Category: Australian News

Australia has ranked 8th in the World Economic Forum’s 2026 Global Gender Gap Report, breaking into to the top ten and achieving its highest ever ranking for gender equality, out of 148 countries.

This result reflects the Albanese Government’s sustained action to improve the lives of women and girls, including lifting wages in female-dominated industries, expanding Paid Parental Leave to six months with superannuation, and making significant investments in women’s health.

It also reflects the progress made on women’s representation in government, with women making up the majority of Cabinet for the first time and more women serving across the Parliament.

Since coming to office, the Albanese Government has jumped 35 places in the global rankings, from 43rd to 8th.

The Index shows that progress in Australia is translating to the global stage, with the Index assessing key measures of gender equality, including political representation, economic participation, educational attainment and health.

The report is available here: Global Gender Gap Report 2026

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese:

“My Government is committed to creating a fairer, safer and more equal society for Australian women and girls.

“Our efforts are bearing fruit, with Australia now sitting in the top ten countries for gender equality worldwide. When we first came to Government we were ranked 43rd – and slipped to an all-time low of 50th under the previous Coalition government.

“The job is not done and we will continue to focus our efforts on lifting wages, ending gender-based violence, increasing female representation in workplaces, investing in women’s health and more.”

Minister for Women, Katy Gallagher:

“We came to the 2022 election with a commitment to make Australia one of the best countries in the world for women. Today we are in the top ten, not by accident, and not by wishful thinking but because of deliberate commitment and action from the Albanese Government.

“From closing the gender pay gap and lifting wages in female-dominated industries to expanding Paid Parental Leave and investing in women’s health, we are delivering practical changes that make a difference in women’s lives.

“We know there is more work to do across our priorities of ending violence against women, valuing care, improving women’s economic empowerment, improving women’s health outcomes and strengthening women’s leadership and representation – this is just one measure that shows Australia is moving in the right direction but we also remain absolutely steadfast in our commitment to improve the lives of women and girls around Australia.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will travel to the United States from Friday 18 September to Thursday 24 September 2026 to visit Apple Headquarters in California and lead Australia’s delegation at the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Week in New York.

The Prime Minister will visit Apple Park and meet the Executive Chairman of Apple’s Board of Directors, Tim Cook, to discuss Apple’s new parental-controls for children, in part inspired by Australia’s groundbreaking reform.  

During High-Level Week, the Prime Minister will promote Australia’s commitment to multilateralism and meet international partners to find collective solutions to shared challenges, including building a safe digital future.

The United Nations General Assembly High-Level Week is the largest annual gathering of world leaders, and an opportunity to engage on the global issues that are impacting Australians at home. The Prime Minister will deliver Australia’s National Statement, underscoring Australia’s values and priorities on the global stage.

Australia is firmly committed to working with our international partners to address these global challenges, and Prime Minister Albanese will reiterate our commitment to climate action, peace and security.

The Prime Minister will be joined at the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Week by Minister for Foreign Affairs Penny Wong.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese

“Australia’s prosperity and security depend on a strong global system, where nations work together, agreed rules are respected, and cooperation delivers shared benefits.

“Australia is working to prevent online harm, particularly for our children, and I am proud that Australia is setting the world standard for digital safety.

“I look forward to joining other world leaders to discuss issues impacting our communities, including fuel costs, climate change and conflict, and how we can work together to find solutions.”

Foreign Minister Penny Wong

“At the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Week, Australia will continue our work to help shape outcomes that deliver for Australians, for our region and the world.

“From building coalitions for the protection of aid workers and the rules countries like Australia rely on for our security and prosperity, to advocating for a better UN system fit for these uncertain times.

“Sovereignty, prosperity and peace are not a gift or a given – they must be built, maintained by all of us and protected across generations.”

More Australians are choosing to join and stay in the Australian Defence Force (ADF) as the Albanese Government continues its record investments to put Defence recruitment and retention back on track. 

In the 2025-26 financial year, the ADF grew to its largest size in a quarter of a century, meaning:

• The ADF enlisted more than 8,100 personnel, the highest intake in 16 years
• The full time and permanent workforce now exceeds 64,000 personnel, making it the largest it has been in 25 years 
• The separation rate – or number of people choosing to leave the ADF – was 7.4%, down even further from last year’s 7.9%, and the lowest it has been in 15 years

Recruitment growth has been recorded across all three Services, with the Navy achieving its highest intake in 16 years, Army its highest intake in 12 years and Air Force its highest intake in 24 years.

Since 2022, the Albanese Government has invested over $1 billion to grow the Defence workforce after inheriting declining recruitment and retention rates. These investments are continuing to deliver results.   

The Continuation Bonus and its subsequent extension have been implemented, in addition to improved processes to enable faster recruitment by identifying skill gaps and addressing them quickly, improvements to Defence Benefits and Conditions of Service to help retain the skilled workforce, and a widening of eligibility criteria so that more people can join the ADF have contributed to the growth of the ADF. 

As at 1 July 2026, there are more than 61,000 permanent members of the ADF alongside more than 900 Gap Year participants and almost 1,500 full-time Reservists. Together these numbers represent an increase of more than 3,000 full time personnel since last year, taking the total ADF headcount to more than 64,000. 

Australians continue to put their hands up to serve, with Defence receiving almost 74,000 applications in the 2025-26 financial year. Navy and Air Force both recorded year-on-year growth in applications.

The ADF is on track to meet the Albanese Government’s target of 69,000 permanent Average Funded Strength by the early 2030s – a key workforce objective reaffirmed in the 2026 National Defence Strategy, which provides a credible and budgeted pathway to grow the Defence workforce. 

While more work remains, these results highlight significant progress in attracting and retaining the skilled workforce required to build the future Defence Force.

The ADF recruits to over 300 roles, available to discover online at: www.adfcareers.gov.au 

Deputy Prime Minister, Richard Marles MP:

“Over the last year more sailors, soldiers, aviators, and cyber and space operators joined the Australian Defence Force than in the last 16 years. 

“The men and women who wear our nation’s uniform go to work every day to keep Australians safe. That is why the Albanese Government is focused on recruiting, retaining and skilling the workforce we need.

“We’ve already made significant progress, but we will continue to reform recruitment processes and retention initiatives over the long-term.”

Minister for Defence Personnel, Matt Keogh MP:

“Our most important Defence capability is our people, who serve our nation, striving to achieve the Defence mission, every day. 

“Thanks to the Albanese Government’s interventions, the Defence workforce is growing, with more people putting their hand up to serve, and more personnel choosing to stick around for longer. 

“In 2026 a career in the ADF can mean almost anything, with more than 300 roles to choose from. It’s fantastic to see more Australians coming forward to serve in such dynamic and rewarding careers.

Leading tech CEOs Dario Amodei, Elon Musk and Sam Altman have called for urgent action to slow down the arms race on AI, citing a threat to humanity.

In Question Time today, Senator Hanson-Young asked if the Government would commit to a moratorium on data centre approval and construction or to making upcoming legislation on data centres retrospective. Senator Wong, representing the Prime Minister, failed to answer the question.

Full exchange available here.

Senator Sarah Hanson-Young, Greens environment and communications spokesperson:

“When the three leading CEOs of AI companies are telling you there’s a problem with the hyper speed of AI, its time for governments to listen.

“Instead, the Albanese Government seems determined to roll out the welcome mat for the construction of dozens and dozens of data centres across Australia.

“New York and Texas have imposed moratoriums on the building of new data centres following fierce backlash from local communities. It’s time for Australia to follow suit.

“With American communities strongly rejecting data centres, Australia is becoming a destination of choice for AI companies because of our lack of regulation.

“Right now, it’s the wild west for cowboy data centre operators, there are no rules. We need to take a pause while we get the settings right.

“The Government has rightly acknowledged the need for a regulatory framework but while they are dragging their feet to bring a bill to the parliament, data centres are popping up all over the country.

“This extractive industry is already taking our energy and water and giving little back to the Australian community.

“Unless we have a moratorium or a commitment that the future laws will be retrospective, it’s a green light to the industry to get in quick and build, build, build before the rules are put in place.”

Industry, the recycling sector, environmental groups and the Australian Greens are today uniting in calls for a mandatory federal extended producer responsibility (EPR) scheme, ahead of a meeting of federal, state and territory environment ministers this Friday.

The Labor Government has previously committed to reforming Australia’s packaging system through an EPR scheme that would make producers responsible for the end-of-life impacts of the packaging they put into the market, but has since walked back that commitment.

Representatives from industry, the recycling sector, environmental groups, the Greens and crossbench are calling on Labor to deliver a mandatory national scheme that puts responsibility where it belongs: on the companies that design, produce and profit from packaging.

Australia’s existing voluntary approach has comprehensively failed. The National Packaging Targets were supposed to deliver 100 per cent reusable, recyclable or compostable packaging and 70 per cent plastic packaging recycling by 2025. We are nowhere near those targets. 

The Greens have previously introduced legislation that would establish a national EPR scheme for packaging and make Australia’s National Packaging Targets mandatory and legally binding.

Australian Greens spokesperson for Waste and Recycling, Senator Steph Hodgins-May, said there was now broad agreement that Australia’s voluntary approach was not working: 

“We don’t always see eye to eye on everything, but industry, environmental groups and the Greens are united on this. Australia needs a mandatory federal packaging scheme.

“The environmental ministers’ meeting is a chance for federal Labor to stop kicking this can down the road and finally make the companies producing the waste responsible for fixing it.

“We’ve spent years setting voluntary targets, and we’ve fallen embarrassingly short. The voluntary approach has failed, and Australia is leading the world in plastic waste for all the wrong reasons.” 

“Industry, environmental groups and the crossbench are calling for mandatory action and the certainty that comes with a nationally regulated scheme, so there are no more excuses for delay. 

“Plastic waste is clogging our environment and our landfills, and it is now even turning up in our bodies. Labor cannot keep pretending this is a problem to be fixed with a patchwork of separate regulations. 

“Successive governments have put the burden on households and councils while the companies producing and profiting from packaging walk away from the mess.

“If you make the packaging, you should be responsible for what happens to it.

“Labor’s cost-of-living excuse doesn’t stack up. Australians are already paying for this broken system through their council rates and waste charges. Making producers responsible would mean less of the cost is dumped on households and councils.

“Labor’s own consultation found 65 per cent support for mandatory extended producer responsibility. The evidence is overwhelming but what’s missing is political will.

“Industry wants certainty. Environmental groups want action. Australians want less waste and a recycling system that actually works.

“We’re ready to work with Labor to get it done this term.” 

Today, ACT Greens Leader Jo Clay will be introducing a motion in the Legislative Assembly demanding the ACT Labor Government commit to a fixed public housing target and guaranteed community infrastructure, as planning proceeds for the Thoroughbred Park precinct.

The precinct is expected to deliver 6,200 homes and house up to 16,400 people – one of the biggest urban redevelopments in Canberra’s history.

“There are over 3,600 Canberrans stuck on the public housing waitlist right now. As Canberra grows, Thoroughbred Park is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for government to lock in the public homes into a major infill development from day one, helping ensure more Canberrans can afford to live in the city they call home.

“If you’re building a suburb for 16,000 people, you need to build the public housing, parks, playgrounds and community spaces at the same time – not as an afterthought once developers have already banked their profits and moved on.

“And with many schools in the area already sitting above 90 per cent capacity, it would be incredibly poor planning to not set aside land for new schools today,” said Ms Clay.

Ms Clay’s motion will call on the Assembly to:

• Require developers to provide 10 per cent of homes in Thoroughbred Park precinct as rent-fixed public housing, plus additional community housing, salt-and-peppered throughout the precinct;
• Require developers to provide playgrounds, parks and community infrastructure as part of the development; and
• Ensure planning for the precinct sets aside land and accounts for future primary and high school capacity to support additional housing development in the inner north.

1. The motion is expected to be tabled in the Assembly after 2 pm today, Tuesday 15 September 2026.
2. 2026 enrolment data shows many schools near the precinct are approaching capacity:
    

• Lyneham High: 93%
• O-Connor Co-op: 93%
• Dickson College: 90%
• Lyneham Primary: 90%
• Majura Primary: 84%
• North Ainslie Primary: 78%
• Ainslie Primary: 77%

Following the recent telecommunications outages that have caused major disruptions across Australia the Greens will push to make domestic roaming mandatory for all Australian telcos. 

This week in the Senate, the Greens will move amendments to the Universal Outdoor Mobile Obligations Bill 2026 to 

• Mandate domestic roaming for Australian phone users in the event of a network outage
• Introduce strong performance and reliability standards for all telcos
• Set up an automatic compensation scheme for consumers in the event of a network outage

Greens Communications Spokesperson and Chair of the senate inquire into Triple 0 outages Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said:

“The era of self regulation in the telecommunications industry must come to an end. All three of the big telcos in Australia have let their customers and the Australian public down. It’s time for accountability.

“This week in the parliament, the Greens will move amendments that put in place stronger accountability for telcos and more choice and support for consumers.

“Mobile phone companies have had long enough to sort out roaming arrangements on their own and they have failed to do it. It’s time for the Government to step in and mandate it. This is such a common sense reform, it works overseas, it can work in Australia.

“Putting enforceable reliability standards into law is well overdue. Access to mobile phones and the internet is an essential in modern life. People rely on it to do everything from getting to work to paying the bills or calling their mum. Telecommunications is an essential service and it should be regulated like one. 

“Just last week Optus customers have once again been left without the essential service they rely upon every day. This is exactly why we can no longer continue to let these big Telcos mark their own homework.

“We have seen the life or death consequences of network outages, especially when it impacts Triple 0. It’s time for the parliament to act. We cannot pass the Universal Outdoor Mobile Obligations bill without significant steps forward to improve telecommunications regulation, and ultimately public safety.

“The Greens are willing to work with the Government on these reforms. This is not a partisan political issue. It is a matter of putting the interests of the Australian people above the profits of the big telcos.”

The Albanese Government is providing another $1 million for Little Wings to help seriously ill children in regional communities access the health care they need.

The funding will extend the Government’s support for Little Wings for a further two years, helping families across regional NSW, Queensland and the ACT access the specialist health care their children need.

The Government will also match every dollar raised by 12-year-old Dusty Langby, who has walked an incredible 540 kilometres from Warren, NSW to Parliament House in Canberra in support of Little Wings.

Little Wings provides free aeromedical and ground transport and specialist outreach clinics for families living outside major cities, helping remove distance as a barrier to essential health care.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Minister for Health and Ageing, Mark Butler announced the funding today as they welcomed Dusty to Parliament House after his remarkable journey.

Dusty has raised over $500,000 for Little Wings, with the Albanese Government matching that amount dollar-for-dollar and doubling the impact of his fundraising effort.

Dusty was joined in his walk by his mother Sarah Langby, a Registered Nurse, Little Wings Chief Executive Officer Clare Pearson, local nurse Christine Letton, Little Wings nurse Nichole Callan, and other members of his support crew.

The new $1 million investment will extend the Government’s support for Little Wings for a further two years, helping the organisation continue its vital work for children and families across regional NSW, Queensland and the ACT.

The Albanese Government has been a proud supporter of Little Wings since 2022. In the 2022-23 Budget, the Government committed $4.3 million to Little Wings for the purchase of an additional aircraft and $2.5 million in operational funding from 2022‑23 to 2026-27.

In 2025-26 alone, the Albanese Government supported 350 Little Wings missions. This included 296 hospital flights and 54 outreach specialist clinics, helping 1,260 families to access specialist care closer to home.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese:

“Dusty has done something extraordinary and has walked 540 kilometres to help seriously ill children and their families.

“My Government will match every dollar Dusty has raised so his incredible effort can make an even bigger difference.

“On top of that, my Government will invest another $1 million to keep Little Wings flying and help regional families get their children the care they need.

“Dusty has shown that you’re never too young to make a difference and we’re proud to back Little Wings and the work they do.”

Minister Mark Butler:

“The Albanese Government has supported Little Wings because for families facing the unimaginable, Little Wings is a beacon of hope, delivering swift and secure transport during their most trying moments.

“Dusty’s extraordinary effort has shown no parent should worry about distance, affordability and reliability when it comes to their child’s health care.

“The extension of support for Little Wings reflects our Government’s commitment to strengthening the health infrastructure that binds our nation together.

“Little Wings helps to ensure no child’s health is compromised by distance or location.”

Assistant Minister Emma McBride:

“Where a child lives should never determine the health care they can access.

“This additional funding will help Little Wings continue supporting children and families who rely on these vital services, it was a pleasure to meet Dusty yesterday and recognize his outstanding advocacy in person.

“The Albanese Labor Government is committed to delivering quality, affordable and reliable health care for all Australians, wherever they live.”

Senator Deborah O’Neill:

“The Albanese Labor Government continues to deliver for regional Australia.

“I am proud to be a member of the Labor Government that listens to strong regional advocates like Dusty and invests in quality health care for regional Australians.

“Dusty has inspired communities across New South Wales and should be incredibly proud of what he has accomplished.”

The Victorian Greens have welcomed the long overdue passage of reforms to decriminalise begging and void outdated historic imprisonment warrants for unpaid fines after years of advocacy from the Greens and community legal organisations.

The Greens were proud to support amendments in Parliament today to decriminalise begging and stop people being thrown in jail for something that should be shown compassion instead. This comes after the Greens have moved their own amendments to decriminalise begging many times, which Labor blocked.

The Greens have campaigned to decriminalise begging for more than a decade, with former Greens justice spokesperson Sue Pennicuik introducing legislation to repeal the offence in 2016 and local Greens MP Ellen Sandell campaigning heavily on the issue as far back as 2017. At the time, Labor explicitly rejected the Greens’ push.

Victorian Greens leader Ellen Sandell MP:

“For more than a decade, the Greens and I have fought to end these cruel and outdated laws.
People who are begging should be treated with compassion not threatened with jail time, and I’m proud to have stood with people experiencing homelessness and the community legal sector to push for this important change to our laws.

“When the Greens introduced legislation to decriminalise begging back in 2016, Labor refused to support it. We didn’t give up, and we’re incredibly pleased that this reform has finally become law.”

Victorian Greens justice spokesperson Katherine Copsey MLC:

“Being poor should never have been a crime. Asking another person for help should never have put someone at risk of a fine, a criminal record or prison.

“It’s well past time to recognise that in a wealthy country, poverty is a failure of governments, not individuals.

“People begging on our streets need housing, income and support – not police, courts and punishment. Criminalising poverty only pushes people already doing it tough further into the justice system.

“This reform has been a long time coming, and it is a testament to the advocates, legal services and people with lived experience who have fought for a more compassionate justice system.”

The Victorian Greens have condemned the vile Islamophobic attack on the Warragul Mosque and warned that racist and far-right hate is becoming increasingly emboldened across Victoria.

CCTV captured a man deliberately throwing bacon and ham around the entrance and signage of the mosque on Wednesday, just days after inflammatory social media posts about the mosque attracted comments encouraging people to target the site with pork products.

The attack follows other recent incidents targeting Victoria’s Muslim community, and the Greens say that political leaders cannot keep treating racist and religiously motivated attacks as isolated – warning that incidents targeting Muslim, migrant and multicultural communities are being increasingly normalised online and in public debate.

Leader of the Victorian Greens, Ellen Sandell:

“This was a vile, deliberate act of Islamophobic hate designed to intimidate Muslim Victorians simply for practising their faith.

“It is no coincidence that at a time when parties like One Nation are being given a massive megaphone, Muslims and multicultural communities are being targeted.

“Every political leader has the responsibility to do everything in their power to loudly call out the escalation in these vile, racist attacks and do everything in their power to fight back against the far-right extremism that’s fuelling it.
“The Greens stand unequivocally with the Warragul Mosque and Muslim communities across Victoria. There can be absolutely no tolerance for Islamophobia, or any kind of racism in Victoria.”

Victorian Greens spokesperson for Multiculturalism and Anti-Racism, Anasina Gray Barberio:

“Our Muslim communities should not have to become ‘used to’ or expected to be ‘resilient’ every time they are targeted by racism. Nobody should have to wonder whether their mosque, their women and children will be the next target.

“The Muslim community is our community, and the overwhelming solidarity shown to the Warragul Muslim community is a much better reflection of who we are than the pathetic actions of racists trying to spread hate and division.

“We are seeing an increasingly toxic political environment where racism and white supremacy is being legitimised by the likes of One Nation and people who trade in hate feel emboldened to take that hatred into the real world. The people responsible for this disgusting attack wanted to make the Muslim community in Warragul feel unwelcome. They have failed.”