Australia news live: CSIRO to axe up to 350 jobs; all children’s sand imports to be tested for asbestos ‘in light of recent findings’

4.47am GMT Queensland minister calls on state teachers to abandon strike Queensland’s industrial relations minister has demanded the state’s teacher’s union abandon planned strike action next week. The Queensland Teachers Union announced its members would walk off the job next Tuesday, 25 November, amid a months-long pay dispute with the state government. Jarrod Bleijie, the state’s industrial relations minister, told parliament that the action would “impact senior exams, particularly for year 11 students”, “and the mental state and welfare of the students”. He said the government “has continued to negotiate in good faith” with the union and said the government wanted to finalise a new bargaining agreement as soon as possible. “We would like to go to arbitration as soon as possible. So I’d call on the Queensland teachers union to put the welfare of students ahead of any politics. Mr Deputy Speaker, join us in arbitration and let the independent arbiter of the (Queensland industrial relations commission) decide this matter,” he said. If the union does not consent to arbitration, the government will take it to forced arbitration at the end of the year, Bleijie said. Updated at 4.50am GMT 4.31am GMT Pauline Hanson’s 1997 prediction of lesbian part-cyborg ‘Australasia’ leader in 2050 raised in federal court Australia decades from now will be ruled by a multi-racial, lesbian, part-cyborg president, One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has written. The post-apocalyptic sci-fi prediction in the outspoken politician’s 1997 book The Truth claims that in 2050, the country of “Australasia” will be run by President Poona Li Hung. The extract was revived in the federal court to highlight the One Nation leader’s alleged tendency to be racist as she tries to overturn a racial vilification finding. Hanson wrote: Ms Hung, a lesbian, is of multiracial descent, of Indian and Chinese background and was felt by the World Government to be a most suitable president. She is also part machine – the first cyborg president. The text was raised by a lawyer for the Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi in defence of a 2024 finding Faruqi was racially vilified by Hanson. “Senator Hanson’s worst nightmare for Australia is a lesbian, cyborg, Asian woman as a president,” Faruqi’s barrister, Jessie Taylor, told the court. - From AAP Updated at 4.41am GMT 4.24am GMT CSIRO to cut up to 350 research roles Australia’s national scientific agency is expected to cut up to 350 more research roles from next year as it frantically looks for savings and new sources of funding to plug budgetary shortfalls. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) held its town hall this afternoon where the agency’s leaders outlined the troubled times ahead. A further 300 to 350 roles are expected to be cut, in addition to job losses earlier this year and last year, with CSIRO adding it would be looking for between $80m and $135m each year to renovate its ageing property portfolio. About 80% of CSIRO’s 800 properties are closely approaching their end-of-life cycles. In a statement, CSIRO’s chief, Doug Hilton, said the changes would set up CSIRO “for the decades ahead with a sharpened research focus that capitalises on our unique strengths, allows us to concentrate on the profound challenges we face as a nation and deliver solutions at scale”. CSIRO’s leader told staff the agency would be deprioritising research areas based on an updated statement of expectations from the minister. Guardian Australia understands the research areas affected by the latest round of job losses will include the health and biosecurity, agriculture and food and environment research units. The CSIRO staff association secretary, Susan Tonks, said the cuts made under the Albanese government were worse than those under the Abbott Coalition government. Tonks said: They [Labor] are now responsible for cuts to public science that exceed the Abbott government – cuts current Labor MPs rightly slammed at the time. These are some of the worst cuts the CSIRO has ever seen, and they’re coming at a time when we should be investing in and building up public science. Updated at 4.26am GMT 4.10am GMT Coloured sand products to be retested for asbestos contamination and designated as 'high-risk' Coloured sand products, which have been contaminated with asbestos and used widely in Australian schools, were not required to undergo any testing for the hazardous material before they were imported, border officials have confirmed. The Australian Border Force (ABF) this afternoon said it would now consider sand products designed for children’s sensory play to be “high-risk”, meaning they will require proof they are asbestos-free before they are allowed into the country. Several ranges of children’s play sand sold at major retailers, including Officeworks, Target and Kmart, have been recalled in the past week after testing of samples of the products found they contained asbestos. Because these products had previously been deemed low risk, their suppliers would not have been obliged to test them at any point before exporting them to Australia, and they would not have required any onshore testing before they were distributed, the ABF confirmed. More than 70 public schools in the ACT were closed yesterday for cleaning, along with nine Catholic schools in Tasmania and others in New Zealand. Some schools in New South Wales and Victorian schools wrote to parents confirming they had the sand products on site. The ACCC on Sunday said respirable (airborne) asbestos had not been detected in any of the tested samples, and “the release of respirable asbestos fibres is unlikely to occur in its current state, unless the sand is processed by mechanical means such as crushing or pulverising”. Updated at 4.27am GMT 4.05am GMT Man armed with knife shot by Queensland police in Cairns A man is in a critical condition after he was shot by police in Cairns, in far north Queensland. In a statement, Queensland police said at about 10.30am, police responded to reports a man was armed with a knife at the intersection of Elphinstone Street and Ramsey Drive. Shortly after, the man approached officers with the knife and an officer discharged a firearm. Medical assistance was immediately provided to the man by police, and he was taken to the Cairns hospital in a critical condition. The matter is being investigated by the ethical standards command, with oversight from the crime and corruption commission. Updated at 4.10am GMT 3.56am GMT More on the proposal to reintroduce two-way tolling on the Sydney Harbour Bridge The New South Wales government plans to make permanent a $60 weekly cap for tolls on Sydney’s roads, with the premier saying it could be funded by reintroducing two-way tolling on the Harbour Bridge. The cap – under which drivers can claim up to $340 a week back from the government after spending $60 per vehicle – started in early 2024 and was due to expire at the end of this year. A 2024 independent report found Sydney drivers were spending $2.5bn annually on tolls in Sydney, with the greatest impact on residents of the western suburbs. The NSW premier, Chris Minns, said the government was considering two-way tolling on state-owned assets, including the Sydney Harbour Bridge and tunnel, and the yet-to-be completed Western Harbour Tunnel and M6 motorway, to pay for making the cap permanent. “It’s not everybody’s cup of tea, but we think it’s the fairest thing to do when you consider that a lot of the communities that will use the Harbour Bridge have access to public transport,” the premier said. Many communities in western Sydney and the Central Coast just don’t have anything like that. Minns said two-way tolling on state-owned toll roads was likely to align with the completion of the Western Harbour Tunnel, which is scheduled for 2028. Read more here: Related: Sydney’s $60 road toll cap to be made permanent with plan for two-way fee on Harbour Bridge to fund it Updated at 4.01am GMT 3.45am GMT BoM forecasts ‘high’ chance storm system strengthens into cyclone near Northern Territory The Bureau of Meteorology said today a tropical low system is strengthening in the seas off the coast of the Northern Territory, near Darwin, and could become a cyclone in the coming days. The BoM said the system has a 25% chance of becoming a cyclone from Tuesday night, and a high, 55% chance of becoming one by Thursday morning. If that happens, it will be the first of the season for Australia. Tropical Low 02U continues to develop over waters north of #Darwin.Tropical Low 02U has a moderate (25%) chance of developing into a tropical cyclone from Tue night. This increases to a high (55%) chance by Wed night.Latest: https://t.co/ZYwfOckJVr pic.twitter.com/77RzIXMX8V— Bureau of Meteorology, Australia (@BOM_au) November 17, 2025 The BoM said on its warning website: 02U [the storm] has been slowly strengthening over warm waters. It is currently moving to the northeast, taking it away from the Northern Territory. On Thursday it is likely to reach tropical cyclone strength and start moving south then southwest, taking it towards the Northern Territory coast. The current forecast peak intensity is 60 knots, or a category 2 storm, but the BoM notes “there is a chance it reaches category 3”. Updated at 3.49am GMT 3.29am GMT Westpac refunding $9.9m in ‘excessive’ fees Westpac’s CEO, Anthony Miller, is happy to confirm to a parliamentary committee hearing in Canberra that his bank is in the middle of fully refunding nearly $10m in fees charged to low-income customers. Asic last year identified what it called “excessive” fees charged to at least two million Australians on Centrelink payments who were eligible for special low or no-fee accounts, including $52m by Westpac and its subsidiaries between 2019 and 2024. “We have agreed to refund those fees,” Miller said. “We are now proceeding through the cohort identified [by Asic] in July 2024.” The Westpac boss confirmed that the bank would automatically migrate current and future eligible customers into these special low-fees accounts, and that people would need to opt out. Miller said the full amount would be refunded by March next year. Westpac’s approach contrasts with that of CBA, which is defending its right to have charged $270m in fees to low-income customers, saying it was consistent with the accounts’ terms and conditions. Updated at 3.33am GMT 3.16am GMT South African man in Villawood detention centre after neo-Nazi rally A South African man whose visa was cancelled after attending a neo-Nazi rally in Sydney was taken into immigration detention in the early hours of this morning, the home affairs minister, Tony Burke, said. Burke said South African national Matthew Gruter had his visa cancelled on Monday, and was taken into detention early Tuesday morning “between 4 and 5am”. It’s understood he was taken to Villawood detention centre, where he will stay until he is deported. The white supremacist group of which Gruter is a member has launched an online fundraiser for him, which has garnered nearly $20,000 in donations since being set up today. The fundraiser page claims Gruter would “fight to remain in Australia via every possible avenue”. Burke says the man has “very limited” options to appeal, because the visa was cancelled by a ministerial decision, adding that he expects Gruter “will be gone very soon” even with the right to appeal to courts. Related: South African man’s visa cancelled after neo-Nazi rally outside NSW parliament The minister defended his decision to cancel the visa, saying today: What could be a clearer example of someone showing they don’t care about cohesion in Australia, than turning up to a Nazi rally? Multicultural Australia and modern Australia are the same thing. Someone who gets involved in neo-Nazism in Australia shouldn’t pretend they’re somehow patriotic. They hate modern Australia. My priority is that Australians feel at home, feel safe, that they are safe in Australia. Anyone who wants to stand in the way of that can find the full force of the law coming down on them. Updated at 3.19am GMT 3.13am GMT Australians in climate risk areas twice as likely to face energy hardship Australians in flood, bushfire and blackout-prone areas are twice as likely to face energy hardship, a new report suggests. The Scenarios for Future Living household survey has found that more than half (54%) of Australians living in self-reported climate risk zones reported difficulty paying their energy bills or meeting essential needs in the past year, compared with 24% in non-risk areas. The report’s lead author, Dr Fareed Kaviani of Monash University, said climate pressures were exacerbating inequalities in Australia’s energy system. He said: Energy hardship is no longer just about affordability. It is about whether households can stay safe and well as extreme weather becomes more frequent. Without targeted policies and support, the gap between those who can invest in clean technologies and those who cannot will only widen. The report’s authors suggest that an increase in climate risks may result in more households struggling to cool their homes during heatwaves, maintain clean air during bushfires and power medical devices during outages. Updated at 3.15am GMT 2.54am GMT Drew Hutton readmitted as Queensland Greens member Greens founder Drew Hutton has been reappointed as a life member of the Queensland party.Party delegates met at a special state council meeting on Monday night, with the Greens’ constitution and arbitration committee meeting on Tuesday morning. Both voted to reverse decisions that had expelled him earlier this year.As a result, Hutton is once again a member. A lawsuit over his dismissal remains under way. Hutton was accused of allowing his Facebook page to be used to publish transphobic comments by other people.The party took the decisions after it received legal advice that the way the two bodies had voted to expel him lacked “procedural fairness”. Related: Greens co-founder Drew Hutton’s expulsion from party could be overturned after legal advice 2.39am GMT Wilson says support from colleagues ‘clear’ after being elected unopposed Wilson was asked if she wanted the job as leader. She told reporters: When I came into the party room, I had colleagues come to me and say they wanted me to stand. I knew I had something to offer the state of Victoria. I knew I could lead them to the next election and be unashamedly talking about the issues that Victorians talk to me about every single day. I will fight for Victorians. I will be in their corner so that I am talking about what is best for them, not talking about ourselves, not being self-interested, not trying to protect our mates, but actually trying to deliver for Victorians and provide that credible alternative government … I’ve had many conversations with colleagues over the recent days, but what is clear to me is that I was elected unopposed. Updated at 2.41am GMT 2.32am GMT New Victoria Liberal leader says party will be focused on ‘single’ goal of winning the next election MP Jess Wilson is speaking in Victoria after becoming the next leader of the state’s Liberal party. She said: My message to Victorians is that I’m in your corner. I want to back you in, and ensure that every single day I am working in your best interests to deliver the Victoria that we all know it can be and that we can have hope in again. Wilson said the party was now united and would become focused on winning the state’s next election in 2026. She added: We are united and we are focused on one single thing, that in 12 months’ time Victorians have a choice. They have a choice of 16 years of a tired government, a government that has its priorities all wrong. And us, a new team that has hope in Victoria and wants to focus on the core issues that are actually gonna deliver for Victorians. She thanked Brad Battin for doing a “terrific” job as leader before he was dumped. 2.22am GMT NSW prepared to compromise on workers’ compensation threshold for psychological injuries The NSW government is willing to compromise on a new threshold for people to receive workers’ compensation for psychological injuries – with a figure of 25% whole person impairment being suggested. The compromise first proposed by independent MP Alex Greenwich would mean more people with serious psychological injuries from work could qualify for long-term support on the state’s Icare scheme. The government originally proposed a 30% threshold in its legislation, but that was met with a fierce backlash from the Coalition and minor parties. Labor’s move appears designed to put further pressure on the Coalition, which so far has supported the status quo of 15% whole of person impairment. The opposition, along with the Greens and a majority of independent and minor party MLCs, have balked at passing the bill in the upper house, where Labor doesn’t have a majority. The premier, Chris Minns, said on Tuesday that NSW businesses had faced a 46% increase in workers’ compensation premiums since 2022. “You can go and stare down the 340,000 businesses in NSW that face a further 17% increase,” he said. Related: Psychological injuries at work are now taken seriously, which is good, but it’s costing billions. So what is NSW proposing? Updated at 2.26am GMT 2.08am GMT ACCC issues warnings to shoppers about scams before Black Friday bargains In the first nine months of 2025, Australians reported losing nearly $260m in more than 150,000 separate scams, the consumer watchdog said on Tuesday. AAP reports shopping scams were the most common ruse, rising 19% this year, sparking warnings for those looking for Christmas or Black Friday bargains online. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) deputy chair, Catriona Lowe, said: Scammers love Black Friday sales too because they know shoppers are looking for bargains. They rely on creating urgency and pressure that can come with a busy shopping period. Nearly half of all scam losses come from an online contact including fake websites, advertisements or social media pages. Compromised social media accounts, particularly on Facebook and Instagram, are used to target people’s personal networks to build trust with unsuspecting victims. With Australians reporting nearly $260 million in losses to scams in the first 9 months of 2025, we're warning that online shopping scams are on the rise. https://t.co/VBxMa0v9Fb pic.twitter.com/DZhHc3n9wJ— National Anti-Scam Centre (@nascgovau) November 17, 2025 Updated at 2.21am GMT 1.56am GMT Historic moment in Victorian parliament after Jess Wilson becomes Liberal leader Newly minted Victorian Liberal leader Jess Wilson shook hands earlier with the Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, in a historic moment in the state parliament. It’s the first time both major parties have been led by women. Wilson is the first woman to lead Victoria’s Liberal party in history after MPs voted to oust Brad Battin earlier today. The party has now had three leaders in less than a year. Related: Victorian Liberal party ousts Brad Battin to install Jess Wilson as first female leader Updated at 2.22am GMT 1.49am GMT NSW government strengthens powers to rebut presumption children under 14 are incapable of evilThe NSW government will enshrine in law a common law presumption that children aged between 10 and 14 are not capable of evil, at the same time as introducing changes it says will improve the ability for prosecutors to rebut the protection in court.The NSW attorney general, Michael Daley, says the changes, which are being introduced to parliament today, follow the recommendations of an independent report, which called for the government to legislate doli incapax. The centuries-old presumption, Latin for “incapable of evil”, offers protection from criminal responsibility on the basis 10- to 14-year-olds don’t understand the difference between right and wrong. But Daley says the government is also making changes he says will “make it easier for courts and prosecutors to understand and apply” the principle. The changes include making it mandatory for courts to consider “the act that constitutes the offence, and also the surrounding circumstances of the offence”. If the evidence surrounding those two is strong enough, combined with other evidence that the common law requires, or even in the absence of that, those that the codification will allow the courts to find the prosecution has rebutted doli incapax on that evidence alone. Asked if the government expects the changes to drive higher conviction rates, Daley says: There’s no expectation here. The aim here is not to lock more children up. The aim here is so we can have a proper hearing before court based on evidence. Too often, the police say that, when they bring a child before the courts, they can’t get any evidence about the child’s upbringing.It’s just not there to be physically garnered, and they can’t get any evidence from their education – one, because school psychologists and counsellors are reluctant to hand over their reports, because it means children won’t come to see them, and often there are children, particularly in regional NSW, [who] just haven’t been to school for years. Updated at 1.54am GMT 1.37am GMT Groups write to NSW corrections minister over concern on disciplining inmates Eighteen organisations have signed an open letter to the NSW minister for corrections expressing concern about a proposed change to the standard of proof needed before disciplining inmates inside prisons. The organisations, which included first nations peak bodies, legal experts and university law schools, warned Anoulack Chanthivong it could risk further Indigenous deaths in custody after a record number of deaths this year. Related: NSW prisoners could face harsh penalty for trivial offences such as ‘looking untidy’ after Labor ignores legal advice The organisations wrote: These changes are contrary to the NSW ombudsman’s investigation into inmate discipline, which exposed a culture of lawlessness and harm being perpetuated by Corrective Services against incarcerated people in NSW, who in many cases were completely innocent of the correctional centre offences they had been accused of.Incarcerated people subjected to discipline proceedings, who are locked in solitary confinement, fined and deprived of basic privileges like phone calls and visits with loved ones, are at increased risk of acute and ongoing mental and physical harm, and even dying in custody, if these laws pass. Passing these laws will cause further harm to people who would likely be found innocent if the proper criminal standard was applied and procedural fairness safeguards were instituted. Updated at 1.48am GMT 1.15am GMT Matt Comyn says restricting migration to 180,000 a year would help manage delivery of housing Matt Comyn, CBA’s CEO, says restricting migration to about 180,000 per year would help federal and state governments manage the delivery of adequate infrastructure and housing. Comyn told a parliamentary committee this morning demand and supply in the housing market “have clearly been imbalanced for some time” and that “that’s causing enormous difficulties”. “I think where there is a predictable level of migration – perhaps that number is something in the order of 180,000 per annum – that gives both the commonwealth and the states the ability to plan for critical infrastructure, including housing.” The big bank boss said he wasn’t against the Albanese government’s ambitious housing supply target, which is to deliver 1.2m new homes by the end of the year. No experts believe the goal will be achieved but Comyn said “targets are important”. “I think the target is stretching but I think stretching an ambitious target is a good thing. Perhaps it may at times be politically unwise but, certainly inside an organisation, targets, even if they are aspiration, if they are well designed, they are appropriate.” Updated at 1.36am GMT 1.02am GMT Sussan Ley congratulates Jess Wilson on Victorian Liberal leadership The federal Liberal leader, Sussan Ley, has congratulated her new Victorian counterpart, Jess Wilson. “I want to thank Brad Battin for his tireless work for the Liberal party in Victoria,” Ley said. “Brad has always put his community first and is an important contributor to the team.” Ley said she looks forward to campaigning with Wilson, who was elected in a party room spill in Melbourne on Tuesday. “Jess represents a fresh, next generation approach at a time when Victoria needs it most. “After years of a tired and out of touch Labor government, families are facing rising debt, growing crime and a health system that is stretched to breaking point. “Jess and I will work together to build a stronger Liberal team across the country and offer Victorians the real alternative they are looking for.” Updated at 1.17am GMT 12.56am GMT Commonwealth Bank CEO says housing credit may be growing too quickly The chief executive of the country’s biggest lender says he is worried that housing credit is growing too quickly and foreshadowed a potential intervention by the banking regulator. Matt Comyn, speaking at a parliamentary committee hearing this morning, also said it was his “suspicion” that the government’s 5% deposit scheme for first-home buyers is only have a “very, very small” impact on housing demand. Still, Comyn was worried that lending was running too hot, with housing credit growing at about 6% a year, and double that annual rate for investor loans. Obviously we benefit as an institution where housing credit is higher. But for long-term financial stability, for equality and access to the housing market … that’s probably pushing a higher level than perhaps policymakers and regulators might be ultimately comfortable with. It will be interesting to see whether there’s some moderation to the demand side given there is, I think with good reason, much less confidence rates will be reducing any time soon. Updated at 1.09am GMT 12.43am GMT Bowen says Australia ‘in it to win it’ on Cop31 bid The climate change and energy minister, Chris Bowen, is at the fortnight-long Cop30 climate conference in Brazil, co-chairing a stream of the negotiations on technology and arguing that Australia and the Pacific should co-host next year’s summit, Cop31. That bid continues to be frustrated. Turkey remains in the race despite Australia having the backing of the majority of countries that have responsibility to nominate the host. If neither withdraws and consensus is not reached this week the event is expected to default to Germany, which is home to the UN climate headquarters in Bonn. As things stand, there is a real possibility. There is no deal on the table to resolve the deadlock. But it is also still only Monday night in the Amazonian city of Belém. Observers say if a deal is done it is unlikely to be until late in the week, when things can move quickly. It’s worth remembering the Germans do not want to host Cop31. International media asked Bowen about the issue a couple of hours ago. He said Australia was “in it to win it”. It respected Turkey’s bid, “but we also point out we have the most support”, he said. We have a very important contribution to make as president of Cop31… We’re fighting hard, we don’t know how we’ll go, but we’re in it to win. Read more on the Cop31 fight here: Related: From Australia to Turkey and, reluctantly, Germany: the tug-of-war over hosting Cop31 Updated at 12.46am GMT 12.29am GMT NSW Liberal plan to stick with net zero at odds with federal party The move to stick with net zero puts the NSW Liberals at odds with their federal colleagues, who have voted to abandon the target, and junior Coalition partner the NSW Nationals. Liberal MPs were presented with YouGov polling that suggested a net zero target was supported by a majority of NSW voters. Overall, 52% of voters in NSW say they will only consider a party ready to govern if they have credible policies to address climate change. Only 33% of voters in NSW think the Coalition should drop its commitment to net zero by 2050, while 48% of voters think they should keep it. In the Liberal party’s heartland seats on the north shore and in the east and south of Sydney, support for climate change policies was particularly strong. The polling suggests that only 33% of voters in NSW think the Liberal-National Coalition is aligned with their personal values and priorities. There were only 14 seats where a majority said the Coalition was aligned with their values. Earlier, the NSW Nationals elected Gurmesh Singh, the member for Coffs Harbour, as the new leader of the Nationals in NSW. The fourth generation Indian Australian is a former blueberry farmer who was first elected to parliament in 2019. 12.25am GMT Speakman remains leader of NSW Liberals, for now Mark Speakman is still the leader of the NSW Liberals after a party room meeting on Tuesday agreed to stay committed to net zero emissions by 2050. The Liberal party decided to stick by the target and the NSW energy transition roadmap developed by the previous state Coalition government during a “respectful and detailed” discussion. But the leadership issue is far from settled, with sources saying another party room meeting will likely be held on Thursday or soon after the end of the parliamentary session. The frontrunner to replace Speakman is the relatively new member for Vaucluse, Kellie Sloane. She’s a former journalist and a moderate. Alister Henskens, the Wahroonga MP, manager of opposition business and right faction member, has also been canvassing support among colleagues. Updated at 12.26am GMT 12.18am GMT Queensland teachers to strike next week Queensland state school teachers will walk off the job next Tuesday, with the union blaming a breakdown in negotiations over a new bargaining deal. The Queensland Teachers’ Union has been locked in pay negotiations with the state government for months. The state government has taken the dispute to arbitration after conciliation failed at the Industrial Relations Commission. QTU president Cresta Richardson said the government refused to enter dialogue with the union. This is quite simply a failure of the premier, the minister, and the director-general to do their jobs. The deals offered have been roundly and soundly rejected and the serious issues facing state education ignored. The Crisafulli government can’t attract new teachers to work in unsafe classrooms with crippling workload. It can’t retain valued educators who’ve been abused and burnt out. In the end, Queensland students who can’t vote will wear the consequences. The state government is offering teachers an 8% pay rise over three years. Members will walk off the job for 24 hours on 25 November. Demonstrations and protests will be held across the state. An estimated 600,000 students were affected by an earlier strike in August, the first since 2009. Related: Thousands of Queensland teachers have gone on strike with 600,000 school students affected. What happens next? Updated at 12.21am GMT 12.11am GMT NSW officer who allegedly assaulted Hannah Thomas faces court for first time today The New South Wales police officer who allegedly assaulted Hannah Thomas had his matter briefly heard before court for the first time this morning. Thirty-three-year-old senior constable, Christopher Davis, is facing two charges after Thomas sustained a serious eye injury after she was arrested at a protest in June. The charges include assault occasioning actual bodily harm and recklessly causing grievous bodily harm. The latter charge carries a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison, and the first charge a maximum of five years’ imprisonment. Thomas was arrested and charged alongside four others at a pro-Palestine protest in Sydney on 27 June that was attended by about 60 people at SEC Plating. Thomas, a former Greens candidate in the prime minister’s seat of Grayndler, was taken to hospital and underwent three rounds of surgery to her right eye. In September, prosecutors dropped all three charges against Thomas, who was later awarded more than $22,000 in legal costs. Davis, who was not required to appear and has not yet entered a plea, had his matter heard before Bankstown local court. It was adjourned to 21st January. Out the front of the court, about 20 protesters had gathered in support of Thomas.Erima Dall, of the Maritime Union of Australia, read out a statement on behalf of Thomas: I’m so grateful to everyone who showed up in solidarity. Thomas underwent a third surgery to her eye a few weeks ago. She’ll learn the long-term prognosis for her eyesight next month. She told Guardian Australia she has spent more than $20,000 on medical bills so far. Updated at 12.15am GMT 12.05am GMT Will Australia be part of an international force in Gaza? After the UN vote on an international stabilisation force in Gaza, we’re checking in with the federal government on whether Australia would be contributing or offering assistance. Guardian Australia understands there has been no formal request made of the Albanese government, but that the government would consider any request made, and supports the broad thrust of US president Donald Trump’s Gaza plan. We’ll bring you more as we hear back. Updated at 12.08am GMT 11.59pm GMT CommBank CEO says it’s incorrect to say banks are making ‘super profits’ The CEO of Australia’s biggest retail bank, CBA, says it’s wrong to accuse the big lenders of making “super profits”. Matt Comyn, who in August revealed a $10.3bn cash profit for the most recent financial year, told a parliamentary committee this morning that this was a “narrative” that the banks for decades had done “a poor job of countering” and “largely left unchallenged”. The long-serving boss said it was in the national interest to have a profitable and financially secure banking sector. He said for every $500,000 home loan, the bank needed to put aside $15,000 in capital – and that this lifted to $100,000 if the loan went into arrears. Rather than a tight oligopoly, the sector had seen some “very significant competitive shifts”, not least led by global technological changes. Comyn also said cash would be around “beyond all our natural lives”, but that there were costs associated with managing cash payments, particularly in regional and remote Australia, that were difficult to manage. 11.53pm GMT CBA boss defends decision to not repay fees to vulnerable customers The chief executive of CBA, Matt Comyn, has mounted a fierce defence of the bank’s decision to not repay $270m in fees to 2.2 million low-income customers after a report by Asic in July. CBA has already paid $25m in “goodwill payments” to tens of thousands of low-income Indigenous customers, after the regulator in 2024 released a report which found banks were keeping vulnerable customers in high-fee accounts. But Comyn this morning doubled down on the bank’s hardline approach to Asic’s more recent report that accused the bank of charging hundreds of millions of dollars in excessive fees to millions of customers who were eligible for low-fee accounts. Ed Husic, a Labor MP and the chair of the house standing committee on economics, asked why the bank wouldn’t automatically ensure its most vulnerable customers were in the lowest-fee accounts. The bank boss said there was “nothing improper” about the fees charged to these customers, as they were charged in line with the published terms of conditions. He said the bank was a commercial entity, and that at its extreme, returning those fees to its customers could be seen by the bank’s shareholders as “an appropriation of our property”. Still, he did say there was potentially an “alternative test” that could be applied to the charges which may lead to some “appropriate level” of payments. Updated at 12.29am GMT 11.41pm GMT NSW health minister says federal funding shortfalls at state hospitals ‘massive challenge’ The NSW health minister, Ryan Park, said federal funding shortfalls at state hospitals “keeps me up at night”, saying hospitals’ costs are a “massive challenge at the moment”. Park spoke to RN Breakfast this morning, after the ABC reported yesterday prime minister Anthony Albanese wrote to state and territory leaders recently to say they needed to rein in hospital spending. Park said without more support “we will continue to see pressures across the hospital system, the likes we haven’t seen before”, pointing to difficulties moving people from acute care to a residential aged care bed or to NDIS support. He said: We are spending an enormous amount because the growth and pressure on our hospitals is significant … That is not fair under a system that is meant to be jointly funded. We don’t mind doing our heavy lifting. New South Wales will take responsibility for acute care. When people need to come into emergency departments, when they need their operations, that’s on me. But what I can’t do is I can’t have 1.200 people lying in a bed right now in New South Wales hospitals that don’t need to be there. Updated at 11.49pm GMT 11.34pm GMT Are we in ‘the killing season’? The Liberal party faces leadership tensions and turmoil this week, with a change in Victoria and challenges speculated upon in NSW and federally. You may hear the phrase “the killing season” a bit this week. The phrase was popularised by the award-winning documentary of the same name from the ABC, about Labor’s vicious leadership fights in its previous time in power. But the documentary-makers didn’t coin the phrase. In an article for Melbourne University Press, journalist Sarah Ferguson explains: Weeks from broadcast on the ABC in 2015, the three-part documentary series on the Rudd–Gillard governments had no title. Everyone working on the series called it ‘the Labor doco’. Series producer Deb Masters burst into the room where I was writing. ‘What about “The Killing Season”?’ she said. I smiled. She didn’t need to explain. The title had been staring at us for months in the opening lines of the series: ‘The last week of Parliament: in politics they call it the killing season. Labor leader Kim Beazley is about to be overthrown’. The lines described the turmoil inside the Labor Party in December 2006 as Kevin Rudd prepared to challenge Kim Beazley for the leadership. Former trade minister Craig Emerson claimed credit for the phrase: ‘I was the person who coined the phrase ‘the killing season’. There’s a time for every purpose under heaven, or under Kevin. If there was to be a challenge it would have to be in that sitting fortnight’. Updated at 11.38pm GMT 11.23pm GMT Victoria’s new Liberal leader says state has ‘clear choice’ at next election Jess Wilson said Victorians have “a clear choice” at the next state election in November 2026: A choice between retired out-of-touch Labor government or a new generation [of Liberals] with me as leader. On Monday, senior state Liberal figures who support Jess were eager to emphasise her economic and policy knowledge. But they also referenced her gender and how she’d present “a very different and compelling face for the Victorian Liberal party”. Read more here: Related: Victorian Liberal party ousts Brad Battin to install Jess Wilson as first female leader Updated at 11.26pm GMT 11.15pm GMT Police fatally shoot man in Queensland after knife attack An armed man who stabbed one man before threatening a woman with a knife has been shot dead by police, Australian Associated Press reports. The confrontation unfolded in Caboolture, north of Brisbane, early on Tuesday after reports a man had been stabbed in the neck. The alleged offender escaped on foot before threatening the woman when cornered nearby by police, Queensland police said. Officers opened fire when the man refused to surrender, and he died at the scene. The woman in her 20s was treated at the scene for a small cut to the arm and shock. The injured man was rushed to Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital with severe wounds to the neck, where he remains in a serious condition. Police remain at the scene, with the shooting under review by the Ethical Standards Command and the Crime and Corruption Commission. Updated at 11.19pm GMT 11.04pm GMT E-commerce giants respond to button battery claims The online platforms selling children’s toys that failed Australia’s mandatory button battery standards have started to respond to the report by consumer group Choice. A spokesperson for Amazon said that “the products in question have been removed” and that “products offered in our store comply with applicable laws, regulations and Amazon policies”. A representative of AliExpress said the platform enforces strict safety standards. “Upon being notified, we immediately removed the listings in question and have further expanded our review to identify and remove any similar products that may violate our policies,” the representative said. A Shein spokesperson said after learning of Choice’s claims, it immediately “removed the items from its site as a precaution while the company investigates”. A spokesperson for eBay said the company “provides regulators with a dedicated regulatory portal that enables them to efficiently and effectively report non-compliant listings, which are removed within two hours”. Choice said the product failures included batteries that could be accessed without the use of a tool, absence of safety alerts or warnings, and removable screws. Updated at 11.15pm GMT 10.53pm GMT Lebara customer dies after Samsung device fails to connect to triple zero TPG – the parent company of Vodafone – said a customer who attempted to dial triple zero on an incompatible Samsung device on 13 November could not make the call and subsequently died. TPG said in a statement to the ASX that it was informed of the incident at 5.22pm yesterday, following advice from NSW ambulance. The company wasn’t experiencing a network outage, it said, but early investigations suggest the Lebara customer was using a Samsung device using software that was not compatible with making triple zero calls on the TPG (Vodafone) network. TPG, Optus and Telstra send out advisories about these devices on 7 November. Under the rules, customers who do not update their handsets after a period of 28-35 days will be blocked from the network. TPG CEO Iñaki Berroeta said: Customer safety remains our highest priority. This is a tragic incident and thoughts are with the individual’s family and loved ones. Access to emergency services is critical. We urge all customers with outdated software to replace or update their devices without delay to ensure they can reach triple zero in an emergency. NSW ambulance was approached for comment. It follows a number of deaths during an Optus triple zero outage in September. Updated at 11.00pm GMT 10.44pm GMT Concerns Battin had become ‘one-trick pony’ on crime Some, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, raised concerns that Battin had become “a one-trick pony” on crime whose campaign was diluted by Jacinta Allan’s decision to allow 14-year-olds to serve adult jail sentences. Wilson, a former advisor to federal treasurer Josh Frydenberg, is seen by her supporters as someone who can comfortably talk about the economy and the cost of living while uniting the party. She was appointed to the shadow treasury portfolio last month in a reshuffle that is also reported as destabilising his support in the party room. Wilson, who has described herself as “a small l” Liberal, is a former president of the Victorian Young Liberals and the daughter of former Liberal MP, Ron Wilson. She has worked as a policy director at the Business Council of Australia. Wilson unsuccessfully challenged Battin in late December, when he replaced former leader John Pesutto. On Monday evening, her supporters were eager to brief the media that she had been encouraged to run, rather than plotting a challenge. Wilson was elected at the 2022 state election to represent the affluent seat of Kew in Melbourne’s inner eastern suburbs. She has ties to the right-wing thinktank, the Institute of Public Affairs, and is a close ally of Liberal frontbencher James Paterson. Updated at 10.48pm GMT 10.28pm GMT Wilson flags budget, crime, health and home ownership as priorities An energetic Jess Wilson has emerged from the party room and named her four priorities as the new leader of the Victorian Liberals: One, to get the budget back on track. Two, to end the crime crisis. Three, to make sure that Victorians can create access to the health care they need and deserve. Four, to give every Victorian best opportunity to own their own home in this state. We’ll get a detailed press conference with Wilson a little later this morning. Updated at 10.31pm GMT 10.25pm GMT Battin says he is ‘proud’ of his work as leader Brad Battin has made a few short remarks after leaving the party room without his leadership: I stand continuously proud in the role that I’ve done and the things that I’ve done for the community. The Victorian Liberal party now has a very clear path to go towards the next election. Obviously … the vote didn’t go my way. The Victorian Liberal party needs to make sure it’s on a path to ensure that we can get into power at the next election. Politics isn’t about just being inside the parliament, it’s about the people. Updated at 10.28pm GMT 10.14pm GMT Jess Wilson new leader of the Victorian Liberals First-term MP Jess Wilson has become the first woman to lead the Victorian Liberal party after defeating Brad Battin in a leadership challenge on Tuesday morning. The majority of the party room rallied behind the 35-year-old shadow treasurer after a group of senior MPs told Battin he had lost their support on Monday afternoon. Battin, a former police officer, lasted less than a year in the job after replacing former leader John Pesutto, whose position became untenable after losing a defamation case against his upper-house colleague Moira Deeming. Battin’s subsequent support for a loan to ensure Pesutto avoid bankruptcy and pay Deeming’s costs enraged sections of the party, which launched a legal challenge to stop it. But it was Battin’s performance as leader in recent months that convinced supporters to consider replacing him before the end of the parliamentary year. Updated at 10.17pm GMT 10.10pm GMT Brad Battin is out in Victoria Brad Battin has lost a leadership challenge and is no longer leader of the Victorian Liberals. We’ll bring you more details shortly. 10.00pm GMT Victorian Liberal spill meeting is under way The Victorian Liberals have begun a meeting to determine the leadership of the party, after a group of MPs told Brad Battin they no longer had support on Monday afternoon. The doors to the opposition party room are closed but reporters outside can hear occasional applause coming from inside. This is a regular party room meeting during a sitting week, so MPs must move to suspend standing orders and then move to spill positions. That would then trigger a vote on who should lead the party. We can expect a few brief remarks and an announcement once the meeting concludes. Several MPs told reporters on their way into the party room that they wanted the matter resolved today. Updated at 10.02pm GMT 9.51pm GMT NSW Nationals choose new leader Gurmesh Singh, the member for Coffs Harbour, has been elected as the new leader of the Nationals in NSW. Singh replaces Dugald Saunders, the former leader, who resigned on Monday. The former blueberry farmer was first elected to parliament in 2019. Singh’s election marks a decision by the Nationals to move to a younger generation of MPs. Kevin Anderson, the member for Tamworth and a long time MP has been elected as his deputy. Updated at 9.55pm GMT 9.34pm GMT John Pesutto: ‘We need to resolve this today’ Former leader of the Victorian Liberals, John Pesutto, says the party needs to resolve the issue of its leadership this morning. Pesutto was replaced by Brad Battin as opposition leader in late December, when his leadership of the party became untenable after losing a defamation case against upper-house colleague Moira Deeming. If Battin is replaced as leader this morning, the state Liberal party would have had three leaders in less than a year. Pesutto made a couple of comments on his way into Parliament: I just want to see a collective decision today as we move to the next election. At the end of the day, this is all about the Victoria people. These are challenging days for a leader and I think it’s important to remember that behind the leaders are families. I think the process needs to be very respectful and we will do that and we will come out with a decision. We’ve obviously got to resolve this matter today and focus on the Victorian people. Updated at 9.50pm GMT 9.24pm GMT Victorian Liberals share thoughts on Battin’s future before party room meeting this morning Deputy leader of the Victorian Liberals, Sam Groth, says he’s confident Brad Battin will remain leader of the Victorian Liberals after a party room meeting this morning. Battin is expected to face a leadership challenge after a cross-faction group of MPs informed him he no longer had their support. Shadow treasurer Jess Wilson is expected to challenge Battin after being urged to do so by several of her colleagues. Any full spill of positions may also impact Groth’s position as deputy leader. He made a few remarks on his way into parliament: [Brad] will come out this remaining leader of the Liberal party and we will continue to put pressure on the Allan government. Victorian Liberal Kim Wells says he’s confident a majority of colleagues will approve a spill of leadership positions in coming hours. On this way into parliament this morning, Wells was critical of the party’s direction in recent months: I think there has been a lot of unfortunate mistakes place over the last few months and that’s how we’ve got to this situation. Wells did not specify which mistakes he was referring to. Liberal MP Moira Deeming repeatedly but politely refused to answer questions from journalists while entering parliament. Updated at 9.43pm GMT 9.16pm GMT Business council calls for ‘sensible amendments’ on environmental protections The groups also want to ensure that “stop-work orders” issued by the new environment protection agency are subject to appeal, as well as an assurance that the disclosure of projected greenhouse gas emissions won’t be considered as part of the assessment process. The alliance of industry groups include the Business Council of Australia, the Minerals Council of Australia, Property Council of Australia and National Farmers’ Federation. The Business Council of Australia’s chief executive, Bran Black, said: With the sensible amendments we’ve proposed, these laws can deliver strong environmental protections and greater certainty and efficiency for business that we need to get urgent projects like housing and energy happening. Updated at 9.17pm GMT 9.09pm GMT Industry groups urge Labor and Coalition to negotiate deal on nature laws Business groups are ramping up pressure on Labor and the Coalition to negotiate a deal on new nature laws, sidelining the Greens and their push for stronger environmental protections. A group of 26 industry groups has written to the environment minister, Murray Watt, and the shadow environment minister, Angie Bell, urging the major parties to agree to several “sensible amendments” and then pass the laws when parliament returns next week for its final sitting of 2025. The long-awaited overhaul of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act passed the lower house earlier this month and Anthony Albanese wants them through the Senate before parliament rises on 27 November. But the government must first land a deal with either the Coalition or the Greens – neither of whom back the laws in their current form. In their letter to Watt and Bell, supplied to Guardian Australia, the groups request seven “essential changes” to the bill. The list includes amending the definition of “unacceptable impact” on the environment, which the groups claim is too vague and open to interpretation. 9.01pm GMT NSW premier says $60 toll cap will be extended ‘permanently’, considering two-way tolling on Harbour Bridge to fund it The NSW premier, Chris Minns, says a $60 toll cap for Sydney’s roads will be extended beyond its expiry date at the end of this year, and the government is considering two-way tolling on the Harbour Bridge to fund the cap permanently. The cap, under which drivers claim up to $340 a week back from the government after spending $60 for each registered vehicle, was put in place at the start of 2024, and was due to expire on New Year’s Day, 2026. Minns has told 2GB the government will now extend it beyond that date, and wants to continue it “permanently”. We’re going to keep it. We can’t get rid of it. It’s a massive cost-of-living relief measure for literally hundreds of thousands of people who live in western Sydney, and without a $60 a week toll cap, they’ll be paying full market rates to use toll roads in Sydney. It’s hugely, hugely onerous for them. Minns says the government is considering two-way tolling on state-owned tolling assets, the Harbour Bridge and tunnel and the not yet completed Western Harbour Tunnel and M6 Motorway, to fund making the cap permanent. Minns says it is costing the government about $200m a year. The government’s negotiations with tolling goliath Transurban to unify all tolling under the NSW Motorways agency continue. The transport minister, John Graham, has previously said an update on negotiations will be given before the end of this year. The Harbour Bridge was tolled in both directions - originally to fund its construction - until northbound tolling ended in 1970. Related: Is an end to Sydney’s ‘tollmania’ in sight? Negotiations for a fairer and simpler system slow to a crawl Updated at 9.04pm GMT 8.49pm GMT Pauline Hanson says Liberal dumping of net zero targets doesn’t go far enough One Nation leader Pauline Hanson is on Radio National Breakfast this morning, where she says the Liberal party’s decision to dump its net zero targets do not go far enough. Hanson said the opposition “should be getting out of the Paris Agreement” as well, “because you can’t have one without the other”, referencing the landmark climate deal forged at the UN Climate summit in 2015. Hanson said: The general public are fed up where the country is going. They say we want our country back. They want the politicians to run the country, not elitists and not the UN telling us how to run our country. Many of her claims on net zero are groundless, including an assertion that’s growing more popular among some that a transition to net zero will cost taxpayers $9tn. That’s false. Guardian Australia’s Adam Morton has more on the reality of the targets here: Related: Factchecking five Coalition claims about net zero, from power prices to the $9tn cost Updated at 8.52pm GMT 8.37pm GMT What’s the latest on the coloured sand clean-up? 25 schools in the ACT will remain closed today, as will nine Tasmanian Catholic schools amid ongoing concern over children’s play sand products that may contain asbestos. Dozens of schools are undergoing cleaning in the NT, although none are closed as students have been moved to other classrooms or alternative learning programs. And in South Australia, more than 300 sites have contacted the Department of Education for advice or to report sand products. Here’s more on what you need to know: Related: Schools in Australia have closed over asbestos in play sand fears – here’s what you need to know 8.26pm GMT ACCC has found wide lack of compliance over button batteries in the past The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has previously found a widespread lack of compliance with safety standards of button batteries, which can be deadly when ingested. When a battery is swallowed, a chemical reaction occurs that burns through tissue and seriously injures vital organs, according to the regulator. The products that failed the Choice test include an electronic writing pad, toy watch, video game and plastic piece, all purchased from AliExpress. Shein’s failed products include slatted glasses, lighted jelly rings, satin scrunchie, spin top and keyboard button chain. Amazon had three items, including bath toys, bendy tubes and a keychain, while an eBay-purchased fidget spinner, gloves, toy torch, glowing mouthguard and shoes breached regulations, according to Choice. 8.16pm GMT Good morning, Nick Visser here to pick up the blog. Let’s see what the morning has in store. 8.04pm GMT Multiple children’s toys breach button safety standards Seventeen out of 24 children’s toys purchased from major online retailers as part of a consumer shopping test by Choice failed Australia’s mandatory button battery standards, putting kids at risk of serious harm. Choice said the failures included batteries that could be accessed without the use of a tool, absence of safety alerts or warnings, and removable screws. The Choice director of campaigns, Rosie Thomas, said Australia urgently needed stronger product safety laws to make it illegal for all companies to sell unsafe products. Time and time again we see online marketplaces failing to ensure the products they sell are safe and compliant with the relevant safety standards — this is simply not good enough. The marketplaces profit from selling products in Australia but face no clear legal obligation to ensure they are safe. The products were purchased from Shein, AliExpress, eBay and Amazon. Guardian Australia contacted the four companies for comment. Choice, which has passed on its results to the consumer regulator, said Amazon and eBay removed the items in response to the findings. AliExpress rejected the findings and Shein didn’t respond, Choice said. Updated at 8.36pm GMT 7.55pm GMT Permanent battle to maintain security in Asia Pacific, says Wong Australia faces a permanent contest to maintain security and prosperity in the Asia Pacific, the foreign minister, Penny Wong, says. In a speech in Canberra on Monday night, Wong named China, as trying to dominate the region, including “reshaping” it in its own interests. She said Russia, Iran and North Korea are working to destabilise and sabotage countries like Australia. Wong talked up Labor’s record in securing the most comprehensive security architecture in the country’s history, but said there was an enduring shift in the power balance among our close neighbours, describing a permanent state of disruption. What we want is a relationship that allows us to cooperate and engage with China, while prosecuting our national interests and building security and prosperity in our region. Because we know that China will continue to be a major influence on our region, as well as on the multilateral system, which matters so much to Australia. Wong told the Australian Institute of International Relations event that Labor’s efforts to build strong partnerships close to home and further away was key to protecting the national interest. With so much activity and contest, things may not go Australia’s way every time. But we will keep pressing our national interest in the contest every day. Updated at 9.57pm GMT 7.48pm GMT Sussan Ley says Australian public ‘marks down’ political infighting Sussan Ley has declared she will “absolutely” lead the Liberal party to the next election while conceding the Australian public “mark us down” when descending into infighting. Speaking on ABC’s 7.30 program on Monday evening, the opposition leader said she knew there was “speculation” as to the future of her leadership. But she said she could “absolutely” guarantee that she would remain leader of the Liberal party after speculation that members of the faction could withdraw support for her struggling leadership in the fallout to the decision to dump a net zero emissions target. I know there’s speculation about the commentary and opinions. You have to ask these questions. I am not going to lose focus for a single second on the thing that matters today, which is our affordable energy plan. Because ... Australians deserve affordable energy ... We are here in the interests of the Australian people. I acknowledge, when it appears we’re talking about ourselves, people do mark us down. I accept that. Updated at 8.20pm GMT 7.40pm GMT Victorian Liberal leader Brad Battin faces leadership challenge Victorian Liberal leader Brad Battin will face a leadership challenge this morning from shadow treasurer and first term MP Jess Wilson, less than a year before the state election. A handful of Liberal MPs from different factions informed Battin on Monday afternoon that he no longer had the confidence of his colleagues as leader. Multiple Liberal sources said Battin had lost support from the majority of the party room with some concerned he had become a “one trick pony” on crime. The party has been bitterly divided by several scandals this year and those supporting Jess believe she is their best hope at unifying before an election in November 2026. The 35-year-old is a former adviser to federal treasurer Josh Frydenberg and the daughter of former Liberal MP Ron Wilson. She was elected at the 2022 state election to represent the affluent seat of Kew in Melbourne’s inner eastern suburbs. Wilson is also former president of the Victorian Young Liberals and a former policy director with the Business Council of Australia. If she succeeds in replacing Battin, as several party sources expect, she would become the first woman to lead the Victorian Liberal party and its third leader in less than a year. Read more here: Related: Brad Battin faces spill after group of Victorian Liberal MPs say they have lost confidence in his leadership Updated at 8.23pm GMT 7.29pm GMT Welcome Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then Nick Visser will pick up the action. We’re off to a busy start today with Victorian Liberal leader Brad Battin facing a leadership challenge at a party room meeting at 8.30 this morning from shadow treasurer and first term MP Jess Wilson. MPs from different factions told Battin yesterday they had lost confidence in his leadership. More coming in a moment. Battin is not alone as a Liberal leader facing questions about leadership with federal leader Sussan Ley continuing to be obliged to answer questions about her own position. Speaking on ABC’s 7.30 last night, she said she could “absolutely” guarantee that she would lead the party at the next election. More coming up. And Penny Wong has delivered a major speech where she describes how Australia can, and in her mind should, navigate our relationship with China. More on that, too, soon.