Australia news live: ‘life-threatening’ injury in Townsville ADF incident; Spirit of Tasmania hits fresh setback | Australia news
Three injured during vehicle accident in Townsville incident involving ADF personnel More information on the incident at a Townsville facility involving ADF personnel: the Queensland ambulance service said three people were injured after a single-vehicle crash. Paramedics assessed one patient with life-threatening injuries. A second patient, a man in his 30s, was airlifted to hospital…
Three injured during vehicle accident in Townsville incident involving ADF personnel
More information on the incident at a Townsville facility involving ADF personnel: the Queensland ambulance service said three people were injured after a single-vehicle crash.
Paramedics assessed one patient with life-threatening injuries.
A second patient, a man in his 30s, was airlifted to hospital in a stable condition with chest and abdominal injuries. A third person, a man in his 20s, suffered back injuries and was transported to hospital by road.
Key events
Police facing difficult conditions, including waist-deep snow, in search for missing bushwalker in Tasmania
Tasmania police are still searching for a bushwalker, Daryl Fong, who was reported missing in the Mt Field national park area on Monday.
Officials said search teams are focused on the Tarn Shelf area of the park, but have been confronted with gale force winds, rain and waist-deep snow in some areas.
Inspector Luke Horne said in a statement:
We are committed to finding Daryl but given it has been several days since his last contact, and the conditions in the area, we hold serious concerns for his welfare.
Police ask anyone who has been in the Mt Field national park area since Saturday to contact police if they have seen any sign of Daryl.
Henry Belot
Spirit of Tasmania IV hit with another snag
The Spirit of Tasmania IV has suffered another setback, with the 212-metre ship unable to safely dock at a berth in Geelong.
The ferry, which has faced numerous costly delays and caused political headaches for the Tasmania government, will soon be moved from Hobart to Geelong to make way for visiting cruise liners over summer.
The ABC has reported the ship was meant to be temporarily stationed at Point Henry at the port of Geelong, but a safety assessment has ruled that option out. It will instead be based at the Spirit’s existing terminal, another berth, and at anchor.
The Tasmanian government had expected a new port in Devonport to be completed in August 2024, shortly before Spirit IV was delivered by Rauma Marine Constuctions in Finland. But the port faced major budget blowouts and is not expected to be finished until late 2026 or early 2027.
Spirit IV was moved from Finland to Scotland at the start of the northern hemisphere’s winter, due to concerns it could be damaged by pack ice in the Baltic Sea. It was based at Edinburgh’s port of Leith for more than six months, initially costing Tasmanian taxpayers about $47,000 a week.
The ship has been based at Hobart’s Macquarie Point in recent months as it prepares to enter service in late 2026.
NSW anti-protest law ruled unconstitutional after Palestine Action Group court challenge
Jordyn Beazley
The NSW supreme court struck down a law that had given police expanded powers to prevent protests near places of worship.
Josh Lees, on behalf of Palestine Action Group, had challenged the law on the basis that it was unconstitutional.
Justice Anna Mitchelmore ruled on Thursday that the police powers impermissibly burdened the freedom of political communication implied in Australia’s constitution.
The challenge came after the NSW government passed in February a suite of reforms aimed at curbing antisemitism. This included a law which gave police the power to move on protesters who are “in or near” a place of worship.
Read more here:
More from Ariarne Titmus’ decision to step away from the pool
The swimming superstar said she had taken some time away over the last year and realised “some things in my life that have always been important to me are just a little bit more important to me now than swimming”.
She went on:
I always intended to return. I never thought that Paris would be my last Olympic Games, and knowing now what I know, I wish I had of maybe enjoyed that last race a little bit more …
Beyond swimming, I’ve always had goals in my personal life. Swimming has always been most important up until this point, and I’ve just realised that those goals and what I want in my future is now more important to me.
Titmus said her rivalry with US swimmer Katie Ledecky was one of the most satisfying touchstones of her career.
I can say without a doubt, racing Katie, I wouldn’t have been the athlete that I am. She set this incredible standard and I was just so willing to chase it.
And I just feel so grateful that I’ve been a part of such an incredible rivalry. I feel like we both have so much respect for each other, and that will really sit with me for the rest of my life.
Ariarne Titmus retires from competitive swimming
Ariarne Titmus is retiring from competitive swimming after 18 years in the pool.
The 25-year-old, who currently holds world records in the 200m freestyle and the 4x200m freestyle relay, has four Olympic gold medals, three silver and 1 bronze. She said in a video announcing the decision:
I am here to announce that I’ve made the decision to retire from competitive swimming. A tough one, a really tough one, but one that I’m really happy with.
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Jordyn Beazley
Judgment on expanded police powers to come today from NSW supreme court
Today the NSW supreme court will hand down its finding on whether police powers that were expanded this year as part of a controversial law designed to curb antisemitism are unconstitutional.
Joshua Lees on behalf of the Palestine Action Group launched a constitutional challenge against the state of NSW over police powers in March.
The challenge came after the NSW government passed – among a suite of reforms in February aimed at curbing antisemitism – the places of worship bill, which gave police the power to move on protesters who are “in or near” a place of worship.
During the hearing in June, lawyers for the Palestine Action Group had argued the “vagueness” of the legislation’s wording created the “chilling effect” of having neither protesters nor police officers able to determine the reach of the police’s move-on powers.
The state of NSW had argued that the powers had an “obvious and legitimate purpose” of protecting religious communities trying to access a place of worship from physical obstruction, physical or verbal harassment, intimidation or incitement to fear.
Justice Anna Mitchelmore is expected to hand down her decision at 9.30am.
Adeshola Ore
Victorian parliament debates renaming of lake in honour of Sikh faith founder
The Victorian Liberals have voted against a motion by one of their own backbenchers about a petition against the renaming of a lake in the state’s south-east to honour the founder of the Sikh faith.
On Wednesday evening, Victorian parliament’s upper house debated a motion by Ann-Marie Hermans to take note of a petition signed by 1,600 people calling for the renaming of Berwick Springs Lake to Guru Nanak Lake to be revoked. The petition argued the renaming did not involve proper consultation and created division within the multi-faith community.
Hermans said the petition was not about “religion” or “race” but the lack of community consultation.
The multicultural affairs minister, Ingrid Stitt, told parliament the renaming of the lake – a 2018 election commitment under former premier Daniel Andrews – reflected values that “unite us”:
It’s important that our place names reflect the multiculturalism and diversity of our state.
Adeshola Ore
Bluey-themed Christmas coins on sale today
Bluey-themed Christmas $1 coins from the Royal Australian Mint are on sale from 8.30am this morning.
The ballot for the two “dollar bucks”, featuring the Australian cartoon character Bluey and her little sister, Bingo, opened on Monday. The coins are also available from Royal Australian Mint shops and selected distributors. Both are presented in Christmas ornaments and baubles.
Last year, Australia Post’s website temporarily crashed as collectors scrambled to snatch a Bluey coin.
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Royal Australian Mint acting’s chief executive, Emily Martin, says she was delighted to release more Bluey coins:
Bluey is loved by fans across the world. We know that last year’s Bluey coins brought joy to many families.
The Royal Australian Mint has a long and proud history of celebrating iconic children’s television shows like Play School, The Wiggles and Bananas in Pyjamas. Continuing the tradition of honouring learning through entertainment is something we hold very
close to our hearts.
Three injured during vehicle accident in Townsville incident involving ADF personnel
More information on the incident at a Townsville facility involving ADF personnel: the Queensland ambulance service said three people were injured after a single-vehicle crash.
Paramedics assessed one patient with life-threatening injuries.
A second patient, a man in his 30s, was airlifted to hospital in a stable condition with chest and abdominal injuries. A third person, a man in his 20s, suffered back injuries and was transported to hospital by road.
Cait Kelly
Essential workers are priced out of rental market
Anglicare Australia’s Rental Affordability Snapshot: Essential Workers Edition surveyed more than 51,000 rental listings and tested them against the wages of 16 essential occupations. It found that:
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1,117 rentals (2.3%) were affordable for an ambulance officer
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850 rentals (1.7%) were affordable for an aged care worker
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754 rentals (1.5%) were affordable for a nurse
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575 rentals (1.1%) were affordable for a construction worker
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417 rentals (0.8%) were affordable for an early childhood educator
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417 rentals (0.8%) were affordable for a hospitality worker.
Anglicare Australia executive director, Kasy Chambers:
In many parts of the country, affordability has gone backwards. A hospitality worker could not afford a single property in the ACT, only five in the Northern Territory, and just 80 across the whole of Victoria.
The solution is clear. We need tax reform to stop pushing up the cost of housing. We need to build at least 25,000 new public and community homes each year – rentals that essential workers can actually afford. And we need stronger protections for renters, so people are not left at the mercy of an unfair system.
US has ‘a lot of enthusiasm’ for Aukus deal, defence industry minister says
Pat Conroy, the minister for defence industry, is in the US visiting Washington DC, where he is meeting officials from the Trump administration.
He told RN Breakfast this morning Australia was giving “space to the Trump administration” to do its own review of the Aukus submarine deal, but said he remained hopeful the country was on board with the pact. Conroy said he hadn’t been “asking” for assurances from any US officials during his visit, before adding:
There’s a lot of enthusiasm for Aukus in the United States, particularly at a congressional level. And every congressional leader I’ve met with has been very strong in support for Aukus and as a co-equal branch of the government, I think that’s very encouraging. …
I am confident that Aukus is in the national interest of all three countries.
Conroy went on to say there is “huge enthusiasm” in the US for its alliance with Australia ahead of prime minister Anthony Albanese’s visit to Washington later this month.
ADF personnel involved in ‘incident’ near Townsville last night
The Department of Defence confirmed an incident involving Australian defence force (ADF) personnel near Townsville last night, but did not have any further details about the event.
An ADF spokesperson said:
The welfare of ADF members and their families is a priority and Defence’s focus is on supporting those involved.
Due to the developing nature of the incident, no further information will be available at this time and we request the privacy of Defence members and families is respected.
Defence will provide further updates when possible.
HSC exams start today across high schools in NSW
Penry Buckley
Spare a thought and send good luck to high school students across NSW today as they start their HSC written exams.
Today marks the beginning of four weeks of sit-down papers, with exams in the compulsory English subjects the first up this morning.
This year, more than 74,700 students are on track to complete their HSC, according to the NSW Education Standards Authority (Nesa). An additional 9,179, most of them not in year 12, are also taking subjects.
We’ll be speaking to students at a high school in Sydney after their first exam later today.
Cait Kelly
Home ownership rates have declined sharply for under-35s
The new research from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare also mapped how home ownership rates have declined since 1971.
Between 1971 and 2021, home ownership rates declined the most among those aged under 35:
25–29-year-olds (from 50% to 36%)
30–34-year-olds (from 64% to 50%).
Among 50–54-year-olds, home ownership also declined from 80% in 1996 to 72% in 2021.
An estimated 1.26 million low-income households were in financial housing stress in 2024–25, spending more than 30% of their disposable income on housing.
One in five (21%) households in the private rental market were low-income households in financial stress
One in seven (15%) households with a mortgage were low-income households in financial stress.
Good morning, and happy Thursday. Nick Visser here to take over the blog. Let’s get started.
Cait Kelly
More Australians experiencing financial stress
Real household income has grown between 2023 and 2024, after two years of declines, but around one in five people aged 15 and over are now experiencing financial stress – the highest in over a decade, new research from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare has found.
In 2024, real household income (median real equivalised household disposable income) was $1,464 per week; an increase of 3.2% since 2023 ($1,418) and 20% since 2009 ($1,215) – but this has mainly benefited wealthier Australians.
Higher-income households, which have an annual disposable income above $122,000 had the fastest real income growth (3.5%), while the lowest income households (which on average make around $15,000 a year) had the slowest real income growth at 0.3%.
More Australians are also experiencing financial stress. One in 20 (4.9%) people reported missing out on meals in 2023, the highest since data was first collected in 2001.
New powers to crack down on crypto ATMs used for money laundering
Krishani Dhanji
The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, will announce new powers to crack down on crypto ATMs and cryptocurrency that are used for money laundering and terrorism financing.
Burke will address the National Press Club later today and will say that the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (Austrac), which is in charge of stopping criminal abuse of the financial system, will have more power to restrict certain “high-risk products” including crypto ATMs.
Australia has third-highest number of crypto ATMs in the world and Austrac estimates that 99% of crypto ATM transactions are cash deposits, which are a high risk for money laundering.
The number of crypto ATMs in Australia skyrocketed in the past six years. Austrac says its jumped from 23 in 2019 to more than 1,800 in operation now.
Burke will also announce powers to disrupt the use of “mule accounts” by money launderers – where criminals take over legitimate bank accounts, often bought or rented from international students or visa holders.
There are significant money laundering, terrorism financing and serious crime risks associated with crypto ATMs. Australia has the highest number of CATMs in the region and the third-highest in the world.
If a bank suspects mule activity, they will be able to check visa-holder status and use this to inform decisions about whether the account is being used by criminals. It’s about equipping banks with the right information to help them manage risk and prevent their accounts falling into the hands of criminals.
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the best overnight stories before Nick Visser takes over.
Real household income has grown between 2023 and 2024, after two years of declines, but around one in five people aged 15 and over are now experiencing financial stress – the highest in more than a decade, new research from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare has found. Details on their way.
The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, will use a speech at the National Press Club in Canberra today to announce new powers to crack down on crypto ATMs and cryptocurrency that are used for money laundering and terrorism financing. More details to follow.
And in better money news: there are new Bluey dollarbucks on the way.