Latitude to engage independent expert on spam processes
Earlier in the blog, we reported that Latitude Financial had paid a nearly $4m fine over spam law breaches related to text messaging to customers.
A spokesperson for Latitude said the company had immediately reported the matter to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (Acma) after becoming aware it had sent potentially noncompliant SMS messages, and immediately strengthened its spam compliance processes.
The spokesperson said:
As part of the enforceable undertaking, Latitude will engage an independent expert to confirm that its strengthened spam processes are operating compliantly.
Updated
NSW pharmacists will be able to prescribe the pill directly to women over 18
The NSW government will invest $4.5m to make it easier for women to access the pill, allowing pharmacists to prescribe it directly to those over 18 without a GP visit.
The reform, the government says, will take pressure off GPs and give women faster, easier access to care. The government will pay for the first 5,000 consultations with a trained pharmacist, but once that service is exhausted, women should only expect to pay between $20 to $60.
To date, 773 pharmacies are registered to provide the resupply service in NSW. The premier, Chris Minns, said in a statement:
This is basic healthcare for millions of Australian women – and this is about making it easier to get that care, without extra cost or hassle.
Just because something’s always been done a certain way, it doesn’t mean it’s the best way to keep doing it – it’s not working for busy women to access a doctor to get a script.
Victoria unveiled a similar program last month, which will begin in July.
Man charged over alleged sexual assault on international flight to Perth
A man has been charged in Western Australia after allegedly sexually assaulting a woman seated next to him on an international flight.
The Australian federal police said police met the man upon the plane’s arrival in Perth and later charged him with one count of sexual intercourse without consent and three counts of an act of indecency without consent.
The woman reported the alleged assault to airline staff, who moved her to another seat and reported it to police.
The AFP acting Supt Peter Brindal said:
Every passenger has the right to feel safe when travelling, especially when confined in an aircraft close to other passengers.
No act of indecency on an aircraft or at an airport is appropriate, and any travellers who break the law will be dealt with swiftly.
The man, who is an Indian national, appeared before Perth magistrates court yesterday.
Updated
Some context on the scale of travellers to and visa holders in Australia
For a bit of context about the scale of monitoring incoming travellers’ social media accounts:
Abul Rizvi, the former deputy immigrations secretary, suggests there are about 500,000 visa applications per month into Australia that need to be processed, about 3 million temporary entrants, and about 4 million permanent residents.
“So, are we going to use this taskforce to analyse the social media of all of those people to identify whether they are in breach of Australian values?” Rizvi questioned on RN earlier.
Jonno Duniam responded to criticisms of the scale of monitoring all those people by saying a Coalition government would “triage efforts” based on where people came from.
Some countries would have a lower bar, while others would face more scrutiny, he told RN:
There are certain jurisdictions, like we’ve talked about, the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, for example, where perhaps because of the nature of society in those countries, there is a lower risk.
There would still be an assessment, but it would be a different one to countries where, for example, they do not share our approach to democracy, rule of law.
Updated
Chalmers says Taylor’s immigration plans ‘pretty strange’
Back to Chalmers, who said earlier Angus Taylor’s immigration speech yesterday was a “pretty strange and pretty disappointing” contribution.
I think what he’s doing is he’s plagiarising the politics and the rhetoric of other countries and another time.
A lot of the rhetoric he uses, and the divisive politics that he is trying to play, we’ve seen in other parts of the world. And in Australia we should be taking the right decision for the right reasons.
Chalmers added that, to him, it seemed Taylor was playing internal politics with three rightwing parties, rather than reflecting the will of Australians.
Updated
Duniam says Coalition’s immigration plans not about stopping people from ‘expressing an opinion’
Jonno Duniam, the shadow minister for home affairs, is speaking to RN now about the Coalition’s immigration plans. He said:
This is not about stopping people from expressing an opinion. There are people who hold certain views and values, aligned with faith, political views and the like.
But when you start inciting hatred, inciting political or communal violence, inciting harm, those sorts of things … They’re the kinds of things that would trigger what we’re talking about here.
Duniam said the target of the hardline policy would be those who are preaching hatred, or in Australia to “cause harm and undermine our way of life”.
Updated
Budget plans have ‘obviously’ changed due to Middle East war, but still ambitious
Chalmers said the budget, coming next month, will still be ambitious but had “obviously” changed in the wake of the ongoing war. He told RN:
It will be a responsible budget. There will be savings in the budget, to get the budget into better position, including, to put in a position to be able to respond, if we see some of these more serious scenarios, play out.
Obviously, the budget that we contemplated in February won’t be identical to the budget that I hand down on the 12th of May, but it will still be ambitious.
Updated
Chalmers says latest IMF findings reflect ‘really dangerous time for the global economy’
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, is speaking to RN Breakfast after the IMF warned of the potential for a global recession, including high inflation and elevated fuel prices through to 2027.
He said the IMF was “really sounding the alarm here” about some of the potentially severe scenarios. He told RN:
This is a really dangerous time for the global economy. The international monetary fund is expecting slower growth and higher inflation, and we are too …
What it tells us once again is that from an economic point of view, the end of this war can’t come soon enough. Australians didn’t choose the circumstances of that war, but they are paying a very hefty price for it.
Updated
Monitoring social media of all incoming travellers ‘herculean’, Rizvi says
Rizvi said the practicalities of monitoring the social media accounts of anyone coming into Australia as a “herculean” effort. He told RN:
Are we going to use this taskforce to analyse the social media of all of those people to identify whether they are in breach of Australian values? Sounds like a herculean task to me.
I presume they’re going to target whose social media they’re going to check. But then, the more they talk about targeting and using social media in a targeted way, that doesn’t seem all that different to what the government does now.
Rizvi also said claims that Labor had opened the door to massive immigration were misleading. He noted there was an all-time record in the year immediately after the Covid pandemic restrictions – under a function of policies from the Coalition.
It was the Coalition that opened the floodgates. They have not identified a single policy in relation to students and working holidaymakers that Labor changed to give us that huge surge that occurred in 22-23. But there are lots of Coalition policies that drove it.
He said Labor had been slow to tighten net migration, but added numbers have been returning more towards normal in the years after Covid lockdowns.
Updated
Former deputy immigration secretary ‘surprised’ Angus Taylor unable to identify a single example of ‘someone breaching an Australian value’
Former deputy immigration secretary Abul Rizvi has been speaking on ABC radio about the Coalition’s new hardline immigration plan, which opposition leader Angus Taylor unveiled yesterday – to significant backlash.
“I don’t think anyone can argue that it’s good that migrants adopt Australian values. I think that’s fine,” Rizvi said. “The practicalities of this, however, is going to be a lot more difficult than … the rhetoric.”
I was surprised that Mr Taylor and his colleagues were unable to identify a single example, either an actual example or a hypothetical example of someone breaching an Australian value. I assume they’ll come up with some soon, but I was surprised they didn’t initially.
You can read Rizvi’s take on the plan for Guardian Australia here:
Updated
Good morning, Nick Visser here to pick up the blog. Let’s see what Wednesday holds, shall we?
Final masterplan for Callan park in Sydney’s inner west
The NSW government has revealed its final masterplan for Callan Park in Sydney’s inner west, although questions remain about how the revitalisation of the site of the former psychiatric hospital will be funded.
The 10-year plan, which proposes restoring the heritage buildings for lifestyle and cultural uses, but not housing, while rejuvenating 61 hectares of parklands to create another Centennial Park-style green space for the city, was announced at the end of last year, after years of disagreement over the space.
It has now been finalised after going on public exhibition, with the first phase of the plan expected to include changes and access improvements to the popular Bay Run, which the former Coalition government itself previously spent millions revamping. Other projects are already under way – the inner west council last week announced it had confirmed a builder for tidal baths slated for completion in the summer of 2026/27.
The NSW planning minister, Paul Scully, says:
Callan Park already attracts millions of visitors every year and improvements like the tidal baths, Bay Run upgrades and removal or renewal of previously abandoned buildings will only enhance its appeal to locals and visitors alike.
The plan acknowledges the need to find a way to fund the project, including the revitalisation of former heritage buildings within the Kirkbride and Broughton Hall precincts. But it does not provide a detailed proposal beyond identifying state and federal grants, and “revenue-generating opportunites” such as arts events and commercial leases, including a potential waterfront cafe.
The masterplan relies on a bill which is before parliament passing later this year. Among the changes proposed is the removal of provisions that currently limit development at the park to not-for-profit purposes.
Updated
Latitude Financial pays nearly $4m for spam law breach
Latitude Financial has paid a $3.96m fine after the Australian Communications and Media Authority found the company had breached spam laws more than 2.7m times, including 2.3m marketing messages without accurate contact information, and 344,416 messages that lacked an unsubscribe function.
It’s the second time the financial institution has been fined, after a $1.55m penalty was paid for similar contraventions.
The breaches occurred during March 2024 and April 2025, and was identified by Latitude through mandatory compliance reporting entered into after the last fine was issued.
The messages related to credit card products and financial services. While recipients were told they could reply “STOP” to opt out, many of the messages were not able to be replied to.
Acma member Samantha Yorke said:
Latitude is now a two-time offender and it is disappointing that it let consumers down again.
The spam laws have been in place for more than 20 years, and there is simply no excuse for ongoing noncompliance, particularly after a prior enforcement action.
Latitude was approached for comment.
Updated
Chalmers travels to Washington
Jim Chalmers will travel to Washington DC this morning to meet finance ministers, treasurers and central bank governors from around the world as the US-Israeli war on Iran wages on.
The treasurer said he will continue to call for an enduring ceasefire, an end to the conflict and the immediate re-opening of the strait of Hormuz after peace talks between the US and Iran failed over the weekend.
Before the G20 finance ministers’ meeting, Chalmers said:
From an economic perspective, a proper end to this war can’t come soon enough. Australians are paying a hefty price for events on the other side of the world.
Chalmers said he will work to strengthen partnerships and supply chains during his short trip to the US capital. The treasurer will meet with key figures from Australia’s major fuel suppliers, including South Korea, Singapore and China.
The world is predicting slower growth, higher inflation and extreme volatility as a result of the ongoing conflict, Chalmers said.
The trip comes as Chalmers prepares his fifth budget amid turbulent times. Tax cuts passed last year will form a part of the government’s relief package for struggling households but the government has left the door open for further announcements as the conflict continues to wreak havoc.
Read more here:
Updated
PM touches down on fuel diplomacy visit
Anthony Albanese has arrived in Brunei Darussalam, the first Australian prime minister to fly to the oil-rich country for a meeting with the sultan, where he’ll discuss fuel supplies with the world’s longest serving monarch, Andrew Greene has reported from the travelling media pool.
Arriving in Bandar Seri Begawan yesterday for his second trip to Asia in a week, Albanese was officially welcomed on the tarmac before making his way to the Brunei Darussalam-Australia memorial to lay a wreath.
He is being accompanied by the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, for the overnight visit where he’ll meet Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah today to discuss fuel and food trade between both countries.
Brunei Darussalam provides 9% of Australia’s annual diesel imports as well as 11% of annual crude oil imports and 11% of annual fertiliser-grade urea imports.
The last Australian leader to travel to Brunei Darussalam was Tony Abbott in 2013 to attend the East Asia summit but Albanese is the first prime minister to be invited for a bilateral visit.
After his talks with the sultan, who has ruled Brunei Darussalam since 1967 and is one of the world’s richest people, Albanese will fly straight to Kuala Lumpur to discuss fuel supplies with his Malaysian counterpart.
Australia was one of Brunei Darussalam’s first diplomatic partners after the country’s full independence in 1984 but historic links date back to 1945, when Australian forces landed there as part of an allied campaign to liberate Borneo.
Updated
Central-west NSW hit by region's largest earthquake
Part of Australia’s east coast has been shaken by an earthquake that could be felt hundred of kilometres away.
A 4.5-magnitude quake hit at 8.19pm last night at a depth of 5km about 30km southwest of Orange in central-west NSW, near the Cadia gold mine.
Geoscience Australia received more than 2,000 reports of tremors in the region, which a senior seismologist said were weak to light and felt as far as hundreds of kilometres southeast in Batemans Bay.
“This is a large earthquake for this area,” Phil Cummins told AAP. The ABC reported this morning that it was “record-breaking” for the region.
Cummins expected aftershocks but said they would likely be much lighter and felt in a smaller area.
Updated
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories before Nick Visser picks up the reins.
Anthony Albanese will meet the sultan of Brunei today to discuss the fuel supply crisis, having touched down in the tiny nation yesterday as part of his ongoing diplomatic offensive in south-east Asia. Later he will fly to Malaysia. We’ll have more details in a moment.
As the prime minister has his discussions in Brunei, the treasurer, Jim Chalmers, will be flying to Washington to join the G20 finance ministers’ summit, where – after the IMF’s warning overnight – the main topic of conversation will likely be how to prevent the world sliding into recession as a result of the war in the Middle East. More coming up.
