AAP Rolling News Bulletin for June 7 at 2230
Honours (CANBERRA)
Will Hodgman was working as a child protection prosecutor when the "fire" in his heart was first lit to get into politics to better protect society's most vulnerable.
Mr Hodgman, who led Tasmania between 2014 and 2020, considers the implementation of his state's plan to reduce family violence during his government's term as one of its most important changes.
"Seeing how governments cannot adequately protect and care for vulnerable people in communities right across the world, but including in my home state, was something I thought I'd like to improve," he told AAP.
"It was that fire in my heart to seek to enter our parliament and pursue what were one of the most significant reforms."
The former Liberal premier has been awarded Australia's highest civil honour, the Companion of the Order (AC), for eminent service to the people and parliament of Tasmania, to economic growth and policy reform, to the law and to the community.
Honours Sport (MELBOURNE)
For more than two decades, Michael Kennedy helped Australia's winter athletes chase Olympic dreams.
Now, the veteran sports administrator has set out on a journey of his own.
After calling time on a 23-year career as chief executive of Snow Australia, which came off the back of the country's record-breaking Winter Olympics campaign in Italy in February, Kennedy headed back overseas to tick off a personal goal.
Kennedy received the news about being appointed a Member (AM) of the Order of Australia in the King's Birthday Honours while walking the 790km-long Camino Frances with his wife, Shannah.
He said the walk, averaging 25km per day for 40 days from France to Spain, had given him time to reflect on his career as an architect of Australia becoming a global winter sports powerhouse.
AUKUS (CANBERRA)
The AUKUS agreement is "full steam ahead", Prime Minister Anthony Albanese insists, despite renewed criticism over the nuclear submarine deal.
In the latest alteration to the defence agreement with the United States and the UK, Australia will receive three second-hand Virginia-class nuclear submarines from the US, despite the original terms of the arrangement stipulating two used and one new boat.
The setback has reignited scrutiny over the mega-money deal.
It showed the greatest strategic risk Australia faced at the moment was losing sovereignty to Washington over the defence of the nation, Greens defence spokesman David Shoebridge told the ABC's Insiders program on Sunday.
Australia risked being dragged into a conflict between the US and China as a result, Senator Shoebridge said, and questioned the need for nuclear submarines to defend Australia's maritime approaches.
Ukraine (KYIV)
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is set to host Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz to discuss ongoing support for Ukraine.
The Ukrainian leader will visit the United Kingdom on Sunday with the two other leaders, officials in Downing Street said.
It comes after a large-scale Ukrainian drone attack targeted St Petersburg, Russia's second-largest city, on Saturday, underscoring the country's growing ability to hit deep inside Russia.
Russia's defence ministry said on Saturday its anti-aircraft units had intercepted and destroyed 339 Ukrainian drones over a 13-hour period in various Russian regions including Moscow.
The ministry, posting on Telegram, listed 13 regions where the interceptions took place, plus areas over the Black Sea, between 7am and 8pm.
Iran (TEHRAN)
Lebanese army commander General Rudolf Haykal has left on a visit to Pakistan, Lebanon's army says, amid Pakistani efforts to mediate an end to the US-Israeli conflict with Iran that has also spilled into Lebanon.
The army said the visit was at the invitation of Haykal's Pakistani counterpart but did not immediately provide further details on its purpose or duration.
The surprise visit is notable given the insistence by the United States - and by Lebanese leaders including the president - that ceasefire talks for Lebanon remain separate from US-Iran negotiations mediated by Pakistan.
It comes as Iran's government again warned neighbouring countries against making their territory available for potential US military operations against it.
"The countries in the region should observe the principle of good neighbourliness and not use their territory for aggressive actions against Iran," the Iranian foreign ministry said on Saturday.
Mideast (HEBRON)
A seven-month-old Palestinian has been laid to rest in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, a day after he was shot dead and his parents were injured by the Israeli military near Hebron, according to family members who witnessed the shooting and the Palestinian health ministry.
Sam Fahd Abu Haikal, wrapped in a white shroud and a Palestinian flag, was buried in Hebron after funeral prayers were held at a nearby mosque.
The infant was killed on Friday while travelling with his family by car near the city of Hebron.
"What happened to us is not a matter of an apology. What happened is not that shots were fired by mistake and led to this tragedy," the child's father, Fahd, said on Saturday.
Tonys (NEW YORK CITY)
The Tony Awards are capping a record Broadway season, with no clear frontrunner among the leading nominees and a mix of star-driven shows and new works signalling sustained momentum for the New York theatre industry.
Pop singer Pink will host the televised ceremony at Radio City Music Hall in New York on Sunday from 8pm local time (10am Monday Sydney time).
New musicals The Lost Boys and Schmigadoon! lead all nominees with 12 nods each, followed by the revival Ragtime with 11, with 24 shows vying for wins across 26 categories.
Alongside leading contenders The Lost Boys and Schmigadoon!, Titaníque and Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York) have built strong followings, making the best musical category one of the most competitive in recent memory.
Honours Indigenous (DARWIN)
When asked what drives her, longtime Aboriginal rights campaigner Pat Turner says it is a determination to achieve justice for her people.
The 74-year-old has been appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for distinguished service to the Indigenous community.
She has long advocated for Indigenous-led solutions to pressing issues facing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islands people, particularly in delivering health care.
"The quiet day-to-day work done in our communities shows the broader Australian community what happens when Aboriginal health is in Aboriginal hands," she has said.
"The government needs to show its confidence in Aboriginal Australia and the efforts that we've made, especially in Closing the Gap."
Ms Turner, an Arrernte and Gurdanji woman, was raised in Alice Springs.
In entertainment ...
Noise (SYDNEY)
Gigs at one of Australia's most famous landmarks are set to get louder.
Along with lifting capacity limits, sound regulation for late-night concerts at the Sydney Opera House's forecourt will be raised to be consistent with settings for daytime gigs.
NSW ministers labelled the tweaks as common sense and said sound restrictions would no longer be determined by residents of the 'Toaster' - the nearby luxury apartment building whose residents have regularly complained about noise.
Notably, the Opera House copped a $15,000 fine after residents complained about the volume of a performance from English band Florence and The Machine in 2015.
"Over the decades it became a Sydney sport to move in next door to a pub and then campaign to close it down," Arts and Night-time Economy Minister John Graham said on Sunday
Arts Remote (MELBOURNE)
In the remote community of Papulankutja in Western Australia, diesel is $4.28 a litre, roughly double the price in capital cities.
One of the few sources of income in the community is its not-for-profit arts centre, but selling artworks at Aboriginal art fairs requires huge amounts of travel.
Making it to the Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair in August, for example, is a journey of some 2500km, at a time when filling up the four-wheel-drive costs about $350.
"With fuel going up, prices are definitely more expensive and general travel costs have increased," arts centre worker Simone from Papulankutja Artists told AAP.
Papulankutja, also known as Blackstone, is 900km west of Alice Springs - it's a five hour drive to get to a bitumen road at Yulara, another five to Alice Springs and 15 more to Darwin.
In sport ...
RL Tigers (SYDNEY)
Nathan Cleary has inspired NRL juggernaut Penrith to the biggest win in the club's history - a 68-0 mauling of insipid Wests Tigers at CommBank Stadium.
Penrith's State of Origin stars excelled on return from a week off to reiterate the yawning chasm between the ladder leaders and their NRL challengers in 2026.
Cleary shone brightest of all with three try assists and a four-pointer of his own as the Panthers rode their largest halftime lead since 2010 - 36-0 - to a huge win.
Nine different Panthers scored tries on Sunday and with six and a half minutes to play, left winger Tom Jenkins crossed for his second to push the margin beyond 60 points.
The end result surpassed a 72-12 defeat of Manly in 2004 to become the biggest Penrith have posted since entering the competition in 1967.
AFL Magpies (MELBOURNE)
Collingwood and Melbourne need a response. It's not quite on the scale of what Neale Daniher did over the last 13 astonishing years of his life, but a response nonetheless.
The Magpies and Demons have hit significant mid-season turbulence ahead of the King's Birthday AFL blockbuster on Monday at the MCG.
Daniher's death a fortnight ago dramatically raises the importance of the occasion. This will be the 12th Big Freeze pre-game event, which raises awareness for the FightMND charity.
Established after Daniher's devastating motor neurone disease diagnosis in 2013, FightMND has helped raise more than $150 million to fight the incurable and fatal illness that he called The Beast.
Outside the grand final, it will be the biggest AFL game this season - an honour traditionally reserved for the MCG Anzac Day clash.
Ends Bulletin
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