What we learned, Monday 8 September
We’ll leave our live news coverage there for today. Thanks for staying with us. Here were the top stories for today:
The Albanese government announced it would explore a new scheme to protect airline customers, potentially creating new rights to be compensated for cancelled or delayed flights.
Erin Patterson was sentenced to life imprisonment with a non-parole period of 33 years after murdering three people and attempting to murder a fourth with a lunch laced with death cap mushrooms.
“Anti-corruption” protest organisers reached agreement with police not to march on Sydney Harbour Bridge.
The University of Technology Sydney confirmed it would not pay senior staff any bonuses as a result of the ongoing restructure at the institution, and had spent $44m on consultants.
Coles and Woolworths revealed they were preparing to pay more than $1bn in the fallout from a major wages case that found the supermarket giants had underpaid thousands of workers.
The former Greens leader Adam Bandt was named as the head of one of the country’s biggest and oldest environmental organisations, the Australian Conservation Foundation.
Liberal MP Alex Hawke said speculation about his call to Jacinta Nampijinpa Price’s office “sounds like total gossip,” adding he has heard broad support for his calls for Price to apologise for comments about Indian migrants.
A British Airways flight from Sydney made an emergency return to the airport just over an hour after taking off.
A Chinese government-run newspaper has claimed Australia and Japan are “stirring up” tensions in the Asia-Pacific region with statements it described as provocative and hackneyed.
We’ll be back with you tomorrow morning to keep you across the nation’s breaking news. See you then.
Updated
Alleged bomb threats targeting Muslim community condemned
Bomb threats towards a Muslim school and mosque in Queensland have drawn condemnation from community advocates.
The Islamophobia Register Australia said an alleged bomb threat to the Gold Coast Mosque on Sunday night had “heightened fear and anxiety among Muslims and other minority communities, leaving the community feeling vulnerable and on edge”.
The threat followed a separate alleged bomb threat made by email to the Islamic College of Brisbane on Friday. Dr Nora Amath, co-executive director of the Register, condemned the incidents:
“Such acts not only traumatise worshippers, students, families, and the broader Muslim community, but they also constitute an attack on the fundamental principles of safety, inclusivity, and respect that underpin Australia’s multicultural society.
Aftab Malik, the Australian government’s special envoy to combat Islamophobia, also condemned the “vulgar, hate-filled email” in a statement on Saturday. Malik said:
“This hate-filled, violent Islamophobic message comes amid a nationwide surge of Islamophobia and threats specifically targeting mosques and Islamic schools.
It also follows a national climate of protests against migrants, and emboldened neo-Nazis marching across our streets.
Malik urged Queensland’s premier, minister for multiculturalism and acting police commissioner to visit the college and show solidarity.
Updated
Shark attack victim Mercury Psillakis mourned by brother
The brother of the man killed in a shark attack at a Sydney beach on Saturday has paid tribute to his “right hand man” .
Mercury Psillakis, a 57-year-old father of one, died at Long Reef beach near Dee Why after being attacked by a white shark.
Mike Psillakis, Mercury’s brother and a surfboard maker, shared his grief on Monday in posts on social media. He wrote on Instagram:
This is the hardest moment of my life. He was my [Yin], I was his Yang. He was my mirror, my blood, my DNA. We were telepathic. We share the same soul.
Mercury was my life, my right hand man. Words cannot describe the bond we had together growing up. We had our own language and shared the same dreams, literally.
The owner of Psillakiss Surfboards said his brother had loved his wife, Maria, and Freedom “so very much,” urging members of the public to support them both.
He shared details about the the experienced surfer’s personality, saying he had developed a passion for nursing exotic palm trees, adding:
[Mercury’s] message to all is to live life with pure passion … He was passionate about being real.
He would be the life at every party. The pure energy from him could be felt in every corner.
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China Daily accuses Wong and Marles of ‘stirring up’ Taiwan Strait tensions
A Chinese government-run newspaper has claimed Australia and Japan have inflamed tensions in the Asia-Pacific region with statements it described as provocative and hackneyed.
Albanese government ministers Penny Wong and Richard Marles met their Japanese counterparts on Friday, with the two countries issuing a joint statement emphasising “the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait”. The statement also expressed concern at Chinese activity near Japan and other instances of “intensification of China’s dangerous and provocative activities”.
That statement was described as “stirring up tensions, making the region more insecure and unstable,” in an editorial published on Sunday in the China Daily, the Chinese Communist party’s English-language mouthpiece. The editorial continued:
[Ministers] did not stop at just parroting the hackneyed China-targeted phrases from the playbook of the United States’ strategy in the region. They went further by seeking to provoke China on issues that concern its core interests. …
Moreover, the mentioning of Taiwan in the statement … risks undermining relations between China and the two countries. … Japan and Australia are reneging on their formal recognition of Taiwan as part of China and degenerating into puppets on the geopolitical chessboard of the US.
The editorial also referred to comments by the former Australian prime minister, Paul Keating, encouraging Australia to adopt a foreign policy more independent from the US. It read:
Hopefully his words will knock some sense into the heads of some in Canberra.
Updated
Bruce Lehrmann launches legal challenge against Nacc
The former Liberal party staffer has launched a legal challenge against the National Anti-Corruption Commission (Nacc) in the federal court.
The action was filed by Lehrmann personally at 9.30pm on Thursday under the classification of a “judicial review,” which asks the court to review the legality of a governmental decision.
The federal special minister of state, Don Farrell, and the Nacc’s commissioner, Paul Brereton, are both named as respondents.
The court is yet to release any documents outlining the case brought by Lehrmann, who has been contacted for comment.
In August 2024, Lehmann’s lawyer, Zali Burrows, confirmed his property had been raided as part of a Nacc investigation into a “conspiracy” that he allegedly improperly held documents linked to the scrapped French submarine deal.
At the time, Burrows said there was no basis to the allegations and that the former Coalition staffer denied any wrongdoing as the Nacc investigated the “conspiracy”.
It is not yet known whether that raid relates to the proceedings now before the federal court.
– with AAP
• This post was amended on 8 September 2025 to reflect that Paul Brereton is the commissioner of the Nacc, not the chief executive as previously stated.
Updated
British Airways flight makes emergency return to Sydney airport
A British Airways flight from Sydney made an emergency return to the airport this afternoon just over an hour after taking off.
The Boeing 787 faced a technical issue and made the emergency landing before 4pm on Monday. It landed safely and cleared the runway after being met by firefighter crews, a spokesperson for Airservices Australia said.
All the passengers on flight BA16 from Sydney to Singapore disembarked safely and airport operations were not impacted, a spokesperson for Sydney Airport said. They added the aircraft was met by emergency services in line with standard procedures.
A spokesperson for British Airways said:
The aircraft returned to Sydney as a precaution after reports of a technical issue. The flight landed safely with crew and customers disembarking as they normally would, and our teams are working hard to get their journeys back on track as soon as possible.
Updated
Shark near Manly was up to 2.7 metres long
As we reported earlier, a great white shark was detected off Sydney’s Manly Beach earlier today. The New South Wales government has now confirmed the shark was detected at 10.51am.
The shark was first caught and tagged at Diggers Beach in Coffs Harbour in September 2023, where it was assigned the name #2020, according to a spokesperson for the NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development.
It was 2.03 metres long at that time but scientists from the department estimate it would now be 2.5 to 2.7 metres in length. The white shark that attacked a man at Dee Why on Saturday was larger than that, the spokesperson said.
Updated
Former priest charged with historical child sexual assault offences
A 82-year-old former priest will face court on Tuesday after being arrested and charged with historical sexual assault offences.
Police in the state’s mid-north coast began investigating in April after receiving a report alleging historical sexual assault offences between 1982 and 1984 at a church in the northern Riverina region of western NSW.
The 82-year-old was arrested at a home in Newcastle on Monday morning and taken to Newcastle Police station, police said.
The man was refused bail. He has been charged with five counts of sexual assault and indecent act with person under 16 years of age and two counts of sexual assault, person under 16 years of age.
Updated
New head appointed to department of finance
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has named Matt Yannopoulos as the new boss of the department of finance. He replaces the former secretary, Jenny Wilkinson, who moved to Treasury earlier this year.
Yannopoulos has previously worked as an associate secretary at the defence department, since 2021. Prior to that he was in the budget and financial reporting unit at Finance. Announcing his appointment, Albanese said:
As an experienced senior leader within the Australian Public Service, Mr Yannopoulos brings diverse experience to the position.
In January 2019, Mr Yannopoulos was awarded a Public Service Medal for his substantial achievements as Deputy Secretary, Senior Responsible Officer for the Child Care Reform Implementation at the Department of Education.
Yannopoulos’ five-year term will start on 29 September.
Finance minister welcomes new head of department
The minister for finance, Katy Gallagher, has welcomed Matt Yannopoulos’ appointment to lead her department.
Gallagher said in a statement:
Mr Yannopoulos brings extensive experience and a deep understanding of public sector governance, budget management and delivering outcomes for the Australian community.
His leadership will be critical as the Department continues its vital work supporting the Government’s priorities and ensuring strong, sustainable public finances.
I look forward to working closely with Matt and the Department’s senior leadership team as we continue the important work of delivering responsible budgets, investing in Australia’s future, and strengthening our economy.
As we reported earlier, Yannopolous has succeeded Jenny Wilkinson, who is now heading up the Treasury.
ANZ closes money-back platform Cashrewards
ANZ has abruptly closed its Cashrewards business, with the money-back platform ceasing operations today.
The business, part of the ANZ-owned venture capital business 1835i, gave members some cash back on purchases made through partner retailers.
Cash back businesses usually make their money through commissions from retailers when customers use their deals, vouchers and promo codes to make purchases.
A note on the Cashrewards site said that from midday, the platform “ceased making offers available on its website, app and notifier”.
ANZ and 1835i were contacted for comment.
Updated
Hawke says he has wide support for call for Nampijinpa Price to apologise
Liberal MP Alex Hawke has said he has heard wide support for his calls for Jacinta Nampijinpa Price to apologise for her claims about Indian immigration to Australia.
Hawke, the Coalition’s manager of opposition business, said no one other than Price had contacted him to express anger over his criticism of the senator’s remarks. He told the ABC:
People have contacted me and supported the idea that Jacinta should issue an apology because the issue is still developing and going very badly.
Nobody contacted me and said ‘I have a problem with anything you have done’. I have been clear with my colleagues about what happened and they accept my point of view.
Hawke said he had not heard any suggestion Price would lose her senior position as a shadow minister and declined to directly answer whether her comments could harm her future leadership ambitions
She will stay. I’ve heard no suggestion to the contrary … [but] there’s ongoing harm.
I think if anyone wants to … be a leader in this country, we have to accept the modern multicultural society we have built.
Price has so far refused to apologise for her claims about Indian migration to Australia. Appearing on ABC’s Insiders on Sunday, Ley also refused to apologise on behalf of the Northern Territory senator and the Liberal party. Read more here:
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Alex Hawke says speculation about his call to Jacinta Nampijinpa Price’s office ‘sounds like total gossip’
Alex Hawke has described claims his phone call to Jacinta Nampinjpa Price’s office lasted several minutes as “total gossip” and denied it was directed by Liberal leader Sussan Ley.
Hawke said his intervention was prompted by concerns heard from his community and people around the country. He said:
“I called in to assist and equally provide advice around what I thought was quite sensible to do: a short and sharp apology. These things nipped in the bud.
Price on Sunday accused Hawke of suggesting Price could “end up like another female member of the Coalition” in a call to her office, shortly after she made remarks about the Indian Australian community on the ABC on Wednesday.
Asked about claims he had referenced Hume or her post-election demotion from the frontbench, Hawke denied he had referenced Hume.
Hawke claimed the call, made to Price’s staffer, was only a couple of minutes long and rejected suggestions the call was longer.
Sounds like total gossip. I’m on one end, somebody on another end, it was an unplanned and unexpected call, I won’t go into that gossip and stupidity.
Asked about claims he berated the staffer, Hawke declined to discuss the specifics of the call.
Updated
Liberal MP says Indians face more racism after Liberal senator’s comments
Alex Hawke has said South Asian Australians have faced more racism since Jacinta Nampijinpa Price’s comments about Indian immigration.
Hawke, who at first privately and then publicly called for Price to apologise, said he had seen heightened racial targeting of the community in the days since Price’s remarks made on the ABC.
Hawke, the shadow industry minister, told ABC’s Afternoon Briefing:
I have heard from the community around Australia, different communities and the South Asian community, not just Indian community, saying there is more targeting of them since the comments were made.
When specifically asked, Hawke confirmed that he believed the Indian Australian community had faced a greater level of racism since Price’s comments on Wednesday. He said he believed Price did not intend for the remark to sound racist but said “it came out awkwardly”:
I don’t think Jacinta went on with the intention of singling out the community. She has walked it back but, in the process, there has been a lot of commentary on the Indian Australian community and that is not helpful. It is a time to get the apology and move on.
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Universities’ early offers hit record high
Early offer applications to the University Admissions Centre (UAC) have reached a record high as Year 12 students increasingly bypass Atar entry admissions.
UAC processes tertiary education applications at around 30 universities, mostly in New South Wales and the ACT, and calculates Atar scores.
Nearly 28,000 students lodged an application for the Schools Recommendation Scheme (SRS) when applications closed on Friday via UAC, the body revealed today, a 3.3% increase on last year’s record intake.
SRS allows universities to make early offers of admission based on criteria other than, or in addition to, the Atar, including Year 11 studies and school references. Around 15,000 SRS offers were made last year, up from 14,000 in 2023.
UAC spokesperson Peter Gangemi said the number of applications showed school leavers had a “significant appetite for university study”.
The first SRS offers will be released on 13 November.
Updated
Auction activity holding steady into spring
The winter chill on home sales is lifting, with the first week of September seeing over 2,000 properties taken to auction across the capital cities - the third straight week with volumes that high.
More than 2,400 homes will go to auction this week and about 2,600 next week, according to data released today from property analytics firm Cotality.
Limited numbers of home sales in recent months have pushed up the rate of successful auctions. The preliminary clearance rate held at or above 75% for the fourth consecutive week last week, indicating buyers have grown more desperate to purchase available homes.
That preliminary rate has fallen since the last week of August, when it was 76.3%, in a sign the rising volume of homes could be easing buyers’ urgency. The hottest market, Sydney recorded a preliminary rate of over 80% two weeks ago but 78% last week.
Woolworths’ market value rises despite backpay cost surge
Investors aren’t too worried about the prospect of supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths facing a combined $1bn bill for underpaying their employees.
As we reported earlier, Woolworths announced it could have to pay out a further $250m to $470m in unpaid wages and up to $280m in extra costs, while Coles estimated a further $150m to $250m. Both chains have already paid large sums in back payment.
Traders seem to expect the payment will have little impact on the supermarket giants’ future profitability, with neither company seeing a significant move in its share price.
Woolworths’ market value has risen today after it released its new backpay estimates after barely moving when the federal court on Friday ruled against the two brands. Coles’ market value has slipped just 1% after making up some ground this afternoon.
The resilience of the companies’ market values sits alongside a broader fall on the consumer staples sector, which has slipped a little lower today. Retail payments data out today from the Reserve Bank showed Australians’ spending slipped in July, while Westpac’s card tracker suggested consumer purchasing hardly improved in August.
Updated
Queensland premier says ‘no place’ in the state for CFMEU
David Crisafulli says “there’s no place in a modern Queensland for the CFMEU”.
Asked about reports in the Nine newspapers that he believed the union was not able to be reformed and ought to be abolished, the Queensland premier told media that he believed in trade unionism “but the Cfmeu isn’t a regular union”, adding:
Their whole business model is different (to other unions). It’s about bullying, it’s about intimidation, it’s about misogyny. It’s about driving down productivity, being anarchist, and that, to me, is not that’s not a function of the union movement.
The CFMEU has come in for heavy criticism from the government and others, after a report commissioned by their administrator was released in July.
Asked how he planned to abolish the union, which is registered federally, Crisafulli said “let’s see what comes out of the commission inquiry”.
Read more here:
Updated
That’s all from me today – thanks for your company. I’ll leave you in the very capable hands of Luca Ittimani.
Tagged great white shark detected off Manly
A tagged great white shark has been detected off Manly beach in Sydney, close to where a surfer was fatally mauled on Saturday.
Mercury Psillakis, a 57-year-old father of one, lost both legs after being bitten by what was suspected to be a great white shark while surfing at Long Reef with friends.
A NSW SharkSmart alert on social media said a shark was detected at 10.51am at North Steyne and was last detected near Coffs Harbour in June:
DPI Fisheries advise: tagged White Shark #2020 detected by North Steyne receiver at 10:51:23 AM (AEST) on 08-September-2025. Last detected at 10:02:52 AM (AEST) on 04-June-2025 by Soldiers Beach receiver. Tagged and released 17-September-2023(AEST) at Diggers Beach, Coffs Harbour.
A message on the Northern Beaches council website said Manly and Freshwater beaches were today closed due “to notification by NSW Government Shark Smart app that a tagged shark in the vicinity”.
Dee Why, close to Long Reef, has shark netting and drumlines. Both it and Long Reef were closed after the attack and will remain closed until further notice, according to the council.
Updated
Dan Tehan tours US nuclear energy infrastructure
Shadow energy and emissions reduction minister Dan Tehan is in the United States this week, part of a trip to look at nuclear energy infrastructure.
Tehan, who is leading the Liberal party’s internal review of net zero policies, told Sky he had paid for the international flights to America, while former Clean Energy Regulator board member and investor Charles Keifel is paying for domestic flights and accommodation.
Keifel is the chairman and co-founder of the Australian Advisory Board on Competitiveness.
The funding will be declared on Tehan’s register of members interests in coming weeks, he confirmed. Kiefel was appointed to the Clean Energy Regulator board when Liberal Angus Taylor was the energy minister.
During the trip, Tehan will look at nuclear fusion technology, as well as uranium export opportunities and potential for knowledge sharing between Australia and the US.
“We need to be across these developments,” he said. “If we’re not careful, the rest of the world is going to move and we are going to be left stranded.”
Tehan indicated the Coalition could stick with its nuclear policy, promoted by former opposition leader Peter Dutton before the election and considered significant in the Coalition’s defeat.
“Once again, if we’re not on top of this, then, as a country, and especially as a nation which needs energy abundance to keep up with the rest of the world, then we’re just not going to be in the picture,” he said.
Porepunkah shooting victim farewelled with full police honours
Tears and laughter have flowed for a larger-than-life veteran policeman gunned down just over a week before he was supposed to retire, AAP reports.
Detective leading senior constable Neal Thompson was farewelled with full police honours in a funeral at the Victoria Police Academy today.
The 59-year-old was one of two officers killed on 26 August while serving a warrant on Dezi Freeman at a property in Porepunkah, about 300km northeast of Melbourne.
His partner, sergeant Lisa Thompson, broke down while leading the tributes for the man affectionately known as “Thommo”.
She met Thompson in 2016 after arriving at Wangaratta Police Station as a constable.
“We worked one shift together and it changed the course of my life,” she told mourners.
I had never laughed so much with someone and as I drove home that night reflecting on my day, I knew with absolute certainty that I wanted to be a detective.
I don’t want to live my life without you and I don’t want to finish our dreams on my own.
Updated
Adam Bandt named CEO of Australian Conservation Foundation
The former Greens leader Adam Bandt has been named as the head of one of the country’s biggest and oldest environmental organisations, the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF).
Bandt, who unexpectedly lost the seat of Melbourne at the May election, will replace long-time ACF chief executive Kelly O’Shanassy, who announced earlier this year that she was resigning.
Bandt starts at ACF in January. The foundation said he would “not play any further role in the Greens”.
The ACF chair, Ros Harvey, said Bandt was the unanimous choice of the organisation’s board after a “rigorous search” that involved screening more than 300 candidates.
She said “hard times require bold leadership” and Bandt had the “vision, the bravery and the experience required” for the job.
In a statement, Bandt said it was a “true privilege to help lead Australia’s most respected voice for nature and climate at such a critical time”. He said:
Climate collapse is beginning, nature is in crisis and this is the parliament that can avoid extinction. This could be the best parliament ever for nature and climate. We’re setting politicians a test we hope they meet.
Updated
‘I don’t think Jacinta has it in for Indians’ Barnaby Joyce says
The fallout continues from Jacinta Nampijinpa Price’s comments suggesting the Labor party’s migration policies were attempts to garner votes from immigrants including those from India.
Barnaby Joyce appeared to defend Price on the Seven Network this morning, putting the comments down to a “mistake”.
The Nationals MP said:
You make mistakes in politics all the time, and the best thing to do is apologise, move on … Get on to another topic. It’s just the nature of politics. You’re not going to be perfect on every statement you ever make, you’re gonna make mistakes.
I don’t think Jacinta has it in for Indians, by the way. I think that she’s trying to convey … migration is out of control. Why is it out of control? Not because of the people [but] because we just don’t have the resources. We don’t have the houses, the hospitals, the schools, the dams to absorb them.
He said Price should apologise “if that solves the problem”.
Labor MP Tanya Plibersek, also interviewed on Sunrise, said the Indian community was due an apology.
Jacinta Price should apologise and if she doesn’t, Sussan Ley should make her apologise … They’ve got all sorts of mess happening in the Coalition.
Updated
The Wiggles deny former CEO was illegally fired
The Wiggles have told a court they will fight an unlawful dismissal lawsuit from their former chief executive, who claims the blue Wiggle undermined him, AAP reports.
Luke O’Neill says he was denied bonuses and excluded from meetings before being dismissed without a reasonable basis by the famous children’s entertainers.
He has launched legal action against the group, blue Wiggle Anthony Field and its general counsel Matthew Salgo in the federal court. No defence has been filed with the court but the band’s lawyer indicated on Monday the allegations were contested.
The Wiggles’ lawyer, Bianca Dearing, said on Monday:
“There are multiple complaints or inquiries pleaded during the course of the applicant’s employment ... all of which are denied.”
Justice Michael Lee asked the parties to set out timetabling ahead of a potential hearing in April, noting he was “unclear about how long it will take”.
The Wiggles and its former chief executive will likely attend mediation before the end of the year to see if the issue can be resolved before a hearing, the court was told.
O’Neill was fired in May, a decision he says came without a reasonable basis and without any prior warning or earlier adverse feedback. He alleges his dismissal was unlawful.
You can read more about the case here:
Updated
Coles and Woolworths underpayment bill could top $1bn
Coles and Woolworths are preparing to pay more than $1bn in the fallout from a major wages case that found the supermarket giants had underpaid thousands of workers.
The federal court found last week the big supermarkets hadn’t adequately tracked entitlements owed under the relevant retail award, resulting in years of missed overtime, penalties rates and other various payments.
The Fair Work Ombudsman alleged Woolworths underpaid 19,000 workers and Coles underpaid more than 8,700 staff, including store managers.
Woolworths said in an ASX statement today it could owe workers a further $250m to $470m in pre tax payments, and up to $280m in additional costs including superannuation and payroll tax.
Coles estimates it might need to pay a further $150m to $250m to “reflect the findings of the court, including interest and on-costs”.
The estimates are in addition to significant sums Australia’s two biggest supermarket chains have already made in back payments. Proceedings are due back in court in late October.
The underpayment issue could become even more costly for the supermarkets, given the figures do not take into account potential payouts stemming from class actions.
Updated
‘Anti-corruption’ protest organisers reach agreement not to march on Sydney Harbour Bridge
NSW police and protest organisers have reached an agreement for an alternative route that will not block the Sydney Harbour Bridge this weekend.
As we reported last week, protesters had lodged a “form 1” notifying police of a planned public demonstration across the Sydney Harbour Bridge this Saturday, 13 September. But after negotiations between senior officers and organisers, the route will now start in Hyde Park and follow a route through Sydney’s CBD, police said in a statement.
In a preliminary hearing at the NSW supreme court this morning, the organiser who lodged the form, Mary-Jane Liddicoat, said she had not been able to find legal representation in time for an urgent hearing originally scheduled for this afternoon. That hearing has now been cancelled with the court hearing an in-principle agreement had already been reached.
Police have now formally withdrawn their filing to the supreme court. The NSW supreme court has ordered that each party pay their own legal costs.
In the statement, police thanked the organiser for their cooperation and added the force recognised and supported the rights of individuals and groups to exercise their rights of free speech and peaceful assembly.
The protest, which is marching under the name “Australia Unites Against Government Corruption” includes the groups My Place Australia and MMAMV, which as the ABC have reported have campaigned against vaccine mandates.
Updated
Airline customer watchdog proposal not strong enough, Choice says
Following up on news the Albanese government is exploring a consumer protection scheme for aviation, customer advocacy group Choice has warned the industry needs a stronger watchdog.
Labor today said its scheme could give customers the right to be compensated for cancelled or delayed flights and provided with prompt rebooking, refunds and food and accommodation.
The proposed watchdog could assist with customers’ unresolved complaints about airlines or airports and penalise breaches, but it will report to the transport minister and won’t be responsible for creating new rights for consumers.
Choice’s director of campaigns, Rosie Thomas, said the new scheme was a welcome first step but the ombudsperson needed more power and independence than Labor has proposed:
We deserve clear rights when flights don’t go to plan, not a patchwork of airline policies. However, consumer rights are only ever as strong as the complaints processes to enforce them.
Banks and telecommunications companies have to answer to an independent umpire and the airlines should too.
The government is taking submissions on the design of the new scheme and watchdog.
Updated
UTS students ‘blindsided’ by program suspensions
The president of the UTS students’ association, Mia Campbell, says students were “blindsided” by management’s decision to suspend enrolments in more than 100 courses at the university and feel “abandoned” by leadership.
Appearing at the Senate inquiry into university governance, Campbell said it rang “alarm bells” when the senior leadership team, appearing before her, said the changes would have no impact on current students, as many had lost the opportunity to study postgraduate options right at the end of their degrees.
Campbell read out quotes from students in the school of public health, who said a week before the cuts were announced, they attended an honours information session with “hope and ambition”.
We were blindsided by news of the suspension of this program … Students of public health feel abandoned by this university, by its leadership and by the vice-chancellor. For many of us in public health, we chose to study this degree on the basis we would have a solid pathway to complete a bachelor, honours and PhD, but now we may not be able to.
Campbell said some PhD supervisors had already been made aware that they might have to supervise students for free if they were subject to job losses next year.
In my classes I’ve seen tutors and peers frustrated and demoralised by the uncertainty and loss of direction of the university, many students are hearing bleak warnings from staff … I worry about how employers will interpret the value of my degree, considering UTS has decided to discontinue it.
Read more here:
Updated
Spring has sprung?
Melbourne enjoyed its warmest day since May on Saturday, with the mercury reaching 22.1C, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.
The warmth coincided with the start of Petyan, or wildflower season, in Victoria.
In Sydney, the temperature was 27.1C at midday today – but while spring has sprung, it may only be a glimpse, with the SES warning parts of NSW are heading into a few days of unsettled weather.
Updated
Erin Patterson’s sentencing hearing this morning was historic beyond its immediate subject matter: it was also the first time news cameras have been allowed in Victoria’s supreme court to film a sentencing.
Here is Justice Christopher Beale’s sentencing of Patterson in full:
UTS cuts staff bonuses and confirms consultants bill of $44m
The vice-chancellor of the University of Technology Sydney, Prof Andrew Parfitt, says senior staff will not be paid any bonuses as a result of the ongoing restructure at the institution. Late last year, UTS announced around 400 jobs will be lost to deliver $100m in annual savings.
Greens deputy leader and higher education spokesperson, Senator Mehreen Faruqi, pointed to Parfitt’s own salary of around $935,000 last year.
Does the operation sustainability initiative consider a cut to that salary or the salaries of any of the other very highly paid executives, or is it just staff who have to pay the price of the changes that you are proposing?
Parfitt said senior executives and the senior staff group “will not now be paid any bonus or performance components, which is a saving across the university of about $2.5m”. He also confirmed UTS had spent $44m on consultants last year.
Faruqi also pressed Parfitt on “fear and mistrust” among staff to speak openly, who were instead resorting to “closed door meetings and encrypted WhatsApp groups”.
He said “genuine and open consultation around challenging issues needs to occur”.
It’s part of our change process, and we have been attempting to release the document ... which provides the basis for the changes that we might consider.
The change proposal will be released in the next fortnight, Parfitt said.
Updated
‘Unprecedented’ amount of pressure on universities, says vice-chancellor
Staying with the Senate inquiry into university governance, around 1,000 prospective students are expected to be affected by the temporary suspension of enrolments at the University of Technology Sydney, its deputy vice-chancellor has said.
Asked about the 120 courses that have been affected until the end of the autumn 2026 semester, Prof Kylie Readman said 33 had fewer than 10 enrolments, and a further 31 had no students enrolled:
If I looked at these courses’ commencing students in 2025, it was less than 1,000 out of about 38,000 at the university. We did follow our policy and our process to identify these courses for temporary suspension, each dean noted the courses that they wanted to suspend, and they were approved by the provost.
In his opening statement, the vice-chancellor, Prof Andrew Parfitt, said universities in Australia were facing an “unprecedented” amount of pressure:
In my 30 years in the sector ... I have never witnessed such a confluence of challenges currently facing our institutions ... constraints on revenue leading to financial stress and job losses ... the underpayment of wages, campus safety concerns ... antisemitism and other forms of racism, foreign interference ... debates around academic freedom and freedom of speech, rapid impact of emerging technologies. It’s a long list, senators.
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Mourners arrive to pay respects to Porepunkah shooting victim
Family, friends and colleagues are coming together to salute a veteran police officer who was gunned down just days away from retiring, as the hunt for his alleged killer continues.
Detective leading senior constable Neal Thompson will be farewelled with full police honours at a funeral at the Victoria Police Academy today, reports AAP.
The 59-year-old was one of two Victoria Police officers killed on 26 August while serving a warrant on Dezi Freeman on a property in Porepunkah, about 300km north-east of Melbourne.
The officer was looking forward to spending more time with the love of his life, Lisa, and already had a list of tasks to tackle in his free time.
His partner, with whom he built a home, will be among the mourners expected to pack the onsite chapel at the academy in Melbourne’s east to remember the man affectionately known as Thommo.
Thompson deserved the life he had planned for after his policing career, state police union boss Wayne Gatt said.
“That, after 38 years in the job and on the cusp of retirement, he made the decision to put others before himself, is a measure of the man we’ve lost,” Gatt said.
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Erin Patterson has left Victoria’s supreme court after her sentencing hearing this morning.
The convicted murderer left as she arrived – in a secure prison truck with a crowd of onlookers.
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Video: Erin Patterson sentencing
Erin Patterson has been sentenced to life in prison with a non-parole period of 33 years after murdering three people and attempting to murder a fourth with a lunch laced with death cap mushrooms.
Here’s footage of the moment Patterson was this morning sentenced by Justice Christopher Beale:
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‘Stressful’ time for UTS staff as SafeWork removes prohibition notice on change plan
SafeWork NSW has removed a prohibition notice that prevented the University of Technology Sydney’s from pushing ahead with its change proposal.
Fronting a Senate inquiry into university governance, the vice-chancellor, Prof Andrew Parfitt, said on Friday the notice was removed based on the work the university had done with health and safety representatives and would plan future meetings with staff today to consult on changes.
Last week, UTS was forced to pause a plan to slash hundreds of jobs after a rare intervention by SafeWork NSW, which said workers would be subject to a “serious and imminent risk of psychological harm” if management pushed ahead.
Under the ruling, UTS cancelled all meetings and paused the release of its change proposal.
Parfitt said he recognised it was a “stressful time” for staff.
We’re balancing two stressful circumstances, the stress of people who want to know what the proposal is so that they can engage in a conversation around it, and the stress of those who are potentially uncertain about the process. So we engaged with the Safe Work inspector on Friday to adjust the timing and the nature of the communication … We had thought that we had adequate provisions in place, but the SafeWork inspector thought otherwise.
The Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) has also been investigating UTS since last month as a result of the temporary suspension of enrolments.
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Cyber-attacks push university’s spending on consultants to $36m
Western Sydney University spent $36m on consultants in 2024, largely due to a significant cyber-attack on campus, the vice-chancellor has revealed.
Appearing before a Senate inquiry into the quality of governance in the higher education sector, Prof George Williams confirmed $36m was spent in 2024 and $17m in the year to date on consultants. He said the figure was predominantly related to cybersecurity.
The university has been badly impacted by a number of attacks. I can’t say too much because the threat actor is currently before the courts and has been arrested by the police, but we needed to engage high levels of consultant support for forensic cyber work in many millions of dollars.
Late last month, Williams confirmed previously stolen personal information had been published online, including on the dark web, after the university had been “relentlessly targeted in a string of attacks on our network”.
The information included name and date of birth, email addresses and phone numbers, identity documents, tax file numbers and student admission and enrolment information.
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Ian Wilkinson addresses media: ‘I’d like to encourage everybody to be kind to each other.’
Ian Wilkinson has just addressed media outside the Victorian supreme court.
He thanked Victorian police for a “professional, efficient and effective investigation as to what happened at the lunch”.
“They brought to light the truth of what happened to three good people,” he said.
He also extended gratitude to the office of public prosecutions led by senior counsel Nanette Rogers:
The court processes are a little bewildering to lay people like me and we are grateful for their expertise, their hard work and their perseverance that has secured this conviction.
He continued:
We’re thankful that when things go wrong, there are good people and services and systems available to help us recover. I would like to encourage all those involved to keep turning up and serving others. Our lives and life [of] our community depends on the kindness of others. I’d like to encourage everybody to be kind to each other.
Finally, I want to say thank you to the many people from across Australia and around the world who, through their prayers and messages of support, have encouraged us. I thank the people of the Leongatha and Korumburra communities in particular. Your thoughtfulness and care has been a great encouragement to us.
Please respect our privacy as we continue to grieve and heal.
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Erin Patterson will be 82 when she becomes eligible to apply for parole in 2056.
The triple murderer has 28 days to lodge an appeal.
Patterson’s ‘harsh prison conditions’
Before handing down Patterson’s sentence, Beale said Patterson was in a management unit to protect her from other prisoners, not vice versa.
He said Patterson has “effectively been held in solitary confinement” for the past 15 months. Patterson is likely to remain in these conditions for years to come, Beale said.
The “harsh prison conditions” that Patterson has endured are relevant considerations for her sentencing, he said.
Patterson will have until 6 October to lodge an appeal against her conviction, sentence or both.
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Sentences for each victim
Patterson, 50, has been spared life in prison without parole.
Beale told the court Patterson had already served 676 days in pre-sentence detention.
Beale delivered the following sentences:
Attempted murder of Ian Wilkinson - 25 years in prison
Murder of Heather Wilkinson - life in prison
Murder of Don Patterson - life in prison
Murder of Gail Patterson - life in prison
Fixing a non-parole period means Patterson will need to serve at least 33 years before she can apply to be released into the community.
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Erin Patterson sentenced to life in prison with a non-parole period of 33 years
Erin Patterson has been sentenced to a minimum of 33 years in prison.
The prosecution and defence both agreed Patterson should receive a life sentence for her crimes. But the defence argued Justice Christopher Beale should impose a minimum term when she could apply to be released.
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Patterson in separation for more than 15 months
Beale says UN guidelines stipulate a prisoner should not be in separation for more than 15 days.
“But you have now been in separation, continuously, for more than 15 months,” he says.
He says given the intense media interest in the case, Patterson is likely to “remain a notorious prisoner for many years to come” and remain at “serious risk” from other prisoners.
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Patterson’s offending the ‘worst category’ of murder and attempted murder
Beale says he has no hesitation in finding Patterson’s offending falls into the “worst category” of murder and attempted murder.
He says Patterson’s legal team provided no character witnesses or psychiatric report during the pre-sentencing plea hearing. Beale says this means he has limited information to draw on.
He says Patterson has been in custody since November 2023.
Jenny Hosking, the assistant commissioner for the sentence management division at Corrections Victoria, provided information about Patterson’s custody arrangements at the plea hearing.
Hosking said Patterson was not permitted to mix with other women in the Gordon unit – a protected area. Patterson has spent about 22 hours a day alone in her cell since she was placed in the unit.
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Wilkinson and Patterson family members attend hearing
Ian Wilkinson is listening intently to the sentence in court, sitting next to his son-in-law, Bradley Dubois.
He is one of a large number of family members to attend the hearing.
Simon Patterson, Erin’s estranged husband, is not in court.
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Patterson’s failure to exhibit any remorse ‘pours salt into victims’ wounds’
Justice Christopher Beale says four generations have been traumatised by Erin Patterson’s crimes.
He touches on the victim impact statements heard at a pre-sentencing hearing last month.
He says there is “great anger” at the callousness of Patterson’s actions
“Your failure to exhibit any remorse pours salt into all the victims’ wounds,” he says.
Beale notes Ian Wilkinson’s offer of forgiveness to Patterson.
“You would do well to embrace it in the manner he suggests,” he says.
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Judge says Patterson ‘inflicted untold suffering’
Beale says it is “implausible” that Patterson would have sourced death cap mushrooms and not ascertained their impact on her victims.
He says Patterson faked illness and disposed of the four grey plates that she served her guests’ beef wellingtons on.
Patterson had the “gall” to tell police she had been “very helpful” to the Victorian department of health during its investigation into the poisoning.
Beale says Patterson’s crimes have inflicted great harm on her victims.
“You inflicted untold suffering on your own children who you robbed of their beloved grandparents,” he says.
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Beale says Patterson’s premeditation an aggravating factor
Justice Christopher Beale says Ian Wilkinson has not fully recovered from the death cap mushroom poisoning.
“He has reduced kidney function, ongoing respiratory issues and reduced energy,” he says.
Beale turns to aggravating factors of Erin Patterson’s offences. He says this includes premeditation and Wilkinson’s ongoing health issues from the poisoning.
He says when Patterson invited her guests to lunch she did so “with the intention of killing them all”.
Patterson showed “no pity” for her victims when she learned from her estranged husband, Simon, they were hospitalised.
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Judge says Patterson’s ‘vague story’ about Asian grocer a lie
Erin Patterson’s lunch guests fell seriously ill on the evening after the lunch, the court hears.
Justice Beale says when Patterson attended Leongtha hospital she showed “reluctance” to undergo medical testing and have her children tested. He says Patterson “falsely” claimed she served her children leftovers of the beef wellingtons with the mushrooms scraped off.
Beale says at the trial Patterson maintained her story that she bought the mushrooms used in the beef wellingtons from an Asian grocer. Patterson told her trial there was a possibility that foraged mushrooms may have been in the plastic container which also contained the store-bought dried mushrooms she said she used in the beef wellington meal.
“The jury rejected this elaborate explanation,” Beale says.
I am satisfied that your vague story about the Asian grocery was a lie.
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Judge recaps trial evidence
Beale is recounting evidence heard in Patterson’s triple murder trial.
He says weeks before the lunch, Patterson invited her in-laws, Don and Gail Patterson and Heather and Ian Wilkinson to the lunch.
Beale says the trial heard that Patterson’s estranged husband, Simon, initially accepted the invitation to the 29 July 2023 fatal beef wellington lunch. But he declined on the evening of the lunch, saying he felt uncomfortable about attending.
On 29 July, Patterson served her four lunch guests individual beef wellingtons that were deliberately poisoned with beef wellingtons, Beale says.
Beale says he accepts the testimony of Ian Wilkinson that Patterson served her beef wellington portion of a different coloured plate to her guests.
He says he also accepts Wilkinson’s evidence that after the meal Patterson told her guests she had cancer.
Judge says only Patterson knows why she committed crimes
Justice Christopher Beale says he agrees Erin Patterson should receive the maximum penalty for her crimes.
He says the “main dispute” is whether he should grant Patterson a minimum sentence or non-parole period.
Beale says the jury in the 11-week trial was satisfied, beyond reasonable doubt, that Patterson committed triple murder and attempted murder.
“Only you know why you committed them,” he says.
Beale says he will not speculate about Patterson’s motive.
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Sentencing hearing under way
Erin Patterson’s sentencing hearing has begun in the Victorian supreme court.
Justice Christopher Beale will hand down the triple murderer’s sentence.
In July, a jury convicted Patterson of deliberately feeding her estranged husband’s relatives beef wellingtons laced with death cap mushrooms.
The jury found Patterson guilty of murdering her in-laws, Don and Gail Patterson and Gail’s sister, Heather Wilkinson. She was also convicted of the attempted murder of Heather’s husband, Ian Wilkinson.
Patterson claimed the deaths were a tragic accident.
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Erin Patterson has entered court room four in the Victorian supreme court, ahead of her sentencing.
Patterson is dressed in a paisley shirt and brown jacket.
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Erin Patterson arrives at court
Erin Patterson has arrived at Victoria’s supreme court for her sentencing hearing:
Here’s survivor Ian Wilkinson arriving at court a short time ago:
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Inside the courtroom
We’re awaiting triple murderer Erin Patterson’s sentencing in the Victorian supreme court.
Inside courtroom four, Ian Wilkinson, the sole surviving lunch guest, is sitting metres away from the bar table.
The media box is filled with journalists. Reporters have also spilled over into the remaining seats in the court room. On the second level, members of the public are peering down into the court.
Earlier, court watchers lined William Street to nab a seat in the public gallery ahead of the 9.30am sentencing.
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Watch live: Erin Patterson sentencing hearing
Victoria’s supreme court will hand down the triple-murderer Erin Patterson’s sentence shortly. The state’s supreme court will allow a television camera inside the courtroom to broadcast the sentencing hearing – with a 10 second delay – for the first time.
Patterson, 50, faces the prospect of spending the rest of her life in prison. Justice Christopher Beale will deliver her sentence from 9.30am in a hearing expected to last about 30 minutes.
Watch the stream below:
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Has Trump succeeded in normalising American autocracy?
It’s been more than 200 days since Donald Trump’s return to power, and many have been left asking: are we seeing authoritarianism normalised in the US?
Global affairs correspondent Andrew Roth talks to Reged Ahmad about whether the US is at a point of no return for democracy under Trump.
Listen to the Full Story podcast here:
Minns’s $140m great koala national park could ‘obliterate’ regional towns, NSW Nationals leader claims
The long-awaited great koala national park in the north of New South Wales, celebrated by wildlife groups, has drawn a mixed reaction from the state’s Coalition, my colleagues Anne Davies and Lisa Cox write.
The opposition leader, Mark Speakman, has hedged his party’s support, saying while he “supports the ambition of protecting koalas”, he was concerned about job losses and the cost of the park.
But Dugald Saunders, the NSW Nationals leader, was more strident, attacking the timing of the decision as appalling and claiming the livelihoods of entire regional towns would be “obliterated” overnight.
Read more here:
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Wentworth MP ‘saddened’ by pro-Palestine and pro-Israel protest standoff at Bondi
Independent MP Allegra Spender says she was “saddened” by posturing between pro-Israel and pro-Palestine groups on Bondi beach on Sunday morning.
“I don’t think anyone wants to see people shouting at each other on Bondi beach. And certainly, some of the things that were said were pretty awful,” she told the ABC, speaking about a pro-Palestinian paddle-out in Bondi that was reportedly met with anger from pro-Israel members of the area’s large Jewish community.
The gathering, organised by Jews Against the Occupation ‘48, was held as a show of support for the Sumud flotilla currently on its way to Gaza in an attempt to bring food and medical aid to starving Palestinians.
Spender said that protests and counter-protests “can end up where people feel further apart rather than when recognising where the common ground is” and suggested an alternative location for the paddle-out – such as Manly in Sydney’s north – would have been a better option, given Wentworth’s Jewish community, “because it was less likely to have ended up with a counter-protest”.
Of course they have the right to do it. And I’m not going to criticise them, but I just wish they had held it somewhere else.
She said the incident “undermines our social cohesion” and “brings conflict to the beach”.
We have the right to protest, we have the right to stand up, we have the right to do these things. But what are we achieving by that? Is our country better off? Is our community better off?
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Indian community ‘upset and hurt’ by Nampijinpa Price’s commentary, Liberal senator says
Liberal senator Maria Kovacic says the Indian community was “hurt” and “disappointed” by her colleague Jacinta Nampijinpa Price’s comments suggesting the Labor party’s immigration policies were attempts to garner votes from immigrants including those from India.
Speaking on Radio National a short time ago, Kovacic said she had talked “face-to-face” with the Australian Indian community in Harris Park yesterday – but did not say whether the meeting was organised after Price’s comments aired.
The senator said the community told her “they were upset and they were hurt by the comments and that they didn’t consider the comments to be true”:
I had a very open discussion with them. I think the most important thing is to be honest in your interactions and tell people that you acknowledge that the commentary was hurtful, but also acknowledge that it was untrue.
Kovacic said she did not apologise to the community but that many “were incredibly disappointed by [Price’s] comments”.
Read more here:
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Stargazers marvel at 'blood moon' lunar eclipse around the world
As promised, an image of the blood moon as seen over Sydney early this morning:
The same phenomenon could be seen around the world. Here, a shot of the blood moon rising over the West Bank:
… and one from Beijing:
View our gallery here:
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Labor exploring new protection scheme for air travellers
Australian travellers could soon be compensated for cancelled or delayed flights under a new scheme that would ensure prompt rebooking, refunds and access to food and accommodation.
The Albanese government will open submissions for the new consumer aviation protection scheme today for four weeks in an effort to hear from the public.
The scheme, which would mirror similar protections overseas in Europe, would create a minimum expectation for airline carriers around the country and offer passengers clear rules on what compensation airlines should offer in the event of travel disruptions.
The scheme would be accompanied by a watchdog to deal with complaints and disputes.
The transport minister, Catherine King, said:
We’ve heard the frustration Australian aviation passengers feel when dealing with airlines and airports. When things go wrong, it can be hard to know what passengers can expect from airlines and airports, because the approach is different at every airport and with each airline.
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Erin Patterson to learn fate in Victorian supreme court
We’ll bring you live updates of triple murderer Erin Patterson’s sentencing in the Victorian supreme court this morning.
Justice Christopher Beale is expected to begin the sentencing hearing at 9.30am.
The court will allow a television camera inside the courtroom to broadcast the sentencing hearing – with a 10 second delay – for the first time in the state.
Patterson faces the prospect of life behind bars. In July, a jury convicted her of deliberately feeding her lunch guests beef wellingtons laced with death cap mushrooms in 2023.
After an 11-week trial, the 12-person jury found Patterson guilty of murdering Don and Gail Patterson, the parents of her estranged husband, Simon, and his aunt, Heather Wilkinson. The jury also convicted Patterson of attempting to murder Heather’s husband, Ian Wilkinson.
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2035 emissions reduction target will ‘deal with the real world’, Albanese says
Anthony Albanese will warn Australia has to “deal with the real world” on the country’s shift to cleaner energy as his government prepares to announce a 2035 emissions reduction target.
In a speech to be delivered on Monday night to the Business Council of Australia’s (BCA) annual dinner, the prime minister will outline his plans to repay voters through boosting productivity, driving investment and cutting red tape.
Albanese will point to Australia’s “ideological conflict of the climate wars”, which he will say damaged Australia’s economy and its standing internationally.
Even as 24 out of 28 Australia’s coal-fired power stations were announcing their timeline for closure, there was no coherent plan to replace them.
Business and industry don’t have that luxury of pretending change is not occurring.
You have to deal with the real world – and you have to be able to plan for the long term.
Albanese will acknowledge the global shift to clean energy is the “biggest transformation since the Industrial Revolution” but will say it is a “profound economic opportunity for Australia”.
On Friday, the BCA released a report claiming Australia would need up to $530bn in capital investment and to potentially curb coal and gas exports to achieve a 2035 emissions target of 70% or more.
The modelling does not factor in the cost of not acting on the climate crisis nor measure the economic benefits of new clean investment.
The Climate Change Authority – the commonwealth’s advisory body on emissions targets – is considering its final recommendation on a 2035 emissions target before the government announces its goal later this month.
Read more here:
Updated
Good morning
Good morning all, and welcome to our live news coverage today.
We’re expecting triple-murderer Erin Patterson’s sentence this morning, with the Victorian supreme court hearing to be broadcast live in a historic first for the state. We’ll bring you updates as soon as they land.
Last night’s blood moon did not disappoint the early risers in Australia who made the effort to see the spectacle – we’ll bring you some of the best photos of the blazing phenomenon soon.
For now, let’s get going with other news.
