Australia news LIVE: Anthony Albanese announces NSW flood disaster relief; Bradfield's wafer-thin margin narrows to five votes; Former PM Turnbull lashes Coalition split; Trump blocks Harvard from enrolling international students

Sydney Morning Herald

23-05-2025

Key posts
12.14pm Boele's wafer-thin lead in Bradfield narrows further to just five votes
11.34am More Jetstar flights disrupted by GPS glitches
10.32am Trump's ban on foreign students at Harvard 'distressing' for Australians: US ambassador Rudd
9.48am More rate cuts could be on the horizon: NAB CEO
9.03am A 'myriad of reasons' why the Coalition lost the election: Tehan
8.46am Disaster allowance available from Monday: Albanese
8.21am Weakened opposition to create 'arrogance out of the PM': Tehan
7.39am Nationals MP confirms discussions with Liberals
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12.14pm
Boele's wafer-thin lead in Bradfield narrows further to just five votes
The count for Bradfield has been a rollercoaster ride for the Liberal candidate Gisele Kapterian and her opponent, teal hopeful Nicolette Boele.
When provisional counting ended on Monday, Boele was in front by 39 votes.
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However, today Boele's already wafer-thin margin over Kapterian narrowed even further to just five votes, according to the Australian Electoral Commission.
The north shore seat was called for Boele on election night by the ABC and Nine, only for Kapterian to forge ahead on the back of postal votes to be in a winnable position several days later.
Then, as the final votes trickled in, the Liberals were caught off guard. While postal votes usually favour the Coalition, a batch of international ballots swung heavily in Boele's favour.
Bradfield has traditionally been considered a safe Liberal seat – retiring MP Paul Fletcher has held the northern Sydney seat since the by-election in 2009.
Preferences are being distributed and if fewer than 100 votes still separate the candidates, there will be a recount.
12.00pm
ASX edges higher, Rio Tinto slides as CEO heads for exit
The Australian sharemarket has advanced after a choppy session on Wall Street caused by worries coming out of the bond market about the US government's debt.
The ASX 200 rose 26.6 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 8366.8 by 11am AEST on Friday, with five of 11 industry sectors in the green.
Mining giant Rio Tinto was 1.5 per cent lower in early trade after it announced on Thursday night it had started a global search to replace chief executive Jakob Stausholm, who will step down from his position after spending almost five years at the top.
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BHP was 0.4 per cent lower and Fortescue shed 1.6 per cent in early trade.
The big four banks are in positive territory. NAB added 0.6 per cent, Westpac gained 0.5 per cent, while CBA and ANZ both edged up 0.1 per cent.
Energy stocks are the best-performing sector, with Woodside and Santos adding 0.5 per cent in early trade.
Wall Street trading remained choppy throughout most of the day following Wednesday's big slump for the S&P 500. That loss has put the benchmark index on track for its worst week in the past seven.
The S&P 500 slipped 2.60 points, or less than 0.1 per cent, to close at 5842.01. The Dow Jones fell 1.35 points, or less than 0.1 per cent, to 41,859.09. The Nasdaq composite rose 53.09 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 18,925.73.
11.34am
More Jetstar flights disrupted by GPS glitches
By Chris Zappone
A second Jetstar flight has been cancelled after a fault in its navigation system, suspected to be related to solar flare activity.
A Brisbane to Bali flight was scrapped on Thursday after disturbances to its Global Positioning System (GPS) prevented the flight from taking off, Jetstar confirmed.
The disruption follows an earlier cancellation of a flight from Melbourne to Bali on Wednesday, as well as a number of delays, lasting for hours, that affected other flights at the Qantas-owned economy airline.
The GPS fault also caused subsequent delays of Jetstar flights to Bali, Fiji and Hobart from Australia's east coast on Thursday.
The spate of difficulties comes days after the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issued a warning about solar flare activity in previous days, raising the possibility that electromagnetic interference could affect aviation communication and navigation.
The Jetstar aircraft received a message 'requiring the [GPS] system to be reset before the flight departs', a spokesperson for the airline said, which caused 'a small number of disruptions to flights'.
'Engineers have inspected the aircraft and have determined the multiple aircraft GPS systems continue to operate and transmit signals,' Jetstar said.
No other Qantas-owned aircraft were affected. A spokesperson for Virgin Australia said no similar issues had been reported with its aircraft.
11.10am
Nationals senator Bridget McKenzie swats away questions on Littleproud's leadership
By Cindy Yin
Nationals senator Bridget McKenzie has thrown her support behind leader David Littleproud after swatting away questions on whether he could survive as the party's leader.
It comes after this masthead reported that former Nationals leaders Michael McCormack and Barnaby Joyce – who Littleproud was preparing to dump from his frontbench – had worked with Liberal leader Sussan Ley to pressure Littleproud into reopening Coalition talks.
McKenzie was asked on Sky News this morning if David Littleproud's leadership of the Nationals was at risk as a result of the rifts.
'David Littleproud is our leader, the party room made a collective decision to leave the Coalition.
'We will come back together post the Liberal Party's meeting to discuss whatever comes out of that.'
McKenzie declined to comment on specifics.
'I'm not going to become a gossip columnist about who said what to whom, that's up for others to discuss that,' she said.
'I'm the Senate leader – I'm going to be looking forward, to see what the Liberal Party has to say and where we go from here. Do we stay separate or are we going to renegotiate a Coalition agreement?'
10.32am
Trump's ban on foreign students at Harvard 'distressing' for Australians: US ambassador Rudd
Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd said he is working with the US government and closely monitoring developments on the future enrolment of international students after the Trump administration blocked Harvard University from enrolling international students.
US President Donald Trump's administration revoked Harvard University's ability to enrol international students on Thursday, and is forcing existing students to transfer to other schools or lose their legal status. About 120 Australian students study at the university, according to an estimate on the Harvard International Office website.
Rudd, who has served as the 23rd ambassador of Australia to the US since 2023, posted on X on Friday AEST:
'I know this will be distressing for Harvard's many Australian students. The embassy is working with the United States government to obtain the details of this decision so that Australian students can receive appropriate advice.'
' We also intend to engage the administration more broadly on the impact of this decision for Australian students and their families, both at Harvard and at other campuses across the United States.'
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The clampdown on foreign students marks a significant escalation of the Trump administration's campaign against the elite Ivy League university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which has emerged as one of Trump's most prominent institutional targets.
During the election campaign, Trump promised to combat antisemitism on campuses, to take on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, and to rid campuses of foreign students he considers hostile to American values. After several other prominent schools signalled their willingness to comply with Trump's demands, Harvard stood firm against the pressure.
The international student crackdown comes after Harvard refused to provide information that Kristi Noem, secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, had previously demanded about some foreign student visa holders who attend the university, the department said.
Reuters
10.14am
'Australians can't stand sore losers. How did politicians miss the memo?'
By Shane Wright
Australians don't like sore losers. We are a country that celebrates near misses, unlucky defeats or even unexpected successes (see: Steven Bradbury). Generally, we recognise that if you fall short, you should accept your lot and march on. Now, it seems there's an exception to this rule: federal elections.
Since the historic outcome of the May 3 election (historically good for Labor, historically bad for the Liberal Party), there has been a growing chorus of those who argue that because their team didn't win, preferential voting is to blame.
The May 3 result has prompted an outpouring of sour grapes from those who reckon a century-old system put in place by conservative parties to maximise their electoral chances is somehow being used by Labor to keep the mob formerly known as the Coalition from power.
For some, it's even worse – a full-blown conspiracy against democracy. This has included the claim that the preferential voting system (also known as an instant run-off or ranked choice) is somehow unconstitutional.
For decades, the preferential system almost always resulted in a final run-off between Labor and Coalition candidates. But as society has changed, so have the wants and needs of voters.
Of the 150 seats contested on May 3, more than 30 had a final two-party-preferred battle outside the Labor-Coalition alignment. About 13 were between a Liberal and an independent, nine were between Labor and a Green, another had Labor facing off against One Nation. There was also Labor versus an independent, and the Nationals against an independent.
That should be one of the key takeaways for the major parties from this election. It's a sign that our society wants more on offer than just a choice between the traditional left and right. It also shows the dissatisfaction among a growing number of voters with the major parties; more than a third backed someone else. Voters are exercising their right to choose, something we should cherish in a democracy.
9.48am
More rate cuts could be on the horizon: NAB CEO
By Cindy Yin
The chief executive of National Australia Bank, Andrew Irvine, said three more interest rate cuts could be on the horizon, which, including the most recent rate cut, would amount to a total decrease of 1 per cent for struggling borrowers.
It comes after the Reserve Bank of Australia sliced official interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point to 3.85 per cent on Tuesday – the first time the cash rate has been below 4 per cent in two years – at its first meeting since Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariffs.
NAB passed on Tuesday's rate cut in full to borrowers. The bank will reduce its mortgage rates by 0.25 percentage points from May 30. Its competitors Westpac, ANZ and Commonwealth Bank also followed suit and announced the reduction almost immediately after the rate cut.
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'This is going to be really meaningful for households. Each 25 basis points saves the average household $90 to $100 a month. That's $300 or $400 in your pocket at the end of this, which I think will help the economy,' Irvine told Tom Elliot on 3AW today.
When asked whether homeowners were likely to save or spend the extra cash, Irvine said it would be dependent on each individual's particular situation.
'There are large parts of the country doing really well – Western Australia, Queensland, and even here in Melbourne, older families have generally paid off their home loans. They're doing quite well, so it depends.
'What we saw with the last rate cut is more people chose to keep their payments the same and pay off their mortgage rates faster. But obviously if you are struggling, this is going to provide real relief, and we'd encourage people to take that cut and reduce their payments.'
9.17am
'You in my house?' Rapper Kid Cudi says 'Diddy' broke into his home
Rapper Scott 'Kid Cudi' Mescudi testified at Sean 'Diddy' Combs' sex-trafficking trial that the hip-hop mogul broke into his home in 2011 after discovering Mescudi was dating his on-and-off girlfriend Casandra Ventura.
The incident is one of a number of violent and threatening acts that prosecutors allege Combs undertook during a 20-year scheme to coerce women, including Ventura, to take part in drug-fuelled sex parties known as 'freak offs' and prevent them from leaving his orbit.
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Combs has pleaded not guilty to charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking, and transportation to engage in prostitution. Combs' lawyers have acknowledged he has a history of drug abuse and domestic violence, but they argue that the women who took part in freak offs did so consensually.
Testifying as a prosecution witness on Thursday, New York time, Mescudi told the Manhattan federal court that Ventura called him early one morning in December 2011 and told him Combs had found out about their relationship and asked Mescudi to pick her up.
Also known throughout his career as Puff Daddy and P. Diddy, Combs turned artists such as Notorious B.I.G. and Usher into stars, elevating hip-hop in American culture and becoming a billionaire in the process.
He has been held in federal lockup in Brooklyn since his September 2024 arrest.
9.03am
A 'myriad of reasons' why the Coalition lost the election: Tehan
By Cindy Yin
Liberal MP Dan Tehan said there were 'a myriad of reasons' why the Liberals and Nationals lost the federal election, and pointed to the urgent need to enshrine a Coalition agreement to iron out issues.
Speaking to ABC Radio Melbourne this morning, Tehan said: 'There were a myriad of reasons why we lost the last election. What we've said loudly and clearly is that we want to look at those reasons, we want to assess them.
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'We obviously want to make sure that we're going out to the Australian people listening, understanding why in the end they didn't vote for us and voted for the Albanese Labor government.'
Tehan's comments come after Nationals leader David Littleproud had to shelve his shadow cabinet plans and restart negotiations just 48 hours after announcing his party would walk away from its long alliance with the Liberals.
'We need to learn those lessons, and now we have to make sure that we regroup, enshrining a Coalition agreement and then presenting a compelling case to the Australian people at the next election,' he said.
'Now we've got a lot of hard work to do between now and then. Obviously, our numbers are diminished, which means we're going to have to work collectively together.'
8.46am
Disaster allowance available from Monday: Albanese
By Angus Dalton
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed flood-affected residents of NSW will be able to access the Disaster Recovery Allowance from Monday. He's preparing to chopper in to flood-affected areas on the Mid North Coast.
The funding provides up to 13 weeks of fortnightly payments to people who can't work or will lose income in the wake of the disaster.
Federal Emergency Management Minister Kristy McBain activated the allowance yesterday for four flood-stricken areas, including Kempsey, Port Macquarie, Dungog and the MidCoast Council area.
'If it's flooded, forget it. Do not drive through floodwaters,' Albanese said on Triple M Newcastle. 'Listen to the advice. Make sure you log on to the relevant sites and keep informed if you're in these communities because we just don't want to see any further tragedies.'
This morning, a fourth death from the flood disaster was confirmed after police found the body of a man in floodwaters north-west of Coffs Harbour.
Another driver alerted police to a car they had spotted, which had run off a road in Nana Glen, about 30 kilometres from Coffs Harbour, about 4.30am this morning.
Police officers and personnel from the NSW State Emergency Service found the body of the man, believed to be in his 70s, inside the car.