What we learned today, Monday 3 April
Thanks for following along on the blog today. Here’s a wrap of the day’s biggest stories:
Anthony Albanese led tributes for Yunupingu, the revered Yolŋu elder who has died in his homelands aged 74.
The Coalition’s Julian Leeser questioned why the Albanese government would “risk the social and racial harmony of the country” with the voice referendum and confirmed the Liberal party room would decide its position on Wednesday.
Malcolm Turnbull said the Liberal party “has gone backwards dramatically since I was overthrown”, while former NSW deputy Liberal leader Bruce Baird said the party has “moved too far to the right” as fallout from the Aston byelection loss continues.
Nationals leader David Littleproud has called for One Nation leader Pauline Hanson to show leadership over Mark Latham’s now-deleted homophobic tweet.
And the NSW premier Chris Minns announced the state will become the latest to ban mobile phones during school hours.
Updated
Palmer’s Waratah coal mine denied environmental licence
A major coal mine that was the subject of a landmark court battle fought on climate change and human rights grounds has been denied an environmental licence, AAP reports.
The Clive Palmer-backed Waratah mine in Queensland’s Galilee Basin had its environmental authority application rejected on Monday.
The decision by the Queensland Department of Environment follows a land court recommendation in November to refuse both the environmental authority and mining lease applications
The thermal coal project should be rejected because it “risks unacceptable climate change impacts” on the environment and on human rights, the court ruled.
The land court’s president, Fleur Kingham, found that even though the mine was intended for exports, “wherever the coal is burnt the emissions will contribute to environmental harm, including in Queensland”.
The hearing took place over seven weeks beginning in April last year, and included evidence taken on-country in the Torres Strait and Cairns.
It was the first time a Queensland court has advised a coal mine should be refused due to its contribution to climate change, and the first time an Australian court has linked climate change to human rights.
There are no review or appeal rights under Queensland’s Environmental Protection Act for the department’s decision, however a judicial review can be applied for via the supreme court.
Updated
