What we learned: Monday, 12 January
With that, we will wrap the blog for the evening. We’ll be back first thing tomorrow, take care of yourselves.
Until then, these were today’s biggest news headlines:
Federal parliament will return next Monday and Tuesday, to deal with hate speech laws promised after the Bondi terror attack. Anthony Albanese says there will be a condolence motion for the 15 people who were killed on Bondi beach in December.
The Coalition says it is “deeply sceptical” of the government’s decision to tie hate speech reforms with a gun buy-back scheme under one piece of legislation.
Former New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern has become the latest international headline act to pull out of the 2026 Adelaide Writers’ Week, in protest of the Adelaide festival board’s decision to rescind its invitation to Palestinian Australian academic Randa Abdel-Fattah.
The Victorian premier has announced further support for bushfire-affected residents. It includes emergency assistance payments of up to $52,250 available to eligible uninsured households so they can re-establish their principal place of residence. There have been at least 350 structural losses in the state.
And the Minns government will give councils new powers to crack down on illegal hate preaching venues, including allowing utilities to be cut off if operators ignore planning laws and cease-use notices.
Updated
Coalition ‘will not stand in the way of getting things done’
The shadow home affairs minister, Senator Jonno Duniam, says the Coalition’s “first port of call is to cooperate” on hate speech and gun laws.
Anthony Albanese will push the Coalition and the Greens to support urgent legislation establishing reform, bringing MPs back to Canberra next Monday to debate laws proposed in the wake of the Bondi terror attack.
At a doorstop on Monday afternoon, Duniam said Australians “want the parliament to work together to get the right outcome” and the Coalition “would have loved to have worked with the government before today in the lead up to the introduction of these bills”.
We’ve wanted these laws passed and action taken urgently. We will not stand in the way of getting things done, but we want to get it right. Again, as I said, this is not a take or leave proposition.
Asked if he had any concern that his Nationals colleagues would be resistant to gun reform, he said the Coalition would “work through the detail” and “make sure our position is a united one, a unified one”.
We are speculating on laws we haven’t seen yet. I do also note that a lot of state and territory governments have taken issue with the federal government’s approach to the gun buy-back. So there’s no guarantee that this thing will get off the ground no matter what laws are passed here. So, let’s see the detail, number one.
Updated
Man arrested in Bondi vest scare told to leave state
A man arrested for allegedly wearing a weighted vest covered in duct tape a suburb away from a commemoration for the Bondi terror attack will likely have charges dropped, police have conceded.
Victorian man Cleophias Machaya was charged with offensive behaviour after police from Operation Shelter were called to Bondi Junction in Sydney’s east over reports of suspicious behaviour.
According to a NSW Police lawyer, he had been wearing a puffer jacket with the weighted vest at 10.10pm on Sunday night while asking where Bondi Beach is.
But the police prosecutor later admitted in court his superiors were leaning towards abandoning the case against Machaya. The Victorian’s lawyer confirmed he had received an undertaking that his client was likely to be in the clear.
Before the revelation, the 33-year-old, who has no criminal record was sobbing and shaking his head as the prosecution laid out its arguments. “I just made a mistake,” Machaya said, before his lawyer advised him not to speak.
Machaya was granted bail on the condition he will not be allowed to re-enter NSW unless it is for future court hearings.
Though Machaya had said he was wearing the weighted vest to train for mixed martial arts, the prosecution said his actions raised significant alarm and magistrate Margaret Quinn added it was “most unusual”.
A few kilometres away at Bondi Beach, thousands had gathered to commemorate the 15 people killed when two gunmen opened fire on a Hanukkah celebration in mid-December. Given the circumstances, the police lawyer argued Machaya’s intention was to cause fear.
Police searched his car, where they allegedly found another duct-taped vest, a face mask and a tin believed to contain prohibited drugs. Both vests were later deemed safe after being examined by bomb disposal unit officers.
Machaya will return to court on 9 February.
-Australian Associated Press.
Commonwealth to hold state funeral for late Nationals leader Ron Boswell
A state funeral service for the former longstanding leader of the National party, Ronald Boswell, will be held at St Stephen’s Cathedral in Brisbane on Friday, 16 January 2026.
In a statement, the prime minister said Boswell was a “stalwart of the National party and a lifelong advocate for rural and regional Australia”.
He was elected to federal parliament in 1983 as a Senator for Queensland, launching a career which spanned three decades.
From 1990 to 2007 Mr Boswell was the leader of the National Party in the Senate, and held the role of parliamentary secretary to the minister for transport and regional services from 1999 to 2003.
He was made an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2020, for distinguished service to the Parliament of Australia, to the people of Queensland, and to fisheries research and development.
The state funeral was requested by the leader of the Nationals, David Littleproud.
Updated
Jacinda Ardern pulls out of Adelaide writers’ week
Former New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern has become the latest international headline act to pull out of the 2026 Adelaide Writers’ Week, in protest of the Adelaide festival board’s decision to rescind its invitation to Palestinian Australian academic Randa Abdel-Fattah.
Ardern had been scheduled to discuss her memoir A Different Kind of Power with the ABC 7.30’s Sarah Ferguson on 3 March.
The former PM joins a growing list of international writers and commentators joining dozens of Australian guests in the boycott, in a controversy which claimed four Adelaide festival board members over the weekend.
Other international guests who have pulled out include bestselling author Zadie Smith, Pulitzer prize-winning writer Percival Everett, Greek economist and politician Yanis Varoufakis, Irish novelist Roisín O’Donnell and Russian American journalist M Gessen.
Updated
NSW woman charged after allegedly displaying Nazi symbol
A woman will face court after allegedly displaying a prohibited Nazi symbol on a boat in the Lake Macquarie region of New South Wales.
On Saturday 6 December, police attended a home at Swansea in relation to the prohibited Nazi symbol, which was displayed outside the home on a parked boat.
Ten days later, a 32-year-old man was arrested by detectives and charged with three offences. He remains before the courts.
After further inquiries, a 34-year-old woman attended Belmont police station at about 1pm on Friday, 9 January.
She was issued a court attendance notice for cause prohibited Nazi symbol to be displayed in public place, and behave in offensive manner in/near public place/school.
She is due to appear before Belmont local court on Wednesday 25 February.
Updated
Queensland premier warns of potential ‘devastating’ rain in drenched north-west
Drenched swathes of north-west Queensland are at risk of further devastating flooding as ex-tropical cyclone Kogi unleashes torrential rain across much of the state, premier David Crisafulli warns.
Speaking from Mackay on Monday afternoon, the premier said, in good news, that weather system was “breaking up” and had brought “welcome rain” to parts of the state.
But major flood warnings remained in place, he said, including for the Connors, Isaac, Flinders, Georgina rivers, while the Gulf Country catchments were in flood watch.
“Why I raise that is there is the prospect of those heavy falls moving west,” Crisafulli said.
You’ve got areas that have had an immense amount of rainfall – some of them more than a year’s fall in a week period – those catchments are swollen.
The premier said authorities were carefully monitoring rainfall in those swollen catchments.
Further rain there could be devastating for the north-west.
Updated
Search to resume for woman missing for a month in SA outback
South Australian police will resume the search for missing woman Trisha Graf.
In a statement today, South Australia police say major crime investigation branch detectives would resume the search for the 41-year-old on Tuesday, more than a month after she first went missing.
Graf was last seen in the early hours of Friday 12 December in the Roxby Downs area, 510km north of Adelaide. She was driving a white 2012 Ford Territory, with SA registration S254BCX, which was found abandoned and unable to be driven near Blue Dam, east of Andamooka, on 13 December. On 6 January, police declared her suspicious disappearance a major crime.
Det Supt Darren Fielke said the searches would focus on locating evidence related to the investigation.
We have established Trisha’s movement’s on the evening and morning she was last seen, but we believe there are people who may have seen her within the town who have not yet contacted police.
An initial ground and aerial search, as well as a search of Blue Dam by police divers failed to locate Graf. Police said detectives would also conduct door knocks on Wednesday in Andamooka on the vicinity of several locations Graf was last seen.
Australia Post rival Sendle closes ‘effective immediately’
Australia Post delivery rival Sendle has ceased operations without warning, Australian Associated Press reports.
The Sydney-based companies sent emails to business customers late on Sunday, warning it would halt all pickup and delivery bookings “effective immediately”.
The decision comes five months after the company merged with two US firms and 12 years after the startup launched to challenge Australia Post on parcel deliveries.
The shutdown is expected to hit small businesses the hardest as the company had ties with online providers Shopify and eBay Australia, although consumers awaiting parcels delivered by Sendle may also miss out.
In a statement, Sendle did not say what the shutdown would mean for its clients. “Sendle has informed its customers that it is no longer taking any future bookings,” it said.
“We are not able to provide any further comment at this time.”
– Australian Associated Press
That’s all from me. Penry Buckley will be your guide for the arvo. Take care!
Opposition claims government’s hate speech bill aims to ‘foster division’
The Coalition says it is “deeply sceptical” of the government’s decision to tie hate speech reforms with a gun buy-back scheme under one piece of legislation which will be introduced to parliament next week.
The PM announced a moment ago that he will bring parliament back two weeks early to introduce the reforms, promised after the Bondi terror attack.
The opposition leader, Sussan Ley, says she wasn’t given the draft bill before Anthony Albanese made the announcement today, and will review it carefully:
We are deeply sceptical of the prime minister’s decision to introduce a single bill that will attempt to cover multiple complex and unrelated policy areas, for example issues of speech are clearly separate from the ownership and management of firearms.
[Albanese] is squarely focused on what he perceives to be his political interests, not the national interest. This is a political decision, aimed at fostering division, not creating unity.
Albanese said he would brief the opposition this afternoon and will also speak to Greens leader Larissa Waters, before the draft bill is released publicly tomorrow.
Updated
Former vice-chancellor of University of Melbourne to be interim leader after death of Emma Johnston
Emeritus Prof Glyn Davis has been appointed the interim vice-chancellor of the University of Melbourne after the death of its former head, Prof Emma Johnston, late last year after cancer complications.
Davis, appointed by the UoM council on Monday, will begin his tenure on 2 February and serve in the role while the university searches for a permanent vice-chancellor.
He previously served as the UoM’s 19th vice-chancellor from 2015 until 2018, and has since chaired Opera Australia and been Secretary of the Department of Prime Minister.
Davis said he was “humbled to be invited and appreciate the importance of continuity and stability at a challenging moment”.
I look forward to meeting the many staff and students who have joined the University in more recent years. Together we will honour the legacy of Prof Emma Johnston and continue the work to make the University of Melbourne a world-leading and globally connected Australian university.
Updated
Hunt for man after woman found dead south of Brisbane
Queensland police are searching for a man in south-east Queensland after a woman known to him was found dead on his property.
The 46-year-old woman was reported missing from the Brisbane suburb of Ashgrove at about 1am Monday morning after being last seen at The Gap at about 7pm on Saturday.
A Queensland Police Service statement said that investigations led officers to a property on Waterford Tamborine Road at Buccan, a semi-rural suburb on Brisbane’s outer southern suburbs, at about 2.30am Monday, where they found the woman’s body.
Police say she had suffered injuries. The man was known to the woman, but she was alone at the property, which was declared a crime scene.
Police say they will await results of a postmortem examination to determine the cause of the woman’s death and continue to search for the man.
Updated
Albanese asked how he sees social cohesion in Australia
The prime minister said there was growing global pressure, noting:
I want an Australia that goes to our values, where everyone is respected. Where the Australian covenant is when people come here, they leave any hatreds and prejudices in the customs hall, and recognise the strength that is here in our diversity. One where we’re able to discuss differences in a mature and respectful way, rather than accusatory, rather than looking to always blame someone else.
He said he hopes a royal commission will help address those issues.
We, as a society, need to have that debate and we need to be able to move forward.
Updated
Parliament to be recalled next week
Federal parliament will return next Monday and Tuesday, to deal with hate speech laws promised after the Bondi terror attack. Anthony Albanese says there will be a condolence motion for the 15 people who were killed on Bondi beach in December.
It will be an opportunity for the parliament to come together and convey our sympathies to the loved ones of those murdered by these terrorists on Bondi beach on 14 December, to recognise the trauma and the pain of the people who have been injured, to honour the courage and quick action of police, first responders, and healthcare workers, and the lives that they saved.
The prime minister has promised to crack down on antisemitism and hate preachers, and introduce hate speech laws to tackle racial hatred, and said he would recall parliament early to do so. Parliament was initially slated to return for the year on 3 February.
Albanese says the government will brief the opposition on the hate speech legislation this afternoon, and the bill will be publicly released tomorrow. Albanese says he wants the legislation to be passed next Tuesday before question time.
The bill is the combating antisemitism hate and extremism bill, a package of reforms which create serious offences for hate preachers and leaders seeking to radicalise young Australians.
It increases the penalties for hate crime offences. It ensures offenders whose crimes are motivated by extremism will have that factored into sentencing. It creates a new offence for inciting hatred in order to intimidate or harass. It expands and strengthens the ban on prohibited symbols, and it makes it easier for the minister for home affairs to cancel or refuse a visa for people intent on spreading hatred.
The bill will also create a new framework for the home affairs minister to list organisations as prohibited hate groups and set up a national gun buy-back scheme.
Updated
Albanese pays tribute to ‘the best of the Australian character’ amid bushfires
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, is speaking now. He’s thanking emergency services for their work surrounding the bushfires in Victoria.
He said:
At the worst of times, we always see the best of the Australian character …
What we saw is just people helping, helping out. Often, some of them from communities themselves have been devastated in recent by floods or by fire. The last time I was at the Bendigo centre there, it was to deal with floods in Victoria. A short time later, I’m back and it’s to deal with the opposite, of fires that have been devastating. So, we’ll continue monitor these situations.
We’ll bring you more shortly.
Updated
Australian shares climb to highest level of 2026
The local share market has hit its highest level in 2026 following the release of US jobs data that suggested the world’s largest economy is overall in good shape, AAP reports.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 0.6% near noon on Monday, while the broader All Ordinaries was up 0.64 %.
The gains came after a positive lead from Wall Street, with the S&P500 closing Friday at an all-time high after labour market data known as non-farm payrolls showed US unemployment declining and wages rising.
While the report pushed back expectations for the next Federal Reserve rate cut from April to June, Interactive Brokers senior economist José Torres said the report had boosted investor confidence in the US economy:
The print signals that labour conditions remain healthy and that the (economic) cycle has legs.
Updated
Firefighters now working to control southern flank of Harcourt Ravenswood fire
Continued from last post:
The fire is still burning in pockets in the area, particularly on the southern side of Mt Alexander, where the fire “moved a bit” on Sunday night, Masters said.
“As we’ve seen over the last couple of days, fire activity starts to increase around 3pm in the afternoon,” he said.
Firefighters are now focusing on building a control line on the southern flank, with large aerial tankers dropping fire retardant on the surrounding forest. They are also backburning, which Masters said would result in an increase in smoke over the next few days.
Don’t be concerned about that, that’s part of our operations.
Masters said the weather forecast was “reasonably kind to us,” but warned that another spike day with dangerous fire conditions was likely.
He also called out the buildings which were saved “as a matter of good luck and work by our firefighters”, which included the primary school, the local mobile phone tower, the petrol station, the general stall, and the football grounds. “The charcoal chicken, which is important, is also safe,” he said.
Updated
Residents of fire-ravaged Harcourt able to return tonight
Residents in the fire-ravaged central Victorian town of Harcourt will be able to return to assess their properties from 6pm tonight, with a plan to allow a permanent return from tomorrow, authorities have said.
Speaking at an online community meeting on Monday, incident controller Michael Masters said the fallen power lines and damaged water supply were the main issues to resolve before residents would be allowed to return.
The fire, which started near Fogartys Gap Road at Ravenswood South around 2.30pm on Friday and burned through more than 3,600 hectares, destroying 46 homes and several key businesses including the Harcourt cool store before burning up Mt Alexander, taking out key telecommunications infrastructure.
Residents were driving around roadblocks to check livestock on the weekend, but Masters said the area remained an active fire zone and it was not yet safe to return:
The risk of people being injured by hazardous trees … is significant, as is the risk to people’s health from things like dust, asbestos dust, sewage that has leaked from the pipes or other things that may present a risk to you.
He also cautioned that returning to a destroyed home could be confronting.
The return to properties after an emergency is always a traumatic event. There is support that is available but I do need to highlight that returning to a property that has been destroyed by fire is a traumatic event so people need to be prepared for that.
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Allan says claims of decreased CFA funding ‘just wrong’
Looping back now to a point raised earlier, where Jacinta Allan defended the state government’s funding for the Country Fire Authority (CFA), in response to questions about whether CFA funding was reduced last year and volunteer concerns around ageing fire vehicles.
“I have seen these claims that are being made and they’re just wrong … to suggest that there’s been anything other than an increase to the funding to the CFA is just incorrect,” she says.
Allan went on:
We know the importance of replacing the vehicles across the state which is why we have increased the funding, which is why we’re putting more vehicles and equipment in to brigades, CFA brigades, right across the state and we’ll continue to that because we’re increasing the funding and recognising the incredible work that the CFA do every single day.
CFA’s chief officer, Jason Heffernan, said he “can also confirm that the available budget to the CFA this year is some $20m more than it was last year”, and that the organisation is actively removing out-of-date equipment.
CFA have removed quite a number of these appliances that have been spoken about our volunteers. We have over 167 of new trucks in order or in production right now. That’s the commitment we’re trying to make to our volunteers, to ensure that they have the best equipment.
Updated
Premier condemns alleged attack on Melbourne imam and his wife
Allan was asked about an alleged attack on an imam and his wife, saying she condemns the attack.
The premier said she spoke to the man and his wife this morning to address the incident. Three people have been arrested by police on Sunday.
Allan said:
It was a terrible, hateful attack and there is no place for Islamophobia, no place for this sort of hate anywhere in Victoria.
I want to say very clearly to the Muslim community, but particularly Muslim women, that I will support your right every single day to live freely in this state, free from hate and also fight for your right to move around our community safely and with dignity. … I will always fight for the right of every community to be safe and free from hate.
Updated
Victorian CFA chief warns of further fire danger in January
The chief officer at the Country Fire Authority (CFA), Jason Heffernan, speaks next. He praises the work of emergency services in bringing fires under control, but warns: “We are early in the high-risk weather season.”
This morning I took the opportunity to sit down with the Bureau of Meteorology and have a look at the next couple of weeks in the outlook. I can see that there is likely to be another heating event towards the end of January to the extent that’s yet to be determined, but I guess the indication there is, you know, there’s a lot of fire in the landscape. Much work will be done between now and then to contain these fires but, you know, there is time for Victorians to get ready for the rest of the season, to make the preparations.
Updated
Commissioner gives details of structural losses by area
Wiebusch breaks down the structural losses referenced by the premier.
He says about 50 homes and businesses have been lost in the Ravenswood and Harcourt fires. One home and multiple sheds and outbuildings have been lost in the Otways fires. At Natimuk, about 30 structures have been lost.
Wiebusch says the number of structures that have been lost in the Longwood fire remains at 154, with impact teams currently going through and clarifying exactly whether they are homes or other outbuildings.
He says the “most significant update” is around Streatham, where 18 local residential homes are among the structures lost, alongside many agricultural buildings. At the Walwa fire, there are so far only four affected structures, but Wiebusch says the number may grow.
He says there were 10 structures lost in the state’s north in a fire that has now been controlled.
One home and 12 sheds have been lost in the Mt Mercer fire, which has now been contained. At the Dargo complex in Gippsland, emergency services have also confirmed one property loss.
Updated
Conditions easing but some fire warnings still in place in Victoria
The Victorian emergency management commissioner, Tim Wiebusch, speaks next.
He says there are three emergency warnings, along with 19 watch and act warnings, still in place in Victoria, calling on residents to continue to check the VicEmergency app.
Wiebusch says conditions are easing but there are 12 major fires across Victoria, with “the slightest of winds … still causing those fires to move around”.
That now includes the two fires in the Otways, being the Kennedy Creek and the Carlisle River. The Longwood fire, as we’ve continued to see, the largest fire footprint in our state. We still have the Walwa Mt Lawson fire as well, Ravenswood and Harcourt are getting close to containment. We still have the fire in the Gippsland valleys as well, along with the two fires and complex of fires that we have brought together under the Snowy Complex. It does include a range of fires in and around the Orbost area and even Mallacoota.
Updated
Allan announces further support for bushfire-affected residents, alongside public bushfire appeal
The Victorian premier has announced further support for bushfire-affected residents. It includes emergency assistance payments of up to $52,250 available to eligible uninsured households so they can re-establish their principal place of residence.
It also includes access to mental health and wellbeing support through an expansion of existing programs in place for primary producers and farming communities. Allan says:
It’s in recognition that alongside the physical rebuilding, there’s a lot of trauma, a lot of impact, that we also need to support people individually with the trauma that has been experienced but also families and communities as well.
Finally, Allan announces the opening of a Victorian bushfire appeal, calling for public donations to support affected communities.
Donations will be able to start being made tomorrow online and I do encourage people who are looking at a way of providing support, the best way to provide that support is through this appeal. Every dollar raised through this appeal will go back into providing support for fire-affected communities.
Updated
Allan offers condolences to family of fire victim and says more than 350 structures lost
Allan goes on to say there have been at least 350 structural losses in the state. She also says she wants to “pause for a moment and acknowledge the loss of life at the Longwood fire”.
A member of that local community, who was part of that local community, has lost their life as a result of the fires, that huge and ongoing fire around Longwood. And my thoughts and condolences are with that person’s family, their loved broader community too, and indeed as we were talking [about it] yesterday, everyone across the emergency services and fire-affected communities felt that loss when we heard the news yesterday afternoon, that someone had been lost to the fires.
It’s a devastating impact and it’s a devastating reminder of the tragedy that fire can bring to any community, to any household, to any doorstep, particularly on those difficult, catastrophic and extreme weather days.
Updated
Jacinta Allan acknowledges ‘catastrophic day’ in western Victorian town
The Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, is now addressing media in Natimuk alongside emergency services officials. Allan begins by acknowledging the devastating impact the weekend’s fires have had on the western Victorian town. She says:
When the fires started here on Friday afternoon it was in the midst of a catastrophic day. The heat was fierce and the winds were incredibly strong. And the fire took off in the grasslands and the consequence of that fire is that we have seen the fire come through the Natimuk community, but also across the broader district as well that has been hit. That’s because there were many thousands, more than 8,000 hectares of land have been burnt out as a result of this fire. The fact it wasn’t more was because of incredible work of not just the Natimuk CFA but the brigades across the district.
Updated
The Golden Globes begin – follow our live coverage
The Golden Globes are kicking off now. If you are following along at home (reminder: you can watch live on Paramount+ or follow our liveblog), there are a few Australian nominees to get behind this year.
Jacob Elordi is nominated for best supporting actor for Frankenstein AND best actor in a limited series for The Narrow Road to the Deep North.
Joel Edgerton is nominated for best actor in a drama for Train Dreams.
Rose Byrne is nominated for best actress in a musical or comedy for If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You.
Sarah Snook is nominated for best actress in a limited series in All Her Fault.
Nick Cave is nominated for best original song with Bryce Dessner for their song Train Dreams, from the film Train Dreams.
Follow our liveblog here:
Updated
Jacinta Allan speaks to bushfire-affected residents ahead of Victoria update
The Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, is expected to provide a bushfire update from Natimuk fire station in the state’s west shortly.
Allan, who posted a video on social media earlier showing her returning to her home in Bendigo after she was among thousands forced to evacuate, was due to speak at about 11.30am, but is still speaking to affected community members in Natimuk.
We’ll bring you updates from the press conference as soon as it begins.
Minns shares support for ‘bonafide Australian hero’ Amy Scott after cancer diagnosis
Returning to the NSW premier’s press conference earlier, Chris Minns spoke in support of Insp Amy Scott, the police officer who shot and killed the Bondi Junction shopping centre attacker in April 2024, following the news that Scott has been diagnosed with breast cancer.
According to a NSW Police Legacy appeal, it is a “rare and aggressive form” of the disease.
Minns said:
I spoke to Amy a couple of weeks ago. She is a genuine, bonafide Australian hero, someone we owe a huge debt of gratitude to, not just because of her heroic actions in Bondi Junction of a couple of years ago but she has been an inspiration to the exact same officers that attended the [alleged] terrorism event on 14 December.
She is so important for NSW and our community and I’m devastated to hear this news. If anyone deserves a break it is Amy and we wish her the very best, she is an absolute champion.
Here’s the current state of the fires in Victoria
More Victorian residents warned too late to leave as fires roll in
VicEmergency just released two emergency warnings for residents in multiple areas to take shelter now.
Those near the Walwa fire in the areas of Berringama, Bullioh, Koetong, Lucyvale, Shelley, Tallangatta Valley and surrounds are in immediate danger and must take action now to survive, officials said.
The fire west of Walwa remains out of control and it is too late to leave.
In Victoria’s south, a fire near the Carlilsle River is also out of control. An emergency warning has been issued for Irrewillipe and the safest option for this in the warning area is to take shelters indoors immediately. It is too late to leave.
EMERGENCY WARNING - BUSHFIRE - Take Shelter Now - Irrewillip
— VicEmergency (@vicemergency) January 12, 2026
More details at https://t.co/6YxB1MeB7v
You are in danger and need to act immediately to survive.
The safest option is to take shelter indoors immediately. It is too late to leave. pic.twitter.com/jlNyAKwg8d
Updated
The Golden Globes are kicking off in Hollywood, here’s how to watch
In lighter news, the 2026 Golden Globe awards are kicking off in Hollywood this morning, with TV and film’s best and brightest walking down the red carpet right now.
If you’d like to watch the arrivals in real time, you can watch the Associated Press’ livestream on YouTube right now
If you’d like to watch the Golden Globes ceremony, you’ll have to stream on Paramount+. The ceremony begins at 12pm AEDT.
Otherwise, our live blog has just kicked off where you can follow both the red carpet and ceremony today.
One Battle After Another leads the film nominees, with nine nominations, followed by Sentimental Value with eight, Sinners with seven and Hamnet with six. The White Lotus leads the television nominees with six nominations, followed by Adolescence with five, and Severance and Only Murders in the Building with four apiece.
Minns’ message to illegal hate preaching: ‘we have introduced laws to take you on’
Minns added:
If you are preaching hate and vilifying some on Sydney’s streets, then we have introduced laws to take you on, to confront you to say this is not tolerable in a multicultural community in Sydney in 2026.
Minns said recent events showcased the need to address hate preaching:
Recent evidence shows us that when we see hate speech in our community we should take it as read that they are trying to divide our community and trying to put hate in someone’s heart and we should confront it where we see it.
Minns champions new powers over illegal hate preaching venues
The NSW premier, Chris Minns, is speaking about the government’s efforts to shut down illegal hate preaching venues, which include powers to see utilities cut off, as we reported earlier in the blog.
Fines against those who defy orders will increase tenfold: The penalty per individual will go from $11,000 to $110,000, and for corporations they will move from $22,000 to $220,000 for a single offence.
Minns said it would not be “the only and last initiative the government will move to take on hate speech in our community”:
We need to fight hate speech where we see in our communities and also where we don’t see it behind closed doors and this is one of a raft of measures we will be introducing over the next six months to 12 months.
Updated
Government commits to listing weight loss drug Wegovy on the PBS
The federal health minister Mark Butler has confirmed the government will move to list weight-loss drug Wegovy on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) following a recommendation from the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) just before Christmas.
PBAC is is an independent expert body appointed by the Australian government that advises whether medicines should be subsidised on the PBS based on clinical benefit, safety, and value for money taxypayers. The government has so far gone on to list all PBAC recommendations.
The recommendation is for Wegovy to be available on the PBS for people with severe obesity (that is, a Body Mass Index of 35 and above) and diagnosed cardiovascular disease. The drug is not yet subsidised and no date has been given, with Butler telling reporters at a press conference in Adelaide that the next step is negotiating a price with the manufacturer.
More than 400,000 Australians are currently paying private prices of $4,000-$5,000 a year for GLP-1 medicines including Wegovy, Ozempic and Mounjaro, and Butler said subsidising Wegovy for those who need it most is a health and equity issue. However, securing a price that works for patients and taxpayers is needed, he said.
Three arrested after alleged racially motivated attack on Muslim religious leader in Victoria
A Victorian Muslim religious leader was punched in the face after he and his wife were allegedly forced from their car on a Melbourne freeway in what police allege was a racially motivated attack, AAP reports.
Police allege the pair were travelling along the South Gippsland Highway in Melbourne’s south-east at 7.40pm on Saturday when they were “racially abused” by three occupants of a small black hatchback.
Police alleged the occupants of the car hurled objects, drove dangerously to intimidate the couple and got out of their car to assault the imam and threaten his wife after forcing them into a service station.
The Australian National Imams Council condemned it as a “cowardly attack”.
Read more here:
Victoria premier returns to Bendigo home after evacuating during fires
The Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, has posted a video on social media returning to her home in Bendigo, after she was among thousands forced to evacuate on Friday evening due to bushfires.
Allan says her home is still standing and her family is safe but the smoke from the Harcourt blaze is visible from her back yard. She says:
You can see here that the fire is still in the landscape across Mount Alexander, and just on the other side of that ridge line is the beautiful community of Harcourt. It’s where the kids went to kinder.
She says it was “tough” to travel into Harcourt to see the damage on Sunday. Allan goes on:
A lot of homes that have been lost, there’s going to be a big rebuild ahead. It’s heartbreaking. Like, I’m standing here in my back yard, right? Fire’s really close. My home’s still standing and my family is safe. To get a warning to be told that it is too dangerous to stay in your own home, that you must leave, and you must leave now, it’s gut-wrenching. It’s sickening. Every time I think of this, I also think of the woman I met at the relief centre in Seymour, where she showed me on her phone the photo of her house that has been destroyed in the fires around Longwood. My heart breaks for her and everyone else who’s lost their homes.
The premier ended her video saying while it had been a tough time for the state, it had brought out the best in Victorians. She says:
There are plenty of tough, strong people out there, not just on the fire ground, but their backup crews at the staging area, in the incident control centres, in the relief centres. We got the best of Victoria on display, the stories I’ve heard, the generosity, the support, the friendship, that is really the best of us.
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Man arrested after allegedly wearing duct-taped vest at Bondi Junction
NSW police arrested a man for allegedly carrying a vest covered in duct tape in Bondi Junction on Sunday night.
Officials said they were called to the area around 10pm amid reports of suspicious behaviour. On arrival, officers found a man, 33, allegedly wearing a vest covered in duct taped objects. He was arrested and taken to Surry Hills police station.
A search of the man’s vehicle allegedly found a second taped vest, as well as a face mask and a tin thought to contain allegedly illegal drugs.
Both vests were examined by the bomb disposal unit and deemed safe. The man was charged with giving false information person/property in danger, possession of a prohibited drug and behaving in an offensive manner in or near a public place.
He was refused bail and will appear before court today.
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Antimony and gallium to be first focus of national stockpile of critical minerals
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, will discuss the first minerals to be the focus of a $1.2bn stockpile aimed at countering Chinese dominance when he meets with Australia’s allies in the US, AAP reports.
The critical minerals strategic reserve is designed to break Beijing’s grip on the supply of the metals needed for defence equipment such as fighter jets, and clean energy technology. The government will announce the metals antimony and gallium as the first to be the focus of the reserve, which Australia has argued can become a reliable supply of rare earths for the US.
Antimony is used in batteries and night vision equipment, while gallium is used for advanced semiconductors and radar systems.
Chalmers said a reliable reserve would strengthen supply chains and help stabilise markets. Canberra and Washington struck a $13bn rare earths deal in 2025 for a pipeline of projects to expand mining and processing in Australia.
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NSW government announces new powers to crack down on illegal hate preaching venues
The Minns government said this morning it will give councils new powers to crack down on illegal hate preaching venues, including allowing utilities to be cut off if operators ignore planning laws and cease-use notices.
The government said in a statement the effort was part of reforms meant to shut down “factories of hate”, including strengthening penalties for non-compliance and ensuring shutdown notices carry renewed weight. A release from the NSW government said:
Freedom of religion is a fundamental right in NSW. But that freedom does not extend to operating unlawfully or putting community safety at risk.
The NSW premier, Chris Minns, said in a statement:
There is no place in NSW for hate, intimidation or extremism masquerading as community activity. These reforms give councils real powers to act when premises are operating unlawfully and spreading division. If operators ignore the law and refuse to shut down, councils will be able to cut off utilities and close them for good.
Read more here:
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Man charged with murder after death of detainee at Sydney detention centre
A man has been charged with murder after the death of a detainee at a detention centre in south-west Sydney.
NSW police said emergency services were called to the Villawood detention centre around 6.35am on Sunday following reports a male detainee had died. On arrival, they located the body of a man, 51, suffering a serious wound.
A crime scene was established, and following inquiries police arrested another detainee, a 29-year-old man. He was arrested and taken to Bankstown police station and charged with murder.
He was refused bail and will appear before local court today.
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Former Adelaide writers’ week director says festival in ‘crisis’
Jo Dyer, the former director of Adelaide writers’ week, said she believes the Adelaide festival is in “crisis” after multiple board members resigned after the disinvitation of Randa Abdel-Fattah.
Dyer spoke to RN Breakfast this morning, saying the festival appeared to no longer be a “functioning organisation”:
Adelaide writers’ week and the festival more broadly is clearly now in complete crisis. The program was due to go to print this week. And as you’ve said, at the moment, the numbers of authors that have withdrawn are approaching 100. There really is, at the moment, not a viable writers’ week program.
Dyer levelled heavy criticism at the board, saying it appeared to her the body had bowed to political pressure over Abdel-Fattah’s appearance:
The issue here is the board has taken a decision to disinvite someone because of pressure from the government, because of, it appears, the politics, if not the nationality of the author in question and fears about what she may or may not say.
It’s how an organisation responds to that pressure and whether or not it stands firm as a protector of the freedom of artistic expression.
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More than 300 structures lost in Victoria bushfires, minister says
Vicki Ward, Victoria’s emergency services minister, is providing an update on the ongoing firefighting effort in the state.
She told RN Breakfast upwards of 300 structures have been lost, but noted that figure included buildings like sheds. But she said it’s likely at least 100 homes have been lost overall, “if not more”.
Eleven recovery centres are open in Victoria that can provide assistance to anyone in need, and Ward said the state government was rolling out personal hardship assistance payments alongside the federal government’s disaster relief payments.
She said roadblocks and barriers to entry remained important to keep people safe, noting people should abide by those restrictions and avoid fire scar areas:
We need to have … qualified people, who know what they’re doing, going in there to check to make sure that roadways are safe because trees can just fall on people.
We do not want to see those kinds of incidents. We do not want to see people who have done the right thing, who have left early, who have saved their lives, the lives of their families, then go back into a fire area only to be harmed, possibly killed by a falling tree.
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Meta removes access to nearly 550,000 accounts in first month of under-16s social media ban
Meta said this morning it has removed access to almost 550,000 accounts belonging to people believed to be under 16, its first compliance report a month after the landmark social media ban law went into effect.
That figure includes about 330,000 Instagram accounts, 173,000 Facebook accounts and nearly 40,000 on Threads. The company said compliance was a “multi-layered process that we will continue to refine”.
Meta said while it was taking all steps necessary to comply with the law, it continued to speak with the Australia government to “find a better way forward” instead of “blanket bans”, adding:
As we’ve stated previously, Meta is committed to meeting its compliance obligations and is taking the necessary steps to remain compliant with the law. That said, we call on the Australian government to engage with industry constructively to find a better way forward, such as incentivising all of industry to raise the standard in providing safe, privacy-preserving, age appropriate experiences online, instead of blanket bans.
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Adelaide festival chair resigns amid ongoing writers' week crisis
The chair of the Adelaide festival board, Tracey Whiting, is the latest person to resign after a controversial decision to disinvite the Palestinian Australian author Randa Abdel-Fattah from the 2026 writers’ week program.
Whiting said her resignation overnight would allow the body to “refresh its leadership and its approach to these circumstances”. As we reported yesterday, three other board members resigned from the festival this weekend.
Whiting wrote on LinkedIn about her decision:
Recent decisions were bound by certain undertakings and my resignation enables the Adelaide Festival, as an organisation, to refresh its leadership and its approach to these circumstances.
My tenure as Chair has been immensely enjoyable, as has working with the terrific AF team. I look forward to the future success of the Adelaide Festival.
I have no further comment.
Updated
Good morning
Welcome to the Australia live news blog for Monday 12 January.
Major Victorian bushfires that have left at least one person dead and hundreds of structures destroyed are expected to burn for weeks, including the Longwood blaze in the state’s north. Cooler conditions could offer some relief to firefighting efforts, but for many small communities, the damage has already been done. More soon.
After days of intense buildup, ex-Tropical Cyclone Koji ran out of power as it crossed the Queensland coast, downgraded to a tropical low – but forecasters warn the threat is not over as Queensland braces for more devastating floods. Thousands were meanwhile without power, AAP reported, as authorities worked around the clock to restore electricity to affected areas.
And the chair of the Adelaide festival board, Tracey Whiting, is the latest person to resign after a controversial decision to dump the Palestinian Australian author Randa Abdel-Fattah from the 2026 writers’ week program. Three board members resigned on Sunday. We’ll have more on that soon.
And the Golden Globes kick off in the US a bit later – we’ll have rolling coverage of the awards, red carpet highlights and more – stay tuned.
