Australia news live: Qantas apologises for four-hour wait on Sydney tarmac; Barnaby Joyce unleashes on dog in 7.30 interview | Australia news
Qantas apologises to passengers stuck on tarmac for more than four hours
Qantas has apologised to about 250 passengers who were stuck on the tarmac in Sydney for four-and-a-half hours on Monday afternoon while the airline dealt with multiple separate aircraft issues.
Flight QF43 to Denpasar had been scheduled to leave at 4.20pm yesterday.
A passenger on the flight called ABC Radio Sydney last night, after four hours of waiting on the tarmac, saying:
They’ve come back with multiple messages and they’ve constantly been changing throughout, the time frame, to the point where a lot of people are not really sure now what’s going on and what is the truth and are we actually going to get off the ground? But there’s been some engineers in and out for hours trying to work out what’s going on with the plane, and now we’re just being told they’re about to shut the computers down and reboot them.
A Qantas spokesperson told Guardian Australia that the flight was delayed initially due to a refuelling issue but then engineers identified a separate issue that required assessment and resulted in further delays.
The spokesperson said:
We understand this was a frustrating experience for our customers and sincerely apologise for this inconvenience. We’re reviewing this incident and acknowledge that our communication could have been better in this instance.
The flight departed for Denpasar at 8.50pm.
Key events
Nine newspapers to cut 30 roles in further redundancies
Amanda Meade
Staff numbers at the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age will be cut by 30 in another round of redundancies announced by Nine’s publishing arm today.
The managing director of publishing Tory Maguire called staff to a town hall meeting at 10.30am on Tuesday to unveil what she said was structural change in a digital-first era.
McGuire said in an email seen by Guardian Australia:
The best way to protect our quality journalism is to ensure our organisation adapts to a changing media landscape, that we’re growing commercially and investing in new areas which connect with new audiences.
In particular we need to keep shifting towards the digital-first future.
Earlier this year Nine made a number of roles in its broadcasting division redundant. This new round of redundancies will not impact the Australian Financial Review.
Marco Rubio expected to join Penny Wong at Asean conference
The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, was scheduled to land in Manila on Tuesday morning for the Asean conference, joining the Australian foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, and their international counterparts, as the rekindled war with Iran is placing traditional American allies under economic strain.
To give some international context to the talks, the import-dependent Philippines declared a national energy emergency in March and has been forced to cast an ever-wider net for fuel, including purchases of oil from Russia, whose foreign affairs minister, Sergei Lavrov, will arrive on Tuesday as well.
Before departing from Washington on Monday, Rubio said he was open to the possibility of sideline meetings with both Lavrov and China’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, who Beijing only officially confirmed would attend on Monday.
A meeting with Wang would come days after the US president, Donald Trump, accused Beijing of meddling in US elections.
The week is also expected to see renewed efforts towards regional energy security, including the ongoing push for ratification of the bloc’s Framework Agreement on Petroleum Security fuel-sharing scheme.
In May, members signed off on a push for an Asean power grid, aimed at connecting national electricity networks to enable cross-border power trading.
Rubio will meet the Philippines president, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, as part of a strengthened US partnership with the Philippines, with the disputed South China Sea certain to be on the agenda. Chinese and Philippine ships regularly clash in the crucial waterway, which Beijing claims nearly in its entirety, despite an international ruling that its assertion has no legal basis.
The Philippines has previously said it hoped to conclude a code of conduct between Asean and China before ending its year as the bloc’s rotating chair but analysts have suggested any deal Beijing would be willing to sign would be toothless.
– With AFP
Synagogue unsuccessful in application for security grant prior to arson attack
Penry Buckley
A Melbourne synagogue was unsuccessful in applications for government grants for security before a December 2024 arson attack that has seen its doors closed ever since.
The royal commission’s fifth block of hearings, which are being held in Melbourne this week, is examining security arrangements for the Jewish community.
Yesterday, counsel assisting, Richard Lancaster SC, said evidence would show “a substantial and ongoing threat” to the security of the Jewish community, leading to a “shrinking of Jewish communal life”.
Today’s first witness is Benjamin Klein, a board member of the Adass Israel synagogue, the subject of an arson attack in December 2024. Asked about applications for grant funding for security in 2023 and 2024 before the attack, he said:
There were letters sent out to both government, local members, to different parts of the Jewish of the community seeking grants. It was local council, there was state government, there were federal grants, which we saw were available.
We’d sent out letters and were unsuccessful. We also sent out a letter to Mark Dreyfus at the time, who was the attorney general, and we weren’t successful. There were technicalities in terms of incorporated entities, unincorporated entities. There was a lot of red tape to sort of get through and we weren’t successful.
The commission has heard that the synagogue’s board has since had to employ someone to oversee funding applications for security grants. After the attack, the federal government has pledged up to $30m to rebuild the synagogue.
Asean foreign ministers to meet in Philippines
Krishani Dhanji
As we mentioned earlier, the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, is in the Philippines today for the Asean foreign affairs ministers’ meeting, the East Asia summit foreign ministers’ meeting and the Asean regional forum.
The 11 Asean nations include Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei Darussalam, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia and Timor-Leste.
Crucially, it means Wong could have an opportunity to put pressure on Lao officials after they said they do not have enough evidence to lay charges over the methanol poisoning deaths of Australian citizens Holly Bowles and Bianca Jones – because autopsies were not carried out.
In a statement on Friday, Wong said the government was “deeply frustrated and bitterly disappointed that authorities in Laos are not pursuing the most serious charges” in relation to the deaths.
Labor announces $25m in support for Gaza
The federal government has announced a $25m package of support for aid in Gaza and “reforms for governance” in Palestine, “to strengthen the institutional foundations of the State of Palestine”.
The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, and the minister for international development, Anne Aly, announced the funding this morning, saying it forms part of “coordinated international efforts to advance a two-state solution.”
The funding includes $15m to the UN Horizon Fund, whose strategic goal is to “contribute to inclusive early recovery and reconstruction for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip” after the 10 October ceasefire last year.
More than $80m has been pledged to the Horizon Fund internationally, with contributions from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, the government’s media release notes.
Australia has also pledged $10m to the World Bank’s Palestinian Fund for Reconstruction and Development (PFRD) “to strengthen the Palestinian Authority’s public financial management”. Japan, the UK, Canada, France, Sweden, Switzerland, and Iceland have also contributed to the PFRD.
Wong said this morning:
This package demonstrates Australia’s practical commitment to Palestinian recovery, reform and institution-building. Hamas can play no role in the State of Palestine.
A lasting peace requires legitimate governance, economic opportunity and security for both Palestinians and Israelis.
Australia will continue to work closely with international partners to help create those conditions.
Aly said:
The humanitarian needs of Palestinians remain immense, and communities will require sustained support to recover and rebuild. This funding package will complement our existing humanitarian assistance.
This investment will help strengthen institutions, advance reform efforts and support communities as they work towards recovery and resilience.
Australia’s development assistance delivers practical outcomes for vulnerable people while supporting the governance and institutional reforms needed for long-term stability and prosperity.
Qantas apologises to passengers stuck on tarmac for more than four hours
Qantas has apologised to about 250 passengers who were stuck on the tarmac in Sydney for four-and-a-half hours on Monday afternoon while the airline dealt with multiple separate aircraft issues.
Flight QF43 to Denpasar had been scheduled to leave at 4.20pm yesterday.
A passenger on the flight called ABC Radio Sydney last night, after four hours of waiting on the tarmac, saying:
They’ve come back with multiple messages and they’ve constantly been changing throughout, the time frame, to the point where a lot of people are not really sure now what’s going on and what is the truth and are we actually going to get off the ground? But there’s been some engineers in and out for hours trying to work out what’s going on with the plane, and now we’re just being told they’re about to shut the computers down and reboot them.
A Qantas spokesperson told Guardian Australia that the flight was delayed initially due to a refuelling issue but then engineers identified a separate issue that required assessment and resulted in further delays.
The spokesperson said:
We understand this was a frustrating experience for our customers and sincerely apologise for this inconvenience. We’re reviewing this incident and acknowledge that our communication could have been better in this instance.
The flight departed for Denpasar at 8.50pm.
Penny Wong congratulates Ed Miliband on appointment as UK foreign secretary
As the UK prime minister, Andy Burnham, announces his new cabinet, the congratulations from Australian ministers have been rolling through.
The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, congratulated Ed Miliband on his appointment as UK foreign secretary, saying on X:
Australia and the UK have an enduring partnership, underpinned by shared history, values and interests. I look forward to working with you again to further strengthen and modernise our relationship.
She also congratulated the outgoing UK foreign secretary, Yvette Cooper, on her new appointment as secretary of state for health and social care, saying on X:
Thank you to @YvetteCooperMP for your friendship and for your contribution to our close partnership.
Your leadership and determined diplomacy have helped deepen cooperation between Australia and the UK, and I wish you every success as Health Secretary.
Wong is currently in the Philippines to attend the Asean-Australia foreign ministers’ meeting, the East Asia summit foreign ministers’ meeting and the Asean regional forum.
She described the meetings as an opportunity “to advance Australia’s interests and continue work on shared challenges, including energy security, supply chain resilience and long-term economic prosperity.”
The meetings will also mark the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia, and 80 years of diplomatic ties between Australia and the Philippines.
Graham Readfearn
Alpine ski resorts in New South Wales and Victoria saw climate records shattered at the weekend with maximum temperatures up to 12C above average.
Ski areas of Mount Hotham and Falls Creek set July records for their hottest daytime and night-time temperatures and Thredbo also set a new hottest July day, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.
The records come after a challenging start for Australia’s ski season with dry and warm temperatures seeing only sporadic falls of natural snow in many alpine areas, leaving resorts to rely mostly on snow-making technology.
Read the full story here:
Tory Shepherd
Labor to release new statement on space
A new “statement on space” will focus on Australia’s areas of strength, the federal government says.
Ecosystems in spacecraft and microgravity environments, and exploration technologies, will be among the priorities and the government will emphasise its expectation that the Australian Space Agency should focus on monitoring the more than 30,000 human-made space objects. Space junk has been known to fall to Earth.
The science, innovation and industry minister, Tim Ayres, will release the statement at a space forum in Adelaide this afternoon. He said it would “provide direction and focus so that we can further grow Australia’s space capability, support national priorities and connect to global opportunity”:
We want to see more Australian ideas commercialised, more Australian technology deployed globally, and more of the economic value harnessed here at home.
Voting to close on Victoria’s teacher strike
A Victoria-wide teacher strike hangs in the balance as voting closes today on a revised pay offer, after months of industrial action.
Victorian members of the Australian Education Union had agreed to take further industrial action on Thursday, citing excessive workloads and uncompetitive pay, AAP reports.
The state government has provided an updated pay offer of 28.3% over the next four years, which has gone to a union member ballot. Voting on the proposal opened on Friday and will close on Tuesday afternoon.
A union spokesperson told AAP the planned action hinged on the outcome of the vote:
If members vote to reject the offer, the action will proceed as planned.
More than 35,000 Victorian teachers, principals and education support workers walked off the job in March, the first strike of its kind in 13 years.
Union educators have been locked in a pay dispute with the government for months, with graduate teachers – the worst paid in the country – earning $13,000 less than those in the Northern Territory, who are the best paid.
The union’s state branch represents more than 60,000 public school staff.
Members have been pushing for a 35% pay rise over four years, after rejecting an initial offer of an 18.5% increase over three years.
Melissa Davey
Life-saving drugs used to treat common childhood infections are increasingly failing and the resistance of bacteria to these medicines will only worsen over the next decade, a global analysis has found.
Led by Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) in collaboration with the University of Sydney in Australia, researchers analysed 106,581 infection samples from children aged up to 18 years old across 82 countries.
They found antibiotic resistance – when bacteria are no longer killed by antimicrobial medicines – increased in every region between 2004 and 2022.
Babies and children in intensive care, and countries with fewer healthcare resources, are most affected, according to the findings published in the Journal of the American Medical Association on Tuesday.
Read the full exclusive story here:
Albanese congratulates new British PM
Anthony Albanese has congratulated the new UK prime minister, Andy Burnham, after the latter took over the job yesterday. The Australian PM posted a note to X, emphasising the strategic allyship:
Congratulations Prime Minister Burnham on your appointment as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
Australia and the United Kingdom are longstanding friends, allies and partners, united by shared values and deep ties between our peoples.
I look forward to working with you to strengthen our partnership and promote security, resilience and prosperity in the years ahead.
Australia Palestine Advocacy Network criticises Labor’s draft policy platform
The Australia Palestine Advocacy Network has criticised Labor’s draft policy platform on Palestine, saying it is “currently falling far short and does not acknowledge the Palestinian genocide”.
We reported this morning that Israel had made an intervention into the Labor party’s internal processes, publicly criticising the draft that it claims risks blaming Israel for the Gaza conflict while giving “insufficient attention” to the role of Hamas.
The Israeli embassy in Canberra issued a four-page statement on Monday challenging the proposed positions on Palestine, Hamas and settler violence in the West Bank, due to be debated at this week’s Labor national conference.
The language in the 2026 draft platform relating to Israel and Palestine is substantially different to the 2023 iteration, reflecting shifts in government policy following Hamas’ 7 October attack and Israel’s war in Gaza.
Nasser Mashni, the APAN president, said this morning:
Despite what the Israeli Embassy might say, Labor is currently falling far short and does not acknowledge the Palestinian genocide and must take real, urgent action at this conference. Their platform position is totally insufficient.
Australia must reckon with the obligations that flow from its recognition of Palestine, and the Conference must draw a red line on genocide and Australian complicity in it.
The International Court of Justice ruled in its July 2024 Advisory Opinion that Israel’s presence in Palestine is unlawful and that all Israeli settlements are illegal under international law. The Court further found that states are obligated not to recognise or assist the illegal occupation. Australia is bound by these findings.
Recognition of Palestine cannot remain symbolic. Australia must impose wide ranging and wholesale sanctions on the Israeli regime and anyone or any entity associated with the settlement enterprise.
Thanks so much Martin Farrer for kicking us off this morning. I’m Stephanie Convery and I’ll be with you until mid-afternoon today.
Joyce dogged by interruptions in 7.30 interview
The Joyce interview was spiky from the start, as he responded to Ferguson’s welcome saying:
I don’t know whether you do welcome me, but let’s have a go.
It was also made more awkward by several interruptions by a dog.
The first time, as Joyce was asked if he was “comfortable with where [Hanson] is taking you”, he turned and loudly yelled “sit down!” off camera, then explained “Sorry, it’s a dog”. He then explained that he believed One Nation’s views mirrored a large proportion of Australia.
The second time, he was asked about suggestions One Nation would implement mass deportations by intercepting visa overstayers during medical visits.
A glum Joyce replied:
I have to apologise for this dog, which has decided to bail up my …
Ferguson said:
Don’t worry about the dog. Just answer the question.
Joyce responded:
Don’t be rude. Don’t be rude. Otherwise, this interview will come to a grinding halt, Sarah. So what was the question actually?
The subject of the dog was returned to at the interview’s conclusion, with Ferguson saying:
Thank you very much indeed for joining us Barnaby Joyce. The dog was no problem. Thank you.
Joyce:
It was to me.
Barnaby Joyce defends Pauline Hanson’s podcast interview with far-right criminal Tommy Robinson
Catie McLeod
One Nation MP Barnaby Joyce has tried to defend party leader Pauline Hanson’s decision to meet far-right convicted criminal Tommy Robinson during a recent visit to the UK.
Hanson and her colleagues have spent recent days clarifying, explaining or walking back headline-grabbing parts of the One Nation leader’s trip to Europe, including a podcast interview with Robinson.
On ABC’s 7.30 program last night, Joyce first acknowledged Robinson had done “some things” that were “basically against the law” but went on to blame a “form of Balkanisation, where there’s not an assimilation” for “massive problems, and we saw that in Bondi”.
The host, Sarah Ferguson, put to Joyce that Hanson was effectively endorsing a man with an extensive criminal record, who had been condemned by UK authorities for encouraging race riots and retribution against minorities.
My question to you, Barnaby Joyce, is: is that not a red line?
Joyce responded:
I believe that there is not a condoning of every action of Tommy Robinson.
I don’t think that was ever said.
During the interview, Joyce also said that he did not know who had bankrolled Hanson’s trip.
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then it will be Steph Convery with the main action.
We start with Barnaby Joyce’s rather unusual interview with the ABC’s 7.30 last night, in which he attempted to defend some of the more controversial aspects of his leader’s trip to Europe, in particular Pauline Hanson’s podcast with Tommy Robinson, while simultaneously trying to fend off an apparently misbehaving dog.
