Image: Virtual Global Taskforce to be led by AFP for the next three years (Source: AFP)
The Australian Federal Police (AFP), through the AFP-led Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE), has taken on the chair of the Virtual Global Taskforce (VGT) for the next three years.
The VGT, a global alliance of 15 law enforcement agencies, has been tackling the growing threat of child sexual abuse, particularly online, since its establishment in 2004. This international collaboration was born from the increasing danger of offenders targeting children through online social interactions and travelling abroad to commit abuse.
The AFP has previously chaired the VGT between 2009 and 2012. Since then, the landscape has evolved, with the threat becoming more complex and the rise of the ACCCE, which saw a significant spike in reports of online child sexual exploitation. In the 2023-24 financial year alone, the ACCCE received 58,000 reports, an increase of approximately 18,000 from the previous year.
Assistant Commissioner Justine Gough, Chair of the VGT, highlighted the global scale and complexity of online child sexual exploitation, noting that technology allows offenders to operate without geographical limits. “The Virtual Global Taskforce provides a collaborative and united approach to tackling child sexual abuse,” she said.
“A collaborative approach is essential as technology allows offenders to operate without geographic limits.”
The VGT’s mission includes knowledge exchange, global influence, threat scanning, and collaboration across borders to combat online and offline child sexual abuse. The AFP, working alongside the VGT Board of Management, will continue to drive innovative solutions to tackle this ever-evolving threat.
The VGT now includes 15 law enforcement agencies, including those from the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, Colombia, the Philippines, the UAE, and several other nations. The AFP assumed the chair on 1 November 2024, taking on this crucial responsibility for a three-year term.
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The Reserve Bank cut official interest rates on Tuesday, the first decrease in four years, saying inflationary pressures are easing “a little more quickly than expected”.
However, the central bank said the outlook for economic activity and inflation remains uncertain, with a risk that household spending may be slower than expected.
The reduction in the cash rate target will come as a relief to the one-third of households with a mortgage. It will help to ease the cost of living crisis for them.
The cut from a 13-year high of 4.35% to 4.1% had been widely expected by economists and financial markets.
Announcing its decision, the Reserve Bank said it had “more confidence that inflation is moving sustainably towards the midpoint of the 2-3% target”.
All four of the major banks swiftly passed on the cut in official rates to mortgage-holders. The average new housing loan is $666,000. Reducing the interest rate on this by 0.25% will mean $110 less a month in repayments (assuming a standard 30-year loan).
It is the first change in the cash rate since November 2023 and marks the first small reversal of 13 rate increases. The central bank had hiked interest rates quickly from the near-zero emergency level during the COVID epidemic and lockdowns.
The interest rate cut comes after headline inflation eased, to 2.4% during 2024, within the Bank’s 2-3% inflation target range.
However, the Bank’s preferred measure of underlying inflation, the “trimmed mean”, which excludes temporary factors such as the government’s electricity rebates, rose by 3.2% during 2024. This is just above the target range but a little less than the 3.4% the Bank had been forecasting.
“We cannot declare victory on inflation just yet,” Reserve Bank Governor Michele Bullock told a press conference after the decision. “It’s not good enough for it to be back in the target range temporarily, the board needs to be confident it’s returning to the target range sustainably.”
The RBA and the election
In its first meeting for the year, the Reserve Bank board rejected the notion that they should hold off changing rates because an election is approaching.
While cutting interest rates will suit one side of politics, not cutting would have benefited the other. The impartial approach is to take the same decision as if no election were looming.
As then RBA governor Glenn Stevens said in 2007 after raising rates during an election campaign:
I do not think we ever could accept the idea that in an election year — which, after all, is one year out of three — you cannot change interest rates.
How does the Reserve Bank compare with other central banks?
Some central banks in comparable economies had already started lowering interest rates and have cut them by more than the RBA. But that is because most had raised interest rates by more.
The Reserve Bank adopted a strategy of being more patient in returning inflation to its target, so as to limit the increase in unemployment.
The strategy has worked. Unemployment in Australia peaked at 4.2% and is now 4.0%. By contrast, in New Zealand it is over 5% and in the euro area and Canada it is over 6%.
The Reserve Bank hasn’t received the credit it deserves for this strong performance.
Where to from here?
This is the last meeting of the current Reserve Bank board. It is being replaced by a new monetary policy committee, and a separate governance board as part of an overhaul of the bank. Two new members will replace two members of the current board for its next meeting on April 1.
The RBA board’s statement said that it “remains cautious on prospects for further policy easing”. This is central bank-speak for not rushing into further interest rate cuts.
The RBA also noted that “geopolitical and policy uncertainties are pronounced”. This is a reference to the economic fallout from United States President Donald Trump’s policies on trade and slashing jobs.
His proposed tariffs and deportations will increase inflation in the US and make US interest rates higher than they otherwise would be.
But this does not mean interest rates need to be higher here. Indeed, a trade war would weaken the global economy, which could lead to less inflation in Australia.
The Reserve Bank also released its updated forecasts. These show the underlying inflation rate dropping to 2.7% by June and then staying around there through 2026 and 2027.
Unemployment is low at 4%, and below what the Bank has previously regarded as “full employment”. But it is not leading to any surge in wage growth.
Indeed, the Bank commented that wages growth has been a little lower than it had forecast. Inflationary expectations are also well contained.
This offers hope there may be at least one further interest rate cut later this year (and the Reserve Bank’s forecasts assume this). But borrowers should not get their hopes up that interest rates will revisit the COVID-era lows. That is very unlikely.
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Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) investigators are focusing on a charging e-bike battery as the cause of a fatal house fire this morning at Guildford in Sydney’s west.
FRNSW crews have confirmed there were no working smoke alarms in the Rowley Road house that caught alight, just before 5am today (18th February 2025).
Responding to multiple Triple Zero (000) calls, firefighters found a bedroom in the home well ablaze. There were reports of a person trapped inside and crews quickly entered the burning building to carry out a search.
A man was located in the bedroom and removed from the property but tragically, he could not be revived. Sources have confirmed to The Australia Today that the man who was killed in the fire was of Indian Subcontinental origin. He has not been formally identified yet.
Five other people evacuated the home prior to the arrival of firefighters and were assessed for smoke inhalation by NSW Ambulance paramedics, with one person transported to hospital.
Crews were able to contain the fire to the bedroom but the remainder of the home suffered smoke damage.
The FRNSW Fire Investigation and Research Unit (FIRU) has examined the scene with Police forensic experts.
They have determined that an incompatible charger was powering the e-bike battery in the bedroom at the time of the fire.
The food delivery bike itself was found outside the home.
The Fire Investigators believe the battery was unable to absorb the energy generated by the charger and overheated, likely causing the fire.
FRNSW and NSW Police are preparing information for the Coroner.
Fire and Rescue NSW is urging the public not to mix and match batteries and chargers to prevent lithium-ion fires. Always charge lithium-ion battery devices with their dedicated power packs.
FRNSW is also reminding homeowners and landlords that working smoke alarms save lives. Every home must have a working smoke alarm, and landlords have an added legislative requirement that they must be less than 10 years old and are checked annually. For more information, visit www.fire.nsw.gov.au/smokealarms
For further information on lithium-ion batteries and how to shop, charge and recycle safely, visit www.fire.nsw.gov.au/chargesafe
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U.S. President Donald Trump has announced a new trade policy that will impose “reciprocal tariffs” on imports, matching the duties that other nations levy on American goods.
In a social media post, Trump declared,
“On trade, I have decided, for purposes of fairness, that I will charge a RECIPROCAL Tariff—meaning, whatever countries charge the United States of America, we will charge them—no more, no less!”
The move signals a departure from the idea of universal tariffs, where all imports would face the same tax. Instead, the administration plans to tailor tariffs to mirror the import duties of trade partners. For instance, if a country taxes American-made cars at 10%, the U.S. will impose the same 10% tariff on vehicles from that nation.
On Trade, I have decided, for purposes of Fairness, that I will charge a RECIPROCAL Tariff meaning, whatever Countries charge the United States of America, we will charge them – No more, no less!
For purposes of this United States Policy, we will consider Countries that use the…
Trump also outlined plans to consider other trade barriers, including value-added taxes (VAT), subsidies, and non-monetary restrictions, such as regulatory hurdles that prevent U.S. businesses from operating abroad.
“This system will immediately bring fairness and prosperity back into the previously complex and unfair system of trade,”
The President signed a memorandum on February 13, instructing his trade and economic advisors to calculate new tariff levels for all trading partners within 180 days. He emphasised that countries wishing to avoid U.S. tariffs could simply reduce or remove their own trade restrictions.
Image: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi with US President Donald Trump at The White House (Image: X)
The European Union swiftly condemned the policy, calling it “unjustified” and vowing to retaliate against any trade barriers. India and Japan have begun discussions with U.S. officials to assess the implications for their economies.
The White House has defended the strategy as a measure to protect American industries and reduce trade deficits. Trump has argued that the policy will encourage foreign companies to manufacture within the U.S., eliminating tariffs altogether for businesses that relocate production.
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Image: Dr Shailendra Singh responds to a question during a panel discussion at the conference while colleagues Johnson Honimae, CEO and veteran journalist SIBC and Jo Elsom, ABC International Development, listen intently (Source: Supplied)
By Monika Singh
Acting Prime Minister Prof. Biman Prasad has commended the University of the South Pacific’s Journalism Programme for its contributions to journalism scholarship, particularly its research on Pacific media, which has been published in top-ranked international journals.
Prof. Prasad made this remark and highlighted the contribution of the head of the programme, Associate Professor Shailendra Singh, to the discipline, in his keynote and opening address at the Asia Pacific Broadcasting Union and the Fijian Broadcasting Corporation’s (FBC) Pacific Media Partnership Conference 2025, held at the Suva Civic Centre on Tuesday. The conference coincided with the 70th anniversary of FBC Radio, the formal launch of FBC’s Media Academy and World Radio Day 2025.
He emphasised the importance of media training and urged media organisations to look beyond daily routines and deadlines to reflect on and advance the industry and profession.
Image: (From left to right): Fiji Broadcasting Corporation’s chief executive Tarun Patel, FBC Board member Hemendra Nagin, Professor Prasad, ABU Director of News Deborah Steele and Vanuatu Broadcasting & Television Corporation’s CEO Francis Herman at the conference (Source: MINISTRY OF FINANCE)
“Research into the media in Fiji and the Pacific is essential to inform and improve journalism,” he said.
“The USP Journalism Programme is the only institution conducting regular research on Pacific media, addressing a critical gap in international understanding of journalism cultures worldwide.”
As a strong advocate for media freedom, academic freedom, and knowledge creation, Prof. Prasad highlighted that the government had restored USP’s annual Government of Fiji grant funding, which had been halted by the previous administration.
“This anti-USP and anti-intellectual action, driven by political motives and the former government’s personal dislike of those who disagreed with it, was one of the most egregious attacks on academia, with far-reaching consequences not just for Fiji, but for the entire region.”
Prof. Prasad stated that reinstating the USP grant revitalised the university’s academic culture and enabled government support for USP Journalism’s 2024 Pacific International Media Conference in July.
He underscored the value of such conferences, noting that they provided a platform to share ideas, reflect on media practices, and engage in critical debates.
Image: The book Waves of Change: Media, Peace, and Development in the Pacific, was launched by PNG Communications and Technology Minister, Timothy Masiu, at the 2024 Pacific International Media Conference hosted by The University of the South Pacific in Suva (Picture: SUPPLIED)
Prof. Prasad, who was a keynote speaker at the 2024 Pacific International Media Conference in Suva, co-edited the book Waves of Change: Media, Peace, and Development in the Pacific with colleagues Dr Singh and Dr Amit Sarwal, former Deputy Head of School (Research) at the School of Pacific Arts, Communication and Education and currently a consultant with the Journalism Programme.
He highlighted that his co-authored chapter advocates for journalism in the Pacific to reflect national and regional contexts while integrating conflict-sensitive reporting to strengthen the media’s watchdog role and ensure public accountability.
“A chapter I co-authored, titled ‘Peace Journalism and Conflict Reporting in Fragile Pacific Societies: Challenges and Opportunities,’ argues that journalism in the Pacific region must be informed by national and regional contexts while critically examining alternative reporting frameworks, such as conflict-sensitive reporting, to complement and balance the media’s watchdog role. This is crucial for the public interest, including holding leaders to account.”
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Between 1 December 2024 and 31 January 2025, AFP officers were called to 4205 incidents across the country’s major airports. Almost half of the charges related to offences against people or property, including a 34-year-old woman at Perth Airport who allegedly assaulted two AFP officers, leaving one hospitalised with facial and neck injuries.
Other charges involved breaches of security zones and the presence of unattended or prohibited items.
AFP Aviation Commander Craig Bellis reaffirmed the agency’s zero-tolerance approach to antisocial, violent, or dangerous behaviour at airports and on flights.
“Travelling through our airports should be a safe experience, which is why the AFP and its government and industry partners work closely to prevent, disrupt, and respond to security and criminal threats,” he said.
Bellis, who took on the role in July 2024, oversees security at nine AFP-led airports across the country. Western Sydney Airport will become the tenth when it opens in early 2026.
With passenger numbers at AFP-protected airports reaching 134 million in 2023-24, authorities anticipate an even busier travel season ahead. The AFP has already responded to 15,697 incidents at designated airports since 1 July 2024.
The AFP is responsible for security at nine major airports, including Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, and Adelaide, providing uniformed and specialist protection to safeguard Australia’s aviation infrastructure from threats.
Passengers are encouraged to remain vigilant and report suspicious activity to Airport Watch on 131 237. Warning signs include individuals displaying excessive interest in security procedures, taking photos in sensitive areas, acting unusually, or attempting to access restricted zones.
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By Louise Birrell, Cath Chapman, and Katrina Prior
Australians are waiting an average of 12 years to seek treatment for mental health and substance use disorders, our new research shows.
While many of us are proactive in looking after our physical health, we appear to be seriously neglecting our mental health, suffering for many years before reaching out for help. Some people never seek help.
In our research, the length of delay in seeking help varied depending on the type of mental health problem and other factors such as sex and age.
But delays in getting help mean mental health problems can become more complex, severe and difficult to treat. So it’s important to understand why these delays occur – and how we can reduce them.
Among the information collected in this survey, respondents were asked about their history of mental health and substance use problems, and when they first sought help from a medical doctor or other professional regarding their symptoms (if at all).
The survey asked about the most common types of mental health and substance use problems in the general population under three broad categories: mood disorders (for example, depression and bipolar disorder), anxiety disorders (such as social anxiety disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder) and substance use disorders.
People with mood disorders waited an average of three years before seeking treatment, those with substance use disorders waited an average of eight, and people with anxiety disorders waited the longest to seek treatment – 11 years on average.
We found people experiencing panic disorder, a type of anxiety disorder, had some of the shortest delays (an average of two years), while those with social anxiety disorder waited the longest (13 years).
The average delay across all mental health and substance use disorders – 12 years – was calculated based on the prevalence of different conditions. Anxiety disorders, particularly social anxiety disorder, are the most common, which brought up this average.
We also looked at how many people would eventually seek help across their lifetime. Nearly everyone with depression (94%) eventually sought help, but only 25% of people with an alcohol use disorder ever did.
Women were less likely than men to seek help for alcohol or other drug-related problems but were more likely to reach out for help with anxiety or mood-related concerns.
Gen Z and millennials were much more likely to seek help than older generations. Compared to people born before 1972, those born between 1992 and 2005 were more than four times as likely to seek treatment for a drug or alcohol problem, more than twice as likely to seek help for a mood disorder, and nearly four times as likely to seek help for an anxiety problem.
Some limitations
While the ABS survey is one of the largest and most comprehensive in Australia, it relies on people remembering and accurately reporting when they first experienced symptoms of a mental health or substance use problem, and when they first sought support.
It was also conducted during the COVID pandemic, a time of heightened stress and increased mental health challenges. However, the impact of this is probably small, given people were asked about their experiences across their entire lifetime.
The survey also didn’t measure less common (but very impactful) mental health problems such as psychosis or eating disorders.
How do delays compare to other countries?
While this data is not perfect, the delays we observed are mostly in line with those seen in other countries. In some ways we are actually doing better.
The relatively short delays for seeking help for a mood disorder (for example, depression, for which the average delay was three years) are largely consistent with similar studies in the United States, New Zealand, Europe and Asia.
While still lengthy, the average delay of 11 years to seek treatment for an anxiety disorder in Australia appears similar if not shorter than in many other countries (ranging between 10–30 years).
What’s more, when it comes to seeking help for problems with alcohol, things seem to be improving. While overall delays remain long, and most people still don’t seek help for alcohol problems, the delay in getting help appears to have shortened over time in Australia.
The average time to seek treatment for alcohol use disorder is now eight years shorter than the 18-year delay reported in 2007. This may be due to increased awareness and education around the impact of alcohol use.
Why do people delay reaching out for help?
There are a range of reasons someone may delay seeking help. Services are not always available and many carry high out-of-pocket costs. Fear and stigma play a significant role, while many people simply may not know where to seek support or what might help.
Finding the right treatment can be hard and while some people recover without help, for many these delays come at a huge cost. Delays mean problems can become more complex, severe and difficult to treat.
We need to actively encourage early help-seeking, as well as continue efforts to reduce the stigma associated with poor mental health. Expanding anti-stigma campaigns and education to encourage people to seek help early could assist with this.
Alongside these efforts it’s essential that effective treatment services are accessible when people do reach out for help. There has been chronic underinvestment in the mental health treatment system over many decades, while prevalence rates have increased. We need continued and increased investment in mental health treatment, prevention and early intervention.
Ultimately, by empowering future generations to be proactive about their mental health, we hope we can make going to the doctor for anxiety as normal as doing so for the flu.
Services available across Australia include the National Alcohol and Other Drug hotline (1800 250 015), Lifeline (13 11 14), Kids Helpline (1800 55 1800) and Head to Health. Each state and territory also has specialised mental health services.
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Image: Pacific Australia Labour Mobility scheme workers return home to Vanuatu, December 2024 (Source: Facebook/DFAT)
By Alyssa Leng, Ryan Edwards, and Terence Wood
A lot has changed in the Pacific-Australia migration landscape over the last decade. To mention a few big and recent changes, the Pacific Labour Scheme (PLS) commenced in 2018, the PLS and the Seasonal Worker Program were merged into the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility scheme in 2022, and new permanent migration pathways were introduced in 2024 with the Pacific Engagement Visa (PEV) and the Australia-Tuvalu Falepili Union.
This expansion of migration opportunities for the people of the Pacific has taken place against a backdrop of persistent broader anti-migration sentiment within Australia. Which invites the questions: how aware and supportive are people in Australia of these recent Pacific migration policies? And do they understand how under-represented people from the Pacific are in our migration program?
To answer these questions and gain a better understanding of immigration policy preferences in Australia, we conducted a large, nationally representative survey of 5,282 respondents in September 2024. The survey investigated the accuracy of respondents’ perceptions of how many immigrants with different characteristics are in Australia. We also asked respondents how many immigrants of various types Australia should accept and tested whether exposure to narratives or facts about immigration changes people’s preferences for different types of migration policies.
Our full findings have today been released by the Development Policy Centre as a discussion paper: Narratives, Information and Immigration Policy Preferences. In this first of three blog posts, we report on perceptions towards Pacific migration and policy preferences held by those respondents who did not receive any extra information on various Pacific migration policies.
The first finding to emerge from the survey is that people in Australia think that the share of immigrants from Pacific Island countries (including PNG) is more than three times — 315% more, to be precise — what it actually is. Respondents think that around 9.4% of immigrants in Australia were born in Pacific Island countries (PICs), when it is in fact around 2.3%.
Figure 1: Misperceptions of where migrants in Australia are born
Our second set of findings relate to policy preferences. We asked respondents:
whether Australia should relax visa requirements for PIC citizens for (i) temporary and (ii) permanent immigration (response options: relax visa requirements, no change, make visa requirements stricter, don’t know)
how many permanent PIC immigrants should be accepted under the Pacific Engagement Visa (response options: a lot more, more, no change, less, a lot less, don’t know)
whether arrangements like the Australia-Tuvalu Falepili Union should be extended to other PICs (response options: expanded to all PICs, expanded to only some more PICs, kept the same (that is, keep arrangements for Tuvalu only), not expanded and numbers from Tuvalu should be decreased, don’t know).
The most common response for all Pacific questions was to keep policy settings as is, that is, “no change” or “kept the same”. We find that this is much more so for immigration from the Pacific than for immigration at large, where people generally want to see lower levels. This suggests that people tend to be more supportive of immigration from the Pacific than of immigration in general. Combined with the relatively large shares of respondents favouring an expansion of numbers or relaxation of visa requirements, it appears that Australian governments likely have space to continue expanding Pacific migration without facing any major political blow-back.
Figure 2: Baseline immigration policy preferences for immigrants from the Pacific
When we consider support for permanent versus temporary Pacific migration, views tend to be similar. 25-30% of people support relaxing visa requirements and tightening them, respectively, but most (around 40%) prefer no change at all.
In the specific case of the PEV, active hostility is low at this point: only about 30% of people want fewer people offered permanent places in Australia under the PEV. Almost 40% of respondents would like to see the Tuvalu agreement expanded to more countries, possibly reflecting concern about the impact that the effects of climate change may have on Pacific countries.
Our survey does however find much room for improvement in public awareness and Pacific literacy. For all these questions, the number of “don’t know” responses for the Pacific was much higher than for questions not about the Pacific, especially for the Tuvalu agreement. This suggests limited confidence in offering opinions on Pacific migration among the general public in Australia, and thus a lot of scope to improve understanding.
We also asked respondents about the views of most Australians on these issues. The results suggest that respondents tended to think that other people wanted less Pacific immigration than they themselves did. The typical person in Australia, it would seem, sees themself as more tolerant of Pacific migration than their compatriots.
Figure 3: Perceptions of majority views on immigrants from the Pacific
All in all, people in Australia don’t seem to know much about Pacific migration, and (perhaps based on this ignorance) appear largely happy for policy settings to stay the same. In the next blog, we will discuss misperceptions and preferences around the broader migration program. The third and final blog in this series will share new experimental evidence on how the latter can be changed.
Contributing Author(s):Alyssa Leng is a research officer at the Development Policy Centre. Ryan Edwards is Deputy Director of the Development Policy Centre and a Fellow at the Crawford School of Public Policy. He leads Pacific migration research under the Pacific Research Program at the ANU. Terence Wood is a Fellow at the Development Policy Centre. His research focuses on political governance in Western Melanesia, and Australian and New Zealand aid.
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Image: Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton has resigned with immediate effect (Source: ABC News screenshot)
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton has resigned with immediate effect following a resounding vote of no confidence from rank-and-file officers.
After weeks of speculation over his future, Patton announced his resignation late on Sunday night, stating that under the “current circumstances,” he had informed the government of his decision to step away.
“I have this evening advised government that given the current circumstances surrounding my position I have decided to step away from the role effective immediately.“
“It is with a heavy heart that I have made this decision, however, I think it is the right one to allow fresh leadership in the role,” Patton added in a statement
The leadership crisis erupted on Friday when 87 per cent of officers who participated in a Police Association Victoria (TPAV) survey declared they had no confidence in Patton’s leadership. The result intensified calls for his departure, particularly amid an ongoing pay dispute that has plagued Victoria Police for nearly two years.
Premier Jacinta Allan thanked Patton for his service, particularly during major challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic.
“On behalf of the Victorian people, I thank Shane for his long and decorated service and his leadership through challenging times,” Allan said.
Emergency Management Commissioner Rick Nugent will transition into the role of acting chief commissioner, while Deputy Commissioner Wendy Steendam will temporarily lead the force until Nugent takes over.
The opposition has criticised the state government’s handling of the situation, accusing Allan’s team of being “missing in action” and claiming the crisis reflects broader issues within Victoria Police.
Liberal MP and Shadow Minister for Community Safety, Migrant Services & Multicultural Affairs Jason Wood criticised the Labor government following Shane Patton’s resignation, accusing it of using the former police chief for its “dirty work” during COVID-19 and failing to address youth crime.
“But Patton went along for the Labor ride and failed to stand up for the police and community. This being said he shouldn’t be made the fall guy for the shocking decisions made by Labor.”
Patton, who had served in the force for 45 years, said he was grateful for the opportunity to lead but acknowledged the need for change.
“To have been given the opportunity to lead a police organisation such as Victoria Police is an absolute privilege and one very few people have. I was fortunate to have done so and for that I am very thankful,” he said.
Patton’s resignation leaves Victoria Police at a crossroads as officers and the government navigate the fallout of the no-confidence vote and the upcoming enterprise bargaining agreement vote on February 24.
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A federal parliamentary inquiry has just recommended civics and citizenship become a compulsory part of the Australian Curriculum, which covers the first year of school to Year 10.
The committee also recommended a mandatory civics and citizenship course for all Year 11 and 12 students to prepare them to vote.
This is not the first time there have been calls to improve the quality of civics education in Australia – such calls have been made as far back as 1994.
As a researcher in political education, I argue we need to make sure civics education is relevant, engaging and given adequate space in the curriculum.
What is civics?
At the moment, civics and citizenship is included in the national Australian Curriculum. But it is not mandatory and many states only make passing reference to it in primary school. Some states provide more opportunities in high school.
The topics covered include how governments and democracy work, how laws work, the rights of individuals, diversity and national identity, and how to critically evaluate different sources of information.
Every three years since 2004, a national sample of Year 6 and Year 10 students are assessed on their civics knowledge, skills and attitudes through a national test.
In the most recent results from 2019, 53% of Year 6 students were at or above the national proficient standard for civics, while only 38% of Year 10 students were at or above the standard. Year 10 students’ results have shown a substantial decline since 2004.
This suggests many young people are leaving school without the knowledge, skills and values to sustain our democracy.
Both Australian and international studies have repeatedly shown civics and citizenship education makes a positive difference to young people’s political participation (including the likelihood they will vote), understanding of democracy and support for democratic values.
What does good civics education look like?
1. Make sure it has its own subject
At the moment, civics education might be included as part of students’ work in history or other humanities subjects. But research shows it should be taught as a separate subject, otherwise it can get lost among other material.
While Year 11 and 12 are times when students get to pick most of their subjects for major exams, it is important they also study how the electoral system works. Many will vote in elections before they even leave school.
3. Make it relevant to young people
As important as they are, some aspects of civics – such as lawmaking or how parliament works – may seem dry to young people.
For example, a lesson on how parliament works could focus on the passage of contentious legislation such as banning social media for young people. Or lessons on misinformation could look at how social media had an impact on a particular issue or election.
4. Have class discussions
Research also shows students need to learn civics knowledge, skills and values in various ways, including role play, problem-solving, simulations and direct instruction.
Students should be encouraged to ask questions in an open classroom environment. Class discussions are important for controversial issues so both sides of issues can be discussed in a supervised environment.
5. Have school elections
My research has found school elections (for school captains or a student council) can engage students in democratic processes. This way, they see first-hand how elections work and how voting can have an impact on their lives.
6. Train teachers in law and government
It is also important for teachers to have specific training in law, government or politics. Research shows teachers with these backgrounds have a greater impact on students’ civic knowledge – students come away knowing more. Similarly, teachers with these backgrounds achieve better results with students’ civic media literacy – or ability to handle misinformation and “outrage” online.
This means existing teachers need to have professional opportunities to upgrade their civic knowledge and skills.
Ultimately, it will take well-trained teachers, teaching a compulsory subject, to see Australian students appropriately educated about our democracy and how to participate in it.
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Image: Fiji’s Prime Minister, Sitiveni Rabuka, has met India’s External Affairs Minister, Dr S. Jaishankar, on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference (MSC) in Germany (Source: X)
Fiji’s Prime Minister, Sitiveni Rabuka, has met India’s External Affairs Minister, Dr S. Jaishankar, on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference (MSC) in Germany.
Both leaders shared a warm handshake and exchanged insights, with Dr Jaishankar expressing it was an honour to meet Rabuka.
Posting on X, Jaishankar remarked, “Always nice to hear his recollections, views and insights.”
An honour to meet PM & FM @slrabuka of Fiji this evening.
Always nice to hear his recollections, views and insights.
Rabuka and Dr Jaishankar are attending the Munich Security Conference (MSC) 2025, which comes at a crucial time of global change. The conference coincides with the start of a new US administration, European legislative shifts in Brussels, and German parliamentary elections.
The MSC serves as a leading forum for international security policy discussions and diplomatic efforts to address pressing global security challenges.
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The move, which takes effect from 1 April 2025 until 31 March 2027, aims to free up more homes for Australians while cracking down on speculative land banking by foreign investors.
The government says this temporary ban is a “minor but meaningful” step in its $32 billion Homes for Australia plan, which focuses on boosting housing supply and making home ownership more accessible.
Today the Albanese Labor Government is announcing a ban on foreign investors purchasing established homes.
There is no silver bullet to solving the housing crisis, but we are tackling it from every angle.
Under current laws, foreign investors are generally restricted from buying existing properties unless they meet specific conditions, such as living in Australia for work or study. However, from April next year, all foreign investors—including temporary residents and foreign-owned companies—will be barred from purchasing established dwellings unless their investment significantly increases housing supply or supports availability, such as through the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme.
To enforce the ban, the government will provide the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) with $5.7 million over four years to strengthen its foreign investment compliance team and tighten screening processes.
Alongside the ban on existing home purchases, the government is targeting land banking—where foreign investors buy vacant land and leave it undeveloped while property values rise. The government is providing the ATO and Treasury with $8.9 million over four years to audit and enforce compliance, ensuring that land is developed within reasonable timeframes instead of being held for profit.
The Albanese Government will ban foreign investors from buying established homes for at least two years and crack down on foreign land banking.
We're coming at this housing challenge from every responsible angle.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the crackdown is about making sure “foreign investment in housing is in our national interest,” while Housing Minister Clare O’Neil emphasised that these measures are just one part of a much larger housing agenda.
The government has criticised Opposition Leader Peter Dutton and the Coalition for promising to cut billions from housing initiatives, including the Housing Australia Future Fund, arguing that such cuts would worsen the crisis.
“The contrast is clear—Labor is all about more homes, the Liberals are all about more cuts,” the government said in a statement.
With Australia’s housing market under increasing pressure, the Albanese Government is betting that tougher regulations on foreign investment will help ease demand while it ramps up housing supply.
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Representative Image: Election rally in India (Source: X - Rahul Gandhi, Arvind Kejriwal and Narendra Modi)
In a shocking revelation, the US government has scrapped $21 million in funding meant to boost voter turnout in India, as part of a massive crackdown on what Elon Musk’s watchdog agency calls a “deep state slush fund.”
The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)—a newly formed body under President Trump’s administration—has axed billions in taxpayer-funded foreign projects, exposing what it claims to be rampant waste and political manipulation disguised as aid.
Deeply honored to support President @realDonaldTrump in this revolutionary administration.
Among the most controversial cuts is the funding for “inclusive and participatory political process” in India, part of a staggering $486 million election-related package spread across multiple countries.
The slashed projects also include: $29 million for “strengthening the political landscape in Bangladesh” and $20 million for “fiscal federalism” in Nepal.
US taxpayer dollars were going to be spent on the following items, all which have been cancelled: – $10M for "Mozambique voluntary medical male circumcision" – $9.7M for UC Berkeley to develop "a cohort of Cambodian youth with enterprise driven skills" – $2.3M for "strengthening…
While Trump hails Musk’s efforts as a long-overdue clean-up of the US bureaucracy, critics accuse them of gutting key global initiatives to push their own agenda.
As Musk and Trump push ahead with their war on government waste, the fallout from these massive funding cuts—particularly in India and other key US allies—remains to be seen.
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Image: Leaders photo from AI Action Summit in Paris (Source: X - Narendra Modi)
By Om Prakash Dwivedi
The colossal shock that the famous German philosopher Martin Heidegger experienced when he first witnessed the image of the Earth taken from the moon in 1966 led him to predict the advancement of technological catastrophe in his interview, Only a God Can Save Us (1966). From capturing the image of the Earth to controlling the thoughts inside our brains, technology has travelled a long way. How else do we interpret Elon Musk’s Neuralink, a device that could decipher our thought processes? Of course, one can counter-argue by pointing out its empowering and liberating features for disabled people, but what matters more are the intentions—just as in a democratic setup, what matters is not the promises but the commitment to public welfare.
In fact, it would not be far-fetched to claim that the technological progress of planetary activities has become enmeshed with the biological progress of human beings. In the age of corporatism, technology is the new biology, data is the new religion, and politics is the laboratory in the hands of corporations, working hard to formulate and disseminate new codes of vulnerability and exploitation for an already gasping human civilization. Tottering senility and disfigured human connectivity are crude retellings of our world, exacerbated further as we slowly surrender ourselves to the grip of artificial intelligence.
Long ago, Alfred Tennyson pointed out, “The old order changeth, yielding place to new,” and today we witness the spiralling wave of technological advancements. Apparently, artificial intelligence is the new code of human intelligence. I am not arguing that technology or artificial intelligence is inherently bad, nor am I downplaying their role in alleviating human problems. My main contention, however, remains the intentions that define and control these codes. This is precisely what I term brutalism—the new form of life emerging in the age of extractive economies and the state-capital nexus.
Under brutalism, life and liveability are no longer contingent on a democratic setup but are instead dictated by the exceptional nature of the state-capital nexus. This divides the world into liveable and non-liveable zones, underpinned by the deep state’s exclusive predatory rights. The brutal living conditions in peripheral zones are symptomatic of a quotidian reality that reinforces the notion of slow violence (Nixon, 2011). Brutalism, therefore, divorces normativity from worldmaking processes. The unchecked surveillance of human lives, the proliferation of deepfakes, and the rise of social media and other digital platforms have contributed to the global decline of democracy. Data colonisation—an integral feature of artificial intelligence—has erected new borders, restricting the movement of people from the Global South in their search for better opportunities and a brighter future.
Today, discussing artificial intelligence in our everyday lives has become both inevitable and essential. It would be naïve to view modern-day politics and technology as separate entities. A mere glance at election outcomes worldwide is enough to reveal this obvious fact. Indeed, technology itself has become a battleground, shaping the fate of our global order. Co-chaired with India, the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Action Summit was recently held on 10 and 11 February 2025 at the Grand Palais in Paris, France. The Summit aimed to build on the decisions taken at the Bletchley Park Summit in November 2023 and the Seoul Summit in May 2024, bringing together representatives from more than 100 countries.
While there is no denying that we must coexist with artificial intelligence, global leaders must also recognise the stark reality that AI is devoid of ideology—unlike many of them. It operates purely on the flow of data and capital. This capitalised data, therefore, is the perennial ideology of artificial intelligence. Seen from this perspective, one could argue that the Gobblesian technique is AI’s operational methodology. Conflating democracy with the datafication of technology poses serious risks to our democratic setup. Hence, the glorification of artificial intelligence demands deeper humanistic intervention. The illiberal tendencies of our so-called liberal demagogues become apparent when one examines how AI disintegrates and disconnects people under the guise of digital connections. While advancing notions of autonomy, freedom, and expression, AI simultaneously undermines these same democratic virtues. One tends to overlook AI’s implicit message: if everyone is free to access data, then everyone is equally susceptible to compromised data. Freedom has a cost, and this time, the price is the future of those already groping in darkness—rendered vulnerable and powerless.
It is nothing short of a deception to believe that we can rely on AI unless we harness our thinking abilities. It is a hallmark of undemocratic liberal technocracy to lure us with endless solutions to our problems. It is another matter that technocratic solutions provided by trained technocrats can hardly be a viable option. On 11 February, 2025, the AI summit week closed with a declaration that emphasized policies to ensure that AI is “open, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy”. India needs to tread the path very cautiously. The anecdotal evidences already suggest that by selling the rhetorics of inclusivity and sustainability, the global North has already cancelled the future of much of the global South. It is no wonder that ‘some 60 countries [including India and China] signed the declaration but notably the United Kingdom and the United States did not.’ There is a greater urgency ‘for democracies to keep the lead, the risks of AI, and the economic transitions that are fast approaching—these should all be central features of the next summit”. Likewise, Toby Walsh, chief scientist at the AI Institute at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, rightly points, [at] ‘the moment, it is a two-country race between the US and China but added that the race isn’t over.’
As the domain and scope of artificial intelligence continue to multiply in our times, it is high time for India to double down on efforts to formulate a robust think tank on AI, comprising people from both sciences and humanities backgrounds. While the plan of the government to invest in AI cities sounds reasonable, but in so doing, we must not turn humans into aliens, while assigning nativity to machines. We have to live with artificial intelligence, but we still haven’t learned how to do this.
Contributing Author: Prof. Om Prakash Dwivedi is a literary critic and columnist.
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A 78-year-old New South Wales man has been convicted and fined $1000 after pleading guilty to committing an act of indecency on a domestic flight.
The man appeared before Southport Magistrates Court on 10 February, 2025 following an AFP investigation into an incident on a Sydney-to-Gold Coast flight on 8 December, 2024.
AFP Detective Acting Superintendent Mark Yarrow condemned the behaviour, stressing the distress such incidents can cause, particularly in confined spaces like an aircraft.
“Members of the public do not deserve to be subjected to unwanted attention under any circumstance, including on a plane,” Det a/Supt Yarrow said.
A female passenger reported the incident to the AFP after landing at Gold Coast Airport, alleging the man seated beside her had touched her leg multiple times without consent.
Following a review of CCTV footage, the man was identified, and on 13 December, 2024, the AFP issued him a notice to appear before court for one count of committing an act of indecency without consent, contrary to section 60 of the Crimes Act (Cth).
After pleading guilty, he was fined $1000, and a conviction was recorded.
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Earth must have experienced something exceptional 10 million years ago. Our study of rock samples from the floor of the Pacific Ocean has found a strange increase in the radioactive isotope beryllium-10 during that time.
But the cause of the beryllium-10 anomaly remains unknown. Could it have been major shifts in global ocean currents, a dying star, or an interstellar collision?
View of the Pacific Ocean from the International Space Station. NASA
At a depth of about 5,000 metres, the abyssal zone of the Pacific Ocean has never seen light, yet something does still grow there.
Ferromanganese crusts – metallic underwater rocks – grow from minerals dissolved in the water slowly coming together and solidifying over extremely long time scales, as little as a few millimetres in a million years. (Stalactites and stalagmites in caves grow in a similar way, but thousands of times faster.)
This makes ferromanganese crusts ideal archives for capturing stardust over millions of years.
The age of these crusts can be determined by radiometric dating using the radioactive isotope beryllium-10. This isotope is continuously produced in the upper atmosphere when highly energetic cosmic rays strike air molecules. The strikes break apart the main components of our air – nitrogen and oxygen – into smaller fragments.
Both stardust and beryllium-10 eventually find their way into Earth’s oceans where they become incorporated into the growing ferromanganese crust.
Ferromanganese crust sample VA13/2-237KD analysed in this work. The anomaly was discovered in this crust at a depth of about 30mm – representing 10 million years. Dominik Koll
One of the largest ferromanganese crusts was recovered in 1976 from the Central Pacific. Stored for decades at the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources in Hanover, Germany, a 3.7kg section of it became the subject of my analysis.
Much like tree rings reveal a tree’s age, ferromanganese crusts record their growth in layers over millions of years. Beryllium-10 undergoes radioactive decay really slowly, meaning it gradually breaks down over millions of years as it sits in the rocks.
As beryllium-10 decays over time, its concentration decreases in deeper, older sediment layers. Because the rate of decay is steady, we can use radioactive isotopes as natural stopwatches to discern the age and history of rocks – this is called radioactive dating.
A puzzling anomaly
After extensive chemical processing, my colleagues and I used accelerator mass spectrometry – an ultra-sensitive analytical technique for longer-lived radioactive isotopes – to measure beryllium-10 concentrations in the crust.
This time, my research took me from Canberra, Australia to Dresden, Germany, where the setup at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf was optimised for beryllium-10 measurements.
The results showed that the crust had grown only 3.5 centimetres over the past 10 million years and was more than 20 million years old.
However, before I could return to my search for stardust, I encountered an anomaly.
Initially, as I searched back in time, the beryllium-10 concentration declined as expected, following its natural decay pattern – until about 10 million years ago. At that point, the expected decrease halted before resuming its normal pattern around 12 million years ago.
This was puzzling: radioactive decay follows strict laws, meaning something must have introduced extra beryllium-10 into the crust at that time.
Scepticism is crucial in science. To rule out errors, I repeated the chemical preparation and measurements multiple times – yet the anomaly persisted. The analysis of different crusts from locations nearly 3,000km away gave the same result, a beryllium-10 anomaly around 10 million years ago. This confirmed that the anomaly was a real event rather than a local irregularity.
Ocean currents or exploding stars?
What could have happened on Earth to cause this anomaly 10 million years ago? We’re not sure, but there are a few options.
Last year, an international study revealed that the Antarctic Circumpolar Current – the main driver of global ocean circulation – intensified around 12 million years ago, influencing Antarctic ocean current patterns.
Could this beryllium-10 anomaly in the Pacific mark the beginning of the modern global ocean circulation? If ocean currents were responsible, beryllium-10 would be distributed unevenly on Earth with some samples even showing a lack of beryllium-10. New samples from all major oceans and both hemispheres would allow us to answer this question.
Another possibility emerged early last year. Astrophysicists demonstrated that a collision with a dense interstellar cloud could compress the heliosphere – the Sun’s protective shield against cosmic radiation – back to the orbit of Mercury. Without this barrier, Earth would be exposed to an increased cosmic ray flux, leading to an elevated global beryllium-10 production rate.
A near-Earth supernova explosion could also cause an increased cosmic ray flux leading to a beryllium-10 anomaly. Future research will explore these possibilities.
The discovery of such an anomaly is a windfall for geological dating. Various archives are used to investigate Earth’s climate, habitability and environmental conditions over different timescales.
To compare ice cores with sediments, ferromanganese crusts, speleothems (stalagmites and stalactites) and others, their timescales need to be synchronous. Independent time markers, such as Miyake events or the Laschamp excursion, are invaluable for aligning records thousands of years old. Now, we may have a corresponding time marker for millions of years.
Meanwhile, my search for stardust continues, but now keeping an eye out for new 10-million-year-old samples to further pin down the beryllium-10 anomaly. Stay tuned.
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Image: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi with US President Donald Trump at The White House (Image: X)
When Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrapped up his high-profile meeting with US President Donald Trump, ABC’s South Asia correspondent wasted no time in branding the visit a failure, running the clickbait headline: “Modi leaves Washington empty-handed as Trump doubles down on tariffs.”
President Trump often talks about MAGA.
In India, we are working towards a Viksit Bharat, which in American context translates into MIGA.
The narrative suggested India had gained little from the visit, as Trump’s reciprocal tariff policy cast a shadow over trade talks. But this framing ignored the bigger picture—Modi’s visit was far from a failure. It marked a significant deepening of US-India strategic ties across defence, energy, technology, and trade. As Modi himself put it, India and the US have entered a ‘mega partnership’—one that is set to transform bilateral cooperation for the long term.
"I am thrilled to welcome the Prime Minister of India, my friend @NarendraModi, back to the @WhiteHouse. There is truly a special bond between the United States and India—the world's oldest democracy and the world's largest democracy." –President Donald J. Trump @PMOIndiapic.twitter.com/CfcRUMgLWs
In fact the meeting was a major boost for US-India ties!
Far from leaving empty-handed, Modi secured key agreements under the newly launched COMPACT initiative (Catalyzing Opportunities for Military Partnership, Accelerated Commerce & Technology). The US committed to:
Expanding defence cooperation with a new ten-year framework for the US-India Major Defence Partnership, including new deals for Javelin anti-tank missiles, Stryker armoured fighting vehicles, and six additional P8I maritime surveillance aircraft.
Accelerating defence technology transfers by negotiating a Reciprocal Defense Procurement (RDP) agreement to streamline sales of advanced US military systems to India.
Deepening tech collaboration, launching the TRUST initiative (Transforming the Relationship Utilizing Strategic Technology) to boost partnerships in AI, critical minerals, data centres, and next-generation semiconductors.
Expanding India’s role in US energy security, with a deal for India to increase imports of American oil and gas, helping balance the trade deficit.
Despite Trump’s tariff announcement, Modi ensured trade talks remained focused on long-term collaboration rather than short-term disputes. Instead of confrontation, both leaders set a new target of $500 billion in bilateral trade by 2030, signalling their commitment to strengthening economic ties.
Here are highlights from an extremely fruitful USA visit…
From energy to education, trade to technology and AI to space…many issues discussed. pic.twitter.com/kJ5EDROrAb
On the other hand, Albanese struggles to find favour in Washington!
While Modi left Washington with a clear roadmap for deeper engagement, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese faced a diplomatic setback.
Trump’s administration has taken an increasingly hard line on Australian aluminium exports, with his top trade adviser accusing Australia of “killing” the US aluminium market. Unlike Modi, who secured a commitment for further trade negotiations, Albanese’s appeal for an exemption to Trump’s 25% tariff on global steel and aluminium imports was swiftly dismissed.
Trump’s advisers pointed to a 103% surge in Australian aluminium exports since 2015, arguing that Canberra had disregarded past commitments to restrain shipments.
Indian Prime Minister Modi understood the assignment in his 8th meeting with President Trump. It could've been bad. Modi was in DC on the same day Trump announced dreaded reciprocal tariffs. Despite trade friction, both sides walked away with deliverables on a potential trade… pic.twitter.com/73xjKfVP6w
Unlike Modi, whose visit was marked by warm optics and strategic gains, Albanese was left fighting for economic concessions with little success.
The White House’s statement that Australia had “flooded the US market” signalled a growing frustration with Canberra’s trade practices, putting Albanese in a weaker negotiating position.
This morning I had a great conversation with President @realDonaldTrump
We committed to working constructively together to advance Australian and American interests, drive economic prosperity and face shared challenges.
Clearly, the success of the Modi-Trump meeting points to India’s rising role in the Indo-Pacific!
As Washington redefines its economic and strategic partnerships, India is emerging as a critical ally in the Indo-Pacific, while Australia risks being sidelined. Modi’s ability to keep India at the centre of US strategic priorities—despite trade tensions—contrasts sharply with Albanese’s struggles to secure even a minor trade exemption.
With India’s defence, technology, and energy ties with the US expanding, the regional balance is shifting. If Australia fails to navigate Washington’s protectionist policies, it could find itself at a disadvantage, particularly as India strengthens its role as a key trade and security partner in the Indo-Pacific.
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Image: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (Source: X)
The Albanese Government is investing in the future of Shellharbour families, with $851,279 allocated for the planning phase of the Shellharbour Integrated Child and Family Precinct. This initiative aims to create a central hub offering early childhood, health, education, and family support services in one accessible location.
NEWS: Our bill to guarantee 3 days of child care subsidy has passed parliament.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese emphasised the project’s role in strengthening regional communities. “Having support services, education facilities, and social care options all under one roof in the middle of Shellharbour will make a big difference to this beautiful and growing region,” he said.
“We want to support regional communities to grow and thrive, for our youngest and eldest Australians and everyone in between.”
The planning process, led by Karitane in partnership with Barnardos Australia and the University of New South Wales, will develop a business case, master plan, and detailed designs. It will also assess site revitalisation, connections to nearby services, and accessibility via parking and public transport. Community consultation will play a key role in ensuring the precinct meets local needs.
Child care centres like this one in Melbourne offer kids the best start in life.
That’s why we’re going to build 160 new centres across the country.
And we’ll scrap the activity test to guarantee that every family can afford 3 days of child care. pic.twitter.com/uNG0LQpXSe
Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government Catherine King highlighted the importance of supporting families. “Being a new parent is incredibly rewarding, but it can also be really challenging,” she said.
“A central hub for early childhood and family support will help new parents in the Shellharbour region get the services they need close to home.”
Assistant Treasurer and Member for Whitlam Stephen Jones described the project as a “game changer” for the community.
“It will help connect people to vital support services they need in an easy-to-access way. Labor is delivering for our regions and building a stronger Illawarra.”
The funding comes from the Albanese Government’s $400 million Regional Precincts and Partnerships Program, which is designed to transform regional, rural, and remote areas. Of this, $47.9 million is being invested across seven precincts in New South Wales.
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Image: Fiji’s Acting Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Prof. Biman Prasad welcoming a high-level ACT Government trade delegation to Suva (Source: X)
Fiji’s Acting Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Prof. Biman Prasad, has reaffirmed the nation’s strong partnership with Australia, welcoming a high-level ACT Government trade delegation to Suva.
Posting on X, Prof. Prasad said, “Pleasure to welcome the ACT trade delegation to Fiji. Our Vuvale Partnership with Australia grows stronger through trade, investment, and people-to-people ties. Looking forward to deeper collaboration—and an exciting Drua vs Brumbies match!”
Pleasure to welcome the ACT trade delegation to Fiji. Our Vuvale Partnership with Australia grows stronger through trade, investment, and people-to-people ties. Looking forward to deeper collaboration—and an exciting Drua vs Brumbies match!#Vuvale@AusHCFJ#AustraliaFiji#Druapic.twitter.com/qI2JPY0h5R
The delegation from Canberra received a warm Fijian welcome at the Grand Pacific Hotel, where Prof. Prasad highlighted Australia’s role as Fiji’s largest trading partner, a major source of tourism, and a key investor in the economy.
Prof. Prasad acknowledged Australia’s unwavering support during crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic and natural disasters, emphasising the deep-rooted ties built on mutual respect, trust, and shared values.
Prof. Prasad assured the delegation that Fiji remains committed to strengthening economic relations and attracting foreign direct investment. He highlighted the country’s stable political environment, democratic governance, and respect for the rule of law as key factors underpinning its strong business climate.
“We are actively promoting private sector participation, removing restrictions, reducing the cost of doing business, and implementing reforms to enhance investor confidence.”
Fiji’s economy, he added, is thriving, with remarkable growth in tourism, renewable energy, ICT, and agribusiness. The tourism industry is expanding into eco-tourism and luxury hospitality, while investments in renewable energy are unlocking sustainable business opportunities. Additionally, Fiji is positioning itself as a regional leader in outsourcing and digital services, providing Australian companies with access to a skilled and cost-effective workforce.
Vinaka @BrumbiesRugby for your special visit to Veiuto Primary, and for all the participants involved in #TeamUp’s Get into Rugby Plus!
The Acting Prime Minister also praised the easing of travel restrictions between Fiji and Australia following visa application cost reductions last year. He thanked Australian High Commissioner to Fiji, Ewen McDonald, for his role in facilitating these changes but stressed that more could be done.
“I believe achieving visa-free travel between Fiji and Australia would further strengthen our people-to-people ties and business engagements.”
As the delegation explores investment opportunities in Fiji, anticipation is also building for the highly anticipated Super Rugby clash between the Fijian Drua and the ACT Brumbies, reinforcing the strong sporting and cultural ties between the two nations.
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This Valentine’s Day, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) is turning the tables on romance scammers by revealing the real-life scripts they use to manipulate and defraud victims.
The dialogue, designed to tug at heartstrings and empty bank accounts, was uncovered during an international operation to dismantle a scam compound in the Philippines.
The script, used to lure Australians via online dating apps, lays out a calculated approach to building fake relationships. It includes an elaborate backstory, affectionate language, and a structured daily communication plan designed to keep the victim engaged for up to a week.
The AFP-led Joint Policing Cybercrime Coordination Centre (JPC3), in partnership with the National Anti-Scam Centre (NASC), is now urging Australians to read the script and remain vigilant against fraudsters preying on those seeking love online.
Scammers posing as kind-hearted Filipino women living in Australia or local residents in the Philippines would share tales of heartbreak—claiming an ex-fiancé was only after their money, not their love. Gradually, they would introduce cryptocurrency trading as a supposed side job, portraying it as a lucrative opportunity. Once trust was established, victims would be encouraged to invest between AUD $300-$800 in cryptocurrency, transferring funds from legitimate exchanges into the scammer’s crypto wallet. The fraudsters would then pressure them to invest increasingly larger amounts.
JPC3 collaborated with NASC, the Philippines Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission, and the National Bureau of Investigation to track more than 5,000 Australian targets of this scam. As part of Operation Firestorm, a global initiative against offshore cybercriminals, authorities alerted potential victims via text messages in January 2025, warning them not to send money to online acquaintances.
AFP Commander Cybercrime Operations Graeme Marshall said sharing the scam script with the public was key to preventing future fraud. “We want to ensure that everyone using dating apps has the tools and information to stay safe online and swipe left on romance scammers,” he said.
“These fraudsters craft elaborate backstories to sound convincing, but if something feels off, step back and seek advice from a trusted friend or colleague.”
Marshall urged Australians to verify online acquaintances by performing Google searches, reverse image lookups, and requesting video calls before engaging in financial transactions. “Most importantly, never send money to someone you’ve only met online,” he added.
Australian Competition & Consumer Commission Deputy Chair Catriona Lowe highlighted the devastating impact of romance scams, noting Australians lost $23.6 million to such fraud in 2024. “Scammers build trust over time and then exploit it, persuading victims to part with significant sums. The emotional and financial consequences can be severe,” Lowe said, urging people to verify investment opportunities through registered financial advisors.
Authorities recommend that Australians protect themselves by refusing to send money or cryptocurrency to online acquaintances, verifying identities, and being wary of overly affectionate behaviour. If someone professes love too quickly or avoids video calls, it’s a red flag.
Victims of scams should immediately cease contact, take screenshots of conversations, and report incidents to banks, police, and ScamWatch. Social media platforms should also be notified if scammers used their services to reach victims.
For those needing support, organisations like Lifeline (13 11 14) and Beyond Blue (1300 224 636) offer 24/7 assistance. With thousands of Australians targeted by romance scams each year, authorities hope that exposing the fraudsters’ playbook will prevent more heartbreak and financial ruin.
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Severe Tropical Cyclone Zelia is bearing down on the northwest coast of Australia and is likely to make landfall early Friday evening.
It’s a monster storm of great concern to Western Australia. Port Hedland is the largest town in the firing line and also our busiest iron ore export port. Strong winds may extend to other areas along the coast, and inland to areas such as Marble Bar, Tom Price and Paraburdoo.
Even if Zelia doesn’t hit towns directly, it’s likely to cause a lot of damage. The Bureau of Meteorology predicts extremely dangerous sustained winds of around 205 kilometers an hour and wind gusts higher still, at 290km/h. That’s strong enough to flatten homes, trees, power lines and other infrastructure.
This is a category five cyclone, which is the most severe possible under the current scale. But as climate change worsens, authorities may need to add another category to the scale.
Bureau of Meteorology video explaining the threat of Tropical Cyclone Zeila.
Do we need a category 6?
Elsewhere in the world, tropical cyclones are called hurricanes or typhoons.
The severity of a tropical cyclone (or hurricane or typhoon) is ranked in categories from 1 (weakest) to 5 (strongest).
Category one involves maximum average wind speed of up to 88km/h, and strongest gusts up to 125 km/h. It typically causes negligible damage to homes but may damage crops, trees and caravans.
Category five, the most severe, is defined as “extremely dangerous”, causing widespread destruction of buildings and vegetation. These cyclones bring maximum average wind speeds greater than 200km/h and gusts greater than 279km/h.
However, on a warming planet, cyclones are expected to become more intense. It’s also making tropical cyclones and hurricanes intensify more quickly.
Some scientists have called for a category six for hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones with sustained wind speeds greater than 309km/h. They argue a new category is needed to communicate the risks associated with tropical cyclones fuelled by climate change.
Climate change is feeding storms
It’s too early to say if Cyclone Zelia is directly caused, or fuelled, by climate change. However, research over the last 30 years has found a link between global warming and more intense tropical cyclones.
Globally, 2024 was Earth’s warmest year on record. Ocean heat content is increasing around most tropical seas, and other places where tropical cyclones are forming. Warmer oceans, and a warmer atmosphere, both feed energy into tropical cyclones, making them more intense and fast-forming when conditions are favourable.
Zelia intensified from a category one into a five in just over 24 hours.
Hurricane Milton, which struck the United States in October last year, also shows how climate change is making tropical cyclones worse. Amid very warm ocean temperatures, it intensified rapidly over the Gulf of Mexico to a category five hurricane.
Climate change is slowing the forward motion of tropical cyclones over the ocean and land. That means they take longer to cross the coast and pass through an area – inflicting more damage from wind and storm surge, and dumping more rain.
The Bureau of Meteorology says Cyclone Zelia’s “forward speed” is quite slow, at 11km/h. So, heavy rain and the strong winds will persist for quite a few hours before and after it crosses the coast.
The strongest winds of a tropical cyclone are usually near the eye, but can extend for hundreds of kilometres. Sometimes, winds on opposite sides of the eye blow in different directions, causing destruction on the ground which damages buildings, infrastructure, farmland and the environment.
At the moment around Port Hedland, winds are about 70-100km/h and rising. That’s gale force but not too alarming. Conditions will rapidly deteriorate into this afternoon, particularly to the east of Port Hedland.
The storm has already dropped a lot of rain. This has caused local flooding and cut rail lines. But there’s more to come.
The Bureau of Meteorology is also warning of a significant storm tide – when sea levels rise well above a typical high tide. This may lead to flooding and inundate coastal roads and properties.
The cyclone will continue to trek inland over the weekend, gradually weakening as it goes. People in mining and Indigenous communities hundreds of kilometres inland could experience strong winds, heavy rain and flooding.
The bureau is providing regular updates online. For those in the path of the cyclone visit www.emergency.wa.gov.au or download the Emergency WA app for the latest community alerts and warnings.
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Image: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese assured North Queenslanders that the government stands with them (Source: X)
North and Far North Queensland are set to become more resilient to severe weather, with the Albanese Government investing $84.8 million in 77 projects aimed at reducing disaster risk across transport networks, communities, and the environment.
The funding, part of the North Queensland Resilience Program, will support 18 local government areas, including Townsville, Douglas, Mornington, Mount Isa, and Whitsunday.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese assured North Queenslanders that the government stands with them.
“These are tough times, but North Queenslanders are tougher. My Government is making sure we’re providing whatever resources are required, right now and into the future, as these communities recover.”
We'll make sure North Queensland gets all the support it needs to get back on its feet. pic.twitter.com/4GyYRURrto
Federal Minister for Emergency Management Jenny McAllister emphasised that the investment would help some of Queensland’s most disaster-prone communities better withstand extreme weather.
“Councils will be undertaking critical works to equip their communities with the assets and resources they need to withstand severe weather events,” she said.
“These projects include major infrastructure upgrades, emergency shelters, community generators, and the sealing of roads frequently washed away.”
The recent floods, McAllister noted, highlight the importance of investing in disaster resilience.
“By prioritising resilience, we can safeguard lives, property, and our environment while ensuring shorter recovery times and a stronger local economy.”
Senator for Queensland Nita Green welcomed the investment, calling it a vital boost for the region. “North Queensland has been hit hard by natural disasters, and this funding will flow into resilience projects from Whitsundays to Douglas, Boulia to Burke,” she said.
“Disaster resilience can mean upgraded roads and airstrips, better drainage, or forward-focused initiatives like flood studies and risk reduction plans. Together, this investment builds a stronger, safer Queensland.”
The Albanese and Crisafulli Governments are also providing over $100 million in extraordinary grants for flood-affected primary producers, small businesses, and non-profit organisations. These include:
$72.7 million for flood-affected primary producers
$25 million for small businesses and non-profits
$2.4 million in Rural Landholder Grants for those with at least 10 hectares of flood-affected land
$1 million in Emergency Fodder Support for primary producers
We must build back better.
This section of the Bruce Highway at Plantation Creek in Ayr is cut off by floodwater too often.
We’re serious about betterment to make sure vital infrastructure is resilient against weather events.
Queensland Premier David Crisafulli echoed this sentiment, saying the priority is getting affected areas back on their feet as quickly as possible.
“We’re standing shoulder-to-shoulder with those affected by disaster to ensure they can recover quickly and come back stronger than ever.”
Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Julie Collins highlighted the importance of financial support for farmers and small businesses. “These grants will help reduce clean-up and recovery costs for North Queensland’s primary producers and small businesses,” she said.
“Farmers and small businesses are the heart of local communities, and this funding is critical.”
Emergency Management Minister Jenny McAllister reinforced the government’s commitment to long-term recovery. “Farmers, businesses, and non-profits are central to the North Queensland community, and we know heavy rainfall and severe flooding have made operations difficult,” she said.
“Recovery can take time. Our government is here for the long haul.”
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Washington, DC, Feb 13 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a bilateral meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, at The White House in Washington, DC on Thursday. EAM S Jaishankar and NSA Ajit Doval are also in the meeting. (ANI Photo)
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with US President Donald Trump on Friday morning (ASET), marking the first official meeting between the two leaders in President Trump’s second term. The highly anticipated meeting occurred at the White House, where PM Modi and his delegation were warmly welcomed.
Modi -Trump hug: (Pic: Dan Scavino, White House Account/X)
The Indian delegation, which included External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, and India’s Ambassador to the US Vinay Mohan Kwatra, arrived shortly after PM Modi’s arrival. The meeting between the two leaders is seen as a significant moment in US-India relations, continuing the robust diplomatic engagement between the two nations.
Ahead of the meeting, Indian flags were prominently displayed at the White House, symbolising the strengthening ties between the United States and India. Prime Minister Modi’s visit comes within three weeks of President Trump’s inauguration, making him one of the first global leaders to visit the US under the new administration.
Since November 2024, both leaders have held two phone conversations, continuing their dialogue on bilateral issues. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar attended President Trump’s inauguration ceremony as PM Modi’s Special Envoy and later participated in key diplomatic meetings, including a QUAD Foreign Ministers’ meeting in January 2025.
Ahead of his meeting with President Trump, PM Modi held a series of bilateral meetings with key American figures, including US National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Indian-origin entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, and US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. These discussions are part of India’s ongoing efforts to strengthen its relationships with the US across multiple sectors, including technology, energy, and national security.
Vivek Ramaswamy said he had a “great meeting” with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Blair House, and it was a “pleasure and honour” to welcome the PM to the US.
Washington, DC, Feb 13 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets with Indian-origin entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, at Blair House, in Washington, DC on Thursday. (ANI Photo)
He also affirmed hope that PM Modi has a “wonderful visit” to the United States.
“It was a pleasure and honour to welcome Prime Minister Modi here. Hope he has a wonderful visit and it was a great meeting,”
Vivek Ramaswamy told ANI, after his bilateral meeting with PM Narendra Modi.
Prime Minister Modi discussed India-US ties, innovation, and biotechnology, with Ramaswamy.
A mobile billboard in Washington, DC, prominently featured images of Prime Minister Modi and President Trump with the message: “Paving the Path for Progress, US-India Alliance in Developing Skilled Workforce” and “Pillars of Friendship, Pathways of Progress.” The visual campaign reinforced both nations’ commitment to advancing their strategic partnership, particularly in education, workforce development, and economic collaboration.
Washington, DC, Feb 13 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds a bilateral meeting with US National Security Advisor Michael Waltz, at Blair House in Washington, DC on Thursday. EAM S Jaishankar and NSA Ajit Doval are also in the meeting. (ANI Photo)
PM Modi’s visit to the US follows his successful three-day trip to France, where he engaged in discussions on artificial intelligence, commerce, energy, and cultural linkages. During his visit to France, PM Modi also met with US Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday, further cementing the growing diplomatic relations between the two countries.
This visit to the United States underscores the growing global influence of the India-US partnership, as both nations continue to collaborate on key global challenges, from technology and energy to international security. As the leaders meet in Washington, the US-India alliance looks set to further deepen, paving the way for a new era of cooperation and progress on the world stage.
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Image: Australian Consul General for Karnataka and Telangana Ms Hilary McGeachy speaking at a session at the Karnataka global investors meet 2025 (Source: X)
Australia reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening economic ties with Karnataka by participating in the country session at the Invest Karnataka Global Investors Meet 2025.
Australian representatives, including leaders from Global Victoria, the Australia India Business Council (AIBC), Austrade India, and the Indo-Australian Chamber of Commerce, joined a high-profile panel discussion to share government and business perspectives on bilateral trade and investment.
Karnataka’s Minister for Large and Medium Industries, M.B. Patil, spearheaded the event, which features participation from 19 partner countries, including Australia, France, Germany, Japan, the UK, and Singapore. The summit will showcase investment opportunities in key industries such as aerospace, renewable energy, semiconductors, and advanced manufacturing.
A major highlight is the Future of Innovation Expo, focusing on mobility, defense, biotech, R&D, and precision manufacturing. The summit will also drive SME and startup growth, training 2,000 SMEs in Industry 4.0 and launching the second edition of the VentuRISE Global Startup Challenge to foster green-tech and manufacturing startups.
Minister Patil, who met with Australia’s High Commissioner to India in September 2024, underscored the deep-rooted Karnataka-Australia relationship. Discussions focused on collaborations in education, biotechnology, and IT, with Patil extending an invitation for Australia to be a key partner in Invest Karnataka 2025.
The event, held from February 12–14, 2025, with an inaugural event on February 11, aims to position Karnataka as a premier investment destination.
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Image: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (Source: X)
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has reaffirmed his commitment to reconciliation, marking the 17th anniversary of the National Apology to the Stolen Generations with a powerful speech at the annual breakfast in Canberra.
Albanese acknowledged the significance of the event, expressing deep respect for the survivors in attendance. “You found within yourselves the strength to turn your suffering into a chance for a better Australia,” he said.
“And make no mistake, when that apology was made, you not only provided a moment of healing for yourselves, you created a better Australia.”
Reflecting on the historic day in 2008, Albanese recalled the moment when then-Prime Minister Kevin Rudd delivered the long-overdue apology. “The nation stopped. There was a sigh you could physically feel,” he said, describing how Australians across workplaces, schools, and Parliament House watched as the words “sorry” were finally spoken.
Generations were stolen.
Children were told they were unloved by their parents.
They were punished for using their own names and language.
And it happened here in Australia within living memory.
Albanese paid tribute to Rudd’s leadership, calling it an “act of grace” and a defining moment of his government. He also recognised the courage of opposition leader Brendan Nelson, who stood in bipartisan support, resisting pressure from within his own party.
The Prime Minister placed the Apology in the broader context of Australia’s ongoing struggle for Indigenous justice, drawing parallels to the Freedom Ride of 1965. “Sixty years ago, Charles Perkins and the Freedom Riders lifted the veil on discrimination,” he said.
“They sparked a national reckoning, just as the Apology did 17 years ago.”
Despite these milestones, Albanese acknowledged that challenges remain. “The Apology was never intended as the end of the story, but the beginning of a new chapter,” he said.
“An Australia in which Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have the same choices as non-Indigenous Australians.”
He announced an extension of the Territories Stolen Generations Redress Scheme to June 2028, ensuring more survivors can access support. He also thanked the Healing Foundation and Stolen Generations organisations for their ongoing work in assisting those affected.
Concluding his speech, Albanese reiterated his commitment to remembrance and action.
“For every year that I am Prime Minister, I will attend this breakfast. Because this moment in history must be turned into practical reform, making a real difference.”
Between 1910 and 1970, Australian governments, churches, and welfare bodies forcibly removed between one in three and one in ten Indigenous children from their families, creating the Stolen Generations. These removals, sanctioned by government policies, have left a lasting legacy of trauma and loss that continues to affect First Nations communities today.
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Opening the doors of its world-renowned forensics facility at Majura earlier this week (Tuesday, 11 February 2025), the AFP hosted more than 50 female students from 18 ACT high schools and colleges, aiming to showcase pathways for young women to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).
Image: AFP welcomes Canberra students for the International Day for Women and Girls in Science (Source: AFP)
The behind-the-scenes look into the world of forensics included a tour of the facility, interactive demonstrations, and the opportunity to see forensic scientists in action.
Students engaged in hands-on activities such as document examination, fingerprinting, and blood testing, providing them with a first-hand glimpse into forensic careers.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, a global initiative promoting equal access and participation for women and girls in scientific fields.
AFP Forensics has a strong representation of women working across diverse fields including crime scene investigations, fingerprint analysis, chemistry, document sciences, digital forensics, firearms and ballistics, and disaster victim identification.
AFP Commander Forensics Jo Cameron said the event was an opportunity to inspire the next generation of female forensic scientists.
“It’s often said you can’t be what you can’t see, so it’s incredibly important we show future generations what they can become,” Commander Cameron said.
“For many of these students, this visit is the first time they’ve had an up-close, hands-on experience of forensic science in action. They have met some of our female forensic scientists and heard firsthand how these women turned their passion into rewarding careers.”
Image: AFP welcomes Canberra students for the International Day for Women and Girls in Science (Source: AFP)
AFP Principal Forensic Scientist, Dr Kylie Jones, highlighted the dual importance of the event—both in inspiring students and showcasing the achievements of AFP’s female forensic experts.
“It’s a fantastic opportunity for the AFP to not only promote equal access to and participation in science for women and girls, but also to highlight the contributions of our own female scientists in forensics,” Dr Jones said.
“Science, particularly forensic science, is always evolving. A diverse workforce allows us to adapt and learn from different perspectives. Our scientists—both women and men—continuously mentor and support each other to be the best they can be.”
The AFP hopes the experience will spark lasting interest in forensic science and encourage more young women to explore STEM careers, potentially leading them to roles within AFP Forensics in the future.
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Finding a home that stays cool in this heat is a real challenge. Homebuyers and renters face two problems: a shortage of heat-resistant homes, and a lack of reliable, independent information about how homes perform in the heat.
So, how can you avoid buying or renting a “hot box”? Here’s a handy list of 12 features to check next time you’re searching for a place to live.
Ask these 4 questions before you inspect
1. Does the house have insulation? Ceiling, wall and underfloor insulation seals the indoor environment, slowing or preventing heat from leaking in or out.
2. Does it have double-glazed windows?Insulated glass, made from two or more window panes with a space in between, keeps heat out in summer and inside during winter.
3. How big is the house? Australian homes are among the largest in the world. Cooling a large home with air conditioning can be costly. Check the floor plan to see if you can shut doors and close off internal spaces, so you only cool the parts you need during hot spells.
4. Has the house had an energy and thermal performance assessment? The Residential Efficiency Scorecard is delivered by the Victorian government on behalf of all Australian governments. The report, undertaken by an accredited assessor, rates a home’s energy use and comfort, and recommends improvements. Other assessments also exist.
Look for these 8 things during an inspection
1. Check the colour and nature of external walls, roof and surrounding surfaces.Dark-coloured roofs or walls, and other hard surfaces such as concrete, absorb more heat. This heat builds up during the day and radiates out at night, causing what’s known as the heat island effect.
2. Look at internal floors and surfaces. Brick walls or concrete surfaces inside can be a good thing, if the hot weather doesn’t last too long. That’s because the home will take longer to heat up. But these heavy materials will also take longer to cool down once the heatwave is over. Good ventilation may compensate for that.
3. Consider the size and position of windows and doors. Openings on each side of rooms and the house as a whole allows cooling through natural ventilation. You can open up the house and let the cool air flow from one side to the other during the night, or once the cool change comes. Security doors and fly screens will keep insects and potential intruders out.
4. Is there external shading, such as blinds or greenery? Ensuring windows and walls are shaded on the outside is the best way to keep the heat out, particularly on the west-facing side. Large unshaded glass windows facing north and west can cause the home to heat up in summer. Vertical blinds work well on west-facing windows. On the north side, horizontal shading such as a pergola blocks out the sun in summer – when it is higher in the sky. It also lets the sun in during winter when the sun is lower in the sky, to gently warm the home.
5. Check for ceiling fans. Ceiling fans cool a home and use little energy. Check how many are installed and where they are located. Ceiling fans are ideal in living spaces, but also work well in bedrooms to help you stay comfortable on hot nights.
6. Investigate the air-con. If the house has air-conditioning, ask about its age, and look up its energy rating on energyrating.gov.au.
7. Consider garden spaces. Plants and trees can creating a “microclimate” around your home, keeping it cool. Also look at the landscape beyond the property – a tree-lined street can reduce temperatures and improve thermal comfort during a heatwave.
8. Note the position of the afternoon sun. Visit potential homes during the mid-late afternoon or check the sun’s path through the home – perhaps using a sun tracking app. If air conditioners are turned on, consider what this might mean for energy bills. What would the home feel like without it? Are there other ways to keep the building cool?
For more information about home energy efficiency, visit YourHome, Renew, Scorecard, and read the Cooling your Home report. https://www.youtube.com/embed/DZYNTagFS-I?wmode=transparent&start=0 Passive Cooling (Your Home)
Setting higher standards
Most Australian homes perform poorly when it comes to maintaining a comfortable temperature range indoors. This is particularly true for those built before the 1990s, when minimum energy performance standards were introduced. But these standards set a low bar compared with those overseas.
This, coupled with the absence of requirements for landlords or sellers (except in the ACT) to have the home assessed or declare a rating, means buyers and renters are left in the dark when it comes to making informed choices.
Renters and lower-income households are at greatest risk of living in a home that is too hot or too cold. The private rental stock in Australia is among the poorest, most uncomfortable housing in the Western world.
While the ACT has introduced minimum energy efficiency standards for rental properties, standards across the country contain few provisions that promise improved thermal comfort.
Until the regulatory landscape changes and energy performance must be disclosed, we hope these tips will help you avoid the worst of Australia’s hot boxes.
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Image: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard in Washington, D.C. (Source: X)
Proud Hindu American Tulsi Gabbard has been sworn in as the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) at the White House on Wednesday, just hours after the Senate narrowly confirmed her appointment in a 52-48 vote.
Gabbard took the oath of office in the Oval Office, administered by Attorney General Pam Bondi, with President Trump in attendance.
@TulsiGabbard has officially been sworn in as Director of National Intelligence by AG Pam Bondi in the Oval Office!
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt praised the confirmation, stating, “Senate Republicans continue to confirm President Trump’s exceptionally qualified nominees, including Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who will now lead our intelligence agencies with strength and clarity.”
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Gabbard in Washington, D.C., congratulating her on her confirmation. He highlighted her longstanding support for India-US relations and discussed key aspects of the bilateral partnership.
They discussed various aspects of ties between the two countries with focused on enhancing intelligence cooperation in counter-terrorism and emerging threats.
In a post on X, PM worte, “Met USA’s Director of National Intelligence, @TulsiGabbard in Washington DC. Congratulated her on her confirmation. Discussed various aspects of the India-USA friendship, of which she’s always been a strong votary. ”
Met USA’s Director of National Intelligence, @TulsiGabbard in Washington DC. Congratulated her on her confirmation. Discussed various aspects of the India-USA friendship, of which she’s always been a strong votary. pic.twitter.com/w2bhsh8CKF
The former Democratic congresswoman and military veteran takes on the role in President Donald Trump’s second-term administration, despite facing scrutiny over her past foreign policy stances and controversial political positions.
Despite opposition, Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Tom Cotton and Vice President JD Vance lobbied Republican senators to back Gabbard, arguing that she would bring “independent thinking” to the role.
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Image: Two NSW Health nurses have been stood down after a video surfaced showing them allegedly making disturbing comments about harming and refusing to treat Israeli patients (Source: YouTube)
Two NSW Health nurses have been stood down after a video surfaced showing them allegedly making disturbing comments about harming and refusing to treat Israeli patients.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese labelled the footage “sickening and shameful,” stating, “This antisemitic video is disgusting. The comments are vile.”
The antisemitic video circulating today is disgusting. The comments are vile.
The footage is sickening and shameful.
These antisemitic comments, driven by hate, have no place in our health system and no place anywhere in Australia.
The footage, shared online by Israeli content creator Max Veifer, captures a man and a woman—both confirmed to be health workers from Bankstown Hospital in Sydney’s south-west—engaging in antisemitic remarks during a conversation on the video chat app Chatruletka.
When Veifer identified himself as Israeli, the male nurse responded, “Eventually you’re going to get killed and go to Jahannam [hell], inshallah.” The woman then joined in, saying, “It’s Palestine’s country, not your country, you piece of shit,” before stating she would neither treat nor help Israeli patients.
“You have no idea how many Israeli dogs came to this hospital, and I sent them to Jahannam,” the male nurse claimed while making a threatening gesture.
SHOCKING: Chilling footage has emerged of a NSW Health doctor and his nurse claiming to have killed Israeli patients
NSW Premier Chris Minns confirmed the two individuals had been identified and immediately stood down.
“We need to send a clear and unambiguous message that if you go to an emergency department, if you’re on a ward anywhere in NSW, you will be treated by people who are highly trained and highly skilled, and who care about you,” Minns told 2GB.
And stronger aggravated sentencing changes will target crimes motivated by hatred towards people on the basis of their religion, race, gender identity, sexual orientation or disability.
An investigation is now underway, with NSW Police’s Strike Force Pearl assessing potential criminal implications.
NSW Health Minister Ryan Park called the footage “one of the most vile, shocking, and appalling videos I have ever seen.”
“These two individuals will not ever be working for NSW Health again,” Park said at a press conference, adding that authorities would also review Bankstown Hospital for any previous incidents of antisemitism.
Bankstown MP Tony Burke and Federal Health Minister Mark Butler also condemned the remarks, saying,
“These sorts of comments—and the hatred that underpins them—have no place in our health system and no place anywhere in Australia.”
Jewish community leader Alex Ryvchin described the video as “utterly sickening” and a “warning sign” about extremism infiltrating Australian institutions.
Meanwhile, NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey and Australian Medical Association (AMA) president Kathryn Austin reiterated that such conduct is completely unacceptable in the medical profession.
“This behaviour will not be tolerated. Our hospitals must remain safe havens for all patients.”
Additionally Australian Nursing Midwifery Federation released a statement condemning the act:
“We are appalled by the video showing two NSW Health workers making antisemitic comments. That type of hate is simply unacceptable and cannot be tolerated.”
Statement by @anmf_federal : "We are appalled by the video showing two NSW Health workers making antisemitic comments. That type of hate is simply unacceptable and cannot be tolerated." pic.twitter.com/ENzqFj58Gg
Albanese confirmed the Australian Federal Police had been briefed on the matter and offered assistance if required.
“It is very clear to me that these people have committed what are crimes, and they should face the full force of the law.”
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Image: U.S. President Donald Trump announced a “lengthy and highly productive” phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (Source: X)
U.S. President Donald Trump announced a “lengthy and highly productive” phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, discussing the war in Ukraine, Middle East tensions, energy, artificial intelligence, and global finance.
I just had a lengthy and highly productive phone call with President Vladimir Putin of Russia. We discussed Ukraine, the Middle East, Energy, Artificial Intelligence, the power of the Dollar, and various other subjects. We both reflected on the Great History of our Nations, and…
— Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) February 12, 2025
Trump, posting on Truth Social said both leaders reflected on the historical ties between their nations, particularly their World War II alliance, and agreed on the need to halt the “millions of deaths” in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Putin, according to Trump, endorsed his 2024 campaign slogan, “COMMON SENSE,” as a guiding principle for negotiations.
Trump stated that both leaders expressed interest in future visits to each other’s countries and agreed to have their teams begin immediate diplomatic talks. He confirmed that U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, would spearhead negotiations.
A key next step, Trump revealed, was informing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of the discussion, a conversation he said he was “doing right now.”
I had a long and detailed conversation with President Trump. I appreciate his genuine interest in our shared opportunities and how we can bring about real peace together.
We discussed many aspects—diplomatic, military, and economic—and President Trump informed me about what… pic.twitter.com/flmigxqtbl
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 12, 2025
Shortly after, Zelenskyy posted on X, calling his discussion with Trump “meaningful” and expressing gratitude for the U.S. leader’s engagement.
Zelenskyy emphasised Ukraine’s technological capabilities, including advancements in drone warfare, and mentioned an upcoming security and economic cooperation agreement. “No one wants peace more than Ukraine,” Zelensky stated, confirming ongoing contact and plans for future meetings.
I just had a lengthy and highly productive phone call with President Vladimir Putin of Russia. We discussed Ukraine, the Middle East, Energy, Artificial Intelligence, the power of the Dollar, and various other subjects. We both reflected on the Great History of our Nations, and…
— Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) February 12, 2025
Trump later posted a follow-up confirming his conversation with Zelenskyy. “He, like President Putin, wants to make PEACE,” Trump wrote, highlighting plans for a diplomatic meeting in Munich on Friday, led by Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Rubio.
Expressing urgency, Trump called the war “ridiculous,” denouncing its “massive, and totally unnecessary, DEATH and DESTRUCTION.” He concluded his post with a message for the people of both nations: “God bless the people of Russia and Ukraine!”
The developments mark a significant shift in diplomatic rhetoric as Trump positions himself as a key player in potential peace talks, though the feasibility and reception of his proposals remain to be seen.
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The latest photos add to the seven images released in 2023 after protesters allegedly displayed a Hizballah flag in the Melbourne CBD on 29 September between 12:30pm and 2:30pm.
AFP Assistant Commissioner for Counter Terrorism and Special Investigations, Stephen Nutt, reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to prosecuting those responsible.
“The public display of these symbols is not only unlawful but also intimidatory and menacing to members of the public, including the Jewish community,” Assistant Commissioner Nutt said.
“Law enforcement throughout the country has been clear that it will not tolerate this behaviour. It would be an error in judgement for offenders to believe the AFP is not taking these crimes seriously.”
The AFP’s Counter Terrorism and Special Investigations Command initially launched Operation Ardvarna to investigate potential Commonwealth offences at the protest. These matters have since been transferred to Special Operation Avalite.
Two Melbourne men, aged 36 and 34, have already been charged, with two further cases referred to the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions.
To support its investigation, the AFP previously requested media outlets to provide footage taken at the protest. The agency has thanked the media for their cooperation and is now releasing additional images to assist in identifying further individuals.=
Hizballah was designated a terrorist organisation by the Australian Government in December 2021. In January 2024, new legislation was introduced prohibiting the public display or trade of Nazi symbols and symbols associated with banned terrorist organisations. The Hizballah flag is classified as a prohibited symbol under this law.
Members of the public who recognise the individuals are urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
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Image: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (Source: X)
Albanese Government Steps Up to Keep Regional Flights in the Air
The Albanese Government has reaffirmed its commitment to regional Australia, announcing it will work with administrators of Regional Express Holdings (Rex) to ensure crucial aviation services continue beyond 30 June 2025.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the government was determined to keep regional communities connected.
“Regional Australians deserve access to quality and crucial regional aviation services,” he said.
“We are working collaboratively with the administrators of Rex to ensure these services continue beyond June 2025, including looking at what support the Commonwealth can provide.”
As part of a competitive sale process, the government will engage with shortlisted bidders to explore possible support options, with any assistance contingent on continued service to regional and remote communities, taxpayer value, and strong governance.
Finance Minister Katy Gallagher said ensuring the sale of Rex delivers the best outcome for regional travellers was a priority.
“The Albanese Government believes regional and remote communities deserve reliable, affordable, and accessible air travel,” she said.
“That’s why we’re taking steps to ensure the best possible deal for the sale of Rex.”
While the government is not a bidder in the sale, it has left the door open to a potential Commonwealth acquisition if a buyer cannot be found.
In the meantime, it has taken further steps to safeguard Rex’s regional operations, including waiving the “use it or lose it” rule for the airline’s flight slots at Sydney Airport until October 2026.
Regional Australians need reliable, quality transport to stay connected and thriving.
So today we’re backing REX airlines to ensure regional communities have access to crucial regional flights.
We won’t leave these communities behind and we'll keep building Australia’s future… pic.twitter.com/jl6dx7zdIQ
This comes in addition to an $80 million loan to keep Rex’s regional routes running until mid-2025 and the acquisition of $50 million in debt from the airline’s largest creditor, PAGAC Regulus Holdings Limited, earlier this year.
Transport Minister Catherine King said these actions reinforced the government’s commitment to regional connectivity.
“Regional Australians rely on these important services, and the Albanese Government is making sure communities outside capital cities aren’t shortchanged,” she said.
“When markets fail or struggle to deliver for regional communities, the Government has a role to ensure people do not miss out on opportunities, education, and critical connections.”
The government likened its approach to regional aviation to its commitment to telecommunications, with Prime Minister Albanese stressing that country towns deserve the same level of services and connectivity as major cities.
“Regional Australians can be assured that our Government will continue to fight to ensure these regional airfares remain available.”
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A 24-year-old Fijian man accused of raping and sexually assaulting a Virgin Australia flight attendant on New Year’s Day has been granted bail under strict conditions.
It is reported that Ilaisa Tanoa Degei was charged with one count of rape and one count of sexual assault after allegedly attacking the 21-year-old woman, who had been celebrating New Year’s Eve with colleagues in Nadi—a major gateway to Fiji’s top tourist destinations.
Degei appeared before the Lautoka High Court on Monday, where he applied for bail.
The court granted his release with sureties of FJD$1,500 (AUD$1,033), on the condition that he must reside in his village and cannot change his address without court approval. He is also barred from leaving Fiji.
The Australian government advises travellers to exercise normal safety precautions in Fiji, but warns that crime—including robbery, violent assault, and sexual assault—is more prevalent in urban areas and at night, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s Smartraveller website.
The case is set to return to court on 24 February for a plea mention.
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The upcoming federal election will see the incumbent Labor prime minister, Anthony Albanese, face off against Liberal opposition leader, Peter Dutton. We’ll likely see a strong focus on the personal qualities and performance of the two leaders.
We tend to think a popular leader can win an election for their party while an unpopular one can lose it. Much of the commentary on the Coalition’s 2022 election loss, for example, centred on the widespread dislike of Scott Morrison.
But how much do party leaders actually affect their party’s vote share, and ultimately, the outcome of an election? We looked at 40 years of opinion polling to find out.
Our research
Opinion polls in Australia have been conducted since the 1940s, but it was not until the 1980s that they began to regularly ask questions about leader satisfaction and voting intention. In recent decades, the proliferation of polls has seen a greater consistency in question wording and protocols.
We have been analysing the polling data on government popularity and responsiveness in Australia. This enables us to track and compare leaders over an extended period.
We’ve crunched the numbers on voter intention and leader satisfaction from September 1985 until December 2024.
We can cross-reference these statistics to show which prime ministers and opposition leaders were a net benefit to their party (more popular than their party overall) and which were a net drag (less popular than their party).
Prime ministers: who helped and who hindered?
By this measure, the prime minister who provided the most electoral benefit to their party was Kevin Rudd between 2007 and 2010.
Rudd achieved some of the highest levels of voter satisfaction recorded since the early Bob Hawke years, averaging 60% satisfaction, a 14-point net benefit for his party.
His popularity declined considerably just before his replacement by Julia Gillard in 2010, and never fully recovered when he became prime minister again in 2013.
John Howard ranks second, with Morrison and Albanese (so far) sharing third place in terms of satisfaction. However, there’s a larger difference between Albanese’s personal popularity and his party’s vote intention.
Morrison’s tenure in office was skewed by the COVID pandemic, which saw a “rally around the flag” effect, seeing a spike in voters’ trust in government.
Paul Keating comes at the bottom of the list. His personal popularity trailed his party’s by eight percentage points on average, with an upset victory in 1993 not enough to win over the public to defeat a resurgent Howard in 1996.
Similiarly, Tony Abbott, although party leader when the Coalition returned to power after the Rudd-Gillard-Rudd years, was consistently less popular than his party – by seven points in opposition and four as prime minister.
What about opposition leaders?
Among opposition leaders, Rudd again tops the list. He was more popular than Labor overall in the year prior to winning the election in December 2007, peaking at 65.5% satisfaction.
The opposition leader who represents the greatest drag on their party was Andrew Peacock in the late 1980s, in what was his second incarnation as Liberal leader.
Overall, prime ministers have a greater impact on their party’s fortunes than opposition leaders. This is expected as incumbency has advantages, with prime ministers usually given more opportunity for media attention, greater recognition with the public, and hopefully a record of achievements in government to point to.
Prime ministers register a net gain to their party of about four percentage points, compared with minus three points for opposition leaders.
Labor leaders show a net gain to their party of two points, compared to minus four points for their Liberal counterparts.
The personalisation of politics
Since at least the 1970s, political leaders have attracted increasing attention in democratic elections around the world.
This trend has not been restricted to countries with presidential systems, such as the United States. It’s also playing out in parliamentary systems such as Australia’s and the United Kingdom’s. This is despite the fact voters elect local members to parliament, rather than voting for the prime minister directly.
This profound shift in democratic politics has been based on several social changes.
First, the rise of television, and more recently social media, has provided the visual images that direct voters’ attention towards the leader.
While television’s heyday has passed – in both the 2019 and 2022 elections, the Australian Election Study surveys show more people followed the election on the internet than on television – visual images of the leaders dominate the media, both traditional and social.
Second, party de-alignment has seen voters moving away from their traditional party loyalties, with the personalities of the leaders filling this gap.
In the 1960s, around one in ten voters said they did not identify with a party, compared with one in four in the 2022 election.
Third, the unprecedented expansion in university education has produced critical voters who are more volatile in their voting than any groups in the past.
One factor that can sway their vote is policies, but another is the leader they find most competent.
What does this mean for the next election?
For Australian voters, leaders matter, rightly or wrongly, for evaluating the performance of a government and choosing which party to vote for.
As we close in on an election in 2025, voters will be looking to Albanese and Dutton. In the chart below, we can see that while on average Dutton has been only marginally beneficial for his party compared with Albanese, this gap has narrowed in the latter half of 2024.
Although Albanese started at a historically very strong position, it appears his popularity began to decline in May 2023. The defeat of the Voice to Parliament Referendum in November sped up the decline.
Dutton received a short-term boost after the result, after which his popularity declined and then has steadily built over time. Current projections indicate the next election will likely be close-run.
It also appears the two current leaders, whatever their other merits, have fallen short of the levels reached by the most popular prime ministers and opposition leaders of the past.
Albanese’s early popularity has waned, while the Coalition and Dutton’s fortunes rise in step with one another.
This reflects a return to a normal vote share for the party after their loss in 2022. While it may prove problematic for the government, it doesn’t necessarily indicate a meteoric increase in Dutton’s personal popularity.
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In a powerful demonstration of community spirit and selflessness, the Association of Haryanvis in Australia (AHA), in collaboration with the Australian Red Cross Lifeblood, successfully hosted the 11th National Blood Donation Drive to mark both Republic Day of India and Australia Day. The drive occurred across major Australian cities—Sydney, Adelaide, and Melbourne.
This national initiative organised twice a year in alignment with key national celebrations, has become an integral part of AHA’s mission to give back to the community. The AHA continues its tradition of service by facilitating blood donation drives, which are essential in saving lives and fostering a sense of solidarity among multicultural communities.
Since the inception of AHA’s Lifeblood Team in July 2021, the organization has made an incredible impact, facilitating 787 blood donations that have saved 2,361 lives. The ongoing efforts have inspired 139 new donors, many of whom have continued their commitment to donating regularly. These efforts have showcased the depth of the community’s commitment to ensuring the availability of life-saving resources and embodying the spirit of “Sewa” (selfless service).
The drive was led by dedicated and passionate people, including team AHA and volunteers:
Founder President: Sewa Singh
National Secretary: Vibhor Sharma
Blood Donation Drive National Lead (VIC Lead): Satish Kumar Khatri
NSW Lead: Pankaj Mittal
SA Lead: Ashok Kundu
These leaders, supported by a wide network of volunteers, worked tirelessly to coordinate the initiative and bring the community together for a noble cause. Their efforts to promote blood donation as an act of “Sewa” have proven instrumental in raising awareness and fostering a culture of giving.
In his remarks, Sewa Singh, Founder and President of AHA, emphasised the importance of giving back to society:
“As Bhartiyas, and more specifically as Haryanvis, we take pride in our spirit of community, resilience, and selfless service – values deeply rooted in our culture.
The vision behind organizing successful Blood Donation Drives is driven by our tradition of giving and standing by those in need.
It is our commitment to humanity, ensuring no life is lost due to a lack of blood. For us, this is not just a donation; it’s our duty, our Sewa, and our way of making a meaningful difference in society.”
Satish Kumar Khatri, Blood Donation Drive Lead, highlighted the profound impact of each donation:
“We are proud Bhartiya who believes in ‘रक्तदान महादान’ (Blood donation is a great donation). One donation has the power to save up to three lives, bringing hope and healing to entire families.
This is one of the simplest yet most profound ways we can give back to the community and support one another.”
The AHA encourages everyone to participate in this life-saving cause. Blood donations are critical in times of need, and by coming forward, individuals can make a lasting impact on the lives of others.
The organisers continue to emphasise,
“Every drop counts,” urging the community to participate and bring hope to those in need.
This initiative serves as a testament to the power of community collaboration. It highlights how a collective effort can save lives and bring people together for a cause greater than themselves. The AHA’s commitment to supporting the community through this invaluable service reinforces the importance of unity, selflessness, and care for one another.
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“Following today’s not guilty verdict, I can finally put this challenging period behind me. While I apologise for expressing myself poorly on what was a traumatic evening, I have always maintained that I did not intend to insult or harm anyone and I am thankful that the jury agreed.”
The Matildas captain faced trial at Kingston Crown Court in London over allegations she directed a racially aggravated insult at a police officer following a night out in 2023.
The charge centred on four words Kerr admitted saying—”f***ing stupid and white”—but the jury found that her remark did not meet the threshold of criminality.
Kerr’s trial, unfolding over the past week, became a flashpoint in broader racial and cultural debates, with supporters and critics interpreting the case through vastly different lenses. While her defenders pointed to the frightening circumstances leading up to the incident—a taxi ride that left Kerr and her partner, fellow footballer Kristie Mewis, feeling unsafe—others viewed her conduct as emblematic of an entitled athlete behaving poorly.
It is reported that the altercation began when Kerr, feeling unwell after leaving a London nightclub, vomited in a taxi. She claimed the driver became aggressive and began driving recklessly, leaving her terrified and fearing for her safety. When the cab arrived at Twickenham police station, officers reportedly dismissed her concerns. Kerr later told the court she believed she was treated differently “because of the colour of my skin.” The situation escalated when police detained Kerr, leading to the remarks at the centre of the trial.
The prosecution argued that Kerr’s comment constituted racial hostility towards the officer, who later described feeling “shocked and humiliated.” However, the jury was not convinced, particularly after it emerged that the officer did not initially report the comment—only including it in a statement 11 months later.
The Metropolitan Police defended their handling of the case, stating:
“Our officers perform a challenging job and are often subjected to various forms of abuse as they discharge their duty. We respect the jury’s verdict.”
Justice Peter Lodder, who presided over the case, acknowledged that while Kerr had been cleared, her behaviour on the night had “contributed significantly to the bringing of this allegation.”
Last year, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had also defended Matildas star Sam Kerr amid allegations of racial abuse against a London police officer. Speaking at ASEAN, he declined to comment on the legal case but praised Kerr as an inspiring Australian. He highlighted her role as Australia’s flag bearer at the coronation, describing his interactions with her as exemplary and delightful.
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Image: The student’s visa was cancelled after a phone search (Picture: Threads)
An international student had his visa torn up at Adelaide Airport after Border Force officers discovered evidence on his phone that he was illegally working excessive hours while studying.
A viral post on Threads over the weekend shared a document reportedly issued to the student by Australian Border Force (ABF) officials.
It is reported that the student admitted to working up to 60 hours per week for Uber while on a subclass 500 student visa, which only permits international students to work a maximum of 48 hours per fortnight.
The student, whose identity remains undisclosed, originally entered Australia in 2022 to pursue a Bachelor of Information Technology. However, he dropped out in July of that year and later enrolled in a Certificate III in Carpentry, followed by a Graduate Diploma of Management (Learning) in December 2023.
Image: The student’s visa was cancelled after a phone search (Picture: Threads)
“During a baggage examination on arrival, the visa holder stated to Australian Border Force (ABF) officers that he is aware of the conditions of his visa, and how many hours he is allowed to work,” the official document reads.
“The visa holder admitted that he consistently worked more than 48 hours per fortnight while his course of study was in session. An examination of his mobile phone was conducted by an officer authorised to conduct digital device examinations under s252 of the Migration Act.”
Section 252 of the Migration Act allows officers to search non-citizens’ property, including electronic devices, if there are “reasonable grounds” for visa cancellation.
The phone search reportedly revealed screenshots of Uber earnings and work hours, confirming the student had worked as much as 66 hours in a two-week period in March.
During a formal interview, the student conceded he had exceeded the work limit while his studies were in session. His visa was subsequently cancelled, and he was removed from Australia.
A spokesperson for the Department of Home Affairs declined to comment to news.com.au on the specific case, citing privacy reasons.
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The Albanese Labor Government is pushing forward with its commitment to Closing the Gap, working in partnership with First Nations organisations, states, territories, and local communities to deliver meaningful change.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese reaffirmed the government’s commitment, stating,
“We are working in partnership with states, territories, and peak organisations to close the gap. Australians believe in a fair go, and our goal is to build a future where all Australians have access to the same opportunities.”
Over the past year, key initiatives have been rolled out to support economic empowerment, improve housing, and expand access to healthcare in remote communities.
The government launched the Remote Jobs and Economic Development Program, aimed at creating up to 3,000 jobs over three years. The Indigenous Rangers Program was expanded, providing 1,000 new roles, including 770 positions for First Nations women. Meanwhile, the First Nations Clean Energy Strategy was introduced to ensure Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities benefit from the clean energy transition.
Housing remains a critical focus, with over 200 new homes built in remote Northern Territory communities, part of a broader 10-year plan to halve overcrowding. Healthcare initiatives have also been strengthened, with the opening of the first of up to 30 dialysis units in remote areas, increased access to affordable PBS medicines, and over 300 enrolments in the First Nations Health Worker Traineeship Program.
Legal and justice support services have also seen significant investment. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services and Family Violence Prevention Legal Services received increased funding to assist women and children experiencing domestic violence. Additionally, 27 community-led justice reinvestment initiatives were funded, and a dedicated National Commission for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People was established to address the over-representation of First Nations youth in out-of-home care and detention.
Today at the Garma Festival I am outlining how the Government will bring our commitment to the Uluru Statement from the Heart to life. pic.twitter.com/1sUi7AnjY7
Looking ahead to 2025, the government is prioritising measures to ease cost-of-living pressures in remote communities, strengthen economic empowerment, and improve living conditions. A $842 million partnership with the Northern Territory Government and Aboriginal Peak Organisations Northern Territory has been announced to fund essential services, including policing, women’s safety, health, and education.
New measures will also be introduced to cut the costs of 30 essential products in over 76 remote stores, expand housing programs, improve maternal care, and support First Nations business growth. The government will also provide scholarships for 150 First Nations psychology students and increase mental health support in communities.
Minister for Indigenous Australians, Malarndirri McCarthy, emphasised the government’s ongoing efforts, saying,
“We are focused on creating jobs with decent conditions, addressing housing overcrowding, supporting healthy children and safe families, and ensuring community-driven responses to crime. In 2025, we are building on these investments to ease cost-of-living pressures and drive long-term economic empowerment.”
The impact of these initiatives is beginning to show. The latest data from the Productivity Commission’s dashboard indicates progress, with five out of 19 Closing the Gap targets now on track. Improvements include an increase in First Nations babies born at a healthy weight and an expansion of land and sea country under Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander management.
Lead Convenor of the Coalition of Peaks, Pat Turner AM, acknowledged the progress while underscoring the need for continued accountability.
“Closing the Gap is not just policy; it is the pursuit of real, lasting change. Governments must strengthen policies that work and change those that fail our people. The journey is long, but we are seeing results, and we will hold ourselves and governments accountable every step of the way.”
With the 2025 Implementation Plan setting the course for the next phase of reforms, the Albanese Government is pressing ahead, determined to ensure First Nations communities lead the way in shaping their future.
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Image: Fiji’s Acting Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Hon. Professor Biman Prasad, has reaffirmed the country’s commitment to democracy and press freedom at the Pacific Media Partnership Conference 2025 (Source: x)
Fiji’s Acting Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Prof. Biman Prasad, has reaffirmed the country’s commitment to democracy and press freedom at the Pacific Media Partnership Conference 2025.
Addressing media professionals, government officials, and international delegates at the Suva Civic Centre, Prof. Prasad highlighted the Coalition Government’s reforms to restore media independence following years of restrictions under the previous administration.
Pleased to be at the Pacific Media Partnership Conference 2025, reaffirming Fiji’s commitment to media freedom and democracy. A free and independent press is essential for accountability and progress. #MediaFreedom#Democracy#Fijinewspic.twitter.com/yMpk7QFqAE
“One of our first acts in Government was to repeal the oppressive Media Industry Development Act,” Prof. Prasad stated.
“We also ended the business of exclusive Government contracts to selected media favourites.”
Prof. Prasad acknowledged that his government is subject to criticism from the press but views it as an essential pillar of democracy.
“Some of that criticism is justified—we are far from a perfect government. Some of it we feel is a bit unfair, but I suppose all governments feel that way sometimes.”
Highlighting Fiji’s progress, Prof. Prasad pointed to recognition from global watchdog Freedom House.
“In 2023, Freedom House ranked Fiji the most improved country in the world for civil liberties as a result of the change in government. That is no accident.”
He recalled the media restrictions of the past, describing how previous governments controlled newsrooms.
“Who can forget the days when the former Fiji Sun editors waited every afternoon to be told by the Government what the following day’s headlines would be? The price for their subservience was a multi-million-dollar exclusive advertising contract.”
Prof. Prasad assured the audience that such political interference is now a thing of the past.
“This government will not interfere with FBC’s independence. Even the Fiji Broadcasting Corporation—the government-owned broadcaster—now regularly runs news that is critical of the government.”
Prof. Prasad also addressed the growing challenges posed by misinformation and social media, emphasising the importance of ethical journalism.
“Mainstream media is challenged by a set of rules which do not apply to social media—the requirement to be accountable under national laws, media and business regulations, and ethical journalism standards. None of these laws apply to bloggers or so-called activists who push their often-half-baked ideas onto others from their keyboards.”
He reaffirmed the government’s commitment to strengthening public service broadcasting, announcing continued financial support for media organisations.
“On our part, the government allocated a total of $10.4 million in the last budget for public service broadcasting, and already two private media organisations have received their grants.”
Concluding his address, the Acting Prime Minister urged media professionals to continue their critical role in holding power to account.
“To those who criticise us, I say, keep holding us to account. But remember how you became free enough, and informed enough, to do that.”
The 2025 Pacific Media Partnership Conference is taking place at the Suva Civic Centre from 11-13 February 2025, co-hosted by the Fijian Broadcasting Corporation (FBC). It coincides with FBC Radio’s 70th anniversary, the launch of FBC’s Media Academy, and World Radio Day 2025, culminating in a Gala Dinner at Ratu Sukuna Park.
The conference will address key challenges for Pacific Island broadcasters, including content acquisition, sports rights, digital platform innovations, Generative AI in news, emergency broadcasting, and monetising OTT platforms. Discussions will also revisit budget pressures, reliance on Big Tech, climate change, gender equality in media leadership, and press freedom.
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The County Court of Victoria handed down the sentence on 11 February 2025 after the man pleaded guilty on 29 October 2024 to one count of false accounting.
AFP Acting Commander Bernard Geason said the case highlighted the AFP’s dedication to combating transnational financial crime.
“False accounting is not always immediately apparent,” a/Cmdr Geason said. “Proving that false records were used to hide transnational transactions requires persistence and international cooperation.
“Serious financial crime, including grand corruption, is not victimless. In this case, the true victims were Malaysian taxpayers. The AFP will continue to prosecute criminals who obtain business advantages unlawfully.”
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) launched an investigation in February 2015 into the man, his associated companies, and several Melbourne property developments. The investigation revealed he had acquired three properties near a university campus in Caulfield East, converting them into student hostels through his companies.
In 2013, the completed hostel was sold to a Malaysian government-owned entity for $22.6 million—an inflated price from the original $17.85 million. The AFP found that $4.75 million in payments were made to entities linked to Malaysian public officials or their agents to facilitate the sale. Of that amount, $3.4 million was disguised through false invoices.
The AFP charged the man in July 2020 with falsifying accounting records to gain an advantage, in violation of section 83(1)(a) of the Crimes Act (Vic).
The AFP-led Criminal Assets Confiscation Taskforce (CACT) later restrained two real estate properties in Victoria—each owned by the offender’s wife and her company—along with bank accounts linked to the family and associated businesses, with a total value of $1.6 million.
The AFP also acknowledged the assistance of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission in the investigation.
As a founding member of the Bribery Prevention Network, the AFP continues to support Australian businesses in managing bribery and corruption risks in both domestic and international markets.
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Image: US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (Source: X)
By Scott French
US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese have stated an exemption for Australia from Trump’s executive order placing 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imported into the US is “under consideration”. But prospects remain uncertain.
Albanese would do well to secure an exemption using similar arguments as then-Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull did in 2018.
If Australia cannot obtain a carve-out from the tariffs, the main group affected will be the Australian producers of steel and aluminium. But the size of the hit they will take is difficult to predict.
Regardless of whether Australia gets an exemption, the world economy – and Australians – will be affected by Trump’s latest round of tariffs.
Producers will be hit
If ultimately imposed by the US, these tariffs will make steel and aluminium produced in Australia more expensive for US manufacturers relative to domestically produced alternatives. This will certainly result in reduced demand for the Australian products.
However, three factors will help limit the effects:
1. The price of metals produced in the US will rise
It will take time to ramp up US production to fill the gap of reduced imports, and the extra production will likely come from less efficient domestic producers. This means that US manufacturers will continue to buy imported metals, despite the higher prices.
2. The US is not a huge market for Australian steel and aluminium
Australia produced A$113 billion of primary and fabricated metal in the 2022-23 financial year, according to the ABS.
By comparison, less than $1 billion of steel and aluminium was exported to the US in 2023, according to data from UN Comtrade, consisting of about $500 million of aluminium and less then $400 million of steel. Exports to the US account for about 10% of Australia’s total exports of these metals.
3. Major markets
If major markets such as China and the European Union enact retaliatory tariffs on US metals, this could make Australian metals more competitive in these markets.
Some stand to benefit
While workers in Australian steel and aluminium plants will be watching the news with trepidation, some of Australia’s biggest manufacturing companies may be less concerned.
For example, BlueScope Steel has significant US steel operations, and saw its share price increase on news of the tariffs.
US-based Alcoa, which owns alumina refineries in Western Australia and an aluminium smelter in Victoria, will also expect to see its US operations benefit.
And Rio Tinto will be most concerned about its substantial Canadian operations. Its Canadian hub is responsible for close to half of its global aluminium production.
Demand for iron ore could fall
The US tariffs will also have wider ranging effects on the Australian economy, regardless of whether Australia’s products are directly targeted.
Iron ore, by contrast, makes up more than 20% of Australia’s exports, with aluminium ores making up an additional 1.5%.
This means the effect of the tariffs on demand for the raw materials to make steel and aluminium may have the largest detrimental effect on the Australian economy.
Because the tariffs will make steel and aluminium more expensive to US manufacturers, they will seek to reduce their use of them. This means global demand for the metals, and the ores used to produce them, will decline.
Investors appear to be betting on this, with shares of Australian miners like Rio Tinto and BHP falling since Trump announced the tariffs.
Imported goods will become more expensive
Many of the things Australians buy are likely to get more expensive.
All US products that use steel and aluminium at any stage of the production process will also become more expensive. Tariffs will raise the cost of steel and aluminium for US manufacturers, both directly and by reducing overall productivity in the US.
About 11% of Australia’s imports come from the US. And about half of this consists of machinery, vehicles, aircraft, and medical instruments, which typically contain steel and aluminium. Further, these goods are used by manufacturers around the world to produce and transport many of the other things Australians buy.
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It is reported that Gursewak Singh, 25, pleaded guilty to dishonestly obtaining property by deception in Blacktown Local Court on Monday.
Singh’s lawyer indicated they planned to file a mental health application.
The court heard that Singh introduced himself to his victim as a saint from the sacred Indian city of Haridwar on January 9.
It is further reported that over several meetings, Singh gained her trust and persuaded her to participate in ritual prayers, where she would close her eyes while he chanted and “blessed” her personal items.
By early February, Singh convinced the woman to offer more than the $20,000 in jewellery she initially wanted blessed, leading her to bring an additional $130,000 worth of gold and diamonds.
Travelling to her home for an hour-long ritual, Singh allegedly swapped the valuables for a coconut while her eyes were closed. The woman later realised the theft and reported it to police.
When officers arrested Singh at Darling Harbour, he admitted to the crime and led them to the stolen jewellery, which was hidden in a shopping bag at a city backpackers’ hostel.
The Indian national was due to return to India on February 6 but remains on bail ahead of his next court appearance on March 10.
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Image: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (Source: X)
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed a “great conversation” with US President Donald Trump, following an urgent phone call over new American tariffs on steel and aluminium—yet Australia remains in the firing line.
Trump announced overnight that all steel and aluminium imports will face a 25 per cent tariff with “no exemptions,” despite Albanese’s push for Australia to be spared.
“This is a big deal,” Trump declared while signing the executive order. “The beginning of making America rich again.”
This morning I had a great conversation with President @realDonaldTrump
We committed to working constructively together to advance Australian and American interests, drive economic prosperity and face shared challenges.
Albanese, speaking from Canberra, revealed that he pressed Trump for an exemption, highlighting Australia’s strong economic ties with the US. “I presented Australia’s case, and we agreed on wording that the exemption is ‘under consideration’ in the interests of both nations,” he said. He emphasised Australia’s history of fair trade, adding,
“My government has a record of getting things done in Australia’s national interest, and I’ll continue to do so.”
Trade Minister Don Farrell is set to fly to Washington within days to negotiate a possible exemption, as Australian officials scramble to prevent a repeat of past trade tensions. Trump, while doubling down on tariffs, left the door open for Australia, acknowledging the two nations’ unique trade relationship.
Congratulations to President Donald Trump on his election victory.
Australians and Americans are great friends and true allies.
Working together, we can ensure the partnership between our nations and peoples remains strong into the future.
“We have a surplus with Australia, one of the few,” he said.
“And the reason is, they buy a lot of airplanes. They are rather far away and need lots of airplanes.”
Trump’s tariff move has sparked backlash among US lawmakers, with Democratic Congressman Joe Courtney labelling it an “insult” to Australia—especially in the wake of the AUKUS defence deal, which saw Australia hand over an $800 million down payment last week.
“We just signed a cheque for US submarines, and two days later, we get slapped with tariffs,” Courtney fumed in the US House of Representatives.
Former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, who previously negotiated an exemption from Trump’s tariffs in 2017, urged Albanese to take a firm stance. “If Trump has decided to impose tariffs on everybody, no matter what, no amount of sucking up will change that,” Turnbull warned.
With Trump’s administration planning further trade measures in the coming weeks, Australia faces an uphill battle to secure an exemption. While Albanese remains diplomatic, pressure is mounting on his government to fight back—without jeopardising the broader alliance with the US.
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Image: Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal (Source: X)
By Om Prakash Dwivedi
The BJP has returned to power in Delhi after 26 years, securing 45.56% of the vote share in the assembly elections. It won 48 out of 70 seats, reducing the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to just 22. This marks a dramatic fall for a party that once championed socialism but seemingly shifted towards self-serving interests.
It was a landslide victory for the BJP, further underscored by the colossal defeat of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his close aide, Manish Sisodia. With this loss, Kejriwal’s decade-long grip on the national capital has come to an end.
The fact that both Kejriwal and Sisodia failed to win their seats signifies the collapse of the so-called “Kejriwal model” and the diminishing appeal of AAP’s socialist agenda. While the party campaigned on its achievements in education and healthcare, Kejriwal’s declining public image overshadowed his policies. His perceived wrongdoings ultimately mattered more than his governance.
From being the ‘muffler man’—a symbol of simplicity—to the owner of a lavish “Sheesh Mahal” in the heart of Delhi, Kejriwal’s transformation damaged his credibility. History has shown that socialist parties are not immune to corruption, and AAP, which set out to redefine socialism in India, ultimately fell prey to the same VIP culture it once opposed.
The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report further exposed AAP’s contradictions. Initially, the renovation of Kejriwal’s official residence was estimated at ₹7.91 crore. By 2020, this cost had risen to ₹8.62 crore, and when the Public Works Department completed the project in 2022, expenses had skyrocketed to ₹33.66 crore. This starkly contrasted with Kejriwal’s self-styled image as a champion of the common people. The so-called “Kejriwal model” seemingly shifted from public welfare to personal extravagance, underestimating the electorate’s ability to see through the façade.
But the controversy didn’t stop there. The man who came to power on an anti-corruption platform became embroiled in a multi-crore liquor scam, leading to the imprisonment of his deputy, Manish Sisodia. Further financial irregularities plagued his tenure, culminating in Kejriwal’s arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in March 2024 on money laundering charges linked to the excise policy. While AAP supporters decried political vendetta, his alleged links to corruption were hard to ignore. As Al Jazeera reported, “What once started as a people’s movement had now fizzled into a mere political party,” with political analyst Neelanjan Sircar observing that “Kejriwal is perhaps just a politician now, and once that shine wears off, the core voters’ affiliation is weakened.”
कांग्रेस की शोषितों-वंचितों के हक़ की लड़ाई निरंतर जारी रहेगी।
Another factor in AAP’s downfall was its inconsistent stance on Congress. Kejriwal had previously positioned both BJP and Congress as part of the same corrupt system but later softened his position. His wife, Sunita Kejriwal, even campaigned alongside Sonia Gandhi at the INDIA Alliance rally in March 2024. This shift confused and alienated AAP’s core supporters, who saw little difference between the two parties.
Kejriwal’s downfall exemplifies the rise of post-ideological politics, where ideology is merely a tool for acquiring power. Once in power, personal ambitions take precedence over principles, and socialism becomes entangled with corrupt and opportunistic leadership.
AAP’s dramatic decline—from winning 62 seats in the 2020 assembly elections to just 22 in 2024—calls for serious introspection. If the party hopes to recover, it needs fresh leadership and a genuine commitment to its foundational principles. For now, the so-called “Kejriwal model” appears to have been sacrificed at the altar of personal ambition.
Contributing Author: Prof. Om Prakash Dwivedi is a literary critic and columnist.
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Image: USAID has helped communities safeguard over 40,000 hectares of forest and marine areas in Madang Province and over 60,000 hectares nationwide, through conservation deeds (Source: Facebook/USAID.PNGSIVAN)
By Terence Wood
Although the Trump administration is now attempting to walk back some of the most obviously murderous aspects of its aid freeze, its ramifications remain: the damage already done, the effects on work still covered by the freeze, the apparent demise of USAID, the sheer capriciousness of the decision. (To make matters worse, supposed humanitarian exemptions to the aid freeze do not appear to be working.)
While impacts on other parts of the world have dominated the headlines, the decision is going to be felt in the Pacific too. The region is the world’s most aid-dependent. Its countries are, for the most part, either tiny and remote or larger and politically unstable. Malaria, HIV/AIDS, dengue fever and tuberculosis are major problems in several countries. Most Pacific countries are highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change and natural disasters.
Regionally, the United States is not nearly as large a donor as Australia but Figure 1, taken from Lowy Institute data, shows it gave more to the region than China did over the five most recent years for which data were available for both countries. If the policy settings of the Biden administration had been maintained, US aid was set to increase under the first-ever US-Pacific Partnership Strategy, including through a pledge of $60 million per annum to the Forum Fisheries Agency and the relaunching of the Peace Corps in the Pacific.
US aid is not equally spread across the Pacific. As can be seen in Figure 2 (based on OECD reporting for the five most recent years with data), the bulk of US aid to the Pacific goes to Micronesia, and in particular the so-called Compact States: the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Palau.
As my colleague Cameron Hill has reported, there is considerable confusion as to whether aid to the Compact States is covered by Trump’s executive order to freeze US aid. Legally, it seems as if the compact states should be excluded from the freeze but in practice it appears as if impacts are being felt.
A cessation of most US aid would be disastrous for the Compact States, but that’s not the end of the story. In recent years the United States has provided more than US$13 million dollars in disaster preparedness support to countries such as Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and Tonga. It has provided nearly US$20 million dollars in HIV assistance to Papua New Guinea and Fiji. (Some of this was funding through the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, known as PEPFAR, which has been declared exempt from the funding freeze. However, the majority of the funding does not appear to have been from PEPFAR.) It has provided nearly US$12 million for biodiversity work in Papua New Guinea. It has helped with unexploded ordnance removal in Solomon Islands (the ordnance in question being left over from World War 2 and a perennial problem).
There will be other flow-on effects too: the US is the largest contributor to the World Bank’s International Development Association (the Bank’s concessional financing arm). And the World Bank is the third largest aid donor in the Pacific. The US has also, historically, been the second largest donor to the Asian Development Bank’s Asian Development Fund. The Asian Development Bank is a major donor in the Pacific as the Figure 1 shows. It would be unprecedented for the United States to renege on existing funding commitments to these multilateral development institutions, but precedent counts for little at present.
Other US decisions about multilateral organisations will also be felt through the Pacific. The United States was the world’s largest contributor to the World Health Organization in 2024-25. The Trump administration has announced it will pull the US out of the WHO, which will have a massive impact on funding. As Samoa’s Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mataʻafa has pointed out, the impacts of falling WHO funding will be felt in the Pacific too.
To make matters worse, if other donors attempt to fill aid gaps caused by what the United States is doing elsewhere, they might potentially cut their aid to the Pacific.
In a purely quantitative sense not all Pacific countries will be that badly affected directly by the US aid freeze. But the flow-on effects of what is happening in the United States – the world’s largest aid donor – will reach the Pacific one way or another.
It’s easy to feel helpless watching the United States right now. It is worth remembering, though, that Australia and New Zealand (the largest and third largest bilateral aid donors to the Pacific respectively) can help. We could quite easily increase our aid budgets and focus these increases on helping Pacific countries cope with the current American trainwreck. We will need to help for other reasons too: the government of the world’s most powerful country is in complete denial when it comes to climate change, which will increase the need for our assistance even more.
Australia and New Zealand often talk the talk about being good neighbours to the region. In the coming years, as another of the region’s neighbours goes rogue, we are – more than ever before – going to have to walk the walk.
Contributing Author: Terence Wood is a Fellow at the Development Policy Centre. His research focuses on political governance in Western Melanesia, and Australian and New Zealand aid.
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Are you a woman looking for a career that’s both challenging and rewarding? The Australian Federal Police (AFP) is calling on women with a sense of adventure to explore exciting opportunities in law enforcement.
The AFP is hosting a free online information session, “Women in Policing and Protection”, where a panel of female officers will share their experiences as protective service officers (PSOs), national police officers, and ACT police officers. The event will also feature insights from the AFP Recruitment team, offering a unique chance to learn about career pathways, benefits, and the vital role women play in the force.
Attendees will hear firsthand about the day-to-day realities of AFP officers, the challenges they overcome, and the unwavering support available to women in policing. The session will also provide an opportunity to ask questions and be inspired by real-life stories of courage, commitment, and success.
As Australia’s national policing agency, the AFP plays a critical role in protecting lives, livelihoods, and national interests, both at home and abroad. The agency tackles serious and organised crime, counter-terrorism, and cyber threats, working closely with domestic and international partners to safeguard the nation.
With a strong history dating back to 1917 and officially established in 1979 following the Sydney Hilton Hotel bombing, the AFP has evolved into a dynamic, cutting-edge law enforcement agency. Commissioner Reece P. Kershaw APM envisions the AFP as an agile, innovative, and progressive police force, one that reflects the diversity of the community it serves.
If you’ve ever considered a career in policing, now is the time to step forward. This free session is your gateway to discovering a career filled with purpose, adventure, and the chance to make a real difference.
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The dramatic rise in antisemitic incidents has dominated headlines in Australia in recent months, with calls for urgent action to address what many are calling a crisis.
The Executive Council of Australian Jewry tallied more than 2,000 antisemitic incidents in 2024, including physical assaults, attacks on synagogues, vandalism and graffiti. This is a 316% increase over the previous year.
These alarming events have sparked a heated political debate, with the opposition accusing the federal government of not taking the issue seriously enough.
However, focusing only on overt acts of antisemitism risks seeing it as an exceptional phenomenon or a problem limited to fringe extremist groups. This can obscure the more subtle and structural forms of antisemitism that perpetuate stereotypes about Jews and entrench discrimination in society.
How laws ingrain structural antisemitism
In my research, I examine how certain forms of antisemitism persist in Western societies with a Christian tradition.
While laws explicitly targeting Jews are largely a relic of the past, subtler forms of exclusion and discrimination remain. These often stem from perceptions that Jews deviate from dominant cultural norms.
For instance, Jewish communities frequently encounter resistance to the building of an eruv. This is a symbolic demarcation of a public space that enables Jews to observe Shabbat, a day when work is prohibited. It can sometimes involve stringing a wire between poles to create a boundary where people can do things they aren’t normally able to do, such as push a pram or carry shopping bags.
When an Orthodox Jewish community in Sydney sought permission to construct an eruv in the 2010s, local residents opposed it. Many arguments invoked stereotypes of Jews as clannish, intrusive and conspiratorial.
There have been similar disputes over eruvs in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States. In many cases, local councils have sided with opponents, meaning Orthodox Jewish communities have had to go to court to seek approval.
In Europe, bans on religious slaughter have also singled out Jews and Muslims as cruel and fundamentalist, despite the widespread use of factory farming in Western societies.
There have also been calls to outlaw infant male circumcision in the name of children’s rights in many European countries and parts of the US.
These campaigns have, at times, tapped into longstanding antisemitic ideas about Jews as barbaric, bloodthirsty and backward.
These legal conflicts or campaigns reveal the structural dimensions of antisemitism. Similar to other forms of structural racism, structural antisemitism normalises majoritarian norms, perceptions and practices.
In turn, it marginalises and denigrates Jews as foreign, threatening and a problematic “other”.
Institutions, including schools, workplaces and local councils, can perpetuate these biases when they legitimise such exclusionary norms without critical reflection.
Understanding structural antisemitism also requires examining the Christian heritage of Western societies. In particular, there is a need to reflect on the legacy of Christian anti-Judaism.
Historically, the Christian belief in “supersessionism” referred to idea that Christianity has superseded Judaism and that Christians have replaced Jews as the people of God. Alongside the stereotype of Jews as the killers of Christ, this belief has contributed to stereotypes of Jews as inferior to Christians and being archaic, unenlightened, exclusive and ritualistic.
As the legal conflicts over eruvs, religious slaughter and circumcision suggest, such views continue to subtly influence attitudes towards Jews, even in modern secular societies.
For example, popular references to Judeo-Christian values signal the equality of Jews and Christians in society. However, this glosses over the fact that the acceptance of Jews can be contingent on conforming with majority norms.
This legacy also normalises Christian privilege. While Christians may face discrimination in certain contexts, they also enjoy inherent advantages in societies shaped by Christian traditions.
National calendars, weekly rhythms and public holidays align with Christian practices, while minorities need to seek accommodations to observe their own traditions.
For example, Western cities are filled with Christian symbols, such as churches and annual Christmas decorations. Several Australian parliaments and local councils also still begin meetings with Christian prayers.
What might seem like benign cultural traditions can signal exclusion to minority communities, including Jews. Implicit Christian norms can also create pressure to assimilate, especially given the long history of Christian societies’ attempts to convert or assimilate Jews.
However, these dynamics are rarely acknowledged in public debates about the discrimination of Jews and can also fly under the radar of the law.
In 1998, for instance, a Jewish father in New South Wales brought racial discrimination complaints against the education department over Christian activities at his children’s public school. These included nativity plays, Christmas carols and exchanging Easter eggs. The complaints were dismissed because they did not constitute discrimination on the basis of race.
The law in NSW does not prohibit religious discrimination (although the state now has religious vilification laws).
This gap exists in federal discrimination law, as well. It leaves minority religious groups with limited legal options to challenge the dominance of Christian norms. The NSW example demonstrates this and suggests there may be a case for a new federal religious discrimination law.
The question of what constitutes antisemitism remains a vexed question, including among Jews. Violent antisemitic attacks demand urgent attention. Yet, public discussions of antisemitism must also address these subtler forms of exclusion and the structural dimensions of antisemitism.
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Image: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese with Northern Territory Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro (Photo: ABC news screenshot / Source: @AlboMP - X)
In a historic step towards Closing the Gap, the Albanese and Northern Territory Governments have joined forces with the Aboriginal Peak Organisations Northern Territory (APO NT) to strengthen service delivery in remote First Nations communities.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the agreement underscores his government’s determination to ensure Indigenous Australians have access to the same opportunities as all Australians.
“Australians want to close the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. Australians believe in the fair go,” Albanese said.
“My Government remains determined to seek better results for Indigenous Australians and help Close the Gap.”
Opportunity, safety, and genuine investment are key to healthy communities.
That’s why we’re strengthening services in remote Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory.
Today's funding agreement with the NT Government and Aboriginal Peak Organisations NT will support… pic.twitter.com/bEMaEiB7GO
The funding package will continue to deliver essential services such as policing, education, and alcohol harm reduction while expanding Aboriginal interpreter services and investing in community development, mediation, and peacekeeping activities. Additionally, it will fund up to 12 Aboriginal Community Controlled Children and Family Centres to provide coordinated solutions for family safety and child development.
Northern Territory Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro welcomed the agreement, highlighting its impact on remote policing efforts.
“This funding supports essential services in remote communities, including $205.9 million for our remote policing efforts,” she said.
“All Territorians have a right to be safe from violence, and ensuring remote communities are effectively policed benefits the entire Territory.”
Senator Malarndirri McCarthy, Minister for Indigenous Australians, reinforced the importance of working in genuine partnership with First Nations people.
“This investment will ensure remote First Nations communities have access to the critical services they need while supporting communities to lead in their economic and social development,” she said.
“We know the most effective solutions come from local communities.”
The agreement will also fund local groups in up to eight remote locations, empowering them to design and deliver services for their communities. Northern Territory Minister for Aboriginal Affairs Steven Edgington described it as a practical step towards Closing the Gap, giving bush communities a greater voice in decision-making.
“Importantly, it empowers bush communities to have a more active role in community development and decision-making processes,” he said.
“The increased investment in remote women’s safe houses will help provide culturally appropriate support to protect victims and survivors of abuse.”
Federal Member for Lingiari Marion Scrymgour, whose electorate covers more than 1.3 million square kilometres, hailed the funding as a vital step in improving the liveability of remote Aboriginal communities.
“Remote communities are the lifeblood of the Northern Territory,” Scrymgour said.
“I am confident the future pipeline of funds committed through this Partnership Agreement will make significant contributions to enhancing the social and economic well-being of the more than 70 remote communities that I represent.”
Dr John Paterson, convenor of APO NT, said the commitment was a testament to Aboriginal self-determination and decades of advocacy by Aboriginal Territorians.
“Investing in Aboriginal self-determination to Close the Gap in the Northern Territory will deliver vital services and programs for our mob in the bush,” Paterson said.
“Aboriginal people hold the knowledge needed to improve outcomes for our people and communities.”
With a renewed focus on community-led initiatives, the funding deal represents a significant shift towards local empowerment and long-term development in the Northern Territory’s remote Aboriginal communities.
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Image: Fiji's Defence Minister Pio Tikoduadua in India (source: X)
In a first for the event, Fiji’s Defence Minister Pio Tikoduadua will join global leaders and industry giants at the Global Investors Meet (GIM) Invest Karnataka 2025, where India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is set to inaugurate the high-profile summit on February 11.
Announcing his arrival, Tikoduadua highlighted the deep ties between Fiji and India, expressing hopes for stronger collaboration in trade and investment.
“Fiji and India share a long history of collaboration and we hope to further our relationship.”
Grateful to have landed in Bengaluru in the great state of Karnataka in the south of India. Later today, I will meet with India’s Minister of Defence Hon. Shri. Rajnath Singh.
Fiji and India share a long history of collaboration and we hope to further our relationship.… pic.twitter.com/BiYlrbLZSM
Karnataka Minister for Large and Medium Industries M B Patil confirmed that the summit will see an unprecedented international presence, with 19 country partners and nine dedicated pavilions showcasing opportunities for global trade and investment. It is reported that more than 10 country-specific sessions will focus on sectors such as renewable energy, supply chain resilience, and healthcare.
The much-anticipated event will mark the unveiling of Karnataka’s Industrial Policy 2025-30, setting the stage for the state’s industrial growth over the next five years. Karnataka is targeting A$181.5 billion in investments across key sectors, with an ambitious plan to realise at least 70% of these commitments.
Landed at the HAL Airport, Bengaluru for Aero India 2025. Visited the state of art LCAMK1A production facility of HAL. MK1A is an advanced version of LCA MK1 with many advanced features. The LCA is a multi-role aircraft capable of taking up offensive air support, close combat and… pic.twitter.com/bzLrVKILcX
The summit will bring together an elite lineup of business and political leaders, with Union Ministers Piyush Goyal, Nirmala Sitharaman, Pralhad Joshi, H. D. Kumaraswamy, Ashwini Vaishnav, Shobha Karandlaje, and V Somanna confirming their participation.
Among the high-profile speakers are Anand Mahindra, Kumar Mangalam Birla, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Sajjan Jindal, Patrick Lord (COO, LAM Research), and US Department of Energy CIO Ann Dunkin. Some of the most anticipated discussions will feature economic strategist Montek Singh Ahluwalia on India’s economic resilience, former Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou and Shashi Tharoor on global leadership, and GoogleX founder Sebastian Thrun on disruptive technology.
For the first time, the Invest Karnataka Awards will recognise 14 pioneering industries for their contributions to the state’s economy, with special categories celebrating advancements in Aerospace & Defence, Electric Vehicles, and Biotech & Life Sciences. The first-ever SME Awards will honour 35 outstanding small and medium enterprises, with special recognition for women entrepreneurs and district-level excellence. Startups will also take centre stage, with the VentuRISE competition offering $300,000 in funding, including a $50,000 first-place prize for the most innovative venture.
The three-day event, featuring over 25 technical sessions, will witness an unparalleled exchange of ideas between policymakers, business magnates, and industry pioneers. With an agenda twice as expansive as previous editions, GIM Invest Karnataka 2025 is set to solidify Karnataka’s reputation as a global hub for investment, innovation, and industrial growth.
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Unfortunately, the bitumen roads, brick and concrete structures and roofing tiles in cities can absorb and retain vast amounts of heat, much of which is released after the sun has set. This creates what’s known as the urban heat island effect. In fact, temperatures can be significantly higher in cities than in surrounding or rural areas.
Trees and greenspace can drive down urban temperatures – but they must be able to draw water from the soil to achieve these massive cooling effects.
In other words, it can sometimes be helpful to water your trees during a heatwave.
How trees keep us cool (and no, it’s not just about shade)
Trees reduce urban temperatures in two significant ways. One is by the shade they provides and the other is through their cooling effect – and no, they’re not the same thing.
Water is taken up via a plant’s roots, moves through the stems or trunks and is then misted into the air from the leaves through little holes called stomata. This is called transpiration, and it helps cool the air around leaves.
Water can also evaporate from soil and other surfaces. The combined loss of water from plants and soil is called evapotranspiration.
The cooling effects of evapotranspiration vary but are up to 4°C, depending on other environmental factors.
Watering your trees
If heatwaves occur in generally hot, dry weather, then trees will provide shade – but some may struggle with transpiration if the soil is too dry.
This can reduce the cooling effect of trees. Keeping soil moist and plants irrigated, however, can change that.
The best time to irrigate is early in the morning, as the water is less likely to evaporate quickly before transpiration can occur.
You don’t need to do a deep water; most absorbing roots are close to the surface, so a bit of brief irrigation will often do the trick. You could also recycle water from your shower. Using mulch helps trap the water in the soil, giving the roots time to absorb it before it evaporates.
All transpiring plants have a cooling effect on the air surrounding them, so you might wonder if trees have anything special to offer in terms of the urban heat island effect and heatwaves.
Their great size means that they provide much larger areas of shade than other plants and if they are transpiring then there are greater cooling effects.
The surface area of tree leaves, which is crucial to the evaporative cooling that takes place on their surfaces, is also much greater than many other plants.
All that said, I don’t want to overstate the role of urban trees in heatwaves when soils are dry.
Some trees cease transpiring early as soils dry, but others will persist until they wilt.
Careful tree selection can help maximise the cooling effects of the urban forest. Trees that suit the local soil and can cope with some drying while maintaining transpiration can provide greater cooling
And, of course, it is important to follow any water restrictionrules or guidelines that may be operating in your area at the time.
Trees keep us cool
Despite the clear benefits trees can provide in curbing heat, tree numbers and canopy cover are declining annually in many Australian cities and towns.
Housing development still occurs without proper consideration of how trees and greenspace improve residents’ quality of life.
It is not an either/or argument. With proper planning, you can have both new housing and good tree canopy cover.
We should also be cautious of over-pruning urban trees.
Trees cannot eliminate the effects of a heatwave but can mitigate some of them.
Anything that we can do to mitigate the urban heat island effect and keep our cities and towns cooler will reduce heat-related illness and associated medical costs.
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The Broadmeadows man is due to face Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on 19 March 2025, after being served with a notice by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) on 6 February.
The AFP alleges the man publicly displayed a prohibited terrorist organisation symbol, an offence under section 80.2HA of the Criminal Code (Cth), which carries a maximum penalty of 12 months’ imprisonment.
Assistant Commissioner Stephen Nutt said the AFP was determined to hold those involved accountable.
“The AFP is relentlessly pursuing evidence and identifying those who allegedly displayed prohibited symbols at the Melbourne protest in 2024,” AC Nutt said.
“Investigators have reviewed more than 100 hours of CCTV footage, police body-worn camera footage, and vision taken at the protest and will continue exploring every avenue to identify those involved.”
In December 2024, the AFP charged a separate 36-year-old Melbourne man for allegedly displaying a Hizballah flag during the same protest on 29 September.
The case follows new Commonwealth legislation introduced in January 2024 that prohibits the public display or trade of Nazi symbols and symbols associated with banned terrorist organisations. Hizballah was designated a terrorist organisation by the Australian government in December 2021.
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You might have heard that eating too many eggs will cause high cholesterol levels, leading to poor health.
Researchers have examined the science behind this myth again, and again, and again – largely debunking the claim.
A new study suggests that, among older adults, eating eggs supports heart health and even reduces the risk of premature death.
Let’s unpack the details.
What was the study?
Researchers examined data from a large, ongoing study that is following older adults and tracking their health (the ASPREE study).
In their analysis of more than 8,000 people, they examined the foods people usually eat and then looked at how many participants died over a six-year period and from what causes, using medical records and official reports.
Researchers collected information on their diet through a food questionnaire, which included a question about how frequently participants ate eggs in the past year:
never/infrequently (rarely or never, 1–2 times per month)
weekly (1–6 times per week)
daily (daily or several times per day).
Overall, people who consumed eggs 1–6 times per week had the lowest risk of death during the study period (29% lower for heart disease deaths and 17% lower for overall deaths) compared to those who rarely or never ate eggs.
Eating eggs daily did not increase the risk of death either.
How reputable is the study?
The research was published in a peer-reviewed journal, meaning this work has been examined by other researchers and is considered reputable and defensible.
In the analysis, factors such as socioeconomic, demographic, health-related and clinical factors, and overall dietary quality were “adjusted” for, as these factors can play a role in disease and the risk of early death.
Researchers received funding from a variety of national funding grants in the United States and Australia, with no links to commercial sources.
What are the limitations of this study?
Due to the type of study, it only explored egg consumption patterns, which participants self-reported. The researchers didn’t collect data about the type of egg (for example, chicken or quail), how it was prepared, or how many eggs are consumed when eaten.
This analysis specifically looked for an association or link between egg consumption and death. Additional analyses are needed to understand how egg consumption may affect other aspects of health and wellbeing.
Lastly, the population sample of older adults were relatively healthy, limiting how much findings can be applied to older adults with special needs or medical conditions.
What is ASPREE?
ASPREE (ASPirin in Reducing Events in the Elderly) is an ongoing, large, randomised, placebo-controlled clinical trial involving more 19,000 participants in Australia and the US. This means some people in the trial were given an intervention and others weren’t but neither the participants nor the researchers knew who received the “placebo”, or dummy treatment.
ASPREE started in 2010 to investigate whether low-dose aspirin (100 micrograms daily) could help prolong older adults’ health and lifespan, specifically by preventing heart disease and stroke. The first findings were published in 2018.
One of the fundamental conclusions of the ASPREE trial was there was no benefit from taking aspirin to prevent cardiovascular disease (heart disease or stroke).
ASPREE is still ongoing as a longitudinal study, which means it provides information on other aspects of healthy living and long-term outcomes in older adults – in this case, the link between egg intake and the chance of death.
Why the focus on eggs?
Eggs are a good source of protein, and contain B vitamins, folate, unsaturated fatty acids, fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E and K), choline, and minerals.
The fuss over eggs comes down to their cholesterol content and how it relates to heart disease risk. A large egg yolk contains approximately 275 mg of cholesterol — near the recommended daily limit of cholesterol intake.
In the past, medical professionals warned that eating cholesterol-rich foods such as eggs could raise blood cholesterol and increase heart disease risk.
But newer research shows the body doesn’t absorb dietary cholesterol well, so dietary cholesterol doesn’t have a major effect on blood cholesterol levels.
Rather, foods such as saturated and trans fats play a major role in cholesterol levels.
Given these changing recommendations over time, and the nuances of nutrition science, it’s understandable that research on eggs continues.
What does this mean for me?
Whether you prefer boiled, scrambled, poached, baked or fried, eggs provide a satisfying source of protein and other key nutrients.
While the science is still out, there’s no reason to limit egg intake unless specifically advised by a recognised health professional such as an accredited practising dietitian. As always, moderation is key.
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Representative image: Clean-up day (Source: CANVA)
By Sakul Kundra
Recent FT Report: “It’s an Eyesore”
Littering, pollution, and improper waste management have severe environmental and public health impacts, as highlighted during the launch of the National Anti-Litter Campaign on 23 January 2025. The reality is that littering is widespread and requires practical solutions. The campaign, titled “Do the Right Thing: A Call for Action for a Litter-Free Fiji,” aims to unite citizens in tackling this pressing issue.
This reminds me of the book Extreme Ownership, which emphasises that true success comes when leaders take full responsibility for their team’s results. This principle applies to all areas of life and should inspire every citizen to take moral and civic responsibility for their surroundings. Parents play a pivotal role in instilling these values in their children, while schools reinforce them by educating students on the consequences of littering and the importance of maintaining clean environments.
The Power of Collective Responsibility
Addressing the litter crisis requires teamwork and mutual support between citizens and the administration. In my research, Utopia or Dystopia: Deterrents to Ecotourism Development in Fiji, I observed that an ecotourism destination is actively working to keep its surroundings clean by raising awareness. This illustrates how pervasive littering is across cultures, affecting social welfare, public health, and the environment.
Countries like Singapore exemplify effective waste management, maintaining pristine public spaces through strict anti-littering laws. Offenders face hefty fines and mandatory community service, enforced by plainclothes officers and surveillance technology. Collective responsibility is key, and a decentralised leadership approach can help educate citizens about the consequences of littering. As Extreme Ownership advocates, “working as a team, empowering others, and communicating effectively” are essential to achieving exceptional results. Both individuals and policymakers must be held accountable for addressing this issue.
Practical Solutions for a Litter-Free Nation
To achieve a litter-free nation, individuals must actively work to reduce littering behaviours. Research from Zero Waste Scotland identifies personal responsibility, community sentiment, and environmental awareness as critical factors in minimising littering. However, challenges such as a lack of civic sense and inadequate access to disposal facilities persist. Practical solutions—such as daily garbage collection and administrative surveillance—are essential, provided that citizens are educated on littering “Do’s and Don’ts.” Taipei’s waste management system, which includes daily waste collection and extensive recycling programmes, serves as an exemplary model.
Raising awareness and fostering a sense of connection to the land can strengthen accountability. Educational initiatives and societal norms must promote an intrinsic motivation to keep public spaces clean, beyond simply adhering to laws. Successful anti-littering campaigns require coordinated efforts between citizens and the government to ensure lasting impact.
The Economic Risks of Littering
Littering also poses significant economic risks, particularly for nations that rely on tourism. Natural beauty attracts visitors, but littering undermines this appeal. Additionally, littering exacerbates environmental problems, such as blocked waterways that lead to flooding and public health hazards. Comprehensive strategies must target specific audiences to address both the causes and consequences of littering while emphasising its long-term implications.
In a Letter to the Editor dated 19 September 2020, I highlighted the importance of changing public attitudes to combat illegal dumping. Increased advertising and promotion of anti-litter campaigns could help achieve this goal. Additionally, daily radio messages and social media outreach could be effective. For example, a message such as “If you see anyone throwing rubbish out of a car, report them” could encourage accountability. Citizens should feel a sense of duty to dispose of waste responsibly and support the government’s efforts to maintain clean, healthy, and safe communities.
Conclusion
A concrete and sustainable strategy is essential to combat littering effectively and create cleaner environments for all. Collaboration between citizens and the government is crucial to developing practical, long-term solutions to this issue. Through collective efforts, we can transform our nation into a litter-free society and enhance its reputation as a premier tourism destination.
Contributing Author: Dr Sakul Kundra is an Associate Dean (Research) and Associate Professor at the College of Humanities and Education at Fiji National University. The views expressed are his own and not those of this newspaper or his employer.
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Representative image: Indian restaurant (Source: CANVA)
Authorities have launched a major crackdown on migrant worker exploitation, with Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) and Australian Border Force (ABF) officers conducting surprise inspections at around 40 Melbourne businesses this week.
The inspections, spanning the CBD and 11 suburbs—including Clayton, Footscray, and Port Melbourne—focused on industries employing temporary visa holders, particularly in the food sector. Fast food outlets, restaurants, cafés, and businesses in retail, hair and beauty, wholesaling, and manufacturing were all under scrutiny.
Fair Work Inspectors examined time and wage records to ensure migrant workers were receiving correct pay and entitlements, while ABF officers provided employers with information on new laws that criminalise the exploitation of temporary visa holders.
FWO Ombudsman Anna Booth said migrant workers were often vulnerable to exploitation due to a lack of awareness about their rights.
“It is crucial visa holders know they have the same workplace rights as all other workers, and protections exist if they report exploitation.”
ABF Commander Ben Biddington reinforced the government’s zero-tolerance stance on migrant worker abuse, warning employers of severe consequences. “There is no place in Australia for employers who exploit workers or abuse our visa regime,” he said.
New migration laws, introduced last year, make it a criminal offence to use a worker’s visa status for exploitation, with penalties including up to two years’ jail or fines exceeding $118,000.
The FWO’s investigations into workplace breaches will continue following the site visits.
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Image: 24-year-old Shivang Pathania (Source: Supplied to Daily Mail)
A heartbroken Indian-origin family is demanding answers after the sudden and unexplained death of 24-year-old Shivang Pathania, who was found lifeless in a Perth motel swimming pool.
According to reports, Pathania, a Melbourne resident on a two-week work trip, had been captured on CCTV working out in the gym just hours before his body was discovered in the Bentley Motel pool on January 18. Investigators remain baffled as to how a fit and healthy young man drowned in a two-metre-deep pool with no one else around.
By the time motel staff found him over an hour later, it was too late to revive him.
Image: 24-year-old Shivang Pathania (Source: Supplied to Daily Mail)
Pathania’s grieving family only learned of his death nine hours later through Victoria Police, after their desperate calls to the motel were met with refusals to disclose information.
“They told us, ‘for privacy reasons, we can’t share hotel guest details,’ but I said, ‘this guy is missing, we need to know where he is.’”
Adding to the family’s frustration, motel staff reportedly claimed Pathania “didn’t look like a confident swimmer,” but his loved ones insist he was strong in the water, frequently swimming at the beach and pools.
Image: 24-year-old Shivang Pathania with partner Erini Misirlakis (Source: Supplied to Daily Mail)
Pathania’s partner, Erini Misirlakis, says toxicology reports show he had a blood alcohol reading of just 0.01 per cent and only had Ibuprofen in his system for a headache.
She is now calling for transparency, saying their requests to review motel CCTV footage have been denied.
“I understand privacy, but when someone’s life is at stake and all we’re asking for is clarification, there must be a better way.”
The cause of Pathania’s death may take up to a year to be determined, leaving his grieving family and partner desperate for closure.
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The authors conclude the evidence for these tax breaks is “mixed at best”. They say that income tax breaks used during the global financial crisis increased investment significantly, however:
[there is] no substantial evidence that other policies, including those implemented during the pandemic, increased investment.
In an election year, further promises of tax breaks for businesses are likely. The Coalition has already announced a tax break for meals and entertainment. But are they a good idea, and at what cost do these promises come?
Small business in Australia
Small businesses with fewer than 20 employees make up 97% of all Australian businesses. More than 92% of Australian businesses have an annual turnover of less than A$2 million. It is these businesses that are doing it tough.
These businesses are offered tax breaks for spending on capital assets such as equipment or vehicles. For the 2023-24 tax year, they can immediately write off the cost of eligible assets up to $20,000. In the May 2024 Budget, the government announced that the tax break would be extended to the 2024-25 tax year.
When a small business is operated as a company, the base tax rate is 25%. This effectively means that the business still contributes 75% of the cost of the asset. This requires businesses to have the cash flow to invest. Even if there is cash flow, businesses may not want to spend on large purchases.
It’s a question of trade-offs
Investment tax breaks are also costly in terms of government tax revenue. Each year, the Treasury estimates the cost of tax breaks. These tax breaks are known as tax expenditures.
For the 2023-34 tax year, the instant write-off tax break for small businesses is estimated to cost more than $4 billion by reducing taxes collected.
Tax expenditures are normally designed to offer incentives to one group of taxpayers. However, they come at the expense of broader groups of taxpayers and at a cost of lost revenue to the government. This is money that could be spent through direct spending programs.
Tax expenditures can be thought of as government spending programs hidden in plain sight.
The current government introduced the latest instant asset write-off to improve cash flow and reduce compliance costs for small business. As the RBA discussion paper notes, these types of incentives are also designed to encourage additional business investment.
However, that study indicates this is not being achieved. They suggest the reasons may be the tax policies themselves or differences in the economic environment. Put simply, businesses may not want to invest.
If the stated benefits are not realised, the result is less tax collected. Take the $4 billion cost above. Without the incentive, the government would have an additional $4 billion to spend. The $4 billion in 2023-24 could have been directed to funding small businesses through a direct spending program.
Targeted programs
The RBA discussion paper highlights the need to determine whether investment tax breaks achieve their intended benefits. Many factors must be considered, and assessing the influence on the economy is vital.
However, evaluating these measures within the tax system means that important questions are not asked. This includes whether the benefits are distributed fairly, whether the program targets the right group of taxpayers, and whether there are unintended distorting effects.
The government’s “Future Made in Australia” contains two examples. Its economic plan to support Australia’s transition to a net zero economy contains two tax incentives, one for hydrogen production and another for critical minerals.
The proposed hydrogen production tax incentive is estimated at a cost to the budget of $6.7 billion over ten years. The measure will provide a $2 incentive per kilogram of renewable hydrogen produced for up to ten years. Eligible companies will get a credit against their income tax liability.
The proposed critical minerals production tax incentive is estimated to cost the budget $7 billion over ten years. Eligible companies will get a refundable tax offset of 10% of certain expenses relating to processing and refining 31 critical minerals listed in Australia.
Support for tax breaks
Tax breaks for businesses, such as the immediate write-off, disproportionately benefit those that spend. Often, this is by design. If this is a government objective, supported by the general population, then it is viewed as a good use of public money.
The same principle applies to tax breaks in the Government’s Future Made in Australia plan. A government objective is to transition to a net zero economy. A stated priority is to attract “investment to make Australia a leader in renewable energy, adding value to our natural resources and strengthening economic activity”.
The question remains as to whether tax breaks are the best way to achieve this. The answer often changes when viewed as a direct spending program.
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In politics, timing is everything. At a time when the sacred city of Prayagraj is hosting the world’s largest congregation of pilgrims—the Maha Kumbh Mela, a rare event occurring after 144 years—it is deeply distressing to witness the chaos that has engulfed it.
On 29 January 2025, the religious grounds of the Kumbh Mela were soaked in blood and echoed with the cries of innocent devotees. Those who had gathered in Prayagraj for spiritual reflection found themselves caught in what appears to be a sinister conspiracy. To dismiss this tragic stampede as merely a crime against religion would be naive; the loss of lives and injuries must be recognised as a crime against humanity. While the exact death toll remains uncertain, what is undeniable is the ruthlessness of those who orchestrated this calamity.
The Opposition claims that “30 people died and 60 were injured in the early hours of January 29.” However, what demands urgent investigation is not just the government’s response but the calculated cruelty of those who planned this tragedy. To attribute the disaster solely to administrative failure would be simplistic. An event of such scale is meticulously planned, with extensive security measures in place. The accusations, therefore, seem not only exaggerated but also politically motivated. How else does one explain a deadly stampede on the auspicious occasion of Mauni Amavasya? Meanwhile, political leaders shed crocodile tears, exploiting the tragedy to score points, even those who have historically distanced themselves from religious events now posing as defenders of the Maha Kumbh Mela.
The inability to protect and rescue civilians in distress highlights the grim reality of political opportunism. This tragedy raises a fundamental question: how could such a catastrophic stampede occur despite stringent security and surveillance? In India’s political landscape, human lives often become expendable, sacrificed at the altar of power struggles. Calls for humanity and justice seem to emerge only during elections or after such crises, exposing the deep fractures in our nation-building efforts. The dignity of citizenship and the duty of care towards fellow beings have become illusions. The spectre of colonial-era divisions still looms over our political consciousness, reflecting how deeply historical subjugation has eroded our collective civility and nationalism. It wouldn’t be surprising if, in time, we discover that this tragedy was orchestrated to serve political interests—history certainly gives us reason to be suspicious.
It is a disgrace that a grand spiritual gathering has been turned into a grim spectacle of death and deceit, inevitably entangled with political machinations. Reducing human lives to mere pawns in ideological battles remains the modus operandi of power-hungry demagogues. Only time will reveal the true masterminds behind this tragedy. Until then, let us hope that these opportunists do not exploit the tragedy further.
Contributing Author: Dr Om Prakash Dwivedi is a literary critic and columnist.
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A 64-year-old man from Toorloo Arm has been charged under AFP Special Operation Avalite for allegedly making offensive antisemitic comments during phone calls to a political organisation.
The man was charged on 5 February 2025 with one count of using a carriage service to menace, harass, or cause offence, an offence carrying a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment.
The AFP alleges the man called the Canberra office of a political organisation twice on 21 January 2025, making antisemitic and abusive statements.
AFP Special Operation Avalite investigators, with support from Victoria Police, arrested the man following a vehicle stop in Lakes Entrance this morning. A search warrant was executed, and his mobile phone was seized for forensic examination.
He was granted conditional bail and is scheduled to appear before Bairnsdale Magistrates Court on 26 March 2025.
AFP Counter Terrorism and Special Investigations Command Assistant Commissioner Stephen Nutt condemned the alleged actions, stating Special Operation Avalite was dedicated to protecting Australians from targeted threats.
“It is abhorrent that parliamentarians and members of our community are being targeted and threatened because of their race or religious views,” he said.
“The experienced investigators and analysts working under Special Operation Avalite have a number of individuals under investigation, and the community should expect further charges.
“If you engage in antisemitic conduct, you will be investigated and prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”
Special Operation Avalite, a dedicated AFP unit of counter-terrorism officers and analysts, continues to investigate and act against individuals involved in:
Urging violence against members of groups
Advocating terrorism or genocide
Using a carriage service to menace, harass, or make threats
Unlawfully displaying prohibited symbols
Doxxing individuals or groups
The AFP encourages the public to report any threats or extremist behaviour to authorities.
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For Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, the funding boost is a chance to reinforce Labor’s legacy in universal healthcare.
“Labor created Medicare, and we will protect it. Our public health system is too precious to entrust to Peter Dutton and the Liberals, who ripped $50 billion out of public hospital funding when he was Health Minister,” the Prime Minister said.
This move brings the Commonwealth’s total contribution to state-run hospitals to a record $33.91 billion in 2025-26, marking a 12 per cent increase. The funding is aimed at tackling overcrowded emergency departments, slashing wait lists, and easing pressure on frontline healthcare workers.
Every state and territory is set to benefit from the one-off funding boost, with NSW, Victoria, and Queensland receiving the lion’s share.
State/Territory
2024-25 Funding
Extra Boost
2025-26 Funding
Growth (%)
NSW
$8.89B
$407M
$9.88B
11%
Victoria
$7.30B
$402M
$8.18B
12%
Queensland
$7.07B
$414M
$7.94B
12%
Western Australia
$3.25B
$158M
$3.62B
11%
South Australia
$2.05B
$169M
$2.35B
15%
Tasmania
$0.66B
$50M
$0.75B
14%
ACT
$0.54B
$50M
$0.63B
16%
Northern Territory
$0.43B
$51M
$0.56B
30%
National Total
$30.19B
$1.70B
$33.91B
12%
At a National Cabinet meeting in December 2023, all state and territory leaders agreed to work with the Commonwealth on structural health reform. The funding agreement also commits all jurisdictions to collaborating on changes to the NDIS, ensuring vulnerable Australians continue to receive critical support.
Meanwhile, Health Minister Mark Butler took aim at past governments that played “the blame game” instead of fixing the system.
“Australians don’t want political trench warfare on hospital funding—they just want to know they won’t be stuck waiting hours in an overcrowded emergency department.”
But the Opposition is unlikely to let this narrative go unchallenged. With an election looming, healthcare is shaping up to be a key battleground—one that will test voters’ trust in both parties when it comes to the future of Medicare and public hospitals.
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Image: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the joint press conference with US President Donald Trump (Source: X)
US President Donald Trump has unveiled a controversial plan to “take over” the Gaza Strip, offering what he calls a bold new future for the war-torn enclave. But his proposal—to relocate Palestinians elsewhere in the Middle East and redevelop Gaza into the “Riviera of the region”—has been met with global backlash, raising serious questions about feasibility, legality, and intent.
Image: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the joint press conference with US President Donald Trump (Source: X)
During a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump claimed the US would “own” Gaza, clear the devastation, and transform the territory into a prosperous hub. “We’ll take over, we’ll do a job with it, and we’ll make it the most beautiful place,” he said, suggesting US troops could be deployed “if necessary” to enforce stability.
"The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it, too." –President Donald J. Trump pic.twitter.com/aCqLl9Gwwn
The new plan signals a radical departure from decades of US foreign policy, which has traditionally supported a two-state solution.
The announcement has put key US allies, including Australia, Canada, and the UK, in a difficult diplomatic position, as they continue to back Palestinian self-determination while maintaining strategic relations with Israel.
With your leadership and our partnership, I believe that we will forge a brilliant future for our region and bring our great alliance to even greater heights. Thank you. pic.twitter.com/LyqdBszMHF
World leaders, Palestinian officials, and Middle East analysts have widely condemned Trump’s proposal, describing it as unrealistic and a violation of international law.
Hamas, the governing authority in Gaza, issued a strong rebuke, calling the plan a “recipe for chaos and tension in the region.” The Palestinian Authority also rejected the proposal, warning it could escalate violence rather than bring peace.
“Our position has remained the same across governments: a just and lasting peace must come through negotiation, not forced displacement.”
Trump’s rhetoric has drawn comparisons to his real estate background, with critics arguing he sees Gaza as an investment opportunity rather than a geopolitical crisis. He has repeatedly described the coastal strip’s “phenomenal location” and “incredible potential,” echoing comments made by his son-in-law and former adviser Jared Kushner, who once referred to Gaza’s waterfront property as “very valuable.”
Israel’s far-right politicians have welcomed Trump’s approach. Jewish Power party leader Itamar Ben Gvir described it as “the only real solution” to Gaza’s future, while Netanyahu cautiously praised Trump’s vision as “worth pursuing.”
With two million Palestinians living in Gaza, Trump’s proposal faces immense practical and ethical challenges. Any attempt to forcibly remove civilians would violate international law, and neighbouring Arab nations, including Egypt and Jordan, have already dismissed any possibility of accepting Gazans.
Trump’s proposal has sparked global controversy and deepening divisions over Gaza’s future. Whether it gains traction or remains political theatre is uncertain.
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Image: Goodfellow’s Tree Kangaroo (Source: Wild Life Sydney)
By Emmeline Norris
Bennett’s tree kangaroos, one of Australia’s most mysterious marsupials, have long eluded researchers. Our new study, published in Australian Mammalogy today, has achieved a breakthrough: using thermal drones to detect these rare animals with unprecedented efficiency.
Tree kangaroos are found only in the tropical rainforests of Australia and New Guinea. Unlike their ground-dwelling relatives, they spend their lives in treetops, feeding on leaves and vines. Their dependence on rainforest trees makes them vulnerable to deforestation and climate change.
Alarmingly, 12 of the 14 species of tree kangaroos are listed as threatened. Yet we know little about their numbers or habits due to difficulties studying them in dense rainforest.
Our new findings mark a significant step forward, offering hope for improved conservation of these elusive, near-mythical creatures. Thermal drones, which detect animals by their body heat, may help to unravel the mysteries of tree kangaroos and guide efforts to protect them.
Tree kangaroos are easily spotted with thermal drones. Emmeline Norris
Rugged, dense rainforests
Bennett’s tree kangaroos inhabit Australia’s most rugged and densely vegetated rainforests north of the Daintree River in Far North Queensland. They rarely descend from their vine-covered treetop roosts, which can be up to 40 metres high.
Traditional survey methods like spotlighting (that is, methodically using flashlights) or handheld thermal cameras (using infrared sensors to detect warm bodies) often fail to detect tree kangaroos, as these tools are limited to what can be seen from the ground.
As a result, there have been no systematic surveys of Bennett’s tree kangaroos. Population estimates rely on outdated observations and anecdotal evidence, leaving their conservation status unclear.
We need robust population estimates to detect shifting population trends and prevent population declines. This requires new monitoring methods to help us find these elusive animals.
Hotspots in the treetops
Thermal drones are just what they sound like – drones equipped with infrared cameras that detect heat signatures from the air.
Warm-blooded animals like tree kangaroos stand out against the cooler rainforest background, even when partially hidden by foliage. This technology offers a powerful advantage over traditional methods, allowing researchers to scan large areas from above and see past vegetation.
In our study, we conducted three drone flights at the Daintree Rainforest Observatory, Cape Tribulation, during the morning and evening.
To our surprise, we detected six Bennett’s tree kangaroos in under an hour of flight time – an unprecedented result. These included a solitary animal, a pair, and a group of three, all consistent with known home range sizes for the species.
By comparison, traditional ground surveys often require several nights of survey effort to spot a single animal. The drones not only made detection easier but also allowed us to closely observe the animals’ behaviour, such as feeding on specific plant species, without disturbing them.
Side-by-side comparison of the same image in colour and in thermal view, with three tree kangaroos clearly visible (circled in yellow) in the thermal image. Emmeline Norris
Shedding light on a hidden species
Our findings suggest Bennett’s tree kangaroos are thriving in Cape Tribulation’s lowland rainforest.
While this is encouraging, further systematic surveys are needed to assess how population density varies with forest type, elevation and other factors.
Another intriguing discovery was the tree kangaroos’ diet. Using the drone’s colour zoom camera, we identified the vines and leaves they were eating. Mile-a-minute vine (Decalobanthus peltatus) and fire vine (Tetracera daemeliana) were popular choices on the menu.
These observations deepen our understanding of the species’ habitat needs and could inform future conservation efforts.
Conservation research methods must prioritise minimising stress on wildlife. The tree kangaroos showed no signs of disturbance, continuing to forage after briefly pausing to look at the drone.
This non-invasive approach is a promising alternative to traditional methods, like radio tracking (where a tag is attached to the animal), which can disrupt natural behaviours.
A Bennett’s tree kangaroo peeks at the thermal drone through the vines. Emmeline Norris
Craning for a better view
Despite showing promise, drone-based wildlife monitoring has its challenges. Regulations require drone operators to maintain visual line of sight with their drone. This can be difficult in a rainforest due to the height and density of the canopy.
To overcome this, we remotely operated our drone from a 47-metre-high canopy crane designed for research. This extra height allowed us to maintain a clear view while surveying a larger area.
The 47-metre high canopy crane at the Daintree Rainforest Observatory, Cape Tribulation. Emmeline Norris
However, canopy cranes are rare – there’s only one in tropical Australia. Expanding this approach will require alternative strategies, such as using mountaintops or canopy walkways as vantage points.
Our study is just the beginning. The next step is designing methods to estimate population densities more accurately – not only for Bennett’s tree kangaroos but also other tree kangaroo species in the remote mountains of New Guinea. By identifying individual tree kangaroos based on their unique fur markings, we aim to also study their social structure and sex ratios.
Thermal drones have the potential to revolutionise conservation efforts for hard-to-study wildlife. They offer a powerful tool to monitor populations and guide management decisions.
For the rare and remarkable Bennett’s tree kangaroo, this technology could make the difference between obscurity and security.
The study authors flying drones from the upper platform of the canopy crane. Emmeline Norris
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Image: Travis Head and Annabel Sutherland (Source: Cricket Australia - X)
Travis Head emerged as the runaway winner, polling 208 votes to claim his maiden Allan Border Medal and Annabel Sutherland claimed her first Belinda Clark Award after a record-breaking year in women’s cricket, including a historic 210 against South Africa.
Head edged out Josh Hazlewood (158 votes) and Pat Cummins (147 votes) after a phenomenal 12 months across all formats, scoring 1,427 runs, including four centuries. Meanwhile, Sutherland edged out Ashleigh Gardner and Beth Mooney to claim the honour in a night that saw the Australian women’s team celebrate their Ashes whitewash over England in style.
Shane Warne Test Player of the Year – Josh Hazlewood
Men’s ODI Player of the Year – Travis Head
Women’s ODI Player of the Year – Ash Gardner
Men’s T20I Player of the Year – Adam Zampa
Women’s T20I Player of the Year – Beth Mooney
WBBL|10 Player of the Tournament – Jess Jonassen & Ellyse Perry
BBL|14 Player of the Tournament – Cooper Connolly & Glenn Maxwell
Bradman Young Cricketer – Sam Konstas
Betty Wilson Young Cricketer – Chloe Ainsworth
Women’s Domestic Player of the Year – Georgia Voll
Men’s Domestic Player of the Year – Beau Webster
For the first time in its 24-year history, the Allan Border Medal was awarded without a single member of Australia’s Test squad in attendance, as the team continued their tour of Sri Lanka.
Head, who was also named ODI Player of the Year, delivered his acceptance speech remotely from Sri Lanka. With Cummins also absent—staying in Sydney to be with his newborn—there was no representation from the men’s Test squad at the country’s most prestigious cricket awards.
The scheduling clash, caused by the upcoming Champions Trophy in Pakistan and the IPL, has reignited debate over the relevance of the Allan Border Medal.
Despite the unusual circumstances, Head’s triumph reinforces his status as one of Australia’s most dominant cricketers, cementing his place among the nation’s elite.
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Image: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (Source: X)
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has outlined his government’s priorities for 2025, promising tax cuts, free TAFE, and continued cost-of-living support while criticising the Opposition’s economic policies.
No one held back and no one left behind. As Prime Minister, I’ve worked every day to make that a reality.
Giving tax cuts to everyone not just some. Cutting student debt. Making free TAFE permanent. Increasing rental assistance. Making it easier to buy a home.
In a series of posts on X, Albanese reaffirmed Labor’s commitment to ensuring “no one is held back and no one is left behind,” highlighting key achievements such as student debt reduction, rental assistance increases, and policies to help Australians buy homes.
“Inflation is going down. Wages are going up. Unemployment is low. After a tough few years, we’ve started 2025 with new reasons to be optimistic.”
In an interview with The Daily Aus, Albanese identified intergenerational equity as a major challenge for young Australians, acknowledging the difficulties of home ownership and the pressures of a rapidly changing workforce. He emphasised that boosting housing supply is the key to addressing rental affordability and noted his government’s 45% increase in rental assistance over two budgets.
These apprentices will help build the 1.2 million homes we're building to make housing more affordable.
We’re giving $10,000 cash to help apprentices become the carpenters, plumbers and sparkies we’ll need in the future.
Speaking to Labor caucus, Albanese praised Australians’ resilience in the face of natural disasters, acknowledging the floods in Queensland, ongoing bushfires, and a heatwave in southern Australia. He assured Queenslanders that federal resources had been mobilised, including emergency income support and rescue operations.
Looking ahead, Albanese underscored Labor’s commitment to education and workforce development, reaffirming plans to make free TAFE permanent and provide $10,000 in support for construction apprentices. He also praised school funding reforms and efforts to improve literacy and numeracy in early education.
Criticising the Coalition’s economic policies, he warned of potential funding cuts under Opposition Leader Peter Dutton and dismissed their support for government-run nuclear power as unrealistic. He contrasted Labor’s cost-of-living measures—including energy bill relief, cheaper childcare, and tax cuts for all Australians—with what he described as the Coalition’s preference for tax breaks benefiting business owners rather than workers.
Inflation is going down. Wages are going up. Unemployment is low.
After a tough few years, we’ve started 2025 with new reasons to be optimistic about the road ahead.
There's more to do.
We're back in Parliament to make free TAFE permanent, guarantee three days of child care… pic.twitter.com/KU0aBGtw95
“We’re building Australia’s future,” Albanese declared, as Parliament resumes with a packed agenda that includes legislation on free TAFE, childcare subsidies, and keeping the NBN in public hands.
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Deportation of Indian migrants; Image Source; CANVA
In a historic first, the United States has deported 205 Indian nationals using a military aircraft as part of President Donald Trump’s aggressive immigration crackdown.
As per reports the C-17 plane took off from San Antonio, Texas, bound for Sri Guru Ram Das Jee International Airport in Amritsar, Punjab, marking the beginning of a new phase in US deportation policies.
Trump, who introduced military deportation flights last week under his emergency immigration order, defended the move, stating,
“For the first time in history, we are locating and loading illegal aliens into military aircraft and flying them back to the places from which they came.”
Past year alone saw the deportation of over 1,100 Indian migrants, with illegal crossings by Indians reaching a record 90,415 attempts—primarily via the northern border.
Following a call with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Trump expressed confidence in India’s cooperation, stating,
“He (Modi) will do what’s right when it comes to taking back illegal Indian immigrants from America.”
Indians remain the largest recipients of skilled worker visas in the US. In 2023, nearly 78% of all H-1B visas were granted to Indian nationals, underscoring their critical role in STEM industries.
The Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has remained cautious, with spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stating that “it would be premature to talk about the number of undocumented Indians.” However, he reaffirmed India’s stance:
“If any of our citizens are there illegally and if we are sure they are our citizens, we have always been open to their legitimate return to India.”
Trump’s press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, reinforced the administration’s tough stance, calling it the “largest mass deportation operation in American history.” She stated that any foreign national who entered the U.S. illegally is, by definition, a criminal and subject to deportation. While priority is given to those with criminal records, no undocumented immigrant is exempt.
Additionally, the US Embassy in India reiterated its tough stance, stating to ANI,
“The United States is vigorously enforcing its border, tightening immigration laws, and removing illegal migrants. These actions send a clear message: illegal migration is not worth the risk.”
With Trump’s second term intensifying immigration enforcement, this deportation is likely the first of many. Reports indicate that India will continue verifying the identity of deported nationals before accepting their return.
Apart from Indians, hundreds of Australians, Kiwis, and Fijians are also among the estimated 1.4 million undocumented migrants facing deportation from the US, as President Donald Trump pushes forward with his hardline immigration policy.
Since Trump’s inauguration, ICE has arrested over 3,500 undocumented immigrants, launching deportation flights to their home countries. While the White House insists that the primary focus is on individuals with criminal records, visa overstayers are also at risk. Many Fijians in the U.S., particularly those working in caregiving roles, now live in fear, uncertain of when or if they will be forced to return home.
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Image: President Donald Trump and Elon Musk (Source: X)
Staff at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) were ordered to stay away from the agency’s Washington headquarters on Monday after Elon Musk announced that President Donald Trump had agreed with him to shut it down.
BREAKING: USAID Senior Officials put on Leave after Physically Trying to stop DOGE from accessing Agency Systems
Two USAID officials, John Voorhees and his deputy, were put on leave late Saturday night after refusing to allow DOGE members access to USAID systems. The DOGE… pic.twitter.com/1Qru47Wcjh
More than 600 employees reported being locked out of the agency’s computer systems overnight, according to internal sources. Those still logged in received emails stating that, “at the direction of Agency leadership,” the headquarters building would be closed to personnel on February 3.
All @DOGE did was check to see which federal organizations were violating the @POTUS executive orders the most.
The move follows Musk’s comments on X Spaces, where he claimed that USAID was beyond saving. “It became apparent that it’s not an apple with a worm in it. What we have is just a ball of worms,” he said.
“You’ve got to basically get rid of the whole thing. It’s beyond repair.”
Musk, who is leading an unprecedented civilian review of federal agencies with Trump’s backing, declared:
“We’re shutting it down.”
USAID, which oversees humanitarian, development, and security programs in over 120 countries, has been in the crosshairs of Trump, Musk, and Republican lawmakers, who accuse it of promoting liberal causes.
Over the weekend, two senior USAID security officials were placed on leave after refusing to provide classified material to Musk’s inspection teams, according to sources cited by The Associated Press.
Democratic lawmakers have condemned the move, arguing that Trump lacks the constitutional authority to dismantle USAID without congressional approval.
Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has already conducted similar operations at the Treasury Department, where a senior official reportedly resigned over Musk’s team accessing sensitive financial data.
Today’s number has increased to 22 consulting contract terminations for a total savings of ~$45mm.
All in today, 36 contracts were terminated for a total savings of ~$165mm across 6 agencies, including a DHS contract for “people and culture survey and climate support services.” https://t.co/ixiZxD302M
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, currently on his first official trip abroad in Central America, has remained silent on the USAID closure. However, the Trump administration has already imposed an unprecedented freeze on foreign assistance, effectively halting key USAID programs worldwide and forcing mass layoffs among aid organizations.
RUBIO: USAID rife with “rank insubordination” — “we had no choice but to take dramatic steps to bring this thing under control."
"They have basically evolved into an agency that believes that they're not even a U.S. government agency…they're completely unresponsive. They… pic.twitter.com/LQOKRDUlBk
Trump defended the decision in remarks to reporters on Sunday night.
“It’s been run by a bunch of radical lunatics. And we’re getting them out.”
Established under the 1961 Foreign Assistance Act, USAID operates as an independent executive agency, meaning Congress would likely need to approve any move to shut it down.
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has long strayed from its original mission of responsibly advancing American interests abroad, and it is now abundantly clear that significant portions of USAID funding are not aligned with the core national interests…
With USAID controlling a significant portion of the U.S. government’s $68 billion international aid budget, its sudden closure could send shockwaves through global humanitarian efforts, particularly in conflict zones and pandemic response programs.
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The County Court of Victoria handed down the sentence on 4 February 2025 after the man pleaded guilty to five charges.
AFP Detective Acting Superintendent Rick Briggs said the case highlighted the dangers of illicit firearms and drugs in the community.
“AFP officers discovered this illegal loaded firearm in a room where children played, which is disturbing to say the least,” he said.
“This could have been a very different and tragic outcome if a child had found it. The seizure of the money also prevents further criminal activity and makes crime less financially lucrative.”
Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers executed a search warrant at the man’s home on 23 June 2023, uncovering a handgun hidden inside an ottoman in a children’s playroom. Officers also seized approximately 2.5kg of cocaine, 700 grams of MDMA, more than $200,000 in cash, and multiple electronic devices.
The man, allegedly linked to an outlaw motorcycle gang, was charged with and later pleaded guilty to:
Trafficking a commercial quantity of cocaine
Trafficking a commercial quantity of MDMA
Dealing with more than $100,000 in suspected proceeds of crime
Possessing an unregistered general category handgun
Failing to comply with a legal order under the Crimes Act
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Large social media companies should have to proactively remove harmful content from their platforms, undergo regular “risk assessments” and face hefty fines if they don’t comply, according to an independent review of online safety laws in Australia.
The review comes a few months after Meta announced it will stop using independent fact checkers to moderate content on Facebook, Instagram and Threads.
Rickard’s review contains 67 recommendations in total. If implemented, they would go a long way to making Australians safer from abusive content, cyberbullying and other potential harms encountered online. They would also align Australia to international jurisdictions and address many of the same problems targeted by the social media ban for young people.
However, the recommendations contain serious omissions. And with a federal election looming, the review is not likely to be acted upon until the next term of government.
Addressing online harms at the source
The review recommends imposing a “digital duty of care” on large social media companies.
The federal government has already committed to doing this. However, legislation to implement a digital duty of care has been on hold since November, with discussions overshadowed by the government’s social media ban for under 16s.
The digital duty of care would put the onus on tech companies to proactively address a range of specific harms on their platforms, such as child sexual exploitation and attacks based on gender, race or religion.
It would also provide several protections for Australians, including “easily accessible, simple and user-friendly” pathways to complain about harmful content. And it would position Australia alongside the United Kingdom and the European Union, which already have similar laws in place.
Online service providers would face civil penalties of 5% of global annual turnover or A$50 million (whichever is greater) for non-compliance with the duty of care.
Two new classes of harm – and expanded powers for the regulator
The recommendations also call for a decoupling of the Online Safety Act from the National Classification Scheme. That latter scheme legislates the classification of publications, films and computer games, providing ratings to guide consumers to make informed choices for selecting age-appropriate content.
This shift would create two new classes of harm: content that is “illegal and seriously harmful” and “legal but may be harmful”. This includes material dealing with “harmful practices” such as eating disorders and self-harm.
The review’s recommendations also include provisions for technology companies to undergo annual “risk assessments” and publish an annual “transparency report”.
The review also recommends adults experiencing cyber abuse, and children who are cyberbullied online, should wait only 24 hours following a complaint before the eSafety Commission orders a social media platform to remove the content in question. This is down from 48 hours.
It also recommends lowering the threshold for identifying “menacing, harassing, or seriously offensive” material to that which “an ordinary reasonable person” would conclude is likely to have an effect.
The review also calls for a new governance model for the eSafety Commission. This new model would empower the eSafety Commissioner to create and enforce “mandatory rules” (or codes) for duty of care compliance, including addressing online harms.
The need to tackle misinformation and disinformation
The recommendations are a step towards making the online world safer for everybody. Importantly, they would achieve this without the problems associated with the government’s social media ban for young people – including that it could violate children’s human rights.
Missing from the recommendations, however, is any mention of potential harms from online misinformation and disinformation.
Given the speed of online information sharing, and the potential for artificial intelligence (AI) tools to enable online harms, such as deepfake pornography, this is a crucial omission.
From vaccine safety to election campaigns, experts have raised ongoing concerns about the need to combat misinformation.
A 2024 report by the International Panel on the Information Environment found experts, globally, are most worried about “threats to the information environment posed by the owners of social media platforms”.
In January 2025, the Canadian Medical Association released a report showing people are increasingly seeking advice from “problematic sources”. At the same time technology companies are “blocking trusted news” and “profiting” from “pushing misinformation” on their platforms.
In Australia, the government’s proposed misinformation bill was scrapped in November last year due to concerns over potential censorship. But this has left people vulnerable to false information shared online in the lead-up to the federal election this year. As the Australian Institute of International Affairs said last month:
misinformation has increasingly permeated the public discourse and digital media in Australia.
An ongoing need for education and support
The recommendations also fail to provide guidance on further educational supports for navigating online spaces safely in the review.
The eSafety Commission currently provides many tools and resources for young people, parents, educators, and other Australians to support online safety. But it’s unclear if the change to a governance model for the commission to enact duty of care provisions would change this educational and support role.
The recommendations do highlight the need for “simple messaging” for people experiencing harm online to make complaints. But there is an ongoing need for educational strategies for people of all ages to prevent harm from occurring.
The Albanese government says it will respond to the review in due course. With a federal election only months away, it seems unlikely the recommendations will be acted on this term.
Whichever government is elected, it should prioritise guidance on educational supports and misinformation, along with adopting the review’s recommendations. Together, this would go a long way to keeping everyone safe online.
Lisa M. Given, Professor of Information Sciences & Director, Social Change Enabling Impact Platform, RMIT University
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Matildas captain Sam Kerr allegedly called a British police officer “f***ing stupid and white” during her arrest at a London police station, dramatic bodycam footage played in court has revealed.
It is reported that the footage shows Kerr, 31, appearing to flaunt her wealth by showing her bank account to the officer and threatening to “post this on Twitter” while stating she would “get the Chelsea lawyers on this.”
Image: Sam Kerr raises her phone to police officers (Photo: X / Source: news.com.au)
Kerr is currently on trial at Kingston Crown Court, facing alleged charges of racially aggravated harassment towards police constable Stephen Lovell during an incident in the early hours of 30 January 2023.
Prosecutors allege that Kerr and her partner, fellow footballer Kristie Mewis, had been out drinking when they took a taxi to Twickenham Police Station after a dispute with the driver. The driver reportedly claimed the pair refused to pay for cleaning costs after one of them vomited in the vehicle and that one of them smashed the rear window.
When officers arrived at the scene, Kerr was allegedly seen crawling out of the broken window before being taken into the station, where she reportedly became abusive towards PC Lovell.
In court, footage was played of Kerr repeatedly telling the officer: “Honestly, you guys are f*ing stupid and white.”** Prosecutor Bill Emlyn Jones told jurors that PC Lovell was “shocked, upset, and humiliated” by the remarks.
Kerr’s lawyer, Grace Forbes, argued that the comments were not intended to be racist but were rather an expression of frustration about “positions of power and privilege.” She insisted that Kerr did not feel hostile towards the officer because of his race.
The defence also presented Kerr’s claims that she and Mewis felt “trapped and terrified” in the taxi, fearing they were being kidnapped.
It is reported that the bodycam footage shows Kerr referencing the 2021 murder of Sarah Everard by a police officer, stating: “One of your people killed and raped a female last year in Clapham… We were begging to get out.”
Kerr has pleaded not guilty to the alleged charge, which carries a maximum penalty of 26 weeks in jail under UK law. The trial is set to continue, with Kerr expected to testify in the coming days.
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India is no stranger to complexities, especially when it comes to social hierarchies and the challenges embedded within them. As a nation, India has evolved through centuries of history, shaped by diverse cultural, religious, and regional influences. Today, however, as conversations around caste, privilege, and socio-economic inequality gain momentum, the approach to these issues is increasingly polarized.
At its core, shaming is a method by which individuals are criticized, often publicly, for the social or systemic benefits they are perceived to enjoy. In India, this concept takes shape in discourse around caste and socio-economic status, with upper-caste and middle-class individuals often at the center of criticism. Shaming aims to make people more aware of their position and to advocate for those who may be disadvantaged. While well-intentioned in theory, it often devolves into a reductive approach that breeds resentment rather than fostering empathy. One of the issues with shaming caste capital in India’s context is that it tends to overlook the socio-economic struggles that transcend caste. India’s vast population and socio-economic diversity mean that simply labeling individuals as privileged based on their caste or class is simplistic. Given the stark economic disparities within communities, the simplistic binaries of upper-caste versus lower-caste, along with the stereotypical incentives and disincentives ascribed to them, fail to hold up under scrutiny and capture societal nuances. This approach risks alienating individuals who might otherwise be allies in addressing social injustices, as it fosters a sense of shame rather than motivating constructive engagement.
The trend of “Varna slamming” has emerged as the motherhood statement for woke activists and the left intellectual cabal, in which historical Varna categorizations are vilified wholesale, often without contextual understanding. Reducing the entire caste spectrum to a simple oppressor-oppressed narrative flattens a historically complex and multifaceted system, leading to generalizations that are at odds with the realities of many Indians today. This approach risks alienating individuals who might otherwise be allies in addressing social injustices, as it fosters a sense of shame rather than motivating constructive engagement.
One of the most problematic aspects of the modern discourse, championed by self-anointed progressives from ‘Lutyens’ Delhi’, academics in India’s liberal arts colleges and so-called Dalit activists, is the application of the oppressor-oppressed binary to India’s social structure. Borrowed from Critical Race Theory (CRT) and intersectional frameworks, this binary has limited application in India’s context. Western societies, particularly the U.S., have a different historical trajectory when it comes to race, class, and discrimination, shaped by slavery, segregation, and a dualistic power struggle. Applying this lens to India’s socio-political context can obscure more than it reveals. When this binary is used to categorize entire groups as oppressors or victims, it not only oversimplifies a complex issue but also risks deepening divides. Rajiv Malhotra and Vijaya Vishwanathan, in their seminal work Snakes in the Ganga, caution against this kind of reductionism, arguing that “Western models of systemic oppression, transplanted onto India, fail to address the nuanced realities of Indian society, instead creating divisive rhetoric that serves external agendas.” The focus shifts from addressing societal issues to blaming individuals or groups based on inherited identities, resulting in divisive rhetoric rather than cohesive action. Furthermore, by framing social justice within the bounds of inherited privilege and oppression, this would only increase resentment and accentuates fissures. Malhotra also warns that such binaries serve external agendas: “CRT’s framework is not neutral. Its universal application across non-Western societies is a form of intellectual colonization aimed at destabilizing cultural cohesion and manufacturing new conflicts.”
A stark example of this was the uproar triggered by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s statement during his election campaign that Dalit students fail IIT entrance exams because “papers are set by upper-class professors.” This remark not only oversimplifies systemic issues in education but also alienates educators and students who strive for merit-based inclusion. Reservation, per se, is an extremely contested issue in independent India, therefore the way it is framed not only determines the trajectory of Hindu society but also shapes the future of the world’s largest democracy and navigating the complexities of social harmony and economic progress. Yes, addressing the Dalit issue is imperative, but overdoing caste politics—and fostering a perception that an entire class is inherently malevolent due to caste capital, with the only solution being their systemic disincentivization to achieve substantive equality of outcome—is as detrimental as sectarian exceptionalism. The focus should instead be on improving access to quality education and livelihood for marginalized groups rather than shaming others based on inherited caste identity.
In India’s anglicized elite circles, the widespread circulation and casual use of the term “Brahmanical patriarchy” has become emblematic of such reductionist thinking. I’m tempted to ask, “patriarchy is patriarchy. What does adding ‘Brahmanical’ even mean?” Does it seek to uniquely vilify one community while ignoring the universality of gender hierarchies across all social strata? Or is it simply a convenient rhetorical device to perpetuate divisive narratives? As Malhotra and Vishwanathan observe, “such slogans are not designed to foster reconciliation but to deepen divisions, leveraging historical grievances as weapons to perpetuate victimhood and resentment.” Harvard academic Suraj Yengde has attributed almost every social evil – gender injustice, class struggle, income inequality, oppression of women, caste-based discrimination, religious atrocities – to the fictional monster called ‘Brahmanical patriarchy’. So much so that Yengde identifies as ‘Ambedkarite Africanist’ and in his work ‘Caste Matters’, he also draws direct parallels between Dalits and African-Americans. What’s particularly noteworthy is the selective outrage displayed by the same lobby that excessively highlights caste-based discrimination within Hinduism. Interestingly, Yengde’s entire intellectual corpus rests on isolating Ambedkar’s views on Hinduism and caste. This selective reading allows him to capitalize on and place the blame for every social injustice squarely on Hinduism. However, perhaps Yengde should also consider Ambedkar’s critical views on Islam and other Abrahamic faiths to gain a more balanced perspective. Such scholars have weaponized caste as the primary axis for the oppressor-oppressed binary to transform the issue from a societal one to a political tool.
One would rarely find these scholars providing a barrage of columns to publications decrying the discriminations within Islam, Christianity, or even Sikhism. Instead, there comes a deafening silence. This silence isn’t just hypocrisy; it’s a strategic omission. Malhotra and Vishwanathan argue that “Caste is targeted because it serves as the weakest link to destabilize Hinduism as a cohesive civilizational force. Parallel sectarian hierarchies in Abrahamic faiths are conveniently ignored to maintain their moral high ground.” For example, the discrimination against Dalit Christians within Indian churches or the Shia-Sunni divide within Islam—both of which involve entrenched inequalities and violence with recent examples being terror attacks on Shia muslims in Pakistan—rarely make their way into woke discourses or critical media analysis.Even within caste itself, the complexities of intra-caste discrimination—such as those faced by Dalits at the hands of other Dalit sub-castes—are overlooked. Instead, the focus remains disproportionately fixed on vilifying Hinduism as a monolithic structure of oppression.
The infiltration of Cultural Marxism into India’s caste discourse has further exacerbated these divisions. It thrives by finding new oppressed classes, caste-politics promises good dividend. If anything, these deliberate caste fissures would permanently destroy the sanctity of the Hindu society. We need to destigmatize caste and educate the masses about the historical context of Varna and Jaati, understanding why they existed and how they have evolved. It’s crucial to have open conversations about their relevance and perpetuation in modern India. Varna and Jaati were once important tenets of Hinduism, devised in a different time and context, and have undergone transmorphisms over millennia. It’s time to acknowledge that, in the modern age, we largely no longer operate within such rigid frameworks. We must, therefore, resist the forces that seek to reignite these divisions. Encouragingly, political developments and voter behavior in states like Haryana and Maharashtra show that Indians have the capacity to transcend caste, focusing instead on progress, economic development, and unity.
Contributing Author: Shreyash Sharma is a research assistant at the Department of Public and International Affairs in City University of Hong Kong (CityU).
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Image: US President Donald Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum (Source: X)
In a dramatic turn of events, US President Donald Trump has put his planned tariffs on Mexico on hold for a month after Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum agreed to deploy 10,000 National Guard troops to curb drug trafficking at the border.
The move, announced after what Trump described as a “very friendly conversation” with Sheinbaum, comes as uncertainty grips global markets, with tariffs on Canada and China still set to take effect on Tuesday.
Trump confirmed that upcoming negotiations will be led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and Commerce Secretary nominee Howard Lutnick, alongside top Mexican officials. Trump posted on social media.
“I look forward to participating in those negotiations, with President Sheinbaum, as we attempt to achieve a ‘deal’ between our two Countries.”
As part of the agreement, Mexico will immediately station troops at its northern border to disrupt drug flows, particularly fentanyl, while the US has committed to working on halting the trafficking of high-powered weapons into Mexico. However, the last-minute pause has done little to ease concerns over a looming trade war.
Despite the temporary reprieve for Mexico, financial markets remained on edge. The stock market opened with a selloff before recovering slightly, reflecting ongoing uncertainty about the economic fallout of Trump’s aggressive trade policies. Critics argue that the tariffs will drive up prices and slow global growth, with Trump himself admitting that his measures could cause “some pain” for Americans.
Como decía Juárez: Nada por la fuerza; todo por la razón y el derecho. Entre los individuos, como entre las naciones, el respeto al derecho ajeno es la paz. Mensaje al pueblo de México: pic.twitter.com/yYUKmZsonY
Meanwhile Canada remains uncertain whether it can secure a similar delay, citing shifting demands from Washington. In response to Trump’s executive order, both Canada and Mexico had vowed retaliatory tariffs, but Mexico has opted to hold off for now.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has urged his country to prepare for countermeasures, warning that US consumers will bear the brunt of rising costs on essential goods like food, fuel, and cars.
Trump has invoked emergency powers under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to justify the tariffs, framing them as a necessary measure to combat drug trafficking and illegal immigration. His administration claims that Mexico and Canada serve as major conduits for fentanyl and other narcotics entering the US.
As tensions mount, Trump remains steadfast in his approach. “This will be the golden age of America!” he declared on social media, dismissing concerns over economic instability.
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Image: New Zealand national charged over alleged 20kg cocaine import through Sydney Airport (Source: AFP)
A New Zealand national appeared before Downing Centre Local Court on 3 February 2025 after being charged with allegedly attempting to smuggle 20kg of cocaine into Australia, concealed in his luggage.
Australian Border Force (ABF) officers reportedly uncovered the illicit drugs on Saturday (1 February 2025) when they selected the 21-year-old man for a baggage search upon his arrival at Sydney Airport from the United States.
During the search, officers allegedly found 22 vacuum-sealed packages of a white substance hidden in his suitcase. Initial testing confirmed the substance was cocaine, prompting ABF officers to alert the Australian Federal Police (AFP).
The AFP charged the man with importing a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug, an offence under section 307.1 of the Criminal Code (Cth) that carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
Authorities estimate the seized cocaine could have been sold as nearly 100,000 street deals, with a potential value of $6.5 million.
AFP Detective Acting Superintendent Luke Needham highlighted the agency’s ongoing efforts to disrupt drug smuggling networks.
“This man is the third person charged by the AFP in the past fortnight for allegedly trying to smuggle illicit drugs into Australia hidden in luggage,” Det A/Supt Needham said.
“The AFP and its partners are working tirelessly to disrupt all levels of the drug trade and stop anyone who tries to profit at the expense of our community.”
ABF Superintendent Elke West credited officers’ intuition and training for the drug detection.
“Our officers are trained to detect changes in behaviour and body language and rely on their instincts when observing passengers,” Superintendent West said.
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Representative image: Political donation (Source: CANVA)
By Kate Griffiths and Jessica Geraghty
As federal parliament reconvenes this week, the pre-election buzz is palpable. When will the election be called? Which policies are on the table? And who’s backing whom in this election campaign?
While the first two questions are yet to be answered, we ought to have a better sense of the third with the release of the annual political donations data.
There’s plenty to unpick in the new data but there’s one glaring problem: we are only just now learning about donations made in 2023–24. Australians are left in the dark about who is donating right now.
Here’s what happened in 2023–24
In 2023–24, Australia’s political parties collectively raised $166 million, with most of the money (85%) flowing to the major parties. In federal election years the totals can be more than double this, and donations at the past two federal elections have been heavily dominated by Clive Palmer giving to his own party (in 2019 and 2022).
The Coalition raised $74 million in 2023–24, with Labor not far behind on $68 million. The Greens were a distant third, with $17 million. Independents collectively declared just $2 million. In the lead-up to the last federal election, Labor raised $124 million, and the Coalition raised $115 million, so we would expect the major parties are raising much more right now.
The big donors
A few big donors dominate the $12 million in donations to political parties that are on the public record.
Billionaire Anthony Pratt donated $1 million to Labor (through Pratt Holdings), while the Coalition was supported by billionaires Harry Triguboff (through Meriton Property Services) and Gina Rinehart (Hancock Prospecting), to the tune of around half a million dollars each. Both Labor and the Coalition also received major donations from their investment arms (Labor Holdings and Cormack Foundation, respectively).
Other major donations included $575,000 to the Greens from Duncan Turpie, a longtime backer of the party; $474,000 from Climate 200 backing several independents (mainly Zoe Daniel and Monique Ryan); and $360,000 to the Greens from Lisa Barlow’s conservation trust.
The big donor missing here is Clive Palmer. The size of his donations – $117 million in 2022 and $84 million in 2019 – blow everyone else out of the water, but he tends only to donate in election years. We won’t know how much he’s spending on the current election campaign until February 2026.
What needs to change
Money matters because it helps spread political messages far and wide. But when political parties are highly dependent on a small number of powerful individuals, businesses, and unions, to fund their campaigns, this dependence creates enormous risks of private influence over decision-making in the public interest.
That’s why Australians need to know – in real time – who’s funding election campaigns.
Under the current rules, it takes at least seven months and sometimes up to 19 months for a large federal donation to be made public. Yet at state level, donations must be made public within a month during election campaigns, and within six months at other times.
Introducing quicker disclosure requirements at the federal level would mean Australians would know who’s donating while policy issues – and elections – are still “live”.
The donations disclosure threshold should also be lowered to give Australians better visibility of substantial donors. In 2023–24, declared donations made up only 7% of political parties’ total income. There are other sources of income on the public record (including public funding), but about 45% of party income remains hidden because the disclosure threshold is so high.
There is no exact science to choosing a threshold, but the current level of $16,900 is well above the amount an ordinary Australian could afford to contribute to a political cause.
This high threshold is made much worse by the fact that political parties are not required to aggregate multiple donations from the same donor. That means, for example, one donor could make many donations of $15,000, but because each is below the threshold, the party doesn’t need to declare them. The donor is expected to declare themselves to the Australian Electoral Commission, but this is almost impossible to police.
The federal government has a bill before the Senate that would reduce the donations disclosure threshold to $1,000, and make release of donations data more timely. These changes would substantially improve transparency around money in politics. But the bill also includes more complex reforms that may stall the progress of these transparency measures.
Better and more timely information on political donations is urgently needed as a public check on the influence of money in politics.
Let’s hope this is the last election Australians are left in the dark on who funds our political parties.
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Image: Ravi and Anuja Kabra, Co-founders of Skippi (Source: Instagram)
Ravi Kabra, who worked as an export consultant and manager in Australia from 2013 to 2020, partnered with his wife Anuja to modernise the traditional chuski.
Drawing on their 17 years of experience in the food and beverage industry, the Kabras set out to create a healthier, tastier alternative – Skippi Ice Pops, inspired by a family member’s struggle to find safe and trusted chuskis in India.
However, their journey wasn’t without its hurdles. The COVID-19 pandemic halted production and resulted in mounting losses. But the Kabras persevered, and in 2021, they launched Skippi Ice Pops, reviving the nostalgic treat with better flavours, RO water, and absolutely no artificial colours or flavours.
The breakthrough came when Skippi secured an All Shark Deal on Shark Tank India, attracting ₹1 crore in funding. This propelled the brand to national fame, resulting in a staggering 40x revenue growth. From a regional distributor, Skippi evolved into a household name, now available in over 10,000 outlets across 25 states.
But the Kabras’ success didn’t end there. In 2022, Skippi launched innovative Freezer Bikes, making it easier for entrepreneurs to sell Skippi pops on the go. This venture was recognised with accolades, including the prestigious Economic Times Award for Corporate Excellence.
Today, Skippi generates ₹2.8 crore in monthly sales (A$526,400), exports internationally, and continues to revolutionise the ice pop industry with its 100% natural ingredients and hygienic production standards.
From a humble beginning to becoming an international success story, Skippi Ice Pops is redefining the frozen treat experience for health-conscious consumers and nostalgic ice pop lovers alike.
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Image: CC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup 2025 winners (Source: BCCI - X)
India’s U-19 Women’s cricket team has successfully defended their ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup title, dominating the final against South Africa with a commanding nine-wicket victory in Kuala Lumpur.
Under the leadership of Niki Prasad, the team remained unbeaten throughout the tournament, proving their dominance on the global stage.
𝗖. 𝗛. 𝗔. 𝗠. 𝗣. 𝗜. 𝗢. 𝗡. 𝗦! #TeamIndia are the ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup 2025 Champions
BCCI officials praised the team for their exceptional skill, determination, and teamwork, emphasising that this victory reflects the growing strength of women’s cricket in India and serves as an inspiration to young athletes nationwide.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi also expressed his pride, congratulating the team for their grit and success.
Immensely proud of our Nari Shakti! Congratulations to the Indian team for emerging victorious in the ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup 2025. This victory is the result of our excellent teamwork as well as determination and grit. It will inspire several upcoming athletes. My best… pic.twitter.com/Z2nbGaolSg
India’s journey to the final was nothing short of remarkable. Having already triumphed in the inaugural U-19 Women’s T20 Asia Cup in Malaysia last December, they continued to display a relentless brand of cricket, outclassing opponents at every stage. In the group stages and Super Sixes, India chased down targets with ease, including a 60-run victory over Sri Lanka and a crushing 150-run win against Scotland.
In the semifinals, India restricted England to just 113 runs before comfortably chasing the target in 15 overs, with only one wicket lost. It was India’s formidable top order, led by the sublime opening partnership of G Kamalini and G Trisha, that consistently dominated their opponents. Trisha was the standout performer, becoming the first player to score a century in the tournament’s history, with an explosive innings against Scotland.
The final saw India’s bowlers, led by spinners Vaishnavi Sharma and Aayushi Shukla, maintain their stranglehold on the opposition. Shukla and Sharma topped the tournament’s wicket charts, with 15 and 12 wickets respectively, while India lost just 14 wickets across their six matches, most of those coming against Sri Lanka.
South Africa, captained by Kayla Reyneke, put up a spirited fight but struggled to match India’s brilliance. Their batting had not been seriously tested in the tournament, and despite a strong bowling unit, they were no match for India’s all-round prowess in the final.
G Trisha leading the charge with the bat in the chase! #TeamIndia zoom past 50.
G Trisha’s stellar performance, which earned her both Player of the Match and Player of the Tournament honours, and the efforts of Sharma and Shukla were key to India’s triumph.
The victory marks a historic achievement for Indian women’s cricket, and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has congratulated the team with a reward of INR 5 Crore for the squad and coaching staff.
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Representative image: A person in limbo, waiting for deportation (Source: Canva)
Hundreds of Australians, Kiwis, Fijians and Tongans are among the estimated 1.4 million undocumented migrants facing deportation from the United States, as President Donald Trump pushes forward with his hardline immigration policy.
A leaked document from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reveals that 261 Australians, 166 Kiwis, 353 Fijians and 151 Tongans have been identified for removal. The list, titled “Noncitizens on the ICE Non-Detained Docket with Final Orders of Removal by Country of Citizenship,” places Fiji at the top among Pacific nations. Other island nations affected include Samoa (57), Solomon Islands (3), and Tuvalu (1).
Since Trump’s inauguration, ICE has arrested over 3,500 undocumented immigrants, launching deportation flights to their home countries. While the White House insists that the primary focus is on individuals with criminal records, visa overstayers are also at risk. Many Fijians in the U.S., particularly those working in caregiving roles, now live in fear, uncertain of when or if they will be forced to return home.
Trump’s press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, reinforced the administration’s tough stance, calling it the “largest mass deportation operation in American history.” She stated that any foreign national who entered the U.S. illegally is, by definition, a criminal and subject to deportation. While priority is given to those with criminal records, no undocumented immigrant is exempt.
Fiji’s Minister for Immigration, Viliame Naupoto, has assured that all deported Fijian citizens will be allowed back into the country. Defence Minister Pio Tikoduadua confirmed that authorities are aware of Fijians involved in drug-related crimes who are now facing deportation. However, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Biman Prasad said it remains unclear how many Fijians will actually be sent home, and discussions on repatriation costs are ongoing.
Concerns are mounting that mass deportations could contribute to rising crime in Pacific nations. Former Fiji Law Society president Dorsami Naidu warned that deportees with criminal backgrounds could introduce sophisticated criminal activities learnt abroad. He cited cases where deported Fijians had been involved in drug trafficking and violent crimes.
Mexico has already set up shelters for deportees, while Tongan authorities fear an influx of criminals could worsen the country’s struggle with drug-related crime. In Tonga’s Hu’atolitoli Prison, overcrowding remains a major issue, with many inmates struggling with drug addiction. Since 2010, an estimated 30 convicted criminals have been deported to Tonga each year.
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Representative image: Children using smartphones (Source: Canva)
By Joanne Orlando
The start of the school year means some parents will be asking a big question: is it time for a child’s first phone?
Safety concerns, particularly around travel to and from school, or being home after school without a parent, often drive this decision. There can also be huge social pressure if many of a child’s friends have a phone.
But it doesn’t have to be inevitable. How can you tell if your child is ready for a smartphone? What are the alternatives? And how do you set achievable, healthy boundaries if your child does get a phone?
Why a phone is a big decision
Many parents will be aware of the concerns about children’s wellbeing around technology, including potential harms to mental health, if they are exposed to inappropriate content, bullying or simply use the phone too much.
How do you know if your child is ready for a phone?
Appropriate phone ownership does not necessarily depend on a child’s age but on a child’s readiness and family circumstances.
Recent studies show children who receive phones based on readiness rather than age show better long-term digital habits. These include managing the constant distraction of phones and good judgement around the content they regularly browse and engage with.
You can look at a child’s child’s readiness for a phone in several ways:
how responsible are they with the technology they already use?
do they follow family guidelines around screen time?
how willing are they to discuss their online experiences with you? Do they come to you if there is a problem or something they don’t understand?
do they have a basic understanding of digital privacy and security?
what’s their decision-making like offline? What are they like with family, friends and other responsibilities?
Non-phone options
If you decide yes, your child is ready, they don’t necessarily have to go straight to a smartphone with all the bells, whistles and apps.
For basic safety requirements, such as travel to school, a smartwatch or basic phone can allow your child to receive and make calls and texts, but without accessing the internet.
If you want to prioritise social connection (so a child isn’t left out with friends), you could might start with a shared family tablet featuring supervised messaging apps. This allows children to maintain friendships within set boundaries.
How to manage the transition to a phone
As children demonstrate growing independence and digital maturity, they can progress to restricted smartphones with parental controls, gradually earning more privileges through demonstrated responsibility.
Or your child could have a smartphone with regular “check ins”. Here parents and the child discuss and review common challenges such as managing notifications, apps the child is permitted to use and where the phone can be used.
This approach acknowledges full smartphone access isn’t an immediate necessity but rather the final stage in a thoughtful digital progression.
Research indicates families who implement this graduated approach report fewer conflicts around technology as well as better long-term digital habits in their children.
The key lies in matching technology access to genuine needs rather than perceived social pressure, while maintaining clear boundaries and open communication.
3 vital ‘new phone’ conversations to have
Even though many schools now have phone restrictions during school hours, planning for healthy use outside of school is extremely important.
There are three vital “new phone” conversations to have with your child, to make sure things get off to the right start.
1. Friend requests: these can be over the top and often overwhelm children and parents. You do not have to say yes to all of them. Decide how to manage the continuous stream of requests and how to cull unnecessary contacts.
2. Screen time: there will likely be a “screentime spike” when your child gets their own device. This is exacerbated by the constant temptation to just zone out and browse content. Decide together on workable “no-tech” times and zones in the home. For example, no phones in the car and no phones after 9pm, or restrictions on browsable content such as YouTube or Tiktok. Parents can assist children to use in-built screentime features in the phone that shut down such apps during restriction times.
3. Notifications: because of multiple group chats and new friends, there will be never-ending pings and notifications. This will encourage even more screen time, sometimes well into the night. Go into the phone settings with your child and together decide which notifications to turn off (ideally, most of them). This will mean children have fewer distractions and more sleep, and the entire household will be more peaceful.
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A 22-year-old Lilydale woman appeared before Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Thursday (30 January 2025) after authorities allegedly found 18kg of methamphetamine and 2kg of cocaine in her baggage upon arrival from Los Angeles.
This follows the arrest of a 20-year-old Portuguese national, who was charged on 20 January 2025 after officers allegedly discovered 16kg of methamphetamine-soaked clothing in her luggage.
Australian Border Force (ABF) officers selected the Lilydale woman for a baggage check after she landed in Melbourne on 29 January 2025. A search allegedly revealed vacuum-sealed bags containing methamphetamine and cocaine.
AFP investigators charged her with multiple offences, including importing and possessing a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug. The most serious charges carry a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
She was refused bail and is set to reappear in Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on 23 April 2025.
The Portuguese woman arrived from the United States on 18 January 2025, when ABF officers allegedly found clothing items impregnated with methamphetamine.
She was charged with importing and possessing a marketable quantity of a border-controlled drug, offences carrying a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison.
She was also denied bail and is scheduled to return to court on 5 May 2025.
AFP Commander Raegan Stewart said authorities remain committed to preventing transnational drug syndicates from using Australian airports as part of the criminal supply chain.
“Despite all the risks involved, we are still arresting people who attempt to bring illicit drugs into our country through our airports,” Commander Stewart said.
ABF Acting Commander Fiona Strong reinforced the message, stating officers are well-equipped to detect drug smuggling attempts.
“Illicit substances such as methamphetamine and cocaine have lethal consequences, destroying lives and wreaking havoc in the community,” she said.
Authorities have warned that drug mules will continue to be targeted and intercepted, with offenders facing serious consequences under Australian law.
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It’s official. On February 1, US President Donald Trump will introduce a sweeping set of new 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico. China will also face new tariffs of 10%.
During the presidential campaign, Trump threatened tariffs against all three countries, claiming they weren’t doing enough to prevent an influx of “drugs, in particular fentanyl” into the US, while also accusing Canada and Mexico of not doing enough to stop “illegal aliens”.
There will be some nuance. On Friday, Trump said tariffs on oil and gas would come into effect later, on February 18, and that Canadian oil would likely face a lower tariff of 10%.
This may only be the first move against China. Trump has previously threatened the country with 60% tariffs, asserting this will bring jobs back to America.
But the US’ move against its neighbours will have an almost immediate impact on the three countries involved and the landscape of North American trade. It marks the beginning of what could be a radical reshaping of international trade and political governance around the world.
What Trump wants from Canada and Mexico
While border security and drug trade concerns are the official rationale for this move, Trump’s tariffs have broader motivations.
The first one is protectionist. In all his presidential campaigning, Trump portrayed himself as a champion of US workers. Back in October, he said tariff was “the most beautiful word in the dictionary”. https://www.youtube.com/embed/uOtIFSt8HzE?wmode=transparent&start=0 Trump hasn’t hidden his fondness for protectionist trade measures.
This reflects the ongoing scepticism toward international trade that Trump – and politicians more generally on both ends of the political spectrum in the US – have held for some time.
It’s a significant shift in the close trade links between these neighbours. The US, Mexico and Canada are parties to the successor of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA): the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
Trump has not hidden his willingness to use tariffs as a weapon to pressure other countries to achieve unrelated geopolitical goals. This is the epitome of what a research project team I co-lead calls “Weaponised Trade”.
This was on full display in late January. When the president of Colombia prohibited US military airplanes carrying Colombian nationals deported from the US to land, Trump successfully used the threat of tariffs to force Colombia to reverse course.
The economic stakes
The volume of trade between the US, Canada, and Mexico is enormous, encompassing a wide range of goods and services. Some of the biggest sectors are automotive manufacturing, energy, agriculture, and consumer goods.
In 2022, the value of all goods and services traded between the US and Canada came to about US$909 billion (A$1.46 trillion). Between the US and Mexico that same year, it came to more than US$855 billion (A$1.37 trillion).
One of the hardest hit industries will be the automotive industry, which depends on cross-border trade. A car assembled in Canada, Mexico or the US relies heavily on a supply of parts from throughout North America.
Tariffs will raise costs throughout this supply chain, which could lead to higher prices for consumers and make US-based manufacturers less competitive.
There could also be ripple effects for agriculture. The US exports billions of dollars in corn, soybeans, and meat to Canada and Mexico, while importing fresh produce such as avocados and tomatoes from Mexico.
Tariffs may provoke retaliatory measures, putting farmers and food suppliers in all three countries at risk.
Trump’s decision to delay and reduce tariffs on oil was somewhat predictable. US imports of Canadian oil have increased steadily over recent decades, meaning tariffs would immediately bite US consumers at the fuel pump.
We’ve been here before
This isn’t the first time the world has dealt with Trump’s tariff-heavy approach to trade policy. Looking back to his first term may provide some clues about what we might expect.
In his first term, Trump imposed major tariffs on US steel imports. ABCDstock/Shutterstock
Canada and Mexico imposed retaliatory tariffs. Ultimately, all countries removed tariffs on steel and aluminium in the process of finalising the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
This signalled a bipartisan scepticism of unfettered trade and a shift toward on-shoring or re-shoring in US policy circles.
The options for Canada and Mexico
This time, Canada and Mexico’s have again responded with threats of retaliatorytariffs.
But they’ve also made attempts to mollify Trump – such as Canada launching a “crackdown” on fentanyl trade.
Generally speaking, responses to these tariffs could range from measured diplomacy to aggressive retaliation. Canada and Mexico may target politically sensitive industries such as agriculture or gasoline, where Trump’s base could feel the pinch.
There are legal options, too. Canada and Mexico could pursue legal action through the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement’s dispute resolution mechanisms or the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Both venues provide pathways for challenging unfair trade practices. But these practices can be slow-moving, uncertain in their outcomes and are susceptible to being ignored.
A more long-term option for businesses in Canada and Mexico is to diversify their trade relationships to reduce reliance on the US market. However, the facts of geography, and the large base of consumers in the US mean that’s easier said than done.
The looming threat of a global trade war
Trump’s latest tariffs underscore a broader trend: the widening of the so-called “Overton window” to achieve unrelated geopolitical goals.
The Overton Window refers to the range of policy options politicians have because they are accepted among the general public.
Arguments for bringing critical industries back to the US, protecting domestic jobs, and reducing reliance on foreign supply chains gained traction after the ascent of China as a geopolitical and geoeconomic rival.
These arguments picked up steam during the COVID-19 pandemic and have increasingly been turned into actual policy.
The potential for a broader trade war looms large. Trump’s short-term goal may be to leverage tariffs as a tool to secure concessions from other jurisdictions.
Trump’s threats against Denmark – in his quest to obtain control over Greenland – are a prime example. The European Union (EU), a far more potent economic player, has pledged its support for Denmark.
A North American trade war – foreshadowed by the Canadian and Mexican governments – might then only be harbinger of things to come: significant economic harm, the erosion of trust among trading partners, and increased volatility in global markets.
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Image: Harish Sharma's book "The Road to Parliament" (Source: X)
By Sanjay Ramesh
Book Review: Road to Parliament: A Glimpse into the Life of Honourable Harish C. Sharma (Brisbane: Carindale Publishing, 2024)
Harish Sharma’s autography is an emotional journey of a son, father, grandfather, and political leader who shaped Fiji politics uniquely and uncompromisingly. Sharma was one of the founders and leader of Fiji’s largest Hindu religious organisation, the Sanatan Dharam Pratinidhi Sabha of Fiji. His dedication to his religion and culture and further his thirst for academic excellence led him to pursue legal studies in Tasmania, Australia where he graduated as a lawyer following many years of hardship. His struggle is one of inspiration for all generations of Indo-Fijians. Most important is his detour into politics in the early 1970s and his immense contribution to the National Federation Party, which was founded in 1966.
Harish Sharma was born in Nausori and at an early age his mother passed away, but he continued to pursue his primary and secondary studies in colonial Fiji, graduating in Junior and Senior Cambridge, which were difficult exams for a young Indo-Fijian man with English as a second language. His perseverance and dedication to education saw him move to New Zealand and then to Australia but as fate had it, Sharma came back to Fiji and joined the law firm of the late Siddiq Koya and then moved to the law practice of A.D. Patel in Nadi but changes in his circumstances enabled him to form his law firm with S.B. Patel. Good fortune returned after his marriage as he entered Fiji politics in the early 1970s.
Before the independence of Fiji, the two major parties, the Alliance Party of Fiji and the National Federation Party agreed that Prime Minister Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara would form government and lead the country until 1972 general election. Sharma notes the manipulation by Indian Alliance members since the Alliance Party was premised on the three-legged stool consisting of ethnic Indo-Fijians, Indigenous Fijians, and Europeans, who supported Indigenous Fijian political paramountcy. Under the 1970 Constitution, the European community, known as the General Electors, was given more seats in the Fiji Parliament in anticipation that they would vote with their Indigenous chiefly allies as a political bloc.
Sharma notes that the National Federation Party leader Siddiq Koya (1969-1977) was a different kind of a leader compared to his predecessor A.D. Patel (1966-1969), who was more conciliatory when it came to the affairs of the Fijian state. Koya was pugilistic, and the honeymoon period between Ratu Mara and Koya soured following the Street Commission Report, which recommended a common electoral roll for Fiji without any reserved communal seats. Ratu Mara dismissed the report invoking the wrath of Koya who accused Alliance of betrayal.
Image: Prof. Biman Prasad at the launch of Harish Sharma’s autography (Source: X)
The most revealing part of the book is Sharma’s analysis of the 1977 Fiji general election which led to a shock win by the National Federation Party. However, internal political bickering within the party, the refusal by the Alliance Party to accept the election results, and the intervention by Governor General Ratu Sir George Cakobau saw the National Federation Party’s fortune disappear. It is important to understand the leadership election process within the National Federation Party and Sharma provides a detailed analysis of what transpired after Koya was narrowly elected as the party leader in 1977, but by the time Koya went to the Governor General to have his team sworn in, his fate was sealed by the behind the scene maneuvers by the Alliance and the advisors to the Governor General who affirmed Indigenous Fijian political hegemony as an important pillar for peace and stability in Fiji.
Following the restoration of the Alliance Party as the interim government, the National Federation Party split into Dove and Flower factions and this factionalisation continued into the 1980s. Harish notes that behind-the-scenes party maneuvers had left the party decimated with problems surfacing between the party leadership and its youth wing with further fragmentation caused by the exit of Jai Ram Reddy in 1984. Koya who continued to rule the party found himself losing out to Harish Sharma, who was appointed leader of the National Federation Party in 1986 and went on to form an alliance with the Fiji Labour Party and win the April 1987 general elections.
Sharma notes that had the May 1987 coup not occurred; Fiji would have been the jewel of the Pacific as the Fiji Labour Party and the National Federation Party had plans for rolling out social policies that would have benefitted all communities in the country. Harish Sharma was an elected senior minister in the Coalition Government led by the late Dr. Timoci Bavadra and approved the extension of FM 96 to the western division, citing the need for expansion of FM radio coverage throughout Fiji. However, the reforms of the Coalition government in 1987 were circumvented by the coup leader Sitiveni Rabuka who, along with his loyal soldiers, continued to intimidate coalition MPs. As Sharma noted, many Indo-Fijian members of the coalition found themselves living in fear and some moved overseas with their immediate families following threats of violence from the military. Sharma and his family were finally given Australian permanent residence but his dedication to Fiji and to democracy saw Sharma return, risking arrest and imprisonment.
In late 1987, there was some momentum to reach a post-coup settlement between the coalition and the Alliance parties but as Sharma elucidates, the coup of 25 September 1987 derailed all efforts on conciliation as Fiji was declared a republic. Between 1987 and 1992, Fiji went through a constitution review process, and divisions between the Fiji Labour Party and the National Federation Party surfaced over participation in the 1992 general election under the racist 1990 Constitution. Both parties eventually contested the election, and Sharma was returned as the Deputy Leader of the National Federation Party and worked with all parties in the parliament on securing a multiracial 1997 Constitution. He retired from politics in 1998 as the National Federation Party failed to win a single seat in the 1999 Fiji general elections.
Harish Sharma pays tribute to his many friends, including former National Federation Party leader Jai Ram Reddy. His last few chapters of the autobiography reference Indo-Fijian Hindu religious activities as well as a lament for his childhood country that continued with the cycle of military coups in 2000 and 2006.
Sharma’s book is highly recommended reading and completes the history of the leaders of the National Federation Party, started by the late Professor Brij Lal, with the biographies of the late A.D. Patel and late Jai Ram Reddy.
Contributing Author: Dr Sanjay Ramesh is an Associate Senior Lecturer at the University of Sydney’s Department of Criminology and Sociology.
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Image: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (Source: X)
The Albanese Labor Government is reinforcing its commitment to training and apprenticeships, with new data revealing that nearly 110,000 Victorians have enrolled in Free TAFE since its launch in January 2023.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the initiative is about more than just skills training—it’s about shaping Australia’s future.
“Building Australia’s future is about so much more than bricks and mortar. It is about creating a better life for Australians, building better education and creating new employment opportunities,” he said.
These apprentices will help build the 1.2 million homes we're building to make housing more affordable.
We’re giving $10,000 cash to help apprentices become the carpenters, plumbers and sparkies we’ll need in the future.
In a major policy move, the government has announced that Free TAFE will become a permanent program. Additionally, a $10,000 incentive payment will be introduced from 1 July 2025 for eligible apprentices in housing construction. The incentive, paid over the course of their apprenticeship, is designed to bolster the workforce and help address the country’s housing needs.
Labor’s plan for a “Future Made in Australia” is centred on strengthening local industries, including construction, care, agriculture, technology, and early childhood education. Since January 2023, Free TAFE in Victoria has seen:
Over 13,300 enrolments in the construction sector
More than 34,300 in the care sector
Nearly 5,900 in agriculture
Over 9,900 in technology and digital industries
More than 5,500 in early childhood education and care
Minister for Skills and Training Andrew Giles said Free TAFE is making training more accessible while easing cost-of-living pressures.
“As I travel around Victoria, at every TAFE I visit, I meet students who tell me how much Free TAFE has changed their life,” Giles said.
“Now – with our additional $10,000 incentive payments and increased support for apprentices – there is no better time to pick up the tools, build homes for Australians, and earn while you learn.”
Popular Free TAFE courses in Victoria include the Diploma of Nursing, where students save up to $17,150 in tuition, and the Diploma of Building and Construction (Building), which offers savings of up to $9,257. More than a third of all Free TAFE enrolments have come from regional areas, ensuring that training opportunities reach communities across the state.
Victorian Minister for Skills and TAFE Gayle Tierney highlighted the state’s leadership in vocational education, saying,
“Victoria is the birthplace of Free TAFE. Since 2019, almost 190,000 Victorian students have accessed Free TAFE, saving over $550 million in tuition fees.”
She also pointed to ongoing efforts to improve apprenticeship conditions: “Implementing our response to the Victorian-led Apprenticeship Taskforce is making apprenticeships safer and fairer.”
The government has framed the policy as a clear distinction from the Opposition’s stance. “Peter Dutton and the Liberals are blocking Free TAFE,” Giles said, “but with Anthony Albanese and the Australian Labor Party, Free TAFE is here to stay.”
With Free TAFE now a permanent fixture and new incentives set to encourage more Australians into trades, Labor is betting on a skilled workforce as the key to a stronger, more self-sufficient future.
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Image: President Lalabalavu also appointed four local Commissioners who will assist Dr Brand. The Commissioners include former High Court Judge Mr. Sekove Naqiolevu, retired Fiji Airways pilot Captain Rajendra Dass, gender specialist and leadership coach Ana Laqeretabua, and human rights advisor and communications specialist Rachna Nath (Source: Fiji Government - Facebook)
Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has pledged to disclose the names of key figures behind the two racist coups he led nearly four decades ago to Fiji’s newly appointed Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
The Fijian government has confirmed the appointment of five commissioners to oversee the truth and reconciliation process, aiming to bring closure and healing to survivors of past political turmoil.
Image: President Lalabalavu also appointed four local Commissioners who will assist Dr Marcus Brand (Source: Fiji Government – Facebook)
In an interview with fijivillage.com, Rabuka confirmed he would “voluntarily appear” before the Commission and hinted at being the first to testify, saying he would “lay the foundation of [the Commission’s] thought processes.”
However, when pressed on why he needed a formal Commission to reveal the truth about the coups he orchestrated, Rabuka remained tight-lipped, insisting Fijians would have to wait.
“I will not give it to you,” he told the media.
“I want the Commission to get that as an example of what people are prepared to come to them and talk about. You are just the press; [the Commission] is a national body. Do not try to promote yourself to be the decision-makers of the country.”
Addressing critics who argue the process is unnecessary given Fiji’s pressing economic and social issues, Rabuka dismissed concerns over costs, stating,
“This expenditure on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission will not be a big dent in the finances of the country.”
The Commission, chaired by Dr Marcus Brand, will investigate political upheavals, including Rabuka’s 1987 coups, George Speight’s 2000 putsch, and Frank Bainimarama’s 2006 military takeover.
Image: President Lalabalavu also appointed four local Commissioners who will assist Dr Brand. The Commissioners include former High Court Judge Mr. Sekove Naqiolevu, retired Fiji Airways pilot Captain Rajendra Dass, gender specialist and leadership coach Ana Laqeretabua, and human rights advisor and communications specialist Rachna Nath (Source: Fiji Government – Facebook)
Dr Brand, an Austrian peacebuilding and human rights expert appointed with European Union support, will lead the Commission alongside four local commissioners: former High Court Judge Sekove Naqiolevu, retired Fiji Airways pilot Captain Rajendra Dass, gender specialist Ana Laqeretabua, and human rights advisor Rachna Nath.
The Commission will undergo a two-week setup period, followed by a three-month preparatory phase to develop an operational framework. It will then conduct its investigations over 18 months before delivering a public report with recommendations.
“We understand this Commission is the culmination of years of discussion, debate, and controversy,” Dr Brand said at a press conference in Suva.
“Ultimately, we aim to help Fiji come to terms with its own history and move forward toward a better future.”
Dr Brand emphasised that the Commission will operate independently, engaging with government, civil society, media, and the broader Fijian public to encourage open dialogue and truth-telling.
“Our goal is not to deepen trauma but to provide a safe space for people to share their experiences, grievances, and concerns,” he said.
“The purpose is not to assign blame but to help the people of Fiji heal and reconcile.”
Image: Dr Marcus Brand (Source: Fiji Government – Facebook)
The formation of the Commission follows the passage of the Fiji Truth and Reconciliation Bill, a landmark initiative introduced under Standing Order 51 by Prime Minister Rabuka. The Bill aims to foster national unity by promoting open dialogue and addressing historical grievances.
The legislation passed with 30 votes in favour and 15 against, following extensive consultations with victims, civil society organisations, faith-based groups, human rights advocates, media, political parties, and communities across Fiji.
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Thousands of Australians have received a stark warning from authorities, urging them to be cautious after being identified as potential victims of an elaborate romance scam operation based in the Philippines. The National Anti-Scam Centre (NASC), in collaboration with the AFP-led Joint Policing Cybercrime Collaboration Centre (JPC3), sent text messages to more than 5,000 people, advising them not to send money to online connections and outlining steps to take if they had already fallen victim.
The operation follows a major crackdown in Manila last November, where Philippine authorities uncovered a scam compound housing more than 300 computer towers, 1,000 mobile phones, and thousands of SIM cards.
Evidence from the raid was shared with international law enforcement agencies, allowing Australian investigators to identify thousands of local phone numbers linked to encrypted messages found on seized devices.
Image: Operation Firestorm (Source: AFP)
Dubbed Operation Firestorm, the global investigation was launched in August 2024 to combat offshore organised crime networks deceiving Australians through romance, cryptocurrency, and investment scams.
AFP Commander Cybercrime Operations Graeme Marshall said the case highlights the power of international cooperation in disrupting sophisticated cybercrime networks while ensuring victims receive the support they need.
“The AFP worked closely with our partners in the National Anti-Scam Centre and the Philippines’ law enforcement agencies to identify Australians targeted by this malicious scam,” Marshall said.
“We urge anyone who has received a warning text from the NASC to take it seriously and refrain from sending money to people they’ve met online.”
Authorities say the scammers lured victims—mostly men over 35—through popular online dating apps, establishing fake romantic relationships before convincing them to invest in cryptocurrency. The initial requests ranged from $300 to $800, but victims were soon pressured to transfer larger amounts into fraudulent accounts controlled by the scammers.
Image: Operation Firestorm (Source: AFP)
The fraudsters typically posed as Filipino women working in Australia or as local women residing in the Philippines. The deception was sophisticated, with scammers steering conversations away from dating apps to encrypted messaging platforms—making it harder for them to be reported and removed.
To date, more than 250 suspects have been arrested by Philippine authorities. However, the financial and emotional toll on victims remains significant.
Australian Competition & Consumer Commission Deputy Chair Catriona Lowe said Australians lost $23.6 million to dating and romance scams in 2024 alone. “Romance scammers prey on people seeking connection,” Lowe said.
“They build trust over time, only to exploit it, often leaving victims with devastating financial losses and emotional distress.”
Image: Operation Firestorm (Source: AFP)
Authorities are urging Australians to recognise red flags, including overly affectionate behaviour from new online connections, requests for money, and reluctance to meet in person or video chat. They advise never to send money or cryptocurrency to anyone met online, to verify identities using tools like reverse image searches, and to be cautious with personal information.
“If it feels too good to be true, it probably is,” Marshall warned. “Protect your heart and your wallet.”
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Image: A passenger jet and a U.S. Army helicopter collided at low altitude near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, crashing into the Potomac River.
By Chrystal Zhang
On Wednesday night US time, a passenger jet and US Army helicopter collided at a low altitude near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, and crashed into the the Potomac River.
A total of 60 passengers – including US and Russian champion figure skaters – and four crew were on board the American Airlines flight AA5342 from Wichita, Kansas. Three military personnel were in the chopper, which was conducting a routine training flight. Authorities say no one on board either aircraft survived.
This crash comes just over a month after a passenger jet crashed in South Korea – possibly as a result of a bird strike – killing all but two of the 181 people on board. The two incidents have focused attention on aviation safety around the world.
In the case of the most recent tragedy in the US, technology exists that is designed to help pilots avoid midair collisions with other aircraft. It is known as the Traffic Collision Avoidance System – or TCAS.
So how does it work? And why might it have failed to prevent disaster in this case?
What is a TCAS?
A TCAS is an aircraft safety system that monitors the airspace around a plane for other aircraft equipped with transponders. These are devices that listen for and respond to incoming electronic signals.
The system – also sometimes referred to as an ACAS (Airborne Collision Avoidance System) – operates independently of an external air traffic control system. Its purpose is to alert pilots immediately to nearby aircraft and potential midair collisions.
Since the technology was developed in 1974, it has undergone a number of advances.
The first generation technology, known as TCAS I, monitors what’s around an aircraft. It provides information on the bearing and altitude of any nearby aircraft. If there is a risk of collision, it generates what’s known as a “Traffic Advisory” – or TA. When a TA is issued, the pilot is notified of the threat, but must themselves determine the best evasive action to take.
The second generation technology, known as TCAS II, goes a step further: it provides a pilot with specific instructions on how to avoid a collision with a nearby aircraft or conflict with traffic, either by descending, climbing, turning or adjusting their speed.
These newer systems are also able to communicate with each other. This ensures the advice given to each aircraft is coordinated.
Any aircraft used for commercial purposes must be equipped with a TCAS in accordance with international regulations under what’s known as the Chicago Convention. There are specific provisions under the convention for noncommercial aircraft.
Military helicopters are not subject to the provisions of the Chicago Convention (although they are subject to domestic laws and regulations). And there are reports the military helicopter did not have a TCAS system on board.
Limitations of TCAS at low altitudes
Regardless of whether the military helicopter involved in the crash was fitted with a TCAS, the technology still has limitations. In particular, it is inhibited at altitudes below roughly 300 metres.
The last recorded altitude of American Airlines flight AA5342 was roughly 90 metres. The last recorded altitude of the US military helicopter that collided with the plane was roughly 60 metres.
It is not an accident that a TCAS is inhibited at low altitudes. In fact, this is part of the design of the technology.
This is primarily because the system relies on radio altimeter data, which measures altitude and becomes less accurate near the ground. This could potentially result in unreliable collision-avoidance instructions.
Another issue is that an aircraft at such a low altitude cannot descend any further to avoid a collision.
The site of several near misses
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is one of the busiest airports in the United States. Commercial, military and private aircraft share very limited airspace and corridors.
For example, in April 2024, a commercial plane pilot coming into land had to take evasive action to avoid a helicopter that was roughly 100 metres beneath it. In an incident report, the pilot said:
We never received a warning of the traffic from (air traffic control) so we were unaware it was there.
Many people, including Democratic US senator Tim Kaine, pointed to this near miss as evidence of why a plan to allow more flights into Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport should not proceed. Despite this, the plan was approved the following month.
The near-miss crash at DCA yesterday is yet another example of why we can’t keep cramming more flights to this airport. I’ve been warning about this for years—the system is overwhelmed and it’s a threat to public safety.
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Image: Young cricketers practising in the nets (Source: LinkedIn - Bruce Adams)
Bruce Adams, an Australian cricket coaching mentor, has voiced strong criticism of India’s cricket academy system, asserting that it is failing a significant portion of its junior cricketers.
Adam claims that over 60% of young players are not receiving adequate training, despite their parents investing substantial sums in academy fees. He highlighted that during recent trials, 40% of participants who had been enrolled in academy coaching for two to three years lacked proper foundational skills. He observed instances of “chucking” among bowlers, a fundamental flaw that should have been corrected early in training. He described the situation as “sad and embarrassing,” noting that many non-cricketing parents remain unaware of their children’s lack of progress.
Adams has over 18 years of experience in mentoring young cricketers, particularly from disadvantaged backgrounds in India. Leading a team of former first-class players and coaches, he provides high-quality training and education to over 1,500 children from remote tribal areas, helping them realise their potential in cricket and beyond.
Drawing an analogy to academics, Adams stated,
“If your child was going backwards at school in maths or science, parents would be asking what the teacher and school were doing.”
Adam urged parents to question why their children aren’t improving in cricket, especially after years of academy coaching and significant financial investment. He particularly criticised large franchise academies, comparing them to fast-food chains like McDonald’s or Burger King, suggesting that they offer a one-size-fits-all approach to coaching. “It’s simply a process line of people and cricket… Most parents are getting pickled and creamed big time!” Adams remarked.
In regions like Noida, the rapid growth of unregistered cricket academies has been attributed to factors such as a flourishing corporate cricket culture and the availability of affordable land. Many of these academies operate on leased farmlands, often lacking proper facilities and infrastructure.
Adams’ critique underscores the need for a thorough evaluation of cricket coaching standards in India, emphasising the importance of effective training to nurture the nation’s future cricketing talent.
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Representative image: Marriage ceremony (Source: CANVA)
Schools are being urged to remain alert to the warning signs of forced marriage, as the Australian Federal Police (AFP) reveals it is the most commonly reported human trafficking offence in the country. In the past year alone, forced marriages accounted for nearly a quarter of all human trafficking reports, with the AFP responding to 91 cases out of a total of 382.
With many victims being of school age, educators are on the front line of identifying those at risk. AFP Human Exploitation Commander Helen Schneider said teachers and school staff are often in the best position to notice the early signs. Sudden changes in domestic arrangements, heightened anxiety when discussing family matters or holidays, or a noticeable lack of independence can all be red flags. “Things like a sudden change in domestic arrangements, heightened anxiety when talking about family matters or holidays, or having very limited independence can be early indicators of forced marriage,” she said.
Forced marriage occurs when a person is pressured, deceived, or coerced into marrying against their will. Some victims are too young to understand the implications, while others fear consequences if they refuse. Commander Schneider described it as a complex and underreported crime, as many victims are reluctant or unable to come forward. “The AFP takes a victim-centric approach to forced marriage, putting the safety and wellbeing of the victim first,” she said, emphasising that prevention remains the key focus. Raising awareness about the laws, recognising warning signs, and ensuring victims know they can seek help are all essential in tackling the issue.
The AFP’s Human Exploitation Community Officers (HECOs) work with schools and at-risk communities, delivering targeted education and prevention initiatives. While authorities prioritise support and intervention, there is also a firm stance on prosecution. “The AFP will prosecute if someone has been forced to marry against their will,” Schneider said, stressing that forced marriage is illegal in Australia and carries serious legal consequences.
The dangers of forced marriage were tragically highlighted in a landmark case in July 2024 when a Victorian woman became the first person in Australia to be convicted of arranging a forced marriage. She was sentenced to three years in prison after coercing her 20-year-old daughter into marrying a man against her will. Less than six months later, the young woman was murdered by her husband. Cases like this, Schneider warned, show that forced marriage is not just a violation of rights—it is a gateway to further harm, including domestic violence and sexual abuse.
While reports of forced marriage have been increasing, authorities believe many cases remain hidden. Victims often struggle with family and cultural pressures, fear of retribution, or isolation from support networks. The AFP urges anyone with concerns—whether for themselves or someone they know—to seek help. “You are not alone,” Schneider said. “If you do not feel comfortable speaking to police, there are other services and agencies that can provide support.”
Since 2013, forced marriage has been a crime in Australia, with laws strengthened in 2019 to protect children under 16. The legislation applies not only to marriages conducted in Australia but also to cases where a person is taken overseas to be married. Unlike legally arranged marriages, which require full and free consent from all parties, forced marriages are characterised by coercion, control, and a lack of choice.
Warning signs can vary, but common indicators include a family history of early marriage, strict control by family or community members, restricted communication, or distress over upcoming overseas travel. Some victims express fear about the consequences of refusing marriage, worried about physical violence or being ostracised.
Authorities continue to raise awareness and encourage the community to report concerns. Forced marriage is a crime that thrives in silence, and breaking that silence is the first step toward protecting vulnerable individuals from a lifetime of harm.
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Civil society march outside the Vanuatu Parliament, November 2023 (Anna Naupa (adapted))
By Anna Naupa
As communities across Vanuatu welcomed a new year and contemplated multiple aspiring political candidates ahead of the 16 January snap election, a popular reggae song was making the rounds.
Ol pipol oli taet (People are tired) Taet long instability (Tired of instability) Talem wanem taem (Tell us when) Bae i gat stability? (When will we get stability?)
Campaigners were very aware of the popular mood and loss of public trust. In my voting district on the outskirts of Port Vila, I listened to many political candidates promise to tackle the issues of economic development, education and health services. One particular political promise made by the Vanuatu Leaders Party — which according to an unofficial count appears to have secured the most seats — was that of better national leadership.
The other politicians are campaigning for their self-interest, but we are campaigning for the next generation. — Efate Rural candidate, Vanuatu Leaders Party
Local constituency expectations of a Member of Parliament (MP) are high. A 2024 Political Attitudes Survey found that voters felt that MPs should focus on community projects (35%) while only 8% felt their role in governing the country was important. A mere 16% reported that an MP should promote national development.
Another 2024 report on voter motivations in Vanuatu confirms that voters prioritise the ability of a candidate to represent them and the local community interests in Parliament. The law-making role of MPs and a candidate’s ability manage the national budget was rated as “very low” by voters.
One former rural MP who party-swapped three times over the past three legislatures explained to me:
My voters pressure me to stay in government, even if it means changing parties. Being [on the] government side means I can lobby better and deliver results to my communities.
Being on the government side also brings additional allowances to MPs and their closest advisors, in addition to the standard MP constituency funds, and has been a key factor in political patronage practices.
The past MP-constituent relationships that shaped Vanuatu’s political instability around local, rather than national, interests will be tested by Vanuatu’s next Parliament, the 14th legislature.
The official results of the 2025 snap election will be announced imminently. The date of the first parliamentary sitting post-election must be announced by 6 February, 21 days after the election as per the parliamentary standing orders.
The new Parliament will put to test the candidates’ election promises that a different type of political leadership will deliver the much-called-for stability.
The constitutional amendments agreed to in Vanuatu’s May 2024 national referendum were designed to curtail the previously capricious political affiliations. While they do not prevent entire parties from changing affiliation during a parliamentary term, they regulate the unfettered party-swapping of individual MPs in their pursuit of power.
How can Vanuatu’s 14th legislature rebuild public trust and restore parliamentary integrity?
As I suggested to media during Vanuatu’s 2025 election coverage, there are three things the next Parliament should do to rebuild public trust and confidence in its integrity and concern for the national interest.
First, the formation of the next coalition government should contain a public pledge by the union of political groups, that is documented in black and white for the entire nation to see and hold to account. This would be additional to the standard swearing in of new parliamentarians and back-room memoranda of understanding. It would demonstrate a recognition that — as Kymvn-J3H’s catchy reggae lyrics describe — the Parliament needs to regain an integrity and dignity that has been lost.
Second, the new government must immediately issue a clear 100-day plan or manifesto that prioritises the passage of the 2025 national budget and tackles earthquake recovery, including business resilience. It must include a sequenced plan to restore reliable inter-island transportation for neglected islands and clearly address the compounding problems of teacher salaries ahead of a new school year.
The plan must also include — on a national scale with attention to urgent local needs — actions that can be implemented immediately to address youth unemployment and the rising cost of living. For example youth skills development could be linked to the projected increase in post-earthquake construction jobs and price controls could be considered. The plan must be made publicly available, with transparent, regular communication to the people advising on progress. Past governments announced 100-day plans but never shared details publicly, compromising accountability.
Third, it is essential that the new Parliament foster a vocal, stable Opposition that respects its role in providing scrutiny of government business and maintaining a democratic balance of power.
The new Opposition will need to be fully committed — ideally for the full term — to properly scrutinising the breadth of proposed bills and public accounts as well as being the people’s advocate for proper public consultation on legislation, with reports made available. The new Opposition will be critical in reminding the Government to be transparent, and to regularly check on the progress of plans, programs, reforms and commissions of enquiry. It will also be critical for the Opposition to work with the Government to ensure that there is public reporting on MPs’ allowances and benefits, information on which has only been released by a small number of MPs.
If the new Parliament can commit itself to restore national integrity — through actions, transparent plans and decisions, and the negotiated roles for a stable Government and Opposition — then Vanuatu will have a better chance of overcoming the litany of economic and social challenges we face.
Contributing Author: Anna Naupa is currently a ni-Vanuatu PhD candidate at the School of Culture, History and Language at the Australian National University.
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Representative image: Construction apprentice (Source: CANVA)
By Pi-Shen Seet and Janice Jones
In an election pitch last week, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced new incentive payments of $10,000 for eligible apprentices in residential construction.
The federal government has committed to an ambitious target of building 1.2 million new homes over the next five years through the National Housing Accord. That means it urgently needs to boost Australia’s construction workforce.
But a recent strategic review into incentives for Australian apprentices and trainees found cost-of-living pressures were a major barrier to apprenticeship entry and completion.
Only about half of apprentices currently finish their apprenticeships.
The new program has been touted as the federal government’s initial response. It will target 62,690 apprentices and cost $627 million.
But previous attempts to attract new apprentices with cash payments have had mixed results. A similar 2023 scheme to get more tradies into “green jobs” only attracted about 2,200 sign-ups in the first year.
There are also concerns the new scheme may have unintended consequences, such as diverting talent from important sectors of the new economy – including the previous “green jobs” scheme.
To build more homes and ease workforce shortages, we're doing more to help train the tradies of the future.
The Albanese Labor Government will give up to $10,000 to apprentices who are helping build more homes like bricklayers, electricians, plumbers and carpenters.
From July 1, eligible apprentices in the new Housing Construction Apprenticeship Program will receive five payments of $2,000 each: after six, 12, 24 and 36 months, and upon completion. The payments are staged to encourage apprentices to complete their training.
Cash payments won’t be the only new financial incentive. There’ll also be a boost to the Living Away From Home Allowance to help cover the costs of relocating, while an increase in the Disability Australian Apprentice Wage Support payment provides financial support to employers who hire apprentices with disability.
Will the scheme succeed?
The government’s previous attempts to address chronic labour shortages through cash incentives have had mixed results.
Introduced in 2023, the New Energy Apprenticeships Program also offers $10,000 in staged payments to apprentices in priority green roles, such as electric vehicle technicians.
Despite 2,200 apprentices joining in the first year, the program was deemed too restrictive by the industry. That was despite employers themselves receiving $15,000 per apprentice (which is also what is proposed for the construction scheme).
As part of the strategic review, the Centre for International Economics was commissioned to conduct an international literature review. It found that financial incentives such as wage or training subsidies and incentives were only “somewhat relevant” to the Australian context, and there was mixed support, at best, for their effectiveness.
A major factor behind the mixed results may be the crowding-out effect in economic theory.
This suggests that increasing public spending (by giving financial incentives) could undermine the intended effect by reducing or even eliminating private-sector investment. And it does not address apprehension among employers, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, about taking on more apprentices.
More than six months after the government expanded eligibility for clean energy work, the green energy sector continues to face significant skills shortages.
While these payments may help in the long run, their staggered nature over three years won’t provide immediate relief.
The plan will likely only contribute to the government’s home-building targets by 2029, if and when more Australians enrol and complete their apprenticeships in the construction sector.
Will this have effects outside the construction industry?
More strategically, by shifting the focus from “new economy” industries outlined in the Future Made in Australia policy, this scheme risks weakening efforts to transform Australia’s economy.
The cash incentive for apprentices in home-building comes at a time when there is intense global competition for skills in “new industries”.
However, despite the many state and federal government initiatives for fee-free TAFE courses since the COVID pandemic, recently released data indicates a continued trend of long-term decline in Vocational Education and Training (VET) enrolments.
Albanese was asked about the government’s commitment to technology and digital innovation, with increasing global competition in artificial intelligence.
He responded by discussing the government’s commitment to the “new economy”.
However, the construction sector has until now not been identified as an essential part of the new economy’s priority industries by the government.
Instead, expanding incentives to construction apprentices marks a shift away from the priorities on green energy and new industries, and towards more traditional trades.
So, despite the lack of evidence that cash incentives work, and the fact they may cause unintended effects, the proposed incentive payments appear to be a pitch addressing cost-of-living/cost-of-building concerns for the upcoming election.
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These important policy announcements will improve the lives of Territorians and keep the community safe, and we call on the Albanese Government to adopt them. pic.twitter.com/tPPPMA4oeR
Dutton criticised Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for failing to address the crisis in Alice Springs, accusing him of neglecting Indigenous communities after the failed Voice referendum. “The Prime Minister spoke a big game about the Voice but has forgotten about Indigenous communities,” Dutton said.
“It’s time to act.”
The seven-point plan, which was put forward by NT Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro, includes Centrelink reforms, audits of federally funded programs, and changes to the distribution of royalty payments to traditional owners. While the Albanese government has yet to act on most of the requests, they did approve exemptions allowing Alice Springs police to use drones more effectively to combat crime.
I’ve heard firsthand from community leaders, police & frontline workers about the challenges in Alice Springs.
Anti-social behaviour in Alice & the NT has been a national issue for two years—worsened by Labor’s reckless lifting of alcohol restrictions. The damage remains. pic.twitter.com/RiCbPjNIS6
During the press conference, Dutton emphasised that a future Coalition government would back the NT government’s initiatives to reduce alcohol-fuelled crime and ensure the safety of families, businesses, and communities. “We will provide police with every resource and support to make sure people can live free of crime,” he said.
“People should feel safe going home at night and opening their businesses in the morning without fear of damage or theft.”
Shadow Indigenous Australians Minister Jacinta Nampijinpa Price also backed the Coalition’s commitment, highlighting the importance of working alongside local leaders to address crime and violence across the territory.
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Image: Stampede at India's Maha Kumbh claims over 30 lives (Photo: PTI / Source: X)
A deadly stampede broke out at the Maha Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj early on Wednesday, January 29, as crores of devotees gathered to mark the sacred Mauni Amavasya. The incident, which occurred around 2:30 am at the Triveni Sangam, resulted in the tragic deaths of at least 30 people and left over 60 injured.
#WATCH | Drone visuals from the Ghats of Triveni as a huge number of devotees reach for the Amrit Snan on the occasion of Mauni Amavasya. pic.twitter.com/3Klik3sF8q
The crowd surge, sparked by the overwhelming influx of pilgrims eager to participate in the ‘Amrit Snan’ (holy dip), caused chaos and panic, as hundreds of devotees were trampled in the stampede.
Among the casualties were women and elderly individuals, with many others crushed under the pressure of the uncontrolled crowd. Authorities rushed to the scene, with rescue teams working tirelessly to transport the injured to medical facilities.
Image: Stampede at India’s Maha Kumbh claims over 30 lives (Photo: PTI / Source: X)
Devastated by the tragedy, several akharas—religious groups—called off their participation in the Amrit Snan, including Juna Akhara and the Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad. Mahant Ravindra Puri, president of the Akhara Parishad, expressed his sorrow and announced the cancellation of the ritual, citing safety concerns. The Panchayati Mahanirvani Akhara also halted its participation, with seers deeming the situation “unsuitable” for the sacred dip due to the overwhelming crowd.
महाकुम्भ-2025, प्रयागराज में हुई घटना अत्यंत दु:खद है, मर्माहत करने वाली है।
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath appealed to the public to refrain from heading to the Sangam and instead take the holy dip at other ghats to prevent further escalation. Despite the tragedy, the state government reassured the public that medical teams were working to manage the crisis, with several ghats designated for safe bathing. The authorities have also launched an investigation into the cause of the stampede.
The incident, which occurred on one of the holiest days of the month-long festival, has reignited concerns over crowd management at religious events in India. The Kumbh Mela, which attracts millions of pilgrims, has seen previous stampedes, with notable incidents in 1954 and 2013 resulting in substantial loss of life.
महाकुंभ में अव्यवस्थाजन्य हादसे में श्रद्धालुओं के हताहत होने का समाचार बेहद दुखद है। श्रद्धांजलि!
हमारी सरकार से अपील है कि: – गंभीर रूप से घायलों को एअर एंबुलेंस की मदद से निकटतम सर्वश्रेष्ठ हॉस्पिटलों तक पहुंचाकर तुरंत चिकित्सा व्यवस्था की जाए। – मृतकों के शवों को चिन्हित… pic.twitter.com/xZcaU940cO
Opposition leaders, including Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, have condemned the incident, blaming poor crowd management and the prioritisation of VIPs over ordinary devotees. Yadav called for the army to take over the management of the Kumbh Mela to restore faith in the system and prevent further incidents.
The stampede occurred just ahead of the Brahma Muhurta, the auspicious time for the holy dip. As devotees flocked to the ghats in the dark hours of the morning, the situation became chaotic, with many people, including those sitting near barricades, caught in the crushing surge. Survivors described the horrific scene, where elderly people and women were suffocated under the weight of the crowd, with no help in sight.
The state government had anticipated a crowd of up to 100 million for Mauni Amavasya, but the overcrowding and lack of adequate measures led to this tragic loss of life. Authorities had deployed drones and surveillance cameras to monitor the crowd, but despite these efforts, the disaster unfolded.
प्रयागराज महाकुंभ में हुआ हादसा अत्यंत दुखद है। इसमें जिन श्रद्धालुओं ने अपने परिजनों को खोया है, उनके प्रति मेरी गहरी संवेदनाएं। इसके साथ ही मैं सभी घायलों के शीघ्र स्वस्थ होने की कामना करता हूं। स्थानीय प्रशासन पीड़ितों की हरसंभव मदद में जुटा हुआ है। इस सिलसिले में मैंने…
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and opposition leader Rahul Gandhi both expressed their condolences, with Modi assuring the public that the local administration was doing everything possible to assist the victims. Gandhi attributed the disaster to mismanagement and called for improvements to the system, urging the government to prioritise the safety of common devotees over VIPs.
प्रयागराज महाकुंभ में भगदड़ के कारण कई लोगों के मौत और कईयों के घायल होने की ख़बर अत्यंत दुखद है।
शोकाकुल परिवारों के प्रति अपनी गहरी संवेदनाएं व्यक्त करता हूं और घायलों के शीघ्र स्वस्थ होने की आशा करता हूं।
इस दुखद घटना के लिए कुप्रबंधन, बदइंतजामी और आम श्रद्धालुओं की जगह VIP…
With more ritual bathing days scheduled during the remaining weeks of the Kumbh Mela, the incident has raised urgent questions about the safety and management of the festival, as millions of pilgrims continue to arrive in Prayagraj.
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Image: Unit C052 departing on the long ride to AJ2025 (Source: Supplied)
‘Your quest, your way’ – Scouts have the time of their lives at Australian Jamboree
By Andrew ‘Astro’ Larmour
At the recent Australian Jamboree 2025 (AJ2025), scouts from 1st Ferntree Gully, 4th Knox, 8th Knox and 1st Kalista formed a combined unit where they came together with over 8500 scouts from all over Australia and across the world to celebrate scouting, learn new skills, make new friends and (of course) have fun. AJ2025 concluded on 15Jan25 following nearly 10 days of activities in Maryborough, Queensland.
Image: Abseiling at AJ2025 (Source: Supplied)
Our local scouts met scouts from international contingents from the UK, Norway, Timor Leste, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, New Zealand and other countries, swapped unit and district badges with them and made new friends.
Each day, scout patrols visited Australia Zoo, the beach near Hervey Bay (paddleboards, snorkelling, swimming, rafting), and explored Maryborough in addition to the many activities zones offered on site. At the Maryborough showgrounds, onsite activities included abseiling, flying fox, rock climbing, challenge courses, pioneering (building towers, catapults and swings), axe throwing, archery and archery tag, water rockets, electronics, wood turning, ham radio, Lego building, scrabble challenge and Eski racing.
AJ2025 is not just about the activities during the day, every night had main arena events including live music from internationally renowned acts including live performances by Amy Shark, Mich Tambo, The Smashing Bumpkins, Sheppard and comedians Mel Buttle and Dave ‘Hughesy’ Hughes. Other events included a “Scouts got Talent” finale and a Rave with DJ Havana Brown to name just some of the incredible shows that Scouts could enjoy each night.
Image: Eski Racing at AJ2025 (Source: Supplied)
While AJ2025 is a load of fun for our scouts, it’s also (unbeknown to them), a learning experience. Every scout unit at AJ2025 had 36 scouts and four leaders. The scouts are split into patrols of six and one allocated duty patrol is responsible for all of the cooking and cleaning for each unit when they were rostered on for that duty. Scouts must work in patrols to get to and complete their activities and to complete their duty patrol responsibilities (when allocated), building a lesson in teaming that will last them a lifetime. Most scouts return from AJ2025 two weeks older and two years more mature. It’s an incredible site to behold.
The next Australian Jamboree will be at Cataract Park, south of Sydney in three years time. Our younger scouts and cub scouts will be eligible to attend the AJ2028, so as a Scout group, we will continue to help our youth members grow and be ready for that Jamboree.
For more information on AJ2025 including the daily e-news articles, see https://www.aj2025.com.au/
Contributing Author: Andrew ‘Astro’ Larmour is the Group Leader at 1st Ferntree Gully Scout Group.
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Billionaire Elon Musk, who heads the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency, praised the buyout as “fair and generous.” Musk had previously used a similar strategy at Twitter (now X) after acquiring the company in 2022.
Announced in an email sent to the federal workforce on Tuesday evening, the “deferred resignation” programme requires employees to decide by 6 February if they wish to accept the offer by simply replying with the word “Resign.” Those who opt in will not be expected to work during the remaining months.
The initiative, first reported by Axios, is part of a broader effort by President Donald Trump’s administration to bring federal employees back to in-person work, five years after the pandemic triggered widespread remote working policies.
.@PressSec Karoline Leavitt on buyouts: "This is a suggestion to federal workers that they have to return to work. If they don't then they have the option to resign and this administration is very generously offering to pay them for eight months." pic.twitter.com/B6AmEe79vB
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the programme, saying,
“If they don’t want to work in the office and contribute to making America great again, then they are free to choose a different line of work, and the Trump Administration will provide a very generous payout of eight months.”
The administration expects 5-10% of employees to take the offer, which could lead to an estimated $100 billion in savings, according to a senior official. The buyout applies to all full-time federal workers, excluding military personnel, U.S. Postal Service employees, and those in immigration enforcement or national security roles.
The email, sent from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM), also hinted at further restructuring, stating that while employees who choose to stay would be “treated with dignity,” there were no guarantees regarding the security of their roles.
The programme has sparked backlash from unions and federal employee groups. The American Federation of Government Employees warned that the buyouts could lead to “chaos” and accused the administration of creating a toxic work environment to push career civil servants out.
Despite criticism, the Trump administration is pressing ahead with its commitment to downsizing the federal government, with Trump himself having signed an executive order ending remote work policies on his first day back in office.
With the deadline fast approaching, the administration’s plan has left federal employees facing an uncertain future as they weigh their options in what some critics call a de facto purge of the civil service.
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The 35-year-old Sydney man had been on the run since failing to appear in Downing Centre Local Court on 20 January 2025. He was last seen on 8 January at a rehabilitation facility in Swan Bay, NSW, where he was required to reside under his bail conditions.
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) allege the man was part of a drug syndicate that used the ANOM platform to import illicit substances into Australia. He was initially arrested at Sydney Airport in July 2023 while attempting to leave the country and faced multiple serious charges, including conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of methamphetamine, trafficking controlled drugs, and breaching a firearm prohibition order.
His escape came to an end on Saturday night (25 January) when he was reportedly spotted at East Woody Beach in Nhulunbuy, NT, flashing a torch towards a yacht anchored offshore. The vessel’s crew responded by flashing a torch back, drawing the attention of AFP and Australian Border Force (ABF) officers, who had been conducting surveillance on the yacht.
AFP Commander Paula Hudson praised the operation, calling it a testament to the persistence and expertise of law enforcement agencies.
“We do not give up. The AFP will continue to work relentlessly with our partners to ensure anyone involved in criminality is brought to justice, even if they have other ideas.”
Northern Territory Police attended the scene but were initially unable to locate the man or the vessel. However, a patrol boat deployed by the AFP and ABF Maritime Border Command intercepted the yacht the following day (26 January) as it sailed north in the Arafura Sea. The vessel was escorted back to Nhulunbuy, where officers confirmed the fugitive was aboard and took him into custody under the NSW arrest warrant.
Image: Arrests on NT yacht (Source: AFP)
The yacht’s crew—a 51-year-old Dutch man and a 42-year-old British woman—were also arrested and will be charged with people smuggling under section 73.1 of the Criminal Code (Cth), an offence carrying a maximum penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment.
ABF acting Chief Superintendent Sonya Boylan warned against aiding criminal ventures, stating that serious penalties, including jail time, await those who facilitate illegal activities for profit.
Northern Territory Police Force Assistant Commissioner Travis Wurst commended the swift action of all agencies involved.
“We will continue to partner with the AFP and ABF to disrupt the flow of criminal activity and illicit substances from making their way to our streets.”
The fugitive remains before the courts, facing charges that carry potential life sentences.
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Australia’s headline inflation rate dropped to a three-year low of 2.4% in the December quarter, according to the Consumer Price Index, adding to pressure for an interest rate cut by the Reserve Bank as soon as next month.
Since it peaked at 7.8% in December 2022, inflation has now fallen for seven out of eight quarters.
The closely watched core inflation measure dropped sharply to 3.2% from 3.6%, below market expectations, but the central bank is concerned about how sustainable the fall in inflation will be. Strength in the labour market is also weighing against the need for a cut in interest rates.
The long-running quarterly measure of the CPI is a better indicator than the more volatile monthly version. But the monthly rate is currently very similar; it ended the year at 2.5%.
Why did inflation fall?
A main reason headline inflation fell was the electricity rebates, which led to the price of electricity falling by 25.2% during 2024.
The fall in global oil prices, which led to petrol prices dropping 7.9% during 2024, also contributed to the decline in inflation.
The rental market is easing, with rents slowing from growth of 7.3% during 2023 to 6.4% during 2024. Increases in Commonwealth Rent Assistance contributed to the deceleration. This still leaves a lot of families facing rental stress.
Home builders offering discounts have moderated the “new dwellings” component of the CPI. It increased by only 2.9% during 2024, a marked deceleration from the growth rates of around 20% seen in 2022.
Urban transport fares also fell during 2024.
Working against the downward trend were increases to the tobacco excise, in addition to the standard indexation, which led to tobacco prices rising by 12.2% during 2024.
Insurance costs continue to rise, increasing by 11% during 2024. If the Californian fires lead to insurers revising up their assessment of the risks posed by climate change, insurance premia could rise further.
The decline in the Australian dollar, while not as alarming as some media reports would suggest, would have added to the price of some goods, particularly those imported from the United States or whose price is denominated in US dollars.
The “underlying” rate of inflation, which looks through temporary measures such as the electricity subsidies and is the preferred measure of the central bank, has also declined. It is now 3.2%.
Australia’s inflation performance is similar to that in comparable countries. It is slightly lower than inflation in the United Kingdom (2.5%) and the same as in the euro area. It is higher than in New Zealand (2.2%) and Canada (1.8%).
The fall in inflation to a rate significantly below the 3.5% at which wages are increasing means that the cost of living crisis is abating, although not yet over.
The quarterly increases in the CPI during 2024 were 1.0% in March and June and 0.2% in September and December. As the large increases in the first half of 2024 are replaced, the annual rate should drop further in coming quarters.
What does it mean for interest rates?
The current Reserve Bank board meets next on February 18. By the following meeting, on April 1, the decisions will be taken by the new monetary policy board, which will have two new members.
This is the second consecutive quarter that inflation has been within the Reserve Bank’s medium-term target band of 2–3%. It is now just below the mid-point of the band.
Inflation is also below the Bank’s latest forecasts of 2.6% (and 3.4% for the “underlying” rate).
But the bank has stated it will only cut interest rates when “members are confident that inflation is moving sustainably towards target”.
Inflation that is low just because of temporary electricity subsidies may not be regarded as ‘sustainable’. That is why the Bank places more emphasis on the underlying inflation measure. While not yet within the target band, underlying inflation has been steadily heading there and is now only just above it. This may be enough to give the Bank board members the confidence they seek. Financial markets now think so.
The government would dearly like to see rates coming down before the election, likely to be in April or May. It faces a nervous wait.
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A caravan filled with powerful explosives, allegedly intended for an antisemitic attack, has been discovered at a property in Sydney’s north-west, prompting a major counter-terrorism investigation.
More than 100 counter-terrorism officers are probing the discovery in Dural on 19 January, with NSW Premier Chris Minns warning the situation had the potential to cause a “mass casualty event.”
Minns vowed a “massive and growing police response” to counter extremist threats.
“There will be absolutely no tolerance under any circumstances for these acts of criminal violence in our community.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also condemned the discovery, stating that “hate and extremism have no place in Australian society.”
Authorities have confirmed that the caravan contained Powergel, an emulsion-based explosive, with an estimated blast zone of 40 metres. A note with antisemitic sentiments and a reference to a Jewish synagogue was also found inside.
NSW Deputy Police Commissioner David Hudson described the find as a dangerous escalation from recent antisemitic incidents in Sydney, which have included arson and graffiti attacks.
“This is certainly an escalation, with the use of explosives that have the potential to cause a great deal of damage.”
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has called the discovery of a caravan loaded with explosives in NSW “sickening and horrifying,” describing it as a dangerous escalation of antisemitism in Australia.
Dutton urged the Federal Government to disclose when it became aware of the threat, who was responsible, and what actions were taken to protect the Jewish community. He also called for increased security at synagogues and schools to provide reassurance and deterrence.
The revelation of an apparent discovery in NSW of a caravan laden with explosives intended for a synagogue is as sickening as it is horrifying. It is a grave and sinister escalation in this insidious rise of unchecked antisemitism in our country.
The NSW Jewish Board of Deputies has expressed deep concern over the discovery of a caravan packed with explosives in Dural, allegedly targeting Jewish communal sites. Calling it a matter of “the gravest possible consequence,” the board stated that ongoing threats against the Jewish community now constitute domestic terrorism “beyond dispute.”
Although arrests have been made on the “periphery” of the case, police are still investigating who was responsible for placing the explosives and orchestrating the attack.
The discovery comes amid concerns that foreign actors may be funding local extremists to carry out antisemitic attacks. Last week, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) revealed it was probing possible links between overseas entities and recent acts of antisemitic vandalism.
Police have urged anyone who saw the caravan parked in Dural between 7 December and 19 January to come forward, as the investigation continues.
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Image: Teen sensation Sam Konstas (Source: Instagram)
Teen sensation Sam Konstas has been dropped for Australia’s first Test against Sri Lanka in Galle, with Travis Head set to open the batting alongside Usman Khawaja. Despite Konstas’ heroics in the recent Border-Gavaskar Trophy win, the selectors have opted for Head, citing his prior success in subcontinent conditions.
Head, who impressed as an opener in the 2023 India tour, averaged 55.75 across two-and-a-half Tests in similar conditions, putting spinners under pressure and tackling seam effectively.
Konstas, only 19 and on his first subcontinent tour, may still find a place in the middle order, where a vacancy has opened at No. 5 following Head’s promotion. Smith noted Australia would finalise the XI based on conditions, highlighting the expected spin dominance of the Galle pitch.
Other contenders for the No. 5 spot include Nathan McSweeney, Cooper Connolly, and uncapped wicketkeeper-batsman Josh Inglis. McSweeney, who struggled as an opener against India’s Jasprit Bumrah, could return to the middle order, while Connolly offers off-spin options. Inglis, with a stellar domestic average of 72.6 this summer, might add an attacking edge.
Australia’s bowling attack remains flexible, with Smith hinting at either two frontline quicks or three spinners. Left-arm spinner Matt Kuhnemann, back after a thumb injury, joins Todd Murphy and veteran Nathan Lyon as spin options.
Smith praised Konstas’ potential, emphasising the development opportunity this tour offers, even if the young opener misses out on the XI.
“He’ll get a lot of practice if he doesn’t play, which is great for his growth,” Smith said, comparing the situation to his own 2013 tour experience.
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Image: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Premier Roger Cook in Western Australia, announcing the $700 million upgrade to the Kwinana Freeway (Source: X)
The Albanese and Cook Governments are joining forces to transform Western Australia’s infrastructure, unveiling a $700 million upgrade to the Kwinana Freeway. With $350 million from the Albanese Government, this major project aims to ease congestion, improve safety, and support economic growth.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese emphasised the project’s importance to commuters and the broader economy.
“Western Australia is an economic powerhouse, and we’re investing in future job-creating projects like Westport while delivering immediate congestion benefits for the 100,000 motorists using the Kwinana Freeway every day.”
The upgrade will add 50 per cent more capacity to sections of the freeway, easing bottlenecks and making freight transport more efficient. It also plays a key role in supporting the future Westport project, which Premier Roger Cook described as “critical to keeping our economy strong and creating local jobs of the future.”
Labor governments build.
In Western Australia, we're partnering with Premier @RogerCookMLA to upgrade the Kwinana Freeway.
And it all leads here to support the Westport project, which is set to transform Fremantle and Kwinana.
“As a Kwinana local, I know how transformative this project will be,” Premier Cook said.
“WA is the economic engine room of Australia, and our partnership with the Albanese Government ensures we’re delivering what’s right for our State.”
The investment builds on a previous $67 million joint commitment to planning infrastructure for Westport, which is set to drive long-term trade growth and economic sustainability in the region.
Living in Kwinana, I know how massive our motorsports community is.
So this is pretty exciting.
Under a re-elected Labor Government, we’ll transform Burswood Park into a street circuit, function centre, and the biggest amphitheatre in Perth. pic.twitter.com/eFqdrfSEQi
Federal Infrastructure Minister Catherine King highlighted the project’s significance to national infrastructure goals.
“This investment enhances productivity, resilience, and liveability. We’re building communities and improving safety across Australia.”
WA Transport Minister Rita Saffioti praised the partnership’s continued focus on the state’s major transport networks.
“This funding ensures the ongoing transformation of the Kwinana Freeway, which already includes smart freeway technology and other upgrades.”
Image: Kwinana Freeway (Source: X)
The Kwinana Freeway project is part of the Albanese Government’s $9.7 billion investment in WA’s transport infrastructure, which also includes METRONET, the Tonkin Highway upgrades, and the Outback Way.
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A memo circulated by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on Monday evening temporarily pauses disbursement of financial assistance programmes, citing President Donald Trump’s executive orders targeting initiatives like diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).
“The use of federal resources to advance Marxist equity, transgenderism, and Green New Deal social engineering policies is a waste of taxpayer dollars,” wrote Matthew J. Vaeth, OMB’s acting director. The suspension, effective 5 p.m. EST on January 28, excludes Medicare and Social Security but affects countless health, education, and aid programmes across the country.
Nonprofits, health providers, and state agencies report disruptions, with Medicaid officials locked out of funding portals. Kristin Miller of Homeless Services United noted shelters for veterans are among those affected, adding,
“This is grossly irresponsible.”
The freeze impacts billions of dollars in federal grants, halting services like nutrition programmes for seniors, early childhood education through Head Start, and public health research. Advocacy groups have rushed to court, calling the order a “life-and-death” issue for vulnerable communities.
The White House defended the pause as “temporary” and necessary to ensure funding aligns with Trump’s priorities. However, critics warn of devastating consequences for millions of Americans relying on essential services.
As state leaders scramble for clarity, the uncertainty grows. “This creates chaos for local providers,” said a Meals on Wheels spokesperson. Community health centres, HIV/AIDS programmes, and nutrition services are among the hardest hit.
The freeze, described as a sweeping attempt to purge “woke” policies, is expected to deepen partisan divides and fuel legal battles in the weeks ahead.
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Image: Former Minister for Youth and Sports Lieutenant-Colonel (Retired) Laisenia Tuitubou (Source: Fiji Sun)
Former Minister for Youth and Sports, Lieutenant-Colonel (Retired) Laisenia Tuitubou, has passed away at the age of 69. He collapsed on Saturday at a beach in Pacific Harbour, Deuba, and was pronounced dead upon arrival at Navua Hospital.
In a heartfelt announcement on Facebook, his son, Nemani Tuitubou, shared the family’s grief:
“With profound sadness and deep regret, we, the Tuitubou family, share the heartbreaking news of the passing of our beloved Patriarch, Father, Grandfather, Uncle and Brother, Lt Colonel (Retired) Laisenia Bale Tuitubou.”
Nemani described his father as a devoted grandfather and a man of humility and service. Known affectionately as ‘Pa’ or ‘Tutu’ to his five grandchildren, Mr Tuitubou cherished his family deeply.
“He served with distinction in various capacities within the vanua, the church, and his country, leaving a legacy that speaks volumes of his unwavering dedication to his faith, family, and people,” Nemani wrote.
“Despite holding positions of honour and responsibility, he remained grounded, humble, and true to his beginnings.”
Originally from Sinuvaca, Koro, in the Lomaiviti Group, Tuitubou is survived by his four children and five grandchildren.
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Representative image: AI generated images (Source: CANVA)
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) is calling on parents and carers to have open, non-judgemental conversations with children about the dangers of using artificial intelligence (AI) to create harmful content, as cases of AI-generated child abuse material rise.
The AFP-led Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE) has reported a troubling increase in such material over the past year, including instances where students have created deepfake content to harass or embarrass peers.
Highlighting the seriousness of the issue, two Australian men were jailed last year—one for possessing AI-generated child abuse material and another for using AI programs to produce abusive content.
AFP Commander Helen Schneider warned that young people might not realise creating AI-based content featuring classmates could amount to a criminal offence.
“Children and young people are curious by nature. However, anything that depicts the abuse of someone under 18—whether it’s videos, images, drawings, or stories—is child abuse material, regardless of whether it’s ‘real’ or not.”
Parents and carers are encouraged to use resources from the AFP-led ThinkUKnow education program to help guide these critical discussions. Topics could include safe technology use, responding to exposure to harmful content, securing online privacy settings, and handling unknown friend requests.
In the 2023/24 financial year, ThinkUKnow conducted 2,218 presentations on online child sexual exploitation, reaching over 200,000 students nationwide. An additional 317 sessions targeted more than 21,500 parents, carers, and teachers.
The ACCCE continues to spearhead national efforts against child exploitation, combining specialised expertise to support investigations and develop preventative strategies for a safer online environment.
Parents and guardians are urged to be proactive in educating their children about the ethical and legal boundaries of using emerging technologies, as AI tools become increasingly accessible.
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Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) company DeepSeek has sent shockwaves through the tech community, with the release of extremely efficient AI models that can compete with cutting-edge products from US companies such as OpenAI and Anthropic.
Founded in 2023, DeepSeek has achieved its results with a fraction of the cash and computing power of its competitors.
DeepSeek’s “reasoning” R1 model, released last week, provoked excitement among researchers, shock among investors, and responses from AI heavyweights. The company followed up on January 28 with a model that can work with images as well as text.
So what has DeepSeek done, and how did it do it?
deepseek's r1 is an impressive model, particularly around what they're able to deliver for the price.
we will obviously deliver much better models and also it's legit invigorating to have a new competitor! we will pull up some releases.
In December, DeepSeek released its V3 model. This is a very powerful “standard” large language model that performs at a similar level to OpenAI’s GPT-4o and Anthropic’s Claude 3.5.
While these models are prone to errors and sometimes make up their own facts, they can carry out tasks such as answering questions, writing essays and generating computer code. On some tests of problem-solving and mathematical reasoning, they score better than the average human.
V3 was trained at a reported cost of about US$5.58 million. This is dramatically cheaper than GPT-4, for example, which cost more than US$100 million to develop.
DeepSeek also claims to have trained V3 using around 2,000 specialised computer chips, specifically H800 GPUs made by NVIDIA. This is again much fewer than other companies, which may have used up to 16,000 of the more powerful H100 chips.
On January 20, DeepSeek released another model, called R1. This is a so-called “reasoning” model, which tries to work through complex problems step by step. These models seem to be better at many tasks that require context and have multiple interrelated parts, such as reading comprehension and strategic planning.
The R1 model is a tweaked version of V3, modified with a technique called reinforcement learning. R1 appears to work at a similar level to OpenAI’s o1, released last year.
DeepSeek also used the same technique to make “reasoning” versions of small open-source models that can run on home computers.
This release has sparked a huge surge of interest in DeepSeek, driving up the popularity of its V3-powered chatbot app and triggering a massive price crash in tech stocks as investors re-evaluate the AI industry. At the time of writing, chipmaker NVIDIA has lost around US$600 billion in value.
How DeepSeek did it
DeepSeek’s breakthroughs have been in achieving greater efficiency: getting good results with fewer resources. In particular, DeepSeek’s developers have pioneered two techniques that may be adopted by AI researchers more broadly.
The first has to do with a mathematical idea called “sparsity”. AI models have a lot of parameters that determine their responses to inputs (V3 has around 671 billion), but only a small fraction of these parameters is used for any given input.
However, predicting which parameters will be needed isn’t easy. DeepSeek used a new technique to do this, and then trained only those parameters. As a result, its models needed far less training than a conventional approach.
The other trick has to do with how V3 stores information in computer memory. DeepSeek has found a clever way to compress the relevant data, so it is easier to store and access quickly.
What it means
DeepSeek’s models and techniques have been released under the free MIT License, which means anyone can download and modify them.
While this may be bad news for some AI companies – whose profits might be eroded by the existence of freely available, powerful models – it is great news for the broader AI research community.
At present, a lot of AI research requires access to enormous amounts of computing resources. Researchers like myself who are based at universities (or anywhere except large tech companies) have had limited ability to carry out tests and experiments.
More efficient models and techniques change the situation. Experimentation and development may now be significantly easier for us.
For consumers, access to AI may also become cheaper. More AI models may be run on users’ own devices, such as laptops or phones, rather than running “in the cloud” for a subscription fee.
For researchers who already have a lot of resources, more efficiency may have less of an effect. It is unclear whether DeepSeek’s approach will help to make models with better performance overall, or simply models that are more efficient.
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(@AusHCFJ) 
SHOCKING: Chilling footage has emerged of a NSW Health doctor and his nurse claiming to have killed Israeli patients
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