Category: Australian News

Canberrans who care about climate change are right to feel let down by Labor, which has just approved three coal mine expansions, undermining the ACT’s net-zero future.

“In a climate emergency, you need climate leaders. Labor has proven this week they are anything but,” said ACT Greens Leader Shane Rattenbury.

“I’ve heard fury from people in the community. I’ve heard disbelief. I’ve heard a huge amount of frustration that Labor is undermining local climate action with these huge new fossil fuel projects.

“Canberrans care about climate change. They know it’s time to band together with real vision, ambition and courage,” Mr Rattenbury said.

Isabel Mudford, Greens candidate for the federal seat of Canberra, said:

“Canberrans expected better from Labor, but it’s clear the old parties have sold out to vested interests profiting at the expense of the community and the environment.

“Local Labor members can’t go around pretending they care about the environment, biodiversity and threatened species while continuing to support their colleagues’ decisions to destroy the planet. 

“It’s essential we make every election a climate election and use every vote we have to choose decisive climate action and leadership. 

“The upcoming ACT and federal elections are a chance to tell the other parties loud and clear that we are done with cooking the planet. We want a cleaner economy and a more sustainable way of living,” Ms Mudford said. 

Mr Rattenbury said the other parties lack genuine ambition on climate and the environment.

“A vote for the Greens is a vote for real climate leadership. We have already delivered 100% renewable electricity to the ACT, a record uptake of electric vehicles, and a nation-leading plan to shut off the fossil fuel gas network by 2045,” said Mr Rattenbury.

“Without the influence of the Greens in local politics, it’s obvious the other parties would not have taken this path.

“While federal Labor was working with the Abbott Government to cut the national renewable energy target, the Greens were in the ACT building toward 100% renewable electricity. 

“While federal Labor has committed this term to a gas-fired future, the Greens have secured a gas-free future for the ACT.

“Last election ACT Labor said it was a ‘crazy’ Greens idea to stop connecting new homes and suburbs to the gas network, but now it’s a reality across Canberra.

“The ACT Greens will keep pushing further, faster, to make a fair transition to net-zero in our community, putting a stop to the federal excuses that it can’t be done,” Mr Rattenbury said.

Next term, a Greens-led ACT Government will:

• Bring forward the ACT’s net-zero target from 2045 to 2040
• Fully fund gas-to-electric upgrades for 5,000 of the lowest income households
• Upgrade all public homes to be efficient and all-electric, including with rooftop solar
• Introduce new minimum standards for rental properties to make sure everyone can live in a home that’s healthy and comfortable
• Take on the ACT’s biggest polluter – transport – with major improvements to public transport and further support for electric vehicles
• Install banks of EV fast chargers in every town centre and in the parliamentary triangle
• Deliver an extra 300MW of battery storage in the ACT
• Cool the suburbs by planting at least 20,000 shade trees each year
• Work with the community to trial and implement city cooling interventions, like misting systems and awnings, water features, street plantings, green roofs and facades.

Detailed information about the ACT Greens’ commitments to climate action is available at https://greens.org.au/act/policies/climate

The ACCC’s interim report on the supermarket sector has underlined the need for laws to stop price gouging and to break up the supermarket duopoly, the Greens say.

“For the ACC to describe the supermarket sector as an oligopoly just shows how easy it is for shoppers to be price gouged,” Greens Economic Justice Spokesperson Senator Nick McKim said.”

“The report has confirmed what Australian shoppers have known for years  – Coles and Woolworths are using their dominant market position to price gouge shoppers and squeeze producers.”

“The report shows that their market concentration is more than two thirds and growing.”

Senator McKim also raised alarm over the revelation that the ACCC is having to obtain some data from supermarkets under compulsion.

“It’s outrageous that supermarket corporations are not fully cooperating with the ACCC.”

“Their arrogance knows no bounds. As if their massive profits based on price-gouging Australian shoppers is not enough, they think they can defy Australia’s corporate regulator as well.”

“We need price gouging laws and divestiture powers to break up the duopoly. These reforms would bring more competition to the market, lower grocery prices, and hold corporate giants accountable.”

“Now that the Opposition supports divestiture powers for the supermarket sector, Labor is alone in protecting the supermarket duopoly.”

“The Prime Minister is talking up a storm but his lack of action is keeping prices high for ordinary Australians.”

“Labor is in the pocket of big corporations. It’s time for them to stop protecting their corporate donors and start working with the Parliament to pass these badly needed reforms.”

The Greens have reiterated their call on Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek to do her job and call in Tamboran Resources’ fracking project in the Beetaloo Basin under the Water Trigger, in response to the Environment Centre NT filing an urgent application to stop the gas company from drilling without an environmental water assessment. 

Greens Spokesperson for the Environment and Water, Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said:

“If Minister Plibersek did her job, the community wouldn’t have to take legal action to try to protect surface water and aquifers in the Beetaloo.

“It is shocking that gas fracking cowboys have started drilling with zero environmental water assessments.

“It is disgraceful that the Minister is leaving it to communities on the frontline of environmental destruction to do the government’s job and make sure all assessments are completed before any work starts. 

“The Minister’s request for scientific advice from IESC isn’t good enough. A recent presentation to IESC made it clear aquifers in the Beetaloo are ‘highly susceptible to contamination or drawdown from activities that support shale gas extraction’. 

“Drilling must be stopped right now until a full assessment under the Water Trigger is completed. The Parliament gave the Minister expanded water trigger powers last year precisely for this purpose. 

“I urge the Minister to do the right thing, right now – call this dangerous fracking project in, look at the science, and listen to the communities and Traditional Owners who have been pleading with you to protect their water – the lifeblood of the NT.”

A Senate Inquiry report into the November 8 Optus outage has recommended greater technological safeguards and public accountability from telecommunications companies. The Optus outage affected millions of Australians. 

Inquiry Chair Senator Sarah Hanson-Young is Greens Spokesperson for Communications:

“Optus failed millions of Australians and small businesses during the November 8 network outage. Not only did the communications network that many of us rely on fail, but the company itself failed to communicate and keep the public informed through the outage.

“This Senate Inquiry report today requires Optus and other telcos to work towards better network safeguards and a higher standard of public accountability in the future. 

“These recommendations mean telcos need to work with the Australian Government and cooperate with one another to deliver large-scale network roaming and mutual assistance arrangements in the event of future outages. 

“In 2024 people expect to be able to call triple 0 in an emergency, to be able to access internet banking for their small business, or to contact their kids or grandparents via their mobile phone. It’s therefore appropriate that telecommunications carriers are included as critical infrastructure providers via amendments to the Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018.

“This report raises the bar for all telcos in the future and I will work with my Senate colleagues to implement these recommendations in the public interest.”

Australia will provide $2 million in humanitarian assistance to support civilians in Lebanon, impacted by the escalation of conflict.

This new funding will support the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to provide medical assistance, and address essential nutrition, education and water sanitation needs for displaced and conflict-affected people in southern Lebanon.

It brings the Australian Government’s total package of humanitarian assistance to the Middle East to $84.5 million since 7 October 2023.

Australia has called for an immediate ceasefire in Lebanon. We reiterate calls for all parties to exercise restraint, de-escalate and comply with UN Security Council resolutions.

Securing an immediate ceasefire in Gaza also remains an urgent priority, along with the release of hostages and the flow of humanitarian aid.

We again urge Australians in Lebanon to leave immediately. If you require emergency consular assistance you should contact the Australian Government’s 24-hour Consular Emergency Centre on 1300 555 135 (within Australia) or +61 2 6261 3305 (from overseas).

Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator the Hon Penny Wong:

“Australia is deeply concerned by the escalation of conflict between Israel and Hizballah – Lebanese civilians cannot be made to pay the price of defeating Hizballah and Lebanon cannot become the next Gaza.

“This is a moment of great distress for the Lebanese people; funding from Australia will support civilians, including women and children, who are paying the highest price in this conflict.”

Minister for International Development and The Pacific, the Hon Pat Conroy MP

“The situation in Lebanon is already very distressing as is the prospect of a further escalation of hostilities, including in the broader region.

“Australia will continue to monitor and assess the humanitarian situation and stands ready to provide further support.”

What on earth was the Labor government thinking when they created the highly paid position of ‘Ambassador for First Nations People’?

It’s important to look at the timing. Justin Mohamed was appointed in March last year when Labor was still thinking there was strong support for the voice to Parliament, seven months before the referendum. In May last year, Labor’s Budget allocated $13.6 million to the new ‘ambassador’.

According to the Department of Foreign Affairs, the ‘first nations ambassador’ is supposed to “implement a First Nations approach to foreign policy” and “embed First Nations perspectives and interests across the Government’s trade and investment activities”.

It doesn’t close any gaps. It doesn’t lift aborigines living in remote communities out of disadvantage. It doesn’t bring law and order to Alice Springs and other communities plagued by crime and dysfunction. It doesn’t stop the corruption and nepotism in the aboriginal industry. All the ‘ambassador’ position appears to do is be a ‘voice’ – not to Parliament, but to DFAT.

All the current ‘ambassador’ appears to have done is rack up frequent flier points. He’s made a bunch of trips to the United States, and one to Switzerland. So far his travel has cost taxpayers almost $150,000 on top of his $300,000+ salary.

Peter Dutton has said he’ll scrap the worthless position. One Nation never supported it in the first place, but we’ll scrap it too. Australian diplomacy needs only one perspective: the Australian perspective.

The Albanese Labor Government is committed to ensuring Australians are paying a fair price for their groceries and our farmers are getting a fair price for their hard work, with the Government today releasing the ACCC’s Supermarkets Inquiry Interim Report.

When families are doing it tough, they need a Government that’s on their side and a tough consumer cop on the beat – and that’s the important role the ACCC is playing.

In January, the Albanese Government tasked the ACCC to look into supermarkets, and today the Government has released the ACCC’s Supermarkets Inquiry Interim Report, which explores in detail issues including concentration and competition in the sector, rising prices and shrinkflation, supermarket buyer power and other consumer and producer concerns.

During its initial work, the ACCC received over 80 public submissions and spoke to more than 21,000 customers across Australia between February and April 2024 – the largest number of responses it has ever received for a consumer survey.

It also held seven roundtable discussions across the nation for farmers and produce wholesalers to discuss their experiences with supermarket supply chains.

The Government is supporting a competitive and sustainable food and grocery sector that is fairer for Australian families and farmers, and this Inquiry is a key component of our work.

The Interim Report makes no specific findings or recommendations, which are set to be in a Final Report that is handed to the Government in early 2025, but the ACCC’s work is exceptionally detailed.

We support their thorough investigations, which will strengthen the sector.

The Government’s economic plan is all about easing the cost of living for Australians – and we know that grocery prices are a key part of pressures people are facing right now.

The Albanese Government is taking a range of actions to make sure Australians are paying a fair price at the checkout and Australian suppliers are getting a fair price for their goods, and the ACCC Inquiry is a key component of the work to identify and fix ways the industry is letting down consumers and producers.

This follows the ACCC announcing legal action against Coles and Woolworths for misleading consumers through discount pricing claims on hundreds of common supermarket products.

A new mandatory Food and Grocery Code, currently open for consultation, will ensure Aldi, Coles, Woolworths and Metcash are subject to multi-million-dollar penalties for serious breaches of the Code. 

Yesterday, CHOICE released its second government funded price monitoring report, giving Australians accurate data on where to get the cheapest groceries.

This is only one part of the Government’s broad competition policy agenda. We’ve banned unfair contract terms and increased penalties for breaches of competition and consumer law.

We are delivering the most significant merger reforms in Australia in almost 50 years, and working with the states and territories to revitalise National Competition Policy.

The next phase of the Supermarkets Inquiry will see the ACCC conduct hearings with the supermarket sector throughout October and November 2024.

The ACCC has invited further feedback on the key issues raised in the Interim Report by 18 October 2024.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese:

“I directed the ACCC to commence an inquiry into supermarkets in January and today they deliver their Interim Report.

“This is an important piece of work and we will study it closely.

“My Government is taking a range of actions to make sure Australians are paying a fair price at the checkout and Australian suppliers are getting a fair price for their goods.

“Customers don’t deserve to be treated as fools by the supermarkets. They deserve better than that.”

Assistant Minister for Competition, Charities and Treasury, Andrew Leigh:

“The Albanese Government’s ACCC Supermarket Inquiry is the biggest, most thorough look at supermarket competition in over 15 years.

“Businesses need to do the right thing by Australians – and the Albanese Government is committed to improving the food and grocery sector so it works for families and farmers.

“Greater competition is critical for lifting dynamism, productivity and wages growth, putting downward pressure on prices and delivering more choice for Australians dealing with cost-of-living pressures.”

One of the largest seismic blasting proposals ever in Australian history has been withdrawn by proponent TGS following immense community pressure.  

The monster seismic blasting proposal off the Victorian and Tasmanian coasts was grossly unpopular from the get-go. TGS repeatedly reduced the size of the blasting area from 75,000 sq km back in 2022, to 45,000 sq km in 2023, to 31,500 sq km in 2024; before finally announcing the project’s end today. 

Greens spokesperson for Healthy Oceans, Senator Peter Whish-Wilson: 

“This win belongs to all the people who have rallied hard for years to protect marine ecosystems and avoid irreversible changes to the Earth’s climate.

“This is a historic moment. Community pressure works!! 

“Increasingly people from all walks of life are waking up to the dangers of seismic blasting in our oceans – there’s no plausible excuse for it! 

“This is a siren call to all the fossil fuel companies eyeing off our oceans: your time is up. 

“It’s unforgivable that our government continues to allow big oil and gas corporations to blast our marine environment for more fossil fuels at this time in history. 

“People want their leaders to start taking bold and radical climate action, and today’s news is welcome proof that with enough sustained pressure people power and protest action works.”

Acting Leader of the Victorian Greens, Sarah Mansfield: 

“This is a huge win for people power. First Nations and local communities have been fighting to protect Southern Sea country from seismic blasting for years. 

“While Labor and the Liberals continue to support new coal and gas projects in a climate crisis, what this shows is that when people come together to fight for our climate, we can win. 

“We need to put an end to all new oil and gas projects. The community won’t give up the fight for our oceans and our climate, and The Greens will be right there with them.”

The Auditor-General has today handed down a scathing performance audit report, Supporting students with disability, which exposes a decades-long failure to adequately fund and deliver targeted supports, monitor school practice and track outcomes for students with disability.

The Auditor-General’s report has been described as damning by Greens NSW MP Abigail Boyd, who chaired the recent parliamentary inquiry into the Experiences of children and young people with disability in NSW educational settings. The report from that inquiry was tabled just last month, and reinforces the Auditor-General’s findings that children with disability and their families are seeing no real improvement in their experiences within NSW’s education system, despite stated government policies and commitments.

The Auditor General’s report found the Department of Education failed to implement their own inclusive education policies and procedures, monitor outcomes and ensure targeted supports for students with disability, despite being aware of these gaps for almost two decades.

It also found serious gaps in the Department’s complaints management process which is neither student-centric nor accessible, and called for independent advice and disability expertise to be provided to parents and guardians of students with disability.

Abigail Boyd, Greens NSW MP and Spokesperson for disability rights and inclusion:

“The message coming through in this and previous reports is loud and clear – when it comes to disability rights and inclusion, the NSW Government is all words and no action.

“The NSW Department of Education has knowingly and persistently underfunded measures that would deliver greater inclusion for people with disability, and then chosen not to measure what they know will be the harmful outcomes of their decisions. This is a shocking abrogation of responsibility, and cannot stand.

“With such limited oversight of our education system, it’s no wonder that students with disability continue to experience exclusion, discrimination and neglect in our schools. The latest suspension data from the Department reveals that year on year, students with disability continue to make up half of all suspensions.

“In light of this and multiple other audit reports, parliamentary inquiries and the Disability Royal Commission, it is clear that the Department is unable to oversee itself and its performance under its legal obligations under anti-discrimination legislation.

“We can no longer leave the Department to its own devices. We need an independent oversight body for children with disability in our education system — as unanimously recommended by all members in the recent multi-partisan parliamentary inquiry report — with the primary purpose of advocating for students with disability and their families at its core, with the ability to oversee all issues from enrolments and adjustments to exclusionary discipline and allegations of discrimination.

“The NSW Government must commit to implementing in full all recommendations of this report, our parliamentary inquiry, and the Disability Royal Commission. Anything less than this will constitute a tragic failure of leadership and serve to perpetuate the cycle of disadvantage experienced by disabled people in this state.”

Australia will join Germany, Canada and the Netherlands to take unprecedented action to hold Afghanistan to account under international law for the Taliban’s treatment of women and girls.

This action is being brought against Afghanistan for violations of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, to which Afghanistan is a party.

We urge Afghanistan to participate in negotiations, as provided for under the Convention.

Australia is strongly committed to protecting and promoting the rights of women and girls at home and around the world.

Today we were united with partners from all regions of the world on the importance of strong international action in response to the Taliban’s treatment of women and girls.

The Taliban has demonstrated contempt for the human rights and fundamental freedoms of women and girls in Afghanistan, through a campaign of sustained and systematic oppression.

This includes denying girls their right to education and attempting to erase women from public life.

We will not stand by and allow the situation in Afghanistan to become a ‘new normal’.

We have heard the calls of Afghan women and we are committed to defending their human rights and amplifying their voices.

The participation of women and girls in society is essential to achieving peaceful societies and sustainable development.