TRANSCRIPT
- Anthony Albanese warns rivals ahead of Parliament’s return
- At least 19 people killed in Bangladeshi air force plane crash
- Mitch Owen blasts fifty as Aussies down Windies in T-20 opener
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has issued a warning to his political opponents ahead of Parliament's first sitting day today.
After the federal election, Labor's ranks in the new House of Representatives will be double that of the Coalition in the new Parliament.
Mr Albanese says he wants this large mandate to be respected by the Coalition and The Greens.
"The holding up of legislation, like our housing legislation last time, I think hurt the no-alition. What I want to see is a positive agenda going forward but we'll see how we go."
Opposition leader Sussan Ley says it's their duty to represent their voters and to scrutinise Labor's policies.
"Now Mr Albanese is giving interviews and he's suggesting we should just get out of the way, well we won't get out of the way. Our job is to be the strongest, best opposition that we can be and we will be."
Meanwhile, Greens Senator Nick McKim tells Channel Nine his party is there to hold Labor to account for the promises they've made to Australians and work constructively on legislation.
"Well, we're here to work constructively and cooperatively with Labor. We hope that they would take the same approach to us.
**
The Human Rights Law Centre is calling for the government to establish an Australian Human Rights Act to protect against what they see as a crackdown on civil liberties.
They've joined more than 150 organisations in warning the United Nations Human Rights Council about an increasing threat to fundamental rights in Australia, ahead of a major UN review.
The coalition includes Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, human rights, legal, disability, refugee, LGBTIQ+ and climate groups.
Caitlin Reiger, CEO of the Human Rights Law Centre says a Human Rights Act must be introduced, to enshrine clear minimum human rights protections that must be considered by governments when designing policies and delivering services.
"We are ready, the time is now, and this is just about codifying our basic shared values of equality, dignity, and fairness for everyone, and putting that into the heart of all of our laws so that all public decision making is really putting people and planet, in terms of the right to a healthy environment being an important human rights issue as we see the climate crisis really impact Australia. That's an immediate first step. "
There's been several inquiries and consultations into establishing a Human Rights Act and last year the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights recommended its introduction after an inquiry.
**
The grandfather of a 24-year-old man who died in Northern Territory police custody says his community won't feel safe in public until they get justice.
The death of Warlpiri man Kumanjayi White in Alice Springs in May sparked vigils around the country, putting deaths in custody back into the national spotlight.
His grandfather, Ned Jampijinpa Hargraves spoke to SBS' Indigenous current affairs program, Living Black.
"We want the Prime Minister to say something, to stop this madness. We cannot live like this in our own country."
Two weeks ago, Northern Territory Coroner Elisabeth Armitage found the former police officer who fatally shot 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 in a remote community of Yuendumu, was racist.
**
At least 19 people have been killed and more than 160 others injured after a Bangladeshi air force plane crashed into a college campus.
A training aircraft belonging to the Bangladesh Air Force crashed in the capital, Dhaka.
It's understood students were taking exams and attending regular classes at the time.
Dozens of those injured have been taken to nearby hospitals.
According to military officials, the jet took off but crashed soon after, before it caught fire.
Bangladesh's leader, Muhammad Younis says support will be provide to determine the cause of the incident.
**
In cricket, Australian T-20 debutant Mitch Owen has joined rare company by cracking a game-breaking half-century in a three-wicket triumph over the West Indies.
In reply to the West Indies' 8-189, Australia reached 7-190 to win game one of the five-match series in Jamaica with seven balls to spare.
Owen smacked six sixes in his stunning 50 from 27 balls, joining Ricky Ponting and David Warner as the only Australians to make a half-century on his T-20 international debut.
Captain Mitch Marsh says it's great to see such an impressive performance from the debutant.
"Fantastic. I think any time you get a young kid that comes in and performs like that for his first game for Australia it's always really exciting. I'm sure there will have been lots of people who would have watched that and will be really excited. So we're pumped for him. We want him to come in here and be as relaxed as possible. We understand he's going to be nervous playing for Australia but we want to create an environment where he can hopefully keep doing that for us."
The series continues on Wednesday in Kingston before three games in St Kitts over the weekend and next Tuesday.
