The Federal Government moves to strengthen Australia's fuel reserves against future disruptions; Brazil's presidential election campaign begins with Lula seeking another term; and in sport, Auckland confirmed as host of the first men's State of Origin match in New Zealand next year.
TRANSCRIPT
In this bulletin;
- The Federal Government moves to strengthen Australia's fuel reserves against future disruptions
- Brazil's presidential election campaign begins with Lula seeking another term
- And in sport, Auckland confirmed as host of the first men's State of Origin match in New Zealand next year
The federal government is moving to strengthen Australia's fuel reserves, saying the current international crisis has highlighted the risks of relying heavily on supplies from overseas.
The government has begun designing a $3.2 billion strategic reserve to will eventually hold one billion litres of diesel and jet fuel.
It is seeking feedback on where the fuel should be stored across Australia, how quickly the reserve should be built and who should manage it.
Fuel companies will also be required to hold an additional 10 days' supply of petrol, diesel and jet fuel by 2030.
Energy Minister Chris Bowen says Australia has weathered the current disruption, but needs a bigger buffer against future crises.
"We've made it clear that we need to strengthen our own fuel security, liquid fuel security, by holding more fuel in Australia. While we got through the last this crisis well, internationally, it would have been better if we'd had more fuel in Australia.When we came to office we had two refineries when we left office in 2013, there were six. When we came back there were two, and of course our fuel stocks were held in Texas. We've worked to improve that."
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Nationals MP Pat Conaghan says he is sad gambling reforms won't go further as the Coalition and Labor inch towards a deal on the longstanding issue.
Mr Conaghan was the deputy chair on a landmark inquiry chaired by late Labor MP Peta Murphy which recommended stronger action including a full ban on gambling ads.
Overnight, the government struck a tentative deal with the Coalition, involving restrictions on inducements and an opt-out register for online ads.
It strengthens a plan to restrict ads during broadcasts and at stadiums, but Mr Conaghan says the Coalition has been weak in not pushing for more.
"The best thing that Labor could do is implement the report in full. I won't make any friends in the Coalition by saying I think we're being weak by not implementing those reports, and I think we'd be supported by the majority of the public out there. We don't want to see these ads on TV anymore. We don't want predatory practices by online wagering services. So I think we've really missed an opportunity here to do the right thing by the public.”
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Brazil's presidential election campaign is officially underway, with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva seeking another term amid a deeply divided political landscape.
The campaign is being closely watched for the influence of US President Donald Trump, whose policies and political alliances have had an impact across Latin America.
But analysts caution against viewing Brazil's contest simply through the lens of U-S politics.
Brazilian political expert Deborah Barros Leal Farias from UNSW tells SBS Portuguese shifts between the left and right have long been a feature of politics across the region.
"Trump ends up being an influence, but I think it's also important to point out that this left-right variation is kind of the norm, right? "It's not a bug, it's a feature" within Latin American politics, right? But despite all the influence of Trump and the Monroe Doctrine, I think we still have to remember that most Latin American countries continue to export to China."
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More than 700 people have been charged in a major domestic violence crackdown across New South Wales.
Operation Amarok also expanded into the ACT for the first time, targeting alleged offenders considered a heightened threat to victims, including people accused of breaching domestic violence orders or evading police.
Over three days, 732 people were charged with almost 1,600 alleged offences, while 118 firearms were seized and more than 200 arrest warrants executed.
Police also carried out more than 12,000 checks on apprehended domestic violence orders, identifying hundreds of breaches.
New South Wales Police Deputy Commissioner Paul Pisanos says the figures highlight the scale of the problem.
"As you know, there are still concerningly for us is about a call for service for police every three minutes in New South Wales for a domestic and family violence-related matter, which is about 400 complaints per day. So consistently is one of our high-risk crimes and offences and community issues that we continue to police."
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Greens leader Larissa Waters says One Nation's call to cut the tobacco excise by 75 per cent shows Pauline Hanson is doing the bidding of the tobacco lobby.
The One Nation leader says her proposal isn't about encouraging smoking but breaking the black market, and the tobacco excise is helping to underwrite organised crime.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, an estimated 80 per cent of all tobacco consumed last year was illicit - up from 12 per cent in 2017.
Speaking to Nine's Today show earlier, Larissa Waters says big tobacco should not be influencing politics.
"Anything that Philip Morris wants to do primarily revolves around them boosting their own profits off the pain of humans and the cancer and the devastation that they will wreak. So I don’t have a lot of sympathy for big tobacco and I don’t think they should be influencing our politics."
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The Australian Rugby League Commission (ARLC) has confirmed dates for the first-ever men's State of Origin match in New Zealand next year.
The Commission's chairman Peter V’landys says the Origin match is scheduled for June 16 in Auckland and will be part of a wider rugby league festival in New Zealand's largest city.
He says the bucket-list event gives New Zealand fans an opportunity to lock in their date with Rugby League history and for Blues and Maroons fans across Australia and the Pacific to secure travel plans.
New Zealand’s Tourism and Hospitality Minister Louise Upston is welcoming the confirmation as Auckland prepares for hosting duties.
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