Albanese

The honour recognises Albanese’s work ‘documenting and denouncing violations of international law in Gaza’The Spanish government awarded the UN legal expert Francesca Albanese one of its highest civilian honours in recognition of what it termed her “extensive work in documenting and denouncing violations of international law in Gaza”.Albanese, an Italian human rights lawyer who serves as UN special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, has been vocal in her criticisms of Israel’s military operations in Gaza, which she has described as genocide. Continue reading...

Originally envisioned to run 1,700km from Melbourne to a port near Brisbane, the mega infrastructure project will now only connect Beveridge in Victoria to Parkes in NSWGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe Albanese government will drastically scale back the beleaguered inland rail project, abandoning plans to connect country NSW and Queensland by rail, as the price tag blows out to more than $45bn.Originally envisioned to run 1,700km from Melbourne to a port near Brisbane, the mega infrastructure project will now only connect Beveridge, on the outskirts of Melbourne, to Parkes in central-west New South Wales – about half the distance – with the government reallocating $1.75bn of the funding to other national rail upgrades. Continue reading...

The PM is clearly not prepared to risk backlash from Asian energy trading partners during a fuel crisis – but his government will face domestic challenges if it doesn’t move eventuallyGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastTwo separate events on Monday – one in rain-soaked Canberra, the other in sunny Gladstone – neatly explain why the federal government won’t pursue a new gas export tax in next week’s budget and why it might have no choice but to do so in the future.In the nation’s capital, Anthony Albanese hosted his Japanese counterpart, Sanae Takaichi, for annual leaders’ talks that coincided with the 50th anniversary of the signing of a landmark treaty between the two nations. Continue reading...

State’s police minister says buyback ‘doesn’t focus on keeping guns out of the hands of terrorists and criminals’, leaving NSW only clear supporter of planGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastQueensland has rejected key recommendations from the Bondi royal commission’s interim report, insisting plans for a national gun buyback will not keep weapons “out of the hands of terrorists and criminals”.The report, handed down by commissioner Virginia Bell on Thursday, raised doubts about whether efforts to establish a national gun register after the 2022 police killings at Wieambilla in Queensland had been “unduly leisurely”. Bell recommended the federal government and the states speed up a jointly funded weapons buyback scheme. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Government should back projects that prioritise renewables to protect consumers from ongoing price shocks, they sayGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastFormer oil and gas industry leaders, including senior executives from BP and Shell, are warning the Albanese government that Australians risk ongoing price shocks and higher costs if it prioritises fossil fuel development in response to the global energy crisis.Sixteen ex-executives and professionals – who had worked for companies including Woodside, Inpex, Exxon Mobil and Esso – have urged the government to reject calls for fast-tracked gas and coal extraction, arguing it would do nothing to improve the nation’s liquid fuel security. Continue reading...

Prime minister says the middle of a global fuel crisis is ‘the worst possible time to jeopardise’ Australia’s partnerships with Asian trading partnersThe prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has confirmed next month’s federal budget will not include a new tax on existing gas export contracts as he criticised the “populist” campaign calling for a levy on producers.As reported last week, Albanese was poised to reject pressure to introduce a 25% tax on gas exports amid concerns the intervention could alienate the same Asian trading partners Australia is relying on for supplies of diesel and petrol. Continue reading...

One Nation outperforms the Coalition for the first time, while the rightwing populist party’s leader has a positive rating among all age groupsGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA majority of surveyed Australians approve of Pauline Hanson’s leadership of One Nation, giving her a higher job approval rating than Anthony Albanese and Angus Taylor, as the Guardian Essential poll finds the rightwing populist party is outperforming the Coalition for the first time.The results come as Australians are becoming more pessimistic about the country and the economy, with the majority of respondents saying they expected things to get worse in coming months. Continue reading...

Government’s draft news bargaining incentive scheme includes 2.25% levy on local revenues of digital giantsAnthony Albanese has urged Google, Meta and TikTok to make deals with Australian media outlets to avoid a dedicated 2.25% levy on local revenues, warning digital giants should not be able to exploit the work of journalists to boost profits.Releasing an exposure draft for the government’s news bargaining incentive (NBI) scheme on Tuesday, the prime minister said platforms who sign new deals with publishers to pay for news content would receive offsets of between 150% to 170% from the new levy. Continue reading...