Inflation for 2022 landed at 7.8%, with the treasurer, Jim Chalmers, saying he expects this to be its peak.
The figure landed just short of the Reserve Bank’s estimate that inflation would peak at 8%, but analysts are still expecting the bank to continue hiking interest rates.
“Our expectation is that you’ll continue to see rates rise at least in the short term. Although I think we are coming close to the top of the interest rate cycle,” said KPMG Australia’s chief economist, Brendan Rynne.
Top news
Indigenous voice could have helped Alice Springs | An Indigenous voice to parliament, with the government receiving “practical advice” from community representatives, could have prevented the crime crisis in Alice Springs from escalating, said Linda Burney, the minister for Indigenous Australians. Meanwhile, Anthony Albanese is urging all political parties to show leadership and place the Indigenous voice above politics.
Queensland’s ‘tough’ approach to youth crime criticised | The Palaszczuk government’s pledge to toughen laws on youth crime has alarmed experts who say it contradicts evidence. Queensland has the highest reoffending juvenile rate in the nation, with multiple experts saying a punitive approach is likely to make crime problems worse.
Greg Lynn to stand trial | The 56-year-old man accused of the alleged murder of two elderly campers in north-east Victoria in March 2020 has been committed to stand trial. Lynn has faced the Melbourne magistrates court over the past week for a committal hearing, which finished today. He has pleaded not guilty to both charges, and will face the Victorian supreme court for a directions hearing on 9 February.
Endangered ‘flake’ at fish and chip shops | South Australians treating themselves to the takeaway favourite might be eating threatened and imported shark species labelled as “flake”. Less than a third of servings are meeting seafood labelling standards, according to an investigation by the University of Adelaide. The Australian Fish Names Standard says only two types of shark – gummy shark and New Zealand rig – should be sold as flake in Australia.
Polls suggest Coalition loss in NSW | A second opinion poll within days has pointed to defeat for the NSW government at the March election. The Resolve Strategic poll published in the Sydney Morning Herald shows Labor ahead with a primary vote of 37%, while the Coalition’s primary vote is on 34% and the Greens 12%.
New NZ prime minister | Chris Hipkins, who served as a cabinet minister under Jacinda Ardern, has been sworn in as her replacement. Hipkins, the architect of New Zealand’s pandemic response, is now tasked with reviving the Labour government’s sagging popularity ahead of a general election in October.
US, Germany to send tanks to Ukraine | The US and Germany have succumbed to international pressure and agreed to send Ukraine battle tanks – the American M1 Abrams and the German Leopard. The decision could have significant implications for Kyiv’s efforts to repel Russian forces.
Fox-News Corp merger called off | Rupert Murdoch has scrapped a proposal to combine Fox Corp with News Corp, in a deal that would have reunited the media empire he split nearly a decade ago. Murdoch said the combination was “not optimal” for shareholders.
Thirty-nine US mass shootings so far in 2023 | Guns in America have killed 1,214 people so far this year, including 120 children. That figure was 20,200 in 2022, almost triple the 7,068 killed so far in the war in Ukraine. The shocking death toll is unlikely, however, to stir Congress into action, with the Republicans now the majority in the House of Representatives.
Full Story
The Wieambilla shooting: Madelyn Train on her parents’ ‘chapter of evil’
Madelyn Train, the daughter of slain Wieambilla shooters Gareth and Stacey, speaks of the “evil” actions of her parents and their spiral into the world of conspiracy theories in this must-listen episode.
What they said …
***
“Detention centres are the worst possible places for fixing our broken kids.” – Prof Ross Homel, a criminologist at Griffith University
Homel is one of the experts to criticise the Queensland government’s tough stance on youth crime.
In numbers
The amount parents are spending on “free” education – factoring in costs like voluntary student contributions, electronic devices, uniforms, camps and tutoring – has ballooned in the past decade, strengthening calls for the government to invest more in public education. The amount above is the national average – for a capital city breakdown, click here.
Before bed read
EVs alone are not the answer to our climate woes. New research has found that the US’s dependence on cars in towns and cities will deepen global environmental and social inequalities linked to lithium mining – and may even jeopardise the 1.5C global heating target.
“But ambitious policies investing in mass transit, walkable towns and cities, and robust battery recycling in the US would slash the amount of extra lithium required in 2050 by more than 90%.”
That thinking could apply to Australia’s car-centric cities too.
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*Correction: this newsletter was amended to remove an incorrect reference that Chris Hipkins served as deputy prime minister to Jacinda Ardern.
