Marles: There need to be consequences for Morrison, whatever the legal outcome
Paul Karp
Earlier, the deputy PM Richard Marles told ABC News Breakfast:
Whatever the legal outcome here is, what is really clear is that Scott Morrison treated firstly the Australian people with complete contempt by not making transparent the decisions he was taking in respect of who was running Australia at that point in time, but he’s treated his own colleagues with contempt.
Importantly here, he has treated the cabinet process with contempt. That’s at the heart of the Westminster system. As we go forward, whatever the legal advice, there needs to be some political consequence for a person who has flouted the, really, the Westminster cabinet system so completely.
Key events
Nick Kyrgios’ lawyer aims to “finalise” assault matter but loses secrecy bid
Paul Karp
The ACT Magistrates Court has adjourned Nick Kyrgios’ matter to 4 October, rejecting his lawyer’s bid for a longer delay until November for an application he foreshadowed may finalise the matter.
In July Australian Capital Territory policing confirmed that Kyrgios had been summonsed to face a charge of assaulting his former girlfriend. It relates to an incident in Canberra last December.
On Tuesday, Kyrgios’ lawyer Michael Kukulies-Smith asked magistrate Louise Taylor to adjourn the case to 25 November, a time he said that Kyrgios would be back in the ACT and before Kukulies-Smith would go on leave in December and January.
Kukulies-Smith foreshadowed an application on that date “capable of finalising the matter” but said he did not wish to say more, noting the many journalists present in court. Kukulies-Smith said he did not want to take up time making an application for the court to be closed.
Magistrate Taylor said:
I am not sure what the case is for the secrecy … [The proposed November date is] an indulgence for you and your client. I am not going to list the matter on the basis of some application that might be made.
The ACT DPP did not oppose the application, but Magistrate Taylor rejected the request to “set aside time for some unknown reason”, noting the ordinary process is to ask the defendant “if there is a plea of guilty or not guilty”.
As a fallback, Kyrgios’ lawyer asked for a 6 week adjournment. Magistrate Taylor granted it, listing the matter for 4 October.
In July an ACT Policing spokesperson said: “ACT policing can confirm a 27-year-old Watson man is scheduled to face the ACT magistrates court on 2 August in relation to one charge of common assault following an incident in December 2021.”
Energy change needs thousands of electricians
Australia must train tens of thousands of new sparkies if it wants to be a renewable energy superpower, according to the Electrical Trades Union, AAP reports.
The warning comes as the climate change and energy minister, Chris Bowen, hosts a jobs summit in Canberra on Tuesday with industry, unions, environmental groups and community advocates.
Electrical apprentice completion rates currently sit at just 52%, which is too low if Australia is to overhaul energy and industrial processes to meet its climate commitments, Michael Wright, the acting secretary of the ETU, said.
The federal government is setting aside $100m to support 10,000 New Energy Apprenticeships. But electrical apprentices are failing to complete their training because of the soaring cost of living and lack of mentoring, according to a survey conducted by Essential Media for the union.
Wright said:
Australia will need tens of thousands of skilled electrical workers to connect renewables like solar, wind and batteries to our electricity grid.
The survey of 642 electrical apprentices showed more than a third (37%) were thinking about quitting.
Tory Shepherd
New SA River Murray commissioner gives hope for state’s water management
Richard Beasley, the bluntly spoken senior counsel in the 2019 South Australian Murray-Darling Basin royal commission, has been appointed as SA’s River Murray commissioner.
Beasley recently described efforts in NSW and Victoria to stymie part of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan that would deliver 450 gigalitres of environmental water as a “pretty rotten way to operate”.
State water minister Susan Close said:
Mr Beasley’s appointment will ensure South Australia’s voice is heard when it comes to the management of the River Murray. His time on the Murray-Darling Basin royal commission showed he has a great capacity to connect people and build relationships, skills that will be vital in his role as commissioner.
He will also be a much-needed voice for our river communities. Having a commissioner for the River Murray sends a clear message to upstream states that SA is serious about defending its water rights, including the 450 gigalitres promised but not delivered.
Mr Beasley has a deep understanding of the issues relating to the river and the entire Murray-Darling Basin, and I look forward to working closely with him to fight for the future of the river.
‘We shouldn’t have to fight this hard to get a train fixed,’ union says
The Rail, Tram and Bus Union NSW secretary Alex Claassens yesterday defended the latest rail action. He told Channel 9:
We kept working all the way through Covid, we delivered a service, and we deserve better respect than this. We shouldn’t have to fight this hard to get a train fixed and we certainly shouldn’t have to fight this hard to get decent wages and conditions. It’s ridiculous.
NSW Labor should tell unions to end strikes, treasurer says
Circling back to that Sky News interview with NSW treasurer Matt Kean who was also asked about the train delays Sydney commuters continue to see due to ongoing dispute between the government and the transport workers union.
Kean is accusing the unions of waging “industrial warfare” and “holding the NSW public to ransom … over something NSW government said it would fix”.
Kean has urged opposition leader Chris Minns to tell unions to end the strikes.
Victoria records 25 new Covid deaths and 433 people in hospital
There were 3,638 new cases in the last reporting period and 26 people are in intensive care.
NSW records 32 more Covid deaths and 1,928 people in hospital
There were 5,567 new cases in the last reporting period and 49 people are in intensive care.
COVID-19 update – Tuesday 23 August 2022
In the 24-hour reporting period to 4pm yesterday:
– 96.9% of people aged 16+ have had one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine*
– 95.4% of people aged 16+ have had two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine* pic.twitter.com/UtNbnZPxwM— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) August 22, 2022
‘Just need to start stamping passports’: Kean criticises federal jobs summit
NSW treasurer Matt Kean has continued his criticism of the Albanese’s jobs and skills summit while appearing on Sky News this morning.
Kean said there is a backlog of 65,000 skilled workers waiting to enter Australia.
He says what’s needed more than the jobs and skills summit is for the government to “start stamping passports”.
He is urging the government to stop waiting for permission from the unions and bureaucratic processes.
Rock star reception for Albanese at Gang of Youths concert
Prime minister Anthony Albanese was spotted at a Gang of Youths concert in his electorate at Sydney’s Enmore Theatre last night.
The PM was there with his partner Jodie Haydon and was seen downing a beer as the crowd cheered him on.
‘Plan B’ needed for Sydney trains dispute
As Sydney commuters face yet another day of delays, both sides of the dispute are calling for an arbiter.
A third party could be needed to resolve the stalled negotiations in the long-running dispute between the NSW government and the rail union, AAP reports.
Employee relations minister Damien Tudehope says he doesn’t know where negotiations will go next. He told Sydney radio 2GB:
I think there has to be a plan B.
Let’s get a sort of independent arbiter to sort of work between us but it’s got to be conditional upon a suspension or pausing of industrial activity.
Rail, Tram and Bus Union NSW secretary Alex Claassens agrees. He said on Monday:
We need somebody to drag us all in around the table and keep us there until the matter is resolved.
At this point nobody has done that, all we get is a succession of different ministers ringing me up and saying ‘we’ve got to sit at the table’.
Adeshola Ore
New Victorian schools to be named Indigenous language words
The Victorian government has selected Indigenous language words as the names for several new schools that are due to open next year.
The Andrews government is planning to open 100 new schools between 2019 and 2026 to cater for the state’s biggest growth regions.
Victoria’s education minister, Natalie Hutchins, revealed the names which include local Aboriginal language for flora and fauna. It followed a community consultation process.
Hutchins said the naming of the schools was a milestone as they prepare to open their gates for new students:
It’s so important for families and young people to feel connected to their local schools, and we’re thrilled the community has had their say on these names that really reflect the areas’ culture, history and environment.
Jupiter revealed auras and all
Jupiter is being shown as never before in new images from the world’s biggest space telescope.
Scientists released the pictures Monday from the James Webb space telescope, which were taken in July.
They captures Jupiter’s northern and southern lights, and swirling polar haze.
Well-wishes for Farnham pour in as singer’s cancer diagnosis revealed
John Farnham’s family this morning revealed the legendary singer will undergo surgery for cancer.
Farnham’s friend Derryn Hinch, who appeared in the video for his hit song You’re the Voice alongside Jacki Weaver, said he is shocked by the news.
Shocked by John Farnham’s cancer news. Thoughts are with you and Jill, mate. Jacki sends love.
— Derryn Hinch (@HumanHeadline) August 22, 2022
According to the Daily Mail, Hinch had also advised Farnham at one time not to release You’re the Voice, telling him the lyrics didn’t make sense.
Greens senator renews calls to ban shark nets as latest whale trapped
Shark nets are indiscriminate killers and weapons of mass destruction. Australia is the only country in the world to use these lethal and unjustified measures to provide a false sense of security to surfers, swimmers and other ocean goers. We need #netsoutnow! https://t.co/KnrOtD5c84
— Peter Whish-Wilson (@SenatorSurfer) August 22, 2022
Whale trapped off Gold Coast
A rescue team is trying to free a whale tangled in shark nets at Currumbin.
It’s the seventh whale caught this year, according to Leonardo Guida, shark biologist with the Australian Marine Conservation Society.
#BREAKING: #Whale entangled in Currumbin #shark nets on the Gold Coast. That’s no 7 for this year, folks. Hopefully this one survives and the rescue crew stay safe. Whale migration season still has another 2 months to go. @MarkFurnerMP get the #NetsOutNow and put drones up.
— Dr Leonardo Guida (@ElasmoBro) August 22, 2022
Dorinda Cox criticises Plibersek’s approval of contentious fertiliser plant near ancient rock art
Cox is now responding to the news that the federal government will not intervene to block a controversial $4.5bn fertiliser plant near ancient rock art on WA’s Burrup peninsula.
Guardian Australia’s environment editor Adam Morton reports:
The federal environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, has ruled a controversial $4.5bn fertiliser plant near ancient rock art on Western Australia’s Burrup peninsula can go ahead after being told it had the support of a local Aboriginal corporation.
Work on the development had stopped after Save Our Songlines, a separate traditional owners organisation opposed to the project, asked the minister to protect five culturally important sites, including petroglyphs. Three of the five are due to be moved during construction.
Plibersek appeared on ABC Radio earlier and said she was following the support of the traditional owner group recognised as the most representative organisation for the five traditional owner groups in the region.
Cox says Plibersek’s decision is “disappointing” and that it’s fair to compare the situation with Juukan Gorge.
Cox says the project endangers the environment and cultural heritage, most prominently its significance for Indigenous Songlines.
Greens senator says traditional owners need better consultation in environmental projects
Greens Senator Dorinda Cox is speaking to ABC Radio as traditional owners are challenging a massive Northern Territory offshore gas project.
She attended a landmark bush court hearing yesterday at the Tiwi Islands which heard from traditional owners via song and dance.
Cox said two emails and an unanswered phone call did not constitute proper consultation for Santos’ plans to drill in the Barossa gas field.
Gas fitter charged over NSW baby ward death
A man allegedly responsible for a rare gas mix-up in a neonatal ward at a Sydney hospital has been charged with a newborn’s manslaughter and causing serious harm to another baby, AAP reports..
The boy died of severe hypoxemia 57 minutes after he was born in Operating Theatre Eight in the Bankstown hospital on 13 July 2016.
He required resuscitation after his birth and while medical staff believed they were administering oxygen, the boy was given nitrous oxide from the theatre’s neonatal medical gas system, killing him.
The system had also been used on another baby a month earlier, leaving that girl with a permanent brain injury.
The incorrect gas connection was discovered the next week.
Following a coroner’s referral of the case to the director of public prosecutions, Christopher Laurie Turner, 61, attended Bankstown police station on Monday and was arrested.
He now faces charges of manslaughter by criminal negligence and causing grievous bodily harm by a negligent act or omission.
Police allege Turner failed to adhere to the Australian standards when certifying oxygen connections within the neonatal medical gas outlet at the hospital in July 2015.
The gas fitter, according to a court in 2020, signed a form stating he’d tested the Operating Theatre Eight outlets and 100% oxygen was flowing from the pipe labelled oxygen.
A magistrate on Monday granted Turner bail on the condition he report thrice weekly to police, live in a specific address near Lake Macquarie and have someone put up a $10,000 surety.
He’s also banned from contacting prosecution witnesses except through his lawyer.
The matter was adjourned until 26 October to allow the brief of evidence to be served on Turner.
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