Turnbull says Trump ‘lashing out’ at Australia and other allies
Malcolm Turnbull said Donald Trump was “lashing out” and had been left “furious” that the US’s allies, including Australia, weren’t assisting with the war in the Middle East.
The former prime minister spoke to RN Breakfast this morning:
It really just underlines … the importance of Australia being more independent, exercising our own sovereignty and recognising that the course we have been undertaking, really since the Morrison government, of becoming more and more dependent on the United States, is absolutely the wrong course, because we are making ourselves more dependent on the US at a time when the US is less dependable.
Turnbull added that Trump’s remarks show he “doesn’t respect” his allies.
This is a guy that does not respect smaller countries. He believes might is right, he makes no bones about that. He believes he should be able to do and get whatever he wants.
Key events
Guardian Australia’s Amanda Meade has a full report into the Kyle Sandilands contact saga, and his abrupt fall from grace.
You can read more about that here:
National cabinet to meet on Thursday over fuel supply crisis
Tom McIlroy
National cabinet will meet tomorrow as federal and state governments struggle with fuel supply questions amid the ongoing Middle East war.
Anthony Albanese will hold a virtual meeting from Tasmania with state premiers and chief ministers. The prime minister made the announcement during a speech to the Australian Automotive Dealer Association.
Albanese said the meeting would work “to ensure that coordination, that’s occurring right across our country, maximises the benefit for business, for farmers, for our communities”.
The federal government is under increasing pressure on the question of fuel supplies as strikes in the strait of Hormuz slow some deliveries around the world and panic buying in Australia makes petrol hard to get in some communities.
The energy minister, Chris Bowen, said on Tuesday that all expected deliveries of fuel were arriving as planned and that fuel retailers had told the government there was no concern about supply into next month.
The transport minister, Catherine King, will hold a fuel security roundtable with key stakeholders from the transport industry today.
Penry Buckley
NSW police release CCTV of three sought for questioning over alleged kidnapping and murder of Sydney grandfather
The NSW police have released CCTV footage of three further men sought for questioning in relation to the alleged kidnapping and murder of Sydney grandfather Chris Baghsarian last month.
Two men, Daniel Stevens, 24, and Gerard Andrews, 29 have been charged with murder and taking or detaining in company with intent to ransom, occasioning actual bodily harm. Police allege the 85-year-old was kidnapped from his North Ryde home last month in a case of mistaken identity. His remains were found at a golf club on 24 February.
In footage released today as part of a public appeal for more information, another three men are pictured walking towards what police allege was the kidnappers’ stronghold in north-western Sydney on the night Baghsarian went missing, 13 February. In CCTV from the following day, a blue Hyundai sedan with a missing hubcap on its left side is seen arriving at and leaving the Dural address just after 12pm.
The NSW police commissioner, Mal Lanyon, told ABC Radio Sydney this morning:
We believe these males may be involved. It’s important that we identify who they are and either rule them in or eliminate them from our inquiries. I think we’ve indicated we’re going to be incredibly thorough with this investigation. The CCTV also indicates a blue coloured Hyundai sedan which is missing a hubcap on the left hand side. That vehicle was seen to go out to a house that we believe Mr Baghsarian was held captive during his ordeal.
Luca Ittimani
Australian households fear double whammy of rate hikes and higher petrol prices will lead to recession
Surging interest rates and petrol prices have stripped more than $1bn a month from Australian household budgets as economists warn of recession risks.
Consumers are preparing for rates to surpass their recent highs after the Reserve Bank delivered back-to-back hikes ahead of an inflation spike driven by the US war on Iran.
Dougal Warby was among the thousands of Australians who bought their first homes when the RBA was expected to cut its target interest rate from 4.1% to 3.1% or lower by today.
On Tuesday, as he approached the one-year anniversary of buying his Brisbane apartment, rates rebounded back to 4.1%, adding more than $200 to his monthly repayments.
“We’ve seen two drops, two raises, which pretty much brings us back to square one,” he said. “Unsettled is the word.”
Read more here:
Benita Kolovos
The Victorian Greens will today call on the state government to make public transport free next month to provide immediate relief from cost of living pressures and shift people away from cars as petrol prices soar.
The party’s state leader, Ellen Sandell, says the short term measure should be introduced next month while the government works on longer term cost of living relief. A parliamentary budget office commissioned by the party found that making public transport free for a month would cost the government approximately $79.4m but could save a commuter household up to $500 from their family budget for that month.
She said Victoria had among the most expensive public transport in the country, while other states such as Western Australia and Queensland had lowered their fares.
Sandell said:
Petrol prices are surging and people across Victoria are feeling the pain. Making public transport free for the next month is something the state government could do right now to immediately help people with cost-of-living pressures.
Hastie says Trump’s remarks criticising allies ‘petulant’
Andrew Hastie, the shadow minister for industry, said Donald Trump’s criticism of Australia was a “petulant” remark.
Hastie spoke to RN this morning, where he was asked about the US president’s statement that the country did not need or “desire” assistance from Australia, Japan, South Korea or Nato allies during the ongoing turmoil in the Middle East. He said:
Look, I thought it was a petulant post from a president under immense pressure. … Relationships that are longstanding, you show respect and I don’t think it was a respectful post at all.
We’ve got a proud history, and I just don’t think that’s how you treat allies. I think it’s a reflection on his character more than us.
Greens senator says party ‘pleased’ Labor open to CGT reform
Greens senator Nick McKim is railing against the capital gains tax discount this morning.
McKim said the Greens were “pleased” that the government is considering options for reform, saying the discount remained the “most unfair tax break on the books”, skewing housing towards investors.
He told RN:
It blows overwhelmingly to wealthier older Australians and it is time for change. This is a historic opportunity for government and we hope they take it.
The evidence is overwhelming that the capital gains tax has not only skewed the mix of the housing stock in Australia away from owner-occupiers, which means that renters trying to buy their first home just can’t get in to the market. But it’s also contributed to rising house prices, which is again taking the Australian dream of owning your own home further and further away from more and more.
Turnbull says Trump ‘lashing out’ at Australia and other allies
Malcolm Turnbull said Donald Trump was “lashing out” and had been left “furious” that the US’s allies, including Australia, weren’t assisting with the war in the Middle East.
The former prime minister spoke to RN Breakfast this morning:
It really just underlines … the importance of Australia being more independent, exercising our own sovereignty and recognising that the course we have been undertaking, really since the Morrison government, of becoming more and more dependent on the United States, is absolutely the wrong course, because we are making ourselves more dependent on the US at a time when the US is less dependable.
Turnbull added that Trump’s remarks show he “doesn’t respect” his allies.
This is a guy that does not respect smaller countries. He believes might is right, he makes no bones about that. He believes he should be able to do and get whatever he wants.
ARN confirms Kyle Sandilands contract terminated
ARN just issued a statement confirming Kyle Sandilands’ contract had been terminated and the Kyle and Jackie O show cancelled.
The broadcaster said the decision came after it first said this month it considered Sandilands’ behaviour as “serious misconduct and a breach of ARN’s services agreement with Quasar Media, under which Mr Sandilands presents the Kyle and Jackie O show”.
ARN said Sandilands was given 14 days to remedy the breach.
Kyle Sandilands says his ARN contract has been terminated – but he ‘doesn’t accept it’
Kyle Sandilands said this morning his contract has been terminated by ARN.
In a statement, the radio host said:
ARN has just announced that they’ve terminated my contract. I don’t accept it.
My lawyers told them last week this would be invalid. And guess what? It is.
Sandilands described his conflict with former co-host Jackie “O” Henderson as a “blue on air. That’s it”, saying ARN had used the situation as an opportunity to “try and burn the place down”.
They sacked Jackie. They suspended me. They wouldn’t even let me pick up the phone to call her or anyone else on the show. Then – and this is the bit that gets me – once they’d made it impossible for the show to go on, they turn around and say, “You didn’t fix it. You’re fired!”
He said he had apologised to Henderson, but said the apology didn’t mean he would “stand by”.
ARN knew exactly what they were getting when they signed my deal. They’ve worked with me for over a decade. They knew how I work, they knew the show, and they were happy to pay for it – because I delivered.
Chalmers says government firm on not sending defence resources to strait of Hormuz
Jim Chalmers said Australia’s commitments to the Middle East conflict were “clear”, but those obligations would not include any military effort in the strait of Hormuz.
The thoroughfare is a major channel for oil and has been effectively blocked by Iran, leading to a surge in worldwide fuel prices.
Chalmers said:
It is not something we have been considering. We have made the nature of our commitment clear. … We have a different kind of commitment.
Chalmers says rate rise not the decision ‘Australians were hoping for’
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, said the government would continue to tackle inflation, but said yesterday’s rate rise would increase pressure on Australians already reeling amid a cost of living crisis.
Chalmers told ABC News this morning:
This is not the decision that a lot of Australians were hoping for, at a time when they were already under significant pressure.
The treasurer said the government was still pushing cost of living relief measures, including upcoming tax cuts, efforts to slash student debt and making medicines cheaper.
There’s a whole range of things that we’re doing in the responsible way that we can.
Chalmers would not comment on any changes to the capital gains tax discount, but said the government was “considering its options on tax reform”.
Good morning, it’s a rainy one over in Sydney. Nick Visser here to take you through the day’s news. Let’s get to it.
Benita Kolovos
Victoria to release final planning controls for inner-Melbourne ‘activity centres’
The Victorian government will today release the final planning controls for the first 25 activity centres near train and tram stations in Melbourne’s inner-city suburbs.
The premier, Jacinta Allan, and the planning minister, Sonya Kilkenny, will release the maps for areas including North Brighton, Middle Brighton, Hampton and Sandringham stations along the Sandringham line.
The duo first unveiled the plan in Middle Brighton, leading to a much-publicised protest led by Liberal MP James Newbury.
Five of the 25 maps were released to the media ahead of today’s announcement. These include maps for a large stretch of Sydney Road from Coburg through to Brunswick, where the proposed height limit increased from 16 storeys in the draft to 20 in the final planning controls.
In Middle Brighton, Oakleigh and Kew Junction, the plans are largely unchanged from the drafts.
The government has said it letterboxed from more than 140,000 Victorians and received feedback from 12,500, which “directly shaped the final plans” including changes to height limits.
Allan said in a statement:
For years, some of Melbourne’s best-connected suburbs have been locked up and it’s pushing young people and families out. We’re changing that. These reforms cut delays and give clear rules – so more millennials get into a home faster.
Here’s what we wrote when the drafts were released last year:
Cyclone Narelle forms in Coral Sea
Adeshola Ore
A tropical low developing in the Coral Sea off Queensland’s coast has been declared a cyclone.
On Tuesday afternoon, the Bureau of Meteorology confirmed that the area of low pressure, which is heading for the state’s far north coast, had developed into a cyclone called Narelle.
It could intensify to a category four system when it makes landfall later this week.
Narelle could cross Queensland’s Cape York as early as Friday before moving into the Gulf of Carpentaria over the weekend, according to the BoM.
It is then expected to head towards the Northern Territory, which has been hit by record-breaking floods this month.
Trump lashes out at Australia over absence of allies against Iran
Donald Trump has listed Australia among the allies he appears to be bitterly disappointed with, for not wanting to get involved with his war against Iran.
In a social media post overnight the US president said his country “has been informed by most of our Nato ‘allies’ that they don’t want to get involved … despite the fact that almost every country strongly agreed with what we are doing”.
“I am not surprised by their action,” he said, because he always considered Nato a “one way street – we will protect them, but they will do nothing for us, in particular, in a time of need”.
Because of the fact that we have had such military success [against Iran], we no longer ‘need’ or desire the Nato countries’ assistance – we never did!
Likewise, Japan, Australia, or South Korea.
In fact, speaking as president of the United States of America, by far the most powerful country anywhere in the world, we do not need the help of anyone!
It is unclear whether he has asked for assistance from Australia. On Tuesday the deputy prime minister, Richard Marles, said Australia had not received any formal request for help in the strait of Hormuz.
Chalmers downplays RBA’s warning of possible recession
Adeshola Ore
Jim Chalmers has sought to downplay the Reserve Bank of Australia’s warning that a recession may be unavoidable after a second consecutive rate rise.
On Tuesday, the RBA increased interest rates to 4.1% amid a global energy shock that threatens to push Australian inflation towards 5%. The RBA governor Michelle Bullock said if the central bank could not bring inflation down it would have to deal with the possibility of a recession.
Speaking to the ABC’s 7.30 on Tuesday night, the federal treasurer said:
That’s not something that we’re anticipating or forecasting or expecting.
We’re running a lot of scenarios at the moment as you would expect …. in the numbers we’re running right now we’re not expecting that outcome.
Chalmers said the government would do the “best” it could with available forecasts amid global uncertainty due to the Middle East conflict.
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then Nick Visser will take the reins.
After a day of grim headlines yesterday, with economists forecasting recession for Australia, Jim Chalmers has come out fighting, telling 7.30 last night “that’s not something that we’re anticipating or forecasting or expecting”. Read more in a moment.
And Donald Trump has named Australia among the allies he appears to be disappointed don’t want to get involved in his war against Iran. On the other hand, he insisted in capital letters, “we do not need the help of anyone!”
More on that soon.