Category: Australian News

As part of the Albanese Government’s commitment to supporting the humanitarian response in Myanmar and Bangladesh, Australia will provide $135 million in2022-23 to assist with the delivery of life-saving food, water and shelter through partner organisations.

The package of support will also deliver essential protection, education and health services for those most in need, including women, girls and people with disabilities.

Since the military coup in February 2021, the number of people in humanitarian need in Myanmar has surged from 1 million to an estimated 14.4 million.

Australia commends Bangladesh’s ongoing support to over 919,000 displaced Rohingya who rely on humanitarian assistance to survive. We also recognise the ongoing impact on communities hosting the Rohingya.

Australia’s humanitarian assistance will be delivered through the United Nations, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and non-government organisations.

All partner organisations have proven capacity to deliver neutral and independent humanitarian assistance and reach those most in need. They are carefully chosen to ensure that Australia’s assistance does not directly benefit or legitimise the military regime in Myanmar.

The package of support builds on $480 million provided since 2017 to people across Myanmar, and Rohingya refugees and host communities in Bangladesh.

Further information on development and humanitarian programs in Myanmar and Bangladesh can be found on the DFAT website.

As part of the Albanese Government’s commitment to standing by those who helped Australia, today we announce Dr Vivienne Thom AM will lead an Independent Review into the Afghan Locally Engaged Employee (LEE) program.

Established in 2012, the program gives eligible Afghan LEE, who are at risk of harm due to their employment in support of Australia’s twenty-year mission in Afghanistan, priority under Australia’s Humanitarian Program. Since 2012, more than 2,300 Afghan LEE and their families have arrived in Australia.

We have been clear in opposition and in government that the Morrison Government failed to apply the instrument consistently and in accordance with its original intent.

The Senate Inquiry into Australia’s Engagement in Afghanistan confirmed this and recommended a review of the operation of the Afghan LEE program to ensure that programs of this nature are improved.

The Albanese Government is acting on this recommendation with Dr Thom’s review, which will examine how program decisions were made, including the application and appeals process, record keeping and departmental resourcing. It will also consider whether the legislative instrument that underpins this program remains fit for purpose.

Dr Thom AM has substantial experience leading public inquiries and is also leading the Afghanistan Inquiry Implementation Oversight Panel.

Dr Thom AM will report her findings to the Australian Government in early 2023.

The Australian Government is committed to supporting the Afghan community, with 16,500 additional places allocated for Afghan nationals under the Humanitarian Program. This builds on the 10,000 places already allocated for Afghan nationals under the Humanitarian Program, and will be delivered over the next four years in addition to the annual intake.

In total, the Government is committed to fulfilling its allocation of 31,500 resettlement places for Afghan nationals – comprising 26,500 places under the Humanitarian Program and 5,000 places under the Family stream of the Migration Program.

Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Defence, the Hon Richard Marles said:

“Our current and former ADF personnel have been clear about the painful impact of leaving people behind in Afghanistan.

Dr Thom’s review is critical to ensuring our ADF personnel can have confidence that Australia will stand by those help us.”

Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator the Hon Penny Wong said:

“We know that those attempting to leave Afghanistan face a very difficult set of circumstances, not least because border crossings out of the country are difficult and dangerous.

But Australia has a moral obligation to help those who helped us and we are focused on doing everything we can to assist those people whose safety is at risk.”

Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, the Hon Andrew Giles said:

“We have a duty to ensure that our humanitarian efforts focus on those whose safety is most at risk, especially those who may face harm due to their involvement in our mission in Afghanistan.

The Government remains resolute in our commitment to prioritise the grant of visas for Afghan Locally Engaged Employees and their immediate families.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will join world leaders at premier international and regional summits in Cambodia, Indonesia and Thailand from 11–19 November.

The Prime Minister will meet with counterparts at the East Asia, ASEAN, G20 and APEC Summits to discuss the most pressing strategic, economic and climate challenges facing the region and world.

The Prime Minister will travel to Phnom Penh from 11–14 November to attend the East Asia Summit, the region’s premier leader led forum for strategic discussion.

In Phnom Penh, the Prime Minister will also attend the 2nd Annual ASEAN-Australia Summit. Australia’s engagement with ASEAN is longstanding – as ASEAN’s first dialogue partner and Comprehensive Strategic Partner – and supports regional resilience, jobs and economic growth.

From 14–17 November the Prime Minister will attend the Bali G20 Summit in Indonesia – the world’s top table for international economic cooperation. In Bali, the Prime Minister will work with G20 leaders to chart a pathway to achieving the international conditions needed to ease economic pressures at home.

While in Bali, the Prime Minister will join Indonesian President Widodo and Indian Prime Minister Modi to deliver a keynote address at the Business 20 Summit, which will bring together more than 1,000 CEOs, investors and senior executives from Australia, the Indo-Pacific region, and across the world.

The Prime Minister will then travel to Bangkok from 17-19 November to attend the 29th APEC Economic Leaders’ Summit. The Summit will focus on practical action to support regional economic integration and an open trade and investment environment.

Alongside summit commitments, the Prime Minister will meet bilaterally with a range of other leaders to discuss international developments and identify new opportunities for cooperation, including on regional security, energy transition and climate action.

Prime Minister Albanese said:

“Australia has always been an outward facing nation and we have never shied away from facing up to global challenges.

“The global economic outlook is stark, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has exacerbated the challenges of food insecurity, rising energy prices, rising inflation and cost of living pressures globally. 

“Australia strongly supports ASEAN’s central role in the region and its vision for the region is closely aligned with our own.

“My role at these summits will be one of advocacy for not only Australians, but also for those of our Pacific neighbours who face many of the same pressures that we do.

“At each summit I will emphasise Australia’s commitment to the global transition to net zero, and our vision for a stable, peaceful, resilient and prosperous region.

“I will remain, on behalf of the Australian people, a fierce opponent to Russia’s immoral and illegal invasion of Ukraine.

“I look forward to engaging my counterparts in Phnom Penh, Bali and Bangkok in the next week.”

Answers to Questions on Notice provided to Greens Senator Barbara Pocock show the publicly owned Future Fund is invested heavily in those very companies that threaten Australia’s future, with a total $3.4 billion in the biggest polluting companies in the world.

In Senate estimates, Senator Pocock pressured the Future Fund to use its shareholding power to force the coal, oil and gas companies it invests in to diversify away from selling planet-destroying products. 

Pocock questioned the Future Fund about its discussions with Rio Tinto over the destruction of Juukan Gorge, arguing that there is nothing stopping the Fund from similarly engaging directly, or through their fund managers, with coal, oil and gas corporations making record profits from climate destroying activities.

Further, the Government’s Disaster Ready Bill, currently before the Senate, will use proceeds from the Future Fund to pay for infrastructure to ‘mitigate’ climate damage. But at $200 million a year, when the cost to protect us from storm surges alone is $600 million a year, there is a huge gap between what is needed and what is offered.

And there is a deep irony in the government relying on dividends from the world’s biggest polluters to pay for infrastructure to deal with the escalating damage those very same companies are causing through their fossil fuel investments.

Senator Pocock said:

“The Future Fund is invested in companies that have absolutely no intention to diversify away from coal and gas, with $549 million directly invested in Woodside, $190 million in Santos and $83 million in Whitehaven.

“The government’s Disaster Ready Bill is proposing only a third of the climate infrastructure funding we need to keep Australians safe from natural disasters, all the while investing billions into the same greedy corporations driving climate destruction and Australia’s natural disasters.

“These Australian companies need all the pressure the Future Fund can bring to bear on them and if the Fund doesn’t intend to do that, the Labor government must direct a sell off of that stock and send a message that the Future Fund’s focus is on a safe and secure future.

“While Australia is attending COP27 to mitigate against climate disaster, and is asking the world to let us host a climate summit, our government is sinking money into the world’s biggest polluters.

“If the Future Fund is entrusted with paying for the public works needed to keep Australian communities safe from floods, fires, storm surges and cyclones moving south – then it needs to stop profiting from those companies making these natural disasters worse. ”

Questions on Notice and Answers

Table of Investments 

Minister for Mental Health Emma Davidson has announced the ACT Residential Centre for eating disorders will be built in Coombs.

A tender for the construction of the Centre will be released in the coming weeks and the Centre is on track for completion in 2023-24. The location is Block 3, Section 17 in Coombs.

Minister Davidson says the Centre forms part of the ACT Government’s stepped care model of care for eating disorders, which links services together so that everyone can access the right support at the right time.

“The location in Coombs is close to nature, overlooks green spaces and a pond and is in a residential setting. These elements support a home-like environment to help people on their recovery journey and live well in the community,” Minister Davidson said. 

“People with lived experience, clinicians and non-government organisations have been clear that this centre will fill a significant gap – providing a calming home-like environment with specialised therapeutic support for people with eating disorders who sit between care delivered in the community and acute clinical care in hospital.

“It is a critical addition to Canberra’s eating disorder services, which has been scarce and led to many not being able to receive the right support in the ACT. Over the past years, significant work has been undertaken to expand services and better coordinate them with existing support. For instance, the Clinical Hub, which launched in January this year, has seen patient waiting times reduce from an average 644 days in December 2021 to 56 days in October 2022.”

An early design on the Coombs site has been completed and the Preliminary Sketch Plan Phase is now underway, with the aim of having a Development Application (DA) lodged before the end of 2022. The draft designs for the Centre continue to undergo consultation throughout the DA process, which will run until construction commences in 2023. 

The Commonwealth Government has agreed to fund $13.5 million over three years starting in 2021-22 for the development of the Centre.

The Clinical Hub better coordinates resources, services, and clinical expertise to ensure people with eating disorders are quickly connected with health and community services that best support their individual needs.

The Victorian Greens have launched their plan for a Youth Housing Guarantee in an election bid to reduce the high rates of youth homelessness across the state.

The Youth Housing Guarantee would see Victorians under the age of 25 guaranteed appropriate housing when presenting to a homelessness service.

To help fund the plan the Greens have committed $100 million dollars to housing and homelessness services over the forward estimates.

Leader of the Victorian Greens, Samantha Ratnam, said it was unacceptable that over one in four Victorians experiencing homelessness were aged between 12 and 24.

She said for too long both major parties had chronically underfunded our housing and homelessness services and refused to invest in more public and affordable homes.

There are increasingly high rates of youth homelessness in Victoria, often due to family breakdown and family violence. 

Due to the severe shortage of affordable and appropriate housing options for young people, young people experiencing homelessness often end up in unsuitable housing such as rooming houses or overcrowded short-term accommodation.

Experiencing periods of homelessness at a young age is also a strong predictor of experiencing homelessness later in life, and increases the likelihood of poor physical and mental health, substance abuse and interactions with the justice system.

The Greens’ plan would ensure young people at risk of or experiencing homelessness in Victoria could be connected with appropriate support and services, such as specialist youth accommodation.

Leader of the Victorian Greens, Samantha Ratnam MLC said: 

“We are in a housing crisis and young people are some of the hardest hit.

“Up to 25,000 Victorians experience homelessness on any given night and one in four of them are under 25.

“Our Youth Housing Guarantee would make sure that young people who present to a homelessness service will get access to safe, specialist youth housing.

“We don’t need more band-aid solutions – we need a guarantee that the next government will end youth homelessness.”

We are seeing an increase in COVID-19 case numbers in Australia, reflecting community transmission of the Omicron variant XBB.

We are also closely monitoring the overseas transmission of a second Omicron variant – BQ.1.

While evidence is still emerging, the experience to date with these two variants overseas is that they do not appear to pose a greater risk of severe illness and death – and that the COVID-19 vaccines provide good protection against these outcomes.

All indications are that this is the start of a new COVID-19 wave in Australia. This was to be expected and will be part of living with COVID-19 into the future.

The overseas experience is that these new variants have driven increases in case numbers – and hospitalisations at a rate proportionate to these increases – because of their ability to evade the immunity provided by prior infection and vaccination. 

It’s therefore timely to focus on the actions we can all take to reduce the threat of these new variants, keep the pressure off our health care workers and hospitals and continue to look forward to our summer plans.  

There are three things everyone can do to reduce the threat of these variants across our communities – and help limit the size of the wave.

Firstly, make sure you are up to date with your vaccinations – including having a third or fourth dose if you haven’t had them already. Make an appointment for this dose as soon as possible so your immunity is boosted for the coming months when we are most likely to see an increase in COVID-19 transmission in Australia.

Vaccination is your best protection against getting severely ill or dying from COVID-19. And evidence from overseas indicates vaccination reduces the prevalence of symptoms associated with Long COVID.

Secondly, keep a mask handy when away from home. If you’re at indoor public places or in crowded settings, a mask can help protect you and reduce the chance of infecting others. It’s a simple, sensible way to add another layer of protection and contribute to our collective effort to slow the spread of the virus.

And thirdly, if you have tested positive or are not feeling well, stay at home until the symptoms have passed. If you do have to leave your house, wear a mask and avoid going to any high-risk settings, including hospitals, and aged and disability care facilities. 

Through these three measures, you can make a significant contribution to protecting yourself, your family and friends, and the wider community against these new COVID-19 variants.

Advice about managing COVID-19 symptoms is available 24/7 from the Australian Government’s National Coronavirus Help Line: 1800 020 080. Information about managing COVID-19 is also available at healthdirect.gov.au.

In addition, people at risk of more severe illness from COVID-19 should talk to their GP now about their eligibility for oral antiviral treatments should they contract COVID-19.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will join world leaders at premier international and regional summits in Cambodia, Indonesia and Thailand from 11–19 November.

The Prime Minister will meet with counterparts at the East Asia, ASEAN, G20 and APEC Summits to discuss the most pressing strategic, economic and climate challenges facing the region and world.

The Prime Minister will travel to Phnom Penh from 11–14 November to attend the East Asia Summit, the region’s premier leader led forum for strategic discussion.

In Phnom Penh, the Prime Minister will also attend the 2nd Annual ASEAN-Australia Summit. Australia’s engagement with ASEAN is longstanding – as ASEAN’s first dialogue partner and Comprehensive Strategic Partner – and supports regional resilience, jobs and economic growth.

From 14–17 November the Prime Minister will attend the Bali G20 Summit in Indonesia – the world’s top table for international economic cooperation. In Bali, the Prime Minister will work with G20 leaders to chart a pathway to achieving the international conditions needed to ease economic pressures at home.

While in Bali, the Prime Minister will join Indonesian President Widodo and Indian Prime Minister Modi to deliver a keynote address at the Business 20 Summit, which will bring together more than 1,000 CEOs, investors and senior executives from Australia, the Indo-Pacific region, and across the world.

The Prime Minister will then travel to Bangkok from 17-19 November to attend the 29th APEC Economic Leaders’ Summit. The Summit will focus on practical action to support regional economic integration and an open trade and investment environment.

Alongside summit commitments, the Prime Minister will meet bilaterally with a range of other leaders to discuss international developments and identify new opportunities for cooperation, including on regional security, energy transition and climate action.

Prime Minister Albanese said:

“Australia has always been an outward facing nation and we have never shied away from facing up to global challenges.

“The global economic outlook is stark, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has exacerbated the challenges of food insecurity, rising energy prices, rising inflation and cost of living pressures globally. 

“Australia strongly supports ASEAN’s central role in the region and its vision for the region is closely aligned with our own.

“My role at these summits will be one of advocacy for not only Australians, but also for those of our Pacific neighbours who face many of the same pressures that we do.

“At each summit I will emphasise Australia’s commitment to the global transition to net zero, and our vision for a stable, peaceful, resilient and prosperous region.

“I will remain, on behalf of the Australian people, a fierce opponent to Russia’s immoral and illegal invasion of Ukraine.

“I look forward to engaging my counterparts in Phnom Penh, Bali and Bangkok in the next week.”

Canberrans are encouraged to learn to identify the key scam signs to protect themselves and their loved ones, as more than $7 million was lost in reported scams in 2021.

Minister for Consumer Affairs, Shane Rattenbury, said it was important Canberrans remained vigilant.

“With scams becoming more prevalent on social media, text messages and emails, the ACT recorded the highest amount of money lost to scams than any other state or territory in proportion to population,” Minister Rattenbury said.

“No one is immune to scams. Scammers target people from a variety of backgrounds, ages, and income levels. This week is Scams Awareness Week and we’re encouraging Canberrans to have a conversation with their family and friends about scams. Talking can help people spots the signs early and avoid being scammed.

“One of the best ways to combat scams is by being aware of them and knowing how to protect yourself. When dealing with uninvited contact, always consider the possibility that it may be a scam.”

Scams often operate by claiming to be from a genuine source such as a trusted organisation or family member. If unsure, check that a communication is real by contacting the person or organisation directly using details you have found yourself.

“Many scams go unreported due to feelings of shame and embarrassment, but I encourage anyone who thinks they have been scammed to report the matter to the ACCC via ScamWatch,” Minister Rattenbury said

“By reporting scams you can help the ACCC disrupt scammers and warn about emerging scams. Reporting a scam may protect others so please don’t feel embarrassed to lodge a report.”

For more information visit www.scamwatch.gov.au.

Samantha*, an ACT resident who fell victim to a bank phishing scam said:

“Someone claiming to be a supervisor within my bank’s fraud department called to let me know they had detected unusual activity on my account. They asked if I had opened any suspicious links lately and I told them about the link I had clicked about a month earlier. They informed me that malware had been installed on my phone. They asked me to transfer my savings of $20,000 from my existing account to a new account that they told me was linked to my current one but with updated credentials so the scammer couldn’t access it. The phone numbers that appeared were legitimate numbers that had been spoofed and the caller had access to my full name and location.”

Theo*, an ACT resident who fell victim to a romance baiting cryptocurrency scam said:

“I met a nice girl on a dating app and we had been speaking for a month and a half when she brought up cryptocurrency. She said she could show me how to trade. I signed onto a legitimate cryptocurrency platform and transferred $30,000 into the account. She asked me to change the currency into USDT and into a new wallet. My account reached $422,000 USDT so I wanted to withdraw and change it back into Australian dollars. When I did this, I received a message that I needed to pay $112,000 to make the withdrawal. A friend tried to help me retrieve the funds but my account was frozen as I did not pay the service fee.”

*Names have been changed to protect identity.

“Endless consumption on a finite planet does not work,” said Jo Clay MLA, ACT Greens Spokesperson for Arts and the Circular Economy. 

“This year’s Recycling Week theme explores the idea that waste isn’t waste until it’s wasted. I’m thrilled to open Candice Addicoat’s exhibition, Transformation, made entirely from recycled material. What a perfect way to celebrate Recycling Week!” 

Local designer Candice Addicoat has installed Transformation in the Reception Room in the Legislative Assembly. Candice is the founder of charity design organisation Scene and plastic recycling initiative Plastic Static as well as a resident designer in The Green Shed.

Candice will host morning and afternoon tea today and present an artist’s talk for National Recycling Week (7 – 11 November).  

“As a designer, I love to create beautiful and purposeful things for the community,” said Candice Addicoat. “One of the reasons I design with used items and waste is to demonstrate we are surrounded by free materials that can improve the way we live.” 

“It’s unnecessary that so many unwanted things end up in landfill. Mass produced items also lead to a heavy carbon footprint. I recently pioneered world-first techniques with polyethylene plastic to turn waste household plastic into designer items.” 

“My proposed program would see the most polluting plastic on the planet, polyethylene, used in the community for design and purpose. There’s no need for it to go to landfill or end up in our environment or oceans. And it’s so easy and fun to do this!”