Murray Watt details the new right to disconnect laws
Employment and workplace relations minister Murray Watt spoke with ABC News Breakfast earlier on the new right to disconnect laws.
He was asked a hypothetical: if you get what you reckon are unreasonable phone calls and emails from your boss, the prime minister, at the end of today, you’ll be following the letter of the law too? Watt responded:
For someone like me, I’m pretty well paid, there’s an expectation in my job I am on call. That’s very different to a very junior employee at the ABC or anywhere else. Who, you know, I would hope they’re not being contacted after hours – but it probably does happen.
Watt said that emergency situations were different, but for “run of [the] mill” issues that could wait until the next working day, bosses should wait until then.
We all get emails and phone calls like that from our boss about things that can actually wait until the next work day, [so] they should wait until the next work day so people can enjoy their private lives, enjoy time with their family and friends, play sport or whatever they want to do after hours, without feeling like they’re chained to the desk at a time when they’re not being paid because that’s just not fair.
Key events
Magnitude 6.9 earthquake near Tonga Islands ahead of Pacific Forum
The Bureau of Meteorology says there is no tsunami threat to Australia following a magnitude 6.9 earthquake near Tonga Islands.
As Daniel Hurst reported earlier, the Pacific Islands Forum is beginning in Tonga today.
Anthony Albanese is due to arrive in Tonga tomorrow and is expected to try to secure support for a proposal for Australia to help train Pacific police officers.
Water minister backs tap as PFAS inquiry launched
The discovery of “forever chemicals” in Sydney’s drinking water has not turned federal minister Tanya Plibersek off the tap, as she backs an inquiry into the potentially cancer-causing substances.
As AAP reports, the parliamentary probe will examine the environmental, economic and health impact of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, collectively known as PFAS chemicals.
It comes after Sydney Water found the chemicals in drinking-water supplies in quantities that fall within Australian guidelines but well outside tighter US standards.
Plibersek, the water and environment minister, said the inquiry would also examine why the US tightened their standards in 2024. She told Sunrise earlier:
We have to be cautious with PFAS and related chemicals and that’s why I have banned the importation of a whole lot of chemicals in this class from 1 July next year. It’s why we’re doing the drinking water guideline review that the health minister has brought forward.
Melbourne Water and Western Australia’s Water Corporation say testing of their water sources found no samples of the chemicals above Australian standards.
Karen Middleton
ASD deputy to take over as head of defence and cyber spy agency
Australia’s key cyber defence agency, the Australian Signals Directorate, will have a new chief from 6 September, with the current deputy, Abigail Bradshaw CSC, announced as its new director general this morning.
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, and the deputy prime minister, Richard Marles, said in a written statement that Bradshaw would succeed the incumbent, Rachel Noble PSM, who has held the position since 2020 and was the first woman to head up the agency.
Bradshaw has been Noble’s deputy and head of the Australian Cyber Security Centre for the past four years, has held senior roles across the federal public service and served in the Royal Australian Navy.
Albanese said:
At a time of increasingly complex geostrategic challenges, Ms Bradshaw’s expertise in both cyber and national security matters will be critically important in leading ASD to continue protecting our nation.
He and Marles thanked Noble for overseeing the expansion of ASD’s intelligence capabilities in recent years.
Bradshaw said ASD would remain focused on supporting the Australian Defence Force, collecting foreign signals intelligence, conducting “cyber offensive operations” and “protecting Australians from cyber threats”.
Delays at Brisbane airport amid industrial action and fog
Delays are occurring at Brisbane airport this morning as more than 30 electric and service workers strike for 24 hours in protest of wages and conditions.
Action by the Electrical Trades Union (ETU) and Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union members – employed by Alstef Group, the baggage handling firm at Brisbane airport – will impact on luggage movement. Commuters are being urged to plan ahead and expect delays.
This morning, a number of flights were estimated to depart later than scheduled, according to the airport’s website, with 12 flights listed as delayed.
Thick fog this morning also caused delays, with aircraft temporarily prevented from landing. In a post to X, the airport said a number of aircraft had been diverted to other airports. About an hour ago the fog began lifting and flights were landing, the airport said.
PSA: Thick fog is temporarily preventing aircraft from landing at Brisbane Airport. A number of aircraft are diverting to other airports.
Departing flights are not affected. Please check arrival flight status with your airlines. pic.twitter.com/FJpwErSZqG
— Brisbane Airport ✈️ (@BrisbaneAirport) August 25, 2024
Renegade senator Rennick to ‘stir the pot’ after LNP defection
AAP has some more details on Queensland senator Gerard Rennick’s defection from the state Liberal National party to sit as an independent.
The renegade Queensland senator who sits with the Liberals says he can accomplish more from the cross bench after becoming a pariah within the party.
Rennick became known for his stance against vaccine mandates during the pandemic and withheld his vote in protest when the Coalition was in power, which angered many within the party.
While he does not regret his stance, he says it pigeonholed him and stripped the focus from the other issues he went into parliament to pursue:
I want to stir the pot and get off the whole … vaccine shit, I didn’t intend to become a cheerleader for the vaccine stuff.
Change could not be sparked from within the major parties, Rennick said, adding he only decided in the past fortnight to quit the LNP.
You go to Canberra, you’re not doing anything. If I stayed in the party, I couldn’t push these ideas, this way I can generate a conversation on the issues.
An internal email to LNP members from President Lawrence Spingborg said the party had been informed of the senator’s decision:
People make their own decisions for their own reasons. Our hardworking team will not be distracted from focusing on the priorities of Queenslanders.
Catherine King fields more questions on aviation white paper
The transport minister, Catherine King, has been making the round on breakfast programs this morning as the government unveils its aviation white paper. We had more on this earlier in the blog, here and here, if you missed that.
She was asked: how quickly passengers could get their money back if and when the scheme is up and running?
She said it would be “pretty much immediate” for customers who haven’t got the service they paid for:
That refund should be immediate and that will be part of developing the legislation for the scheme. What the timeframes are and the battle that people have had to go through, particularly post-Covid to get the service that they have paid for, has been frustrating for many people and often people give up and say we will write off the money, and it is often a lot of money and it is difficult for people.
We expect the scheme to be up and running as soon as it can.
Damaging winds lashing parts of New South Wales until this afternoon
Speaking of damaging weather, strong wind gusts appear to be making their way across parts of New South Wales today.
The Bureau of Meteorology said a cold front crossed the state last night, with damaging wind gusts likely over the Illawarra, south coast, Goulburn and Katoomba – plus elevated areas such as Thredbo.
Conditions are expected to ease by Monday afternoon, the Bureau said.
The Illawarra Mercury reported that trees have been brought down along roads in Woonona and Figtree in Wollongong, with the wind threatening to send a trampoline flying.
In the south-east, damaging wind gusts in excess of 90km/h are likely until this afternoon. For alpine peaks above 1,900m, peak gusts up to 125km/h are possible.
Some notable gusts recorded overnight and this morning include:
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128km/h wind gust at Thredbo at 7:47pm.
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119km/hr at Cabramurra at 11:56pm.
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96 km/hr at Nowra at 01:19am.
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93 km/hr at Moss Vale at 12:43am.
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96 km/hr at Shellharbour Airport with 66 km/h mean wind speeds at 06:26am.
Thousands without power following Victorian storms on Sunday
Continuing from our last post: According to Ausnet – which covers the eastern half of Victoria – 3,000 customers are without power following yesterday’s storms.
Partnered with the Citipower stats, that’s almost 3,700 customers affected.
Ausnet says there are 27 current outages, stretching from Wodonga in the north to Kardella in the south.
We flagged earlier that the Victorian State Emergency Service had received 422 requests for assistance after huge hailstones and damaging wind gusts swept the state yesterday.
According to CitiPower, there are still hundreds of power outages following on from yesterday’s storm.
687 customers remain without power, from as far north as Castle Donnington near Swan Hill down to Beeac and Heywood in the south.
Watt congratulates CLP on Northern Territory win and ‘we take notice of election results’
Murray Watt was also asked about the Northern Territory election results at the weekend, where the Country Liberals achieved a resounding win:
Asked if he was worried about the two federal Labor seats in the Northern Territory, Watt responded:
I congratulate the new CLP government in the Territory for a very convincing win. That was a message about the kind of policies that people want. When there’s an election at state and territory level you take note of that.
But it would be fair to say there was a clear focus on local Territory-based issues. We take notice of election results and listen to what it means for federal politics as well. I’m looking forward to having some discussions with some of my Northern Territory colleagues about what the implications are.
Murray Watt details the new right to disconnect laws
Employment and workplace relations minister Murray Watt spoke with ABC News Breakfast earlier on the new right to disconnect laws.
He was asked a hypothetical: if you get what you reckon are unreasonable phone calls and emails from your boss, the prime minister, at the end of today, you’ll be following the letter of the law too? Watt responded:
For someone like me, I’m pretty well paid, there’s an expectation in my job I am on call. That’s very different to a very junior employee at the ABC or anywhere else. Who, you know, I would hope they’re not being contacted after hours – but it probably does happen.
Watt said that emergency situations were different, but for “run of [the] mill” issues that could wait until the next working day, bosses should wait until then.
We all get emails and phone calls like that from our boss about things that can actually wait until the next work day, [so] they should wait until the next work day so people can enjoy their private lives, enjoy time with their family and friends, play sport or whatever they want to do after hours, without feeling like they’re chained to the desk at a time when they’re not being paid because that’s just not fair.
King says ombudsman may allow for consumer rights charter on compensation
Q: The competition watchdog had recommended that carriers be fined for canceling flights and made to compensate passengers like Europe does, but the government instead is opting for an ombudsman – why?
Transport minister Catherine King said the ombudsman scheme allows for the development of an aviation customer rights charter – “so it may well be that the [scheme] does recommend or does insist that the an airline does have to pay refund plus compensation”:
What we’re trying to do is make sure that there is consistency about … the contracts people are entering into, and that they have a clear pathway to enforce their rights when they’re not delivered with the service.
And the bottom line is, if people don’t get the service that they are expecting, then customers deserve to get their money back, or they deserve to get an equivalent service. And that’s really not what’s been happening when it comes to the consumer space.
Transport minister details new aviation white paper to be released today
As Elias Visontay reports, the government will today release its much-anticipated aviation white paper.
Under the reforms, an ombudsman will police how airlines treat customers and enforce a passenger rights charter to ensure timely refunds and possibly cash compensation for delayed and cancelled flights. You can read more of the details below:
The transport minister, Catherine King, was on ABC AM radio just earlier and said the white paper was the result of two years of work to examine how aviation in Australia can be set up for the next 20 years.
We know there have been significant problems, and obviously leading into Covid and now post-Covid as we’re in that recovery phase, both with the challenges that many airlines are facing, the collapse of Bonza and obviously Rex being involuntary administration.
But also we know that the customer experience has been very poor through that period as well, which is why part of the white paper has focused significantly on, how can we make sure that the rights that consumers have around refunds, around delivery of service can actually be met by our airlines – whether that is Qantas or Virgin or our international [airlines].
