Australia news LIVE: National cabinet to meet in Queensland …

Former federal Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann has been given the green light to sue Network Ten and News Corp for defamation over interviews airing Brittany Higgins' rape allegation, after a judge extended an expired limitation period. Lehrmann filed Federal Court defamation proceedings[1] against Network Ten and News Corp in February over interviews with his former colleague Higgins on The Project and news.com.au, broadcast and published on February 15, 2021.

Bruce Lehrmann enters the Federal Court in Sydney last month.Credit: Kate Geraghty Lehrmann alleges the interviews, which did not name him, conveyed a series of defamatory meanings, including that he raped Higgins in then defence industry minister Linda Reynolds' office in 2019.

He denies the rape allegation. Lehrmann asked Federal Court Justice Michael Lee to extend a one-year limitation period to enable him to sue for defamation over the interviews, which are now two years old. The media outlets had argued he should not be granted an extension of time.

In a decision on Friday, Justice Michael Lee extended the limitation period. Lee said his decision did not involve a consideration of the merits of either case. The head of the OECD Mathias Cormann has told an international economic gathering that the West decoupling from China would be an expensive mistake and that the wrong lessons would have been learned from the pandemic.

Separating the US and China economies, also known as decoupling, was a policy pushed by China hawks in the Trump administration but under Democratic President Joe Biden has become more focused on diversifying supply lines for critical sectors, particularly technology.

OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann addressing the Delphi Economic Forum in Delphi. Cormann, Australia's former finance minister and now head of the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, said in a speech to the Delphi Economic Forum under way in the ancient city north-west of Athens, that while it is sensible to de-risk supply lines from being dependent on China, total decoupling by the West would leave the world poorer. "Let's learn the lessons of the pandemic and the impact of the war in Ukraine on global supply chains," he said. "It is entirely sensible to focus on de-risking global supply chains but let's not throw the baby out with the bathwater.

"Let's avoid costly decoupling or deglobalisation, let's keep in mind the significant benefits that come in terms of living standards and downward pressure on inflation with open global trade and investment. Deputy opposition leader Sussan Ley has slammed Anthony Albanese's decision to attend a million-dollar wedding "when people can't afford their rent". Albanese will attend the wedding of FM radio shock jock Kyle Sandilands on Saturday and will do a guest spot as DJ at the wedding.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is under fire for attending Kyle Sandilands' wedding.Credit: Sydney Morning Herald

He defended his decision to attend the wedding during a national cabinet press conference on Friday and endorsed Sandilands s a rags-to-riches success story. Ley said that there was "nothing wrong with going to a friend's wedding, but it is curious the Prime Minister thinks he can take a day off just days before his first real budget". While Ley did not criticise the PM for his support of the Sydney shock jock, she did say now was not the time for the prime minister to take time out.

"The test of that budget will be whether Anthony Albanese gives Australians a start date for the £275 reduction in power prices, a start date for the cheaper mortgages Labor promised and a start date for real wage rises - it's hard to see how the Prime Minister can justify being there tomorrow when there are still no answers on those promises," she said. "Australians will rightly ask whether the Prime Minister should be spinning decks at a million-dollar wedding when people can't afford their rent." "It can't be right that the PM is kicking back tomorrow while aged care residents are being kicked out of their homes because of his government's failures."

A federal Liberal source, who was not authorised to speak publicly, argued that if a Liberal Prime Minister had gone to the wedding of a person who had a history of sexist and controversial comments - and where the best man was a convicted drug smuggler - "Labor frontbenchers would be rushing to condemn them". "We look forward to Tanya Plibersek loudly distancing herself from the prime minister and criticising this attendance," the federal Liberal source said. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been asked about the significant increase in net migration in light of the nation's housing shortage.

He said international students, including a 60,000 cohort of Chinese students, were returning en masse following the pandemic. "So if you look at the numbers for this year, they're high, but that's in recognition of the fact that the borders were closed previously. So they're still lower, in terms of the population is lower today, substantially, than it would have been in terms of the projections that were there prior to the pandemic," he said.

He said the range of measures announced by Home Affairs Minister Clare O'Neil on Thursday, including raising the income threshold for temporary skilled migrants, tightening the skills criteria for visas, and clamping down on international student rorts, would reduce the migration intake. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has described Sydney shock jock Kyle Sandilands as a "significant figure" after being invited to the colourful radio identity's wedding.

Anthony Albanese will be at Kyle Sandilands' wedding. "One of the things about Kyle Sandilands - I'll say this - a bloke who at one stage was homeless, living on the streets of Sydney, and has grown into someone who is a significant public figure, is a part of what is an Australian success story," Albanese said during a press conference in Brisbane.

Sandilands is well known for his intriguing social circle. His best man is convicted drug smuggler Simon Main and one of the groomsmen is Kings Cross identity John Ibrahim. "I'm not in charge of the invite list.

I was invited by Kyle Sandilands to his wedding. Which is taking place tomorrow in Sydney. I accepted that invitation.

And I intend to attend the wedding," Albanese said. On housing, Albanese said state and territory ministers would develop a plan to strengthen housing growth and rental rights across the country. "As part of the new national migration strategy, the Commonwealth will ensure that states and territories have a greater contribution to Australia's migration settings as well," he said.

"We need to make sure that we get the right people in the right places in order to fulfil the jobs and the demand that is there for skilled labour and for workforce without putting undue pressure on particular areas of Australia where there has been a concentration in the past. He said the Commonwealth would also commission a review of the national infrastructure investment program, "adopting a refreshed approach to infrastructure investment". "We know the debacle that is inland rail, for example, a program that has been going for years, where the costs have blown out to in excess of £30 billion ... yet still does not have a path or a plan to get to a port, either in Brisbane or Gladstone or Melbourne," he said.

He said the government would also increase its visa processing capacity, "by expanding pathways for permanent residence for temporary sponsored workers and taking steps to address migrant exploitation". "We know that in this country we have had a demand for everything from engineers to nurses to skilled workers. Carpenters, bricklayers, people who have skills that are needed in the economy," he said.

He said Australia needed continued investment in affordable housing supply, criticising the opposition and the Greens for opposing the government's housing fund legislation. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is announcing £2.2 billion worth of measures to strengthen Medicare following a meeting with state and territory leaders. He said the governments needed to improve primary care to take pressure off public hospitals around the country, including by expanding services provided by pharmacists.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (centre), Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews during the national cabinet meeting.Credit: Dan Peled

"We need to provide pharmacists with the opportunity to deliver the services that they are capable of. That will provide support and income for community pharmacies, but it will also take pressure off our GPs and off that system as well in the primary healthcare network," he said. Nurses will also become more involved in primary healthcare, while patients will be able to have more access to primary care services after hours.

"That will include an incentive for doctors, for GPs, to stay open and longer hours. That will be included in our budget when it is handed down on May 9," he said. He said the government would also introduce Medicare patient IDs to enable a better understanding of what is driving regular presentations to emergency departments.

Albanese said the national cabinet also discussed the financial sustainability of the NDIS. "We need to have a sustainable growth trajectory for the NDIS in order to support equity and fairness for all Australians who are living with disability, including those not eligible for the NDIS and ensure that every dollar goes to those who need it most," he said. "We know that the trajectory of NDIS expenditure is just not sustainable into the future.

Indeed, that trajectory projects some £97 billion on the NDIS over the medium term." "So in 10 years' time, when you look at the budget framework - and that is simply not sustainable - the growth over the period in between the last budget and October, of course, was alone some £8 billion in just those few months." A climate protester has been arrested after scaling the spire of the Melbourne Arts Centre in an early morning demonstration.

Just after dawn on Friday, the climber unfurled a giant banner promoting climate activist group Extinction Rebellion as supporters watched on. He climbed back down the structure about 10am and was arrested by waiting police who led him away in handcuffs. The banner he attached to the structure promotes three days of climate rallies set to be held in late May.

The Extinction Rebellion group is known for disruptive, high-profile protests staged around the world. The group says the May demonstrations will include daily acts of civil disobedience. Supporters set up tents outside the performing arts centre at Southbank in inner Melbourne to watch the climb on Friday.

The man appeared to attempt to light a flame. Spokeswoman Jane Morton said the purpose of the demonstration was to draw attention to climate change. "We are looking at societal collapse, that is what scientists are saying.

It's not really on the news. That is why Extinction Rebellion is going to try to sound the alarm," she told the Nine Network. Tourism, Sport and Major Events Minister Steve Dimopoulos visited the arts centre for an unrelated event on Friday and said there were better ways to call for action on climate change.

"Protest is healthy in any democracy but it has to be safe," Dimopoulos told reporters. "Safe for yourself, but also safe for other Victorians and people who try and then get you out of harm's way (such as) emergency services." Arts Centre Melbourne has declined to comment on the situation.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has held a press conference after this morning's national cabinet meeting. You can watch it here: Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles today announced £3.4 billion over the next 10 years to be spent on new defence technology and innovation.

Marles said the advanced strategic capabilities accelerator (ASKA) would focus on asymmetric technology and new innovations after the recent strategic defence review found Australia's defence capabilities were not fit for purpose. Asymmetric technology refers to defence capabilities that are difficult to respond to, and Marles said there needed to be a focus on implementing them in operations. "One thing we can do is invest in asymmetric technology, and that in many ways, this is the most value for money investment that we can make," Marles said.

Defence innovation in Australia is only 3 per cent of the defence budget. "Translating innovative solutions into operation is one of the six priorities that we announced as being part of the Albanese government's focus in responding to the defence strategic review and we are enormously proud of making this announcement today." Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy said that both the armed forces and Australian families would benefit, with a focus on local technology and development.

"It will help solve technology challenges for the Australian Defence Force so that they get new advanced capabilities to give them greater firepower and greater protection.

And secondly, it will grow the defence companies of the future and that leads to more well paid secure jobs for Australians in advanced technologies and advanced engineering, in advanced equipment and production methods, that will make Australia safer and put food on the table for more Australian families."

References

1. ^ filed Federal Court defamation proceedings (www.smh.com.au)
2. ^ Lehrmann given green light to sue Ten, News Corp over Higgins interview (p5cvmo)
3. ^ Cormann warns the West that decoupling from China would be a costly mistake (www.watoday.com.au)
4. ^ Albanese pledges £2.2 billion for Medicare overhaul (www.watoday.com.au)