Sydney Morning Herald
Australia urged to consider back-up plan for subs ahead of top-level meeting
Australia faces mounting pressure to develop contingency plans for its submarine capability as questions persist about the AUKUS timeline. The calls come ahead of a high-stakes meeting with Japan's new prime minister, whose tough stance on China resonated strongly with voters. The encounter signals deepening strategic alignment between the two nations as Indo-Pacific security concerns intensify.
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Albanese paves way to break election pledge on negative gearing
Australia's housing affordability crisis is pushing Prime Minister Anthony Albanese toward scrapping a core election promise, with negative gearing reforms now set to feature in this month's budget. The move signals a significant policy reversal, as Albanese frames the overhaul as a generational equity measure to help younger Australians enter an increasingly locked-out property market. The decision carries real political risk, given Labor's bruising history with negative gearing reform at the 2019 election.
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Australia news live: Victorian Liberal leader again refuses to rule out One Nation deal in November; federal Labor may extend fuel excise cut
Victoria's Liberal leader has repeatedly declined to rule out a coalition deal with One Nation ahead of November's state election, drawing sharp criticism from Premier Jacinta Allan, who argued the Nepean byelection result demonstrated the Liberals "can't govern without One Nation." The controversy deepens a broader national debate about the Coalition's preference arrangements, with senator Matt Canavan defending the decision to preference One Nation ahead of an independent in the upcoming Farrer byelection. Meanwhile, federal Labor is weighing an extension of the fuel excise cut as cost-of-living pressures remain a central political concern.
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What are we here for? Anthony Albanese’s Labor government faces the defining test of its appetite for reform
Anthony Albanese's Labor government is under mounting pressure to prove its reformist credentials as it enters what was billed as its pivotal year for delivering meaningful change. Senior Labor insiders are grappling with competing priorities and external shocks — from Middle East conflict to budget pressures — that threaten to crowd out the government's domestic agenda. The central question now is whether Labor has the political will to push through substantive reform or will settle for managed competence.
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Australia news live: three dead and man arrested in Sydney; Liberals claim seat of Nepean in key Victorian byelection
Three people are dead following an incident in the Sydney suburb of Rosemeadow, with a 32-year-old man arrested in the early hours of Sunday morning. In Victoria, the Liberal Party has claimed the seat of Nepean in a significant byelection on the Mornington Peninsula, with candidate Anthony Marsh holding a commanding lead. The result is being closely watched as a bellwether for the state's November general election.
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