Australia news live: Greens call for 25% gas export tax; house price surge wipes out benefits of three interest rate cuts

8.54pm GMT Final stage of early childhood educator pay rise kicks in Early childhood educators will receive a 5% pay rise today, the last instalment of a promised 15% wage increase by Labor. The government says the increase will mean educators will receive an extra $160 per week. That sits on top of the Fair Work Commission’s minimum wage rise which took effect earlier this year. The government’s also released some retention data, saying the wage rises have helped increase the number of educators by 6% in the year to August, while vacancy rates are down 14% in the year to October. Not-for-profit provider Goodstart says it’s reduced its use of labour hire by 70%. In a statement, the education minister, Jason Clare said: Our early educators deserve to be paid fairly for that work. That’s why we’re delivering this 15 per cent pay rise, with the final 5 per cent hitting the pay packets of early educators from tomorrow. We know the pay rise is working to bring more people into sector and help to keep the great educators we’ve already got. It follows an announcement from Clare that mandatory safety training for educators to begin in February next year, and be undertaken through early childcare centres. The mandatory training was agreed by state, territory and federal education ministers as part of safety reform. Updated at 8.59pm GMT 8.43pm GMT Home price rises outpacing benefits of interest rate cuts Surging home prices have wiped away the benefits of three interest rate cuts to new buyers, new data reveals. AAP reports across Australia, home values grew by 1% in November with the median dwelling now worth $888,941, property analytics firm Cotality reported on Monday. That follows a blistering result in October, when prices rose at 1.1% rise, and 0.8% in September. On a monthly basis, growth in Sydney slowed from 0.7% to 0.5%, while Melbourne fell from 0.9% in October to 0.3% in November. Meanwhile, the mid-sized capitals picked up. Brisbane became the second Australian city to break the $1m median home price barrier. Already, the impact of 75 basis points of cash rate cuts since February are wearing out. Cotality research director, Tim Lawless, calculated the cuts increased the borrowing capacity of a median income household by $55,000, but home values have since risen by $60,000. For renters, the outlook continues to be one of worsening affordability. Rents are rising across every capital city, with the national rental index 5% higher over the past 12 months – the highest annual rate of growth in a year. Updated at 8.57pm GMT 8.35pm GMT Greens call for 25% gas export tax The Greens are calling for all gas exports to be taxed 25% and domestic gas supply to be prioritised as the country faces a future gas shortfall by 2028. The minor party – who just secured a deal with the government on the EPBC nature law reforms – say they will not support any new gas fields. There is more than enough uncontracted gas being exported overseas, they say, to meet any future shortfalls. The 25% tax would replace the petroleum resource rent tax which the Greens say has failed to collect “meaningful” revenue from gas exporters due to “massive loopholes”. Greens senator Steph Hodgins-May says gas corporations have created a “crisis” that Australian households have had to pay for. Government and industry lies are quickly unravelling. We don’t have a gas shortage, we have a gas export problem. If Labor brings forward an option that incentivises new gas and hands more rewards to the corporations that have been ripping off Australians, they won’t have the support of the Greens. Updated at 8.51pm GMT 8.27pm GMT Good morning Good morning, and happy December. Another month down, another season begins. Nick Visser here to get you started on the blog this morning – here’s what’s on deck. The Greens are calling for all gas exports to face a 25% tax, with a new prioritisation on domestic gas supply. The party, which recently secured a deal with the Labor government on new federal nature law reforms, says it will not support any new gas fields. Surging home prices have wiped out the benefit of three interest rate cuts to new buyers, according to recent data. Across Australia, the median dwelling is now worth nearly $889,000. The government is encouraging businesses, creators and AI developers to label AI generated or modified content. Tim Ayres, the minister for industry and innovation, said the strategy would see the “benefits from innovation without sacrificing trust”. Stick with us.