In a significant development for small island nations threatened by rising seas, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) has found greenhouse gases constitute marine pollution. The tribunal handed down a unanimous advisory opinion this week in its first climate-related judgement. It declared countries must take measures to combat […]
Government
A central focus of this week’s budget is the treasury’s forecast for inflation. By this time next year, inflation is projected to be back within the Reserve Bank’s 2-3% target range. Inflation has dropped dramatically from its peak of 7.8% just 18 months ago, but the last mile – getting from the present […]
The federal government’s push for tougher deportation laws is facing renewed criticism in the wake of a recent ruling by the High Court. The ruling, delivered last Friday, authorises the indefinite detention of non-citizens who resist deportation, stirring fresh opposition from political adversaries and community organisations. In March, the Government […]
The Albanese government wanted to avoid an inquiry into its migration amendment bill. The report, handed down this week by a senate committee that reviewed the bill, showed why. The report lays bare the potentially devastating impacts of this hastily drafted bill. These impacts would go well beyond the cohort of former […]
It has been a particularly distressing start to the year. There is little that can ease the current grief of individuals, families and communities who have needlessly lost a loved one to men’s violence in recent weeks. A spate of cases involving women dying, allegedly at the hands of men, […]
Do Australian courts have the right to decide what foreign citizens, located overseas, view online on a foreign-owned platform? Anyone inclined to answer “yes” to this question should perhaps also ask themselves whether they are equally happy for courts in China, Russia and Iran to determine what Australians can see […]
Many Australians with disability feel on the edge of a precipice right now. Recommendations from the disability royal commission and the NDIS review were released late last year. Now a draft NDIS reform bill has been tabled. In this series, experts examine what new proposals could mean for people with disability. […]
A national Newspoll, conducted April 15–18 from a sample of 1,236, gave Labor a 51–49 lead, unchanged from the previous Newspoll in late March. Primary votes were 38% Coalition (up one), 33% Labor (up one), 12% Greens (down one), 7% One Nation (steady) and 10% for all Others (down one). Anthony […]
The New Zealand government claims its recently announced changes to visa rules will address exploitation and unsustainable migration. In reality, the new rules are likely to have the opposite effect. The exploitation of migrant workers has become a growing problem in New Zealand. Reports of fraud, wage theft, job and visa premiums (where […]
The New South Wales government has announced plans to conduct a review of a child protection tool that has a disproportionate impact on Aboriginal children and has remained unchanged in the state for over a decade. The system in question, referred to as “structured decision making” (SDM), has been utilised […]
