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Labor pushed on truth commission for First Nations people<\/p>\n
Malarndirri McCarthy says the Uluru statement from the heart is \u201cimportant\u201d to the government, but won\u2019t give any indication of when it will act on truth telling.<\/p>\n
The statement, which was committed to in full by the government, includes \u201cthe voice, treaty and truth\u201d. The government failed to gain national consensus when it put a referendum to the public to establish a voice to Parliament.<\/p>\n
Yesterday, the former Victorian Yoorrook justice commissioner, Travis Lovett, arrived at Parliament after a 500km, 38-day walk from Victoria, urging the prime minister for a truth telling commission.<\/p>\n
The minister for Indigenous Australians tells ABC News Breakfast:<\/p>\n
double quotation markWe said that with the Uluru Statement from the Heart there were three principles, the voice, treaty and truth. And I know that that has been important for us. It was disappointing with the outcome of the Voice. But we moved on from that.<\/p>\n
And clearly there are many other issues that are going on with the states. Victoria, in particular, has had a treaty process, a Yoorrook commission, which Travis Lovett was a commissioner on that commission.<\/p>\n
Share<\/a> WhatsApp could face inclusion in under-16s social media ban<\/p>\n WhatsApp and other apps that were excluded from the under-16s social media ban may be later included in the ban if they add more social features, the eSafety commissioner has said.<\/p>\n Meta\u2019s messaging app was excluded from the ban last year, but Greens senator David Shoebridge noted in Senate estimates: \u201cEvery time I open WhatsApp, I\u2019ve got some new option…where there\u2019s now channels, there\u2019s communities, there\u2019s my status feed.\u201d<\/p>\n The eSafety commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, said those that were told they weren\u2019t covered by the ban may not be excluded forever:<\/p>\n double quotation markWe\u2019ve told WhatsApp, we\u2019ve told Roblox that the the more social features that bring you closer to the definition, you might have been assessed at this time as a messaging app or an online gaming, but the more social you become, the more likely you are to [meet the definition].<\/p>\n Inman Grant said if eSafety gets wind of excluded platforms introducing more social features, then it will work through a process of reassessing them.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Suppressing housing investment \u2018quite insane\u2019, Bragg says<\/p>\n The shadow housing minister, Andrew Bragg, says the government\u2019s changes to negative gearing and CGT will reduce housing supply.<\/p>\n Speaking to the ABC\u2019s RN Breakfast, he says that supressing one form of investment is \u201cquite insane\u201d.<\/p>\n The budget states that housing will continue to be built but the impacts of CGT and negative gearing could cut 35,000 new homes from the countries pipeline over the next decade.<\/p>\n Bragg says:<\/p>\n double quotation markI think the idea that more taxes on housing, which would reduce housing supply by 35,000 dwellings, is a crazy policy.<\/p>\n It doesn\u2019t make any sense that you want to suppress housing supply. So they\u2019ve brought in 1.6 million people since they\u2019ve been in office, and they\u2019ve only built 600,000 houses. So we need to build more houses. And the idea that you want to suppress one form of investment is also quite insane.<\/p>\n Investors who buy new properties would still get access to negative gearing and more generous capital gains tax discount incentives.<\/p>\n The shadow housing minister, Andrew Bragg. Photograph: Lukas Coch\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a018.38 EDT<\/p>\n Rishworth rebuffs criticism from Labor premiers<\/p>\n The employment minister, Amanda Rishworth, says criticism by two Labor premiers on the capital gains tax changes is a matter for them but reminds them that the federal government is providing all the states with $25bn for their hospitals.<\/p>\n The WA premier, Roger Cook, was the second to criticise the budget and warn that the CGT changes could impact investment in the mining sector (that WA heavily relies on for revenue).<\/p>\n Last week, the NSW premier, Chris Minns, said that the government should have handed back bigger tax cuts to income earners.<\/p>\n Rishworth spoke to the ABC\u2019s RN Breakfast and brushed off the feedback.<\/p>\n double quotation markThat\u2019s entirely a matter for those premiers. What I would say is we work very closely with state and territories. For example, in this budget, and if we like to talk about the contribution we\u2019re making to state and territories in this budget, there\u2019s $25bn for state hospitals, the largest hospital deals.<\/p>\n The employment minister, Amanda Rishworth. Photograph: Lukas Coch\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a018.39 EDT<\/p>\n Clare defends multi-stage CGT reforms<\/p>\n What do we know so far on the CGT reforms?<\/p>\n Labor will be introducing a bill in parliament this morning that will cover the broad capital gains tax changes (likely with no carve-outs), as well as the negative gearing changes, and the working Australian tax offset.<\/p>\n As the government keeps consulting on the reforms, it will then decide whether to make any carve-outs with additional legislation. Some of the loudest voices are calling for exemptions for the startup and venture capital sector.<\/p>\n Labor\u2019s education minister, Jason Clare, defended the multistage approach, telling Sunrise:<\/p>\n double quotation markThe first bill gets introduced today but there\u2019ll be a series of bills to implement these reforms, as there always is with big tax reform.<\/p>\n Asked if the government could increase the threshold so businesses with a turnover of $10m, rather than $2m, would qualify for an exemption, Clare said:<\/p>\n double quotation markThat\u2019s what those conversations are about right now.<\/p>\n The bill today is about cutting income tax and about making it easier to buy a house, and it sets the foundations for these tax changes, but the second bill that we introduced will have all of that detail.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a018.14 EDT<\/p>\n Jewish witnesses who have given evidence to the royal commission on antisemitism and social cohesion have faced a barrage of online abuse and harassment in the aftermath, including being called \u201cdemonic\u201d, \u201csubhuman\u201d, and told to burn in hell.<\/p>\n Royal commissioner Virginia Bell raised concerns earlier this week, saying at least one instance of online harassment had been reported to the Australian Federal Police.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have received reports from a number of witnesses concerning a dramatic increase in online hate messages after they have given evidence,\u201d Bell said, describing it as an \u201cundiluted level of hatred and bigotry directed towards members of the Jewish community\u201d.<\/p>\n New analysis by the Dor Foundation has catalogued more than 1000 posts and comments containing antisemitic, abusive, or threatening material directed at royal commission witnesses, including children.<\/p>\n The analysis details posts that used dehumanising slurs and antisemitic tropes such as \u201ccockroach\u201d, \u201cparasite\u201d, \u201crat\u201d, \u201cvermin\u201d, \u201cevil dog\u201d or \u201cpig\u201d. Other posts called for witnesses to be \u201cexecuted\u201d or to \u201cburn in hell\u201d.<\/p>\n The report by the Dor Foundation \u2013 established by former treasurer Josh Frydenberg \u2013 said the targeting of witnesses demonstrated a \u201csustained effort to punish participation in the royal commission\u201d.<\/p>\n The report said:<\/p>\n double quotation markThe cumulative effect of this material\u2026 is a chilling message to any member of the Jewish community considering giving evidence that public participation carries a personal cost, and may result in severe and prolonged online targeting.<\/p>\n Dor Foundation chief executive Tahli Blicblau said the witnesses \u201chave been subject to exactly the same hatred they turned up to speak about\u201d at the royal commission.<\/p>\n double quotation markThe abuse is egregious, it is harsh, it calls for violence, it dehumanises people, and it takes the debate far beyond what we would expect to see in terms of acceptable public discourse and debate.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n \u2018Outrageous approach to legislating\u2019 tax changes: Paterson<\/p>\n Speaking of criticisms, the shadow defence minister, James Paterson, has fired shots at the government\u2019s approach to legislating the CGT changes (which the opposition will vote against), calling it \u201coutrageous\u201d.<\/p>\n Labor will introduce its first bill to legislate the CGT and negative gearing changes as well as the working Australians tax offset (a classic wedge to force the opposition to vote against the tax cuts).<\/p>\n Paterson tells Sky News that the process is \u201ccompletely backwards\u201d.<\/p>\n double quotation markThe government\u2019s got this completely backwards, even they admit their own legislation is so flawed that they will have to fix it in the future, but they\u2019re saying, \u2018Just trust us, we\u2019ll rush it through now, and then we\u2019ll negotiate with you afterwards to repair the mistakes we\u2019ve made.\u2019 Well, that\u2019s an outrageous approach to legislating.<\/p>\n Labor has argued that it\u2019s totally normal to pass broad legislation first and then legislate the other details later.<\/p>\n Liberal senator\u00a0James\u00a0Paterson. Photograph: Mick Tsikas\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a018.40 EDT<\/p>\n Cook warns CGT carve-out shouldn\u2019t disincentivise mining investment<\/p>\n The WA premier, Roger Cook, has warned the government that its changes to the capital gains tax discount should not disincentivise investment in the mining sector.<\/p>\n On Wednesday, the Labor premier said that investors \u2013 locally and abroad \u2013 had already raised concerns about the changes, and told him \u201cthat could potentially put a disincentive in place for foreign investors\u201d.<\/p>\n Cook said:<\/p>\n double quotation markIt\u2019s important that as the government continues to consult and refine the tax laws, which back up their announcements in relation to the budget, that they talk to industry about \u2026 the potential impacts of those announcements and ensure that the laws ultimately don\u2019t produce outcomes that they didn\u2019t intend.<\/p>\n We want to make sure that it [the tax changes] doesn\u2019t disincentivise both international investment in our major projects but also exploration.<\/p>\n The Western Australia premier, Roger Cook, and the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, in Perth last week. Photograph: Colin Murty\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a018.42 EDT<\/p>\n Mulino defends CGT changes<\/p>\n Daniel Mulino moves across to ABC News Breakfast, where he\u2019s being forced to defend against criticisms including from WA Labor premier Roger Cook about the impact the tax changes could have on the mining sector.<\/p>\n Mulino says that the government has acknowledged that consultation is needed and is being done, particularly for sectors such as venture capital where there is a \u201cvery low cost base\u201d.<\/p>\n On the criticism from Cook, the minister says, \u201cwe will look at those issues raised and engage with him, I\u2019m sure, on at a good faith basis\u201d.<\/p>\n double quotation markThe government has received representations on the range of fronts. Those are the VC issues I identified, there\u2019s been a number of issues in relation to small business. I myself have been in discussions in relation to that. But I know of course the treasurer is leading that and Treasury, the department, is also engaged with those.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a017.49 EDT<\/p>\n Government considers automatic reimbursement for scams under $3,000<\/p>\n Scams come in all shapes and sizes (and none of them are nice), and the government is considering creating rules that would force banks, telcos and digital platforms to automatically reimburse victims of smaller scams of up to $3,000.<\/p>\n Labor is considering a range of options as part of a scam protection framework.<\/p>\n The financial services minister, Daniel Mulino, is out and about this morning spruiking the idea.<\/p>\n He tells the ABC\u2019s AM program it would mean that banks and telcos would focus their dispute resolution processes on bigger scams.<\/p>\n double quotation markFor smaller losses, $3,000 and under, what we\u2019re proposing is that there should be automatic payment to consumers where they can verify that there has been a scam.<\/p>\n Scams that get into the six figures: some investment scams, some romance scams. And that\u2019s where dispute resolution processes would come into play.<\/p>\n Host Melissa Clark asks why the automatic payment threshold isn\u2019t higher \u2013 she says other countries like the UK have theirs set closer to \u00a348,000. Mulino says the government doesn\u2019t want to incentivise bigger scams.<\/p>\n double quotation markWhat we want to do is to make sure that we don\u2019t have the wrong incentives for perpetrators to see Australia as a soft target. But the balance is that with very small claims we don\u2019t want to have processes that are completely disproportionate to the value of the sum in dispute.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a018.15 EDT<\/p>\n McKenzie denies misuse of taxpayer funds to attend son\u2019s wedding<\/p>\n Bridget McKenzie has denied taxpayer funds were used for her to attend her son\u2019s wedding or his engagement party, in revelations reported by Nine Newspapers earlier this week.<\/p>\n The Victorian senator billed taxpayers for flights to Tasmania where both events were held in 2022 and 2023.<\/p>\n Politicians can only claim travel costs where the \u201cdominant purpose\u201d of the trip is parliamentary business.<\/p>\n McKenzie told the Today show this morning:<\/p>\n double quotation markTaxpayer funds should never be used for private business, nor were they in this case.<\/p>\n When we\u2019re undertaking whether it be community engagement, media engagement, stakeholder meetings, you know, assisting colleagues, there are arrangements in place to assist us to do that work that is right and appropriate, and it is not right and appropriate to bill the taxpayer, as you say, for personal activities. And I did not do that.<\/p>\n So when I was on personal business, I absolutely paid my own way.<\/p>\n Asked if she stands by her decision, McKenzie said:<\/p>\n double quotation markYep.<\/p>\n Nationals senator Bridget McKenzie. Photograph: Lukas Coch\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a017.34 EDT<\/p>\n eSafety chief still investigating breaches of under-16s ban The eSafety commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, says her office has yet to finalise investigations into five platforms over compliance with the under-16s social media ban, stating that she doesn\u2019t have a \u201cfine-issuing button\u201d.<\/p>\n In March, Inman Grant announced five of the 10 platforms \u2013 Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and Facebook \u2013 were under investigation for non-compliance with the ban with two-thirds of under-16s remaining on the platforms.<\/p>\n Inman Grant told Senate estimates on Wednesday evening that she had yet to conclude the investigation on whether the platforms had taken \u201creasonable steps\u201d to prevent under-16s from accessing the platform:<\/p>\n double quotation markI know there is strong interest in why fines have not yet been issued. Unfortunately, we do not have a fine-issuing button. Rather, systemic non-compliance needs to be proven in court with solid evidence and complex legal proceedings.<\/p>\n Julie Inman Grant. Photograph: Hollie Adams\/Reuters<\/p>\n She said some platforms had improved in the intervening period, including by requiring accounts to go under further age checks and introducing new age verifications when people try to change their data of birth.<\/p>\n She said some platforms that allowed under-16s multiple attempts to pass facial age assurance reversed this practice, and parents have been able to report their teens\u2019 accounts more easily to the platforms.<\/p>\n Inman Grant said one platform was allowing users to try, on average, 24 times each day to pass facial age assurance.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a017.38 EDT<\/p>\n Nacc needs a \u2018significant reset\u2019 after Brereton, Haines says<\/p>\n Helen Haines \u2013 a key advocate for the anti-corruption commission \u2013 says that the body has been \u201covershadowed\u201d by controversy and needs a reset after the inaugural commissioner, Paul Brereton, standing down.<\/p>\n She says that the commission should restore trust by delivering outcomes from investigations, more timely outcomes, and better public understanding of how the process works.<\/p>\n She tells the ABC\u2019s RN Breakfast the process has so far been \u201ca little secretive\u201d.<\/p>\n Helen Haines. Photograph: Lukas Coch\/AAP<\/p>\n Haines says:<\/p>\n double quotation markWe need to have a significant reset now.<\/p>\n Unfortunately for Mr Brereton, the issues regarding his perceived conflicts of interest with defence overshadowed all those other principles. There\u2019s no question that, when Mr Breton was appointed to the Nacc, he was a person of great reputation and merit. And I think it is really unfortunate that what followed did follow and the Nacc has, of course, been completely overshadowed by those events.<\/p>\n Haines adds that the Nacc has held no public hearings \u2013 unlike its NSW state counterpart, Icac, which has held many.<\/p>\n double quotation markAn anti-corruption commission is not about a popcorn moment for the public \u2026 We want to see justice done when there has been corruption. And I think the public hearing is part of that, that people can see the process taking place. I\u2019ve never called for routine public hearings but I do think we need to see some public hearings at the right time.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a017.42 EDT<\/p>\n 6,600 Iranians with visitor visas prevented from travelling to Australia<\/p>\n More than 6,600 Iranians with visitor visas were prevented from travelling to Australia<\/a> after the Albanese government announced a six-month travel ban<\/a> amid the overseas conflict, home affairs officials say.<\/p>\n At a Senate estimates hearing last night, the department confirmed 6,634 Iranian nationals with valid visas were unable to travel after the decision by the home affairs minister, Tony Burke, in March. Officials said the department had received 752 appeals for an exemption and had granted 480 travel exemptions and denied 164 others.<\/p>\n \u201cTheir visa is frozen and, if it has an expiry date that is after the September date when the arrival control determination lifts, then the visa will come into effect again,\u201d Clare Sharp, the department\u2019s immigration head, said.<\/p>\n Expressions of interest for a new temporary humanitarian pathway available for Iranian nationals onshore<\/a> opened on Friday, granting them a three-year stay while the US-Israeli war against Iran continues. The department said there are 2,833 Iranian nationals in the country with visitor visas. So far, no one has applied.<\/p>\n Greens senator David Shoebridge asked whether the temporary visa could be made permanent in a similar way to those offered to Ukrainians<\/a> and Palestinians<\/a> in recent years.<\/p>\n Sharp said: \u201cAs [those] conflicts progressed, and [we\u2019ve] gotten a better handle on [whether] is this a short term crisis with people able to return, or is this a long-term protracted conflict, we will look at what options need to be put in place there.\u201d<\/p>\n Read more:<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a017.18 EDT<\/p>\n Good morning, Krishani Dhanji here with you, thanks to Martin Farrer for getting us started.<\/p>\n It\u2019s the last sitting day of the week and the drama might just be dialled up to 11 today with the government to introduce its bill that will include changes to capital gains tax and its $250 working Australians offset \u2013 despite all the controversy and commentary surrounding it.<\/p>\n Yesterday the treasurer gave us a hint that the broad legislation would go through first and all the finer details would be introduced later.<\/p>\n There have been more headlines out of Senate estimates overnight, with new details on how many Iranians with visitor visas have been barred from travelling to Australia under the government\u2019s temporary travel ban, and eSafety is still investigating breaches of the under-16s social media ban. More on those in a moment.<\/p>\n Grab your coffee, I\u2019ve got mine \u2013 let\u2019s get cracking!<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a017.19 EDT<\/p>\n Reserve Bank board member says rate settings not a choice between prioritising inflation or jobs<\/p>\n Carolyn Hewson, an independent member of the Reserve Bank\u2019s rate-setting board, said the global oil shock has made it more \u201ccomplex\u201d to manage monetary policy but that it was wrong to frame the central bank\u2019s deliberations as a \u201cstark choice\u201d between \u201cprioritising inflation or prioritising jobs\u201d.<\/p>\n The RBA has hiked interest rates three times this year as it attempts to juggle a (hopefully) temporary stagflationary shock from surging fuel prices that is pushing unemployment and inflation higher.<\/p>\n Hewson\u2019s address at Adelaide University last night gave little extra insight into what the RBA will do next on rates.<\/p>\n The Reserve Bank of Australia building in Sydney. Photograph: Saeed Khan\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/p>\n But it was notable as the first of its kind since the central bank committed to having each of its independent board members deliver at least one speech a year.<\/p>\n \u201cSupply constraints push inflation higher at the same time as they weaken economic activity and employment,\u201d Hewson said, in a nod to the impact from the closure of the strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n double quotation markIt is often said that central banks face a stark choice in such moments between prioritising inflation or prioritising jobs.<\/p>\n But \u201cthat framing misses the point\u201d, she said.<\/p>\n double quotation markIt is not a question of which objective matters more; instead, it is about understanding that they are generally complementary over the longer term.<\/p>\n Seen this way, the RBA\u2019s dual mandate is an expression of economics in service of the broader public interest.<\/p>\n Something to keep in mind the next time the RBA pushes up your mortgage costs. For the record, that could happen as soon as August.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a017.37 EDT<\/p>\n Labor flags changes to mutual obligations<\/p>\n Amanada Rishworth also flagged changes to so-called mutual obligations, which require jobseeker recipients to prove that they have applied for a certain number of jobs in order to continue to receive welfare payments.<\/p>\n But she said the contentious system would remain, despite criticism from some welfare advocates.<\/p>\n She told 7.30:<\/p>\n double quotation markMutual obligations have been a feature in the system for a long time. [They] play a really important role.<\/p>\n It is part of the social contract that, if you\u2019re receiving income support \u2026 and you\u2019re able to work, you do take steps to find a job.<\/p>\n What I think is being commented on, where I do agree, is that there\u2019s no point in having pointless, meaningless mutual obligations.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a017.07 EDT<\/p>\n Rishworth defends jobseeker work program The employment minister, Amanda Rishworth, has said she is concerned there is \u201cvarying quality\u201d among the providers meant to help welfare recipients find work but defended keeping private companies in the system.<\/p>\n Rishworth was interviewed on the ABC\u2019s 7.30 program last night, after announcing at the National Press Club in Canberra that Labor would amend the unemployment system for jobseeker recipients.<\/p>\n The exact details of the new system were not announced yesterday but it is set to be separated into three streams depending on a jobseeker\u2019s skill level and work readiness.<\/p>\n Asked by 7.30 if she accepted some of the responsibility for the \u201cfailures in the current system\u201d were due to for-profit job providers who \u201cignore the more difficult cases\u201d, Rishworth said:<\/p>\n double quotation markI would say that I am concerned that there is varying quality in the system. So I am focused on how we lift quality.<\/p>\n Stream one really is about the public service delivery. Stream two is more like the services we understand today.<\/p>\n Stream three, I imagine, will be different types of providers \u2013 they will have deep connection with community and be able to do this specialised, intensive work.<\/p>\n![\"Josh](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1779922270_876_Josh_Taylor.png\")
Josh Taylor<\/p>\n![\"Ben](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1779922270_146_Ben_Doherty_720x600_final.png\")
Ben Doherty<\/p>\nJosh Taylor<\/p>\n![\"Sarah](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1779922271_979_Sarah_Basford_Canales.png\")
Sarah Basford Canales<\/p>\n![\"Krishani](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1779922271_632_Krishani_Dhanji.png\")
Krishani Dhanji<\/p>\n![\"Patrick](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1779922272_238_Patrick_Commins.png\")
Patrick Commins<\/p>\n![\"Catie](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1779922273_896_Caite_McLeod.png\")
Catie McLeod<\/p>\nCatie McLeod<\/p>\n