What we learned today, Friday 18 October
And with that, we are going to put the blog to bed. Before we go, let’s recap the big headlines:
The arrival of King Charles and Queen Camilla is the first tour by a reigning monarch since 2011, though Charles was here most recently in 2018.
Children as young as 10 could face jail after the Northern Territory parliament last night passed a law to lower the age of criminal responsibility from 12 to 10.
The NSW Rural Fire Service says far western parts of the state are experiencing “major” power outages following severe storms that could last weeks.
Jim Chalmers has responded to commissioned Parliamentary Library research from the Greens that showed more than a quarter of a million renters could own their own homes if negative gearing and capital gains tax discounts were wound back. He said if they wanted to help first-home buyers, they would pass the government’s housing policy.
Anthony Albanese issued a statement following news that Hamas’s leader, Yahya Sinwar, was killed by Israeli forces, saying Sinwar was “a terrorist and the architect of the atrocities committed on October 7”.
VicEmergency said there is a possibility of tornadoes forming in part of the state, with severe weather warnings in place for Melbourne and Geelong expected to be hit by “life-threatening” flash flooding.
Cases of mpox continued to increase across Victoria and other Australian jurisdictions, the Victorian chief health officer has warned.
Former premier Daniel Andrews was appointed chair of youth mental health researcher Orygen
The Shoalhaven River on New South Wales’ south coast has filled with grain after two silos collapsed overnight.
The Seven Network has won a legal fight to suppress details of a federal court lawsuit brought against it by former journalist Amelia Saw.
Thank you for spending part of your day with us.
Updated
What did the inquiry find against Mike Pezzullo?
The inquiry, conducted by former senior bureaucrat Lynelle Briggs, said Pezzullo had breached the rules at least 14 times relating to five “overarching allegations”.
Those included using his power, status or authority to “seek to gain a benefit or advantage for himself”, failing to act apolitically, failing to disclose a conflict of interest and failing to maintain confidentiality of sensitive government information.
It also found Pezzullo engaged in “gossip and disrespectful critique” of ministers and public servants.
Speaking to ABC’s 7.30 program in April this year, Pezzullo said he shouldn’t have been sacked but “perhaps an appropriate censure or reprimand would have been relevant”.
“What I sought to rebut was that they were of such a grievous kind that they warranted dismissal.”
Pezzullo added he did not gain any personal benefits but sought to achieve program, research or policy outcomes for his former department.
“It was considered, in terms of the finding, that I was using channels outside of the established mechanisms to pursue those ends. I accept that. I made a mistake.”
Read more:
Updated
