Health News at Your Fingertips

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has been busy today, announcing a review in the RBA and appearing in the media, although I wanted to zero in on one particular line.

Chalmers was asked about highly indebted households on RN Breakfast this morning, and to what extent they will be able to withstand any further rate rises.

Chalmers did not give much positivity in his answer, conceding it was a “mixed bag”:

It’s a mixed bag.

It depends how marginal you are in your home loan. It depends on your wages. It depends on your other financial circumstances. Certainly, some people have been able to build a buffer in their mortages [during the pandemic]. But not everybody.

So these rate rises, which are designed to take some of the pace out of the economy, they will do that. That will impact on some people harder than others.

These interest rate rises are very difficult for people to accomodate in their household budgets at the same time [that] they’re dealing with the skyrocketing costs of petrol and groceries and electricity and other essentials.

So I don’t underestimate the impact these rate rises are having.

Thanks Natasha, and good afternoon all, its been a busy day with much to come, so let’s dive in.

I just shared Mostafa Rachwani’s story on the wild weather expected in NSW and Queensland, and now I am handing you over to the man himself who will be with you on the blog into the evening.

Mostafa Rachwani

Fears of coastal erosion in NSW and Queensland

More wild weather is on the way for parts of Queensland and northern New South Wales, with heavy rain, damaging winds and hazardous surf bringing the risk of coastal erosion.

It comes as a cold snap grips south-east Australia, driving temperatures down and bringing with it widespread frost.

The Bureau of Meteorology has predicted damaging wind, huge swells and heavy rain along the stretch of the southern Queensland coast from Wednesday and northern NSW from Friday.

Viral fragments of foot and mouth disease and African swine fever have been detected in pork products at a Melbourne retailer, AAP reports.

Australia remains free of the diseases as the live virus was not detected, but agriculture minister Murray Watt reiterated the importance of biosecurity measures.

The products, believed to be imported from China, were detected in the Melbourne CBD as part of routine surveillance and have been seized.

It’s the first time viral fragments have been detected in a retail setting, Senator Watt said. He told reporters in Brisbane:

This is not the first time in Australian history that we have picked up foot and mouth disease viral fragments in meat products – it’s happened a number of other times in airport settings.

I want to assure people that our systems have worked, we have monitored this, we have undertaken surveillance operations and these products have been found, tested and now seized.

Further investigations about how the products entered Australia was being taken and it was likely prosecutions would occur, Senator Watt said.

SA rocket missions approved for launch

Two sub-orbital rockets will be launched from South Australia after federal government approval for the missions, AAP reports.

Rocket manufacturer ATSpace and spaceport provider Southern Launch will launch the Kestrel I rockets from the Whalers Way complex on Eyre Peninsula in coming months.

The VS02 and VS03 missions will fly the experimental rockets along sub-orbital trajectories to test their design under different operating conditions.

On the ground, the collection of rocket noise data during lift-off will also contribute valuable knowledge for the future operation of the Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex.

Southern Launch chief executive Lloyd Damp said the missions would provide significant data to be used to inform best practice during future launch campaigns and the development of South Australia’s space industry. He said:

Southern Launch is committed to advancing a sustainable local space launch industry in Australia,” he said.

This industry will create new high-paying, skilled jobs for regional and rural Australians and in doing so, will advance Australia’s science and technology capabilities.”

Here are the latest coronavirus numbers from around Australia today, as the country records at least 90 deaths from Covid-19:

ACT

• Deaths: 0
• Cases: 961
• In hospital: 160 (with 4 people in ICU)

NSW

• Deaths: 20
• Cases: 15,352
• In hospital: 2,236 (with 63 people in ICU)

Northern Territory

• Deaths: 0
• Cases: 642
• In hospital: 68 (with 1 person in ICU)

Queensland

• Deaths: 15
• Cases: 9,650
• In hospital: 1,034 (with 21 people in ICU)

South Australia

• Deaths: 22
• Cases: 4,774
• In hospital: 323 (with 11 people in ICU)

Tasmania

• Deaths: 3
• Cases: 1,586
• In hospital: 49 (with 2 people in ICU)

Victoria

• Deaths: 28
• Cases: 12,984
• In hospital: 906 (with 45 people in ICU)

Western Australia

• Deaths: 2
• Cases: 7,901
• In hospital: 457 (with 22 people in ICU)

Tamsin Rose

Icac finds Sidoti engaged in “serious corrupt conduct”

Former New South Wales Liberal minister John Sidoti has been found to have engaged in “serious corrupt conduct” by the state’s Independent Commission Against Corruption.

The findings were made public on Wednesday afternoon after an almost three-year investigation into the independent Drummoyne MP’s conduct.

The commission found Sidoti had used his official role as a member of parliament to try and “improperly influence” City of Canada Bay councillors in relation to properties in Five Dock that would benefit his family.

The report read:

The Commission found that Mr Sidoti engaged in serious corrupt conduct by, between approximately late 2013 and February 2017, engaging in a protracted course of conduct, involving the use of his official position as a member of Parliament and the local member for Drummoyne, to try to improperly influence CCBC Liberal councillors, Helen McCaffrey, Mirjana Cestar and Tanveer Ahmed, to adopt and advance certain positions in relation to the Five Dock town centre that would benefit his family’s property interests in the area.

Despite his representations that he was acting at all times in the interests of his constituents, in particular, the business community and landowners in the Waterview Street block, the outcomes that he wanted those councillors to deliver were entirely directed to his private interest in increasing the development potential of his family’s growing number of properties in and around the Five Dock town centre.

Icac said it would seek the advice of the director of public prosecutions on whether criminal charges should be pursued.

The commission also made 15 recommendations in the report including changes to the way members of parliament are trained about the improper exercise of power and undue influence, in line with findings made in the investigation.

“We no longer hold out hope”: search for missing fishers ends

Police have concluded a search and rescue operation for three fishers who have been missing off waters in Far North Queensland since Sunday.

In a statement Queensland Police say they searched more than 3,000 square kilometres in the first day increasing daily, over surface, air and land.

Following the rescue of a fourth member of the group, found floating in waters off North Barnard Island Group on Monday July 11, all subsequent efforts have failed to locate his three companions, debris or items of investigative value following the failure of the stricken vessel’s outboard motor and capsize.

Acting Inspector Cassowary Coast Patrol Group, Brett Jenkins said the outcome was heartbreaking for the families of the missing men, the rescued man, the community and search party.

Regrettably, despite the best efforts of all members of the search and rescue team, whose dedication was nothing short of commendable, we have been unable to locate the men.

Tragically, while we no longer hold out hope for a positive outcome, I ask the community to be vigilant, boaties in particular, who are asked to report any debris or information to police.

Jenkins urged people to be prepared and alert to conditions.

Before you set out, ensure you tell a responsible person about your itinerary to raise the alarm early if you come into trouble.

Always take an EPIRB—and ensure all parties know where it’s located and how to activate it, the earlier the better if need be. And always, always don your life jacket at sea.

After lengthy questioning (nearly an hour) about the Ibac report, the Victorian premier is now fronting questions about the surge in Covid-19 cases and mask mandates.

Andrews says that after the National Cabinet meeting this past weekend, Australians will not see mask mandates return.

If you are asking me, is it my view that these rules are going to change? No, they have only just been made and I would also make the point to you that the National Cabinet on Saturday and, again I’m not here to comment for other premiers, but I think it is fair to say, from a conversation that went around the room, you’re not going to see mask mandates around the country, but you will see consistent advice from government that it is strongly recommended that people wear masks inside, people act on their symptoms, get tested, isolate.

He also said there is “unity” around wanting to reduce the isolation period down from seven days but “right now it is not the time to do it.”

Somyurek expresses relief and anger, Albanese confidence for Victorian Labor going forward

The Andrews press conference is still happening, with the premier continuing to face questions and criticisms in the face of what the state integrity agency’s findings have revealed of the Victorian Labor party.

Andrews has apologised and taken responsibility for the findings. These are some of the other reactions that have come through to IBAC findings.

The former Labor MP Adem Somyurek said:

On the one level, I’m happy. I’m relieved. I feel exonerated. I feel some good emotions on the one side because I’m finally getting my life back. But on the other side, I’m very angry.

Prime minister Anthony Albanese said:

What we have is a different set of rules and structures, different personnel in place, as a result of the need to ensure that people could have confidence in the Victorian Labor party going forward. I have that confidence and I note that the Australian people, in particular people in Victoria, expressed that confidence by electing additional Labor members to the federal parliament.

with AAP

Homicide squad and forensic field officer teams on their way to Port Hedland

Earlier this morning we shared the horrific news that three young children died in a house fire in the Pilbara town of Port Hedland.

WA Police held a press conference earlier today where acting deputy commissioner Allan Adams said:

Police will continue an investigation into the tragic deaths of what is believed to be three children after a house fire in Port Hedland.

The bodies of the three children were located during the firefighting operation.

Local police and detectives were at the scene yesterday.

A homicide squad and our forensic field officer teams are on their way to Port Hedland as we speak.

The mother of the believed to be deceased children is assisting police with their investigations in Port Hedland.

This tragedy will have a profound effect in the Port Hedland area, the family and extended family, and across the state.

Whenever we see these types of incidents occur they resonate through every West Australian.

Jumping back to NSW state politics, Icac has found Drummoyne MP John Sidoti engaged in “serious corrupt conduct”.

Behaviour was “unprecedented” premier says

Daniel Andrews is asked if he regrets not having acted in the decades he has been in parliament.

I am not looking backwards. What I will say is this, the truly shocking and unprecedented nature of what was going on is noted and the scale of this, the unique nature of this is noted by the agency today in the report.

It became known to us at about nine o’clock on Sunday night. By nine o’clock Monday morning, I had sacked a minister and set about an extreme intervention, and unprecedented intervention by a national party to essentially take over the Victorian party.

We did not wait because there was no time to wait, Jenny Macklin and Steve Bracks have worked hard to put down recommendations and have faithfully delivered on all of those. There is more work to be done, of course, and this report calls on us to do that, but also to just have this is a function of the rules of the party.

Victoria committing to “the largest overhaul of the integrity system in the country” attorney general says

The attorney general, Jaclyn Symes, has taken to the mic :

We thank the integrity agency for their important work. We are not shying away from the findings of the report and apologise for the conduct any members of the government have been involved in and committing to the largest overhaul of the integrity system in the country.

Symes says she is confident of bipartisan support in implementing recommendations and will start from today bringing together committees to progress them:

There is a good set of recommendations in the report and 21 will be supported by the government but as a premier has indicated, this is about the whole parliament, Victorian expectations, their representatives, and it is a good starting point, and ethics committee, bipartisan, multiparty membership of the ethics committee which will further develop the recommendations in the report because they go to the function of the Parliament, the function of MP more importantly, and I’m confident of bipartisan support.

As leader of the government in the upper house, it is common practice for me to deal with multi-parties and know this is something many members of Parliament will be interested in.

Andrews promises to go beyond the 21 recommendations in the report to respond to “disgraceful behaviour”:

To give you some examples, payment of benefits by traceable means, checks and balances to make sure the electoral roll is properly used, production of photo ID when a person joins a political party.

It is not good enough and not enough, you have those as a matter of party rules and they should be the law of the state … I have indicated this to both the Ombudsman and the Ibac Commissioner but we will go well beyond that by writing that into law.

If a political party did not have processes, practices and plans to deliver all of those things and potentially things like external audits like we have had – the most extensive perhaps in Australian political history – if a political party did not take these seriously and deliver those things and more, than they would not be eligible for public funding. Public funding which of course increased substantially when we made sweeping donation reforms at the end of 2018.

In more general terms, but the report tabled today shows is absolutely disgraceful behaviour. Behaviour that does not meet my expectations or the expectations of hard-working members of the Victorian committee.

Andrews takes “full responsibility” and apologises

Andrews has said:

As leader of the party and leader of our state I take full responsibility for that conduct. That is what the top job is about and I apologise for it.

Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, is speaking in response to the release of the state’s integrity agency’s report into Labor’s branch stacking scandal.

Andrews says the government will accept all 21 recommendations and “go well beyond” those recommendations in terms of reform.

Josh Taylor

ACCC trialling scam website takedown

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is quietly trialling a new service to take down phishing websites, with dozens taken down in the past three weeks.

The phishing sites – where they impersonate businesses in order to steal personal information and banking credentials – were taken down by UK company Netcraft in a trial by the ACCC and the Australian Securities and Investment Commission, ACCC chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb told a Law Council of Australia event on Tuesday.

The automatic takedown trial is focused on scam websites reported to the ACCC’s Scamwatch site, and to ASIC, and is the same used in the past four years by the UK’s national cyber security centre.

Cass-Gottlieb said:

Over the past three weeks we have submitted more than 300 malicious websites targeting Australians to the service, resulting in dozens of takedowns to date with dozens more pending. Many of these are phishing sites impersonating Australian businesses and government authorities, though others relate to puppy scams, shoe scams, cryptocurrency investment scams and tech support scams.

She said it was one piece of the puzzle in disrupting scam sites, in addition to informing consumers about scams, and getting more organisations to identify and disrupt scams as they arise.

We note Industry Codes are still being developed in many areas, but in any event organisations should already be taking the following steps in relation to phishing scam prevention.

Organisations know when they are a regular target of impersonation by scammers. Organisations should actively monitor for, warn about, and request the removal of websites impersonating their brand. Complaining of a branding or copyright violation to a website hosting provider is fast and easily proven relative to, for example, the ACCC requesting a website’s removal for not delivering goods after customer payment.

She said phishing scams were the most common scams Australians experience, with 32,000 reports in the first half of 2022 alone.

Cass-Gottlieb also took aim at banks for not doing enough to prevent people being taken in by cryptocurrency scams. She noted that one bank in the UK blocks all transfers to cryptocurrency exchanges, and while the ACCC isn’t calling for that, banks should be alert for customers who wouldn’t normally transfer money to such exchanges.