What we learned, 20 February 2023
And that’s where we’ll leave you on this summer Monday. Thanks so much for sticking with us. Here are your catch-up cliffnotes for the day’s events:
• Prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has addressed growing calls to ban the import of engineered stone, commonly used in kitchen benchtops, after reports of workers contracting silicosis, which causes irreversible lung damage.
• Federal treasurer, Jim Chalmers, has proposed changes to superannuation laws that will make it harder for people to withdraw savings before retirement.
• University staff have been underpaid more than $80m in the past three years, a landmark report on wage theft has revealed. The federal government has reiterated its commitment to act on criminalising wage theft by the end of the year, a key Labor election promise.
• Pat Dodson, Labor’s special envoy for reconciliation and implementing the Uluru statement from the heart, has emphatically rejected Peter Dutton’s suggestion the proposal for a local and regional voice is being sidelined.
• Philippine authorities said they would verify whether the wreckage of a small plane spotted near the crater of a restive volcano was that of a Cessna aircraft that went missing with four people onboard over the weekend, including two Australians working for a geothermal power company.
• Former Nationals MP Andrew Gee, who quit the party due to its opposition to an Indigenous voice to parliament, says sceptics will be proven wrong about the proposal, as he joined the minister for Indigenous Australians, Linda Burney, in regional NSW to kick off the “yes” campaign.
• A shark killed a 59-year-old Australian tourist on Sunday near a crowded beach in the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia.
• A search continues for two men who went missing while bushwalking in the NSW Blue Mountains last week. The 69- and 81-year-old bushwalkers left from Dunphy’s campground in the Megalong Valley on Wednesday, telling a friend they would be back on Friday.
• Young Collingwood forward Jack Ginnivan has been suspended after footage emerged of him allegedly using a banned substance in a Torquay hotel. He’ll be banned from the first two rounds of the 2023 season.
See you tomorrow, folks.
Updated
Action on silicosis ‘should not be a partisan issue’, PM says
Anthony Albanese has addressed growing calls to ban the import of engineered stone, commonly used for kitchen benchtops, after reports of workers contracting silicosis. Silica dust inhaled while working with the stone causes irreversible lung damage.
The prime minister told reporters in Perth:
The issue of silicosis is a really serious one. And it is impacting on workers – that has got to be front and centre. We will look at what can be done with state and territory governments in cooperation. This should not be a partisan issue, it should be an issue, which is about occupational, health and safety, with the safety of those workers front and centre …
And I think that today’s reports that were covered in the Nine newspapers just reinforce the concern, which is there. I have met with Dan Walton and the Australian Workers Union, and people who’ve been impacted by this. That’s what has led to further examination of action.
And certainly, I’m of the view that we should respond as quickly as we can, but we want to work this through with state and territory governments with the industry as well to make sure that there aren’t any unintended consequences. My government acts in an orderly fashion and we will be doing so on this as well.
Updated
Aston voters head to polls on April Fools’ Day to select replacement for Alan Tudge
Voters from the Aston electorate will head to the polls on April Fools’ Day to select their replacement for outgoing Victorian Liberal MP Alan Tudge, AAP reports.
House of Representatives Speaker Milton Dick has set the date for Saturday 1 April with candidate nominations to close on 9 March.
Tudge delivered his resignation letter to the Speaker last week, kicking off the formal byelection process.
The Liberal party has not yet confirmed its candidate for the seat, but senior party members are pushing for a female nominee.
Opposition leader Peter Dutton said the candidate announcement would happen in the “not-too-distant future”. He told reporters in Perth:
I would very much like – in the democratic process that we have in the Liberal party – for a female candidate to be selected in Aston, but ultimately that’s a question for the division in Victoria.
Dutton said the Liberals would go into the election as the “underdogs” because the government was still in its honeymoon period.
I’m confident, ultimately, that we can win but I think it’ll be a tough fight.
In a statement on Monday, the Australian Electoral Commission urged people to update their details on the electoral roll by 6 March, so they’re ready to vote in the byelection.
Labor confirmed breast-cancer survivor Mary Doyle would be the party’s candidate after she was chosen by the division unopposed.
Doyle was selected by Labor to take a second shot at the seat, having won 47.2% of the two-party vote at the 2022 federal election.
Updated
Severe storms are possible in south-west Queensland tomorrow, with non-severe storms possible in northern and eastern inland areas. Check the Bureau of Meteorology’s website for more.
⛈️QLD Storm Forecast for Tuesday 21/2. Severe storms with damaging wind gusts possible in #SWQld. Non-severe storms possible for northern and eastern districts inland of the coast. pic.twitter.com/ZWS8nKpARh
— Bureau of Meteorology, Queensland (@BOM_Qld) February 20, 2023
Updated
Search continues for two bushwalkers missing in Blue Mountains
A search is continuing for two men who went missing while bushwalking in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales five days ago, AAP reports.
The bushwalkers, aged 69 and 81, left from Dunphy’s campground in the Megalong Valley on Wednesday, telling a friend they would be back on Friday.
Police say the alarm was raised on Sunday when the 69-year-old failed to keep an appointment that day, and a search began.
The 81-year-old man’s car was found in the car park of Dunphy’s campground.
Acting Insp Lauren Martin told reporters on Monday:
We will search until we find them.
Police were concerned about the pair after a storm hit the area on Sunday, followed by intense heat above 30C on Monday, Martin added.
One of the men managed to make a phone call to his family on Sunday morning, but communication was hampered by patchy reception, Nine News reported.
Officers involved in the search are believed to have promising leads on where the bushwalkers may have hiked, NSW police told AAP on Monday.
Both men are described as experienced bushwalkers and police believe the trail they intended to take was within their capabilities.
A command post has been established at Dunphy’s campground with local police, the rescue squad and SES involved in the search.
Updated
Religious leaders’ essays backing voice to parliament launch tonight
An essay collection from religious leaders across the faith spectrum supporting the Indigenous voice to parliament is being launched tonight as part of the referendum “week of action”.
The essay collection, Statements from the Soul: The Moral Case for the Uluru Statement from the Heart, makes the moral case for Indigenous constitutional recognition through the voice.
It includes essays written by the Anglican Archbishop of Sydney, Kanishka Raffel, the Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne, Peter Comensoli, and contributions from Liberal party politician Russell Broadbent and a former vice-president of the federal Liberal party, Karina Okotel. It also includes a foreward from Noel Pearson.
Former chief justice of NSW Tom Bathurst will launch Statements from the Soul at the Great Synagogue in Sydney tonight.
He told the Law Society of NSW last year that Australia:
… won’t achieve a system that is just until First Nations communities and elders are not merely consulted but have an active role in the formation of the laws and processes which affect them, including constitutional recognition.
The book was a project of the Radical Centre Reform Lab at Macquarie University law school and is published by La Trobe University Press.
Updated
Queensland under fire for creating 'disgusting' new bail offence for children
The Queensland government has announced it will introduce a new criminal offence for children caught breaching bail conditions – a policy about-face that advocates say will cause a human rights emergency in the state’s youth detention system.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk’s announcement on Monday would allow police to arrest children who breached technical bail conditions, but weren’t otherwise committing an offence.
The LNP opposition has been calling for the measure, but Labor has previously repeatedly trashed the idea, saying it would not have any impact on youth crime.
The impact, advocates say, would be on the state’s already swollen population of children – mostly First Nations kids – in custody. Queensland’s youth detention centres are full and about 80 children are currently in adult police custody in watch houses, including some who have been in holding cells for about four weeks.
Making technical breaches of bail offences would cause the population of kids in custody to “explode” and heighten what has already been described as a human rights crisis.
Debbie Kilroy, the chief executive of Sisters Inside, said Labor had become “worse than the LNP”.
This is disgusting, this is going to explode the numbers in watch houses, it’s going to explode the numbers in youth prisons, all to justify their policy decision to build two new youth prisons.
It would explode overnight. Legal Aid has already estimated 40 more kids would be in the watch house pretty quickly. So we’re talking that number going to 120.
Kilroy said many children committed technical breaches of bail because their conditions forced them to live in unsafe places.
Girls are going to be stuck in those unsafe places where you either get sexually abused or raped, or you go to the watch house.
With the LNP you know what you get. Labor pretends they are values-based, they are for marginalised disadvantaged people, for the battlers.
Updated
Cessna salvage bid ‘very risky’
More on the salvage operation for the wreckage of that Cessna: Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology director Teresito Bacolcol told the Associated Press:
It’s a very risky operation … It’s a race against time and it’s a matter of life and death but there’s also the danger of rockfalls and volcanic lahar.
Rescue contingents could enter a permanent danger zone 6km around the volcano because “it’s an extraordinary situation”, but the search and rescue should be carried out by well-trained experts, who should be backed up by standby emergency contingents and made aware of the high risks involved, Bacolcol said.
A popular tourist attraction because of its near-perfect cone, Mayon last erupted in 2018, displacing tens of thousands of villagers.
It is currently under the second level of five volcano alert levels, meaning volcanic earthquakes, steam and gas emissions, ground deformation and intermittent ash and steam blasts have been sporadically detected. Alert five means a major and deadly volcanic eruption is under way.
Updated
Philippine wreckage spotted after plane with Australians onboard goes missing
Philippine authorities said on Monday they would verify whether the wreckage of a small plane spotted near the crater of a restive volcano was that of a Cessna aircraft that went missing with four people onboard over the weekend, Associated Press reports.
The Cessna 340, which was bound for Manila, took off from Albay province south-east of the capital on Saturday morning with two Filipino pilots and two Australian passengers but had not been heard from since then, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines said.
The Australians were working for a geothermal power company, officials said.
Mayor Carlos Baldo of Albay’s Camalig town and other officials told reporters on Sunday that, during an aerial search, authorities spotted the suspected wreckage – including the tail – scattered about 350 metres near the crater on the south-western slope of Mayon Volcano but there was no indication of people.
Eric Apolonio, a spokesperson for the government’s civil aviation authority, said experts and investigators from the agency would have to examine the wreckage to determine if it was the missing Cessna plane with registry number RP-C2080 and to determine the fate of the four people onboard.
A ground search was hampered by rainy weather over the weekend and dozens of search and rescue personnel may scale the 2,462-metre Mayon if the weather clears on Monday.
The search teams would have to be closely monitored by volcano experts and local officials given the restiveness of Mayon, one of the country’s 24 active volcanoes.
Updated
Today, First Dog On the Moon has tackled a subject close to my heart: the indignities and inequities in the rental system. Please enjoy/wail with despair:
Dodson rejects Dutton’s claims on voice proposal
Pat Dodson, Labor’s special envoy for reconciliation and implementing the Uluru statement from the heart, has emphatically rejected Peter Dutton’s suggestion the proposal for a local and regional voice is being sidelined.
Earlier today, Dutton told reporters in Perth the Coalition went to the election “with a policy of wanting local and regional Indigenous voices to feed into policy and to provide that advice”.
Dutton said:
Now, the government’s – it seems in the last 24 hours – stepped back a bit from that. I don’t quite understand the announcement from the prime minister, but we’ll get more detail.
On ABC’s Afternoon Briefing, Dodson rejected this suggestion, saying:
Let me just correct the fact that Mr Dutton and Mr [Julian] Leeser required that I not be present at that [expert working group] meeting, otherwise I may have been able to enlighten him.
But in terms of how to deal with reports that have been made, and I of course co-chaired a committee of parliament with Mr Leeser and we made recommendations about co-design and proceeding by of regional and local voices. The Calma-Langton report goes into a lot of detail about that, and there are no doubt many other proposals around and considerations that will be the subject of greater discussion and consideration and consultation with the Aboriginal people in the Australian public post-referendum.
None of that material is being pushed aside. It is a figment of his imagination if he thinks that is happening. But all that detail and valuable work will be taken onboard when it is relevant, and that will be post-referendum and when we get down to discussing legislation.
Updated
Property sellers hold out amid downturn
It’s not just buyers who are disappearing from Australia’s rapidly cooling housing market. Many prospective sellers are also holding back, unwilling to accept the falling prices now sweeping the market.
The standoff spells bad news for property companies that rely on transactions to make money. It also raises the prospect that steeper price falls could lie ahead, should rising mortgage rates prompt a wave of forced sales.
On Monday, real estate company McGrath reported an 83% drop in underlying net profit to $1.12m for the six months to December after a weaker-than-usual spring season, marked by reduced sales volumes.
McGrath’s chief executive, John McGrath, said he expected property prices to start rising again in 2024:
As expected, the market is taking a much-needed breather after rapid growth over the last three years.
While the economic climate and impact of further interest rate rises is difficult to predict, we think we are either at or approaching the bottom of this property cycle.
Read the full story here:
Updated
Fertility Society calls for greater regulation of sperm donors
Concerns about prolific donors have prompted Australia’s peak fertility body to join calls for a national sperm donation register.
The Fertility Society of Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ) warned of the legal and medical risks of unregulated sperm donations, as thousands of Australians have joined Facebook groups to give or seek donations without the protections offered by the formal system.
FSANZ president, prof Luk Rombauts, said:
We totally support the rights and desires of people to start their own families, but unregulated online sperm donation presents considerable medical and legal risks for all parties and particularly for children donor-conceived in this way.
With online sperm donations, there are no appropriate screening protocols for sexually transmitted or genetically linked diseases, no professional counselling to help people make informed decisions about this procedure, along with the potential of frightening legal ramifications.
In accredited fertility clinics, all sperm donations are recorded, and professional screening and quarantining procedures are in place as accepted practice to provide appropriate health safeguards.
There are legal caps on how many families sperm donors are allowed to help create, but currently no way to track the donations nationally and include informal donations. Rombauts said that had a flow-on effect to donor-conceived children:
Nobody seems to be asking how donor-conceived children will feel growing up knowing that they are part of large group of half-siblings, and it also raises the real prospect of accidental co-sanguinity.
Updated
Victorian government’s affordable rental scheme under fire
The Victorian government’s new affordable rental housing will be allocated to tenants by random ballot rather than need, with applications to be processed by Snug, a rental applications company already under scrutiny for what advocates have called a “troubling” use of renters’ data.
Read the full story here:
Updated
Body of missing man found in Murray River
Police divers have found a body in their search for a man missing after a dinghy capsized in the Murray River, in northwest Victoria, AAP reports.
Four men set off on the waters near Mildura on Saturday night, before their dinghy capsized about 11.30pm, NSW Police said.
Three of the men returned to their houseboat, where they realised one of their group was missing.
NSW and Victorian police were both involved in the search for the 34-year-old.
Officers arriving at the scene about 2.40am on Sunday were told one of the men had not re-surfaced after the dinghy overturned.
A large, multi-agency search for the man continued on Monday, with NSW police being assisted by Victoria police and police divers.
The divers located a body just before 1.30pm on Monday. While the body has not been formally identified, it is believed to be the body of the 34-year-old.
Numerous reports suggest the men had been at a buck’s party when the incident occurred.
Police will prepare a report for the coroner.
Updated
Body believed to be that of missing surfer found in NSW
A man’s body has been found in waters on the NSW mid-north coast, a day after a surfer drowned in the NSW Hunter region, AAP reports.
Police were called to Treachery beach about 7.15pm on Sunday after personal belongings were found on the sand, but no swimmer could be seen.
A man’s body was found about 100m offshore after a search involving the Westpac rescue helicopter and surf lifesavers on jetskis.
The body has not been formally identified, but is believed to be a 48-year-old man.
It was the second consecutive day a person has died from drowning in NSW, after a surfer’s body was found at a secluded beach in the NSW Hunter region on Saturday.
The alarm was raised after the man, believed to be a 44-year-old, went surfing near Shoal Bay on Saturday morning but didn’t return home.
Police found his body in the surf off Wreck beach, a secluded spot only accessible by water or a long walk from the car park.
Updated
Andrew Gee says voice sceptics will be proven wrong
A former Nationals MP who quit the party due to its opposition to an Indigenous voice to parliament says sceptics will be proven wrong about the proposal.
Andrew Gee, who quit the party in December and now sits on the crossbench as an independent, has joined the minister for Indigenous Australians, Linda Burney, in regional New South Wales as the yes campaign kicks off.
Gee said people who had opposed the high court’s Mabo decision, which recognised Indigenous land rights, were proven wrong about the implications – and the same would happen with the voice to parliament.
Read the full story here:
Updated
My colleague Luke Henriques-Gomes told us earlier about Jennifer Miller’s appearance at the robodebt royal commission. Her son, Rhys Cauzzo, took his life in 2017 while facing Centrelink debts worth about $17,000. Here are some clips from Miller speaking at the hearing.
Thanks Natasha May for all your work today! I’ll be with you for the rest of the afternoon.
Thanks for your attention today. The wonderful Stephanie Convery has the blog now, see you tomorrow!
Australian professor among hostages taken in remote PNG highlands
An Australian professor has been taken hostage in the remote highlands region of Papua New Guinea, along with three other researchers.
The professor, who Guardian Australia has chosen not to name, was reportedly taken by an armed group demanding a ransom payment from the PNG and Australian governments.
It is believed the professor was conducting studies in the region with University of Papua New Guinea graduates and guides.
PNG prime minister, James Marape, confirmed the reports, saying contact had been made. He told reporters in Port Moresby today:
I want to inform the families of those taken hostage we’ve been at work.
Contact has been made with people in the bush through secondary sources.
They have indicated ransom. We do not encourage ransom, but we’re treating this very diligently and carefully because life is at risk and life is at stake.
Updated
The April 1 date of the Aston by-election is now twitter official – the Australian Electoral Commission’s account has posted all the details. Nominations will close at midday March 9 while early votes will be cast from March 20.
The #Aston by-election has been announced! 🗳️
— AEC ✏️ (@AusElectoralCom) February 20, 2023
Election day is Saturday 1 April 2023. If you live in Aston & need to enrol or update your details – now is the time!
- By-election explainer video: https://t.co/sWqPOM4WwJ
- By-election info: https://t.co/7ziBNBl7Rj pic.twitter.com/kjFM3wgYh8
Ex-Nationals MP calls on voice 'sceptics' to open minds
A former Nationals MP who quit the party due to its opposition to an Indigenous voice to parliament says sceptics will be proven wrong about the proposal.
Andrew Gee, who quit the party in December and now sits on the crossbench as an independent, has joined the minister for Indigenous Australians, Linda Burney, in regional NSW as the yes campaign kicks off.
Gee said people who had opposed the high court’s Mabo decision, which recognised Indigenous land rights, were proven wrong about the implications and the same would happen with the voice.
He told reporters in Orange today:
Sceptics out there, once this voice is implemented, will see that this is not a scary thing, this is not a bad moment for our history, this is an uplifting moment for our history.
We want this to be a true community conversation and it should be a moment in our history to celebrate and not to divide.
I just hope that the sceptics will approach this with an open mind and an open heart.
Earlier, Nationals Leader, David Littleproud, told Sky News the voice would create an extra layer of bureaucracy that wouldn’t help advance better outcomes for Indigenous people.
But Burney labelled the comments as “misinformation” and “scaremongering”.
- AAP
Updated
Reserve Bank offered treasurer the choice to have King Charles on $5 note
The Reserve Bank of Australia offered the federal treasurer, Jim Chalmers, a choice of whether the new $5 note should feature King Charles III or a design that honours Indigenous history, documents reveal.
The documents, released by the RBA under freedom of information to the website Right to Know, reveal that the central bank’s governor, Philip Lowe, indicated to Chalmers in October that the government’s desire would be a major factor in the decision.
Lowe said in an email to the treasurer on 7 October 2022:
If the government is of the view that the king’s portrait should be on the $5 banknote, then the bank will proceed on that basis and seek an appropriate image from the palace.
Letters reveal RBA offered government the choice to put King Charles on the $5 note.https://t.co/o00d8EUeTN pic.twitter.com/Vn5YdHR8lG
— Josh Taylor (@joshgnosis) February 20, 2023
South Australia braces for five-day heatwave
South Australia is bracing for its longest burst of extreme heat for more than three years with temperatures surging into the mid-40s in some regional centres.
The Bureau of Meteorology says much of the state will experience heatwave conditions with five days over 35C.
In Adelaide, the mercury is expected to hit 40C on both Thursday and Friday, ahead of a milder change.
But temperatures will go higher in many regional centres with Nullarbor, on the west coast, to have 45C on both Wednesday and Thursday.
Senior meteorologist Simon Timcke said after a couple of milder summers, SA was set to have its longest streak of very hot days since December 2019.
At that time, Adelaide had four days above 35C in the middle of the month then six days above 35C at the end of the month.
We’ve got a big mass of very hot air up over the north-western and central part of the continent.
We did get a burst of hot weather last week but a change pushed that hot air back over the far north of SA.
But once the high pressure system currently south of the bight moves out east of Tassie, that will turn the winds around northerly and drag all that hot air back down over southern parts of the state.
The conditions will also lift the bushfire risk, with Friday shaping as the worst day with winds increasing as the change pushes through.
Updated
Queensland fire and emergency have shared images from the members of their team who are in Turkey, sorting through rubble in the earthquake zone.
The specialised members of the Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) are trusted around the world.
— Qld Fire & Emergency (@QldFES) February 20, 2023
Station Officers Jon Fullard & Will Teen have been in Turkiye for over a week, sorting through rubble in the earthquake zone as part of AUS-2 DART.@dfat @AusAmbTurkiye pic.twitter.com/Qmnmv8ge6a
Mother of robodebt victim who died by suicide ‘stonewalled’ by government
The mother of a robodebt victim who killed himself has told a royal commission she was stonewalled by the former Coalition government as she sought answers for more than five years.
Jennifer Miller, whose son, Rhys Cauzzo, took his life on 26 January 2017 while facing Centrelink debts worth about $17,000, told the inquiry that the government and other authorities had only given her “platitudes” over several years.
She said she had written to the former human services minister Alan Tudge – whose response said his department had acted appropriately in the case with only some “minor” errors – as well as the Commonwealth Ombudsman and Victorian coroner.
Only through the royal commission has Miller been able to view crucial documents that revealed that despite Cauzzo’s pre-existing mental health conditions there was no “vulnerability indicator” on his Centrelink file. This may have prevented him from receiving those debts and was described by Miller as a “major” rather than “minor” fault.
A key question for Miller had been whether Cauzzo’s debt had been unlawfully calculated like the hundreds of thousands of other victims of the scheme.
Services Australia, previously the Department of Human Services, was lashed in 2021 by the federal court judge overseeing a class action into robodebt for its continued failure to inform Miller whether the debt was unlawful.
The royal commission heard on Monday that Cauzzo’s debts had been refunded and “zeroed”, meaning it was calculated using the unlawful income averaging method.
Miller also finally learned how Cauzzo’s vulnerability indicator had been removed from his file automatically via internal documents provided to the royal commission. Her attempts to obtain such documents had previously been blocked, including through the freedom of information process. Yet the inquiry heard the department did not provide some documents relevant to this fact to the coroner, which ultimately declined to investigate Cauzzo’s death.
Miller said while searching for answers over the years she had felt like she had “let Rhys down not knowing a lot more”, though he was also “certainly let down by the system”.
Miller told the commission on Monday:
I find it extraordinary the lengths they have been to to try and get me to stop being so persistent … It all became very sly, everyone was lying and covering each other’s backs. Once I saw the all the information … it was both heartbreaking, but also vindicating that we’ve been able to get the truth.
The royal commissioner, Catherine Holmes AC SC, thanked Miller for her courage. “It’s a harrowing story,” she said.
For information and support in Australia call Lifeline on 13 11 14, Mensline on 1300 789 978 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636
Updated
Voice referendum week of action kicks off
The week of action to support the referendum for an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voice to parliament has kicked off and Australian leaders are showing their support for the yes campaign.
The independent member for Calare, Andrew Gee, who quit the Nationals when the party said it would not support the voice, has invited the minister for Indigenous Australians, Linda Burney, to his electorate to see the initiatives such as the Ngurang-gu Yalbilinya education program.
Burney says:
The voice will mean Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islander voices are heard and make a difference.
Ngurang-gu Yalbilinya is an amazing education program being run by the local community.
— Linda Burney MP (@LindaBurneyMP) February 20, 2023
Thank you to Andrew Gee for inviting me along to see.
The Voice will mean Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islander Voices are heard & make a difference.#Voice2023 #UluruStatement #yes23 pic.twitter.com/EYNXWQen9a
This week is a week of action to support the referendum for an Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament.
— Senator Penny Wong (@SenatorWong) February 20, 2023
The Voice is constitutional recognition of our First Nations people to ensure they have a say in matters that affect them.#VoteForTheVoice #VoiceTreatyTruth pic.twitter.com/64dzeTiukl
Updated
Fill-in Antarctic resupply vessel runs aground
A cargo ship hired to replace Australia’s out-of-action $528m icebreaker Nuyina has suffered minor damage after running aground in Antarctica, AAP reports.
The Happy Diamond was grounded on a shoal off Mawson Station about 7.30pm (AEDT) on Sunday for about an hour. No one was injured.
An Australian Antarctic Division (AAD) spokeswoman said in a statement:
Minor damage occurred to a ballast water tank.
The vessel’s operator ... has assessed that there is no danger posed to personnel, the vessel or the environment.
Ongoing monitoring and assessments will continue.
The Happy Diamond is returning to Hobart as scheduled and will undergo repairs.
The AAD chartered the vessel after Nuyina was forced to miss the resupply season because it needed maintenance.
The Nuyina, which was plagued by delays during construction, was due to return from Singapore to Australia in March but is now expected to return in April.
The AAD says the Happy Diamond incident will be reported and investigated by its operator, Big Lift Shipping BV, in co-operation with the Australian Maritime Safety Authority.
It is the second time Happy Diamond has run into trouble during fill-in operations. In November, it was forced to return to Hobart while on a re-supply mission due to mechanical problems.
Some lunchtime pretty for you: on the eve of Sydney WorldPride 2023, Sydney Town Hall hosted The Coming Back Out Salon, an afternoon tea dance which celebrates LGBTQIA+ elders. The event endeavours to acknowledge the resilience of this community, and allows a safe space for those elders just discovering themselves.
Some severe storms with damaging wind gusts are possible in upper western New South Wales today, and across the Central Tablelands and Blue Mountains. Check the Bureau of Meterology’s warnings if you’re in those areas.
⛈️NSW Storm forecast for Monday 20/2. Severe storms with damaging wind gusts are possible in the Upper Western district today. Severe storms with heavy rainfall also possible across the Central Tablelands and Blue Mountains. Warnings, when issued: https://t.co/Ss766eSCrL pic.twitter.com/SMgDbIaSGk
— Bureau of Meteorology, New South Wales (@BOM_NSW) February 20, 2023
Big emitters could cut CO2 by 90% by 2050 without offsets, report finds
Some of Australia’s largest heavy industrial companies have backed a report that says they could cut direct greenhouse gas emissions in their supply chains by more than 90% by 2050, and not have to rely heavily on carbon offsets.
The report, by the Australian Industry Energy Transitions Initiative (ETI), prepared over three years by Climateworks Centre and the CSIRO, found the industrial transition would cost the equivalent of $21bn a year over three decades if Australia were to play its part in trying to limit global heating to 1.5C.
It has landed during a political debate over the safeguard mechanism, the Coalition policy that the Albanese government says it wants to revamp to reduce the CO2 emitted by Australia’s 215 biggest polluting industrial facilities. The Greens have offered to support Labor’s plan if it agrees not to approve any more coal and gas mines, a step the government says it will not take.
Read the full story here:
Updated
University staff wage theft exceeds $80m in three years
University staff have been underpaid more than $80m in the past three years, a landmark report on wage theft has revealed.
The National Tertiary Education Union (Nteu) analysis of 34 cases found 22 public universities had withheld at least $83.4m in wages since 2020.
The real the figure was likely to be in excess of $90m higher with three cases still ongoing or without a figure disclosed.
The Nteu national president, Dr Alison Barnes:
This report exposes what we’ve known for some time - systemic wage theft has been baked into universities’ business models. The sheer scale of wage theft in higher education is staggering. It’s absolutely shameful that so many Australian university staff have had wages stolen.
Victoria leads the nation in underpayments, tallying up a bill of more than $50.2m, followed by New South Wales at almost $25m.
The University of Melbourne has the highest tally for one institution, with $31.6m in stolen wages in four separate cases. The University of Sydney is ranked second with $12.7m.
RMIT ranked third at $10m followed by Monash University ($8.6m) and the University of Newcastle ($6m). Monash, the University of NSW and Deakin University all have cases ongoing.
Barnes said the federal government needed to urgently act on its election promise to make wage theft a crime, calling for strong penalties including jail time for the most egregious offences.
The report also called for a crackdown on casualisation in the workforce and fresh parliamentary inquiries into university governance.
A spokesperson for the University of Sydney said it was “absolutely committed” to ensuring staff received their full entitlements, and had a process to ensure any claims of underpayment were carefully investigated and resolved appropriately.
When we became aware of errors in the payment of some employee entitlements, we publicly committed to … remediating all affected staff as quickly as possible. The majority of errors identified … were found to have affected casual professional staff, rather than academic staff.
A University of Melbourne spokesperson said there was an “extensive program of work” underway to reduce reliance on casual employment, re-think the universities workforce model and “improve our employment and management practices”.
Updated
Stuart Robert on superannuation changes
The shadow assistant finance minister, Stuart Robert, has criticised the treasurer’s plan for being too focused on “super funds’ purpose for super”, and not enough on the individual.
The treasurer is talking about anything other than the cost of living crisis engulfing Australians. This morning he’s talking about the purpose of super.
The problem is the treasurer is talking about his purpose for super and the super funds’ purpose for super, not the purpose for individual Australians.
The treasurer talking about dignity, but again he’s speaking about the dignity of the super funds.
The coalition, the Liberal National parties, we’re concerned more about the dignity of the individual. And what can be more dignified than an individual Australian owning their own house.
And frankly, what can be more undignified than a super fund using your money to buy a house that you have to rent. What can be more dignified than Australians getting early access to super because they’re 26 weeks unemployed and they’ve got a family.
Updated
Treasurer calls for changes to superannuation laws
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, stepped up to speak a little while ago about the proposed changes to superannuation laws that will make it harder for people to withdraw savings before retirement.
We acknowledge the last decade or so of super policy has been challenging for many of you to navigate. Our predecessors took an attitude towards the industry that could be contradictory, sometimes counterproductive and often costly.
They promoted performance but they denigrated the best performers. They claimed the mantle of member first while simultaneously in many cases putting them last.
And super balances were raided as part of their opportunity to cover for some of the weaknesses and failures in economic policy.
This messy ideologically-motivated approach culminated in the early release debacle during the pandemic. Without consultation and little consideration, Australians were forced to choose between better incomes in retirement or paying their bills. Funds were forced to liquidate assets and $36bn of Australian retirement savings were lost.
Our government will take a different approach. We have started by addressing some of the immediate problems in the system. Stephen [Jones] has led a review into the last government’s your future, your super reforms, and this review won’t undermine the performance test which, we said before, which must and will continue.
But it will look to remove some of the unintended consequences of those reforms and keep the focus on the best interests of members. So this year, in 2023, our agenda for super goes further. We’ll try and end the super wars once and for all. And make sure that the future changes to the system are compatible with the main objective of super. And doing that requires us to embed superannuation’s purpose into law.
Twitter has no Australian staff regulator can contact for child exploitation materials, parliamentary committee hears
The parliamentary joint committee on law enforcement is today examining the law’s capabilities when it comes to child exploitation, with the Greens senator David Shoebridge questioning the Attorney General’s Department, Home Affairs and the Office of the eSafety Commissioner.
The Office of the eSafety Commissioner’s Toby Dagg has spoken about the growing awareness of the importance of local jurisdiction responses in this space.
Dagg confirmed that Twitter has no Australian staff the regulator can contact regarding child exploitation materials, while Microsoft takes an average of two days to respond to a complaint about child exploitation material such as livestreaming on Skype.
Here is Shoebridge’s summary of what the committee has heard this morning:
JUST IN: The Office of the eSafety Commissioner confirmed that Twitter has NO Australian staff the regulator can contact re child exploitation materials. eSafety gave evidence that having local staff was vital in keeping people safe online, especially children. Deeply disturbing.
— David Shoebridge (@DavidShoebridge) February 20, 2023
Convicted paedophiles are hiding their wealth & assets in Superannuation so abuse survivors can't access compensation. Madeleine West gave powerful evidence this morning & joined the calls for change. The Federal govt must fix the law so abuse survivors can access compensation.
— David Shoebridge (@DavidShoebridge) February 20, 2023
We’ve been calling for the industry codes of practice regulating big tech (so far kept secret) to be made public. Meta today agreed they should be public. I asked eSafety if we can see them, they took it on notice, said they’d check with the other companies they’re regulating🤔
— David Shoebridge (@DavidShoebridge) February 20, 2023
Highly alarming– we’re hearing evidence that it takes Microsoft an average of TWO DAYS to respond to a complaint about child exploitation material such as livestreaming on Skype. The gaps in regulation, detection & enforcement in this area are chilling.
— David Shoebridge (@DavidShoebridge) February 20, 2023
Updated
Cash for young NSW country drivers to update cars
Younger drivers in regional NSW could be given $5,000 to help them buy a safer car, in a move the premier hopes will save lives in the bush.
In a trial announced today, drivers under 25 who drive a used car with a safety rating of one or two stars, or whose car is more than 16 years old, could be eligible to upgrade to a safer vehicle.
The premier, Dominic Perrottet, said:
We will get old and unsafe cars off our country roads and make it easier for young drivers to get behind the wheel of a safer car.
This is extra incentive for kids in the bush to ditch their old cars and upgrade to a more modern vehicle with better safety features.
The subsidy will be available for up to 1,000 young drivers in regional areas, after an initial trial of 50 drivers in selected areas.
This is one way we can lower the risk of country kids being seriously injured or losing their life in car accidents.
The deputy premier, Paul Toole, said the initiative recognised that young drivers were much more likely to inherit the old family car or buy an older, cheaper or less safe vehicle.
This landmark trial will provide a helping hand to young drivers to buy a safer set of wheels.
- AAP
Updated
Matt Kean does not endorse David Elliott for upper house, wants a woman to fill vacancy
New South Wales treasurer Matt Kean has made no secret of his thoughts about the prospect of rival minister David Elliott filling the upper house seat left vacant following the sacking of Peter Poulos, saying he would “like to see a female” take the spot.
Elliott, the retiring transport minister and one of the government’s most vocal spear throwers, has put his hand up for a position on the Coalition’s upper house ticket left vacant after Poulos was sacked over the weekend.
He told Sydney radio station 2GB this morning that he would “like to be considered” for the role.
But he faces an uphill battle. Kean, the party’s senior moderate who has often clashed with Elliott both publicly and privately, was asked about the vacancy on Monday and left no confusion about where he stood on Elliott’s candidacy:
What I’d like to see is a female fill that vacancy. That’s no secret. I’ve been campaigning on that front for a while and that’s what I think should happen here.
Perrottet also declined to endorse Elliott’s very public bid for the spot, saying only that the transport minister had “made a significant contribution to the NSW parliament”.
Updated
'Conspicuous lack of politicians' at yes campaign launch: Parkin
This week the advocates for the Indigenous voice to parliament will officially launch the yes campaign.
Dean Parkin, the director of From the Heart who was closely involved in the process that resulted in the Uluru Statement, says the campaign is focused on getting more grass roots supporters.
Parkin told ABC Radio this morning:
It’s time to bring the conversation down from the politicians and the media types and the commentators and bring it back to where it should be. It should be in communities across the country. That’s where this whole idea started from. That’s where we know that campaign will be won.
… Our focus, as always will 100% be on making sure that all Australians are involved in this conversation around the voice and this question around recognition.
Parkin said at the launch of the campaign in Adelaide this Thursday, there will be a “conspicuous lack of politicians”.
It’s about bringing together all sections of community. We’ve got people from the faith groups, we’ve got people from civil society, we’ve got Indigenous people, we’ve got non-Indigenous people. There’ll be a conspicuous lack of politicians at this launch. This is about the community.
Karvelas:
They’re not invited?
Parkin:
They’ve had their go and there’ll be other gos for politicians after this. This is unashamedly focused on Australians from all walks of life, bringing them together and saying it’s time that we bring the conversation back to the community.
It’s not going to be a big fireworks show. It’s really about grounding where this should be. And I’m really excited about it. In some ways we’re not commencing the campaign – we’ve been at this for nearly six years now, but to reorientate and refocus this issue back to where it should be. I’m just really excited. I can’t wait for Thursday.
Updated
Family violence on the rise in NZ in wake of Cyclone Gabrielle
Reports of looting in New Zealand regions affected by Cyclone Gabrielle are overblown, police say, but family violence is spiking.
At least 11 people have died as a result of New Zealand’s biggest storm in decades, with widespread damage to infrastructure, property and business.
Electricity is still cut to much of Napier, the regional centre in the Hawke’s Bay region where eight people have died.
In the absence of reliable power and communications, many feared an increase in gang activity or opportunistic crimes. However, police commissioner Andy Coster said data showed reports of dishonesty offences had decreased.
Police made 60 arrests in the past six days in the eastern district, which comprises the Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne-Tairawhiti regions.
Coster told Radio NZ:
Dishonesty offending, at least on the numbers available to us, is less than its normal level.
We must acknowledge this kind of behaviour. Preying on communities that are utterly devastated is completely unacceptable.
What we’re actually seeing is an increase in family harm reporting.
Coster said the rise in family violence was not surprising given the challenges facing families in the region.
We can understand the pressure that is on the communities that are affected here. No doubt that’s playing out in a range of ways in terms of tension between people at supermarkets, petrol stations but also in homes.
People are under pressure and that’s really understandable in the circumstances they’re facing.
Police have sent an additional 120 officers to the eastern district in the past week to maintain a visible presence and assist with the emergency response.
Another 100 police based elsewhere were tasked with “working the phones” to investigate the thousands of reports of uncontactable people.
As of this morning, Coster said police had received roughly 6,500 reports of missing New Zealanders, with 4,000 confirmed as safe.
Coster – who expects the death toll to increase further – said police had “a lot of volunteer help” to visit addresses when phone inquiries failed to find missing people.
– AAP
Updated
Greens decry decimation of independent observer program for live exports
Almost half the live export ships that sailed from Australia without an independent observer claimed there was “insufficient space” to allow them onboard last year, new data shows.
The independent monitoring scheme established in 2018 after 2,400 sheep died while being exported by Australian exporter Emanuel Exports has weakened considerably since its resumption from a Covid-related pause, data shows.
Data presented to Senate estimates last week showed independent observers boarded just 11 of 78 eligible live export voyages between May and the end of December last year. That is despite the government clearly telling vessel operators to expect observers on any eligible voyages.
Aston voters will head to polls on 1 April
Voters from the Aston electorate will head to the polls on April Fools’ Day to select their replacement for outgoing Victorian Liberal MP Alan Tudge, AAP reports.
House of Representatives speaker Milton Dick has set the date for Saturday, 1 April.
Tudge delivered his resignation letter to the speaker last week which kicked off the formal byelection process.
Labor announced breast cancer survivor Mary Doyle would be the party’s candidate.
Doyle was selected by Labor to take a second shot at the seat, having won 47.2% of the two-party vote at the 2022 federal election.
The Liberal party has not yet announced its pick but opposition leader Peter Dutton has promised a strong, local candidate for the seat.
Senior Liberals are pushing for a female candidate to be chosen but a decision has not been made.
Former Victorian upper house MP Cathrine Burnett-Wake announced last week she would nominate for the Liberals.
Another potential candidate is Melbourne City councillor Roshena Campbell.
The byelection is also expected to feature candidates from the Greens and One Nation and possibly an independent.
Updated
Greens senator backs union’s call to ban engineered stone
We mentioned earlier about the Construction Forestry Maritime Mining Energy Union’s campaign to ban engineered stone commonly used in kitchen benchtops and linked to silicosis, an incurable lung disease likened to asbestosis.
Engineered stone is cheaper than naturally occurring stone but dust created during the manufacturing process can pose a serious health risk.
Greens senator David Shoebridge has backed the calls to ban engineered stone.
For years we have been saying no one should die for a slightly cheaper shiny bench top. Yet manufactured stone is still killing young workers. The producers can’t even get insurance it’s so toxic. Time to ban the bloody stuff. https://t.co/kAdxjLSbGS
— David Shoebridge (@DavidShoebridge) February 19, 2023
Updated
One person dead after Sydney unit engulfed in fire
A person has died and three others are in hospital after an explosion triggered a fire that engulfed an apartment block in Sydney’s inner west, AAP reports.
Fire and Rescue NSW said it received calls about an explosion and fire in a block of units on Young Street at Croydon around 5.45am on Monday.
Twelve fire trucks and more than 40 firefighters arrived to find the fire had engulfed a ground floor apartment and was spreading to units above.
Trapped residents living on the third floor were rescued by firefighters on ladders and about 30 people were evacuated.
A resident says she was getting ready for work when she heard the explosion. She told ABC TV:
All of a sudden I felt the house shake and very loud noises and glass shattering.
I thought the back of my house was collapsing so just ran out with my family and then went down the back to see what was going on.
She saw a four-metre “big ball of fire” before yelling for people to evacuate.
A resident, a firefighter and a police officer were taken to hospital and are reported to be in a stable condition.
Fire crews extinguished the blaze and found a body inside the ground floor unit where they suspect the fire started.
Fire investigators are working with NSW police to determine the cause of the incident.
Updated
Ampol to pay extra $157m in tax for Singapore hub
The Australian tax office’s $157m settlement with Ampol over its Singapore hub comes as part of the ATO’s focus on targeting multinationals’ offshore procurement hubs.
The Australian Taxation Office’s deputy commissioner Rebecca Saint said the settlement shows the ATO’s commitment to working with multinationals to ensure full compliance with the Australian tax regime.
In a statement the ATO said the settlement resolves the dispute for past years back to 2014 and also locks in the tax outcomes of the arrangement out to 2033:
The settlement covers the transfer pricing outcomes of refined products and crude oil between Ampol Singapore and Ampol Australia as well as how Australia’s controlled foreign companies regime will apply to the profits of Ampol Singapore.
The Tax Avoidance Taskforce has had a focus on offshore procurement hubs for a number of years.
Broadly, under these models, an offshore entity of the multinational group (the procurement hub) is used to procure goods from third party suppliers and in turn on-sell those goods to the Australian arm of the group. The procurement hub is typically located in a low or no tax jurisdiction.
We are keen to ensure that procurement hubs are not used as a mechanism to shift profit from Australia by charging excessive prices for imported goods and services in an effort to reduce tax paid in Australia.
The assistant minister for competition, charities and treasury, Andrew Leigh, says the latest settlement follows those with BHP and Rio in a trend which must continue to ensure multinationals “pay their fair share of tax”.
The tax office has shut down another attempt to shift profits out of Australia via a Singaporean marketing hub.
— Andrew Leigh (@ALeighMP) February 19, 2023
Ampol's agreement to pay $157 million follows recent tax settlements with BHP ($529 million) and Rio ($1 billion).
Multinationals must pay their fair share. #auspol pic.twitter.com/ePdNzorXxb
Updated
The minister for defence industry, Pat Conroy, is leaving the Munich Security Conference, after meeting with several international counterparts.
Just wrapped up my time at #MSC2023 with great meetings with 🇸🇬 Defence Minister @Ng_Eng_Hen & 🇸🇪 Defence Minister @PlJonson Thank you to @AusAmb_DE & his wonderful team for their support. Our messages of 🇦🇺support for 🇺🇦 & the need to focus on the Indo-Pacific were well received pic.twitter.com/jspFR8Daz2
— Pat Conroy MP (@PatConroy1) February 19, 2023
Chalmers pledges ‘end the super wars once and for all’
Australia’s superannuation system must be “equitable and sustainable”, the federal government has declared, in a move that will fuel speculation about a future budget crackdown on tax concessions at the top end.
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, will say in a speech in Sydney today that he wants to “end the super wars once and for all and make sure that future changes to the system are compatible with its very objective”.
The treasurer will propose to enshrine in law a new definition that states “the objective of super is to preserve savings to deliver income for a dignified retirement, alongside government support, in an equitable and sustainable way”.
You can read more about that speech here:
Shark kills Australian tourist in New Caledonia
A shark killed a 59-year-old Australian tourist on Sunday near a crowded beach in the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia, Agence France-Presse reports.
The man was swimming close to a pontoon around 150 metres from the beach in the capital Noumea when the shark attacked, biting him several times, authorities said.
Two people sailing their boat nearby rushed him back to the beach, where emergency services tried to save him. The man had major bite wounds in his leg and both arms, local prosecutor Yves Dupas told AFP.
He died at the scene despite receiving cardiac massage.
Many people were in the water at the time and witnessed the incident at the Chateau-Royal beach just south of Noumea.
There was a panicked rush back onto the beach and police evacuated the area.
Noumea’s mayor, Sonia Lagarde, ordered the closure of most beaches in the area and the capture of tiger sharks and bull sharks in nearby waters.
Drones were deployed to track them and two were sighted before operations were suspended at nightfall, police said.
The prosecutor said an investigation would shed more light on the circumstances of the attack, which happened inside the zone watched over by lifeguards.
A 49-year-old swimmer was seriously injured by a shark last month, also near the Chateau-Royal beach.
A surfer was also attacked by a shark a few days later but escaped without injury.
New Caledonia lies south of Vanuatu and 1,200km east of Australia.
It ranks 13th in the world for the total number of shark attacks, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History, which has kept a tally of worldwide shark attacks since 1958.
Updated
Fresh push to ban ‘asbestos of the 2020s’
There’s a fresh push to ban engineered stone commonly used in kitchen benchtops and linked to an incurable lung disease likened to asbestosis, AAP reports.
A prominent union will ban members working with the product by mid-next year unless the government stops it being imported and used Australia-wide.
Stonemason Kyle Goodwin was just 33 when diagnosed with silicosis after years of cutting, shaping and polishing engineered stone benchtops. He received the devastating diagnosis four and a half years ago and his medical team predicted he had just five years left before the disease claimed his life.
Engineered stone is cheaper than naturally occurring stone but dust created during the manufacturing process can pose a serious health risk.
Goodwin is the face of the Construction Forestry Maritime Mining Energy Union’s campaign to ban the product.
He says in the advertisement.
Instead of planning a family, we’re planning my funeral. I used to install kitchen benches. People liked engineered stone because it was cheap. But the dust got into my lungs causing deadly, incurable silicosis.
That’s too high a price for anyone to pay. Nothing will save my life but if you join the campaign to stop the importation and manufacture of engineered stone, you can help save someone else’s. Please.
Engineered stone is the asbestos of the 2020’s, according to the union’s incoming national secretary Zach Smith.
Australian workers like Kyle are dying because of engineered stone.
The companies flooding our markets with this cheap and nasty material know that, but to them profits are more important than people’s lives.
Updated
Brisbane honours Hannah Clarke and her children three years on from tragedy
Brisbane’s Story Bridge was lit up in purple last night to commemorate three years since the death of Hannah Clarke and her children.
Queensland attorney general Shannon Fentiman has said she hoped the legacy of the inquest into the deaths will be “a much stronger system”.
It is incredibly distressing … when we hear about these horrific murders and we have to do more to prevent [them from] happening.
I often say we have to start responding to the red flags before more blue police tape surrounds the family home.
The Story Bridge is lit up tonight for Hannah Clarke and her family. Three years on from the unimaginable tragedy that took their lives. Hannah, Aaliyah, Laianah and Trey - Queensland will never forget you. pic.twitter.com/SEIbgUhDab
— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) February 19, 2023
The national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732.
Updated
Cate Blanchett wins best actress at Baftas
The British Academy Film Awards (Baftas) has just wrapped up in the UK, with Australia’s very own Cate Blanchett taking out best actress for her performance in Tár. (You can read Guardian’s review of Blanchett as the “perfect lead in delirious, sensual drama” here.)
Here’s a bit of what she said in her acceptance speech:
Every year, these idiosyncratic, remarkable performances just break down the myth that women’s experience is monolithic. So, thank you to Bafta for recognising all of us. We sit in dialogue with one another.
You can read the complete list of winners here:
Updated
Barnaby Joyce compares PM’s decision to march in Mardi Gras with Alice Springs visit
Barnaby Joyce is continuing to criticise the prime minister, Anthony Albanese’s, decision to march in Sydney’s Mardi Gras, compared to the time he spent in Alice Springs.
He told ABC Radio this morning:
I just think he went to Alice Springs for four hours. And I think that deserves a little bit more time than four hours. He spent more time at the tennis. He probably spent more time at the Woodford Folk festival. And this was another issue where he believes it’s a great thing to go and he’s the first prime minister to march and good luck to him.
But how does that make the people of Tennant Creek and Alice Springs feel, who are dealing with the law and order issues? How are you going to make them feel?
… They are annoyed that someone spends more time at the tennis than concerned with what’s happening in their lives.
RN Breakfast host Patricia Karvelas:
Okay, the tennis is different though to the Mardi Gras parade, which is about –
Joyce:
What do you mean, what’s the difference?
Karvelas:
Well, you answer that question.
Joyce:
No, no, no, no.
Karvelas:
They are vastly different. One is about a group that has suffered their rights being abused over years and the other is a tennis match. They are different.
Joyce:
Okay, well then the people in Alice Springs, a lot of people there who believe that their rights are being abused.
Karvelas:
No one’s questioning that. The question is why are you comparing the two?
Joyce:
Because really the attention that has been given to Alice Springs is not paramount.
Joyce went on to tell Karvelas he did support the prime minister going to the event and marching on his own, saying “he can knock himself out”.
Updated
Collingwood forward suspended after drug scandal
Young Collingwood forward Jack Ginnivan has been suspended after footage emerged of him allegedly using a banned substance in a Torquay hotel. He’ll be banned from the first two rounds of the 2023 season.
Ginnivan said this morning arriving at Olympic Park:
Everyone knows I’m pretty sorry and remorseful for the actions I did. And ready to get to work today and earn the trust back of the group.
Collingwood captain Darcy Moore had this response when asked by the media if there was a wider issue of drugs at the club:
Absolutely I believe there’s no issue. We have over 90 male and female athletes at this club, the large majority of whom take their jobs really seriously and make great decisions. But having said that we don’t operate in a vacuum. We are human beings and people make errors of judgment. That’s something that Jack’s done in this instance.
Updated
Robodebt royal commission begins last round of hearings
The final round of hearings of the robodebt royal commission is set to get under way, probing what ministers’ offices knew about the legality of the scheme.
The first day of three weeks worth of hearings begins on Monday in Brisbane, with the former chiefs of staff to two ministers to appear.
Megan Lees, former chief of staff to then human services minister Marise Payne, and Charles Wann, chief of staff to Scott Morrison when he was social services minister, will give evidence.
They will appear alongside two lead plaintiffs in the robodebt class action lawsuit and others affected by the debt collection scheme.
The fourth block of hearings will also examine an inquiry by the commonwealth ombudsman into the scheme, proposals to expand robodebt, the impact it had on victims and how it was wound up.
Three expert reports will also be introduced including a review of the data matching processes and changes that could be made within the federal public service following evidence presented to the royal commission.
Commissioner Catherine Holmes last week wrote to the government requesting a two-month extension of the inquiry.
Her final report will now be handed down by the end of June, rather than April.
– AAP
Updated
Universities around Australia gear up for O week
Every bright-eyed student’s rite of passage is back, with campuses across the country to hold orientation week celebrations for the first time since the return of international students.
Big headliners are planned for this year, including Tones and I – set to perform at Monash University’s Block Party.
The University of Wollongong is publicising its week of celebrations under the banner Let’s Go Party (Responsibly) It features a drag show, comedy night and range of local acts.
Prof Theo Farrell, UOW’s deputy vice-chancellor, said he couldn’t wait for campus to “come alive”.
Sydney University’s O week coincides with WorldPride and will feature an afternoon of Drag Bingo at the campus library, while UNSW is opting for night markets and a party night at the Roundhouse.
The University of Melbourne is expecting 50,000 students to join in on festivities, including international students, who make up 40% of the total student population.
It’s celebrating with more than 230 events including music performances, a sporting carnival and picnics and campus tours.
Melbourne lord mayor Sally Capp said the city was “overjoyed” to welcome back international students to the city:
We’ve already seen the popular student suburb of Carlton hiving with pedestrian activity over the last few weeks. In early February, foot traffic there has gone over 23% of benchmark levels.
Before the pandemic, international students boosted Victoria’s economy by $13bn every year. Our hospitality and retail traders have been waiting for this day for more than two years.
Semester one officially begins today.
Updated
Two bushwalkers missing in Blue Mountains
A search has resumed for two men who went missing while bushwalking in the NSW Blue Mountains.
The 69- and 81-year-old bushwalkers left from Dunphy’s campground in the Megalong Valley on Wednesday, telling a friend they would be back on Friday.
Police say the alarm was raised on Sunday when the 69-year-old man failed to keep an appointment and a search got under way.
The 81-year-old man’s car was found in the car park of Dunphy’s campground.
Both men are described as experienced bushwalkers and police believe the trail they intended to take was within their capabilities.
A command post has been established at Dunphy’s campground with local police, the rescue squad and SES involved in the search.
– AAP
Updated
Government vows to act on criminalising wage theft by end of year
The federal government has vowed to act on criminalising wage theft by the end of the year after the release of a report that found university staff had been underpaid more than $80m since 2020.
In a statement, education minister Jason Clare said the government was “committed” to introducing the legislation by the end of 2023, a key promise made by the Labor party during the federal election campaign.
Greens education spokesperson Mehreen Faruqi said the numbers released in the National Tertiary Education Union report were “shocking, but not surprising” and the link between wage theft and casualisation in the sector was “undeniable”.
This week, the Department of Education confirmed the issues of casualisation in the workforce were being looked at as part of the universities accord – the first broad review of the system since 2008 – which is due to report back by the end of the year.
Faruqi:
Not everyone who is underpaid at our universities is a casual, but if you’re a casual you are at much higher risk of having your wages stolen. The brutal reality is that the corporate university of today can only function on the back of the unpaid labour of thousands of casual staff. That must change.
The government should require universities to set publicly available targets for increasing permanent employment, and link this to funding. There should be clearer reporting requirements with respect to employment statistics and improved rights of entry for trade unions.
The Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency has spoken to 22 universities about issues related to staff underpayments since August 2022, alongside the Fair Work Ombudsman.
Employers will be required to provide evidence they’re ensuring compliance with their obligations. The agency noted most of the universities had begun reviews of their payroll and other systems.
Updated
Good morning
The government says it will act against wage theft by the end of the year following the release of a report that found university staff had been underpaid more than $80m since 2020.
It was a key promise made by the Labor party during the federal election campaign and education minister Jason Clare says the government is “committed” to introducing the legislation.
The final round of the robodebt royal commission hearings kicks off today in Brisbane, with the former chiefs of staff to two ministers to appear in the three-week block of hearings.
Megan Lees, the former chief of staff to then human services minister Marise Payne, and Charles Wann, chief of staff to Scott Morrison when he was social services minister, will give evidence.
The national Week of Action on the referendum continues after the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, opened the week hosting a barbecue in his home electorate in Sydney’s inner west on Saturday.
Hundreds of people attended leafy Petersham Park over the weekend to hear Albanese, the minister for Indigenous Australians, Linda Burney, and one of the key architects of the Uluru statement from the heart, Pat Anderson, speak about the upcoming voice to parliament referendum.
Burney told the crowd she hoped they would vote “a big fat yes” to the voice in the referendum, expected to be held between October and December.
In other news, the construction worker’s union (CMFEU) wants to see a ban on engineered stone to stop rising cases of silicosis, a potentially deadly disease resulting from particles of the stone entering the lungs.
After the revelation that one in five Queensland stonemasons have been diagnosed with silicosis the union says this “must be a wake-up call resulting in urgent action.”
The industry must consider substituting engineered stone with safer alternatives. In the interim, there should be a ban on cutting of engineered stone on site and a ban on dry cutting of stone, as is presently the case in Victoria.
Let’s get into it.
Updated
