Australian government signals support for extension of Gaza truce
Daniel Hurst
The Australian government has signalled it would support further extensions to the truce between Israel and Hamas to allow the further release of hostages and delivery of “much-needed” aid to Gaza.
While not yet calling for a full ceasefire, the government has also expressed concern about the “harrowing number of civilian deaths, including children”.
Under the tentative agreement between Israel and Hamas – negotiated through intermediaries – hostages held in Gaza are being released in return for the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.
It was originally set down for four days, but an agreement was reached on Monday to extend it by two days until Wednesday. US and Israeli spy chiefs have flown to Qatar for talks on a further potential extension.
Guardian Australia asked the foreign affairs minster, Penny Wong, for comment on whether the government hoped for further extensions and whether it was now ready to call for a full ceasefire.
A spokesperson for Wong responded:
Australia welcomes the two-day extension to the pause in hostilities in Gaza, and supports further extensions.
This extension will allow for the release of further hostages and for the delivery of much-needed humanitarian assistance.
We continue to call for all hostages to be released and the protection of civilian lives.Australia wants to see continued steps towards a sustainable ceasefire, but it cannot be one-sided.
This deal represents important progress, but we must ultimately work for a long-term, enduring peace.
That requires a two-state solution with Israelis and Palestinians living securely and prosperously within internationally recognised borders.
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While not yet calling for a full ceasefire, the government has also expressed concern about the “harrowing number of civilian deaths, including children”.
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Under the tentative agreement between Israel and Hamas – negotiated through intermediaries – hostages held in Gaza are being released in return for the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.
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It was originally set down for four days, but an agreement was reached on Monday to extend it by two days until Wednesday. US and Israeli spy chiefs have flown to Qatar for talks on a further potential extension.
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Guardian Australia asked the foreign affairs minster, Penny Wong, for comment on whether the government hoped for further extensions and whether it was now ready to call for a full ceasefire.
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A spokesperson for Wong responded:
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\n
Australia welcomes the two-day extension to the pause in hostilities in Gaza, and supports further extensions.
\n
This extension will allow for the release of further hostages and for the delivery of much-needed humanitarian assistance.
We continue to call for all hostages to be released and the protection of civilian lives.\n
Australia wants to see continued steps towards a sustainable ceasefire, but it cannot be one-sided.
\n
This deal represents important progress, but we must ultimately work for a long-term, enduring peace.
\n
That requires a two-state solution with Israelis and Palestinians living securely and prosperously within internationally recognised borders.
\n
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EST”,”blockLastUpdated”:1701207900000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”16.45 EST”,”blockFirstPublished”:1701205716000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”16.08 EST”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”16.08″,”title”:”Australian government signals support for extension of Gaza truce”,”contributors”:[{“name”:”Daniel Hurst”,”imageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2020/03/30/Dan_Hurst.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=a5af531a12fe1dac65af586a33e46f25″,”largeImageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2020/03/30/Dan_Hurst.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=841ba2989a73d161b6a26127a9274808″}],”primaryDateLine”:”Tue 28 Nov 2023 17.15 EST”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First published on Tue 28 Nov 2023 14.27 EST”},{“id”:”6566569c8f0892870f38ab37″,”elements”:[{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
A new survey of almost 20,000 Australians aged 15-19 has found almost half consider climate change and severe weather to be an important concern, ahead of discrimination and the economy.
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The 2023 Youth Survey Report released by housing charity group Mission Australia on Wednesday found 44% of those surveyed deemed environmental issues to be one of their top concerns, making it the most important issue for young people for the second year in a row. It was followed by equity and discrimination (31%), the economy and financial matters (31%) and mental health (30%).
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Housing and homelessness also rated higher this year on the previous year, rising seven percentage points to 19% of respondents who listed it as one of the top concerns.
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The charity’s CEO, Sharon Callister, said the research conducted between April and August this year showed young people were engaging with the biggest political and societal issues of the day.
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Callister also pointed to the increase in housing concerns among those participating in the survey.
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Homelessness is a traumatic experience which can have ongoing impacts on a person’s life, their wellbeing and their future. As such, we strongly urge all levels of government to take immediate action to end homelessness.
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“,”elementId”:”bdaf7c53-ebad-45de-b4d8-df278cbc3a7a”}],”attributes”:{“pinned”:false,”keyEvent”:true,”summary”:false},”blockCreatedOn”:1701205660000,”blockCreatedOnDisplay”:”16.07 EST”,”blockLastUpdated”:1701207382000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”16.36 EST”,”blockFirstPublished”:1701205677000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”16.07 EST”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”16.07″,”title”:”Climate crisis the biggest concern for Australian teenagers, survey shows”,”contributors”:[{“name”:”Sarah Basford Canales”,”imageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/08/01/Sarah_Basford_Canales.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=66c36b9cb909414f7b8e8c893cfd6bcd”,”largeImageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/08/01/Sarah_Basford_Canales.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=5e1ba75fa72eea4b851d7dbb67ae83c4″}],”primaryDateLine”:”Tue 28 Nov 2023 17.15 EST”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First published on Tue 28 Nov 2023 14.27 EST”},{“id”:”65664ac58f08e51ddd4b2d48″,”elements”:[{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
The Australian Taxation Office has paused a letter campaign alerting taxpayers they have historical debts after conceding its communication caused “unnecessary distress”.
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While the ATO said it would review its overall approach to the on-hold tax debt scheme, it is not erasing the amounts allegedly owed.
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Thousands of Australians were recently advised they have money owing, ranging from a few cents to thousands of dollars, that may be decades old and will be taken from future refunds.
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The tax letters caused distress to recipients, who told Guardian Australia the debts were nearly impossible to contest given their historic nature.
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The ATO said in a statement on Tuesday evening that it had heard the community concerns.
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Taxpayers can check whether they have a debt on hold by calling us. However, we accept that our communication approach caused unnecessary distress – especially for those debts incurred several years ago.
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We will review our overall approach to debts on hold before progressing any further.
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On-hold tax debts are debts that the ATO is not taking active steps to recover, but will be extracted from future tax refunds or credits.
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While some of those debts were paused because they are very small and weren’t previously deemed worth pursuing, some represent significant sums, according to letters viewed by Guardian Australia.
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Thank you to Martin for kicking us all off this morning – you have Amy Remeikis with you now as we head into the sitting day.
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Happy hump day, or if you prefer, happy half way through this particular existential crisis known as the working week.
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It is absolutely pouring with rain in the nation’s capital. Matches the mood.
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Ready?
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Let’s get into it.
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Telstra has paid a $306,360 fine issued by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (Acma) for failing to provide accurate details to the Integrated Public Number Database used to locate and contact people in emergencies when they dial triple-zero.
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The company had previously been fined $2.5m for systemic issues with complying with IPND rules, but in 2022, Telstra self-reported to Acma that it had found more issues in the same period, and had failed to provide accurate information on more than 19,000 occasions between October 2010 and August 2022.
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Acma chair Nerida O’Loughlin said:
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The IPND is essential in a crisis when emergency services or police need to contact or locate people in harm’s way. We will keep Telstra focused on fixing these longstanding issues and giving consumers confidence that their data is being accurately recorded.
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A Telstra spokesperson said the company had been working to improve its systems, which is how it reported the issues to Acma.
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“People’s privacy and safety is paramount and we’re sorry this happened.”
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EST”,”blockLastUpdated”:1701204381000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”15.46 EST”,”blockFirstPublished”:1701200861000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”14.47 EST”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”14.47″,”title”:”Telstra fined over tripled-zero failure”,”contributors”:[{“name”:”Josh Taylor”,”imageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2019/08/06/Josh_Taylor2.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=8f0817a8c42fa3c8151074378eedf09f”,”largeImageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2019/08/06/Josh_Taylor.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=a1e8502bb438342885b78582aeeb8ce9″}],”primaryDateLine”:”Tue 28 Nov 2023 17.15 EST”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First published on Tue 28 Nov 2023 14.27 EST”},{“id”:”6565d4328f08e51ddd4b26db”,”elements”:[{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
The business lobby is livid over the government accepting a Greens amendment to the IR bill, which they say would “give unions an unprecedented and unfair advantage in bargaining”.
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This goes to a Greens push on what’s called “intractable bargaining”, where negotiations on a new industrial agreement have stalled, and the Fair Work Commission has to arbitrate.
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Advocates for the change say it would help workers get breakthroughs on the bargaining process – but Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry CEO Andrew McKellar says the business community can’t support it, calling it “a sneaky and underhanded move”.
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It’s expected the business lobby will strongly campaign against this change.
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McKellar said in a statement:
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\n
The amendment, which seeks to change a law that only came into effect a matter of months ago, will mean that unions can drag out a bargaining dispute, unilaterally force a matter to be arbitrated by the Fair Work Commission, and because of the change, the employer will be worse off than before.
\n
This change will only incentivise unions to stall and disrupt the bargaining process, further destroying productivity in our workplaces.
\n
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EST”,”blockLastUpdated”:1701204055000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”15.40 EST”,”blockFirstPublished”:1701200229000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”14.37 EST”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”14.37″,”title”:”Business fury at ‘unfair ‘ IR bill changes”,”contributors”:[{“name”:”Josh Butler”,”imageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2022/07/01/Josh_Butler.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=f6e36ddc89d1442611e6b4fe726302d0″,”largeImageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2022/07/01/Josh_Butler.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=b99fc3ae31423d51324e5f82baea0af0″}],”primaryDateLine”:”Tue 28 Nov 2023 17.15 EST”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First published on Tue 28 Nov 2023 14.27 EST”},{“id”:”6565bf048f088ae3f4cb786e”,”elements”:[{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
Good morning and welcome to our rolling politics coverage. I’m Martin Farrer and these are some of the best overnight and breaking stories to get you started before the main political dishes are served throughout the day by Amy Remeikis.
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The battle to stop the spread of vaping is intensifying amid a surge in the number of shops selling the products. Our top story this morning shows that 600 outlets in New South Wales looked to cash in on the highly profitable trade despite tough new federal rules coming in next year. Anti-nicotine campaigners are concerned the surge shows that they believe the industry will succeed in watering down a federal ban on the importation of nicotine and non-nicotine vapes from March next year.
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An extensive survey has revealed that the Indigenous voice to parliament referendum would probably have passed if the Coalition had not decided to campaign against it. It comes as the Western Australian senator veteran Pat Dodson announced that he was standing down from political life. Asked what lesson he would take from the voice defeat, Dodson took aim at the partisan nature of Canberra politics that had thwarted his dearly held project of reconciliation and said simply: “You can’t have a treaty with yourself.” Katharine Murphy was there to witness a most dignified departure from a man through whom “history seems to flow”.
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Industry groups have lashed out at changes to the government’s workplace laws, describing the changes as rushed. The amendments, which passed the House of Representatives last night, will close labour hire loophole measures and add extra guardrails for the Fair Work Commission on gig worker minimum standards. But the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry say they have been “blindsided” by the 81 changes and that they say will drive up costs for businesses.
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More on that coming up, and on a fine imposed on Telstra over problems with a vital database that locates people in emergencies.
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Key events
![Benita Kolovos](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2022/03/03/Benita_Kolovos.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=5eab712ba445dc6cf12cdc0f9a1eff16)
Benita Kolovos
Victoria’s treasurer, Tim Pallas, has confirmed the state has begun the process of refunding a tax paid by electric vehicle owners after the high court declared it invalid.
Last month, the high court ruled in favour of two electric car drivers who argued the imposition of the Victorian tax, charged per kilometre driven, was unconstitutional because the states do not have the power to impose such excise taxes on consumption.
Pallas told reporters outside parliament on Wednesday the government had received advice to refund all electric vehicle drivers:
It might take a few months as we identify who they are, but the advice that I’ve received is yes, there is an obligation to repay it. I think we’ve even decided to be sufficiently generous, albeit that there isn’t an obligation to pay interest, to pay the interest on the retention of those funds.
Pallas said the refunds was a “relatively small” hit to the state budget but the ramifications of the high court decision could be huge:
What is not a relatively small amount is a reimagining of the Constitution by the High Court and it’s going to cause very substantial problems for every state.
He said he would be raise the matter at the meeting of state and federal treasurers on Friday.
The so-called ‘team Queensland’ (honestly, could we retire Team XX in the political sense for 2024) has arrived in Canberra to express its crankiness with the federal government infrastructure funding cuts. Led by Queensland’s deputy premier Steven Miles, the group of officials and local government representatives are making their views on the funding changes known. One, because Queensland Labor is about to lose the next election and two, because when it comes to infrastructure funding, including for the Bruce Highway, which is a national highway, Queensland hasn’t always come out on top.
It won’t be the last time we see some friendly fire between the state and federal government ahead of October’s state election.
But they obviously think it’s a killer line (and probably will work in some sectors, because they also rely on people, including in the press gallery, not checking things like when parliament sits and when the opposition leader has held press conferences before running this stuff) because Sussan Ley walked out of the Sky studio and repeated it in a door stop:
I note that the Home Affairs Minister has given a short statement this morning, she could not help pointing the finger once again at the Opposition Leader and the Opposition, when in fact she should be taking the lead, stepping up and explaining in detail the legislation that’s going to be introduced. Instead, she seeks as always to score political points.
But where is the Prime Minister on this? The Prime Minister has not fronted all of you, the Canberra Press Gallery, since the 22nd of October, that’s over a month*.
In that time, we’ve had interest rate rise, we’ve had the Chinese Communist Party attack on our Navy Divers, we’ve had an infrastructure announcement that has pulled projects across Australia, and we’ve had this debacle of detainees released into the community**.
We’ve heard nothing from Anthony Albanese in this place, his workplace, where he should be fronting the Press Gallery and answering all of the questions that I know you have for him***.
*Again, there have been seven sitting days in that time.
**When the sonar pulse issue occurred, Anthony Albanese was in the US for Apec and he has all but confirmed he raised the issue directly with Xi Jinping, the infrastructure minister addressed the infrastructure announcement, and the high court decision which led to the release of refugees and migrants in indefinite detention has been spoken about every single sitting day.
***By this measure, I look forward to the opposition leader holding a Canberra press conference every single sitting week too, because that has not happened.
Liberal deputy leader Sussan Ley has gone on Sky News to point out that Anthony Albanese has not held a press conference in Canberra since 22 October, which she says is the prime minister “missing in action”.
Which is true. But also true, since 22 October (which was a Sunday and just as Albanese was about to head to the United States for the official White House visit) there has only been seven days of house sittings (which is when the prime minister is in Canberra) .
Peter Dutton held a press conference in Canberra on 15 November, which was the first he had held in Canberra since 16 October. And prior to that, I think it was July when he held a presser in Canberra (Dutton did not hold a press conference in Canberra while the voice referendum was officially underway)
Now both have held press conferences outside of Canberra and done media interviews. But if missing in action applies to no press conference in Canberra for seven days, then surely it also has to apply to your own side.
NSW Labor delegation heads to Canberra to push for permanent ceasefire in Gaza
A delegation from western Sydney is headed to Canberra today to meet with Labor MPs and push for the government to call for an “immediate, permanent and just ceasefire in Gaza”.
The NSW Labor Friends of Palestine group has helped organise the delegation, which will be led by Suzan Wahhab, president of Palestinian Christians in Australia (Pcia) and includes Dr Mohamad Assoum (Auburn-Lidcombe ALP); Syed Samnan (Camden ALP); Louisa Romanous (Toongabbie ALP President); Kassem Chalabi; Louay Moustapha (Barton ALP and convener of Labor Friends of Palestine); Ms Nahil Chidiac (Pcia) and Ms Keira Ademovic (Young Labor).
![Daniel Hurst](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2020/03/30/Dan_Hurst.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=841ba2989a73d161b6a26127a9274808)
Daniel Hurst
Penny Wong’s spokesperson reiterated that Hamas had “shown contempt for international law” but also noted that “for democracies, the standards we seek and accept are high”.
The spokesperson said Australia had “called on Israel to honour its commitment to uphold international law and protect innocent lives”, adding:
The world has witnessed a harrowing number of civilian deaths, including children. This must not continue.
Australian government signals support for extension of Gaza truce
![Daniel Hurst](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2020/03/30/Dan_Hurst.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=841ba2989a73d161b6a26127a9274808)
Daniel Hurst
The Australian government has signalled it would support further extensions to the truce between Israel and Hamas to allow the further release of hostages and delivery of “much-needed” aid to Gaza.
While not yet calling for a full ceasefire, the government has also expressed concern about the “harrowing number of civilian deaths, including children”.
Under the tentative agreement between Israel and Hamas – negotiated through intermediaries – hostages held in Gaza are being released in return for the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.
It was originally set down for four days, but an agreement was reached on Monday to extend it by two days until Wednesday. US and Israeli spy chiefs have flown to Qatar for talks on a further potential extension.
Guardian Australia asked the foreign affairs minster, Penny Wong, for comment on whether the government hoped for further extensions and whether it was now ready to call for a full ceasefire.
A spokesperson for Wong responded:
Australia welcomes the two-day extension to the pause in hostilities in Gaza, and supports further extensions.
This extension will allow for the release of further hostages and for the delivery of much-needed humanitarian assistance.
We continue to call for all hostages to be released and the protection of civilian lives.Australia wants to see continued steps towards a sustainable ceasefire, but it cannot be one-sided.
This deal represents important progress, but we must ultimately work for a long-term, enduring peace.
That requires a two-state solution with Israelis and Palestinians living securely and prosperously within internationally recognised borders.
![Penny Wong](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/95dfca31fff4318403e5ff68f6d9ccec919f02d0/0_0_7225_4817/master/7225.jpg?width=465&dpr=1&s=none)
Climate crisis the biggest concern for Australian teenagers, survey shows
![Sarah Basford Canales](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/08/01/Sarah_Basford_Canales.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=5e1ba75fa72eea4b851d7dbb67ae83c4)
Sarah Basford Canales
A new survey of almost 20,000 Australians aged 15-19 has found almost half consider climate change and severe weather to be an important concern, ahead of discrimination and the economy.
The 2023 Youth Survey Report released by housing charity group Mission Australia on Wednesday found 44% of those surveyed deemed environmental issues to be one of their top concerns, making it the most important issue for young people for the second year in a row. It was followed by equity and discrimination (31%), the economy and financial matters (31%) and mental health (30%).
Housing and homelessness also rated higher this year on the previous year, rising seven percentage points to 19% of respondents who listed it as one of the top concerns.
The charity’s CEO, Sharon Callister, said the research conducted between April and August this year showed young people were engaging with the biggest political and societal issues of the day.
Callister also pointed to the increase in housing concerns among those participating in the survey.
Homelessness is a traumatic experience which can have ongoing impacts on a person’s life, their wellbeing and their future. As such, we strongly urge all levels of government to take immediate action to end homelessness.
So what does working with the opposition on these new preventive detention laws look like? Clare O’Neil is on much more familiar ground here – criticising Peter Dutton – and she delivers the lines:
They certainly have made all the right noises about community safety but the reason I’m so concerned about their actual intention is because of what we’re seeing in the parliament this week, and that was the leader of the opposition lead his party to come in and vote against laws that help protect Australian children against pedophiles.
I’m not making it up. That actually happened.
O’Neil on uncontactable detainees: ‘I’m not going to criticise police’
Clare O’Neil won’t get into the detail of one of the detainees who refused to wear a monitoring device and police have been unable to contact them since their release.
Border Force confirmed yesterday that the issue of the uncontactable former detainee had been referred to the Australian federal police. The AFP have not commented on the matter. And the government has also not said much.
O’Neil won’t get into it in this interview either. Instead, we get four versions of this answer:
I’m not going to criticise police. I would not do that. The Australian federal police and Australian Border Force have done an exceptional job at implementing a regime which was invented just a number of weeks ago. I stand by their performance, I stand by their integrity. We have referred this matter to the police and that’s the end of the discussion.
But if the conditions were not imposed as instructed (in this case, monitoring) doesn’t that mean they didn’t do the job they were supposed to do?
O’Neil:
I have great confidence in the work that they do. They will work through and resolve these issues over time.
O’Neil: ‘I do not want these people on our streets. However, I must follow the law’
Clare O’Neil repeats that if it were up to her “all of these people would be in detention”.
(That is the political environment Australia has created around refugees and migrants –everyone has to be tougher than the last guy, because otherwise we’ll get accusations of being “soft on borders” and we know how that ends.)
O’Neil:
Because when the high court made its decision, they all were in detention, and that is because minister Giles and I had chosen to keep them there. I do not want these people on our streets. However, I must follow the law like every other Australian and the high court has required us to release these people into the community.
O’Neil then moves on to the preventive detention legislation which is coming:
The high court has just told us that politicians can’t punish, only a court can punish. So your questions about who would remain to be detained must now be referred to a court.
The courts will work with the legislation the parliament gives it though:
And that is why the parliament has a very important job to do now, our government’s commitment is to create the toughest preventative detention regime that is constitutionally possible, and we will be working with the parliament to do that.
Now, as I’ve said, we’ve got to see the opposition come with us and work with us constructively on this.
They have behaved atrociously over recent weeks making absolute politics out of this when there are serious community safety issues at the heart of the matter. That time is over. Stop slowing us down, stop saying no, come into the parliament and work with us to help protect the community.
O’Neil accuses Dutton of hypocrisy over community safety
The opposition say they wanted amendments to the legislation they voted down, that it didn’t go far enough (as also they wanted to wait for the high court reasons).
Clare O’Neil said that is the opposition playing politics:
Well, they haven’t proposed any amendments.
They haven’t proposed him and their position is completely ridiculous and untenable.
I would have thought that one thing that the parliament can come together on is protecting children from child sex offenders.
Now after everything that Peter Dutton has said and done, beating his chest walking up and down the country, pretending he’s a tough guy, he then comes into the parliament and votes against a law that will help protect Australian children from sex offenders.
Now, I know there’s a lot of politics that gets played around the place. But let’s just be really clear, that is hypocritical.
It is wrong and it does not help us protect Australian citizens.
Every move that we have made and how we’ve managed this issue has been focused not on politics, not on winning the day, but on making sure we protect Australian citizens. I wish I could say the same as Peter Dutton’s behaviour.
Clare O’Neil then turns to Peter Dutton:
I will just point out that just make sure you take Peter Dutton’s words with a grain of salt here.
I watched him come into the parliament this week. And when the government introduced a bill to criminalise sex offenders from loitering near schools and preschools, the opposition leader came in and voted against it.
So let’s just not make any bones about this. The opposition have played horrendous politics with this matter for weeks now. It’s time for that to end. We want to build a preventive detention regime. We need them to work with us and stop wrecking the solution.