What we learned, Monday 5 June
That’s where we’ll leave the blog for today – thanks so much for joining us. Here is a wrap of the day’s biggest stories:
Kathleen Folbigg has been pardoned over the deaths of her four children and released from prison after two decades, following a decision of NSW attorney general, Michael Daley.
Folbigg always maintained her innocence. The pardon does not erase her convictions, and supporters are calling for “very, very significant” compensation for her.
Justice Anthony Besanko’s complete written judgment on Ben Roberts-Smith – 736 pages long – was published this afternoon after he delivered an initial summary decision in court last Thursday.
My colleagues Ben Doherty and Elias Visontay have been working through the document, and you can read full details on what the judge found here.
PwC has disclosed the names of four former partners it says are responsible for confidentiality breaches to a parliamentary committee amid mounting pressure in the tax leaks scandal.
A school bus driver was killed early this morning after he crashed into two escaped camels in central Queensland.
Monash University vice-chancellor Margaret Gardner has been appointed as Victoria’s new governor, due to begin her five-year term on August 9.
Australian employers who exploit migrant workers will be banned from hiring other visa holders and will face new criminal penalties, as part of a government crackdown.
University of Melbourne vice chancellor, Prof Duncan Maskell, has congratulated Margaret Gardner on being appointed the 30th governor of Victoria.
In a statement, he said:
Professor Gardner has had a distinguished career as a researcher and leader in Australia’s higher education sector, shaping policy and delivering outcomes which have had a profound effect on the lives of many people in Australia and around the world.
A leader of the utmost integrity, Professor Gardner’s commitment to public service has ensured that Australian universities remain fundamentally important to the continuing growth of our nation.
Professor Gardner’s contributions to Australia’s success have already been immense. We wish her very well for continued success when she begins her new role later this year.
Updated
Gillnet fishing to be banned on Great Barrier Reef
Conservationists have applauded a commitment to phase out gill net fishing on the world heritage-listed Great Barrier Reef, Lisa Cox reports.
The reef will be gill net-free by mid-2027 under the $160m licence buyout plan unveiled by the federal and Queensland state governments.
Dugongs, turtles, dolphins and sharks are among the species inadvertently caught and killed in the nets, which are already banned from use on parts of the reef.
Commercial fishers will also be prevented from taking threatened hammerhead sharks within Queensland waters.
Federal environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, said on Monday:
We know one of the most immediate threats to health of the reef is unsustainable fishing practices.
The removal of gillnets in net-free zones on the reef has already helped boost local fish populations.
We want to see this happen right across the reef.
Additional protected zones will be established in the Gulf of Carpentaria as part of plans to create a “net-free north” from Cape Bedford to Cape York.
World Wide Fund for Nature-Australia praised the decision after having waged a lengthy campaign against the use of the nets.
Chief executive Dermot O’Gorman said:
This announcement is shaping up as a globally significant moment for ocean conservation, fisheries management and the Great Barrier Reef.
If all goes to plan, by June 2027 we’ll have a net-free reef where dugongs, turtles, dolphins and other threatened species can swim without the threat of becoming entangled and drowning in a gill net, and that’s a cause for global celebration.
Updated
Catch up on the day’s biggest headlines so far with this wrap from my colleague Antoun Issa:
Cadaver dog enters razed site of Sydney factory fire
A specially trained dog will spend the next few days pacing over the charred remains of a century-old derelict Sydney factory, amid fears human remains may be at the site, AAP reports.
The seven-storey former hat factory and a neighbouring building were destroyed in a catastrophic fire last month in Surry Hills. The intense heat meant much of the brick and timber building collapsed and Fire and Rescue crews last week carried out major emergency demolition works to make the site safe.
The derelict building was known to regularly house rough sleepers, with 15 people counted in the building the night before the fire.
Despite efforts by police, two people who may have been inside have not been found.
Financial crimes squad commander, Gordon Arbinja, says a cadaver dog will be combing over the site for at least three days.
He told reporters on Monday:
I hope we don’t find any [deceased people], but it is possible.
The golden labrador, named Polar, will search for any evidence of human remains, before demolition crews return to the site to extract mounds of rubble.
Polar will then return and examine the site again, before more rubble is removed, and the site is again searched.
Any human remains found will be extracted and removed for forensic testing.
Updated
Australasian Railway Association says ‘wonderful’ to see high speed rail board in place
Earlier today, we reported how planning for high speed rail in Australia has inched slightly forward, with the formation of the inaugural board for the government’s soon to be launched High Speed Rail Authority.
Transport minister Catherine King unveiled five board appointments for the HSRA which is set to commence operations on 13 June.
Jill Rossouw will chair the HSRA board. Rossouw is currently executive director of infrastructure at IFM Investors and a board member of the Port of Brisbane.
Responding to the board announcement, Caroline Wilkie, CEO of the Australasian Railway Association, said she was hopeful high speed rail will transform interstate travel on the east coast and provide a fast alternative to air travel.
Wilkie said:
High speed rail in Australia is a visionary and nation-building project that has been discussed for decades. It is great to see the government finalising the HSRA board appointments and we look forward to engaging with the Authority moving forward.
Rail is the backbone of sustainable transport in this country and it is wonderful to see the High Speed Rail Authority formally begin this transformative project, which will connect and bring great economic benefits to many communities.
Updated
BoM releases weekly forecast
The Bureau of Meteorology has issued its weather update for the week ahead. It warns of a windy cold front moving through Western Australia at the moment, and forecasts warm and wet conditions on the way for parts of eastern and south-eastern Australia.
Weather Update: Weekly weather update. Find out what to expect across the country over the coming days. Video current 1:00pm AEST, Monday 5 June 2023.
— Bureau of Meteorology, Australia (@BOM_au) June 5, 2023
Latest: https://t.co/4W35o8iFmh or the BOM Weather App. pic.twitter.com/y1GtjmYy3i
Updated
Labor says fighting inflation is at core of Albanese decision making as RBA prepares to meet tomorrow
Asked whether a rate rise can be expected by the independent Reserve Bank tomorrow, Labor MP Jerome Laxale said he didn’t want to pre-empt their decision but “economists seem to think that’s the way they are going to go”.
Laxale told the ABC:
It’s important for governments to make sure that they are not adding to inflation or adding fuel to the fire, and that something I know has been at the core of the decision-making of the Albanese government.
We’ve now had two budgets in a row that have returned revenue upgrades back to the budget, but we also have [the Reserve] Bank governor himself say there are elements in this budget directly reducing inflation …
… We know it’s tough out there, it’s not just mortgage holders bracing for impact, we know renters are really doing it tough and we know interest rate rises have [a] disproportionate impact on those who are doing it tough and those who are renting.
The Nationals’s Michael McCormack added his thoughts:
… we’re looking at a situation where grocery prices are going up, mortgages are going up, cost of living is very high on the average household. Jerome can talk from the talking points all he likes, the situation is Labor is in power, they said there would be $275 power price cuts, there hasn’t been that, and there won’t be under this government.
Updated
Liberals concerned consultation has not taken place over Macquarie Island marine park
Liberal frontbencher Jonathan Duniam is asked on the ABC whether he supports an expansion to Macquarie Island marine park, as announced by the environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, earlier today.
Duniam said he has not seen the scientific data underpinning the decision, but would support it if a “proper process” has been followed.
He said his main concern as been around the consultation process:
Conservation is a good thing, provided it is done properly and all competing interests are taken into account. I’m concerned at this point [that] they have not been.
He also shared concerns over “green or red tape” being placed on fisheries operations:
They will still be able to fish but the big concerns will be around what it means when they go to market and the first they have taken from the marine park, a lot of people will look at that out in the marketplace and say ‘how are you taking this from a marine park?’ It’s akin to hunting in a national park.
You would not be able to serve some sort of meat taken from a national park in a restaurant and I think there are similar concerns about fish taken from a marine park.
Updated
Labor Senator calls for PwC to release names of people involved in confidential information scandal publicly
Senator Deborah O’Neill has issued this statement over PwC, calling on them to release the names of its employees who were pushing to monetise confidential government information publicly:
The contagion threat continues. After more than a month of calling for PwC to publicly name those who were part of the 144 pages of emails detailing its attempts to monetise confidential government information for private profit, PwC has decided to provide this information in response to the Senate’s question on notice.
PwC should release these names themselves, and they should do it publicly. In my opinion, this is an attempt to use the cloak of the Senate to maintain confidentiality. The whole of Parliament, the Australian public, and the international audit, assurance and consultancy sector deserve to know the identities those who participated in this egregious breach of trust and assault against the interests of the commonwealth.
Updated
Assistant trade minister ‘determined to make sure’ free trade agreements good for Australian agriculture
The assistant trade minister, Tim Ayres, is speaking to the ABC from London where he is taking part in talks about Australia’s push for expanded access to markets in Europe and in China.
He said there are a series of challenging issues that come at the end of every free trade agreement negotiation:
The European agreement is an important agreement for Australia … and we are determined to make sure that we secure an agreement here that is in the national interest and delivers a commercially meaningful outcome for Australian agriculture in particular.
There are broad benefits of both the UK [Free Trade Agreement] after its entry into force, and a prospective EU FTA broadly across the economy in the services sector, in terms of access for Australian workers to come over here and work for two or three years in the case of the UK FTA, but we are determined to make sure that we grasp this opportunity to secure a commercially meaningful outcome for Australian agriculture …
Updated
Protesters demand end of new mining projects
Unions, religious groups, climate activists and high school students rallied outside NSW Parliament House today, demanding the government put a stop to new coal and gas projects, AAP reports.
Climate activist Raymond Weatherall is crystal clear about what should happen to new gas and oil projects:
They don’t deserve to be on our country… And if we beat (mining company) Santos, it will inspire other Aboriginal people to say ‘no, stop coming onto our land and killing it’.
Weatherall is leading the fight against Santos’ Narrabri gas project, and is one of 18 Gomeroi people on a representative body of the native title claimants.
Santos launched proceedings last year in the national native title tribunal to continue its 850-well coal seam gas project in north-west NSW without consent from the Gomeroi People. Traditional owners voted 162-2, with four abstentions, to reject the agreement.
The NSW and federal governments approved the Narrabri project in 2020.
High school student Alice, 14, skipped class to attend the rally with her mother and friends in support of the Gomeroi people. She told AAP:
If the government isn’t going [to] protect our futures, then we’ll do it ourselves … Sometimes adults don’t want to tell us what’s really happening because it was their responsibility, and it’s a hard idea to face but it’s real and we need to do something about it.
Protesters also called on the government to repeal anti-protest laws. Darren Greenfield, secretary of the NSW branch of the construction union, said Sydney would not be the same without protests:
Circular Quay, the Rocks – they would have been trampled many years ago if not for our forefathers standing up to protest. Think about the people that put you in this house and put you into government and get rid of these anti-protest laws.
Scrap them tonight.
• Aboriginal Counselling Services are available at 0410 539 905
Updated
Kathleen Folbigg’s lawyer: ‘we are all human and our legal system can make mistakes’
Kathleen Folbigg’s lawyer Rhanee Rego has described today as a “breakthrough moment on a long and painful journey”.
She said:
We thank the attorney general for making an evidence-informed decision today and recommending that Kathleen Folbigg be pardoned. We thank the governor for acting on this advice and unconditionally pardoning Ms Folbigg.
This case reminds us that we are all human and our legal system can make mistakes.
It also reminds us that we have the capacity to do great things in the pursuit of truth. It is Ms Folbigg’s hope that the legal system will thoroughly investigate sudden infant deaths before seeking to blame parents without good reason to do so.
She hoped the case would “reignite” discussions about the role of science in the law, saying:
It is impossible to comprehend the injury that has been inflicted upon Kathleen Folbigg – the pain of losing her children, close to two decades locked away in maximum security prisons for crimes which science has proved never occurred.
This decision highlights the need for Australia to consider seriously implementing an independent body for reviewing miscarriages of justice, such as those which have been established in the United Kingdom, Scotland, Norway, New Zealand and Canada.
We strongly urge the attorneys general across the country to prioritise a review of their post-conviction review systems as a matter of priority.
Updated
Tracy Chapman releases statement after pardoning of friend Kathleen Folbigg
Kathleen Folbigg’s longtime friend and supporter, Tracy Chapman, has thanked all the people who supported the campaign to see her freed after she was released from prison this morning.
In a statement, Champman also remembered the Folbigg children who had died. She said:
I know the past 20 years have been horrific for Kathleen, not least for the pain and suffering she has had to endure following the loss of her four children. They were gorgeous children.
Caleb, even at 19 days old, was a placid baby with intense eyes and long fingers of a future piano player.
Patrick, despite all his medical issues with epilepsy and blindness, was focused on discovering the world around him through his hands.
Sarah was cheeky, poking her tongue when you called her name, and found fun and joy in the simplest of things - playing with her toys and chasing her dad around.
Laura was an empathetic and compassionate little kid.
They are all missed every day.
Updated
Ben Roberts-Smith sent anonymous threats to SAS comrade, judgment finds
A judge has found that Ben Roberts-Smith sent two anonymous threatening letters to an SAS comrade, the full judgment of the war veteran’s defamation case reveals.
The letters warned the comrade – known as Person 18 – to recant his evidence to the inspector general of the ADF’s inquiry into war crimes, or face being accused of murder himself. The letters said:
You and others have worked together to spread lies and rumours to the media and the inspector general’s inquiry. You have one chance to save yourself. You must approach the inquiry and admit that you have colluded with others to spread lies.
We are very aware of your many murderous actions over many tours in Afghanistan, including specific dates … just like when you took part in the execution of two persons-under-control at Tizak. You know what you have done and so do we.
Don’t forget this because it will not go away. You will go down, better to take a reprimand than murder charges.
The court heard he gave the letters to former policeman-turned-private eye John McLeod to post. The court also heard from Emma Roberts who said Roberts-Smith admitted to sending the letters. She also said she saw him at home with a grey shopping bag filled with a packet of Reflex paper, a packet of envelopes and a packet of gloves.
Roberts-Smith denied sending the letters.
Justice Anthony Besanko found:
I am satisfied on the evidence that the applicant [Roberts-Smith], through Mr McLeod, arranged for two threatening letters to be sent to Person 18. I accept the evidence of Mr McLeod and Ms Roberts and I reject the evidence of the applicant [Roberts-Smith].
Updated
Judge finds Ben Roberts-Smith lied about details of key incident in defamation case
The judge of Ben Roberts-Smith’s defamation case has found the war veteran lied about details of a key incident to explain evidence from witnesses which might otherwise seem unfavourable to him.
One of the key allegations published by the newspapers was about an incident in Darwan.
At trial, the newspapers sought to prove it was “substantially true” that Roberts-Smith, on a mission to the southern Afghan village of Darwan in 2012, marched a handcuffed man named Ali Jan to stand above a 10-metre-high cliff that dropped down to a dry riverbed below. The court heard that Roberts-Smith then “walked forward and kicked the individual in the chest”.
The court heard the man survived the fall but was significantly injured. Roberts-Smith then allegedly ordered a subordinate soldier to shoot Ali Jan dead before the body was dragged into a cornfield.
In his full judgment released on Monday, Justice Anthony Besanko said “the applicant’s evidence as to the path he took from the compound to the creek bed was unsatisfactory”.
Besanko said:
Further, I consider that he has lied about the height of any embankment on the side of the creek bed abutting the fields and he has lied about using his foot to move the insurgent near the Helmand River with a view to possibly explaining evidence from witnesses which might otherwise seem unfavourable to him.
Updated
Sydney man dies from meningococcal disease
NSW Health is urging the community to be on alert for symptoms of meningococcal disease and act immediately if they appear after the notification of three recent cases.
A person in their 50s from Sydney has died from the disease, and a further two cases have been detected in a person in their late teens who had been living in Sydney, and a person in their 60s from the Central Coast.
Both individuals are recovering and none of these cases are believed to be linked, NSW Health said.
There have been 19 cases of meningococcal disease reported in NSW so far this year.
NSW Health is urging the community to be on alert for symptoms of meningococcal disease and act immediately if they appear after the notification of three recent cases.
— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) June 5, 2023
Meningococcal disease is a rare, but serious and sometimes fatal infection. pic.twitter.com/c0pM9HH4AG
Updated
Yes campaign director downplays Newspoll results
The director of the yes campaign in the Indigenous voice referendum has downplayed the results of a new Newspoll showing less than half of Australians would support the vote today, saying he expected the pro-voice momentum to grow as the campaign properly begins.
Dean Parkin, director of Yes23 – the main organising group behind the campaign – said a tightening in poll numbers was “understandable” as more Australians got engaged in the referendum. But he told Sky News earlier today there was still a long way to go before polls open for the vote, expected in mid-October.
Parkin said:
We’ve seen a number of polls. In fact, you’ll see this issue, the referendum this year, it is going to be subject to an enormous amount of speculation and polling between now and the referendum.
He was responding to today’s Newspoll which put the yes vote at 46%, the no vote at 43, and undecideds at 11. The yes campaign has a higher mountain to climb, with a referendum needing a national majority and a majority of voters in 4 out of 6 states for the constitutional change to pass.
Some in the yes campaign are concerned about tightening polls and a trend showing dipping support, but others believe the slide will turn around when the campaign truly begins in earnest in coming weeks.
Many yes campaigners are keen to see the constitutional alteration bill pass parliament, to end the speculation over the wording of the amendment and how politicians will vote, so they can concentrate on the community.
Parkin said:
It’s understandable in some ways that there has been some tightening up in the numbers. We knew that this would always become contested. The conversation has been bogged in Canberra, in politics, in a fair bit of negativity there.
That phase is coming to an end and so that will allow us to increase the focus and get some more cut through on that conversation that’s starting to grow significantly in communities. We’re seeing different groups come out and support, so that’s again where we will continue to drive this all the way through to the referendum.
Updated
Ben Robert-Smith lied over USBs containing classified information, judge finds
Ben Roberts-Smith lied about burying USBs containing sensitive, classified defence material in his backyard, the judge of his defamation case has found.
In his full judgment released on Monday, Justice Anthony Besanko said Roberts-Smith knew the documents were relevant to the case and kept them hidden:
I do not accept the applicant’s case that the failure to discover the USBs was due to inadvertence. The applicant lied about not burying the USBs in the backyard of the matrimonial home. He must have known they were relevant. He had sworn three affidavits of discovery and each time has not discovered them. I find that he decided not to discover them.
The defamation trial heard Roberts-Smith’s ex-wife and a family friend dug up six USB storage sticks buried in a child’s lunchbox in the Roberts-Smiths’s family back yard, before handing the classified files to police.
Included on the USBs was classified information including operational reports from SAS missions in southern Afghanistan, drone footage of military operations and classified photographs.
Updated
Roberts-Smith and witnesses he called 'not honest and reliable': full judgment
The judge in Ben Roberts-Smith’s defamation case has found Ben Roberts-Smith, and four of the witnesses he called, were “not honest and reliable” in their evidence about two alleged murders at a compound called Whiskey 108 in the village of Kakarak in 2009.
The mission to Whiskey 108 was a critical allegation against Roberts-Smith.
Two men were found hiding in a secret tunnel inside the bombed-out Whiskey 108 compound: one an elderly man, the other a younger man with a prosthetic leg. The men allegedly came out of the tunnel unarmed and surrendered.
The judge has found that on the balance of probabilities the newspapers, in their defence of the defamation claim, have proven that Roberts-Smith ordered a junior soldier on his patrol to execute the old man, before manhandling the man with the prosthetic leg outside the compound, where he threw him to the ground and fired his Para Minimi machine gun into his prone body.
The man’s leg was later souvenired by another soldier and used by Australian SAS troops as a macabre celebratory drinking vessel at their on-base bar, the Fat Ladies’ Arms.
Roberts-Smith gave evidence to the court about the mission and called four other soldier witnesses to support his evidence. The judge rejected their evidence.
The judge was scathing about BRS’s evidence in totality:
I have difficulty accepting the applicant’s [Robert-Smith’s] evidence on any disputed issue.
Updated
About 1.32 million Australian households struggling to pay their mortgage: Finder
A record number of Australian homeowners are struggling to pay their mortgage, according to new research by Finder.
In May, 40% of Australian mortgage holders - about 1.32 million households - struggled to pay their home loan.
This marks the highest proportion recorded since Finder began tracking the question in 2019.
The percentage of those struggling to pay is up from 24% in May last year.
The data also shows that mortgage stress is most prevalent among women, and that millennial homeowners are the hardest hit, with 49% admitting to trouble paying their mortgage repayments.
Updated
Minister flies to US to push to remove barriers to Aukus
The minister for defence industry, Pat Conroy, is heading to the United States this week and is expected to focus on ways to remove barriers to sharing defence technology.
Under the Aukus security partnership, Australia, the US and the UK have promised to step up collaboration on advanced defence technologies in addition to the plan for Australia to acquire nuclear-powered technology. But a range of regulations – including US export controls – are seen as potential barriers to speedy collaboration.
According to a government statement, Conroy will “hold high-level talks with representatives from the US administration and Congress to advance the implementation of the pathway for Australia to acquire conventionally-armed nuclear-powered submarines through the Aukus partnership”.
Conroy said:
I look forward to continuing to work closely with both the [Biden] administration and Congress to progress key alliance priorities including enhancing the two-way transfer of technology and information, and meaningful engagement in the Indo-Pacific.
The schedule also includes a visit to the General Dynamics electric boat shipyard in Connecticut, where Virginia-class submarines are produced for the US navy. Australia is planning to buy between three and five Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines from the US in the 2030s, before Australian-built British-designed submarines start to enter into service in the 2040s.
After visiting the US, Conroy will fly to India to attend the G20 development ministers’ meeting in Varanasi. Conroy, who is also minister for international development and the Pacific, said the Albanese government was “a strong supporter of our multilateral institutions” and believed “the only way to address the world’s greatest development challenges is through collective solutions”.
Updated
ACTU responds to worker exploitation reforms
There is some confusion around the government’s announcement it plans to crack down on migrant workers. We reported earlier comments from the movement Democracy In Colour, which raised concerns there were no whistleblower protections.
The government says it will create a “firewall” between the Fair Work Ombudsman and the Department of Home Affairs to encourage exploited workers to report exploitation without suffering adverse immigration outcomes. It also plans to consult on whistleblower protections.
The president of the Australian Council of Trade Unions, Michele O’ Neil, has responded to the announcement, saying the unions are welcome to reforms.
The exploitation of workers in Australia on short-term visas hurts all workers and exposes the impact of a migration system that has shifted away from permanent migration towards a guest worker, individual employer driven approach.
We commend the government for beginning to take action to protect migrant workers and increase the penalties for employers who see temporary migrant workers as an easy target for exploitation.
Updated
Full judgment in Ben Roberts-Smith defamation case released
The full judgment of Ben Roberts-Smith’s defamation case has just been released, four days after the result was delivered in court.
Only the much shorter summary judgment was released when federal court justice Anthony Besanko read out his findings on Thursday, because of a last minute request from the commonwealth to inspect the full judgment out of national security concerns.
The full judgment is 736 pages long. Guardian Australia’s Ben Doherty and I will be combing through the document now.
You can read the full judgment here.
Updated
University of Sydney staff underpaid almost $25m, including $15m for casuals
University of Sydney staff have been underpaid almost $25m, its annual report reveals, more than doubling the findings of a review in 2021.
The figures, released as part of its latest annual report, are related to the university’s employee payments review, still ongoing.
As of 31 December last year, the university reported underpayment of professional and academic employees to the tune of $9.9m and underpayment of casual academic staff totalling $15m.
A spokesperson said the university was“committed to ensuring staff received their full entitlements” and had a process to ensure claims of underpayment were investigated and resolved appropriately:
In 2020, when we became aware of errors in the payment of some employee entitlements, we publicly apologised and committed to addressing the errors and remediating affected staff as quickly as possible.
The majority of errors identified in the subsequent review were found to have affected casual professional staff, rather than academic staff.
In late 2021 a review by auditing firm PwC found the university unpaid staff by almost $13m over a seven year period, affecting almost 13,000 staff, the majority of which were casual professionals.
The spokesperson said its “initial comparison” of timesheets and payslips didn’t indicate underpayment issues for casual academics but the next stage of the review would focus on the cohort.
Following feedback provided through more than 70 school and faculty workshops/sessions last year, we’ve made improvements to our processes for allocating and documenting casual academic work and for reconciling timesheets. New guidelines … were released for consultation and feedback earlier in the year.
We’ve kept the Fair Work Ombudsman informed of the steps we’ve taken to resolve these issues.
Updated
Monash chancellor congratulates Gardner on appointment while union points out wage theft issues
Monash University’s chancellor has congratulated the vice-chancellor, Prof Margaret Gardner, for her appointment as the 30th governor of Victoria.
She will commence her role on 9 August, finishing up at the university on 4 August.
Simon McKeon thanked Gardner for her “outstanding tenure” at Monash University. Gardner joined Monash in 2014 after nine years at RMIT.
She leaves behind a significant legacy of growth and achievement which will be felt within the Monash community for generations to come.
The people of Victoria can be assured they will be well represented nationally and globally, and that their interests will be fiercely advocated for with professor Gardner in post.
Writer and researcher Ben Eltham posted on social media that the union was less pleased with her appointment, pointing at the university’s attempts to prevent a $10m wage underpayment claim from going ahead while under her leadership.
The NTEU Monash branch, the staff union at Monash University, is disappointed with the appointment of Margaret Gardner as Victorian Governor. We note that Professor Gardner presided over more than $8.6m in wage theft while Vice-Chancellor of the University https://t.co/BrbwCwt0Eo
— Ben Eltham (@beneltham) June 5, 2023
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‘Every governor and their partner make the role their own’: Andrews
Daniel Andrews is being asked about the role the new governor’s partner, Glyn Davis, will play. He is currently the head of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet.
Andrews points to Linda Dessau’s husband, Anthony Howard, who was a judge in the county court at the beginning of her appointment:
He was resident within the government house, but he attended to his duties as a jurist first and foremost. So this is a modern world. Often partners in a partnership work and have different roles. And every governor and their partner make the role their own. That evolves over time. They’re not deployments for five weeks or five months, they’re for five years.
But I think it’s fantastic to be able to secure someone who has such a strong track record of leadership, someone who lives their values, someone who is really passionate about life opportunity, passionate about this role.
Updated
‘Absolutely, I was not expecting it,’ new Victorian governor says
Margaret Gardner says she didn’t expect to be asked to be governor; she found out in a face-to-face meeting with the premier in early May:
It was unexpected and so it wasn’t something that I had thought about … I can tell you absolutely, I was not expecting it.
Asked about how she feels about being King Charles’s representative in Victoria at a time that First Peoples are calling for sovereignty, she says she’s a republican:
I’m a republican personally, but I recognise that we are living currently in a constitutional monarchy, and we will do so until such time as the people decide otherwise.
Now, I should note that the role of the governor now is much different from when it was originally conceived … even the roles of government are different now from when we were first a constitutional monarchy. And I think that shows that Australia can change, and the way these roles can change …
One of the strengths of the state has been acknowledging its history in all its forms. And it’s done that through treaty and truth through the Yoorrook Justice commission.
Updated
Renters demand housing action in protest at minister’s office
Housing activists are camped outside the federal housing minister Julie Collin’s office in Hobart today, hoping to discuss what protest organiser and renter Danny Carney described as “the worst rental crisis in our lifetime”.
The action was organised by Grassroots Action Network Tasmania, who plan to organise rolling protests until Labor “start to take the housing crisis seriously”, the Antipoverty Centre said.
Carney, a former Greens campaign manager, said:
We’re in the worst rental crisis in our lifetime and the federal housing minister is doing nothing.
We’ve just spoken to Julie Collins and told her renters are organised and we’re going to fight back. She’s not going to be in power long if they don’t make our lives better.
We’re sick of politicians who say they care. We need politicians who will act.
We demand meaningful action on housing right now. We don’t need a housing fund that doesn’t even build homes, we need a big increase in public housing. We don’t need tweaks to a system that doesn’t work, we need a rent freeze urgently to keep people in their homes.
The Guardian understands Collins spoke with the protesters for 30 minutes.
The federal government argues rental tenancies are the legal domain of states and territories and a number of states have recently ruled out a rent freeze. The RBA governor in Senate estimates last week suggested a rent control policy could “distort the supply side”.
It’s been really difficult to get a meeting with @JulieCollinsMP to talk about the worst rental crisis in our lifetime, so some of us have set up here in the hope she starts listening. Come say hi mates #politas pic.twitter.com/mMxN3uXkiE
— Danny Carney (@dannyrcarney) June 5, 2023
Federal Housing Minister @JulieCollinsMP is in discussion with protestors outside her office on Hobart’s eastern shore. They’re fed up with a lack of action on rising rents, among other issues. #politas #auspol pic.twitter.com/vIKHy5EEcd
— Alex Johnston (@swegen31) June 5, 2023
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Gardner looking forward to honouring Victorians in ‘all their diversity’
Daniel Andrews says he wrote to King Charles to recommend Margaret Gardner some months ago. King Charles got back to him last Tuesday:
I was pleased and proud to nominate to the king Margaret as the 30th governor and the second woman to hold the role given her considerable experience, her background, her values, and her passionate commitment to our state.
Gardner says she’s looking forward to honouring Victorians in “all their diversity”.
Let me begin by expressing my very sincere thanks for the opportunity to contribute through the role of governor to this great state of Victoria to its peoples to its lands, and to supporting what is one of the longest continuous democracies in the world.
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Margaret Gardner to be Victoria’s new governor
The Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, is holding a press conference to announce that Monash University vice-chancellor, Margaret Gardner, will be the state’s new governor.
Gardner will begin her five-year term on 9 August. She has been president and vice-chancellor at the university since 2014. Prior to joining Monash, she served in the same role at RMIT for nine years.
The term of the current governor, Linda Dessau, ends on 30 June. She was the first female governor when appointed in 2015. Her term was extended for three years in 2018.
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University of Sydney announces $100m for early and mid-career researchers
The University of Sydney has announced an “unprecedented” $100m investment in fellowships for early and mid-career researchers, the first of its kind in Australia.
The Sydney Horizon Fellowship scheme will support up to 40 new continuing research positions as part of the university’s 2032 strategy.
The vice-chancellor, Mark Scott, said the scheme would focus on research in climate change, health and sustainability:
We know if we want to grow innovation we must support our researchers to tackle the greatest challenges for the common good.
Early career researchers are vital to solving the challenges of the future and building a better world.
The University of Sydney is one of the few tertiary institutions nationally to have posted a surplus in 2022 as Covid losses come back to bite, logging a $298m surplus in its recently released annual report.
The announcement comes amid continues calls for the federal government to boost its investment in research and development, which remains well below the OECD average.
Bodies including Universities Australia and the Australian Academy of Science want Labor to formally adopt a target of 3% GDP invested into research and development, above the current figure of 1.8%. The OECD average is 2.7%.
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Regulator says PwC needs to be accountable
The corporate regulator says PwC will need to be held to account before it can start rebuilding its commercial relationship with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.
Asic chair Joseph Longo said on Monday that while existing contracts between the organisations would “play out in accordance with their terms”, future arrangements would be affected.
Longo told the AFR ESG summit on Monday:
They need to be held accountable for this extraordinary incident and very serious breach of trust.
Until that happens, many of us will find it very difficult to have a normal commercial relationship with PwC.
PwC’s Australian affiliate is subject to several inquiries, as well as a police probe, after it used confidential information obtained through government work for the firm’s financial gain.
The professional services firm has apologised for the breach and vowed to take action to enhance accountability.
Longo said that like most agencies, the regulator had contracts with PwC, although he did not quantify the monetary size of the current arrangements.
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Driver killed as school bus crashes into escaped camels
A driver has been killed after his school bus crashed into two escaped camels in central Queensland, also killing both animals, AAP has reported.
Emergency services were called to the crash on Emu Park Road, east of Rockhampton, after 5am this morning. The driver was on his way to start the school bus run before sunrise when the accident happened.
Capricornia detective inspector Luke Peachey said the cause of the accident was under investigation:
It appears at this stage that a bus has collided with two camels and as a result, the bus driver has lost his life.
Our investigations to date have revealed that he was the sole occupant of that bus.
It’s a tragic day for the family and friends. Our thoughts go out to the family and friends of that bus driver.
Veteran camel racer and breeder John Richardson said police notified him that the incident involved his animals. He told ABC News he was “devastated” after finding a gate off its hinges along his fence line.
I’ve never had a gate come off like that.
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Following news earlier this morning that Macquarie Island marine park is set to triple in size, the environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, has shared some photos from the announcement:
Best way to start World Environment Day - letting these guys know we’re going to better protect their home. pic.twitter.com/KW0JTPcGnV
— Tanya Plibersek (@tanya_plibersek) June 5, 2023
This is a huge win for world ocean protection. The expanded design will see the Macquarie Island Marine Park almost triple in size. Plus, it will add an area larger than Germany to the highly protected area. pic.twitter.com/pHgRCgcPDF
— Tanya Plibersek (@tanya_plibersek) June 5, 2023
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Thanks to Cait Kelly for taking us through the morning! I’ll be with you for the remainder of the day – let’s get into it.
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With that, I am going to hand over to my colleague, Emily Wind, who will take you through the afternoon.
Thank you so much for spending some of your day with me!
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Experts from Australia and around the world involved in inquiry, says Arabia
The second inquiry into Kathleen Folbigg showed how important it was to get the most qualified and expert scientists, she said.
We had experts from Australia, but also from around the world to bring the most up-to-date knowledge for that inquiry to consider.
This was a remarkable moment in our history, where science was comprehensively put by the most qualified experts in the world. It has been critical to having science heard in this case.
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Arabia:
That’s a real opportunity for law reform. The independent selection of scientific experts so they can bring to bear their knowledge in an unfettered way would be an enormous advancement for our nation.
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Legal system needs ways for science to be heard, says academy chief Arabia
Arabia said the academy was now calling for law reform, and the system to involve more decisions on science:
We need ways, particularly when all the appeals mechanisms have been exhausted, as was the case for Kathleen Folbigg, for that science to be heard.
But also in other cases where we do need independent experts to come forward and quite independently put their scientific evidence to inform decision making. Science is complex.
We don’t need scientists put into a boxing ring, put up against each other.
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Academy of Science CEO says involvement in Folbigg inquiry was ‘an absolute privilege’
In Canberra, the chief executive of the Academy of Science, Anna-Maria Arabia, is responding to the pardoning of Kathleen Folbigg:
I’m absolutely relieved that Kathleen Folbigg has been pardoned. It’s been an absolute privilege for the Australian academy of science to have acted as an independent scientific advisor to this inquiry.
She said science was moving at a rapid pace and this case had huge implications for its role in cases.
The attorney general, Michael Daley, said we must have mechanisms to have cases reviewed when new evidence comes to light.
The question must now be asked: how do we create a more science-sensitive legal system, bringing it to cases routinely, not just in exceptional cases?
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Folbigg to pursue compensation for 20 years in jail, says Sue Higginson
Greens MP and supporter Sue Higginson told reporters Kathleen Folbigg had been freed from the Clarence correctional centre in Grafton.
She said:
She’s walking, she’s outside, she’s in the sunshine … justice has been done.
This is our Lindy Chamberlain case here in Australia.
Higginson said Folbigg would be pursuing compensation for the “20 years of her life that has been lost”. Folbigg is expected to spend the night with lifelong friend and advocate Tracy Chapman.
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‘Gross power imbalance’ between migrant workers and employees must be addressed, advocate says
Democracy in Colour national director, Neha Madhok, has responded to the announcement the Albanese government will crack down on migrant worker exploitation.
Madhok said:
While the changes announced today are a step in the right direction, they do nothing to address the core issue that enables the discrimination and exploitation of migrant workers. Most migrants who find themselves in discriminatory or exploitative conditions say nothing because they fear risking their visa status and employability.
The real issue is that migrant workers aren’t protected if they speak out against their employers for exploitation or discrimination. The government must ensure that protections against visa cancellations are included in migration reforms.
It’s time to acknowledge the gross power imbalance that exists between migrant workers and employers who control whether a migrant is allowed to stay in the country or not by controlling their visa status.
Employers know they can continue practices like wage theft and breaching fair work laws because the visa statuses of migrant workers are not protected or secure.
MEDIA RELEASE 📃
— Democracy in Colour (@democracycolour) June 5, 2023
Migration reforms must protect migrant workers from visa cancellations.
There is still no practical mechanism in place that protects migrant workers from having their visas cancelled if they speak out against exploitation.https://t.co/GNb7gVrmxA pic.twitter.com/wZwrxqA9qZ
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Nearly one in two drivers willing to swap to electric vehicles, study shows
From AAP:
Almost half of all Australian drivers are willing to replace their petrol car with an electric vehicle and two in three consider the technology the future of transportation, a new study has found.
But despite growing enthusiasm for electric vehicles in Australia, some issues are causing motorists to pause purchases, including the high price of the cars and concerns about the availability of charging stations.
The findings, from a survey commissioned by automaker BMW, arrive on World Environment Day and one week after consultation closed on a fuel-efficiency standard that is expected to be introduced to Australia later this year.
The policy would set a limit on vehicle pollution from each carmaker’s fleet, encouraging companies to bring more low and zero-emission vehicles into the country.
The survey of more than 1,000 Australian motorists identified rising enthusiasm for electric vehicles, with 48% saying they would consider buying a battery-powered vehicle.
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Big battery to power Phillip Island during Grand Prix tourist peak
From AAP:
Tourist hotspot Phillip Island has officially opened a big battery to support power supply during summer holidays and the Island’s Grand Prix.
Powering more than 8000 homes for two hours or 700 homes for a whole day – the $10m battery will reduce the cost, emissions and noise of running extra diesel generators during the influx of tourists.
AusNet chief executive, Tony Narvaez, said replacing generators with the big battery will also stabilise the local electricity supply.
The population of Phillip Island more than quadruples over summer, which puts a strain on the local electricity network and at times, leads to power dropping out.
This battery, which in time will be powered by renewable energy, will help solve this issue.
Preparing for high fire-danger days, each individual battery cabinet has a fire detection and suppression system. And the high-voltage compound has a fire break and bush clearance zones.
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Deutsche Bank nudges interest rate forecast higher amid hints of resilience in economy
From AAP:
Hints of resilience in the economy have prompted some economists to nudge their interest rate forecasts a notch or two higher.
Ahead of a central bank interest rate decision on Tuesday, Deutsche Bank has bumped up its peak cash rate forecast from 4.1% by August to 4.6% by September.
In a research note, Deutsche Bank’s chief economist, Phil O’Donoghue, said the relative resilience in household spending and the labour market, a rebound in the housing market and last week’s wage decision had prompted the upgrade.
Under the industrial umpire’s decision on minimum and award wages, annual wage growth is likely to move above the Reserve Bank of Australia’s forecast of 4% to more like 4.5%.
O’Donoghue said the economy was weathering the central bank’s monetary policy tightening cycle, which began in May 2022, much better than most had expected.
He said:
Multiple rate hikes now look likely to be delivered before the end of this year.
For us, the only open question is when.
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New information suggests missing teen Linden Malayta was shot dead four years ago
From AAP:
Queensland Police say they’ve received new information to suggest missing teenager Linden Malayta was shot dead in the state’s north more than four years ago.
The 15-year-old was last seen in the town of Ayr and was possibly travelling to Townsville in March 2019 “in the company of relatives and associates”.
Detectives said on Monday they had received details suggesting an altercation occurred and a firearm was used, resulting in his death.
Police are investigating whether his death was deliberate or accidental.
Child Protection Investigation Unit officer Dave Miles said an “independent and reliable witness” had provided information about an interaction with the teenager before his disappearance in 2019.
Dave Miles said:
During this interaction, Linden told the witness he was in fear for his life and he had ‘come to say goodbye’.
The witness urged Linden to speak to the police but Linden stated: ‘No one could help me now’.
In March in Townsville, police announced a $500,000 reward to help solve the suspected murder of Linden, who would have been 19 at the time.
In a statement on Monday, Miles said:
It is important the community rallies together to bring Linden home..
Linden’s family has not given up hope and deserves answers.
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‘It would not be human if you do not feel something’, Daley says on those who don’t believe Folbigg’s innocence
Daley has been asked what message he would give those who don’t believe she is innocent:
It is human nature to form a view and to make your mind up based on what you know of any circumstances.
No ordinary citizens have a sort of volume of informational detail before them. We just have to trust that the law did its job.
I have to say we have four babies who are dead. We have a husband-and-wife who lost each other. A woman who spent 20 years in jail. And a family that never had a chance. It would not be human if you do not feel something about that.
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Kathleen Folbigg to be released from prison 'without delay', NSW attorney general says
Folbigg will be released “without delay”, according to Daley.
He said:
If she’s not out already, she will be soon.
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NSW attorney general’s pardon does not wipe Folbigg of her convictions
The pardon does not wipe Folbigg of her convictions.
He said he was open to any legal changes that were required to avoid such a situation in the future.
While he would not take a view on Folbigg’s innocence, Daley said it was a tragic case.
He said:
We’ve got four little babies who are dead. We’ve got a husband and wife who lost each other. A woman who has spent 20 years in jail and a family that haven’t had a chance.
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NSW attorney general offers his sympathy to Craig and Kathleen Folbigg
Daley said he spoke to Craig Folbigg to let him know he was thinking of him on this day as well.
He said justice has been done.
The result today is confirmation that our judicial system is capable of delivering justice and demonstrates that the rule of law is an important underpinning of our democratic system.
I thank the team on the inquiry for the work they have done so far. I also thank Mr Bathurst for the thorough and robust assessment he provided me which helped enable this outcome.
I thank the previous attorney general Mark Speakman and the NSW governor her Excellency the Hon Margaret Beazley KC AC, for establishing this inquiry.
Given all that has happened over the last 20 years, it is impossible not [to] feel sympathy for Kathleen and Craig Folbigg. I am glad that our legal system in NSW contains provisions that allow for the continual pursuit of truth and justice.
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Key points from NSW chief justice’s Folbigg memorandum
The key points from Bathurst’s memorandum to the attorney general include:
• There is a reasonable possibility that three of the children died of natural causes.
• In the case of Sarah and Laura Folbigg, there is a reasonable possibility a genetic mutation known as CALM2-G114R occasioned their deaths.
• Bathurst was “unable to accept … the proposition that Folbigg was anything but a caring mother for her children.”
• In relation to the death of a fourth child, Bathurst found that “the coincidence and tendency evidence which was central to the (2003) Crown case falls away”.
• In relation to Folbigg’s diary entries, evidence suggests they were the writings of a grieving and possibly depressed mother, blaming herself for the death of each child, as distinct from admissions that she murdered or otherwise harmed them.
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Folbigg has been pardoned and will be released from prison after 20 years
Daley said Folbigg will be released from prison as soon as possible:
She has now been pardoned. I would like to also say that we also took the opportunity, as you would expect, to make sure that Ms Folbigg was released without delay so I spoke to the Minister for Corrections last night.
Full story here:
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NSW attorney general says Folbigg will be pardoned
Kathleen Folbigg is being pardoned after a decision of the New South Wales attorney general Michael Daley.
Folbigg, who has always maintained her innocence, has spent 20 years of a 25-year sentence in prison since she was convicted in 2003 of murdering three of her children, and the manslaughter of one child.
An inquiry has found there is reasonable doubt as to Folbigg’s guilt.
The decision comes after an inquiry into Folbigg’s convictions last month heard there was enough evidence to suggest her children had died of natural causes.
A draft of the report was handed to Daley on Friday and a summary will be released later today.
You can read our previous feature on the case here:
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NSW attorney general Michael Daley is speaking now.
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NSW attorney general to recommend whether to pardon and release Kathleen Folbigg from prison
We are expecting the New South Wales attorney general to speak soon – he will announce whether or not he will recommend Kathleen Folbigg be pardoned and released from prison.
In 2003 Folbigg was sentenced to 30 years in jail after being found guilty of killing her four children.
But a second judicial inquiry earlier this year heard new scientific evidence that suggested the deaths of the children could be due to natural causes.
More to come.
To learn more about the case, you can listen here:
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Eight teenagers arrested over violent carjacking on the Gold Coast
From AAP:
Eight teenagers are in police custody after allegedly dragging a woman from her car during a violent carjacking on the Gold Coast.
The 50-year-old Pacific Pines woman was on her way to work in Ashmore on Sunday morning when her car was allegedly struck by the car carrying the teenagers, at a set of traffic lights.
The woman followed as the teens fled the accident scene.
Police say when they realised they were being followed the teenagers stopped and turned on the woman, dragging her from her Toyota Corolla and leaving in her car.
The vehicle was later spotted near Logan by a police helicopter, which tracked it to the train station at Richlands, south-west of Brisbane, where five teens were arrested.
A short time later the vehicle dropped another two teenagers nearby at Inala where two girls were arrested.
Police continued to track the stolen car as the driver headed toward Logan before a tyre deflation device finally brought it to a stop at Hillcrest.
The driver tried to escape on foot before he was caught at a nearby address.
The eight youths, aged between 13 and 17, are in custody as investigations continue.
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Australian women and children in Syrian refugee camps file a federal court case for repatriation
From AAP:
More than two dozen Australian women and children trapped in dire conditions in Syria will file a federal court case to be repatriated.
The case will be filed by Save the Children Australia on Monday, on behalf of 17 children and nine women, who critics say have been subjected to inhumane living conditions in detention camps for more than four years.
Many of the women involved are either wives or widows of slain or jailed Islamic State terrorists and either travelled to Syria by force or voluntarily.
Their children, some of whom were born in Syria, are not receiving the appropriate care and medical attention.
Chief executive of Save the Children Australia, Mat Tinkler, said:
These are innocent children, who are being punished for the alleged actions of their parents.
Read the full story here:
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Pay offer increase of 4.5% announced for NSW public sector employees
The New South Wales treasurer, Daniel Mookhey, has announced a new pay offer of 4.5% for the state’s public sector workers.
The treasurer said the offer included a 4% pay increase with an additional 0.5% boost to superannuation.
It will cost the budget $618m over the coming financial year.
Mookhey said:
This is an investment we have to make. Too many of our essential workers cannot afford to stay in [their] professions.
NSW treasurer Daniel Mookhey announces public sector pay offer of 4.5% increase- 4% pay rise and 0.5% superannuation bump. Will cost NSW $618m over the next year. #nswpol pic.twitter.com/jzj7OgJUTi
— Tamsin Rose (@tamsinroses) June 5, 2023
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Sydney’s newspaper rebellion: the night the censors called armed officers on the press
Eighty years ago, in September 1943, Australia’s newspaper owners feared the worst when Labor’s Arthur Calwell was sworn in as minister for information in John Curtin’s wartime government.
Unlike most politicians, the federal member for Melbourne relished fighting with the press. Calwell’s political career had begun with a libel action against a newspaper – and it would end the same way three decades later.
Two years before he was sworn in as minister, Calwell famously said that the Australian press is “owned for the most part by financial crooks and is edited for the most part by mental harlots”.
A tough political brawler with a legendary ability to hold a grudge, no other government minister ever gave newspaper owners as much trouble. When Curtin set sail for the United States in early April 1944, he had not even arrived before Sydney’s daily newspapers were suppressed at gunpoint with Calwell’s permission. This set off the most dramatic incident in Australian press history.
Read the full story here:
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NSW legal services call for investigation after reports police were directed to take ‘strong approach’ to enforcing Covid fines
Two community legal services have lodged a formal complaint against NSW police over its “heavy-handed” enforcement of Covid fines during the pandemic.
The Redfern Legal Centre and Public Interest Advocacy Centre said on Monday they had asked the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission to investigate the way police enforced Covid fines, following an internal video published by the Sydney Morning Herald showing former NSW police commissioner Mick Fuller directing officers to take a “strong approach to enforcement” and that they “start to issue tickets over using discretion”.
In a statement, Redfern Legal Centre chief executive officer, Camilla Pandolfini, said the significant volume of fines issued by police suggested they were not using their discretion to issue fines and were instead issuing them by default.
Some of our clients were as young as 12 years old when NSW Police officers issued fines to them. Parents called us, in tears, unable to pay the fines issued to their young children.
People experiencing homelessness, with significant mental health conditions, or returning home from their shift as health workers were fined by NSW Police. Many of these people were not actually in breach of the directions.
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Melbourne flood alert system to be transferred to BoM after last year’s disastrous flooding
Melbourne’s flood alert system is set to be overhauled after more than 500 homes and businesses were inundated without warning last year, AAP reports.
Melbourne Water, the Bureau of Meteorology and the Victoria State Emergency Service will work together to improve flood forecasts and warning systems following consultation in the aftermath of the Maribyrnong River flooding disaster in the city’s north-west last October.
Responsibility for flood warnings and forecasts will be transferred to the BoM, bringing Melbourne into line with the rest of Australia.
After the October 2022 flood, Melbourne Water was criticised by residents who said warnings came too late.
At Chifley Drive in Maribyrnong, the river rose from a minor flood level of 1.7 metres at 4.25am on 14 October to a major flood level of 2.9 metres two hours later.
In a 36-page submission to its Maribyrnong flood inquiry, Melbourne Water admitted the river rose faster than its modelling predicted.
Melbourne Water managing director, Nerina Di Lorenzo, said:
We know that every minute counts in a flood emergency. Simplifying the process of generating flood warnings between our agencies will further improve timeframes and better support our community when extreme weather events occur.
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Plibersek says fisheries were consulted on marine park expansion
The environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, has been giving a press conference about the Macquarie Island marine park expansion. She’s asked about the response from the seafood industry who say there was a lack of consultation with them about the proposed changes.
Plibersek responds that on the contrary, public consultation had gone for months and involved fishing companies directly:
Well, I have spoken directly to the two companies involved on several occasions. There’s been months of public consultation. We’ve had about 14,700 responses from the public. Only a handful actually opposed the addition of more highly protected waters around Macquarie Island.
I made a slight adjustment to the original maps that I proposed, to give the fisheries operators slightly more water to fish in. They have argued they should be able to trawl sometimes in the future and I said no to that. The waters are too precious to allow trawling. They’re not doing it now and I don’t want them to be doing it in the future.
Plibersek said the government expects the marine park expansion to be operational from 1 July.
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High Speed Rail Authority board appointments announced
Planning for high speed rail in Australia has inched slightly further forward, with the formation of the inaugural board for the government’s soon to be launched High Speed Rail Authority.
On Monday, transport minister Catherine King unveiled five board appointments for the HSRA which is set to commence operations on 13 June.
Jill Rossouw will chair the HSRA board. Rossouw is currently executive director if infrastructure at IFM Investors and a board member of the Port of Brisbane.
Other board members will be: Gillian Brown who is a director of Ausgrid; Diane Crowther who is the CEO of the UK’s High Speed One railway; Ian Hunt who was CEO of the Moorebank Intermodal Company and is a non-executive director of Canberra Light Rail; and Neil Scales who was recently director general of the Queensland transport department.
In a statement, King said the appointments followed a “merit-based process” and that the board has appropriate skills, qualifications, knowledge and experience to best bring high-speed rail to reality.
High speed rail was a signature policy Anthony Albanese took to the May 2022 election; however, announcements for the project – which has been promised to begin with a stretch between Sydney and Newcastle – have been few and far between in the more than 12 months since Labor took office.
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Sydney trains $97m maintenance catchup to cause year-long weekend disruptions
Sydney train commuters will endure a year of weekend disruptions as premier Chris Minns says it’s time “to bite the bullet” on a $97m backlog of overdue maintenance.
AAP reports that Minns told Sydney radio 2GB on Monday the blitz on the beleaguered rail system will be done “mainly on weekends and certainly out of peak hours”:
We need to do this … because maintenance on the railway networks is at an all-time low.
About 80% of Sydney trains were running on time but that figure should be 95%, he said.
That’s because there hasn’t been enough money put into maintenance. We’ve just got to bite the bullet and get on with it.
The transport minister, Jo Haylen, revealed on Sunday a major review of the system found several years’ worth of critical maintenance was required to prevent things from getting worse.
The review made 12 recommendations for restoring reliability to the network, which has suffered repeated meltdowns.
A new timetable introduced in 2017 was found to be responsible for the huge backlog of work and repairs because it left very little time for workers to gain access to tracks. Buses would be substituted for at least a year when tracks were being repaired.
Sydney Trains CEO, Matt Longland, said there would be “significant track works over the next few months” but promised there would be a concerted effort to minimise disruption for commuters.
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Jail terms for exploiting migrant workers to be introduced in Australian government crackdown
Australian employers who exploit migrant workers will be banned from hiring other visa holders and will face new criminal penalties as part of a government crackdown.
On Monday the federal government will announce legal changes to tackle what it calls “a crisis of exploitation with up to one in six recent migrants paid less than the minimum wage”.
The changes, to be introduced to parliament within weeks, will include making it a criminal offence to coerce someone into breaching their visa condition. This offence will attract a penalty of up to two years in prison.
The government will also use new prohibition notices to “stop employers from further hiring people on temporary visas where they have exploited migrants”.
In addition to tripling some existing financial penalties, the government will give temporary visa holders who are sponsored by an employer much longer to find a new job. This aims to ease the pressure exploited workers face to stay in poor conditions.
Some visas currently allow a gap of only 60 or 90 days between employer sponsors. The new gap of 180 days aims to make it easier for sponsored migrants to move between employers.
The home affairs minister, Clare O’Neil, said that over the past 10 years the migration system had “drifted deeper and deeper into reliance on low-paid temporary migrant workers who we know are routinely exploited”.
Read the full story here:
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Business groups argue ‘same job, same pay’ laws would disadvantage workers
I mentioned a little earlier that business groups have glommed together to launch a campaign against the federal government’s proposed “same job, same pay” industrial relations laws.
They’ve released a statement this morning, arguing that the legislation would “lead to lower wage growth and fewer jobs” – essentially that it will make things harder for workers. Here’s a sample of what they’ve got to say:
The so-called ‘Same Job, Same Pay’ proposals does not mean equal pay for men and women. It does not speak of fairness and justice, as its name falsely represents.
It means by law, employers will have to pay workers with little knowledge or experience exactly the same as workers with decades of knowledge and experience.
It means by law, you cannot earn better pay by working harder or longer, if your colleague does not share your ambition or work ethic.
This retrograde policy will deny Australian workers flexibility and the capacity to be treated individually. It will deny them the opportunity to negotiate more pay for harder work.
The signatories here – sorry for the word salad that you’re about to read – are those noted champions of the working class: the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association, Business Council of Australia, Council of Small Business Organisations Australia, Master Builders Australia, Minerals Council of Australia, National Farmers Federation, and the Recruitment, Consulting & Staffing Association.
We heard from the treasurer, Jim Chalmers, earlier, who said the point of the legislation was to ensure that labour hire, casual workers, and gig workers aren’t used to undercut the pay and conditions that had been won by permanent employees.
The government’s notes on the proposed legislation are quite useful here, with some of the principles being that “business should be able to access labour hire for genuine work surges and short-term needs” but also that “labour hire workers should be paid at least the same as directly engaged employees doing the same work”.
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Qantas and Virgin given little incentive to cheapen air fares, watchdog warns
Australian aviation is at a “critical juncture”, with policy shortcomings allowing for a duopoly marked by higher air fares and poorer service, the consumer watchdog warns, as it loses extra resources to scrutinise the sector.
Qantas Group – including budget carrier Jetstar – and Virgin Australia have carried 90% of domestic passengers over the past two decades, and as many as 94% in April this year, according to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s quarterly domestic aviation monitoring report released on Monday, the final edition of the three-year task.
Average revenue per passenger – while down from last December’s record air fare peak – remains just above pre-pandemic figures even when adjusted for inflation, but the number of passengers and seats flown by airlines hovers just under 2019 levels.
ACCC chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb noted the high market concentration in Australian aviation is rivalled only by natural monopolies such as electricity grids and rail networks.
Without a real threat of losing passengers to other airlines, the Qantas and Virgin Australia airline groups have had less incentive to offer attractive airfares, develop more direct routes, operate more reliable services, and invest in systems to provide high levels of customer service.
Read the full story here:
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Matt Shirvington to replace David Koch on Seven’s Sunrise morning show
Seven has announced Matt Shirvington will replace longtime Sunrise presenter David Koch, who resigned from his role at the morning TV show in May after 21 years in the job.
Shirvington, 44, has been a fill-in presenter on Sunrise for a while now, and has worked a sports presenter and commentator for Seven since 2020. But he’s perhaps more widely known for his performance on the track in the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games. He moved into media after his athletics career wound down in 2006.
Shirvington said in a statement this morning that he was “excited but also humbled” to take on the job.
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Plibersek dodges question on number of fossil fuel projects seeking approval
Plibersek has come under fire for approving a new coalmine in May despite the repeated warnings from climate campaigners, in line with scientific advice, that no new fossil fuel developments should go ahead if the world is to limit global heating to 1.5C.
Asked how many coalmine projects are sitting on her desk at the moment, Plibersek skips away from answering the actual question:
Yeah. Look, I think the most important thing is that we have a legislated pathway to net zero in Australia. So the previous government had 22 energy policies; they didn’t land one. They weren’t prepared to commit to taking us on this journey to net zero, so we’re behind the eight ball.
We’re starting slow, but I have doubled the rate of approval for renewable energy projects. I’ve got a lot more renewable energy projects on my desk.
As you say, I have approved one coalmine. I have cancelled two others. We do need to get a wriggle on with this transition to get more renewable energy into our grid.
We’ve got a target of 82% renewable energy in our east coast grid, and we’re building massive offshore windfarms, we’re – as I said, you know, picking up the pace … we need to make that transition.
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‘Well over 99%’ of 14,700 submissions on marine park expansion were in favour: Plibersek
The environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, is giving interviews this morning about the expansion of the Macquarie Island Marine Park.
She tells ABC TV the government received 14,700 submissions from the public consultation process into the project, the vast majority of them supporting it:
This is a great opportunity to add to the area of protected oceans around Australia. We’ve got a target of 30% of our land and 30% of our waters protected by 2030, so we really are getting a wriggle on with that.
I announced in February that it was my intention to protect this beautiful place and since then, we have had several months of public consultation, we have had 14,700 submissions from the public about this place, and well over 99% of them supported the expansion of the marine park because people understand that this is a unique and beautiful place.
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‘Same job, same pay’ laws about ‘closing loopholes’ for undercutting pay, says Chalmers
Jim Chalmers was also asked about business groups who have launched a campaign against Labor’s “same job, same pay” legislation, which the government says is aimed at making sure that labour hire and other insecure working arrangements aren’t used to undercut other workers’ pay and conditions.
One of the criticisms business groups have made of the legislation is that they say it will prevent them from hiring someone with experience and paying them better as a consequence.
Chalmers responds to that criticism:
This isn’t about stopping businesses rewarding experience. It’s about making sure that workers are eligible for the pay and conditions that the employers have agreed with their workforces. It’s about closing loopholes to make sure that labour hire, for example, or casual workers or gig workers are used in the way that they’re intended.
We recognise that there’s a role for example, for labour hire, whether it’s expert work, whether it’s surge capacity; we know that there’s a role there, but we don’t want to see it used as a sort of ongoing way to undermine and undercut people’s pay and conditions that have been negotiated with employers. That’s our motivation here. It’s not about trying to prevent businesses from recognising different levels of experience.
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Chalmers: government ‘prepared to consider’ whether more should be done after AFP investigates PwC
Asked whether he thinks there ought to be penalties for PwC, Chalmers says the federal police investigation needs to roll out first, through the government will consider further action “if more needs to be done”:
First of all, let’s let the AFP process play out. That’s important. Treasury’s referred it to the AFP. And there are other steps we’re working through, cleaning up the tax practitioners board, the AFP referral, and the steps being taken on procurement, I think represent a pretty decisive and methodical response. And if more needs to be done, we’re prepared to consider it.
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Chalmers says PwC scandal 'a substantial breach of faith'
The federal treasurer, Jim Chalmers, has been speaking on ABC RN this morning. He’s asked about the PwC tax scandal. He says it’s something “that “people have got a right to be absolutely filthy about” and that it amounts to “a substantial breach of faith”.
He says he doesn’t know the “precise number of contracts” that PwC has with the government, although it’s “substantial”, and that the government needs to shift away from relying quite so heavily on external contractors and consultants:
But what we have done since being made aware of this really appalling behaviour, that people have got a right to be absolutely filthy about, is we’ve worked through a decisive and methodical response on cleaning up the tax practitioners board [and we have] already got legislation in the parliament to that effect.
Treasury referred it to the federal police. The finance department is strengthening their procurement framework. And we’re asking people to take into consideration this behaviour when they award future contracts. And if there’s more that can be done beyond all of that, obviously, we’re prepared to consider it.
We think that there has been a substantial breach of faith and a substantial breach of trust here. And we need to get on top of it so that people can have faith in the way that these things are done into the future, at the same time as we rebalance a bit away from the overuse of external contractors and consultants and try and rebuild capacity and the Australian public service.
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Expansion of marine park a ‘huge win for world ocean protection’: Plibersek
The environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, has signed off on a final design for an expanded marine park that will triple the size of the Macquarie Island marine park in the Southern Ocean, calling it a “huge win for world ocean protection”.
Plibersek announced plans to add an area about the size of Germany to the park in February.
Public consultation has finished, with 99% of submissions in favour, and the minister will now recommend to the governor general a proclamation to expand the marine park to 475,465 sq km, including large new areas designated as high protection zones.
Halfway between Hobart and Antarctica, Macquarie Island and the surrounding waters are home to species including the endemic royal penguin, rockhopper penguin, subantarctic fur seal, southern elephant seal, black-browed albatross and the grey petrel.
The original proposal was to put an additional 388,000 sq km under the highest level of protection. Plibersek said that had been altered slightly to 385,000 sq km due to a small adjustment to the Patagonian toothfish fishing zone in response to feedback from the fishing industry.
Plibersek said 93% of the expanded park would be completely closed to fishing, mining and other extractive activities:
I want to protect our oceans for our kids and grandkids. This announcement is part of our mission to conserve Australia’s special places, particularly those that are home to threatened species.
Macquarie Island is an exceptional place. It’s a remote wildlife wonderland – a critical breeding ground for millions of seabirds, seals and penguins.
An alliance of 27 environment groups, including the Pew Charitable Trusts and the Australian Marine Conservation Society, welcomed the decision.
National oceans manager for the Pew Charitable Trusts, Fiona Maxwell, said by tripling the size of the park and making 93% a fully protected marine sanctuary, “Australia has given Macquarie’s wildlife the best possible chance to survive and thrive into the future”.
When the plan was announced in February, the seafood industry’s peak body Seafood Industry Australia said it was concerned about the proposal, labelling it an overreach “funded by international activists” that would “tarnish the sustainably managed toothfish fishery”.
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Good morning. Welcome to a brand new week.
First up this morning is the news that Macquarie Island marine park is set to triple in size, with an extra 385,000 sq km added to the ocean reserve, according to the environment minister, Tanya Plibersek. This will result in a total park size of 475,465 sq km, with 93% of it completely closed to fishing, mining and other extractive activities.
Macquarie Island is halfway between Hobart and Antarctica, with the surrounding waters home to species including the royal penguin, rockhopper penguin, subantarctic fur seal, southern elephant seal, black-browed albatross and the grey petrel. We’ll have more on that shortly.
Elsewhere today, we’re expecting Justice Anthony Besanko to publish the full reasons for Thursday’s decisions in the Ben Roberts-Smith case, after they were held back by a few days to ensure they did not unintentionally reveal classified information. It comes as the Australian government now looks for “a way forward” to compensate families of victims of alleged war crimes in Afghanistan.
And that’s just the start of it. I’m Stephanie Convery, I’ll be with you for the next few hours. Caffeinate yourself.
