Liberal leader vows to work with PM in first party room address
In her first address to the party room as leader, Sussan Ley says the Opposition will work with the Prime Minister on constructive policies.
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ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
WA Liberal Party State Council supports call to abandon net zero, reduce Welcome to Country ceremonies
The WA Liberal Party has supported a motion to abandon a target of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, putting added pressure on Australian Opposition Leader Sussan Ley to abandon the policy for the federal party. Delegates at the WA Liberal State Council also approved a motion to get rid of the Indigenous and Torres Strait Islands flags behind the prime minister at press conferences and cut back on Welcome to Country ceremonies. It is understood both motions were carried with an overwhelming show of support when they were read out and without needing to go to a ballot. The behind-closed-doors meeting was held at a hotel in federal MP Andrew Hastie's electorate of Canning, one of only four seats the Liberals now hold in WA. Labor increased its dominance in the state after the May federal election, winning 11 seats, while independent Kate Chaney retained Curtin. As Ms Ley and the party weigh up how to claw back those and other seats around the country, she has ordered a review of the Liberals' energy and emissions reduction policy. The WA Liberal Party's move has thrown open the debate on net zero within the Coalition, with Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce proposing a private members bill to dump the policy. Grassroots Liberals have been making their views known to the parliamentary party, with the South Australian Liberal State Council already abandoning net zero and the Queensland Liberal National Party also due to decide on the matter. The motion at the WA State Council on Saturday was put forward by the Canning Division, in Mr Hastie's seat. It said the WA division of the Liberal Party called on the federal Liberal opposition to abandon the target of net zero by 2050 and to reform "the legislated net zero incentives, subsidies and penalties". It said it wanted the party to "affirm (a) commitment to clean energy, but not at the expense of Australia's economic and national security". Further, the motion called on the federal opposition to "harness Australia's natural abundance of coal, gas and uranium in the generation of stable, reliable and affordable power for all Australians". The motion said its positions should be adopted in light of the fact the three countries responsible for more than 50 per cent of the world's carbon emissions — China, the United States and India — "have no intention of meeting Net Zero by 2050". It also said "attempts to decarbonise Australia are destabilising our energy grid, forcing up power prices and damaging our national and economic security". The WA Liberal Party's Policy Committee put up the motion on the flags and Welcome to Country ceremonies. It called on the federal opposition to adopt a policy where the only other flags, apart from the Australian national flag, to receive Commonwealth recognition should be those of others states and territories or of government institutions, such as the military. The motion also called on the opposition to remove official status for Welcome to Country ceremonies. "While they may originally have been well-intentioned, they are now often divisive and tokenistic and do little to improve the lives of our most disadvantaged Australians," it said.
ABC News
3 hours ago
- ABC News
Townsville businesses speak on public drunkenness as Queensland government looks to re-criminalise it
The Queensland government has flagged re-criminalising public drunkenness in a bid to curb what it says is a surge in antisocial behaviour, less than a year after it was decriminalised. Queensland became the final state in Australia to decriminalise public drunkenness, more than 30 years after it was first recommended by the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody. Premier David Crisafulli this week held a forum in the largest city in north Queensland — Townsville — a city he once described as crime ground-zero to listen to community concerns. A walk down Townsville's main street paints a nuanced picture, with views mixed among business operators and community leaders on how best to make the CBD safer and more attractive to visitors. It's a quiet weekday afternoon when foot traffic should be busy. Shop owner Lucy Downes said she now worked seven days a week because it was harder to find staff wanting to work in the CBD. "It is not a family-friendly environment when you have people brawling and yelling," Ms Downes said. "Especially when there's substance abuse involved. That can be intimidating and scary for staff to witness." Ms Downes backed the state government's move to possibly re-criminalise public drunkenness, but said harsh punishment was not the solution to substance abuse. "It is a very complicated problem … it's good to look towards the bigger picture," she said. When public drunkenness was decriminalised last year, it brought Queensland into line with every other state and territory. The legislative change allowed for an intoxicated person to be taken to a place of safety. But, walking into a meeting with community and business leaders, Mr Crisafulli said it was a retrograde step. "We certainly won't be ruling [re-criminalising] out." Queensland Police statistics show that while the total number of crimes in Townsville has risen steadily over the past 10 years, good order offences, including public nuisance offences, have dropped. Business owners stressed the CBD was still a good place to visit and that police had been working hard recently to keep order. Pauline Jackson said she felt safe at the newsagency she had run on Townsville's Flinders Street for 18 years. Ms Jackson said criminalising public drunkenness would discourage people from poor behaviour. She said more consistent policing was needed. "As soon as you drop it off, antisocial behaviour comes back," she said. "It does keep people away." Marg Cox is often greeted by the smell of urine on her morning walk to her job as the operator of a sandwich shop on Flinders Street. Ms Cox said practical solutions were the best approach. "They need more public toilets in the city; the closest toilet is over the bridge, not in the area," Ms Cox said. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Service principal legal officer Greg Shadbolt warned any move to bring back public intoxication laws would target the state's most marginalised people. The service said 2020–2021 statistics demonstrated Queensland Police were 11 times more likely to pursue public order offences against Indigenous people compared to the rest of the population. "If the park is your home and you're not doing anything wrong, other than just drinking, you could potentially be arrested," he said. "If anyone does make a nuisance of themselves in the public arena, police can still arrest them for a whole plethora of charges." Birrigubba elder and academic Gracelyn Smallwood said outlawing public drunkenness would be a backward step, risking more Aboriginal deaths in custody. "I think it's absolutely ridiculous," Professor Smallwood said. Professor Smallwood said alcohol abuse should never be dealt with by locking people up. "All the organisations, Indigenous and non-Indigenous that are receiving money for drunkenness and homelessness should all be collaborating," she said. Additional consultation sessions are being planned for Townsville, Maryborough, Cairns and Mackay.
SBS Australia
4 hours ago
- SBS Australia
SBS News in Filipino, Saturday 26 July 2025
There are growing calls for Australia's childcare subsidy to include more care options. Australia and the United Kingdom are set to sign a 50-year defence treaty today Supreme Court dismisses impeachment complaint against VP Sara Duterte, citing constitutional violation of one-year ban. LISTEN TO THE PODCAST SBS Filipino 26/07/2025 06:25 Filipino 📢 Where to Catch SBS Filipino
