SA opposition leader says Liberals will preference One Nation in her home seat
Ashton Hurn, the South Australia opposition leader, said the Liberals will preference One Nation over the Labor party in her seat of Schubert in the state’s upcoming election.
Hurn spoke to RN Breakfast this morning, saying there were a “number of different scenarios” the Liberals had planned across dozens of seats, but the priority was “getting rid of the ALP”.
She said:
We’re in the business of getting rid of the ALP. The ALP are a bad government here in South Australia. They have proven time and time again that they’re more interested in PR and politics than they are on delivering practical outcomes for South Australians.
But this is not a vote of confidence in One Nation. In fact, far from it. But you’ve got to put people somewhere on the ballot. That’s the decision that we’ve made. And this is a vote of no confidence in the government. And that’s who I’m focused on defeating at the election on Saturday.
Hurn said she wasn’t concerned about One Nation becoming the opposition party in SA.
Read more about the swing to One Nation here:
Key events
Regulator summons fuel giants over price hikes
Jonathan Barrett
The consumer watchdog is calling major fuel suppliers and retailers to an emergency meeting today to demand explanations for the recent surge in petrol prices.
Fuel prices have surged in recent weeks and some regional retailers have even run dry, with customers panic-buying petrol over concerns the Middle East conflict will lead to shortages.
Representatives of major fuel suppliers and retailers, including Chevron, BP and Ampol, have been called in to the meeting run by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, said:
Today the regulator will get a chance to make the retailers and suppliers justify their prices. I’ve made it very clear that if they find evidence of misconduct, we expect the ACCC to throw the book at them.
Petrol prices have started to push past 230c per litre in most state capitals.
Global oil prices have surged by about 40% in March in response to the Middle East conflict and closure of the crucial strait of Hormuz, prompting fears of a breakout in global inflation.
Determining the direct impact of global oil prices on pump prices has historically proven difficult due to the supply chain’s complexity.
Donald Trump has called on regional partners to assist in securing the strait, which is largely controlled by Iran.
Scientists have welcomed a ‘pivotal’ review of Australia’s research sector
Donna Lu
The final report of the federal government’s Strategic Examination of Research and Development (SERD) in industry was released last night. It recommends a simplified system focusing on six priority areas: health and medical, agriculture and food, defence, environment and energy, resources, and technology.
The review, chaired by Robyn Denholm, pushes for a “move away from an underperforming system that is the result of often trifling, incremental improvements, risk aversion and Band-Aid solutions”, and recommends more investment in competitive grant schemes to better fund science research.
The minister for science, Tim Ayres, said:
Meeting Australia’s big collective challenges – food and agriculture, energy security, new industrial and tech processes, water security and dealing with the human, animal and plant diseases of the future, to name just a few – requires a modern and fit for purpose research and development system. This report charts out a long-term reform roadmap for me, and for the government to consider over coming months.
Jas Chambers, the president of Science and Technology Australia, said:
This is the first pivotal step in tackling the longstanding challenges facing Australia’s research, development and innovation system that will lead to lasting and intergenerational opportunity.
Our sector is hurting. An STA survey last year found nearly half of Stem professionals are thinking about leaving their role. Action is needed to improve job security and pay, which are the main reasons behind low morale.
SA opposition leader says Liberals will preference One Nation in her home seat
Ashton Hurn, the South Australia opposition leader, said the Liberals will preference One Nation over the Labor party in her seat of Schubert in the state’s upcoming election.
Hurn spoke to RN Breakfast this morning, saying there were a “number of different scenarios” the Liberals had planned across dozens of seats, but the priority was “getting rid of the ALP”.
She said:
We’re in the business of getting rid of the ALP. The ALP are a bad government here in South Australia. They have proven time and time again that they’re more interested in PR and politics than they are on delivering practical outcomes for South Australians.
But this is not a vote of confidence in One Nation. In fact, far from it. But you’ve got to put people somewhere on the ballot. That’s the decision that we’ve made. And this is a vote of no confidence in the government. And that’s who I’m focused on defeating at the election on Saturday.
Hurn said she wasn’t concerned about One Nation becoming the opposition party in SA.
Read more about the swing to One Nation here:
Sarah Basford Canales
Details of revamped disability community program released
The federal government has announced its revamped disability community program will deliver $90m to 62 disability support and advocacy organisations in its first year.
The NDIS minister, Jenny McAllister, will announce today $50m will be given to 38 organisations to support people with disabilities, their carers and families with workshops, mentoring programs and referral services.
Another $40m will be shared between 24 groups aimed at offering information and advice to help the disability community access relevant supports and services.
It comes as the NDIS undergoes a number of changes while the start date for the Thriving Kids program has been delayed to October.
McAllister said:
We want to make sure that people with disability and their families are empowered by a broad network of supports and services on the ground in their communities.
It’s essential for the ILC Program to reflect the genuine needs of the disability community to provide quality, targeted supports to those who need them most.
Two men charged with murder after man fatally shot in Sydney unit
Two men have been charged with murder after a gangland-linked shooting at a suburban apartment complex that left one man dead and another injured, AAP reports.
A 38-year-old man was rushed to hospital about 4am on Monday after being found with gunshot wounds inside a unit in Lidcombe, in Sydney’s west, but died a short time later. A second man was found at the scene with non-life-threatening injuries.
Officers arrested a 21-year-old man on Monday afternoon after a car crashed into a parked vehicle, NSW police said. Police allegedly found a firearm in the car and later charged the man with murder and wounding a person with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
Detectives then raided a home in Ermington, near Lidcombe, about 8pm and arrested a 22-year-old man. He was also charged with murder.
Both men were refused bail and are expected to face court on Tuesday.
NSW crossbenchers push for human rights bill inquiry
Penry Buckley
A bill requiring government bodies to consider the impact of human rights on all decisions, laws and policies they make may be a step closer in NSW after a crossbench push for an independent inquiry.
The Greens MP for Newtown and human rights spokesperson, Jenny Leong, has written a letter to the NSW premier, Chris Minns, asking for an inquiry into a bill she introduced for a human rights act in October last year.
It has the support of more than 120 organisations, including Amnesty International, as well as five crossbench MPs who often vote with the Labor minority government, some as part of “confidence and supply” agreements allowing it to pass legislation in the lower house. Their support could see the government allow an inquiry into the bill, as it did with Leong’s move to end no grounds evictions, which preceded its own legislation to end the practice.
As Australia does not have its own bill of rights, individual states have moved to legislate their own human rights acts or charters, including Victoria, Queensland and the ACT. Leong says a similar act in NSW would be “a powerful tool to ensure people are the priority for decisions made”.
Earlier this year, the ACT supreme court used the ACT Human Rights Act to find in favour of public housing tenants who were challenging evictions handed to them by the government – and they were allowed to stay in their homes. It’s more evidence that a human rights act is far from a lofty, feelgood document: it’s a powerful tool for people in tough positions to access their basic rights like the right to a secure and safe home.
Marles says Australia has not received request from US on ships to strait of Hormuz
The defence minister, Richard Marles, is speaking about Australia’s plans when it comes to the strait of Hormuz. He said the US has not requested Australia send any ships to the region.
The point to make here is we’ve not received a request from the United States in respect of the strait of Hormuz.
Clearly, it is in the global interest to see the strait of Hormuz open. I mean, we just need to work through this in a methodical way. And, at this point, we’ve not received any request.
He said the government is doing “everything in our power” to see fuel get where it’s needed, encouraging Australians to go about “their business as they usually would”.
Marles added were the US to formally request Australian assistance, the government would work through it “in terms of what is the best way in which we can contribute”.
Obviously all the requests that we receive, we firstly look to from the perspective of what is Australia’s national interest.
Taylor hammers energy minister over fuel prices
The opposition leader, Angus Taylor, is continuing to hammer the federal energy minister, Chris Bowen, over rising fuel prices this morning.
Taylor said the government “absolutely should have” taken more actions to rein in energy prices amid the fallout from Iran’s effective closure of the strait of Hormuz. He told RN Breakfast:
Last week, on Tuesday, there was no problem at all. By Thursday, it was a national crisis. He simply hasn’t been on top of it. The result is out here in regional areas, we’ve got farmers and truckies and others deeply concerned.
Taylor was asked about Bowen’s point that petrol prices reflect global oil prices, which are set by the market. The federal government has maintained for days that Australia is well placed to weather the economic turmoil linked to the Middle East, including the recent release of about 20% of the country’s fuel reserves.
The opposition leader said:
Of course, but shortages are not part of that. And there’s a role for the government to play in dealing with shortages.
Taylor didn’t suggest how the Coalition would do things differently.
Labor widens crackdown on dodgy immigration agents
Tom McIlroy
The federal government is expanding its crackdown on dodgy immigration agents, toughening ethical standards and training requirements for the industry, with one agent losing their registration after 20 years for supplying misleading information on visa applications.
Julian Hill, the assistant minister for citizenship and multicultural affairs, said the changes are designed to ensure would-be visa holders receive only high-quality immigration assistance.
Changes due to come into force from 1 April include updates to the list of providers who can deliver the mandatory courses required for registration for new providers. Existing operators will have to undergo new training in ethical standards and obligations under the code of conduct.
Hill said 61 agents have been sanctioned for breaches since 2021/22.
While most registered migration agents act with professionalism and integrity, those who engage in wrongdoing will be caught – it’s not a matter of if, but when. Anyone concerned about agent behaviour is encouraged to raise a complaint.
One veteran operator had their registration cancelled for five years due to significant breaches of the code, includinging knowingly supplying false and misleading information in visa applications and using templated statements that didn’t reflect each applicant’s individual circumstances.
Good morning, it’s Nick Visser here with you again to see what the day in breaking news holds. Let’s get to it.
Tougher penalties and new offence for hate crimes against LGBTQ+ community in NSW
Penry Buckley
The NSW government will today introduce measures it says will toughen penalties and lead to more prosecutions for hate crimes against the LGBTQ+ community.
They include a new offence which responds to a series of attacks revealed by an ABC investigation, some allegedly IS-inspired, in which teenagers lured victims on dating apps before robbing or assaulting them, in some cases filming them.
The offence for procuring a person by making false or misleading representations with the intent of committing a serious assault or robbery will not only apply to offences against the LGBTQ+ community.
Under the changes, existing “post and boast” offences for when criminals share footage of their crimes online will be expanded to cover serious assaults and robberies committed against members of the LGBTQ+ community.
The sentence for threatening or inciting violence on the grounds of a protected attribute such as sexual orientation or gender will be increased from three to five years, but the government has not moved to expand a controversial offence for inciting hatred on the grounds of race to include gender identity or sexuality. The government has been sitting on a six-month review to determine if the laws should be expanded, which was tabled in November.
The NSW premier, Chris Minns, says:
The attacks we have seen targeting members of the LGBTQIA+ community are sickening and completely unacceptable.
These laws send a clear message that if you target someone out of hatred, or try to lure someone into harm, you will face serious consequences.
Reserve Bank poised to hike rates at 2.30pm
Patrick Commins
The Reserve Bank board is widely expected to increase rates at 2.30pm today amid a global energy shock that threatens to push inflation towards 5%.
A hike would take the RBA’s cash rate target from 3.85% to 4.1%, marking the second consecutive increase after the February move.
If the economists and analysts are right, someone with a $600,000 mortgage and 25 years will see their repayments rise by another $91 a month.
Central bankers worldwide are recalibrating their plans after a broadening Middle East conflict that has sent petrol prices soaring and triggered fears of fuel shortages.
The RBA would normally look past a short-term hit to energy prices.
But inflation is already elevated at 3.8% – well above the bank’s 2-3% target – and that has left the central bank with little wriggle room and worried that rapid price increases will start to become embedded in Australia’s collective psyche.
Economists will be looking at whether the decision was unanimous, and for any indication in the board’s statement and Bullock’s press conference (at 3.30pm) that there could be a third straight hike at the May meeting.
Chris Bowen says petrol reserves won’t ease shortages straight away
Adeshola Ore
The energy minister, Chris Bowen, says it will take “some time” for the petrol and disesel released from Australia’s domestic stockpile to reach areas hit by shortages.
On Friday, the Albanese government directed fuel companies to release nearly a fifth of reserve petrol and diesel supplies. Dozens of service stations across the country have run out of petrol as retailers struggle with customers panic-buying in response to skyrocketing prices from the Middle East conflict.
In an interview with ABC’s 7.30 last night, Bowen said companies had assured the government the released supply would reach regional areas:
There will be some time for it to flow through. There’s a very complicated supply chain.
But it is going to have an impact. Some companies have said it will start to have an impact in coming days, to some degree. But there will be some time before it’s all released.
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the best of the overnight stories and then it will be Nick Visser to guide you through the news day.
The economy and cost of living will be one of the big stories today with the Reserve Bank expected to raise interest rates when it announces the outcome of its monetary policy meeting at 2.30pm. The main reason is persistent inflation, further fuelled by war-boosted petrol prices.
Speaking of which, we have Chris Bowen’s comments on fuel shortages coming up – he says the nation’s fuel reserves are being poured into the market but may not have an immediate obvious effect.
