Australia votes for end of Israel’s ‘unlawful presence in Occupied Palestinian territory’ at UN for first time in two decades
Sarah Basford Canales
Australia has voted with 156 other countries at the United Nations to demand the end of Israel’s “unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory as rapidly as possible”, marking a return to the position for the first time in more than two decades.
A total of 157 members, including Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom, voted to support the resolution, while eight, including Argentina, Israel and the US, voted against it. Seven others abstained.
Australia’s ambassador to the UN, James Larsen, explained Australia would be supporting the resolution, titled the ‘Peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine’, to reflect a desire for the international community “to build momentum towards” achieving a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine.
Larsen said:
A two-state solution remains the only hope of breaking the endless cycle of violence, the only hope to see a secure and prosperous future for both peoples.
The resolution demands Israel “comply strictly with its obligations under international law”, referring to the ICJ ruling in July this year. It also rejects any attempt at “demographic or territorial change” in the Gaza strip.
It also supports a 2025 high-level international conference aimed at devising and implementing a two-state solution.
A spokesperson for the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, said while Australia was a “constructive middle power”, it looked to achieve the best outcomes possible at the UN.
Wong’s spokesperson said:
We don’t always get everything we want. But if, on balance, we believe the resolution will contribute to peace and a two-state solution, we will vote for it.
On our own, Australia has few ways to move the dial in the Middle East. Our only hope is working within the international community to push for an end to the cycle of violence and work toward a two-state solution.
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Key events
Daisy Dumas
Two-thirds of over-25s say they feel better about saying no to alcohol than a decade ago
Almost two-thirds of Australians over the age of 25 feel more empowered to say no to alcohol than they did 10 years ago, according to new data.
Research by Drinkwise points to a shift in attitudes around drinking – the same number, 62%, said they would not feel self-conscious if they chose not to drink when others were drinking.
But the data also showed drinkers tend to drink more when they’re not footing the bill – a nod to the Christmas party season that Simon Strahan, CEO at DrinkWise, says highlights the need for workplaces to be mindful of a changing drinking culture, especially given 53% of Australians want to cut back on alcohol.
He said the research demonstrates that workers increasingly expect alternatives to alcohol at work functions.
We continue to see positive shifts in attitudes and behaviours towards alcohol, with parties and celebrations the main occasion where people alternate between full and lower or zero strength alcohol (71%). This demonstrates a growing awareness of the benefits of more responsible drinking habits.
Man charged with alleged assault at Sydney airport
A man charged with allegedly assaulting a security officer at Sydney airport is expected to appear in Downing Centre local court today, according to an AFP media release.
The man, 27, allegedly forced open an aerobridge door at the international terminal and boarded an aircraft on 28 October 2024.
Flight crew members spoke to the man, who then exited the aircraft and allegedly assaulted a security officer, causing him to become unconscious, according to the AFP.
The man was arrested and issued with a court attendance notice for assault occasioning actual bodily harm. The offence carries a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment.
Peter Hannam
GDP data likely to show growth rise even as per-capita output extends decline
National accounts for the September quarter are out this morning from the ABS, which should signal the economy’s heartbeat is strengthening.
Economists have seen most components already – we are two-thirds into the December quarter, after all – so they can pencil in what gross domestic product (GDP) trends roughly look like.
They expect GDP growth to have quickened from 0.2% in the June quarter to 0.5% in the July-September period. On an annual basis, growth should come in about 1.1%, marginally better than the June quarter’s 1% pace. (There may be some revisions.)
A lot of attention has focused on extra government spending, which the ABS reported yesterday added a chunky 0.7 percentage points to quarterly growth. In other words, without that increase, the economy would have shrunk.
Some of that spending looked a bit splurgy. There were federal rebates for energy and even larger ones and other outlays in Queensland and Western Australia as governments in those two states headed for the polls. It didn’t save the Miles Labor government in the sunshine state; WA’s elections are next March.
There will be some focus, too, on the likelihood per-capita GDP retreated for a record seventh consecutive quarter.
Still, an accelerating overall economy means job openings should remain relatively plentiful for a while. Just don’t expect an interest rate cut from the Reserve Bank next week – and perhaps not until May.
Look out for the data dump at 11.30am Aedt.
Gender divide on nuclear reactors as inquiry heats up
Women are strongly opposed to nuclear energy and are most concerned any consideration of the controversial power source will delay the switch to renewables, polling shows.
A national survey released today to coincide with a federal inquiry found a stark gender divide, with a mere 26% of women saying nuclear would be good for Australia, compared with 51% of men.
But only one in three men surveyed were willing to live near a nuclear plant.
Almost two-thirds (63%) of women said they do not want to live near a nuclear plant and more than half (57%) do not think transporting radioactive waste is worth the risk.
The DemosAU poll of 6709 adults between 2 July and 24 November also found a higher percentage of men (42%) said they were concerned about the safety of the technology than those who were not concerned.
The findings come as a federal inquiry into nuclear power generation is scheduled to hold a public hearing in Melbourne with industry, health and climate witnesses listed to speak. Community leaders, unions and grassroots organisations plan to gather outside to declare “our shared energy future is renewable, not radioactive”.
– Australian Associated Press
Read more from our own Lisa Cox here:
Renewable hydrogen tech could give green light to jobs: CSIRO
Making equipment to produce renewable hydrogen could help Australia lead the world in the clean energy resource sector and unlock up to 4,000 jobs and $1.7bn by 2050, a study says.
The research, released by CSIRO Futures today, also warned the nation had a small “window of opportunity” to take advantage of its head start before other countries recognised the market’s potential.
The findings come weeks after the release of the national hydrogen strategy 2024, which outlined a target to produce 15m tonnes of green hydrogen in Australia annually by 2050.
Electrolysers are specialised equipment that use renewable electricity to split water into hydrogen and oxygen, creating hydrogen without producing carbon emissions. Demand for renewable hydrogen was rising worldwide, the study found, as nations sought to cut their greenhouse gas emissions.
Australia could create $1.7bn in revenue and 3,974 jobs by 2050 if it manufactured hydrogen electrolysers, CSIRO’s hydrogen industry mission leader, Dr Patrick Hartley, said.
Installing the equipment could also create another 1,000 jobs, the analysis found, and an additional $1.2bn.
– Australian Associated Press
More than half of all Australia National University poll respondents lack confidence in Labor
As mentioned at the top, a new poll out today has some concerning findings for the Labor government.
The study by the Australian National University found that 17.4% of respondents said they had no confidence at all in the federal government; 44.8% had “not very much confidence”; 32.8% “quite a lot” and just 5% “a great deal of confidence”.
However, there were some more encouraging pointers for Labor, with more favouring Anthony Albanese as prime minister over Peter Dutton.
Here’s the full report:
Labor MP says Australians travelling to South Korea should check travel advice
MP Stephen Jones has urged Australians to check travel advice to South Korea “given things are moving so rapidly” after the country’s president declared, and then rescinded, martial law overnight.
He said on ABC Radio National this morning:
[It’s a] very fluid situation over there at the moment.
We’re urging Australians to just check in with the travel advice.
Clearly, we’ve got concerns about what’s going on over there. Our number one concern is for the safety of Australians who are contemplating a trip over there. Just watch the travel advice is the best advice I can give at this moment, given things are moving so rapidly.
There have been no updates to the government’s Smartraveller advice for South Korea since 9 July 2024, which advises to “exercise normal safety precautions in South Korea”.
Transport costs still taking 16% of household income over last quarter
More on transport costs:
The falling price of fuel had a significant impact, the Transport Affordability Index found, reducing transport costs by an average of $338 across all households.
But cuts to public transport fares made the biggest impact, forcing down transport prices in Queensland, the ACT and the Northern Territory.
Only Queensland’s public transport price cuts were designed to be permanent, however, with fares in other states free on a temporary basis.
Despite 50-cent fares up north, Hobart claimed the title of lowest annual transport costs, followed by Darwin, while Sydney, Melbourne and Perth registered the highest costs.
Transport costs also fell across seven regional areas surveyed for the index, with transport in Alice Springs, Bunbury and Geelong costing the most at over $23,000 a year, while Townsville and Wagga Wagga registered the cheapest bills at just over $20,000 a year.
Even though costs fell in most cities and towns, the Australian Automobile Association’s managing director, Michael Bradley, said transport consumed 16.1% of household income during the quarter and remained a major drain on family budgets.
“Transport costs are significantly higher than they were before the (Covid) pandemic,” he said.
“The typical Australian household’s transport costs have risen from 13.9% of its income in September 2019 to 16.1% in September 2024.”
– Australian Associated Press
Deals on the bus go down and down: transport costs plunge
The cost of getting around has fallen for the first time in two years, a study has shown, but households in some states are faring better than others thanks to public transport discounts.
The Australian Automobile Association detailed the extent of the savings in its Transport Affordability Index today, revealing travel costs fell by an average of $921 a year for those living in capital cities.
But Brisbanites were significantly better off than people in other states, saving $3316 a year on average, thanks to the introduction of 50-cent fares for public transport.
On the other side of the ledger, Sydneysiders fared the worst, with transport costs rising in the city by $107 a year due to high toll prices, (as Elias Visontay reported earlier in the blog).
The report, prepared quarterly by the motoring body, analysed household transport costs including registration, servicing, insurance, car loans, fuel and public transport to determine spending.
– Australian Associated Press
More to come in the next post.
Full Story on Labor’s end-of-year legislation rush
Parliament has wrapped for 2024 and politicians are now back in their electorates for the summer. Labor ended the year on a high, striking deals to pass more than 30 pieces of legislation through the Senate in just one day.
And while the sitting year is over, speculation is still running hot over when the prime minister will call the federal election.
In today’s Full Story podcast, Nour Haydar speaks to chief political correspondent Paul Karp about what the government achieved – and compromised – in the final frenetic sitting day, and what Anthony Albanese could now be weighing up as he decides when voters will head to the polls.
Greens announce free contraceptives policy for women
Natasha May
The Greens have announced a new election policy to provide women with free access to contraceptives.
The policy would mean women would not have to pay out of pocket for oral contraceptives, including more modern pills with fewer side effects, as well as long-acting reversible contraceptives including intrauterine devices (IUDs).
Under the policy, the Greens would allocate an ongoing and indexed $250m a year to make medicines regulator approved non-PBS contraceptives free, as well as removing the PBS co-payment to make PBS listed contraceptive methods free.
It would also create a contraceptive counselling medicare benefits item.
The party’s spokesperson on women, Larissa Waters, says the policy would help “empower women to make decisions about bodily autonomy despite a difficult financial climate”:
Our policy would make sure people can access the contraception that works for them, regardless of their bank balance and whether they live in the city, the country, or are studying on a visa.
With abortion rights in Queensland potentially under threat it has never been more important to ensure women are able to avoid unwanted pregnancies.