Ավստրալիայի նորություններ ՈՒՂԻՂ. Լիբերալ պատգամավորը զայրացել է վերջին րոպեին զուտ զրոյական հետկանչի պատճառով. Սուդանի վերջին նկարները բացահայտում են մռայլ զարգացումը. Նենսի Փելոսին կհեռանա Կոնգրեսից

Key posts

• 5.40pmSussan Ley - what the key players said
• 5.09pmCNN: Multiple people at US military base fall ill after suspicious package delivered
• 4.59pm‘I make no apology’: Defence industry minister doubles down on defending Israeli military equipment purchases
• 4.34pmNT Police release anti-racism strategy
• 3.31pmWorld leaders warn time running out to combat global warming, slam Trump
• 3.15pmUS flight cancellations accelerate as airlines comply with government shutdown order
• 2.50pmGrand Theft Auto VI delayed again
• 2.01pmThe day so far

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Thanks for joining us on the blog today.

If you’re heading to Oasis in Sydney tonight, here’s a little taste of what you can expect, courtesy of Melburnians.

Meanwhile, it’s likely there will storms and rain across much of the eastern seaboard this weekend, the BOM says.

Here’s what happened across the afternoon:

• Opposition Leader Sussan Ley’s senior conservative rivals have played down the prospect of a coup, giving Ley at least until next year to prove herself after an escalation of backbench criticism before a climax over energy policy next week.
• It has been revealed that the father of two infants killed in a Queensland house fire that claimed four lives was undergoing treatment for cancer when he learnt his children had died.
• The Pentagon says its review of the AUKUS pact with Australia is in its final stages, but it now agrees that the agreement will bring “significant benefit” for US strategic interests in the Indo-Pacific. We also found out today that Jonathan Mead, the vice admiral spearheading AUKUS in Australia, will retire mid-next year.
• The Northern Territory police command has released a strategy to deliver anti-racism training to all staff and boost Aboriginal employment in the force to 30 per cent. It follows the exposure of systemic racism within the force by a long-running coronial inquest into the death in custody of young Aboriginal man Kumanjayi Walker in 2019.
• Overseas, at least five people died in Vietnam after Typhoon Kalmaegi pummelled coastal regions with destructive winds and heavy rain, officials said on Friday, following the storm’s deadly passage through the Philippines, where it killed at least 188 people.
• World leaders said on Thursday that time is running short for urgent and decisive action to prevent the worst effects of climate change, and blasted the US for its retreat from those efforts, as they gathered at the edge of the Amazon rainforest for the annual United Nations climate summit.
• Speaking of the US, airlines have begun cancelling hundreds of flights due to the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) order to reduce traffic at the country’s busiest airports from Friday because of the government shutdown.

• And Grand Theft Auto VI, the video game that has been anticipated as potentially the largest launch of any entertainment product ever, has been delayed for a second time. It is now scheduled to be released on November 19, 2026.

Illegal tobacco is burning a $4 billion hole in Australia’s hip pocket, but policy boffins are sceptical that lowering the tax on legal cigarettes will stop the rot.

The economic cost of organised crime to Australia jumped to $82.3 billion in 2023-24, up from $68.7 billion in the previous 12 months, reports from the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission and Australian Institute of Criminology show.

Illicit tobacco’s estimated economic cost rose to $4 billion, a four-fold increase in the past three years.

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Of that figure, $3.3 billion was the result of lost tax revenue from the tobacco excise.

Organised crime groups’ efforts to control the illicit tobacco and vape market have led to more than 200 fire bombings, at least three murders and countless acts of intimidation and extortion, the commission’s chief executive, Heather Cook, said.

“Legitimate businesses have been forced to close their doors,” she said in a speech on Thursday evening at Canberra’s National Security College.

“Billions of dollars in lost tax revenue means less money for hospitals, schools and essential services.”

Violence from illegal tobacco turf wars had spilled into the streets and affected bystanders and entire neighbourhoods, Cook said.

AAP

Here are the key quotes from MPs today during a rough-and-tumble day for Opposition Leader Sussan Ley:

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• Sarah Henderson, Victorian senator: “I can’t back in the way things are ... It’s a very difficult time for the Liberal Party. [Sussan] is losing support because of what’s happened since she became leader, and we are all working very hard to get our party back on track.”
• Andrew Hastie: ”I think we can turn things around, and the thing we have to do is come to a position on net zero. And that’s my singular focus. Until we sort that out, it doesn’t matter who leads the party.”
• Scott Buchholz: “Don’t mistake her feminine politeness for weakness. We have come from a previous leadership style of authoritarian [under Peter Dutton] to now a consultative, and some people mistake that, but there are just different styles of leadership.”
• Dan Tehan: “Colleagues have been saying a variety of things over the last few months. What I’m focused on is making sure we get the policy right, the energy and emissions reduction policy right, because that is what the Australian people want us to do.”
• Julian Leeser: “I support her leadership. Sussan is focused on growing the economy and increasing the productivity of Australia.”
• Anne Ruston: Asked by reporters whether Ley will be leader at the next election, Ruston gave a one-word answer: “Absolutely.”
• James McGrath: Asked whether Ley would still be leader following next week’s party meeting to discuss net zero, he said: “Yes, she is.”
• Alex Hawke: “I would say to all colleagues, we’ve got to get together next week, have the argument with each other, and look there’s no problem with argument over policy, we’ve got to have it and we’ve got to sort it out and go to the public with one view.”
• Tony Pasin: ”I don’t sense a concerted effort or any momentum towards change.”
• Roshena Campbell, former Liberal candidate: “I would like to think on how it is going for Anthony Albanese, and I reckon he is rubbing his hands.”

Sussan Ley had this to say when asked for comment on Henderson’s comments:

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Westpac will not appeal a Fair Work Commission ruling that found in favour of an employee who requested to work from home permanently after moving hours away to be close to her children’s school.

Last month, the staff member in the bank’s mortgage operations won her case at the commission after she challenged the bank’s refusal to allow her to work from home permanently.

Experts said the case was a warning to bosses that they must be prepared to justify why they require certain workers to come into the office.

Earlier this week, Westpac said it stood by its policy, but it was not known until Friday whether it would challenge the commission’s decision. A spokesman said it would not appeal.

The Finance Sector Union, which this week urged banks to review their flexible work policies in light of the commission’s ruling, welcomed Westpac’s decision not to appeal.

“Westpac has finally done the right thing by accepting the commission’s ruling: a decision that reinforces the rights of every worker to request flexible work arrangements,” said the union’s assistant national secretary, Nicole McPherson.

“This case was always about fairness and respect for working people, especially carers, parents and those balancing their jobs with family or health needs,” McPherson said. “The law is clear: flexibility is not a perk, it’s a right.”

China has commissioned its latest aircraft carrier after extensive sea trials, state media reported on Friday, adding a ship that experts say will help what is already the world’s largest navy expand its power farther beyond its own waters.

The official Xinhua news agency reported on Friday that the Fujian was commissioned in Sanya on Hainan island on Wednesday in a ceremony attended by leader Xi Jinping.

The Fujian is China’s third carrier and the first that it both designed and built itself.

It is perhaps the most visible example so far of Xi’s massive military overhaul and expansion that aims to have a modernised force by 2035 and one that is “world class” by mid-century – which most take to mean capable of going toe-to-toe with the United States.

With it, Beijing takes another step towards closing the gap with the US Navy and its carrier fleet and network of bases that allow it to maintain a presence around the world.

“Carriers are key to Chinese leadership’s vision of China as a great power with a blue-water navy,” or one that can project power far from its coastal waters, said Greg Poling, director of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.

A suspicious package was delivered to a US military base in Maryland, causing multiple people to fall ill and leading to several being taken to hospital, CNN has reported.

A statement from Joint Base Andrews, located outside Washington, DC, said a building on the base was evacuated after an individual “opened a suspicious package”, according to CNN.

Several people were transported to the Malcolm Grove Medical Centre on the base, it said.
“As a precaution, the building and connecting building were evacuated, and a cordon was established around the area,” CNN said, citing the statement from the base.

“Joint Base Andrews first responders were dispatched to the scene, determined there were no immediate threats, and have turned the scene over to the Office of Special Investigations. An investigation is currently ongoing.”

The package contained an unknown white powder, CNN said, citing two sources familiar with the investigation.

An initial field test from the HAZMAT team did not detect anything hazardous, but the investigation remained ongoing, added CNN, citing one of the sources familiar with the matter.

Reuters

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Pat Conroy was also asked about purchasing military equipment from Israel, which he again defended.

At a defence industry expo in Sydney on Tuesday, which protesters attended, Conroy was asked whether Australia should be doing business with Israeli defence companies.

Today on ABC News, Conroy effectively repeated what he said on Tuesday.

“I make no apology for getting the best possible equipment for the Australian Defence Force. I do this because it is critical to the safety of the ADF personnel and it is critical to them being able to promote Australia because my interest [is to] defend Australia,” he said.

Conroy also accused the Greens of spreading lies about what Australia supplied Israel.

“In terms of relationships with Israel, there are a whole lot of myths out there,” he said.

“Some people are running around saying we are participating in a two-way arms trade with Israel, particularly the Greens are saying that. That’s a straight out lie. We haven’t exported weapons or ammunition to Israel over the last five years, and that is our position and we will continue to do so.”

Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy followed Roshena Campbell on ABC News’ Afternoon Briefing , where he was asked about the head of AUKUS in Australia announcing his retirement.

Vice-Admiral Jonathan Mead will resign in mid-2026, which host Patricia Karvelas noted was only 12 months before Australia is set to receive the first submarine from the US under the AUKUS deal.

“Isn’t the timing a little chaotic? I mean, don’t you need stability at the top right now?,” Karvelas asked Conroy.

“Not at all,” Conroy replied.

“This is something where Admiral Mead has been in charge of this program for three and a half years, and previous to that was in charge of the nuclear taskforce, so he has had a very long length of service in this role. Importantly, Admiral Mead will continue to serve until the middle of next year, which gives us plenty of time to identify and appoint his successor.”

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Conroy also said he expected a Pentagon review of AUKUS to be released soon, after the Pentagon said overnight it was in its final stages.

“We will see what this review brings in terms recommendations, but as I said, President Trump has said AUKUS is all steam ahead,” Conroy said.

“We have USS Vermont, producing a Virginia-class submarine, going through in-water maintenance, another step in us being sovereign ready.”

A police plan to tackle systemic racism is a good first step but must be properly resourced, with real powers to act when racial discrimination occurs, Indigenous advocacy groups say.

The Northern Territory police command has released a strategy to deliver anti-racism training to all staff and boost Aboriginal employment in the force to 30 per cent.

Police Commissioner Martin Dole says it is “not a witch hunt” but a pathway forward for the force to reflect the territory it serves.

The strategy follows the exposure of systemic racism within the force by a long-running coronial inquest into the death in custody of young Aboriginal man Kumanjayi Walker in 2019.

NT Coroner Elisabeth Armitage found there was entrenched systemic racism in the force and a work culture that normalised racist terms.

Then-police constable Zachary Rolfe shot and killed the 19-year-old during a botched arrest in the outback town of Yuendumu but a jury in 2022 acquitted the officer of all charges.

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The strategy also aims to deliver anti-racism training to all employees, provide tools to identify racist employees and improve processes to protect whistleblowers and victims of racism.

Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance Northern Territory chair Rob McPhee said the success of the strategy depended on resourcing.

“There must be real powers, transparent processes and consequences to investigate and act on racism when it occurs. Without that, this will become yet another wasted opportunity for critical reform,” he said.

McPhee said his alliance had hoped for an independent mechanism to investigate complaints against police, but the strategy was “a good first step”.

AAP

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A former Liberal candidate for the eastern Melbourne seat of Aston believes the prime minister is very much enjoying the news today.

Roshena Campbell, also the deputy lord mayor of Melbourne, was on ABC News and was asked how she felt about the scrutiny Liberal leader Sussan Ley has been facing from her own colleagues today.

“I would like to think on how it is going for Anthony Albanese, and I reckon he is rubbing his hands,” Campbell replied.

“This very much plays to a concern voters hold that the Coalition is a party of climate sceptics and deniers.”

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Campbell also said it would be disastrous to the Liberals’ attempt to attract younger voters if it followed the National Party in dumping net zero following its party-room meeting on energy policy next Wednesday.

“This could lead to some serious brand damage,” she said.

Asked if it would be dangerous for the Liberals to dump their first female leader six months after an election, Campbell said: “I think the worst thing that any political party can do is spend time talking about themselves and of because leadership challenges says they are more concerned about themselves than the concerns of voters.

“There should be not be any discussion about leadership.”

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