double quotation markApparently, these are generational reforms. If they\u2019re generational reforms, well, surely they should have been taken to an election so that the Australian people could decide that.<\/p>\n
Two days simply is not enough. There is no need to rush these changes through because they don\u2019t kick in until 2028.<\/p>\n
Read more about jostling with the Greens and the Coalition<\/a> here:<\/p>\n Updated at\u00a018.33 EDT<\/p>\n Key events<\/p>\n \u2018I don\u2019t think that women should automatically not be believed,\u2019 Hume says<\/p>\n Hume was asked on RN about comments made by the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, yesterday in relation to a cohort of Australians who allege they were beaten and sexually assaulted by Israeli forces after being detained as part of the latest Global Sumud Flotilla.<\/p>\n Wong told Senate estimates:<\/p>\n double quotation markMy principal position is to always believe women when allegations of sexual assault are made.<\/p>\n Hume was asked on RN if women should always be believed, and if she shared Wong\u2019s view. The deputy opposition leader responded:<\/p>\n double quotation markI don\u2019t think that women should automatically not be believed.<\/p>\n I mean, certainly if an allegation is made, it should be taken very seriously. And it doesn\u2019t matter what the circumstance is. And I think all fair-minded Australians believe that.<\/p>\n Read more here:<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a018.40 EDT<\/p>\n Jane Hume says Labor being \u2018sneaky\u2019 on tax changes<\/p>\n Jane Hume, the deputy opposition leader, accused the government of being \u201csneaky\u201d, saying discussions around tax reforms in parliament were much too short to properly address so-called \u201cgenerational\u201d tax reforms.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat the government has done is essentially prevented scrutiny of the changes that this legislation is going to inflict on the Australian economy<\/a>,\u201d Hume told RN Breakfast. She went on:<\/p>\n double quotation markApparently, these are generational reforms. If they\u2019re generational reforms, well, surely they should have been taken to an election so that the Australian people could decide that.<\/p>\n Two days simply is not enough. There is no need to rush these changes through because they don\u2019t kick in until 2028.<\/p>\n Read more about jostling with the Greens and the Coalition<\/a> here:<\/p>\n Jane Hume. Photograph: Mick Tsikas\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a018.33 EDT<\/p>\n NSW officially abolishes \u2018good character\u2019 references from being considered at sentencing hearings<\/p>\n NSW has officially abolished the use of \u201cgood character\u201d references when it comes to sentencing for all offences, the first such change in the nation.<\/p>\n The new legislation passed in legislative council on Thursday night, and will apply for all offences, including homicide, domestic violence and road crimes. It means convicted offenders will no longer be able to argue their sentences should be mitigated because they are of otherwise \u201cgood character\u201d.<\/p>\n The NSW attorney general, Michael Daley, said in a statement:<\/p>\n double quotation markVictim-survivors and their loved ones will no longer be forced to sit in court and hear the person convicted of a heinous crime be described as an otherwise good person.<\/p>\n While I\u2019m glad we\u2019re finally here, it should not have taken so long for the Liberals and Nationals to listen to victim-survivors and their advocates and drop their opposition to these reforms.<\/p>\n Harrison James, the cofounder of the group Your Reference A\u2019int Relevant, said:<\/p>\n double quotation markThis win belongs to every survivor in this country. \u2026 That is hard-won dignity.<\/p>\n But I\u2019m not done. Every survivor in every corner of this country deserves the same protection, and I will fight until every jurisdiction reflects that. NSW was first. The rest will follow.<\/p>\n Read more about the changes here:<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a018.12 EDT<\/p>\n John Howard among signatories of open letter calling for stronger gambling reforms<\/p>\n Former prime minister John Howard and a cohort of other current and former lawmakers signed an open letter urging the Albanese government to take stronger action on the gambling industry.<\/p>\n The letter was published today as an ad in the Sydney Morning Herald and the Age, urging the prime minister to establish \u201clong-overdue reforms to reduce gambling harm\u201d.<\/p>\n The letter reads:<\/p>\n double quotation markYour proposed reforms do not go far enough. They leave too many loopholes and fail to properly protect families from an industry that profits from addiction. \u2026<\/p>\n This is not good enough \u2026 We support stronger national action, including consideration of a national regulator, so gambling harm is addressed consistently across the country.<\/p>\n Signatories include Andrew Hastie, senator Maria Kovacic and former Liberal premiers Jeff Kennett and Nick Greiner.<\/p>\n You can read the full letter here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Former prime minister John Howard. Photograph: Dan Himbrechts\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a018.08 EDT<\/p>\n Senate committee hears of transition to SmartCard<\/p>\n The Senate community affairs legislation committee discussed the government\u2019s controversial income management system at estimates last night.<\/p>\n Social services officials revealed that since September 2023, 17,014 people have been placed on the newer SmartCard, which can be used on the visa network. The BasicsCard, which is being phased out and can only be used at government-approved merchants, is also still being used.<\/p>\n Estimates heard 81% of participants on the government\u2019s income management are Aboriginal and\/or Torres Strait islander, with that number jumping to 84% in the Northern Territory.<\/p>\n Participants on the BasicsCard have had the opportunity to transition across the cards, but the department said some had not taken that up.<\/p>\n In 2024, a Labor-led inquiry into compulsory income management recommended the government abolish the scheme after receiving a large amount of evidence showing the compulsory SmartCard increases hardship, makes it difficult for women to flee violent relationships and is discriminatory towards First Nations people.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a017.45 EDT<\/p>\n Labor\u2019s help to buy shared equity scheme approves 2,589 applicants in five months Housing Australia officials have revealed 2,589 applications had been approved under Labor\u2019s Help to Buy scheme.<\/p>\n Alia Ayoub, executive leader of the Help to Buy scheme, told Senate estimates it had received 5,323 applications from 5 December 2025 to 30 April 2026, of which 2,589 applications had \u201cfound a home\u201d.<\/p>\n Senator Andrew Bragg asked why the scheme was marked a \u201crisk\u201d in its portfolio budget statement, to which Ayoub said:<\/p>\n double quotation markWe had a forecast that we would do 10,000 applications in a year. However, the scheme started on the 5th of December. Had it been running for the full year, it would receive the 10,000.<\/p>\n Ben Rimmer, director general of Treasury\u2019s housing group, said the operating cost of the scheme was $21m over the forward estimates, while the money spent on buying stakes in homes was nearly $1.6bn this year and $6.9bn over the forward estimates. Rimmer said of the latter figure:<\/p>\n double quotation markWe don\u2019t know whether that will be a cost or a benefit to the balance sheet of the commonwealth at this point. If house prices continue to grow gradually over time, it will actually benefit the commonwealth.<\/p>\n We reported earlier that more than 312,000 people have benefited from the government\u2019s 5% first home buyer guarantee scheme, including 251,000 under Labor since 2022. About 51,000 of those who accessed it were permanent residents.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a017.29 EDT<\/p>\n Some NSW pharmacists can now prescribe contraceptive pill<\/p>\n Women waiting weeks and months in regional areas to get a doctor\u2019s appointment for a prescription for the pill can now head to their local pharmacy, AAP reports.<\/p>\n NSW is the latest state to expand access to contraception beyond the GP\u2019s office after Victoria, Queensland and Tasmania enacted similar changes.<\/p>\n Karen Carter, who has almost 35 years\u2019 experience, is one of 30 pharmacists who, from Friday, can prescribe and supply the oral contraceptive pill to low-risk women between the ages of 18 and 39.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s going to be great for those women who want to talk about contraception, but sometimes their shifts may not allow all of them to be able to attend a doctor\u2019s surgery,\u201d she told AAP.<\/p>\n \u201cThis just gives women an option.\u201d<\/p>\n Carter completed a 12-month course offered through NSW Health<\/a> to allow for first-time prescriptions.<\/p>\n It is part of a state initiative to expand the treatment services available in pharmacies, including for uncomplicated urinary tract infections and common skin conditions.<\/p>\n NSW is the latest state to expand access to contraception beyond the GP\u2019s office. Photograph: SimpleImages\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a018.08 EDT<\/p>\n Good morning, Nick Visser here to take over from Martin Farrer. Let\u2019s see what Friday holds.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Homelessness up 75% in NSW in past six years, report shows<\/p>\n Homelessness is soaring in regional areas as advocates plead for more funding to stop simply shifting the problem and start solving it, Australian Associated Press reports.<\/p>\n The number of people sleeping rough in New South Wales has increased 75% in six years, according to a Homelessness NSW report that relies on the state\u2019s street count data.<\/p>\n While the count in metropolitan Sydney is virtually unchanged between 2020 and 2026, it has surged 689% in the Illawarra Shoalhaven and southern NSW district, from 27 people to 213.<\/p>\n The district encompassing NSW\u2019s northern region and mid-north coast has also sky-rocketed from 407 people in 2020 to 1024 in 2026, leading it to become the state\u2019s leading area for homelessness.<\/p>\n Homelessness CEO Dominique Rowe said state government funding for support services needed a 50% boost, along with a commitment to build 10,000 social homes a year until they constitute 10% of all housing.<\/p>\n \u201cHomelessness services have a situation where 92% of people coming through their doors are not getting the assistance they need,\u201d she told AAP.<\/p>\n Shelters and tents under a bridge at Wentworth Park in Glebe, Sydney, in May. Photograph: Jessica Hromas\/The GuardianShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a017.06 EDT<\/p>\n Labor MP claims government has \u2018won the debate\u2019 on housing tax changes A Labor MP has declared victory in the debate over the government\u2019s tax reforms, engaging in a bit of meta-commentary at the end of parliament\u2019s sitting fortnight.<\/p>\n Julian Hill made the comments on the ABC\u2019s Afternoon Briefing on Thursday.<\/p>\n Hill said:<\/p>\n double quotation markI believe the government\u2019s won the debate on negative gearing. I believe we\u2019ve won the debate on capital gains tax on property.<\/p>\n And we\u2019re winning the debate, we got a way to go, on removing the distortion that would otherwise be there. \u2026 I think we\u2019re winning the debate \u2026 Start ups and so on, we are still engaging on.<\/p>\n But I absolutely believe we\u2019ve won the argument about property and giving young Australians a fair crack at the housing market.<\/p>\n![\"Jane](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/8256.jpg\")
Jane Hume. Photograph: Mick Tsikas\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Cait](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1780612990_371_Cait_Kelly.png\")
Cait Kelly<\/p>\n![\"Luca](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Luca_Ittimani.png\")
Luca Ittimani<\/p>\nLuca Ittimani<\/p>\n
![\"Martin](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1780612992_407_Martin_Farrer,_L.png\")
Martin Farrer<\/p>\n