A review of the navy’s surface fleet is due to be handed to the government by the end of next week – but the defence minister, Richard Marles, has hinted decisions won’t be made until early next year.

Earlier this year, the Albanese government ordered a review, opening the door to potential changes to the number of Hunter class frigates and offshore patrol vessels to be bought by Australia.

In a discussion at the Submarine Institute of Australia’s conference in Adelaide today, Marles confirmed that the government expected to receive that assessment by the end of next week:

And obviously, we’ve been talking with the surface fleet review team, so that’s not going to be a surprise to us, we have a sense of what’s coming. And in that sense, when we announced it coming out of the [defence strategic review], we said it would be a relatively short, sharp review and it has been that. And we’re very thankful to the review team and the work they’ve done.

What now? Obviously, it’s the government’s response to that. Our intention is to provide our response to that, meaning the decisions which come from that, in the first part of the first couple of months of next year.

We’ll try and get this out the door as quickly as we can, but that’s essentially the timeframe that we’re working on. And in the process of providing that government response, we’ll obviously – I mean, a lot of the review exists in the classified domain which people will understand, but we will provide as much of the review as we can at that time.

Translation: the findings will probably be kept under wraps until early next year when the government announces what it is actually going to do in response to the report.

From AAP:

Perth tenants are struggling amid a housing crisis as rental prices rise faster than in any other capital city and the vacancy rate plummets.

Advertised rents rose 19% in the past year according to Shelter WA.

Perth also has the tightest vacancy rate of the capital cities at 0.4%, and regional Western Australia experienced some of the largest rent rises in the nation.

Shelter WA chief executive Kath Snell said tenants were being “smashed by some of the biggest rent rises in the country”.

Two WA regions are among Australia’s top 10 areas for rent rises in the past year – the Goldfields recorded a 30.8% increase, while rents in the Mid-West and Wheatbelt rose by 24.4%.

The average weekly rent asking price was $644 in Perth and Canberra, $597 in Melbourne, $793 in Sydney, $626 in Brisbane, $532 in Adelaide, $489 in Hobart and $576 in Darwin.

From AAP:

Farmers are feeling the heat from El Niño with some producers already in drought.

The weather pattern is expected to deliver warmer drier conditions across eastern Australia and parts of the NSW north coast and Hunter region are drought-declared.

One charity has reported a 240% spike over the past four months in demand for emergency drinking water from producers.

Rural Aid which helps primary producers said the need was greatest in parts of NSW, Queensland and Victoria.

John Walters from Rural Aid:

The declaration is a formalisation of what they’re already living and experiencing and managing against.

The spike in fodder and water requests reflect the dry conditions.

A car has crashed into a Coles in Ballina, with emergency crews on the scene currently performing a rescue and assessing the property, Fire and Rescue NSW have confirmed.

Images were shared online that reportedly show the car inside the supermarket on Fox Street.

One person commented that it sounded like “a bomb going off”.

The Tasmanian fire services have updated the community. They are asking people in Swankick and Coles Bay to evacuate immediately.

Deputy Regional Chief Greg Butters:

It’s an imminent threat to communities and the Coles Bay area.

The fire, which is travelling east towards Friendly Beaches from Coles Bay Road, is about 20km north of the picturesque Freycinet national park.

Police have closed Coles Bay Road from the Tasman Highway to Swanwick Road.

Butters:

It is an unusual event, but I think we’ve had relatively quiet periods of fire activity in the last couple years.

This year, the wind has been a lot warmer hence the fuel is a lot drier. What we’ve got now is fire that started on a windy day, obviously being wind-driven because the fuel are so dry, it is what’s increased the fire activity.

- With AAP

Australian shares fall again

The Australian share market has fallen for a second day ahead of a bevy of central bank meetings and after the release of dovish minutes from the Reserve Bank.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index on Tuesday dropped 33.8 points, or 0.47%, to 7,196.6, while the All Ordinaries fell 33.1 points, or 0.45%, to 7,395.0.

The Australian dollar was buying 64.33 US cents, from 64.45 US cents at Monday’s ASX close.

– via AAP

Animals facing potentially disastrous summer in El Niño, group warns

The International Fund for Animal Welfare is concerned about the potential impact on wildlife, landscape and communities now that El Niño has been declared.

IFAW animal rescue officer Robert Leach said that with Australia facing a potentially disastrous summer:

The sad reality is that our wildlife cannot handle much more. After the 2019-20 devastation, koalas were uplisted to an endangered species in Queensland, NSW and the ACT. I don’t want to imagine what another devastating summer would do to the already declining population numbers of our iconic Aussie species.

We must do all that we can now to ensure our wildlife and the people who care for them are prepared. Too often we see people put their own lives at risk and refuse to evacuate if they cannot take their animals with them. Preparation saves lives.

Now is the time to make sure you’ve created and trialled your evacuation plans and that the animals – be it pets or wildlife – in your care are considered in that plan. Remember, if it is not safe for you, it is not safe for the animals in your care.

We ask people to download the IFAW wildlife rescue app, which puts you in touch with your nearest wildlife rescue group, which will be able to guide you on the best way to help an injured or orphaned animal.

Bushfire alert for stretch of Tasmania’s coast

An emergency alert has been issued for a stretch of Tasmania’s east coast near Coles Bay. There is a warning for residents near Friendly Beaches to leave now.

Tasmanian authorities are expected to give a press conference soon. I will bring you that when we have it.

Carlton housing project needs ‘adequate green spaces and community facilities’

The Carlton Neighbourhood Learning Centre in Victoria has welcomed the announcement of 231 social homes to be built on the corner of Nicholson and Elgin streets.

CNLC executive officer Tony Milne said:

Carlton is a fantastic place. It’s a strong and diverse community where people can thrive, but there is no doubt that many locals are doing it tough right now

There is a cost-of-living crisis and an overstretched housing waiting list, putting unprecedented demand on people and families. The risk of homelessness is high and the need for additional support is significant.

To make the most of this opportunity, it’s important that the new housing project includes adequate green spaces and community facilities. And, to address the ongoing threat of climate change, the housing should be fully equipped with air-conditioning, up-to-date renewable energy technology and battery storage capabilities.

Thanks for being with me on the blog today – it’s been a big morning.

All this news of bushfires and warming temperatures can be quite daunting, especially for communities who were impacted by the black summer bushfires just a few years ago. Please know you can always reach out for help if needed (Lifeline: 13 11 14).

Take care, and with that I’ll leave you with my lovely colleague Cait Kelly to see you through the rest of today’s news.

BoM says NSW and Victoria heat’s duration is unusual

Miriam Bradbury of the Bureau of Meteorology provided a weather update.

She said Melbourne had seen a prolonged run of days above 20C:

We are in this run of very, very warm weather which hasn’t been seen for many years.

She said what made the heat in NSW and Victoria so unusual for this time of year was how prolonged it was.

Bradbury said conditions were expected to ease across the NSW south coast as a cold front moved through. However, “severe fire dangers” were expected for the Greater Sydney and Hunter regions tomorrow.

That is likely to trigger a total fire ban as well – it depends on the RFS’s decision there.

The cold front is expected to sweep across Tasmania and Victoria from tomorrow, and gradually push up the NSW coast through Wednesday and Thursday, she added, bringing a welcome relief from the heat.

Sydney still going for 34C [tomorrow] as it will be ahead of that front, but the cooler weather will settle into NSW as well through Thursday and Friday.

The Bureau of Meteorology spokesperson said El Niño was a natural phenomenon of the climate system, but didn’t occur “in isolation of global warming in the background”.

We have had globally record warmth in the oceans since April and to give you an idea of the interplay between the two, we believe that that continued ocean warmth is potentially one of the things that slowed down the atmospheric response.

… This year we’ve had continued warm conditions everywhere, which is more to do with the background trends than it is to do with El Niño. El Niño tends to impact global temperatures from now until the middle of next year.

So unfortunately we’ll probably see a continuation of the global heat up until the middle of 2024.

The Bureau of Meteorology spokesperson encouraged communities to take initiative and prepare for the bushfire season ahead.

He said NSW and Victoria, in particular, would have an extended period of warmth.

I think El Niño means we’ve elevated the risk of fire danger and extreme heat, in particular in terms of the hazards we face … We aren’t leading into this summer on the back of extended drought, which somewhat reduces the risk, but we have seen eastern NSW dry out quite particularly.

I think there’s 61 fires burning in the landscape in NSW at the moment and I think that just underscores if we continue to dry out the landscape over the next three months … then we’ll be adjusting our message accordingly in terms of the risk.

El Niño likely to last until end of summer, expert says

A meteorologist with the Bureau of Meteorology is giving an update following the announcement of an El Niño.

He said that now the El Niño pattern was settling in, it increased the BoM’s confidence this pattern would last until the end of summer. It was likely there would be a continuation of warm and dry conditions over the summer months in particular, he added.

We are already seeing extreme conditions in some parts of the continent, particularly in the duration of heat. We’ve had an extended period of warm and dry weather to start spring, today we’ve had catastrophic conditions on the south coast of NSW, just to underscore that risk.

While we are different to leading into the black summer in 2019, where we had years of preceding drought, we do have a wetter landscape out there, it is drying out more rapidly than has occurred in recent years, and we are seeing that elevated risk now occurring in eastern NSW in particular, and Sydney equalling its record so far today for temperatures for September.

To read the full details on the El Niño announcement, see the full story from Donna Lu and Graham Readfearn here:

Victoria’s Gabo Island records hottest September day

More temperature records are being broken, this time in Victoria.

The Bureau of Meteorology says Gabo Island has recorded its hottest September day on record with a high of 34.6C.

This beats the previous September record of 31.2C, recorded in 2017.

Gabo Island sits off the coast of eastern Victoria on the border with NSW, between Mallacoota and Cape Howe.

The president of the ANU Students’ Association, Ben Yates, said yesterday’s incident was a “terrifying act of violence”.

Students need to be able to feel safe on campus. This is where they study. This is where they learn. For many students, this is also where they live.

Many students are upset and angry about the incident yesterday. This is understandable. My message to students is to look after each other and seek support if you need it.

… The effects of this incident will continue to be felt in the community. To students – really important that you look after yourselves and look after each other, and take care over the next few days.

Sally Wheeler acknowledged the “prompt action” of the university’s security team, and of police and emergency services, “without which this incident might have been even worse”.

The ANU deputy vice-chancellor said:

At ANU, the safety of our people is our highest priority. We’re a peaceful campus. We’re a public place. A place where all are welcome. The university has a wide range of measures in place to ensure our community’s safety.

She said the university had comprehensive security infrastructure and processes in place which were being ramped up today in light of yesterday’s events.

Yesterday was challenging but please also note this is an isolated and extremely rare event … These responders had the situation promptly under control, apprehending the perpetrator quickly and assuring that matters did not deteriorate further.

Continued from last post:

Most new homes are required to be built with at least one entrance without steps, wider internal doors and corridors, step-free access to a bathroom and ground level toilets, among others.

New homes on small lots will be granted an 18-month exemption, ending on 31 March 2025.

But under the changes, many types of new houses will be exempt for good, such as for homes on lots that are too steep for a ramp.

Queenslanders – single family homes built on stilts – will continue to be inaccessible for wheelchair users, exempted from step-free entry. The government says builders will be required to make “improvements that ensure new home-builds feature enhanced accessibility”.

The Australian Building Codes Board estimates the new standards will add about 2% to the cost of building a new house.

The state government estimates they will save customers $185 a year, slash carbon emissions by 1.64m tonnes and improve liveability, once they do take effect.

CEO Gary Rake said it had been a decade since the industry promised to voluntarily introduce accessibility standards:

The homes we’re building now are supposed to be good for 50 years – we need to think about the requirements of the next two and three generations.

Every month we delay locks people into outcomes that are below the standard they should be.

Queensland delays new building codes around disabilities and energy

The Queensland government will delay the implementation of new building standards to improve disability access and energy efficiency for six months under a “phased approach” to the reforms.

All state governments except NSW signed up to an updated national construction code last year, agreeing to simultaneously implement the changes in October. But the building sector has repeatedly demanded more time to adapt to the reform.

Public works minister Mick de Brenni announced on Tuesday some rules would not take effect until May 2025.

The government will now delay a requirement for new homes to meet 7-star energy efficiency standards until May 2024, giving builders an additional six months to adapt to the laws.

De Brenni said:

We have listened to advocates, industry and the community and our phased implementation plan balances the needs of industry to transition alongside the community’s expectations that we adopt these improved standards.

The backflip leaves just the ACT and the Northern Territory to implement the changes according to the original schedule.

Upgrades to standards for wheelchair access will also be delayed.

The New South Wales Rural Fire Service has just provided an update on the small bushfire in Eden, on the south coast.

Firefighters had“gained the upper hand” on the fire, it said, with the threat now reducing.

Residents in the area should continue to monitor conditions.

Continued from last post:

Sydney airport pointed to one example in particular showing the stark differences between the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.

UAE is permitted 168 flights a week compared to Qatar’s 28. The submissions said UAE was only operating 84 of its 168 flights while Qatar was utilising all its 28 flights.

At Sydney airport, we are currently seeing a 25% shortfall in recovery on the Middle East market when compared to pre-Covid. With 50% of weekly permitted flights from the UAE not being utilised, while Qatar is prevented from increasing their capacity, consumers are paying the price with less choice and ultimately higher airfares.

The submissions concludes the rules need to change to improve competition and drive down prices.

Fundamentally, the way the current rules are written incentivises incumbent airlines to perpetually over-file and hold too many slots. Slot filing data demonstrates that this has been allowed to go untempered for many years, and unless there’s a change to the rules, we do not see a scenario where behaviours will change or competition can increase.

Australian flights system ‘outdated’, Sydney airport tells inquiry

Sydney airport, which is now appearing before the air services inquiry, has put forward a fairly scathing submission regarding the state of incoming flights to Australia’s major airports.

As we’ve already mentioned, it’s expected senators will be questioning the airport over allegations of “slot hoarding” by airlines.

Slot hoarding is essentially when airlines try to hold on to their slots for flights into an airport, like Sydney airport, despite not necessarily intending to go ahead with the flights for economic reasons.

The practice prevents competitor airlines from snatching up those empty slots for themselves, and is considered an anti-competitive practice that drives up prices for consumers.

Sydney airport, in its inquiry submission, described the legal and regulatory framework as “outdated” and no longer fit-for-purpose.

As a result, the system has become clogged up, anti-competitive behaviour has been incentivised and vital components of the aviation framework, such as bilateral air service agreements, are outdated and no longer fit-for-purpose. Inevitably, it is the travelling public that suffers the consequences of these inefficiencies.

Sydney airport reaches highest temperature in 23 years

Sydney airport has recorded its highest temperature for September since 2000, according to preliminary data from the Bureau of Meteorology.

The airport reached 35.9C today, and has the potential to climb to even higher temperatures as the afternoon continues.

The previous record was 35.6C, set in September 2000. The Sydney airport temperature records date back 85 years.

This is based on preliminary data, and a record wouldn’t be officially announced until at least 9am tomorrow morning, a spokesperson for the Bureau of Meteorology said.

Preliminary data also shows that Observatory Hill has reached 34.6C, the spokesperson said, matching its previous September record.

We will continue to bring you the latest as new data is released.

Transport department needs more of a ‘consumer lens’, senators told

Australia’s transport department needs to better consider the ramifications its aviation market decisions have on consumers, a Senate committee has been told.

Dean Long, CEO of the Australian Travel Industry Association, spoke of what he saw as an imbalance when appearing before the Senate select committee into bilateral air services agreements, which is examining the Albanese government’s decision to reject Qatar Airways’s request to almost double its capacity into Australia.

Long said there should be better input during bilateral air service negotiations – discussions two countries have when expanding permissions for airlines to fly to the other – that considers the implications for consumers and airfares.

He said:

The transport department is really good at regulating airlines and airports [but] it doesn’t have a consumer lens. So you’ve got a department making decisions on that [that] have massive ramifications to competition in the Australian market.

Earlier, Flight Centre CEO Graham Turner called for the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to be consulted on bilateral air services agreements.

Firefighters at small bushfire in Eden on NSW south coast

Firefighters with the New South Wales Rural Fire Service are on the scene of a small bushfire between the coast and Aslings Beach Road in Eden, on the south coast.

Residents along Aslings Beach Road, Mitchell Street, Lake Street and Hosies Road near the beach should prepare now, the RFS says.

Earlier this afternoon the fire warning for the far south coast was upgraded to “catastrophic” due to unexpectedly high winds.

There is also a watch and act alert in the Snowy Monaro local government area, where a fire is burning 30km south of Bombala in the Bondi nature reserve.

The RFS said:

The fire is burning in an easterly direction towards the Monaro Highway.

There is currently no homes under threat, but smoke will be visible in the area.

Government offers support after ‘shocking’ stabbing at ANU

The education minister, Jason Clare, says the federal government stands ready to do “anything [it] can” to support the Australian National University after a stabbing on campus yesterday afternoon.

Speaking at a doorstop in Sydney, Clare said his thoughts were with the victims after the “horrific attack” left two hospitalised, one in a critical but stable condition.

I think I speak for all Australians when I say that our thoughts are with the two young women who were stabbed yesterday at the university and are currently in hospital, as well as the young men that were attacked as well.

On behalf of all Australians, can I thank the police for their quick action. Can I thank the ambulance officers for the work they did, the ANU security staff and the hospital staff right now, the doctors and the nurses that are helping those young women to recover.

Clare said he spoke to the ANU vice-chancellor, Prof Brian Schmidt, yesterday afternoon to offer the government’s support.

I made it very, very clear that the Australian government stands ready to do anything that we can here. Australia is a safe place ... to live, to work, to study, and when things like this happen, it just makes it all the more shocking.

ACCC should be consulted on air services, Flight Centre chief says

Flight Centre CEO Graham Turner has called for the competition and consumer watchdog to be consulted when Australia and foreign countries negotiate rights for extra air services.

Turner, whose company is running an ad campaign urging the Albanese government to reverse its rejection of Qatar Airways’ request to almost double its capacity into Australia, told a senate inquiry into bilateral air service agreements he believed the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission should be able to provide its view on how agreements could impact the market.

He also said tourism and travel operators should be consulted in the decisions.

Turner also called for a tightening of take off and landing slot rules at Sydney Airport to improve cancellation rates and prevent major airlines such as Qantas and Virgin from strategically scheduling and cancelling services to block competitors. Current rules allow airlines to cancel 20% of a scheduled slot, and Turner called for this to be tightened to between 5-10%.

Meteorologist Ben Domensino has shared this image from the slopes today, showing how ski village Guthega near Jindabyne is being impacted by the hot weather:

The Perisher Valley is expected to reach up to 18C today.

A timeline in the Qatar Airways case

Michael Bradley from Marque Lawyers is before senators in Sydney today for the inquiry into flights.

Bradley’s firm is representing five of the women suing the Qatari government after experiencing invasive searches at Doha airport in 2020.

Committee chair Bridget McKenzie asked Bradley when his clients had written the letter to transport minister Catherine King imploring the federal government not to grant additional services to Qatar Airways. That date is confirmed as 27 June.

A letter from King to his clients was received on 10 July and tells the women the federal government “is not considering additional bilateral air rights with Qatar”.

Three days later, according to King herself, prime minister Anthony Albanese was told of her decision not to grant Qatar Airways an extra 28 flights into Australia’s major cities.

Bradley said the women wrote the letter because of their disapproval for Qatar Airways’ proposed expansion in Australia.

If you’re confused about the timeline, check out my colleague’s piece outlining this saga’s key moments:

More Qatar Airways flights would have led to cheaper fares, senators told

Airline Intelligence and Research managing director Tony Webber told senators on Tuesday the extra services for Qatar Airways would have led to “favourable effects”.

“There will be a material reduction in airfares ... somewhere between 7% and 10%,” he said.

Dr Webber said there would have been an improvement in inbound tourism, largely from Europe, that could have been worth up to $1bn.

Dr Webber, the former chief economist of Qantas, also described Qantas as “one of the most aggressive carriers” in terms of dominating the market.

He said while it was tougher for Qantas to flex its muscle internationally, it was “exceptionally aggressive” in the domestic market.

– with AAP

Calling all NSW readers, politicos and budget die-hards!

If you are looking for dedicated coverage of the NSW budget, my colleague Catie is running a live blog now.

You can follow along here:

Travel industry group tells inquiry of ‘critical flaws’ in flights system

The Australian Travel Industry Association will appear before the flights inquiry today, calling for urgent reform.

In its submission to the inquiry, the association highlighted what it calls “critical flaws in the existing system, where decisions often lack a comprehensive understanding of their impact on passengers”.

Ahead of the hearing, association CEO Dean Long said in a statement:

The Senate committee inquiry offers a pivotal opportunity to address the issues that have long plagued Australia’s aviation industry and air ticket distribution landscape, with ATIA taking the lead in this fight for our members and the broader travel industry.

The current system determining which airlines can operate in and out of Australia was established in 1944. This system was designed to protect the interests of national carriers which at that stage were largely government-owned. While times have changed, the system has not.

There is a critical and compelling need to redefine national interest in decision-making.

Universities ramp up support of voice to parliament

The University of Newcastle has become the latest tertiary institution to support a yes vote in the upcoming referendum. It brings the universities in support of the voice to 26 out of 41.

On Tuesday, the university released a statement in support of an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voice to parliament, endorsed by its First Nations advisory board and the university council.

In its statement, the university said it was “proud to be shaped and guided by the knowledge, stories and principles of the oldest continuing culture in the world”.

Universities have a long history of leadership in reform. History has taught us that public institutions can only be bettered by listening to, and working with, the communities we represent.

As a learning institution, we encourage healthy debate on political matters and feel we have a role to provide information that supports our community to make informed decisions … our university community has spoken and shown majority support for an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voice to parliament.

Tomorrow, staff and students at the University of Wollongong will join together to create a giant, human-formed ‘yes’ on the grounds of campus. The university was one of the first tertiary institutions to come out in support of the voice.

The vice-president of Indigenous strategy and engagement, Jaymee Beveridge, said the efforts of many years of “consultation, listening and word-smithing” had presented Australia with an opportunity.

The introduction of an entity to provide advice and solutions on matters relating to our people is long overdue. Bureaucrats and politicians should not continue to make decisions about us without us.

Anthony Albanese is asked whether he supports a tax on short-term stays such as Airbnb.

Without commenting on any hypothetical tax, the prime minister acknowledged short-term stays were an issue in his electorate.

In my electorate that’s an issue because you have problems of accessing rentals for people because of a lack of accessibility. So I’m very conscious of the pressure that is placed on communities.

If you try to get a rental property in Newtown or Enmore, there have been a range of [issues], in part because of the changes in the makeup of housing, that has caused an issue, so it’s not surprising that governments are having a look at this.

And I know that that is something that has been considered by anyone who actually looks at the housing issue with regard to housing supply.

Australia ‘cannot advance based upon fear’, PM says of voice vote

Anthony Albanese is now speaking from Melbourne, speaking about the “significant fear campaign” surrounding the Indigenous voice to parliament referendum.

The prime minister said:

Every mainstream news organisation … have expressed concern for some period of time about some of the misinformation which is out there on the internet and the role of some social media organisations in that. We saw that during Covid, it probably wasn’t a good idea to have stuff out there about, you know, bleach being injected and about a whole range of things that were that were out there.

… Our country cannot advance based upon fear, no country can. By definition if you are about change and change for the better, countries have only been changed for the better with hope and optimism.

Albanese said a proposal from opposition leader Peter Dutton to hold a second referendum for constitutional recognition, if this one failed, was nonsensical.

That to me makes no sense, to reject what Indigenous people are asking for, which is a very modest and simple request.

Daniel Andrews said houses “have to go somewhere” and a balance between quality and affordability could be found.

I just say, respectfully, to people who say not here, not here, not here – where are we going to build the [homes]?

If everyone says no, then we’re going to be hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of thousands of [homes short].

I don’t think any of us want to live in a city and state like that, and I do think that you can find that balance between high-quality product and a price that people can afford.

Victoria to announce more on housing supply, Andrews says

Victorian premier Daniel Andrews said further housing announcements would be made later this week.

It was just announced that the Carlton public housing towers will be the first project redeveloped as part of the federal social housing accelerator fund.

Andrews said all 769 dwellings would be delivered using $500m from the federal government, which is the state’s share of the $2bn fund.

There’s a cabinet meeting this afternoon and there will be further announcements about housing supply made later on this week. We’ll be back before you quite a bit over the next few days and weeks making lots of announcements.

Andrews said nothing would get done if you waited around for 100% agreement on policy.

You have to search for a balance. You have to search for a fair and reasonable outcome, look at all the angles, listen to all the different points of view. Ultimately, no one should get any points for admiring the housing problem. We should get on and build more houses, and that’s exactly what we intend to do.

Back on the Carlton public housing redevelopments, which are being announced by the PM and the Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews:

There’s currently 196 dwellings across the way here, they are old, they are out of date, no longer fit for purpose. They are derelict. There’s no one living there, resident moved out earlier this year. It’s fenced off and boarded up.

We need to do more and do better. And under the partnership with the … the Albanese commonwealth government we will demolish those towers and build something infinitely better for at least 231 units.

BoM warns of damaging winds in parts of NSW alongside fire danger

The Bureau of Meteorology is warning of damaging winds in alpine areas of New South Wales from this afternoon.

This is likely to impact southern parts of the state such as Khancoban, Jindabyne and Thredbo.

Average winds are forecast at 80 to 90km/h for these areas, gusting up to 125km/h.

Khancoban is forecast to reach a top of 27C today, with mostly sunny conditions and a “high” fire danger in the Monaro Alpine area.

The wind is expected to ease from late Wednesday morning.

The voice Ask Me Anything

Do you have a question for the next episode of “The voice Ask Me Anything” on our Full Story podcast? Whether it’s wanting analysis of the latest news, misinformation you want debunked or reflection on how our panelists came to their stance on the voice, we want to hear from you.

Please email your questions to voicequestions@theguardian.com.

Highest number of Australians banking with the big four as cost-of-living bites

New research from Finder shows that 4 in 5 Australians (80%) are banking with the big four – the highest number recorded since Finder began tracking the question.

The proportion has been tracking higher since January 2022 when 71% of people said they banked with the big four.

Finder’s head of consumer research, Graham Cooke, said more people are gravitating towards the big banks as the cost of living rises:

Consumers are prioritising their financial security as they grapple with interest rate rises and rising living costs.

In uncertain times, the big banks can feel like the safest option for consumers to stash their savings.

Cooke said while big lenders may instil a trust due to their long standing history, “some of the smaller banks are offering better deals”.

Fears over early extreme heat conditions in some communities

With extreme heat conditions being experienced across Australia so early in spring, a sense of anxiety is forming in some communities about the summer ahead.

Emma Bacon, executive director and founder of Sweltering Cities, said cost-of-living pressures will leave even more people vulnerable in sweltering heat:

Extreme heat can put our physical and mental health under enormous pressure, as well as our healthcare systems, housing and workplaces.

In our cities, people living in hot homes or our baking hot urban heat island suburbs will be at an even higher risk.

An active firefighter on the South Coast, Darin Sullivan, said the extreme heat is causing an earlier start to the bushfire season:

Rather than October we can see higher risk earlier. The impacts of climate change are longer, drier fire seasons with more intense fires.

Bushfire Survivors for Climate Action wrote on Twitter/X that it is “not normal” to see so many schools close due to fire risk this early in spring.

Our members are scared of what this fire season could bring – [and] now we see education suffering when the fires haven’t yet begun.

Under 40% of staff have confidence in University of Sydney leadership

Less than 40% of staff have confidence in the University of Sydney’s leadership, its latest survey has found, and just 31% believe it effectively directs resources towards the institution’s goal.

The annual survey was completed by 5,875 staff across professional and academic roles, reflecting on workloads, morale, culture and professional development.

It found almost 80% of staff were proud to work at the university and 79% believed their supervisor genuinely cared about their wellbeing.

But just 26% believed systems and processes helped them get teaching done effectively, citing high workloads and poor communication, and less than half (47%) believed the university was in a position to “really succeed” over the next three years.

Since the release of the survey, the humanities head of school, Keith Dobney, has stepped down from his position, pointing to its “truly disheartening” findings in a resignation email to colleagues.

The results from the recent staff survey are … a clear signal of a widening disconnect between the academic staff and leadership team.

A university spokesperson said a key goal for leadership was to build a “high-trust, high-accountability culture”:

All levels of university leadership ... have been analysing and discussing this year’s results with staff … and agreeing actions that specifically address staff feedback in their areas.

We’ll conduct a similar survey in May each year, and will continue to release the results to staff and commit to action to address issues raised.

Flights inquiry to confirm final list of witnesses for today’s Qatar Airways hearing at 10.30am

We are still yet to see a final list of the witnesses fronting the flights inquiry this morning due to this last-minute scramble.

The inquiry will scrutinise why the transport minister, Catherine King, knocked back Qatar Airway’s request to offer an additional 28 flights a week to Australia’s major cities.

It will also look at other factors affecting competitiveness in the industry and the impacts they have on consumer prices.

As we reported this morning, we’re expecting Sydney Airport officials to appear today, along with Flight Centre and Marque Lawyers.

But it needs a final tick off from the committee, and chair Bridget McKenzie has now confirmed on Sky News that will happen after a 10.30am meeting.

Beyond those appearing today, Qantas’ top brass, including the chief executive, Vanessa Hudson, former boss Alan Joyce and the board chair, Richard Goyder, have all been invited to attend.

Qatar Airways’ chief executive, Akbar Al Baker, has also been invited but it was reported yesterday he knocked back appearing at today’s hearing.

McKenzie said she was still confident some of those more high-profile invitees would be attending one of later hearings.

She said:

The secretariat, the public servants that are assisting the senators to conduct this inquiry, are in constant negotiation with everyone we’ve invited bearing in mind the invitations only went out on Friday. Today is Tuesday. So we’re working as hard as we can to get the jigsaw puzzle of who’s appearing when and where.

NSW RFS: 61 fires burning across NSW with 13 yet to be contained

Meanwhile, the NSW Rural Fire Service says there are currently 61 fires burning across the state, with 13 of these yet to be contained.

More than 500 firefighting personnel are working to contain these fires.

This comes as a total fire ban has been enacted in the Greater Sydney region and the Far South Coast today, and more than 20 public schools have closed due to the increased fire risk.

Queensland BoM flags extreme fire risk for part of state on Thursday and Friday

The Queensland Bureau of Meteorology has flagged that fire danger ratings will increase for most of the state in the coming days as heat builds.

Most places will have a “moderate” or “high” risk of fire between today and Friday. However, the Channel Country district has an “extreme” fire risk on Thursday and Friday:

More than 20 public schools across NSW are non-operational today due to the increased fire risk, with many of these being on the south coast – an area highly impacted during the 2019-20 black summer bushfires.

Batemans Bay public school’s principal, Kel Smerdon, is encouraging the school community to remain calm. Writing on Facebook, Smerdon said:

On a personal note, I share many of your own lived experience with fires and encourage everyone to take a calm and evidenced approach to the normal challenges of living in the hot summers of NSW which we both enjoy and also work together to alleviate the challenges and risk of during this dry time.

A number of schools are suggesting they will be advised by the NSW Rural Fire Service around 4-5pm this afternoon if it will also remain non-operation tomorrow.

RFS: NSW seeing worst fire risk since 2019 black summer fires

AAP has more details on the NSW school closures today, due to the increased fire risk:

The NSW education department listed 20 schools that will be closed across the state’s south coast on Tuesday.

A statement read:

Schools with elevated bushfire risk will be temporarily closed ... due to extreme fire danger ratings being declared.

The fire ban and school closures apply across areas including the Bega Valley and Eurobodalla Shire.

People needed to be prepared, the RFS commissioner, Rob Rogers, said:

It’s the worst risk we’ve faced since the Black Summer fires of 2019.

The heat is expected to shift north later in the week into parts of Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia, driving maximums to 40C.

Victoria to release state housing statement later this week

Later this week, the Victorian government is set to release its long-awaited housing statement.

The premier, Daniel Andrews, is expected to today outline how the state government will spend its share of the $3bn allocated for social and affordable housing as part of the federal government’s $10bn Housing Australia Future Fund (Haff) bill.

Later in the week, Andrews will outline details of the housing statement, including changes to the state’s planning laws to boost supply.

Ahead of the announcement, the CEO of the Victorian Public Tenants Association, Katelyn Butterss, said:

When this $2bn was announced the prime minister was very clear - it’s for public housing. The VPTA is expecting to see this promise delivered, and for new publicly owned and managed homes.

She said the Victorian housing crisis is already grave but has “exponentially worsened” due to the cost of living crisis:

It is imperative that today’s announcement adequately commits to deliver long term growth, beyond the Big Housing Build [plan], to ensure adequate publicly owned and operated housing to cope with this increased demand.

It will be extremely disappointing and a missed opportunity if the government, once again, neglects public housing and focuses solely on community housing.

McKenzie: Qantas culture hasn’t changed irrespective of who the CEO is

Bridget McKenzie was asked whether Qantas chairman Richard Goyder’s position is tenable.

She told ABC RN:

I think he’s overseen some egregious behaviour from his company.

… He was also the chair when these illegal sackings occurred and the ghost flights were sold. So at some point, the board has to take decisions for the management team that they put in place and I think this is one of the great questions over the new management team, because as I talked to former transport ministers, Qantas culturally hasn’t changed irrespective of who the CEO is, so I think there’s a lot of challenges going forward.

McKenzie argues government has been running ‘protection racket’ for Qantas

Speaking to ABC RN, opposition transport spokesperson Bridget McKenzie argued the government has been running a “protection racket” for Qantas:

…because it’s not just the Qatar Airways decision, they cancelled the ACCC monitoring of our aviation sector that was in place since Covid and they also explicitly brought out the aviation industry from their competition review [and] only backflip[ed] when we sort of raised it … [it] begs the question, what’s the quid pro quo? And Australians need to know.

She said there’s “too many decision points this government has made to protect Qantas”, attempting to draw a link to Qantas’ support of the yes campaign for the Indigenous voice to parliament referendum.

At the same time, McKenzie acknowledged the Coalition made similar decisions relating to air service agreements when in power and the hearings will examine this.

She criticised Qantas’ decision to sack staff, and ABC RN host Hamish Macdonald pressed that McKenzie was in government when this decision was made:

At the end of the day, companies make decisions and the board is responsible to shareholders. But once a court actually holds you that that was an illegal action, well absolutely you should be condemning that.

Macdonald asks if McKenzie took that moral position at the time when it happened. She said:

Well at the time it happened, it wasn’t deemed illegal.

Government to establish AI taskforce

The federal government will set up an AI taskforce made up of agencies including the Digital Transformation Agency, Industry, Health, Agriculture and Home Affairs to develop guardrails for AI and provide advice to government on how to use AI safely.

The taskforce will last up to 6 months, and comes following a public consultation on the future of AI policy.

The finance minister, Katy Gallagher, said that the robodebt saga had shown how advanced technologies can cause harm and undermine trust in government, so it was important to develop a safe and responsible use of AI.

The industry minister, Ed Husic, said AI models were advancing rapidly and it was important to get the maximum benefit from the technology, while also identifying emerging risks:

The government can lead by example by safely and responsibly harnessing the benefits of AI technologies. Our safe and responsible AI in Australia consultation is reinforcing that message loud and clear.

The new AI use in government taskforce combines a wealth of experience in the field of AI with broader perspectives from across the APS, and I look forward to the results of their work.

McKenzie: government ‘can’t get its story straight’ on Qatar Airways decision

The opposition transport spokesperson, Bridget McKenzie, is next up on ABC RN, speaking about the government’s decision to reject Qatar Airways routes.

As we brought your earlier on the blog, the inquiry into the federal government’s decision-making process to grant or reject additional flights to airlines begins today in Sydney.

McKenzie is heading the committee. She said there is a “long list of people” invited to speak and so far, “no one has refused to appear”.

In fact, because if they do, we’ve got the power obviously to summons those people.

McKenzie said the government has given nine different reasons for their decision to block Qatar Airway’s routes, from human rights to the environment, and “can’t get its story straight”.

That’s why we’ve had to stand the inquiry up to get to the bottom of the real reason. By restricting this application by Qatar Airways we know that Australians have a less choice of destination into Europe, through the Middle East …

I think Australians at the end of the day want an aviation industry they can where they can afford a ticket, where the planes take off and land on time, where your bags get to destination at the same time …

O’Neil: government response on cybercrime will not take away responsibilities of corporations to secure data

Clare O’Neil is asked whether the government is considering implementing a “safe harbour rule” like other countries have that would enable businesses to report what’s happened but then be saved from prosecution.

She told ABC RN:

What’s really important to understand … is the way in which a cyber attack unfolds is quite different than other types of crime. So if you get something stolen from your house, the police can come in and you can identify the items that are gone usually pretty much immediately. Cybercrime is not like that. Often what is taken is invisible and it will take sometimes months to understand exactly what has happened.

So what what we are thinking about at the moment is how to make sure we’ve got as open disclosure as possible at the crisis point of the attack. So when we know there is an intruder on the system … we need to help companies [eject] them from the system as quickly as possible. That doesn’t take away from any responsibilities that corporations will have ultimately around the transparency of what has happened, and reporting that to government and to regulators.

The only kind of tension that I would see here is how do we manage that really short-term crisis response … where we need to understand exactly what type of crime has occurred. None of that should take away from the responsibilities that companies have to make the laws in Australia and no one’s going to be taking away any of those responsibilities.

Clare O’Neil says Australia aiming to become ‘world leader’ in cybersecurity by 2030

The home affairs minister, Clare O’Neil, is speaking to ABC RN this morning about the government’s plan to become a “world leader” in cybersecurity by 2030.

This comes after Australia faced cyber attacks on Optus, which impacted 9 million Australians, and the Medibank attack three weeks later, which O’Neil said was a “wake-up call”.

O’Neil said cybersecurity was a priority of the government because there is “good reason” to believe it’s only going to get worse:

We’ve got really good reason to believe that the cybersecurity environment is actually going to worsen. And I say that not to scare people, but to help them understand that we can see what is coming at us and that is why the government is so fiercely active on this issue.

She said there aren’t mechanisms in place at this stage to go after culprits:

What I mean by that is that cybercrime is a relatively new form of criminal activity. And I think what we’re seeing is countries around the world start to build and develop responses that will actually help us bring perpetrators to account …

O’Neil said the government has implemented 10 substantial reforms within the last year and the focus is now becoming a “cyber leader” by 2030, with corporate Australia also getting “a big wake up call” over the last year around their responsibilities, she added.

Ed Husic says community consent would also be barrier to Coalition nuclear proposal

The industry and science minister Ed Husic spoke to ABC News Breakfast this morning about the Coalition’s nuclear energy proposal.

In case you missed it yesterday: the federal government says it would cost as much as $387bn to replace Australia’s retiring coal-fired power stations with the form of nuclear power proposed by the Coalition. You can read the full details here:

Husic said solar and wind are the “cheapest, quickest” ways to get energy generation.

What the Coalition is proposing is something they never really worked on when they were in government and if they were to get back into government, [it] would take ages to generate energy and it would be much more costly.

He was asked if the $378bn figure was a bit “over the top”, but argued it comes down to the scale of investment required.

That is a huge amount of money that would be required … and the key ingredient here is community consent where these potential nuclear power plants would be built.

…you have got the Liberal party pushing for the creation of nuclear power plants while the National party fights the establishment of transition lines. So you’ll generate the energy, won’t be able to move it. What we really need is to get focused on how we make this transition as efficient as possible and if it will also longer-term deliver longer prices, too, when we get it right.

Sydney to hit 34C as NSW RFS declare fire ban

Sydney is in for another hot day today, as high temperatures continue to sweep the country and the region faces its first total fire ban in three years.

Yesterday, the New South Wales Rural Fire Service enacted a total fire ban for the entire Sydney region:

Temperatures are forecast to hit 34C in Sydney today, with the ABC reporting the all-time September record as 34.6C.

Penrith has a forecast max temperature of 35C today, as does Bega, with the Bureau of Meteorology also declaring an extreme fire danger for the area.

Angus Hines from the BoM said parts of South Australia and Queensland would also feel the heat:

Most of Australia is sitting at moderate or high fire (danger) for the next few days.

The south coast of NSW has a small area of extreme fire danger there, overlapping with the heatwave conditions on Tuesday.

The NSW education department listed 20 schools that will be closed across the state’s south coast on Tuesday.

The fire ban and school closures apply across areas including the Bega Valley and Eurobodalla Shire.

- with AAP

Good morning everyone, and happy Tuesday!

I’m Emily Wind and I’ll be with you on the live blog today. Thanks to Martin Farrer for kicking things off.

If you see anything that needs attention on the blog, feel free to send me an email: emily.wind.casual@theguardian.com.

And with that, let’s get into it.

One reason for the no lead we’ve been talking about this morning might be their use of TikTok. As our reporters explain here, negative videos are spreading “like wildfire”, and leaving yes flatfooted.