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The Guardian - AU
National
Elias Visontay and Royce Kurmelovs

Albanese says Labor will match Coalition’s IVF pledge ahead of second leaders’ debate – as it happened

EPA Barnaby Joyce Scott Morrison Anthony Albanese Brittany Higgins Coalition Labor Nine
Opposition leader Anthony Albanese
Opposition leader Anthony Albanese speaks to the media on day 28 of the 2022 federal election campaign in Sydney. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP

What we learned, Sunday 8 May 2022

With that, we’ll wrap up this live news blog. We will have a new blog from 8pm tonight, where my colleague Tory Shepherd will be covering the leaders debate.

Here’s what happened today:

  • Scott Morrison has claimed gay students are not being expelled from religious schools while defending his decision to delay protections for them until after the passage of the religious discrimination bill.
  • The Liberal National candidate running in the ultra-marginal Queensland seat of Lilley will “fully cooperate” after being referred to the Australian Federal Police amid allegations he provided a false residential address to the Australian Electoral Commission.
  • The Liberal Democrats candidate for the federal seat of Brisbane says he “deeply regrets” a history of offensive Facebook posts, including messages that were antisemitic, described Indigenous Australians as “the enemy” and celebrated white supremacist culture.
  • There were 19 Covid deaths reported across Australia on Sunday.

Thanks for following along, and another reminder that we’ll be back from 8pm with a fresh blog covering the leaders debate.

Have a great evening!

Updated

The Australian government says almost nine out of 10 visits to GP clinics are bulk-billed, but a health insurance researcher says gap fees often aren’t recorded, meaning the official data is “a great big lie”.

Read more:

Senate candidate Drew Pavlou arrested while protesting

A 22-year-old federal Senate candidate from Queensland was arrested in Sydney on Saturday night while protesting at night markets.

Drew Pavlou from the Drew Pavlou Democratic Alliance was holding a sign that read “free Tibet, free Uyghurs, Free Hong Kong” when police were called to the Eastwood event about 6.30pm.

New South Wales Police said an unauthorised protest which Pavlou was a part of was causing problems for stall owners and “obstructing pedestrian traffic”.

NSW police said:

Police were concerned that the unauthorised assembly was causing fear and alarm among the community due to the escalating anti-social behaviour of those present.

Police spoke with a 22-year-old man and issued him a move along direction. When the man failed to comply with that move along direction, he was arrested.

Pavlou was then taken to Ryde police station and charged with failing to comply with a police direction before being granted conditional bail to appear at Hornsby local court later this month.

Pavlou said the protest was “peaceful” until an argument between others broke out.

At that point, he was told by police that he was causing fear and alarm and instructed to move on, which he refused to do and was then arrested.

Pavlou said:

It’s actually a tremendous attack on free speech. It’s a really bad thing for our democracy that a Senate candidate in the course of campaigning, peacefully protesting is arrested.

Updated

Labor will promise a new measure to close the gender pay gap and attack the government for promoting “the importance of low paid work” in the campaign’s final fortnight.

On Sunday the shadow minister for women, Tanya Plibersek, confirmed another policy push on gender pay inequity, while the shadow industrial relations minister, Tony Burke, signalled a plan to weaponise the Coalition’s submission to the minimum wage review.

With runaway inflation and a mid-election campaign interest rate rise, cost-of-living pressures and wage stagnation have emerged as the most important issues for voters ahead of the 21 May election.

The Morrison government has claimed to be the superior economic managers, but Labor has countered that its cost-of-living measures consist largely of one-off handouts without structural solutions to low wages.

Read more:

National Covid summary

Here are the latest coronavirus numbers from around Australia today, as the country records at least 19 deaths from Covid-19:

ACT

  • Deaths: 0
  • Cases: 788
  • In hospital: 76 (with 6 people in ICU)

NSW

  • Deaths: 6
  • Cases: 8,891
  • In hospital: 1,504 (with 57 people in ICU)

Northern Territory

  • Deaths: 0
  • Cases: 223
  • In hospital: 38 (with no people in ICU)

Queensland

  • Deaths: 2
  • Cases: 4,673
  • In hospital: 426 (with 12 people in ICU)

South Australia

  • Deaths: 5
  • Cases: 2,788
  • In hospital: 214 (with 9 people in ICU)

Tasmania

  • Deaths: 1
  • Cases: 733
  • In hospital: 43 (with 1 person in ICU)

Victoria

  • Deaths: 4
  • Cases: 8,744
  • In hospital: 491 (with 38 people in ICU)

Western Australia

  • Deaths: 1
  • Cases: 8,747
  • In hospital: 281 (with 8 people in ICU)

Large parts of Queensland are at risk of flooding this week as regions prepare to receive up to 10 times their average monthly rainfall by the weekend, AAP reports.

Police are warning people to avoid unnecessary travel, including for holidays or work, with the downpours expected to begin from Tuesday.

Acting inspector Donna Stewart said one in 10 road deaths in the state this year had been from people driving in flood waters.

It’s incredibly frustrating to see the number of people who aren’t heeding our warnings.

Felim Hannify, a senior meteorologist at the Bureau of Meteorology, said flood and severe warnings will begin to be issued from tomorrow.

The central, central interior and central coast are all set to receive 10 times their monthly average, while the interior and south-east are tipped to get an average month’s worth of rainfall.

During the worst of the weather Queensland’s central coast region could be hit with up to 300mm of rain within six hours, along with damaging winds.

Hannify said:

There’s going to be widespread rainfall basically across the entirety of the state.

The real event starts to ramp up particularly from Tuesday to Wednesday.

Hannify warned parts of the state were already saturated and flooding presented a threat to lives and livestock.

He said the severe weather would be fuelled by two troughs, one coming from the interior and another from the north coast.

A high pressure system in the Tasman Sea will essentially trap the two rain-laden troughs across Queensland, forcing it to rain itself out rather than move on.

It’s like nature is working against us.

Queensland and New South Wales are still reeling from devastating and deadly floods earlier this year which triggered a massive – but criticised – response from state and federal governments.

Updated

The NBN rollout may have been completed, but Richard Proudfoot is still using an old ADSL internet connection, and he has to juggle his Zoom meetings around his partner’s work.

He runs a small IT business from his home in Maleny, on the Sunshine Coast, about 100km north of Brisbane, while his partner is a part-time university lecturer.

Due to their property’s terrain, NBN Co has told him he is not able to connect to fixed wireless or fixed line. While he has the option of satellite, many users have reported poor speeds and reliability. He has stuck with ADSL for the time being because he believes the tree cover and weather would adversely effect his service.

“We are very, very dependent on a reliable internet ADSL connection. To make it work for us given the limitations, we schedule internet use based on need ... we cannot do concurrent Zoom meetings so we rearrange diaries in order to cope.”

Read Josh Taylor’s feature for the full story on the future of the critical national infrastructure project that should have been a triumph but became synonymous with disappointment.

Updated

The Greens have marked Mother’s Day by saying they will fight for universal free childcare as a priority in the event of a hung parliament.

Greens leader Adam Bandt announced the proposal on Sunday morning which would expand Labor’s own $2.9bn policy and is expected to cost an extra $2bn for a total of $18.9bn over three years.

It is thought the policy pitch would have a stronger chance of attracting support from Labor were the opposition to find itself in the position of minority government.

Labor leader Anthony Albanese has repeatedly said he would not do a deal with the Greens and the Coalition has repeatedly painted Labor and the teal independents as being at the mercy of the minor party.

Updated

Prime minister Scott Morrison and opposition leader Anthony Albanese will be squaring off in their second leaders’ debate on Sunday evening.

Political animals can catch the hour-long debate on Channel Nine and 9Now from 8.45pm AEST. It will also be streamed on The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age’s websites.

Sarah Abo will moderate the debate which will take questions from a panel of reporters headed by Nine political editor Chris Uhlmann.

Albanese was declared the winner of the first leaders’ debate by 100 undecided voters in the third week of the campaign.

Updated

Stay safe, Queensland.

After Jules Stewart ordered an electric vehicle, her next move was to ask the property manager of her northern Sydney apartment building about installing a powerpoint in the garage.

The 60-year-old speechwriter says she was happy to foot the bill, and didn’t want anything fancy – like a Tesla Powerwall or three-phase charging – just a plug to charge overnight.

“It would have been just your run-of-the-mill 240-volt powerpoint,” Stewart says. “I didn’t think the owner would mind because they’re going to end up with power in their garage they didn’t have before, so it’s a bit of a win for them.”

The hurdles facing apartment-dwellers who want to use electric vehicles, install solar panels or switch from gas to electric for cooking and heating are not just financial, says Associate Prof Cathy Sherry, of the University of New South Wales law and justice faculty.

And for those who rent – about half the people who live in apartments across the country – the barriers can be insurmountable.

Read the full story for more on what is needed to retrofit Australia’s apartment buildings to install EV chargers, solar panels and other efficiency saving devices to deal with climate change.

Endangered trees are being planted in secret locations on the NSW north coast in an attempt to save the species.

The critically endangered nightcap oak trees date back to the Gondwana supercontinent era and can grow up to 40 metres tall, but are only found in northern NSW.

The only known wild population is located in rainforest north-east of Lismore.

About 20% of them were destroyed or damaged during the 2019/20 bushfire season, however seeds were collected and propagated.

Despite being notoriously difficult to grow, and growing slowly, 50 successful seedlings have been developed.

National parks on the north coast will house 20 of the seedlings at four secret sites.

The replanting is part of the NSW Saving Our Species initiative and the locations were selected by national park officers and Australian Botanic Gardens species experts, choosing sites based on their long-term climate resilience.

“The nightcap oak is the ancient rainforest equivalent of the Wollemi pine in terms of evolutionary significance, and it’s yet another great example of a critical species that we’re helping to bring back from the brink,” NSW environment minister James Griffin said.

The remaining seedlings are due to be planted in coming months.

From AAP.

Updated

SA records five Covid deaths

Five people with Covid-19 have died in South Australia overnight, with the state recording 2,788 new cases on Sunday morning, 2,788 people in hospital, and 9 in ICU and one on ventilation.

Updated

The Australian Electoral Commission has asked a special taskforce to investigate who put up hundreds of fake political signs in blue-ribbon Liberal electorates.

In a statement released on Sunday the AEC said the signs where in breach of federal law as they do not contain an authorisation statement which ensures voters “know who is communicating with them”.

The electoral Commissioner, Tom Rogers, said the breach of electoral laws must be investigated.

“This is a very serious matter and we are exploring all avenues possible to get to the source of the signage,” Rogers said.

The matter has now been referred to the Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce to determine the source.

The AEC is also seeking information “directly from relevant entities” and encouraged members of the public to come forward.

The Guardian Australia reported on Friday that the signs had appeared in electorates across New South Wales and targeted independent candidates by creating near-identical copies of their actual campaign signs but with Greens party branding.

Updated

Scott Morrison has claimed gay students are not being expelled from religious schools while defending his decision to delay protections for them until after the passage of the religious discrimination bill.

The Labor leader, Anthony Albanese, hit back at the comments on Sunday, accusing anyone who thinks young people are not “discriminated and vilified” based on their sexuality of having views that don’t reflect “reality”.

Morrison’s comments resurfaced division in the Liberal party, with backbench MP Katie Allen reiterating that she will continue to support changes “to protect gay and trans students” which she labelled “not negotiable”.

Morrison is under pressure over his commitment to religious groups to reintroduce the religious bill “as stand-alone legislation” and to refuse “any attempts to make changes to other laws that undermine protections for religious institutions”.

For more read Paul Karp’s story in full.

Updated

The Liberal National candidate running in the ultra-marginal Queensland seat of Lilley has been referred to the Australian Federal Police amid allegations he provided a false residential address to the Australian Electoral Commission.

Labor MP Anika Wells on Friday called on the prime minister, Scott Morrison, to “disavow” Vivian Lobo after the Australian newspaper reported he had provided “false evidence” to the AEC when he claimed to live in the inner Brisbane electorate.

The article alleged that Lobo had told the AEC he was living in a home in Everton Park within the electorate, but that the property was actually uninhabited, unfurnished and in a state of disrepair, and he was living in the neighbouring electorate of Brisbane.

In a statement released on Sunday, the AEC confirmed it had referred the matter to the federal police for investigation after an initial look at the candidate’s forms revealed some “concern”.

“Following Mr Lobo’s candidate nomination for the 2022 federal election we have reviewed the declarations made on Mr Lobo’s enrolment and nomination forms,” the statement said. “There is concern as to whether the information provided by him regarding his residential address on these forms is false.

Read more:

Unlike in 2010 and 2013 when the NBN rollout was a hot topic, it is yet to hit the headlines this election, but it remains front of mind for some.

Read more:

New Zealand’s prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, has been forced into seven days of isolation after her partner tested positive to Covid-19.

Ardern announced her Covid isolation in a social media post wishing a happy Mother’s Day to her followers, after her fiance, Clarke Gayford, returned a positive Covid test on Sunday morning.

Ardern said that she and her daughter, Neve, were feeling fine.

Read more:

The West Australian government will allocate an extra $1.6bn in Covid-19 response and recovery funds in this week’s state budget.

The extra cash will take the state’s total pandemic-related spending to $11.2bn and will cover a suite of measures including $635m for the supply of free rapid antigen tests.

Another $537m will be spent on health services, including medical equipment and the ongoing vaccine rollout while $237m will be used to support businesses, including grants to small companies.

There will also be $42.5m in Thursday’s budget to cover ventilation strategies in schools along with enhanced cleaning.

Premier Mark McGowan said:

WA’s Covid experience has been unique and we owe our success to our safe management of Covid-19, which has enabled Western Australians to live largely free of restrictions, which is in stark contrast to the experience of the eastern states in the past two years.

With APP.

Updated

WA records one Covid death

Western Australia has recorded one new historical Covid death overnight. The state recorded 8,747 new cases on Sunday, with 281 people in hospital and eight in ICU.

The death reported today is historical and was reported to WA Health yesterday.

Updated

“The Barnaby Line” has now entered the political lexicon in the 2022 federal election.

To catch up on what it is, read Guardian Australia’s rural and regional editor Gabrielle Chan’s analysis on the seat of Nicholls which coined the phrase.

Updated

Queensland records two Covid deaths

Two people with Covid-19 have died in Queensland overnight, with the state recording 4,673 new cases on Sunday morning, 426 people in hospital, and 12 in ICU.

Updated

AEC asks AFP to investigate whether Queensland LNP candidate provided false information

The Australian Electoral Commission has asked the Australian Federal Police to investigate whether Queensland LNP candidate Vivian Lobo provided false information when nominated to run at the 2022 election.

In a statement on Sunday morning the AEC said it became aware there were questions about Lobo’s enrolled address from media reports following a complaint Labor made to the regulator alleging he “may have committed enrolment fraud”.

The AEC said it had reviewed Lobo’s nomination form and had concerns about whether information provided by the candidate in the Division of Lilley “regarding his residential address on those forms is false”.

It says candidate nominations for the Division of Lilley must remain as they were formally declared on 22 April 2022.

Updated

The presser wraps with an attack on Scott Morrison where Albanese compared him to John Howard and found him wanting.

Albanese is now being questioned over how many jobs for women Labor’s employment policies will create given that manufacturing are traditionally male dominated. The opposition leader talks around the question before finding his feet:

Modern manufacturing, well, you should’ve been following me since January. If you go into a modern manufacturing plant, what you don’t see is just people on assembly lines.

What you see is people behind computer screens, people with skills in IT, people operating those areas. You see women and men working in manufacturing.

Updated

Labor pledges to match Coalition's IVF policy

Albanese also confirms Labor will match the government’s announcement on IVF today saying it is a “good policy”.

Which, on Mother’s Day, how could they not?

Updated

Albanese 'astonished' PM is walking back promise to protect gay students

On climate change, Albanese says that the modelling Labor’s policy is based on shows it will reduce carbon emissions by 43% by 2030.

And then he is asked again about the prime minister’s comments on the Religious Discrimination Bill.

The prime minister wrote to me when the debate was on in that national parliament and said that he would take action to protect students, gay and lesbian students. I am astonished that he has walked away from that.

We need to protect people from discrimination whether it is religious discrimination or on the basis of people’s sexuality.

Updated

Opening statements done, Albanese is taking questions from the press – the first is about Labor’s costing. He deflects by pointing to how the Liberal party have not held their campaign launch.

The second questions is about prime minister Scott Morrison’s comments there is no evidence of gay students being expelled from schools and that there is religious discrimination evidence.

Albanese says “there is evidence of religious discrimination” and he supports a religious discrimination bill with protections for LGTBQI people.

He also pointedly makes a point to say young people experience discrimination for their sexuality.

If people don’t think that young people are discriminated against and vilified because of their sexuality, then that does not reflect reality.

Updated

Anthony Albanese press conference

Albanese kicks off the presser by paying tribute to his mother and expanding on Labor’s $11m proposal to expand children’s playgroups.

We will support playgroups Australia and toy libraries Australia to grow their membership, offer free playgroups with this funding and set up new services in regional areas as well.

We want them to be able as well to have funding to upgrade facilities and toys but for many kids, too, from underprivileged backgrounds, this is an opportunity that they have that they cannot afford to have all the toys and gadgets at home.

Updated

With the Morrison presser wrapped now – where he was grilled on his proposal to revive the Religious Discrimination Bill that would not contain protections for LGBTQI students – we’re going to switch across to opposition leader Anthony Albanese who is speaking now.

Updated

PM says there's 'no evidence' that LGBTQI students are being expelled from schools

A heated exchange now as Morrison rejects a suggestion that LGBTQI students are being discriminated in schools.

We’ve been having this conversation for the last four years. And on education it has been presented, students are being expelled each and every day, apparently, each and every week and each and every year. There is no evidence of that at all.

What I’m saying is not like they don’t need to be protected. No, what I am saying is there is no evidence because religious schools themselves don’t wish to do that. They don’t wish to do it.

Instead he says there are no protections for “Australians of faith”.

There are discrimination laws that apply to all other, many different attributes of people in this country, including sexual discrimination. In New South Wales in particular, there are no laws at all protecting Australians of faith or no faith against discrimination.

The exchange culminates in a direct exchange with a reporter.

Reporter: So the best you could say to trans students last time was this in parliament and you are going to send it to a law reform review. What guarantee can you give to those gay and lesbian students that you will not buckle for them and send them to a law reform review that could take up to 12 months?

Morrison: Again, I don’t think you are across the legislation.

Reporter: I think I am!

Updated

Morrison is now asked a direct question about whether the attempts to amend the Religious Discrimination Act and Sexual Discrimination Act to allow discrimination against trans students in schools.

Reporter: Can you say that you care about every young person’s mental health when are trying to introduce the bill at -- religious discrimination amendments that will protect gay and trans students at the same time, adding to their mental health issues?

Morrison responds by saying he “rejects the premise of of your question” before speaking over attempts to ask follow up questions..

“It is possible to protect Australians from religious discrimination without that impacting on the many other issues that we need to address in our community. It is very possible to do that.”

Morrison says he can offer no guarantee or protections for gay and lesbian students besides the legislation will be dealt with “sequential”.

Questions are now veering into the area of the economy where the PM is far more comfortable. The tone of the presser has changed, with a riff on previously announced investments on renewable energy, industry and manufacturing.

This is interrupted by a reporter about comments from Sussan Ley who said yesterday that “she wasn’t focussed on what happens after the election”: what are you hiding from voters until after the election?

Morrison says the government’s announcements were explained in “over 200 specific measures” in the budget before pivoting into an attack on Labor.

Updated

PM pressed on Religious Discrimination Act and protections for gay students

There is this exchange about changes to the Religious Discrimination Act and the Sex Discrimination Act that would expose trans students to discrimination and specifically about what Morrison means when he says they should be dealt with “sequentially”.

Reporter: When we have things like schools asking parents and students to sign a contract saying that homosexual acts are immoral, that they are offensive to God, and that trans students should not be recognised, how can you say that the issue of ensuring that those students are protected is separate from the law that would allow that school to discriminate. Can you explain what “sequential” means in terms of a timeline?

PM: Sequentially means exactly what it means. One follows the other. And that is the way that the original RDA was set up in the legislation. If you look at the legislation you will see that one triggers another. They are different issues. And that is my view. They are both important issues and the government’s position is they will be dealt with sequentially. There is nothing new in this position.

Reporter: So the RDA and following it with the SDA on the same day together?

PM: You pass one and then you pass the other because one triggers the other. One triggers the other, that is what is set out in the legislation.

Reporter: What message are you sending to gay students by not doing this as many in your own party have asked for?

PM: I am sending the very clear message that both are very important.

Updated

Questions now move to changes to the changes to the Religious Discrimination Bill and whether the government’s amendments abandon LGBTQI students.

Morrison:

Our position has always been the position that the government had, the position that was endorsed by the party room of the government, was that both would be pursued and they would be pursued sequentially.

This is followed by a spicy question about whether the PM is “being held hostage by Christian lobby groups”.

Morrison rejects this.

Our policies have a set of protections for people of religious faith or no religious faith in our country. I have been seeking to achieve that for a long time and I was disappointed we were not able to achieve that in the last parliamentary term. I’m keen to see both of those issues pursued sequentially as we have set up.

Updated

Morrison is now taking questions from reporters but restricts them to those “on this topic today” before we “move to those other issues”.

He is asked about surrogacy and supports it “within the the laws of our country”.

Minister for families and social services Anne Ruston is speaking now highlighting the Coalition’s work to stop violence against women over the last two budgets.

A very important component of our two $5bn commitments over the next five years is around recovery.

$142m has been put in programs to make sure we assist women who are recovering from the trauma of violence because we know the trauma often lives on well after the violence has occurred.

She adds that “it is through a strong economy” that we can make these investments.

Updated

Minister for health Greg Hunt speaking now on the policy where he is paying tribute to the work of IVF researchers.

We stood in a room with 20,000 potential lives. One room! A whole town of future people in one room. And that’s real life and science coming together.

Updated

PM announces $53m pledge to expand access to IVF

Morrison officially announces the $53m commitment to expand access to IVF treatment saying the package has three elements:

  • $14.4m to support those with genetic diseases and conditions with the cost of storage of eggs, sperm and embryos.
  • $13.7m to support future parents through the process.
  • $25.7m to create 20 new perinatal mental health services.

There is nothing more important in this country or this world than family. That is the centre of everything and these services help make families stronger in our country. And that’s how you get a strong Australia.

Updated

Scott Morrison press conference

Prime minister Scott Morrison is speaking now at an IVF clinic in Melbourne where he begins by talking about how he and his spouse, Jen, struggled to have children.

Already, we are seeing significant advancements in supporting Australians to be able to have children where they would never have had but hope. It has been happening since the late 70s.

Now I remember when Jen and I were going through this for many, many years, the chances of success were very, very low, about one in three and often less. Now they are so much higher.

Updated

ACT records no Covid deaths

Six people with Covid-19 are in the ICU in the ACT, with health authorities in the territory recording 788 new cases overnight, including one person on ventilation and no lives lost.

Updated

Interesting end to ABC Insiders: a reminder that the PM has refused to appear on the program – but the invitation remains open, David Speers says.

Updated

Prime minister Scott Morrison has turned up in Melbourne this morning for a meet and greet at Melbourne IVF.

We’ll have more from any presser as soon as it is broadcast.

Updated

Just a few quick observations from that interview: Spender was borrowing from the well-worn playbook of veteran independents Nick Xenophon, Andrew Wilkie, Jacqui Lambie and more recently, Zali Steggall.

The power of the independents is the ability to flit between both sides of politics in order to secure what they can for their community.

On policy, Spender presented herself as a careful, policy-driven, business-friendly centrist while adopting talking points that would not be – and should not be – out of place within the Liberal party.

Updated

The inevitable question comes about who Spender would back in the event of a hung parliament, noting that Zali Steggall has been reluctant to back forming government with the Coalition while Scott Morrison is leader.

Spender says it would come down to policy.

I’m open to [Scott Morrison continuing as prime minster] and open to negotiating with everyone.

Updated

Speers surveys Spender on where she stands on various issues.

Spender says she supports more access for foreign workers in Australia, more engagement with China that does not compromise Australian national interests, will rely on defence briefings on issues that “need unity of purpose” such as nuclear submarines and supports an independent anti-corruption commission.

The community feel that money is being spent in ways that is not in the interest of Wentworth, or not actually in the interest of Wentworth because it isn’t about the money that went with God. It is money being spent across the community.

Updated

Spender, the independent candidate for Wentworth who is among the 20 so-called “teal” candidates that are challenging the hold of the Liberal party in safe seats, is speaking now on climate change.

I think climate change is one of the most important factors in terms of what is right for the environment but is also a huge economic opportunity for Australia.

You look at what the Business Council of Australia is saying, they are saying we should take 46-50% reduction by 2030 because that is in the interest of Australian businesses, in the interest of Australian families.

Spender says she wants the major parties to “come back to business” and makes the point that rightwing governments have also embraced climate action.

Climate change is an issue that affects the economy, defence, and the environment.

Look at the New South Wales Coalition – they have a target in by 2030 which is 50%. You look at the Conservative party in the UK, they have a very ambitious climate target.

Updated

Allegra Spender appearing now and says she will “give a moderate, sensible, centrist government that is looking after the long-term of Australia”.

If we govern for the long-term and have that approach, we will be better off. What I have said to people in Wentworth is that I will negotiate with either side if it comes to forming government, but on an issue, I will vote on the interest of Wentworth, I will consult widely with the community as well as with experts. I think that is crucial. It is about bringing the people and experts back into politics.

Updated

Guardian Australia’s regional editor Gabrielle Chan is on ABC’s Insiders discussing the challenge being made by the independent candidates to the major parties ahead of Allegra Spender’s appearance.

They are talking more about climate change, they are talking about integrity. Then, it fractures locally. I think the challenge for the Liberal party is that these voices for movement that have really got together community of people to choose a candidate are hard to beat because it gives you both a volunteer base in.

Updated

NBCF announces $12.4m in funding for breast cancer research

More than $12m in grants for breast cancer research will help save lives and revolutionise screening and treatment in Australia, experts say.

The National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF) has announced funding of nearly $12.4m for 20 research projects as part of a campaign to achieve “zero deaths from breast cancer” by 2030.

Associate professor Cleola Anderiesz, CEO of NBCF said:

Over the last 28 years NBCF has made a significant improvement to Australia’s breast cancer outcomes through its grants program.

I’m proud to present 20 additional talented researchers and their collaborators with the support they need to work towards NBCF’s mission of zero deaths from breast cancer by 2030.

Breast cancer is one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers in Australia and affects both men and women, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.

This year alone, an estimated 20,000 people will be diagnosed and, each day, nine Australians die of the disease.

With AAP.

Updated

Plibersek is asked about the proposed stage three tax cuts that Labor has supported and which will lead to superannuation changes that will benefit men. She says it is something Labor will look at in government.

What makes a difference to the superannuation pay gap: when we invest more than $95bn, when we make child care cheaper, that allows those women who have been locked out of work, because it is too expensive – they actually lose money by working day four or day five in a week. They can earn more, have less time out of paid work, they can contribute to their own superannuation when they get back to work more easily.

As for the paid parental leave superannuation, it is something that we would look at in government. It is something that we would love to do when we can afford to.

Updated

Speers now asked about Labor’s policies on fair pay for women.

Plibersek says Labor’s policy includes getting rid of pay secrecy clauses, increasing transparency of wages by “asking large companies to report on their gender pay gap”, by tackling the issue in the public service and changing industrial relations laws that the equal pay is a requirement of the Fair Work Act.

Updated

Was that a little bit of snark?

Plibersek is challenged over whether Labor actually has a school policy and after a bit of an explanation, Insiders host David Speers interjects suggesting the explanation is “a little bit vague” leading to a little cross talk.

Almost no – Sorry, go on. I don’t want to interrupt you, David, please go on.

Updated

On education Plibersek says Labor will work with states and territories to address a skills shortage and has a $500m policy to create 20,000 “additional university degrees”.

At the moment more young people are being turned away from a university education than ever before, so we want to make sure that more Australians get the opportunity of upgrading their education and skills so they can get the job of their dreams. And places is not nothing.

Updated

Plibersek says PM has 'completely given up' on alleviating cost of living pressures

Tanya Plibersek is now live on ABC Insiders where she is attacking the government over its failure to act on cost of living issues.

The prime minister has completely given up on helping families with the extraordinary cost of living pressures they are under right now.

The deputy leader of the Labor party lists a series of failings of the government, including an industrial relations system that keeps wages low, a refusal to criminalise wage theft, act on gender equity, to provide cheap child care or lower power bills.

I think it’s really instructive we’ve got a prime minister who says, ‘I’ve got nothing. I’ve got nothing for you. I know you’re struggling, but I’ve got nothing’.

Updated

NSW records six Covid deaths

Six people with Covid-19 have died in New South Wales overnight, with the state recording 8,891 new cases on Sunday morning, 1,504 people in hospital, and 57 in ICU.

Updated

Victoria records four Covid deaths

Four people with Covid-19 have died overnight in Victoria. The state recorded 8,744 new cases on Sunday, with 491 people in hospital, 38 in ICU and eight on ventilation.

Updated

Coalition pledges $53m to support IVF procedures for cancer patients

The Coalition have promised $53m to support IVF procedures for cancer patients with genetic conditions who still wish to have children.

In an announcement timed for Mother’s Day, the ABC reports that those who might struggle with having children due to medical conditions will be able to freeze and store their eggs, sperm and embryos for free.

It is anticipated the plan will help up to 6,000 Australians access reproductive technology services with $14.4m dedicated to subsidise the storage costs of preserving this material.

Another $25m in the package will be spent over four years to deliver perinatal mental health and well being services.

Labor, meanwhile, has marked the day with their own announcement: $11m in extra funding for playgroups to help them recover from Covid-19 and expand their networks.

Opposition leader Anthony Albanese said playgroups were critical in childhood development.

On Mother’s Day, I can’t think of a better way to come out of the pandemic than by strengthening the communities that are built for mums and kids through increasing funding to grow and support playgroups all over the country.

With AAP.

Updated

Deputy Barnaby Joyce says he trusts Scott Morrison despite having previously described the prime minister as a “hypocrite and a liar”.

Joyce was pushed on the issue of trust during an early Sunday morning interview with Nine after text messages he sent to Brittany Higgins questioning the integrity of the PM were revealed in February.

The texts were sent on 22 March 2021 at 8.30pm, a month after Higgins’ sexual assault allegations were made public.

After attempting to avoid the question, Joyce backed the prime minister.

Trust is not about what I think of you Chris, and I do trust the prime minister because every agreement I’ve had with him, he has honoured.

This is a much bigger thing. This is about the nation trusting the capacity of a government to keep them in safe hands.

He also said the government could be trusted to meet its climate change targets.

You should trust it because every target that is set in regards to climate change we’ve met. Every target. We’re an honourable country. We should be trusted because we understand what is before us.

An analysis of the Coalition’s climate change commitments found it would not live up to the 2015 Paris agreement and would lock in more than 3C of global heating.

Updated

Good morning

It’s Sunday morning and we’re picking up the live blog once more as we head into week five of the 2022 federal election.

Deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce is out of the gate early with a quick interview on Channel Nine – more on that later.

Meanwhile both prime minister Scott Morrison and opposition leader Anthony Albanese will be starting their day in Sydney. The Coalition will be talking about its plans to boost tourism and its $20m commitment promise for wineries, breweries and distilleries, while Labor will be continuing to highlight cost of living pressures.

Tonight Morrison and Albanese will square off in their second leaders’ debate. The event will be broadcast on Nine with the two candidates taking questions from the media.

I’m Royce Kurmelovs, taking the blog through the day. With so much going on out there, it’s easy to miss stuff, so if you spot something happening in Australia and think it should be on the blog, you can find me on Twitter at @RoyceRk2 where my DMs are open.

With that, let’s get started ...

Updated

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