Key events
Opposition leader Peter Dutton is speaking live.
He said the government urging Israel to enter “an amnesty” is “at odds with our key coalition partners”:
When the Government says that Israel should lay down its weapons and enter into … an amnesty or however Richard Marles described it yesterday, that is at odds with our key coalition partners.
I think the problem with the Government’s position at the moment is that they have decided that they want domestic political opportunity to trump our national interest. I think Australians will condemn the Prime Minister for that.
It’s clear the Prime Minister at the moment being led by the Greens and paranoid about the Labor vote fracturing and going to the Greens in inner Sydney and Melbourne, that’s not in our country’s best interest. The Prime Minister should put our national interest first instead of his own political interest. At the moment he’s not doing that.
eSafety loses fines case
Josh Taylor
The federal court has dismissed the eSafety commissioner’s case against X seeking a $610,500 fine against the company for failing to answer questions on how it tackles child abuse on its platform.
Justice Simon Wheelahan on Friday dismissed the case and ordered the eSafety commissioner to pay X’s costs.
We are waiting on the reasons to be published to find out more and will bring that to you when we have it.
X had argued in court last month that the notice was issued to Twitter and the subsequent fine did not account for the company “ceasing to exist” when Elon Musk’s X Corp merged with Twitter in March 2023.
Dutton joins Queensland election campaign with Crisafulli – who opposes nuclear
Andrew Messenger
Peter Dutton has become the first federal leader to join the Queensland election campaign.
For the first time since his nuclear power pledge, the opposition leader is holding a joint press conference with Queensland Liberal National party leader David Crissafulli, who has been tipped by polls to win the 26 October vote.
Crisafulli has repeatedly ruled out supporting nuclear power in Queensland, where the federal government plans several plants.
He did this again as recently as this week, denying there was any amount of money sufficient to change his mind.
Crisafulli has also ruled out repealing the state’s nuclear ban.
Minns labels social media an ‘unregulated experiment’ on kids as NSW survey released
Thousands of parents and teenagers have highlighted social media’s negative impacts, including addiction and other harms, in a major survey.
Six-in-seven respondents backed age restrictions for social media use, with 16 being the most suggested minimum age.
The NSW government survey, taking in views from 21,000 people, revealed usage steadily increased with a child’s age, with 70% of 10 to 12 year olds already on the apps, while those aged 16 and 17 averaged more than three hours a day.
Young people cited concerns over excessive screen time, with two out of every three teens aged 16 to 17 saying social media distracts them from essential tasks such as schoolwork and family obligations.
Parents highlighted addiction, exposure to inappropriate content and the detrimental effect on their children’s daily responsibilities.
The most frequently mentioned issues included cyber security risks, exposure to harmful content and concerns over how social media usage is affecting children’s behaviour.
NSW premier Chris Minns said:
Parents are concerned about how social media is impacting the lives of young people.
The huge response to this survey sends a powerful message about the extent of community concern.
Parents and children are rightly concerned about this giant global unregulated experiment on young people.
– via AAP
Woman allegedly assaulted paramedic at address of suspicious death
The death of a man found inside a Mitcham property last night is being investigated by the homicide squad.
The man, who is yet to be identified, was found inside a property on Simla Street about 5.45pm yesterday, Victoria police said in a media release. Ambulance officers attended the scene.
A 27-year-old woman at the address allegedly assaulted a paramedic, according to the media release.
Police attended and arrested the Ashwood woman. She remains under police guard in hospital and is yet to be interviewed.
The man’s death is being treated as suspicious. The exact cause is yet to be determined.
Tory Shepherd
Can Australian authorities take action against protesters who wave the Hezbollah flag?
Australian federal police are investigating after prohibited symbols of Hezbollah were displayed at the weekend. The opposition leader, Peter Dutton, wants parliament urgently recalled to debate new anti-terrorism laws. The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, accused him of wanting “to raise the temperature” and said the visas of anyone who incited discord should be revoked (but no one is sure if anyone involved is here on a visa anyway).
What’s going on, and what might happen next? Here is what you need to know:
‘No tolerance’: joint police statement issues warning before weekend protests
A joint police statement warns “there will be no tolerance for illegal behaviour or violence on any day of the year” in the lead-up to protests planned for the 7 October anniversary.
The statement comes from NSW police, Northern Territory police, the Queensland police service, South Australia police, Victoria police, Western Australia police, Tasmania police and Australian federal police.
It says:
Police respect the right to peacefully protest and assemble in Australia, however, there will be no tolerance for illegal behaviour or violence on any day of the year.
In Australia, there are offences that prohibit behaviour that incites or advocates violence or hatred based on race and religion, including the display of prohibited symbols in public under these circumstances.
It is also a serious offence to counsel, promote, encourage, urge, instruct or praise terrorism.
There is a range of State and Commonwealth legislation that can be used by police to uphold community safety and maintain social cohesion.
Law enforcement agencies across Australia work together to share information, intelligence and evidence relating to criminal activity.
Police are lock-step in keeping Australians safe, and continue to work with all Australians, visitors, stakeholders, community leaders and leaders of faith to ensure Australian laws are understood.
Police are planning and preparing for upcoming protests in some states and territories.
The joint statement comes after NSW police launched supreme court action to have a pro-Palestine rally on Sunday and a standing vigil on Monday deemed unlawful. At a hearing on yesterday police and protesters agreed the events could proceed with some alterations.
Karen Middleton
Raid on Parliament House
Officers from the National Anti-Corruption Commission have conducted a raid at Parliament House as part of an ongoing operation that does not involve any current or former member of parliament.
Late yesterday the Nacc confirmed in a statement to Guardian Australia that its officers had been at the parliament during the day. Police officers seconded to the commission conducted the raid:
The commission can confirm it carried out operational activity today at Parliament House. This was in relation to an ongoing investigation.
The agency declined to confirm the subject of the raid and would only clarify that it was not a politician.
Read the full story here:
Environment ministers summoned over bird flu threat
Environment ministers have been summoned to a special meeting on the looming bird flu threat as Australia asks the US and New Zealand for advice on vaccinating wildlife.
Federal minister Tanya Plibersek has called the meeting for 18 October, correspondence shows, after pressure from conservation groups and the ACT government.
ACT environment minister Rebecca Vassarotti wrote to her federal counterpart appealing for leadership as Australia awaits the arrival of H5 high pathogenicity avian influenza.
Vassarotti requested an urgent gathering of environment ministers to ensure they were ready to respond to the virus, which has caused mass wildlife deaths overseas.
The federal minister has since written back saying the meeting would go ahead in line with Vassarotti’s suggestion and would involve all environment ministers and their agriculture counterparts.
– Australian Associated Press
Full Story: the right to protest and Peter Dutton’s strongman politics
After protests against strikes on Lebanon at the weekend included some people holding the Hezbollah flag, opposition leader Peter Dutton suggested parliament should be recalled to enact new anti-terrorism laws that would cover such actions if it was not already illegal.
Prime minister Anthony Albanese and the Labor government accused the opposition leader of seeking to ‘raise the temperature’ of public debate over conflict in the Middle East. Then the debate turned to protests planned for 6 and 7 October after police in NSW tried to block the pro-Palestinian rallies from taking place.
Nour Haydar spoke to deputy editor Patrick Keneally and deputy editor Gabrielle Jackson about how the opposition leader is dictating the terms of the political debate and the role of protests in our democracy. Listen here:
Hello
Rafqa Touma
Thanks to Martin Farrer for kicking off the blog this morning. I’ll be rolling your news updates throughout the day. If there is anything you don’t want us to miss, shoot it my way on X @At_Raf_
Miles v Crisafulli
At the end of the Queensland leaders’ debate, the hosts from Nine Network – Nine’s state political editor Tim Arvier, Brisbane Times editor Sean Parnell and 4BC announcer Sofie Formica – were asked to give their verdict.
Parnell concluded that David Crisafulli had lost the debate to Steven Miles, and Formica and Arvier said the LNP leader had won it.
You can get a flavour of what happened from our reporter Andrew Messenger:
Dental woes
Almost one in five adults delayed or did not see a dental professional in 2022-23 due to cost, according to major report released today.
For the past decade only half of adults have visited a dental professional every year, exposing a two-tier dental care system in which many people go without because it’s too expensive.
Natasha May reports and talks to Tara, who lost her teeth in her 50s as a result of undiagnosed gum disease.
Here’s Natasha’s full story:
‘No flags, portraits or symbols connected to a prohibited terrorist organisation will be displayed’
NSW police say they have not opposed revised plans by the Palestinian Action Group for a public assembly on Sunday after the group agreed to change the location and route of the rally:
Protest organisers have agreed that no flags, portraits or symbols connected to a prohibited terrorist organisation will be displayed.
At a previous rally, Hezbollah flags were allegedly waved.
Police said they would “work with organisers to conduct a high visibility policing operation on Sunday to ensure the safety of the community. Police will not hesitate to take appropriate action against anyone who commits a criminal offence.”
The statement noted that the Palestinian Action Group had withdrawn an application for a public assembly on Monday – 7 October – and had not made a new one, “making that public assembly unauthorised if it goes ahead”.
Organisers have said they will hold a stationary vigil on Monday.
Sarah Basford Canales
NDIS debts will be raised as ‘an absolute last resort’
The head of the NDIS has assured the scheme’s more than 650,000 participants that debts will only be raised against them as “an absolute last resort” over the next 12 months if they mistakenly buy prohibited items or services.
The NDIS minister, Bill Shorten, announced the final list for what items and services are available for NDIS participants, and what are not, on Tuesday. The changes came into effect yesterday.
Shorten said there would be a 12-month transition period for any participants now receiving items or supports that will no longer be covered.
In an interview with disability advocate Dr George Taleporos yesterday, the National Disability Insurance Agency’s chief executive, Rebecca Falkingham, said the transitional period was focused on educating participants who make mistakes, rather than punishing them:
One of the changes, having listened to the parliamentary debate, as I did, obviously there was a lot of concern around debt, and that concerned me greatly. And so we’ve made a bit of a tweak in the agency, that if the agency was ever to pursue a debt against a participant, it would need to be signed off by me first, and so that puts a whole lot of safety nets through the process to kind of make it be really clear that raising any debt against a participant would be an absolute last resort.
The NDIA head said plan managers and providers would instead be given a 30-day grace period.
Any incorrect claims made by plan managers and providers on a participant’s NDIS plan would result in debts being raised against them and not the participant, Falkingham said:
We’re really clear that plan managers know what their expectations are. They know what they’ve got to be absolutely assisting participants. They should be in a really good place to know what you can and can’t claim for. One of the things they sign up for to be a plan manager is being compliant with the NDIS legislation.
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the best of the overnight stories and then it’ll be Rafqa Touma bringing you the main action.
We have a dramatic top story this morning after officers from the National Anti-Corruption Commission conducted a raid at Parliament House in Canberra as part of an ongoing operation – although it does not involve any current or former member of parliament. Our political editor Karen Middleton got the scoop on the story and Nacc confirmed to her that its officers had been at the parliament during the day. Police officers seconded to the commission conducted the raid.
Protest organisers in NSW would be much less likely to end up fighting police in court for permission to hold rallies if the state had a charter of human rights instead of its “undemocratic” approvals system, a legal expert says. The NSW Council for Civil Liberties’ president, Lydia Shelly, said the system whereby a group applies for permission to hold a rally “lent itself to litigation” and had “no place in a democratic society”.
Pro-Palestine activists have agreed a deal with police over a planned march this long weekend in Sydney. They changed their planned route for a rally on Sunday and withdrew an application for an authorised public assembly on Monday – the anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel. Instead they plan a stationary vigil.
In a statement, NSW police said they had not opposed the new planned rally on Sunday but promised a “high visibility policing operation”. They also noted that a public assembly on Monday would be “unauthorised”.
Queensland LNP leader David Crisafulli would step down after one term as premier if he could not meet an ambitious crime target within four years, he said during the first of three televised debates with Labor’s Steven Miles in the lead-up to the state election. Crisafulli’s party is expected to win power this month but Miles hit back in the debate, arguing that solving the crime problem was complex.