Australia

Trade minister says Australia has ‘robust, comprehensive and world-leading legislation addressing forced labour and modern slavery’Australia is among dozens of countries facing a 12.5% trade tariff from the Trump administration for allegedly failing to prevent imports of goods made by slave labour.The US trade representative, Jamieson Greer, listed Australia among 54 economies that “failed to impose and effectively enforce a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labor” following an investigation into their practices. Continue reading...

The economy was slowing even before the Middle East conflict and interest rate hikes started to bite, while the boom in datacentres was a rare bright spotGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe economy slowed sharply in early 2026 and Australians’ living standards are once again going backwards.At the risk of upsetting the treasurer by “talking down the economy”, as he put it, there wasn’t all that much to love in the latest national accounts. Continue reading...

Australian Bureau of Statistics estimates nicotine consumption rose 40%, with illicit sources accounting for 80% of all tobaccoFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAustralians are consuming more nicotine than they were eight years ago but are spending less, new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows, as 80% of the cigarettes smoked by the nation last year were cheaper illegal products.The analysis released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) on Wednesday showed the amount of nicotine consumed around the country soared by 40% between 2017 and 2025, despite population growth rising by just 14%. Continue reading...

BoM and other agencies expect transition to the first El Niño since spring 2023 sometime during winterFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesSign up for climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s free Clear Air newsletter hereAustralia should prepare for an imminent El Niño, with the Bureau of Meteorology and other agencies forecasting that the weather phenomenon is likely to develop in the coming months.“The models are really aligning now,” Felicity Gamble, a senior BoM climatologist, said. “We are expecting a transition to El Niño sometime during winter.” Continue reading...

Reform advisory committee says changes will undermine scheme’s original intentions and give unprecedented power to the health ministerFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe national disability insurance scheme’s proposed overhaul will cause “material harm” to Australians with disabilities, undermine its original intentions and hand unprecedented power to the health minister, the federal government’s own reform advisory committee warns. The Australian Human Rights Commission has also urged the government to slam the brakes on the potentially “regressive” changes to the NDIS, saying more consultation time was needed to avoid the “clear risk of adverse and unintended human rights impacts”.The Albanese government is eager to move ahead with changes that are estimated to remove more than 200,000 people from the $50bn-a-year scheme by 2030 in a bid to secure its financial sustainability. Continue reading...

• The Albanese government is facing increasing pushback over proposed reforms to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), with critics warning that cuts could cause significant harm to participants. • In the Middle East, Israel continued its overnight offensive, while Tehran announced it is halting peace talks and intends to fully close the strait of Hormuz. • Tensions remain high as Marco Rubio claims Iran has agreed to negotiate parts of its nuclear program, contradicting the current escalation.

Senate estimates told it was a ‘joint idea’ to rework the nuclear submarine deal. Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAustralia’s preference was always to receive secondhand nuclear powered submarines under the Aukus deal, defence officials have revealed, prompting the Coalition to question if the original arrangement was “imposed” on the Albanese government.The defence secretary, Meghan Quinn, was grilled at Senate estimates on Tuesday night about the announcement that Australia would buy three used Virginia-class submarines from the US rather than a combination of new and old vessels.Australia’s position is that we would have always … had a preference for three in-service (submarines).They imposed a new submarine on us and said you must take a new submarine even if you want three in-service?This is a joint exercise over many decades, working collaboratively with an alliance partner to deliver a capability which is significant and is very important for Australia’s national defence. So there are many reasons why three in-service (submarines) would be simpler, lower-cost through the training of staff, the sustainment arrangements, the maintenance requirements, and all of those considerations. Continue reading...