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The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence, Richard Marles, is travelling to Chile for the 2025 South Pacific Defence Ministers’ Meeting (SPDMM). 

SPDMM provides a forum for regional defence ministers to enhance cooperation and drive Pacific-led responses to shared regional challenges. In its 10^th iteration, this year’s meeting theme is ‘Integrated South Pacific’. 

While in Chile, the Deputy Prime Minister will also conduct bilateral meetings with his Pacific counterparts to discuss opportunities to deepen cooperation, and advance the continuing evolution of Pacific-led responses to regional security challenges, including natural disasters, transnational organised crime and climate change.

SPDMM member countries are Australia, Chile, Fiji, France, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Tonga. Officials from Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States will attend as observers, with Pacific Islands Forum Secretary General Waqa attending as a special guest.  

Deputy Prime Minister, Richard Marles:

“This will be my fourth South Pacific Defence Ministers’ Meeting and I look forward to meeting my counterparts in Chile. 

“This forum will provide an opportunity defence partners in our region to discuss emerging trends in security challenges, and develop Pacific-led responses to shared challenges in order to support a peaceful, secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific.” 

Homeowners are paying a climate “disaster penalty” as climate-driven floods become more frequent and severe, according to a new report published by the Climate Council and Prop Track.

The report, which analysed more than two decades of property data, found that a million Australian households are already impacted with homes in flood zones collectively worth about $42 billion less due to the risk of floods:

• Homeowners are effectively paying a “disaster penalty” of about $75,000 for a typical 3-bed, 2-bath house. 
• As climate-driven floods become more frequent and severe, more properties could face steeper penalties. 
• Households in Queensland and New South Wales are the hardest hit, followed by Victoria. 
• Overall rising property prices are masking the fact that flood-prone properties start from a lower value and experience slower growth.

The Greens say urgent action is needed from the Government to address the climate crisis and the housing crisis hitting Australians.

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

“We’re in a housing crisis, and the increasing frequency and intensity of climate-driven disasters is making the housing crisis worse. The crisis is making more homes uninsurable and uninhabitable and it is lowering the value of homes in flood prone areas affecting many lower income households and widening inequality.

“Homeownership is already out of reach for so many Australians. Climate-driven events hiking the cost of insurance and making many properties unoccupiable is making our housing crisis worse.

“This is further proof of where this Government’s priorities lie: Appease the coal and gas corporations while ignoring the costs of climate impacts on Australia’s households.

“Many households across the country spend decades saving for their home deposit and then face high recovery costs and insurance premiums arising from climate-driven disasters. Why should Australians continue to bear the costs of decades of government inaction on climate change? 

“Labor are captured by the interests of coal and gas corporations which mean that they prioritise polluters’ profits ahead of a safe climate future for everyday Australians and nature.

“The Government’s own Climate Risk Assessment Report shows 1.5 million people are at risk of their homes flooding or falling into the sea in the next 25 years. However, the Prime Minister doesn’t want to know about it.

“Labor must deliver a truly ambitious climate target based on science and based on the avoided cost of disasters that are putting too many of us at risk. 

“We have existing, affordable technologies that could deliver over 85% emissions reduction and, with the Greens, Labor has the numbers in parliament to be truly ambitious on climate.

“Labor must stop approving new coal and gas.”

Greens Deputy Leader & Spokesperson for Climate Adaptation, Resilience & Emergency Management, Senator Mehreen Faruqi:

“People are buckling under the combined stressors of the housing and insurance crises, and the trauma of climate disasters destroying their homes and lives.

“It should be climate polluting fossil fuel companies paying the costs of climate-fuelled disasters, not families, communities, renters and retirees who are bearing the brunt of the housing and climate crises.

“Report after report reinforces what scientists and people on the front line of climate disasters have been demanding: the strongest action to tackle the climate emergency is needed urgently.

“Insurance has become a major stressor for at-risk communities as it becomes increasingly unaffordable or unavailable, with insurance companies either pulling out or hiking premiums and making people’s lives even harder.

“Labor needs to stop pouring fuel on the fire of the climate crisis. That means taking every action to transition away from coal and gas right now.”

“We need environment laws that protect our forests and the climate; these laws do neither, they are not worth the paper they’re printed on.  

“The Environment Minister’s job is to protect the environment, not just make approvals easier and cheaper for big business. Labor’s laws fast track environmental destruction and do nothing to guarantee protection for the environment.

“Rather than closing loopholes that give bulldozers and chainsaws free reign, this package is riddled with carve-out clauses to suit industry.

“This bill has been drafted with the interests of mining industry front and centre. It weakens environmental protection. It will take us backwards and is worse than the status quo.

“While industry will no doubt say they haven’t got enough, their grubby fingerprints are all over it. These laws are written to help big business and the mining companies, at the expense of nature. 

“The Greens have been very clear from the start. We will not rubber stamp laws that fail to protect our native forests, wildlife and climate.

“If the Minister wants to protect nature, then he has a lot of work to do.”

The Victorian Greens have said until Labor makes unlimited rent rises illegal by introducing rent controls, renters will continue to avoid asking for basic repairs and live in substandard, expensive, insecure homes.

A new report by the Consumer Policy Research Centre – Renting in Reality – has revealed that 79 per cent of Victorian renters experienced a major rental issue in the past year, yet only half lodged a complaint due to fears of retaliation from landlords.

It also found more than two-thirds of renters believed their homes didn’t meet minimum rental standards.

The Greens say the report lays bare the need for stronger renters rights, and that while Labor refuses to protect renters from huge rent hikes, renters across the state will be too afraid to speak up about any issues.

Victorian Greens housing spokesperson, Gabrielle de Vietri MP:

“Retaliatory rent rises are all too common. Is it any wonder renters aren’t speaking up about serious rental issues, when landlords have the power to hike rents as much as they want?

“The rental crisis is breaking people. Renters are living in too much insecurity and fear to even ask for basic repairs when they know one more rent hike will force them out of their home. 

“A massive rent hike may as well be an eviction notice, and while unlimited rent increases are still legal, everything else is just tinkering around the edges of the rental crisis. 

“We can make unlimited rent increases illegal today – just like they are in the ACT, Germany, the Netherlands, Ireland and other countries around the world.

“Labor just needs to stop ignoring renters and act.”