Australia news live: NSW police charge woman with 62 counts over alleged threatening letters to politicians, media and place of worship

From

NSW police charge woman with 62 counts over alleged threatening letters

A Sydney woman has been charged with 62 offences after allegedly sending threatening letters to organisations and individuals, including politicians, a place of worship and a media outlet.

This follows the investigation by a newly formed strike force established in response to “a large volume of letters” sent to several individuals and organisations.

Officers searched a home in Constitution Hill last month, seizing electronic devices before arresting the 36-year-old woman on Wednesday.

The charges include sending letters containing threats of death or grievous bodily harm, stalking and intimidation, and dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception.

The woman was refused bail and will remain in custody.

A Sydney woman has been charged with 62 offences after allegedly sending threatening letters to organisations and individuals, including politicians, a place of worship and a media outlet.

This follows the investigation by a newly formed strike force established in response to “a large volume of letters” sent to several individuals and organisations.

Officers searched a home in Constitution Hill last month, seizing electronic devices before arresting the 36-year-old woman on Wednesday.

The charges include sending letters containing threats of death or grievous bodily harm, stalking and intimidation, and dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception.

The woman was refused bail and will remain in custody.

Queensland’s deputy premier said he met twice with billionaire mining magnate Gina Rinehart to talk about “the weather”.

Rinehart, Australia’s richest person, owns a massive portfolio of businesses including minerals company Hancock Prospecting and numerous agricultural landholdings. She is also a sponsor of several sports, including rowing and swimming.

Documents published by the Brisbane Times revealed last week that she lobbied deputy premier Jarrod Bleijie – who is the minister responsible for Olympics infrastructure – to host rowing at Fitzroy River a known crocodile habitat, in Rockhampton.

The paper published another story on Wednesday pointing to two meetings Bleijie disclosed in his ministerial diary, and a third at a swimming Australia event in April. One was held last October, the other on 7 January, with just the pair and his staff.

On Wednesday Bleijie denied speaking to Rinehart about legislation before parliament streamlining approvals for mining projects or that she had influenced his decision to host rowing at Rockhampton and accused the journalist asking him about his meetings of bias.

“We talked about the weather. How’s that? And we talked about the Brisbane Times misinformation,” Bleijie said.

The NSW Icac’s Operation Rosny has returned after a break for lunch. This morning’s hearing has been slower than on previous days, with counsel assisting Juliet Curtin taking Jean-Claude Perrottet methodically through his time in the NSW Liberals and in factional group the Reformers.

Perrottet admitted the group, who wanted more conservative policies on same-sex marriage, abortion and euthanasia, planned to recruit “like-minded people” to the party, including in order to influence preselections for MPs.

Asked about a message in which Reformer Christian Ellis wrote “Two people happy to go into dodgy Branch”, Jean-Claude admitted the group signed up members with a view to putting them in branches not controlled by their conservative right faction.

He laughed when he was read out one message in which Greenwood wrote to Reformer Christian Ellis: “Mate, Claude either needs a Valium or a break from the faction work to rest”.

Curtin asked:

\n Are you laughing because it’s it’s true? You did need a break or a Valium at this point from faction work, or just at the expression that Mr Greenwood uses?\n

“I don’t know whether in that moment I needed a break … it’s just the turn of phrase, I guess,” said Perrottet.

In another message, Reformer Robert Assaf wrote that another member signed up by the group was not renewing their membership. “She is a nun,” Assaf wrote. “Only problem Reformers sign up would ever have”. “Haha,” wrote back Perrottet.

Chris Bowen, the federal energy minister, is speaking at the National Press Club this afternoon in Canberra.

He said Australians are “right to be concerned” about high power prices, saying bills are “higher than we would like”. But, he said, the answer to that problem is working hard every day to get them down.

Claims that a magic bullet like introducing nuclear power on an “unrealistic timeline”, Bowen said, won’t help. He said those pushing such ideas were living in a “fantasy world”. He went on:

\n If they want the next election to be a referendum on energy, that’s OK, too. Because our plan is ultimately, the only one on offer to the Australian people that can reduce bills. And their plan will make electricity more expensive.\n

Australian shares have rallied to a record high in early trading after optimism about peace negotiations in the Middle East buoyed global markets.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 spiked above the 9,200 point mark shortly after the market opened this morning, surpassing an intraday record set in late February.

Prices then eased to trade at 9,150 points by late morning.

The ASX has been pulled around by global events in recent months, with the Iran conflict and fears of an AI bubble leading to wild swings.

The recent bullish sentiment has outweighed concerns over inflation, which typically drag stock prices down. There have also been multiple past instances of failed negotiations between the US and Iran.

Market strategist Michael McCarthy, from trading platform Moomoo, says “while stock investors may be ignoring bad news while buying good news” there has been a flow of strong US company earnings reports to support stock prices.

The latest bout of market optimism was sparked by comments by US and Qatari officials saying progress is being made in restoring a ceasefire in the US-Iran war and reopening the strait of Hormuz.

The main US index, the S&P 500, rallied to a record high overnight, led by a surging technology sector.

The NSW government has formally accepted all recommendations from a coronial inquest into the stabbing deaths of six people at Bondi Junction shopping centre in 2024.

The final report into the attack made 13 recommendations directed to the government, 11 of which it will accept in full and two in principle. They include a new health-led response model for mental heath emergencies funded with $270m over the next 10 years and stronger community mental health services, among others.

“The Government’s response outlines the significant work already underway across agencies to strengthen mental health care, enhance emergency preparedness and response, improve community safety, and deliver on the Coroner’s recommendations,” a press release reads.

NSW health minister Ryan Park said in a statement:

\n The Government’s response continues our work to strengthen mental health services, improve access to care and ensure people with severe and complex mental illness receive the support they need earlier and closer to home.\n We are investing in reforms that improve coordination across the health system and help people access the right care at the right time.\n

Read more:

The NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption’s (Icac) Operation Rosny hearings resumed this morning.

Today’s witness is Reformers member Jean-Claude Perrottet, the younger brother of former Liberal premier Dominic Perrottet.

Icac is investigating whether Liberal figures including Jean-Claude solicited or accepted illegal donations for the recruitment or renewal of members to the Liberal party, a practice known as branch stacking, which is not itself illegal.

Icac is investigating another allegation that Liberal figures including his brother, Charles Perrottet, solicited or accepted donations from fugitive property developer Jean Nassif in exchange for the pursuit of outcomes sought by Nassif.

The inquiry has heard that Jean-Claude and Charles avoided being served summons to appear at a parliamentary inquiry which preceded Icac’s probe. Yesterday’s witness, NSW shadow attorney general, Damien Tudehope, who admitted to leaking a confidential draft report from the parliamentary inquiry to another Reformer, claimed to have discussed with Dominic Perrottet that Jean-Claude was in Fiji during the 2023 inquiry.

Dominic Perrottet is not accused of any wrongdoing, while Jean-Claude and Charles have previously denied any wrongdoing.

Victoria’s anti-corruption watchdog has tabled a long-awaited report into the former Daniel Andrews government’s dealings with the United Firefighters Union and its secretary Peter Marshall.

The Operation Richmond report did not find that any individuals engaged in corrupt conduct, but it found that senior members of the Andrews government engaged in “serious and concerning” conduct in their dealings with Marshall when negotiating pay deals for the Country Fire Authority and Metropolitan Fire Brigade, and their later amalgamation into Fire Services Victoria.

This included “actions contrary to policy, procedure and codes of conduct, deliberate attempts to conceal and mislead, and the misuse of information.”

The Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (Ibac) found the government made an “undisclosed deal” with Marshall, “to the exclusion of other key stakeholders,” which allowed him to “exert extraordinary influence over the negotiations” for both the CFA and MFB enterprise bargaining agreements.

Ibac also found that Marshall was granted “privileged access” to responsible ministers.

The final release of the findings comes after years of legal attempts by the UFU to keep the report secret, including a high court challenge. The investigation first began in 2018 following a tip-off that Marshall “blackmailed or otherwise compromised” Andrews “to change his position on the CFA EBA”. Ibac found no evidence of blackmail and did not substantiate the allegation, which both Andrews and Marshall denied.

Victoria’s new premier, Ben Carroll, gave his first broadcast interview with ABC Radio Melbourne’s Raf Epstein this morning, where he was grilled about his involvement in last week’s leadership spill.

He said it was “not an easy decision” to put his hand up for the leadership and he only did so after a group of colleagues had already told Jacinta Allan they had lost confidence in her.

\n Epstein: “So you had nothing to do with it?”\n Carroll: “No.”\n

Carroll also stressed that the newly created minister for AI would not mean a free-for-all regarding datacentres. He said:

\n What is clear with artificial intelligence and datacentres is that it’s off the leash, so to speak, Raf, and I think we need to put working people and the people we represent into that equation. And I don’t think they are at the moment. Whether it’s AI or datacentres, I want to make sure it’s not just free rein.\n

When asked who let AI off the leash, Carroll replied:

\n This is what happens with the big disruptors. We know [this is] the biggest disruptor happening to society right now. We’ve seen it with other things, Uber, transport. But what I want to do is make sure we have a strong, vibrant datacentre industry [and] a strong, vibrant artificial intelligence industry, but with the guardrails and the regulatory reform. I have tasked the incoming minister for artificial intelligence and digital economy – that is his first priority: putting workers front and centre of this massive economic transformation for society.\n

The minister for energy and climate change, Chris Bowen, will announce an expansion to the small-scale renewable energy scheme (SRES) in an address to the National Press Club today.

Bowen will announce an expansion of the solar discount to include installations up to 1MW – 10 times greater than the previous limit of 100kW – which will “slash the installation costs for commercial, industrial and agricultural buildings by around 20%”.

The scheme’s expansion is hoped to encourage more mid-scale solar installation, what Bowen will describe as the “missing middle in Australia’s energy transition”.

On per capita terms, Australia is a world leader in residential solar, with 22GW installed as of last December. Businesses have only installed about a quarter of that – 5.6GW – despite consuming more electricity than households, according to a June analysis.

Bowen is also expected to request the Australian Energy Market Commission consider a rule change, to require the network providers to “approve commercial and industrial solar much more expeditiously and efficiently than they have been doing”.

Today’s announcements come after a $100m federal investment through the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, announced on Monday, to support the development of up to 16 hybrid solar, battery storage and battery retrofit projects.

Independent senator David Pocock said a housing correction “would be a good thing for our country”, adding house prices cannot grow at the rate they have over the past two decades.

Pocock spoke to ABC News Breakfast this morning, saying:

\n It’s kind of just become this normal thing that house prices go up at a rapid rate. I think we’ve got to ask the question – what is housing for?\n Housing is so fundamental to functioning as a human, to flourishing families, communities – we have to actually ensure that we can keep house prices in check over the next couple of decades while wages rise to get back to a point where housing is affordable in this country.\n

Pocock said it was great news that Labor had released a change to negative gearing laws to better protect widows and divorcees and drop the so-called “widow tax”.

Jetstar is changing its carry-on baggage policies and will charge customers for use of the overhead compartments on its aircraft.

The airline said it would remove the 7kg carry-on weight limit for bags from February 2027 and instead allow customers to bring one underseat bag like a backpack or handbag.

Anyone wanting to use the overhead lockers would need to buy “priority carry-on”, which includes a second, larger bag and the chance to be among the first to board. The fees will start at $25 one-way on short flights and can vary upwards of $52 for long-haul routes.

Jetstar’s CEO said the decision came amid frustration from passengers and crew that have struggled to access the overhead bins:

\n By giving customers an underseat bag with the option to add Priority Carry-on, we can make better use of overhead locker space, streamline boarding and help more flights depart on time.\n Our new carry-on baggage model provides more choice to customers while helping to keep our fares low. You only pay for what you need – travelling with less means paying less, and you can always add more if you need.\n

Labor has announced it will drop the so-called “widow tax” in its next tranche of tax reforms after widespread pressure from the opposition and crossbench.

Under the reforms to negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount announced in the May budget, a widow or divorcee would have lost their tax concession – which Labor promised to fix under subsequent legislation.

It was revealed in June that, for example, if a property was owned by a couple, they would lose grandfathered exemptions to negative gearing and capital gains tax in the event of a divorce or death, and the property was transferred to one of the partners.

The treasurer has also exempted beneficiaries of “genuine testamentary trusts, deceased estates and special disability trusts” from the new minimum tax on capital gains.

The government will now consult on the latest changes.

Good morning, and happy Wednesday. Nick Visser here bright and early. Here is what’s on deck.

Jetstar will make it more difficult for travellers to bring carry-on baggage onboard an aircraft. The company will remove its 7kg carry-on weight limits, but impose a size-based model that will allow customers to bring just one underseat bag. An overhead bag will now cost.

The federal government said it will drop the so-called “widow tax” after widespread pressure from the opposition and crossbench. Under the reforms to negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount, a widow or divorcee would have lost their tax concession.

Stick with us, more on these stories soon.

Key events

• 19m agoNSW police charge woman with 62 counts over alleged threatening letters
• 2h agoQueensland’s deputy premier says meetings with Gina Rinehart were about ‘the weather’
• 3h agoReformers member needed a ‘Valium or a break’ after factional work, inquiry hears
• 4h agoBowen says claims nuclear could fix power prices things quickly are from a ‘fantasy world’
• 6h agoAustralian share market hits record high
• 7h agoNSW government accepts all recommendations from inquest after Bondi Junction stabbing attack
• 7h agoBrother of former premier Perrottet to appear before NSW Icac
• 7h agoVictorian corruption watchdog finds ‘concerning’ conduct by Andrews government but no evidence premier was blackmailed in tabled report
• 8h agoAI and datacentres ‘off the leash’, new Victorian premier says in first broadcast interview
• 9h agoBowen to announce expansion of solar discount to commercial buildings
• 9h agoPocock says housing correction would be ‘good thing for our country’
• 10h agoJetstar will begin charging at least $25 for overhead baggage space
• 10h agoGovernment drops ‘widow tax’ on negative gearing and capital gains changes
• 10h agoGood morning

Jonathan Barrett

ASX closes at record high

Australian shares have closed at a record high, as hopes for a Middle East peace deal overcame lingering inflation concerns.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 closed up 0.9% to end the day at 9,227.8 points, surpassing its last peak struck just over five months ago.

Global equity markets have been pulled up and down by the Middle East conflict given energy disruptions and increased oil costs contribute to global inflation by elevating costs across nearly all goods and services.

Oil prices have been falling in recent days amid optimism that the latest peace negotiations between the US and Iran would reopen the strait of Hormuz, lifting global equity markets.

Six of the ASX’s 11 sectors ended the day higher, led by the materials sector, which includes miners. Mining giant BHP was up more than 3% and Rio Tinto was up 2.2%.

Queensland teenager who killed woman during home invasion to serve harsher jail term

A teenager who murdered a woman on her front lawn during a home invasion will serve their original and harsher sentence after a high court appeal overturned their reduced jail term, AAP reports.

The killer, who cannot be named because he was aged 17 at the time of the offences, fatally stabbed Emma Lovell in the heart after he broke into her family’s house north of Brisbane about 11.30pm on Boxing Day in 2022.

Emma Lovell. Photograph: Lee Lovell

Lovell was fatally stabbed during a struggle on her front lawn, with her husband, Lee, wounded.

The home invasion became the catalyst for “adult crime, adult time” changes in Queensland law under the Liberal National government after it won the 2024 state election.

The teen was jailed for 14 years with the court of appeal reducing his minimum sentence by 18 months in 2025.

The high court overturned that reduction on Wednesday.

Queensland supreme justice Tom Sullivan in May 2024 sentenced the teen, then aged 19, to a maximum of 14 years with a requirement to serve 70% of that time in detention, after he found the crime to be “particularly heinous”.

After a successful state appeal in August 2025, the teen’s minimum sentence was reduced by about 18 months.

Justice David Boddice found the 14-year sentence should stand but reduced the detention period to 60%.

He cited the teen’s guilty plea, “genuine remorse and prospects of rehabilitation” as special circumstances justifying his release from detention after serving less than the statutory 70%.

The teen had less than five years left to serve in detention after 500 days of pre-sentence custody in May 2024 were recognised as time served.

Penry Buckley

NSW government releases legal advice after committee finds state’s top prosecutor gave false evidence

The NSW attorney general, Michael Daley, says legal advice obtained by the government shows a finding in an inquiry report that the state’s top prosecutor gave false evidence to an inquiry is “unfounded”.

Last month, a NSW parliamentary committee looking at protection against identifying children in court proceedings voted 4-3 to find the NSW Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Sally Dowling, had given false evidence under oath to the inquiry and recommended Daley investigate whether there were grounds to remove her from office.

NSW director of public prosecutions, Sally Dowling. Photograph: Steven Markham/AAP

The allegations relate to the decision by the ODPP to proactively pitch a story about an Indigenous child who performed an acknowledgment of country during a sentencing hearing. Dowling admitted her office had pitched the story to radio station 2GB but denied she had authorised it.

Daley and the office of the DPP rejected the recommendations, with Daley instead referring the report to crown solicitors, who appointed former bar association president Noel Hutley SC to conduct a review of some findings.

Daley tabled the advice today. Hutley’s review rejected the four committee findings the review had been asked to look at, including that Dowling gave false evidence. In a statement Daley said the review was “unequivocal: the findings against the Director of Public Prosecution were not justified by the evidence”.

The committee described difficulty compelling key ODPP witnesses to appear before the inquiry, after a court decision last in favour of the Minns government which means that parliament can no longer compel witnesses. As part of its recommendation to determine whether there were grounds to remove Dowling from office, it had recommended establishing a formal inquiry with compulsory powers. But on Wednesday, Daley said he considered the matter closed.

High court blocks plan to extract two Sydney Harbours’ worth of groundwater from the desert

Native title holders have won a high court appeal, overturning the largest groundwater licence ever granted in the Northern Territory, which would have allowed an agricultural company to extract 40 gigalitres of groundwater – equivalent to draining Sydney Harbour twice – every year for 30 years, AAP reports.

The massive water allocation was granted to Fortune Agribusiness for free by the NT government, to support a plan to grow fruit and vegetables in Singleton Station in the central desert.

The Mpwerempwer Aboriginal Corporation challenged whether the NT government had lawfully granted the decades-long water licence, arguing the project threatened sacred sites, cultural survival and a fragile desert water system, and claiming it had failed to consider the cultural impact.

That argument failed in the NT supreme court and the territory’s court of appeal.

The NT government said the courts had already correctly identified the law did not impose an obligation on a government minister to consider the impact on Aboriginal cultural values.

But the high court on Wednesday ordered the water licence to be quashed, referring the water licence application back to NT decision makers, who will have to consider environmental approvals.

Read more:

Queensland’s deputy premier says meetings with Gina Rinehart were about ‘the weather’

Andrew Messenger

Queensland’s deputy premier said he met twice with billionaire mining magnate Gina Rinehart to talk about “the weather”.

Rinehart, Australia’s richest person, owns a massive portfolio of businesses including minerals company Hancock Prospecting and numerous agricultural landholdings. She is also a sponsor of several sports, including rowing and swimming.

Documents published by the Brisbane Times revealed last week that she lobbied deputy premier Jarrod Bleijie – who is the minister responsible for Olympics infrastructure – to host rowing at Fitzroy River a known crocodile habitat, in Rockhampton.

Queensland deputy premier, Jarrod Bleijie. Photograph: Darren England/AAP

The paper published another story on Wednesday pointing to two meetings Bleijie disclosed in his ministerial diary, and a third at a swimming Australia event in April. One was held last October, the other on 7 January, with just the pair and his staff.

On Wednesday Bleijie denied speaking to Rinehart about legislation before parliament streamlining approvals for mining projects or that she had influenced his decision to host rowing at Rockhampton and accused the journalist asking him about his meetings of bias.

“We talked about the weather. How’s that? And we talked about the Brisbane Times misinformation,” Bleijie said.

Nick Visser

That’s all from me. Achol Arok will take the blog from here. Take care.

Graham Readfearn

More than 80 new suspected cases of bird flu

Authorities in South Australia and Victoria have reported a further 82 suspect cases of bird flu today that have been sent to the CSIRO for confirmation.

In SA, authorities there said they had suspect cases of the deadly H5N1 strain in 46 greater crested terns and three silver gulls.

A greater crested tern. Photograph: David & Micha Sheldon/Getty Images/imageBROKER RF

Victoria’s AgriBio laboratory has identified 33 suspect cases to add to the seven previously confirmed cases.

The new cases were 30 greater crested terns, one gul, one magpie and one “unidentified” bird – all found on the state’s south-west coast.

The magpie – which the lab said had returned an “inconclusive result” – would be the first land-based bird to test positive if the CSIRO lab can confirm it.

All other cases have been in seabirds.

The federal government has revealed that almost 400 species of native birds and mammals are at a high risk – or worse – from the disease, that has wreaked deadly havoc in bird and seal populations around the world.

If members of the public sea sick or dead birds or animals, they are asked no to approach them, take photographs and then call Emergency Animal Disease Hotline on 1800 675 888.

Reformers member needed a ‘Valium or a break’ after factional work, inquiry hears

Penry Buckley

The NSW Icac’s Operation Rosny has returned after a break for lunch. This morning’s hearing has been slower than on previous days, with counsel assisting Juliet Curtin taking Jean-Claude Perrottet methodically through his time in the NSW Liberals and in factional group the Reformers.

Perrottet admitted the group, who wanted more conservative policies on same-sex marriage, abortion and euthanasia, planned to recruit “like-minded people” to the party, including in order to influence preselections for MPs.

Asked about a message in which Reformer Christian Ellis wrote “Two people happy to go into dodgy Branch”, Jean-Claude admitted the group signed up members with a view to putting them in branches not controlled by their conservative right faction.

He laughed when he was read out one message in which Greenwood wrote to Reformer Christian Ellis: “Mate, Claude either needs a Valium or a break from the faction work to rest”.

Curtin asked:

double quotation markAre you laughing because it’s it’s true? You did need a break or a Valium at this point from faction work, or just at the expression that Mr Greenwood uses?

“I don’t know whether in that moment I needed a break … it’s just the turn of phrase, I guess,” said Perrottet.

In another message, Reformer Robert Assaf wrote that another member signed up by the group was not renewing their membership. “She is a nun,” Assaf wrote. “Only problem Reformers sign up would ever have”. “Haha,” wrote back Perrottet.

Benita Kolovos

Peter Marshall response to Operation Richmond report

The head of the United Firefighters Union, Peter Marshall, held a press conference in Melbourne after the tabling of the anti-corruption watchdog’s Operation Richmond report, which found he wielded an “extraordinary influence” in pay negotiations with the Andrews government.

Marshall said he’s been “vindicated” by the report, which stopped short of making any findings of corrupt conduct, but it found senior members of the Andrews government engaged in “serious and concerning” conduct in their dealings with him.

He told reporters at a press conference:

double quotation markNow you can try and make this out to be the union having improper influence against the Labor government. Well, let me tell you the real world. How many business people go and see the Liberal government? How many other organisations and lobby groups go and see parliamentarians? There is nothing wrong with what we’ve done, absolutely nothing.

Marshall also called for an inquiry into Ibac itself, describing its surveillance methods as “extreme.” He said:

double quotation markThey’ve done a hit on this union, and they’ve actually tried to find a corrupt conduct. They went looking for a finding that was simply not there. Eight years, around $8m of public money they’ve spent on a witch hunt, and why? Because when they find nothing, then they try to write up something that gives it substance, and that’s what this report is, and that’s why I’m calling it creative writing.

Marshall said he wasn’t “an angel” but he did his job representing his members’ interests.

double quotation markHave I breached the law? No. Have I ever been convicted for doing so? No. Have I been found [guilty] of corruption? No.

United Firefighters Union Secretary Peter Marshall. Photograph: Joel Carrett/AAP

Andrew Messenger

Brisbane showground to get $287m Olympics upgrade

The Brisbane showgrounds, host to the Ekka, will get a $287m upgrade over the next two years, in advance of the 2032 Olympics.

The Royal Queensland Show – known as the Ekka – will celebrate its 150th anniversary when it opens on Saturday.

Deputy premier Jarrod Bleijie announced on Wednesday that the showgrounds will get a major upgrade, becoming a 20,000 outdoor arena, over the next two years, in order to be a host venue.

The heritage listed Brisbane showgrounds, host to the Ekka, will get a $287m upgrade for the 2032 Olympics. Illustration: Queensland government

The heritage-listed showgrounds date to 1886, and several stands in the main arena area are unusable due to safety problems caused by their age.

The Ekka grounds will also be a neighbour to one of three athlete’s villages.

Bleijie said construction would get under way a matter of days after this year’s Ekka ends next week, on 24 August. It will take two years to finish; next year’s show will take place using temporary facilities.

“The Ekka – the show – will go on, concerts will happen, events will take place, the Ekka will happen every year, bar one year in 2032, because the Ekka is held same month as the Olympic and Paralympic Games,” Bleijie said.

The Ekka has been cancelled four times, to serve as a hospital during the Spanish Flu, twice during Covid-19 lockdowns, and in 1942, during WW2.

A mock-up of the site. Illustration: Queensland government

Josh Taylor

High court to hear social media ban challenge cases in November

The two high court challenges to Australia’s under 16s social media ban will be heard in November, orders from the court late last week reveal.

There are two cases to be heard jointly: one from New South Wales Libertarian MP John Ruddick’s Digital Freedom Project group, and one from Reddit.

In orders from 29 July, the court gave leave to both cases to file a special case jointly for the opinion of the full court.

The court ordered the matter be set down for a two-day hearing in November.

Last week eSafety’s own study of the social media ban’s effectiveness found that there had been a slight drop in the number of teens holding accounts, but “little to not change” in offline activities or “potentially problematic behaviour”.

The regulator blamed the platforms for not taking enough action to remove teen accounts, as the parliament is considering legislation that will double the fine that eSafety can seek in the court against platforms for breaching the law, and give eSafety new powers to compel the platforms to hand over documents.

Graham Readfearn

Penguins and dolphins among nearly 400 Australian species under threat from bird flu

Almost 400 native Australian bird and mammal species have been assessed as being at a high risk – or worse – from the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus, a federal government assessment has revealed.

Some of Australia’s most beloved animals – including species of penguins, fur seals, quolls, dolphins, more than 300 birds and the Tasmanian devil – are considered at least high risk from the virus, meaning they could suffer “severe reduction in population size or viability” or worse if it reached them.

Five species are considered at extreme risk, meaning “unlikely to survive where the virus occurs”.

Read more here:

Little penguins are among numerous species at very high risk from deadly H5N1. Photograph: leelakajonkij/Getty Images/iStockphoto

Bowen says claims nuclear could fix power prices things quickly are from a ‘fantasy world’

Chris Bowen, the federal energy minister, is speaking at the National Press Club this afternoon in Canberra.

He said Australians are “right to be concerned” about high power prices, saying bills are “higher than we would like”. But, he said, the answer to that problem is working hard every day to get them down.

Chris Bowen speaking at the National Press Club in Canberra. Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAP

Claims that a magic bullet like introducing nuclear power on an “unrealistic timeline”, Bowen said, won’t help. He said those pushing such ideas were living in a “fantasy world”. He went on:

double quotation markIf they want the next election to be a referendum on energy, that’s OK, too. Because our plan is ultimately, the only one on offer to the Australian people that can reduce bills. And their plan will make electricity more expensive.

Luca Ittimani

Investors rushing to buy homes via superannuation before ban, mortgage broker says

Australians are racing to borrow to buy investment properties though their self-managed super funds before the government bans the practice next week.

Labor’s reforms to investor tax breaks became law in June with the Greens’ help, on the condition SMSF loans be banned from 10 August, as you can read here:

Loan Market, a mortgage brokers group, says it received hundreds more SMSF loan applications than normal in the month ahead of the ban.

Applications for SMSF property loans rose about 30% from July 2025 to June 2026, after the budget reforms made super one of the least-taxed ways of investing in property.

Applications then rose 326% in July 2026 to hit record volumes, after the ban was announced, Loan Market reported.

About 1.2 million Australians have self-run super funds, which are an alternative to industry super that typically incur high fees, and housing made up only about 6% of their combined wealth. The government estimated just 4,000 people took out SMSF investment loans each year but the Australian Finance Industry Association estimated more than 16,000 were written in 2025-26.

The rush suggests there is still demand for property investment despite a broader fall as prices slide. Lending to all housing investors rose 0.8% in June, or 10.4% annually, its highest rate since 2015, according to Reserve Bank data. Lending to owner-occupiers rose 0.5% in the month.

Caitlin Cassidy

Julian Leeser says funding isn’t the answer to improving educational outcomes

The shadow education minister, Julian Leeser, says “money is not the issue” to improving Naplan results after Wednesday’s release showed one in three students are failing to reach literacy and numeracy benchmarks, with disadvantage gaps persisting.

Leeser says it is “another disappointing round of national results” but “clearly, money is not the issue”.

double quotation markI am calling on every Labor government in Australia to stop pretending that funding is the answer. We have much more fundamental problems – with curriculum, with discipline and with the way that we teach. We need a renewed focus on quality. Since Labor changed the way we measured outcomes in 2023, funding has gone up significantly, but results have not. In fact, in most cases, kids are behind where they were years ago.

Last year, the Labor government reached a deal with every state and territory to fully fund public schools for the first time. The money will be rolled out over a decade to 2034. Currently, the ACT is the only jurisdiction in Australia where public schools receive the minimum benchmark of funding.

Caitlin Cassidy

Experts say Naplan results point to ‘concerning’ advantage gaps

The CEO of the Smith Family, Doug Taylor, says Wednesday’s Naplan results have again highlighted a “significant and persistent” gap in achievement between students from low and high socioeconomic backgrounds.

The results showed three in 10 students from disadvantaged backgrounds needed additional support to reach minimum literacy and numeracy benchmarks – 10 times higher than their peers from high socioeconomic backgrounds.

Taylor:

double quotation markA test can reveal whether a student can decipher the theme of a poem or solve an algebra equation. But it doesn’t show the very real challenges holding many children and young people back from making the most of the educational opportunities … Early intervention is key. That’s how we close the achievement gap between students from low and high SES backgrounds.

Tanya Serry, a professor at La Trobe’s school of education, says the “persistent gap between our highest and lowest performing students is of concern”.

double quotation markStudents from more advantaged areas, and those who live in urban areas of Australia, are much more likely to be meeting proficiency levels. This is a concerning social equity issue.

Read about the results here:

Penry Buckley

Jean-Claude Perrottet was made redundant from Catholic Schools NSW in month before Icac hearing

Returning to the NSW Icac’s Operation Rosny hearings, Jean-Claude Perrottet, younger brother of former premier Dominic Perrottet, has been giving evidence under questioning from counsel assisting, Juliet Curtin.

Questions this morning have methodically gone through Jean-Claude’s history with the Liberal party and his early years in conservative right faction group the Reformers, alleged to have solicited illegal donations, after joining in 2018. He has previously denied any wrongdoing.

Like Reformer Robert Assaf and previous witness Dylan Whitelaw, Jean-Claude has been an employee at Catholic Schools NSW. Icac is investigating the allegation that illegal donations were made by the schools governing body, arranged and approved by the Catholic Schools NSW chief executive, Dallas McInerney.

The inquiry heard that although Jean-Claude was promoted to head of communications in May this year, he was made redundant from Catholic Schools NSW in June, weeks before Icac’s inquiry. He says McInerney, who has stepped aside from his role during the inquiry, told him the decision was because of office changes. Curtin asks:

double quotation markCurtin: “I want to suggest to you, Mr Perrottet, that the reason you were made redundant only a month after you’ve been promoted to this new role was because of your involvement in this inquiry. Is that right?” Jean-Claude Perrottet: “That wasn’t what was communicated to me from the office and the emails that I received, but I mean, obviously, I’ve thought about the timing of it.”