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What we learned today, Friday 5 September
And with that, we’ll close the blog for today. I hope you have a great weekend and, as always, thank you for reading. Here’s a recap of today’s top stories.
Neo-Nazi Thomas Sewell, who allegedly led an attack on a sacred Indigenous burial site, was refused bail in the Melbourne magistrates court.
Two men were arrested over the alleged malicious damage at the Anzac Memorial in the Sydney CBD, police said, after the force publicly released CCTV footage of the alleged vandals in an effort to find them.
The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, responded to a controversial photo of former Victorian premier Daniel Andrews in Beijing with a group of people that included Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un, along with leaders of Iran and Belarus.
Alan Joyce secured a final bonus worth $3.8m, two years after the prominent Qantas chief executive left the airline after a series of corporate decisions sparked a reputational crisis.
The New South Wales treasurer, Daniel Mookhey, said the Indian-Australian community would welcome an apology from Liberal senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price after her “utterly wrong” comments about their migration here.
The massive search for alleged Porepunkah gunman Dezi Freeman in Victoria’s high country was to continue over the weekend, after thousands of people gathered to farewell one of the men he allegedly killed, Vadim De Waart-Hottart, at a funeral in Melbourne.
A skull found by a bushwalker was formally identified as the missing remains of Julian Story. Former reality TV star Tamika Sueann Rose Chesser has been charged with his alleged murder.
And more than 700 people had signed an open letter requesting that the vice-chancellor of the University of Melbourne (UoM), Prof Emma Johnston, sacrifice 10% of her current salary to save the literary journal Meanjin, which is to be shut down after 85 years.
Updated at 05.09 EDT
Two men arrested over alleged vandalism of Sydney’s Anzac Memorial
Two men have been arrested over the alleged malicious damage at the Anzac Memorial in the Sydney CBD, New South Wales police say.
Police have just released a statement saying they arrested the men about 5.45pm today after they attended the Auburn police station in the city’s west.
About 12.20pm yesterday, two unknown men were allegedly seen spraying “a substance” on the walls and steps of the Anzac Memorial in Hyde Park, police said.
Police said the men were then seen leaving the memorial and walking north together through the park.
Earlier today, police released CCTV footage of the two men who allegedly vandalised the memorial to help find them.
Police have estimated the cost of the alleged vandalism to the Sydney Anzac memorial is about $10,000.
Updated at 05.13 EDT
Proposed Sydney Harbour Bridge march linked to conspiracy theorists heads to NSW supreme court
Penry Buckley
A proposed march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge linked to anti-vaxxers and conspiracy theorists will be challenged at the NSW supreme court on Monday.
As we reported yesterday, a group protesting under the name “Australia Unites Against Government Corruption”, has lodged a “form 1” application, notifying police about a planned public assembly next Saturday, 13 September.
Police have now moved to reject the form 1, lodging a challenge at the NSW supreme court this afternoon.
An urgent hearing has been scheduled for Monday afternoon. If the court decides the protest should be considered as “authorised”, it will provide some legal protection to demonstrators.
Updated at 05.13 EDT
Tom McIlroy
EV reforms aim to ‘ensure more equitable treatment’ across vehicles, treasurers say
The treasurers’ EV statement says:
Reforms to road user charging arrangements for electric vehicles have the potential to bolster productivity through more efficient use of the road network and vehicle fleet and ensure fair and sustainable funding for road investment and maintenance.
Reforms should be designed to not deter the continued take-up of electric vehicles.
The reforms to the treatment of electric vehicles will ensure more equitable treatment across vehicle types and provide certainty to support investment.
The group has agreed any new rules must be as simple as possible, in order to minimise the new administration and compliance burden, and says:
We will ensure any changes are phased to enable the productivity, climate and consumer benefits of increasing electric vehicle uptake over the coming years.
Updated at 03.51 EDT
Tom McIlroy
Chalmers and state treasurers flag changes to EV road user charging rules
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, met his state and territory counterparts today, with road user charging for electric vehicles high on the agenda.
At the end of last month’s economic reform roundtable in Canberra, Chalmers flagged plans to move ahead with new road user charging rules, long in the policy too hard basket in Canberra.
The shift to electric vehicles around Australia is costing the budget due to falling fuel excise. Chalmers said new rules to ensure fairness between EV drivers and others on the road was “an idea whose time has come”.
Friday’s meeting looks like a step along the way, with no immediate outcomes announced.
In a joint statement released by Chalmers, Australia’s treasurers said EV technology was transforming the outlook for passenger and freight transport.
As a result, policies at all levels of government “will need to evolve to seize the opportunities and manage the challenges of this new outlook”.
Updated at 03.48 EDT
Man jailed for taking gun to MCG had violent history
Here are some more details of the case involving the man who brought a gun to the MCG, from AAP:
The magistrate, Brett Sonnet, noted Omar Salma had carried out multiple violent attacks since 2022, including at Crown Casino where he kicked and punched a man on an escalator.
Sonnet accepted Salma was still a young man and had developed a drug addiction following the death of a friend.
But a pre-sentence report showed Salma had a high risk of reoffending, and he continued to minimise the seriousness of his conduct, the magistrate said.
Sonnet concluded the offending was very serious and needed to be strongly condemned by the court.
Salma was jailed for 22 months, but he will be eligible for parole in five months, having already served 155 days of his 10-month non-parole period.
His co-offender, Mohammad Noori, was also jailed for 21 months but is appealing his sentence in the Victorian county court.
Updated at 03.35 EDT
Man jailed for bringing loaded firearm into packed MCG
A man who brought a loaded gun into a packed MCG earlier this year has been jailed for 22 months, with a magistrate strongly condemning the alarming incident, AAP reports.
Omar Salma, 21, admitted bringing the weapon to the AFL clash between Collingwood and Carlton on 3 April, which 82,000 fans attended.
He had assaulted a security guard – who had evicted him from the ground two weeks earlier – when police arrived to restrain him.
During a search, officers uncovered a loaded .22 calibre revolver on Salma and a container of cartridge ammunition in his bag.
His co-offender Mohammad Noori also had a loaded firearm in his possession.
Salma told police he had the weapon to protect himself but magistrate Brett Sonnet on Friday described that reasoning as concerning.
Liberal frontbencher Andrew Bragg says the markets have already decided net zero debate
Liberal senator Andrew Bragg has said the net zero debate has already been “overcome” by the markets but has dodged questions on what the Coalition’s policy should be.
Bragg has been interviewed on the ABC’s Afternoon Briefing program today, where he was asked in detail about renewed debate within the Coalition over whether Australia should uphold its commitment to achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
A growing number of Coalition MPs have been agitating for the target to be dumped altogether, as the opposition’s internal tussle over the climate crisis continues.
Liberal senator Andrew Bragg. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP
Bragg would not answer directly when asked on the ABC this afternoon whether his message to his party was that Australia should stick to its net zero pledge, saying:
Well, Australia is a serious country. We take our international obligations seriously but we also want to protect domestic industry and Australians.
There is a good way to do net zero and there is a bad way to do net zero and Labor is taking us on the bad path and we should adopt a smart way which protects industry, which respects regional communities and is cognisant of our economic and environmental obligations.
He said the debate on having net zero was “overcome in the sense that the capital markets had made up their mind” and:
That’s why the former Coalition government signed Australia up, because this is where the world is going.
But there are different views on how you can achieve that, and that’s a debate that we having.
Updated at 03.21 EDT
Patrick Commins
S&P Global Ratings downgrades ACT’s credit rating and projects $19.7bn of debt in 2028
S&P Global Ratings has downgraded the ACT’s credit rating, which it has blamed on the territory’s ballooning debt and deficits.
In a major indictment of chief minister Andrew Barr’s fiscal management, the international agency cut its rating on the ACT’s debt to AA from AA+.
In its newly issued report, the agency said:
We expect (the) Australian Capital Territory’s operating accounts to remain in deficit until fiscal 2027 due to rising health costs.
Additionally, higher capital spending will weigh on overall cash deficits, driving the territory’s debt above that of all rated Australian states except Victoria.
Including these capital costs, deficits will reach 10% of total revenue over the coming two years, the report said.
That higher capital investment included “a new convention and entertainment center precinct, as well as an aquatic center”, with the prospect of further extensions to the light rail project threatening further damage to the budget.
The fiscal projections are grim.
S&P analysts forecast the ACT’s total debt will jump from $12.9bn in 2024 to $19.7bn in 2028.
And paying for this bigger debt pile will be a growing burden on the territory’s taxpayers.
Between the 2024 and 2028 financial years, interest costs will more than double to 8.8% of operating revenue, S&P said.
Updated at 03.01 EDT
NSW treasurer says Jacinta Price should apologise to Indian-Australian community
The New South Wales treasurer, Daniel Mookhey, says the Indian-Australian community would welcome an apology from Liberal senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price after her “utterly wrong” comments about their migration.
Price has sought to walk back inflammatory claims she made on ABC TV earlier this week that the federal Labor government was promoting migration by specific ethnic groups, including Indians, to grow its electoral support.
Mookhey has been asked about Price’s remarks in an interview on the ABC’s Afternoon Briefing program today after the Sydney Morning Herald published a story in which he condemned what the firebrand conservative senator had said.
Mookhey told the ABC:
I have made a statement and mainly because I am Australian of Indian heritage and maybe one of Australia’s most senior politicians who have Indian heritage.
I thought these comments were wildly insensitive. They were utterly wrong.
Mookhey said the Liberal party should rethink its decision to have Price headline a fundraising event in Sydney tonight, “in the wake of her rather divisive comments”.
Asked if he thought Price should apologise to the Indian community, Mookhey said:
I think the Australian Indian community would welcome that.
NSW treasurer Daniel Mookhey. Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAPShare
Updated at 02.48 EDT
Penny Wong responds to photo of Daniel Andrews in China
Sarah Basford Canales
The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, has weighed in on that photo of former Victorian premier, Dan Andrews, in Beijing in close proximity of dictators Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un, along with leaders of Iran and Belarus.
Speaking from Tokyo this afternoon, the minister was asked what Andrews’ presence in the group shot did for Australia’s image and whether it played into Chinese propaganda.
Wong responded:
I don’t speak for private individuals, but I would so hope that we all should be mindful of the message that our presence and engagement sends, as I certainly am.
That photo. Photograph: Sergei Bobylev/APShare
Updated at 05.14 EDT
Sarah Basford Canales
Richard Marles says Australia on track to finalise $10bn frigate deal with Japan by early next year
The defence minister, Richard Marles, says he expects Australia and Japan will finalise a $10bn deal to acquire three Mogami-class frigates by the first quarter of 2026.
Speaking in Tokyo following a defence and foreign ministers’ meeting this afternoon, Marles said the deal, announced last month, was a subject of the conversation today and that both sides were eager to settle the negotiations quickly.
The defence minister said he expected the first frigate from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries would be received by Australia in 2029.
Marles said:
This is really breaking new ground in terms of the defence industry cooperation between Australia and Japan. Japan is a technologically advanced economy, and we see that there are enormous opportunities across the defense industrial base here for us to cooperate more broadly on.
Updated at 01.33 EDT
Catie McLeod
Hi, I hope you’ve had a great day, wherever you are. I’ll be with you on the blog for the rest of the afternoon.
Updated at 01.18 EDT
Caitlin Cassidy
Shots allegedly fired in western Sydney
NSW police have provided an update after shots were allegedly fired in greater western Sydney today.
Just after 12pm, officers were called to Victor Street, Greystanes after reports of shots fired from a BMW towards a Suzuki Swift. The two vehicles then left the scene.
Police said a short time later, a man returned to the scene uninjured:
Initial inquires have led police to believe two people – including the man – were in the Suzuki Swift when the incident occurred. The man is currently assisting police with inquiries. A short time later, a BMW was located on fire on Targo Road, Toongabbie; and the Suzuki Swift was located with damage on Whalans Road, Greystanes.
The fire was extinguished by NSW Fire and Rescue officers. Police have established a crime scene at all three locations and investigations are underway.
There have been no reports of injuries.
Updated at 01.20 EDT
With that, I will pass the blog into the hands of Catie McLeod.
Thanks so much for reading.
ShareSkull formally identified as that of alleged SA murder victim
A skull found by a bushwalker has been formally identified as the missing remains of Julian Story, with a former reality TV star facing charges over his alleged murder.
Authorities had been searching for Story’s head since the 39-year-old’s dismembered body was discovered in the South Australian town of Port Lincoln on 19 June.
The skull was identified after it was discovered in scrubland by a person pursuing a wandering dog in the town on 31 July and underwent testing.
Police said the remains were forwarded to Forensic Science SA for a detailed scientific examination which confirmed the identity.
“Police extend their gratitude to the many members of the Port Lincoln community who have come forward with information to aid this investigation.”
Tamika Sueann Rose Chesser, 34, a former Beauty and the Geek contestant, has been charged with Story’s alleged murder.
Updated at 01.25 EDT
August weather data: wet in WA but southern states record well below average rainfall
Rainfall patterns across Australia in August varied dramatically in different parts of the country, the Bureau of Meteorology’s latest update has revealed.
Western Australia recorded its wettest August since 2005, with area-averaged rainfall 67% above average, while New South Wales was 12% above average. But conditions were much drier further south. Tasmania had its driest August since 2014, with rainfall a third below average, while southern NSW, Victoria and South Australia also recorded well below-average falls.
Year-to-date rainfall deficiencies have eased in WA but persisted in the south-east. Long-term deficits in soil moisture and streamflow remain, particularly in Tasmania and Victoria. Streamflow at some southern sites was the lowest on record for August. Water storages in parts of the south and east are down by as much as 50% compared with this time last year.
The bureau noted that while above average winter rainfall has softened deficiencies in some regions, drought recovery requires many months of sustained rainfall to replenish deep soil moisture, groundwater and storages.
Looking ahead, the September–November outlook points to above-average rainfall for much of eastern Australia. Warmer than average days are likely in northern and south-eastern regions, with nights expected to be warmer across most of the country.
The bureau said climate trends show a long-term shift towards drier conditions across southern Australia during the cool season. Since 1994, April–October rainfall has been below the long-term average in 24 of the past 31 years.
Heavy rain in Sydney on 21 August 2025. Photograph: Steve Markham/AAPShare
Updated at 00.53 EDT