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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Cait Kelly and Emily Wind (earlier)

Data shows ‘collapse’ in full-time roles – as it happened

Antoinette Lattouf Penny Wong Riyad alMaliki Ramallah Sydney
Treasurer Jim Chalmers
Treasurer Jim Chalmers says interest rates and global uncertainty combining to ‘slow our economy’. Photograph: Jono Searle/AAP

We brought you some news earlier of the Greens writing to Anthony Albanese asking him to pledge Australia’s support to the International Court of Justice case against Israel.

The party has now shared a media statement on the subject claiming support from Australia for the genocide case would “act as an important counterbalance, sending the clear message that Australia will hold all nations accountable to breaches of international law”.

“Australia must publicly support South Africa’s genocide case against Israel in the International Court of Justice,” said acting Greens leader Mehreen Faruqi.

“The world is watching and Australians are demanding that Anthony Albanese put politics aside, show some guts and be remembered on the right side of history.

“There should be no argument that the Australian government has a responsibility to act decisively to stop the crime of genocide and support punishment for genocide wherever it occurs.

“Ignoring the atrocities being committed by Israel is not going to stop them – it is time the prime minister showed the courage to call out Israel’s war crimes and demand justice for Palestinians.”

Greens foreign affairs spokesperson, Jordon Steele-John, went on to call for Australia to “stop all military and security trade and cooperation with Israel, to push for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, and to work to end occupation and apartheid”.

Updated

Inquiry makes 58 recommendations to simplify laws governing financial services

Complicated and “broken” laws governing financial services could be given an overhaul in an effort to simplify regulations for customers and businesses, AAP reports.

The Australian Law Reform Commission has handed down its final report on laws for corporations and financial services, making 58 recommendations to better improve the legislation.

The inquiry was set up in 2020 following the royal commission into the banking sector.

The commission called for offences and penalties under the laws to be less complex and to consolidate them.

It also recommended introducing a single definition for what constitutes a financial service to make it easier to understand for consumers and corporations.

Commission president Mordy Bromberg said the recommendations had been a long time coming.

“The reforms outlined in this report will make these laws easier to understand and navigate, drive down the costs associated with complying with the law, and make it easier for consumers to understand and enforce their rights.”

Updated

Flesh-eating ulcers on rise in Victoria

A record number of Victorians were diagnosed with a flesh-eating ulcer in 2023, prompting fresh warnings to cover up and be alert for early signs of infection, AAP reports.

There were 363 Buruli ulcer cases detected in the state last year, up from 338 cases in 2022.

The ulcer is caused by a bacterial infection that can create significant skin damage including painful lumps, limb swelling and occasionally severe pain.

But experts say the mosquito-linked condition can be treated with antibiotics if diagnosed early.

“We need GPs and the community to be aware of that,” Barwon South West public health unit director Eugene Athan told AAP.

“If it gets beyond a few weeks then it can be much more difficult to treat.”

Updated

Hackers accessed Victorian court records from as far back as 2016

The cyber-attack that hit Victoria’s court system was worse than officials first thought, with hackers accessing years’ worth of recorded hearings from as far back as 2016, AAP reports.

Court Services Victoria was first made aware of the infiltration on 21 December and initially believed hackers accessed hearings from the supreme, county, magistrates and coroner’s courts as far back as 1 November.

It also warned an October recording from the children’s court could have been compromised.

But Court Services Victoria on Thursday revealed some of the court files hacked were from before 1 November, including some as old as 2016.

The cyber-attack targeted supreme court matters heard in Ballarat in April 2016, along with others heard in Bendigo, Shepparton and Wodonga during parts of 2023, the statement said.

Signage is seen for the Supreme Court of Victoria

Updated

DP World has responded to workplace relations minister, Tony Burke’s, accusation that the company had engaged in a political and media campaign for him to intervene in the dispute with the maritime union rather than bargaining with its workers.

DP World’s Nicolaj Noes, said:

“DP World’s request for government intervention is driven by the severe economic impact of customer frustration and a substantial backlog of containers. The company is committed to the Fair Work Commission process to find a fair and sustainable resolution that addresses the consequences of the industrial action and seeks to end it.”

Burke also made some adverse comments about Noes’ record of threatening a lockout while he was running Svitzer.

Updated

There are severe weather warnings still in place for parts of Queensland:

Conservation group seeks injunction to halt logging of habitat trees

A conservation group has gone to court in a bid to halt logging in more NSW forests where vulnerable and endangered species live, AAP has reported.

The government-owned Forestry Corporation of NSW is already in hot water with the environmental watchdog.

The Environment Protection Authority (EPA) has repeatedly extended stop-work orders in the Tallaganda and Flat Rock state forests, alleging the corporation failed to competently look for habitat trees used by endangered species before harvesting began.

Now the South East Forest Rescue (SEFR) group has launched court action in a bid to expand the list of forests where harvesting is banned until “adequate” surveys are done for imperilled species including the greater glider.

“SEFR is seeking an injunction that the Forestry Corporation be permanently restrained from logging anywhere in the north east or south east forests unless they conduct effective surveys for gliders,” the group says.

“SEFR’s position is that the Forestry Corporation is breaking the law by not performing adequate surveys for den trees, and necessary exclusion zones around den trees are not being implemented.”

Updated

There was a seven-day delay between the New South Wales transport authority being alerted about possible asbestos contamination at a major Sydney park and testing that revealed the dangerous substance was present in recycled mulch.

Rozelle parklands has been closed for at least six weeks after a clean-up notice was issued by the state’s environmental watchdog when testing found bonded asbestos at 14 locations.

Guardian Australia can reveal the alarm was first raised with Transport for NSW on 2 January in an email from a member of the public.

More here:

Updated

Commonwealth’s unpaid legal bills in litigation with rightwing thinktank now top $500,000

In August my colleague Josh Taylor reported that LibertyWorks had failed to pay $172,000 in legal costs to the commonwealth, after it lost federal court litigation relating to Covid-19 border closures.

New answers to questions on notice in Senate Estimates have revealed the commonwealth’s unpaid legal bills in litigation with the rightwing thinktank now top $500,000.

This includes:

  • $297,000 for LibertyWorks’ high court challenge against the foreign influence transparency scheme.

  • $172,000 for the federal court case.

  • $63,441 expended by the Australian government solicitor for pursuing costs.

In responses to questions on notice from the Labor senator Helen Polley at June’s Senate Estimates, the attorney general’s department confirmed that LibertyWorks had not responded to invoices or requests for payment.

Guardian Australia contacted LibertyWorks for comment.

Updated

Hello everyone – this is Cait Kelly, I will be with you for the rest of the afternoon. Let’s get into it!

Updated

Many thanks for joining me on the blog today, I’ll leave you with the lovely Cait Kelly who will guide you through the rest of today’s news. Take care!

As the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, wraps up two days of talks in Israel and the occupied West Bank, our foreign affairs correspondent Daniel Hurst has a wrap of her latest comments in Jerusalem:

Updated

And in even more weather news: Andrea Peace, a meteorologist with the BoM, has answered some commonly asked questions about El Niño in this video.

She answers why El Niño is still active, even though its been a wet summer in the east.

Our very own Graham Readfearn also wrote this fantastic explainer on the same topic earlier this month:

Updated

Coastal Queensland prepares for cyclone threat

As we’ve flagged throughout the blog today, coastal Queensland from Cooktown to Mackay is preparing for an imminent cyclone threat to develop by late Tuesday next week.

The cyclone would be known as Kirrily and it coincides with a massive clean-up effort in far north Queensland that is finally gaining momentum after record flooding in December caused by Cyclone Jasper.

State MP Craig Crawford said:

The wet season’s potentially got a couple of months to go – we are barely a third of the way through.

We know we typically get the worst of our wet seasons in February-March and we haven’t got there yet.

This season has certainly shown us ... that all bets are off when it comes to predicting the weather.

– with AAP

Updated

Properties near Grafton cut off amid storms

Sticking with the weather and AAP has more details on the warm, humid and stormy conditions across large tracts of Queensland and north-eastern New South Wales today.

About 150 properties at Orara River, near Grafton in the NSW Northern Rivers region, have been left isolated and could remain cut off for several days. However, the State Emergency Service is confident it can get supplies to residents when needed.

The agency responded to about 200 incidents across NSW between midday on Wednesday and Thursday morning.

Sydney was hit with heavy rain overnight, including 49mm at Penrith and nearly 40mm in the city centre.

Updated

Flood watch in place for Cape York Peninsula

A flood watch remains in place for the Cape York Peninsula in Queensland, as monsoonal rain falls across the region.

According to the Bureau of Meteorology, the monsoon – which extends across the southern Gulf of Carpentaria coast, base of Cape York Peninsula and into the Coral Sea – will persist for several days.

In the 24 hours to 9am, rainfall totals of up to 130mm were recorded.

The BoM said abnormally high tides are forecast along the Gulf of Carpentaria coast and through the Torres Strait, with sea levels “potentially exceeding the highest tide of the year”.

Further riverine flooding is possible within the flood watch area over the next few days. Flood warnings are current for the following catchments:

  • Tully and Murray rivers

  • Herbert River

  • Paroo River

  • Barcoo River

  • Bulloo River

  • Diamantina River

  • Daintree River

Updated

PM says Bali bombing conspirators ‘finally being held accountable’

Overnight, Malaysians Mohammed Nazir Bin Lep and Mohammed Farik Bin Amin pleaded guilty to conspiring in the 2002 Bali bombings that killed more than 200 people.

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, responded to this on social media, writing:

The 2002 Bali bombings took the lives of 202 people, including 88 Australians. Hundreds more were wounded, with victims and their families still living with the trauma of that day.

We welcome the fact that the terrorists responsible for these attacks are now finally being held accountable for their actions. We pay tribute to the courage and resilience shown by those whose lives were forever changed by those horrific acts of terrorism.

We also thank the Australian federal police for the extraordinary work they did supporting the victims and their families, and assisting Indonesia with the investigation to bring to justice those responsible for this atrocity.

Updated

Dutton says if Albanese abandons stage-three tax cuts ‘his leadership is over’

Peter Dutton has bared his teeth on talk of Anthony Albanese potentially tinkering with the stage-three tax cuts, claiming “I think his leadership’s over” if the government changes the legislated settings.

It further escalates the stakes for consideration of the tax cuts - which disproportionately benefit richer Australians - which many in Labor would prefer to scale back.

Dutton said on 2GB this morning:

I think his leadership’s over if he abandons the stage three tax cuts because Australians have seen this movie before and they don’t reward leaders who go to an election with an ironclad guarantee, and then knowingly break it.

Now to step back a moment, the government has consistently said their plans haven’t changed on the tax cuts, which come in from July.

You may remember this is the third stage of the Morrison-era tax plan, with earlier stages (benefiting lower and middle income earners) coming in years ago. Labor initially opposed stage three, but later voted for the plan as the Coalition government wouldn’t split the bill up, and has since said they won’t change them.

But the ballooning costs of the cuts – now estimated at more than $300bn over a decade, with those in the top 20% of incomes getting $227bn alone - has many in Labor more nervous.

Australian Opposition Leader Peter Dutton reacts during House of Representatives Question Time at Parliament House in Canberra, Wednesday, November 29, 2023. (AAP Image/Lukas Coch) NO ARCHIVING
‘If the prime minister breaks that promise, then I think his leadership is done,’ Peter Dutton says. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP

The PM has said that the government’s plans haven’t changed, and this week guaranteed that “tax cuts will happen in July” – but the opposition remains prickly, accusing Albanese of “weasel words” by not specifically promising that the whole legislated cuts will occur. On 2GB, Dutton gave a flavour of what the opposition would chase if there are changes.

“If the prime minister breaks that promise, then I think his leadership is done, and I think Bill Shorten would be licking his chops at the thought that Mr Albanese is going to walk away from it,” he said, referring to former Labor leader Shorten.

But instead of just a straight answer and being honest, the prime minister has to give this coded form of words, as you say, in every tortured press conference that he does, where he says a thousand words, but really doesn’t say anything at all, and he’s trying to play again to the element in his party room who are on the phone to him saying, ‘you’ve got to ditch these tax cuts’, and the other half of the party room that’s saying ‘you’ve got to honour your election commitments’.

Updated

While its exact location may be a mystery, a 2017 Instagram post reveals what Djokovic’s special tree friend looks like - and she’s a beauty:

Novak Djokovic tells press conference about his favourite tree in Melbourne

After his four-set defeat of Australian Alexei Popyrin on Rod Laver Arena last night, the world No 1, Novak Djokovic, revealed there was one place in Melbourne that he keeps going back to even when he’s deep in the tournament.

“There’s one particular tree that I’ve been having [a] special relationship with, so to say, in the last 15 years,” Djokovic said in his post-match press conference.

“I love every corner of botanical gardens. I think it’s incredible treasure for Melbourne to have such a park and nature in the middle of the city. That particular tree, I cannot reveal which one, I’ll try to keep it discreet for myself when I’m there to have my own time. I like to ground myself and connect with that old friend.”

Q. What is it about that tree?

“I got connected with that tree. I just liked it. I liked its roots and the trunks and branches and everything. So I started climbing it years ago. That’s it. I just have a connection.”

What type of tree could cast such a spell over the champion tennis player? It will remain his secret for now.

Screen shot of Novak Djokovic's 15th January 2017 Instagram post about his favourite tree in Melbourne's Royal Botanical Gardens. Australia
Novak Djokovic and his favourite Melbourne tree. Photograph: Novak Djokovic Instagram

Updated

Mediation fails in unfair dismissal case between Lattouf and the ABC

Meanwhile, Antoinette Lattouf’s case against the ABC in the Fair Work Commission has reached a stalemate today, with neither party coming to an agreement in mediation.

Outside court, Lattouf gave a short statement in which she said she was determined to see the case through:

The matter did not resolve today but the fight continues and I am willing and prepared to fight for as long as it takes and I want to take a moment to thank the millions of people around the country, so much support around the country, but also overseas.

This is such an important case because it is not just about me, it is about free speech. It is about racism and about the important role [we] play in [truth]-telling and about a fair independent and robust ABC. I love [the] ABC and I will always advocate and fight for an ABC that can operate and inform the masses, inform and entertain the masses without fear or favour.

Updated

Burke says not unusual for states to differ from federal counterparts when asked over Victoria’s position on IR bill

Asked about a letter sent from the Victorian treasurer, Tim Pallas, to Burke and the prime minister lobbying for the government to back away from their industrial reform bill, Burke said he wasn’t sure when it had come to his office.

He added that it was “not unusual” for state ministers to differ in their positions compared to their federal counterparts:

It is not unusual for state ministers to have a different view to the federal minister. And I have no doubt that minister Pallas is acting in the interest of his government in writing that.

I do want to make this point about the amendment that passed the house of representatives. The concept that if agreement is not reached, you would not go backwards on conditions is actually not new. It was, prior to the Secure Jobs Better Pay legislation [of 2022] how it had worked in Australia for years.

The difference was - you wouldn’t go backwards and there would never be an arbitration. That your conditions would go backwards and everything would effectively freeze.

The intention of Better Jobs Secure Pay was to get conditions moving. One of the things that happened after the legislation passed was some employer consultants had found a way to effectively game the system, and I’m not referring to the Victorian government here in any way.

But some employers had found a way to effectively game the system, which was to not negotiate in good faith, wait until it was time for intractable bargaining and then try your luck. And where you previously might have had an enterprise agreement that had really good pay and conditions for your workforce, roll the dice, through arbitration, you may be able to get it back down again.

And that wasn’t what we were intending to do. So that’s the reason for the change. And it is also … completely consistent with how the world, in fact, worked, prior to Secure Jobs Better Pay.

Updated

Government has no intention of intervening in dispute between port company and union

The employment minister Tony Burke is speaking in Sydney following meetings with unions and DP World over their dispute and has begun by saying he has “no intention of intervening.”

Burke said the position of the company doesn’t “impress him” and that he expected all parties to “be at the table, to be negotiating to resolve this.”

I have made clear to the company as well – if they had invested as much into negotiations as they have into their media campaign, they may already have an agreement. That it is in the interests of everybody, including the company, that they negotiate and that they use the Fair Work Commission to help them with that conciliation.

But the concept that where every other business in Australia is expected to negotiate with their workforce but this business wants to rely on ministerial intervention is not a view that impresses me … I expect them to do the same as every other business in Australia.

I think … their presumption that they would find a political answer, rather than do what every other business in Australia is expected to do, was misguided. And I’ve made that clear to them.

In terms of their workforce, the Maritime Union went through the differences between pay rates. The company would say that you can never get a complete parallel because the systems are different. But to reach an agreement – everybody needs to give a bit. That’s how you get to agreements.

And I have had a number of times, which haven’t been as public as this one, where companies have made very similar pleas to me in terms of their frustration - would they be able to reach an agreement or not? They’ve used the professionalism of the Fair Work Commission, and they’ve got there. And I have no doubt that that is possible and available for them now.

AUSTRALIA-LOGISTICS-PORTS-CYBERSECURITYA worker moves containers at the compound of ports operator DP World at Port Botany in Sydney
Employment minister Tony Burke says he won’t intervene in dispute between unions and port company DP World. Photograph: David Gray/AFP/Getty Images

Updated

Planning minister blames workforce shortages and cost of materials as NSW set to miss housing target

The New South Wales planning minister, Paul Scully, says workforce shortages and the cost of building materials is hampering the state’s ability to build enough new houses and apartments.

Scully held a press conference this afternoon to talk up the government’s previously announced housing reforms after the premier, Chris Minns, admitted in an interview with the Daily Telegraph that the state would fall short of its goal to build 75,000 new homes this year.

Under the national housing accord between the states and the federal government, NSW has committed to delivering 377,000 new homes by 2029.

Scully refused to put a deadline on when the state would be building 75,000 homes a year, which he said was an “arithmetic target”. He said:

What we’ve got to do is make sure that we’re gearing up the machine and make sure there’s a pipeline of builds coming through the system; well located, well designed, well built homes, close to to transport - and that’s the work of the NSW government.

We ... are determined and we will work towards along with the rest of the industry and along with the rest of NSW to deliver on that housing accord target.

Updated

Update on drowning at Tallows beach in Byron Bay

Earlier this morning, we reported there had been a drowning at Tallows beach in Byron Bay, bringing the New South Wales coastal drowning toll for summer to 11.

NSW police said emergency services were called to the beach just after 7am following reports a man was unresponsive in the water.

Initial reports indicated it was a woman involved in the incident, but police have confirmed it was a man.

The man is yet to be formally identified, but is believed to be aged in his 20s.

Officers have commenced an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident, and a report is being prepared for the coroner.

Updated

BoM predicts high chance of tropical cyclone next week near Queensland

The Bureau of Meteorology says there is a high (more than 50%) chance of a tropical cyclone in the Coral Sea from Monday, which would be known as Kirrily.

In its latest update, it says the tropical low will initially be slow moving before moving south from Sunday to Tuesday. After this, its movement becomes uncertain but is likely to come towards the Queensland coast.

As reported earlier, the BoM says a “severe impact” with the coast is possible.

Updated

Jim Chalmers on job figures

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has reacted to the December job figures released just earlier.

He wrote on X:

Today’s new jobs numbers showed the unemployment rate was steady at 3.9%, but also make it clear we’re now seeing the consequences of higher interest rates and global uncertainty which are combining to slow our economy in expected ways.

You can read more about the figures here on the blog from Peter Hannam, or read the full story here.

Updated

Full-time jobs ‘collapse’ the most since height of the Covid pandemic

That steady 3.9% jobless rate for December masked quite a bit going on. As noted, the economy shed 106,600 full-time roles in the month, which Bloomberg notes was the largest drop since May 2020 when Covid was flaring.

Ben Udy, lead economist for Oxford Economics Australia, described the shift as a “collapse” – although there remain about 9.8m people in full-time jobs so that might be a strong descriptor. He is on the mark with his point that “the softening in the labour market is now undoubtedly well under way”.

The ABS‘s labour specialist, David Taylor, noted the tally of hours worked had been dropping through the second half of last year. Hours worked last month were back to levels of last February, he said.

Across the states, NSW continued to have the lowest jobless rate at 3.4%, unchanged from November. Victoria’s rate was also unchanged at 4% while Queensland’s improved to 4.3% from 4.4%. The ACT and WA were two regions to see the rate tick higher, coming in at 3.9% for both.

There’s no doubt of a few big shifts in the jobs figures even if the overall unemployment rate was steady. It remains to be seen what revisions the ABS has to make because of the floods and storms, mostly in Queensland, that might have affected data for last month.

For now the ABS reckons the survey data from Queensland is “fit for publication without any need for imputation”. However, it is open to undertaking “additional analysis of the collected data to ensure the quality of final estimates”.

Let’s see if we’re not publishing a few sizeable revisions in a month’s time.

Updated

Severe storm warnings issued for parts of Queensland

Just as a severe storm warning was issued for northern NSW, severe storms are also forecast for southern inland Queensland today.

The Bureau of Meteorology said heavy rainfall is the main risk, with locally intense rainfall possible on the Darling Downs.

Severe storms are also possible in south east, western and far north Queensland.

Updated

Shadow minister says pace of proposed AI regulation is ‘weak’ and ‘amateurish’

The shadow communications minister, David Coleman, spoke to Sky News earlier this morning about the government’s plans to regulate high-risk artificial intelligence (AI), as announced yesterday.

Asked whether he thinks the government measures are enough to regulate the space, Coleman said it’s “a bit hard to respond because it is such a flimsy document”.

He argued the 25 pages “say very little indeed”, mostly summarising what has happened around the world in terms of AI, encouraging a focus on regulatory activity, and setting up an advisory committee.

This technology is moving very fast. It’s now 14 months since ChatGPT was launched, a product which has really changed the world. This is a very flimsy response and when you look at the steps that countries like the United States and the UK are taking, it’s a very weak and frankly amateurish pace that the government is moving at.

Coleman said that AI is the “biggest thing that’s happened in technology since the creation of the internet itself” and as a country, we need to “lean forward and grasp this opportunity”.

… we’ve got to focus on the huge opportunity of AI because it is immense. And there’s basically nothing on that in this document, and we do need to think about those risks at the higher end of the risk level. But we’ve got to get moving.

Updated

Thousands of homes in Western Australia still without power

There are currently 134 active power outages across Western Australia, due to the impact of storms, leaving thousands without power.

According to the latest update from Western Power around 14,000 homes and businesses in the Merredin, Kellerberrin, Kalgoorlie and surrounding areas are without power.

The cause of that specific outage is damage to the network from a lighting strike, as a result of the recent storm front that moved through the region.

At the peak of the storm incident there were 34,000 customers affected, but yesterday Western Power said it had restored power to 18,000 customers after crews worked through the night.

It said full customer restoration would take “a number of days”, with critical infrastructure being prioritised.

At this stage we can’t deploy network generators until we have responded to all hazards and made safe.

The damage we are seeing is widespread and generators will only help very small pockets. We’re assessing where and when they can be used to ensure maximum community benefit.

Shift in participation rate masked sizable shrinkage in the workforce

The reduction of more than 100,000 full-time jobs suggest employers wanted to clear their decks to some degree at the end of 2023. We’ll see later, but perhaps all those November sales pulled forward spending and retailers didn’t need as many staff for December.

Anyway, the net loss of 65,200 jobs was bad enough, but the fact 106,600 full-time roles were lost is not good. The numbers get revised a bit, but the previously largest net loss for any month in 2023 was 14,600 in July (before tweaks by the ABS). Hours worked dropped 0.5%.

The ABS has tried to put a positive spin on it, suggesting that a weak December followed strong results in the previous two months. David Taylor, ABS’s head of labour statistics, said:

The fall in employment in December followed larger-than-usual employment growth in October and November, a combined increase of 117,000 people, with the employment-to-population ratio and participation rate both at record highs in November.

While the December employment fall was large, the number of employed people was still 52,000 higher than September.

Looking over the past 12 months, seasonally adjusted employment increased by an average of 32,000 people per month, showing reasonably strong underlying growth during 2023.

Markets so far aren’t too fussed. The Aussie dollar dropped about US0.1c initially but remains about US65.5c, while the stock market modestly pared its losses for the day. That could be interpreted as investors reckoning another interest rate rise by the RBA is even less likely after these figures. More updates to come in this story:

Updated

Tasmania changes antique firearms rules to improve community safety

A new process to manage the possession of antique, pre-1900 firearms has been implemented in Tasmania, aimed at improving community safety.

Until now, an exemption under the Firearms Act 1996 allowed people to possess certain antique firearms without a licence, registration and storage requirements. This exemption has now been cancelled after a review.

Those who possess antique firearms must now take steps to ensure they comply with the legislation, and have four options:

  • apply for a time limited individual exemption

  • apply for a firearms licence, or a licence upgrade

  • sell the firearm through a licensed firearm dealer

  • surrender the firearm to police for destruction

Assistant commissioner Rob Blackwood said:

We understand that these changes mean affected owners will need to take action and we have established a team of people specifically to support owners through this process.

Updated

AI models offer early tracks for a possible cyclone off Queensland coast

While the federal government discusses setting guidelines for artificial intelligence, the industry is busy doing its thing, as many students and companies know too well.

Meteorology happens to be one industry where machine learning has a lot of potential, not least because it requires a lot of computer power and regular updates.

The more traditional numerical models still hold sway - and should be relied on by the public for warnings and the like. However, even big agencies such as the European Centre for Medium-Range Forecasting is confident enough of the power of these AI-driven models to start hosting a few on its website.

We had a look here about what they might tell us about the potential tropical cyclone off the Queensland coast. (It’ll be named Kirrily if it forms):

Definitely not a substitute yet for the official models, but a space worth watching.

Updated

ACTU rejects Victorian Labor concerns about IR bill

The Australian Council of Trade Unions has sided with federal Labor and the Greens on proposals to reform intractable bargaining over the Victorian government, which has raised concerns about an amendment that employees must be better off clause by clause, not just overall.

The ACTU secretary, Sally McManus, said:

Employers will game the laws to keep wages down and cut rights if these changes are not made. Workers have had the security that their current pay and conditions will not be cut unless a majority vote otherwise. This principle should be maintained and arbitration occur only when a dispute is truly intractable and on a narrow range of issues.

Updated

Learner rider caught travelling at 140km/h in Tasmania

A 17-year-old learner rider has lost his licence for seven months, had his bike confiscated, and been fined more than $1100 after being caught driving at 140km/h in Tasmania yesterday.

Police say at 7pm last night, a police officer detected the teenager reaching a speed of 140km/h between Mowbray and Newnham on the East Tamar Highway.

Soon after, the rider was detected travelling over 100km/h along George Town Road at Rocherlea, which has a speed limit of 60km/h.

The rider was located by police at a nearby service station where his bike was seized.

Senior constable Christopher Rockliff said the rider had only held his learner licence for six months and had a maximum speed limit licence condition of 80km/h.

Such high speeds by young, inexperienced riders can have tragic consequences, and thankfully this was not the case in this instance.

Motorcyclists are one of the most vulnerable road user groups, particularly new riders, and police urge all riders to ride within their ability and limits.

Unemployment steady at 3.9% for December as employers shed jobs

Australia’s jobless rate in December was 3.9%, the ABS has just reported, citing seasonally adjusted figures. That compared with economists’ forecast for it to come in at 3.9% and the ABS’s previously posted rate of 3.9% for November.

Employers shed a net 65,200 jobs for December. Economists had expected them to add 15,000.

The participation rate, which counts the proportion of the population in the workforce, was 66.8% compared with November’s reported record high of 67.2%.

More soon.

Updated

Taking questions from reporters, the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, was asked about this story from Guardian Australia’s Paul Karp:

The article reported that Victorian treasurer, Tim Pallas, had written to the federal workplace relations minister, Tony Burke, warning that amendments to Labor’s industrial relations bill could embolden unions to refuse to bargain with industry, thanks to a clause-by-clause “no worse off” guarantee.

The amendments were introduced by the Greens and agreed by Burke.

Albanese said he has been in Tasmania this morning and is “not up to date on the Guardian” (he’s missing out!).

He continued:

I’d suggest that those comments will be responded to, if appropriate, by Tony Burke.

I must say that our legislation on industrial relations and on working people when we talk about the cost of living – we’ve seen two quarters of wages growth in real terms under my government.

Updated

One in five voters back Dutton’s call for boycott of Woolworths over Australia Day

Just one in five Australian voters back the opposition leader, Peter Dutton’s call to boycott Woolworths and Big W over the company’s decision not to stock Australia Day merchandise due to declining sales, a survey from YouGov has found.

The survey of 1,532 voters conducted between 12 and 17 January found just 20% support overall for Dutton’s boycott call, and that both yes and no voters in the voice referendum overwhelmingly believe that their main concern is excessive prices at supermarkets over the culture war fired up by the Coalition and conservative news outlets, (64% and 67% respectively).

Only 29% of no voters supported Dutton’s call to boycott the company.

Paul Smith, YouGov director of government, said the result showed Dutton had picked the wrong focus with the boycott call:

Even Liberals were twice as concerned with excessive pricing, as expressed by 61% of voters, with only 32% backing Dutton’s boycott.

The poll also found 49% of voters support Australia Day remaining on 26 January, while 21% support changing the date, and 32% say there should be two public holidays with a new and old date both recognised.

Updated

Albanese stands by comments directed at China over sonar incident

Albanese was asked what his reaction is to the Chinese ambassador claiming China wasn’t responsible for the sonar incident that injured Australian personnel, suggesting it was actually Japan. He said he stands by comments the government made at the time.

I’m not swayed by the comments. The navy made reports. I think it’s very clear what occurred. I stand by the comments that I made at the time, that it was wrong. It shouldn’t have occurred.

Updated

Albanese confirms ADF personnel headed to UK to train Ukrainians

Anthony Albanese is asked about a request from Ukraine to obtain Australia’s grounded Taipan helicopters. As we brought you earlier on the blog, Australia will disassemble the Taipan helicopters into parts after it was deemed too expensive for taxpayers to make them safe to fly.

(You can read more on this from defence industry minister Pat Conroy here).

Speaking to the media now, Albanese reiterated what Conroy said earlier:

We take advice from the department of defence on these matters, and … we’ve been substantial contributors to support for Ukraine, and indeed, just this week, there will be further Australian Defence Force personnel leaving for the United Kingdom providing support for that training effort in the Ukraine.

Updated

Albanese speaks ahead of unemployment figures

The prime minister Anthony Albanese is speaking to the media from Frankston in Victoria ahead of the jobs figures being released in less than half an hour.

Albanese said inflation has gone down to 4.3%, but unemployment “still has a three in front of it”.

I know there are new figures due to come out. Having a three in front of the unemployment number is very unusual, it’s got to be said.

He said the government is working to put downward pressure on inflation whilst supporting employment, pointing to a number of measures including boosts to TAFE to address skills shortages.

Updated

Angus Taylor says we should not compromise Australian values when it comes to China

The shadow treasurer, Angus Taylor, appeared on the Today Show earlier this morning, arguing that Australia needs to have a diversity of markets because the Chinese economy is in the midst of a slowdown.

Taylor said China is “an important customer for us, there’s no question about that”, but “the key with China is you’ve got to stick to your values and stick to your interests”.

He was asked about suggestions from the Chinese ambassador to Australia that the two countries should restart joint military operations. Asked whether Australia would entertain this, he said you would need to ask the government. As for his feelings in opposition:

I’m deeply sceptical. I’m deeply sceptical about that idea … the truth is, we want to have a strong relationship with China. But we do have to stand up for our interests, and for our values.

You’ve got to put a line in the sand with China. They are a big, strong country, and they’re a great benefit to us when the relationship is good. But you should never ever compromise your values and interests in the process.

Updated

Leading Victorian senior constable charged with sexual assault while on duty

A leading senior constable from the north-west region of Victoria has been charged following multiple allegations of sexual assault.

Victorian police said the charges relate to four separate incidents that occurred between 2020 and 2023 in Kalkallo, Greensborough, Fawkner and Epping while the member was on duty.

The 49-year-old has been charged with three counts of sexual assault and other related offences. He will appear before a court at a later date.

Updated

BoM forecasts severe storms for north-east NSW

Severe storms with heavy and intense rainfall are forecast for north-east NSW today.

The Bureau of Meteorology said this brings a risk of flash flooding, with damaging winds and large hail also possible. Storms are likely to continue into the evening.

Updated

Greens urge PM to support South African genocide case against Israel

The Greens have written to the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, and the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, urging them to publicly support South Africa’s proceedings against Israel in the International Court of Justice.

In their letter, the acting leader of the Greens, Mehreen Faruqi, and the party’s foreign affairs spokesperson, Jordon Steele-John, noted that more than 24,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israel since 7 October, with more than 10,000 of these being children.

People have seen the horrors of indiscriminate bombing and the deliberate blockage of food and water to Gaza. These are actions that amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The letter states that South Africa’s case presents “serious and compelling evidence that Israel is committing the crime of genocide”. Faruqi and Steele-John argue that as a signatory to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, Australia has a “clear moral and legal obligation” to prevent breaches of this.

Prime minister, the world is watching. It’s beyond time to put politics aside, to show moral courage, and to be remembered on the right side of history. Rather than providing political cover for Israel’s atrocities, Australia must play a key role in ensuring Israel and Israeli officials are held to account under international law.

The Greens also reiterated its call for the government to push for an immediate, permanent ceasefire.

Updated

AFP releases online safety guides for conversations with children

The Australian Federal Police has released age-appropriate conversation guides to help families talk to their children about online safety.

While almost all children regularly use technology for education or entertainment, just over half of parents regularly discuss online safety, the AFP said. Research by the AFP-led centre to counter child exploitation found that 87% of children between four and seven use the internet and 16% of that is unsupervised.

Only 3% of participants who participated in the research listed online grooming as a concern.

AFP commander Helen Schneider said parents and carers needed to begin regular conversations with their children about online safety during early childhood to help them understand the challenges they may face online, and how to get help and support.

We know about 52% of parents and carers talk to their children about online safety, which includes topics like online grooming and inappropriate contact online, but we are aiming to increase this in 2024.

You can read the advice for talking to children aged under five, between five and 12, and 13+ about online safety here.

Updated

Reform or repeal stage-three tax cuts: Acoss

The Australian Council of Social Services (Acoss) has written to the Albanese government urging it to reform or repeal stage-three tax cuts, citing the disproportionate benefit to high income earners.

Acoss said that “at a minimum, it should abolish changes that exclusively benefit high-income earners including removing the 37% tax rate for incomes between $120,000 and $180,000 and increasing the 45% threshold from $180,000 to $200,000”.

This would retain a tax cut of up to $37 per week for people on incomes up to $120,000 and save approximately $9bn in 2024-25, which should fund cost-of-living relief for people most in need, it argued.

Australian Council of Social Services CEO, Dr Cassandra Goldie.
The Australian Council of Social Services’s CEO, Dr Cassandra Goldie. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP

Acoss chief executive, Cassandra Goldie, said:

Acoss is urging Labor to abandon these wasteful tax cuts to fund targeted relief for people on lower incomes.

Stage three is a hand up to society’s wealthiest that will give people with incomes of $200,000 an extra $9,000 per year ($25 per day). Stage three will inject $21bn into the economy, feed inflationary spending and compound cost of living pain for people with the least.

If the government is serious about tackling inflation and delivering targeted relief, it should scrap stage three and also raise the rate of income support payments including jobseeker from $54 to at least $78 a day.

The upcoming May budget must provide meaningful cost of living relief for people with the least, including coordinated rent controls, electrification and solar retrofits for low-income homes and adequate funding for community service organisations to keep up with a tsunami of demand.

In October research by the Australia Institute found the tax cuts could be renovated to save the budget up to $130bn while still delivering bigger tax cuts to 80% of income earners. The progressive thinktank modelled four alternatives to the controversial tax cuts, finding they could save between $70bn and $130bn.

Updated

AFP employee charged with bail breach

An AFP employee has been charged with contravening bail conditions imposed after an arrest late last year.

The employee was charged by ACT police on 17 January 2024 and has been suspended from duties. They will appear before the magistrates court today.

In a statement, the AFP said it is “committed to transparency”.

No further comment will be made while this matter is before the court.

Updated

December jobs data expected to show new hiring slowed

The first major economic figures for December are out later today, with the ABS releasing labour market numbers for the month.

Economists on average forecast the economy added a net 15,000 jobs in the final month of 2023, down from the 61,500 bumper result in November. Remember that November also included perhaps the final interest rate rise by the RBA in this cycle.

Focus will naturally land on the jobless rate, which was 3.9%, and technically would rise unless employers kept hiring at the pace of 30,000 or so that the workforce is growing by.

However, the participation rate – measuring the share of potential toilers – was at a record 67.2%, so if that drops back it won’t be surprising for the unemployment rate to remain at 3.9% – the market consensus.

As always, the labour figures contain a few curveballs such as revisions to the previous month’s numbers. So a headline today could confusingly be “jobless rate falls to 3.9%” if November’s rate had been revised higher to 4%.

Anyway, how the jobs market holds up in 2024 will be critical for many households’ abilities to keep meeting debt repayments and the costs of food, energy and everything else. And the RBA will be watching, too; if the number is particularly weak, the timing of the first rate cut will likely be sooner.

As it happens, all of the big four Australian banks now expect the RBA’s next move will be a cut:

Stay tuned for the jobs data dump at 11.30am AEDT.

Updated

ABC confirms it earned $1.5m from YouTube ads in 2023

The ABC is commercial ad free, thanks to taxpayer funding, except in one place: YouTube.

The national broadcaster has revealed in a response to questions on notice that it is taking ad revenue from the Alphabet-owned tech giant from ads that run on ABC videos uploaded to the site.

In response to a question from Liberal senator Hollie Hughes, the ABC confirmed it expected to earn around $1.5m in revenue from YouTube in the 2023 financial year. The broadcaster declined to provide any further detail, stating:

Providing information that may give insight into commercial terms agreed in confidence could diminish the value of agreements, breach confidentiality terms, and jeopardise future negotiations on similar agreements with entities.

Updated

Drowning at Far North Coast beach, bringing NSW summer drowning tally to 11

The NSW drowning figure has jumped after what Surf Life Saving (SLS) described as a “horrid 24 hours” along the state’s coastline. Two people died along the state’s coast in the past 24 hours, bringing this year’s coastal drowning toll for summer to 11.

A man in his 20s was pulled unconscious from the water early this morning at Tallows beach on the Far North Coast at around 7.30am. CPR was performed but the man was declared deceased at the scene by paramedics.

This comes less than a day after a 32-year-old woman was pulled from the water at Shelley beach in Manly by bystanders. Despite resuscitation efforts, she also died at the scene.

SLS said women are generally underrepresented in coastal drowning figures, with the most recent NSW coastal safety report indicating 83% of drownings for the state involve men. The service’s CEO, Steve Pearce, said it has been a “devastating 24 hours for NSW” and that the latest two incidents are a warning to all beachgoers.

Every coastal drowning is a tragedy, but to have two in such a short space of time is a tough reflection on how risky it can be to enter the water.

Once again, both of these drownings have occurred at unpatrolled locations and we really must reiterate that if you plan to visit the coastline, the safest thing you can do is head to a beach where you see the red and yellow flags flying.

Note: Initial reports indicated it was a woman involved in the incident at Tallows beach, but police have since confirmed it was a man.

Updated

Multiple highways across the NT closed due to flooding

A number of highways across the Northern Territory are closed due to flooding, including:

  • Buchanan Highway between 70km west of Top Springs and Grid

  • Buntine Highway between Victoria Highway Intersection and Watte Creek Road at Kalkaringi

A number of roads and access roads are also closed due to flooding, which you can view via the NT Road Report here.

A severe weather warning remains in place across northern parts of the state, with a monsoon trough extending across the base of the Top End. It is expected to remain in place for the rest of the week, with heavy rainfall that could lead to flash flooding likely between Pine Creek, Ngukurr, Tennant Creek, Lajamanu and Wadeye today and tomorrow.

Six-hourly rainfall totals between 150 to 200mm are possible.

Updated

Anthony Albanese campaigning on health in Dunkley, Victoria

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, is campaigning in Dunkley today with the Labor candidate for the byelection, Jodie Belyea. Albanese is campaigning on health, including the creation of an urgent care clinic in Frankston and $7.6m for an Indigenous health clinic to be completed by June 2024.

Albanese said:

Peta Murphy was a fighter. Peta fought for Dunkley every day and I know Jodie Belyea will too. Peta knew that when it comes to healthcare the only card that should matter is your Medicare card, not your credit card. Jodie knows that too. Jodie is campaigning hard to be part of a government that is working hard every day to strengthen Medicare.

Under my government we have already delivered 58 urgent care clinics that are taking pressure off hospital emergency departments. We’ve made medicines cheaper and made it easier to see a doctor by tripling the bulk billing incentive.

By contrast Peter Dutton was voted by Australia’s doctors as the worst health minister on record. He wanted to make Australians pay more to see their GP, pay more for medicine and charge for emergency room visits. The Liberals can’t be trusted with Medicare.

Updated

Sydney’s new Rozelle interchange jammed again

The much-maligned new $3.9bn Rozelle interchange is having another slow morning in Sydney’s inter west, as our roaming correspondent Peter Hannam tells us.

The snarl, though, can’t be blamed on the multi-merging lanes that will be a permanent bane of commuters in that part of the city. Instead it looks like a prang between cars:

Normal service looks to be resuming but it’ll be a while before the traffic flows smoothly. (Cynics wonder if that’ll ever happen during morning rush hours beyond the quiet holiday period.)

Updated

Man charged following fatal car crash in Echuca at weekend

Victorian detectives have charged a man following the deaths of two people, including an 11-year-old boy, in a crash at Echuca on Sunday.

Police believe a vehicle travelling along the Murray Valley Highway left the road and struck a tree near Mt Terrick Road just after 12.30pm on Sunday, subsequently catching fire.

There were three occupants in the car, including an 11-year-old Echuca boy and a 26-year-old Moama woman, who both died at the scene.

The driver, a 23-year-old Echuca man, has been charged with two counts of dangerous driving causing death.

He has been bailed to appear before Echuca magistrates court on 23 January.

Updated

Foreign minister Penny Wong has shared more photos from her visit to the Middle East, this time meeting with representatives of communities affected by settler violence in the West Bank:

Wong said she is grateful they had the courage to share their experiences, and wrote:

Such violence inflames tensions and undermines stability in the West Bank.

Coral bleaching predicted over southern oceans as heat stress builds

According to America’s NOAA Coral Reef Watch, significant heat stress is building across the southern hemisphere.

Because of this, it predicts that over the next few months coral bleaching may occur throughout much of the Indian Ocean and the central equatorial and southwestern Pacific, including the Great Barrier Reef:

Updated

More images from Wong meeting with Palestinian authorities

The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, has shared images of meeting with Mohammad Shtayyeh, prime minister of Palestine, and foreign minister Riyad Al Maliki, to social media. She wrote on X:

I conveyed Australia’s support for the Palestinian people. Australia wants to see more urgent action to protect civilian lives and increased and unimpeded humanitarian access in Gaza.

We must continue to work for a just and enduring peace which meets Israel’s security needs and Palestinian aspirations for statehood.

As Daniel Hurst brought us on the blog just earlier, Wong has called for a “pathway to a Palestinian state”. You can read more here, or by scrolling down.

Updated

Miles commits to accepting recommendations of Olympic Games review

Q: If the review recommends that the stadium rebuild is going to be too expensive and could blow out the cost even further, would you scrap it altogether? How committed are you to the rebuild of the Gabba?

Steven Miles:

I will accept the recommendations of this review.

I have always taken independent advice whenever I have asked for it. That’s precisely what I’ll do here.

Updated

Miles says Gabba stadium rebuild has become ‘more political and more devisive’ than it should be

Moving to the forthcoming Olympics in Queensland, Steven Miles was asked how concerned he is by cost blowouts and if a more than $2.5bn Gabba stadium rebuild is “value for money”.

He said he wants the Games to deliver on the promises made to Queensland, including delivering value for money, and uniting Queenslanders:

I’m really concerned that this issue has been becoming more political and more divisive than it ever should have.

I hope this independent review can give all Queenslanders certainty that we have the right plan for Queensland, the right plan to deliver the best Games ever, but more importantly, even more importantly than that, the right plan to deliver what our state needs and I think really that comes down to transport connectivity. That was the promise of the Games and I want to make sure that’s what it delivers.

Updated

Queensland premier says powers to address potential price gouging are at a national level

Asked what needs to be done to address this issue, Steven Miles said many of the powers are at a national level.

He welcomes the review of the grocery code but said his personal view is it should be mandatory, not voluntary, and there should be tougher penalties “that really make people think twice before price gouging”.

At a state level, we do have the ability to put this transparency into the system to make sure that Queenslanders can see why and how the prices they’re paying are set and that’s really what I’m trying to do here, starting with this meeting with the supermarkets.

I hope there are concrete outcomes. I hope they bring to me concrete proposals. If they don’t, we’ll put to them concrete proposals to help address the cost of buying food for Queensland families.

Updated

Steven Miles on supermarket price gouging: ‘it looks that way to me’

The Queensland premier, Steven Miles, spoke to ABC News Breakfast just earlier, ahead of a meeting with the chief executives of Australia’s major supermarkets today.

Miles said he has heard from farmers directly about how they’re getting less pay from the supermarkets as their costs go up at the same time as families are struggling to afford fresh fruit and vegetables:

I think the starting point here is scrutiny and transparency. Queenslanders deserve to know just how much supermarkets are paying farmers, and why they’re not paying less for their groceries.

Asked if he has evidence of price gouging, Miles said: “Well, it looks that way to me.”

I’ve heard these stories firsthand from farmers about just how these supplier agreements are driving down farm gate prices right when their costs are going up, and I know from visiting the supermarket myself, as well as from talking to Queenslanders, the price of fresh food just hasn’t gone down anything like what the price farmers are getting has.

Updated

Tropical cyclone report as BoM warns of ‘significant risk’ to Queensland

Here is the latest on Tropical Cyclone Anggrek, from the Bureau of Meteorology:

The cyclone remains to the west of the Cocos Islands and will continue moving in a southerly direction today and tomorrow. It is expected to weaken from tomorrow. Over the weekend it is likely to track west, but if it moves to the east, it is likely to be a weak tropical low.

Meanwhile, tropical low 05U is expected to become Tropical Cyclone Kirrily and impact the Queensland coast next week.

The latest update says it is developing in the Coral Sea currently, due to strengthen at the weekend and become a tropical cyclone by Monday.

The BoM says there is a “significant risk” the system will impact Queensland next week and that a “severe impact” is possible.

Updated

Taiwanese ambassador welcomes Australian statements of congratulations

Taiwan’s top diplomat in Australia, ambassador Douglas Hsu, spoke to ABC RN just earlier following Taiwan’s recent election.

Lai Ching-te from the pro-sovereignty Democratic Progressive party (DPP) was elected president. Yesterday, China said it had lodged diplomatic protests with Australia over a statement congratulating Lai.

(You can read more on yesterday’s blog here).

Speaking to RN, Hsu said the Taiwanese government welcomes statements from the Australian government, including the prime minister and foreign minister, following the election:

I think that will pave a very solid foundation for both sides to advance the bilateral partnership.

What does Taiwan think of Australia maintaining its bipartisan approach to the One China policy? Hsu:

We respect the Australian government choice on their policies … Under the current policy, Taiwan and Australia can still find room and flexibility to explore all the opportunities out there for cooperation.

He said Taiwan was “disappointed” that Nauru has severed diplomatic ties and switched its allegiance to China, but that it wouldn’t influence Taiwan’s overall strategies in the Indo-Pacific.

Updated

Wong calls for sustainable humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza

Speaking from Jerusalem, Penny Wong also repeated the Australian government’s condemnation of Hamas’ 7 October attacks and called for the immediate, unconditional release of hostages.

The foreign affairs minister also spoke about the importance of “a humanitarian ceasefire” which “obviously cannot be one-sided” and the need for steps towards a sustainable ceasefire. Summing up the points she has made during her visit to the region, Wong said:

I’ve spoken about Australians’ concerns. Australia is a friend of Israel. We’re also a friend of the Palestinian people. Australians are increasingly concerned about the civilian toll and are increasingly concerned about the urgent need for humanitarian access [to Gaza].

Wong said the Australian government had been consistent in stating Israel’s right to self-defence, but in also saying how it conducted itself mattered:

That is why we have international humanitarian law. That is why we have international obligations and norms around the protection of civilians, around proportionality, around distinction. And we have been very clear about that.

Wong, when pressed on whether she was alleging breaches of international law, added:

I am simply saying we are a democracy and this about who we are – I spoke about this with our Israeli friends. We are a democracy, so too is Israel, and we hold ourselves to higher standards because of who we are.

Updated

Penny Wong calls for ‘pathway to Palestinian state’

The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, has called for “peace, security and dignity” for Israelis and Palestinians, saying this must include a “pathway to a Palestinian state”.

Wong spoke to reporters in Jerusalem early this morning Australian time, following a visit to the occupied West Bank. She said:

It is clear from the conflict that the path to peace demands a just and enduring two-state solution. It demands the recognition of Palestinians’ aspirations for statehood and it demands security for Israelis, and we don’t believe as the Australian government - we’ve made that clear - that settlements are consistent with that pathway to a two-state solution.

Wong reiterated that Hamas had no place in the future governance of Gaza. She was it was “important to recognise that for Israelis … October 7 was a deeply horrific and traumatising event, and peace and security go hand in hand”. The minister added later:

There is history and pain and anger in so many parts of the Middle East. My message is that actually ultimately Palestinians and Israelis want peace, security and dignity. And what this shows us is we do have to deal with the pathway to a Palestinian state as part of that.

Updated

Conroy defends consideration of potential sale of Taipan helicopter parts

Circling back to defence industry minister Pat Conroy’s interview on ABC RN: Conroy faced questions around why the Australian government was scanning the market to sell the Taipan helicopters if they have not yet been deemed safe.

He said the helicopters were only going to be sold if the crash investigation deemed them safe, but it was in the taxpayer’s best interest for the helicopters to be disassembled into parts rather than sold.

We do not know whether they’re safe to fly. Secondly, to get them into a condition to provide to the Ukrainian government [would] require considerable taxpayers expense and time and resources and that was not a good use of taxpayers money.

We’re providing $910m worth of assistance to Ukraine … and we’ll continue to consider requests where they’re appropriate, but I really find it quite incredible that people are suggesting that we should provide aircraft to Ukraine that we still have no idea [are safe to fly].

Updated

Two teens charged over alleged murder of doctor Ash Gordon

Victorian police detectives have charged two teenage boys following the alleged murder of 33-year-old doctor Ash Gordon.

Police say two 16-year-old boys were arrested yesterday. They were interviewed by police and both teens were charged with murder, aggravated burglary and theft.

The pair will appear at children’s court at a later date.

Police said this follows an incident in Doncaster on 13 January where Gordon was killed. It is alleged that he was fatally injured following a confrontation as part of an alleged aggravated burglary.

Serious crime division superintendent Janet Stevenson said investigators have worked “tirelessly” since Saturday to identify, locate and apprehend those responsible for “this tragedy”.

We know that Ash’s family and loved ones are grieving. This arrest will not take away the tragedy of this dreadful situation, but we hope that it will alleviate some of their distress. We will continue to provide all the support they require during this difficult time.

Ash was a much-loved, valued member of our community, and we are all trying to make sense of what has occurred. This type of incident can create fear and uncertainty. We want our community to feel safe in their homes and to that end, Victoria police will do continue to do everything in our power to make this a reality.

Updated

Pat Conroy says Ukraine-requested helicopters are not cleared for flight

The defence industry minister, Pat Conroy, is speaking to ABC RN about a request from Ukraine to receive Australia’s retired fleet of MRH-90 Taipan helicopters. The helicopters were retired earlier than planned after a crash in Queensland killed four Defence personnel during a training exercise last year:

Conroy said “none” of the helicopters are up to flying conditions, so to get them prepared would be a huge cost to taxpayers.

Anyone who suggests that these aircraft have been cleared is wrong and they are making, quite frankly, really offensive suggestions at a time when people are really grieving.

I think it’s really important that those investigations keep working to establish the cause of that accident. These aircraft are [not in] flying condition, and we still do not know whether they’re safe to fly.

As to Ukraine’s request, Conroy said Australia’s response will be provided through the “normal channels” to the Ukrainian government.

Updated

Penny Wong shares images from Middle East visit

The foreign minister Penny Wong is continuing her visit to the Middle East, and shared a number of photos overnight, including from Yad Vashem in Jerusalem, a world centre for Holocaust research:

Wong also met with Tzachi Hanegbi, the head of the national security council of Israel, and wrote:

We spoke about averting regional escalation, our deep concern over the conflict’s civilian toll and Gaza’s dire humanitarian situation, and the steps necessary to achieve a path out of the conflict.

We will have more details around Wong’s travels shortly.

Updated

Goldie encourages high earners to speak up about stage-three tax cuts

Cassandra Goldie said that the debate around stage-three tax cuts is a “debate for all of us”:

I am encouraging everyone to speak up about this, including people on very high incomes who know they don’t need an extra $9,000 per year in the face of what is being experienced by people all over the country who are facing homelessness, unable to feed themselves.

She said that an Acoss survey from last year showed that people on low incomes and fixed incomes – like the pension and jobseeker – were skipping food and unable to cool themselves due to high energy bills.

Even though the stage-three tax cuts kick in at $45,000 a year, she said, that would only deliver around $100 per year when compared to $9,000 per year for those on high incomes:

That’s what we’re [saying] to the prime minister – increase those income support payments. Make sure we’ve got better regulation of rent increases, because in the private rental market, it’s really shocking for people on low and modest incomes who cannot afford those rents, and let’s get the big rollout of the retrofitting for low and modest income homes so people have access to the best technology, solar panels, et cetera, to reduce their energy bills in the same way that people on very high incomes can do that.

Updated

Acoss CEO says ‘obviously very unfair’ that stage-three tax cuts are priority during cost-of-living crisis

Cassandra Goldie, the chief executive of the Australian Council of Social Service, spoke to ABC News Breakfast just now about the stage-three tax cuts.

Yesterday in two separate interviews the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, said the tax cuts would go ahead in July, but equivocated slightly about their form. (You can read more on yesterday’s blog here).

Goldie said that to help people on low incomes a number of things are needed such as fixing the adequacy of income support payments, tackling exorbitant rent increases, reducing energy bills and investment in community services. How could this be achieved? With the stage-three tax cuts, she argued:

We [need to] scrap those stage-three tax cuts which … increases cash in the hands of people on very high incomes; $9,000 per year extra for people on very high incomes.

It’s unaffordable, it’s obviously very unfair that it would be the priority for a government in the face of a cost of living crisis which is hitting people very hard, who are on very low and modest incomes.

Updated

WA hits by severe thunderstorms

In more weather news via AAP, the south-west of Western Australia copped its second round of severe thunderstorms in as many days late yesterday.

The first on Tuesday afternoon tore down hundreds of electricity poles and wires, cutting power to 34,000 homes and businesses in the Perth Hills and the Wheatbelt.

While more than 14,000 properties were reconnected by late yesterday afternoon, grid operator Western Power warned it could take a week to return some to the network.

Elsewhere, a trough that has brought heavy falls and storms to the south-east is due to move offshore bringing dry conditions to inland areas and only showers on the coast.

“But more active showers and thunderstorms will persist across northeast NSW and south-east Queensland,” Miriam Bradbury, a senior meteorologist, said on Wednesday as a high-pressure ridge becomes established to the south.

Tasmania will likely also see heavier falls due to a low-pressure system.

While flooding in the northeast of NSW is easing, the SES has urged people to stay alert for flash flooding and renewed river rises amid forecasts of up to 70mm of rain in some parts.

Good morning, and happy Thursday

I’m Emily Wind and I’ll bring you our rolling coverage here on the liveblog today.

See something that needs attention? You can get in touch via X, @emilywindwrites, or send me an email: emily.wind@theguardian.com.

With that, let’s get started.

Updated

‘All bets are off’: Queensland remains wary of further storms

The latest cyclone threat coincides with a massive clean-up effort in far north Queensland finally gaining momentum after record flooding in December caused by Tropical Cyclone Jasper.

“The wet season’s potentially got a couple of months to go - we are barely a third of the way through,” Craig Crawford, a state MP, said. “We know that we typically get the worst of our wet seasons in February [to] March and we haven’t got there yet.

“This season has certainly shown us ... that all bets are off when it comes to predicting the weather.”

Strong winds projected over Darwin as Queensland braces for potential cyclone

A monsoon trough moving slowly over the Northern Territory is due to bring damaging winds to Darwin today, Australian Associated Press reports.

Possible localised intense falls that could lead to life-threatening flash flooding are also possible further south, including at Tennant Creek. The low is expected to remain inland for seven days as it moves through the Top End and into Western Australia early next week.

It comes as Queensland prepares for the potential of another cyclone, with another tropical low building in the Coral Sea.

Expected to turn towards the coast from Sunday, the weather system will most likely become a tropical cyclone by Monday.

“There is a significant risk that this system will impact the Queensland coast during next week - a severe impact is possible,” the Bureau of Meteorology said.

Coastal areas from Cooktown to Mackay could be impacted by late Tuesday.

Updated

Atlassian survey points to more working from home

The tech company Atlassian has released research on its first 1,000 days working with a remote workforce as it tries to help other firms grappling with staff who want to retain their freedom, do their best work and not commute, Australian Associated Press reports.

Co-founders Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar say their bet on “team anywhere” is the biggest they have made in 20 years and concede they do not have all the answers.

Since 2020, the company has gone from 12 locations to having staff spread across more than 10,000.

“Distributed work is just the next generation of digital transformation,” Atlassian’s head of Team Anywhere, Annie Dean, told AAP from her New York apartment.

Atlassian CEO and co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes speaks during the Australian Financial Review ESG Summit, in Sydney, Wednesday, June 15, 2022. (AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts) NO ARCHIVING
Atlassian CEO and co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes Photograph: Dan Himbrechts/AAP

“It’s just a word that describes how work happens today, which is on the internet.”

Atlassian’s survey of 200 other big companies found the biggest blockers to productivity were back-to-back meetings, vague priorities, confusing emails and endless distracting notifications – not location.

Almost all (99%) of executives agreed work will become more distributed in the future. But the findings only cover so-called knowledge workers, or those who work online – not retail staff, factories or many essential services.

And for many bosses, tension remains around trusting workers they can’t see.

“We have a belief as a company that the person who is the best decision-maker on where they should be working is you, within certain parameters,” Dean said.

Welcome

Good morning and welcome to our rolling news coverage. I’m Martin Farrer and I’ll be bringing you some of the morning’s top stories before my colleague Emily Wind’s turn to take you through the day’s action.

The ABC will defend a wrongful dismissal claim by the presenter Antoinette Lattouf at the fair work commission in Sydney today as the stoush over her removal from her presenting role last month rumbles on. She claims she was fired on the grounds of “political opinion or a reason that included political opinion” related to the Israel-Hamas war. The broadcaster’s managing director, David Anderson, told staff in an email that he rejected suggestions that the decision to remove her from air was influenced by outside lobbyists.

Centrelink staff say their toilet breaks are being timed as part of an “intrusive and stressful” effort to reduce average call wait times, which unions have condemned as a “continuation of the culture that led to the robodebt catastrophe”. Call centre staff, who are too frightened about losing their jobs to reveal their identities, claim they are being monitored minute-by-minute as part of a management-led crackdown.

Penny Wong has held talks with Palestinian leaders and people affected by settler violence as she continued to urge for peace in the Middle East. She held meetings with Palestinian prime minister, Mohammad Shtayyeh, and the foreign minister, Riyad al-Maliki, in Ramallah as part of her week-long visit to the Middle East. In Jerusalem she held talks with Israel’s president, Isaac Herzog, and met the country’s national security adviser, Tzachi Hanegbi.

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