TRANSCRIPT
- Two more schools in Sydney contaminated by asbestos-laden mulch
- Another home has been confirmed lost from bushfires in Victoria
- The father of Julian Assange expects his son will be extradited to the United States
Two more schools in Sydney have been added to the growing list of sites contaminated by asbestos-laden mulch.
Mulch at Penrith Christian School and St Luke's Catholic College at Marsden Park has tested positive for the hazardous material, bringing the total of schools confirmed positive to four.
But testing at Sydney Olympic Park - where popstar Taylor Swift is scheduled to play four sold-out concerts - has returned a negative result.
Secretary of the New South Wales Department of Education, Murat Dizdar, says he has been working with 12 out of the state's 3,000 schools.
"There are four sites that we're still waiting for further test results from. And they are Domremy College at Five Dock, Edmondson Park Public School in Edmondson Park, Mount Annan Christian College at Currans Hill and Trinity Catholic Primary at Kemps Creek. We're hopeful of attaining those results today so that we can communicate with those school communities prior to the kick-off of the school week tomorrow."
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Another home has been confirmed lost from catastrophic bushfires in Victoria, bringing the total to 46.
Premier Jacinta Allan has confirmed a house was destroyed near Pomonal on the edge of the Grampians National Park.
The fires destroyed 1 home in Dadswell Bridge and 45 homes in Pomonal, alongside 3 businesses and 23 outbuildings.
Residents across the state have been warned to stay vigilant while cleaning up, with dangerous residual electricity still running through downed powerlines.
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The Greens say they are open to negotiating with the federal government on its 'help to buy' policy, despite saying the current scheme "screws over" the vast majority of Australians looking to purchase a home.
Under Labor's 'help to buy' program, the government would contribute up to 40 per cent of the value of a home for a new property or 30 per cent for an existing one for a first home buyer as part of a shared equity scheme.
Home buyers would then be able to contribute as little as two per cent for a deposit.
But Greens housing spokesman Max Chandler-Mather told A-B-C's Insider that only a tiny number of Australians would be eligible for the program and the current form of the scheme will be a detriment to the rest.
"The government scheme would only help 0.2 per cent of renters buy a home every year, and for the other 99.8 per cent of renters in this country, it will actually drive-up prices, it will have an inflationary impact. Because, imagine you're at an auction and one person has access to this scheme and the 99.8 per cent who don't will watch that person bid up the price of housing because they have more money from the government in their pocket and it screws over the vast majority of people. Frankly, I don't think Australians should have to win this bizarre lottery where you've got a 0.2 per cent chance of winning just to get an affordable home."
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Opposition leader Peter Dutton is politicising unauthorised boat arrivals at the expense of Australia's national security.
This comes after the reported arrival of a group of over 35 asylum seekers in northern W-A believed to have come by boat from Pakistan, India and Bangladesh via Indonesia.
Peter Dutton has criticised Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, accusing him of being weak on the border and encouraging people smugglers.
The Prime Minister Albanese says Peter Dutton is risking border security in service of his political agenda.
"Peter Dutton is someone who is showing with his overblown rhetoric and with his overreach on this issue that he's not interested in outcomes or in the Australian national interest. As usual, he's just interested in politics. But we're very confident that Operation Sovereign Borders remains in place. We are implementing the policies that we said we would before the election, and this is just the latest demonstration of it."
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The father of Julian Assange expects his son will be extradited to the United States, but says he has faith the Australian government understands Mr Assange's life is at stake.
The Wikileaks founder will face the United Kingdom's High Court in his last bid to prevent his extradition to the United States on 18 charges including espionage.
His father John Shipton has told SBS News he believes it's likely the appeal will fail but explains there is still the chance of taking the case to the European Court of Human Rights.
"Hope's not a word I use. Faith in life and faith in the federal government to understand that it's burdened with three great things. One is the freedom of speech and freedom of media in the west, the other is the sovereignty of Australia. The third is the extraterritorial reach of the United States laws, and the fourth and most important to me is the life of Julian Assange."
Last week, the federal parliament urged a motion urging the UK and US to drop their prosecution against Mr Assange and allow him to Australia.
His wife Stella Assange has said she is concerned about Mr Assange's physical and mental decline and believes he will die if he is extradited.
