2m agoThu 30 Oct 2025 at 1:04am

Barnaby Joyce faces complaint over alleged verbal abuse of female staffer(ABC News: Matt Roberts)

Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce is facing a complaint over his alleged verbal abuse of a female staffer in a colleague’s office.

Joyce, who was absent from parliament on Thursday, is accused of launching a tirade against a member of staff in the office of Nationals whip Michelle Landry on Wednesday.

A Coalition source familiar with the incident said Joyce had been seeking leave to attend a funeral taking place today, but became agitated when advised this would require a form.

They said the incident had been flagged with the Parliamentary Workplace Support Service (PWSS) on Thursday morning ahead of an expected formal complaint.

A spokesperson for the Nationals said the PWSS has “trust confidential processes and support to deal with workplace issues in parliament house”.

“Therefore, it would not be appropriate to comment.”

Joyce, who is on leave to attend the funeral, has been contacted for comment.

6m agoThu 30 Oct 2025 at 1:01am

Australia living through an ‘era of strategic competition’: Albanese

Anthony Albanese has been asked whether he stands by previous comments that we’re living in the most dangerous strategic environment since World War II.

The prime minister has used that same language but says Australia is living through an “era of strategic competition”.

“It is a good thing that President Trump and President Xi are meeting today. I have developed good positive relationships with both President Trump and President Xi,” Albanese says.

9m agoThu 30 Oct 2025 at 12:58am

Australia believes in free and open trade: Albanese on Trump comments

The prime minister has been asked if he agrees with statements from the US president that Washington hasn’t used tariffs very much.

Anthony Albanese says he won’t give a running commentary on the comments given by the US president.

“What I do is state Australia’s position and Australia’s position is that we support free and fair trade,” the PM says.

“We believe that the more open trade occurs, the better it is for the global economy, the better it is for Australia, and we consistently put that position,” he says.

12m agoThu 30 Oct 2025 at 12:54am

PM not concerned about reports US will transfer technology to Korea for nuclear subs

The prime minister has been asked about reports the US president has confirmed a green light to transferring nuclear technology to South Korea to enable them to build nuclear-powered submarines.

Asked if that concerns him considering Australia’s investment in AUKUS, Anthony Albanese says it doesn’t concern him.

“These bilateral arrangements are a matter for the United States and Korea. The arrangements Australia has entered into with United States and United Kingdom are in our national interest,” Albanese says.

But pressed again on whether the deal could have implications for AUKUS, Albanese says he doesn’t think the US president’s comments could have been any clearer.

“They have been clear ever since President Trump has made very explicit — not just support for AUKUS — but indeed the bringing forward of the timetable if that is possible,” he says.

16m agoThu 30 Oct 2025 at 12:50am

Albanese won’t say if he’ll attend COP leaders summit in Brazil

The prime minister has been asked whether he’ll be attending the COP leaders summit in Brazil in November.

Anthony Albanese says he’ll look at his itinerary and that Australia will be represented at the summit.

He says the government is still working out issues related to the hosting rights for the next COP, which is race between Australia and Türkiye.

“This week is a leaders’ level meeting, but we take COP very seriously,” Albanese says.

“We are advocating to host COP at the end of next year. We are working through those issues,” he says.

20m agoThu 30 Oct 2025 at 12:47am

Albanese wants to see reduced trade tensions out of Trump, Xi meeting

US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping will hold a bilateral meeting later today.

The prime minister has been asked what a positive outcome would look like for Australia from that meeting.

Anthony Albanese says he wants to see less tension in global trade and see countries working together moving forward.

“We obviously also want to see a reduction in tension around the world, and the United States and China have an important role as the two major economies and the two major powers that exist in our region and right around the globe,” Albanese says.

22m agoThu 30 Oct 2025 at 12:44am

Prime minister speaks following dinner with leaders in South Korea

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has just stepped up to talk in Gyeongju, South Korea, after his dinner with world leaders overnight.

Albanese says he went to a memorial to pay tribute to the final resting place of Australians killed in the Korean War.

The prime minister says he had a “terrific informal dinner” last night hosted by South Korea’s president.

He says he spoke with US President Donald Trump at the dinner about last week’s meeting in Washington. 

The PM says he’ll have a bilateral meeting with the president of South Korea later today.

“It was a real opportunity to develop relationships further with leaders from those seven other countries, and a really positive initiative from the president of Korea,” Albanese says.

He has also flagged he’ll be meeting with the chief executive and chair of POSCO — a South Korean steel manufacturer.

51m agoThu 30 Oct 2025 at 12:16am

Environment bill does the ‘bidding of big business’: Sarah Hanson-Young(ABC News: Matt Roberts)

Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young says the Greens will refer the government’s environment protection bill to a Senate inquiry that will report back next year.

Speaking to reporters in the corridors or parliament this morning, Senator Hanson-Young says the bill in its current form weakens environmental protection and does the “bidding of big business”.

She says the bill in its current form fails to stop the logging of native forests and the destruction of native habitat.

“This bill fails the basic test right up front that it doesn’t improve environmental protections,” Hanson-Young says.

“It’s been written by the business lobby and the mining lobby to fast track their approvals. That means new coal and gas fast tracked, the destruction of our forests, made easier, made cheaper,” Hanson-Young says.

1h agoWed 29 Oct 2025 at 11:58pmLabor’s environment protection bill introduced to parliament

The government’s Environment Protection Bill 2025 has just been introduced into the House of Representatives by the Minister Representing the Environment Minister Tony Burke.

If passed, the law will introduce a national Environmental Protection Agency and require projects report their carbon emissions.

It would also allow the environment minister to green light projects that don’t meet all environmental guidelines on grounds of national interest.

“This package of bills is a once in a generation opportunity to reform our environmental laws,” Burke says.

“We’ve been down this path before under governments of both sides and we cannot afford to wait any longer,” he says.

Labor needs the support of either the Coalition or Greens to pass the bill through the senate, but neither party has pledged their support.

1h agoWed 29 Oct 2025 at 11:44pmThings heat up in the Senate as Jane Hume accuses Labor of ‘playing games’(ABC News: Matt Roberts)

Well, things have erupted in the Senate this morning, with one Coalition senator accusing the government of “playing games”.

Liberal senator Jane Hume was delivering a speech to the Senate when she was interrupted three times by government calls for a quorum.

Hume claimed Labor senators were leaving the Senate in order to force a quorum call, cutting time out of private members’ debate.

It comes off the back of moves by the Coalition and crossbench yesterday to increase the number of non-government questions allocated during Senate question time.

“Not only are they hiding, they are playing games in the chamber,” Hume says.

“Labor are refusing to produce a document that we have been requesting to see for two years … which ironically is a review into jobs for mates.”

1h agoWed 29 Oct 2025 at 11:13pm

Older people risk losing some at-home services despite ‘no worse off’ promise

Advocates are warning older Australians accessing government-funded help at home risk having to cut back on their services because of rising fees.

Under the new aged care system beginning November 1, people who were on, or approved for, a home care package by September 12, 2024, have been given a “no worse off” guarantee, but while their out-of-pocket costs will not rise, there are warnings their package funds will not go as far.

Older Persons Advocacy Network chief executive Craig Gear said under the new scheme, some providers were increasing their costs.

“It may mean that their purchasing power from their package is less than what they had before,” he said.

Read the full story from political reporter Evelyn Manfield in the link below.

2h agoWed 29 Oct 2025 at 10:53pmCoalition’s James Paterson accuses Labor of acting like an authoritarian government(ABC News: Matt Roberts)

Shadow Finance Minister James Paterson has confirmed the government has threatened to strip the opposition of deputy chair positions in the lower house in retaliation for supporting a motion by David Pocock yesterday.

The Coalition and Greens backed the ACT senator’s motion in the Senate that will give the opposition and crossbench more questions in Senate question time.

The motion, as we mentioned earlier, was an attempt to force the government to release a report into ‘jobs for mates’ review, which it has been keeping secret for a year.

Speaking to Sky News, Paterson says the government’s response was “utterly petulant” and reflects badly on Labor.

“The government’s response has been utterly extraordinary, completely petty and much more consistent with the behaviour of an authoritarian government than a democratic one,” Paterson says.

“This is not a transparent government and they’re now being exposed,” he says.

2h agoWed 29 Oct 2025 at 10:45pm

‘Call it for what it is’: Thorpe petitions for hate crime charges

Calls are mounting to treat an attack on a Melbourne First Nations camp as a hate crime, with a petition tabled by Senator Lidia Thorpe receiving more than 400,000 signatures.

In August, a group of neo-Nazis violently assaulted peaceful protesters at Camp Sovereignty — an Aboriginal sacred site and protest camp in the heart of Melbourne.

Thorpe told ABC News Breakfast the alleged offenders are being let off with a “slap on the wrist”.

“We need to send a clear message to the rest of this country that this is a hate crime and neo-Nazi attacks are not tolerated,” she said.

“We know that if it was an attack on a synagogue or a mosque, then this would be a hate crime. It’s an attack on the oldest continuing living culture on the planet — it is clearly a hate crime”.

She’s calling on the prime minister to back the federal police to investigate the incident as a hate crime, and to charge them as such.

“That’s what over 400,000 signatures have signed up to — to pressure this government to take it more seriously”.

2h agoWed 29 Oct 2025 at 10:29pm

Coalition doesn’t want rushed Senate inquiry into environment bill(ABC News: Matt Roberts)

The Coalition will refer the government’s environmental protection bill to a Senate inquiry to closely examine the details.

Labor thinks a one-month Senate inquiry is ample time to pour over the details over the bill.

But Shadow Environment Minister Angie Bell says she doesn’t understand what the rush is to pass the bill.

“Australian deserve to have an inquiry that looks into every part of this bill, every single dot across 1,500 pages and that will take a significant amount of time,” Bell says.

2h agoWed 29 Oct 2025 at 10:16pmWatt accuses Senator David Pocock of a ‘dummy spit’ in the Senate yesterday

Murray Watt isn’t happy about the shenanigans that unfolded in the Senate later yesterday afternoon.

The environment minister says Independent Senator David Pocock has upended decades of Senate procedure for moving a motion pressuring the government to release a report.

Pocock introduced a motion into the Senate to put pressure on the government to release a 2023 review into ‘jobs for mates’, which has been kept secret for a year.

The motion, which was backed by the Coalition and the Greens and passed yesterday, means that opposition and crossbench senators will now get an extra five questions every question time until that secret report is released.

“The number of questions that are allocated to the government, opposition and crossbenchers in the Senate has been set for decades,” Watt says.

“As a result from a dummy spit from David Pocock, he’s decided to upend that in a way that advantages the opposition and the crossbench.

“I think he should reflect on his actions … he’s just gone and chucked the toys out of the cot yesterday, so he should have a good hard think about that,” he says.

3h agoWed 29 Oct 2025 at 10:04pmWatt defends criticism of ministerial powers in govt’s environment protection bill(ABC News: Matt Roberts)

Environment Minister Murray Watt has stepped up for a doorstop interview in the corridors of Parliament House.

He’s been asked about concerns raised by Labor backbencher Ed Husic on the ministerial powers outlined in the government’s bill.

The environment minister will have the power to override some environmental rules to approve projects of national interest.

Husic told the ABC’s Afternoon Briefing yesterday he was concerned about how those powers could be used by a future Coalition minister.

But Watt says the power for the minister to have the final say on projects of national significance was a key recommendation of the 2021 Graeme Samuel review.

He says the government expects the power to be used very rarely and only in national security or natural disaster situations.

“What he said is that an elected government should have the ability, in rare circumstances in the national interest, to be able to make a decision to approve a project after it has been assessed if it doesn’t meet all of the usual environmental standards,” Watt says. 

“He also said that decision needs to be accompanied by a statement of reasons setting out why that decision was made and what environmental impacts that decision will have,” he says.

3h agoWed 29 Oct 2025 at 9:44pm

Over a thousand recommendations gathering dust prompts DV watchdog call

As part of the Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence Commissioner’s (DFSV) report to parliament being tabled today, the commission analysed thousands of recommendations from inquiries into the issue going back to 2010.

What they noticed has prompted a recommendation for a national body to coordinate and track government performance on meeting their commitments to stop violence against women and children.

DFSV Commissioner Micaela Cronin’s team found while recommendations were often “repeated in report after report”, many had not been consistently or widely implemented.

“The challenge is not generating solutions,” the commissioner says.

“The gap between what we know needs to be done and what — and most crucially how — we are implementing at scale has never been more apparent.”

Among consistent recommendations are sustainable investment in the frontline workforce, support services that are culturally safe and led by Indigenous communities and men’s behaviour change programs.

“The evidence is clear, inquiries have mapped what is required. Funding has been committed. Institutions exist to provide oversight. What is missing is consistent and coordinated delivery.”

3h agoWed 29 Oct 2025 at 9:32pm

National watchdog needed for violence against women, commissioner says

Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence (DFSV) Commissioner Micaela Cronin is recommending a national watchdog to coordinate and track government responses to violence against women and children.

She’s handing down her annual assessment on the progress of the National Plan to End Violence Against Women and Children today, which also calls for the commission to have greater powers to compel government agencies to provide it with data.

The DFSV commission found systems meant to keep governments accountable are so fragmented they’re leading to authorities passing the buck on responsibility.

Cronin says while some progress has been made, with programs like the federal government’s leaving violence payment, key targets from the national plan are not being met.

One of them is the aim of a 25 per cent reduction per year in female victims of intimate partner homicide.

While rates of intimate partner homicide have decreased over the longer term, there was a sharp increase in 2023-24 — the largest single year climb in over a decade.

Among the proposed watchdog’s responsibilities would be providing quarterly tracking reports to national cabinet, establishing performance measures on DFSV for department secretaries and ensuring victim survivors of violence and sector workers are represented in policy development.

3h agoWed 29 Oct 2025 at 9:23pm

Coalition open to continuing talks with minister on environment bill

The Coalition has signalled that’s it’s willing to continue talking with the environment minister on the government’s environmental protection bill.

Angie Bell says the Coalition is eager to ensure the bill is balanced so that the environment is protected and investment continues.

“We’re open to continuing to talk with the minister on how these bills can be improved, to make sure that there is a balance struck and that industry, jobs, and investment don’t get a raw deal out of this,” Bell says.

She says the Coalition supports establishing an inquiry to take a closer look at the bill and involve more stakeholders in the discussion.

“We have to understand also that all the stakeholders around the country haven’t been meeting with Murray Watt. It’s only been a select few,” she says.

“So the stakeholders around the country, including the conservation outlets, need to have a voice on this because they also have concerns.”

3h agoWed 29 Oct 2025 at 9:15pmAustralians should be ‘scared’ if Labor does deal with Greens on environment laws(ABC News: Matt Roberts)

Shadow Environment Minister Angie Bell has jumped into the hot seat on ABC Radio National Breakfast right after the minister’s appearance. 

Bell says the environment minister has “cherry-picked” recommendations from the 2021 Graeme Samuel review into the nation’s current environmental protection laws.

The shadow environment minister says the establishment of a federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was not mentioned in the Samuel review.

She says the Coalition takes issue with the EPA’s “broad sweeping powers”.

Bell says Australians should be “scared” if the federal government goes to the Greens to secure passage of the bill through parliament.

“There are lots of different concerns that we have around this bill. I understand, I’ve seen it, it’s 1,500 pages. It’ll take a 40-hour working week to read through it cover to cover,” Bell says.

“The minister’s had it for six months and been working on it. We’ve had it for just a few hours and so we’ll be working through the rest of the detail,” she says.

Listen back to Bell on ABC Radio National Breakfast.