Australia news live: royal tour kicks off at Sydney church; Queensland LNP launches election campaign | Australia news
Royals visit Sydney church as Australian tour begins
King Charles and Queen Camilla have made their first public appearance in Australia.
The royals briefly met with children outside St Thomas Anglican Church in North Sydney, before attending a church service.
The couple flew into Australia on Friday but spent two days recovering from the flight, making Sunday morning their first appearance.
Crowds turned out for a chance to meet the king and queen ahead of an official meet-and-greet at 11.30am.
The couple was also met by a small group of protesters, with one holding a sign that read “decolonise”.
The trip marks King Charles’s first trip to Australia since becoming King. The itinerary has been heavily pared back due to the king’s cancer diagnosis – the treatment for which has been stopped to enable the trip.
Key events
Caitlin Cassidy
Guests are filtering in for the NSW parliament’s bicentenary luncheon, and it’s quite an affair, with native floral bouquets and branded royal chocolates on the tables. Among them is the premier, Chris Minns, and a number of state MPs lucky enough to nab an invite. A logo created for today’s events encourages attendees to:
Reflect, celebrate, imagine.
More from royal couple’s Sunday service at Sydney church
King Charles III and Queen Camilla were greeted by warm weather as they made their first public appearance in Australia during an intimate Sunday morning service at St Thomas’ Anglican church in North Sydney.
Upon arrival, the royal couple were greeted by crowds that wrapped around the church’s property, hoping to catch a glimpse of them.
As Charles and Camilla made their way to the front of church, children waving Australian flags cheered and shook hands with the couple. The queen, wearing a pale green Anna Valentine dress and straw hat, was given flowers by the church minister’s wife, Ellie Mantle, as she proceeded into the church.
Upon arrival at the church, King Charles passed by the corner stone of the church that was unveiled in 1881 by his great-grandfather, King George V. Once inside, the royal couple were bathed in sunlight that poured through the door and stained glass windows. Dozens of phones pointed in their direction, while excited whispers echoed through the room.
Despite the important guests, Sunday’s service was restricted to the local congregation, with only a few special guests allowed to attend, such as Australia’s governor-general, Sam Mostyn, and the governor of New South Wales, Margaret Beazley.
Bishop Christopher Edwards delivered a prayer, asking for the protection of the king and queen, along with a hope the upcoming commonwealth heads of government meeting in Samoa would be prosperous.
He also asked for world peace and an end to wars.
The service also featured serval hymn, prayers and several readings from the Old and New Testaments (Isaiah 52:13-53:12 and Acts 8:26-40).
Finally, the church’s minister, Michael Mantle, thanked the king and queen for their attendance and said it was an honour to host them.
The king and queen also signed two bibles in black pen, including one that belonged to Australia’s first minister, Richard Johnson, who was also the chaplain on the first fleet.
– Laura Chung, pool reporter
Affluent areas along train lines to be rezoned in Victorian government housing push
The Victorian Labor government is set to seize planning control of some of Melbourne’s most affluent suburbs in an effort to build thousands more homes, setting the stage for a fight with the opposition and local governments.
The premier, Jacinta Allan, will announce an overhaul of planning rules in 50 inner-Melbourne areas located near public transport, including in Brighton, Malvern and Toorak, to allow for greater density.
She will argue young people are now “locked out” of these areas – despite being close to jobs, transport and services – due to low availability and high property prices.
Twenty-five of the 50 new “activity centres” to be unveiled on Sunday include Armadale, Hawksburn, Malvern and Toorak stations on the Frankston railway line, Auburn, Hawthorn and Glenferrie on the Belgrave-Lilydale line and North Brighton, Middle Brighton, Hampton and Sandringham on the Sandringham line.
For more on this story, read the full report from Guardian Australia’s Benita Kolovos:
Caitlin Cassidy
King Charles to address NSW parliament
King Charles is fresh off a church service and about to address the NSW legislative council on his third day down under. Australia’s first parliament is celebrating its bicentenary as the oldest parliament in Australia, and what better occasion is there to welcome our monarch?
His Majesty won’t be eating, but the luncheon program is quite a showstopper, with entrees of chargrilled asparagus and marinated octopus followed by barramundi or confit of duck and lemon meringue pie with native desert lime. Reporters are being offered triangle sandwiches and complimentary mints.
Formalities will be held with King Charles, followed by an address from the winner of the inaugural NSW parliament regional public speaking competition, Sophia Huckel, chair of Australian history at the University of Sydney, Prof Kirsten McKenzie, and leader of the government in the legislative council, Penny Sharpe.
After his address, the king will be off to receive the governor-general, followed by the governor of NSW.
Queensland LNP launches election campaign
Ben Smee
The Queensland LNP’s campaign launch is about to get under way.
The polls appear to be tightening, but most still predict that the opposition leader, David Crisafulli, will be elected premier in a week’s time.
Abortion rights have become a key campaign issue, and pro-choice and union protesters have gathered outside the event at Ipswich, which is normally Labor heartland.
Some protesters have been calling out at LNP candidates asking them “how are you going to vote?”, amid the prospect of a conscience vote on abortion, and party candidates refusing to outline personal views.
Voters go to the polls on 26 October.
ACT Labor extends record run to hold government in territory election
Australia’s “forever government” has lived up to its name, with Labor retaining power to extend its record reign in the ACT beyond a quarter of a century.
The ACT Labor leader, Andrew Barr, already the longest-serving political leader in the country, fended off a negative swing and an independent surge to win his third election as chief minister.
While there was still more counting to be done, he told supporters he was confident he could once again form a progressive government with the support of a five-member crossbench.
“We will take the progressive, practical and proven policies we have taken to this election and enact them in government with the support, I hope, of a progressive crossbench that sees value in investing in public housing, public health and public education,” he said after triumphing in Saturday’s election.
With more than three-quarters of votes tallied, the ABC’s election guru, Antony Green, predicted Labor would cling on to their 10 seats while the Greens would hold three, amounting to the 13 needed to form government in the 25-member legislative assembly.
The Liberals were on track to pick up one seat under their leader Elizabeth Lee, matching Labor on 10, but still saw their share of the vote decline by 0.7%.
For more on this story, read the full report:
Royals visit Sydney church as Australian tour begins
King Charles and Queen Camilla have made their first public appearance in Australia.
The royals briefly met with children outside St Thomas Anglican Church in North Sydney, before attending a church service.
The couple flew into Australia on Friday but spent two days recovering from the flight, making Sunday morning their first appearance.
Crowds turned out for a chance to meet the king and queen ahead of an official meet-and-greet at 11.30am.
The couple was also met by a small group of protesters, with one holding a sign that read “decolonise”.
The trip marks King Charles’s first trip to Australia since becoming King. The itinerary has been heavily pared back due to the king’s cancer diagnosis – the treatment for which has been stopped to enable the trip.
Good morning
And welcome to another Sunday Guardian live blog.
King Charles and Queen Camilla are kicking of their first visit to Australia since the coronation in 2022. The itinerary, which was tightened after the king’s cancer diagnosis, began on Sunday with a church service at St Thomas’ Anglican Church in North Sydney.
Labor has declared victory in the ACT election, extending the party’s two-decade hold over the nation’s capital despite a swing against it. The ACT chief minister, Andrew Barr, retains the position he has held since 2014 and his party will secure power with the Greens, who have held on to three seats, with another two going to independents.
I’m Royce Kurmelovs and I’ll be taking the blog through the day.
With that, let’s get started …
#Australia #news #live #royal #tour #kicks #Sydney #church #Queensland #LNP #launches #election #campaign #Australia #news
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