Category: Australian News

Labor has refused to support fair superannuation for the firefighters and paramedics who carry this country through crisis after crisis.

The Government and Opposition last night voted down a Greens amendment to increase employer super contributions for frontline emergency workers to at least match those received by Australian Defence Force personnel.

“Firefighters and paramedics put themselves in harm’s way to protect others, often at high risk and great personal cost,” Greens Economic Justice spokesperson Senator Nick McKim said.

“It is deeply disappointing and shameful that Labor has failed to recognise that sacrifice by ensuring that they receive fair superannuation.”

“This amendment would have tackled a clear inequity in our superannuation system while sending a strong signal of respect and support for the people who keep us safe.”

“Labor failed an important test today. They love talking about fairness when the cameras are on, but when it really counts they refuse to back in the people who put their lives on the line.”

The Greens’ proposal would have ensured firefighters and paramedics receive employer contributions of 16.4%, reflecting the physical and psychological toll their work takes over a lifetime.

The NSW Parliament has finished its final sitting week of 2025 with a double win for the environment and invasive species management, with a bill from the Shooters Party to weaken gun laws failing to get through, and the repeal of the laws protecting invasive species in the Kosciuszko National Park passing the Upper House late into the last sitting day of the year.

The NSW Upper House refused to change rules governing debate times on Wednesday evening after the Labor Government attempted to ram through their agreed gun law changes with the Shooters Party. The next day, during Government time, the Parliament agreed that the Kosciuszko Wild Horse Heritage Repeal Bill should be debated until finished, and has now passed both houses of the NSW Parliament.

Greens MP, Solicitor and spokesperson for the environment Sue Higginson said:

“The net result of what has happened this week, with these two bills, is a phenomenal win for the community and for the environment,”

“While the Shooters’ publicly funded gun lobby was supported by the Labor Government and Premier Chris Minns, the Parliament has refused to give in to those demands, and refused to weaken our gun laws and undermine invasive species control,”

“The repeal of the legal protections for damaging feral horses in Kosciuszko National Park has righted a wrong committed by the Former Deputy Premier John Barilaro,”

“It was an obscene misuse of power and Government when the Nationals legislated for the protection of an invasive species in our only alpine National Park, but it has now been made right because Labor and the Liberals, with others finally joined the Greens to get this done,”

“Both of these wins ultimately go to the community. Each of these bills attracted incredible attention for different reasons, and it’s clear from the feedback we’ve had that the bill with community support to protect Kosci has passed, while the fringe interests of the gun lobby have been sent off till next year. I couldn’t be happier,” Ms Higginson said.

The Albanese Government’s deal with the Greens to force its flawed EPBC reforms through the Senate confirms the Labor-Greens alliance is back, locking Australia into a chaotic regime that will hurt jobs, productivity and investment.

At a time when project pipelines are tightening, productivity has fallen, and competition for global capital is fierce, Labor has chosen a model that makes it harder to approve major projects, harder to employ Australians and harder for regional communities to grow.

Under Labor and the Greens, gas and critical minerals projects that are essential to Australia’s energy security, industrial base and global competitiveness will be pushed into the approvals slow lane.

And it won’t stop there. The impacts of this deal will flow straight through to the construction industry, pushing up the cost of building materials and making it even harder for Australians to build and buy homes.

Labor’s EPBC package was already unworkable. By locking in a Greens-backed model, the Government has cemented uncertainty, entrenched excessive regulatory power in an unaccountable EPA, and guaranteed longer delays for project approvals across the economy.

These reforms also ignore clear recommendations of the Samuel Review which called for clear rules, reduced duplication and faster, more certain approvals.

The Coalition was constructive at every step, offering sensible amendments and a practical pathway to deliver genuine streamlining and improved environmental outcomes.

Our approach would have fixed bad laws and turned them into genuine reforms that lifted productivity, supported jobs and attracted investment.

Industry, and business agreed substantial changes were vitally needed to make the legislation workable.

The Coalition will oppose the Labor Greens destructive deal and fight for an environmental system that protects our natural heritage while supporting jobs, investment and the communities that rely on a strong economy.

I am pleased to announce the Governor-General has appointed Ms Victoria Anderson as the Secretary of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.

Ms Anderson has an extensive career in the Australian Public Service, most recently as Deputy Secretary of the Small Business, Corporate and Law Group at the Department of the Treasury.

Prior to this, Ms Anderson held senior roles in the Department of Education, Skills and Employment and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.

Ms Anderson brings a depth of expertise in public policy to the role, particularly in the agriculture domain where she commenced as a graduate.

Her experience spans industry and drought policy, agricultural market access, biosecurity policy and corporate governance.

Ms Anderson led the delivery of the Government’s Jobs and Skills Summit in 2022, and worked with the states and territories on national schools reform and management of COVID-19 in schools.

Ms Anderson’s term will commence on 8 December for a five-year period.

I would like to thank Ms Justine Saunders APM for acting as Secretary since September 2025.

Today we announce the appointment of Hon Mark Dreyfus KC MP as Australia’s Special Envoy for International Human Rights.

As Special Envoy, Mr Dreyfus will renew Australia’s tradition as a global champion for human rights – a role we have played since we were an original signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948.

In particular, Mr Dreyfus will take a special advocacy role for the abolition of the death penalty, as well as for the rights and protections of children, older persons, people living with a disability and LGBTIQ+ individuals – all issues on which Australia has a long record of international leadership.

Mr Dreyfus is one of the most accomplished and widely respected parliamentarians of recent decades. He has served as Attorney-General and Cabinet Secretary in two governments, and before entering parliament was a prominent barrister for twenty years.

His high standing as a parliamentarian means he can work effectively with other parliamentary representatives in our region leading their countries’ human rights agendas.

We thank Mr Dreyfus for agreeing to share his wealth of experience and outstanding credentials through this role, in addition to his parliamentary responsibilities.

Police are appealing for public assistance to locate a teenage boy from the state’s Lake Macquarie region.

Zachary Rouse, aged 15, was last seen in Whitebridge about 7.30pm today (Saturday 29 November 2025).

When he could not be located or contacted, officers attached to Lake Macquarie Police District were notified and immediately commenced inquiries into his whereabouts.

Police and family hold concerns for Zachary’s welfare as he lives with autism.

Zachary is described as Caucasian appearance, 174cm tall, thin build and brown hair.

He was last seen wearing a black hat, red shirt, army cargo pants, white shoes and carrying a grey backpack.

Zachary is known to frequent the Whitebridge, Charlestown, Dudley, Gateshead and Windale areas.

The Albanese Government continues to invest in the shared health security of our region. Through a new $48 million program, Australia will support the Pacific family to manage increasing rates of HIV infections.

This funding will assist Pacific governments to contain the spread of HIV through technical assistance, disease surveillance and co-investment in their national public health responses.

Rising rates of HIV, and co-infections like tuberculosis, place increased pressure on Pacific health systems, societies and economies. COVID has been an important reminder in recent years that communicable diseases, such as HIV, cost lives and ignore borders.

Ahead of World AIDS Day, acknowledged on 1 December each year, Australia reaffirms its support to ending the global AIDS epidemic by 2030. This latest announcement complements broader and longstanding Australian support to strengthen national health systems in our region and beyond.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Penny Wong:

“We are partnering with the Pacific to tackle the growing public health threat of HIV, including by sharing Australian knowledge and expertise and investing in community-led responses.

“Australia is continuing to work with our Pacific partners to reduce HIV transmission and support people living with HIV.”

Minister for Pacific Island Affairs Pat Conroy:

“As rates of HIV in the Pacific rise, Australia stands ready to co-invest with Pacific partners to strengthen nationally led HIV responses.

“As a member of the Pacific family, we will always be ready to support local leadership and community led responses to HIV in the region.

“Australia is committed to working with our regional partners to advance strong, resilient health system capable of responding effectively to HIV.”

Minister for International Development Anne Aly:

“Australia is proud to share our expertise in containing HIV as a public health threat, drawing on our decades of research and hard-won experience.

“By supporting resilient, equitable and inclusive health systems across the Pacific, we are investing in the shared health security of our region.”

The Greens have negotiated significant wins to protect forests and stop Labor’s fast-track for coal and gas; and with the EPBC now better than the status quo, will support the passage of the package through the Senate this week.

Labor’s first draft was a wish list for corporate environmental destruction: it would have gutted Australia’s environment laws, given corporations the green light for new coal and gas projects in as little as 30 days, and introduced new loopholes to an already weak Act. 

While Labor had clearly hoped to pass a bill on behalf of big corporations, the Greens held firm during negotiations on protections for nature and the climate – boosted by community opposition to a bill that took us backwards. 

Holding firm with community support, the Greens negotiated wins that include:

• Ending decades-long exemptions for forestry destruction in 18 months,
• Removing the ability for coal and gas projects to use fast-tracked approvals or the ‘national interest loophole’,
• Powers to stop illegal land clearing
• Saving the Water Trigger,
• Ensuring the Federal Minister can always step in to protect the environment

Despite significant wins for nature, the bill is still woefully short of what the climate needs – with Labor’s refusal to take meaningful climate action showing that the coal and gas lobby still runs both major parties. 

Labor has pointedly refused to support a climate trigger, despite majority public support and strong evidence in Inquiry, preventing the Environment Minister from considering climate damage when approving projects.

However, with three coal and gas fast-tracks removed, and the government clearly captured by corporations, this deal prevents fossil fuel giants from winding back these loopholes via agreement with the Coalition.

Sen. Larissa Waters, Leader of the Australian Greens:

“The Greens have won changes to better protect native forests, closed loop-holes for land clearing and stop Labor from fast-tracking coal and gas.

“Greens pressure made this bill better than the weak laws we have now, and infinitely better than if the government had done a deal with the climate deniers in the Coalition.

“This outcome was only possible because the Greens are in parliament. We’ve been able to hold off the worst of Labor’s plans – we need more Greens in parliament to get better outcomes. 

“Labor has again refused to take meaningful climate action.

“The Greens stopped Labor’s fast-tracking of coal and gas, but their straight up refusal to add climate to these laws shows Labor puts coal and gas corporate profits ahead of the millions of people who want to protect the climate.”

Sen. Sarah Hanson-Young, Greens Environment spokesperson:

“The community trusts the Greens to deliver real outcomes for nature, and today that is what we have done. 

“Today, with hard work and negotiation we have secured new protections for our beautiful native forests and bushland that will protect our wildlife and biodiversity, and stopped fossil fuels being fast tracked. 

“Labor started this process with a bill that was clearly written to get a deal with the Coalition. It was full of carve outs and loop holes that would have allowed big corporations to trash our environment.

“We said from the start that the Greens wouldn’t accept a bill that would take nature backwards, and would fight to protect forests and the climate, and we’ve done just that.

“Now, this is an environmental protection bill that does what it says on the tin. 

Sen. Nick McKim, Greens Forests spokesperson:

“This is the best we could do in negotiation with a Labor Party that couldn’t care less about the environment, and cares more about corporate profits than protecting nature.”

“Ending the RFA exemption is a spanner in the works of the native forest logging industry which has trashed our beautiful forests with impunity for far too long.”

“We have ended an outrageous legal carveout for logging that’s resulted in devastation for forests and threatened species habitats across the country.”

“Forest campaigners have fought for decades to stop the special treatment for logging, but this is by no means the end of the fight to finally end native forest logging.

“There are now some extra tools to fight the forest industry and save our native forests. See you in the streets and on the blockades.

APRA has announced today that the regulator will intervene in the housing crisis by introducing limits to stop high risk loans from 1 February 2026.

The Greens welcome APRA taking action in response to the Greens’ and community concerns for the massive spike in investor lending. However, this alone won’t cool investors’ stampede of the housing market. The Greens say Treasurer Jim Chalmers must direct APRA to use all the available levers to curtail runaway investor lending.

Greens spokesperson for finance, housing and homelessness Senator Barbara Pocock:

“I’m pleased to see that APRA is listening to the Greens. This is an important first step in limiting runaway investor lending that outcompetes first-home buyers but it’s not enough. 

“$40 billion has gone to investors in the last 3 months and APRA and Chalmers need to stop the tens of billions flowing to investors.

“APRA must use all the tools in their toolbox to rein in investor lending that is exacerbating the housing affordability crisis.

“Investor lending is growing at an unsustainable pace, outstripping loans to owner-occupiers. First-home buyers are being priced out by investors at weekend auctions, house prices are surging, and the banks are profiting handsomely.

“This housing crisis is heading toward a point where it may be impossible to reverse without immediate, decisive action. We urgently need to cool the overheated credit market for property investors. The Treasurer has the authority to issue directions to APRA and he should do so immediately.

“APRA has used its toolkit in the past to cool investor lending and it led to the greatest stabilisation of house prices in 30 years, they need to take that decisive action again. 

“This market is rigged in favour of wealthy property investors, and you only need to look at the latest ABS data, which shows investor lending skyrocketing by 12.3% over the year compared to only a 0.9% increase for first-home buyer loan commitments for the same period. It’s out of control!

“House prices are forecast to increase by 9 percent next year on top of more than 6% this year, which will only worsen unless more pre-emptive action by APRA is taken.” 

The Australian content requirement for online streaming services bill will pass the Senate today. The Greens negotiations have delivered an additional $50 million in funding to the ABC to invest in Australian-made children’s and drama content. 

Greens communications spokesperson, Senator Sarah Hanson-Young: 

“Today we are delivering an important reform for our screen industry. Big tech companies like Netflix, Amazon and Disney will now be regulated and required to invest in local Australian stories. 

“This is a win for our local screen industry and the incredible storytellers that we have in Australia. It is also a win for Australian audiences who deserve to see themselves and their communities reflected on our screens.

“As part of our negotiations, the Greens have secured an extra $50 million for the ABC to invest in local Australian stories, including children’s programming.

“This funding is about giving Australian kids the opportunity to see themselves and hear their own voices on their screens. 

“For decades, the ABC has been the heart of Australian story telling. By strengthening its capacity to make more children’s and drama content, we’re ensuring that heart keeps beating strongly. 

“Bluey, Bananas in Pyjamas, Playschool and many other successful shows have entertained and educated our kids for decades. This is the new chapter of quality kids content that parents can trust. 

“Homegrown content matters. It shapes how kids understand the world, gives them stories grounded in Australian experience, and keeps our creative industries thriving. 

“The Greens have long campaigned for local content quotas on streaming platforms to support Australian stories on our screen, and we’re happy to see this bill pass the Senate today. 

“The Greens have secured a commitment from the