Australia news live: Queensland watching Cyclone Alfred as it heads south; earthquake rattles coast off Townsville
Key events
A NSW prison that is currently privately operated will return to public hands as Labor moves to reverse the privatisation of correctional facilities.
The NSW government announced this morning that Parklea Correctional Centre, Sydney’s second-largest remand centre, will be the second prison to return to public hands.
It comes after it was announced in 2023 that Junee Correctional Centre would return to public hands, with the 16-month transition underway and to be completed in April.
Parklea Correctional Centre is operated by Management & Training Corporation Australia (previously MTC Broadspectrum) since 2018, with its existing contract expiring in March 2026.
MTC’s contract will be extended to October 2026 as part of the transition.
NSW premier Chris Minns said:
We began bringing Junee Correctional Centre back into public hands in 2023, and today, we take the first step in making Parklea public again.
Frontline staff who work at Parklea Correctional Centre today will have a job at Parklea – regardless of the changes.
This is a win for hundreds of essential workers in Western Sydney as we rebuild essential services for NSW.
Queensland watching Cyclone Alfred as it heads south, with possible turn to the coast this week
Graham Readfearn
Communities along Queensland’s battered south coast will be closely watching the Bureau of Meteorology’s updates on Sunday as severe Tropical Cyclone Alfred continues its meandering and circuitous journey south.
Warnings for gale force and strong winds and hazardous surf are in place on Sunday from Rockhampton down to the Gold Coast.
Queensland’s parks department on Friday closed camping on K’gari island and at sites on the neighbouring coast and encouraged campers in those areas to pack up and leave.
By Sunday morning, the bureau was expecting the cyclone to be about 350 km north-east of Bundaberg as a category three system.
Alfred was expected to continue moving slowly south, perpendicular to the cost, through Sunday when it could weaken to a category two system.
The bureau’s MetEye system showed the system could keep heading in the same direction at the same intensity until about Tuesday or Wednesday, when a sharp turn towards the Queensland cost was being predicted.
The bureau has warned that the further out the predictions are, the less confidence they have in them, so the best advice would be to keep up-to-date with the warnings and the expected tracks of the cyclone over the coming days.
Labor announces freeze on draught beer excise
The government is freezing indexation on the draught beer excise for two years, in a move the PM has called a “win-win” for beer drinkers and brewers.
Pouring a cold one is a solid tax earner, and is estimated to raise more than $2.6bn this financial year. The excise increase happens twice a year, with the latest increase taking effect at the beginning of February.
Anthony Albanese last week announced tax changes for distillers, brewers and wine producers during a visit to Tasmania.
The changes increase the remission cap for any excise paid from up to $350,000 to $400,000 a year.
Albanese says the latest measure will help small to medium-sized producers “thrive”.
“Freezing the excise on draught beer is a common sense measure that is good for beer drinkers, good for brewers and good for pubs.”
Magnitude 4.4 quake rattles Queensland coast
A magnitude 4.4 earthquake has rattled north-eastern Queensland’s coast, seismologists say.
Geoscience Australia said the quake struck at 9.31pm on Saturday near Townsville at a depth of about 10km.
Geoscience Australia seismologist Phil Cummins said:
A lot of people felt this earthquake.
It was relatively shallow.
He said there were reports of the quake being felt 300km north of Townsville and 300km south of the city along the Queensland coast.
The Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Centre said there was no risk of a tsunami to the Australian mainland or surrounding islands or territories from the earthquake.
– APP
Fatima Payman announces first election candidate
The former Labor senator, Fatima Payman, has unveiled the first candidate for her new political party Australia’s Voice ahead of the federal election.
Mohamed El-Masri will lead the party’s senate ticket in Victoria after quitting the Greens to join Payman’s outfit.
The Muslim community worker was the Greens’ candidate for the seat of Calwell in Melbourne’s outer north before he jumped ship.
El-Masri said:
I’m humbled and honoured to be selected as first on the Australia’s Voice Senate ticket.
I leave the Greens with deep appreciation for their work, but joining Australia’s Voice gives me an even greater opportunity to serve the people of Victoria and focus on the issues that matter most like tackling cost-of-living, fixing the housing crisis, and standing up for human rights.”
Australia’s Voice, which Payman launched after quitting Labor in protest over its refusal to immediately recognise Palestinian statehood, is planning to run Senate candidates in all mainland states.
Payman ignited a media storm last week after telling Iranian state-owned news outlet PressTV that Iran was an “incredible place” for women.
The United Nations has found the Iranian government’s repression of women is “intensifying” two years after the death of Mahasa Amini sparked mass protests.
Payman has since apologised for the comments, which she acknowledged “did not reflect the realities of women who have suffered violence, brutality, and severe human rights violations”.
Speaking about El-Masri’s candidacy, Payman – whose senate term runs until 2028 – said the “major party mafia have controlled the lives of Australians for too long”.
This is a huge first step for Australia’s Voice and for everyday Australians as we fight to build a stronger, fairer Australia for everyone.
Good morning
Jordyn Beazley
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog.
As voters wait for the federal election to be called, the former Labor senator, Fatima Payman, has unveiled the first candidate for her new political party, Australia’s Voice.
And a magnitude 4.4 earthquake has been felt off the north Queensland coast as authorities monitor Tropical Cyclone Alfred on its slow journey towards the mainland.
I’m Jordyn Beazley, and I’ll be taking you through our rolling news coverage today. If you have any questions, tips or feedback, you can get in touch via email: [email protected].
Happy Sunday!
