Category: Australian News

Australian Greens Peace and Disarmament spokesperson Senator Jordon Steele-John has called on the Morrison Government to commit to reverse the decision to close its embassy in Kabul after horrific new information was reported today about the nature of Australia’s worst alleged war crime, known as the ‘tractor job’.
“Now is not the time for Australia to lose a vital piece of on-the-ground infrastructure that would be critical in supporting the Office of the Special Investigator to better access evidence and witnesses in Afghanistan,” Steele-John said.
“To close the Australian Embassy in Kabul now, when so much new and truly shameful information about the conduct of Australian SAS soldiers in Afghanistan has come to light, borders on governmental obstruction of justice!
“The closure of the Austrlaian Embassy in Kabul will unjustifiably disadvantage the victims, and their families, when engaging with the investigation.
“What has been reported today by the ABC about the incident known as the ‘tractor job’ is horrific and truly shameful.
“The war has had a terrible and lasting impact on the Afghani people, whose country we occupied for two decades. Innocent people, including children like 14 year old Abdul Salim who is alleged to have been killed at Sara Aw, are dead, families have been torn apart and villages have been left in ruin.
“It is imperative now that we do everything in our power as a nation to ensure that no stone is left unturned, perpetrators are brought to jsutice and the families, and the communities, affected by our occupation are appropriately compensated.
“Abdul Salim, Fiz Mohammad, Omar Jan, Mohammad Azim, Sakhi Jan, Wali Jan, Gulab Khan, Gran, Abdullah, Toor Jan and Nazar Mohammad. These are the names of the 11 civilians alleged to have been murdered; lest we forget.”

The human biosecurity emergency period under the Biosecurity Act 2015 will be extended for a further three months.
The emergency period, which has been in place since 18 March 2020 to protect Australians during the COVID-19 pandemic, will continue until 17 September 2021.
The extension, declared by the Governor General today, was informed by specialist medical and epidemiological advice provided by the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee (AHPPC) and the Commonwealth Chief Medical Officer.
The AHPPC has advised that the international COVID-19 situation continues to pose an unacceptable risk to public health.
The extension of the emergency period is an appropriate response to that risk.
The human biosecurity emergency declaration ensures the Government has the powers to take any necessary measures to prevent and control COVID-19.
This extends the four existing emergency determinations including:

• mandatory pre-departure testing and mask wearing for international flights
• restrictions on the entry of cruise vessels within Australian territory
• restrictions on outbound international travel for Australians
• restrictions on trade of retail outlets at international airports.

To date, these and other measures have greatly assisted in protecting Australia by preventing and controlling the entry, emergence, establishment and spread of COVID-19.
We will continue to review these determinations regularly to take into account the latest medical advice
The Government also continues to consult with the States and Territories and the maritime industry on options for the staged resumption of cruising when the medical advice is that it is safe to do so.
These measures in place under the Biosecurity Act 2015 the can be amended or repealed at any time.

Eligible Victorians whose hours of work and income are significantly affected due to the state lockdown can now claim the COVID-19 Disaster Payment.
Since claiming opened at 8am today, thousands of claims have been successfully lodged and Services Australia has already started granting claims.
This payment is for people who reside or work in a Commonwealth declared hotspot and can’t attend work as a result of state imposed health restrictions lasting greater than a week.
Eligible people, for the period 4 to 10 June, will receive $500 if they’ve lost 20 hours or more of work, and $325 if they’ve lost less than 20 hours of work. They must not have liquid assets of more than $10,000 or be in receipt of other payments.
Minister for Government Services, Senator the Hon Linda Reynolds CSC, said Services Australia staff are urgently progressing claims from Victorians affected by the current lockdown restrictions in Greater Melbourne.
“Services Australia staff are now processing COVID-19 Disaster Payment claims and prioritising payments and services to support Victorians through this current lockdown period,” Minister Reynolds said.
“Once a claim has been lodged, using a Centrelink online account through myGov, customers do not need to do anything else.
“When their claim is approved, customers should get their payment the next business day.
“Customers will receive an SMS when their claim is submitted. People don’t need to call to check on their claim.
“We expect significant interest in this payment and ask that people be patient, especially during the first few days as Services Australia processes these claims for support.
“Payments will also be backdated to the date someone first became eligible, rather than the date the claim was lodged.”
People who can’t make a claim online can call 180 22 66 for support. Phone lines are open 8am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.
Eligible visa holders will need to call Services Australia on 180 22 66 to claim.
For more information on the COVID-19 Disaster Payment go to servicesaustralia.gov.au/covid19
Additional information
Services Australia will pay the COVID-19 Disaster Payment from the date of activation for an area where both of the following apply:

• the area has a public health lockdown for more than 7 days (Note: Victorians cannot receive this payment for the first 7 days of lockdown)
• the area is a declared COVID-19 hotspot.

To be eligible for the payment, Victorians must meet all the following criteria:

• be an Australian resident or hold an eligible working visa
• be 17 years or older
• not be in receipt of an income support payment, the Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment, a state or territory pandemic payment or a state small business payment
• live or work in a COVID-19 declared hotspot
• had paid employment and because of the lockdown are unable to attend work on or after day 8 of lockdown
• lost income on or after day 8 of lockdown and don’t have any appropriate paid leave entitlements
• have liquid assets of less than $10,000. Note: Liquid assets are any funds readily available in cash or savings, or assets that can easily be converted into cash in a short amount of time.

The Australian Greens have called on the Senate, and state and territory governments, to reject the Morrison Government’s flawed environmental law reforms following the release of a highly-critical Senate Inquiry Report today.
Greens Environment Spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said:
“The Morrison Government is trying to weaken environment protection laws and hand approval powers for mines and big developments to the states rather than the Commonwealth.
“It is quite clear from the Senate Inquiry Report released today into this plan must be stopped.
“The Inquiry heard these laws not only further weaken existing protections they aren’t scientifically credible and will do nothing to halt the current extinction crisis.
“The only support in this report for the legislation comes from the government.
“If these new laws pass the parliament we will see more dead koalas, more pollution, more logging and more wanton destruction of cultural heritage sites.
“Our states and territories must also again lead where the Morrison Government won’t.
“Queensland, NSW and the ACT governments have rejected the Federal Government’s plan and I urge the other states and territories to join them.
“In particular, I call on SA Environment Minister David Speirs to stand up for our home state, our special natural places and the River Murray which will all be at serious risk if the Morrison Government’s plan goes ahead.
“We need a zero extinction target and to achieve it, we need strong environmental protections and an independent watchdog to hold governments, miners and developers to account.”
Report into Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Amendment (Standards and Assurance) Bill 2021 by the Senate Environment and Communications Legislation Committee, including Greens Dissenting Report here.

Australian Greens Peace and Disarmament spokesperson Senator Jordon Steele-John said today the National Capital Authority’s (NCA) approval of early works as part of the redevelopment of the Australian War Memorial (AWM), just days after confimring they had the power to reject the proposal, was anti-democratic.
Senator Steele-John said that of the 601 submissions the NCA received for this proposal – three times more than for any other issue – only three supported the redevelopment, making it abundantly clear that this project does not have the support of the community
“It’s clear that the consultation process up to this point has been an absolute farce and an insult to the community,” Steele-John said.
“After appearing before Senate Estimates just over a week ago and stating they had the power to knock back proposals that were not in line with the capital plan or unsupported by the community, it is incredibly disappointing to see the NCA now wave this proposal through without even taking the time to consult further.
“The speed with which this proposal has been approved by the NCA makes it clear the concenrs of the wider community have been ignored at the behest of the Morrison Government, the AWM and their corporate donors.
“The Greens will continue to listen to the community, who are united in their opposition to the project, and fight to ensure the AWM is a place of rememberance and reflection for all and not a billboard for corporate weapon makers.”

The Greens say Minister Robert’s latest release on the DobSeeker hotline confirms that it is just more Government funded intimidation of people on income support.
This attempt to once again demonise people looking for work is despicable. There are 1.14 million people looking for work and the Minister is making a big deal of a few hundred calls that are still being ‘investigated’. This demonising has to stop.
The mutual obligations system is a vicious cycle of intimidation and paper pushing.
Every month businesses have to deal with 17 million job applications, despite there being just 243,500 jobs available.
Come July that will go up to 23 million per month when people on JobSeeker have to apply for 20 jobs per month.
At the end of the day Minister Robert needs to take responsibility for his Government’s policies and the impact it has. People lose their only income if you don’t put in 15 job applications per month.
It’s because of the Government’s rules that businesses are having to deal with so many applications, but of course Mr Robert is just going to use it as an opportunity to attack people on income support.

The Australian Government is helping nurses receive the extra training they need to care for older Australians.
The University of Wollongong (UOW), the Australian College of Nursing (ACN) and Aged and Community Services Australia (ACSA) are being funded to establish Aged Care Transition to Practice (ACTTP) programs to attract and retain up to 740 new nurses to aged care.
The programs will guide new nurses in their first year of clinical practice through mentorship, professional development and specialist clinical training.
Minister for Health and Aged Care, Greg Hunt, said the aged care workforce was at the heart of quality care and supporting the growing workforce was a Government priority.
“This program is designed to directly support and provide guidance for newly-graduated nurses to join this expanding sector,” Minister Hunt said.
Minister for Senior Australians and Aged Care Services Richard Colbeck said it was just the beginning of once-in-a-generation changes to aged care in Australia, with a particular focus on workforce.
“It will allow graduates to see the benefit and contribution they can make to the lives of senior Australians, and ultimately choose aged care nursing as a rewarding career of choice,” Minister Colbeck said.
Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer, Adjunct Professor (Practice) Alison McMillan, said the training component would include infection prevention and control, nutrition, falls prevention and wound care, which will be critical for ensuring safe and high quality care for senior Australians.
“Transition to practice programs are common in other parts of the health sector, and their introduction to aged care will go a long way to boosting the sector,” Prof. McMillan said.
“Many graduates don’t realise aged care provides nurses with opportunities for rapid development and career advancement compared to other clinical settings.
“The critical mentorship component of this program will ensure graduate nurses see these opportunities for growth and make aged care nursing a career of choice.”
The ACTTP program was announced in the 2020-21 Budget and received a $1.1 million funding boost in this year’s historic aged care allocations in response to the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety’s recommendations.
The successful organisations, UOW, ACN and ACSA, will start work immediately, with all programs underway from July 2021.

World Food Safety Day is an opportunity to recognise Australia’s contributions in providing safe, premium food for consumers here and abroad.
Minister for Agriculture, Drought and Emergency Management David Littleproud said food integrity and safety was everyone’s business.
“As a major food exporter, Australia has an outstanding reputation as a trusted and reliable supplier in international markets,” Minister Littleproud said
“Underpinned by strong food safety standards, our farmers and food processors continue to provide confidence to the domestic and international community with strong food safety controls to deliver food that remains safe and reliable.
“We’re always looking to improve our food regulatory system to ensure it remains robust and agile into the future.
“One way we are doing this is through chairing the Codex Committee on Food Import and Export Inspection and Certification Systems which is currently meeting virtually.
“The committee provides guidance and a trusted framework for efficient and transparent inspection and certification systems, which are vital for open trade in reliable and safe foodstuffs.
Senator Richard Colbeck, who has portfolio responsibility for food regulation, said production and consumption of high-quality, safe product had immediate and long-term benefits for individuals, the economy and the rest of the world.
“World Food Safety Day draws global attention to need to prevent, detect and manage foodborne risks and highlights importance of access to safe, healthy and nutritious food,” Minister Colbeck said.
“Our food safety standards are among the highest in the world.
“Australia prides itself in implementing effective food safety standards throughout food production and distribution chains to ensure the safety and quality of Australian produce.
“The COVID-19 pandemic reinforced the importance of strong food safety systems.
“We will continue to be a key producer of high quality, safe, reliable and globally recognised food products.”
Fast Facts:

• This year marks the third United Nations World Food Safety Day.
• The theme this year’s is ‘Safe food today for a healthy tomorrow’.
• Foodborne diseases are a major inhibitor to growth and development in children.
• Codex Committee on Food Import and Export Inspection and Certification Systems 25^th meeting is being hosted virtually by Australia over 7 days. Australia has chaired the committee since 1992.

More rural and remote Queenslanders will be rolling up their sleeves as local pharmacies join the national COVID-19 vaccine rollout from today.
The Australian Government is partnering with the Queensland community pharmacy network to bolster the regional rollout of vaccines, with 49 pharmacies starting to vaccinate from this week.
Speaking at the first pharmacy-delivered vaccination site in Boonah, Wright MP, Scott Buchholz, said he was proud the Scenic Rim region and more specifically Boonah was chosen to be part of the local pharmacy rollout of vaccines which would help protect more people from the devastating pandemic.
“I’m pleased for Scenic Rim locals who can now book their AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine at Terry Foote’s Boonah Pharmacy,” Mr Buchholz said.
“I urge everyone who is eligible for vaccination to make a booking and get the jab, to protect you, your family, and the wider community from this awful disease.”
Federal Regional Health Minister, Mark Coulton said using the existing network of community pharmacies in Queensland ensures regional Australians will have more access to COVID-19 vaccines.
“More than 8 million people live outside Australia’s major capital cities, and while the regions have largely been spared from outbreaks during the pandemic, getting vaccinated is vital to our ongoing recovery and way forward,” Minister Coulton said.
“Ensuring all Queenslanders have access to COVID-19 vaccinations, regardless where they live, is hugely important, and community pharmacies provide a network of professionals to make this task easier.
“Pharmacists have the skills and the capacity to play an important role in bolstering the rollout of vaccines in the bush and have the local knowledge needed to ensure their communities are fully protected from the virus.”
Minister for Health and Aged Care, Greg Hunt, said Queensland’s community pharmacies are the first to join the national COVID-19 vaccine effort, one of the largest logistical exercises in the nation’s history.
“This will harness Australia’s network of community pharmacies to increase access to safe, effective, and free vaccines, especially for those in regional, rural, and remote communities,” Minister Hunt said.
“We have always said community pharmacies will play an important role in the ramp up of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, and we are working with other states and territories to activate community pharmacies across the country.”
As the community pharmacy rollout begins, the benchmark of one million people in regional, rural, and remote Australia receiving their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine has been surpassed.
Minister Coulton said the milestone is significant in the protection of regional Australians, many of whom remain vulnerable to future COVID-19 outbreaks.
“The rollout of safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines across Australia’s vast and sparsely populated areas is a complex and challenging undertaking,” Minister Coulton said.
“I would like to thank everyone involved with helping to reach this milestone, including medical professionals, Indigenous and other health services and most of all, the people who have stepped up – and rolled up – to be vaccinated.
Minister Coulton said it is pleasing that many regional Australians had acknowledged the vaccine would protect them from the virus and had made appointments to have their vaccine.
Visit health.gov.au/covid-19-vaccines for more information about the vaccine rollout.

Well, it’s wonderful to be here in downtown Boonah this morning, making a significant announcement, not only for Boonah but for regional Australia.
This morning, we are flanked by some incredible men that have joined the fight against COVID-19 in regional Australia. This morning we’ll be announcing that regional pharmacies, in particular Footes Pharmacy right here in Boonah, will as of today, be able to hand out the vaccines for over 50s, for the AstraZeneca.
Now, I’m joined here by the Minister for Regional Health and Regional Communications, Mark Coulton. Thank you for joining us.
It’s always wonderful to have you in the electorate doing amazing things.
Cameron Foote, the local pharmacist – who has a number of pharmacies. Cameron, thank you for being a part of this exciting rollout and joining with us, locked arms, to take the fight up against COVID-19.
And of course, Chris Owen, the Pharmacy Guild President here to make the announcement. I might just ask Mark Coulton now to give you a bit of an oversight of what the program’s about.
MARK COULTON:
Thanks, Scotty. Great to be here in Boonah, your home town with the Assistant Minister Scott Buchholz.
And so what we’re announcing today is a partnership between the Federal Government, the Queensland Government and the Pharmacy Guild.
This site here behind us, Cameron Foote’s pharmacy, Foote’s Pharmacy, will be the first site of 49 pharmacies across Queensland that will be distributing AstraZeneca starting from today.
These pharmacies are located in areas where there is not a GP delivering the service.
So, community pharmacy are filling in the gap. And it’s a great choice because people need to have confidence in the people delivering vaccinations.
With what has happened in the last six months, there is a lot of questions people have about whether they should have the vaccine or not.
And there are not many more trusted professions in a community than their local pharmacist.
So I’m pleased that this announcement’s been made today.
We’re very hopeful that in other parts of Queensland, but also in other states, we will be able to roll out the vaccine program with the Pharmacy Guild across Australia because they are a very important partner with the Australian Government because of their close connection to the community.
But I might hand on now to Chris to say a few words and then happy to take questions at the end.
CHRIS OWEN:
Thank you, Mark. It is a pleasure today to be able to announce that 49 community pharmacies in Queensland will be able to give the COVID-19 vaccine.
State Health Minister Yvette D’Ath, Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt, we thank you for being able to join in this COVID rollout.
We want to accelerate the amount of numbers that are being given, and especially in rural and remote Australia, where I myself am from. And we want to be able to lower those barriers to access for those patients to get in this COVID vaccine rollout.
We look forward to further pharmacies being rolled out in the future and we’ll hopefully be able to get back to our normal daily lives sooner rather than later.
CAMERON FOOTE:
Thanks, Chris. Welcome to Boonah, everyone. Really excited to be part of the rollout today, improving access for people in rural and remote areas. Pharmacies are excited to come off the bench and get involved in the fight against COVID. Thanks very much for coming, everyone.
MARK COULTON:
So we can take any questions that you might have.
QUESTION:
Fantastic. Minister, just a couple of questions in relation to, same thing there, just about you got any idea what sort of timeframes we may be able to seek supplies to roll it out further?
MARK COULTON:
Look, I think towards the end of the year, we’ll see more. We secured an extra 20 million Pfizer doses on top of the 20 million we secured earlier in the year.
And so they’re sort of back ended in the last quarter of the year.
But I would expect that we’ll see a gradual roll out. And then when we get to go in the below 50s, so the general population, we’ll see larger numbers.
Queensland’s been very good. You know, they started doing sort of town-wide vaccination clinics some time ago in some of the smaller, remote communities. And so, as the vaccine supply increases, so will the opportunity for people to have vaccine.
QUESTION:
You’ve got AstraZeneca here. Pfizer, will that come to?
MARK COULTON:
Pfizer, eventually. There is a few more logistical problems with Pfizer, but not insurmountable.
It can be transported at the minus 70 that it’s stored at. Once it’s thawed back to around 4 degrees and below, it can sit in a vaccine fridge for five days.
So they’re working through the logistics now of getting more Pfizer doses out as we’re getting to that phase of the rollout.
UNKNOWN:
Last question.
QUESTION:
Good to see the Queensland Premier getting her jab today.
MARK COULTON:
Oh, is she? Yeah. Well I had mine on Saturday, my wife and I who’s with me, had ours on Saturday.
We’re still upright and smiling. The clinic we were at, people were keen to have it. And I think that, particularly country people, understand that while country towns have probably been the safest place on the planet over the last 18 months, what’s made us safe, also makes us vulnerable.
And so we are focusing on getting regional areas done, particularly some of the more remote rural and Indigenous communities, because that would be incredibly difficult to manage it in those places. And those folk are really stepping up and taking the opportunity.
QUESTION:
Speaking of vulnerable, we can be very vulnerable. Take Victoria, you know, another 11 cases overnight. At a click of the fingers, Queensland could be in trouble.
MARK COULTON:
Everyone could be. And I think one of the reasons that the rollout was a little slower than we would have liked is probably complacency that people thought that the pandemic was something that was really happening somewhere else.
And to put it in perspective, if we had the same death rate as Europe here in Australia, we would have lost 30,000 people. And we’ve lost under a thousand.
So, yeah, they were tragic deaths, but it could have been worse. But I think what we’ve seen with the lockdown in Victoria, we are seeing a much greater focus on the public that this is serious.
It can affect us. Someone could roll into a town like here in Boonah and before you know it, we’ve got a lockdown here in Queensland.
And so we don’t want that, and the best way to prevent that is for people to step up and have their vaccine when they can make an appointment.