Key Points
- NSW premier promises tighter laws for police to reject protests after neo-Nazi rally
- Senate deal reached to fund US government in sign shutdown will end
- Carlos Alcaraz beats Alex de Minaur in opener at ATP finals
TRANSCRIPT
New South Wales Premier, Chris Minns, says laws will be tightened to make it easier for police to refuse approval for neo-Nazi rallies.
Investigations are underway into how neo-Nazis were granted authorisation to hold a protest outside state parliament on Saturday [[8 Nov]].
Mr Minns says he is strongly considering legal changes, such as expanding the ban on Nazi symbols to also cover slogans and appearances.
"I want to make it easier for New South Wales Police and send a clear and unambiguous message that we are not going to stand for this fascist rhetoric, these neo-Nazi rallies in our beautiful multicultural city. And to do that we may well need legislation in the coming weeks."
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In a sign the US government shutdown is set to end, a Senate deal has reportedly been reached to fund the government through to January 30.
A handful of Senate Democrats - Angus King, Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan - negotiated the deal on behalf of their party.
The deal reportedly includes a reversal of the decision to fire federal employees, as well as provisions to prevent a repeat of such actions.
It also would ensure food stamps are funded thorough fiscal year 2026.
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Liberal Senator Maria Kovacic says it is "extremely unlikely" the party will abandon its commitment to net zero emissions.
The party is meeting on Wednesday to finalise its position on net zero policy, after their Coalition partner, the Nationals, abandoned the target.
She told ABC Radio that Liberal Party leader Sussan Ley [[Susan Lee]] has her support, and she believes the Liberals should hold firm to Australia's commitment to the Paris Agreement.
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The New South Wales government is offering to have a state funeral for veteran radio broadcaster John Laws, who has died at the age 90.
Nicknamed "Golden Tonsils", he had a huge impact on the media industry over a career spanning seven decades - interviewing 17 prime ministers in that time.
Born in New Guinea on August 8, 1935, Laws moved to Australia with his family as a schoolboy, launching his radio career in Bendigo in 1953.
Premier Chris Minns says the government has yet to discuss with his family the possibility of having a state funeral - but he is happy to make the offer.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has paid tribute to John Laws in an interview on Radio 2GB.
"And he is someone who was so in touch with Australians for such a long period of time. It is an extraordinary career that I don't think will ever be matched. He had the ear of prime ministers, of leaders of the opposition, of ministers. I spoke to John Laws for more than 30 years."
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In Tennis, Alex de Minaur has lost his opening round-robin match against top seed Carlos Alcaraz at the ATP Finals.
The pair traded breaks of serve at the start of the second set, but Alcaraz broke twice more to again lead - going on to win 7-6(5) 6-2.
De Minaur says there were some close moments in the match - and his goal was to maintain his composure.
"I did my best not to let it affect me because as I know I have played him many, many times and there are moments where he sometimes drops his level. But today in the second set, he played pretty flawlessly in my eyes. And he made it very difficult for me to hang on with him."
Alcaraz is also on course to end the year as world number one, and in Turin he must reach the final with at least one round-robin win or sweep his round-robin matches to guarantee himself the award for the second time.
