Health News at Your Fingertips

And that’s a wrap for the Australian politics liveblog for today. If you’re keen to keep up with what’s happening with the US mid-terms, follow along over here.

Here’s some of what we learned locally today:

• In the wake of a ransomware group beginning to publish Medibank customer data on the dark web overnight, the AFP announced it would expand Operation Guardian – which was set up to protect the 10,000 Optus customers who had their personal information posted online earlier this year – to those Medibank customers exposed.

• Clare O’Neil, the minister for home affairs and cybersecurity, said the fallout from the Medibank data breach could last months.

• The environment and water minister, Tanya Plibersek, said Coles and Woolworths need to “step up” and explain how they will deal with recycling soft plastics in the wake of the collapse of Australia’s biggest soft plastics recycler, REDCycle.

• The federal government used question time as an opportunity to target the previous government’s decision-making on the botched robodebt scheme through discussion of the royal commission. Mark Dreyfus called the scheme “shameful” while the opposition called the government’s use of question time to talk about the scheme “a politicised witch-hunt”.

• Meanwhile, in the robodebt royal commission itself, a former senior official conceded she failed to do anything to stop the scheme even though she knew it was unlawful.

• Advocates for survivors of child sexual abuse have welcomed the government’s announcement of $15m in new funds to help deal with backlogs and delays in the national redress scheme.

• Three Coalition politicians met with a senior Iranian diplomat in Canberra to directly call for an end to “violence, human rights abuses and persecution of Iranian women, girls and protesters”.

• Climate protesters attempted to deface one of the National Gallery of Australia’s prized modern art pieces, Andy Warhol’s Campbell’s soup cans, to protest a lack of action to address the climate crisis.

• The publicly owned Future Fund is investing billions into major polluting companies, Senate estimates questioning revealed.

• And Ged Kearney, the assistant health minister, and Anne Ruston, the shadow health minister, have joined together for a bipartisan announcement of clinics for endometriosis and pelvic pain.

Look after yourselves, mates, and we’ll be back with you bright and early tomorrow.

Peter Hannam

Cyclone reinsurance pool lowers expected premium cuts and is yet to sign up an insurer

Senate estimates has been hearing from the Australian Reinsurance Pool Corporation and its CEO, Chris Wallace, with the news not that promising for those in northern Australia hoping for some relief on soaring premiums.

First, the Labor senator Nita Green asked about how much cyclone-related insurance premiums were expected to fall given the Morrison government had promised drops of as much as 58%.

Well, as it turns out, the change of government meant Labor could get its mitts on the modelling and, lo and behold, the reductions in premiums were much less. Two cracks at getting a better fix in June and then October now points to much smaller reductions, ranging between 6% and 32%, so Wallace said.

As Green stated, “people have had enough of being lied to or misled”, with a barb towards the previous government.

We’ll have more on this soon, but it’s fair to say many locals are already seeing premiums climb, so there won’t be much benefit when it lands.

And that won’t be until the end of next year for big insurers and the end of 2024 for smaller insurers – none of which have signed up so far, Wallace said.

So, the bottom line – there may be relief but for many there are two cyclone seasons to get through. And a parliamentary inquiry later this month to hear more about troubles with the scheme.

Stay tuned.

Ex-official concedes she failed to stop robodebt despite knowing it was unlawful, inquiry hears

Luke Henriques-Gomes

A former senior official has conceded she failed to do anything to stop the robodebt scheme even though she knew it was unlawful, a royal commission has heard.

Under questioning by the senior counsel assisting, Justin Greggery, the former Department of Social Services official Serena Wilson accepted that by 2017 she was fully aware welfare debts were being raised using a method called “income averaging”.

She was also aware of 2014 advice from her department’s lawyers saying such a practice was likely unlawful.

Greggery said as the deputy secretary of the department Wilson was in a position to do something but “took no steps to stop it”.

He said:

You had an opportunity to do something about it and you didn’t, disregarding the consequences to those who had been subjected to the unlawful scheme.

He said Wilson had failed to act with “actual knowledge of the consequences of the raising of unlawful debts on a large scale”.

After a long pause, Wilson replied:

Yes, I think you’re right.

Greggery said she was “duty bound” to provide “full and frank advice” but instead took steps to ensure the “continuation of what you then believed to be unlawful”.

He said she had “breached the [Australian Public Service] code of conduct” by her “deliberate choice”. Wilson accepted this was the case.

The inquiry continues.

There are fears for two pilots involved in an aviation incident north of Brisbane after reports of a collision involving two light aircraft, AAP reports.

Three Queensland Fire and Emergency Services crews responded to the incident at Kybong, north of Brisbane, at about 3pm on Wednesday.

Two aircraft were found in a paddock, separated by a distance of about 400 metres, a QFES spokesman said.

Crews had to make their way on foot for about 100 metres to gain access to the site.

Emergency services have now left and Queensland police remain on scene.

Inspector Brad Inskip is expected to hold a press conference with further details later in the day.

Going to Cop27? Take home this snazzy gift bag.

My colleague on the inequality round, Luke Henriques-Gomes, has been following the robodebt royal commission all week and live-tweeting as well as reporting on it. Today’s evidence has been pretty upsetting.

You can click through and follow his tweet thread for more as today’s hearing is still going; I’ve linked to his latest story proper a few blocks down too.

Here’s today’s Afternoon Update – for all the news you missed and everything you want to catch up on, courtesy of Antoun Issa:

Here’s a little teaser for our forthcoming video series on the Victorian state election later this month, from the queen of one-minute explainers, Matilda Boseley, and our excellent Victorian state reporters, Benita Kolovos and Adeshola Ore.

Melbourne Luna Park’s ‘Mr Moon’ to get a facelift

Just stepping away from politics for a brief moment to bring you the very important news, per AAP, that the giant face at the entrance to Luna Park Melbourne, “Mr Moon”, is having a facelift for the first time since 1999.

The face with a gaping mouth, which has swallowed up visitors entering the park since 1912, is undergoing a restoration as part of the theme park’s 110th anniversary celebrations.

Local Melbourne artist Mark Ogge is completing the work, which will be overseen by Bob Clutterbuck – the last person to paint Mr Moon.

The face has been restored several times over the years, taking it from its original chicken wire, hessian, and cement form to the fibreglass model unveiled and last painted in 1999.

Daniel Hurst

Defence considering contract for three more navy ships

Defence officials have confirmed the Australian government is considering a proposal from the Spanish company Navantia to build three more ships for the navy, with it now subject to a risk study.

Navantia’s pitch to build three additional Hobart-class destroyers has previously been the subject of media reporting. The company has argued it could provide “additional firepower” this decade to fill capability gaps.

At Senate estimates this afternoon, Defence confirmed the company had made an unsolicited proposal with three options: build the destroyers in Spain with some modules in Australia; build them in Spain but with the combat system integration largely done in Australia; and build them entirely in Australia.

Defence has ordered analysts from Rand Corporation to do a “risk reduction study” on the proposal so the government can weigh up the idea. An official, Tony Dalton, said:

It’s quite a complex unsolicited proposal … so we have taken some more time and have sought some external support to conduct that assessment of that proposal.

The navy was first approached with the first unsolicited proposal in May.

Dalton said the company had submitted a second unsolicited proposal within the past four weeks, which “added some more capability options to the three destroyers”.

He said Navantia was also offering to build six small warships known as corvettes. To date, this second idea has not been sent to Rand for review. Navantia has also pitched this to the defence strategic review.

Thunderstorm asthma risk in parts of Victoria tomorrow

There’s a high risk of thunderstorm asthma tomorrow in Wimmera in Victoria, and moderate risk across the state’s west.

Luke Henriques-Gomes

Official says she failed to tell Scott Morrison scheme could be unlawful

A former senior Department of Social Services official, who was given damning legal advice the robodebt scheme was unlawful, has told a royal commission she lacked the “courage” to speak up and was now “ashamed”.

In dramatic hearings on Wednesday, the royal commission was told Serena Wilson, a former deputy secretary at DSS, was made aware of the legal advice in early 2015 when the scheme was being designed.

But she said she failed to personally tell former prime minister Scott Morrison the plan could be unlawful as she was under the belief it had already been “killed”.

Wilson then claimed she was unaware for about two years that the unlawful “income averaging” method was being used in the robodebt scheme, saying she had been given assurances by another official, Malisa Golightly, who has since died.

Wilson said she finally realised the unlawful method was being used in the “latter part” of 2017, but she did not have the “courage” to tell anyone.

She told the hearing:

And now I’m ashamed. And in hindsight I could have spoken up.

Read the full story here: