With that, we will wrap the blog for the day. Here were today’s major developments:
David Pocock has said he’s open to the idea of independents forming a party to tackle One Nation’s growing influence on the right.
Pocock has also urged a Senate inquiry on changes to the capital gains tax discounts for all business investments, and agreed the tech industry should receive a potential carve-out or a special deal.
Staged demolition of the Waterloo public housing estate will begin tomorrow after a long fight by community members to save the towers.
Eleven Australians part of the Global Sumud flotilla will begin returning to Australia from this evening.
A 39-year-old man has died after a suspected shark attack on the Great Barrier Reef.
Queensland police have shot dead an alleged domestic violence perpetrator who was armed with a firearm at a home north of Brisbane.
The NSW police watchdog has said it expects to start its public hearings as part of the investigation into alleged police brutality at the February protest against the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog, no later than September, after receiving a record number of complaints.
Community continues to fight to save Waterloo public housing as demolition begins
Staged demolition of the Waterloo public housing estate will begin tomorrow after a long fight by community members to save the towers and who have said their battle is still not over.
The NSW government is demolishing Waterloo south, which housed vulnerable Sydney-siders in 750 public housing properties, to make way for 3300 properties. It’s expected the $4b redevelopment will take between ten and 15 years.
Half of the new properties will be private, 20% will be “affordable” housing, and the remaining 30% will be a mix of public and community housing.
The tenants displaced by the redevelopment are being relocated to other social housing estates in nearby suburbs and have been promised they can return when the new homes are complete.
Some residents continue to fight against the demolition. A protest is being held this afternoon in Waterloo calling for the government to renovate “the perfectly liveable apartments”.
The advocates said in a statement on Sunday about the protest that the government’s plan to redevelop Waterloo is a renege of a “pre-election 2023 promise to save Waterloo”.
Ron Hoenig, the state MP for Heffron, sent letter and texts to tenants in the lead-up to the 2023 election urging tenants to send the Liberal party a message – “Hands off Waterloo” – by voting Labor.
After the election the premier Chris Minns that said he would freeze the privatisation of public housing. Minns maintained the government’s plan to push ahead with the redevelopment is not privatisation and in line with its election policies.
Karyn Brown, Waterloo South resident and Action for Public Housing spokesperson said in a statement on Sunday:
double quotation markWe will not stop fighting the Minns government. A total of 750 tenants will be evicted to make way for private developer Stockland to build 3300 homes.
We have 640,000 people across the country who are in dire need of secure public housing. We have 150,000 people homeless and these are conservative figures.
The solution to the housing crisis is beautiful public housing. That’s why we need to save Waterloo.
A 39-year-old man has died after a suspected shark attack on the Great Barrier Reef.
Queensland police confirmed they will prepare a report for the coroner after the “sudden and non-suspicious death” of the man, who was understood to be fishing at Kennedy Shoal, a popular spot off the coast roughly between Townsville and Cairns.
He was brought to a boat ramp near Tully in a critical condition but has since died.
Three Gaza flotilla activists to arrive back in Melbourne and Brisbane from tonight
Three more Australians including activist Violet Coco will return to Australia from this evening, after they were detained by the Israel Defense Forces along with 425 others after their flotilla carrying aid to Gaza was intercepted.
As we reported earlier, seven Australians part of the Global Sumud flotilla will return to Sydney tomorrow morning. This includes, Neve O’Connor, Sam Woripa Watson, Isla Lamont, Juliet Lamont, Surya McEwen, Zack Schofield, and Anny Mokotow.
Two more, Coco and Gemma O’Toole, will arrive at Melbourne airport. O’Toole will arrive this evening, and Coco will arrive early on Monday morning. Helen O’Sullivan will arrive at Brisbane airport early on Monday.
A man is in a critical condition after an apparent shark attack about 160km south of Cairns.
It is understood the man is being treated for life-threatening injuries after being brought to the Hull Heads boat ramp aboard a vessel.
Police and paramedics were called at about noon on Sunday, and had been at the boat ramp waiting for the man to be brought back to shore.
‘Huge amount of grievance’ behind One Nation’s surging polls, Bragg says
Liberal senator Andrew Bragg says Australians are choosing One Nation over the opposition because they “want an economic revolution” and his party has failed in the last decade to give them a solution.
Earlier this morning, the NSW senator told Sky News it was a big opportunity for the Liberals to “reset” and to differentiate themselves from Labor.
double quotation markI think we’re in real trouble under this [Labor] government and we have to accept that part of the blame here belongs with us over a long period of time. I think we’ve been too much like a uniparty with Labor on economic policy and if we don’t massively differentiate, like we’re starting to do on bracket creep, then we’re going to be dead.
His comments come as a new poll released over the weekend by Redbridge Group and Accent Research estimates One Nation could win as many as 59 seats if a federal election were held at the moment.
Public hearings into NSW police response to Herzog protest to begin in September
The NSW police watchdog has said it expects to start its public hearings as part of the investigation into alleged police brutality at the February protest against the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog, no later than September, after receiving a record number of complaints.
The Law Enforcement Conduct Commission (Lecc), which is independent from the police, said in a statement released today:
double quotation markThe Commission is committed to a fair, objective and thorough investigation. That investigation will include Commission examinations, some of which will be held in public. The public hearings will start no earlier than September 2026.
The Lecc said in the statement that the police force had “promptly complied” with its notices to produce material from the Sydney protest, and that their cooperation had assisted the investigation.
However, this is at odds with a statement made by the Lecc chief commissioner, Peter Johnson SC, on Friday before a NSW parliamentary committee.
Johnson said police had become “overly defensive” in response to requests for information in its investigations, describing the relationship between the agencies as “difficult”.
The commission said it is assessing more than 800 complaints, reviewing more than 1,000 hours of CCTV footage, has conducted early interviews with witnesses, and is considering a range of material provided by police, including body worn video footage.
Seven Australians that were among the 428 people detained by the Israel Defense Forces last week after their flotilla carrying aid to Gaza was intercepted will return to Australia on Monday morning.
A statement said that the Australia participants of the Global Sumud flotilla – Neve O’Connor, Sam Woripa Watson, Isla Lamont, Juliet Lamont, Surya McEwen, Zack Schofield, and Anny Mokotow – will fly into Sydney airport at 7.45am.
More than 100 family members, friends and supporters are expected to welcome them back to Australia at the airport.
Lamont, an Australian film-maker, speaking in Turkey alleged that Israeli soldiers had sexually assaulted and beaten her. She says soldiers had beaten 180 people on her prison boat, leaving at least 40 with broken bones, while others were Tasered and sedated.
Israel’s national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, faced condemnation in Australia and around the world after sharing footage of himself verbally abusing the kneeling and bound detainees.
He was criticised within Israel, with the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, defending the flotilla’s interception but condemning his minister, stating: “The way that minister Ben-Gvir dealt with the flotilla activists is not in line with Israel’s values and norms.”
The Israeli ambassador to Australia, Hillel Newman, has claimed that the detained flotilla members were handled with “great sensitivity”. He rejected claims of violence and sexual abuse.
Suspected gunman dies after volley of gunshots heard near White House
We have an update on the gunshots that were heard near the US White House and which went into a brief lockdown on Saturday evening.
In a statement, the US Secret Service said that, shortly after 6pm local time, a man approached a checkpoint at a White House gate near 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW, took out a pistol and fired.
Secret Service officers, who protect the US president and vice-president, returned fire, the agency said, “striking the suspect, who was transported to an area hospital, where he later died”.
During the shooting, a bystander was also shot.
The Secret Service said:
double quotation markIt remains unclear whether the bystander was struck by the suspect’s initial gunfire or during the subsequent exchange of gunfire.
No injuries were sustained by Secret Service personnel. The President was at the White House during the incident but was not impacted.
More on this story here:
Climate activists say they have blocked two coal ships from entering Newcastle port
Climate activists say they have stopped two coal ships from entering the Port of Newcastle this morning after kayakers and a small boat entered the channel.
Rising Tide said in a statement a short time ago one ship scheduled to arrive at 8.30am had been turned around offshore, and another scheduled to arrive an hour later was cancelled.
They said police had spoken to the driver and passenger of a boat which had a banner that read “STOP HVO”, referring to the Hunter Valley Operations coalmine. The boat left and no arrests were made, the climate group said.
The driver of the boat, 85-year-old June Norman, is quoted in the statement as saying:
double quotation markI grew up in the best years economically in Australia’s history, and I can’t sleep at night thinking about my 5 great-grandkids trying to live on a dead planet if we keep mining coal. I want to see more people my age standing up for what’s right.
David Pocock has said he’s open to the idea of independents forming a party to tackle One Nation’s growing influence on the right.
Insiders host David Speers asked the independent senator for the ACT if independents forming a party would be a better strategy to tackle One Nation’s rise. Pocock said:
double quotation markThere’s plenty of conversations going on all the time.
Asked if he was open to it, he said: “I’m always happy to chat about the future of our country”:
double quotation markI think there’s so many people in politics for the right reasons and, when you’re in there, you want to say, well, how do we actually ensure that people can elect people that are going to come here and really deal with the root causes of the problems that we’re facing, because we haven’t seen that.
At the next election, Pocock said he’d like to see an independent run for parliament in every electorate who is supported by the community.
Speers asked: “Do you see this moment as a moment where independents like you should be forming a party, or is staying independent more important to you? How do you think about your own future here?”
Pocock responded: “It’s a big question in the current political climate as an independent.”
double quotation markHow do you be part of changing our country for the better? For me at the moment, that is serving people in the ACT, engaging on each issue, bringing solutions, using whatever power I have in the Senate to actually work on behalf of the people that have sent me there. As to what that looks like in the future, who knows?
Pocock says Labor should not ram CGT changes for businesses through parliament
David Pocock said the government’s aim to pass its changes to the capital gains tax discount for businesses in six weeks’ time was too fast.
double quotation markWe’ve seen this worrying trend in politics where things are just rammed through parliament rather than actually taking the time to get it right.
And in my experience, in the last term of parliament, when you do take things a bit slower, sure, it may get a bit messier but you end up in a better place because you hear the wide perspective of Australians who are directly impacted, and just more generally what their view is on these changes, and then you can land on a place that you say this actually makes sense for us as a country.
David Pocock has urged a Senate inquiry on changes to the capital gains tax discounts for all business investments, and agreed the tech industry should receive a potential carve-out or a special deal.
Pocock said on Insiders a short time ago that while he is a longtime supporter of changes to the capital gains tax regime for property, he thinks changes to the capital gains tax discounts for all business investments requires a Senate inquiry because “it’s very complicated”.
double quotation markI think the onus is on the government to, one, to make the case for the changes they’re suggesting, but I think, two, to really engage in good faith, and I think that is through a lengthy Senate inquiry, where you actually delve into the detail and grapple with some of these trade-offs to ultimately land on a piece of legislation that is going to work well.
Asked by the Insiders host if he thinks the tech industry deserves a complete carve-out or some sort of special deal, Pocock said: “I do.”
double quotation markI really welcome the government’s changes to property and their ambition to actually change our tax system.
I think when it comes to businesses, we want to be using it to incentivise startups, not just to start here in Australia, but critically to actually stay here as they scale.
He was also asked if he thinks there needs to be a carve-out or special deal for other small businesses.
double quotation markI think this is something that really needs broad consultation.
I think there’s some very good reasons that we do want people to be taking a chance and actually building businesses that solve the big challenges of today, but then critically to get them to stay here in Australia, because we’ve seen so many Australian businesses, a good idea gets gobbled up, moves to the US.
Pocock says Australia also needs to focus on returns from ‘industries of the future’
Pocock has advocated for a fair return on gas and other “industries of the future” including critical minerals and AI datacentres.
double quotation markI think we need to get a fair return from the export of our gas right now but we need to be looking at all these other industries that we’re told are the industries of the future, critical minerals, AI datacentres.
Asked what that fair return looks like and if he thinks Australia should be considering a government ownership model similar to Norway, he said:
double quotation markI don’t have the specific solution to it but I think it’s the principle of how do we get a fair return on resources that belong to the Australian people?
David Pocock urges ‘fair return’ on gas exports
David Pocock says he doesn’t want the gas industry “stopped”, he wants “a fair return on the exports of our gas”.
The independent senator for ACT, who is on Insiders, is being asked about his calls for a 25% tax on gas exports.
double quotation markWe’re one of the biggest gas exporters in the world right now. My argument is we should be getting a fair return from the export of that gas, and also lowering the price of gas here in Australia.
We’re constantly being told that we have some sort of shortage of gas. We’ve got manufacturers here paying more for Australian gas than Japan is buying our gas for.
David Pocock on Insiders this morning
ACT independent senator David Pocock will soon speak to Insiders host David Speers before the battle over the Albanese government’s budget moving into parliament this week.
We’re expecting more news soon on the volley of gunshots heard near the White House in Washington DC on Saturday evening.
Selina Wang, a White House correspondent for ABC News, shared video on social media of the sound of gunfire interrupting her as she recorded a report on US negotiations with Iran.
In the clip, Wang could be seen diving to take cover as what “sounded like dozens of gunshots” rang out.
You can read what we know so far here:
Queensland police have shot dead an alleged domestic violence perpetrator who was armed with a firearm at a home north of Brisbane.
After midnight on Sunday morning, officers responded to an alleged domestic violence incident at a house in Narangba after reports that a man was armed and making threats.
The man allegedly made threats towards the police while holding the weapon and an officer shot at him.
Officers immediately conducted first aid and resuscitation but the man died at the scene.
Queensland ambulance service said paramedics assessed a patient in a life-threatening condition. Three people were also transported to hospital in stable conditions.
The Police Ethical Standards Command, with oversight from the Crime and Corruption Commission, will investigate the incident.
Investigations are ongoing.
In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is on 13 11 14 and the national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732. Other international helplines can be found via www.befrienders.org
Good morning and welcome to another Sunday morning Guardian Australia live blog.
Queensland police have shot dead an alleged domestic violence perpetrator who was armed with a firearm at a home north of Brisbane.
And in the US, what sounded like a sustained volley of gunshots was heard near the White House in Washington DC on Saturday evening, according to reporters for multiple outlets and audio posted on social media.
I’m Jordyn Beazley and I’ll be taking you through our rolling coverage of news today.
With that, let’s get started.
Source: Guardian - World News
