Category: Australian News

The sails of the Sydney Opera House will be illuminated tonight in honour of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, the Prime Minister of Australia and NSW Premier have announced.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Premier Dominic Perrottet announced the lighting the sails of the Sydney Opera House as a fitting tribute to Her late Majesty.

“The late Queen Elizabeth the Second played an important role to the people of Australia during her reign and the lighting of the Sydney Opera House is a fitting tribute on behalf of the people of Australia,” said Mr Albanese.

Premier Dominic Perrottet said the tribute on our most recognised icon will be a symbolic gesture on behalf of the NSW Government.

“The tribute on the sails will recognise Her late Majesty’s immense contribution to our state and nation, a fitting tribute as she officially opened the Sydney Opera House in 1973,” said Mr Perrottet.

The lighting of the Sydney Opera House sails will take place over two days from 7.30pm to midnight on Friday, 9 September and from 6.30pm to midnight on Saturday, 10 September.

For information on condolences and floral tributes visit:

• Her Majesty The Queen
• Vale Her Majesty The Queen

The passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second will bring deep sadness to the people of the United Kingdom, to our fellow Australians and to countless admirers of Her Majesty around the world.

Amidst our grief, the people of Australia offer our gratitude for a remarkable life lived in service of faith and duty.

We recognise this will be a time of profound personal loss for the Royal Family, who are mourning a beloved mother, grandmother and great-grandmother.

Over the course of her reign, The Queen visited our shores on 16 occasions, traveling to every state and territory across our vast continent. Her affection for this country and our people was lasting, real and returned many times over. In particular, we recall the sympathy and personal kindness she extended to Australians afflicted by tragedy and disaster.

Her Majesty The Queen was also Head of the Commonwealth, and today we join together with the extended Commonwealth family of nations in sorrow and mourning for her loss.

At this time, on behalf of all Australians, I send my deepest condolences to our new King and the Royal Family. Like his mother before him, The King has a deep and lasting connection to Australia, a love of our beautiful country and a deep affection for our people.

In the coming weeks, we will commemorate our late Queen with every state honour.

I hope all Australians who wish to pay their respects can participate in the gatherings, commemorations and tributes that will be held, as well as share their own reflections and memories.

The Governor-General and myself will be part of Australia’s presence at Her Majesty’s Funeral. Further details about Australia’s remembrance of Her Majesty The Queen will be announced over coming days.

In our parliamentary democracy, the passing of the Crown from one generation to the next is rare but also seamless.

In the coming days, the Governor-General and I will be speaking with The King.

On behalf of all Australians, we will be sharing with The King the sorrow of Australia as well as our best wishes to him as he takes up his duties as Sovereign.

May our Queen rest in peace, and may God bless our King.

Greens Treasury spokesperson, Senator Nick McKim, has responded to the RBA Governor, Philip Lowe’s, speech today in which he again failed to acknowledge the role of corporate profits in driving inflation.

“Yesterday’s National Accounts showed that profit’s share of national income hit a new record high and that wages’ share of national income hit a new record low.”

“In the 60 years that records have been kept, never have workers been getting a smaller slice of the pie, and never have business owners been getting a bigger slice of the pie.”

“We are in a profit-price spiral not a wage-price spiral.”

“Inflation started with global supply shocks, but it is being turbocharged by corporate profiteering”

“But, once again, Philip Lowe has failed to acknowledge this.”

“He has also failed to recant his statements asking workers to brace themselves for a further decline in real wages.”

“And he is jacking up interest rates even though the preconditions that he set for this to happen before 2024 have not been met.”

“That’s why Dr Lowe has got to go.”

“The job of the RBA Governor is to ensure the economic prosperity and welfare of the people of Australia.”

“The RBA Governor should not be a corporate stooge.”

The Albanese Government’s landmark Climate Change Bills have now passed the Senate, ensuring Australia’s emissions reduction target of 43 per cent and net zero emissions by 2050 will be enshrined in legislation.

For almost a decade, Australia stumbled from one policy to another, and our economy and communities missed out on billions of dollars in public and private clean energy investment. But today that changes.

This overdue legislation will provide the energy policy and investment certainty needed to usher in economic growth and opportunity in a decarbonising global economy.

The Bills ensure a whole-of-government approach to drive down emissions and accountability through an annual update to Parliament.

Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen said the legislation puts Australia on a credible path to net zero.

“The passage of the Climate Change legislation sends a message to the world that Australia is serious about driving down emissions, and serious about reaping the economic opportunities from affordable renewable energy ,” Minister Bowen said.

“Legislating these targets gives certainty to investors and participants in the energy market and will help stabilise our energy system.

“It also strengthens transparency and accountability through the annual climate change statement and will ensure public debate informs government decisions.”

This legislation has brought together business, industry, unions, farmers, community and conservation groups, all of whom have asked the Parliament to put Australia on the path to net-zero emissions.

• Business Council of Australia: ““Prime Minister Albanese and Minister Bowen have brought Australia a step closer to ending the climate wars that have put a handbrake on progress and become a serious economic barrier. We welcome this legislation and the adoption of key elements of the Business Council’s plan to reach net zero emissions.”
• Australia Council of Trade Unions: “There doesn’t have to be a fight between jobs and climate action, we can and must have both. With the Albanese Government and a new Parliament, we can finally work towards the future.”
• Australia Chamber of Commerce and Industry: “The business community has been very clear, consensus on energy and emissions reduction policy must be achieved. The best way to secure the planning, investment and innovation that will underlie an efficient energy transition is through legislated targets.”

The legislation empowers the Climate Change Authority to provide the government with independent and expert advice while agencies including the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, Infrastructure Australia and the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility will embed amended targets in their objectives and functions.

The Senate Environment and Communication Legislation Committee recommended passage of the Bill on 31 August.

With the passing of Queen Elizabeth the Second, an historic reign and a long life devoted to duty, family, faith and service has come to an end.

The Government and the people of Australia offer our deepest condolences to the Royal Family, who are grieving for a beloved mother, grandmother and great-grandmother—the person whom for so long was their greatest inner strength.

Australian hearts go out to the people of the United Kingdom who mourn today, knowing they will feel they have lost part of what makes their nation whole.

There is comfort to be found in Her Majesty’s own words: “Grief is the price we pay for love.”

This is a loss we all feel, for few have known a world without Queen Elizabeth II. In her seven remarkable decades on the throne, Her Majesty was a rare and reassuring constant amidst rapid change. Through the noise and tumult of the years, she embodied and exhibited a timeless decency and an enduring calm.  

From the moment the young princess became Queen, shouldering the mighty weight of the institution into which she was born, Her Majesty made dedication to duty and service above self the hallmark of her reign.

She celebrated our good times, she stood with us in the bad. Happy and glorious but steadfast too. In particular, we recall the sympathy and personal kindness she extended to Australians afflicted by tragedy and disaster.

Throughout it all, she was a monarch who let her humanity show, performing her duty with fidelity, integrity and humour. In this, she was supported so long and so lovingly by the late Prince Philip, her “strength and stay” for 73 years.

From her famous first trip to Australia, the only reigning sovereign to ever visit, it was clear Her Majesty held a special place in her heart for Australia.

Fifteen more tours before cheering crowds in every part of our country confirmed the special place she held in ours.

As monarch for more than half the life of our Federation, the relationship between Australia and Britain matured and evolved throughout Her Majesty’s reign.

The Queen greeted each and every change with understanding, good grace and an abiding faith in the Australian people’s good judgment.

This was the deft and diplomatic way she bound the diversity of the modern Commonwealth, nations around the world who will mourn her passing.

Today marks the end of an era, the close of the second Elizabethan age. This time of mourning will pass but the deep respect and warm regard in which Australians always held Her Majesty will never fade.

May she rest in eternal peace.

The cost of living for Australian families is being driven up by climate damage as the Australian Insurance Council reveals households across Australia paid a higher cost of living because of flooding in NSW and Queensland earlier this year.

Farmers for Climate Action CEO Dr Fiona Davis said neither working families nor Australian farmers could afford increases in cost of living due to climate damage.

“The McKell Institute confirms what we knew: Climate change is driving up the cost of living,” Dr Davis said.

“The McKell Institute report finds each Australian family has paid $525 in the increased cost of food and other farm products because of the huge floods in NSW and Queensland earlier this year – floods made far worse by climate change. 

Those floods came just two years after the deadly Black Summer Fires and extreme weather events driven by climate change are becoming more and more frequent.

“The report says the hit to Australian households from floods, fires, drought and other climate-driven events this financial year was almost double the decade average of $888 at $1532.

“Australian families can’t afford the huge hit to their hip pocket climate damage is causing.

“Insurance Council of Australia figures reveal losses from the floods were $5.28 billion, while losses in the Black Summer fires were $2.32 billion. This does not take into account the massive health impacts from these climate events.”

Dr Davis said farmers were worried about the cost of insurance premiums, which are rising steeply because of climate damage.

“Huge hikes in insurance premiums following climate damage are coming as farmers continue to count the cost of floods six months ago. Some of our farmer members have reported losses of more than $100 000.

“We need deep emissions reductions in this, the decisive decade, to protect our farming families and our food supply.”

A recent report by GHD saw GHD Australian Water Market Leader Lindsay Brown noted climate damage to the agriculture sector was not limited to on-farm damage, but also to “ability to transport and equipment losses, and all the things that actually make that part of our economy viable”.

Dr Davis said Farmers for Climate Action’s Fork in the Road report had identified exactly the same thing and showed consumers were already paying more for food because of climate damage.

Farmers for Climate Action is a movement of 7000 farmers calling for strong economy-wide climate policies.Key facts:

Cost of living takes massive hit from climate-driven floods earlier this year

Report by the McKell Institute reveals a hit to each Australian household of $525 due to higher prices paid for food and farm products, plus extra government spending

We need deep emissions reductions this decade to protect our farmers and our food supply

Geoff Parkes, a Vietnam-era national servicemen who was conscripted into the Australian armed forces is taking his #NashoFairGo petition representing other service personnel like him to Australian Parliament House tomorrow. So far, the petition has been signed by 25,000 Australians.

The campaign is seeking recognition and additional health support from the Labor government on behalf of 48,000 Nashos (of which only 35,000 are expected to be alive).  

The Nashos are a cohort of Veterans who had been given an impossible choice by the government. To choose between being conscripted into the armed forces, or going to jail. They put their lives on hold, underwent intensive training but didn’t serve in a war zone. The main aim of the petition is to obtain DVA Gold Health Cards for their service.

Greens Spokesperson for Health and Mental Health Jordon Steele-John, and Veterans’ Spokesperson Senator David Shoebridge will accept Geoff’s petition, and table it in the Senate today. 

“I want to obtain justice for the men Australia forgot,” says Geoff. “We have received no thanks, recognition, benefits or reparation for the two years of their youth that were taken from us.”

Senator Jordon Steele-John is “proud to receive the petition from the Nashos. The Australian Greens are committed to ensuring all Veterans, especially those who were conscripted into the armed forces receive access to the health and mental health supports to maintain their wellbeing. Being provided with the DVA Veteran Gold Card will enable many of these gentlemen to access health services without worrying about the financial cost of doing so.

Senator David Shoebridge said: “The Department of Veterans Affairs is failing in its duty of care to veterans and is in urgent need of reform. Too often it is a barrier to veterans getting the support they need, entitlements are inconsistent and arbitrary, and veterans are forced to struggle against a departmental culture that fails to respect their service.

“We have a new government and a new Parliament and veterans need to hear a loud message from them that they are now on their side.” 

Senator Mehreen Faruqi, Australian Greens Deputy Leader and spokesperson for education, has backed the early childhood educators action to Shut Down the Sector on Early Childhood Educator’s Day today and urged the Albanese government to act on wages and workforce shortages.

Senator Faruqi said:

“The Greens are right with early childhood educators as they shut down the sector today.

“The low pay and difficult conditions early childhood educators are subjected to are a national shame. Educators deserve professional pay that reflects the skill and responsibility of the work they do every day.

“Parliament needs to hear these workers’ calls for an immediate pay rise. Early childhood educators, who we know are predominantly women, have been taken for granted for far too long. They’ve had enough.

“The Greens call on the government to bring legislation to lift wages, fix conditions and deal with the critical workforce shortage in early learning and care. These steps, hand in hand with the Greens’ plan for free early learning and care for all, are vital to building a better future.”

Today, Liberal Senator Alex Antic used his two minute statement to complain about the “threat” of critical race theory and “victimhood.” Senator Lidia Thorpe called these comments racist. Senator James McGrath called for Senator Thorpe to withdraw her comments. 

Senator Thorpe refused, saying that she was simply stating a fact. Senator Mehreen Faruqi asked why those calling out racism were asked to withdraw, yet there are no consequences for being racist.

TSenator Lidia Thorpe said:

“This parliament punishes Blak women for calling out racism, yet there are no consequences for being racist in the Senate Chamber. I am not safe in this workplace.”

“The Jenkins report talks about the ‘intersection of multiple forms of discrimination and harassment (…) on the basis of gender, age, race, disability and sexual orientation’ as well as the importance of everyone feeling ‘safe and welcome to contribute.’

“If I didn’t withdraw, I could have been kicked out of the Chamber for a day and The Greens would be down a vote. They cut off my microphone and told me to withdraw my comment. How is that creating a workplace where everyone is ‘safe and welcome to contribute’?!

“It’s ‘unparliamentary’ to call out racism, but not unparliamentary to be racist. Racism is a disease in this Country. It’s violent and literally makes people sick. We need an anti-racist code of conduct for MP’s to be accelerated and implemented to stop this from happening in the first place.”

Almost 50 years to the day (29 August, 1972) after the historic Henderson Commission of Inquiry into poverty, and after years of inaction by successive governments, the Greens have today established a Senate Committee inquiry into the nature and extent of poverty and cost of living pressures in Australia.

Senator Janet Rice, Australian Greens spokesperson on Social Services and Chair of the Community Affairs References Committee, said: 

“When 5.1 million Australians are barely scraping by on Centrelink payment rates below the poverty line, and millions more are facing cost of living pressures and the crushing stress that goes with it – something is deeply wrong and needs to be fixed. 

“I’ve heard directly from countless people about how poverty has an acute impact on nearly every aspect of their lives: not being able to afford nutritious food, an education, housing, the resources to get a job, and on their physical health and mental wellbeing. 

“This inquiry will hold wide-ranging hearings across the country, enabling people who have been forced to rely on woefully inadequate payments to have their voices heard, and take that evidence into Parliament. 

“With skyrocketing rents, interest rate rises, and months of inflation, it’s urgent that Parliament provide cost-of-living relief to those that need it most, and get out of this decades-long reflex of punishing people on starvation-wages.

“One in six children are living in poverty. No parent should have to wonder how they’re going to feed their kids this week or afford the new school uniform next term. 

“When millions of people in this wealthy country are one car-breakdown or dental emergency away from total financial ruin, surely as elected representatives of the people, it is our moral obligation to do something about it.”