Investment in new wind and solar falls short of 2030 target pace
Petra Stock
For the second consecutive quarter in 2025, investment in new wind and solar has fallen well short of the pace required to hit Australia’s 2030 renewable energy target.
Only four projects – totalling 615MW capacity – reached financial close between April and June, according to data released today by the Clean Energy Council.
That brought total new investment in 2025 to 1.17GW – about a third of the rate required (6-7 GW per year) for Australia to replace its ageing coal power and stay on track for 82% renewables by 2030.
Political and policy uncertainty during the federal election contributed to the weaker result, the report said.
The CEC chief policy and impact officer, Anna Freeman, said:
While we now have renewed confidence in the direction of travel, many chronic and structural issues remain unresolved – significant delays in the transmission rollout, lengthy and unpredictable environmental and planning processes, workforce bottlenecks and a lack of certainty about long-term revenue for new projects.
This morning, the environment minister, Murray Watt, announced he had approved a 135MW solar farm with battery storage in New South Wales, at a site adjacent to the Muswellbrook coalmine. Watt said it was the 97th renewable project approved under the Albanese government.
In late July, the federal government announced plans to expand its underwriting scheme to help accelerate the transition to renewable energy.
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Updated at 01.46 BST
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Sydney restaurant faces human rights complaint after keffiyeh incident
The Racial Justice Centre is preparing to file a group complaint with the Australian Human Rights Commission after a Sydney restaurant denied dine-in service to people wearing Palestinian keffiyehs during a 20-minute period last weekend.
The legal centre will file the complaint to Australia’s national anti-discrimination body on behalf of six Palestinian complainants, regarding an incident that took place on 3 August at Merivale-owned Jimmy’s Falafel in the Sydney CBD after the Sydney Harbour Bridge march, first reported by the Sydney Morning Herald.
Guardian Australia has spoken to four people, not part of the complaint, who report being told they would be barred from eating inside at Jimmy’s Falafel unless they removed their keffiyehs.
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Investment in new wind and solar falls short of 2030 target pace
Petra Stock
For the second consecutive quarter in 2025, investment in new wind and solar has fallen well short of the pace required to hit Australia’s 2030 renewable energy target.
Only four projects – totalling 615MW capacity – reached financial close between April and June, according to data released today by the Clean Energy Council.
That brought total new investment in 2025 to 1.17GW – about a third of the rate required (6-7 GW per year) for Australia to replace its ageing coal power and stay on track for 82% renewables by 2030.
Political and policy uncertainty during the federal election contributed to the weaker result, the report said.
The CEC chief policy and impact officer, Anna Freeman, said:
While we now have renewed confidence in the direction of travel, many chronic and structural issues remain unresolved – significant delays in the transmission rollout, lengthy and unpredictable environmental and planning processes, workforce bottlenecks and a lack of certainty about long-term revenue for new projects.
This morning, the environment minister, Murray Watt, announced he had approved a 135MW solar farm with battery storage in New South Wales, at a site adjacent to the Muswellbrook coalmine. Watt said it was the 97th renewable project approved under the Albanese government.
In late July, the federal government announced plans to expand its underwriting scheme to help accelerate the transition to renewable energy.
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Updated at 01.46 BST
Council orders Sydney shop to remove signage after allegedly using Labubus to promote vapes
Sydney’s Inner West council has ordered a shop to remove its signage after allegedly using a children’s toy to promote vapes.
In a social media post, the council said it had yesterday sent compliance officers to the Marrickville business premises.
“Labubye, Marrickville! This sign is gone for good,” the council wrote beside before and after photos of the signage.
The sign referred to Labubus, a hugely popular doll marketed to children.
A composite photo published by the Inner West council. The council said it had yesterday sent compliance officers to the Marrickville business premises. Photograph: Inner West CouncilShare
Updated at 01.26 BST
Sarah Basford Canales
PM praises ‘first dog’ Toto when asked about Victorian law preventing people being buried with pets
Ending on a lighter note on ABC radio this morning, Anthony Albanese says common sense should apply when asked about a Victorian law that prevents people from being buried alongside their pets.
Albanese often talks about his dog, Toto, a cavoodle he refers to as Australia’s first dog and who often accompanies him on his prime ministerial jet around the country.
While not often one to wade into topics he’s presumably not been briefed on, the prime minister let loose on the subject:
If people feel close to their pets and they want to be buried with them, why would you, why would you stop it?
Albanese then offered a little bit of insight into how Toto reacts when he gets home to The Lodge.
The thing about our pets is they give us unconditional love and, no matter how difficult my day is, when I come in, there is a little furry friend who is absolutely ecstatic and excited to see me. And it takes about 10 minutes to settle [her] down and that just lifts you up. So, I think that’s part of the human condition. So, for goodness sake, whatever that law is, should be, a bit of common sense should apply surely.
Anthony Albanese and his dog, Toto. Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAPShare
Updated at 01.31 BST
Sarah Basford Canales
Anthony Albanese says he is not in a position to judge whether Israel is directly killing journalists in Gaza but said too many innocent lives have been lost.
Speaking to ABC radio this morning, the prime minister was asked whether he was OK with Israel’s killing of Al Jazeera journalist Anas al-Sharif and four of his camera crew earlier this week.
Israel claimed responsibility for the killings, alleging al-Sharif was the leader of a Hamas cell responsible for rocket attacks against Israel – an allegation that Al Jazeera and al-Sharif had previously dismissed as baseless.
Albanese responded:
Well, the Israeli government themselves say, in this case, there’s one person they say there are allegations against. I’m not in a position, obviously, to ascertain the veracity of those allegations, but the camera crew killed … with that journalist – and there’s been too much loss of innocent lives across the board.
And that’s why Australia has come to the position that we have, but taking a step back as well, if you argue, as Australia has, for a long period of time, that there needs to be a two-state solution … I want to see Palestinians and Israelis live in peace and security, and I want to see an end to the killing of innocent lives, whether they be Israelis or Palestinians.
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Updated at 01.28 BST
Sarah Basford Canales
Albanese dismisses US criticism over intention to recognise Palestinian statehood
Anthony Albanese has dismissed criticism from the US ambassador to Israel about Australia’s intention to recognise Palestinian statehood at an upcoming UN meeting.
The US ambassador, Mike Huckabee, told the ABC’s 7.30 last night that Australia’s announcement came as a surprise to the US administration, adding there had been “an enormous level of disappointment and some disgust”.
Asked to respond, Albanese told ABC radio his job was to represent the interests of Australia and Australians who had been disgusted by the deaths of thousands of innocent Palestinians in Gaza:
[Australians] were disgusted by the terrorist actions of Hamas on October 7, the slaughter of innocent Israelis, taking of hostages and the ongoing holding of those hostages have outraged Australians, but Australians have also seen the death of tens of thousands of people. When you have children starving, when you have children losing their lives, with families queuing for food and water, then that provokes, not surprisingly, a human reaction.
The prime minister continued:
I’m concerned about Australia’s position, and that is what my role is. We’re a sovereign nation, and he’s entitled to put his views, but we’re also entitled to put our views. We didn’t do it shyly. I noticed, I saw the interview last night. He suggested that this came as a surprise. I spoke with prime minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu last Thursday night. I asked him, ‘What are, you know, what’s the end point here?’ And the end point is the same as the end point that he had put to me more than a year ago, which was, ‘We’re going to get rid of Hamas militarily’. There was no political solution there. And the idea that you just continue to do more of the same, that you occupy Gaza City, that you foreshadowed the conflict which has been opposed by the Israeli Defence Force themselves.
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese. Photograph: Darren England/AAPShare
Updated at 01.23 BST
Sarah Basford Canales
PM says working with children check system is ‘hopeless’
Anthony Albanese has described the existing working with children check systems as “hopeless” before a meeting between attorney generals this morning to implement a national system.
On ABC radio this morning, the prime minister was asked why media reports on Tuesday about a male childcare worker alleged to have been grooming children, and subsequently banned from working in childcare, hadn’t been enough to trigger the removal of his working with children check.
Albanese said establishing a national system and strengthening the screening requirements was a priority at today’s attorney generals’ meeting:
[The system is] hopeless and we need to do better. Quite clearly, and these revelations are a wake-up call for state and territory governments in terms of the regulations but also the commonwealth.
The federal attorney general, Michelle Rowland, is meeting with her counterparts this morning to discuss how to harmonise the state and territory systems but earlier flagged on ABC radio the process could still take 12 months.
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Updated at 00.57 BST
Mark Butler says Penny Wong spoke to Marco Rubio before Palestinian statehood announcement
The Australian government advised US counterparts of its intention to recognise Palestinian statehood before making the decision public, Mark Butler has reiterated.
The health minister’s comments contradict those of the US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, who last night told the ABC the “unilateral” move had been unexpected, ill-timed and had caused an “enormous level of disappointment and some disgust”.
Butler told Sunrise this morning: “There was a discussion between our foreign minister, Penny Wong, and Secretary of State Rubio before the announcement … It wasn’t just about the situation in Israel and Gaza but also importantly about the main focus of our relationship, which of course is security and stability in our own region.”
He added:
The State Department [was] pretty disciplined publishing a read-out …that was published very soon after the conversation.
So, I am not quite sure why the ambassador to Israel says that. There was a conversation.
On Monday, Wong also said she had spoken “to Secretary Rubio ahead of the announcement and, as a matter of diplomatic courtesy, advised him of our intention to announce”.
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Updated at 00.26 BST
Police bust theft ring that targeted major supermarkets
Nineteen people have been arrested for allegedly shoplifting more than $10m worth of goods, after police claimed to have busted one of the largest theft syndicates seen in Australia.
Victoria police allege the syndicate targeted major supermarkets, taking items such as baby formula, medicines, vitamins, skincare products, electric toothbrushes and toiletries, reports AAP.
“Those arrested are predominantly Indian nationals on temporary, student, or bridging visas,” the force said this morning.
They are alleged to be working in a coordinated network to supply stolen goods to ‘receivers’, who then on-sell the products to end users for profit.
The operation to smash the syndicate was led by the Box Hill divisional response unit, which worked with retailers and the Australian Border Force.
“This has been one of the most significant operations we’ve undertaken in recent times to target organised retail theft,” detective acting inspector Rachele Ciavarella said.
Investigations remain ongoing, with further arrests anticipated.
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Updated at 00.01 BST
Sydney Harbour Bridge protesters ‘useful idiots’, says Israel’s deputy foreign affairs minister
Israel’s deputy foreign affairs minister says the 100,000-plus people who marched across the Sydney Harbour Bridge almost a fortnight ago in support of ending the Israel-Gaza war were “naive” and “useful idiots”.
Sharren Haskel told ABC’s Radio National a short time ago: “I truly believe that most of this crowd was the same crowd who was gathering together since the 8th of October.”
She continued:
The rest are useful idiots that are being used as tools in the hands of those who are trying to promote those radical jihadist ideas. And unfortunately, many naive people in Australia are falling for a lot of the propaganda of those terrorist organisations and those radical jihadist organisations.
Israel’s deputy foreign affairs minister, Sharren Haskel. Photograph: The Canadian Press/AlamyShare
Updated at 01.06 BST
‘We loved his wit and his sharp insight’: Albanese remembers David Stratton
Tributes are pouring in for the legendary film critic David Stratton his death at age 85.
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, said Stratton had shared his love of cinema with the entire nation while co-hosting the television programs The Movie Show and At The Movies with fellow critic Margaret Pomeranz.
“All of us who tuned in to At the Movies respected him for his deep knowledge and for the gentle and generous way he passed it on,” Albanese said.
We loved his wit and his sharp insight, and the deep love of cinema that underpinned it all. And in his chemistry with Margaret Pomeranz, he helped deliver one of Australia’s truly great TV partnerships.
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Plan to extend Queensland coalmine would bulldoze ‘critical’ koala habitat
Habitat for threatened koalas that are part of a population described by one expert as nationally significant would be bulldozed under plans to extend a Queensland coalmine.
The campaign group Lock the Gate used drones with thermal imaging cameras to find 13 koalas in one night in trees earmarked for clearing by mining company Glencore, Graham Readfearn writes.
Glencore wants to clear 680 hectares of land – including 600ha of koala habitat – to expand its Hail Creek mine west of Mackay.
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