Charles Darwin University must stop ‘attacks on academic freedom’, NTEU says
The National Tertiary Education Union is urging Charles Darwin University’s vice-chancellor to “drop his attack on academic freedom”.
As my colleague Lisa Cox reported yesterday, Charles Darwin University asked a federal inquiry not to publish submissions by three of its staff after the academics criticised the university’s support for the Middle Arm gas and industrial development on Darwin Harbour.
NTEU Northern Territory secretary Dr Rajeev Sharma said the vice-chancellor’s request was highly concerning:
Trying to gag academics is an egregious attack on academic freedom and free speech … Academics have a right to respond to CDU’s submission which supported this project despite no consultation with the university community.
Academic freedom is a cornerstone of all universities. The vice-chancellor’s request for censorship should alarm all staff and students.
Thankfully senators rejected the request …
Middle Arm on the Elizabeth River near Darwin in the Northern Territory. An inquiry is examining the proposed precinct. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian
Scott Morrison urges New Zealand to abandon anti-nuclear stance
Former prime minister Scott Morrison has suggested New Zealand consider abandoning its anti-nuclear stance of the past 40 years, AAP reports.
New Zealand is considering membership of pillar 2 of the Aukus pact – along with Japan, Canada and South Korea – which would develop and share advanced military technology.
As we flagged earlier, NZ foreign minister Winston Peters and US secretary of state Antony Blinken issued a joint statement noting there were “powerful reasons” for New Zealand to “engage practically” with Aukus.
But New Zealand’s proud and bipartisan anti-nuclear stance – which extends to banning nuclear-powered or nuclear-armed ships in Kiwi waters – will put it at odds with its only formal defence ally, Australia, by next decade.
Former prime minister Scott Morrison delivered his valedictory speech to the House of Representatives in February. Photograph: Mike Bowers/Guardian Australia
In an interview with Stuff’s Tova podcast, Morrison said he would welcome a debate in New Zealand to be more accepting of nuclear technology:
These things are always worth looking at. I appreciate that it’s a very sensitive issue in New Zealand and it’s got quite a history.
In Australia, under the new leader of the Liberal party, Peter Dutton, they have engaged in a discussion about a civil nuclear industry in Australia [and] it’s progressing in a very mature way … I [have] no reason to believe why New Zealand couldn’t equally consider doing that.
Morrison said a debate would have to be “guided by the national interest”, with bipartisanship necessary given the long-term nature of the commitment. He also said whether or not New Zealand signed up to Aukus pillar 2, the country could “be involved in a practical capacity”.
Tasmanian premier decries Dutton's Port Arthur protest comparison
Tasmanian premier Jeremy Rockliff has criticised opposition leader Peter Dutton’s comments comparing a pro-Palestine protest to the 1996 Port Arthur massacre, AAP reports.
Rockliff, a Liberal premier, said such a comparison should not have been made to the massacre. He told ABC Radio:
It is never appropriate to compare the Port Arthur tragedy with anything, in any circumstance. This is still raw for many Tasmanians and will be forever raw with those who are directly affected.
It’s up to Mr Dutton in terms of clarifying what he has said.
My view is we need to be very careful and never compare the Port Arthur tragedy to anything but the absolutely tragedy that it was.
Tasmanian premier Jeremy Rockliff. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian
Chris Uhlmann joins Sky News as analyst and contributor
Amanda Meade
Former ABC and Nine political editor Chris Uhlmann has joined Sky News Australia as an analyst and regular contributor.
He will appear on Peta Credlin’s program on Tuesdays starting next week, Sky announced today.
The journalist will also appear during the day on Sky’s NewsDay program with Kieran Gilbert to analyse political news.
Uhlmann said:
I have watched the network since its inception and have always admired its commitment to journalism through straight-shooting broadcasters like Kieran Gilbert and Laura Jayes.
In 2010 I helped establish ABC News 24 and had a brutal reality check on just how hard it is trying to keep pace with Sky.
Chris Uhlmann moderates debate between Malcolm Turnbull and Bill Shorten in 2016. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian
Origin Energy adds wind power, batteries for coal exit
Origin Energy will buy one of the most advanced wind and energy storage projects in New South Wales to help plug the gap left by the planned closure of the country’s largest coal-fired power station, AAP reports.
The electricity and gas company has announced an agreement with Virya Energy to acquire its Yanco Delta Wind Farm, one of the largest in the state.
Capable of powering more than 750,000 households, the project is forecast to avoid up to 4.5m tonnes of emissions a year by displacing coal generation.
Origin CEO Frank Calabria said Yanco Delta was a large-scale, advanced wind development project next to existing transmission infrastructure, with key planning and regulatory approvals already secured:
The acquisition of Yanco Delta represents a major step forward in our journey to transition Origin’s portfolio to cleaner energy.
The purchase price consists of an up-front payment of $125m and an additional payment of up to $175m conditional on the project achieving development milestones.
Origin Energy CEO Frank Calabria. Photograph: James Gourley/AAP
In particular, people are returning to the office more frequently midweek. Office utilisation was up on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays by around 20% compared with the third quarter of 2023.
The data from XY Sense is a preview of its quarterly Workplace Utilization Index report, set to be released later this month. Co-founder and CEO Alex Birch said:
The data clearly shows office attendance is now at its highest levels since the beginning of the pandemic.
Birch said attendance spikes midweek are creating challenges for companies whose “office spaces are bustling on a Wednesday and ghost towns by Friday”.
A busy Sydney CBD. Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty Images
Changes to Australia Post letter delivery: timeframe explained
Circling back to some earlier news that Australia Post will move to delivering letters every second day, instead of every day.
Australia Post has clarified the rollout of this change for us. A spokesperson said the regulation change is effective from Monday, but the actual changes to deliveries will be progressively rolled out until the end of 2025.
CEO Paul Graham said the previous regulations requiring Australia Post to deliver letters every day, even when there were no letters to deliver, had been causing “significant financial losses”.
As AAP reported earlier, posties will continue to deliver daily under the changes but their deliveries will favour parcels.
Tasmania's Liberals formally secure minority support
Tasmania’s Liberals can govern in minority after receiving the final required offer of support from an independent MP, AAP reports.
Premier Jeremy Rockliff’s party won 14 of 35 lower-house seats at the 23 March election, four short of the number required to govern in its own right.
Three first-term Jacqui Lambie Network MPs earlier this week inked a deal to provide votes of confidence and supply in parliament in return for several measures.
Rockliff confirmed independent and former Labor leader David O’Byrne had provided a written assurance of confidence and supply.
He told ABC radio a more formal agreement was still being discussed but at this stage he had not made any commitments in return for O’Byrne’s support:
We can now move forward ... and have a parliament that is workable, that listens to everyone’s ideas [and] provides that certainty and stability that Tasmanians want.
Tasmanian independent and former Labor leader David O’Byrne. Photograph: Ethan James/AAP
Compulsory income management in NT ‘ineffective in reducing harm’, study finds
A study led by Charles Darwin University (CDU) has found that compulsory income management (CIM) in the Northern Territory is perceived as ineffective in reducing harm.
The study interviewed 26 people who are experts in social welfare programs, who provide support to welfare recipients or have an in-depth understanding of CIM in the lives of welfare recipients.
CIM was established in the NT in 2007 and restricts a portion of someone’s income support payment that cannot be used to gamble, purchase alcohol and other prohibited products.
Lead author Dr Steven Roche said the study concluded CIM was considered a punitive approach to reducing harm and was incompatible with the needs of welfare recipients:
The findings detail CIM’s negligible impact on behaviour change around social harms and suggest that CIM can exacerbate issues such as family violence, where CIM is weaponised by men who use violence in situations of family violence.
The study was led by Charles Darwin University. Photograph: Esther Linder/The Guardian
According to Roche, study participants said welfare recipients found ways to bypass CIM to purchase prohibited items, that CIM doesn’t prevent or reduce family violence, and it doesn’t address the underlying issues of harm from alcohol and other drugs.
A policy reform agenda involving genuine community consultation is desperately needed to better understand the complexities of CIM in the NT that holds principles of community-based policy development at its heart.
