Category: Australian News

Australia welcomes the Pacific Islands Forum announcement that Fiji and Tuvalu will bring the world to the Pacific as part of the pre-COP climate events to be held later this year.

Fiji will host the pre-COP meetings, while Tuvalu will have a special leaders’ component – ensuring that Pacific priorities are front and centre in global climate negotiations, a critical priority for our region. In addition, Palau will host a special climate event as part of the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in August. Pre-COP is expected to be held in October and will act as a springboard to launch outcomes in the annual UN climate conference.

It is an unprecedented opportunity to bring the world to the Pacific, to experience climate impacts and solutions firsthand.

Through Pre-COP and our Negotiations Presidency, Australia and the Pacific will play a critical role in COP31. Australia will also provide operational and logistical support for the Pacific event.

Türkiye will host COP31 and a World Leaders Summit in Antalya in November 2026.

Australia acknowledges the role of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) Chair, Solomon Islands Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele, the PIF Troika and the PIF Secretariat for facilitating the Pre-COP decision-making process.

Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Penny Wong:

“Pacific countries have long been leaders on climate action, and their voices are central to shaping the global response.

“Hosting these COP meetings is an opportunity for the global community to hear directly from the people of the Pacific.

“Australia will work closely with our Pacific partners to support a successful Pre-COP as part of our shared effort to address the climate challenge.”

Australian Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen:

“Our region is at the frontline of the climate crisis, where the effects of climate change are real and immediate.

“Hosting pre-COP in Fiji, with a leaders’ component in Tuvalu,  will bring a global focus to the most pressing challenges facing our region and support investment in solutions which are fit for purpose for our region.

“Leading the COP31 negotiations in partnership with the Pacific will strengthen our ties with our closest neighbours, raising our region’s profile in support of shared prosperity, stability and security.”

Australian Minister for Pacific Island Affairs Pat Conroy:

“Pacific nations are bearing the brunt of the devastating effects of climate change but have contributed the least to it.

“Pre-COP will be an unprecedented opportunity for the world to listen to the Pacific and understand the existential threat climate change poses for the region.

“Hosting the Pre-COP and a leaders’ event in the Blue Pacific is an opportunity for the region to work together on this critical issue and bring global attention to their leadership”.

The NSW Government has rejected 20 of the 22 recommendations from the Parliamentary Inquiry into Public Toilets, accepting only two recommendations in principle.

According to Greens MLC Dr Amanda Cohn, who chaired the inquiry, it’s an unusually dismissive response.

The inquiry was the most comprehensive examination of public toilet provision to be conducted in New South Wales. It heard from 60 witnesses across five public hearings, and produced six findings and 22 recommendations aimed at modernising a regulatory framework the committee found to be “not fit for purpose.”

The inquiry recommended a significant overhaul of public toilet regulation in NSW, including development of a statewide public toilets strategy and establishment of benchmark standards for provision, accessibility and inclusive design. The committee’s report was supported by consensus by Labor and Liberal MPs.

“The inquiry found, for example, that toilets should be designed using universal design principles so they are accessible and usable by people with a disability, older people, and people with prams. Another recommendation was the inclusion of baby change tables.”

“It is deeply disappointing to see such a sweeping rejection of the committee’s work,” Dr Cohn said.

“The inquiry demonstrated overwhelmingly that public toilets are failing large parts of the community and excluding them from public life as a result.”

“The Government had an opportunity to act on strong, cross-sector evidence and tripartisan recommendations to improve public health, inclusion and dignity. Instead, it has chosen to back the status quo of poorly regulated and inadequate public toilet provision.”

The committee’s findings highlighted that inadequate access to public toilets disproportionately affects people with disability, people who experience incontinence, people who menstruate, LGBTQIA+ communities, people experiencing homelessness, First Nations people, and those living in rural and remote areas.

Advocates are calling on the NSW Government to reconsider its response and engage seriously with the inquiry’s findings to ensure public toilets across the state meet the needs of the whole community.

advocates who provided submissions to the inquiry

Megan Spindler-Smith, Acting CEO of People with Disability Australia, said: “People with disability shared deeply personal experiences with this inquiry about planning their whole day around toilet access, facing humiliating and undignified situations, or staying home because accessible facilities simply are not available. Seeing those voices and lived experiences met with inaction is deeply disappointing. Safe and truly accessible public toilets and Changing Places facilities are rights-supporting and rights-affirming and are a basic requirement for people with disability to live, work and participate in community life. The NSW Government cannot keep passing the buck to local councils, it must show leadership and deliver a statewide public toilet strategy that guarantees consistent, accessible facilities across NSW.”

Public toilets researcher and expert Katherine Webber said: “While the NSW Government response agrees that public toilets are an essential component of urban infrastructure, their response fails to acknowledge the connection between public toilets and the health and wellbeing of people in NSW. Subsequently, it is disappointing that the NSW Government has decided not to take a leadership role in public toilet policy at this time.”

Labor Premier Chris Minns has escalated his targeting of peaceful and legitimate protest with an announcement that a dedicated, permanent, and heavily armed police unit will be used to target protests and public demonstrations.

Greens MP and spokesperson for Justice Sue Higginson said:

“This announcement has explicitly and deliberately misconstrued the political expression through protest as dangerous and extremist, akin to vile mass murders and terrorist events. The Premier has got to quit this Chris Minns is making a habit of deploying state violence against political opponents and the community at large, this is dangerous to our democracy,”

“Creating dedicated police forces who will be rapidly deployed in the community with high calibre and rapid fire weapons will not prevent people from engaging in protest, all it will do is put everyone at far greater risk of violence, harm, and death,”

“Seeking to arrest your way to some twisted vision of social cohesion is frankly fascist, and yet this NSW Labor Government seem determined to take every bad step when it comes to caring for and healing our communities,”

“Just a few weeks ago, I was standing with Jewish People, Muslim People, First Nations People, Queer People and tens of thousands of caring and compassionate people in the community. This wonderful gathering for peace was socially cohesive, non-threatening, and determined to express their political views. Chris Minns incited Police to attack, and assault that community, and he has now announced that he wants this to be a permanent fixture of our democracy, he should be ashamed,”

“Premier Chris Minns is escalating the conflicts between the community, and he is signing the guns that will be deployed in response to peaceful gatherings. It’s time for NSW Labor to reign in their authoritarian leader, and take responsibility for the damage he is doing to their movement and our community,” Ms Higginson said.

The Consumer Price Index released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics today shows inflation is out of control, confirming Pyro Jim’s reckless spending is pushing the cost of living higher for Australian families.

Inflation was 3.8 per cent in January, leaving Australian households paying even more for the basics while the Treasurer continues to pour fuel on the fire through reckless spending and rising debt.

Domestic inflation is running even higher at 4.9 per cent – Labor’s cost of living crisis is well and truly homegrown.

As all Australians know by now, Labor has been papering over the true crisis it has unleashed in Australia’s energy system. With the expiry of temporary energy rebates, today’s numbers reveal the true cost of Labor’s failed energy policy. Electricity prices are up 32 per cent in the past year alone.

Australian families with kids also know the cost of going back to school and childcare hit hard this year. Out-of-pocket childcare costs are up 11 per cent in the past year despite Labor’s claims of fixing the system.

This never-ending cost of living crisis is unique to Australia, with inflation running hotter here than in every major advanced economy.

After nearly four years of Labor, Australians are paying more for almost everything:
 Insurance is up 39%.
 Energy is up 38%.
 Rents are up 22%.
 Health is up 18%.
 Education is up 17%.
 Food is up 16%.

Shadow Treasurer Tim Wilson said Australian families feel the pressure every time they pay for groceries, fuel or the household bills.

“Today’s figures confirm what Australians already know, Pyro Jim’s spending is keeping inflation higher for longer,” Mr Wilson said.

“Government spending is at its highest level outside a recession in 40 years and Labor’s debt is racing towards one trillion dollars.”

“Australians are paying around $50,000 a minute just to service Labor’s debt, money that adds demand to the economy and keeps pressure on prices.”

“At a time when Australians need relief, Labor is making inflation stick.”

“Under Labor, living standards have fallen, with Australia recording the biggest drop in household disposable incomes in the developed world.”

“Until Pyro Jim gets spending under control, Australians will keep paying through higher prices, higher mortgages and weaker living standards.”

“As Liberals, we stand for lower inflation, lower interest rates and lower taxes.”

The Coalition will restore disciplined economic management and fight to bring down costs for Australian families.

When Labor spends, you pay.

Family First National Director and NSW Legislative Council candidate Lyle Shelton is urging Australians to attend Shen Yun’s Australian tour in the wake of the bomb threat that forced Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to evacuate The Lodge.

A Chinese-language email warned that explosives had been placed at the Prime Minister’s residence and that “blood will flow like a river” if Shen Yun’s Gold Coast performance proceeded. Police later confirmed the threat was a hoax.

Mr Shelton said while it has not been proven that the threat originated from the Chinese Communist Party, Australians would be naïve not to consider that possibility.

Given the CCP’s long-running hostility to Shen Yun and its global campaign to silence critics, it is not wrong to suspect the regime or its sympathisers may be involved in bomb threat.”

The Chinese Consulate-General in Sydney, along with the Chinese Consulate in Melbourne, has issued public statements urging Australians not to attend Shen Yun performances. Those statements have described the show — which is presented by a group linked to Falun Gong — as inauthentic or politically motivated, and warned against what they call its “political framing”.

Mr Shelton said such interventions amount to foreign interference in Australia’s cultural life.

It is completely unacceptable for foreign diplomatic missions to pressure Australians about what cultural performances they should or should not attend,” he said.

Shen Yun presents ‘China before communism’ — a celebration of 3,000 years of civilisation before the violent Leninist takeover of 1949.”

In 1949, the CCP seized control of mainland China following civil war. Historians estimate that up to 100 million people perished under communist campaigns, purges, famine and political violence during the twentieth century.

Mr Shelton attended a Sydney performance by Shen Yun Performing Arts last year.

I greatly appreciated the production’s honest portrayal of the persecution of religious believers and dissidents under communist rule,” he said.

This is the China the CCP does not want Australians to see — a rich cultural heritage that predates and contradicts communist ideology.”

Mr Shelton said the appropriate response to threats and intimidation is not retreat but resolve.

Australia is a sovereign nation. We will not have our Prime Minister threatened, nor our artistic freedoms curtailed, by foreign powers,” he said.

If anything, Australians should turn out in even greater numbers to support Shen Yun and send a clear message: intimidation will not work here.”

The Albanese Government is strengthening Defence capability in northern Australia, with major milestones reached on delivering the $250 million HMAS Cairns wharf upgrade and the completion of a new shared-user training facility for Australian Navy Cadets.

The HMAS Cairns wharf upgrade is part of the Navy Capability Infrastructure Subprogram (NCIS), supporting the next generation of Navy vessels, including the Hunter class frigates, Supply class auxiliary oiler replenishment ships, and Arafura class offshore patrol vessels.

Delivered by BESIX Watpac, the new 212-metre wharf will enable Arafura class vessels to operate from HMAS Cairns, reinforcing the Royal Australian Navy’s presence in North Queensland and enhancing Australia’s maritime security.

Built for resilience, the wharf has been elevated above surrounding infrastructure to withstand rising king tide levels and ensure it continues to meet Navy operational requirements for decades to come.

Through this project, more than 770 workers have worked onsite, with a peak workforce of 90 people on site each day. 13 major subcontractors have been engaged, with $67.7 million awarded to local businesses within 125 kilometres of Cairns.

Local Indigenous-owned organisations have secured almost $800,000 in contracts, while Indigenous employees have contributed more than nine per cent of total workforce hours.

Complementing the wharf upgrade is a new $11.5 million shared-user facility completed two kilometres south of HMAS Cairns.

The new facility, delivered by Hutchinson Builders, will provide a permanent home for Australian Navy Cadets from Training Ship Endeavour, including offices, classrooms, boatshed and a fully equipped galley.

Located adjacent to the Great Barrier Reef International Marine College, the new facility will strengthen integration with Cairns’ marine education and training sector.

Assistant Minister for Defence, Peter Khalil:

“These projects are critical to the Royal Australian Navy’s future capability and demonstrate our Government’s commitment to delivering ungraded Defence infrastructure across northern Australia.

“The new wharf at HMAS Cairns will support Arafura class offshore patrol vessels, enhance engagement with our Pacific partners and ensure our Navy is equipped to meet operational demands well into the future.

“Just as importantly, it’s great to see this investment delivering strong local outcomes as well, with more than $67 million flowing to regional businesses and meaningful participation from Indigenous organisations and workers.”

Assistant Minister for Northern Australia and Senator for Queensland, Nita Green:

“North Queensland has always been strategically important, and these investments recognise the region’s role in keeping Australia safe while supporting local livelihoods.”

“From construction through to ongoing operations, these upgrades create lasting employment and training pathways for North Queenslanders.”

Member for Leichardt, Matt Smith MP:

“This upgrade ensures HMAS Cairns remains a major employer and economic anchor for the region for decades to come.”

“The new Navy Cadets facility gives young people in Cairns and surrounding communities a direct pathway into Navy and maritime careers, without having to leave the region.”

This week I will travel to Samoa and Niue to continue to strengthen Australia’s deep ties of friendship, respect and trust with our Pacific partners.

Australia is a partner the Pacific can count on – listening and acting alongside Pacific leaders to build a peaceful, stable and prosperous region.

In Samoa, I will meet Prime Minister Laʻaulialemalietoa and members of his Cabinet to advance Australia’s and Samoa’s cooperation across security, governance, climate, health, education, and economic growth, reflecting our shared commitment to Pacific-led solutions.

In Niue, I will meet Prime Minister Tagelagi to discuss Niue’s development priorities and our shared ambitions for climate action in the Pacific.

Australia is proud to be the Pacific’s largest and most comprehensive development partner, with increased investment in shared security, health and climate resilience to ensure our region is safe and secure in a more uncertain world.

I look forward to the opportunity to advance our partnerships and celebrate the contributions we have made to each other’s societies. Together, we are building a stronger Pacific family.  

Over 20 Australian children have been held in desert detention camps in Syria for half-a-decade. One Nation, the Liberals and Labor have condemned these children to a dangerous and uncertain future in their lurch towards anti-immigration dog whistling.

Responding to the hateful campaigning of One Nation, the current Coalition Leader, Angus Taylor, now wants to make it a crime to help these children. This needs repeating, the Coalition wants to make it a crime to help bring Australian children to safety.

This is not a gimmick, it is not a sound bite, it is not a political move. This is a betrayal of core human values.

Senator Shoebridge, Greens Spokesperson on Home Affairs, said:

“The first responsibility of any Australian government is to keep Australian children safe. It is extraordinary how few politicians in Canberra seem to understand this basic fact.

“Last September I met with one of the children held in these camps who was 6 years old and spoke with a broad Australian accent that took me straight home. She drew me a picture of her favourite story, Rapunzel, with roses she had never seen in a garden she could only dream of.

“The 23 Australian children trapped in the dangerous Syrian detention camp are victims of ISIS. They had no choice in going to Syria to have their childhoods devastated like this.

“It is shocking that both Angus Taylor and Anthony Albanese are failing a moral test that was set by Scott Morrsion who said when he assisted children to return in 2020 that ‘these young children who are coming back to Australia, they can’t be held responsible for the crimes of their parents.’

“The women and children who are Australian citizens will come home, the only thing that will change is how they come home. Will it be in an orderly and monitored way where Australian agencies can integrate people back into the community and monitor community safety or will it be an unplanned and risky mess?

“One Nation, Labor and the Coalition are in a race to the bottom here, demonising children, stoking fear and now threatening to jail people for the ‘crime’ of bringing kids to safety.

“When I met with local Syrian representatives last year they knew the dangers of ISIS, they had fought the appalling war against them and defeated them. They said Australia should bring these women and children home because they are our responsibility. The US has said the same.

“Once the Government abandons, defames and attacks children who have done nothing wrong, what is to stop them doing this to any Australian citizen?

“There is a moral vacuum at the heart of this debate which is the real threat to Australia, and that’s the threat politics needs to meet.”

 

The Museum of Chinese in Australia has officially opened in Sydney’s iconic Chinatown today, supported by the Albanese Government.

The Albanese Government is supporting the establishment of the first Chinese focused museum in New South Wales dedicated to preserving and presenting the history, heritage and contributions of Chinese Australians, with $2.6 million in funding.

The museum is located within the heritage listed former Haymarket Library, a building with more than 180 years of history and showcases the historical and cultural ties of the Australia Chinese community dating back to the Cantonese traders in the 1920s.

Adapting the three-storey building at Haymarket, the museum will feature an archive, library and include the transformation of former reading rooms into exhibition galleries and public program spaces.

The project has also been supported by the City of Sydney, NSW Government and generous contributions from the Chinese Australian community.

As communities across Australia celebrate Chinese New Year and welcome the Year of the Horse, the official opening of the Museum of Chinese in Australia reflects the Government’s ongoing commitment to strengthening multicultural Australia and preserving the stories that shape our national identity.

The museum is a permanent invitation to all Australians to learn about the significant role the Chinese community has played in Australia.

The Albanese Government is focussed on investing in community infrastructure which preserves and celebrates our history and builds community.

Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese

“The Chinese Australian community is a powerful example of how when people come to our nation seeking a better life for themselves, they make this a better country for all of us.

“This museum will celebrate a vital thread through the history of our modern nation – the long and extraordinary story of Chinese people in Australia.   

“I can’t think of a better site for this museum than in Haymarket – a place synonymous with the Chinese-Australian story – or a more fitting time of year to open it.”

Minister for Social Services Tanya Plibersek

“Labor understands that Australia’s diversity is one of our greatest strengths.

“The Museum of Chinese in Australia is a place to preserve the stories, struggles, and achievements of Chinese Australians, and to remind us of all the richness they bring to our shared history.

“It’s fantastic to see it open in Sydney’s Chinatown, a place where Chinese culture, hard work, and creativity have flourished for generations.”

Minister for Multicultural Affairs Anne Aly

“The Museum of Chinese in Australia will stand as a cultural landmark in Sydney’s Chinatown as a place of connection reflection and celebration.”

“It shines a light on individuals and families whose stories of ambition, resilience and determination are central to Australia’s nation building journey.”

“These are stories worth remembering, because they deepen our understanding of who we are and strengthen the sense of belonging that underpins our multicultural success.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will welcome the Right Honourable Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada, to Australia from 3 to 6 March.

This will be Prime Minister Carney’s first visit to Australia as Prime Minister. He will visit Sydney and Canberra, where he will address the Australian Parliament.

Australia and Canada have a close and enduring partnership, underpinned by trust and shared values, including parliamentary democracy, multiculturalism, equality before the law, and respect for our First Nations peoples.

Prime Minister Carney’s visit is an opportunity to further strengthen cooperation on investment, economic security and critical minerals, defence, and links between our institutions and communities.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese

“I am pleased to welcome my friend Prime Minister Carney to Australia and look forward to his address to the Australian Parliament.

“Canada is one of Australia’s closest friends, built on generations of trust, with a shared commitment to supporting stability across the Indo-Pacific and beyond.

“As our countries face new challenges and opportunities, we must deepen our cooperation with partners to promote our national interests.

“I look forward to discussing ways to build on our existing cooperation with Canada to shape the next stage of this key relationship.”