected, although the amount of strain placed on hospitals had been exacerbated by large numbers of influenza cases.

“It’s much harder in winter because hospitals get so many other cases through their doors in winter as well as flu cases,” he said.

“[Covid has] not become a seasonal virus in the way that influenza is around winter, for example.”

The health minister also expressed concern the take-up of third vaccine doses was lagging despite a large number of people getting fourth doses following an expansion of eligibility.

“We’ve been seeing more than half a million people get that fourth dose every week, but I am worried about the third dose,” he said.

Updated

Russian oligarch suing Penny Wong says sanctions on him should be lifted

A Russian billionaire, who is suing the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, over sanctions imposed on him, said they have caused him severe reputational damage, AAP reports.

The former government put the sanctions in place on a range of Russian oligarchs, politicians, and business leaders earlier this year after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

Steel industry mogul Alexander Abramov was among them.

In federal court today his lawyer, Ron Merkel QC, argued they should be removed and were causing severe reputational harm and financial losses. Announcements by former foreign affairs minister Marise Payne will form part of the suit.

Wong is represented by barrister Brendan Lim, and the case will return on 26 August.

Updated

NT opposition calls for re-evalutation of state’s alcohol laws

Hello everyone! This is Cait – I will be taking you through the afternoon. First up, a big thank you to Natasha – who has guided us through the morning.

Let’s get into it! First up, I have this for you from AAP:

The Northern Territory opposition has called for all the region’s alcohol policies to be re-evaluated amid claims the laws are turning police into a taxi service.

The opposition has pointed to figures revealed during a parliamentary estimates hearing related to police transfers over a 12-month period to March this year.

It said they showed that police took 2,174 people to watch houses, 3,312 to sobering up shelters, 501 to hospitals or clinics and 1,803 to their homes.

“Our police have essentially turned into a taxi service, due to the Labor government’s failed alcohol policies,” the opposition leader, Lia Finocchiaro, said.

“Our police are not trained to act as Uber drivers or social workers, they are trained peacekeeping officers that should be on the street dealing with serious crime.”

Updated

I am handing over now to my wonderful colleague Cait Kelly! Have a wonderful weekend and see you Sunday.

Amanda Meade’s Weekly Beast is out and excellent as always.

Find out why Sydney Morning Herald’s Sunday Life story about the health benefits of “structured water” was withdrawn.

Updated

First ever all female Senate economics team forms

A range of parliamentary committees formed in Canberra this week, including the Senate Economics Committee.

According to a Senate researcher it’s the first time an all female Senate economics team has been formed.

If you want to know more about the ins and outs of parliament (including what are committees?) Amy Remeikis and Rafqa Touma have your questions answered here:

Updated

Wet and windy weather set to ease this weekend

After a week of wild weather in the southern parts of the country, conditions are set to ease this weekend according to the Bureau of Meteorology.

Updated

One Nation to lead ‘no’ campaign in Indigenous voice referendum

Senator Pauline Hanson has released a statement saying One Nation will spearhead the campaign for the “no” vote in the coming referendum on an Indigenous voice to parliament.

Updated

Woman found safe after vehicle swept away in NSW flood waters yesterday

Greg Nash, a spokesperson from SES, told the Guardian that flooding at the Murrumbidgee River and its tributary areas remain the focus for emergency services.

But the SES has responded to requests for help in other parts of New South Wales which have experienced flooding as a result of rain.

Nash said the SES responded to a report of a car in flood waters near Piambong, 30 minutes away from Mudgee in western NSW just after 6.30pm last night.

However, when police arrived they found the car unoccupied. Nash said the woman was later “found safe and well at hospital.”

Nash reminded people:

Flash flooding is very dangerous. Just because people drive the road every day, you do not know what flash flooding has done to the road. It may create large pot holes, expose power lines or gas mains.

Updated

Kylie Bell tells inquiry of decision to move trade office from west US to New York

In the Barilaro inquiry, Kylie Bell, a senior public servant at Investment NSW, is being asked about the decision to open an office in New York City.

As I’ve previously written about, an existing commissioner based in San Francisco was forced to work out of the front room of his home after the government closed its office on the west coast of the US in favour of a new base in New York.

Labor’s shadow treasurer, Daniel Mookhey, is asking who made the decision to move the state’s trade base to the east coast.

Bell tells the committee it was a decision based on the need for an east coast presence, but then also reveals that in November 2019 a cabinet decision was made to set up headquarters in New York.

Mookhey wants to know who took that submission to cabinet. Bell says it was “joint submission by a number of members of government”.

She can’t recall whose name was “on top of the document” but that it likely would have been Barilaro, then treasurer now premier, Dominic Perrottet, and the then investment minister, the recently resigned Stuart Ayres.

We’ve previously heard evidence from Barilaro’s former chief of staff, Mark Connell, who claimed that in a conversation in April 2019 the then deputy premier told him he would get the state’s trade operations shifted to New York.

He claimed Barilaro said that he wanted the New York job for “when I get the fuck out of this place”. He claimed that he said:

I’ll get them to put one in New York, that’s where I’m off to.

Barilaro has called that evidence “fictitious, false and only serves as a reminder as to why we had to part ways”.

Updated

Jacqui Lambie describes her ‘years of hell’ to veteran suicide inquiry

Tasmanian senator Jacqui Lambie has told the royal commission into defence and veteran suicide about her “10 years of hell” following her medical discharge from the army and legal battles with the Department of Veterans’ Affairs over compensation, AAP reports.

Lambie is appearing before Hobart hearings after calling for a royal commission into defence force culture during her maiden Senate speech in 2014.

She served in the Australian army for 11 years and was medically discharged in 2000 after suffering a back injury during training. Lambie has previously spoken publicly about attempting to take her own life in 2009, her heavy use of painkillers and major depression.

She said the department conducted surveillance on her at her Devonport home in the early 2000s and a camera was “put over her back fence”.

She told the inquiry:

I never thought about faith or anything but I did make a deal with God. If he could just give me a second chance at life I would fight like hell for veterans because I could understand what was going on.

They weren’t getting a fair deal.

Updated

Senior public servant Kylie Bell gives evidence as Barilaro inquiry resumes

The hearing examining the appointment of John Barilaro to a lucrative New York trade job has resumed, with senior public servant Kylie Bell now giving evidence.

You can read about what she’s likely to be asked about here.

Bell, who was on the selection panel that picked Barilaro for the role, has started by saying she was not contacted by Stuart Ayres, his office, or any other political office during the appointment process.

She says she picked Barilaro for the job “based on his skills and his experience for this particular role”.

Updated

SES issues flood warning for Gundagai NSW

The SES has issued a warning for major flooding at Gundagai in New South Wales this evening and moderate flooding at Wagga Wagga tomorrow and Narrandera next week.

Updated

RBA pessimistic about inflation decline

The Reserve Bank is more pessimistic than the government about when and how quickly inflation will decline, implying it may need to hoist its interest rate higher for longer to keep price increases in check.

Updated

Indonesia’s foot-and-mouth disease outbreak declining

The risk of foot-and-mouth disease reaching Australia is diminishing as Indonesia suppresses its outbreak, state and territory leaders have been told, AAP reports.

More than 450,000 cases of the disease have been recorded in Indonesia and thousands of infected cattle have been slaughtered, according to media reports.

An expert biosecurity task force has been established to ensure Australia is fully prepared for any potential outbreak.

But Western Australian premier, Mark McGowan, on Friday indicated there was optimism Indonesia was getting on top of its outbreak.

“We had a long discussion about foot and mouth disease yesterday at national cabinet,” he said.

“The advice was that it’s low-risk from Indonesia, and the risk is diminishing.

“[The federal government is] of the view that there’s a lot of contact tracing going on in Indonesia and there’s a lot of vaccination going on, which is reducing the risk.

“That’s a good thing, and the task force and measures the commonwealth government are putting in place are quite appropriate.”

Updated

Emily Maguire on the deaths of Aboriginal women

The bodies of three people, including an Aboriginal woman and her baby, were found last month north of Alice Springs. The case is being investigated as a murder-suicide, writes Emily Maguire.

While mainstream media reported the basic facts, coverage has been minimal – as has the public conversation. Aboriginal women are not afforded the respect that many other victims of violence rightly receive.

Updated

Man dead after being injured by falling scaffolding and concrete at Sydney school

A stone mason has died after being critically injured by falling scaffolding and concrete at a school in Sydney’s inner west.

The incident took place at Fort Street High in Petersham. Guardian Australia understands no staff or students were hurt, and that students have been sent home.

Fort Street High School
NSW police stationed outside Fort Street High School in Sydney. A man died after he was found trapped under stones after scaffolding at a building site at the school collapsed. Photograph: Carly Earl/The Guardian

NSW police have told the Guardian:

At 11.20am today (Friday 5 August 2022), emergency services were called to a school on Parramatta Road, Petersham, following reports scaffolding had collapsed on a man.

Officers attached to Inner West Police Area Command attended the location and found a worker trapped underneath large stones.

NSW Ambulance Paramedics attended and pronounced the man deceased; he is yet to be formally identified.

A crime scene has been established and Safe Work NSW has been notified of the incident.

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) said they were at the scene, where the incident occurred just before 11.30am at the Parramatta Road site.

There were four FRNSW rescue crews there with NSW Police Rescue and NSW Ambulance paramedics.

Updated

National Covid summary: 82 deaths reported

Here are the latest coronavirus numbers from around Australia today, as the country records at least 82 deaths from Covid-19:

ACT

  • Deaths: 0
  • Cases: 705
  • In hospital: 141 (with 2 people in ICU)

NSW

  • Deaths: 29
  • Cases: 12,908
  • In hospital: 2,224 (with 63 people in ICU)

Northern Territory

  • Deaths: 0
  • Cases: 257
  • In hospital: 54 (with 1 person in ICU)

Queensland

  • Deaths: 8
  • Cases: 4,926
  • In hospital: 736 (with 22 people in ICU)

South Australia

  • Deaths: 8
  • Cases: 2,421
  • In hospital: 316 (with 11 people in ICU)

Tasmania

  • Deaths: 2
  • Cases: 765
  • In hospital: 902 (with 2 people in ICU)

Victoria

  • Deaths: 34
  • Cases: 7,502
  • In hospital: 699 (with 39 people in ICU)

Western Australia

  • Deaths: 1 (dating back to 31 July)
  • Cases: 3,239
  • In hospital: 351 (with 14 people in ICU)

IMF head thanks Australia for contribution to global reserve currency

The managing director of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva, has given “huge thanks” to Australia for its contributions to the world’s poorest countries.

Australia has agreed to channel 20% of its special drawing rights (SDR) allocation to vulnerable countries, which is a “reserve currency” to boost global liquidity.

Australian has channeled $1.26bn SDR to loans for the poverty reduction & growth trust (PRGT) and resilience & sustainability trust, and SDR 167.2m in deposits and reserves.

Georgieva said Australia is “leading the way by placing SDR $1bn in the recently established deposit and investment account to generate subsidy resources for the PRGT. We hope more countries will follow your example!”

Updated

Queensland records eight Covid deaths and 736 people in hospital

There were 4,926 new cases in the last reporting period, and 22 people are in intensive care.

RBA releases quarterly statement on monetary policy

Lots to wade through in the RBA’s quarterly statement on monetary policy, which has just landed here.

Among the things that stand out is a slightly higher inflation forecast than the treasurer, Jim Chalmers, cited from Treasury in his “state of the economy” just last week.

Here’s the RBA’s forecast released today:

And here’s the numbers Chalmers released:

It’s a bit subtle, but you see that the RBA is predicting headline consumer price retreating at a slower pace than Treasury forecasts.

For instance, by June 2023, the RBA expects CPI to still be at 6.25%, while Treasury was tipping 5.5% for consumer price increases by then.

By June 2024, the RBA sees CPI still outside its preferred 2% to 3% target range at 3.5%.

Treasury had it pencilled inside that range at 2.75% by then.

Those differences suggest the central bank is more pessimistic about inflation’s decline.

Perhaps, and only perhaps, that means a greater inclination to cool the economy - with its main lever being raising interest rates. Here’s one source for the inflation that the RBA and Treasury both expect to reach 7.75% by the end of the year.

The RBA said:

Domestic retail gas and electricity prices are expected to increase by 10–15% over the second half of 2022, given the high global price of energy and recent disruptions in the domestic electricity market.

Trimmed mean inflation is also expected to peak around year-end, at about 6%, as firms continue to pass transport and other non-labour cost pressures through to their own prices.

Back in May, the RBA was forecasting that gauge – which strips out more volatile items – would come in at 4.75% by the end of the year. Back then they were expecting it to ease back to 3.5% by next June, but now the RBA reckons it will still be running at 5% by them. Hence, bad news.

The RBA said on Friday:

As supply constraints continue to ease, inflation is expected to decline over coming years, to be back around the top of the 2% to 3% target range by the end of 2024.

Updated

Barilaro considered resigning prior to September, inquiry hears

John Barilaro’s former chief of staff Siobhan Hamblin has told the parliamentary inquiry probing his appointment to a lucrative New York trade job that she urged him not to quit parliament when Gladys Berejiklian announced she would resign in October last year.

Labor’s shadow treasurer, Daniel Mookhey, has been pressing her on whether Barilaro had been planning to resign in September last year prior to a cabinet decision making the trade postings ministerial appointments.

She says:

I was broadly aware that Mr Barilaro was intending to resign at some point. What I will say is - following the events of the resignation of the premier, my advice to Mr Barilaro on that day was that any plans that you may have to leave politics should be shelved for the sake of stable government and for the people of NSW.

Hamblin insists that Barilaro had raised the prospect on numerous occasions prior to September. She says:

The nature of that took various forms, sometimes quite flippant [and at] other times somewhat more serious.

Mookhey wants to know exactly when in September Barilaro raised the idea of his resignation, but Hamblin can’t recall. Eventually Mookhey asks:

Was the actual reason why the deputy premier, in the middle of Covid, was urgently seeking a cabinet decision to turn these into [ministerial] appointments because he knew he was intending to resign?

She replies: “That’s a question for Mr Barilaro.”

Updated

Sydney man dead with meningococcal disease

NSW Health is urging people to be alert to the symptoms of meningococcal disease following the death of a Sydney man in his 40s from the disease.

NSW Health is advising people to act immediately if any symptoms appear. If you want to know what those symptoms are, you can find them here.

There have been 15 cases of meningococcal disease reported in NSW so far this year.

The state health department said in a statement:

While meningococcal disease is now uncommon thanks to vaccination, it can occur year round. We tend to see increases in late winter and early spring, with children under five and 15 to 25-year-olds at the greatest risk of contracting the disease.

Dr Jeremy McAnulty, the executive director of health protection NSW, stressed early intervention can be lifesaving.

Meningococcal disease can be fatal within hours if left untreated. Knowing the symptoms could help prevent premature death or life-long disability.

While it is a well-known symptom of meningococcal disease, the rash does not always occur, or may present late in the illness.

If symptoms rapidly worsen, or if your child is very unwell, call triple zero (000) or go straight to your nearest emergency department.”

For more information on vaccination or symptoms, transmission, risks and treatment of meningococcal, see the NSW Health website

Updated

Barilaro’s chief of staff maintains her focus was Covid-19 roadmap, inquiry hears

The words “I don’t recall” are being repeated quite a lot from Siobhan Hamblin, the former chief of staff to John Barilaro.

Hamblin is appearing before a parliamentary inquiry into Barilaro’s appointment to a lucrative New York trade job.

As I said earlier, she’s being asked about a cabinet submission in September last year which made the trade jobs ministerial appointments.

Hamblin says that while she was aware of the submission, she wasn’t involved in drafting it and doesn’t recall much detail about it. She was focused on the roadmap being produced by the government to exit the long Delta lockdown.

Labor’s shadow treasurer, Daniel Mookhey, says it was “100% appropriate” for her to be focused on that, but says:

The obvious question is, given the government was obsessed, rightly, with getting the roadmap out, why was Mr Barilaro asking for this cabinet submission to be produced ASAP for the same day as NSW is meant to learn we’re getting out of Covid lockdown?

Hamblin responded:

That’s a question for Mr Barilaro … I don’t have recollections of those conversations.”

Barilaro’s replacement Stuart Ayres, has said he reversed that decision when he took over but as we heard earlier this week the head of Investment NSW, Amy Brown was never formally told the decision was reversed.

The decision is crucial because, as we heard, it created a “grey area” for Brown when she was filling the role which meant she felt she had to “sense-check” the hiring process with Ayres.

Ayres resigned from cabinet and as deputy Liberal leader earlier this week over questions about his role in the appointment.

Updated

Hospitalised man talking to police

Asked about the condition of the man in hospital with a gun wound, Armitt said:

As far as his condition is [concerned], he has obviously been shot so it is serious.

He underwent surgery but he was able to converse with us last night, provide us with a version of what he saw and he’s continuing to converse with detectives this morning.

Updated

Police seeking local witnesses

When asked about if police are seeking any witnesses, Armitt said:

The person that we have in custody has been a resident of the area for a long period of time. We understand that there are a number of neighbouring properties in the area. We understand there were a lot of people working in the area. Mustering is occurring at the time. So we are seeking, especially persons in that area if they have any knowledge of any issues that were going on out there at the time or any movement of vehicles in and out of the area at that time if they could please come forward and make contact with the police.

Updated

Deceased family had been on their property less than twelve months

Superintendant Armitt has provided more information about the people involved in the shooting incident.

The family - the deceased family in question - have only been on their property a short amount of time ... I believe they purchased the property some time in the last 12 months.

The person that we have in custody is a long-term resident.

We understand that there was a conversation that had occurred the night before which was the reason why the parties had met at the gate on the property in the morning.

Updated

59-year-old man in custody over north Queensland shooting

Armitt is providing an update on police investigations since police arrived at the scene:

Overnight we took a number of people into custody. There were five persons located on the property, two of those persons were involved in a power company and they were - after taking statements from them - they were released. Three other people were property owners or family of the property owners. Two of those persons have now subsequently been released and we have a 59-year-old man in custody who is a long-term resident of the area. He will be remaining in our custody and we expect to lay criminal charges in relation to the matter some time later on this afternoon.

No charges have been laid so far.

Updated

Superintendent Tom Armitt is providing more information about the events which unfolded yesterday.

Initially police received information that a male person had been shot and he was reporting that three others were also shot. He’d been trapped approximately 40kms away from the scene of the shooting and there was some confusion about where the actual scene of the shooting had occurred.

So police had to traverse a large amount of ground before we actually found where the crime scene was. At that particular time we had a report that three persons had been shot. He believed that they had been killed, however we needed confirmation on that.

So we had a small team of police who drove forward into the crime scene at that time not knowing whether the armed offender was present or not, putting their lives in grave danger, especially when the report was that the people had been shot with a rifle and that they were in danger of being shot from any distance whilst approaching the crime scene.

Updated

Queensland Police provide shooting updates

Queensland police are currently giving a press conference with further details on the shooting which occurred on Thursday at a remote property near the locality of Bogie in the north of the state.

Superintendent Tom Armitt has taken to the microphone, setting the scene:

The area is approximately 2.5 hours away from Bowen station and approximately an hour-and-a-half from Collinsville station in a very remote area. We are talking properties of the size of tens of thousands of acres and between the two properties in question it’s actually a 45 minute drive between the neighbours. At the crime scene, which is at the front gate of one of the promises, it is a 3km drive between the gate and the house at that location.

Superintendent Tom Armitt
Superintendent Tom Armitt at a press conference discussing the triple fatality after a shooting on a cattle property near Bogie in north Queensland. Photograph: ABC News

Updated

Offshore wind zones next steps in creating new renewable energy industry: Bowen

To summarise Natasha’s reporting on Chris Bowen’s presser, the energy and climate minister has announced the government is investigating the establishment of an offshore wind industry in Australia, pinpointing six potential strategic sites nationwide suitable for turbines.

Bowen, who has already had what you might call a busy week, told a press conference in Sydney that consultation would begin immediately on a possible wind project in the Bass Strait off the Gippsland coast.

Five other potential sites for offshore wind energy projects include oceans off the Hunter and Illawarra regions in NSW, the Portland region of Victoria, Bass Strait off northern Tasmania, and the Indian Ocean off the Perth and Bunbury region in Western Australia. Consultation periods for those proposals will be announced in the future.

Bowen said those sites were chosen because they have “good to excellent” wind resources, had existing energy generation facilities and connections to transmission networks, and were located near major ports or industrial hubs.

Bowen said an offshore wind industry in Australia could support from 3000 to 8000 jobs. He said the power source had the potential to be a “variable baseload” contributor.

“We have some of the best wind resources in the world - just one rotation of one offshore wind turbine provides as much energy as an average rooftop solar installation generates in one day,” the minister said in a statement.

Further information on the consultation around the Gippsland proposal can be found at: https://consult.industry.gov.au/oei-gippsland

Updated

John Barilaro’s former chief of staff continues giving evidence

In the parliamentary inquiry investigating John Barilaro’s now-abandoned appointment to a lucrative New York trade job, John Barilaro’s former chief of staff Siobhan Hamblin is being asked about the months between June and October 2021, when NSW was in the grips of a Covid-19 lockdown.

Labor’s shadow treasurer Daniel Mookhey is asking her about any submissions the then-deputy premier took to cabinet during that time.

We know that on 27 September, Barilaro took a submission to cabinet seeking to change the senior trade commissioner roles now at the centre of the inquiry into ministerial appointments.

He resigned as deputy premier a little over a week after the decision. He was later appointed to the trade commissioner role in New York.

Hamblin says she was “broadly aware” of the cabinet submission over the trade posts, but doesn’t recall speaking to Barilaro about it directly.

She says she “can’t recall” specifics of how she was told about the submission.

Hamblin explains there were many submissions taken to the crisis cabinet, which was made up of senior ministers to deal with the Covid outbreak.

But Mookhey asks her about submissions taken to the full cabinet on issues outside of Covid.

Hamblin says she can’t recall any others in that period, although she says that it is possible.

Updated

Jacqui Lambie gives evidence at Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicides

Senator Lambie said joining the army saved her life at a time she was otherwise surrounded by “bad influences”. However, she would later experience the hardship of serious injury and a long path to compensation.

I originally wanted to be a police officer. I had been in a couple of court sessions when I was younger due to my behaviour and so I actually wanted to give back for that. For me, I just happened to be in the right place at the right time and the Army was there and I had the opportunity - me and two of my girlfriends - and sign on the dotted line on that day. Unfortunately for my girl friends they did not and they’ve had a very tough life, unfortunately, by not doing that. So for me, that is what I wanted to do. My mother was obviously very forceful in me joining the military. I seemed to be around a bad group of people at that time that were bad influences, so for me it was probably a life-saver that I had the opportunity to serve my country.

For me I really don’t think when you are 18 years of age - you just go, “This is great. I am prepared to put my country first”, and I don’t think you really
understand the impact of that until much later on and how much that actually means ... we go and join the military because we want to put them first and foremost and, if need be - and if called upon - we are prepared to go and fight and die for our country.

Lambie also described how she completed her basic training at Kapooka, in NSW, when she was pregnant.

For me, I was actually pregnant - probably about two weeks before I went through Kapooka. On your screening, the day that you leave, they will give you a pregnancy test. Obviously I would have been in my very early days during that period of time, so that was not picked up, so I managed to go through Kapooka over a 16-week period - we had a little bit extra because it was over the Christmas period, so we did some extra duties which was fine, but for me, I was actually carrying a baby. I did go back down there, it would have been about 10-week mark of me being pregnant because I had obviously missed my period and that had never happened to me in my life.

Updated

Senator Lambie tells Royal Commision she was “reduced to basically just an empty human being”

Before Senator Jacqui Lambie is asked about her lived experience at the the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicides, she is asked if she would like to say anything as one the architects of the royal commission.

Lambie thanked other veterans and their families for helping to bring the royal commission about.

I wanted to thank the peace makers and peacekeepers. I think they have been alluded to and nobody sort of knows the story from the beginning. There were a couple of fathers who had lost their own sons and that is how that was generated.

She became emotional when speaking about her own experience:

I want to thank my family for the 10 years of hell they had to go through. That was very difficult for them, watching their daughter, especially my mum and dad, go from being someone who was very fit with a military career to reduced to basically just an empty human being. But last and certainly not least, I want to thank my two sons who went through a lot and watched their mother deteriorate so badly over a 10-year period and the ending of that. To my young son... I know you have paid a very heavy price.

Moved to tears speaking about the toll it has taken on her youngest son, Senator Lambie had to pause. To her younger son she said:

I know you have paid a very, very heavy price for what you had to do to care for me over that period of time, and I know you are still paying the price of that, but I thank you sincerely. And I speak on your behalf and tell them what you went through and the impact that it has had on your life. So, thank you very much.

Updated

Jacqui Lambie at veteran suicide royal commission

Senator Jacqui Lambie is starting her evidence to the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide in Hobart in Tasmania.

Updated

RBA statement on monetary policy due shortly

The Reserve Bank will give us a more thorough update of how it sees Australia’s economy (and the world’s) faring when it releases its quarterly statement on monetary policy at 11.30am, AEDT.

A lot has changed since its last such report, which landed in the middle of the official federal election campaign, and came just a few days after the RBA had lifted interest rates for the first time since 2010.

(That move didn’t help the Morrison government’s economic management case ... and no doubt they would have preferred it hadn’t happened until June.)

Anyway, three months ago, the RBA was busy chipping away its forecast growth rate in the economy, in part because it was beginning to calculate how much it would need to hike its cash rate to quell inflation.

We expect a few more down arrows to be fired today, although the RBA governor, Philip Lowe, already sent a few from his quiver when explaining the board’s fourth rate rise in as many meetings (for the most aggressive tightening of monetary policy since 1994).

These included a “central” forecast cut in GDP growth rate of one percentage point to 3.25% for this year and a meagre 1.75% for the coming two years. Inflation would peak at 7.75% and not drop to “around 3%” until 2024.

Lowe said on Tuesday:

The board places a high priority on the return of inflation to the 2–3% range over time, while keeping the economy on an even keel.

The path to achieve this balance is a narrow one and clouded in uncertainty, not least because of global developments.

Today’s statement will shed more light on the RBA’s thinking about “even keel” and also those clouds of uncertainty.

Another focus will be how much the RBA deviates from the outlook presented just over a week ago by the treasurer, Jim Chalmers, in his “state of the economy” speech to parliament (as we reported on here).

If you’re a keen podcast listener, here’s a wider take on the economy that might fill in a few blanks:

Updated

John Barilaro’s former chief of staff appears at inquiry

John Barilaro’s former chief of staff Siobhan Hamblin is the first witness appearing before an inquiry today into the former deputy premier’s appointment to a lucrative New York trade commissioner job.

In an opening statement, Hamblin tells the inquiry she was Barilaro’s chief from about February 2020, during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, a period in which she felt the “full weight of the people of NSW on my shoulders”.

For that reason, she tells the inquiry, the appointment of senior trade commissioners was a “peripheral” issue for her.

But, she says, Barilaro “never raised with me any personal interest in these roles”.

She says:

Any requests for information or instructions [about the roles from Barilaro] I understood to be in the capacity as the minister for trade. Had I had reason to believe any steps or actions [were] in Mr Barilaro’s personal interest, I would’ve had no issues escalating the matter further.

You can read some of the background to the inquiry here.

Updated

Bowen: climate bill ‘not symbolic’

Taking questions, Bowen explains that community consultation has been extensive in Gippsland while the other areas where offshore wind sites are planned are still at an early stage.

Gippsland has had community consultation. I’ve been to Gippsland myself. I’ve spoken to Darren Chester, the local member there. There has been a lot of consultation there. This is the formal part. Other areas are at an early stage. There will be a lot of consultation, to get issues aerated, very genuine concerns. Around the world people have found a way, for example, for recreational commercial fishing to work together with offshore wind.

Asked about criticisms the climate bill passed in the lower house is symbolic, Bowen responded:

It is not symbolic. It is practice. There are 10 years of delay and dysfunction. This parliament is taking big steps for it to end. There is a reason why the Business Council, the Australian industry Group, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry all called for the legislation to be passed, because they know is provides certainty of investment. It is not symbolic. It is meaningful. Yes, there is more to do. What’s next? The day after the passage through the House of Representatives we are here doing this.

Updated

Bowen: possible offshore wind zones in NSW, Victoria, Tasmania and WA

Bowen announces the next zones where consultation will occur following Gippsland.

The next zone that I intend and expect to be consulting on is offshore wind in the Pacific region off the Hunter Valley in New South Wales, and then off the Illawarra, the Pacific Ocean region of Portland in Victoria, the Bass Strait region off northern Tasmania and the Indian Ocean region off Perth and Bunbury, of course in Western Australia.

These are the next zones that we will be beginning consultation on. This is an important process because I want to bring [people] with us on this important journey. There will be questions, valid concerns and issues needed to be worked with through communities, whether they be fishers, commercial fishers, environmental issues that need to be factored in – exactly what will be happening over the next 60 days in Gippsland and across these zones over the next 18 months.

This is good news for these communities ... Offshore wind will create a lot of jobs. Offshore wind turbines need a lot of maintenance, they need ships to maintain them, ports to keep them operating. This is good news for the jobs, for the environment, for emissions reduction and good news for Australia. This is our next step on towards the 80% renewable energy market.

Updated

Chris Bowen announces coast of Gippsland as an offshore wind zone

Bowen says in Sydney:

Today I am announcing that yesterday I signed an instrument beginning the 60-day consultation process to declare the coast of Gippsland as an offshore wind zone.

Offshore wind is jobs-rich and energy-rich. It creates a lot of power and a lot of jobs. The Star of the South proposal, which would be built in that offshore wind zone off Gippsland, would create enough power for 1.2 million households, or 20% of Victoria’s energy needs, for example.

Offshore wind is expected to create 3,000 to 8,000 jobs a year when it’s up and running across Australia. I am also announcing today the next steps, the pathway, or the pipeline of zones that I will be beginning consultation on over the next 18 months at various points.

Updated

Chris Bowen on climate action: Australia has a lot of ‘catching up to do’

Bowen says:

I look forward to the passage of the bill through the Senate when parliament resumes.

As we’ve said, the passage of this bill sends a message to investors in renewable energy, transmission and storage around the world that Australia is open for business to become a renewable energy powerhouse. But also, as we’ve said, this is not the end of the work.

There is much, much more to do and Australia has a lot of catching up to do [after] 10 years of delay, denial and dysfunction. One of the key measures in getting Australia to 82% renewable energy by 2030, which is the Albanese government’s plan, will be offshore wind. We are way behind the game, way behind the rest of the would in producing wind off our coastline. Again, we have a lot of catching up to do.

Updated

The climate change minister, Chris Bowen, is giving a press conference in Sydney following the passage of Labor’s climate bill in the lower house yesterday.

Road reopened around site of Queensland shooting

Police have re-opened Shannonvale Road, the road where four people were shot on a remote property near Bogie, a rural locality in north Queensland.

The reopening comes after the emergency declaration under the Public Safety Preservation Act, which set up an exclusion zone around the property on Shannonvale Road was revoked at 10.06pm on Thursday.

Updated

Education regulator blocks 40 cheating websites

Australia’s education regulator has had 40 of the most-visited academic cheating websites blocked, under a new protocol with internet service providers in Australia.

Under laws passed in 2020, the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) could go to the federal court to obtain an order to compel ISPs to block cheating websites. The first case was run last year.

The education minister, Jason Clare, has said that the regulator has now blocked a further 40 sites – which are visited about 450,000 times per month – under a new protocol with the ISPs that didn’t require court action.

The protocol was developed with several ISPs and finalised in June.

Clare said:

Illegal cheating services threaten academic integrity and expose students to criminals who often attempt to blackmail students into paying large sums of money.

Blocking these websites will seriously disrupt the operations of the criminals behind them.

For the first time, the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) has used new protocols developed with members of the Communications Alliance to prevent access to the websites.

The protocols streamline the process for blocking illegal academic cheating websites, better enabling TEQSA to enforce Australia’s anti-commercial academic cheating laws.

Updated

Commonwealth Games: Aussie wife to face off against husband in squash

Action at the Commonwealth Games is proving a family matter, with some relations on the same side of the net and others squaring off.

AAP reports Australia’s Donna Lobban, playing squash with her cousin, must beat her husband to remain in the hunt for a Commonwealth Games gold medal.

Lobban will face off against her Scotland-born husband in a mixed doubles quarter-final in Birmingham. Lobban said:

I have already started the mental warfare.

I’ve started to wind him up already. I was telling him we were fist-pumping when we got that draw.

Lobban and her cousin Cameron Pilley are defending Commonwealth mixed doubles champions.

Meanwhile, Melbourne teenage siblings Jack and Angela Yu are thriving in the mixed doubles, just not with each other.

Jack Yu, 17, and 19-year-old partner Kaitlyn Ea beat Jamaica’s Samuel Ricketts and Tahlia Richardson 21-13 16-21 21-8 to reach the Commonwealth Games round of 16.

Yu’s older sister Angela then teamed up with Tran Hoang Pham to thrash the Falkland Islands’ Joshua Dwight and March Soraye 21-2 21-5.

The Yus won’t meet unless they both make the final.

You can find out Australia’s medal totals here:

Updated

Victoria records 34 Covid deaths and 699 people in hospital

There were 7,502 new cases in the last reporting period, and 39 people are in intensive care.

Climate bill will help economy grow, Albanese says

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has promised that the economy will grow on the back of Labor’s climate bill, saying the transition to renewable energy will unlock new economic opportunities.

Albanese told ABC Melbourne radio this morning:

Unless we do this transition, Australia will actually suffer and shrink.

The climate bill passed the House of Representatives yesterday, and is expected to pass the Senate next month following the Greens’ support. But Albanese denied that yesterday’s decision by environment minister Tanya Plibersek to block a proposed coal mine near the Great Barrier Reef was a concession to the Greens’ calls for no new coal or gas mines.

Albanese said the Greens have “a different position from Labor”.

In a 20-minute interview, Albanese shrugged off Coalition complaints that he had made an offensive gesture to deputy Liberal leader Sussan Ley, countering that the opposition had been “completely disruptive” in parliament in the opening sitting fortnight. He said:

I dismiss the comments as being totally hypocritical, given the yelling that occurred every time I was on my feet, including non-stop gestures and yelling for me to sit down. That is just part of the disruption.

The PM said he expected inflation rates to go higher, but doubted Australia’s numbers would go into “double figures” as seen in some parts of Europe. Albanese admitted the government could not do much to constrain potential interest rate rises, which are controlled by the independent Reserve Bank, but flagged spending cuts to bring down inflationary pressures.

One of the things the government can do is constrain spending through fiscal prudence, and one of the reasons we’re bringing down a budget in October ... is to go through line by line and look for savings that can be made, to rip the waste that is there, out of the budget.

Updated

NSW records 29 Covid deaths with 2,224 people in hospital

There were 12,908 new cases in the last reporting period, and 63 people are in intensive care.

Updated

Flood warnings issued in three states

Flood warnings have been issued in NSW, Victoria and Tasmania.

The flooding is expected to be minor to moderate in parts of NSW and Victoria, and minor in Tasmania.

Updated

Albanese to take short break next week

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, says he will be “taking a break” next week, with his deputy, Richard Marles, to act in the top job in his stead.

Speaking on ABC Melbourne radio, Albanese said he would take a short period of leave and travel somewhere in Australia. He will be on leave from August 6-14.

Parliament rose yesterday for a month-long recess, with politicians to return to Canberra on September 5.

Albanese joked:

Taking a break with security issues is more complex, I have found.

He said it was his first period of leave this year. Opposition leader Peter Dutton took a fortnight of leave last month, travelling to the United States.

Updated

Possible shooting suspect in custody in north Queensland

Queensland police say a suspect in the shooting of four people near Collinsville in north Queensland may be among those in custody.

The shooting occurred yesterday morning at a rural property in Bogie near Collinsville. Of the victims, two men and a woman have died while one man remains in Mackay Base hospital in a serious but stable condition with a single gunshot wound to the stomach.

Superintendent Tom Armitt told Channel Nine’s The Today Show that of the five people police were speaking to:

Three people remain in custody. We believe one of those persons is responsible for this matter.

No charges have been laid.

Armitt had earlier said: “the parties involved are neighbours and some conversation has occurred between the parties,” he said.

Nine news is also reporting that of the five people being questioned overnight, the other two people were wind farm contractors near the property “just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

Updated

Barilaro’s former chief of staff to appear at NY job inquiry

John Barilaro’s former chief of staff Siobhan Hamblin will today give evidence at the parliamentary inquiry.

She is expected to be asked about what she knows of the former NSW deputy premier’s controversial appointment to an overseas trade commissioner role.

Investment NSW managing director Kylie Bell and Public Sector Commissioner Kathrina Lo will also give evidence.

if you want to catch up about what hearings have heard so far this week, Michael McGowan and Tamsin Rose have this report:

Health minister says there are 58 cases of monkeypox in Australia

The health minister, Mark Butler, also discussed the increasing cases of monkeypox being reported around the globe on ABC radio this morning.

The government yesterday announced that monkeypox vaccines have been secured. Butler said they will be due to arrive “this week or early next week”.

He said there were now 58 cases of monkeypox in Australia.

ABC asked the minister if he was worried some communities may be vilified, given that monkeypox is being spread through sex (although it isn’t a sexually transmitted disease). He responded:

We’re really conscious of this, it’s important to say that anyone can get monkeypox … but this overwhelmingly has affected gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men.

We’re working very closely with the Federation of Aids Organisations, the clinicians in HIV medicine – these are organisations that over 40 years have built extraordinary networks and communities.

Updated

Health minister increasingly confident Covid-19 wave has peaked

Health minister Mark Butler was on ABC Radio just now after the national cabinet was briefed that the country may have seen the worst of the current wave of Covid.

Butler said there were still pressures on the health system with “close to 5,000 Australians in hospital with Covid – that’s close to one in 12 public hospital beds”:

There’s no question our doctors, our nurses and other hospital workers are still under enormous pressure … although we’re increasingly quietly confident that the peak has appeared a little earlier than we’d earlier feared.

Butler said the third wave had been “very bad”, with more than 300,000 cases a week officially though “the likely number was more than twice that”.

He said the fourth dose program was “going very well” since it was expanded, but he was still worried about the third dose.

As for the long-term situation, Butler said Covid-19 has not become a seasonal virus the way influenza is.

Updated

Investigations continue into north Queensland shooting

Police are speaking to a number of people over the shooting of three people on a remote property near the north Queensland town of Collinsville yesterday.

No charges have been laid.

Acting Superintendent Tom Armitt told Channel Nine today: “What we do know is that the parties involved are neighbours and some conversation has occurred between the parties.”

The AAP is reporting that the neighbours are believed to have met at the boundary line of their properties early on Thursday.

Updated

Resilience NSW ‘to be scaled down’

Disaster agency Resilience NSW, now led by Shane Fitzsimmons, could be scaled down under recommendations from the state government’s flood inquiry report, according to reports this morning in the Sydney Morning Herald and the ABC.

The report was handed to premier Dominic Perrottet five days ago but is yet to be made public.

Former police commissioner Mick Fuller and Prof Mary O’Kane are the authors of the report, which the Sydney Morning Herald said “will call for the bloated agency to be cut to a small office and its responsibilities reallocated to existing government departments”.

Updated

WA confirms first monkeypox case

Western Australia has confirmed its first case of monkeypox in a returned overseas traveller. The patient is in isolating in Perth, WA Health said.

The risk to the community remains low, according to authorities, and returned travellers are being urged to monitor for symptoms.

The state’s communicable disease control directorate’s director, Dr Paul Armstrong, said:

Monkeypox is spread to humans through close contact with an infected person or animal, either by direct contact with open lesions or prolonged face-to-face contact, or with material contaminated with the virus.

A person with monkeypox can transmit the infection to other people through skin lesions, body fluids, respiratory droplets and contaminated materials such as bedding.

Updated

Jacqui Lambie to speak at veterans inquiry

Tasmanian independent senator Jacqui Lambie will appear before the royal commission into defence and veteran suicide after years of campaigning for an inquiry into the nation’s armed forces, AAP reports.

Lambie served in the Australian army for 11 years, before being medically discharged in 2000 because of a back injury.

She will give evidence today and is expected to speak about a lengthy legal battle with the Department of Veterans’ Affairs over compensation.

Lambie, who called for a royal commission into defence force culture during her maiden Senate speech in 2014, has previously revealed she attempted suicide in 2009 as she struggled with an addiction to painkillers.

The commission is holding seven days of hearings in Hobart, its final evidence gathering before delivering an interim report on Thursday focusing on issues needing urgent action.

Lambie is scheduled to give evidence for three hours.

Tasmanian senator Jacqui Lambie
Tasmanian senator Jacqui Lambie. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian

Updated

Good morning!

Australia’s new parliament has wrapped up its first sitting week, and will return along with the wonderful Amy Remeikis on 5 September.

The House of Representatives yesterday passed Labor’s climate targets it took to the election, which will now be subject to a Senate inquiry. This will report back to parliament by the end of August.

The bill received support from a majority of the crossbench and one Liberal MP, Bridget Archer, but opposition leader Peter Dutton remains critical, telling Sky News that the government is introducing “unreliability” into the energy market. Prime minister Anthony Albanese had earlier declared the Coalition “stuck in time”.

If you want to read more about what happens now, Guardian Australia’s climate and environment editor Adam Morton has this report for you:

Meanwhile, forensic police are this morning conducting examinations around a rural property in north Queensland where they have declared several crime scenes after the terribly grim news that a gunman opened fire on four people yesterday morning.

Two woman and a man died at the scene, while a fourth man managed to flee with a gunshot wound to his stomach. He underwent emergency surgery yesterday and police say he is in a serious but stable position.

Police are speaking this morning with five people in relation to the shooting and say they “do not believe there is any ongoing danger to members of the public”.

It’s a busy Friday morning so let’s jump in!

Updated

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Marilyn Manson: Unmasked review – should a tour bus really need the age of consent pinned to the wall?
Abuse allegations – which he denies – pile up against the shock rocker in this chilling documentary, not helped by some of the sexual comments he makes about pre-teens
The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Yes, Mark Zuckerberg, You Can Shout 'Fire' in a Crowded Theater
Anyone discussing free speech should at least try to get this right.
Reason
Reason
Why are users commenting ‘Nice Try Diddy’ under Instagram ads?
You may have seen a surge in Nice Try Diddy comments under social media advertisements in the last couple of months
Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Graham Norton reveals why Robert De Niro’s anecdote on his talk show had to be ‘cut out’
De Niro has appeared on ‘The Graham Norton Show’ several times
The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Brooke Shields’s new book about embracing aging fails to realise one crucial thing
THE READING LIST: Shields was only a newborn when she appeared in her first TV ad, setting off a chain reaction of events that would see her become a generational touchstone of beauty and youth. Her candid new book is a surprisingly optimistic take on aging full of lessons in…
The Independent UK
The Independent UK
“Welcome To Your 40s”: These 120 Tweets Perfectly Sum Up What It’s Like To Be In Your 40s (New Pics)
It's the age when we start aching in the places where we used to play, as Leonard Cohen sang. The post “Welcome To Your 40s”: These 120 Tweets Perfectly Sum Up What It’s Like To Be In Your 40s (New Pics) first appeared on Bored Panda.
Bored Panda
Bored Panda
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.
Download on the AppStore Get it on Google Play