What we learned – Wednesday 10 June
And with that, we are going to put the blog to bed. Before we go, let’s recap today’s headlines.
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Australia has joined the UK and other western allies in introducing sanctions against “extremist settlers” accountable for the “horrific levels of settler violence against Palestinian civilians”.
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Catherine King, the federal transport minister, said the government maintains that a diplomatic solution is needed amid renewed tensions in the Middle East surrounding the strait of Hormuz.
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The Australian government is liable for paying damages to Safwat Abdel-Hady who the high court ruled today was unlawfully held in immigration detention for 18 months because he could not be removed to another country.
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Prosecutors have filed court attendance notices today for 19 fresh charges laid against Naveed Akram for his alleged role as a gunman in the Bondi terror attack, taking the total number of charges against him to 78.
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Mark Latham will have to pay more than half a million dollars after he failed to overturn a court ruling over a homophobic social media post aimed at Alex Greenwich.
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Almost 1,300 people in NSW are stuck in hospital beds awaiting either an aged care or NDIS placement, the state government has said, prompting it to pursue its own strategy to address the issue in federally funded hospitals.
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A man believed to be homeless has been found dead with burn injuries in a park on a quiet street in Melbourne’s east.
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Mourners gathered at the Melbourne Cricket Ground for the state funeral of AFL great and MND crusader Neale Daniher.
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Pocock says Australia needs to ‘stare down’ AI companies on datacentres
David Pocock was asked if regulating datacentres further could discourage investment. He said:
Every AI company that my team has met with has said we desperately want to come to Australia. Australia is the target, and so we have a lot of power here.
Let’s not buy the same lines that the gas industry and others say, and say, ‘well, if you actually make us pay tax, then we’re not going to come, we’ll go elsewhere’.
I think we need to stare them down and actually say, ‘you can come here, but these are the not voluntary expectations, these are the actual laws, and this is how we’re going to get a return’, because we’ve got to be thinking, what is good over the next decade, two decades, not just what’s going to prop up GDP for the next few years.
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Australia is ‘sleepwalking’ into AI and its impacts, Pocock says
David Pocock has said Australia is “sleepwalking” into the impact that artificial intelligence will have on the country, saying there remains many unanswered questions by the government.
Speaking on ABC’s Background Briefing, the independent senator for ACT said:
I think we are sleepwalking into this as a country, we’re not talking about the potential job losses, the plan for that, what AI means for the very fabric of our society when it comes to datacentres, which are clearly going to fuel that.
There’s some real unanswered questions in terms of the government’s statement of expectations. Just expecting companies to do something doesn’t cut it, and my bigger concern is once these things are built, how do we actually benefit?
These are all companies that have a track record of minimising their tax to an extraordinary degree.
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NSW health minister takes aim at federal government
The NSW health minister has said the state has been “forced” to spend “tens of millions of dollars every single year on essentially doing the commonwealth’s job” as patients become stranded in federally funded hospitals.
As we covered in the blog a little earlier, the state government has said almost 1,300 people in NSW are stuck in hospital beds awaiting either an aged care or NDIS placement, prompting it to pursue its own strategy to address the issue in federally funded hospitals.
Speaking on ABC Afternoon Briefing, Ryan Park, said:
[We’re now] spending tens of millions of dollars every single year on essentially doing the commonwealth’s job.
These are 1300 people, remember, that have finished their care in our state’s hospitals. They no longer need it, but they’re taking up a bed, which is terrible for them and their family.
Park said the state government needed the commonwealth government to rapidly increase home care packages so people can return to their home with the care they need.
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‘No government should be able to unlawfully detain people and then walk away’
The Asylum Seeker Resource Centre has responded to today’s high court ruling which found the Australia government unlawfully held Safwat Abdel-Hady in immigration detention for 18 months.
(My colleague Sarah Basford Canales covered the news a little earlier here.)
Jana Favero, deputy chief executive of the centre, said:
Today’s decision was a critical step towards justice for people who have had years of their lives taken from them by Australia’s immigration detention system.
This decision is not just about the years that have been taken from people, it is also about the harm that has been done to them during that time.
It is about the trauma that has been inflicted on them in the detention environment - the use of restraints including body belts and handcuffs, medical neglect, and having every moment of their lives controlled by security guards.
No government should be able to unlawfully detain people and then walk away from the damage it has caused.
Today’s ruling could be a watershed moment on whether the government could be liable for damages for more than 350 unlawful non-citizens released after the high court ruled against indefinite detention in 2023.
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NSW police officer charged with negligent driving over crash with motorbike while off-duty
A New South Wales police officer has been charged with negligent driving after he crashed into a motorbike rider while off-duty.
Police said in a statement:
About 5.40pm on Tuesday 23 December 2025, emergency services were called to the intersection at Garfield Road East and Picadilly Street, at Riverstone, after reports of a crash involving a sedan and motorcycle.
The rider, a 19-year-old man, was treated by NSW Ambulance paramedics before being taken to hospital with serious injuries.
The 33-year-old senior constable was charged with one count of negligent driving and also one count of negligent driving occasioning grievous bodily harm.
He will appear before Blacktown local court on 28 July.
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NSW government to pursue its own strategy on hospital bed issues, saying commonwealth left it ‘no choice’
Almost 1,300 people in New South Wales are stuck in hospital beds awaiting either an aged care or NDIS placement, the state government has said, prompting it to pursue its own strategy to address the issue in federally funded hospitals.
The government said this strategy would include:
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NSW expanding aged care outreach services
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Strengthening hospital in the home services
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Triaging and referring patients to community-based service
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Strengthening discharge planning for complex patients
The NSW health minister, Ryan Park, said:
The NSW Government is effectively subsidising the Commonwealth in its duty to provide aged care places.
The government said that in the year up to March 2026, the number of stranded patients in NSW hospital beds surged from 871 to 1,276.
Almost 950 of these people are older patients waiting for an aged care placement.
Park said:
The growth in the number of stranded commonwealth aged care patients in our health system is unsustainable, and the commonwealth has left the NSW Government with no choice but to devise its own plan.
While the NSW Government is pursuing its own plan to address bed block, this is by no means a signal to the Commonwealth that they are relieved of their responsibility to deliver aged care placements.
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Neale Daniher’s state funeral comes to an end
The state funeral for Neale Daniher has come to an end, with his casket escorted out of the MCG by pallbearers – daughter Lauren, sons Luke and Ben, son-in-law Drew and brothers Terry and Chris – to Sting’s “Fields of Gold.”
Master of ceremonies Hamish McLachlan says:
Neale, we will honour your wishes and play on. Rest in peace.
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NSW councils call for $5bn loan facility to boost infrastructure and housing
Councils from across NSW have come together to call for the state government to establish a $5bn interest-free loan facility so councils in the regions and Western Sydney can deliver infrastructure that will help unlock more housing supply.
In a plan released today titled Unlocking Homes, Local Government NSW – the peak body for council’s in the state – has proposed a new system that it says would unlock up to 70,000 homes.
This includes the $5bn interest-free loan facility, which it said council’s would repay after developer contributions were paid, and would be spent on up-front investments like roads and sewage.
Darcy Byrne, the LGNSW president and mayor of the Inner West council, said:
We are seeing across Western Sydney, in particular, that without up-front investment in roads, water, sewage and stormwater, housing is simply not being built.
It also called for an expansion on what developer contributions can be used for, and to include social infrastructure such as libraries, childcare facilities and pools.
Byrne said:
We agree with the NSW Government that the housing crisis is the number one challenge facing the State, but we also know that too little investment in the basic infrastructure needed for new homes is making the crisis worse.
Put simply, if we are serious about actually fixing the housing crisis, we need the NSW Government to do more to fix the infrastructure roadblocks that are preventing housing supply.
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Alex Greenwich says ‘justice prevailed’ after Mark Latham appeal dismissed
Alex Greenwich has said “justice prevailed” prevailed today after the federal court upheld a ruling that Mark Latham defamed him in a “a sexually aggressive social media post”.
Greenwich, the independent MP for Sydney, said in a statement after the court dismissed the appeal:
Justice is a long game. More than three years ago, Mr Latham defamed me in a sexually aggressive social media post that subjected me to an avalanche of homophobic hate.
He failed to take responsibility for his actions. Today, justice prevailed: his appeal has been dismissed and the judgment in my favour upheld.
Latham, the former One Nation turned independent NSW MP, was found in September 2024 to have defamed Greenwich in an explicit tweet during the 2023 state election.
Greenwich said it had been a tough few years and that he was deeply grateful for the support from his loved ones and colleagues.
He said:
This is an important judgment at a time when politics is too often charged with divisive vitriol. Like the original judgment and the NCAT ruling, it makes clear there is no place in Australian civil discourse for the kind of conduct Mr Latham engaged in.
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Good afternoon. I’ll now be taking you through our rolling news coverage for the rest of today.
That’s all from me. Jordyn Beazley will take things from here. Take care.
NSW admits pro-Palestine protester Hannah Thomas was assaulted by police officers and falsely imprisoned
The state of New South Wales has admitted that a police officer punched Hannah Thomas in the eye while holding a torch at a pro-Palestine protest – and it’s offered to pay her medical costs.
Court documents seen by Guardian Australia reveal that the state has admitted to false imprisonment and battery in its defence to a civil action launched by the former Greens candidate in October.
NSW has denied claims of malicious prosecution and malfeasance in public office.
Thomas was arrested and charged alongside four others at a pro-Palestine protest in Sydney in late June 2025 that was attended by about 60 people at SEC Plating. Three months later, the office of the director of public prosecutions (DPP) dropped all charges against Thomas and three other protesters.
Read more here:
Neale Daniher's daughter Bec: 'You inspired so many, but to me you were simply my dad'
Daniher’s son Luke said while the crowd knew him as a footballer, coach and campaigner, to him he was a “man with a sweet tooth who occasionally hid his chocolate biscuits from us four kids”.
One of Dad’s happiest memories wasn’t a football memory at all. It was watching the children become parents and seeing the grandchildren grow. The older I get, the more I realise Dad’s greatest legacy isn’t what he achieved, it’s what he passed on – the values, the perspective, the example.
Daughter Bec, who is the executive director and spokesperson for FightMND, says her dad was her mentor:
I once heard that grief is the price that we pay for love, and I loved you boundlessly. So, I’ll carry that grief gladly, because it comes from it, comes from such a deep privilege to have had those laughs, those lessons, the challenges, and all those moments in between, the big and small, that shaped who I am today. I wouldn’t trade a single one. To the world you inspired so many, but to me you were simply my dad, the one who guided me when I couldn’t see the next step, whose laughter filled the room, whose charm and cheeky smile could light up anyone around him.
She said in the coming weeks she will welcome a baby boy he was desperate to meet but she knows he will have Daniher’s “spirit and laugh”.
Son Ben described Daniher as his “kindred spirit”, who he talked “endlessly” to about politics, movies and music:
My dad was a tyrant when it came to the control of the music, and anyone who knows me well knows I inherited that trait. We both like to rule the speakers with an iron fist. Some have said they haven’t seen a more autocratic father-son duo since Kim Jong-il and Kim Jong-un … and they’re probably right.
There have also been touching tributes from his young grandchildren, Cooper and Rosie. Cooper said:
When I was born, Pops couldn’t hold me with his arms. He still found a way to rock me with his legs, even when he couldn’t talk. He used his machine to chat and called me and my brother Ollie cheeky monkeys. My pops was strong, brave, and courageous, and I hope I can be like him when I grow up. I miss you, Poppy, play on.
Rosie said she wishes he could “come back to see us and take me on adventures:
I wish he could come back to the Big Freeze. Poppy, I see you as a star in the sky. I hope you got to see me push the sliders down. I love you.
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Mark Latham will have to pay Alex Greenwich after failed appeal over homophobic tweet
A maverick New South Wales MP will have to pay more than half a million dollars after he failed to overturn a court ruling over a homophobic social media post aimed at a parliamentary rival, AAP reports.
The right-wing independent MP Mark Latham was found in September 2024 to have defamed Sydney MP Alex Greenwich in an explicit tweet during the 2023 state election.
He posted the tweet – which described a sex act – in response to a news article in which Greenwich described Latham as a “disgusting human being”.
The federal court found the post exposed Greenwich, who is gay and a vocal LGBTQ+ advocate, to hatred and ridicule.
Latham was previously ordered to pay $140,000 in damages as well as an estimated $400,000 to cover a large portion of Greenwich’s legal costs.
The former NSW One Nation leader sought to quash the court’s ruling, claiming that calling someone gay or saying gay men had sex was not defamatory.
Greenwich filed a cross-appeal to increase the damages on the basis that the post implied he was unfit to sit in parliament.
On Wednesday, three federal court appeal judges dismissed both the appeal and cross-appeal.
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‘I love you, darling’: Daniher’s family pay tribute at state funeral
Neale Daniher’s family also paid tribute to him, with his wife, Jan, speaking first. She says they first met at a family friend’s 21st birthday party and have been together since:
Our first date was a lunch in a dark old pub on Swanston Street that had a very limited menu of sausages, lamb’s fry, and chips. I’m fairly sure this was Neale’s way of checking, just to see how down to earth I was. I must have passed the test. We were married in 1985 and we were married for 41 years.
She says it was when Neale was the general manager of football operations at the West Coast Eagles – when “life was full, we were busy and things were going well” – that he first began to notice weakness in his hand and was later diagnosed with MND.
Being told there is no treatment, no cure, and that the life expectancy is around 27 months. It’s devastating and it was almost impossible to believe, but Neale took on the challenge.
Jan told the crowd the entire family went on the journey together:
There were moments of joy and sadness, fear and love, strength and determination. It wasn’t easy. It was incredibly difficult, but we faced each challenge together, and we never gave up. We’re incredibly lucky that Neale got to meet his six beautiful grandchildren, but MND doesn’t define Neale.
Neale is defined by his character, his integrity, his humility, his honesty, his strength, and resilience, by his sharp wit, his cheeky smile, his love of family and friends, and his wonderful love of laughter. This is how we will remember Neale. I love you, darling.
Daniher’s daughter Lauren said he never complained:
You got up each day and focused on what you could do, and you made the most of every single moment Even when his body was failing, his mind was still fighting on right to the very end, I’ll miss walking through the front door and seeing you smile from your chair.
I will miss the look of annoyance when I misunderstood what you were trying to communicate, and if you’re wondering what that look is, just Google a picture of Dad from his coaching days. I will miss that cheeky grin you would have on your face while you typed a smartarse comment, and I will miss the wink you would give us when we sorted what you needed. We will play on for you, Dad. I love you.
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Albanese says Daniher ‘one of the most positive people’ he’s ever met
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, spoke next, describing Daniher as a hero:
When confronted with an adversity that most of us simply cannot imagine, facing odds that could not be beaten, Neale chose to fight. In doing so, he gave new hope to thousands of Australians living their own struggle against motor neurone disease, and he inspired all of us with his courage, with his determination, with his humor, and his invincible optimism.
Albanese says Daniher was “one of the most positive people I have ever had the honour of meeting”.
Finding a cure was always about saving the lives of others. It was the same when he was awarded Australian of the Year in 2025 Neale didn’t see that as an accolade for what he had done. He treated it as a platform to continue his work and to share his call to action.
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Victoria premier says Neale Daniher ‘understood football, but more than that, he understood people’
The Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, was the first speaker at Neale Daniher’s state funeral. A lifelong Essendon supporter, she says she grew up following the “mighty Daniher brothers, all four of them in red and black”.
She went on:
That was how Victoria first came to know Neale – one of the Daniher boys, a country New South Wales footballer who made his mark in the VFL and the AFL, and later Melbourne’s coach, [where he] coached for 223 games, including that grand final here against Essendon in 2000.
Allan says that as a coach, Daniher was known as “the Reverend”, a nickname she says suited him:
A deep thinker, a fierce competitor, a man who understood football, but more than that, he understood people. When Neale spoke, people felt it. He brought them in, not around anger or grievance, but around purpose, around hope, around the belief that if enough people cared, something could change. He really was the Reverend, and all of us were part of his flock.
She says a letter Daniher sent her in late 2025 is on her desk. In it, he wrote: “You can’t always choose what happens, but you can always choose how you respond. Waiting for certainty keeps you stuck, and courage begins the moment you decide”.
Allan says the words have stayed with her:
I think about them on hard days, and they say so much about how Neale lived his life. He did not choose MND but he did choose how he would meet it – with courage, with purpose, with love, by turning his own suffering into something that could help others.
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How do you like them apples?
Nicholas Jordan is back with a new taste test: this time, it’s Australian apples.
These are always controversial, so steel yourself to either be vindicated or frustrated.
Check out the results below:
No indication yet of how alleged Bondi attacker will plead
Returning to news that the alleged Bondi attacker will officially face 19 fresh charges.
Outside court earlier today, Leonie Gittani, one of Naveed Akram’s lawyers, gave no indication of how her client will plead when she spoke to reporters.
Prosecutors are yet to file the brief of evidence which Akram’s lawyers will view and may inform how Akram pleads.
Deputy chief judge Michael Antrum approved a request by prosecutors on Wednesday to extend the deadline for the brief of evidence to 12 August, taking it two months beyond the usual six-month time limit for briefs to be served.
Antrum said:
I’m sure there’s a significant volume of material.
Gittani said outside court the case was “unprecedented” and “there’s still a way to go”.
She also said it wasn’t unexpected that additional charges would be laid given the “magnitude” of the case.
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Australia’s AI regulation to face scrutiny in new inquiry
Submissions have opened for a Senate inquiry into AI datacentres in Australia.
Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young will chair the body, which will look into the economic, environmental and social impacts of the surge in AI infrastructure, including questions around energy and water use and their effects on local communities.
Hanson-Young said in a statement today:
AI is the new extractive industry and Australia’s regulations are lagging behind. Like the gas industry, these massive data miners want to extract Australia’s resources for free, paying very little for the data, water and energy all used to make their huge corporate profits …
If we don’t put the handbrakes on this rapid datacentre development our communities, energy and water resources will be at risk.
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AFL greats arrive for Neale Daniher's state funeral
There are a few AFL greats arriving at the MCG for the state funeral of Neale Daniher.
They include Essendon player and former Fremantle coach Mark Harvey, Brisbane coach Chris Fagan, and Daniher’s brothers, Terry and Anthony, who also played alongside him on the same Essendon team.
David Neitz and Paul Hopgood, former Melbourne players and close friends of Daniher have also arrived, as has former footballer and commentator, Rex Hunt, Scott Selwood, who played at West Coast when Daniher was the club’s football manager, and former Nationals MP Damian Drum, who also used to play and coach AFL.
According to the order of service, after the Welcome to Country and national anthem, we’ll hear from Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, the prime minister Anthony Albanese and then Daniher’s wife, Jan, and four children: Loz, Luke, Bec and Ben.
Anthony Daniher, Neitz, Hopgood and Fagan will also make a tribute, along with Daniher’s close friend, Cam Taylor.
Singer-songwriter Gary Pinto will perform between the tributes.
The back of the order of service booklet features a quote from Daniher himself:
I hope to leave a legacy that says this: no matter the odds, no matter the diagnosis, we all have the power to fight, to smile, and to do. Because the mark of a person isn’t what they say; it’s what they do.
The funeral service begins at 1pm.
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Funding lifeline saves Tasmanian and SA smelters, including more than 1,000 jobs
More than 1,000 workers at two major smelters have been given a lifeline after a metals producer received a $105m government boost, AAP reports.
The joint federal and state funding will keep Nyrstar’s Hobart and Port Pirie, South Australia plants running through 2026 while the international company weighs up major investments in critical minerals production.
The agreement follows the expiry of a $135m rescue package in May and weeks of tense talks over how much taxpayer money would be put on the table to secure the sites.
The new deal would keep workers in jobs and protect Australia’s ability to process minerals vital to defence, semiconductor, energy and automotive industries, industry and innovation minister, Tim Ayres, said.
Nyrstar, headquartered in the Netherlands, is a major producer of lead, silver, zinc and other critical minerals at the Port Pirie and Hobart smelters.
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Homeless man found dead with burn injuries in Melbourne’s east
A man believed to be homeless has been found dead with burn injuries in a park on a quiet street in Melbourne’s east.
Police said a passerby found the man in parkland in Donvale about 4.20pm on Tuesday. The man was yet to be identified this morning but it appeared he had no fixed address and may have been sleeping rough in the area.
Arson squad detectives attended the scene but not homicide detectives, a police spokesperson said. They declined to share further detail on the suspected burns.
An autopsy will be carried out and a report prepared for the coroner to determine whether the man’s death was suspicious, police said.
Officers are making further inquiries into the man’s identity. Police urged anyone who may have seen him in the area, knows the man’s identity or has other information to contact Crime Stoppers.
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Crowds gather for Neale Daniher’s funeral at MCG
Here are some more images coming from Neale Daniher’s state funeral at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, as crowds continue to gather:
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Mourners arrive at MCG for state funeral of Neale Daniher
Mourners have begun arriving at the Melbourne Cricket Ground for the state funeral of AFL great and motor neurone disease crusader Neale Daniher, who died at home on 25 May, aged 65.
Daniher, the 2025 Australian of the Year, became the symbol of the fight against MND after his 2013 diagnosis with the incurable and fatal disease, which he dubbed “The Beast”.
He defied the odds, battling MND for 13 years when the average life expectancy is 27 months.
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, will lead tributes at the funeral – on the hallowed grounds where Daniher played for Essendon and coached Melbourne.
The state funeral comes just two days after the annual Big Freeze match between Collingwood and Melbourne, which raised $2.5m for FightMND. The governor-general, Sam Mostyn, was among the high-profile figures who slid into an ice bath as part of the festivities.
- Australian Associated Press
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Government R&D spending falls when adjusted for inflation
Government spending on research and development (R&D) has fallen in real terms in the latest financial year, new Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data shows.
Spending was $4.4bn in 2024-25, up 1% from 2022-23 before adjusted for inflation.
The head of business statistics at the ABS, Tom Lay, said the increase was the “lowest since 2018-19, when it grew 2 per cent”.
When adjusted for the impacts of inflation, government spending on R&D declined by 4 per cent in 2024-25 in real terms.
Government spending on R&D as a proportion of GDP fell from 0.17% in 2022-23 to 0.16% in 2024-25, the ABS data showed, well below the OECD average of 2.73%.
The largest rise was for environmental sciences, up $224m or 55%, followed by biomedical and clinical sciences.
University and science bodies have consistently lobbied governments to increase R&D spending to 3% of GDP in line with global competitors, arguing it drives productivity and economic growth.
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One Nation says it will ‘target Labor held seats’ as rightwing party seeks supporter donations
In a donation drive email today seeking contributions from supporters, Pauline Hanson’s party claims Labor is “destroying the Australia we know”, branding prime minister Anthony Albanese a “liar”.
“One Nation has proven we can win lower house seats – so it’s time to target Labor held seats,” the email says.
One Nation’s polling surge, now outperforming both Labor and Liberal on primary votes, has previously been seen as a threat to conservative parties – but outer suburban or regional Labor-held seats could also come under threat if current polling levels hold until the next election.
In a campaign they’re calling “fire the liar”, One Nation references a donation drive from Labor to its supporters, in which the government party sought funds from its backers to “prevent One Nation from turning polling momentum into seats”.
It is commonplace for politicians and parties of all stripes – Labor, Liberal, One Nation, independent and more – to regularly seek donations from supporters in email fundraising campaigns.
Hanson on Tuesday had claimed it was “disgusting” for Labor to seek donations:
I just can’t believe that they are brave enough to ask poor Australians to give over their money to fund their campaigns. It’s just disgusting.
One Nation has sent at least weekly emails to subscribers, suggesting donation amounts of between $5 and $100 to “support our fight to challenge the two-party system – fund ads, materials, and campaigning on the ground”. The emails direct supporters to the party’s website, where a blurb states: “One Nation needs your help to break the party system.”
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Government loses indefinite detention case in high court, liable for damages
The Australian government is liable for paying damages to a man it unlawfully held in immigration detention for 18 months because he could not be removed to another country, the high court has ruled.
The case of Safwat Abdel-Hady could be a watershed moment on whether the government could be liable for damages for more than 350 unlawful non-citizens released after the high court ruled against indefinite detention in 2023.
The Austrian citizen was unlawfully held in immigration detention for a period of 18 months because his health conditions restricted his travel, and meant he had no real prospect of removal to another country.
The high court’s ruling this morning means the government cannot defend against damages claims on the basis that it relied on the high court’s previous 2004 ruling in Al-Kateb – which was overruled in 2023 – allowing non-citizens without a visa who cannot be removed to another country to remain in indefinite detention.
Abdel-Hady’s matter will now be heard in the federal circuit court, which will determine whether he is liable for damages.
We’ll bring you more once we work through the reasons.
Read more:
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Bondi terror accused Naveed Akram formally charged with 19 new offences
Prosecutors have filed court attendance notices today for 19 fresh charges laid against Naveed Akram for his alleged role as a gunman in the Bondi terror attack, taking the total number of charges against him to 78.
A commonwealth prosecutor told Downing Centre local court on Wednesday that the documents had been filed today after the new charges against Akram were first revealed last month.
Akram, 24, and his father, 50-year-old Sajid Akram, allegedly killed 15 people after opening fire at a Hanukah festival at Bondi beach on 14 December.
Akram, who survived a shootout with police, was charged in December with 59 offences, including 15 counts of murder and one count of committing a terrorist act that investigators allege may have been “inspired by Isis”. Sajid Akram was shot and killed by police at the scene.
The new charges include 10 counts of shooting with intent to murder and six charges of discharging a firearm with intent to resist arrest.
Prosecutors sought another extension on Wednesday to file the brief of evidence, with the court setting a new due date of 12 August. The prosecutor said they were still working through about 230,000 CCTV images and numerous devices “from other persons purportedly linked to the defendant” that required translation. She told the court:
We are progressing really steadily and well through the preparation of this matter towards charged verification.
An interim suppression order was placed over a number of the victims and complainants named in the fresh charges, which the court heard included police officers.
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ACT will move to abolish stamp duty for first home buyers
First home buyers in the ACT will no longer have to pay stamp duty, the territory government will reveal, as it hands down a budget mired in debt, AAP reports.
Housing is central to ACT treasurer Chris Steel’s second budget, to be unveiled on Wednesday.
The latest milestone in ACT Labor’s long-term project to abolish stamp duty in favour of higher property rates will extend the exemption to all first home buyers from 1 July.
Currently, only homes under $1m are exempt and purchasers must be below income eligibility thresholds.
The ACT will become the first jurisdiction in Australia to fully abolish stamp duty for people entering the property market.
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First test of national emergency warning alert system coming today in Canberra suburb
Australia’s emergency warning system will get its first test today, in the Canberra suburb of Duffy, with the federal government advising it is only a trial run and recipients of alerts don’t need to do anything.
The AusAlert system will see text messages sent to all mobile phones in each area, accompanied by a siren warning. The system is to warn Australians about natural hazards like bushfires and floods, security threats like public safety events or terrorism, and biosecurity or health emergencies.
The system will be operational later this year, with a nationwide test on 27 July, but small local tests will be carried out in the coming weeks.
Duffy is the first test site, with more scheduled in Launceston on 15 June, Cooya Beach in Queensland on 16 June, Liverpool in New South Wales on 17 June, and Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory and Victoria’s Geelong on 18 June, with more tests in following days.
The government is saying that people who receive a test alert don’t need to do anything, because it is just a test.
“A test alert will be sent to all mobile devices in the selected testing area at the time of the test. If you are in the test area with a compatible mobile device you may receive the alert,” the government website states.
Devices may vibrate and play a siren-like warning sound for about 10 seconds. An AusAlert message may appear on device screens. It will clearly say it is a test. Exactly how it appears will depend on your device type and operating system.
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Disability discrimination commissioner warns NDIS changes will leave participants in ‘unsafe situations’
The disability discrimination commissioner, Rosemary Kayess, has called for a halt to the Albanese government’s planned overhaul of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) as she warns proposed participant budget cuts will leave “people in unsafe situations”.
Kayess is appearing on the second day of a Senate inquiry into Labor’s sweeping changes to the NDIS, which are designed to save $37.8bn over four years.
Among the changes are new powers that would allow the federal minister to make cuts to entire categories of support.
The health minister, Mark Butler, intends to use that power to order cuts of 50% to funding for social and community participation activities. Participants use the funding to hire support workers to accompany them into public, helping to build independence and reduce social isolation.
Under questioning from the independent senator, David Pocock, Kayess warned the cuts could cause significant harm to participants.
She said:
We know it will leave people in unsafe situations. We had four-and-a-half years of evidence given to the disability royal commission. People with disability in 2009, 2010 after the first round for a disability strategy identified the way that the vulnerability that is created when people are isolated and that’s how they become vulnerable, they end up in either closed environments or isolated environments and they are at risk of violence, abuse, and exploitation.
Asked if the bill should pass in its current form, Kayess said:
No, I think it needs to stop and slow down so there can be far more analysis. I feel the analysis we’ve been able to do over the last couple of weeks is still inadequate.
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Western Sydney airport opening date set for 25 October
Western Sydney international airport’s inaugural flight will take off on 25 October, with its executives pledging to help ease demand on some of Australia’s busiest domestic routes, AAP reports.
Jetstar and Qantas tickets go on sale from Wednesday morning, with the budget carrier to run a combined 21 services a week to Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
Qantas will begin flying to and from the airport in March 2027.
The first flight out of Sydney’s second airport will be a Jetstar service to the Gold Coast at 11am on 25 October.
Two international routes – Auckland and Changi – had previously been announced.
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KPMG loses contracts and leaders amid scandal over alleged confidential leaks
The Australian chief executive of global accounting firm KPMG has resigned and its lucrative government contracts are under threat amid a growing scandal over alleged leaks of clients’ confidential information.
The London-headquartered company allegedly leaked secret documents and breached independence rules, around the same time its competitor PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) was banned from working for the Australian government for leaking confidential tax information for commercial gain.
KPMG has already lost at least one $10m-a-year contract and will face two inquiries.
Here’s what you need to know:
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Albanese urges ‘civil’ discourse on immigration debate amid One Nation rise
Anthony Albanese says he wants to dial down the temperature on the immigration debate, refusing to launch attacks against the opposition and One Nation’s policies.
The prime minister joined ABC Melbourne this morning but was hesitant to label the opposition’s policy to remove welfare access for permanent residents as “racist”.
He said:
Quite clearly, [Angus Taylor] has decided to compete with One Nation in that sphere … I’m not about using slogans. I’m saying that it’s not factually correct to say that someone who is an Australian permanent resident from a place, like India or China, where you can’t have dual citizenship, who, for practical reasons, or indeed there are so many people from the United Kingdom and from a range of countries who’ve been here almost their whole life who aren’t citizens …
We need to be able to have discourse, which is civil, where people are able to discuss things in a factual way, put different views, sure, but do it in a way that has some respect rather than the way that discourse is occurring.
Albanese was also asked by a listener whether the immigration debate occurring is due to higher levels of non-white migrants entering the country.
There are a range of factors which will drive people’s views, and I don’t think Australians aren’t homogenous. They don’t have one view, people will have a range of different views, but what I say is that we are stronger because of the diversity that is here in this country.
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Disability workers will push for 35% pay rise
Community and disability workers are pursuing the largest pay rise in decades in an historic claim, as the government continues to defend significant cuts to the National Disability Insurance Scheme, AAP reports.
The Australian Services Union will push for a 35% wage increase for 300,000 workers in the claim, citing the growing demands and complexity of their roles.
Emeline Gaske, the ASU’s national secretary, said the workforce, which is overwhelmingly made up of women, has been undervalued and underpaid for decades.
“We surveyed our members and what they told us was stark. More than half say they cannot get ahead financially. One in three won’t have enough to retire on,” she said ahead of the claim being filed on Wednesday.
As the sector continues to grow and demand for workers is surging, we cannot afford to lose workers because pay is failing to keep up with the cost of living. Something has to give, and that something is pay.
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How the war in Iran could leave one Australian farmer $600,000 out of pocket
John Bennett’s farm is more than 11,000km from the strait of Hormuz, yet the war in the Middle East is having a daily impact on the grain grower’s life. He estimates increased fertiliser costs could strip about $600,000 from his farm’s bottom line this season.
“Numbers are big in farming,” Bennett says. “And in the end not a lot comes out at the end of the pipe.”
Albanese says ‘we need to do more’ on house prices
Albanese was asked if he’s been surprised by any backlash to the changes to the capital gains tax discount and negative gearing.
“Tax reform’s hard … We’re working through these issues,” the prime minister said, pointing to efforts to support first home buyers. “The changes that we’ve made are modest.”
He went on to note the changes include grandfathering provisions that won’t hurt those already with negatively geared assets.
Albanese maintained that Treasury forecasts on house prices don’t show falls, but rather a much smaller increase over time rather than large gains.
It is certainly the case that since the changes were made in 1999, house prices have increased by 400%. That’s more than double the increase in incomes, and that’s what leads and explains the gap that’s there in affordability.
What we’ve done is thrown everything at supply … But we need to do more. Which is why these changes are aimed at boosting supply as well as giving first home buyers a fair crack.
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Albanese says Australia still impacted by Middle East conflict ‘each and every day’
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, is now on the ABC News Breakfast couch. He said Australia remains concerned about the economic impact of the turmoil in the Middle East.
“We’re a long way away, but we’re impacted here each and every day,” he said.
Albanese went on to say the government would make an assessment on the fuel excise cut as the conflict continues. The cut is set to expire at the end of June.
The prime minister said fuel shipments are continuing due to the work of the government.
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Coalition needs to convince Australians it is a ‘genuine and credible’ alternative, Hume says
Jane Hume, the deputy opposition leader, said while she believes the Labor government had broken trust with voters, the Coalition had done so too, after fracturing and reuniting multiple times in recent months.
Hume spoke to ABC News Breakfast saying the opposition had to rebuild trust with Australians, adding:
Our job now is to demonstrate that we are a genuine and credible alternative to this terrible Labor government.
Hume added she thinks Tony Abbott’s presidency of the Liberal party is “terrific” and an opportunity for the Coalition.
He’s a great supporter of the party, he’s a great supporter of Angus Taylor, I think this is a great opportunity. The Liberal party has always been what John Howard called the broad church: we like having different opinions.
We listen to everybody’s views, and we represent them.
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Clean energy advocates say it’s great to see ‘green energy statecraft’ at play after Bowen’s remarks in Germany
Clean energy advocates have cheered Chris Bowen’s remarks about electrification at a climate change conference in Bonn, Germany.
Melissa Conley Tyler, an honorary fellow at the Asia Institute at the University of Melbourne, said it was “great to see green energy statecraft in practice”, adding:
As new president of negotiations for COP31, Australia will play a crucial role in setting the agenda and bringing countries together to agree on action.
Patrick Veyret, the spokesperson for Energy Consumers Australia, said:
The benefits of going all-electric are clear: cheaper bills, predictable energy costs, energy sovereignty and healthier environments to live and work in. …
As Australia steps up to lead negotiations for COP31, the federal government must back its international climate ambition with concrete domestic action. We need a clear, national roadmap and ambitious electrification targets to help households and small businesses to become all-electric.”
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Australians should expect fuel excise cut to expire at end of June, transport minister says
Catherine King, the federal transport minister, said the Australian government maintains a diplomatic solution is needed amid renewed tensions in the Middle East surrounding the strait of Hormuz.
King spoke to ABC News Breakfast this morning, saying:
Obviously we know that we need diplomatic solutions to the conflict in the strait of Hormuz, and we want to urge all parties to continue to negotiate that.
I understand this is a pretty fragile ceasefire, and you’re seeing that borne out, unfortunately, this morning.
King was asked about any extension of the fuel excise cut, which ends at the end of this month. She said the government is still talking to industry, including trucking companies, about the impacts of continued spikes in fuel prices, but said Australians should expect that cut to expire at the end of June:
Obviously we are doing everything we can to shield Australians from this conflict in the Middle East. … But people should, at this stage, expect that it’s coming off at the end of June.
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Climate change minister says world is having an ‘electrification moment’ at major conference
The climate change minister, Chris Bowen, said he thinks the world is having an “electrification moment” during a climate change conference in Bonn, Germany this week.
Turkey, the incoming presidency of the next UN climate summit, known as the COP, announced new targets calling for the global electrification target to rise to 35% by 2035.
Bowen said during the climate meeting Australia had done a lot of things “right” to meet that moment and confront the climate crisis, saying:
One thing that we have been getting right in Australia is that the journey to net zero runs through households, and it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy in many ways.
I think what’s happening is this: a lot of households are saying, well, now that we have solar panels on the roof and a battery in the garage, why don’t we get an EV? Because we can charge that EV at night off our battery and pay nothing. And I think these things become self-fulfilling and self-reinforcing.
This is something that we’ve learned along the way in Australia, and we’re sharing those thoughts, and we’re learning from others, of course, here in Bonn.
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Good morning
It’s Nick Visser here to take over the blog. Let’s get to it.
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Barbeques Galore goes bust with 62 stores to close
Australian retail chain Barbeques Galore will wind up its operations in the coming weeks after failing to negotiate a rescue deal, affecting 500 jobs.
Receivers confirmed on Tuesday that 62 company-owned stores will close, with staff facing redundancies. The brand’s other 27 franchise-owned stores are expected to work through “transitional arrangements” during the wind-up period.
The retailer, operational since the 1970s, entered voluntary administration in February. Management had been working on a conditional recapitalisation deal with major creditor Gordon Brothers, but negotiations with landlords and suppliers collapsed.
In a statement Tuesday, the receivers said staff will continue to be employed during the immediate receivership process before being made redundant:
All employees will be paid their full accrued redundancies and termination payments in the ordinary course of separation.”
Customers with a Barbeques Galore gift card will be able to use it until 30 June. However, in an arrangement first announced in February, for every $1 redeemed on a gift card, the shopper must spend $2. The receivers said in a statement:
Unredeemed gift cards will be treated as unsecured creditors after the 30 June deadline, so customers are encouraged to use their gift cards while they can do so.
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Australia joins sanctions against 'extremist settlers'
Australia has joined the UK and other western allies in introducing sanctions against “extremist settlers” accountable for the “horrific levels of settler violence against Palestinian civilians”.
The announcement was made overnight by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and will see sanctions imposed on six firms and one individual involved in enabling and financing the recent upsurge in settler violence in the West Bank.
A statement released by Dfat said:
In response to the deteriorating situation in the West Bank, we the Foreign Ministers of Australia, Canada, France, Norway and the United Kingdom, have taken coordinated action to introduce sanctions and other measures to hold extremist settlers accountable for the horrific levels of settler violence against Palestinian civilians.
Extremist violent settlers, with the backing of their supporters, continue to attack Palestinians and abuse their human rights. They use violence to displace Palestinians, destroy property and perpetuate the illegal settlement enterprise, undermining the viability of the State of Palestine and the prospects for peaceful coexistence.
For too long, violent settlers have been able to act with near impunity, and settlement expansion and creation of outposts continue with the support and facilitation of the Government of Israel. In some cases, settler violence takes place under the protection of Israel’s security forces. We continue to urge the Government of Israel to take action to ensure meaningful accountability for violence in the West Bank. The Government of Israel should ensure every attack is swiftly and thoroughly investigated, take action against the outposts and organisations that allow violence to flourish, and stop the incitement of violence.
We believe that peace and security for both Israelis and Palestinians can only be achieved through the implementation of the two-state solution. Together, we will continue to work towards this goal.
We Australia, Canada, France, Norway, and the United Kingdom have all taken the historic decision to recognise the State of Palestine, reflecting the rights of the Palestinian people and as part of our common efforts to protect the viability of the two-state solution. Today, we are acting together again in support of the same objectives.
We stand ready to take more action if the Government of Israel does not take urgent steps to address the situation on the ground.
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High court to rule on indefinite detention damages claim
The high court will today rule on whether the Australian government should pay damages to a man it held in indefinite immigration detention for 18 months despite there being “no real prospect of [his] removal”.
Safwat Abdel-Hady’s case could determine whether the 350-or-so non-citizens affected by the high court’s ruling against indefinite detention in November 2023, known as the NZYQ cohort, are liable for damages for false imprisonment.
The Austrian citizen was placed in immigration detention in 2017 after his visa was cancelled by then home affairs minister Peter Dutton for pleading guilty to poisoning to endanger life or inflicting grievous bodily harm in 2012.
The federal circuit court ruled in June 2024 Abdel-Hady was declared not medically fit to travel for an 18-month period between July 2022 and February 2024 due to his medical conditions, and therefore there were no real prospects of removing him from Australia.
Abdel-Hady’s lawyers argued last November he should not have been detained by authorities using the precedent established in the 2004 case of Al-Kateb.
Lawyers acting for the government did not dispute that Abdel-Hady was wrongfully detained but argued the high court’s 2004 ruling had allowed authorities to detain someone indefinitely under the Migration Act before it was later ruled unlawful in 2023 in the NZYQ case.
We’ll bring you the judgment once it’s delivered after 10am.
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Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then it’ll be Nick Visser with the main action.
Australia has joined the UK and other western allies in introducing sanctions against “extremist settlers” accountable for the “horrific levels of settler violence against Palestinian civilians”. More coming up.
The high court will today rule on whether the Australian government should pay damages to a man it held in indefinite immigration detention for 18 months despite there being “no real prospect of [his] removal”.
