Australian news and politics live: Canavan criticises Labor's net zero target amid soaring electricity bills
Liberal senator Dave Sharma has expressed support for NSW Premier Chris Minns' decision to block a march by pro-Palestine activists across the Sydney Harbour Bridge on Sunday afternoon.
Mr Minns has refused appeals to facilitate the protest on the Harbour Bridge, instead directing police to assist organisers in finding an alternative route for the rally.
However, activists have pledged a legal challenge to secure permission to march across the bridge.
'They're planning to disrupt Sydney's major piece of infrastructure causing inconvenience to tens of thousands of people. Right time, right place, this is not appropriate,' Mr Sharma said.
'Taking over the Harbour Bridge to protest about a foreign conflict I think is incredibly disproportionate, and the premier is right to be opposed to it.'
US President Donald Trump says many people are starving in the Gaza Strip and has suggested Israel could do more on humanitarian access, as Palestinians struggled to feed their children a day after Israel declared steps to improve supplies.
As the death toll from two years of war in the enclave nears 60,000, a growing number of people are dying from starvation and malnutrition, Gazan health authorities say, with images of starving children shocking the world and fuelling international criticism of Israel over sharply worsening conditions.
Describing starvation in the Gaza Strip as real, Mr Trump's assessment put him at odds with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said on Sunday 'there is no starvation in Gaza' and vowed to fight on against the Palestinian militant group Hamas - a statement he reposted on X on Monday.
Mr Trump, speaking during a visit to Scotland, said Israel has a lot of responsibility for aid flows and that a lot of people could be saved.
'You have a lot of starving people,' he said.
'We're going to set up food centres,' with no fences or boundaries to ease access, Mr Trump said.
Read the full story.
US President Donald Trump has warned that the minimum tariff the United States imposes on its trading partners, including Australia—could soon double.
Speaking at a press conference in Scotland, Mr Trump said he was planning a new universal tariff 'for the world.'
Asked just how high it would go, he replied: 'I would say it'll be somewhere in the 15 to 20 per cent range. I just want to be nice. Probably one of those two numbers.'
Currently, most US trading partners, Australia included, face America's 10 per cent 'baseline' tariff.
Read more.
Nationals Senator Matt Canavan has criticised the Labor government over soaring electricity bills, accusing it of failing to deliver on promises to reduce energy costs after committing to the 2050 net zero emissions target.
Mr Canavan said the government had focused too much on attacking the Coalition instead of addressing energy policy.
'It seems like the Labor Party has only one thing to talk about the last fortnight, and that's us, the Liberal and Nationals party,' he told Sky News, speaking alongside Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce in support of a bill to scrap the net zero goal.
'If they were actually doing a good job on energy policy, they'd be spruiking that, but the fact that they can't do that speaks volumes.
'They promised when they signed up to net zero that they'd lower your energy bills. It hasn't happened.'
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