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Minister Keith Pitt has this morning recommitted the Government to fracking the Northern Territory’s Beetaloo Basin through the funding stream that was previously struck down by the Federal Court.

The Beetaloo Cooperative Drilling Program will now see $19.4 million in grants awarded to Liberal Party-aligned donor Empire Energy.

Empire Energy, who today have been promised almost $20 million in public money to frack the NT’s Beetaloo Basin, have previously donated $40,000 to the Liberals and $25,000 to NT Labor. Empire’s Chair has personally previously donated over $200,000 to the LNP.

Australian Greens Leader Adam Bandt MP said:

“Scott Morrison is using the dying days of his government to cause as much climate damage as he can, all with Labor’s backing.

“By signing off on NT Labor’s giant climate bomb, the Liberals are putting lives at risk.

“Gas is as dirty as coal, and the Betaloo gas project will be worse for the climate than the Adani coal mine. The NT gas fields contain almost 70 years’ worth of Australia’s total climate pollution, and today Keith Pitt has signed off on detonating that climate bomb.

“The only way we’ll break the bipartisan coal and gas grip on this country is by putting Greens in balance of power.”

Greens Resources and Minerals Spokesperson Senator Dorinda Cox said:

“Minister Pitt’s decision today is a climate grenade that this government is throwing over their shoulder on the way out. What a desperate act from a dying government. 

“This decision will cause enormous destruction to Country. My heart goes out to people of the ​​Gudanji, Yanyuwa, Garrwa, Jingili, Mudburra and Alawa nations over this dreadful news, who are on the frontline as as the last line of defence for their land, skies and waters.”

“Once again decisions are being made about our land that desecrate our cultural heritage, while simultaneously wrecking the climate for our kids, where mining interests take precedence over Traditional Owners’ right to their land.”

The Australian Government has accepted advice from leading immunisation experts to make the Moderna (SPIKEVAX) COVID-19 vaccine available for children aged six years and older from 24 February 2022 – broadening the previous recommendation for children aged 12 years and older. 

The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) recommendation follows the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) approval of Moderna for children aged six years and older on 17 February 2022.

Pfizer continues to be available to children aged five and over, and nearly half of children aged between five and 11 have already received one dose of the Pfizer vaccine since it became available in January this year.

With Moderna being made available for children aged six and above, parents and carers will have more choice and flexibility in the vaccine they choose for their child.

The Australian Government has secured more than 25 million doses of Moderna and is well placed to continue to achieve world leading vaccination rates against COVID-19.

Before any COVID-19 vaccine can be supplied for use in Australia it undergoes a rigorous evaluation by the TGA for safety, quality and effectiveness. The TGA will only approve a vaccine once it has established that the benefits greatly outweigh any potential risks.

Moderna has been clinically proven to produce a strong immune response in children. Most side effects are mild and short-term, and similar to those experienced by children who have received the Pfizer vaccine.   

For children aged between six and 11 years old, a paediatric dose of Moderna is half the dose currently provided for people aged 12 years and over – two doses of 50μg per dose (0.25mL), eight weeks apart, or three doses for immunocompromised children.

The recommended eight-week interval can be shortened to four weeks for children at risk of moderate to severe COVID-19, for example those with underlying health conditions, in an outbreak or before international travel.

The TGA and ATAGI will continue to actively monitor the safety of the vaccine in children and adults both in Australia and overseas and will not hesitate to take action if safety concerns are identified.

Moderna is not currently recommended for anyone under the age of six years.

Australia was one of the first countries in the world to commence a whole of population COVID-19 booster program. Over 10.9 million Australians have already received a booster dose over recent weeks.

Over 94.3 percent of Australians have completed their primary course of vaccination.

1.12 million Australian children aged six years and older have received a first dose of vaccination.

All Australians who are currently eligible for their primary course of vaccination, or for their booster dose, and who have not yet acted are urged to make a booking as soon as possible to get vaccinated.

To book a vaccination please use the COVID-19 Clinic Finder and make your appointment.

The Morrison Government is creating jobs and strengthening the future of defence manufacturing in Victoria, with a new state-of-the-art armoured vehicle centre of excellence to be established at Avalon Airport in Greater Geelong.

A first of its kind, Hanwha Defense Australia’s 32,000sqm armoured vehicle centre of excellence is estimated to create a minimum of 300 jobs over the life of the $1 billion project, generating ongoing support opportunities for Australian industry until the late 2040s.

Hanwha was contracted by the Morrison Government last December to deliver 30 self-propelled howitzers and 15 armoured ammunition resupply vehicles, collectively referred to as the Huntsman family of vehicles.

Minister for Defence Industry Melissa Price said Hanwha would build the sovereign armoured vehicle manufacturing and maintenance facility to deliver core platforms of the Protected Mobile Fires project.

“Hanwha will draw on Greater Geelong’s highly skilled and experienced workforce to deliver this project,” Minister Price said.

“About 100 jobs are expected to be created during the two-year, $170 million construction of the armoured vehicle centre of excellence.

“It is great news for the Geelong region economy that the $1 billion program will support at least 300 jobs during its lifespan.

“This project demonstrates the Morrison Government’s commitment to supporting local jobs.”

Senator for Victoria, Sarah Henderson said Avalon Airport was an ideal location for the armoured vehicle centre of excellence.

“Avalon Airport, complete with its international terminal which the Morrison Government helped build, is a wonderful asset for our region and will make a first-class home for the Howitzer defence project,” Senator Henderson said.

“The Government’s election commitment to base this $1 billion defence project in the Geelong region, announced in May 2019, is an absolute game-changer for our local economy and for Victoria.

“With five Australian-owned companies currently shortlisted to construct the armoured vehicle centre of excellence, a sovereign national asset for military capability manufacturing, this will deliver an immediate jobs boom for our region and for Victoria.

“Geelong is set to become one of Australia’s most important defence manufacturing centres. It is expected that other defence industry suppliers will consider re-locating to the Geelong region so the opportunities for future growth are enormous.”

Design work on the facility is now in its final stages, and there is an opportunity for Australian defence industry partners to co-locate on site to streamline the manufacturing process and maximise export opportunities for the Australian defence industry.

The new facility will include multiple assembly lines, a 1500m test track, a deep-water test facility, and an obstacle course to test capability.

Hanwha will build the new facility on a 20-hectare site at Avalon Airport.

The site will be leased from Linfox Pty Ltd, an Australian-owned logistics and supply chain management company.

Senior Defence officials from Australia, Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand, the UK, and the USA, have come together to release the Combined Space Operations (CSpO) Vision 2031 statement.

Chief of Air Force, Air Marshal Mel Hupfeld AO, DSC, said he welcomed the release of the Vision statement, which reflects the Government’s commitment to strengthening our international relationships to support and protect Australia’s interests in space.

“By releasing the Vision statement, we affirm Australia’s commitment to space cooperation with international partners and allies to ensure that space remains safe, secure and accessible to all,” Air Marshal Hupfeld said.

“The Vision statement underlines CSpO partners’ shared values and goals to the international community in a transparent manner, including our intent to lead as responsible actors in the space domain.”

CSpO focusses on information sharing, developing aligned policies and maximising the combined capabilities of participating nations. Member nations seek to generate and improve cooperation, coordination, and interoperability, to sustain freedom of action in space, optimise resources, enhance mission assurance and resilience, and prevent conflict.

The statement outlines a ten year vision, and articulates the mission, guiding principles and objectives of the CSpO initiative.

“The Australian public is dependent on space for positioning, navigating and timing, communications, weather forecasting and broadcasting information. Space is also critical to ADF warfighting effectiveness, situational awareness and delivery of real-time communications and information,” Air Marshal Hupfeld said.

“As space becomes more contested and congested, CSpO will help Australia coordinate on military space issues, and enhance both individual and collective space capabilities to protect our national interests and assure our access to space.”

The CSpO Vision 2031 statement is available at the Departments website: https://defencenews.govcms.gov.au/sites/default/files/cspo_vision_2031_-_uk_english.pdf

The Australian Government joins the United States and the United Kingdom in publicly attributing the cyber attacks against the Ukrainian banking sector on 15 and 16 February 2022 to the Russian Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU).

In consultation with our partners, the Australian Government assesses that the GRU was responsible for these distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks.

The Australian Government stands in solidarity with Ukraine and our allies and partners to hold Russia to account for its ongoing unacceptable and disruptive pattern of malicious cyber activity.

The international community must not tolerate Russia’s misuse of cyberspace to undermine Ukraine’s national security, sovereignty and territorial integrity by seeking to disrupt essential services, businesses and community confidence.

Russia’s actions pose a significant risk to global economic growth and international stability.

The global community must be prepared to shine a light on malicious cyber activity and hold the actors responsible to account. All members of the international community – including Russia – should abide by existing international law and norms of responsible state behaviour which apply in cyberspace. Australia calls on all countries to honour and uphold their commitments.

Australia is committed to upholding the rules-based order online, just as we do offline, and supporting our partners in the face of cyber threats.

Australia will continue providing cyber security assistance to the Ukrainian Government, including through a new bilateral Cyber Policy Dialogue and further cyber security training for Ukrainian officials.

Australia commends the swift action taken by Ukrainian authorities and the private sector to substantially mitigate the impacts of this incident.

Governments, the private sector and households must remain vigilant about the ongoing threats we face in cyberspace.

The Government is taking concrete action to protect Australians against cyber criminals, investing $1.67 billion over 10 years to build new cybersecurity and law enforcement capabilities to protect Australian businesses and communities, and passing new laws to protect our critical infrastructure assets from malicious cyber attacks.

The Australian Government condemns President Putin’s declaration today that the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of eastern Ukraine are independent states.

This flagrantly undermines Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and has no validity under international law. We also condemn President Putin’s announcement that Russia is deploying so-called “peacekeepers” to eastern Ukraine. These personnel are not peacekeepers.

The Australian Government is coordinating closely with the United States, United Kingdom, European Union and other governments around the world to ensure there are severe costs for Russia’s aggression. Along with our partners, we are prepared to announce swift and severe sanctions that would target key Russian individuals and entities responsible for undermining Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

We continue to urge all Australians to leave Ukraine immediately. Do not delay. The safety of Australians and officials is our priority.

Due to the increased risk, Australian officials have been directed to depart Ukraine. Our Embassy and operations in Lviv are now temporarily closed. Australian officials have been deployed to eastern Poland and Romania to assist Australians seeking to depart Ukraine.

Australia stands in solidarity with Ukraine and continues to call on Russia to cease and reverse its unprovoked assault on its democratic neighbour.

Australians in Ukraine seeking consular assistance should call DFAT’s 24-hour Consular Emergency Centre on 1300 555 135 or +61 2 6261 3305 outside Australia.

Today’s recycled tree planting  plan from the Prime Minister has been slammed by the Greens as little more than a cynical electioneering stunt from a Government that has failed spectacularly at delivering on decades of promises to “Green Australia”.

Greens senator for lutruwita/Tasmania, Peter Whish-Wilson said:

“Everyone wants to see more trees planted, but Tasmanians shouldn’t be so easily conned by the PM and his Government.

“People are rightly cynical of politicians making big promises at election time, because they never keep them. People do not want to see the same election policy recycled multiple times by a Government they cannot trust. 

“The Liberal Government promised in 2018 to plant one billion trees over the decade to 2028. The policy cited studies that showed 400,000 hectares of new plantations would be needed over the next decade. Yet in 2021 it was revealed that less than 1% of that goal had been achieved.

“The Abbott government also promised to plant millions of trees nearly ten years ago, but this also turned out to be an empty promise. 

“This Government simply can’t be trusted. As usual there are so many unanswered questions and falsehoods in today’s empty promise.

“How is this going to fix our timber shortage when these trees won’t be available for harvest for decades?

“How will planting trees help with tackling our climate emergency if they’re going to be harvested for timber at the same time this Government supports the logging of some of the most carbon rich, biodiverse forests on the planet through RFAs?

“Unsuccessful tree planting schemes don’t provide nearly enough climate action when the Government is supporting the development of 114 new fossil fuels projects around the nation.

“It’s no accident that this announcement has occurred in one of the most marginal seats in the country. The Liberals will offer northern Tasmanians the world if they think it will help them retain Government.

“Clearly this is nothing more than a cynical electioneering stunt from a Government that has failed spectacularly at delivering on decades of plantation-forest promises.”

Today’s Antarctic announcement from the Morrison Government is a political ploy that provides no certainty for Tasmania’s globally significant science community and is a distraction from the real threat facing the Antarctic: climate change. 

Greens Senator for lutruwita/Tasmania, Peter Whish-Wilson said:

“The Government has a penchant for big announcements and cutting ribbons but not for investing in people and critical science programs.
 

“The Coalition has spent the last decade ignoring numerous strategic reviews and gutting Tasmania’s contribution to Australian Antarctic science. 

“In this term of parliament the Government has been called out specifically for its lack of coordination and strategic approach in funding Antarctic science programs, which has created uncertainty in the Tasmanian science community and fragmented globally significant Antarctic research. 

“In 2016 the Coalition tried to sack 300 scientists, many of them globally significant researchers in the Southern Ocean and Antarctic science based in Tasmania.

“All the runways, machines, boats, and buildings amount to nothing unless you invest in the people utilising them, and the scientific programs they are needed for. 

“The Government’s dismal track record speaks for itself. Don’t be conned by yet another big election promise from a Government facing defeat at the polls.

“I also question the validity of the $804 million announcement today as “new” funds. In 2016 $413.1 million was earmarked for investment starting from 2020‑21 – this was announced again in 2019, and again today it seems. We also know the Government’s doomed runway project spared $300 million of expenditure into the region – making part of today’s funding announcement a reappropriation of funds from a broken election promise. 

“Science is the currency of the Antarctic Treaty and if Scott Morrison wants to secure Australia’s leadership role in the region he should properly fund Tasmanian scientific efforts. 

“If you want to act on security and on protecting Antarctica then act on the biggest threat this region faces: climate change. Take real action to stop warming oceans and unstable ice sheets, and act on the loss of krill and biodiversity. 

“Climate change is the biggest threat to Antarctica yet our Government is an international embarrassment on climate action, currently looking to approve 114 new fossil fuel projects. No amount of spin will distract from that.”