What we learned, Sunday 7 September
We’re going to wrap things up after a busy Sunday. These were the key events:
The Minns government’s announcement of its long-awaited great koala national park has been welcomed by conservation groups and crossbench MPs as a “once-in-a-generation” decision that will boost the endangered species’ chances of survival.
A fatal stabbing attack on two boys in Melbourne by eight masked attackers armed with machetes and long edged weapons had “the hallmarks of a youth gang crime”, Victoria police say.
The opposition leader, Sussan Ley, said senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price’s comments about Indian migrants were “wrong” and “will not be repeated”.
Ley also called on Anthony Albanese to repair ties between the US and India, and not be a “bystander”, as relations between two of the four Quad pact leaders break down.
A 25-year-old Camperdown man was charged with violent disorder, affray, unlawful assault and discharge missile over the alleged attack on the sacred Indigenous burial site in Melbourne known as Camp Sovereignty last Sunday. He is the seventh person charged over the alleged attack.
Thanks for joining us and enjoy the rest of your weekend. We’ll see you back here on Monday.
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Fatal workplace incident at Sydney airport
A man has died after a workplace incident at Sydney airport.
NSW police said in a statement that emergency services responded to reports a freight handler at Sydney airport had been struck by a vehicle at the freight handling terminal about 10.30am on Sunday.
They said paramedics treated the man – believed to be in his 40s – but he died at the scene.
Officers from South Sydney Police Area Command established a crime scene that was examined by specialist police. Police said in a statement the incident was not being treated as suspicious and Worksafe NSW had been notified.
A report will be prepared for the coroner.
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While we are on the topic of the environment, with all of the news about the great koala national park today, you may have missed this story about new analysis by the Australian Conservation Foundation examining clearing of koala habitat.
The group has found more clearing of koala habitat has been approved under Australia’s nature laws in 2025 so far than in any other year since the marsupial was listed as a threatened species.
Opposition expresses alarm at growing list of threatened species
The federal opposition’s environment spokesperson Angie Bell has expressed alarm at the growing number of plants and animals being added to Australia’s list of threatened species.
Today is threatened species day and Bell said she was concerned more than 200 species had been added to the list since Labor first won government in 2022. Some important context here – many of those species have been added as a result of the catastrophic black summer fires in 2019-20.
“The increased number of threatened native species is deeply concerning and I call on the government to control invasive plants and animals, focus on habitat restoration and threatened species protection to preserve our native wildlife,” Bell said.
Bell warned invasive species posed a particular threat to more than 40 species facing extinction. She joined calls made this week by the Invasive Species Council for the government to continue funding the Saving Our Species program, which is due to expire in 2026. Reforms to Australia’s nature laws are due to be introduced to parliament later this year.
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Victim named in Melbourne stabbing deaths
One of the two children killed in a suspected targeted attack in Cobblebank northwest of Melbourne has been named as Dau Akueng.
The 15-year-old’s father Elbino said his son and friends were attacked while walking home from a local basketball game.
The community had buried four children in the past month, Akueng said.
“Similar incidents happening, there’s no answer from police,” he told reporters at the scene on Sunday morning.
Akueng and a 12-year-old boy were fatally stabbed in the suburb of Cobblebank in Melbourne’s outer north-west on Saturday evening, police said
An emotional Aboil Alor, a friend of the Akueng family, said the boys didn’t deserve to die.
“We needed justice especially for those children, 12 and 15 years old,” she said.
Federal Labor MP Sam Rae, who represents the local seat of Hawke, said it had been a harrowing night for the community after a “heinous crime”.
“We’ve lost two children from our community overnight,” he told Sky News.
My job is to support the family, support the community and to support the police to bring justice for these kids.
– AAP
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Alice Springs elects first ever Greens mayor
Lawyer Asta Hill has been elected mayor of Alice Springs.
She is the first Greens candidate ever to win the top job in the outback Northern Territory town, and one of the first badged Greens to become mayor of any council in the country.
Hill, a lawyer, received 3,005 first preference votes, topping the poll at the ballot last month. After several weeks of counting, she defeated independent candidate Eli Melky by 56 votes late on Friday night, with a two-candidate preferred count of about 50.3%.
Community advocate Aia Newport was also elected on the Greens ticket, as a councillor. Two Country Liberal party candidates, including former mayor Damien Ryan, will join them on the council alongside five independents.
Hill ran on a platform of changing the image of the remote community amid a national conversation about crime. Her predecessor, independent Matt Paterson, called on the commonwealth to deploy the army or federal police to Alice Springs and backed a controversial curfew imposed on the town by the territory government.
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Police investigate Melbourne CBD shooting
Victoria police detectives are investigating after a man died in hospital after a shooting in Melbourne’s CBD early on Sunday morning.
Emergency services were called to the corner of Franklin and Elizabeth streets just before 4am following reports of a gunshot.
A 26-year-old Seabrook man later presented at the Royal Melbourne hospital with what appeared to be a gunshot wound. He died from his injuries shortly after.
Police say the exact circumstances surrounding the incident are still being determined, and initial inquiries indicate it was a targeted shooting.
No arrests have been made.
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No arrests at Bondi Gaza gathering and counter-protest
Just taking you back to the earlier reports of protesters at Bondi beach:
NSW police say there were no arrests made after Gaza flotilla supporters were met by counter-protesters at Bondi beach on Sunday morning.
It is understood the Jews Against the Occupation ‘48 gathering on Bondi beach, which was organised to show support for the flotilla currently attempting to take food and medical aid to starving Palestinians, has wrapped up along with the counter-protest by Israel supporters.
In videos seen by Guardian Australia, the two groups were seen yelling at each other, with pro-Palestine protesters making claims the Israel supporters “supported genocide”, while the pro-Palestine rally participants were asked in return whether they “support Hamas”.
The Australian Jewish Association posted a video of the pro-Israel protest on X containing what the organisation said was a chant that was “going viral” where the group was chanting “you can stick your Palestine up your hole”.
Police confirmed no arrests were made of anyone attending the event or counter-protest. Police did not release numbers on how many attended the event.
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Police call for tougher youth crime sentences after Melbourne stabbing deaths
Det Insp Graham Banks has finished the press conference by calling for longer sentences for youth gang crime.
He said police had made a record number of arrests, and seizures of knives, and therefore there was a need for “broader change”.
“The policing position has always been that there needs to be a strong deterrent for this type of behaviour for carrying weapons, for people who break into homes with weapons, for people who carjack, for people who assault people with weapons,” Banks said.
So whether that balance is right is really a matter for the community and the courts and ultimately the government. As I stand here before you, I think the penalties aren’t in balance with what community expectations are, or mine.
Banks told media that police could not arrest their way out of a problem he said had been growing more intense for a decade
There needs to be greater outcomes for a number of the people, but they are matters for the court and the government.
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Child victims not believed to be gang members, police say
Continuing on the Victoria police press conference:
Det Insp Graham Banks says the alleged murders may have been a case of mistaken identity, though it may also have been a targeted attack, and the two child victims were not members of a gang.
“It is one of the most horrific crimes in a substantial and growing list of crimes of this nature. The children who were murdered were not gang members and it is not OK to remain silent,” Banks said.
He said the youngest victim, just 12, was so young he would be highly unlikely to be a gang member.
The two were part of a group of three who’d just hopped off a bus, he said.
Police are searching for about eight offenders, Banks said.
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Melbourne stabbing deaths have 'hallmarks' of a youth gang crime, police say
Victoria police are holding a press conference on the killing of two boys, one 12 and one 15, in Cobblebank in Melbourne’s west last night.
Det Insp Graham Banks has told media that the attacks had “the hallmarks of a youth gang crime”.
Though the two children were found on different streets, he said the two alleged murders were linked to the same offenders.
Banks urged anyone with information to come forward.
The alleged attackers “fled the scene in a vehicle that’s yet to be identified, and vision shows that they were armed with machetes and long edged weapons,” Banks said.
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Gaza flotilla supporters met by counter-protesters at Bondi beach
A gathering was taking place on Bondi beach this morning in solidarity with the Sumud flotilla currently sailing towards Gaza.
Jews Against the Occupation ‘48 said it was holding a gathering to show support for the flotilla that is trying to bring food and medical aid to starving Palestinians.
Video seen by the Guardian shows the group was met by a counter protest, a large group, some waving Israeli and Australian flags, which had assembled on the steps at Bondi beach. Some police could be seen in the video.
We will bring you more on this as it develops.
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Police looking for owner of ‘distinctive’ 50-cent coin
South Australia police are looking to reunite a distinctive coin which was discovered during a search at Seaton with its owner.
The coin is a 2022 Australia decoration Christmas beetle 50c coin. Police said they suspected the coin was stolen and were looking to reunite it with its rightful owner.
Anyone who recognises the coin or has information on its owner is asked to contact Crime Stoppers.
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NSW opposition proposes redevelopment of Long Bay jail site for 12,000 homes
The NSW opposition has unveiled its alternative for housing close to Sydney’s CBD, with a plan to redevelop Long Bay jail at Malabar for 12,000 homes.
The site, currently used as NSW’s main remand centre, is located just 15km from the city centre. It would be sold and redeveloped into housing, parks, childcare, schools and healthcare services.
The opposition said its plan would unlock $3bn in funding, and that 30% of the housing on the site would be reserved for social and affordable housing.
It pledged that the new development would be planned in consultation with local communities to create a model environment which would respect the heritage values of the area.
With the NSW election just 18 months away, housing has become the most pressing political issue.
The Minns government has promised to complete the half-built Woollahra station in Sydney’s eastern suburbs and develop up to 10,000 homes as part of its plans to unlock more housing. But it is already meeting resistance from the council. The development is in the Liberal held seat of Vaucluse.
The opposition’s plan is in the seat of Maroubra, held by Labor’s Michael Daley. In the past, when the idea has been floated by both Liberal and Labor governments, it has met with strong opposition from the local community, because of the lack of transport.
The area is served by buses but the light rail now terminates at nearby Maroubra.
The plan also requires constructing a new jail close to Sydney.
The opposition leader, Mark Speakman, said the development would be “a beacon of hope” for young homebuyers.
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Ley urges PM not to be a ‘bystander’ to deteriorating US-India relationship
The opposition leader has called on Anthony Albanese to repair ties between the US and India, and not be a “bystander”, as relations between two of the four Quad pact leaders break down.
Speaking to ABC’s Insiders on Sunday morning, Sussan Ley, said the Quad pact between Australia, the US, Japan and India was vital and Australia should “step in” and calm tensions for the sake of its future.
Ley, who said she did not agree with Donald Trump’s negative comments about India, criticised Albanese for not having secured a face-to-face meeting with the US president to discuss the “laundry list of issues” that has arisen since the Trump administration took office.
She continued:
Look, pleasantries and small talk are fine. I think we need more at this time. There’s a laundry list of issues that we need to raise with the US, and that should be done face to face, man to man.
The tensions between Trump and the Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, have deteriorated in recent months after the US president took credit for de-escalating hostilities between India and Pakistan in May. Trump has since called India a “dead economy” while his trade adviser, Pete Navarro, accused India of profiteering off Russia’s invasion of Ukraine by buying and selling discounted Russian oil. In late August, the US imposed 50% import tariffs on India in response.
Analysts have said Modi’s warm meeting with the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, and Russian leader, Vladimir Putin, was a message of defiance to Trump.
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Great koala national park could be ‘iconic’ attraction alongside Great Barrier Reef and Uluru, minister says
Sharpe said the NSW government hoped the great koala national park, would “be an iconic park, not just for locals”.
We want it to be when people come to Australia, you know, they go and see the Great Barrier Reef, they go and see Uluru and they come and see the great koala national park.
She said the government was planning to formally legislate the park next year but issues related to wood supply needed to be worked through with industry first as did a proposal to establish a carbon credit project within the park that is being considered by the Albanese government.
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NSW environment minister says forestry will continue outside great koala national park
The NSW environment minister, Penny Sharpe, has spoken to the ABC about the government’s announcement confirming its long-awaited great koala national park.
The decision comes with a moratorium on logging within the park’s boundaries.
Sharpe said the government had been “as careful as possible” to ensure there would still be a continuation of forestry in other areas of the north coast. But the decision would have an impact on some mills and about 300 jobs with affected workers to receive “immediate support”:
At the end of the day, there are people who won’t like this decision, but we think this is incredibly important.
This is about … looking after one of our most precious iconic species. This area is home to over 100 threatened species. It’s a very important conservation outcome, but it’s also a really exciting opportunity for the mid-north coast in New South Wales.
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AFP records 41% jump in reports of online child sexual exploitation
The Australian federal police reported a 41% increase in reports of online child sexual exploitation in the 2024-25 financial year, with 82,764 reports in the 12 months compared with 58,503 in the previous financial year.
The commander of the AFP’s human exploitation unit, Helen Schneider, said:
The 41% rise in reports of online child sexual exploitation is hugely confronting, as it represents acts of unspeakable horror and trauma that involve Australians as both victims and offenders.
These acts range from the creation, distribution and consumption of child abuse material through to the livestreaming of child sexual abuse overseas.
Schneider said people should be mindful about what material is posted online.
It’s a natural impulse for parents and carers to want to celebrate and share their children’s lives, but it’s important to think about where this material could end up and what could be done with it.
Our message is: take a minute to think before hitting publish, and also be mindful of factors such as who has access to your posts and videos.
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Seventh person charged over alleged attack on Camp Sovereignty
A 25-year-old Camperdown man has been charged with violent disorder, affray, unlawful assault and discharge missile over the alleged attack on the sacred Indigenous burial site in Melbourne known as Camp Sovereignty last Sunday.
Victoria police announced the charge on Saturday afternoon. He was bailed to appear in Melbourne magistrates’ court on 9 September.
The man is the seventh person charged over the alleged attack, and police say they will allege the men assaulted people in Kings Domain around 5pm after an anti-immigration protest in Melbourne last weekend.
Neo-Nazi Thomas Sewell was also charged over the alleged attack and denied bail last week.
Police have said the alleged attack is still under investigation and have urged anyone with information or footage to make contact.
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NSW logging industry group calls koala national park an ‘own goal’
Not everyone is happy about the Minns government’s koala park announcement. Industry body Timber NSW accused the government of valuing “politics above science and people”.
Its chief executive, Maree McCaskill, said the government decision showed disregard for the “livelihoods of people in country areas” and it had “scored an own goal by putting another barrier in place to restrict the availability of timber to help solve the NSW housing crisis”:
“Minister [Penny] Sharpe has had her political win but we’re now calling on Premier Minns to show some compassion by making sure what is left of the industry is sustainable, diverse and equitable.
For example, extending the wood supply agreements past the expiry in 2028 so they can invest in new machinery, processing equipment and encourage investment in hardwood plantations.”
It’s worth noting that the park was subject to a lengthy scientific assessment before today’s announcement, and the decision comes with a broad support package for workers at affected timber mills as well as financial assistance for businesses. The government is offering priority placement for affected Forestry Corporation workers if they wish to transfer into the NSW national parks and wildlife service.
The government estimates the park’s value as a tourism destination will generate an extra $163m for the state’s economy over two decades. The native logging division of NSW Forestry Corporation has run at a loss for several years.
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‘A lot of work being done’ within Coalition over energy and net zero policy, Ley says
Sussan Ley was asked about the ongoing debate within the Coalition over Australia’s net zero target.
She said energy policy remained under consideration by a working group being led by the opposition’s energy and emissions reduction spokesperson, Dan Tehan:
There is a lot of work being done, I want to reassure your viewers of that. We will deliver an energy policy with two fundamentals. That we have a stable, reliable energy grid for affordable energy for households and businesses and we play our role in reducing emissions.
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Coalition will look at tax policy ‘as a whole’, Ley says
Insiders host David Speers asked Sussan Ley whether the Coalition was open to considering changes to the GST. Ley said “we will deliver tax policy that is lower, simpler and fairer. You would expect me to say that. I haven’t met an Australian who tells me they are not paying enough tax”. She added:
We will look at tax policy as a whole, connect it to our economic narrative, and that is about empowering Australians … giving them the opportunities they need to get ahead.”
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Ley claims immigration a ‘complete mess’ under Labor
Sussan Ley claimed on Insiders that “migration under this government is a complete mess” and Australians were “losing confidence with the government in respect to its migration programs”.
Ley clarified these remarks by adding “we value our skilled migrants”, particularly in regional Australia, and “the issue is not the migrants but infrastructure”.
What I am hearing as I travel around the country is the pressures communities are facing …
This is not about any migrant or migrant community. We value every single one of them and what they bring to this country. This is not a failure of migration. This is a failure of government policy to build infrastructure, the services, to have the roads. Those pressures are reflected.
Federal government figures show net overseas migration for the 12 months to 31 December 2024 was 341,000 people. That’s down 37% compared with its peak of 538,000 in the 2022-23.
You can read more on these figures in Josh Butler’s explainer here:
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Ley says Price’s comments on Indian migrants wrong and ‘will not be repeated’
Ley has told Insiders that comments by senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price claiming Labor was bringing Indian migrants into Australia to boost its electoral chances were wrong:
The comments were wrong, not correct. They should not have taken place. Corrections have been made.
They will not be repeated. They will not be repeated. What I said subsequent and what I say now is to express my deep appreciation to the Indian community for all they have brought to Australia.
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Ley accuses Labor of “hollowing out” defence spending
The opposition leader, Sussan Ley, has told the ABC’s Insiders that this week’s military parade in China, attended by the former Victorian premier Daniel Andrews alongside Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, was an opportunity for Australia to “reflect on our own defence policy and foreign policy”.
We’ve been saying that defence spending should increase to 3% of GDP. That is an important reminder for us about avoiding conflict – peace through strength. It’s about recognising the increasing tensions in the region.
Ley accused Labor of “hollowing out” defence spending and “using Aukus funding to cannibalise the rest of the defence budget”:
A significant display of military strength as we saw from the Communist party is a reminder at this point. It’s a reminder of what prime minister Anthony Albanese could do to step up engagement with regional partnerships. Regional engagement matters at this point.”
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NSW Greens call for end to native forest logging after koala national park announcement
The NSW Greens environment spokesperson, Sue Higginson, who is based in the state’s north, said the long-awaited announcement of the great koala national park was a victory that “belongs to the communities, First Nations leaders, scientists and forest defenders who never gave up”.
Higginson welcomed the moratorium on logging within the park’s boundaries and called on the Minns government to work to end native forestry operations across the state:
Now the Government must keep going and protect the Richmond River koala stronghold, commit to the Great Southern Forest National Park on the South Coast, and end native forest logging across NSW.
Higginson said “native forest conservation, threatened species survival, clean drinking water, carbon storage and science should not be political sport in 2025”. She said it was “hard to reconcile” the destruction from logging that occurred within the great koala national park’s boundaries since the 2023 election while communities waited for the government to fulfil its commitment to protect the area.
Logging intensified inside areas that should have been protected, and the community has carried the heavy environmental, emotional and financial cost – that era must end.
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Conservation advocates welcome NSW koala national park
Confirmation that 176,000 hectares of state forest will be added to reserves in northern NSW to create a 476,000-hectare great koala national park has been widely welcomed by conservation advocates.
A moratorium on logging in the area between Grafton and Kempsey will begin on Monday.
Gary Dunnett from the National Parks Association said: “This park will ensure future generations will be able to see koalas, greater gliders and other threatened species in the wild for many years to come.”
The permanent protection of this magnificent area will also safeguard critical water catchments for the people of the Coffs coast, protect sacred Indigenous sites and open up huge economic opportunities for regional green tourism. It is truly a win-win for the people of NSW and nature.”
Jacqui Mumford, CEO of the Nature Conservation Council NSW, said: “The conservation and economic values of this park have always been apparent and we welcome a science- and evidence-based decision to deliver the park in full.”
Read more:
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Police suspect 'targeted attack' as two boys fatally stabbed in Melbourne
Two youths were fatally stabbed in the Melbourne suburb of Cobblebank on Saturday evening, detectives said.
AAP reports a 12-year-old boy with critical injuries was found by emergency services about 8pm and later died at the scene.
Shortly afterwards a seriously injured 15-year-old boy was given treatment nearby before he also died.
Officers said they believed the two fatal attacks were connected but the exact circumstances were still being determined.
“At this time police are treating it as a targeted attack and the investigation remains ongoing,” Victoria police said.
“Too many Victorians have been victims of crime,” the Victorian opposition leader, Brad Battin, said in a statement.
“Last night, two more Victorians were tragically added to that tally.”
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Good morning
Good morning everyone. Lisa Cox here as we get started for the day.
Making news this morning, the Minns government has confirmed its long-awaited great koala national park in mid-north New South Wales, a victory for community forest advocates who have pushed for the establishment of the park for more than a decade.
In Melbourne, two boys have been fatally stabbed in what police suspect is a series of targeted attacks.
The opposition leader, Sussan Ley, is up on the ABC’s Insiders this morning. We will bring you that when it happens.
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