What we learned: Tuesday 20 January
This is where we will wrap up the live blog for the evening. Here’s what made the news:
The federal parliament continues to debate the gun and hate speech legislation rushed into the parliament this week following the Bondi terror attack.
The attorney general, Michelle Rowland, says that Virginia Bell has formally commenced her role as commissioner for the royal commission into antisemitism and social cohesion.
NSW police have extended a protest declaration preventing the authorisation of public assemblies after the Bondi attack, but drastically reduced the area to allow Invasion Day marches through the Sydney CBD on 26 January to go ahead.
The Commonwealth Remuneration Tribunal has updated the rules for politicians’ travel, after the expenses saga which dogged parliament before Christmas.
Australia’s largest coal-fired power plant, Eraring in Lake Macquarie, will stay open for an additional two years, the NSW government has confirmed.
The NSW premier, Chris Minns, said he has no “silver bullet” to prevent shark attacks but public warnings after stormy weather may need to be increased following the third attack at Sydney beaches in two days.
The International Monetary Fund says Australia is “projected to see some drawn-out persistence in above-target inflation”, as economists and investors bet the RBA will be forced to hike interest rates this year.
We’ll be back with all the latest tomorrow. Enjoy your evening.
Updated
Midnight Oil founding member Rob Hirst dies
Rob Hirst, the drummer and founding member of Australian rock band Midnight Oil, has died aged 70.
Hirst was diagnosed with stage three pancreatic cancer in 2023. The band confirmed his death on Tuesday afternoon.
“After fighting heroically for almost three years, Rob is now free of pain - ‘a glimmer of tiny light in the wilderness’,” they wrote in a statement on social media. “He died peacefully, surrounded by loved ones. The family asks that anyone wanting to honour Rob donate to Pankind, Pancreatic Cancer Australia or Support Act.”
Read more:
Campsites on K’gari closed after woman found dead on beach
Two campsites have been closed and park rangers are increasing patrols after a 19-year-old Canadian woman was found dead on a beach surrounded by a pack of dingoes on a popular Queensland tourist island.
Two men made the grisly discovery while driving down the eastern beaches of K’gari (formerly known as Fraser Island) at about 6:15am on Monday. The discovery came up to 75 minutes after the woman left the backpacker hostel at which she had been working for six weeks, where she told colleagues and friends she was heading to the beach that morning.
Her body was found near the Maheno shipwreck, transported to the mainland and was expected to undergo a postmortem on Wednesday.
Search for man missing off NSW south coast scaled back
NSW police say a search for a 23-year-old man who fell off a cliff into the ocean 12km south of Narooma on Sunday has been scaled back.
The man tripped and fell off the cliff at Mystery Bay beach on Sunday evening, and didn’t resurface from the water after falling in.
NSW police, as well as Marine Rescue NSW, SES and Volunteer Rescue Association have been searching for the man since Sunday.
At 1pm on Tuesday, the search was scaled back, but NSW police marine area command will continue proactive patrols in the coming days, NSW police said.
Updated
‘Dirty deal’ on hate speech bill threatens protest rights, Greens say
The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, said he couldn’t see how it would be possible for the hate speech bill to be used to silence criticism of countries undertaking human rights abuses.
The Greens leader, Larissa Waters, tells Afternoon Briefing she was “surprised” by Burke’s claim because analysis the Greens have conducted on the bill led to that concern.
She said:
We don’t want to see those impacts that silence people from peaceful political expression. That’s not what a free country does. And I think the haste with which this has been done has really meant that as a nation, we’ve missed the opportunity to get it right. We could have hate speech laws that protect everyone, that don’t just selectively choose groups of people.
Waters said that a “dirty deal” between Labor and the Coalition for the bill will put political expression and freedom of association under threat.
She added that LGBTQ+ and people with disabilities also deserve protection from hate.
Updated
Gun reforms would mean alleged Bondi attackers would have had no guns, minister says
The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, told ABC’s Afternoon Briefing that instead of having six weapons, the alleged Bondi attackers “would have had zero” under the gun law changes working their way through parliament today.
Those reforms are really significant and they matter.
Burke also said the hate speech reforms are not as strong as the government wanted. He said the Liberal party had long called on this legislation:
It would have made a difference. And I am disappointed that it’s not there.
In response to a suggestion it would have had a chilling impact on free speech, Burke said it “would have had a chilling impact on racist bigotry”.
I don’t accept that racist bigotry is within the free speech domain. I just don’t. I’ll go through my whole life in Australia without ever receiving racist bigotry. But that’s not true for a whole lot of Australians. And some but not all of the people who’ve been in the free speech brigade are people who will never have a racist word said against them.
Burke said he would continue to negotiate with the states on gun buybacks.
Updated
Federal politicians’ travel rules updated following expenses saga
The Commonwealth Remuneration Tribunal has updated the rules for politicians’ travel, following the expenses saga which dogged parliament before Christmas.
The advice was sought by the Albanese government after ministers including Anika Wells, Don Farrell and Michelle Rowland were forced to defend claims of thousands of dollars in taxpayer-funded travel entitlements to bring family to events such as the Australian Open and major NRL and AFL matches.
The tribunal has recommended MPs’ family members fly economy class for so-called family reunion travel, and that extra spending benefiting ministers and other senior office holders be wound back.
MPs will be allowed to access one return economy fare per year to an Australian location outside of Canberra for their family members, provided their travel is for parliamentary business, the family member needs to accompany them and the dominant purpose of the spending is “facilitating the family life of the member’s family.”
In a statement, the tribunal said 194 of 226 federal MPs did not access any Australia-wide family reunion travel in the 2024-25 financial year.
Ministers and other senior office holders will have access to three return airfares for their spouse to accompany them to official events, when the spouse has been invited as a guest. The event must be related to the minister’s portfolio or official duties.
The tribunal said “parliamentary life is not family friendly.”
In undertaking their duties parliamentarians are required to live interstate for long periods. Therefore the availability of family reunion travel is important, particular for parliamentarians with children.
Updated
Supermarket price transparency reforms consultation begins
The federal government has begun consultation on reforms that would compel supermarkets to be more transparent about prices, promotions and loyalty programs.
It is seeking community and stakeholder views on the following proposals:
That all supermarkets, including remote stores, publish prices in-store.
That large supermarkets publish prices online, ensure web-scraping technologies can be used by third parties such as online comparison websites and apps.
That large supermarkets display minimum information about promotions, supported by record-keeping requirements.
That very large supermarkets provide members with six-monthly information summaries for loyalty programs.
The proposals respond to recommendations from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) supermarkets inquiry, which found supermarkets were making it hard for customers to judge if something was actually a good deal.
The assistant minister for productivity, Andrew Leigh, said in a statement:
Supermarket prices shouldn’t be a guessing game.
Clear, accessible information allows shoppers to compare prices fairly and make informed choices.
Submissions to the consultation paper can be made until 17 February.
Updated
Greens call for more federal action on shark mitigation, criticising ‘lazy and ineffective’ nets and drumlines
The Greens are calling for more federal funding for shark mitigation measures after a spate of shark attacks across Sydney and NSW over the past 48 hours.
Senator Peter Whish-Wilson, the Greens spokesperson for healthy oceans, said the recent incidents have “ignited public discussion about what creates the perfect storm for shark encounters to spike, and how best to reduce risks to both oceangoers and marine wildlife”. He said the federal government needed to urgently act, including the establishment of a national summit of experts to drive shark risk education, as well as provide better information and resources to states.
He said in a statement:
Resorting to lethal shark mitigation measures, such as nets and drumlines, is a lazy and ineffective approach. …
If we want to transition from lethal shark control programs that don’t work, to more effective and sophisticated approaches that protect marine wildlife and oceangoers, the federal government has an important role to play.
Updated
Greens welcome police backdown on Invasion Day protests
NSW Greens MP, Sue Higginson, said the NSW police “rightly bent to the will of the people” in allowing Invasion Day protests to occur in Sydney on 26 January. But she said the extension of the public assembly restriction declaration for another 14 days raised questions about why the restrictions are in place.
Higginson said:
It seems fairly obvious they have been extended to try to continue to capture the pro-Palestine protest movement and in particular any protest against the Israeli president’s apparent visit in early February.
Updated
Thank you all for joining me on the blog today for this extra sitting day. The politics coverage isn’t nearly over though, there will still be plenty more debate in the Senate – with the lower house voting on two bills tonight.
I’ll leave you with the excellent Josh Taylor to take you through all of that!
Updated
Sydney protest declaration extended but area reduced to allow for Invasion Day rallies
NSW police have extended a protest declaration preventing the authorisation of public assemblies following the Bondi attack, but drastically reduced the area to allow Invasion Day marches through the CBD on 26 January to go ahead.
A 14-day extension to the declaration preventing the authorisation of protests under NSW’s form 1 system was due to expire today, following an original declaration made on Christmas Eve under new police powers rushed through parliament following last month’s terror attack.
In a press conference just now, the NSW police commissioner, Mal Lanyon, said the declaration had been extended but the area covered had been reduced to include locations which go “from Darling Harbour through the north of the CBD ... and then out through Oxford Street and take in all of the eastern suburbs police area command.” The area includes Bondi beach, but not Hyde Park, a typical focus point of marches.
Lanyon said the decision was about “getting the balance right between community safety and a right to protest.”
The protest that is planned by the First Nations community on Australia Day will be managed down through College Street and out of southern Sydney. I’m satisfied that that reduces the risk to the community. On Australia Day I expect we’ll have tens of thousands of community members, mums and dads, boys and girls wanting to come into the CBD. This is about ensuring that we enable people to protest, enable free speech, but make sure that the community remains safe.
Updated
Tl;dr here is what happened in question time
The Coalition focused all its questions on the prime minister – first whether he would apologise to the Jewish community, and second on his delay to call a royal commission.
The prime minister said he was sorry the Bondi attack happened on his watch, and also said that antisemitism has occurred in Australia long before Labor was elected in 2022. He warned the opposition not to politicise the attack.
Tony Burke said individuals are radicalising younger, faster and predominantly online, with detection of radicalisation far more complex for intelligence agencies – in response to a question from Allegra Spender.
The attorney-general, Michelle Rowland, said Virginia Bell has begun her work formally as commissioner of the antisemitism and social cohesion royal commission.
Independent MP, Rebekha Sharkie, pressed the health minister on the rise in older Australians being stuck in hospitals instead of being in residential care.
Updated
We told you earlier that the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog, was preparing to visit Australia early next month.
The Times of Israel reported planning was underway for a 7 February visit to Sydney.
Guardian Australia understands that date is not correct.
Updated
Australians who are in Iran urged to ‘leave and leave quickly’
The deputy prime minister and defence minister is asked a final dixer on the Iranian regime.
Richard Marles says that the government condemns the killing of Iranian protesters and that there are more than 200 sanctions in place against individuals and entities in Iran.
We will continue to work with the international community to put pressure on the Iranian regime in respect of its treatment of its own people and the way in which it engages with the world. That said, there is a significant Iranian community in Australia, and there are Australians who are in Iran. Since 2020, it has been the advice of the Australian government not to travel to Iran. For those Australians who are in Iran right now, our advice is that if it is safe to do so, leave and leave quickly.
With that, question time is over for the week.
Updated
Ley asks PM whether he was ‘making stuff up’ before calling royal commission
The opposition is continuing its questions challenging the prime ministers’ reluctance to call a royal commission. Sussan Ley asks whether the PM was “making stuff up” when he cited security experts who had advised against a royal commission, before he agreed to call one.
Anthony Albanese skirts the question entirely and points to Ley’s comments immediately after Bondi when she said that the opposition had legislation that it was ready to move, and had called for parliament to be recalled.
Ley accuses Albanese of deflecting, while the prime minister accuses the Coalition of voting against national security measures.
I tell you what, see if you can find a national security expert that does not support the gun laws that went through this parliament with the support of this side but not that side. Because one of the problems we have had, Mr Speaker, throughout this, is the gap between the rhetoric of those opposite and what they have actually done. They said they had legislation and they did not.
Updated
More South Australians stuck in hospital while waiting for residential aged care
In a change of tone, independent MP, Rebekha Sharkie, asks the health minister about the increase in older South Australians being stuck in hospital while waiting for residential aged care.
She says there were 60 older Australians in Adelaide hospital in 2022 waiting to be transferred to residential care but, as of yesterday, that number has ballooned to 370.
Health minister, Mark Butler, says the government has been working to stop aged care residents going into hospitals to get care in the first place, and instead funding geriatricians to go to homes.
The difficulty is that the commonwealth is currently negotiating a new five-year hospital funding deal with states and territories but the SA government will soon go into caretaker mode ahead of their March poll.
We have undertaken arrangements with different state governments to fund programs to divert older Australians from hospitals in the first place, including in South Australia geriatric outreach teams who go out to aged care facilities to try to prevent admission in the first place. Those are working very, very well and are subject to Commonwealth funding.
Updated
Leeser questions why PM argued against a royal commission
Liberal shadow minister, Julian Leeser, takes another question, this time asking why the prime minister argued against a royal commission for 25 days.
Albanese says – as he did earlier in question time – that the immediate priority of the government and security agencies was to ensure that there wouldn’t be another attack and that the alleged shooters weren’t part of a wider cell.
He then says the government established the Richardson review to examine Australia’s security and intelligence settings (that review will now feed into the royal commission), and adds that the government was prepared to work with the NSW royal commission.
We then, of course, worked with the community on what a royal commission might look like because we wanted to make sure that we got it right.
There are risks with the royal commission given that a criminal case will be taking place at the same time and we needed to make sure that was covered. We need to make sure as well that we got the royal commissioner right and in choosing Virginia Bell I believe we did get it right.
Updated
Virginia Bell formally commences royal commission role
Attorney-general, Michelle Rowland, says that Virginia Bell has formally commenced her role as commissioner for the royal commission into antisemitism and social cohesion.
Bell was chosen by the government to lead the royal commission, and has been instructed to report back by December this year.
Labor announced the royal commission just last week, after arguing against one.
During a dixer (all of which have been on the government’s response to Bondi), Rowland said Bell has begun her work.
I am pleased to update the House that the commissioner has now formally commenced her role and is wasting no time in operationalising the royal commission. The royal commission will be an important opportunity for Australians, particularly Jewish Australians, to have their voices heard and to speak to their experiences.
Updated
Coalition piles pressure on PM to apologise to Jewish community
Sussan Ley asks the prime minister again, now for a fourth time, if he will apologise to the Jewish community. She quotes Sheina Gutnik, the daughter of one of the 15 people killed in the Bondi terror attack, saying, “Australia did not fail quietly. It failed loudly, repeatedly and with full knowledge. It’s government watched hatred grow and chose to do nothing. They minimised it, excused it, they dismissed Jewish warnings as noise.”
Anthony Albanese says he met with Gutnik last night, and spoke with her and her community last week.
He then attacks the Coalition over its criticisms of the government for rushing legislation.
I have engaged with people in every forum and there is no one who has asked to speak to me who has not had a meeting. And at the same time, what we have had [from the opposition] is shouting. We had shouting that the parliament had to be resumed before Christmas, but then when we resumed it, we were resuming it too soon. We had shouting that we had to introduce legislation based upon the antisemitism envoy report, but when we produced it they opposed it. They opposed it.
Ley tries to make a point of order but is quickly shut down by speaker Milton Dick.
Albanese then attempts to turn the spotlight back on the Coalition, asking Ley where the package of legislation that they had announced in December is.
Updated
Albanese warns not to politicise Bondi attack
Shadow minister, Julian Leeser, who is a Jewish MP, asks the prime minister for a third time on whether he will apologise to the Jewish community, and says NSW premier, Chris Minns, apologised to the Jewish community for rising antisemitism.
Anthony Albanese says that he is sorry that the Bondi attack occurred and occurred on his watch. But he says again that antisemitism is a longstanding issue, and didn’t begin when he became prime minister.
When Port Arthur happened, the parliament came together, no-one saw that as a political opportunity … When the Bali bombings occurred, people did not see that as an opportunity for politics, people saw that as the need for the national interest to be put first.
I am devastated, as all Australians are, at what has occurred. I am sad that every government has not done better on antisemitism, including mine. What I won’t say though is that antisemitism began when my government was elected.
Updated
People are radicalising ‘younger, faster and online’: says Burke
Independent MP, Allegra Spender, who represents the area of Bondi, has the first question from the crossbench.
She says that de-radicalisation programs have been around for years, but asks how effective they are and whether the government will take any further action on de-radicalisation before the royal commission and Richardson review into Australia’s security settings (which will report back with the royal commission in April) make their findings.
Anthony Albanese says he acknowledges the problem of extremism and radicalisation.
We know that hate preachers can cause a real problem in distorting Islam and creating a circumstance where people are full of hate ... But the government has a range of [de-radicalisation] programs, it’s certainly something the Richardson review will look at.
Home affairs minister, Tony Burke, says the threat of radicalisation is more complex with individuals radicalised by “mixed ideologies”.
He also says of the 35 individuals currently before the courts linked to counter-terrorism, 18 of them are children.
For our agencies the threat now is more complex, people are radicalised younger and faster and predominantly online.
Updated
Sussan Ley steps up to the dispatch box and again asks the prime minister if he will apologise to Jewish Australians for not listening to the Jewish community and acting on antisemitism sooner.
Anthony Albanese says he acknowledges “very directly the pain that Jewish Australians are feeling”, and the pain they have felt for some time, but says antisemitism didn’t start when the Labor government was elected in 2022.
He quotes Liberal senator, Andrew Bragg, who said antisemitism was rising in 2019 – which leads to Liberal MP, Julian Leeser, raising a point of order, but he’s quickly shut down.
Albanese then goes through a list of reforms the government has passed (and says the former Liberal government didn’t do) – including criminalising doxxing, and setting up the special envoy to combat antisemitism.
Did they [the Coalition] establish a joint operation bringing together the AFP and Asio to combat acts of antisemitism? No. Did they introduce Australia’s first ever hate speech laws? No. Did they legislate a crackdown on preachers and leaders who preach violence? No.
Updated
Ley accuses PM of delaying Bondi royal commission with ‘bogus excuses’
We’re on to questions, and Sussan Ley begins with criticism of the prime minister over his response to the Bondi terror attack.
She accuses the prime minister of delaying action and using “bogus excuses” for not calling a royal commission sooner, and asks him if he will apologise to the families of the tragedy.
Anthony Albanese says the attack was “a targeted, evil antisemitic terrorist attack on Jewish Australians”, and that his government’s first priority was investigating whether the two alleged gunmen were part of a cell or whether there would be another attack.
As I have said, I am sorry that this occurred, sorry for the grief and pain the Jewish community in our entire nation have experienced.
If you look at what has happened with terrorist attacks overseas, what often occurs is that one attack leads to another coordinated attack somewhere else, as part of planning. Our first priority unashamedly on the Sunday night, on the Monday, on the Tuesday, on the Wednesday, on the Thursday, was not to worry about politics. Our priority was, were these people part of a cell? Would there be another attack at another place in Sydney? Would there be a follow-up attack in Melbourne? Were Jewish Australians being kept safe?
Updated
Ley acknowledges hardships of Victorians and Queenslanders affected by fires and floods
Following the prime minister, the opposition leader, Sussan Ley, also acknowledges the deep hardship felt by Australians affected by the bushfires and floods in Victoria and Queensland.
From community facing catastrophic bushfire conditions along the New South Wales and Victoria border and in parts of South Australia and with Australia, to families and businesses still reeling from widespread flooding in Queensland and northern New South Wales. Australians are once again being tested by a land that is both extraordinary and unforgiving.
Updated
Nationals leader abstains from hate speech vote
Taking you back to that vote on the antisemitism, hate and extremism bill that was voted through the House a moment ago, two Nationals MPs – Colin Boyce and Llew O’Brien voted against the bill, while others including leader David Littleproud abstained.
Littleproud, has released a statement, and said that there wasn’t enough time before the vote to get more certainty around “unintended consequences of the hate group legislation reforms”.
The Nationals’ position is to abstain from voting in the House of Representatives, so that we can put forward amendments to the Bill in the Senate to fix these issues.
Updated
Question time begins with PM’s tribute to farmer killed in Victoria fires
Question time has begun a little late today, after a short, scheduled suspension after the bill passed the House.
Before we get into questions, the prime minister is making a statement about the devastating fires across Victoria and Queensland.
He also pays tribute to Max Hobson, a cattle farmer who died in the Longwood fire in central Victoria. Anthony Albanese says:
In the last month Queenslanders and Victorians have been hit hard. In Victoria, fires burned through over 400,000 hectares of bushland. Authorities have been warned of the extreme conditions were the worst since the black summer. The firies on the ground said the same thing. These fires were fast moving, unpredictable and intense. Tragically, they claimed the life of Max Hobson.
Updated
Ley says opposition ‘stepped up to fix’ anti-hate legislation and Liberals will vote to pass it
The opposition leader, Sussan Ley, has confirmed Liberal MPs will vote to pass Labor’s hate speech bill in parliament tonight, even if the Nationals are yet to decide their position.
“In the national interest, the Liberal party has today stepped up to fix legislation that the Albanese government badly mishandled,” Ley said in a statement a few minutes before question time.
As a result of Liberal party action, the legislation has been narrowed, strengthened and properly focused on keeping Australians safe, not political point scoring.
Ley said the deal narrows the focus of the bill to dealing with antisemitism and Islamic extremism.
Preachers and guest speakers will be covered by new aggravated offences provisions, parliament will conduct two-year reviews of the laws and new rules to ban extremist organisations will only cover those seeking to incite violence.
Ley said the focus of the amended bill will be on serious conduct of a criminal nature, and listing and de-listing of organisations will require consultation with the opposition.
As a direct result of the Liberal party’s veto, Labor’s attempt to criminalise free speech is no more.
Updated
Labor’s anti-hate bill passes House but two Nationals vote against
With the support of the Liberals, the government has passed its antisemitism, hate and extremism bill through the House.
But two Nationals MPs voted against – Colin Boyce and Llew O’Brien.
From the crossbench, the Teals voted with the government but Dai Le, Rebekha Sharkie, Bob Katter and Andrew Wilkie have voted against.
The bill will now go to the Senate.
Updated
Qld Labor says government ‘can’t be tough on crime and soft on guns’
Queensland Labor leader Steven Miles has slammed the government for reportedly backing away from the federal firearm buyback scheme, proposed in response to the Bondi massacre. Miles said:
David Crisafulli likes to say he is tough on crime, but you cannot be tough on crime while you are soft on guns. These steps could see these people and these guns attracted to Queensland.
The Crisafulli government was elected on a law-and-order platform, with few policies other than its “adult crime adult time” legislation.
Miles claimed that by backing away from a buyback the state government was effectively “vetoing or making ineffective” the national scheme, and that Queensland would “become a refuge for those dangerous guns and dangerous people, which will make Queensland a more dangerous place”.
He also sledged the premier for not holding a press conference on Tuesday to explain his government’s position, instead putting out “poor Sam O’Connor”, the minister for housing, who was not involved in crafting the government response. Earlier, O’Connor said many of the questions put to him should be put to other ministers or the premier.
Miles finished by referencing his predecessor, Nationals premier Rob Borbidge, who backed the 1996 gun crackdown after Port Arthur. The decision was seen as fuelling both the government’s 1998 defeat after a single term in office and a huge increase in the One Nation vote.
If David Crisafulli was half the leader Rob Borbidge was, then he would support [the legislation].
Updated
Greens say extremism bill a threat to free speech, claiming Labor followed Coalition ‘down the rabbit hole’
The Greens, who will pass the government’s firearms law in the Senate, have stood up to criticise the government’s extremism bill, and attacked Labor for going down the “rabbit hole” with the Liberal party.
Leader Larissa Waters again says the bill, which will create a new hate groups listing and increase grounds to cancel or deny visas under the migration character test, was rushed.
She says the bill could lead to the criminalisation of peaceful protesters.
It is an atrocity that we have seen the government go down the rabbit hole following the Liberals to further crackdown on people’s ability to speak out peacefully against human rights abuses anywhere in the world.
Deputy leader Mehreen Faruqi calls the last minute deal with the Coalition a “sham process”.
Updated
The House is quickly moving through amendments from the crossbench – all of which have been rejected by the government.
Amendments have been moved by independents including Allegra Spender, Sophie Scamps, Kate Chaney, Monique Ryan and Nicolette Boele, as well as One Nation MP Barnaby Joyce.
The government is aiming to get through all of them including a vote on the bill as a whole before question time (in about 22 minutes).
The Senate will begin sitting at question time, which means they’ll debate and vote on the two bills into the evening.
Updated
Anti-hate bill changes would allow minister to refuse or cancel asylum seekers’ visas based on speculation, ASRC warns
As the parliament debates the hate and extremism bill, the Asylum Seeker Resources Centre says it has deep concerns over the impact the legislation could have on refugees and asylum seekers.
A short recap here: the bill will give the home affairs minister greater grounds to cancel or deny a visa over “the risk of a person engaging in certain conduct, including vilification, inciting discord, or activities that represent a danger to the Australian community, if they were allowed to enter or remain in Australia”.
The denial or cancellation also impacts temporary safe haven visas used by asylum seekers.
The ASRC has said the laws have been drafted too quickly, without enough time for consultation with experts and stakeholders. In a statement, they wrote:
The ASRC supports strong measures to address hate and extremism to protect communities, but these objectives and the nation’s grief must not be used as cover to further erode the human rights of marginalised people.
These changes would lower the threshold for visa refusal or cancellation, allowing decisions to be made based on the opinion of the minister about what someone “might” do. This is a dangerous shift into speculation, with potentially life-altering consequences for refugees and people seeking asylum, including detention, deportation and permanent exile to Nauru.
Updated
Amendment to criminalise burning Australian flag rejected
The government has rejected an amendment which would criminalise burning the Australian flag and result in up to two years of jail.
Liberal Phil Thompson moved the amendment, which is the same amendment that former Coalition MP turned One Nation member, Barnaby Joyce, has also pushed.
The government is moving amendments to its own bill now – after making a deal with the opposition.
One of the changes will require a Senate committee to review the legislation after two years.
Updated
Independents criticise government and opposition over hate bill
Allegra Spender has criticised Labor and the Coalition for dumping anti-vilification provisions in the hate bill, something she said the Jewish community has called for. It’s also something the envoy to combat antisemitism has called for.
My question is, what are the mechanisms you are saying that we can use now? Because you have rejected something that the Jewish community has been calling for a long time.
Spender says social cohesion is under threat, but Muslim communities and migrants are made to feel “suspect by association by failing to confront hateful individuals and ideologies directly”.
We drift towards a culture of guilt by association rather than accountability.
Spender’s colleague, Helen Haines, said she would not stand in the way of action but had deep concerns over the process.
The powerful intelligence and security committee (which only consists of Labor and Coalition members) held two public hearings last week and tabled its report this week. When the public hearings were held, the bill was still in one piece. Haines says:
In many respects, I can live with the haste of this. I did not come here with the intention of standing in the way of immediate action on the serious issues this bill is intending to address.
But the reality is that the inquiry into this bill was only tabled this morning. But the consequence of haste, as a legislator, is the missed opportunity to carefully consider and improve this significant legislation.
Updated
Nationals appear unconvinced by bill amendments agreed between Labor and Liberals
The junior Coalition partner looks unconvinced of Labor’s plans and amendments agreed with the Liberal party and the opposition leader, Sussan Ley.
The latest party room meeting, under way in Canberra before lunch, is understood to be discussing proposed guardrail mechanisms added to the legislation, including the powers of the Asio director-general and criminal standards for prescribed organisations.
The Senate is due to sit from 2pm, with question time and consideration of the gun control legislation recently approved by the House of Representatives.
It could be a late night at Parliament House. A final Senate vote might not happen until 10pm.
Updated
Victoria bushfires have caused 38,000 livestock deaths and destruction of 435 homes since 9 January
The agricultural losses as a result of Victoria’s devastating bushfires have now reached 38,000, with this number expected to climb.
We’ve just received an update from the Victorian State Control Centre regarding the bushfires across the state, of which six are continuing to burn.
Since 9 January, they say fires have torn through 418ha of land, destroyed or significantly damaged 1,500 structures, including 435 homes, and 38,000 livestock have been killed. The SCC spokesperson said these figures are expected to grow as impact assessments continue.
They said about 20 firefighters from New Zealand have arrived in Victoria to assist, particularly with the Wonnangatta – Dargo complex of fires, which have been difficult to contain due to their “arduous” location in the alpine region.
Firefighters are also expected to arrive from Canada in late January.
Authorities are keeping a close eye on the hot weather forecast for Saturday, which is also expected to bring strong winds and thunderstorms. An update on conditions will probably occur later in the week.
Updated
Queensland government remains tight-lipped about gun reforms
Queensland’s government is remaining tight-lipped about gun reforms, after a four-and-a-half hour cabinet meeting on the issue yesterday.
Cabinet reportedly decided to not participate in the federal government buyback scheme, joining the other non-Labor run jurisdictions of Tasmania and the Northern Territory.
But the housing minister, Sam O’Connor, refused to confirm any details at a press conference this morning. He repeatedly said that questions about the policy would best be put to the premier, David Crisafulli, the police minister, Dan Purdie, and the attorney general, Deb Frecklington, none of whom are scheduled to hold a press conference today.
O’Connor said:
We’re putting together a comprehensive piece of work in terms of the police minister’s work as well, and it will be ready to go for that first sitting week of parliament in just over a couple of weeks time.
Queensland parliament returns on 10 February.
The state government has also yet to respond to a recommendation from a coronial inquiry into the Wieambilla shootings that gun licence holders be required to undergo mental health checks.
Updated
Leeser says Liberal party will stand with Jewish community to pass hate laws
Shadow minister and Jewish MP Julian Leeser says Bondi represents a “moment of choice” and that the Liberal party has chosen to stand with the Jewish community to pass the government’s reforms.
He says more needs to be done by the government and parliament to tackle antisemitism, but says that “if we don’t change, then Bondi won’t have changed anything either”.
It’s the choice to be constructive, to pass this legislation as a step in the right direction. That’s the choice the Liberal party has made. But the choice for the government today does not end. The choice for the Albanese government is in the implementation. The test for the government is how it uses it.
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Shadow attorney general says intelligence inquiry was a ‘sham’ but opposition will support anti-hate bill ‘in principle’
Going back to the house, which is now debating the antisemitism, hate and extremism bill, the shadow attorney general, Andrew Wallace, says the opposition will support the legislation “in principle”.
He takes aim at the government for “rushing” the process, and calls an inquiry by the parliamentary joint committee on intelligence and security a “sham” due to the severely limited time frame.
He says stakeholders had just 48 hours to provide their submissions on the complex bill to the committee, and describes the whole process as a “farce”.
But he says the opposition is still likely to support the bill.
We support, in principle, subject to the safeguards and amendments we have sought to ensure these measures are targeted, proportionate and lawful.
Updated
Man flown to north Queensland hospital after being bitten by crocodile
A man has been flown to hospital in tropical north Queensland after being bitten by a crocodile.
A Queensland ambulance service spokesperson said the attack occurred just before 8.40am on Tuesday morning at a creek in Victoria Plantation – a few kilometres east of the town of Ingham, in the lush sugar and banana growing region between Cairns and Townsville.
“A man in his 20s was at a creek there and has sustained some puncture wounds, sounds like it’s to his hip and upper legs, after a reported crocodile incident,” the spokesperson said.
So, he’s definitely stable, he was taken through to Ingham hospital via road and he’s since been flown by rescue helicopter to Townsville hospital.
Townsville is about 90km directly south-east of Victoria Plantation.
A Queensland police service spokesperson said emergency services were called to an address on Ingham Forrest Beach Road and that no one else was injured.
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Attorney general says passage of anti-hate bill ‘will be a decisive step forward’
Rowland said the passage of the bill “will send a message that light will prosper over darkness”.
She said:
Our nation is strongest when we choose respect over division, and we must continue to invest in a community where everyone belongs, where everyone can thrive.
The passage of the combatting antisemitism, hate and extremism, criminal and migration laws bill will be a decisive step forward in achieving this.
It will send a loud and unequivocal message to all corners of this country that we must stand united in the face of racial hatred.
But more importantly, passage of this bill will send a message that light will prosper over darkness.
Updated
The attorney general, Michelle Rowland, is now introducing the combatting antisemitism, hate and extremism bill.
The opposition leader, Sussan Ley, hasn’t yet stood up to confirm if the Liberal party or Coalition will support the bill.
Updated
Albanese defends firearms legislation as debate continues
The House is debating amendments to the gun reforms, with crossbench MPs Zali Steggall and Bob Katter so far having put amendments forward.
Steggall moves to have firearms background checks consider “criminal history or proceedings relating to domestic violence or AVOs issued in local courts”, while Katter’s amendment goes to automatically revoking the firearm licence for a person put on an Asio watchlist.
Anthony Albanese stands up in response to Katter to defend the firearms bill as it stands.
This legislation is not about targeting farmers. It’s not about competitive shooters. It’s not about those who law abiding this federal bill will establish a national gun buyback scheme to purchase surplus, newly banned and illegal firearms.
The gun buybacks scheme is based on the same scheme that was introduced under John Howard, Tim Fischer and Kim Beazley, three leaders who all stood up at an important moment for Australia.
The prime minister has tried to put pressure on the Coalition, saying that the government’s scheme follows the work of Howard – but the Coalition, who are opposing the bill, have tried hard to deny that.
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Reports: Israeli president Isaac Herzog to visit Sydney on 7 February
The Times of Israel is reporting that Israeli president, Isaac Herzog, will visit Sydney on 7 February, after he was invited by the Australian government.
Guardian Australia reported earlier this month, that a group of rank-and-file Labor members were urging Anthony Albanese to rescind the invitation.
Albanese said on 24 December that he had requested the governor general, Sam Mostyn, to formally invite Herzog to visit in early 2026, after the attack on Jewish Australians at a Bondi beach Hanukah festival.
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Lidia Thorpe says gun reforms should include transparency about firearms used by police
The independent senator Lidia Thorpe says gun reforms should be expanded to include more oversight of firearms used by law enforcement agencies.
The First Nations senator for Victoria says she will move an amendment in the upper house to ensure the public knows what type of weapons police are using and how many they have.
If we’re serious about gun safety, accountability can’t stop at civilian firearms. Tracking and transparency must apply to all guns, including those issued to police and prison guards.
The public has a right to know what firearms police are importing into this country, how they are stored and used, and what happens to them at the end of their lifecycle.
We already know that stolen firearms are the biggest source of illegal guns in this country, and that most guns used in crime are stolen guns. Yet police firearms are excluded from national tracing systems. That is a dangerous gap.
Updated
In pictures: the government introduces its gun reforms bill to the house
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Gun reforms a ‘cheap political diversion’: Nationals leader
The Nationals leader, David Littleproud, is the next to the dispatch box in the chamber, and is visibly angry as he speaks.
He criticises the legislation as a diversion, but says he does support an increase in security and intelligence background checks for current or prospective gun owners.
This is nothing more than a cheap political diversion, a cheap political diversion that is not facing up to the real problem in this country, which is radical Islamists …
This is a failure of process, not a failure of gun licensing. The fact is, the authorities did not act and take away the licence and the weapons as they should have.
The Coalition has tried to focus the debate on “Islamic extremism”, including leader Sussan Ley who has said that there are two tests for the legislation, that it deals with antisemitism and “radical Islam”.
Updated
CFA annual report shows increase in funding
A delayed annual report for Victoria’s Country Fire Authority has been tabled in parliament this morning, showing the government has actually increased funding for the emergency service.
The report, which was due by the end of October, shows the service received $361.3m in grants in 2024-25, an increase of $21.8m on the previous financial year, when the service received its lowest funding across the forward estimates, $339.5m.
The report was due to be tabled last year but delayed, with the government blaming the Victorian Auditor-General’s Office for the hold up. VAGO responded saying it had provided its report to the government on 11 November.
In a letter attached to the annual report, the emergency services minister, Vicki Ward, said she received the report on 18 December:
As a result of delays in the process to finalise the Annual Report, it was unable to be tabled by 31 October 2025.
Both the government and the CFA have maintained the service has not had a funding cut. Instead, they have said its annual budget fluctuated according to fire risk.
Origin CEO says keeping Eraring open ‘provides more time for renewables’
The chief executive of Origin Energy says the decision to keep Australia’s largest coal-fired energy plant, Eraring, open will allow more time for the renewable energy transition.
In a statement shared to the ASX this morning, the Origin CEO, Frank Calabria, said:
Good progress is being made on the delivery of new energy infrastructure including major transmission works and projects like our large-scale battery at Eraring, but it has become clear Eraring power station will need to run for longer to support secure and stable power supply.
Our decision to keep Eraring operating until April 2029 provides more time for renewables, storage and transmission projects to be delivered, and reflects uncertainty regarding the reliability of Australia’s ageing coal and gas fleet.
Calabria says the extension is not expected to affect Origin’s 2030 emissions reductions targets and 2050 net zero plans.
Updated
Intelligence group urges MPs to work together to pass post-Bondi bills
Parliament’s powerful committee on intelligence and security has recommended MPs pass legislation responding to the Bondi beach terror attack, and “work together in a constructive and collaborative manner” to combat antisemitism, hate and extremism.
A rushed inquiry by the parliamentary joint committee on intelligence and security (PJCIS) has considered Labor’s legislation, including draft hate speech laws and plans for a national gun buyback scheme.
Now split into two bills, the legislation is expected to pass in an emergency sitting today.
The PJCIS recommended provisions on hate crimes and migration as well as firearms reforms be passed.
Made up of Labor and Coalition MPs, the committee said the guns bill should be amended to include a specific defence for individuals who hold a valid licence permitting them to manufacture, repair, maintain or modify firearms, and ensuring that possession or access to firearms, or explosives‑manufacture material, “is not criminalised where the material relates to conduct lawfully authorised under that licence”.
Coalition MPs on the committee issued a dissenting report, calling the bill “poorly drafted, unclear in its operation, insufficiently safeguarded and inadequately consulted on in a transparent manner”.
They said the inquiry was too rushed and the bill should not proceed.
Updated
Gun legislation ‘fundamentally flawed’ says opposition
Speaking after Burke, the shadow attorney general, Andrew Wallace, says the government has taken a “politically driven” approach to the laws, which places “disproportionate burdens” on lawful owners.
Wallace says the opposition will refer the bill to a Senate committee to report back in March this year, and will also move amendments in the Senate.
This proposed gun legislation is fundamentally flawed … Evidence before the PJCIS [parliamentary joint committee on intelligence and security] inquiry demonstrated that these measures are poorly constructed, inadequately justified and unlikely to achieve their stated objectives … the government has chosen a reactive, politically driven approach to the preparation of these proposed laws.
While the government has said their proposed buyback scheme follows a similar program to former Liberal prime minister, John Howard’s, in the aftermath of the Port Arthur massacre, Wallace says this “could not be further from the truth”.
Wallace claims the buyback will be based on prices under market values which he says will provide “little to no incentive for owners to hand in their guns”.
The 1996 buyback gathered covered ammunition and those pieces of equipment, such as scopes and spare parts rendered unusable by virtue of the handing in of individual guns under this buyback, states are told these items explicitly are excluded from compensation. The 1996 buyback compensated legitimate businesses involved in the firearms industry who had suffered due to the buyback arrangements. States under this legislation have been told that these businesses will receive nothing, zip, nada.
Updated
Isabella Higgins to replace Sabra Lane as ABC AM presenter
Former ABC Europe correspondent Isabella Higgins will take over from Sabra Lane as AM presenter, listeners to the flagship radio program were told this morning.
A former Indigenous affairs correspondent and social affairs reporter, the Torres Strait Islander woman joined the ABC in 2014 where she worked her way up through regional and state newsrooms.
It’s an absolute privilege to take on this role at AM, a program with such a strong legacy and loyal audience.
I still recall my joy at getting my very first story on AM as a young reporter and can’t quite believe I’ll be taking on the role of host. Sabra Lane and all the other past hosts leave enormous shoes to fill.
The director of news, Justin Stevens, paid tribute to the “formidable work” from Lane, who is stepping down after nine years in the role.
Updated
Australia’s largest coal plant to continue running for two further years
Australia’s largest coal-fired power plant, Eraring in Lake Macquarie, will stay open for an additional two years, the NSW government has confirmed.
The energy provider had previously agreed a deal with the NSW government to extend Eraring’s closure from 2025 to 2027.
In a statement shared just now, the NSW environment minister, Penny Sharpe, confirmed operator Origin Energy had notified the NSW government, the Australian Stock Exchange and the Australian Energy Market Operator that it will operate Eraring Power Station until April 2029. She said:
Origin’s decision gives certainty to workers, the market and energy consumers across the state, as well as contributing to NSW’s 2030 emissions reduction target.
My number one job is keeping the lights on and putting downward pressure on power prices. NSW is making real progress replacing ageing coal-fired power stations. Since the election, we have increased the amount of renewable energy capacity in operation by almost 70%. That’s equivalent to Eraring’s capacity.
Updated
Government introduces gun reform legislation
The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, is now introducing the gun control bill to parliament.
Speaking in the house, Burke says the alleged Bondi shooters “had hate in their hearts and guns in their hands”, and that the government must do everything it can to combat both the motivation and the method of the alleged killing.
Earlier this week, the government released numbers showing Australians own more than 4m guns. Burke says:
It comes as a shock to most Australians that Australia now has more firearms than we had before Port Arthur, nearly 30 years ago, many people are also surprised to see that it was possible for a visa holder to have a licence, and that the information held by our intelligence agencies was not integrated into the firearms licensing decisions.
A critical question that I’ve often been asked during this debate is, if this national reform package had already been in place, how many firearms would the [alleged] Bondi gunmen have held? Would it be six? Would it be five? Would it be four? The answer is zero.
On the buyback, Burke says the scheme will purchase “surplus and newly restricted firearms”.
Updated
PM pays tribute to former Labor strategist Tim Picton
As parliament begins this morning, Anthony Albanese is making a statement on the death of former Labor campaign strategist, Tim Picton.
Albanese says Picton was highly respected across politics, and worked across the South Australian, Victorian, federal and Western Australian governments. He led the Labor campaign in WA in 2021 that saw Mark McGowan’s landslide win.
Albanese says:
Tim Picton was not only very effective as a political operator, as a human being he was remarkable, he was full of joy, he loved his wife Priya, his daughter Charlotte was the apple of his eye.
Updated
Helen Haines backs government’s gun reforms
Independent MP Helen Haines says she’ll be supporting the government’s gun reforms this morning.
The gun legislation – which will tighten import controls, create a national buyback scheme and increase and strengthen background checks – will pass through the house and Senate with the Greens’ support.
Haines – a regional MP – says while there are legitimate reasons to own firearms, particularly in rural and regional Australia, the laws “strengthen safeguards and help prevent guns from falling into the wrong hands”.
These reforms are not about targeting farmers, sporting shooters or licensed gun owners. They are about making sure people who pose a real risk – including violent extremists and individuals on an Asio watchlist – cannot legally access firearms.
Law-abiding gun owners were as horrified by those events as anyone else – and they can be part of the solution … This bill does not ban firearms. And it does not blame licensed gun owners for acts of violence.
Updated
Students for Palestine hit back at Sussan Ley: ‘We are on the right side of history’
The Students for Palestine group has hit back after Sussan Ley yesterday asserted that university encampments for Gaza contributed to antisemitism that “fuelled” the Bondi terror attack.
Ley, during her address on the condolence motion, said antisemitism came out of the shadows after 7 October 2023, and “it walked our streets, it marched over our bridges, it took over our landmarks, it camped in university quadrangles”.
Students for Palestine has responded to the speech, saying that the Gaza solidarity encampments were “built on the principles of antiracism and solidarity”.
Co-convener Bella Beiraghi said:
Our Gaza solidarity encampments were built on the principles of antiracism and solidarity, demanding an end to the genocide and an end to our universities ties to weapons companies. We are on the right side of history.
Jasmine Duff, another co-convener, told protesters to not be intimidated: “It is always right to march against genocide, against bombing, against starvation.”
Updated
Minns says ‘no silver bullet’ for shark attacks after third incident in two days
The NSW premier, Chris Minns, says he has no “silver bullet” to prevent shark attacks but public warnings after stormy weather may need to be increased following the third attack at Sydney beaches in two days.
Speaking on 2GB this morning, Minns was asked if he had any short-term plans to increase safety following the news a man was left in a critical condition after being bitten by a shark off Manly beach yesterday.
Minns says: “I don’t have a silver bullet here. It’s a really, it’s a difficult one.”
I think that probably our warning system and communication needs to be beefed up, particularly during stormy weather. What happens is bull sharks can identify food via silhouette. They do it by sight. In murky conditions, they might attack a human, whereas under normal circumstances, they wouldn’t.
Minns says he is happy to look at measures introduced by Queensland in its shark control program, but does not support a cull. He says controversial shark nets will remain:
What I would say is that we’re not going to be removing the nets, and that if you look at as tragic as these attacks have been on Sydneysiders, it’s best of my understanding, none have been within the netted areas of major Sydney beaches. And I think that that’s proof positive that those systems have worked.
Updated
Shadow home affairs minister expects a ‘very good outcome’ on hate laws
The shadow home affairs minister, Jonno Duniam, says he believes there will be a “very good outcome” on the hate laws, which will be introduced to parliament this morning.
Speaking to Sky News, Duniam says it’s been a “slog” getting to this point with the government, and that leader Sussan Ley will have more to say on any final agreement.
Changes negotiated by the Liberals include that laws would be subject to review after two years by parliament’s intelligence and security committee and the opposition would be consulted on any decision to “unlist”, as well as list, a hate organisation.
Duniam said:
We’ve come a long way from where we were a week ago when the laws were thumped on the table and the government said take it or leave it … So they’ve dropped some pretty bad parts, and we are working through what’s left of the bill to make sure it actually does work, it does deal with groups like Hizb ut-Tahrir.
Updated
Where are we at this morning?
There are a lot of moving parts, and time is ticking because the house begins sitting at 9am, with the bills to be introduced very soon after.
So we know that the Liberals met last night and agreed to a deal with the government on the hate speech laws – but we’re still waiting for Sussan Ley to stand up this morning to make it official.
The government have been positive this morning, and said conversations have been constructive but that the deal isn’t done “until it’s done”.
The Nationals will be meeting this morning to decide on whether they will support the hate speech bill or vote against. They’ve announced they will vote against Labor’s gun reforms which they say will “punish law-abiding Australian firearms owners” but will move amendments. This isn’t much of a surprise – it was anticipated that the Nats would vote against the gun reforms.
Updated
Free bus service to Western Sydney airport amid metro delays
Leaving parliament for a moment, passengers at Western Sydney airport will be offered a shuttle bus connection to the city’s rail network when the terminal opens this year, amid delays to a high-speed metro line originally intended to open alongside it.
The NSW government has announced the free bus service, connecting the new airport at Luddenham and the heavy rail network at St Marys station, will run every 30 minutes from 4.30am to midnight on Sunday and 1am on Friday and Saturday, with an expected journey time of 30 minutes in normal traffic.
The NSW transport minister, John Graham, says this in addition to local public bus services which will remain after the metro line, expected to deliver a 15-minute connection to St Mary’s, opens:
While the free, interim buses will phase out when the metro opens, the new bus services between the airport and Penrith, Oran Park, Campbelltown, Liverpool, Mount Druitt and Leppington will be a permanent upgrade for public transport.
The NSW opposition has accused the government of mishandling the airport metro project, which the Sydney Morning Herald has reported will open as late as December 2027. Transport spokesperson Natalie Ward says:
This government was supposed to deliver a metro line and is instead delivering a minibus.
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Julian Leeser says he wants government to do more to tackle antisemitism in the arts and universities
The shadow education minister and Jewish MP, Julian Leeser, says Liberal leader Sussan Ley will stand up this morning and announce the Coalition’s position on the hate speech bill, but says the opposition has been working constructively on the bill.
Following Rowland on Radio National Breakfast, Leeser says he won’t provide any details on what the Liberal party decided on during its meeting last night, but that he wants authorities to have the power to deal with antisemitism and hate.
We want to see those organisations that are engaged in those things disrupted. We want to see extremist organisations busted up. We want to see people brought to justice. That’s what we want to see. We want to see powers given to authorities to deal with those issues.
Leeser says he wants the government to do more to tackle antisemitism in the arts and universities.
Updated
Michelle Rowland defends lowering threshold for listing of hate groups
Earlier this morning, Nationals senator Matt Canavan said he had concerns over how broad the listing of hate groups is, and questioned whether “a group that’s calling for the boycott of Israeli products can be classified as a hate group?”
Michelle Rowland says she disagrees with Canavan’s argument, and says that the hate group listing isn’t “novel”, it branches off the existing terror group listing.
She also points out that the legislation allows for groups on the list to be constantly reviewed, and can be removed from the listing.
We know that some of these hate groups have skirted deliberately just below the threshold. For those existing provisions to be enlivened, we need to lower that threshold. And also, I will point out that the drafting of these provisions was also done in close consultation with Jewish representatives. And we heard in the condolence motions yesterday about the kind of harm that is inflicted by antisemitism on Jewish Australians. They include a variety of factors so I disagree with senator Canavan’s assertions.
Updated
Rowland says she can’t guarantee the Coalition will support the split bill
The attorney general, Michelle Rowland, says the two bills on gun control and hate speech will be introduced to parliament this morning and that there has been “constructive engagement” with the Coalition over the last 48 hours.
But on whether that deal is signed, sealed and delivered, Rowland, speaking on the ABC’s Radio National Breakfast, won’t guarantee the Coalition will support the bill when introduced and she says she won’t “pre-empt” anything.
I don’t want to pre-empt any of those conversations, and particularly since they have been undertaken in good faith … some of those issues go around the listing of hate groups and that framework. And it is a fact that the opposition has sought a number of amendments to this area. I will point out that the removal of the serious vilification provisions do mean that these remaining provisions in the prohibited hate groups section do need to do a lot of work.
Updated
Tony Burke says hate speech deal ‘really close’
The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, who under the new legislation would be given the power to list hate groups, as well has cancel or deny visas on broader character grounds, says the laws will not be “as strong as what the government want them to be”, but says his party is close to doing a deal with the Coalition. He tells Sky News:
I think we’re really close. I mean, effectively, the laws won’t be as strong as what the government wants them to be, and that’s been public for a while. But importantly, this will still involve the strongest hate speech laws that Australia’s ever had.
On anti-vilification provisions – which the government was forced to drop – Burke says that he doesn’t see a “pathway” to bring them back, despite some pressure from Labor MPs to do so.
We’ve got to deal with the parliament that we have, and I can’t see a pathway in the current parliament.
Updated
‘There is a long road to keep the Jewish community safe,’ Allegra Spender says
Independent MP Allegra Spender who represents the area that includes Bondi, says she expects hate speech legislation to be passed through parliament today, as the Coalition and government get closer to a deal.
Speaking to ABC News Breakfast this morning, Spender said she had a conversation with the prime minister who indicated a deal had been reached.
It was certainty what I took from that conversation …
I do think it’s important that the parliament comes together and passes some legislation today, but honestly, there is a long road to keep the Jewish community safe, to bring our country together, and repair what we have lost.
Spender has been pushing for strong anti-vilification provisions in parliament, to protect other groups including the LGBTQI+ community, and said she would “continue to pursue these areas”.
Updated
‘It’s not done until it’s done’
The Coalition party room will meet this morning to discuss their final position on the bill, but ministers appear to be feeling positive, calling discussions “constructive”.
On ABC News Breakfast, the education minister, Jason Clare, (who gave an impassioned and emotional address on the condolence motion yesterday) says he’s confident but a deal “is not done until it’s done”.
The whole country are watching us right now. They expect us to come together today, to be bigger than the National parties and take action in the national interest, to keep Australians safe and I’m very confident that will happen today.
Asked about the home affairs minister, Tony Burke’s comments yesterday, that he wished the laws were stronger, Clare says, “I think everyone in the Labor party would have.”
Time is tight – the two bills are due to be introduced when parliament begins sitting this morning, and we can assume that there will still be plenty of debate in the chamber.
Updated
Hate group listing would give home affairs 'way too much power', Canavan says
While the Coalition looks at making an agreement with Labor, there’s still some division within the opposition over elements of the bill.
Nationals senator Matt Canavan has told the ABC’s Radio National Breakfast this morning he’s not a fan of how broad the hate group listing is, which he says would give the home affairs department “way too much power” to ban groups.
Asked whether he would cross the floor if the Coalition decides to support the amended legislation, Canavan says “as the bill is drafted, I’m voting against it”.
Giving a power to a government to ban an entire group is an extremely serious change to our laws. I would have preferred to have much, much more time to look at this for it to go through a proper inquiry process.
Do we jail people for expressing just hate? Because I, I mean, what is hate? It’s very, very important, right … These laws we’re putting in place [to] weaponise words like hate to the extent that people can be put away for years in jail and my perspective here has always been that there is a line here that where someone is inciting a violent act, physically violent acts.
Updated
Good morning, Krishani Dhanji with you here for another very busy sitting day of parliament.
It’s the second of two special sitting days, and it’s crunch time for the government to make an agreement with the Coalition to pass its hate speech bill – something looking increasingly likely after Sussan Ley agreed to cut a deal with Anthony Albanese late yesterday.
A very quick recap for you here: the government was forced to split its omnibus bill over the weekend, with the Greens to pass the gun reform bill and conversations ongoing with the opposition on the rest of the hate speech bill, with the anti-vilification provisions scrapped entirely.
I’ve got my coffee – I hope you’ve got a warm beverage. Let’s get into it!
Updated
Nationals want to 'lean into the intent' of banning hate groups
David Littleproud said his party wants to “lean in to the intent of the banning of hate groups” and “obviously sees the merit in reform to the migration act” after being asked what elements of the Albanese government’s reforms his party wants to support.
The leader of the Nationals appeared on ABC’s 7.30 on Monday night. He said:
We obviously see the merit in reform to [the] Migration Act that gives more power and the ability for the immigration minister to cancel visas.
We also are sympathetic and want to lean into the intent the banning of hate groups, but we’ve got to make sure there’s no unintended consequences in terms of the legislation, and how that interacts and how far-reaching that goes.
Littleproud has said he agrees with sections of the Albanese government’s gun reforms, but maintains that his party will not offer its support, adding that “I don’t believe that guns are the problem.”
He said:
Even the laws that [NSW premier] Chris Minns put in place would not have averted Bondi, because he reduced the ownership of guns in New South Wales to four per person, four guns were used in that tragedy, in that horrific event.
Littleproud said he did not support the government’s proposed buyback scheme, saying:
If you think in all honesty that by spending $1bn you are going to recover illegal guns … and you’re going to save Australians from future terror attacks, then you are kidding yourself.
Updated
Measles alert for western Sydney
People in NSW have been warned to be on the look out for symptoms of measles after authorities reported a confirmed case in a person who has recently returned from Thailand.
NSW Health said the person was “infectious while visiting locations in greater western Sydney”.
Particularly:
Priceline Pharmacy St Clair from 3pm to 4pm on Wednesday 14 January; and
Nepean Hospital Emergency Department from 7.50pm on Friday 16 January 2026 to 7.40pm Saturday 17 January
Anyone in either location is advised to be on alert for up to 18 days the above date of potential exposure to symptoms including a fever, runny nose, sore eyes and cough, followed three to four days later by a red, blotchy rash.
A full list of public exposure locations is here.
Dr Alvis Zibran, a public health specialist at the Nepean Blue Mountains local health district, said it was a reminder to get the measles vaccine – which is free for certain cohorts.
We want to remind the community to make sure they are up-to-date with their vaccinations. The measles vaccine can prevent the disease even after exposure, if given early enough.
This should be a reminder for everyone to check that they are protected against measles, which is highly infectious.
Updated
Australia will see 'drawn-out' and 'above-target inflation', IMF says
The International Monetary Fund says Australia is “projected to see some drawn-out persistence in above-target inflation”, as economists and investors bet the RBA will be forced to hike interest rates this year.
Unemployment figures on Thursday followed by consumer price data the following Wednesday will help determine whether the Reserve Bank will deliver a hike on 3 February.
The IMF’s latest update to its world economic outlook said the global economy has “shaken off” the threat from Trump’s tariff, thanks to an historic surge in tech-related investment in the US and a resilient Chinese economy.
The Washington DC-based organisation did not change its forecasts for Australia’s economic growth, forecasting real GDP would climb by 2.1% in this fiscal year, and 2.2% in the next.
Global growth was upgraded to a projected 3.3% this year, against the October estimate of 3.1%.
The IMF said:
Remarkably, current projections are broadly unchanged from a year earlier, as the global economy shakes off the immediate impact of the tariff shock.
However, the report also said:
This masks underlying fragilities tied to the concentration of investment in the tech sector.
And the negative growth effects of trade disruptions are likely to build up over time.
Welcome
Good morning. Krishani Dhanji will be here shortly to guide you through happenings in Canberra, where the Albanese government is hoping to pass proposed hate speech laws introduced in the wake of the Bondi terror attack. As reported earlier, Anthony Albanese split the draft laws into two bills: one focused on gun control, which will pass with the support of the Greens, and the anti-racial vilification provisions, which require Coalition support.
Both Labor and the Liberal party held party room meetings late yesterday in an attempt to hash out a deal, and last night it seemed increasingly likely the bills would pass.
We are also expecting an announcement from NSW police today on whether they will again extend controversial restrictions on public protests – which would mean the ban was in place on 26 January, when a large Invasion Day rally is planned. Senior police last week suggested it was likely they would extend the ban and would “work with” organisers of the Invasion Day rally. Rally organisers have said they’ll march regardless.
Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund says Australia is projected to see “drawn-out persistence in above-target inflation”, further hinting at a potential rate hike for later in the year.
We’re also keeping an eye on extreme weather across the country, after at least two homes were lost in a bushfire that tore through the Fleurieu peninsula near Adelaide on Sunday.
Let’s crack on.
