Key Points
- Climate target consider "hopeless" and "ambitious"
- Allan Jones before Sydney court, pleads not guilty to charges as some withdrawn
- US Olympian facing two-year ban is first track athlete to commit to Enhanced Games
TRANSCRIPT
Australia will aim to cut greenhouse gas emissions by between 62 and 70 per cent on 2005 levels by 2035, under a climate target announced by the government today.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says the target is in line with advice by the Climate Change Authority.
He also announced $2 billion in funding for the Clean Energy Finance Corporation to help reach the target, AND a major funding boost for the resources sector in the transition to renewable energy.
"We know that getting emissions down in the resources sector and heavy industry is the next major area and will help heavy industry to do the heavy lifting. Today, we announce a net zero $5 billion reconstruction fund to help large industry decarbonise and scale up more renewables and low emissions manufacturing."
Under the Paris Climate Accord, the government must submit its new climate target by the end of the month.
The agreement, which 195 parties including Australia signed in 2015, aims to limit global temperature rises to 1.5 degrees and less than 2.
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The Greens were quick to respond to the government's newly announced 2035 net zero target, with party Larissa Waters labelling the emissions target range an utter failure.
Ms Waters criticised the government for releasing the target shortly after approving the Woodside Northwest Shelf Gas Project.
"A range of 62 per cent to 70 per cent means 62 per cent. The only reason they've put a range in place is so that they can hit the lowest end of the range and then claim to be heroes. Well, this target is so appallingly low, it will not keep us safe."
Today's announcement also follows the recent release of the first National Climate Risk Assessment, which laid out a catastrophic vision of Australia's future if the Paris Agreement targets are not met.
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Meanwhile, the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry says the 2050 target announced by the government is ambitious and will be challenging to achieve.
Chief executive Andrew McKellar urged politicians to take a bipartisan approach to support policy certainty for businesses.
"It will be very challenging for business and for industry to get to this target. But the important thing is business needs certainty if we're able to put in place the investment that is required to continue on the pathway to net zero emissions by 2050."
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Outspoken former radio host and former Wallabies coach Alan Jones has pleaded not guilty to dozens of sexual abuse charges in a Sydney court today.
In the same hearing, several charges against him were withdrawn.
Mr Jones' lawyer Bryan Wrench told the court the changes removed any allegations of aggravated conduct, or accusations that any of the alleged victims were under Jones' authority at the time of the alleged abuse.
The 84-year-old had been accused of historical sex offences against 11 people - the youngest of whom was 17 at the time - over two decades when he dominated Sydney's airwaves.
Mr Jones now faces 25 charges of indecent assault and two of sexual touching against nine alleged victims, and will face a local court hearing in 2026, with the date due to be set in November.
Prosecutors did not explain in court why the charges related to two victims are no longer being pursued.
And if this story has caused distress for you or someone you know, 24-hour support is available at 1800 RESPECT 1800 737 732.
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The Taliban says it has cut internet connections in five provinces in the north of Afghanistan to prevent what it calls immoral activities.
Officials say the outage affects all internet connections via fibre optic cable, but internet access on mobile phone data is still available.
The move has prompted fears the regime will enforce the ban across the country, as it cites concern over pornography and online flirting.
Khalid Amiri is an Afghan journalist who was evacuated after the Taliban came to power in 2021.
He told SBS Pashto, the ban further isolates Afghans.
"It particularly affects the Afghan diaspora in countries like Australia and across the West, where families remain separated since the Taliban takeover. Many fled, leaving loved ones behind and their only means of communication has been through applications like WhatsApp and Signal. And I think with this ban, even that lifeline has been cut off."
This outage is the first internet ban announced by the Taliban since it took over Afghanistan in 2021.
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To sport now, a track athlete has joined a controversial new event that will allow athletes from all over the world to compete using performance-enhancing drugs.
Called The Enhanced Games, the event will debut in Las Vegas in May 2026.
Olympic medallist sprinter, Fred Kerley, is the first US sprinter to sign up for the competition.
Kerley is provisionally suspended for an alleged anti-doping whereabouts violation - and he could face a two-year ban if the charge from the Athletics Integrity Unit is upheld.
The World Anti-Doping Code states an athlete cannot miss three anti-doping tests - and/or filing failures - within a 12-month period.
He says he will contest the allegation.
Australian Olympian James Magnussen will swim in the event - and Nine newspapers reports former teammate Kyle Chalmers has turned down millions of dollars to compete.
