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Shark nets go back in water at NSW beaches

Shark nets are back in the water in NSW, a day after a surfer was mauled north of Sydney – but conservationists say they are wildlife-killing machines that don’t protect humans, AAP reports.

Every year, on 1 September, about 50 shark nets are reinstalled at beaches up and down the NSW coast and stay there until the end of April.

Queensland has 27 nets along its coastline, but they stay in the water year round.

Both state governments say the nets are an important part of their shark control efforts but conservationists and academics say they are nothing more than a feelgood gesture for a fearful public, and take a horrific toll on marine life.

Earlier this year, the NSW government revealed that three target shark species accounted for just 13.5% of everything trapped in the state’s nets last season.

Threatened species accounted for 22% of the 376 animals caught, and included critically endangered grey nurse sharks, vulnerable green turtles, endangered leatherback turtles, and endangered loggerhead turtles.

Queensland has seen 10 whale entanglement incidents so far this migration season.

NSW agriculture minister, Dugald Saunders, has said his government will be “ramping up” all shark mitigation strategies to keep people safe this summer and has called the meshing program “great” and successful.

Queensland fisheries minister, Mark Furner, has consistently said “human life comes first” and no changes will be made unless he’s convinced it’s safe.

Humane Society marine biologist Lawrence Chlebeck says both governments are ignoring evidence that show shark nets, and baited drum lines used in both states, don’t protect swimmers. He says there have been almost 40 shark bites at “so-called protected” NSW beaches and about double that at protected sites in Queensland.

University of Sydney political scientist Dr Christopher Pepin-Neff, who has worked on the shark nets issue for 16 years, has said it’s a fact that nets don’t work and they are a deception perpetuated by politicians.

Protests were held on Thursday at Manly beach in Sydney, in Byron Bay and on the Gold Coast as the NSW shark nets went back into the water.

They were planned before a teenager was bitten on the hand at North Avoca Beach, on the NSW Central Coast, about 7am on Wednesday. He is recovering.

Baited drum lines had been set in the area at around about the same time.

Chlebeck says the drum lines didn’t help the teenager and nets wouldn’t have either, had they been in the water.

Leading scientists recognised in Eureka prizes

The Eureka Prizes were awarded in a ceremony last night recognising 15 individuals and teams across the categories of research & innovation, leadership, science engagement and school science.

The prize for scientific research went to Prof Justin Yerbury from the University of Wollongong, who leads a research program that has challenged prevailing ideas about the pathology of motor neuron disease, a degenerative disease with no known cure.

The prize’s website says:

His discoveries about its underlying molecular principles, made since he was diagnosed with MND in 2016, are driving new research into the causes of cell dysfunction.

ASX plunges 2.02% and hits five-week low

The local share market has dropped sharply to a five-week low, with cyclicals the worst-performing area as fears of a long US recession grow, AAP reports.

At noon today the benchmark ASX/S&P200 index was down 140.9 points, or 2.02%, to 6845.9, while the broader All Ordinaries was down 139.6 points, or 1.93%, to 7086.3.

The ASX was on pace to exceed Monday’s 1.95% drop, tracking to be the market’s worst single-day performance since mid-June.

State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETF equity strategist Julia Lee told AAP in an email:

First day of spring started off on a negative note after the US stockmarket recorded its fourth consecutive day of losses.

Weaker China factory numbers out on Wednesday saw commodities trade lower overnight.

‘Immediate action’ on Fair Work Act changes: Tony Burke

Paul Karp

The workplace relations minister, Tony Burke, has outlined a number of changes to the Fair Work Act that the government will take “immediate action” on, with consultation to begin next week.

Burke said these included:

• Stronger access for flexible working arrangements and unpaid parental leave.

• Stronger protections against adverse action, harassment, discrimination.

• Ensuring all workers can negotiate in good faith including women, small business, care and community services sectors, and First Nations people.

• Ensuring workers and business have flexible options for reaching agreement, including removing “unnecessary limitations” on single and multi-employer agreements, while ensuring that employers which negotiate single-employer agreements are able to do so without “those changes interfering in it”.

• Making the “better off overall” test for agreement approval simple, flexible and fair.

• Giving the Fair Work Commission power to proactively help workers, particularly new entrants and small-to-medium businesses.

• Ensure the process for agreement termination is fit for purpose and fair.

• Sunset zombie agreements; that is, stop employers underpaying people with old agreements struck under WorkChoices.

Peter Hannam

Dylan Alcott says changes to improve work participation rate of disabled Australians long overdue

At the jobs summit, Dylan Alcott, self-introduced as a “washed-up tennis player” to the gathering, has made an impassioned contribution.

Allcott, 31, said the participation rate in the Australian economy of those with a physical or non-physical disability hadn’t changed over 28 years.

“That really isn’t fair”, because people with disabilities had the right of “going to work just like anybody else”, he said.

“At the time of a pandemic or a natural disaster or a recession, whose job goes first? The disability jobs, and that’s not fair.

“And it’s not just about getting us in the front door,” Alcott said. “It’s about creating a safe workplace once we’re there.”

Skills gaps had widened, too, and that was despite employers often receiving support payments aimed at hiring those with disabilities.

“The time for changing this isn’t now – it’s yesterday,” he said.

Peter Hannam

Wage increases in line with inflation discussed at jobs summit

Now to the jobs summit, with panellists talking about safety and other workplace issues.

Before we dip into those matters, though, some comments from Paul Zahra, CEO of the Australian Retailers Association, got us thinking.

He said “any increase in wages [at the] underlying inflation rate will need to be offset by productivity gains”, he said.

Jo-anne Schofield, national president of the United Workers Union, who followed Zahra, said wage increases should keep up with consumer price inflation.

Now there is a bit of difference in those measures, at least lately. Underlying inflation in the June quarter as tallied by the trimmed mean was running at an annual rate of 4.9%, while the CPI is at 6.1%.

On the safety front, Schofield said her union’s workers “aspire to little more than a secure and safe job”.

Notably, a “lack of respect” came up as the second most significant issue among the union’s 28,000 members.

Issues included “a lack of voice or consultation at work, about changes, through to bullying, harassment, racism, sexism, [and] homophobia” Schofield said. Women, particularly nurses, also felt they were “undervalued” or being paid poorly.

Adeshola Ore

Adding nearly 3,000 extra Victoria police officers did not improve community safety, auditor general finds

A $2bn investment to boost Victoria’s police workforce by nearly 3,000 officers has not improved community safety, according to a review by the state’s auditor general.

The auditor general’s report said it was unable to determine how the police force arrived at the business case of requiring 2,729 extra police officers in 2016.

“Victoria police told us that this number originated from a government decision,” the report said.

The auditor general concluded Victoria police did not have a proper internal process to forecast additional staffing numbers.

There were 1,162 new cases in the last reporting period, and two people are in intensive care.

Peter Hannam

Housing loans take a tumble

Outside in the wider world, the ABS has released some interesting data on lending.

The value of new loan commitments for housing fell 8.5% to $28.4bn in July 2022 (seasonally adjusted), accelerating from the 4.4% drop in June

The value of new owner-occupier loan commitments fell 7.0% in July 2022, while new investor loan commitments fell 11.2%.

Katherine Keenan, ABS head of finance and wealth, said:

Although lending has fallen from historically high levels recently, the value of loan commitments remained significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels.

Owner-occupier loans in July 2022 were 40% higher than February 2020, while investor loans were 78% higher.

Loans to first home buyers totalled $4.06bn for the month, down 9.5% from June, and were off 32.6% from a year earlier.

As we reported earlier today, house prices are tumbling, and these loan numbers suggest further falls are ahead.

Adeshola Ore

Mask requirements on public transport to stay in place in Victoria

The Victorian government says it has no plans to remove its mask requirement on public transport, despite the fact the mandate will be dropped on domestic flights from next week.

National cabinet agreed on Wednesday that face masks on domestic flights would be voluntary from next week.

But Victoria’s health minister, Mary-Anne Thomas, said it would not change the state’s requirement that people wear masks on public transport:

Masks are a simple and effective way to reduce the spread of the virus. We’ve still got Covid in our community.

Adeshola Ore

Push for raising the age in Victoria ahead of November election

The Law Institute of Victoria has called for the state government to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 14 ahead of the state election in November.

The LIV has released its pre-election wishlist, which includes 51 policy recommendations to reform Victoria’s justice system.

The peak body has also called for the state government to reform the state’s bail laws and mandatory sentencing – laws that disproportionately impact women and Indigenous Victorians. Guardian Australia has reported that the Victorian government is spending $1m each day to keep unsentenced prisoners in jail.

LIV president, Tania Wolff, said parties should prioritise long-term reform as opposed to short-term policies.

The LIV Call to Parties sets out a clear agenda for improving the laws in this state. It would not be possible without the valuable input from LIV members. I thank all of those who contributed to this document and look forward to real action being taken on these issues by the next government.

Government pledges additional $20m to Timor-Leste’s budget support

The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, has announced $20m for Timor-Leste, while Timor-Leste wants a gas pipeline.

Wong has discussed the controversial Greater Sunrise project with her Timor-Leste counterpart, Adaljiza Magno.

Resources in the Timor Sea are estimated to be worth $71bn. Timor-Leste’s prime minister, José Ramos-Horta, has said his country could turn to China for support if Australia doesn’t support the bid to have the pipeline lead to Timor-Leste, rather than Darwin.

It’s a commercial decision by the partners (including Australia’s Woodside Energy), although there are regulatory changes the government could make to help a deal along.

Asked about Greater Sunrise, Wong said Timor-Leste’s economic resilience was important, and that Greater Sunrise was part of an economic diversification, but “not the only part”. She said:

We need to see how a way through can be found … that will be best done respectfully and directly, not through the media.

Wong, who impressively began the press conference speaking Portuguese, said $20m support would be given this financial year, on top of $100m in existing funding as well as support for labour mobility:

Australia will be providing an additional $20m from our Covid response package to Timor-Leste – funds to be provided as budget support, to co-fund finance programs managed and delivered by the government of Timor-Leste.

Asked about the looming presence of China in the region, she said smaller nations needed to work together, and that there needed to be a “regional order that reflects rules and norms”. She said:

We don’t want a situation where power and size is the only way in which disputes in this world become resolved.

On the trip she has also met with the president, Ramos-Horta, the prime minister, Taur Matan Ruak, and the finance minister, Rui Augusto Gomes.

Amanda Meade

ABC to air special Australian Story episode following Dawson verdict

The ABC will air a special episode of Australian Story at 8pm on Monday following the guilty verdict for Chris Dawson.

“Lyn Dawson – Vanished” will feature Lynette’s sister and brother behind the scenes as they prepare for the outcome of the murder trial and digest the guilty verdict, which was handed down in the New South Wales supreme court on Tuesday.

The episode will update a 2003 Australian Story about the disappearance of Lyn and the family’s desire to have her husband prosecuted.

There is another TV project in the works after Hedley Thomas, the Australian newspaper’s national chief correspondent and creator of the Teacher’s Pet, signed a deal with Jason Blum’s American production company Blumhouse for a TV series based on his hit podcast, which has been downloaded 60m times.

Peter Hannam

Education union welcomes Tafe announcement out of jobs summit

Perhaps not surprisingly, the Australian Education Union has welcomed Anthony Albanese’s summit-starter announcement of the 180,000 Tafe places.

The union notes these places add to the 465,000 fee-free TAFE places announced prior to the May federal election. AEU’s federal president, Correna Haythorpe, said:

Australia is facing skills shortages across states and territories, and across industries. There is an urgent need for skilled workers to secure our economy now and into the long term.

In making this announcement at the start of his opening address, the prime minister has acknowledged the critical role Tafe plays in Australia’s vocational education and training system, and placed it at the heart of the national jobs and skills agenda.

[With the $1.1bn funding,] Tafe can continue to provide high quality vocational education to help Australia rebuild following the pandemic, address skills shortages in the labour market and help ensure our future economic security.

Meanwhile, we’re still trying to clarify how that funding will be split between the federal, state and territory governments.

Paul Karp

Employers call for ‘sensible reform, not radical change’ on bargaining

The Australian Industry Group chief executive, Innes Willox, is leading the employer rearguard action against unions’ call for multi-employer bargaining.

Willox said the Fair Work Act was designed around bargaining at the enterprise level. He said:

That has been the bedrock for a very long time, which Paul Keating spoke about. We should not lose sight of that.

Willox said that industry has consistently said bargaining is “overly complicated and technical”, particularly in the way the “better off overall” test is applied. He said that “sensible reform, not radical change” can help achieve higher productivity and real wage rises.

On the ACTU call for multi-employer bargaining, Willox said AiG is not convinced of the need for “risky” reform. The ACTU had provided “little detail” to its proposal, leaving employers “deeply concerned”.

Willox warned that the proposal could cause “crippling industrial action” which “nobody wants”.

Guardian Australia understands that business groups including AiGroup, the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and ACTU have agreed on principles to reform the better off overall test, and that workplace relations minister Tony Burke will commit to do so later in this session.

The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s Andrew McKellar said this is “fundamental reform” that “has to be on the table”. He said Burke and his team have “worked to close the gap” to achieve near complete unanimity on the ways to reform the test.

Paul Karp

Opinions on multi-employer bargaining divided at jobs summit

Tim Reed from the BCA reiterated that it thinks bargaining should still occur “primarily at the enterprise level”, explaining why it didn’t sign up to the ACTU call for multi-employer bargaining.

IR expert Prof Anthony Forsyth has argued that limiting bargaining to a single entity “completely ignores how business has evolved”, with labour hire, franchising, outsourcing and other business models which “enable lead firms to exert significant economic power on wages down the chain, but avoid ever having to negotiate with them”.

Forsyth said that multi-employer agreements would help enable pay rises in childcare and aged care, which are female-dominated. He suggested that given the government is the primary funder in those sectors, it should also be around the bargaining table.

AMA demands release of health advice following decision to reduce Covid-19 isolation period

Josh Butler

The Australian Medical Association is demanding the release of health advice on reducing Covid isolation times to five days, saying the public should see the expert guidance on the change.

The AMA’s president, Prof Steve Robson, warned that “many people re-entering the community after five days’ isolation will potentially still be infectious and pass the virus on”.

Yesterday, national cabinet received advice from the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee (made up of federal and state chief health officers) that isolation could be reduced from seven days to five for people who are asymptomatic after that time. The seven-day period will be enforced for people who are symptomatic, or who work in health or aged care.

Robson said he worried up to 30% of people may still be infectious on day six or seven and beyond. He called for a “clear plan” for the vulnerable after this change, and said rules should tighten again if case numbers spike. He said:

Throughout this pandemic, the AMA has continuously said governments must base their decision-making on the health and medical advice, and we need to see that advice and whether it supports today’s decision. If it doesn’t, the politicians need to explain themselves.

Governments should also continue public health messaging on the importance of community vigilance around Covid testing and isolation requirements, community spread and vaccine uptake.

It’s a busy day in Parliament House with the jobs summit, but the AMA will hold a press conference later on to talk more about this.

Peter Hannam

Tafe places are positive, but support for trainers needed too: Ai group

Innes Willox, chief executive of the Ai Group, popped out of the jobs summit bubble for a few minutes during the morning break, to say “there was complete agreement around gender equality”.

Willox is looking for agreement on “the big issues and an approach of how to tackle them” as a measure of the summit’s success.

He described the announcement by PM Anthony Albanese for 180,000 new TAFE positions from 2023 as “a real positive” . Willox said:

It’s great there’s that commitment.

The big issue for that sector, and for training more generally, is getting the trainers and getting the equipment they need to train with.

So the places are one step, and then there’s the next step of actually fulfilling the needs of those extra students.

Willox said “you’ve got to find the extra 180,000 students who want to do TAFE courses”, which feeds into career counselling and other issues.

That points to some issues raised in this pre-summit piece we published a few days ago:

One takeaway is that places like Switzerland steer about 75% of high school graduates to vocational education and training – about double Australia’s share. That ship might take a bit of effort to turn, Down Under.