What we learned; Wednesday 17 May
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:
The deputy prime minister, Richard Marles, said in a speech today that the full ambition of Aukus will only be realised if the transfer of technology and information between Australia and the US is “seamless”.
Wages increased at annual rate of 3.7% in the March quarter, topping expectations.
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has revealed the Quad meeting will not be going ahead after US President Joe Biden’s withdrawal.
India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, is still expected to come to Australia this year.
Anthony Albanese criticised Liberal MP Stuart Robert’s no-show at parliament as “completely unacceptable”.
Some of the injured children involved in yesterday’s collision between a school bus and a truck will have to undergo amputations. The truck driver was charged earlier today.
The shadow treasurer, Angus Taylor, was at the National Press Club and rejected suggestions the opposition rhetoric on migrants had emboldened fascists.
The former Liberal shadow attorney general Julian Leeser said the voice referendum wording was “a stumbling block” for some to vote yes.
Sydney recorded a new low in rental listings, with the number of new listings falling 17% month-on-month in April on realestate.com.au – the lowest it has been in a decade.
The Falls festival will not ring in 2024, with organisers announcing the national New Year’s event will take a year off to recalibrate.
The AFL has decided against a twilight grand final, confirming the 2023 decider will be held at the traditional time of 2.30pm AEST on 30 September at the MCG.
The Miles Franklin long-list was announced, and included 11 Australian novelists.
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Mark Latham likely to have to defend controversial tweet insulting Alex Greenwich in court
AAP is reporting that the controversial NSW One Nation MP Mark Latham is set to defend a graphic and homophobic tweet in court as his window to apologise closes.
The One Nation state leader was widely condemned from across the political spectrum after posting the tweet directed at openly gay Sydney MP Alex Greenwich last month.
Greenwich earlier this month said the tweet was “extremely defamatory” and he was prepared to sue Latham if the One Nation MP did not apologise, retract the comment and commit not to make similar statements again.
A deadline for Latham to apologise for the tweet passed at 5pm on Wednesday, and it is expected a claim will be filed in the federal court in the coming days.
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Victorian minister for equality hosts drag storytime event in Parliament House
The Victorian minister for equality, Harriet Shing, hosted a drag storytime at the state’s Parliament House today, attended by the premier, Dan Andrews, Labor MP Vicki Ward and families.
In the past six months, at least 11 queer events across the state have been cancelled.
Shing said it was important to remember increasing intimidation from members of far-right groups was not enough to stop every council around Victoria from raising a rainbow flag:
Nor could it stop us from hosting a drag queen storytime event right here in Parliament.
I was so proud to be joined by so many colleagues, rainbow families, allies, and members of our LGBTQI+ communities. It was a colourful, fun and inclusive celebration of LGBTQI+ visibility, and sent a really strong and positive message that LGBTQI+ safety, connection and pride have never been more important than now.
The Victorian Government is hosting a drag story time event at parliament today to mark IDAHOBIT day. It also announced $1.8M for Rainbow Health Australia to deliver inclusion training to make sure organisations are safe for the LGBTIQ+ community #springst pic.twitter.com/Ov8pHZnwqY
— Bridget Rollason (@bridgerollo) May 17, 2023
After successfully protecting a drag storytime outside Eltham library today, a group of LGBTQ+ defenders, the Rainbow Community Angels, have promised to protect future queer events. The group’s co-founder, Felicity Marlowe:
It’s been fantastic ... But we’d really like a world where we didn’t need to be there. People should really be able to leave work and study and go to the local library. Whether you’re a young kid, a rainbow family [or] an older trans person. These are our beautiful public institutions.
We are sick of the systemic discrimination and vilification. Our families and children are under and it’s got to stop.
Co-founder of the Rainbow Angels Felicity Marlowe has promised the group will be at more events in the future after they successfully stopped protestors from cancelling today's drag storytime in Eltham. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/kDo6FfhSC9
— Cait Kelly (@cait__kelly) May 17, 2023
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Maribyrnong city council declares pollution health emergency
A “health emergency” has been declared by a Melbourne council, which claims residents are suffering above-average rates of hospitalisations for certain conditions partly due to a surge in road trains on its suburban streets.
Maribyrnong city council, which takes in Footscray in the city’s inner western suburbs, announced the declaration on Wednesday, claiming rates of illness in the municipality due to pollution “considerably exceed the Australian average”.
“Council believes this is in part due to the exhaust from heavy trucks, which contains particulate matter, being blown directly into resident’s homes day in and day out from morning to night,” it said in a statement.
The health emergency declaration follows long-term frustration about heavy trucks driving through suburban streets around Footscray, even after a curfew was introduced in 2015.
Adolescent asthma rates in the City of Maribyrnong are 50% higher than the state average, and the hospital admission rate is 70% higher than the Australian average for those aged between three and 19.
Read more:
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AFL sticks with afternoon grand final slot
The AFL has decided against a twilight grand final, confirming the 2023 decider will be held at the traditional time of 2.30pm AEST on 30 September at the MCG.
Outgoing boss Gillon McLachlan said the time of the grand final would continue to be reviewed to “deliver the best possible game experience, both for fans at the ground and for the millions watching the broadcast”. The incoming chief executive, Andrew Dill, had indicated his support for a day grand final.
There had been speculation this year’s grand final could move to a twilight slot of around 4pm but fans and senior AFL figures kept their support behind a day final.
In 2020 Covid restrictions forced the grand final to move to an evening time slot at the Gabba in Brisbane, and then a twilight time slot in 2021 at Perth’s Optus Stadium. Last year’s fixture between Geelong and Sydney was held in the afternoon in front of more than 100,000 people at the MCG. Proponents of a later grand final start time argue the potential TV ratings spike is worth breaking tradition for.
The AFL is also expected to announce its support for a yes vote on the Indigenous voice to parliament in the coming days.
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PM cautions accepting Coalition ‘scare campaign’ rhetoric on migration levels
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, also took aim “a low-rent attempt by the Coalition” to whip up a scare campaign about migration, during his interview with ABC Radio Brisbane this afternoon.
Albanese was asked what his plan was for housing for arriving migrants. Albanese cautioned the interviewer, Steve Austin, not to accept the Coalition’s rhetoric on the topic:
It’s important to not be sucked into a scare campaign about what the migration levels are.
Albanese pointed to pandemic-related factors when explaining the budget projections for net overseas migration.
The opposition leader, Peter Dutton, and his senior Coalition colleagues have focused on migration in the wake of the budget. The shadow treasurer, Angus Taylor, said on Monday that “this budget does add 1.5 million immigrants … most importantly without a plan”.
But the budget doesn’t set this as a target or a policy as such – it outlines forecasts for “net overseas migration”.
Net overseas migration is forecast to be 400,000 in 2022-23, followed by 315,000 the next year and 260,000 in each of the following three years. The Coalition has added these together to come up with the “1.5 million immigrants” figure.
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PM confirms Indian leader Narendra Modi will still visit Australia despite Quad meeting cancellation
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has confirmed that the Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, will still visit Australia for a bilateral meeting next week, despite the cancellation of the Sydney Quad leaders’ summit after Joe Biden pulled out.
During an interview with ABC Radio Brisbane this afternoon, Albanese confirmed that Modi would meet with Albanese and also hold business meetings and make an address at Homebush in Sydney:
I look forward to welcoming him to Sydney. He made me a very welcome guest in March and he is the host of the G20 this year.
As for the Japanese prime minister, Fumio Kishida, Albanese said a bilateral program wasn’t planned in Australia. He said Kishida had visited Perth late last year, and Albanese would attend the G7 summit hosted by Kishida this weekend.
Albanese reiterated that there were now plans “for the four Quad leaders indeed to have discussions when we are at Hiroshima at the G7 meeting”.
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Light plane crashes at Melbourne Essendon airport
AAP is reporting that a light plane has crashed onto its roof at Melbourne’s Essendon airport.
Television footage from the scene shows the small plane lying on its roof on the grass with firefighters nearby.
Nine emergency vehicles responded to the crash, which was reported at 4pm.
Paramedics were called to the incident but were not treating any patients, an Ambulance Victoria spokesperson said. Fire crews are working to isolate any potential fuel leak before the scene can be declared safe.
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Julian Leeser: voice referendum wording ‘a stumbling block’ for some to vote yes
The former Liberal shadow attorney general Julian Leeser has said that the wording of the voice referendum question is a “stumbling block” for some Australians to vote yes.
Leeser was on the ABC’s Afternoon Briefing, and addressed reports that the yes vote had been declining in support, reflected in some recent polls, and said the referendum was in “real difficulty”:
I think referenda always start out or tend to start out with high support for the yes case and as time goes on, and people hear the campaign, and doubts are created, the support is whittled away. Unfortunately, the legislation has not even been settled and yet we are already in a position where the referendum is in real difficulty.
I still think there is a lot of goodwill in the community for it. But … I have been critical of the government’s handling of this: not releasing detail, not answering some of the questions that Peter Dutton put in early January, I think, has been problematic for the success of this.
You cannot change the past but we can change the future. And that is what I’m focused on.
I’m not arguing here about the legal technicalities. I am arguing that these words that are in the referendum are a stumbling block for some Australians to vote yes, I want to remove the stumbling block and encourage more Australians to vote yes to the referendum.
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Queensland cabinet reshuffle predicted tomorrow
Queensland’s environment minister, Meaghan Scanlon, will be promoted to housing minister in a cabinet reshuffle aimed to revitalise three critical portfolios ahead of next year’s state election.
Senior government sources told Guardian Australia that Scanlon will replace Leeanne Enoch as housing minister. Scanlon has been the state member for Gaven since 2017 and has been described as a rising star in the Labor caucus.
Health and youth justice will also be targeted in the cabinet shake-up, with reports the state’s health minister, Yvette D’Ath, will swap portfolios with the attorney general, Shannon Fentiman.
Guardian Australia understands no backbenchers will be promoted, with further announcements on the cabinet changes expected tomorrow.
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At least 11 queer events called off in last six months after right-wing action
Drag performer Spencer Street is performing at the online Storytime is for Everyone event.
The performer revealed they had an event cancelled leading up to Idahobit day - making it at least 11 queer events that have been called off in the past six months.
Street said continuing to hold events, even virtually, sent an important message to the community.
There are about nine different drag artists that are a part of it. We’re just going to come out and look fabulous.
We’ve all got a little competition going, who’s got the best backgrounds. And just having fun with it, because at the end of the day, we need a little bit of fun, a bit of love.
Over 500 people are registered to attend the event.
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Richard Marles calls for ‘seamless’ transfer of technology and information between Australia and US
Sticking with American relations, the defence minister, Richard Marles, has told the American Chamber of Commerce in Adelaide of the importance of Australia’s alliance with the United States.
Marles was giving a keynote speech to the chamber and said the Aukus alliance must also cut red tape around arms and technology exports.
He said the regulations around transfers of information, technology and defence material were understandable, but it was necessary to change them to “help us hold potential adversaries’ forces at risk at a greater distance and increase the cost of aggression against Australia”.
What is really clear is that if we are to realise the ambition of Aukus, the transfer of technology and information between Australia and the US needs to be seamless.
Marles went on to advocate for changes to the culture at the Australian Defence Force, saying it needed to embrace failure as part of developing an “innovative mindset”:
Defence no longer has the luxury of taking the time to get a capability perfect. We must also change our relationship to risk and celebrate the learning that comes from failure.
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Bob Carr warns of Biden’s ‘cognitive decline’ and against Australia acting like American ‘client-state’
The former foreign minister Bob Carr has taken to Twitter to warn of the “frailty and cognitive decline” of the US president, Joe Biden, adding that attendance at major forums and conferences have been left to the “unsteady hand of the vice-president, [Kamala] Harris.”
Carr, who is also a former premier of NSW, also said that the Republican base was “loyal to Trump” and to “any heir of Trump”.
Prepare for Biden’s next term when frailty and cognitive decline may prevent president’s attendances at any forums leaving things to the unsteady hand of Harris. Republican base is loyal to Trump and beyond 2024 partial to any heir of Trump:
— Bob Carr (@bobjcarr) May 17, 2023
Trumpian instincts are unfriendly to NATO and fond of Putin.
— Bob Carr (@bobjcarr) May 17, 2023
It comes after the US president informed the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, that the Quad meeting was cancelled because Biden had to be back in the US to negotiate Congress’s debt ceiling deadlock.
Carr also told the Australian newspaper that Australia needed to rethink its relationship with the United States and that policy makers needed to “factor in a serious uncertainty about projected American behaviour”:
Australia is suffering from being too compliant, too un-pushy, too like a client state. Biden won’t come here, and apparently flicks off our prime minister’s submission about Assange.
We were encouraged by the White House to talk-up the Quad and invest it with more substance that it has. It hasn’t even delivered on its promise for an Asian vaccine.
Act like a client state, get treated like one. We’ve got out of the habit of fruitful arguments with our coalition partner.
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Thanks Natasha, Mostafa Rachwani with you to take you through the rest of the day’s news.
Thanks for following along today, that’s it from me this hump day. See you back here tomorrow morning!
Anthony Albanese colouring in rabbits – in pictures
You might have noticed the PM’s press conferences are pretty regularly coming from different childcare centres around the country. That’s because these visits are part of a tour spruiking his subsidies to help more women get back into the workforce. This morning’s press conference came from Goodstart in Tweed Heads.
If you were wondering how Anthony Albanese helped ease the blow of the US president, Jo Biden, cancelling his big visit down under and then the whole Sydney Quad leaders’ meeting falling to pieces as a result … the answer is some colouring in.
I do not have confirmation whether Albanese brought along the Rabbitohs print offs himself or whether the centre provided the PM the opportunity to colour his favourite team’s emblem.
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Loch Ard Gorge cliff face in Victoria closed after fears of collapse
Part of a cliff face on the Great Ocean Road has fallen into the sea, leading authorities to close one of the route’s most popular tourist attractions.
The ABC is reporting that the beach steps at Loch Ard Gorge have been closed to the public following a rock fall at a cliff which overlooks the stairs.
A crack was discovered in the cliff face following the rock fall, just three kilometres north-west of the famous Twelve Apostles.
Parks Victoria has engaged specialists to assess the geotechnical risk at the site.
Authorities have closed access to one of the Great Ocean Road's most popular tourist attractions, the beach steps at Loch Ard Gorge, amid fears of a cliff collapse https://t.co/c10U8MKFKH
— ABC News (@abcnews) May 17, 2023
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First solo runway by Indigenous label at Fashion Week
Indigenous fashion label Ngali has presented the first-ever First Nations solo runway show at Australian Fashion Week, AAP reports.
The Murriyang collection at Carriageworks in Sydney today featured a cast of all First Nations models, including Samantha Harris.
The name means “skyworld” in the Wiradjuri language and the collection’s bright prints are a celebration of the land, water and sky of Wiradjuri country in NSW.
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Meanwhile at Eltham library, where the drag queen storytime had to be cancelled …
The event in Eltham led by the Rainbow Angels has just wrapped up, with the Angels moving inside the library to debrief. Vanessa Muradian bought her new baby, along with a group of friends. She said it was more important than ever to come out and show support for queer families:
I think more than ever there seems to be a rise of transphobia particularly, but queerphobia in general.
In my adulthood, it felt we were coming to a beautiful place in the community. I think post-Covid a lot of hate is rising. I’m raising a baby in a queer family, it’s important she feels love in the world.
Now more than ever we need love. When the hate is there we need to stand up against it.
The event at Eltham is wrapping up, with families being escorted out by marshals.
— Cait Kelly (@cait__kelly) May 17, 2023
The angels are calling it a massive success and promising to be at more queer events. pic.twitter.com/vLaSQgSUUa
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Campo finished the press conference confirming students attended school today:
We’re just taking it really easy today and surrounding our kids with love and support.
… there’s some children still being cared for and others having a school-approved pyjama day.
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Campo:
It is just distressing knowing what our kids have been through and I can only just imagine their fear in being confronted with that scene. As I said, myself and assistant principal and our staff wrapped our arms around the kids. I know that we’re not supposed to hug kids but that is what they needed.
Principal says staff only expected to find a ‘minor collision’
Campo confirms that she was one of the staff members who were first on the scene. She thought she was heading to the scene of a “minor collision.” She did not expect what they found:
A community member gave us a call to say the bus had been in an accident and we were about to start a staff meeting and I said I had to go and they all followed me down. We just flooded the kids.
I didn’t know what I was going to see.
I honestly thought I would just be there comforting some distressed kids who’d been in a minor collision. Didn’t ever expect to see that and I hope I never see that again.
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Campo thanks the bystanders who stopped to help, the emergency services, police, the department of education and the local community for providing support.
To our amazing local community, we have been inundated with messages of love and support and food and flowers.
Exford primary school principal thanks staff for assistance in wake of Melbourne bus crash
Campo acknowledges the school staff:
I just want to actually acknowledge our amazing staff. Almost the entirety of our teaching staff, some were here managing the situation at school in terms of family calls.
The majority were down at the site with us and that was really confronting.
We were expecting a fender bender, not anything more than that.
Our staff just extensively wrapped their arms around the kids and provided love and support and comfort in a really difficult situation.
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Lisa Campo, the principal of Exford primary school, follows Superintendent Cruse.
I want to start by sending all the children and families are a love and our support and our thoughts are with them. I have been in contact with as many as I could reach and I will be ringing them all again later on.
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Cruse said police have just had a meeting with the parents of some of the children in the school as well as the staff that were there.
It is unimaginable to imagine that children were in their classrooms and such a short time later so seriously injured so close to school. And for teachers have turned out, that is going to be really impactful for them.
Asked about what is known about seatbelts, Cruse says:
I know the bus was fitted with seatbelts but I am unaware of the children that were or were not wearing seatbelts.
Cruse says as the investigation continues, it is likely there will be more charges.
Police say emergency response time to Melbourne bus collision ‘quite quick’
Cruse says “when I heard the job, your heart really sinks. It is really confronting.”
He says the response time from emergency services’ response was “quite quick” in his opinion.
We got down there. They were able to stabilise the bus and then start to remove the children from the bus and triage.
It is a difficult environment to work in. The intersection is surrounded by paddocks. We had to set up just temporary triage areas.
Those who are most seriously injured were conveyed to hospital really quickly.
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Police looking at ‘inattention’ as part of investigation into Melbourne bus crash
As we mentioned earlier, the driver of the truck – a 49-year-old man – has been charged with dangerous driving causing serious injuries.
Cruse says there are multiple counts in regards to the charge and he will front the Melbourne magistrates court later today.
Asked about the possible factors around those charges, Cruse says:
Inattention is something that we are actively looking at as part of the investigation.
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Cruse said many of the first responders would have known people involved in the collision:
Some of the teachers went down to the scene and assisted in triaging the children before they went to hospital.
Police provide details on ‘horrific’ and ‘chaotic’ scene of Melbourne bus crash
Cruse is providing some more details about what he described as a horrific and chaotic scene after the collision:
The bus driver, despite being injured, I understand that he helped some of the children out of the bus.
Then we had passers-by who have heroically stopped immediately and assisted in assisting the children who could be removed from the bus.
Then we obviously had the emergency service response, some of the children were trapped and it was a horrific scene. It was chaotic.
It would have been very confronting for those passers-by. I think a special mention to those people. Some of the people who also assisted up from the school here.
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Superintendent Cruse says police will allege the collision was avoidable.
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Cruse is reminding the community about road safety messaging:
We want all road users to remain vigilant, concentrate, obey the speed limits, be really courteous to other road users, and stay completely in attention at all times, not use their mobile phone to make sure we do not see any incidences of this nature.
Superintendent Michael Cruse is describing the incident which he says has given children on the school bus “life changing injuries.”
[The school bus] has been struck from behind by the by the truck.
That collision has caused the bus to flip onto its side and enter the intersection with Murphy’s Lane.
As a result of that collision several children in the in the bus have received life changing injuries.
Seven children confirmed seriously injured in Melbourne bus crash
Victoria police have revised the number of children seriously injured in the bus crash to seven.
Police are now addressing the media about the incident – we’ll bring you those updates.
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Angus Taylor rejects suggestion opposition rhetoric on migrants has emboldened fascists
Back at the National Press Club, the shadow treasurer, Angus Taylor, has been asked what he has to say to migrant communities who say the rhetoric of the opposition has emboldened fascists after an anti-immigration rally was held in Melbourne over the weekend.
It of course comes as Taylor and members of the opposition have criticised increased rates of immigration, with the shadow treasurer repeating often this afternoon the number of migrants expected to arrive in the coming years.
But when asked about emboldening fascists, Taylor rejected the association:
I just reject neo-Nazism, I can’t reject it strongly enough, and I think Peter Dutton has been very clear about that. And any association of our agenda with that, I think, is just wrong.
… Look, we want the right thing for all Australians. We don’t take responsibility for the behaviour of nutters in Melbourne. I mean, if they’re going to go and do that sort of stuff, we can’t take responsibility for their heinous behaviour and we certainly don’t condone it.
But we will argue the case for what’s right for Australia every day of the week, and, of course, that’s what we’re doing here.
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Queer performers drown out anti-LGBT protestors at Eltham library reading
At Eltham Library, anti-LGBT protestors are on one side, being drowned out by queer performers who are dancing, dressed in white angel wings.
Anti-queer protestors have signs like “kids should be protected” and are yelling at people entering the area.
Frock Hudson, aka Dean Arcuri, was here earlier reading to a group of children outside the library while “angels” stood in a big circle.
We spoke to him just before. He said he started crying when he rocked up seeing the big community turnout:
It was beautiful to come and see all these community members and families who want to support storytime. Seeing that, I started crying straight away.
Honestly it’s a really beautiful thing to see. I couldn’t be prouder of the community.
This is the scene at Eltham library right now where anti-LGBT protestors are being drowned out by tunes and bangers on the other side of the road. pic.twitter.com/5xs7nIMvMM
— Cait Kelly (@cait__kelly) May 17, 2023
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Truck driver charged
A truck driver has been charged after the vehicle he was driving allegedly crashed into a school bus in Melbourne’s west on Tuesday, seriously injuring 10 children.
Police on Wednesday interviewed and charged the truck driver, a 49-year-old Balliang man, with four counts of dangerous driving causing serious injury after he spent the night in police custody.
He will likely front Melbourne magistrates court on Wednesday afternoon.
Police allege the bus, which was carrying 45 children from Exford primary school, was struck from behind by a truck at the intersection of Exford Road and Murphys Road in Eynesbury about 3.40pm Tuesday.
The bus was conducting a right-hand turn from Exford Road on to Murphys Road when police allege the truck crashed into it, causing it to roll over.
Taylor continues Coalition line of criticising 1.5 million forecast immigration figure
Angus Taylor’s speech is largely sticking to the main criticisms the opposition has been raising since the budget was revealed last week – including migration.
Now, the budget has the Australian population growing by substantially more than Adelaide over the next five years, but with no plan to address housing supply, infrastructure needs, and other services required to make that growth successful.
We all support … a well-planned migration program, and that’s the history of Coalition governments. But over five years, net overseas migration will see our population increase by over 1.5 million people. It’s the biggest migration surge in our country’s history and it’s occurring amidst a housing and rental crisis.
Migration is an enormous part of our history and it’s been critical to our economic success, our culture, our lifestyles, and who we are … whilst migration will continue to serve us well into the future, it only works if you have a complementary plan around the infrastructure, the housing, and the services that are required.
Instead, the government is cutting infrastructure spending in real terms and reallocating it to their pet projects.
As Guardian Australia has previously reported, the picture when it comes to immigration is a bit more complicated, with Australia still catching up to pre-pandemic levels.
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Charles Darwin University supports yes vote
Charles Darwin University has become the latest tertiary institution to throw its “unequivocal support” behind the Yes vote in the upcoming referendum.
A string of universities including ANU, UNSW, the University of Wollongong, Swinburne and Curtin University have pledged public support for the Voice this year, with others remaining in negotiation over their institutional positions.
CDU’s decision was made by the university’s council and has been backed by deputy vice-chancellor professor Reuben Bolt.
It is imperative that the university ‘of’ and ‘for’ the Northern Territory, publicly endorses and supports First Nations advancement in Australia. It is critical, because the Territory has a strong history of advocacy for First Nations advancement, including the Larrakia petitions, the Barunga Statement, the Yirrkala Bark Petition, and the Walk off at Wave Hill.
Advocate for the Uluru Statement from the Heart and author Thomas Mayo signed the university’s statement on Monday.
The decision for CDU to unequivocally support the Yes campaign is very welcome, especially with its expertise, knowledge and connection to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and their understanding of the challenges we face here in the Northern Territory.
Support for the Yes vote is an acknowledgement that the best outcomes for First Nations Australians is when they are involved in the design and implementation of policy and legislation that affects them.
Leeser says amendments to voice will limit arguments made by no campaign
But Leeser, the former spokesperson for Indigenous Australians who quit the shadow cabinet to campaign for the voice, said he was concerned about the polling.
He said in a statement:
Today’s Resolve Poll confirms a trend, the electoral prospects for the Voice are not tracking as they should.
The best way to improve the prospects is to limit the arguments of the No case. That’s why I will be moving two amendments to the Voice constitutional alteration when Parliament returns next week.
Leeser is continuing to push his so-called “Press Club model”, which he outlined at (you guessed it) the National Press Club earlier this year. His idea would remove entirely the second section of the proposed constitutional alteration, which explicitly gives the voice power to make representations to executive government – which has been a key criticism of No campaigners.
Leeser said the voice needed to advise the executive, but believed it would be better to set up that power through legislation, not the constitution.
I am a supporter of the Voice, I will be voting YES at the referendum, the amendments I am proposing will improve the electoral prospects of the Voice.
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Julian Leeser to move his own amendments on the Indigenous voice referendum
Liberal MP Julian Leeser will move his own amendments to the constitutional alteration bill setting up the Indigenous voice referendum, claiming new poll results showed supporters needed to change tack.
A poll in the Nine newspapers reported support for the voice has dropped from 58 to 53% over the past month. The Resolve poll found 44% of voters backed the change, 39% were against, and 18% undecided; but when asked a yes/no question, as the referendum will require, yes was supported 53-47.
That’s still a likely victory for yes, but the Resolve poll trend shows slipping support for yes. The latest Guardian Essential poll, by the way, shows support for the Indigenous voice was high and remaining steady, with yes supported 59-41. Other published polls have shown voice support in the mid to high 50s.
Sources in the yes organisation said they expected polls to bounce around during the campaign, noting there was likely still five months until the referendum – and that there was a wide variety of results in various polls. Yes campaigners said they weren’t concerned about one poll, pointing to a large civil society campaign still to come.
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‘No one wins from a big-spending government in an inflation crisis’: Taylor
Taylor is telling the NPC that there is a “credible case” that the Albanese government’s budget is making inflation worse:
As has been pointed out by the Australian Financial Review’s John Keogh, this budget even walks away from the treasurer’s one fiscal rule in the last budget.
Far from returning 99% of the revenue windfalls to the bottom line, as promised in October, the government has banked just 40% of improvements in the bottom line since PIFO and spent 60% or more from the massive windfall from strong commodities and job markets.
No one wins from a big-spending government in an inflation crisis. At best, the budget fails to address inflation. At worst, it adds fuel to the fire.
Taylor goes on to reference Rich Insights director Chris Richardson, S&P Global Ratings, and Betashares chief economist David Bassanese.
But not everyone agrees:
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Anti-LGBT protests at Eltham library drowned out by counter-protesters
Eltham library was supposed to hold a drag storytime today, but instead the community space is the scene of protests.
The event was moved online as part of a string of drag queen storytimes that have been cancelled due to threats from the far right.
Our reporter Cait Kelly is at Eltham today where anti-LGBT protesters are being drowned out by counter-protesters supporting LGBT inclusivity.
This is the scene at Eltham library right now where anti-LGBT protestors are being drowned out by tunes and bangers on the other side of the road. pic.twitter.com/5xs7nIMvMM
— Cait Kelly (@cait__kelly) May 17, 2023
Read more about this disturbing trend here:
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Angus Taylor addresses National Press Club
The shadow treasurer, Angus Taylor, has begun addressing the National Press Club this lunchtime. He’s told the audience in Canberra:
Persistent inflationary pressure is the new crisis for this government. Bringing down cost-of-living pressures and delivering long-term economic growth is hard for a government, requiring hard choices, just like those that the Coalition made during the pandemic.
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Yvette D’Ath to be removed from position as Queensland’s health minister
Queensland’s health minister will be removed from the position in a cabinet reshuffle being announced on Thursday, with the premier expected to revitalise three critical portfolios ahead of next year’s election.
Guardian Australia understands Annastacia Palaszczuk told Yvette D’Ath on Tuesday afternoon she would be removed from the health portfolio, just minutes before D’Ath fronted a press conference about the state’s troubled DNA laboratory.
There is speculation among government officials that D’Ath will swap roles with attorney-general Shannon Fentiman, a position D’Ath held from 2017 to 2020.
The cabinet reshuffles come amid polling showing support for the Palaszczuk government has fallen, as issues in health, youth crime and the housing crisis dominate the local news agenda.
A senior government source has told Guardian Australia the reshuffle will target those three key areas.
No backbenchers will be promoted, with government advisers expected to keep their jobs.
The cabinet overhaul comes 16 months ahead of the election and days after speaker Curtis Pitt announced he would take leave for his mental and physical health.
Pitt was absent for most of last week’s regional sitting week in his home town of Cairns. After showing up half an hour late to the first day of sitting week, he told reporters he was unwell and did not return.
Palaszczuk first came to power in 2015 and has won three elections.
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Universities Australia applauds the government’s move to block cheating websites
Universities Australia welcomed the efforts, with the CEO, Catriona Jackson, hailing it “another step forward in the fight against academic cheating”.
We applaud the government’s front-foot approach. Universities recognise the pressures students sometimes find themselves under, but cheating is never the answer, no matter how challenging the circumstances.
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More academic cheating websites blocked at universities
The higher education regulator has blocked a further 100 academic cheating websites as the sector aims to crack down on student malpractice at universities.
It’s the third time the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency has used protocols with Australia’s major internet service providers to disrupt access to websites targeting students.
It brings the number of blocked illegal cheating websites, which sell essays, assignments or accept payment to sit student exams, to 250 in the past year.
The Department of Education said illegal cheating websites exposed students to criminals, who often attempt to blackmail students into paying large sums of money.
Since using the protocols in August 2022, web traffic from Australia to illegal cheating services have halved compared with the same time in 2021.
Under Australia’s anti-cheating laws, individuals face up to two years in prison and fines in excess of $100,000 for providing or promoting academic cheating services. Students are subject to their institution’s disciplinary penalties.
It comes as universities remain split over the policing of new chatbot technology including ChatGPT, with concern mounting over the use of artificial technology in assessments and exams.
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Those reporting bigger wage increases now at a two-decade high, ABS says
The wage price index numbers just out from the ABS have a few interesting snapshots.
For one, the share of those reporting a larger increase than a year ago is now almost 60%, or the biggest proportion since the ABS began collecting such numbers in 2003.
From the March quarter wages info, the proportion of those reporting a bigger increase than a year earlier has climbed to about 60%, or the highest since the series began two decades ago. (Source: @ABSStats ) pic.twitter.com/HIs8L16MUn
— @phannam@mastodon.green (@p_hannam) May 17, 2023
Mind you, with inflation running at near three-decade highs, we would be disappointed to see that proportion not increase.
Those reporting that their wages are increasing by 4-6% are now at 24.5%, or the largest share of the market since 2009. Those eking out increases of less than 2% are down to about 18.6%, down from more than 50% about two years ago.
As for whether the market interpreted these numbers as good or bad for inflation (and hence RBA action soon), the first impression is a bit like the budget. The dollar and stocks have barely budged on the news so it’s a bit “as you were” as far as the prospect of another rate rise goes.
Tomorrow’s release of April jobs numbers will be the last set of important stats before the RBA meets again on 6 June (when we might know if the US debt ceiling has caved in).
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PM pays tribute to schoolchildren in Melbourne bus crash
Albanese ended the press conference paying tribute to the “tragedy” of the schoolchildren gravely injured in yesterday’s collision between their school bus and a truck in Melbourne’s western suburbs:
My heart goes out to these young students going to school, who have been involved in this tragic accident with a heavy vehicle, with the injuries that have been sustained. My heart goes out to them and to their families at what must be an extraordinarily difficult time.
… We owe our thanks to the medical professionals, to the ambulance personnel, to the paramedics, to the doctors, the nurses, all those who have looked after these fine young people who are suffering as a result of this accident.
Ten children remain in hospital, one in intensive care:
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‘Nothing’s changed,’ PM says on stage-three tax cuts
Albanese has no plans to rethink the stage-three tax cuts despite new parliamentary budget office figures showing the cost has climbed to $313bn.
Nothing’s changed between yesterday and today. These are legislated tax cuts. We attempted to amend those tax cuts when they were introduced and were not successful and therefore they’ve been legislated.
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Uncertainty over whether Modi will visit Sydney after Quad meeting cancelled
As we reported earlier, before Albanese announced the Quad meeting in Sydney wouldn’t go ahead, he said that Narendra Modi was still expected to come to Australia. Now things sound a bit more uncertain as Albanese says discussions are still taking place:
Prime Minister Modi had, as well, a bilateral meeting scheduled for Sydney as well.
We are in discussions with the Quad leaders over today. We’ll make further announcements about that, but Prime Minister Modi would certainly be a very welcome guest here next week.
Prime Minister Kishida, of course, we had bilateral meetings last year, at the end of last year, just a few months ago, in Perth that was very successful.
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Albanese says stage four funding of Gold Coast light rail project in review
Albanese was also asked a question about the federal government’s commitment to funding stage four of the Gold Coast light rail project.
Albanese says it’s being reviewed, as are all projects that weren’t Labor commitments.
He goes on to recall that the federal and Queensland LNP opposed the project at the time the funding was proposed by Labor.
The Gold Coast has been taken for granted by the LNP and the Coalition for a very long period of time.
He goes on to flag the resignations of two Liberal MPs from the area but distinguishes Karen Andrews is turning up to parliament unlike the aforementioned Stuart Robert.
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Albanese furious that Stuart Robert still receiving ‘pay as a member for Fadden’
The PM also called out the opposition leader Peter Dutton’s nonplussed attitude on the issue, saying the people of Robert’s electorate deserve better:
And Peter Dutton seems to think anything goes with regard to members of his team.
If you’re a member of parliament, your basic duty – unless there’s a good reason why you’re not in parliament, with other duties or ill health – you have to turn up.
And he continues to be paid as the representative of the people of Fadden and they deserve better.
To give Alan Tudge credit, at least when he said he was resigning, he stood up in parliament, gave a speech, and was off a week later.
So I find it incomprehensible that Peter Dutton finds this behaviour acceptable, that he can continue to get the pay as a member for Fadden and not think that you have to turn up to work.
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‘He’s not turning up to parliament’: Albanese criticises Liberal MP Stuart Robert’s no-show
Circling back to the prime minister’s press conference in Tweed Heads. Just before he just made that big announcement on the Quad leaders meeting not going ahead, Albanese criticised Liberal MP Stuart Robert’s no-show at parliament as “completely unacceptable”.
The chaos that I see is the chaos in the LNP. Peter Dutton has lost four shadow cabinet ministers this year. We’re only five months into the year.
And yesterday he was out there saying that it’s business as usual for Stuart Robert to be collecting his pay as a member of parliament and as a shadow minister.
He said that he’s resigning but he hasn’t resigned, so no date can be set for the byelection, but he’s not turning up to parliament. That is not business as usual.
Scott Morrison has foreshadowed leaving at some stage, but he turns up to parliament most of the time.
So this is completely unacceptable.
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Wages increases accelerate to 3.7% but still well shy of inflation
Wages rose at a 3.7% clip in the March quarter from a year earlier, in seasonally adjusted terms, the ABS has just stated. That’s marginally faster than the 3.6% pace economists had been expecting and the quickest in just over a decade.
Wage price index for March came in at an annual (seasonally adjusted) rate of 3.7%, @ABSStats says. That's the highest since the September quarter of 2012. pic.twitter.com/o9GKFRliUl
— @phannam@mastodon.green (@p_hannam) May 17, 2023
The quarter-on-quarter increase was 0.8% or slightly weaker than forecast. (The December quarter increases were 3.3% annually and also 0.8% for the quarter.)
In other words, no sign of a big burst for wage earners that might be cause for an RBA rate rise.
For the quarter alone, wages in the public sector advanced 0.9% and those in the private sector 0.8%. If you were in education and training, the gain was 1.5%, which was among the biggest increases, the ABS said.
More soon.
Updated
Wages rise again
Wages increased at annual rate of 3.7% in the March quarter, topping expectations.
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Quad meeting not going ahead, PM says
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has revealed the Quad meeting will not be going ahead after US President Jo Biden’s withdrawal.
Biden this morning announced he would not be making the trip to Sydney because he had to be back in the US to negotiate Congress’s debt ceiling deadlock.
Albanese:
All four leaders - President Biden, Prime Minister Kishida, Prime Minister Modi and myself - will be at the G7, held in Hiroshima on Saturday and Sunday. We are attempting to get together over that period of time.
As well as I’ll have a bilateral discussion with President Biden. At this stage, we haven’t got a time locked in for that arrangement.
…The Quad leaders’ meeting will not be going ahead in Sydney next week.
We, though, will be having that discussion between Quad leaders in Japan. I thank Prime Minister Kishida for his invitation for me to attend the G7 and it is appropriate that we talk.
The Quad is an important body and we want to make sure that it occurs at leadership level and we’ll be having that discussion over the weekend.
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Miles Franklin long-list announced
Eleven Australian novelists have been chosen in the long-list for the Miles Franklin award, recognising a diverse range of stories from migration narratives spanning several centuries to tales of depression-era Sydney’s criminal underworld.
The small presses are well-represented this year (which is a trend we saw in this year’s Stella prize too):
Kgshak Ake, Hopeless Kingdom (UWA Publishing)
Robbie Arnott, Limberlost (Text Publishing)
Jessica Au, Cold Enough for Snow (Giramondo Publishing)
Shankari Chandran, Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens (Ultimo Press)
Claire G Coleman, Enclave (Hachette Australia)
George Haddad, Losing Face (University of Queensland Press)
Pirooz Jafari, Forty Nights (Ultimo Press)
Julie Janson, Madukka: The River Serpent (UWA Publishing)
Yumna Kassab, The Lovers (Ultimo Press)
Fiona Kelly McGregor, Iris (Pan Macmillan Australia)
Adam Ouston, Waypoints (Puncher & Wattmann)
This year’s contenders for the award given to works of literary merit which tell stories about Australian life weave together literary traditions from around the world, the judging panel says:
The 2023 long-list is a reflection of the breadth and depth of contemporary Australian story-telling. The eleven long-listed novels define Australian literature as a transformative space where writers are singing the songs of the nation today.
They reverberate with the cadences of this land where Indigenous sovereignty was never ceded, but also bring to us mellifluous sounds from far-away lands, weaving together literary traditions from around the world.
The words of our novelists, grounded in personal experience, poetry and philosophy, are heralds of the new dawn of Australian fiction: they hum and hiss with language that is newly potent and styles that are imaginative and fresh.
Last year, Jennifer Down won the award for her novel Bodies of Light:
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Wages data likely to show an uptick for workers during the March quarter
If there’s a set of economic numbers that have been the source of most angst for most people for a while, it would have to be the wage price index.
We’ll shortly get the WPI for the March quarter, and economists are tipping the number will land at about 3.6% at an annual rate. That would be up from the 3.3% pace in the December quarter but well shy of the consumer prices increase of 7% that we already know about for the March quarter.
In the pre-Covid period (if we can remember that time), WPI continually fell short of expectations, and arguably the Reserve Bank should have been lowering interest rates more to help nudge employment and the economy to grow faster.
That was then. Now the RBA is worried that wages will pick up too fast although they don’t seem to be talking about a wage price spiral of late (because there hasn’t been one).
Still, a number close to 4% for the March quarter will no doubt be viewed as adding to the inflationary concerns that the RBA is trying to quell, and hence another interest rate hike will be in the offing. So workers who have loans can’t win either way.
Anyway, stay tuned for the 11.30am AEST release.
Updated
Labor senator Tony Sheldon was among the demonstrators in Sydney and urged lord mayor Clover Moore to personally get involved in the garbage collectors strikes.
I joined waste workers from the @cityofsydney who are striking today over Cleanaway’s ongoing attacks on their pay and conditions.
— Senator Tony Sheldon (@TonySheldonNSW) May 17, 2023
Lord Mayor @CloverMoore needs to step in and make sure these workers are paid fairly and given safe conditions. pic.twitter.com/V49RzCzddx
The City of Sydney said it was not involved in the negotiations and hoped the matter would be resolved swiftly “with an outcome that works for all parties”.
Bin collections could be delayed by up to 48 hours this week, it said.
Cleanaway has been contacted for comment.
During previous actions, it backed the rights of its employees to undertake protected industrial action as part of the enterprise bargaining process.
– with AAP
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Garbage collectors strikes spread across country
The stench of uncollected rubbish bins has returned to Sydney and spread to Victoria as garbos demand state government intervention in their industrial dispute, AAP reports.
About 150 garbage collectors walked off the job today demanding that ASX-listed waste contractor Cleanaway raise pay and leave work conditions alone.
Waste workers in City of Sydney have walked off for the 6th time and in Wollongong and Victoria over Cleanaway’s attempts to extend rosters for less pay @TWUNSW Richard Olsen pic.twitter.com/1QBStQBnB1
— TWU Australia (@TWUAus) May 16, 2023
The one-day action also affects residential services in the greater Geelong, Surf Coast and Golden Plains council areas and commercial services in Wollongong and Geelong.
The Transport Workers’ Union said councils needed to turn the screws on their contracted waste collectors and if they don’t, Labor state governments should intervene.
TWU national assistant secretary Nick McIntosh said:
Tell these councils what they should be doing. Stop the attack on safety, job security, wages and conditions and set the standard to make sure these essential waste industry workers are protected.
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Daniel Andrews praises first responders to Melbourne school bus crash
Victorian premier Daniel Andrews has praised first responders of a Melbourne school bus crash that has left 10 children seriously injured.
Speaking to reporters, Andrews said it was a “deeply distressing” incident but noted the school’s “amazing” community:
Our thoughts are, obviously, with those families, those teachers, who were there on scene within moments.
Andrews said the state government would provide any support the school requested.
He said any lessons from the investigation into the crash would be acted on. Andrews said he did not know if the children were wearing seatbelts and said he would wait for the full investigation report.
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Palaszczuk planning cabinet reshuffle – reports
There are reports this morning that Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk is preparing a cabinet reshuffle.
The health minister, Yvette D’Ath, will move to a different portfolio, according to Nine News. The outlet says they were told by several senior government sources that a meeting took place between Palaszczuk and D’Ath yesterday afternoon in which the health minister was told she would be moved into a different role.
Both News Corp and the ABC reported last night that D’Ath was expected to return to the attorney general role she held before the 2020 election in a swap with Shannon Fentiman, who would take on the health role.
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New federal pilot programs for children with autism
Children with early signs of autism will be given federally funded development support as part of two new intervention programs, AAP reports.
More than $22m will be spent on the pilot programs, which will focus on developmental concerns not being detected early enough.
Up to 1,500 children aged between nine and 14 months with early signs of neurodiversity are expected to take part.
Social services minister Amanda Rishworth said the programs had been developed in talks with disability and early childhood sectors, as well as state and territory governments and families.
The pilots will be funded until 2026-27 and will focus on family-centred interventions.
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Poll shows slip in support for voice
Support for the Indigenous voice has fallen from 58% to 53% over the past month, according to the latest Resolve poll in the Nine newspapers.
David Crowe writes:
The sharp fall in support includes pivotal shifts against the Voice in big states such as Queensland and volatile swings in smaller states that challenge assumptions that Australians will cast a majority vote for the contentious change to the Constitution.
An exclusive new survey shows that 44% of voters support the Voice and 39% oppose it when asked about the government proposal for change, with another 18% undecided.
When asked a “yes or no” question akin to the referendum on the exact wording planned by the government, 53% support the change but 47% are opposed.
The survey, conducted for this masthead by Resolve Strategic, confirms a slide in support for the Voice that has continued for more than six months and puts the No campaign on track for a majority by August if there is no change to the trend across the published polls.
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Ryan praises hospital treating school bus crash victims
Independent MP Monique Ryan says the seven children being treated at Melbourne’s Royal Children’s hospital after yesterday’s school bus crash “couldn’t be in better hands”. Ryan was the chief of the hospital’s neurology department before entering federal politics.
Thoughts with all the children and families affected by the tragic bus crash in Melton last night.
— Dr Monique Ryan MP (@Mon4Kooyong) May 16, 2023
You couldn’t be in better hands than with the Royal Children’s Hospital.
All Victorians are thinking of you with sadness and love.
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Falls festival cancelled after 28 years of NYE revelry
Australian Associated Press have more details on the news that the Falls festival will not ring in 2024, with organisers announcing the national New Year’s event will take a year off to recalibrate.
Today’s announcement follows a challenging few years for the 28-year-old festival, including postponements because of Covid-19 lockdowns, a failed attempt to move from its Victorian home of Lorne to Birregurra in Colac, and ending the festival’s time in Tasmania.
For 2022-23 the Victorian event was held at Melbourne’s Sidney Myer Music Bowl across two stages. Secret Sounds co-chief executive Jessica Ducroe said:
The past few years has seen unprecedented change in the live music space, both front of house and behind the scenes.
Our team needs a break, so this year we’ll take time off to enjoy the holiday period and allow some space to re-imagine how Falls will look in the future.
Ducroe thanked everyone who was a part of pulling the events together and punters for the ongoing support of the festival, which also ran in Byron Bay in NSW and Fremantle in WA:
You really are the heart and soul of Falls and we look forward to updating you with our plans when the time is right.
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Pause on some Victorian infrastructure projects
Victorian infrastructure projects moving into construction phase – including the long-awaited Melbourne airport rail – will be paused due to the federal government’s national infrastructure review.
The state’s transport infrastructure minister, Jacinta Allan, today confirmed projects that early works cannot move to the next phase until the federal government’s review concludes in August.
This includes the Melbourne airport rail, Clyde Road upgrade and the McGregor and Racecourse Road upgrades in Pakenham.
Allan said work on these projects would continue “until the conclusion of their current package of works”. She said workers may then be temporarily redeployed to other infrastructure projects:
With a massive pipeline of projects on the way for Victoria, we’ll be building big for years to come – supporting thousands of jobs across our major transport infrastructure projects and boosting the state’s economy.
While this national review is undertaken, we’re being upfront with our contractors, workforce, and the public, and following the direction from the federal government.
Allan stressed the majority of Victoria’s infrastructure pipeline “remains completely unaffected”, including projects like the Metro Tunnel, West Gate Tunnel and the removal of 110 level crossings, as they have been fully funded by the state government.
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Falls festival to take coming season off
The Falls festival has rung in the new year for thousands of Australians for the past 28 years but organisers have announced they are taking this coming season off to “rest, recover and recalibrate”.
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Indian PM still expected to visit Australia
Anthony Albanese just did an interview with James Valentine on ABC radio in Sydney. This is a critical bit of it, that Narendra Modi is still expected to come to Australia.
Valentine:
Alright, so Quad meeting postponed, not cancelled, but will be postponed. Do you have a notion when it might occur?
Albanese:
No, just the US president’s visit is postponed. So that will occur at some time in the future. We will be talking with our partners about the Quad meeting over the next day.
Valentine:
So that could still occur in Sydney with India and Japan?
Albanese:
Yes that’s right, and with a representative of the United States at a senior level, as well, could occur. Prime Minister Modi has a bilateral program that is organised so I’m certain that he will be here. And, of course, we have a very large growing diaspora here in Australia and there are events including a large event at Qudos Arena to be held next Tuesday night.
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Kyrgios mourns grandmother
Nick Kyrgios has taken to social media to share the news of his grandmother’s death. The tennis player, who was forced to withdraw from the French Open due to knee troubles, shared the personal news saying it “seems like I can’t catch a break right now”.
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NSW community discusses becoming renewable energy zone
An inland NSW regional community is set to begin talks on whether locals want their area to become a renewable energy zone, AAP reports.
The New England region, taking in the north-west slopes, the northern tablelands and the regional centres of Armidale, Tenterfield and Tamworth, could be one of the state’s five renewable energy zones.
The proposed zone in New England will be just 1km wide, likely housing solar and wind farms as well as battery storage.
Establishing the site is crucial to NSW plans to transform its system and community input is being encouraged, energy minister Penny Sharpe said today:
We need to make sure that the community understands and has input into its development.
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Sydney’s whale-watching season begins
Attention whale watchers, our marine mammal friends have been spotted out and about off Sydney’s coast.
NSW premier Chris Minns has this morning hailed the beginning of whale-watching season, sharing the images captured by Jason Sutcliffe (AKA Bondi Ripper) three days ago.
The first whales of the season just hit Sydney.
— Chris Minns (@ChrisMinnsMP) May 16, 2023
You never know, spotting a humpback could help you get through this hump day!
📸 Bondi Ripper pic.twitter.com/13mmWqGbi0
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Minister looking to lift gas price caps
Ed Husic says the government will be looking to lift gas price caps if the energy prices return to normal levels:
If the gas market and our reforms through the mandatory code work, and we see that stabilisation, then we absolutely would be looking to do that.
But we do need to ensure that the way in which these contracts get negotiated, that they get negotiated in a much better way than what we’ve experienced …
My preference is certainly as an industry minister, we get rid of the caps as soon as we can – and the best way to do that is to have a stabilised environment and a better bargaining framework.
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Gas has role to play in transition to green energy, Husic says
Circling back to the industry minister, Ed Husic, who acknowledges new gas supply might not be “everyone’s cup of tea” but insists gas has a role to play as Australia transitions to green energy:
You’ve seen some fairly big announcements in terms of what might happen with Narrabri and Beetaloo. I know that that’s not everyone’s cup of tea but I imagine that, in the interim, those those fields will meet domestic needs. While we work very hard on attending to boost mobile energy generation.
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Quad still a priority, White House says
Despite the postponement of Joe Biden’s visit, the White House says that partnerships like the Quad remain a priority.
The official statement by White House Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre says:
Revitalizing and reinvigorating our alliances and advancing partnerships like the Quad remains a key priority for the President. This is vital to our ability to advance our foreign policy goals and better promote global stability and prosperity. We look forward to finding other ways to engage with Australia, the Quad, Papua New Guinea and the leaders of the Pacific Islands Forum in the coming year.
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Biden cancellation ‘regrettable but understandable’
The industry minister, Ed Husic, says it’s “regrettable but understandable” Joe Biden has had to cancel his visit to Australia.
Speaking to ABC Radio, Husic brushed off any concern that if Biden failed in his debt ceiling negotiations and the US defaulted it could be felt in the Australian economy:
I think he will obviously be working very hard for this not to happen. We’ve danced this dance before, as the phrase goes …
I think we’ll get to a good place and I think that’s why he’s wanting to stay there, to focus on just that.
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Praise for hospital staff
Bernadette McDonald also hailed first responders and hospital staff she said responded “beautifully”:
I couldn’t get people to go home last night. They were all wanting to stay and actually help in any way possible. It was very calm and very well-controlled and very well responded to last night.
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‘We have some very traumatised families and children in the hospital’
Bernadette McDonald of the Royal Children’s hospital in Melbourne says she is “extremely surprised” a fatality did not occur from the school bus collision with a truck:
Having said that, the children –- I would never say they were lucky. We have to acknowledge that, you know, this was traumatic for every single person that was involved. We have some very traumatised families and children in the hospital at the moment and we’re working extremely hard to provide that trauma support and care that they will need not just now but in the coming weeks and months as well.
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Children to undergo amputations after school bus crash
Bernadette McDonald, the chief executive of the Royal Children’s hospital in Melbourne, has given an update on the children seriously injured in yesterday’s collision between a school bus and a truck.
At least 10 children aged five to 11 sustained traumatic injuries when the school bus carrying 45 kids collided with a truck and rolled on to its side about 3.40pm yesterday.
Just a warning before you read on, these details might distress you.
McDonald said one child had complete amputation and number of children were awaiting partial amputation.
Children have suffered multiple and traumatic injuries including partial and complete amputations of arms, multiple crushed limb injuries, severe lacerations to head and body, head injuries, glass shard injuries and three patients are receiving spinal support and being monitored carefully in terms of spinal injuries.
She said one child was still in intensive care but was likely to come out of intensive care today, and seven remained in hospital.
Specialist doctors have been called in to perform emergency surgeries.
A code brown was declared after the accident and ended about 8pm.
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PM invited to US for state visit
Anthony Albanese says he has been invited to the US for a state visit and will be attending later this year. But there are no firm dates as yet.
There is also the possibility that the Quad leaders will get together when they are all in Japan for the G7.
So there will be a bilateral between Joe Biden and Anthony Albanese in Japan.
There may be a Quad meeting in Japan.
Albanese will travel to the US for a state visit but there are no set dates beyond “later this year”.
And the Quad meeting in Sydney may progress next week but with a representative of the US instead of Biden, who is dealing with a pesky Congress and Senate.
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Albanese explains why Biden cancelled trip
Hello from Canberra, where we are listening to a very tired Anthony Albanese explain why US president Joe Biden can’t make it to Australia next week for the Quad meeting.
Albanese says he was up from 4.30am preparing for the phone call. So the US is out of the Quad meeting but there is a bilateral in Japan coming up.
The prime minister told ABC radio Sydney that Biden just couldn’t get away because of the latest fight over the US debt ceiling:
As the president put to me that week before June 1 will be absolutely critical, which of course is the coming week, and so he would be postponing his visit to Australia. We will have bilateral meeting in Hiroshima.
We will both be in Japan over the weekend for the G7 meeting. We had a very good discussion this morning between myself and President Biden and confirmed that he he would be postponing his visit [but] that we would be meeting in Japan.
Albanese says he is still talking with India and Japan about meeting next week – a triangle, if you will, with a representative of the US.
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Aukus depends on ‘seamless’ technology transfer, Marles says
The deputy prime minister, Richard Marles, will say in a speech today that the full ambition of Aukus will only be realised if the transfer of technology and information between Australia and the US is “seamless”.
In a keynote address to the American Chamber of Commerce in Adelaide, Marles will say the government is “focused on developing asymmetric technologies that will help deter future conflicts”.
But Marles will say that technology transfer barriers in the US and Australia “are vast and complex”. That includes export controls in the US known as international trafficking in arms regulations.
He will say Australia has been having “productive” conversations with the US, including the defence secretary, Lloyd Austin, about the export controls “and how we can translate that shared understanding and positive intent into action”.
Marles will say, according to speech extracts released by his office:
We are encouraged by the momentum we’re seeing at all levels across the Australian and US to overcome these hurdles. But we need supportive voices in business to keep this momentum going.
Your role in building the seamless defence industrial base between our countries is pivotal, because improving technology transfer and information sharing between the US, the UK and Australia is at the heart of maximising the full potential of the Aukus agreement.
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New rental listings in Sydney lowest in a decade
Sydney has recorded a new low in rental listings, with the number of new listings falling 17% month-on-month in April on realestate.com.au – the lowest it has been in a decade.
According to the new PropTrack Market Insight, this was the fewest new listings since April 2012. The report goes on to say supply will continue to be a problem for capitals, “exacerbating the competitive conditions renters currently face”.
The report adds that while rental listings typically decline in April, the 18.9% month-on-month fall in new listings across the country was the largest decline since 2017. Total listings also fell in the past year, with falls particularly acute in capital cities such as Melbourne (-31.3%), Sydney (-15.7%) and Perth (-19.2%).
PropTrack director economic research and report author Cameron Kusher said the results reflected a deepening of the rental crisis across the country:
I think in Sydney and Melbourne, there’s potentially more that it could drop. Just because we know that migration to Australia is really strong and we know that most migrants tend to settle in Sydney and Melbourne.
I think it’s going to continue to be a problem and the main reason for that is supply takes time. There’s a lot of stock under construction, but most of it has been sold to owner occupiers rather than investors. So that doesn’t really help the rental market.
Updated
Good morning!
The defence minister, Richard Marles, is today warning that the full ambition of Aukus will only be realised if the transfer of technology and information between Australia and the US is “seamless”.
Marles will be speaking about cutting red tape to work more efficiently with the US and Britain when he delivers a keynote speech to the American Chamber of Commerce today.
His speech comes off the back of the breaking news this morning that US President Joe Biden’s visit to Australia as part of the Quad meeting has been cancelled. Biden will return from his international tour early as a result of the deadlock in negotiations with Congress to raise the US debt ceiling.
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, said he and Biden had agreed to reschedule Biden’s first visit to Australia as president at the earliest opportunity.
Back home, the housing crisis continues to hit new lows, with Sydney’s new rental listings falling to the lowest they have been in a decade.
And the annual wage review will get under way at the Fair Work Commission today, which will consider the pay awards for Australia’s lowest-paid workers.
The Australian Council of Trade Union Secretary, Sally McManus, wants to see minimum wage brought into line with CPI at 7%.
Let’s get into it!
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