What we learned – Tuesday 18 June
That’s where we’ll leave the blog for today. Here is a recap of the main news:
The Reserve Bank has left its key interest rate unchanged for a fifth consecutive meeting at 4.35%.
The Victorian government will raise the age of criminal responsibility from 10 to 12.
New South Wales Liberal MP Matt Kean has announced his resignation from politics after 13 years in state parliament.
The Australian government has formally complained to the Chinese embassy about “ham-fisted” attempts by its officials to block the view of the formerly detained Australian journalist, Cheng Lei, during an event inside Parliament House.
The New South Wales government has revealed that the state will be $14bn worse off over the next four years than it had previously forecast as it is now expecting the budget to be in deficit until at least 2027.
About two dozen tents and a handful of Palestinian flags remain at the University of Sydney’s quadrangle after protesters were advised on Friday to pack up their encampment.
The communications minister, Michelle Rowland, has said the Albanese government is looking at a “range of ages” to restrict social media access to - including setting the age at under-16 - but has warned there is “no perfect solution”.
A controversial wind farm project in north Queensland backed by mining magnate Andrew Forrest has been given approval by the federal government with a list of conditions to protect threatened species.
Updated
Albanese raised Cheng Lei incident directly with Chinese premier, Wong says
The foreign minister, Penny Wong, was asked earlier about Peter Dutton’s suggestion that Anthony Albanese was “not standing up for our country”, over the incident involving Cheng Lei and Chinese officials at Parliament House.
Appearing on ABC’s RN Drive, the foreign minister dismissed those criticisms, saying Albanese raised the matter “with the Chinese Premier Li directly this morning”:
And that demonstrates why engagement is important. We are going to have things on which we disagree, on things in which we disagree very deeply because of who we are. And freedom of the press is very important to Australia. So, the Prime Minister has raised the matter with the Chinese premier and I have to say the prime minister and I understand the importance of standing up for Cheng Lei, that’s why we worked for two years to secure her return home. So, you know, Australia has tried it Mr Dutton’s way. You know, it got us nowhere. We know that Mr Dutton’s focus is always on what is a domestic political fight, not actually on getting outcomes for Australians. That’s what we’re focused on.
Updated
