Josh Butler
Twitter suspends two pretend accounts pretending to be Fatima Payman
Two pretend Twitter accounts have popped up for brand spanking new Labor senator Fatima Payman, which even briefly fooled the ALP and a few senior politicians, earlier than they have been suspended for violating Twitter guidelines.
Payman confirmed to Guardian Australia that neither the @paymanfatima and @Fatima_Payman accounts have been operated by her or her workforce. The primary account had already gathered greater than 4,500 followers as of Tuesday afternoon, together with the assistant international minister, Tim Watts, Labor MP Sharon Claydon, and the ALP nationwide secretary, Paul Erickson.
One of many account’s tweets was retweeted by the official Australian Labor account on Twitter, earlier than it was rapidly eliminated. The immigration minister, Andrew Giles, responded to one of many tweets, saying he “can’t wait to get to work with you”. The Labor followers deleted tweets and unfollowed the account because it grew to become identified the web page was not run by Payman.
By Tuesday afternoon, the account had been suspended, with the discover “Twitter suspends accounts that violate the Twitter Guidelines”.
The account appeared professional, with a bio claiming it was her “private account”, tweeting “due to my colleagues in parliament” and mentioning a number of Labor MPs by title. However a better look discovered that the account solely began tweeting about politics on Monday, the day Payman was introduced as being elected as a senator for Western Australia.
Earlier to that, the account – created in April – had solely tweeted about Elon Musk’s buy of Twitter, praising the Tesla founder as “a hero of free speech”. The account seems to have modified its Twitter deal with between April and June.
The opposite @Fatima_Payman account had attracted solely 100 followers – together with the communications minister, Michelle Rowland, the assistant local weather minister, Jenny McAllister, and WA MP Josh Wilson – earlier than it too was suspended on Tuesday afternoon.
Guardian Australia has contacted a number of customers which adopted the pretend Payman accounts, or which the accounts have interacted with, to ask in the event that they have been working the illegitimate pages.
La Niña ends with potential return later in 2022
The Bureau of Meteorology has introduced an finish to the 2021-22 La Niña within the tropical Pacific.
#BREAKING – The @BOM_au has at this time declared the tip of the 2021-22 La Niña, an occasion that produced record-breaking rain and flooding in japanese Australia. Nevertheless, the ENSO outlook stays at La Niña WATCH, with potential for La Niña to reemerge later this 12 months. pic.twitter.com/75tRkOmNjn
— Ben Domensino (@Ben_Domensino) June 21, 2022
The standing modified to La Nina WATCH, which suggests there’s round a 50% likelihood of a La Niña occasion forming once more throughout 2022.
The Bureau of Meteorology’s head of long-range forecasting, Dr Andrew Watkins, mentioned the Bureau has been monitoring this pattern of a weakening La Niña over a number of weeks.
A La Niña WATCH doesn’t change the outlook of above common rainfall for many of Australia over coming months.
The Bureau’s long-range outlook stays wetter-than-average, according to mannequin outlooks from different world forecast centres, reflecting a variety of local weather drivers together with a creating unfavorable Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) and warmer-than-average waters round Australia.
Sea floor temperatures are presently hotter than common for a lot of the Australian shoreline, notably to the north and west. This sample is more likely to improve the prospect of above common winter-spring rainfall for Australia.
At present, the IOD is impartial. However all local weather mannequin outlooks surveyed counsel a unfavorable IOD is more likely to type within the coming months.
Rainfall throughout japanese and southern Australia is usually above common throughout winter and spring throughout a unfavorable IOD.
However earlier than you ditch your raincoat – bear in mind Australia’s east coast may very well be hit by a uncommon “triple La Niña”. Nice.
Benita Kolovos
Outgoing Victorian Liberal MP condemns treaty oversight physique as ‘woke tokenism’
The Victorian Coalition has introduced it can help the institution of an impartial authority to supervise the state’s treaty negotiations, though outgoing Liberal MP Tim Smith has vowed to cross the ground to vote towards the invoice, describing it as “woke tokenism”.
The state’s opposition chief, Matthew Man, and Nationals chief, Peter Walsh, confirmed the Coalition’s place on the Treaty Authority invoice after a celebration room assembly on Tuesday.
Josh Taylor
Extra 3D scanners for Australian airports
Sydney airport has began utilizing new scanners in its Qantas home terminal as a part of the shift away from metallic detectors.
New South Wales to abolish stamp responsibility for first homebuyers
From AAP:
First homebuyers in NSW will have the ability to choose out of one of many largest boundaries to homeownership, because the premier pulls the set off on his long-held plan to abolish stamp responsibility.
From January, first dwelling patrons can select between paying stamp responsibility as soon as or opting into an annual tax, paying $400 and 0.3% of the land’s worth.
The federal government has budgeted $728.6m for the scheme over 4 years, with plans to introduce laws later this 12 months and provides first homebuyers the selection by 16 January.
First homebuyers can go for the tax on properties as much as $1.5m and the property gained’t be locked into the tax if bought.
Present stamp responsibility exemptions for properties below $650,000 and concessions for properties below $800,000 will stay.
NSW opposition chief, Chris Minns, says the federal government is hiding behind first homebuyers to introduce its coveted land tax.
“For those who’re going to place cash on the desk for first homebuyers, why introduce a model new land tax system for NSW, one we’ve by no means had earlier than, moderately than simply extending exemptions?”
It’s right here, it’s brief and it means Spring is on its means
Paul Karp
ACT supreme court docket chief justice ‘regrettably’ postpones trial of Bruce Lehrmann
The trial of the person accused of raping Brittany Higgins will probably be delayed, probably till October, resulting from public feedback on the case that might “obliterate” the excellence between an allegation and discovering of guilt.
At an pressing ACT supreme court docket listening to on Tuesday, the chief justice, Lucy McCallum, dominated “regrettably and with gritted tooth” to vacate the trial, which was set to start on Monday, resulting from feedback by journalist Lisa Wilkinson and broadcasters Amanda Keller and Brendan Jones.
Royce Kurmelovs
Winter solstice celebrations from across the nation and Antarctica
Researchers within the Antarctic have taken a dip right into a sub-zero pool to mark the winter solstice as Australians put together to rejoice the shortest day of the 12 months on Tuesday.
The winter solstice marks the center of winter when the shortest day and longest evening happens. It is going to happen at 8.14pm AEST on Tuesday night.
NSW price range bodes properly for Hunter area as renewable power powerhouse
Measures outlined within the NSW State price range at this time auger properly for the Hunter to proceed to ascertain the area as a renewable powerhouse for the nation, in accordance the Hunter area’s peak enterprise organisation, Enterprise Hunter.
The chief government of Enterprise Hunter, Bob Hawes, mentioned:
The $1.9bn to roll out transmission infrastructure for renewable power zones in NSW and $50.4m to speed up the renewable power zone growth in gentle of earlier-than-expected thermal energy plant closures will set a strong base to work from.
We hope there’s an impetus offered by these initiatives that may spur on the method to brief listing and transfer rapidly with tasks valued at over $110bn that have been lodged in respect of the EOI course of for the Hunter-Central Coast renewable power zone.
Occasions over the previous couple of months have highlighted the urgency required for us to maneuver forward with constructing and commissioning renewable power tasks and never simply planning and speaking about them. The dangers are too nice for our power intensive industries to have uncertainty prolong for any size of time.
NSW public and Catholic faculty academics will strike subsequent week
From AAP in Sydney:
Hundreds of NSW academics will strike subsequent week after the state price range did not ship an improved pay provide.
Unions representing public and Catholic faculty academics met on Tuesday because the NSW price range was handed down, saying they’d strike for twenty-four hours on 30 June.
“The federal government has failed college students, and continues to fail college students and the instructing career,” the NSW Lecturers Federation president, Angelo Gavrielatos, mentioned.
It comes after the 2 academics’ unions gave the premier, Dominic Perrottet, an ultimatum to enhance the three% pay deal supplied over the following monetary 12 months.
Tuesday’s price range papers revealed no additional provide was on the desk.
“Each single day academics and principals have been much more burdened with their workloads, and the stress related to the instructor scarcity,” Gavrielatos mentioned.
“This instructor scarcity is 10 years within the making.
“What we received from this authorities is denial, spin, gimmickry, something however coping with this disaster.”
The Impartial Training Union NSW/ACT secretary, Brett Northam, mentioned the federal government’s inaction on instructor shortages had left the Catholic faculty system in a large number.
Catholic colleges in internal metropolis areas like North Sydney and Canberra have been struggling to recruit academics.
“For those who’re sharing courses, standing within the doorway between courses, having a number of courses at school halls, then instructing and studying has been compromised,” he mentioned.
“[Our parents] little kids are telling them what’s happening and the way they’re lacking out.”
The brand new coverage confirmed within the price range on Tuesday features a 3% pay rise in every of the following two monetary years, with one other 0.5% the next monetary 12 months for employees who make a “substantial contribution to productivity-enhancing reforms”.
This enables a attainable improve of 6.5% over the interval.
Public sector employees say it interprets to an actual wage lower, with inflation working at 5.2% and forecast to tip over 7%.
“The truth that we met collectively speaks to the disaster wherein we discover ourselves in,” Gavrielatos mentioned.
Members of each unions will rally outdoors parliament in Sydney in addition to in regional NSW cities and the ACT.
The treasurer, Matt Kean, mentioned it was necessary to keep up aggressive wages to draw and retain the most effective expertise.
“Within the context of a robust and rising financial system, this two-year improve to wages is an inexpensive and smart coverage,” he mentioned.
The price range additionally expanded paid parental depart to 14 weeks for public sector employees, together with academics.
Elias Visontay
Frank Zumbo scolded feminine worker for social media put up, court docket hears
The workplace supervisor of former federal MP Craig Kelly scolded a younger feminine worker for posting a photograph to social media that he felt drew consideration to her breasts after she had instructed him she was not curious about him romantically, a Sydney court docket has heard.
The trial of Francesco “Frank” Zumbo, 55, has additionally continued to listen to covert recordings wherein he chastised the younger lady – in her early 20s on the time – for not inviting him to her college commencement ceremony and for refusing his request to observe her on Instagram.
The recordings additionally captured Zumbo referring to Kelly as “absent-minded”, “bumbling” and “easy”. In an earlier listening to, sections of the audio recordings included Zumbo calling Kelly the “worst instance” of a politician.
Daniel Hurst
Dfat Covid data not appropriately maintained, audit report says
The Australian Nationwide Audit Workplace (ANAO) report about stranded Australians paints an image of presidency officers trying to answer a quickly unfolding disaster in actual time.
It mentioned authoritative data related to disaster administration had not been appropriately maintained by the Division of International Affairs and Commerce. In a single instance, it mentioned:
Dfat suggested the ANAO that recommendation to the minister and knowledge to ministerial employees in relation to the Covid-19 pandemic occurred through e mail, telephone calls and WhatsApp. Using these channels could make it tough to determine selections taken or authoritative approvals, if selections and related particulars usually are not saved within the division’s record-keeping system. The ANAO was solely capable of find one report in Dfat’s doc administration system regarding the approval of the second evacuation flight from Wuhan.
This report was a WhatsApp screenshot which had not been saved with a file notice offering applicable context in step with Dfat’s data administration coverage. The ANAO was unable to find a proper report of approval by the federal government for the second evacuation flight from Wuhan.
The report additionally examines the notorious feedback by then prime minister Scott Morrison on 18 September 2020 that he “would hope that we are able to get as many individuals dwelling, if not all of them, by Christmas”.
The identical day, Morrison “directed that an interagency taskforce be established to help the return of Australians earlier than Christmas”.
However the footnotes of the ANAO report reveal: “Dfat suggested the ANAO that earlier than the federal government’s announcement, the return of Australians by this date had not been mentioned with the federal government.”
Josh Butler
Twitter suspends two pretend accounts pretending to be Fatima Payman
Two pretend Twitter accounts have popped up for brand spanking new Labor senator Fatima Payman, which even briefly fooled the ALP and a few senior politicians, earlier than they have been suspended for violating Twitter guidelines.
Payman confirmed to Guardian Australia that neither the @paymanfatima and @Fatima_Payman accounts have been operated by her or her workforce. The primary account had already gathered greater than 4,500 followers as of Tuesday afternoon, together with the assistant international minister, Tim Watts, Labor MP Sharon Claydon, and the ALP nationwide secretary, Paul Erickson.
One of many account’s tweets was retweeted by the official Australian Labor account on Twitter, earlier than it was rapidly eliminated. The immigration minister, Andrew Giles, responded to one of many tweets, saying he “can’t wait to get to work with you”. The Labor followers deleted tweets and unfollowed the account because it grew to become identified the web page was not run by Payman.
By Tuesday afternoon, the account had been suspended, with the discover “Twitter suspends accounts that violate the Twitter Guidelines”.
The account appeared professional, with a bio claiming it was her “private account”, tweeting “due to my colleagues in parliament” and mentioning a number of Labor MPs by title. However a better look discovered that the account solely began tweeting about politics on Monday, the day Payman was introduced as being elected as a senator for Western Australia.
Earlier to that, the account – created in April – had solely tweeted about Elon Musk’s buy of Twitter, praising the Tesla founder as “a hero of free speech”. The account seems to have modified its Twitter deal with between April and June.
The opposite @Fatima_Payman account had attracted solely 100 followers – together with the communications minister, Michelle Rowland, the assistant local weather minister, Jenny McAllister, and WA MP Josh Wilson – earlier than it too was suspended on Tuesday afternoon.
Guardian Australia has contacted a number of customers which adopted the pretend Payman accounts, or which the accounts have interacted with, to ask in the event that they have been working the illegitimate pages.
Josh Butler
Charities relieved over Labor pledge to scrap gag clauses
The charities sector says it’s respiratory “a sigh of aid” after the brand new assistant minister for charities and Treasury, Andrew Leigh, pledged to scrap gag clauses which restricted nonprofits from talking about public coverage.
Leigh mentioned the federal authorities needed to encourage social, authorized and environmental charities to offer suggestions on insurance policies – calling the previous Coalition authorities’s reverse stance an “assault on democracy”.
Psychiatrists’ school welcomes Victorian psychological well being invoice
The Royal Australian and New Zealand School of Psychiatrists (RANZCP) has welcomed the introduction of the Victorian authorities’s Psychological Well being and Wellbeing Invoice, saying it marks a big transformation in Victorian psychological well being laws.
The Victorian RANZCP chair, Astha Tomar, mentioned the proposed laws – a key advice of the royal fee into Victoria’s psychological well being system – is a welcome step in the fitting path relating to addressing psychological well being and wellbeing within the state.
However Tomar mentioned a lot nonetheless must be carried out with a view to guarantee new laws doesn’t undergo from the identical points as earlier psychological well being acts.
If handed, this laws marks a big transformation of Victorian psychological well being laws.
Whereas we’re trying ahead to seeing this enacted, there’s rather a lot that should occur on the frontline of Victoria’s psychological well being and wellbeing system earlier than the brand new laws will be correctly enacted.
Tomar mentioned it was important that any new laws helps Victorian customers and carers to make knowledgeable selections in relation to sickness and remedy all through their journey.
New MPs to be taught the ropes in Canberra
With the final declaration of MPs set for tomorrow, the brand new members will go to Canberra subsequent week to study their roles.
In an announcement Parliament of Australia mentioned:
Australia’s latest MPs will probably be launched to their new lives within the Home of Representatives over the two-day seminar held 28-29 June, listening to from officers of the Home of Representatives and different parliamentary and government companies.
They’ll be taught in regards to the procedural and administrative facets of their new roles and in addition hear from seasoned MPs earlier than the forty seventh Parliament opens.
Studying to navigate the 75,000 sq metre constructing, understanding chamber proceedings and the work of committees and what a newly-elected MP can anticipate throughout their first week on the job, may even be on the agenda.
Pandemic highlighted weaknesses in Dfat’s disaster response, auditor common says
Daniel Hurst
The Division of International Affairs and Commerce failed to satisfy all the authorities’s goals in the course of the operation to assist Australians stranded abroad in the course of the pandemic, the auditor common has discovered.
A brand new report, tabled in parliament this afternoon, focuses on how Dfat managed the return of Australians from abroad in the course of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Australian Nationwide Audit Workplace (ANAO) report mentioned the division had “tailored its disaster administration preparations and established a brand new program of exercise to offer help to a lot of abroad Australians affected by Covid-19, though it didn’t meet key authorities goals”.
The report mentioned the division’s underlying disaster administration buildings and capabilities “require strengthening to make sure it’s ready to answer future main and complicated crises”.
Listed below are some key passages from the report’s findings:
Dfat’s preparedness to handle complicated crises earlier than the onset of the pandemic was partly efficient. Whereas disaster administration preparations align with whole-of-government necessities, Dfat lacks an outlined disaster administration framework and mature preparedness insurance policies. There may be scope to strengthen disaster administration planning, functionality growth and assurance processes over Dfat’s disaster administration functionality.
Dfat utilized its disaster administration preparations to help the return of Australians and tailored these to ship a brand new program of flights and monetary help. The pandemic has highlighted weaknesses in responding to plain and complicated, and large-scale crises. Whereas coverage recommendation to the federal government was largely applicable, Dfat’s reporting to authorities on its return of Australians couldn’t be verified by the ANAO.
The report notes Dfat’s consular funding to help Australians abroad elevated by 64% between 2018–19 and 2021–22, and that it helped prepare 150 “facilitated industrial flights” between 22 October 2020 and 24 February 2022.
But it surely says the division “didn’t keep dependable knowledge on registered Australians, together with these recognized as weak”.
Dfat knowledge and reporting point out it didn’t meet all the authorities’s goals. The ANAO couldn’t confirm Dfat reporting on: the variety of Australians and weak Australians it assisted to return to Australia; and Australians who accessed facilitated industrial flights administered by Dfat. Reporting couldn’t be verified resulting from knowledge high quality points and unclear strategies underpinning its reporting on Australians registered with Dfat.
Dfat accepted seven of the 9 suggestions, saying “the circumstances of the pandemic have been extraordinary and there are classes to be taught”. Dfat mentioned in a letter to the ANAO:
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the Division of International Affairs and Commerce’s established disaster framework enabled it to help 61,755 Australians to return and facilitate 227 flights…
ANAO’s framing of the federal government’s goals focuses narrowly on the interval of 18 September 2020 to 25 December 2020. At the moment, 26,200 Australians had registered as searching for to return; by Christmas, greater than 24,800 had returned.
Bruce Lehrmann trial date postponed
Paul Karp
The ACT supreme court docket chief justice, Lucy McCallum, has dominated “regrettably and with gritted tooth” to vacate the trial date of Bruce Lehrmann on 27 June resulting from public feedback prejudicing his potential to get a good trial.
McCallum instructed a listening to on Tuesday that she was “not able to say how lengthy” the trial ought to be delayed for, however she remarked she needed it “to be heard this 12 months if it may be”.
McCallum mentioned October can be an applicable time for “dissipation of prejudice”.
McCallum requested the ACT director of public prosecutions, Shane Drumgold, if he wished to hunt injunctions to forestall additional commentary on the case. She steered these may very well be directed at Lisa Wilkinson, the complainant Brittany Higgins, The Undertaking, and radio hosts Jonesy and Amanda.
The matter was stood over to 9.30am Thursday for a point out solely. At that listening to a date will probably be set to debate additional orders.
