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The Guardian - AU
National
Josh Taylor (now), Caitlin Cassidy (earlier)

Japanese encephalitis declared disease of national significance – as it happened

Members of the public are tested at a COVID-19 testing centre in Melbourne
Members of the public are tested at a Covid-19 testing centre in Melbourne. Photograph: Joel Carrett/AAP

The day that was, Thursday 24 March

That’s where we will leave the live blog on a busy news day.

Here’s what made headlines today:

  • Up to 450 refugees on Nauru will be resettled in New Zealand over the next three years after the Australian government finally agreed to a nine-year-old offer from the government.
  • Embattled Kiama MP Gareth Ward has been suspended from parliament after being charged by police over the alleged sexual assaults of a 17-year-old boy and a man earlier this week.
  • Two men were charged over alleged threats against WA premier Mark McGowan and his family.
  • Labor has pledged 340,000 tech jobs by 2030 if elected.
  • The federal government finalised its deal with Moderna to build an mRNA facility in Victoria from 2024.
  • World tennis No 1 Ash Barty has said she is looking forward to spending more time at home with her family in a press conference the day after she announced her shock retirement from the sport.
  • Former senator Nick Xenophon announced he plans to run for the Senate again at the 2022 election.
  • There were 63,103 new Covid-19 cases reported: 24,803 in NSW; 10,259 in Victoria; 11,018 in Queensland; 8,616 in Western Australia; 4,742 in South Australia; 2,009 in Tasmania; 1,278 in the ACT and 378 in the Northern Territory.
  • There were 36 Covid-19 deaths reported: eight in NSW, 11 in Victoria, six in Queensland, two in SA, one in NT, one in Tasmania, and seven in WA.
  • NSW Health confirmed a two-month-old baby died due to Covid-19 at John Hunter Hospital in December.
  • WA will ease most level two Covid-19 restrictions from Thursday next week.
  • Japanese encephalitis has been declared a disease of national significance.

Thanks for reading. See you tomorrow.

Updated

Western Australia will ease most Covid-19 restrictions with authorities confident the state has reached the peak of its Omicron outbreak, AAP reports.

WA’s infection numbers have outpaced the government’s Omicron modelling, but fewer people than expected have required intensive care.

Premier Mark McGowan said this had provided assurance the state could unwind most level two public health measures from next Thursday.

Hospitality venues, currently limited to 150 patrons, will be subject to a 2 sq metre rule and limited to 500 attendees until 14 April.

Up to 30 people will be allowed at indoor home gatherings and 200 at private outdoor gatherings, while major venues like Optus Stadium can host 75% of their usual capacity.

But indoor mask-wearing will remain mandatory for adults and children aged year three and above.

“At this point in time, it appears the doubling in case numbers has stopped,” McGowan told reporters.

“We are now on course for the soft landing Western Australians have been aiming for.”

Under the new rules, people will still need to check in to “higher-risk” venues such as bars, but not supermarkets.

Visitor limits will remain in place at hospitals, residential aged care and disability care facilities.

West Australians who contract Covid-19 will also be exempt from being classed as a close contact until 12 weeks after their recovery, in line with national guidelines.

Updated

An interesting side note to the refugee announcement today. Independent senator Jacqui Lambie says the secret terms of the deal she made with the government in 2019 to repeal the medevac legislation can finally be revealed – it was to get people off Manus Island.

She told News.com.au:

My demand was to ensure that by the time his term was finished, to make sure that everybody, unless they were a security risk, was off those bloody islands.

I couldn’t tell the story of what had happened because otherwise the deal’s off. That means that people would have been still stuck there.

Updated

NSW transport minister David Elliott says an agreement has been reached with the Rail, Tram and Bus Union and there will not be industrial action as originally planned.

He says he and the union are committed to offering fare-free days for commuters.

He says services should be as normal tomorrow, but warned extreme weather and Covid-related staffing issues could impact the network.

Updated

That would be a lot of rain...

The AFL is launching a comprehensive and independent review of the work and advice of concussion doctor Paul McCrory who for years treated and diagnosed athletes suffering concussions and other serious head injuries.

My colleagues Melissa Davey, Stephanie Convery and Emma Kemp have the full story.

Victoria’s lower house has gone to the consideration in detail stage of a bill for the first time this parliamentary term.

For those of you that aren’t political nerds, this basically means non-government MPs will be able to put questions to the government on a bill, move amendments and debate clauses in detail before it goes to a final vote.

The bill in question? The Puffing Billy Railway Bill 2022, which will see the Emerald Tourist Railway Board renamed the Puffing Billy Railway Board with updated responsibilities as a significant Victorian tourist attraction.

I don’t think it’s a coincidence it’s happening a couple days after this report:

Hannah Clarke discovered a threatening note on her estranged husband’s phone that said her children “will miss you I’m sure” a month before he killed them in a suburban Brisbane street, an inquest has heard.

The note, discovered by Hannah Clarke on 26 January 2020, said “you can’t fuck with someone’s life like this and expect them to just take it”, the inquest was told.

  • In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is on 13 11 14 and the national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732. In the UK, Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123 and the domestic abuse helpline is 0808 2000 247. In the US, the suicide prevention lifeline is 1-800-273-8255 and the domestic violence hotline is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). Other international helplines can be found via www.befrienders.org

Andrews can’t say how quickly the resettlement will get under way, just “as soon as possible” noting they’re still finalising details.

She says there are still “a couple of hundred places” left in the United States deal, and opportunities in Canada, and the government will “continuously look for resettlement opportunities” for those who do not resettle in NZ or the US.

Updated

Andrews says the NZ plan will work in parallel with the existing resettlement arrangement with the United States, and people who are already in the process of being resettled in the United States should “stay on that path”.

She says those who settle in New Zealand will not be able to stay in Australia permanently.

The policy position has not changed. Anyone who is part of the resettlement arrangement with New Zealand, will not be able to come to Australia permanently, will not be able to become a citizen of Australia and will not be able to stay here on a permanent basis.

Home affairs minister Karen Andrews press conference

Home affairs minister Karen Andrews is holding a press conference about the government’s deal with New Zealand to resettle up to 450 refugees from Nauru.

She says the resettlement will be under NZ’s exising refugee quota program, and will not apply to anyone who tries to get to Australia by boat now.

Andrews rejects claims from Labor that the arrangement might never happen under the Coalition government.

She said:

Well, nothing could be further from the truth. So we are now in the process of operationalising those arrangements.

We will continue to work with New Zealand to operationalise the arrangements, we will continue to work with the UNHCR. It was the middle of last year where I announced that I was working with the New Zealand government to facilitate the finalisation of this arrangement. We have worked productively with New Zealand and they have worked very collaboratively with us to reach this arrangement. So a lot of issues had to be negotiated.

We had to work closely with the UNHCR but the important thing is that this agreement has now been reached, it has now been finalised and we will proceed immediately to operationalise this agreement. This is a positive outcome for those who have been in this country or are in a regional processing centre and they will have the opportunity to consider and be considered for resettlement in New Zealand but let me be very clear.

Updated

Gareth Ward suspended from NSW parliament

Embattled Kiama MP Gareth Ward has been suspended from parliament after being charged by police over the alleged sexual assaults of a 17-year-old boy and a man earlier this week.

The New South Wales parliament on Thursday passed the motion to suspend Ward until the charges against him are resolved, with acting premier Paul Toole telling the parliament that it would not move to expel the former Liberal minister to safeguard the trial.

Ward was charged on Tuesday over allegations of sexual abuse against a man and a 17-year-old boy dating back several years. He denied the allegations and said he will be fighting the charges.

Toole said the government was not moving to suspend the member’s pay because it did not have that power, but was looking at other options.

Premier Dominic Perrottet said on Tuesday when charges were first laid that, while Ward was entitled to the presumption of innocence, he should fight the charges as a private citizen and he would seek to remove the member from parliament if he did not resign.

Toole moved the motion in parliament on Thursday:

I move that this house, one: suspend the member for Kiama from the service of the house until the verdict of the jury has been returned and the five criminal charges laid against him ... or until it is further ordered.

Two: acknowledges the need to ensure the alleged victims in this matter have their day in court, therefore cannot debate the alleged misconduct of the member for Kiama contained within the said charges.

Three: notes this house did not have the power to withhold a member’s remuneration.

He said it was important that all members of the house did not discuss the charges to avoid a mistrial:

The most significant of these risks is the possibility that alleged victims will be deprived of their day in court.

The motion was supported by the opposition.

Ward released a statement following his suspension, saying he was disappointed but would continue to represent the people of Kiama as “its democratically elected” MP.

He said:

The legislative assembly of the parliament has today taken the step of suspending me as a member based on allegations that I completely deny and that have yet to be tested in a court of law.

I am extremely disappointed with that decision.

The effect of the decision is that I am unable to speak and vote in parliament.

I will, however, continue to represent and lobby for my local community as its democratically elected member of parliament.

As challenging a time as this is for me personally, I have an important job to do and I intend to get on with it.

Updated

Journalist and refugee Behrouz Boochani, who settled in New Zealand after being held on Manus Island for four years by Australia, was on ABC’s Afternoon Briefing, and was asked about the announcement of the resettlement of up to 450 refugees from Nauru in New Zealand.

He says people have been waiting for this day, but it should have come a long time ago. He wondered why those detained on Manus Island were not included.

He said those being settled in New Zealand will realise it is very different to Australia.

He said:

I think, when I came to New Zealand, I thought of New Zealand and Australia having the same culture and system. My friends actually warned me that, oh no, New Zealand is quite different.

It is a different country, now after two years, I really see that New Zealand is really a different country. People here, they, I think they are happy to work on these refugees. They are happy to accept them and also with the system here, that is a big difference between Australia and New Zealand, the immigration system in New Zealand is, everything is clear in the system.

When refugees come here, they know what will happen for them. In Australia, it is not like that. We have thousands of refugees, around 30,000 refugees who have been in Australia for more than nine years, and still many of them, even they didn’t process them.

Here, I think that the approach is different. The approach is with kindness, with compassionate. I am sure that when refugees come here, they will be happy and they really like to ... establish their lives.

That is a great achievement, I think, for those refugees.

Updated

Rex Patrick to announce political intentions tomorrow

South Australian independent senator Rex Patrick, who replaced Nick Xenophon in the Senate in 2017, has said he will make an announcement about his political future tomorrow, after Xenophon announced his intention to run for the Senate again.

He said:

Clearly Nick Xenophon’s decision to throw his hat into the SA Senate changes the landscape.”

I have worked for Nick as an adviser and I have great respect for him as a politician. He can again be a fine representative of our great state.

I will make an announcement concerning my own political intentions tomorrow.

The Senate legal and constitutional affairs committee, which is chaired by Liberal senator Sarah Henderson, has called for a major overhaul of the government’s anti-trolling bill.

In a report, released on Thursday, the committee suggests it be amended:

  • So the social media page operators can be liable in defamation if they encourage the publication of defamatory comments or have been notified of defamatory material and fail to remove it
  • To change the complaints scheme so social media companies can delete defamatory posts within 72 hours without the poster’s consent if they fail to reply

The former recommendation addresses a widespread concern that a blanket defence for operators of social media pages against being held liable as publishers of third-party comments could actually increase the amount of trolling online.

It’s a sign of how rushed the bill was, that government senators writing the majority report were not on board - but they did ultimately recommend for it to be passed.

Labor senators wrote a minority report warning of “significant dangers that this poorly conceived and drafted bill will make the problem of online trolling worse” because of the “sweeping defences” it provides social media companies and page operators to claims of defamation.

Labor recommended the bill not be passed without substantial amendments, calling instead for a shorter bill to address the Voller high court decision, which found media companies were publishers of third party comments on their social media posts.

Your daily Ben Roberts-Smith trial update.

One Covid-19 death reported in NT

The Northern Territory has recorded one additional Covid-19 death today, a man in his 70s from Greater Darwin.

There were 378 new cases reported in the territory. There are 18 people in hospital, one in ICU and two requiring oxygen.

WA records seven Covid-19 deaths

Western Australia has reported seven more Covid-19 deaths, and 8,616 new cases.

There are 209 people in hospital, and nine in intensive care.

In 2019, Chinese telecommunications network company Huawei hired Nick Xenophon to “help [Huawei] challenge false and misleading statements made about Huawei by entities with strong vested interests and will also help provide a more fact-based conversation in the national media,” the company said in a release.

Huawei has been banned from supplying network equipment for the NBN, as well as 5G networks in Australia.

The chair of the parliament’s joint standing committee on intelligence and security, James Paterson has called on Xenophon to explain why he represented the organisation now that Xenophon is running for the Senate again.

It is worth noting several people from all sides of politics have been involved with Huawei at one stage or another. Former Liberal foreign minister Alexander Downer was an Australian board member of the company until 2014.

In a statement from Nick Xenophon on why he’s going to run for the Senate again at the upcoming federal election, he says he has tried to be a “political hermit” for the last four years, but says he can no longer sit on the sidelines.

Incredibly, it has gotten worse in Canberra. It’s nastier, full of hatred and bile that eats away at our nation’s core.

So many of them are too busy doing a job on each other, rather than doing the job we’re paying them for.

I must come back, to call them out, and to speak out on the issues that have to be tackled. Why? Because I give a damn about our state’s future and our kids’ future.

And more than ever, South Australia needs strong independent representation in the Senate to ensure our state never misses out of its fair share of federal services and funding. I’ve done it before, and I’ll do it again.

He acknowledges it won’t be easy to return, and he is starting from scratch. He says his name will be below the line on the Senate ballot paper - because he won’t be on a party ticket.

But what I do have is a burning passion and energy to fight for our state; for the issues that matter and to give everyday South Australians a genuine voice.

This will be the fight of my life, but I’ll do it, because I give a damn.

Labor has welcomed the government’s announcement to resettled up to 150 refugees in New Zealand per year, but has said the announcement is “just another pre-election promise to protect inner-city Liberal seats” and may never be implemented by the Liberal government.

Shadow home affairs minister Kristina Keneally said:

This is a humiliating backflip for Scott Morrison who claimed as recently as 2018 that New Zealand’s generous offer to resettle refugees would see people smugglers restart their evil trade.

Peter Dutton foolishly backed in Mr Morrison, saying New Zealand is being ‘marketed and pitched’ as a destination by people smugglers.

That was not true then, and is not true now - as the Morrison government has been forced to admit.

The deal was first organised under the former Labor government in 2013, but when the Liberal-National government came to power the deal was dropped.

Keneally says a Labor government will make sure the deal is delivered finally.

South Australia records two Covid-19 deaths

South Australia has reported 4,742 new Covid-19 cases, and two additional deaths.

There are 157 in hospital, 10 in intensive care, and one ventilated.

The New South Wales State Emergency Service has told people in NSW to prepare for moderate to heavy rainfall in the coming days.

The Bureau of Meteorology is warning that showers and thunderstorms are expected across northern and eastern NSW over the coming days, with some widespread moderate rainfall in already flood-affected areas of the state.

The catchments already being full in many places also increases the risk of flash flooding and river rises, the NSW SES said.

The agency has activated an incident management team in Grafton, and the ADF are continuing to provide assistance, moving over 200,000 sandbags and other equipment to the NSW SES warehouse yesterday for use across the state.

Acting commissioner Daniel Austin said:

The devastation caused by the Northern Rivers floods is still being processed by residents, many of whom are still trying to clean up the aftermath. We know that for those people this latest warning will come as very unwelcome news.

These latest floods have proven just how dangerous severe weather events of this kind can be, which is why we are appealing for people to start making a plan now and to be prepared to leave early should they need to evacuate.

Put together an emergency kit with all your essentials so you have that ready to go. Have a plan about where you’ll go and the route you’ll take.

Updated

Communications minister Paul Fletcher has criticised Labor for not responding much at all regarding this week’s announcement of $480m in planned upgrades to the fixed-wireless network to give more users in regional and remote Australia faster speeds on the NBN.

He says Labor has been “uncharacteristically quiet” about it, but claims because the communications union described the announcement as a “joke” - because they say the workers actually installing the NBN are very underpaid, that this is “Labor’s union masters” belling the cat.

Fletcher said:

“Labor needs to come clean on what, if anything, it plans to do to provide better, faster internet services across the fixed wireless network.

Regional and remote Australians deserve to know: will Labor back the Government’s $750m plan? Or will Labor take its lead from its union masters and turn its back on regional and remote broadband users?

Worth noting in November, Fletcher criticised Labor’s announcement of a policy to upgrade an additional 1.4m homes from fibre-to-the-node to full fibre to the premises as “more wasteful government spending of taxpayers money.”

Updated

Independent MP and anti-gambling campaigner Andrew Wilkie has questioned - in response to the WA government’s decision not to revoke Crown’s licence - what it would take for a licence to actually be revoked.

He said:

What will it take for Crown to actually lose its licence? If the Royal Commission into Crown Perth deemed them unfit to operate the business, then their licence needs to be cancelled immediately. Letting Crown continue to operate a casino in Western Australia is akin to letting a serial drunk driver hold onto their licence.

Just like similar probes in Victoria and New South Wales, the West Australian Royal Commission laid bare damning evidence that Crown facilitated money laundering, bullied regulators, underpaid gambling taxes and broke responsible gambling rules. Frankly the company’s behaviour, across the breadth of Australia, has been unethical, dishonest and downright illegal.

And yet all the gambling giant gets is a warning and slap on the wrist. I find it impossible to believe this cowboy casino outfit is suddenly going to embark on a path of righteousness, no matter how much oversight is provided.

Yes, the Royal Commission did recommend tougher regulations, oversight and penalties for Crown’s criminal activity, but it’s not enough to change its corrupt culture, let alone hold the people responsible to account. Surely this time the Australian Securities and Investments Commission must act decisively against the Board, unlike Crown Melbourne where the Commission failed to hold anyone genuinely to account.

The Australian Education Union has called for the school term in South Australia to end a week early amid a growing number of Covid-19 cases and staff absences, AAP reports.

The union said a survey of schools last week revealed more than three-quarters of schools and preschools had between one and 10 teachers away each day.

There were similarly high rates of absences among support staff.

The AEU has suggested officials declare the final week of the current term a pupil-free period.

“As a demonstration of goodwill toward fatigued educators, this break will provide much-needed time to reset in preparation for term two,” the union said in a statement on Thursday.

“Words of thanks are not enough. Real measures to address workforce exhaustion are needed now.”

In response to increasing case numbers, classes in some schools have been combined.

While authorities this week decided that whole classes would be sent home if 10 or more students tested positive.

The actions came as Covid-19 infections across SA spiked on Wednesday with the daily case tally of 4594 the third-highest since the start of the pandemic.

Recent modelling suggested average daily infections could top 8000 and possibly even 10,000 within weeks with a rise also in hospitalisations and deaths.

A meeting of SA’s new Emergency Management Council on Friday will consider the response to rising cases as well as SA’s existing restrictions, including isolation requirements and statewide mask mandates.

Premier Peter Malinauskas said he had asked for further modelling to be provided on what the effect would be on case numbers of reducing SA’s isolation and mask-wearing rules.

“We want to make informed judgements,” he said.

“The more information we can have, the better for my team.”

Updated

Nick Xenophon running for the Senate again

Former independent senator Nick Xenophon has announced he’s running for the Senate again in South Australia

He left the Senate in 2017, and was replaced by Rex Patrick.

He then unsuccessfully ran for the parliament in South Australia before returning to his law practice.

Victorian premier Daniel Andrews says the state remains committed to a national process of raising the age of criminal responsibility, despite a parliamentary inquiry calling for the state to commit to the reform.

A parliamentary inquiry into Victoria’s justice system released its report today, recommending the state raise the age of criminal responsibility from 10 to at least the age of 14.

Last year, Australia’s attorneys general agreed to develop a plan to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 12. But it sparked a backlash from human rights and Indigenous advocacy groups who said it would do little to reduce the number of children in prison.

Andrews said the national process to raise the age had “taken too long” but believed a nation-wide approach was the best way forward.

“At some point, if it seems there’s not going to be a national outcome, then of course we will look at this issue,” he said.

Last year, the ACT became the first Australian jurisdiction to support raising the age from 10 to 14.

The Victorian parliamentary inquiry’s report said the state’s participation in the national plan to raise the age to 12 was a “missed opportunity” to ensure children were diverted into social services rather than trapped in the criminal justice system from an early age.

Updated

An external monitor should be put in place to oversee Crown Resorts’ Perth casino, if it is allowed to keep its license, a royal commission in WA has found.

The WA royal commission, the third inquiry into the Crown empire in the past two years, found that Crown was not fit to hold the Burswood casino license, but set out a “pathway to suitability” through which it could rehabilitate itself.

In addition to the appointment of an external monitor, something that was also recommended by inquiries in NSW and Victoria, the commission recommended that Crown beef up its risk management, anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism finance program and the capacity of the Burswood casino board to oversee operations, and completely overhaul the corporate culture at the casino.

The commission also recommended that the state government set up a “comprehensive scheme that will empower casino patrons to set their own spend and time limits for electronic gaming machine use” - something it said would be easier in WA than in NSW or Victoria because the Perth casino has a state monopoly on pokies.

Perth’s inquiry was sparked by the same allegations of criminal involvement in junkets and facilitation of money laundering, aired by Nine Entertainment on TV and in its newspapers in 2019, that were found to be largely true by the NSW and Victorian inquiries.

The WA inquiry also upheld these findings.

And it criticised the state’s Gaming and Wagering Commission, saying that “there have been numerous deficiencies in the manner in which the Gaming and Wagering Commission has exercised its power and responsibilities in relation to casinos and casino gaming”.

In its report, it said:

The deficiencies which we identified in the regulatory framework and the inadequate regulatory actions of the Gaming and Wagering Commission and the support it received from the Department, have resulted in deficient regulation of the risks from the organisation and conduct of gaming operations at Perth Casino. This regulatory failure has, in turn, contributed to the past and current failure of the Perth Casino licensee and its associates to adequately mitigate those same risks.

Barty says she spoke to mentor and tennis champ Evonne Goolagong yesterday:

I just called her and wanted to have a chat with her, and obviously she’s been incredibly supportive as Roger has been as well. They’re incredible people. I’m very lucky to have them in my corner.

[Goolagong’s] just been incredible. Evonne always knows the right thing to say at the right time. She’s always been there for me but never been in the way, she’s never tried to impose herself. She’s always been someone who has been there for me and I’m so grateful and I can’t wait to spend a bit more time with her now.

Barty says her name will be taken off the list in the next rankings. She says her wedding is coming up soon but won’t say when exactly, or where it will be.

That’s the end of the press conference.

Updated

Just returning to the Ash Barty press conference, her coach Craig Tyzzer says her retirement plans were not a shock to him:

Yeah, look, it’s not a shock to me. Ash does her own thing and when she started together she wanted to do it the way she wanted to do it. And - yeah, look, I think it’s the right time. I think she won the Aussie Open for everyone, not just for her. I think that was for everyone else, and - yeah. I don’t think there’s anything left in the tank for her.

He says it speaks volumes about Bary that she doesn’t need validation through tennis.

Yeah, I think it speaks volumes for who she is. Yeah, look, how many grand slams are enough. So, we’re amazed at - we have seen Rafa, you know, at the French and what he’s done, and to know how hard it is to be win one grand slam, to go out there and do what he’s done, I mean, that’s incredible. But, yeah, look, it was never about the successes, it was about fulfilling Ash’s dreams and she basically did that.

Up to 450 refugees from Australia’s regional processing centres will be resettled in New Zealand over the next three years, after the federal government took up a long-standing offer from Jacinda Ardern.

Up to 150 refugees a year will be able to go to New Zealand, under the deal announced by home affairs minister Karen Andrews and her Kiwi counterpart Kris Faafoi on Thursday.

The arrangement is only open to those refugees in Nauru or who are “temporarily in Australia under regional processing arrangements”. It is not open to those who are
“engaged in other third country resettlement pathways”, like the arrangement Australia has with the United States.

Andrews stressed that “Australia’s strong border protection policies had not changed”, and the resettlement plan would not apply to people who attempted to come to Australia in future.

“Australia remains firm – illegal maritime arrivals will not settle here permanently. Anyone who attempts to breach our borders will be turned back or sent to Nauru,” she said.

Faafoi, NZ’s immigration minister, said his country was happy to take the refugees.
“New Zealand is very pleased that Australia has taken up the offer to resettle up to 150 refugees annually for three years,” he said.

“We are pleased to be able to provide resettlement outcomes for refugees who would otherwise have continued to face uncertain futures.”

Greens immigration spokesman Nick McKim tweeted that the deal was “blessed, belated relief”, but was critical of the time it had taken.

“We know that NZ will open its arms to all those who are resettled there, and give them the welcome they should have had in Australia years ago,” he said.

Updated

Refugees in detention on Nauru to be resettled in New Zealand

The Australian and NZ governments have announced 150 refugees a year who have been held in detention on Nauru or in Australia temporarily under regional processing arrangements will be settled in New Zealand.

Updated

Barty says she will be looking forward to spending more time at home:

I mean, I have missed out on a few things but I’ve been able to experience and have the opportunity to experience so much more, and now that’s just bit of a shift. I get to experience more time at home and spend more time at home with my family, which is exciting, and kind of put my energy into different contributions.

She says her nieces and nephews are excited to have “Aunty Ash” back home more.

Barty says she is looking forward to contributing more to the Indigenous side of tennis:

Everyone’s been so unique in their journeys and everyone’s had differ challenges along the way, but I know my contribution with the Aboriginal and Indigenous side of our sport will only grow. I’m really excited for that, I’m really excited to have the opportunity to give Indigenous youth, Aboriginal youth around our nation more opportunity to get into the sport. That’s something that we’ll work on down the track but I am excited to spend more time in that space.

Barty is asked if she might try AFL. She says she’s a “sports nut” and always likes trying different things “but we’ll see how we go”.

Barty says she’s been in discussions about her retirement for a while, and after Wimbledon her perspective changed. The Australian Open in January was a “beautiful challenge” and a goal for her to win.

She said:

To do that as a team and to do that with the people that meant so much to me was incredible so it was just - there is no perfect way, there is no perfect timing but this was our perfect way, and it was a great finish.

Barty says she is an open book, and has no secrets and is not hiding anything. She says she’s never been a prisoner in the sport, and appreciates all the love and support she has received in Australia.

I think the Australian public allowed me to be myself. They allowed me to make mistakes, they allowed me to be imperfect, and I - it just made it so much more fun, and it really did make that Australian Open so much more enjoyable for all of us to be able to go, “You know what? This is one last crack. Let’s see what we can do.” And it was really cool.

She says she is excited for the next chapter of “Ash Barty the person” and not the athlete. She says she’ll never stop loving tennis, but she’ll now just be playing for her.

Ash Barty speaks about shock retirement announcement.

World women’s tennis number one Ash Barty is speaking at a press conference about her shock retirement announcement yesterday.

Barty says the time was right:

I just knew for me the time was right. I’d given absolutely everything that I could to this sport, and I knew that it wouldn’t be fair to my team and the people that have invested so much time and energy into my life to not be 100% committed to them. So it’s been a hell of a journey. I wouldn’t change a thing and I certainly have no regrets.

Updated

National Covid-19 update

Here are the latest coronavirus numbers from around Australia today, as the country records at least 35 deaths from Covid 19:

ACT

  • Deaths: 0
  • Cases: 1,278
  • In hospital: 42 (with 3 people in ICU)

NSW

  • Deaths: 8
  • Cases: 24,803
  • In hospital: 1,180 (with 43 people in ICU)

NT

  • Deaths: 1
  • Cases: 378
  • In hospital: 18 (with 1 person in ICU)

Queensland

  • Deaths: 6
  • Cases: 11,018
  • In hospital: 271 (with 11 people in ICU)

South Australia

  • Deaths: 2
  • Cases: 4,742
  • In hospital: 157 (with 10 people in ICU)

Victoria

  • Deaths: 11
  • Cases: 10,259
  • In hospital: 244 (with 25 people in ICU)

Western Australia

  • Deaths: 7
  • Cases: 8,616
  • In hospital: 209 (with 9 people in ICU)

Updated

Victorian premier Daniel Andrews has slammed Liberal MP Wendy Lovell’s comments on social housing, labelling her remarks “shameful.”

During a debate in Victorian parliament over a Greens bill to end homelessness by 2030 on Wednesday, Lovell said there was “no point” in having social housing in wealthy areas “where the children cannot mix with others”. She pointed to low-income families’ inability to afford “the latest in sneakers and iPhones” as a reason children would struggle to fit in.

Andrews refuted opposition leader Matthew Guy’s clam that Lovell “means well” but had made “clumsy remarks.”

“No she didn’t... you can’t say those things then double down on it,” he told reporters.

“I reject, in the clearest terms, the Liberal party’s view that poor people should be kept poor and poor people should be kept away. That is wrong. That is fundamentally wrong.”

Updated

Buti notes the report says a lot has changed for the better since the inquiry began.

The remediation work expected of Crown over the next two years covers corporate governance, culture, junkets, and a review of responsible gambling.

The report also finds the current legislation regulating the casino is not fit for purpose, Buti says.

He adds that the government will not weaken the ban on poker machines in WA (outside of the gaming machines in the casino):

I want to make it clear that the McGowan Government will not weaken the prohibition against poker machines. We have the strictest regulation of poker machines in the entire country and we are committed to maintaining that. To reiterate: Under a McGowan Government, pokies will not be allowed, and are not allowed, in Western Australia. And electronic gaming machines are not, and will not be, allowed outside of Burswood Casino.

Updated

Royal commission report finds Crown unsuitable to hold gaming licence in WA

The WA racing and gaming minister Dr Tony Buti is holding a press conference on the report just tabled in WA parliament that says Crown is unsuitable to hold a gaming licence in Western Australia.

He says the royal commission was convened in March 2021, and has produced a 1,000-page report after holding 57 days of hearings from 69 witnesses.

The report makes 59 recommendations, but Buti says it is about “remediation not revokation” saying the government will not be revoking Crown’s licence, which he says would impact thousands of jobs.

He said:

It is clear from the report that the situation in Western Australia is broadly similar to that in New South Wales and Victoria, and that there are deficiencies with the casino operator in this state. The royal commission found that the Crown entities are presently not suitable to continue to hold a gaming licence for the Perth Casino, or to be concerned in - or associated with - the organisations and conduct of the Perth Casino operations.

The government accepts this key finding. Similar to reports handed down in New South Wales and Victoria, the royal commission details the remediation activities that Crown will need to implement to become suitable. Again, the government accepts these recommendations, which include establishing an independent monitor to monitor and report on Crown’s progress in implementing these remediation activities.

The report outlines that the remediation should take two years to implement. Importantly, this is about remediation rather than revocation, protecting the jobs of thousands of employees at the casino.

Updated

With that, I will pass you into the highly expert hands of Josh Taylor who will keep you informed for the rest of the afternoon.

Ash Barty is due to front the media in the next hour after her retirement, announced over Instagram yesterday.

Updated

China’s new ambassador to Australia has said Beijing has no intention of interfering in the upcoming federal election.

Xiao Qian, who said last month the two countries should “meet each other halfway” but is yet to spell out any tangible steps Beijing may be willing to take, spoke briefly to reporters after an event at the Chinese embassy in Canberra today.

When asked about the upcoming election, he said:

We have a policy, it’s a policy of principle, that we never interfere with the domestic affairs of any country, and the election of this country is the domestic affair of Australia. We have no intention, no interest to get involved. We have no choice of this party or that party. But whoever is going to be the ruling party after the election, we are looking forward to a more positive relationship.

We’re ready to work with the new government to grasp this year, the 50th anniversary of the development of diplomatic relations, and to put our relationship back on the right track, back to the right direction, so that China and Australia can move forward to the benefit of our two countries and peoples.

Xiao arrived in Canberra in January after years of increasing tensions over a range of issues including trade and security concerns. Australia’s laws against foreign interference were a source of tension when they were introduced under the Turnbull government. The head of Asio recently said the security agency had foiled an alleged foreign interference plot.

In the past few weeks, Xiao has met with both Marise Payne and Penny Wong. Payne and Wong have expressed their openness to dialogue while saying Australia won’t take a backward step on matters of national interest and sovereignty.

There’s a bit more chatter about whether treasurer Josh Frydenberg’s budget next week will show real wages increasing faster than inflation in the near term.

If they do, presumably the Reserve Bank will lose patience faster and raise interest rates, taking off some of that benefit for those on variable-rate mortgages.

So it’s interesting to see another major bank actually cut its variable rate, with Westpac the latest of the big four to move.

Westpac’s lowest variable rate is now 2.09% for those with a 30% deposit - making it the lowest variable of the big four, according to RateCity.com.au, a market tracker. St George and Bank of Melbourne are offering 2.04% for borrowers with a 40% deposit.

This follows cuts to the basic variable rate by NAB on 9 March and ANZ on 8 February, the company said.

“It’s astonishing to see some fixed rates rise by over two percentage points in the last 12 months, when the cash rate hasn’t moved a muscle,” said Sally Tindall, RateCity.com.au’s research director:

Westpac and other banks are responding to rising costs of funding and expected RBA hikes. As a result, the majority of big four bank owner-occupier fixed rates now start with a ‘3’, some even a ‘4’.

Hence, the shift back towards variable-interest rate loans among borrowers does seem a tad brave at this point.

Markets often don’t get it right (if investors were all-knowing, there would be a lot less trading every day in the stock and other markets). Still, investors are betting the RBA will move as soon as June to lift the official interest rate:

And a big CPI figure for the March quarter - due to land from the ABS on 27 April - would even make a pre-election RBA rate rise a possibility.

Updated

Remember carparks?

Queensland records 11,018 new Covid cases and six deaths

Queensland has just released its daily Covid update.

Sadly, six lives have been lost.

There are 271 people being treated in hospital with the virus, including 11 people requiring intensive care.

Updated

South Australian premier Peter Malinauskas has pulled a major surprise, picking an independent MP to join his new cabinet, AAP’s Tim Dornin reports.

The premier on Thursday named Geoff Brock as his local government, regional and veterans’ affairs minister.

Brock won the mid-north seat of Stuart in Saturday’s election after successfully switching from his electorate of Frome to take on former deputy premier Dan van Holst Pellekaan. The change was prompted by boundary changes which moved many of his supporters from Frome into Stuart.

Brock had previously served as a minister in the Labor administration of former premier Jay Weatherill after he provided support in 2014 for Weatherill to form a minority government.

Less surprising on Thursday was the appointment of Nick Champion as trade and investment minister. Champion easily won the northern suburbs seat of Taylor after making the switch from federal parliament, where he had served for almost 15 years.

Other members of the Labor ministry were largely predictable, with most taking on the same roles they held on the opposition’s front bench. Chris Picton has been named health minister, Stephen Mullighan treasurer, Tom Koutantonis infrastructure and transport minister and Blair Boyer education minister.

Deputy premier Susan Close increased her workload with the portfolios of industry and science, space and defence; and climate, the environment and water.

Labor’s cabinet reveal came as counting neared a close after Saturday’s poll, with the new government almost certain to hold 27 seats in the 47-seat House of Assembly. The Liberals will probably hold 15, with four or possibly five going to independents.

Updated

Speaking of Blockade Australia, two protesters involved in the demonstrations at ports in Sydney will be “removed” from the country, after immigration minister Alex Hawke decided to revoke their visas.

Protesters have disrupted Port Botany for several days, blocking freight roads by suspending themselves from poles. Two of the men, reportedly German tourists, have now had their visas cancelled.

In a statement on Thursday morning, Hawke said:

Today I exercised my power under section 133C(3) of the Migration Act to cancel the visas held by two non-citizen protesters on good order grounds, on the basis that it was in the public interest to do so.

Families going about their business, driving to school or work, do not deserve to be disrupted by the attention-seeking stunts of unlawful protesters.

Hawke said he’d asked the Border Force for more information on “any further potentially unlawful activity by temporary visa holders”.

The minister told 2GB radio there was “zero tolerance for temporary visa holders committing crimes in Australia”. Regarding the two Germans, Hawke said authorities were working on “their removal from Australia as soon as possible”.

A statue of late record executive and promoter Michael Gudinski has been unveiled at Melbourne Park. He died last year aged 68.

Updated

Following three days of climate inaction protests in Sydney this week, the state government will threaten a $22,000 fine, imprisonment for two years or both for blocking roads, bridges, tunnels or other transport facilities while protesting.

Five arrests have been made this week as Blockade Australia launched a series of direct actions disrupting traffic in the city.

“Everything is at stake. Engaging in strategic action like this is our attempt to force the changes necessary for survival while we still have the chance to act,” protester and practicing psychologist Helen said.

Updated

Japanese encephalitis declared disease of national significance

Japanese encephalitis virus has been declared a disease of national significance. At least three people have died from the mosquito-borne virus.

If you missed it, here’s a Full Story episode we released last week with everything you need to know about the virus.

Updated

Flood-watch warning for Bellinger, Nambucca and Severn rivers

Updated

The Animal Justice party has introduced a bill to the New South Wales parliament that would amend the Biosecurity Conservation Act to ban the killing of kangaroos.

Animal Justice party MP Mark Pearson introduced the bill on Wednesday. He told parliament it was “absurd and shameful that I have to bring a bill to protect this animal which is part of our image to the world”.

Pearson said the kangaroo cull program in NSW was based on flawed data, and suggested that was the reason that hunters very rarely met the annual quota for the number of kangaroos allowed to be harvested.

A parliamentary inquiry, called by Pearson, questioned the kangaroo data and said there was a need for more on-the-ground audits.

“What reason could there possibly be for the industry to fail to fill 70 per cent of its quotas, year in year out? The kangaroos are simply not there,” he said.

It comes as the European Union is under pressure to ban the import of kangaroo products.

Updated

NSW Health confirms infant died due to Covid in December

A young infant died in December due to Covid-19, NSW Health is reporting.

NSW Health has today confirmed a two-month-old baby passed away at John Hunter hospital due to Covid-19 in December last year.

The death, first publicly reported in January, was referred to the coroner, who has this week determined the infant died due to infection with the virus. The child had no underlying health conditions, and was infected with the Omicron variant.

A two-year-old child whose death due to Covid was reported on Monday was also infected with Omicron.

NSW Health has offered its heartfelt condolences to the family and asks their privacy be respected.

A further seven adults have died of Covid in NSW in today’s reporting period – one person in their 40s, one in their 60s, two people in their 80s and three people in their 90s.

Updated

Before the press conference ends, Albanese reasserts there were no complaints regarding behaviour towards Kitching put forward through established Labor processes.

Politics can be robust, I will put my hand up and say from time to time I’ve said some robust things in meetings. I doubt whether there is anyone in a senior position in the Labor party that can say that that’s not the case.

If there are any improvements in practices that can be made, I’m up for that. I did that between 2018 or 2019 when I became leader, leading up to the adoption in 2021 ... all of those processes, they are in place, there are in place for a good reason and they are best practice, and we’ve also said with regard to parliament, that we’ve adopted all of the recommendations of the Jenkins review going forward. There wasn’t even a candidate suggested against Kimberley Kitching for that ... I got asked a question before about the electorate of Parramatta, are there more people could be the candidate for Parramatta, well, we only had one.

Updated

Bowen continues.

I also want to say that it’s been a tough time for them [Wong and Keneally] and that also needs to be considered and they are valued and trusted colleagues, it’s been a difficult time for everyone involved in this discussion but I do just want to add on a personal basis to Anthony Albanese, [the] political party had the best practice complaints mechanism, dispute resolution better than any other party ...

Penny, Kristina and Katie, you could not find three more valued colleagues ... our focus [is] on the election of a better government, a government that Australia deserves, they can deliver for the people of this area, for western Sydney, that actually cares about the issues that are important to everyday Australians, and there is only one bloke who is going to deliver those things and that’s Anthony Albanese as prime minister.

Updated

Labor MP Chris Bowen is up. He says he wants to add “a couple of things from a personal point of view”.

There’s been a very difficult time for the Labor party with the loss of Kimberley Kitching but there are some things that need to be said about the current debate. Firstly, there is a robustness in politics. I’ve been on and off the tactics committee, on and off the front bench and ... and it’s a robust life, politics, but there’s been a lot of commentary about senior colleagues and I want to say this: Penny Wong, Kristina Keneally, I’ve served in parliament with Penny Wong for 17 years ...

... and they treat every single individual with respect, every single individual they interact with, they have treated me with respect and I have seen them treat every single colleague with respect, there are robust conversations from time to time with political parties, we are debating a better future for our country.

Updated

Albanese returns to the purpose of today’s press conference – to grow 340,000 jobs in the tech sector by 2030.

It joins with our national reconstruction fund to support new industries ... our support for start-ups that Ed Husic has pioneered. All of these policies go together to add up to a better future here.

What we’re saying is that we have an opportunity to learn from the pandemic and to build back stronger, to build back a stronger economy and one that works for people, not people just working for an economy.

Updated

Albanese says nominations for preselection in Kitching’s seat have been called for and will be determined in the next week.

We will finalise all our candidates, the Liberal party haven’t finalised their candidate for Parramatta yet. I’ll have an announcement about another candidate who has been preselected but not announced yet on the weekend. We’ll make sure that by the time we get to the budget we have candidates in all of the seats going forward.

Updated

Continuing on speculation Kitching was leaking, Albanese says he saw the speculation today and was not aware of its basis.

Kimberley Kitching’s passing is a tragedy ... I think that Kimberley Kitching deserves much better than an ongoing discussion about whether she spoke to the vice-president of the Liberal party at some time, or anyone else at any particular time.

Updated

Anthony Albanese is speaking now in Sydney at a construction site of some description. He was again asked about allegations the late Kimberley Kitching was leaking to members of government and if that is why she was removed from the Tactics Committee.

Albanese:

People are on and off the Tactics Committee ... I was on the Tactics Committee and I was removed from the Tactics Committee after 2013 and put back on ... Joel Fitzgibbon was removed from the Tactics Committee. From time to time there are changes made to our procedures and to composition of committees in both the Senate and the House of Representatives. That is the normal processes of political discourse.

Updated

PM calls resignation of Hillsong founding pastor ‘entirely appropriate’

Back to the press conference, Morrison was asked about the resignation of pastor Brian Houston from Hillsong yesterday. It came after an internal investigation found he had breached the church’s code of conduct at least twice by behaving inappropriately towards two women.

Morrison said it was “entirely appropriate” he resign.

I must admit we were very disappointed and shocked to hear the news. We heard it the same as – about the incidents [that] took place ... my first thoughts were with the victims, as they’ve been rightly described. And so I was very concerned. And the actions that have been taken are entirely appropriate ... I mean, I haven’t been at Hillsong now for about 15 years. I go to a local church in my own community, a Pentecostal church – I think everybody knows that. But I think that I was quite shocked. And I’m sure, like many, very disappointed.

Updated

Two men charged over alleged threats to WA premier and his family

In Western Australia, two men have been charged in relation to separate incidents involving alleged threats against premier Mark McGowan and his family.

In the first incident, a suspicious package was found at the premier’s electoral office in Rockingham. It is alleged a threatening letter towards McGowan was discovered inside the package along with a “white powdery substance”. Further testing determined it wasn’t hazardous.

On Wednesday, 16 March, a 58-year-old man from Melville was charged. He has been bailed to appear before the magistrates court on 7 April.

In the second incident, it’s alleged during the evening of 28 February a man made threats to the safety of the premier and his wife online and over the telephone. On 15 March, detectives executed a search warrant for a man’s home where several items were taken.

The 52-year-old man from Mahomets Flats has been charged on three counts including possession of a prohibited drug and has been bailed to appear before the magistrates court on 14 April.

Updated

Hunt reasserts an extra vaccination dose for older Australians and the immunocompromised is on the cards, with a decision likely to be revealed in the next 48 hours.

Asked whether it’s time to end Covid mandates and go back to living life as normal, Morrison says he would encourage everyone to get the third dose and reasserts Australia has surpassed 95% double doses for over 16-year-olds.

I spoke to the chief medical officer this morning, Professor Kelly, and they had a meeting of the medical expert panel yesterday – he’s been in constant contact, of course, with Greg Hunt. And he tells me that our hospital system is functioning well, well within the tolerances in terms of the impact of this latest wave and, you know, we’re not being complacent about this wave, but we also know that the severity of the disease for this wave is not what it was under Delta. We’re keeping a very close eye on other strains – the so-called Deltacron strain, which we are examining. But at this stage there’s not enough information to have clear views about that. And so we’ll continue to proceed cautiously, as we have throughout the pandemic.

Updated

Morrison says he agrees with the United States assessment that war crimes have been committed in Ukraine.

I think they’ve gone through the evidence and made those claims, and, yes, Australia would share their assessment based on what we have seen ... I am not shocked by their barbarity. I am not shocked by their arrogance in what they’re seeking to impose on Ukraine ...

I know Ukraine’s President Zelensky ... [is] very grateful for Australia’s response and the strong stand we’ve taken, and the United States have singled Australia out for our very strong stance. And one of the reasons they are so encouraged by it is in Australia we’re a long way away from Ukraine, but we can see a bully when we see them. And we always call them out, under my government.

Scott Morrison tours the Melbourne Centre for Nanofabrication, 24 March 2022.
Scott Morrison tours the Melbourne Centre for Nanofabrication, 24 March 2022. Photograph: James Ross/EPA

Updated

Morrison says having Putin at G20 'a step too far'

Turning to other matters, Morrison is asked whether Putin should go to the G20 summit in Indonesia later this year as planned. Earlier this morning, foreign minister Marise Payne said Australia had been in discussions with the G20 nations including Indonesia.

Morrison says the government has been “raising concerns” about this.

Russia has invaded Ukraine. I mean, this is a violent and aggressive act that shatters the international rule of law. And the idea of sitting around a table with Vladimir Putin, who the United States are already in the position of calling out war crimes in Ukraine [for], for me is a step too far.

Asked whether Australia would boycott the G20, he says “we want to make sure that the G20 for Indonesia is successful”.

We want to work closely with Indonesia as our partner - and I have been in direct contact with President Widodo about these issues. The G20 isn’t just one meeting at the end of the year. The G20 is a series of meetings, and the first of those come up in April, for finance ministers and central bank governors ... I don’t think it’s any secret – by that time ... we’ll be in a caretaker period given an election is due in the middle of May. And so that will obviously impact on Australia’s participation at that time.

But in terms of all the other meetings, we’ve been making very clear statements and representations about our very strong concerns about the involvement of Russia in the G20 this year ... and I would be disappointed if the G20 – and I’m sure President Widodo would feel the same – that the real purposes of it were not able to be achieved. So I think we need to have people in the room that aren’t invading other countries.

Updated

Asrak says the Covid vaccine will be prioritised for immediate production from 2024. He anticipates influenza “will not be too far behind” followed by respiratory syncytial virus.

We could very well have a Covid-influenza vaccine ready by the time production commences [in 2024] ... I think once the facility is up and running, we see up to 150 high-skilled jobs on the site.

Updated

Hunt is asked if a site for the mRNA hub has been decided on, with production expected to begin from 2024.

He says “ultimately, that’s been a decision between the Victorian government and Moderna” and there are a number of sites under consideration.

Gladys [Liu] has been advocating very strongly ... for Monash, and this is a leading candidate. And we have been in discussion this morning, but ultimately that’s once Victoria has completed its agreement we will be in a position to announce that. But Monash is right at the top of the list.

Updated

Managing director of Moderna in Australia and NZ, Michael Asrak, is speaking. He says it’s a “landmark occasion” for Australia and its medical research community and is confident the company will be in Australia longer than the 10-year agreement.

Australia is the first country in the world to reach an agreement with Moderna for onshore manufacturing ... Australia is going to have onshore capability of the most cutting-edge research available today for mRNA respiratory vaccines. Yesterday it’s Covid but tomorrow it will be influenza, respiratory virus and other respiratory viruses into the future. We’re investing heavily in developing combinations.

Just yesterday we announced we are going into the clinic for a triple combination – so Covid, influenza and respiratory virus – for at-risk populations over the age of 50 ... if we think about the pace of science, science has never moved faster than it is today ... we want to drive and embed ourselves end to end, looking at pre-clinical, looking at clinical trials, and most importantly developing workforce capabilities for the future. Today’s partnership is a 10-year agreement but Moderna talks in decades and we think and plan in decades. And I’m very confident we’re gonna be here for much more than 10 years.

Updated

Wendy Lovell's comments on public housing in the spotlight

Back in Victoria, Liberal MP Wendy Lovell is under pressure for comments made yesterday on public housing. She told parliament “there is no point putting a very low income, probably welfare-dependent, family in the best street in Brighton.”

Updated

Health minister Greg Hunt is up. He says mRNA isn’t just about “Covid and vaccines” but precision medicines of the future. He says the agreement will accompany a manufacturing hub for 100 million mRNA vaccines a year for respiratory conditions, a global R&D hub and a regional headquarters.

It’s about saving lives and protecting lives, it’s about pandemic resilience, but it’s also about the bright vision and horizon of job creation and an ecosystem for world-class research and translation.

mRNA isn’t just about Covid, it isn’t just about vaccines, it’s also about the precision medicines of the future so we can literally tailor the treatments for individuals over the course of the next decade. And the other thing we’ll be doing in the budget will be the 10-year Medical Research Future Fund plan, which is about tailored medicine and treatments and diagnoses, so as we will be the world leader in precision medicine and genomic medicine, and mRNA is the most flexible platform to deliver those outcomes.

Updated

Morrison says the multi-billion dollar investment will provide future resilience not just for pandemics but other areas of vaccine delivery. It will be the first manufacturing plant to offer mRNA vaccines in the southern hemisphere.

This means an Australian shot in the arm for our pandemic preparedness, for Australia’s health, but also for the future of Australian manufacturing in the medical sphere ... we have one of the highest vaccination rates in the world. And today we meet the 95% double-dose vaccination rate for Australia ... mRNA, before the pandemic began, was largely looked on as almost science fiction and now it’s a science reality, and it’s a science reality here in manufacturing in Australia. There are few countries in the world that have been able to get to this point through the course of the pandemic, and certainly none in the southern hemisphere.

Scott Morrison and the Liberal member for Chisholm Gladys Liu (R) tour the Melbourne Centre for Nanofabrication, 24 March 2022.
Scott Morrison and the Liberal member for Chisholm Gladys Liu (R) tour the Melbourne Centre for Nanofabrication, 24 March 2022. Photograph: James Ross/EPA

Updated

The prime minister is speaking in Melbourne now following the announcement of the Moderna deal to produce mRNA vaccines locally. He says today is a “big investment” for science and technology.

Boys and girls studying science today, when they go to school today and they’re sitting there in that science lab, this would have to be one of the most exciting times for any young person studying science at school or university because they are going into, should they choose to continue down that path, to one of the most exciting areas of Australia’s economic advancement.

Today is another big investment in that future for science and technology, which is such a central part of our economic plan. Because a stronger economy means a stronger future. And whether that’s building dams or whether that’s investing in new clean energy technology and research – in particular hydrogen – or it’s, indeed, investing in leading-edge, high-value vaccination manufacturing capabilities, this is Australia’s future.

Updated

Liberals select candidate for Bennelong

Former consulting boss Simon Kennedy has been chosen by the Liberals to contest the north-west Sydney seat of Bennelong, as the major parties scramble to preselect candidates in key federal seats, AAP’s Dominic Giannini reports.

Kennedy now sits on the Committee for Sydney as a non-executive member after leaving McKinsey in late 2021 to “pursue interests in government”, according to his LinkedIn page.

The NSW division of the Liberal party was given a deadline of 25 March to select candidates in key seats, after the federal executive intervened to re-endorse three sitting Liberal MPs who faced local challenges.

Kennedy will take the mantle from former professional tennis player turned MP John Alexander who has announced his retirement from politics ahead of the federal election, due to be held in May.

Both major parties are yet to select nominees for the marginal seat of Parramatta, with incumbent Labor MP Julie Owens retiring.

Labor leader Anthony Albanese says he wants a consensus candidate chosen for the seat amid suggestions former adviser to Kevin Rudd, Andrew Charlton, could be parachuted into the seat despite living in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.

The NSW Liberals’ Senate ticket will go to a vote on Saturday and Labor’s Victorian ticket has been opened for nominations, with a vote to occur in Canberra on Tuesday afternoon if an election is required.

Victorian government minister Natalie Hutchins and human rights barrister Fiona McLeod have been flagged as possible replacements for the late senator Kimberley Kitching, who was up for re-election.

Updated

She’s back. The HMAS Canberra has returned to Australia this morning three weeks after departing for Operation Tonga Assist.

A 32-year-old man has been arrested during Blockade Australia’s third day of climate inaction protests in Sydney. It is the fifth arrest this week related to the protests, which have blocked freight trains.

Updated

Tennis Australia head honcho Craig Tiley has responded to Ash Barty’s shock retirement at the age of 25.

He says “we’re disappointed” she’s cutting her career early but there’s respect and appreciation for her decision.

Praise for Barty has been pouring in around the world.

She is expected to hold a press conference in around three hours’ time.

Updated

Updated

A strong earthquake has just been detected in the Vanuatu Islands.

Here’s some more context on today’s Covid case numbers. ICU numbers are staying relatively stable in both New South Wales and Victoria, while overall hospitalisations are up by 18 in NSW.

Updated

Emirates will now fly two daily A380 services from Dubai to Melbourne from 1 May, up from one per day, grows its seats to more than 375,000 a year to Victoria as international travel resumes.

The extra flights will create about 1,000 new jobs in Victoria’s aviation and tourism sectors, the state government says.

Melbourne was the airline’s first destination in Australia in 1996. Emirates will join Qantas, Etihad Airways and Bamboo Airways in delivering increased services to Melbourne.

An Emirates Airbus A380 takes off from Dubai international airport.
An Emirates Airbus A380 takes off from Dubai international airport. Photograph: Christopher Pike/Reuters

Updated

Victoria records 10,259 Covid cases and 11 deaths

Victoria has recorded 10,259 new Covid cases and sadly 11 more deaths.

There are 244 people with coronavirus in hospital in the state, with 25 in ICU.

Updated

NSW records 24,803 Covid cases and eight deaths

New South Wales has released its daily Covid update and there have been 24,803 new cases detected.

Sadly, eight more lives have been lost overnight.

There are 1,180 people being treated in hospital with the virus and 83 people in intensive care.

Updated

This story from Paul Karp about Michael McCormack’s movie nights is great reading this morning.

They’re the “problematic” videos that the finance department didn’t want to see the light of day.

Created for an “objective” infrastructure campaign, the videos featured a cheery Michael McCormack spruiking federal government spending. They were to be played before free movies in a taxpayer-funded roadshow through regional cities to promote the Building our Future package in 2019, ahead of the May election.

Just 137 people attended the six movie nights, including one lone viewer in Ballarat, at a cost to taxpayers of $353,730 – or about $2,500 a ticket.

Updated

More from David Davis’s apology in Melbourne this morning.

Updated

“The Melbourne Centre for Nanofabrication” is quite a title.

Blockade Australia stops container trains in Sydney in climate crisis protest

Blockade Australia is protesting climate inaction for a third day in Sydney, this time blocking the train cargo route near Banksia street foot bridge.

This morning, Alex Pearse has halted container trains to and from the Port of Botany as part of Blockade Australia, a network organising direct action mobilisations in response to the climate crisis.

Pearse is suspended off a pole blocking the rail line to the Port of Botany, with banners that read “for the love of the planet” and “Australia is a threat to this continent”:

We are facing a climate catastrophe. I have worked in environmental science for 12 years and during that time I have seen no credible action on climate. I am taking direct action because without a halt to business as usual there will be no true change.

Blockade Australia says police have made four arrests at the port this week, one on Tuesday and three on Wednesday. A police operation is underway this morning.

Updated

The Doherty Institute’s director professor Sharon Lewin has welcomed the finalisation of the agreement with Moderna to develop mRNA vaccines.

We have seen with the Covid-19 pandemic the importance of being able to quickly create and deliver an effective vaccine.

By applying Moderna’s mRNA technology there are opportunities to revolutionise our approach to developing both vaccines and therapeutics. Traditionally, these pathways take years. It is an incredible investment in the future of global health.

Moderna has identified a list of close to 100 pathogens that could be eligible for investigation through the agreement, including HTLV-1, a deadly pathogen endemic in remote Aboriginal communities.

More unfamiliar or neglected diseases like HTLV-1 are often difficult to attract funding and attention for, despite their widespread global burden. Having the ability to design an mRNA vaccine candidate for HTLV-1 in the future could save years and potentially thousands of lives.

Only a handful of institutes, including the Doherty, have been selected at this early stage to be part of the program.

Updated

Whoops. In Victoria, shadow treasurer David Davis has apologised for being sent home at a gala event last night. He says he’s “not a teetotaller” but the behaviour is “not the way I am”.

Here’s the latest on that rain to come, which is already hitting Sydney.

Australia is risking its economic security in a future crisis by being too dependent on foreign-flagged commercial ships, a former navy chief, Tim Barrett, has warned.

Australia’s commercial fleet is likely to decline from 13 large-scale vessels to just nine by 2024, according to a shipping industry peak body whose members include Shell, BP and Origin.

Maritime Industry Australia says the war in Ukraine and the pandemic have shown how vulnerable international shipping can be in a crisis.

Teresa Lloyd, the chief executive of Maritime Industry Australia, said in an interview:

When push comes to shove, the place where the ship is registered is king. They can tell their ships where to go, what to do and what to carry. We don’t have an ability to do that except for the handful we have left.

Barrett, who is a board member of the same group, joined Lloyd for meetings with politicians in Canberra this week. The former chief of navy called on both sides of politics to take the decline in Australian flagged ships seriously, saying it was an issue of economic and national security. Barrett said:

To be entirely dependent on others is very concerning.

Maritime Industry Australia is calling for “tax and regulatory settings equal to those in other countries to make it commercial for the market (ship owners) to own and operate Australian ships”. It is also seeking a “government stipend for 20 ships to kickstart the industry”.

Labor pledged in January to build an “independent Strategic Fleet to secure our ongoing access to fuel supplies and other essential imports”. The Coalition is yet to make a similar commitment but the deputy prime minister, Barnaby Joyce, said last year that he believed Australia needed “Australian-flagged ships to have full sovereignty”.

Updated

If you missed it this morning, Madeleine Albright, the first woman to serve as US secretary of state, has died aged from 84. Tributes are flowing in around the world.

Marise Payne says Putin G20 attendance a ‘sensitive issue’

Vladimir Putin still plans to travel to the G20 summit in October. Marise Payne says these are “sensitive issues” and Australia is working in tandem with other G20 members including the host, Indonesia.

Updated

More rain is on the way for New South Wales, with falls of up to 100mm expected in some areas.

Foreign minister Marise Payne is speaking on RN Breakfast now reiterating the condemnation of the Ukraine invasion.

She says Russia’s intentional bombing of civilians and the forced deportation of residents constitutes a war crime. Expelling the Russian ambassador from Australia remains a “live option” however Payne says it could be useful to maintain lines of communication.

There shouldn’t be a key needed to prevent Putin from continuing this war. We all know it’s illegal and unlawful ... and a wholesale breach of the UN charter.

Asked whether India’s position on the war is strong enough, Payne says there is a “strong sense of unity around the world” and Australia and India maintain a “strong bilateral relationship”.

Ultimately these are matters for each country to determine their own approach but the importance of the unity in the coalition I spoke about ... this is a very strong and unified coalition against Russia’s illegal war, extracting the maximum cost on Russia that we can and providing as much support to Ukraine that we can.

Marise Payne says Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a ‘wholesale breach of the UN charter’.
Marise Payne says Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is a ‘wholesale breach of the UN charter’. Photograph: Paul Braven/AAP

Updated

In southern Tasmania, the search is continuing for four-year-old girl Shayla Phillips who was last seen around 2.30pm yesterday.

Tasmania police, Tasmania SES and the Westpac rescue helicopter are scouring the Stormlea area for the child who was last seen playing in a backyard with two dogs.

The little girl has long brown curly hair and was last seen wearing pink leggings, a light yellow top, and gumboots.

Police will front the media at 9.30am today to provide an update on the investigation.

Updated

Labor pledges to create 340,000 tech jobs if elected

Labor’s latest election commitment is to grow 340,000 jobs in the tech sector by 2030, pledging to develop an “industry plan” to boost new and existing companies.

The opposition accused the government of a “failure ... to back tech jobs”, claiming they would boost the industry from its current 861,000 jobs to some 1.2 million by the end of the decade if they won the election.

Labor leader Anthony Albanese and shadow industry minister Ed Husic will detail their plan on Thursday on Sydney. They say that their pledges for 465,000 free Tafe places, the creation of a new federal jobs and skills organisation, and the “startup year” plan through university accelerator hubs will help create those extra 340,000 jobs.

“Labor will work closely with the tech sector, including the Tech Council of Australia (TCA), to develop an industry plan that will look to strengthen existing firms, build new ones, and grow jobs here at home,” Albanese and Husic said.

Anthony Albanese will provide further details about Labor’s tech plan today.
Anthony Albanese will provide further details about Labor’s tech plan today. Photograph: Darren England/AAP

Updated

Government finalises mRNA deal with Moderna

Here’s more on that mRNA deal the federal government has finalised with Moderna.

Vaccines will be produced in Melbourne from 2024, but construction on the new factory could still be 20 months from starting and no site has yet been chosen for the cutting-edge facility.

Prime minister Scott Morrison had announced an in-principle agreement with the Texan company in December. Today’s announcement is the finalisation of that process, confirming the partnership between the federal and Victorian governments with Moderna.

The federal government said the facility would have the capacity to make up to 100m doses a year, including vaccines for Covid, influenza and other respiratory diseases.

In December, when announcing the in-principle agreement, the Victorian government said 100m would be the top capacity that it could “scale up” to in a future pandemic, but that the normal annual production would be 25m vaccines.

Morrison’s office said construction on the factory would begin before the end of 2022, ahead of production beginning from 2024. The PM said it would be “the first mRNA production facility in the southern hemisphere”.

A pharmacist holds a vial of the Moderna Covid-19 in Canberra.
A pharmacist holds a vial of the Moderna Covid-19 in Canberra. Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAP

The process of site selection is the subject of “negotiations” between Moderna and Victoria. Industry department officials told a Senate hearing in July 2021 that they were still choosing between retrofitting an existing factory, or building a new site.

It’s also yet to be announced how much the facility will cost, and how much taxpayers will contribute. In December, Morrison and then-acting premier of Victoria James Merlino said the financial details were “commercial in confidence” and “sensitive”.

Morrison said the facility would create 500 jobs in construction, and employ around 150 people once completed.

Health minister Greg Hunt said the onshore production of mRNA vaccines would be “crucial insurance” for the health of Australians. Australia currently has no local mRNA production capability, which led to supply issues during the initial phases of the Covid jab rollout and questions being raised over the Coalition’s strategy around ordering vaccines.

“It means Australians will have access to the most cutting-edge vaccination technology available both now and into the future,” Hunt said.

Moderna’s Australian arm called it a “landmark” deal, promising a “world class” mRNA industry onshore and pledging to work closely with local researchers on new medical developments.

Updated

Good morning

Good morning,

Caitlin Cassidy here to guide you through this morning’s news, with Covid again at the top of the headlines.

The federal government has finalised a deal with Moderna to begin producing mRNA vaccines in Australia, The vaccines are expected to be produced in Melbourne from 2024, with a site yet to be chosen for the facility.

The prime minister Scott Morrison had announced an in-principle agreement with the Texan company and the Victorian government in December. The federal government said the facility would have the capacity to make up to 100 million doses a year, including vaccines for Covid, influenza and other respiratory diseases.

As the pseudo election campaign ramps up, Labor leader Anthony Albanese and shadow industry minister Ed Husic will today announce an election commitment to grow 340,000 jobs in the tech sector by 2030 via free Tafe places, the creation of new federal jobs and skills organisation and university accelerator hubs.

It comes as Australian tennis has been reacting to the shock retirement of female world number one Ash Barty at the age of 25. Tributes have been flowing in for Barty, who won the Australian Open just months ago.

And Australia’s first truth-telling commission to investigate injustices against Aboriginal people is meeting today in Melbourne. Victoria’s Yoorrook Justice Commission and Indigenous elders will use today’s ceremonial hearing or wurrek tyerrang to outline the work of the commission. The commission was announced last year as a continuation of the process towards treaty in the state.

There’s a lot to come, so let’s dive in.

Updated

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