Australia news live: court told Lehrmann should be denied appeal; Victoria police investigate after ‘unknown liquid’ poured in Labor MP’s office | Australia news
Lehrmann ‘had his day in court’ and should be denied appeal against defamation finding, Wilkinson’s lawyer says
Amanda Meade
Bruce Lehrmann’s lawyer has told the court he has not been served a bankruptcy notice, although one was attempted on his mother.
The statement contradicts an earlier claim by Matt Collins KC for Network Ten, that Lehrmann was served with a bankruptcy notice on 8 August.
The court has adjourned while Lehrmann’s lawyer, Zali Burrows, reads Ten’s submissions on the bankruptcy notice.
Before the break Sue Chrysanthou SC, for Lisa Wilkinson, said Lehrmann has “had his day in court” and should not be given a second chance:
He came to this court by choice.
He came here pleading his first imputation as one of rape. He did so having escaped the criminal process.
He chose to enter the fray. He walked over the line and asked this court, knowing the likelihood that my client in Network Ten would plead truth; he made that decision, and that’s a factor against the arguments that he would make on public interest.
Key events
Tasmanian Police deploy drones to ‘hooning hotspots’
Tasmanian Police have charged two people for dangerous driving after they were monitored by police drones and then arrested by officers.
Sergeant Andy McShane said police deployed drones to Rose Bay and Montagu Bay “to covertly monitor known hooning hotspots, and detect and remove unsafe motorists from the roads”.
A 17-year-old motorcycle rider with a learner licence was allegedly detected dangerously conducting a burnout and high-speed wheel-stand, police said, and will appear in court this month for serious traffic offences.
An 18-year-old driver was also found allegedly dangerously conducting a prolonged burnout. Police said his vehicle has been clamped for a month, and he will appear in court on summons for several driving related charges.
McShane said it is “pleasing to see that drones are assisting police to detect and remove unsafe motorists from our roads” and that police will “continue to deploy drones across the state, to assist in investigations, and detect and deter unsafe motorists and those who commit anti-social behaviours.”
Amanda Meade
Lehrmann’s lawyer says he is ‘Australia’s most hated man’, unemployable
Justice Wendy Abraham has reserved her decision on whether to make Bruce Lehrmann pay a $200,000 surety ahead of an appeal.
Before the closure of proceedings in the federal court Lehrmann’s lawyer Zali Burrows said Lehrmann was on Centrelink payments, was unemployable and had no possibility of paying the surety.
Mr Lehrmann is arguably, probably, Australia’s most hated man. You cannot imagine the worst type of defamation against someone [other than] being called a rapist.
The only shot he’d probably ever have in making money is by going on Only Fans or something silly like that.
But other than that, they know that he cannot come up with this.
Police issue warning over ‘romance scams’ after woman loses $200k
Cairns police have issued a warning about “romance scams”, after a 60-year-old woman lost $200,000 to a scammer who established an online connection with her.
Police said that “romance scams” typically begin with a scammer sending an unsolicited request or message through social media via a fake profile, that can appear genuine.
The scammer might encourage communication on a different platform and build a story over time – such as being deployed overseas and unable to access their own funds.
Detective acting inspector Cindy Searle said scammers aim to manipulate victims by establishing trust before requesting money. She said victims of romance scams “are not at fault”, and the people behind them are “well practised”.
A scammer may ask you to send money. They may ask you to send cash in packages, make an online transfer either in cryptocurrency or funds, or even open accounts they can access.
Before making any transactions think about what you really know about the person. If you have not met them in person, you can’t be sure they are who they say they are.
Aussie shares hit two-week high, creep towards record
The local share market has gained ground, AAP reports, hitting its highest level in two weeks and creeping towards another all-time high.
At midday AEDT the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 22.8 points, or 0.28%, to 8,237.3, while the broader All Ordinaries was up 22.5 points, or 0.26%, to 8,514.0.
Five of the ASX’s 11 sectors were higher and five were lower, with consumer staples basically flat. The heavyweight mining sector was up 1.1%, with BHP up 0.9%, Fortescue climbing 2.3% and Rio Tinto adding 1.7%.
All of the big four banks were higher as well, with CBA up 0.6%, ANZ adding 0.7%, Westpac climbing 0.5%, and NAB rising 0.3%.
WEB Travel Group – formerly known as Webjet Limited – had plunged 31.7% to a nearly two-year low of $4.80 after the business-to-business marketplace for the travel trade downgraded guidance provided just a month and a half ago.
Seek was up 1.4% to $25.32 as the job-search platform said it had entered into exclusive talks to acquire Xref, an ASX-listed HR and recruitment tech company. Xref shares soared 55.7% to 21 cents, not far from Seek’s tentative figure of 21.8 cents.
The Australian dollar was buying 67.32 US cents, from 67.41 US cents at Friday’s ASX close.
Police investigating alleged criminal damage to Labor MP’s office in Melbourne
Victoria Police is investigating alleged criminal damage to Labor MP Peter Khalil’s office in Brunswick.
In a statement, police said paint was sprayed on the Sydney Road building and a door was damaged between 2am and 9am this morning.
Police said the alleged offenders poured an unknown liquid through the door, and no one was inside at the time.
According to the ABC red paint was used, with “land back” and “glory to the martyrs” written along the walls. Khalil, who is the government’s special envoy for social cohesion, told the ABC it “smells like an abattoir and it’s hard to breathe near by it”.
Police said anyone with information or CCTV is urged to contact Crime Stoppers.
Andrew Messenger
Queensland Labor begins day with panel discussion on school lunches policy
Queensland premier Steven Miles has started the first week of voting with a panel discussion with experts on Labor’s free school lunch policy.
He was joined by education minister Di Farmer, QUT expert Danieele Gallegos, as well as Justine Caine from Diabetes Australia, Diona Maxwell from First Bit and FareShare, and Mica Projects CEO Jaryn Walsh.
There were few additional details of the policy announced, but Miles and Farmer defended the policy against claims the money would be better spent filling a gap in Commonwealth funding of the state school system. Miles said:
We think we can do both, but we also think this is important to core education outcomes. And there’s a lot of evidence that says that. There is currently a disagreement between the states and the Australian government what their share should be … we want to see the Australian government contribute.
Miles said he’d been developing the policy virtually the entire 10 months he spent as premier. The policy assumes an uptake of about 76%.
So that assumes that most families will take it up every day, but some might optimally have it one or two days a week.
Vocus to acquire TPG’s fibre network assets for $5.25b
Vocus Group has agreed to buy the fixed-line fibre networks from TPG Telecom for $5.25bn, AAP reports.
The acquisition will almost double Vocus’s fibre network, to more than 50,000km of owned or leased fibre connecting close to 20,000 buildings across capital cities.
The deal includes a submarine cable from Sydney to Guam along with TGP’s wholesale residential broadband assets, which includes fibre in major capital cities, plus Ballarat, Mildura, and Geelong.
TPG – whose brands include Vodafone Australia, iiNet and Internode – expects the transaction to result in net cash proceeds of $4.65bn to $4.75bn, money it will use on yet-to-be-determined business investments.
Under the deal, Vocus has agreed to supply network services to TPG for at least 15 years at a fixed fee of $130m a year.
TPG shares were down 0.9% to $5.045 late this morning. Vocus used to be listed on the ASX but was taken private by Macquarie Asset Management and Aware Super in 2021.
Collins Street welcomes baby seagulls, giving falcons a run for their money
A duo of baby seagulls on Collins Street in Melbourne are giving the famed peregrine falcons a run for their money.
Two peregrine falcon chicks hatched on top of 367 Collins Street earlier this month, witnessed by more than 1,000 viewers on the building’s rolling live feed.
As Caitlin Cassidy reports, peregrine falcons have treated the ledge as home for more than three decades, but cameras, and the mundanity of Covid-19 lockdowns, made them a social media phenomenon.
But now, the Environment Protection Authority of Victoria has shared images of two baby seagulls just nearby, near its training rooms at 664 Collins Street. The EPA wrote on X:
Move over 367 Peregrine Falcons. We have our very own seagulls!
Move over 367 Peregrine Falcons. We have our very own seagulls!
Spotted from our training rooms at 664 Collins St. pic.twitter.com/XyPV3nB0Cs
— Environment Protection Authority Victoria (@VicGovEPA) October 14, 2024
Greens accuse Queensland Labor of adopting ‘numerous Greens policies’
The Greens MP for Brisbane, Stephen Bates, has accused the state Labor government of adopting “numerous Greens policies” or floating them in the media.
He said this “shows the power that comes from threatening the two party system”, with Labor’s free school meals policy “a prime example of this”.
Bates wrote on X:
When debating a universal school meals program, then education minister Grace Grace in 2021 said, “The Greens have not one skerrick of evidence to suggest that this affects children in schools today.” Flash forward and now it’s a Labor election policy.
The longer the two party system reigns, the worse outcomes we get, and the realm of what’s possible continues to shrink. The continuing and cementing existence (and political threat) of The Greens in QLD politics has already shifted the Overton window.
This comes as the Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather also accused Labor of stealing a number of Greens policies, including 50 cent fares, an electricity retailer and the free school lunches.
As Andrew Messenger reported, premier Steven Miles warded off allegations of plagiarism at yesterday’s election campaign launch:
Greens senator pushes for First Nations truth and justice commission
The Greens senator Dorinda Cox says it is important governments don’t “walk away from First Nations justice” on the one-year anniversary of the voice referendum.
In a post to X, she said it had been “a difficult year for First Nations communities” and that “many are looking for action and want to see a renewed focus on implementing the Uluru Statement from the Heart”.
The Greens have a bill before Parliament right now to establish a Truth [and] Justice Commission, which we need to progress to get to Treaty. We are the only Commonwealth nation without a Treaty with its First Peoples.
This was Labor’s election promise, they mustn’t break it. The Greens will keep fighting for First Nations Justice both in [and] out of Parliament.
Minority Liberal premier backs embattled deputy
Tasmania’s Liberal premier has thrown his support behind his under-fire right-hand man who appears set to be forced out of cabinet by parliament, AAP reports.
The deputy premier and treasurer Michael Ferguson has copped increasing heat over the bungled roll-out of two new Bass Strait ferries, prompting him to drop the infrastructure portfolio in August.
The yet-to-be-delivered $900m Spirit of Tasmania ships are over budget, behind schedule and new wharfs for the vessels won’t be ready for their arrival. The state’s Labor opposition has flagged moving a no-confidence motion in Ferguson when parliament resumes tomorrow.
Independents David O’Byrne and Kristie Johnston, and the Jacqui Lambie Network’s Andrew Jenner, have said they’d back a no-confidence motion. With Labor’s 10 votes and five from the Greens, it means the motion would succeed.
Under parliamentary convention, Ferguson would have to resign from cabinet or premier Jeremy Rockliff would have to send him to the backbench. Rockliff told reporters he had full confidence in Ferguson, but he would respect the will of parliament:
He has already accepted responsibility for the Spirit of Tasmania situation when he relinquished his responsibility as infrastructure minister. [But] should there be a no-confidence passed … then Mr Ferguson will be resigning and then going to the backbench.
Lehrmann ‘had his day in court’ and should be denied appeal against defamation finding, Wilkinson’s lawyer says
Amanda Meade
Bruce Lehrmann’s lawyer has told the court he has not been served a bankruptcy notice, although one was attempted on his mother.
The statement contradicts an earlier claim by Matt Collins KC for Network Ten, that Lehrmann was served with a bankruptcy notice on 8 August.
The court has adjourned while Lehrmann’s lawyer, Zali Burrows, reads Ten’s submissions on the bankruptcy notice.
Before the break Sue Chrysanthou SC, for Lisa Wilkinson, said Lehrmann has “had his day in court” and should not be given a second chance:
He came to this court by choice.
He came here pleading his first imputation as one of rape. He did so having escaped the criminal process.
He chose to enter the fray. He walked over the line and asked this court, knowing the likelihood that my client in Network Ten would plead truth; he made that decision, and that’s a factor against the arguments that he would make on public interest.
Thunderstorm warnings in NSW
The Bureau of Meteorology is warning New South Wales residents that severe thunderstorms are likely from this afternoon and over the next few days. The affected areas may experience damaging wind, heavy rain and hail:
Thunderstorms are forecast across NSW for the next few days. Today, Severe Thunderstorms may develop about central & S parts, incl. W Sydney, Hunter, Illawarra, central & S Tablelands, slopes & plains. Risk of damaging wind, heavy rain & hail. Warnings: https://t.co/UqlGxUsuBw pic.twitter.com/arRt5sRjzk
— Bureau of Meteorology, New South Wales (@BOM_NSW) October 13, 2024
Warning sounded on inevitable bird flu pandemic
It’s a case of when, not if, a deadly bird flu pandemic arrives in Australia, the country’s top medical expert is warning.
As AAP reports, chief medical officer Paul Kelly says Australia is the only continent without the H5N1 strain, but it’s coming. He told reporters in Canberra:
It’s really when, not if, this arrives, and we’ve seen in other parts of the world, whilst there has been rather mild human disease so far, this virus is changing very quickly.
This is about us getting ahead of the curve … Australia does have a moat and we know how to use it, so the fact that we’ve had time to actually see what’s happening elsewhere is really important.
Kelly reiterated a bird flu outbreak would not lead to human health issues, but would spread in the same way as other influenza viruses.
The Albanese government has announced an extra $95m to prepare for the potential arrival of the strain in Australia. We have more details on this earlier in the blog here.
Amanda Meade
Lehrmann was served bankruptcy notice in August, court told
Bruce Lehrmann was served with a bankruptcy notice on 8 August, the federal court has heard.
Network Ten has asked the court to make an order for security for costs ahead of the hearing of any appeal of the defamation finding. The former Liberal staffer lost the defamation case he brought against Ten and Lisa Wilkinson.
The interlocutory hearing before Justice Wendy Abraham today is hearing from counsel for Lehrmann, Ten and Wilkinson on the matter of costs.
Lehrmann is unemployed and has no apparent means to pay the lump sum cost order of $2m which Ten has been granted.
Sue Chrysanthou SC, for Wilkinson, says Lehrmann’s grounds for appeal that he was not given procedural fairness is not valid:
And at no point, at no point was there any complaint about how we put the case, or that it took the appellant by surprise, or that it somehow departed from the pleadings, or that it somehow wasn’t available on the pleadings.
Seven Australian sailors graduate from US navy nuclear power school
The first seven Royal Australian Navy sailors have graduated from the US navy nuclear power school, according to a statement from Defence.
Vice-Admiral Mark Hammond, Australia’s navy chief, said the sailors would now move on to the nuclear power training unit and this “takes [Australia] closer” to operating a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines (SSN) in the early 2030s, as part of Aukus.
The nuclear power training unit “trains officers, enlisted sailors, and civilians for shipboard nuclear power plant operation and maintenance of surface ships and submarines” in the US navy’s nuclear fleet, Defence said.
The director general of the Australian Submarine Agency, Vice-Admiral Jonathan Mead, said:
We are well on our way to developing Australia’s SSN capability.
ACTU secretary says she ‘doesn’t go out much’ amid CFMEU stoush
The secretary of the ACTU, Sally McManus, says she has “two black belts”, doesn’t go out much and has had to change her routine due to security concerns – and this is the “price to pay” for taking a stand against the CFMEU.
Speaking on ABC RN earlier this morning, McManus was asked about concerns she expressed during her last interview on the program, and whether anything had changed?
She said within the construction industry there are some people who have “infiltrated the union that are not good people”:
They are, at the moment, worried that their business model has been disrupted, and that doesn’t make life great for those of us who are standing up to it.
Asked if she has had to put on extra security, McManus said:
I’ve got two black belts … I don’t go out much, I’ve had to change my routines, I live between different places. That’s life unfortunately at the moment, because we’re standing up to those people, and there’s a price to pay for that.
McManus said police have been helpful, and “hopefully over time, that’ll get better, but we’re not walking away from what’s got to happen”.
Australians supported live shows in record numbers last year
Australia’s live performance industry reported record levels of attendance last year, in its first full year of operation without any Covid-19 disruptions or restrictions.
The 2023 ticket attendance and revenue report from Live Performance Australia shows revenue was $3.1bn and ticketed attendance reached 30.1m – the highest recorded attendance and revenue since the report commenced in 2004.
New South Wales accounted for the highest market share of revenue at 33.3% and tied with Victoria for the highest attendance (30.6%). The two states accounted for 64.7% of all live performance revenue and 61.2% of attendance.
LPA’s chief executive Evelyn Richardson said despite the strong results “there continues to be real pressures on many of our performing arts organisations”.
All categories are managing significant increases in their operating costs with limited scope to pass these on to audiences through higher ticket prices. For many, a ‘full house’ now means just breaking even, leaving little scope for reinvestment in new productions or rebuilding of financial reserves …
Government needs to step up public investment in our small to medium not-for-profit and national performing arts organisations, as well as incentivise more private investment through LPA’s proposal for a live theatre tax offset.
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