TRANSCRIPT
- Australia gives evidence as part of a landmark climate case
- Queensland's Premier defends controversial youth crime laws
- The Matildas are preparing for their final two fixtures of the year
Climate activists are condemning Australia's submission in a landmark case on climate responsibility as an attempt to dodge accountability.
The hearings at the UN's International Court of Justice focus on climate responsibility in the face of the unfolding climate crisis and its impacts on Australia's Pacific neighbours.
An August report from Climate Analytics revealed that Australia is responsible for about 4.5 per cent of global carbon emissions as of 2022.
Lawyer and general counsel for Greenpeace Australia and the Pacific, Katrina Bullock has unpacked Australia's submission during a webinar with the think tank The Australia Institute .
"So Australia did argue that the UNFCCC framework and the Paris Agreement are the primary sources of international obligations to address greenhouse gas emissions and government obligations under those treaties or other treaties or under international law should not extend beyond those frameworks. And that position is fundamentally flawed. Australia's proposed pathway would see fossil fuel emission reductions be completely reliant on voluntary obligations and political negotiations, which we've already mentioned just don't work."
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The final sanctions on Australian trade to China have been lifted.
The decision was made in Beijing after a departmental meeting, bringing an end to the sanctions that were imposed under the Morrison Government.
At the peak they applied to $20 billion a year in trade including coal, timber, lobster, wine, cotton, copper, barley and meat.
It comes two weeks after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20 summit in Brazil.
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Queensland's premier has failed to confirm what expert evidence he relied upon when tabling the Making Queensland Safer Bill, instead repeating he is fulfilling an election promise.
"Adult crime, adult time" was the centrepiece of David Crisafulli's state election campaign, which proposes that minors who are found guilty of particular crimes should be subject to the same penalties as adults.
While some politicians and victims of crime believe it will be an effective deterrent, a public hearing has heard from human rights advocates and other experts who say there's no evidence jailing works.
Mr Crisafulli continues to maintain the legislation will lead to fewer crime victims, but has refused to detail which experts have backed that claim.
CRISAFULLI: "The laws, the timelines, how it will work to support victims first and foremost – everything is consistent with how we campaigned, and I think Queenslanders find that refreshing.
REPORTER: "You promised to be a government who listens to the experts, though. The mandate was to make Queensland safer and the experts say this won't do that, so how are you aligning with that?"
CRISAFULLI: "We are doing exactly what we campaigned on, including the timelines."
REPORTER: "Which experts support these laws and say they will work?"
CRISAFULLI: "We took a very firm commitment to the election."
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Woolworths has filed an urgent application with the Fair Work Commission to stop union members from blocking access to its distribution centres, as shelves across Victoria lay bare.
A United Workers Union picket line outside a critical distribution centre in Melbourne has now continued for thirteen days, with the damage estimated at $50 million so far.
Woolworths said the union was seeking pay increases of more than 25 per cent over three years, which is well above inflation.
It also said its current offer would push hourly rates to about 40 per cent of the award.
But UWU national secretary Tim Kennedy has rejected Woolworths’ allegation the union was not bargaining in good faith.
"These are the workers, the ones here in Melbourne, who when everyone else was locked down, got up everyday when there was a lot of uncertainty and made certain that shelves were supplied. What Woolworths have done since that time is taken advantage to ratchet up prices to massively increase their profits at the expense of customers and, at the same time, their response to their workers after all this time when their real wages are less than they were a decade ago is to say 'stay out here, stay out here'."
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Excitement is building ahead of the Matildas' final two fixtures of 2024.
Following a 2-1 defeat to Brazil, the Matildas are preparing to clash with Chinese Taipei at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium on Wednesday evening.
The squad will then travel to Geelong for their final game of the year at the newly refurbished GMHBA Stadium on Saturday night.
Interim head coach Tom Sermanni says preparations are going well despite losing players to club duties.
"When you become a coach you just get used to dealing with whatever you have to deal with. In some ways, obviously you can look from a logistical perspective - it hasn't been perfect, that's life and you just get on with it - but from another perspective, these games have really given us another opportunity which hasn't happened in the Matildas for many years where we have a chance to look particularly at domestic talent and actually assess some young players, and some more experienced players who have been out of the picture for a little while, to actually get back on the field."
