Australia news live: competition watchdog says airfares rising after demise of Rex and Bonza; Erin Patterson murder trial resumes evidence

Erin Patterson murder trial resumes evidence

Adeshola Ore

We’re following Erin Patterson’s triple murder trial today and will bring you updates.

Patterson, 50, faces three charges of murder and one charge of attempted murder relating to a beef wellington lunch she served at her house in Leongatha, regional Victoria, on 29 July 2023. She has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

The jurors have entered the courtroom in Morwell. Telecommunications expert Dr Matthew Sorell is continuing to give evidence.

Our justice and courts reporter, Nino Bucci, filed this report on what the jury heard on Monday:

Caitlin Cassidy

Respectful relationships education should be rolled out in every Australian school, report finds

Governments must roll out respectful relationships education (RRE) across all Australian schools to address the growing challenges of AI-generated pornography, tech-facilitated abuse and sexual harassment, a report from primary-prevention service Our Watch has found.

The report, based on more than a decade of research, emphasised the need for a “whole of school” approach in place of one-off programs and limited classroom lessons.

Our Watch CEO, Patty Kinnersly, said Australian students and teachers were facing alarming rates of gendered violence:

It is deeply concerning that nearly every week there is a new incident in the school environment – whether that be young men sharing deep fake porn of young women they know, or female teachers leaving the industry because they fear for their safety.

Research shows a clear connection between sexism, disrespect and gender-based violence. Respectful relationships education in every Australian school will support young people to develop their ability to critique the world, cultivate strong and healthy relationships and contribute to ending violence against women and girls.

The blueprint cited research showing 40% of 16-to-17-year-olds experienced sexual harassment at their place of study and nearly one in four (24%) women between 18 and 24 had experienced image-based abuse.

• If you or someone you know is experiencing, or at risk of experiencing, domestic, family or sexual violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732, chat online via www.1800RESPECT.org.au, or text 0458 737 732.

Australia and Pacific in joint bid to host Cop 31 climate conference

The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, is speaking live from Fiji.

She says Australia has partnered with the Pacific in a bid to host climate conference Cop 31 in 2026 “to elevate Pacific voices”:

In an uncertain world we are counting on each other to work hard together to make our region even more resilient. Australia is a partner, Fiji can count on us. Fiji is a partner the Pacific can count on.

We are the largest partner in the region and have lifted our development assistant to record levels to more than $2.1bn to the Pacific, and recognised also the global aid cuts and the effect of those and we have dedicated almost half of our development program to support the Pacific.

And as I have done today, backing the Pacific on climate, including with our legislated cuts to our emissions, ambitious renewable energy target of 82% by 2030 and partnering with the Pacific in our bid to host Cop 31 to elevate Pacific voices and drive global action.

Cait Kelly

Thousands specialist disability accommodation homes remain empty, conference told

At the DSC National Disability Insurance Scheme conference, Loki Ball from data company Performl, has said there are thousands of empty specialist disability accommodation homes – specifically designed houses for people with high support needs.

He said the specialist disability accommodation market is a good example of where the government needed to bring in reforms to make sure the NDIS was targeting the right areas, in the right way.

After a decade of setting the market rules for SDA, a large volume of low-quality providers, spurred by property brokers, have created more than 2,000 SDA places than people need. Just in Melbourne’s west and in the middle of a housing crisis, there are more than 2,800 vacant SDA places today.

Low-quality providers and unethical conduct are obviously wrong, but so too are the rules or lack thereof too often that have enabled this problem to occur.

Cait Kelly

NDIS minister says scheme needs to ensure ‘people with disability can live with dignity’

The minister for the national disability insurance scheme, Jenny McAllister, has been speaking at the DSC annual NDIS conference in Melbourne.

She said she will honour the legacy of everyone involved who built the NDIS:

We need to make sure that the NDIS delivers better, consistent and fairer decisions, that it protects the safety and upholds the rights of participants, and that it operates transparently.

We need to ensure that there is a sustainable and vibrant disability sector that provides rewarding careers for the skilled and committed people who work in it. We need to be certain that every dollar allocated to NDIS participants reaches those participants and is spent in a meaningful way that makes a difference in people’s lives, that no one takes advantage of people with disability or their families, or of taxpayers.

We need to be certain that people with disability can live with dignity and exercise choice and control over their future through the scheme.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission finds Qantas and Virgin are only getting stronger and more profitable after the demise of Rex and Bonza airlines.

Qantas Group reported earnings of $1.5bn before interest and tax for the first half of 2024-25, the ACCC found in its latest report on domestic airline competition. Of that, $916m comes from its domestic operations across Qantas and Jetstar.

Qantas Group had an 80% share of the corporate travel market over the reporting period. “The high half-yearly earnings reported by Qantas Group reflect its dominance of the domestic airline sector,” the ACCC’s commissioner, Anna Brakey, said.

Virgin Austalia’s CEO, Jayne Hrdlicka, said in February that the airline group had achieved record profits in the first half of the current financial year, according to the ACCC report. After Rex withdrew from routes connecting capital cities, Virgin Australia has increased its share of passengers to 34.4% in March this year – an almost 3% increase from the year prior.

And the average air fare has increased by 9.6% between January and March this year – though it is down from their peak in October last year.

“The trends observed in average air fares since January reflect seasonal factors and are broadly consistent with those observed in previous years,” Brakey said.

Police establish strike force Harkstead to investigate shooting death of Sydney man

More from the NSW Police press conference addressing a young man who was and killed at his home in Sydney’s south west. The police spokesperson said the victim was 23 years old and lived with his family:

We have a 23-year-old male who was brutally murdered on his front doorstep, and we have an extremely grieving family. We understand that he lives at home with his family, his mother and father, in their 50s, and I believe with his adult sisters. So this is extremely distressing for the community, and obviously for his family.

A vehicle similar to the small silver hatchback that arrived at the address where he was shot was located about 20 minutes after the attack on fire in Fairfield East, the police spokesperson said. He continued:

Upon that vehicle being extinguished of the flames, and a cursory search, a hand gun similar to that of a Glock style pistol was located in that vehicle.

The spokesperson later said:

At this stage, we know that there is a driver and the person who actually fired the gun.

Strike force Harkstead has been established.

NSW Police are treating the shooting of a man in his 20s in Sydney’s south west as a “targeted execution”, not a “random attack”.

About 10.30pm Monday, officers found a man with gunshot wounds at a home in Condell Park. He was treated by paramedics but could not be revived and died at the scene, police said in a statement.

The victim and his family are not known to the police and do not have criminal records, a police spokesperson said. He addressed press a short while ago:

I want to assure the community that at this stage, we believe that this is, although an extremely brutal and violent execution-style murder, is a targeted attack.

What I can say in this very early stage is that the victim and the holdings that we have on the victim and his family is that he is not known to police. He does not have a criminal record. His family members do not have criminal records. And he, at this stage, I believe, has one traffic offence.

Although this victim at this stage, we believe, may not have links to organised crime … we believe that this has the hallmarks of a targeted execution – very brutal, very distressing.

I want to reassure the community that we are treating this not as a random attack.

Man shot at up to 10 times at Sydney home: police

NSW Police have seen CCTV footage showing the moments leading up to a man in his 20s being shot at multiple times in Sydney’s south-west overnight.

About 10.30pm Monday, emergency services were called to a home on Dalton Street after reports a man had been shot, NSW police said in a statement.

Officers found a man in his 20s with gunshot wounds. He was treated by NSW ambulance paramedics, but could not be revived and died at the scene.

“Detectives viewed good-quality CCTV, which was attached to the house,” a police spokesperson says. He is addressing press live.

The victim reversed his vehicle into the driveway of his home “not long before police arrival”. As he exited the vehicle, a small silver hatchback believed to be a Toyota Corolla arrived at the address and parked across the driveway. Police:

A male exited the rear driver’s side of that car and made his way up the driveway towards the victim … The victim saw the male, he backed back towards the home, and unfortunately, was up against the garage door, and an existing wall.

At this time, the male who was dressed in all black wearing a hood and believed to have his face covered, raised his right hand, and at this time, was armed with a small handgun, which we believe to be a Glock style handgun.

At very close proximity to the victim, he opened fire and we believe that he shot up to ten bullets at the victim … We believe that the victim suffered at least four gunshot wounds. He slumped to the ground out the front of his home and the offender returned to the hatchback and the car was last seen travelling eastbound on Dalton Street.

Mike Hytner

Mary Fowler switches State of Origin allegience to NSW

New South Wales has delivered the telling first blow ahead of this year’s State of Origin series, with Matildas star and Queenslander Mary Fowler switching allegiances, according to her partner Nathan Cleary.

The NSW half revealed Fowler, who was born and raised in Cairns, has defected ahead of next week’s opening game of the three-match series in Queensland territory at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium and will get behind the Blues, rather than the Maroons.

“I’m going to have to [send her a jersey], I reckon. She’s already put in the request, so I think I’m going to have to,” Cleary told News Corp. “She reckons she is going for the Blues, so I think I have swung her.”

But Fowler won’t be able to show her support for Cleary in person a week tomorrow – the injured Manchester City forward is recovering from surgery on a ruptured ACL and will be back in the UK on medical advice from her club.

“It’s pretty unfortunate because she was meant to be back last week, so she would have been able to come to the game,” Cleary said. “She’s sort of attacking her rehab at the moment and hopefully she can get back at some stage, but nothing is confirmed yet.”

Joint 2024 Australian of the Year professor Richard Scoyler has posted a recent MRI scan, showing the glioblastoma in the left side of his brain progressing.

“Whilst this may not be the best direction to be heading with my changes, amazingly (to me) I still seem keen to keep living, loving and having fun, whenever possible,” he said in the post to Instagram.

I feel like there are quite a few people on my team (including my family & friends) and they make me happy & proud!

Scoyler has been sharing his journey with recurring brain cancer on Instagram “in the hope of contributing to better outcomes for all”.

At the beginning of 2024, Scolyer and Prof Georgina Long, who were directors of the Melanoma Institute of Australia at the University of Sydney, took the mantle of joint Australians of the Year in recognition of their pioneering work developing immunotherapy treatment for melanoma. But for the treatment of brain cancers like his, very little progress has been made in decades.

“The thing about brain cancer is there’s nothing that’s proven that works on top of the treatments that started 20 years ago, so it brings grief to everyone,” he has previously told Guardian Australia.

A woman has died after an alleged domestic violence-related assault in Redfern, Sydney, on Saturday.

Emergency services were called to a unit on Morehead Street just after 4:30pm, after reports of an alleged domestic violence assault.

Officers found a 47-year-old woman with head injuries, NSW Police said. She was treated by paramedics and taken to Royal Prince Alfred hospital in a critical condition.

A 30-year-old man was arrested at the scene and charged with causing domestic violence related grievous bodily harm to a person with intent. The man and woman are believed to know one other.

Police were notified at about 5:40pm that the woman had died in hospital. A report will be prepared for the coroner, and inquiries continue. The man remains before the court.

NSW SES details fallout from overnight wild weather

There have been 22 flood rescues overnight and 1,405 calls to NSW SES for assistance in the 24hours since 5am this morning as heavy rainfall and damaging winds hit the Hunter, the mid north coast, the north-west slopes and plains, and the Northern Tablelands.

Emergency warnings were issued overnight urging people to evacuate Dungog, parts of Paterson, Gloucester holiday park, parts of Bulahdelah and Ferndale caravan park on Chichester Dam.

Fourteen watch and act warnings and 36 advice warnings are in place for flooding catchments across the mid north coast and the Hunter. About 160mm of rainfall was recorded in 6 hours overnight in Taree, causing significant sudden-onset flash flooding.

The 22 overnight flood rescues were all in the Hunter and mid north coast regions.

“Rivers and creeks are already responding quickly to renewed rainfall, as catchments remain saturated,” NSW SES said in a statement. There is major flooding on the Paterson, Gloucester and Wiliams Rivers.

Severe weather is expected to linger for several days, with widespread 24-hour rainfall totals of up to 130mm possible in some areas along the coast.

Anthony Albanese meets Pope Leo XIV

Prime minister Anthony Albanese has met with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican. Here are some pictures.

Andrew Messenger

Queensland nurses’ union to vote on strike ballot after negotiations reportedly break down

Queensland nurses could walk off the job, with union members voting on protected industrial action later this week.

The Queensland Nurses and Midwives’ Union announced the move yesterday, saying negotiations had broken down with the state government over a new enterprise bargaining agreement. It comes after the government threatened to deny members two months of backpay if they voted to strike.

QNMU’s secretary, Sarah Beaman, said the threat was “an insult to the frontline public nurses and midwives who stood firm on the frontline of Queensland Health during Covid – and every day”:

Our workforce is in crisis, and we desperately need more nurses and midwives if we are to continue to deliver quality free care in Queensland.

The government’s EB12 offer, no matter how they try to spin it, does nothing to recruit, retain and respect Queensland’s nurses and midwives.

Nurses and midwives have made it very clear – they will not be unfairly pressured into accepting a deal that erodes Queensland’s public health system – or their rights, pay and conditions.

The union says it wants a substantially higher pay offer to make Queensland nurses the best paid in the country. It also says the government is attempting to remove clauses limiting contracting out public services and mandating flexible work arrangements, among others.

British ultramarathon runner William Goodge becomes fastest man to cross Australia on foot

An ultra-endurance athlete has just smashed the world record for running across Australia after spending more than a month on foot.

Spurred on by his mother’s battle with cancer, and with his father by his side, William Goodge crossed the finish line in Sydney just after 4pm on Monday.

It brings an end to 35 days of pounding the pavement, striding the equivalent of two and a half marathons per day.

That’s four days quicker than previous record holder, Chris Turnbull, who completed the 3,800km feat in 39 days in 2023.

The 31-year-old Briton crossed the finish line at Bondi Beach, making his massive run a new Guinness world record. Goodge set out from Cottlesloe Beach in Perth on 15 April, averaging more than 100km per day at about seven and a half minutes per kilometre.

– Australian Associated Press

Anthony Albanese will meet with Singaporean counterpart Lawrence Wong to bookend his first international trip since Labor’s resounding election triumph.

The prime minister, who met with the previous Singaporean prime minister Lee Hsien Loong in 2024, is expected to consolidate Australia’s relationship with one of its most influential Southeast Asia neighbours.

Singapore will join the Talisman Sabre exercise in Australia between 13 July and 4 August, when more than 30,000 military personnel from 19 nations will take part in war games.

Albanese will meet the Singaporean prime minister on Tuesday after attending the pope’s inauguration at the Vatican and meetings with world leaders on the sidelines of the mass.

The trip coincides with the 60th anniversary of bilateral relations after Australia became the first nation to establish a diplomatic relationship with Singapore and the second to recognise it after its independence in 1965.

– Australian Associated Press

Canva co-founder Cameron Adams and his wife, Lisa Miller, have joined a pledge taken by the world’s wealthiest philanthropists to give most of their wealth to charity in either their life or wills.

“Many of the ecosystems that support our lives are being destroyed – and our future depends on how we choose to save them,” Adams said in a statement.

Lisa and I believe that with good fortune comes great responsibility. We recognise that the opportunities we have had in life place us in a position to give generously and act with purpose.

Philanthropy is more than charity; it is a means of addressing systemic issues, driving meaningful change, and ensuring that future generations inherit a world rich in possibility and biodiversity. By joining the Giving Pledge, we aim to emphasise this responsibility and commit our resources to the planet that we all rely on.

And this commitment is critical during the next decade … We must not only halt nature’s decline but also begin its restoration. Governments and businesses will play vital roles, but philanthropy has a unique ability to drive bold action, fund innovation, and catalyse change at scale.

The Giving Pledge is a promise by philanthropists to give most of their wealth to charitable causes, founded by Bill Gates, Melinda French Gates and Warren Buffett in 2010. Adams and Miller have previously pledged to give “most” of their fortune away through their venture Wedgetail.

Adams will have access to his almost $7bn fortune soon, which has largely been in Canva equity, according to the Australian Financial Review.

Jonathan Barrett

The three scenarios the RBA may deliver with today’s rate cut decision

The Reserve Bank will decide today whether mortgaged households will receive interest rate relief in a closely watched decision complicated by Donald Trump’s tariff regime. Here are the three most likely scenarios.

• Quarter point cut: There is a strong view among market participants that the RBA will cut the cash rate by 25 basis points from 4.1% to 3.85% today, providing some relief for mortgage holders.

  This view is backed by a recent easing in inflation, and the belief that the central bank wants to bring the cash level, which helps determine borrowing rates, back to a neutral rate somewhere around 3.5% over the coming months.

• No rate cut: This view has gained momentum in recent days due to strong labour data that suggests the jobs market may not require a rate cut.

  The winding back of Trump’s tariff regime, which has eased economic tension between the US and China, along with a rebounding stock market has also caused some economists to suggest the RBA should wait to see if inflation falls further before cutting again.

• Half percentage point cut: While this outcome has become increasingly unlikely due to the easing of global economic tension and strong local jobs data, there are some who believe the cash rate is too restrictive for the Australian economy.