What we learned, Sunday 1 December
That’s it for today, thanks for reading. Here are the main stories:
A 31-year-old man has been charged with allegedly murdering his parents at their shop in western Sydney.
The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, has dismissed concerns about a mass deportation of non-citizens after tough new laws were introduced as “bizarre speculation”.
Anthony Albanese insists Labor’s plans to establish a national environmental watchdog are still on the table after he quashed a deal with the Greens in parliament’s final sitting week.
Victoria police have carried out one of the “more bizarre welfare checks” after a deadly tiger snake slithered up a driver’s leg as she was travelling at 80km/h on a major freeway.
Four teenagers were injured after a balcony with 40 people on it collapsed on the New South Wales south coast on Saturday night.
More than one million Australians living with endometriosis will have access to a treatment subsidised by the federal government for the first time in three decades.
“Massive amounts” of plastic contamination is getting into food and garden waste through user error and misleading “biodegradable” labelling, waste industry experts have warned.
Thanks for your company today.
Sydney-bound flight diverted to Auckland after engine trouble
An Air New Zealand flight from Wellington to Sydney has been diverted to Auckland after experiencing engine trouble.
Air New Zealand confirmed an engine was shut down about one hour into the flight. Flight NZ249 has now safely landed in Auckland.
Here’s the full statement from Air New Zealand’s head of flight operations, Hugh Pearce:
Flight NZ249 from Wellington to Sydney experienced an engine issue about an hour into the flight.
As per Air New Zealand’s standard operating procedures, the engine was shut down and the aircraft was diverted to Auckland where it landed safely just after 5.20pm.
The matter will now be investigated. Customers will rebooked on the next available service. We thank them for their patience.
Updated
Foreign diplomats in Australia hit with restrictions on domestic workers
The Australian government has restricted foreign diplomats bringing domestic workers into the country, a UN anti-slavery expert has reported, after two recent federal court cases exposed systemic exploitation a judge described as “slave-like working conditions”.
The United Nations special rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery concluded a visit to Australia this week, with a particular focus on temporary migrant workers across the country.
Prof Tomoya Obokata said “a large number” of people had raised concerns with him that foreign domestic workers – brought into the country to work in the private homes of diplomats – faced widespread and largely invisible exploitation:
The way the government is approaching it now, according to the information I have received, is that they are restricting the grant of those visas to a select few individuals, in order not to make it as widespread.
Updated
Australia’s hottest spring on record for mean and minimum temperatures
The start of summer means there’s a chance to look back on the spring that has just concluded. The Bureau of Meteorology provides some interesting stats and charts.
For mean temperatures (which average out the maximums and minimums), it was Australia’s hottest on record. Temperatures were 2.08C above the 1961-90 average, eclipsing the 2.03C previous record anomaly for the spring of 2020.
No other springs came close to matching those two, for mean temperatures at least.
The story was similar in spring for minimum temperatures, with the spring just past Australia’s hottest on record. It too, was a little than 2C above the long-run average for the first time.
For maximums, spring wasn’t that exceptional, merely the sixth warmest on record.
Mind you, the 2.1C departure from the norm is still pretty impressive (and scary). The other five hottest springs for maximums have all happened since 2013.
Spring is, if I’m not mistaken, the fastest warming season in Australia, and these charts help to demonstrate that pretty clear trend.
As for rain, spring was above average – which will please many farmers. Southern parts of the country, though, could have done with a bit more rain.
Updated
Australian representatives to address key climate conference
Australia is preparing to state its position on what obligations states have to address the climate crisis and help Pacific island nations facing the existential threat.
The International Court of Justice is holding oral hearings between December 2-13 to inform advice on what obligations nations have to address global heating and what the legal consequences of failing to do so are.
Greens senator Steph Hodgins-May was a former environmental lawyer who worked on the early stages of the advisory opinion push with Pacific leaders. She spoke to AAP:
It’s a landmark moment.
Anything less than a pledge to stop approving new coal and gas projects and a commitment to end subsidies for fossil fuels “will be considered a failure by those leading the case.
We can’t refer to the Pacific islands as Pacific family while continuing to wave through new coal and gas.
A foreign affairs department spokesperson said engagement with the proceedings was “a reflection of Australia’s backing-in of Pacific leadership and commitment to strengthen global climate action”.
But the department wouldn’t comment on what its submission would contain.
- AAP
Updated
Severe weather warning for Sydney area
The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a severe weather warning for Sydney and surrounding regions, which may soon receive heavy rainfall, damaging winds and large hailstones.
Here’s the warning:
A moist and unstable air mass, supported by an upper trough, is producing severe thunderstorms across eastern parts NSW.
Severe thunderstorms are likely to produce damaging winds, large hailstones and heavy rainfall that may lead to flash flooding in the warning area over the next several hours. Locations which may be affected include Gosford, Sydney, Wollongong, Nowra, Orange, Goulburn and Dubbo.
The NSW State Emergency Service has urged people to move cars undercover or away from trees, to secure loose items, and to keep at least eight metres away from any fallen power lines.
Updated
NSW authorities issue warning after repeated flood rescues
The NSW State Emergency Service is urging people not to drive through flood waters, after responding to more than 313 incidents and conducting nine flood rescues in 24 hours.
Acting assistant commissioner, Paul McQueen, said the service had responded to 900 incidents across the state since storms began earlier this week:
The nine flood rescues conducted overnight were in the Northern Rivers, Illawarra, Sydney and Western NSW regions.
The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting widespread rain, showers, and thunderstorms with moderate to heavy falls to continue into next week, increasing the risk of flash flooding and riverine rises.
McQueen:
The message is simple – Please never drive, ride, or play in flood waters. I also want to thank those who do the right thing and turn around to find another way. By doing this, you are saving our volunteers from being put into harm’s way.
You don’t know what condition the road underneath the water is in and can’t see hidden obstacles and debris under the surface. Flooded rivers may also contain hidden debris, snakes, spiders, chemicals and sewage.”
Updated
Woolworths to reopen distribution centre
Supermarket chain says it will reopen a key distribution centre in Melbourne tomorrow morning, after convincing a cohort of workers to return despite ongoing industrial action.
In a statement, the company said its Melbourne south regional distribution centre was the most significant of five centres currently affected by the action.
Up to 1,500 employees began rolling 24-hour strikes on 21 November in warehouses in New South Wales and Victoria, seeking improved wages and safety. The campaign has led to empty shelves at many stores.
Woolies Vermont running out of promotional snacks and basically ALL of its smaller water bottles. Some of the toilet paper is running low, and the paper towels are almost completely out.
— Dash Nehring (@dash_nehring) November 24, 2024
This is what happens when you don't pay workers a fair wage. #WooliesStrike #WooliesOnStrike pic.twitter.com/DaeQrUxXUI
Woolworths said it would reopen the centre after contacting three-quarters of its staff, with 72% indicating they wanted to return and be paid before Christmas. The United Workers Union has led 11 days of industrial action at the centre.
In a statement, Woolworths called on the union to allow workers to safely return to the distribution centre:
We know that there have been shortages on our shelves in some Woolworths stores and that this is really frustrating for our customers.
We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience and would like to thank our customers for their understanding and for treating our teams with respect.
We continue to seek to negotiate with the United Workers Union and have requested that they allow safe passage for our team wishing to return to work and for vehicles tomorrow at MSRDC.
This will ensure we can operate the site safely and supply much needed essential food and grocery products to our Victorian customers and communities.”
Updated
Senator Hanson-Young says nature ‘bulldozed off national agenda’
The Greens say they will continue to push for a deal with the Albanese government on federal environment reforms and a national gambling ad ban over the summer after a frenetic final sitting week.
On Sunday, the party’s Senate leader, Sarah Hanson-Young, said the issues remained “unfinished business” after a deal between the Greens and environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, was kiboshed by Anthony Albanese at the last minute.
Hanson-Young said:
I’m going to be working hard over summer to make sure we can get this reform that is desperately needed on the environment front, for protecting our forests, stopping the extinction of our wildlife and driving down pollution. Our environment is at a crisis point. Nature needs us. We can’t just keep having nature bulldozed off the national agenda.
The Greens senator said stalled movement on both fronts was due to “vested interests” having a lot of influence in Parliament House.
Whether it’s Gina Rinehart and the mining lobby, and the loggers on the environment front, trying to drag down any inch of protection, or on the gambling reform, the big gambling lobby having their having their claws and their mitts in the government and the opposition stopping any reform, passing the parliament...
Updated
Teens injured in NSW balcony collapse
About 40 teenagers were standing on a balcony on the New South Wales south coast when it collapsed late on Saturday night, injuring four teenagers.
NSW police officers were called to a house on Elizabeth Drive at Vincentia, near to Jervis Bay, at about 11.30pm.
The force has provided a short statement:
Officers from South Coast Police District were told approximately 40 people – all aged in their teens – were on the balcony when it collapsed.
Four people – three females and one male – aged in their teens were injured and were treated at the scene by Ambulance Paramedics for minor leg and back injuries and taken to hospital for further treatment.
Updated
Analysis reveals supermarkets’ most promoted porducts
Health and beauty products are the most frequently promoted products at major supermarkets, a new Guardian Australia analysis shows, with shampoos and conditioners among the items that are almost permanently on sale at Coles and Woolworths.
The big grocery retailers also heavily promote unhealthy foods, which are often displayed prominently near checkouts and at the end of aisles, despite an anticipated government clampdown on such selling tactics.
Promotions are typically funded either solely by a product manufacturer, or through an agreement between the manufacturer and the supermarket to share the reduced profit margins, in expectation of increased sales. Multinationals usually wield the biggest marketing budgets.
Updated
Fatal car accident in regional NSW
Two people have died after a two-vehicle crash near Muswellbrook in regional NSW on Saturday afternoon.
According to police, officers were called to reports of a head-on-crash involving two sedans on Denman Road, Edderton, around 5.30pm.
Police say a woman believed to be in her 70s, who was driving one of the cars, died at the scene. A man believed to be in his 20s, who was a passenger in the second car, also died at the scene.
Another man and two other women aged in their 20s were also treated at the scene by paramedics.
Police said a crime scene has been established. A report will be prepared for the coroner.
Updated
Warning plastic waste found in food and garden waste
“Massive amounts” of plastic contamination is getting into food and garden waste through user error and misleading “biodegradable” labelling, waste industry experts have warned.
Leading figures at some of Australia’s largest waste companies are calling for the government to standardise certification of compostable products, as many bin liners, compostable coffee cups and other material labelled “compostable” or “biodegradable” do not break down into organic matter.
The warnings come as states across the country are introducing food and organic waste collection programs in households in an attempt to halve the amount of food waste that ends up in landfill by 2030. In NSW, councils will be required to collect food and organic waste from all households by 2030.
Updated
Boy in Perth hospitalised after being struck by car
An 11-year-old has been hospitalised with serious injuries after allegedly being struck by a Toyota Land Cruiser in Perth.
According to Western Australia police, the boy was allegedly struck while crossing the intersection of Jersey Street and Hay Street in the suburb of Jolimont, in the city’s west.
Police say the boy was crossing the street with his mother, who was not injured. The force says the 18-year-old driver was also unharmed.
Police are now investigating what has been described as “a serious crash” and are examining the scene.
Updated
Burke explains rejection of visa for former Israeli minister
Continuing with Tony Burke’s appearance on Sky News this morning, the home affairs minister has defended his decision to reject a visa for former Israeli minister, Ayelet Shaked.
Shaked was due to visit Australia for a speaking tour before her entry was rejected.
Burke said Shaked’s visit would have undermined social cohesion, noting he did not want to import hatred from overseas:
Whether those hatreds are demeaning of Israelis or demeaning of Palestinians, I’m going to have the exact same hard line … my view is really simple – if you’re simply coming here to demean people, we can do without you.
The home affairs minister said Shaked had publicly expressed “horrific” views about Palestinians in Gaza, including referring to Palestinian children as “snakes”.
Burke said “we don’t need that in Australia”.
Updated
Burke ‘very grateful and respectful’ of negotiations with Indonesia over Bali Nine
Tony Burke will be discussing the future of the remaining so-called Bali Nine members with his Indonesian counterpart during a visit to the south-east Asian nation this week.
The Bali Nine were nine young Australians arrested in 2005 for attempting to smuggle 8kg of heroin to Australia. Two of the group, Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, were sentenced to death and executed in 2015. Five others remain in jail.
On Sky News this morning, Burke declined to say anything further about whether the convicted drug smugglers might serve the remainder of their sentences in Australia after any negotiations.
Burke said:
I’m very grateful and respectful of Indonesia. It’s got its own justice system. I’m very respectful and grateful that they want to be able to have that conversation, and I’ll be approaching that conversation with a good deal of humility and listening to where the Indonesian government’s up to.
Updated
Tests to NSW’s energy system possible again this week
Summer is officially under way, but a lot of eastern Australia had a warm late spring.
As we saw last week, it didn’t take a lot of heat to stress the power grid, especially when so much of the coal-fired generation capacity was offline for maintenance.
You can read our review of the week but also what’s expected in coming months, particularly for NSW and Victoria, in this piece:
Even though a couple of big coal units should be back on line from this weekend, it looks like there may be a few tight periods this week too.
For instance, the Australian Energy Market Operator was this morning calling for more reserve generation to be made available for tomorrow.
The market is likely to respond but it’s a reminder that we can expect similar calls from the operator each time there is a lengthy hot spell in coming months especially if the warmth stretches over a couple of big population centres (eg Melbourne and Sydney, or Sydney and Brisbane).
Woman discovers snake crawling up her leg while driving on Melbourne freeway
A Melbourne woman was forced to flee her car barefoot after discovering a deadly tiger snake was slithering up her leg while driving.
According to Victoria police, the woman had been travelling at 80km/h on the Monash Freeway when she felt something on her foot:
Remarkably, she was able to fend the snake off her and weave through traffic before pulling over and leaping out of her car to safety.
Police were called to the scene after reports the woman, who was stranded on the side of the freeway, was trying to flag down other cars:
Still in a state of shock and needing to ensure she wasn’t bitten; the driver was assessed by paramedics while police pondered on how to deal with the snake.
The tiger snake is the fourth most venomous snake in the world. It was eventually removed from the car by Melbourne Snake Control.
Passing motorists were left in bewilderment as the massive snake was safely removed from the vehicle.
Updated
Tony Burke dismisses concerns about mass deportation of non-citizens under new laws
Earlier this morning, the home affairs minister, Tony Burke, dismissed concerns about a mass deportation of non-citizens after tough new laws were introduced as “bizarre speculation”.
The migration law changes, which passed parliament late on Thursday night, allow Australia to pay third countries to take non-citizens.
In November, home affairs department officials confirmed about 80,000 people in Australia are on a removal pathway, but stressed many return to their home countries voluntarily.
Burke told Sky News on Sunday the new powers were simply an “extra tool” for the government.
I’m not about to make some big, grand announcement of a mass deportation, or anything like that. This is an extra tool that we should have had, that we now have available, and I’m glad we got the support to get that through the parliament.
Updated
Aukus acting as a form of ‘Asian Nato’, Taiwan says
The Aukus partnership is a form of “Asian Nato”, the Taiwanese government says, after welcoming further transits of Australian warships through the Taiwan Strait to counter China’s military activity.
The Taiwanese deputy foreign affairs minister, Francois Wu, said that the proposal floated by the Japanese prime minister, Shigeru Ishiba, for a Nato-like security pact in Asia would probably anger Beijing.
Here’s what Wu told a group of Australian reporters at the ministry of foreign affairs in the capital Taipei:
Maybe it’s not good for the stability of the region. But having said that … Aukus, in some way, is another form of an Asian Nato.
You just don’t need to call [Aukus] Nato, but it is a real Nato.
The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation is an alliance of 30 European and two North American nations set up to defend each other against attacks by third parties.
In a joint statement, Australia, the UK and US earlier this year said they were consulting with New Zealand, Canada and South Korea to identify possibilities for collaboration on capabilities under Aukus Pillar II, which covers advanced capabilities.
– AAP
Updated
Melbourne tobacco store allegedly set alight after being rammed by car
A tobacco store in Melbourne’s northern suburbs was allegedly rammed by a car in the early hours of Sunday morning, before being set alight.
Fire Rescue Victoria says the fire, which “extensively damaged” the store, will now be investigated by Victoria police:
Crews arrived on scene within five minutes to find a car had penetrated the front of a single storey brick shop, with flames issuing from the building.
Wearing breathing apparatus, firefighters worked quickly to attack the fire with hose lines. Crews successfully prevented the fire from spreading to the neighbouring apartment building.
No one was injured by the fire, which was extinguished about 4.40am by 25 firefighters.
Residents living next to the store were evacuated as a precaution.
Updated
Vanuatu climate envoy says bid for ICJ ruling about delivering ‘the results we need to survive’
Vanuatu’s special envoy on climate change, Ralph Regenvanu, has spoken to the ABC about the country’s historic bid for the international court of justice to rule on the climate crisis.
The UN’s top court will begin hearings on Monday, with 15 judges to determine on the obligation of nations to prevent climate breakdown, as well as consequences for inaction.
Regenvanu, who has written a piece on this issue for Guardian Australia, told the ABC that industrialised nations were “not doing what needs to be done to maintain a positive future for the world”.
The voices of smaller states in vulnerable nations – the ones that have not been responsible for climate change but are suffering the worst effects – are always overshadowed in climate negotiations. The results we need to survive are not being achieved.
You can read Regenvanu’s piece here:
Updated
Albanese tight-lipped on discussions with incoming Trump administration
As we’ve mentioned, Anthony Albanese kept a lot of cards close to his chest during his interview this morning on ABC’s Insiders. Another one of those was on interactions with the incoming US president, Donald Trump.
The US president-elect has been creating a storm of headlines around the world over his intention to impose heavy tariffs on imports into the US. As Insiders host, David Speers, noted, the Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau, paid Trump a visit to his Mar-a-Lago resort recently to discuss the proposed 25% tariff on Canadian and Mexican goods.
Heavy tariffs could also be placed on Chinese imports, which the treasurer, Jim Chalmers, has already warned will have economic flow-on effects for Australia.
Asked whether Albanese might pay Trump a snap visit over the summer, the prime minister stayed mum:
I’m doing the job I was elected to do. I’ve had a productive discussion with President Trump and it was very positive.
Albanese was also asked about Trump’s pick for the director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard. Trump’s decision to choose the former US congresswoman has been scrutinised due to her history as a vocal critic of “warmongering” US foreign policy and sympathetic commentary on Russia.
So, should Australia be comfortable with sharing national secrets with the US if Gabbard is confirmed as its top intelligence official?
Albanese said:
The relationship between Australia and the United States is a strong one. It’s never been stronger than it is right now, and as Five Eyes partners, we cooperate through our intelligence agencies, and I’m sure that we’ll continue to do so in the future.
Updated
Endometriosis drug Visanne added to Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme
The health minister, Mark Butler, is holding a press conference in Adelaide to announce the endometriosis drug Visanne will be added to the pharmaceutical benefits scheme. It’s the first listing of an endo treatment in three decades.
This is a condition that impacts more than 1 million women – one in seven women and teenage girls – and for too long, too many women have been made to suffer in silence.
[They’ve] been told by many healthcare professionals, it has to be said, that this is “normal”. That it is a normal part of period pain or many other explanations for debilitating, crippling pain.
Butler said endometriosis was responsible for as many as 40,000 hospitalisations each year. He said the number of hospitalisations has increased by 40% in the last decade.
This is all about providing cheaper medicines and cutting-edge treatment to Australian patients generally, but [particularly] in the area of endometriosis, which has attracted such inadequate support for hundreds of thousands of Australian women.
This listing is beyond time.
Updated
Brisbane records warmest spring on record
Brisbane has recorded its warmest spring in 75 years of record keeping, with day and night temperatures almost 1C above the long-term average.
Weatherzone analysis says this is mostly due to an increase in minimum temperatures, in addition to a mid-season heatwave:
The major contributor to the record has been the minimum temperatures, which averaged 17.2ºC over the spring season for the site, and were elevated by cloud cover, precipitation, and most notably, humidity.
Updated
‘Certainly our intention’ to resume parliament in March, Albanese says, with election ‘between now and May’
We’re still none the wiser when the federal election will be after the prime minister’s appearance on ABC’s Insiders this morning.
It’s a major conversation topic in Canberra circles whether there will be an early election in March or earlier, or whether Anthony Albanese will send Australians to the polls in May as long predicted.
Albanese said his “starting point” in government is to lead for three years and then “work back from that”.
The prime minister said three-year terms are “too short” and believes Australia should have fixed four-year terms.
So will parliament resume in March as scheduled? Albanese said “that’s certainly our intention”.
Keep your eye on the white car with the flag on the front. At some point between now and May it will go to Government House. But there won’t be an election on New Year’s Day or New Year’s week on 3 January. I can confirm that.
Updated
Albanese refuses to say which countries Australia would pay to take non-citizens
Anthony Albanese has remained tight-lipped on which third countries the federal government could send non-citizens to after the laws were passed with Coalition support this week.
The powers allow the government to pay third countries to receive non-citizens, as well as create criminal penalties for non-citizens who refuse to cooperate with their own deportation, and new powers to search for drugs and confiscate phones in immigration detention.
But the countries they could be sent to remain unknown.
Albanese declined to give any further details on ABC’s Insiders:
What we won’t do is make those announcements on Insiders on a Sunday morning. What this does is give the government power to engage with third countries to make sure that we protect Australia’s national interest.
Albanese said “we’ve done what’s necessary” when asked why mobile phones were also banned in detention centres:
Before the last election, there was some questioning of our resolve, what we’ve been determined to do is to show our strong commitment to keep Australians safe. We have kept Operation Sovereign Borders fully in place. No one who has arrived here by boat has been allowed to settle here. We’ve done what’s necessary.
Updated
‘Technology changes really quickly’: Albanese says social media ban details to be worked out over coming months
Speaking on ABC’s Insiders, Anthony Albanese says the details of the under-16s social media ban will be worked out over the next 12 months before the laws kick in, noting “technology changes really quickly”.
The laws passed parliament on the final sitting on Thursday, preventing Australians under 16 from accessing social media platforms including TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, X and the message board Reddit. Some messaging apps, including Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp, are expected to be excluded.
How the laws will work, including how social media platforms will be able to determine users’ ages, is yet to be revealed.
The prime minister said:
We have 12 months but what we will do is [what] we’ve outlined in the legislation. One of the things the legislation makes clear as well is that because technology changes really quickly, we’ve made sure that the legislation doesn’t have to be adjusted every time there’s a shift in technology, so there are some powers with the minister.
As for whether Australians will have to hand over identification to social media sites to access them, Albanese said the “obligations will be on them” to figure it out.
Updated
Albanese says he still intends to proceed with nature positive laws despite killing Greens deal
Anthony Albanese says it’s still his intention to pass its nature positive laws after a deal with the Greens was scuppered by him during the last sitting week.
The Western Australian premier, Roger Cook, said he had spoken to the “highest level” of the federal government on Tuesday to reiterate his view that the bills in their current form “should not be progressed”.
The government’s legislation would have established two new agencies: an environmental watchdog to manage compliance with national environmental laws and an information agency to manage environmental data.
Negotiations between the environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, and the Greens senate leader, Sarah Hanson-Young, had been progressing through the week, which would have secured the necessary support to pass it.
On ABC’s Insiders on Sunday morning, the prime minister said he had told the Greens leader, Adam Bandt, Hanson-Young, and finance minister, Katy Gallagher, in a meeting but had also informed Plibersek.
Albanese said:
It’s our intention to proceed with them but we’ll proceed with them on the basis of our values that we put forward. These laws could have been carried at any time over recent months if the parliament had the numbers to vote for them … we will hold to our values. We won’t allow any tail to wag the dog. We want to make sure that that happens.
Updated
The endometriosis drug, Visanne, is about to become the first endo treatment to be subsidised by the federal government in 30 years.
The health minister, Mark Butler, will announce the listing of Visanne on the pharmaceutical benefits scheme (PBS) at St Andrews hospital in Adelaide this morning.
The drug is taken daily and works to shrink and suppress the growth of abnormal tissue. Without a subsidy, it can cost Australians with endometriosis about $750 a year.
Butler said the PBS listing would be “a gamechanger” for the roughly one in seven Australian women who suffer from endometriosis:
For too long, women living with endometriosis have had to struggle in silence.
Women are suffering unnecessarily. They’re having their experiences dismissed, being called hysterical and accused of drug shopping. Women’s pain is real and it’s time we stop telling women to just suck it up.
Updated
Man charged after two found dead in Sydney’s west yesterday
A 31-year-old man has been charged for the alleged murder of a man and a woman at a shop in western Sydney.
The bodies of the 69-year-old man and a 68-year-old woman were found with “significant injuries” on Saturday morning, with police describing the scene as “confronting”.
NSW police allege the man and woman were known to the accused, who was arrested at a home in Canley Heights, in the city’s west, in the early hours of Sunday morning.
The man was taken to Fairfield police station where he was charged with two counts of murder (DV). He was refused bail to appear at the Parramatta local court later on Sunday.
NSW police were called to the shop on Oxford Street in Cambridge Park about 9.40am on Saturday after reports of an alleged assault. The bodies were first discovered by a family member, police have said.
Det Acting Supt Michael Cantrell told reporters on Saturday the family of the couple were “obviously devastated” and “assisting police”.
Updated
Major funds boost for mental health, addiction services
Children, pregnant women and people with mental health conditions will receive better support for alcohol and drug issues in a major funding boost, AAP reports.
The $235m package, expanding or establishing more than a dozen services, comes as policing, health and political leaders prepare to chart a new course for drug policy in NSW.
Some $6.4m across four years has been set aside to provide early intervention for 11 to 17-year-olds with moderate to severe substance use.
Funding will also be directed to programs targeting pregnant women, Aboriginal people, people with mental health conditions and people in the criminal justice system.
The NSW health minister, Ryan Park, said the funding would significantly boost the alcohol and other drug workforce including those with Indigenous or lived experience backgrounds:
The programs we are investing in will ensure that people with complex needs receive wrap-around support and care to help people recover and rebuild their lives in the community.
Good morning
Welcome to our live news coverage of 1 December. Is that really the date? December!
We’re starting the day with news that NSW police has arrested a 31-year-old man in Sydney’s west for the alleged murder of a man and woman in their late 60s.
Being a Sunday, there’s going to be the usual round of federal politicians on morning media shows. The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, will be on Insiders shortly after 9am.
Stick with us throughout the day!
Updated
