What we learned today, Monday 22 September
And that’s where we’ll leave you this evening. Here’s a snapshot of what we learned today:
Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has lashed Australia’s decision to recognise Palestinian statehood.
The opposition leader, Sussan Ley, and shadow foreign affairs minister, Michaelia Cash, issued a joint statement saying they “strongly oppose” the Albanese government’s decision to recognise a Palestinian state.
Optus has identified another seven people who could not contact triple zero on Thursday during the outage.
The South Australian premier, Peter Malinauskas, said he was bewildered by the lack of communication between Optus and the state government during the outage last week.
Nerida O’Loughlin, the Australian Communications and Media Authority chair, said Acma wasn’t “notified at all until the outage was resolved”.
Anika Wells, the minister for communications, said Optus would be held to account after the triple-zero outage.
The RBA is “getting closer” to being able to declare inflation is back under control, the governor, Michele Bullock, said.
Meta will begin testing AI in Australia on teens on Instagram suspected of being under 18 but whose account age is listed as being over 18.
The Northern Territory Director of Public Prosecutions will decide whether to lay charges over the death of Kumanjayi White, a Warlpiri man with disability who died after being restrained by police in an Alice Springs supermarket in May.
A man has been charged with the alleged murder of 49-year-old Crystal Beale in Brisbane in February this year.
A “root and branch” review of the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) found the organisation suffers from a lack of leadership, poor budget management and a “culture of fear” among its staff.
Two people were transported to hospital in stable condition after a chemical leak in a building in Brisbane’s CBD this morning.
The Mackay Hospital and Health Service has issued a measles alert for the region.
The NSW government announced a ban on converted ebikes on the state rail network, saying the risk of lithium-ion battery fires was too great.
Thanks so much for your company today. Nick Visser will be back with you bright and early tomorrow morning. Look after yourselves until then.
Updated
Australia set to have its longest ski season since 2022
Some Australian ski resorts will apparently still be open in October, with Weatherzone reporting that about half of all ski lifts are still running at Mt Buller, Falls Creek, Mt Hotham, Thredbo and Perisher. That would make the ski season the country’s longest since 2022.
Updated
