What we learned; Thursday 31 August
That’s where we’ll leave you this evening. Here’s what we learned today:
Anthony Albanese has ruled out legislating a voice to parliament if the referendum on 14 October fails to produce a yes vote.
The energy minister, Chris Bowen confirmed the total cost of the Snowy Hydro project has blown out to $12bn.
The NSW transport secretary, Josh Murray, has revealed he and his wife donated $1,450 to three separate Labor events and that none of these were disclosed during the recruitment process for the $588,000-a-year public service role.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said the watchdog received about 1,300 consumer complaints about Qantas cancellations in the past year, equating to 50% of complaints received by the ACCC.
The ACCC will also take Qantas to court alleging it was advertising and selling tickets for more than 8,000 flights that it had already cancelled in its system.
Qantas has caved to pressure and removed the looming expiry clause on its Covid-related flight credits.
Australia Post has announced it recorded a $200m pre-tax loss in 2022-23, its first loss since 2015 and just its second since it became a self-funded government business enterprise in 1989.
Four people have died after a car and a truck crashed in Victoria’s north-east.
Julia Gillard’s former partner Tim Mathieson’s sexual assault case has been adjourned until October.
A Victorian parliamentary inquiry has recommended a complete ban on recreational duck hunting, which would bring the state into line with all other mainland states.
And the son of two Victorians who died from suspected death cap mushroom poisoning has spoken at a public memorial in honour of his parents.
We’ll be back bright and early tomorrow to bring you all the day’s news. Thanks so much for your company.
Updated
Qantas reveals extra $200m in flight credits held
Qantas is still holding $570m in Covid-related flight credits – revealing an additional $200m it had not previously included in public figures before a wave of pressure on the travel credit program this week.
Qantas has provided the updated figure – which comprises $365m belonging to Qantas customers in Australia, $90m belonging to Jetstar customers in Australia and $115m belonging to overseas customers of both airlines – to the Senate committee on the cost of living. Of the credit, $180m is connected to travel agent bookings.
On Thursday, Qantas announced it was scrapping the looming 31 December expiry clause for all Covid-related flight credits. Qantas customers can now request their credits as refunds, while Jetstar customers can use their vouchers indefinitely.
The updated figure and backflip of policy follows days of intense criticism of Qantas’ credit policy, which included the CEO, Alan Joyce, being grilled by the Senate committee on Monday and Anthony Albanese calling for customers to be fairly compensated.
Qantas is separately facing a class-action lawsuit over its refund policy for flights cancelled due to the pandemic, with lawyers alleging the airline’s use of travel credits allowed them to treat their customers’ money as more than “$1bn in interest-free loans”.
Updated
Australia was drier in August, extending 2023 trend
The Bureau of Meteorology counts rainfall for each month up to 9am on the last day of that month. That means we can get a view of conditions for August before we tick into September.
The rainfall “decile” maps show us that August was another relatively dry month for most of the country’s east and parts of the west coast:
Rainfall was below average for much of Australia in August, according to @Bom_au. pic.twitter.com/n8Pv4j8tUZ
— @phannam@mastodon.green (@p_hannam) August 31, 2023
We know that southern Australia has been on a drying trend for the past few decades of winters as storm tracks veer closer to Antarctica, missing the country. Northern Australia has been getting wetter.
This winter seems to fit that pattern, with some regions receiving well-below average rainfall.
For winter as a whole, rainfall was very much below average for most of the coast between Melbourne and Brisbane. The north was mostly wetter than average. pic.twitter.com/0yxYbmRb8H
— @phannam@mastodon.green (@p_hannam) August 31, 2023
In fact, as the La Niña started to wind down in the Pacific, Australia has been on a drying trend.
The year-to-date rainfall points to the worrying trend of drier conditions in the west and east, which has fire authorities anxious about the coming spring and summer. (Grassfires look like a bigger risk than forest ones for this summer.)
A similar story is playing out for the year to date. Drier than average in the west and east, wetter than usual in the north. (Source: @bom_au) pic.twitter.com/lcjohm1tEx
— @phannam@mastodon.green (@p_hannam) August 31, 2023
We’ll get heat maps from the BoM in a day’s time, but we expect much of the nation had a warmer-than-average August and winter.
Updated
Need to catch up on today’s news? Antoun Issa has your afternoon update right here.
The managing director of the ABC, David Anderson, has defended Stan Grant from what he says was an “unfair attack” published on the front page of the Australian that was “not in the public interest”.
The article in the Murdoch broadsheet on Tuesday said ABC management had investigated what it claimed was a “public bullying incident” involving Grant and a senior ABC colleague in the foyer of the ABC’s Sydney headquarters.
Anderson said on ABC Melbourne radio in response to a question from Virginia Trioli:
I am happy to defend Stan right now… He should be judged on his journalism; he should be judged on his contribution to Australian media.
I can’t control what the Australian writes; I can disagree with what they write and their focus.
Grant told Guardian Australia on Tuesday that the story was an “outrageous slur” which was part of a pattern of abuse from the Murdoch press and the ABC should have rushed to his defence:
All I know is that if somebody in these circumstances had been smeared in a paper in a disgraceful way, I’d be picking up the phone to every radio station and howling down the phone.
Read the full story here:
University of Sydney confirms ‘limited number’ of international students hit by hack
International students at the University of Sydney have been hit by a data breach, the university has confirmed.
On Thursday afternoon, a university spokesperson said a “limited number” of recently applied and enrolled international students have had their personal data breached in a hack that compromised one of its third-party providers.
We took immediate steps to secure our systems and contain the incident. At this stage our provisional findings indicate that no domestic students, staff, alumni or donors’ data has been affected.
The spokesperson said the issue was isolated to one platform and did not affect other university systems.
There is currently no evidence that any personal information has been misused. We are working to contact impacted students and applicants and will continue to monitor our systems. We are working with all parties to best support and protect any students and prospective students whose information may have been compromised.
We understand this incident may cause concern, and we are working hard to reduce any impact on the affected students and applicants.
Cyber security authorities have been notified, as has the NSW privacy commissioner.
Updated
Super blue moon: night two
It’s the second night of the super blue moon tonight and – assuming the clouds part where you are – astrophysicists say the moon will appear big and bright tonight, even though technically it’s starting to move further away from Earth.
A super blue moon is a combination of a supermoon – the full moon coinciding with the closest point in its orbit around Earth, usually appearing about 15% brighter – and a “blue moon” – either the 13th full moon in a calendar year, or the second full moon in the same calendar month, depending on which definition you use.
The super blue moon is occurring for the first time since 2009. It reached its closest approach to Earth this morning at 11.35am AEST and has started its retreat now, but if you want to see it tonight, here are the local moonrise times in the major capital cities:
5:46 pm Sydney.
5:46 pm Brisbane.
6:08 pm Melbourne .
5:51 pm Hobart.
6:17 pm Perth .
7:01 pm Darwin.
6:08 pm Adelaide.
You can read more about the super blue moon here:
Updated
Former NSW Liberal premier Barry O’Farrell on the voice: ‘It’s not political. It’s about Australians being decent’
Prime minister Anthony Albanese and the yes campaign are trying to highlight how many people across the political spectrum support the Indigenous voice, with the first full day on the referendum hustings seeking to show a diverse range of supporters.
Albanese went from South Australia (one swing state) to Tasmania (the other main state in flux) to campaign with Liberals including premier Jeremy Rockliff and federal MP Bridget Archer. On a street walk in Launceston with Archer – the renegade Liberal who has consistently called out her own party’s position on the referendum – Albanese said “people on all sides of politics are backing the voice”.
“Because it goes beyond politics,” he said online.
People on all sides of politics are backing the Voice, including Liberal MP Bridget Archer who I campaigned with today.
— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) August 31, 2023
We've seen Liberals like former PM Malcolm Turnbull and former Indigenous Australians Minister Ken Wyatt come out in support.
Because it goes beyond politics. pic.twitter.com/mZ1M5o1u59
Elsewhere on the campaign trail, Liberal MP Julian Leeser appeared alongside NSW shadow treasurer Matt Kean and former premier Barry O’Farrell in Sydney’s north, advocating for a yes vote.
O’Farrell said:
I know that as someone who led a government giving people a say in policies that affect their livelihoods, their outcomes, their health is sensible, it saves time, it delivers better policies and often saves money.
But secondly, I grew up in the Top End. I did all my schooling in town with First Nations fellow students who never had the same opportunities that I had and regrettably today some of them aren’t alive because their health outcomes aren’t the same as ours. This is a great thing to do. It’s not political. It’s about Australians being decent. Australians again, expressing their common sense and Australians again wanting to bring us together.
Updated
TikTok removes 284 accounts linked to Chinese disinformation group
TikTok has removed 284 accounts associated with a Chinese disinformation campaign after Guardian Australia raised questions about several accounts uncovered by the company’s rival Meta.
On Wednesday, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram reported it had shut down close to 9,000 Facebook and Instagram accounts, groups and pages associated with a Chinese political spam network that had targeted users in Australia and other parts of the world.
During its investigation, Meta uncovered the influence operation on more than 50 online platforms and forums including YouTube, TikTok, Reddit, Pinterest, Medium, Blogspot, Livejournal and X, formerly known as Twitter, in addition to Instagram and Facebook.
Read the full story here:
Updated
Energy ministers downplay blackout threat for this summer
“Nightmare blackouts in sweltering summer of discontent” was one of the Herald Sun’s headlines this morning, so it’s probably no wonder energy ministers have been fending off questions about imminent and rolling outages.
Lily D’Ambrosio, Victoria’s energy minister, said the market operator had assured her “they’ve got five times sufficient electricity available to more than adequately meet that very small gap”. She said the “worst-case” scenario had a “potential gap” of 120 megawatts.
Victoria and South Australia were identified by Aemo as the states most at risk for this coming summer – but they did not predict blackouts as such, as we noted here:
NSW’s Penny Sharpe said Aemo’s message was very clear:
To keep the lights on, we need to deliver new renewable energy generation, transmission and storage infrastructure, on schedule.
Her government will soon release its plans when it shares its electricity supply and reliability check-up, with the future of the giant Eraring power plant likely to be a focus.
Queensland’s Mick de Brenni said he’d been advised “Queensland’s power system remains robust and is positioned well for the upcoming summer period”.
Federal energy minister Chris Bowen said the energy market operator’s standards were “very high” and didn’t allow for more than a few hours of blackouts every year.
For this summer, Aemo had been granted $3m extra to help speed upnew capacity. Energy ministers had also established a Capacity and Connections Committee that “meets very regularly to ensure that new capacity is coming online in time for next summer”.
Bowen declined to guarantee there won’t be any blackouts (fair enough, since it only needs a tree to fall on a powerline):
What I guarantee is that all the governments are working together with Aemo to make sure that our grid is as stable as it possibly can be going into what will be a very hot summer.
Updated
Release of correspondence between Walter Sofronoff and ACT chief minister over Lehrmann report
Lawyers for Walter Sofronoff wrote to the ACT chief minister Andrew Barr telling him he was wrong to allege he breached the law through his premature release of the Lehrmann inquiry report and request that he correct the record.
Sofronoff’s lawyer, Glen Cranny, released the correspondence between his client and the ACT government on Thursday, about a month after Barr made strident criticisms of Sofronoff’s decision to prematurely hand his report to a journalist before it went to the chief minister.
Barr said a “reasonably straight reading” of the ACT’s Inquiries Act “would clearly indicate” he had breached a provision around the non-disclosure of information.
Cranny said the remarks were made “without notice to Mr Sofronoff” and that Barr was offering views “without having taken legal advice as to whether they were correct”. He acknowledged the remarks were made in the “midst of a reaction of shock and dismay at the premature publication of the report”, but said:
We are writing on Mr Sofronoff’s instructions to point out respectfully why Mr Barr was wrong to say that Mr Sofronoff had contravened the act and to impute that he had behaved in bad faith. We also write to give Mr Barr an opportunity to correct the harm that he has caused to Mr Sofronoff’s professional reputation .
Updated
Memorial for Don and Gail Patterson: ‘Mum and Dad were very much a team’
We mentioned earlier that the son of two Victorians who died from suspected death cap mushroom poisoning would be speaking at a public memorial in honour of his parents this afternoon.
Simon Patterson said his parents, Don and Gail Patterson, were family-oriented, always generous to others and open-minded about people of different faiths and cultures, AAP reports.
He said:
Mum and Dad were very much a team. The fact they died on consecutive days reflected the togetherness they had worked so hard [to achieve].
Patterson spoke about overseas trips with his father, including to the Mt Everest base camp. Younger climbers were struck by his father’s fitness when he was then in his 60s, he said.
It was this fitness that saw him survive an emergency liver transplant only weeks ago but then die because he was so unwell, Patterson said.
Hundreds of locals filed into Korumburra Recreation Centre on a dreary Thursday afternoon to farewell their neighbours.
Reverend Fran Grimes opened the service, noting such a massive gathering was not “Don and Gail’s nature or style”:
They just got on with living generous lives quietly and without fanfare.
When media flooded the town and described a tight-knit community, what they “actually found was a community that above all was shielding and protecting the family from speculation”, she said.
Behind every story that we hear on the news every night, there’s families and communities reeling from that event.
Updated
Indonesian navy chief visits Canberra
The Indonesian navy chief, Adm Muhammad Ali, is visiting Australia for talks with his Australian counterpart.
Australia’s navy chief, V-Adm Mark Hammond, is expected to host his counterpart in Canberra today and tomorrow.
This visit forms part of a regular program of engagement with the Indonesian navy, including annual navy-to-navy talks. A Defence spokesperson said Indonesia was one of Australia’s closest and most important defence partners.
Indonesia was one of the countries that expressed concerns about a regional arms race when the Aukus nuclear-powered submarine plan was first announced in 2021.
But in an interview with Guardian Australia in 2022, the Indonesian ambassador to Australia, Siswo Pramono, said the two sides were “getting much, much closer”.
Updated
NSW premier ‘optimistic’ about voice referendum’s chances
New South Wales premier, Chris Minns, is optimistic about the chances for success ahead of the voice referendum after the date was announced by prime minister Anthony Albanese in South Australia.
Speaking in Sydney on Thursday, Minns said he wanted to throw the support of the government behind the campaign and would do whatever he could to help.
He said:
I’ve actually got a lot of optimism about it ... We’re fully behind it. The NSW government is behind it. We think it’s important for the state and we’ll be talking with the Yes23 campaign about what we can do to lend our support for what we regard as the next iteration for social progress in Australia.
Updated
NSW government fails in application to delay over trespass case
The NSW government has failed in its bid to get out of paying a woman more than $18,000 after police trespassed on her property, AAP reports.
Northern Rivers property owner Sanchia Romani won proceedings against NSW Police earlier this year after two officers climbed a locked gate into her land in August 2021.
Police had received information that Romani might be printing pamphlets about a planned public gathering or protest, which would have been in breach of Covid-19 laws in place at the time.
Two officers attended her property without a warrant and climbed over the locked gate despite a “no trespass” sign.
Romani was not home at the time, but her 19-year-old daughter Maia and younger son were. Officers questioned her daughter despite her asking them to return behind the gate.
Romani previously told the court the officers’ actions had caused her children “great anxiety, distress, worry and trauma”.
In February, she was awarded more than $18,000 after NSW supreme court justice Robertson Wright found officers breached her privacy.
The state did not pay and instead filed an application in May to delay as the costs incurred during the proceedings had been more than $20,000.
If the application had been successful, Romani would not have received any money from the state since the costs were more than the value of the judgment.
On Thursday, Justice Wright denied the state’s application.
He ruled there was a public interest in ensuring the infringement of citizens’ rights by those supposed to uphold the law was vindicated and there had been no conduct on the part of Romani to justify the state’s claim that the costs should be set off against the judgment sum.
In contrast, he said the state had failed to pay the $18,000 sum for three months “without any apparent justification and has subsequently continued to refuse to pay”.
The state has been ordered to pay the full original amount plus interest as well as Ms Romani’s legal costs for its rejected application.
Updated
Panel set up to field candidates for NSW transport secretary role not aware of Josh Murray’s relationship with premier and minister
The New South Wales Public Service deputy commissioner, Chris Lamb, fronted the inquiry into Josh Murray’s controversial appointment to the transport secretary role a little earlier today.
Lamb said the independent assessment panel set up to field candidates for the $588,000-a-year job wasn’t aware that Josh Murray had longstanding personal relationships with both the premier and the transport minister, Jo Haylen.
The panel also wasn’t aware that Murray and his family had donated $1,450 to Labor at three separate functions, including one held in the premier’s electorate and another held for the now-transport minister, over the past year.
However, Lamb said the panel shouldn’t have been aware of these matters in order to conduct an “impartial assessment”.
Lamb also told the parliamentary committee he agreed that a merit-based recruitment process should be free of interference from a minister’s office.
Updated
Coalition weighs in on Australia Post’s $200m loss
My colleague Aston Brown has been to the shadow communications minister, David Coleman’s, press conference to ask about Australia Post’s $200m loss this financial year and calls to reduce frequency of letter delivery and reduce post offices in metro areas.
Coleman said:
Well, look, I was down in Box Hill in Melbourne last week with [Liberal MP] Keith Wolahan and when post offices close, it has a big impact on communities. It’s often the case particularly in regional communities. But it can be the case in the cities as well and Box Hill is one of the biggest urban centres in Australia and, you know, keeps fighting very hard to get that post office reopened and I’m completely backing him in that because it should be reopened.
We as the Coalition will always fight for regional Australia. And we will always stand up for those regional post offices. So often they are the bedrock of local communities and they provide not just the postal services but a whole range of other services like banking and other things too. So if the Albanese government authorises the closure of regional post offices, they’re going to have a massive fight on their hands from the Coalition and will always stand up for those regional communities.
Australia Post is required to maintain 4,000 post offices and doesn’t seem remotely interested in closing regional post offices, it’s more an issue in big cities where customers have alternatives.
Coleman noted that Labor’s Michelle Rowland “when she was in opposition’s communications spokesperson was very critical of any changes [to] Australia Post”. “So, you know, let’s see what the government does here.”
Updated
NSW premier ‘concerned’ about loss of endangered species due to logging
The New South Wales premier, Chris Minns, is ‘concerned’ about the loss of endangered species due to logging across the state after the Environment Protection Authority found a dead greater glider near a logging site.
The state-owned forestry agency was ordered to immediately stop work in parts of the Tallaganda state forest near Canberra after the discovery of the dead endangered animal near a logging site.
Asked about the issue on Thursday, Minns said:
I’m concerned about it. We’re looking closely at that particular issue. There’s obviously contracts that the previous government entered into in terms of logging contracts with private operators in NSW. We’re working through complicated issues. We’ll have more to say soon.
Updated
Haylen’s chief of staff says Josh Murray was ‘the best candidate’
The New South Wales transport minister’s chief of staff, Scott Gartrell, says he didn’t consider it significant that the now-transport secretary contributed $750 to a fundraising event held last year for his boss, Jo Haylen.
Gartrell is fielding questions at a parliamentary inquiry over his involvement in Josh Murray’s controversial appointment to the top public service job, including why Murray’s donations to the Labor election campaign weren’t disclosed during the recruitment process.
Gartrell said the fundraising event, which Murray and his wife paid $750 to attend and purchase raffle tickets at, was “so insignificant” that he didn’t remember Murray had been there.
I was essentially retired last year, farming goats.
I was back in the city at an event with lots of old comrades. It was a good evening. I wasn’t scouting out talent. It was actually about me supporting a great candidate.
Documents released through parliament previously revealed Gartrell intervened in the recruitment process to recommend that Murray be interviewed despite recruiters warning he wasn’t experienced enough for the job.
On Thursday, Gartrell said the headhunting firm hired by the government “did a pretty ordinary job” and hadn’t “fully understood the brief”, but Murray came through the process as “the best candidate”.
He insisted he had not interfered in the recruitment process.
Updated
Tony Burke at the Press Club, continued
Burke said he couldn’t quantify the price impact, because it would be up to the Fair Work Commission to decide what minimum standard of pay would apply.
He said:
If I go back to years ago, the delivery service used to be Pizza Hut and everybody doing it was an employee. They were all employees - they all had rights. We all accepted this kind of work used to have minimum standards attached. And in the last decade, that’s gone. We simply want to bring back what those appropriate minimum standards should be, for the commission to be work it out.
If it created a price problem for consumers you wouldn’t find the co-operation we’ve had from the platforms. But it is a real change. Don’t just think ... [of] Uber Eats, don’t forget that, disproportionate for the size of the business, the number of injuries we saw with businesses like Hungry Panda. There’s some small apps out there that have been radically undercutting, that have been a real safety concern. I met with those workers, over the years, I’ve been to memorials with them. That’s why I say it’s a game-changer.
Updated
Tony Burke concedes some cost impact from gig economy reforms: ‘a pretty small price to pay’
More on the workplace relations minister Tony Burke’s address at the National Press Club on Labor’s gig economy reforms.
Burke conceded during the address there may be some price impact for consumers of services including food delivery, rideshare and care economy services, but he said it’s a “small price to pay” to increase workers safety.
He said:
When you say ‘oh, could there be a pass-through to someone getting the pizza delivered to their home?’ Well, underpaying people is cheaper. Yeah, it is. Slavery is probably cheaper too. There is some modest pass-through here. We’re talking about some of the lowest paid people in Australia. And if that means there’s a tiny bit extra you pay when your pizza arrives to your door and they’re more likely to be safe on the roads getting there, then I reckon it’s a pretty small price to pay.
Updated
Trade talks with EU resume today
Australia and the European Union will try to make progress on a free trade agreement in a teleconference this afternoon, after previous failures to reach a deal.
The trade minister, Don Farrell, will hold a teleconference with the European trade commissioner, Valdis Dombrovskis, and is expected to encourage him to visit Australia in the near future.
Today’s call will mark the resumption of ministerial level talks on a free trade agreement – the first time since talks broke down without a deal in Brussels in early July.
It is understood the Australian government is holding to the position that the EU was “asking too much but offering too little” in the previous round of negotiations.
The Australian government is seeking a deal that offers “commercially meaningful” access to the EU market for Australia agricultural exports including beef, sheep meat, sugar and dairy.
Farrell has previously invited Dombrovskis to visit Australia for the next round of official ministerial negotiations – and is likely to reiterate the invitation today.
Updated
Memorial service to be held for Victorian victims of suspected mushroom poisoning
The son and grandchildren of two Victorians who died from suspected death cap mushroom poisoning will speak at their public memorial service, due to be held this afternoon at 2pm.
Don and Gail Patterson, both 70, died in hospital after their daughter-in-law Erin Patterson cooked them a beef wellington dish at her Leongatha home in Victoria’s south-east on 29 July.
The pair are being remembered on Thursday afternoon at a public memorial service at their local Korumburra Recreation Centre, AAP reports.
Gail’s sister Heather Wilkinson, 66, also died following the lunch while her husband, Baptist church pastor Ian Wilkinson, remains in hospital in a critical but stable condition.
The Patterson’s son Simon is listed to speak at the service, as are his children.
There was a small police presence outside the community hall on Thursday afternoon.
Updated
Asic pursuing Youpla funeral fund directors
The corporate regulator is pursuing former directors of a collapsed funeral fund that marketed insurance to Aboriginal families, over allegations they oversaw a vulnerable structure that exposed members to unaffordable premiums.
The Youpla Group schemes, formerly known as the Aboriginal Community Benefit Fund (ACBF), collapsed last year, leaving thousands of mainly low-income families unable to pay for funerals.
The federal court proceedings, pursued by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (Asic), are chiefly concerned with the scheme’s alleged use of an offshore insurer, the Vanuatu-based Crown, which Asic alleges was controlled by two of its directors, Ron Pattenden and Jonathan Law.
Read the full story here:
Updated
Digital rights and sex worker groups welcome federal government ruling out age verification for websites hosting adult content
Digital rights and sex worker groups are celebrating the federal government’s decision to not require sites hosting adult content to verify the ages of users.
Digital Rights Watch, which was one of the leading opponents to the proposal, said on Thursday that it was pleased with the result:
Age verification is rife with privacy and digital security risks, as well as critical effectiveness and implementation issues. We welcome this sensible announcement from the Australian government.
This win shows that when we raise the alarm and put pressure on government we can stop harmful and invasive tech policy proposals. We need to keep up the fight to protect human rights, wellbeing and safety.
Online safety is a highly politicised area, replete with plenty of troubling tech ideas — from attempts to undermine end-to-end encryption to broad powers for content takedowns to proposals for client-side scanning.This isn’t the first time that an invasive and flawed approach like age verification has been proposed, and it likely won’t be the last.
crying screaming throwing up!! it's so rare to get a win
— Samantha Floreani (@samfloreani) August 31, 2023
shoutout in particular to @Zemmiph0bia @gala_vanting @jpwarren @chipswoon for just unrelenting advocacy over the past three years and also for being a dreamteam to laugh-cry with 💞 https://t.co/gly8bFGTFC
More on fatal crash on Hume Highway near Chiltern, Victoria
Police have been speaking about the crash between a car and a truck on the Hume Freeway in Victoria, near Chiltern, that has killed four people and sent a 30-year-old man to hospital.
They say the truck was heading northbound on the Hume Freeway and the car was intending to turn left from the intersection onto the Hume Freeway. Investigators are still trying to confirm all the details of what happened.
Updated
Continuing on from our prior post:
Mali Hermans, from the first people’s disability network, called the use of watch houses “institutionally racist and ableist”:
It is deeply disturbing that watch houses are becoming the default place to accommodate young people with disability.
Watch houses are not safe for any child ... the Palaszczuk government seems content with entrenching pathways into prison for children and young people.
About 8% of 10-17 year olds in Queensland identify as First Nations, but at least 65% of the Queensland youth prison population on an average day are First Nations children.
Change the record national director Maggie Munn said Aboriginal communities are “rightly outraged” by the government’s actions and its “complete contempt for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children”.
She said:
The Palaszczuk government has demonstrated a dangerous and prolonged track record for disregarding parliamentary process and violating human rights that is unprecedented in Australia.
All Australians, regardless of where you live, should be alarmed by this government’s actions that undermine our fundamental human rights.
Updated
Human rights advocates slam Queensland youth justice laws
Hundreds of Queensland human rights advocates have penned an open letter to the state government calling on it to repeal its “cruel” youth justice laws which “undeniably violate children’s rights” and show “contempt for UN torture protocols”.
More than 180 lawyers, human rights advocates and First Nations organisations signed up to the open letter, which was coordinated by youth justice group Change the Record.
They slam the state government for twice passing laws to override the Queensland Human Rights Act in just six months, to amend the youth justice act - first to make breaching bail a criminal offence, and second to permit children to be held in adult police watch houses.
The letter calls for the government to repeal the laws, “end the mass incarceration of First Nations children,” and adopt alternatives to jail.
Qantas removes refund expiry date on flights cancelled due to Covid-19 lockdowns
Some more information on our earlier post regarding Qantas refunds for flight cancellations:
Qantas has caved to pressure and removed the looming expiry clause on its Covid-related flight credits.
More than $470m in flight credits remained unspent across Qantas and Jetstar, with an extra $100m revealed during a Senate committee appearance on Monday.
Credits had been set to expire by the end of the year, but following pressure during that committee hearing, as well as from Anthony Albanese, Qantas has announced a relaxation of the policy.
Qantas customers can now request a cash refund for their credits, or use them without an expiry date. Jetstar customers won’t have the same ability to request a cash refund, but will be able to use their vouchers indefinitely.
Any credits for Qantas – not Jetstar – unspent after December will be issued as a refund. From 4 September, Qantas is offering double the standard number of frequent flyer points for any flights booked with a Qantas Covid credit before 31 December.
CEO Alan Joyce said:
We know the credit system was not as smooth as it should have been. And, while we’ve improved it recently, and extended the expiry date several times, people lost faith in the process. We hope this helps change that.
Qantas is separately facing a class action lawsuit over its refund policy for flights cancelled due to the pandemic, with lawyers alleging the airline’s use of travel credits allowed them to treat their customers’ money as more than “$1bn in interest-free loans”.
Updated
Tony Burke on industrial relations changes for casuals and gig workers
Circling back to the minister for industrial relations, Tony Burke, who is speaking on the second tranche of industrial relations reforms at the National Press Club.
Burke has detailed how the changes that will close the four loopholes we outlined in an earlier post will change worker’s lives:
For the person working in a convenience store, who is worried about whether they might be breaking their visa, or what the laws might be for them, they had no protection if the employer was stealing their money… they’ll now have the protection of the criminal law.
The casual worker who is supporting people, who hasn’t had a holiday for years and years and years, will have some rights to be able to convert to more secure work.
The labour hire worker, like the guy I met in the Hunter, who … said he has never worked in another industry where casuals are paid less than permanent workers.
For a gig worker who we have all seen, currently out there, running red lights, going up on to the footpath, down on the road, on the road, creating an extra lane between the parked cars and the traffic, knowing at any moment if a car door opens, instead of riding between the lanes they’ll be lying beneath the traffic, they’ll have some minimum standards.
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Four killed in Victoria crash between car and truck on highway
Some tragic news, via AAP:
Four people have died after a car and a truck crashed in Victoria’s north-east.
The crash happened at an intersection on the Hume Highway at Chiltern at 10.30am on Thursday.
All four people inside the sedan were killed. The 30-year-old driver of the B-double truck suffered non-life threatening injuries and has been taken to hospital.
Circumstances surrounding the collision are under investigation. Detectives from the major collision investigation unit were on their way to the scene, which is about three-and-a-half hours from Melbourne.
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Second tranche of industrial relations reforms will close wage and conditions loopholes: Burke
Tony Burke has said the government’s second tranche of industrial relations reforms will work to close loopholes that undercut wages and worker conditions.
He said this includes:
Making wage theft a criminal offence.
Making it easier for permanent casuals to convert to permanent full-time or part-time workers.
Businesses no longer being allowed to use labor hire firms to undercut wages previously agreed to with workers.
Minimum wage and conditions for gig economy workers.
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Gender pay gap ‘lowest it has ever been’, says Tony Burke
The minister for industrial relations, Tony Burke, is speaking now at the National Press Club about the second tranche of industrial relations reforms to be introduced on Monday.
He has said the government’s reforms passed last year are so far working as intended. He said in the first quarter of the Albanese government, 7,700 work days were lost to industrial action, compared with 128,000 in the last quarter of the previous government.
He added that the gender pay gap is now “the lowest it has ever been”.
The result of this government’s policies are exactly what we are intending them to be. We want people to be in work, and we want those jobs to be secure.
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Federal opposition outraged over government ruling out age verification on adult websites
The federal opposition has expressed outrage that the Albanese government has decided against introducing age verification for websites hosting adult content.
The government today ruled out age verification, citing privacy and security concerns and the lack of reliable technology.
Prior to the last election, the Coalition had commissioned the eSafety commissioner’s report that led to the response, and the opposition’s communications spokesperson, David Coleman, said the government should have been open to trialling an age assurance system – which attempts to identify a person’s age without strict identity checks.
Coleman said:
On one hand we have a government that wants to regulate political speech through its appalling misinformation bill. On the other we have a government that refuses to trial crucial technology to keep children safe online. Minister Rowland’s decisions continue to defy logic, to the great detriment of Australians.
More on the government’s decision here:
Updated
Soldiers hospitalised in second NT military accident
A group of Australian and East Timorese soldiers were injured after their armoured vehicle rolled during a military exercise in Darwin, just days after an aircraft crash killed three US marines, AAP reports.
Of the eight injured soldiers, some were taken to hospital in serious but stable conditions and are receiving treatment for non-life-threatening injuries.
The Bushmaster vehicle rolled over near Howard Springs RAAF base at about 8.30pm on Wednesday.
The soldiers were training as part of Exercise Predator’s Run 2023, the Northern Territory’s largest annual military exercise.
The accident is the second serious incident since the exercise kicked off last week, after an aircraft carrying three US marines plunged to the ground on a remote NT island on Sunday, killing the marines and injuring 20 others.
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Tim Mathieson’s sexual assault case adjourned
Julia Gillard’s former partner Tim Mathieson’s sexual assault case has been adjourned until October.
Timothy Raymond Mathieson, 66, appeared remotely in Melbourne magistrates court on Thursday.
He will plead guilty to one count of sexual assault when the case resumes in October, his barrister, Brad Penno, said.
According to court documents, he is accused of sexually touching a woman by “sucking her nipple without her consent” in circumstances where he did not reasonably believe she had consent on 13 March 2022.
That plea was on the provision that two other charges are dropped.
In early 2022, Gillard revealed the couple had split up in 2021.
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Consumer watchdog chair calls for more foreign airline capacity to increase competition
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s chair, Gina Cass-Gottlieb, has called for allowing more foreign airline capacity into Australia, claiming there would be consumer price benefits and that she was not concerned that Australian airlines would be harmed by increasing competition.
“We’re certainly supportive of expanding capacity,” Cass-Gottlieb told Guardian Australia, noting the government’s denial of Qatar Airways’ push to almost double its capacity on national interest grounds provided “a very broad test” for justifying rejection.
The comments stand in contrast to the Albanese government suggesting it refused the request for expanded air rights to ensure Qantas’ financial sustainability.
Cass-Gottlieb said:
International air services agreements are a ministerial decision in national interest which is a very broad test. From our competition perspective, we support expanding capacity.
There are benefits from greater choice and lower price.
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Government working with AEMO to make energy grid ‘as stable as it possibly can be’ over summer
Asked whether the government can guarantee there won’t be black outs on the east coast as the country braces for a hot summer, Bowen said:
I guarantee that all of the governments are working together with AEMO to make sure that our grid is as stable as it possibly can be going into what will be a very hot summer.
Bowen said the government is working to get more capacity into the system to deal with the challenge of coal fire power stations becoming “increasingly unreliable”.
He said this included expected outages, where ageing stations require maintenance, and also unexpected outages, where a station closes earlier than expected.
Bowen said the $3m boost to AEMO earlier this year to improve the grids readiness for summer was “working well”.
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Bowen: government ‘stands by’ Snowy Hydro changes
Bowen has said the government “stands by the [Snowy Hydro] project” despite the cost blow outs, and that it will be important for the energy grid going forward.
We support the new steps being put in place by the new management of Snowy 2.0 to put the important project back on track.
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‘Could have and should have been done better’: Chris Bowen on Snowy Hydro
The energy minister, Chris Bowen, is now speaking on Snowy Hydro, confirming the total cost of the project has blown out to $12bn.
He said the clear advice to government is that “things could have and should have been done better and much earlier”
Bowen said:
The $12bn cost is obviously very, very substantial. And there are a couple of things at play here. Firstly, this is one of the most complex engineering projects under way anywhere in the world. And it is subject to the same constraints and blowouts that all major infrastructure projects around the world are experiencing. That’s just a fact.
Whether it be Covid-19, or the supply chain constraints which are following Covid-19 - these are impacts on every project around the world. And we acknowledge that and we accept that.
The clear advice to government, though, is also that things could have and should have been done better and much earlier in the project’s development.
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Care economy platform Mable hits out at gig economy reform
The care economy platform Mable, which connects independent contractors with NDIS participants and aged care service recipients, has hit out at Labor’s proposed gig economy reforms.
Co-founder and the executive director of Mable, Peter Scutt, said:
Independent contractors on Mable have high bargaining power and authority over their work, including setting their own rates, resulting in them earning more on average than individuals working as employees ...[They] are small business operators. They determine the services they offer, to whom and the rates and terms for these services. They contract directly with their clients. Just because they choose to use a digital marketplace as part of their business should not determine that they are ‘employee-like’.
Yet the minister has insisted the reforms capture Mable while other online marketplace platforms that operate in the same vein, like Airtasker, will not. It is incorrect to describe disability and aged care support providers on the Mable platform as part of the ‘gig economy’ and suggest they are different to independent contractors who provide similar services independent of a platform or via Airtasker or other digital marketplaces. There is an agenda here.
The inconsistency in these arguments is perplexing. The only rational explanation for the government’s inconsistency is that it is deciding who is in the bill on the basis of union pressure. No one in our community is asking for this intervention.”
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Uber likely to support governments gig worker reforms
In June Uber reiterated its in principle support for “sensible reform that improves benefits and protections for gig workers while preserving the flexibility they love”.
This is why the Albanese government isn’t expecting much pushback – at least from this platform – on its gig economy reforms.
“We believe that reform can provide certainty and transparency to workers in the form of a universal safety net of entitlements that applies to all gig workers and is easy to understand,” Uber said.
Uber supports:
A transparent minimum earnings rate that ensures gig workers never earn below a set amount while on a job. Dynamic earning opportunities would remain intact, allowing workers the ability to earn above the minimum rate, depending on time of day and location
Platform-funded compulsory personal accident insurance with minimum coverage for all gig contractors, so gig workers are covered in the event of a accident when performing work
A consistent set of standards across platforms related to loss of platform access. This would include a mechanism to enable gig contractors to appeal decisions to permanently remove their access to a platform in certain instances, once internal processes have been exhausted
The right to receive a gig contractor information statement from a platform, which sets out information about their status as a gig contractor, the safety net and their rights around dispute resolution; and and a monthly earnings statement, ensuring gig workers clearly understand their rights and what they are earning.
Uber said:
This universal safety net would preserve the flexibility of being an independent contractor while providing better protections and benefits to all gig contractors.
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Josh Murray and his wife donated $1,450 to three separate Labor events
The NSW transport secretary, Josh Murray, has revealed he and his wife donated $1,450 to three separate Labor events and that none of these were disclosed during the recruitment process for the $588,000-a-year public service role.
Murray has been giving evidence at a parliamentary inquiry examining his appointment to the role, which has come under scrutiny since it was revealed the office of the transport minister, Jo Haylen, intervened in the recruitment process to have him shortlisted.
Under intense questioning by independent upper house MP Mark Latham, Murray insisted he had made all of the disclosures he was required to under the state’s electoral laws and that he had attended the events as a “private citizen”.
Latham fired back, saying: “Don’t you think you’re delusional about the ethics that should apply? You’re being paid a lot of money in a very important position for which the recruitment agency said you weren’t qualified.”
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ACCC will seek penalty that ‘sets a deterrence’ against Qantas if legal action successful
Circling back to the earlier interview on ABC News with the consumer watchdog’s chair, Gina Cass-Gottlieb.
Cass-Gottlieb said if the ACCC’s legal action against Qantas is successful, the watchdog will be seeking a penalty that “sets a deterrence” and sends a message across the industry that “timely and accurate” notifications of cancellations should be business as usual.
Cass-Gottlieb said Australian consumer law can set up to $50m per contravention.
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Qantas taking ACCC allegations seriously
Qantas has said it treating seriously allegations levelled by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) after it launched legal action against the airline alleging it had been advertising and selling tickets for more than 8000 flights that it had already cancelled in its system.
In a statement, Qantas said:
We have a longstanding approach to managing cancellations for flights, with a focus on providing customers with rebooking options or refunds. It’s a process that is consistent with common practice at many other airlines.
It’s important to note that the period examined by the ACCC between May and July 2022 was a time of unprecedented upheaval for the entire airline industry. All airlines were experiencing well-publicised issues from a very challenging restart, with ongoing border uncertainty, industry wide staff shortages and fleet availability causing a lot of disruption.
We will examine the details of the ACCC’s allegations and respond to them in full in court.
Tasmanian premier speaks alongside PM in support of the voice
The premier of Tasmania, Jeremy Rockliff, also appeared alongside the prime minister to speak on the importance of voting yes in the referendum for an Indigenous voice to parliament.
Rockliff said:
What I want to see is a nation that moves forward in partnership with First Nations people really listening and addressing those matters that are so important.
Asked by a reporter whether Rockliff thinks the majority of Tasmanians share his view, he said he was confident they will once they see it’s a way to “take this nation forward and listen to Tasmanian Aboriginal people”.
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Albanese: Indigenous Australians are behind the voice
In response to a question from a reporter about the “several Tasmanian groups” who are “very much opposed to the voice”, Albanese has said Indigenous Australians overwhelmingly support a yes vote.
This isn’t something that’s coming from the Labor party or the Liberal party, this is something that has come from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people themselves. This is a gracious request by Indigenous Australians to walk with them.
Updated
PM on yes campaign trail in Tasmania
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, is speaking in Hobart now, where he is campaigning for a yes vote in the referendum for an Indigenous voice to parliament.
He has said he is very positive about how the yes campaign was going in Tasmania and across the country.
It’s an opportunity to lift the whole nation up. It should be a moment of national unity and I’m very pleased that every premier and chief minister is supporting a yes vote, as well as all of the faith groups, all of the sporting codes the business community, the trade union movement, and other non government organisations and charities are all supporting a yes vote.
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Government says changes to Australia Post needed
Changes to Australia Post will be needed to ensure a high quality service is maintained, the communications minister has said, after the service announced a $200m loss in 2022-2023.
The minister for communications, Michelle Rowland, said:
Today’s results show that the company faces significant structural headwinds, from changing consumer trends to growing digitisation.
The Albanese government is committed to supporting Australia Post modernise so that it can continue delivering the essential services consumers and small businesses rely on to stay connected.
Change will be needed to ensure that a high quality and sustainable letters and parcels service is maintained.
Rowland said the government is considering submissions as part of its public consultation process to modernise Australia Post.
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Federal government supports Snowy 2.0 update on cost
Continuing on from our prior post:
The federal energy minister, Chris Bowen, and the finance minister, Katy Gallagher, have backed in Snowy’s plans.
They said in a statement:
When the Albanese government was elected, we were advised of serious problems with the Snowy 2.0 project which had not been made public by the previous government.
Snowy 2.0 is a critical project to Australia’s energy future - providing enough renewable energy and storage to power three million homes for a week. The update makes clear that despite the increase in costs, the value of the project to the National Electricity Market has materially increased, and a 10% increase to the capacity of Snowy 2.0 has been negotiated.
For more details about the issues, here’s our piece from a couple of months ago:
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Snowy Hydro confirms latest cost blowout for its 2.0 pumped hydro project
As has been expected for a while, Snowy Hydro has confirmed the cost for its 2.0 pumped hydro project has blown out to $12bn - with that sum contingent on the project operating by the end of 2028.
The project was first touted by the Turnbull government in 2017 at $2bn with a four-year completion date. It was later revised to $5.9bn, excluding the cost of augmenting the grid connections that will be at least $5bn that will be picked up by NSW consumers.
Part of the reason for the cost escalation were the ongoing delays, particularly for the tunnel boring machine that got stuck only a few hundred metres into its work near Tantangara Dam. It’s still to resume work after hitting soft soil late last year.
Anyway, the giant project will get a bit bigger – 10% in fact – to have a capacity of 2.2 gigawatts. And perhaps given how much higher power prices are now forecast to be, the $12bn tab (assuming it stays at that level) will still be lower than the benefits of ploughing on to the tune of $3bn, or so the Commonwealth-owned entity says.
Snowy Hydro said this morning:
Snowy 2.0 is the largest renewable energy project under construction in Australia and will provide crucial deep storage central to Australia’s renewable transition.
Updated
ACCC head says half of watchdog’s complaints were regarding Qantas cancellations
The ACCC chair, Gina Cass-Gottlieb, has just spoken on ABC News about the consumer watchdog’s legal action against Qantas.
She said the watchdog had received about 1,300 consumer complaints about Qantas cancellations in the past year – equating to 50% of complaints received by the ACCC.
Cass-Gottlieb said they had a complaint from one Qantas customer who was not notified her flight from Melbourne to Los Angeles was cancelled until two days before it had been due to take off, despite Qantas having made the decision six days prior.
Cass-Gottlieb said:
Yesterday we made the decision that this conduct is serious enough and important enough given how essential for Australians reliable air travel, to take holidays, to visit loved ones, to go on business is – that we should commence proceedings, which we’ve done today.
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Airports welcome legal action against Qantas
Airports have welcomed legal action against Qantas alleging the airline was advertising and selling tickets for thousands of flights that it had already cancelled, saying a watchdog investigation “confirms what many have been raising for some time”.
On Thursday morning, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) launched legal action against Qantas alleging it engaged in false, misleading or deceptive conduct between May and July 2022 in advertising and selling tickets for more than 8,000 flights that it had already cancelled in its system.
The ACCC investigation also found Qantas was cancelling flights to retain take off and landing slots at certain airports, among other reasons. Despite this, the legal action is focussing only on Qantas’ conduct after the cancellations had been decided.
James Goodwin, the chief executive of the Australian Airports Association, said “this action is welcome and confirms what many have been raising for some time” and called on the federal transport minister, Catherine King, to reinstate the ACCC’s formal airline monitoring program that was discontinued earlier this year.
Scheduled and coordinated cancellations not only affect airline customers but disrupt airport operations. At airports where slots are at a premium this can have the effect of limiting other airlines from using those potential runway allocations.”
More on this story here:
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Multiple Victorian MPs criticise parliamentary inquiry into duck hunting
Circling back to our earlier news that a Victorian government inquiry has recommended a ban on dunk hunting in the state.
Shooters, Fishers and Farmers MP, Jeff Bourman, is speaking to reporters outside parliament after a committee he was on has recommended an end to duck hunting in Victoria. He’s criticised the process:
This has taken truth and just chucked it out the window on the basis of we don’t like it. Frankly, it’s been a waste of time, I feel sorry for all those people that put in their time, effort and submissions for what was obviously just a complete hatchet job.
Two of the Coalition MPs on the inquiry, Melina Bath and Evan Mulholland, have also hit out at its integrity.
In a joint statement, Bath described it as “stacked” and “biased”:
This inquiry was a missed opportunity to showcase the sustainability of hunting based on science and fact. This inquiry has wasted many thousands of dollars and countless hours of time to put together a biased and flawed report.
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Australia Post records $200m loss
Australia Post has announced that in 2022-23 it recorded a $200m pre-tax loss, its first loss since 2015 and just its second since it became a self-funded government business enterprise in 1989.
Australia Post’s parcels business continues to achieve steady growth, with revenue up almost 1% on last year, but letter losses increased over 50% to $384 million in the 2023 financial year. This financial year also saw a marked increase in the estimated cost to deliver Australia Post’s Community Service Obligations to $442 million, up 27% from the 2022 financial year.
“Further losses are expected unless Australia Post can secure the necessary support required to modernise its business,” it said in a statement.
As Guardian Australia reported today the loss is likely to renew political debate about increasing the cost of stamps, cutting the frequency of letter delivery and closing post offices in metropolitan areas.
Group chief executive officer and managing director of Australia Post, Paul Graham, said:
The headwinds Australia Post is facing into aren’t new and it’s my job along with the leadership team to transform and modernise Australia Post, so it can once again be a financially sustainable business.
If we do everything in our power to run this business well and we get a favourable regulatory response towards modernisation, I’m confident that Australia Post will return to profit.
Without this support, the FY23 loss will be followed by many more. Inaction could result in a greatly devalued Australian asset.
Updated
Labor MP Sheena Watt against ending duck hunting in Victoria
As expected, the Coalition MPs and Jeff Bourman from the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers party, who were on the committee, have released a minority report. But more surprising is a minority report from Labor MP Sheena Watt.
Watt said Victorians “don’t have the luxury of closing an entire industry that contributes so significantly to rural communities” during a cost of living crisis.
She said the industry adds $350m to the state’s economy and employs 3,100 Victorians:
We can’t let down the rural communities who rely on the tourism income from interstate and intra-state visitors for native bird hunting. Many people from these industries and these communities have reached out to me directly and contributed submissions, showing how tough they’re doing it. There is simply a lack of other industries and economic alternatives that can replace the lost economic benefits caused by a ban on native bird hunting.
She urged the government to consider introducing more stringent management, regulation and compliance during the bird hunting system. She also recommended they explore the involvement of First Peoples in the management of game reserves.
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MP urges Victorian government to move ahead with ending duck hunting
Animal Justice MP Georgie Purcell, who was on the committee said today was the “best and most exciting day” of her career and urged the Victorian government to accept the recommendations:
When I was elected as an Animal Justice party MP in Victoria, I made a commitment that I would do all I can to end duck shooting. It has been my priority. Today, we are now closer than ever before. Victorians love our wildlife - they don’t want to see native animals shot for a thrill kill.
The recommendations by the select committee are common sense and in line with long-held community sentiment.
Updated
Inquiry recommends ban on duck hunting in Victoria
A Victorian parliamentary inquiry has recommended a complete ban on recreational duck hunting, which, adopted by the government, would bring the state into line with all other mainland states.
As revealed by Guardian Australia, the select committee on Victoria’s recreational native bird hunting arrangements has recommended a ban on duck and quail hunting on both private and public land from 2024.
The committee, established by the government in February, is made up of three Labor MPs, three Coalition MPs, Animal Justice party MP Georgie Purcell, the Greens’ Katherine Copsey and Shooters, Fishers and Farmers party MP Jeff Bourman. Labor MP Ryan Batchelor chairs the committee.
Batchelor said in the report:
Victoria’s native fauna is unique and should be protected. Native bird populations across eastern Australia have been in constant and consistent decline over the last 40 years… Although Victoria has experienced a significant increase in water surface and fuller wetlands in the most recent La Niña cycle, we have not experienced the same rebound in bird populations. This is an ongoing trend.
Bird hunting also involves inherent wounding rates that cannot be completely avoided, regardless of hunter skill and best intentions. This is unacceptable for bird populations that are already under significant pressure.
The government has six months to respond to the report, though if it decides to go ahead and ban the practice, it will face significant opposition from some unions, who have threatened to walk off job sites.
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Qantas scraps refund expiry date for flights impacted by Covid-19
The Age is reporting that Qantas airways will scrap the flight refund expiry date for consumers whose travel plans were disrupted by border closures during the height of the pandemic.
Qantas customers who had flights cancelled due to Covid-19 lockdowns up until October 2021 can request a refund indefinitely, the Age reported.
The expiry date for refunds was previously set at December 2023.
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‘If I was asked to apply again tomorrow knowing what I know now, I would still say yes’: Josh Murray
The NSW transport secretary, Josh Murray, is staring down the controversy over his appointment to the plum public service role and says he would apply again tomorrow if asked.
Murray, a one-time staffer to the former Labor premier, Morris Iemma, and more recently an executive at Laing O’Rourke, is giving evidence before a parliamentary committee examining his appointment to the head of the transport department.
In his opening statement, Murray said his background as a Labor staffer has always been made “clear”.
The idea that I’ve secretly traded a highly rewarding international infrastructure leadership role, leading teams globally and successfully for 15 years (and) taken a pay card in some kind of conspiracy, that just doesn’t stack up. And I reject all of that.
I made a tough career call based on the opportunity to make a difference. If I was asked to apply again tomorrow knowing what I know now, I would still say yes.
The transport minister, Jo Haylen, has come under fire over revelations Murray donated $500 to her election campaign and that her office intervened to have him added to the shortlist of candidates to lead the transport department before she made the final pick.
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ACCC outlines ‘detailed investigation’ into Qantas’ cancellation patterns
Continuing on from our prior post:
The ACCC chair, Gina Cass-Gottlieb, said the watchdog had conducted “a detailed investigation” into Qantas’ flight cancellation practices.
“As a result, we have commenced these proceedings alleging that Qantas continued selling tickets for thousands of cancelled flights, likely affecting the travel plans of tens of thousands of people,” she said.
Cass-Gottlieb added:
We allege that Qantas’ conduct in continuing to sell tickets to cancelled flights, and not updating ticketholders about cancelled flights, left customers with less time to make alternative arrangements and may have led to them paying higher prices to fly at a particular time not knowing that flight had already been cancelled.”
There are vast distances between Australia’s major cities. Reliable air travel is essential for many consumers in Australia who are seeking to visit loved ones, take holidays, grow their businesses or connect with colleagues. Cancelled flights can result in significant financial, logistical and emotional impacts for consumers.
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ACCC sues Qantas over cancelled flights
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) will take Qantas to court alleging it was advertising and selling tickets for more than 8000 flights that it had already cancelled in its system.
On Thursday morning, the ACCC launched action in the federal court alleging Qantas engaged in false, misleading or deceptive conduct in advertising the flights, scheduled between May and July 2022.
The watchdog is accusing Qantas of keeping the tickets on its website for an average of two weeks, and in some cases up to 47 days, after cancelling the flights.
The ACCC is also alleging that for more than 10,000 flights scheduled over the same period in 2022, “Qantas did not notify existing ticketholders that their flights had been cancelled for an average of about 18 days, and in some cases for up to 48 days”.
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‘Whole housing system in crisis’: report finds Australia’s emergency accommodation is often unsafe
Emergency accommodation is often unsafe, inappropriate, of poor quality and compounds the trauma of people experiencing housing crisis, a new report has found.
The lack of available social and affordable housing coupled with inaccessible and unaffordable private rentals meant that most people who entered crisis accommodation had no meaningful pathways out.
Demand for emergency housing was also vastly outstripping supply, which meant services were resorting to acquiring unsuitable and often unsafe short-term accommodation, such as in rooming houses, hostels, motels and caravan parks.
More on this story from my colleague Stephanie Convery here:
NSW transport minister refuses to front parliamentary inquiry over Josh Murray appointment
The controversial appointment of former Labor staffer Josh Murray to the $588,000-a-year NSW transport secretary role will be scrutinised by a parliamentary inquiry today.
Murray, who was recently an executive at Laing O’Rourke, is expected to be questioned about his relationship with the transport minister, Jo Haylen, when he appears before the inquiry this morning.
Haylen has been facing accusations of engaging in “jobs for the boys” after it was revealed her office intervened to have Murray added to the shortlist of candidates to lead the transport department before she made the final pick.
The NSW opposition is demanding answers after it was revealed this week that Haylen’s campaign received a $500 donation from Murray, by way of two tickets to a fundraising event, before the state election in March.
Haylen insists she did not breach the ministerial code by not declaring the donation. She has said has nothing to hide and is happy to answer questions, but she has refused to appear before the inquiry.
The hearing will commence at 9.15 and is expected to run until later this afternoon.
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NSW volunteer firefighter charged with deliberately lighting fires
An 18-year-old volunteer firefighter has been charged with deliberately lighting several fires in the Hunter region.
NSW police said the firefighter has been charged with 15 offences, including intentionally causing fire.
NSW police’s detective acting superintendent, Richard Puffett, said his team is committed to investigating any fires suspected of being suspicious or deliberately lit:
With a large amount of dry vegetation across our state, we are urging members of the public to be vigilant during this year’s bushfire season. If you see or notice anything suspicious, please contact police.
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Samah Baker’s remains found in NSW grassland
Human remains found in the grasslands off the Hume Highway in Goulburn have been identified as 30-year-old Sydney woman Samah Baker.
In May, Baker’s ex-boyfriend, James Hachem, was found guilty for her murder in 2019 and sentenced to 24 years in prison.
Baker’s family said the discovery of her remains offers a small measure of what they’ve been “longing for all this time”.
In a statement, the family said:
The news of her remains being discovered four and a half years later isn’t a neat resolution, but it does offer a small measure of what we’ve been longing for all this time.
Each development in the case feels like a reopening of our barely healed wounds, reminding us of the harsh reality of our loss.
Even though what remains of Samah has been found, it feels like losing her all over again.
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AEC seeking 100,000 temporary staff members as referendum nears
The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) has put a call out for Australians “seeking a bit of extra money” to put their hand up to work with the commission in the lead up to the referendum on an Indigenous Voice to Parliament.
Australian Electoral Commissioner, Tom Rogers, said the AEC is seeking 100,000 temporary staff. Most roles are a single day’s employment with training, but some roles stretch over a few weeks.
This will be a unique opportunity to work at the first federal referendum this century and add a pretty rare experience to your resume.
Hot, dry summer to elevate risks for power sector, market operator warns
Every time the Australian Energy Market Operator releases its electricity outlook report, there’s an inclination in the media to lurch for the scariest headlines.
There are risks every day of power outages and at certain times of the year they rise. Depending on your standard of guaranteed service, we could face periods of “unserved energy” this summer, particularly in Victoria and South Australia.
That the risks are elevated this summer should surprise nobody. Three La Niña events in as many years meant the populated eastern seaboard had milder than usual summers, so air-conditioner use was moderated.
This summer, we’ll have El Niño-like conditions (whether one is declared or not) which by itself will ramp up demand. Our coal-fired power stations are also ageing, requiring more maintenance as the years pass.
However, there will also be some 3.4 gigawatts of extra capacity compared with last summer, and almost 1 gigawatts of “demand response” available when things get tight.
Still, the margin for error is getting smaller. That’s why AEMO’s report is as much a call to arms to make sure we get the renewables actually rolling out where and when we need them. More details are in this article:
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Lithium battery fire reported in Sydney
Fire and Rescue NSW are reporting a lithium battery fire has broken out in a multi-level building in the Sydney suburb of Silverwater.
It come as firefighters have said they fear being ‘“overwhelmed” by increasing numbers of battery fires, after the death of a Sydney man in a house fire on Saturday night was linked to toxic smoke from burning lithium batteries.
My colleague Royce Kurmelovs reported on Sunday about the growing concern behind the rate of lithium battery fires:
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Gig worker legislation to set minimum standards for protection
The minister for industrial relations, Tony Burke, has just spoken on ABC RN about the bill to be introduced by the Albanese government next week to set minimum pay and protections for gig workers.
Burke said it wouldn’t be possible for the Fair Work Commission to provide gig workers with all the entitlements of an employee while maintaining independent contractor autonomy, but setting minimum standards would stop work conditions from being a “race to the bottom”.
He said gig workers were putting themselves at risk to reach a “minimum wage that is meant to apply to every workplace in Australia”.
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‘Maintain the love’: Noel Pearson on voice campaign
Prominent yes campaigner and Cape York leader, Noel Pearson, is speaking on ABC RN about the referendum for an Indigenous Voice to parliament.
He has responded to comments made by John Howard that the no campaign must “maintain the rage”, saying the yes campaign must “maintain the love, there’s no rage”:
I was surprised that any eminent leader of the country would, would urge rage. I only say in response to it that well the no campaign might be inciting rage, we’re gonna incite love and faith and the removal of fear, belief in Indigenous people.
We need Australia to believe in my people. My people are good people. And they got a lot to contribute to the country.
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Jane Hume to vote no despite anticipated home state yes
Liberal senator Jane Hume appeared on the Today show earlier this morning, saying she would be voting no in the upcoming referendum on an Indigenous voice to parliament, however she conceded her home state of Victoria will likely vote yes.
My home state is probably where there’ll be a Yes. But the yes vote is very well resourced from corporates and individuals and that’ll be ramping up. I don’t think the No campaign can take anything for granted in these last few weeks.
She said it was important that Australians read the referendum brochure that will be appearing in mail boxes across the country this week.
That describes both the yes and the no case. They can make up their own mind.
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Australia’s gig economy workers set to benefit from minimum pay and protection against ‘unfair deactivation’
Gig economy workers in Australia including ride-share drivers and food delivery riders could soon benefit from minimum pay and protection against “unfair deactivation”.
Under a bill to be introduced by the Albanese government next week, the Fair Work Commission will be given the power to set minimum standards for hundreds of thousands of “employee-like workers” on digital platforms from 1 July 2024.
The bill fulfils a commitment made before the 2022 election to regulate the gig economy, which Labor hopes will help reduce incentives for unsafe practices that have contributed to a spate of food delivery rider deaths.
More on this story from my colleague Paul Karp here:
Noel Pearson speaks on first day of yes campaign
Noel Pearson, one of the leading yes campaigners for an Indigenous voice to parliament, has just appeared on ABC as the yes and no camps head into the first day of campaigning after prime minister Anthony Albanese yesterday announced 14 October as the date Australians will cast their vote in the referendum.
Pearson said he’s feeling excited about the next six weeks of campaigning and the growing momentum in the “yes team”.
This is a culmination of my life’s work and the work of so many of my Indigenous colleagues who have been working for this for so long.
Pearson said it was important to teach Australians what the words of the amendment to the constitution will be.
That should be the starting place and the ending place of our conversations about this referendum. And when you read the provision, it’s 92 words, they’re very simple, what you read is basically what it means, and all of a sudden lights start switching on.
I tell you what the first line is: ‘In recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of Australia’. I think that acknowledgment is magnificent. And I think the Australian people will say, yes, that recognition is an important step for the country to make.
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Westpac to introduce real-time scam detection system for digital payments
In an Australian banking first, Westpac has announced it will integrate a fraud detection system in its digital payment platforms, so customers are warned when it looks like they are about to be scammed in real time.
The new prompts will be activated when customers enter payment details in online or mobile banking which the bank detects to be a higher scam risk.
The customer will then be asked questions, and if their responses suggest the payment is likely to be a scam, the transfer will be stopped.
The announcement was welcomed by the Consumer Action Law Centre, with chief executive Stephanie Tonkin calling on the government to implement “mandatory legal obligations” for all banks to protect customers.
Westpac has announced it will also be enhancing its existing Verify feature, which should alert customers if account names and numbers don’t match up.
The bank previously announced Verify would be rolled out by March.
Westpac Group’s chief executive, Peter King, said:
The prompts will inject important friction into the payment process, helping alert customers in the moment.
This will add less than a minute to the payment process, but it could save a customer much more than that if they are being targeted by scammers.
Tonkin said these announcements “were welcome” but urged banks and government to do more:
This isn’t a catch-all. Information sharing and verification needs to link up across all other banks such as through confirmation of payee technology, so that many more customers are protected from scams.
This needs to happen regardless of who a person banks with so they can feel more confident they are not transferring money to a scammer, she said.
Without mandatory legal obligations on banks to prevent, detect and respond to scams, it will be hard to gauge how effective these steps will be and how customers can seek reimbursement when they are not met.
Westpac said it is prepared to share the technology across the industry to help protect more customers.
Testing and design of the new features will be carried out over the coming months.
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NSW government commits to safe staffing levels in public hospitals
The NSW government has signed a memorandum of understanding with the nurses and midwives union to progress the roll-out of safe staffing levels in public hospitals across the state.
The agreement will see the Labor government work in “good faith” with the union to work out a process and timeframe to implement safe staffing levels that will then be written into the nurses’ and midwives’ state award.
The government has described the MoU as a “once-in-a-generation” reform that will bring more nurses and midwives into hospitals.
The premier, Chris Minns, said:
We made a promise to the people of NSW to implement safe staffing levels in NSW public hospitals, and that’s exactly what we’re delivering. This will make a world of difference for health workers.
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EPA orders NSW forestry agency to stop logging after greater glider found dead
Following our story yesterday about pressure on a New South Wales state agency to cease a logging operation possibly endangering the rare greater glider, the Environment Protection Authority has done just that and ordered a work stop.
It follows an inspection of the area in Tallaganda state forest near Canberra and the discovery of a dead glider about 50m from the site.
It ordered all logging, haulage and road and track construction work in the area to stop for at least 40 days while the death was investigated.
The EPA’s acting executive director of operations, Steve Orr, said the cause of the glider’s death was not known, but it was “extremely concerning”. The species has been increasingly reliant on unburnt forest areas after its habitat was severely damaged in the black summer bushfires nearly four years ago, he said.
Here’s the full story from Adam Morton:
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Thanks Martin Farrer for kicking things off this morning. I’m Jordyn Beazley and I’ll be with you on the blog today.
Public memorials for two Victorian mushroom poisoning victims
A normally quiet Victorian town will today farewell two of their much-loved neighbours whose death became international news, AAP reports.
Don and Gail Patterson, both 70, died in hospital after their daughter-in-law Erin Patterson cooked them a beef Wellington at her Leongatha home in Victoria’s southeast on July 29.
Police believe four people at the meal were poisoned by death cap mushrooms. The others were Gail’s sister Heather Wilkinson, 66, who also died, and Wilkinson’s husband and local church pastor Ian Wilkinson, who remains in hospital in a critical but stable condition.
On Thursday afternoon, the pair will be remembered at a public memorial service at their local Korumburra Recreation Centre.
The South Gippsland mayor, Nathan Hersey, said a large turnout was expected at the service.
“For a lot of people, it’s going to mean an opportunity to again, reflect, but also to give thanks for the lives of people who have been instrumental in our community,” Cr Hersey said.
“It’s going to be closure to say goodbye and to have that opportunity to grieve that hasn’t been there because it’s been so public and been such an unusual circumstance.
“It’s been a very almost unprecedented experience for people in the area with the way it has played out so publicly but also because it is people who have contributed so much.”
The couple was recently laid to rest during a private burial after the town was thrust into the spotlight over speculation about what led to the deaths.
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Albanese rules out legislating voice if referendum fails
Anthony Albanese has ruled out legislating a voice if the the referendum on 14 October fails to produce a yes vote.
Appearing on Nine’s A Current Affair program last night, Albanese said he would be disappointed with the outcome but would not legislate a voice in contrast to voters’ decisions.
If Australians vote no, I think that will be a lost opportunity but I’ll respect that.
But Albanese said he remains confident the Indigenous voice will succeed, putting faith in Australians trying to do the right thing and adding the final three weeks will be crucial for winning over undecided voters.
He said:
People will focus, like they do in an election campaign, they focus in normally the three weeks leading up to it ... We only had to give 33 days notice – it’s a conscious decision to give a longer time for people to examine what is before the people on 14 October.
Albanese was pressed on a range of issues on the upcoming referendum, including whether he agreed it had “no real power”, was a “wishy-washy” model and could be easily changed by future governments.
He dismissed the criticisms, saying it was a “voice to Canberra” rather than from it, and that despite just being an advisory body, it would give Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people a say in matters affecting them.
He said:
This is just recognition, and an advisory body with no downside, no one losing anything [and] everything to gain from this change.
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our rolling news coverage. I’m Martin Farrer and I’ll be bringing you the best of the overnight stories before I hand over to my colleague.
Our top story this morning is a call by the Greens leader, Adam Bandt, for more people to join protests by groups such as Extinction Rebellion and Disrupt Burrup Hub in an effort to force the Albanese government to stop allowing new fossil fuel projects. Speaking in Melbourne last night, he compared frontline climate activism to the types of civil disobedience that helped end slavery and gain women’s suffrage.
Anthony Albanese has ruled out legislating an Indigenous voice to parliament if the referendum now set for 14 October fails to produce a yes vote. Speaking on Nine’s A Current Affair program last night, Albanese said he would be disappointed with the outcome but would not legislate a voice in contrast to voters’ decisions. “If Australians vote no, I think that will be a lost opportunity but I’ll respect that,” he said. More on that coming up. Meanwhile, the prime minister has been accused by leading no campaigner Warren Mundine of unleashing “horrible racial abuse” against no campaigners.
Australia Post will today reveal a full-year loss for the first time since 2015, renewing debate about increasing the cost of stamps, cutting the frequency of letter delivery and closing post offices in metropolitan areas. Australia Post has warned the government that its letters business lost $189.7m over the first half of the 2023 financial year. Its community service obligations, which include deliveries five days a week to 98% of delivery points, cost it $348.5m in the 2022 financial year.
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