Australia news live: Hutton says Greens ‘taken over by a cult’ after expulsion from party; Butler shocked by SA algal bloom | Australian politics

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Queensland officials investigating reported crocdile sighting in Noosa

Queensland officials are investigating reports a crocodile was seen at the Noosa Spit this weekend. A spokesperson for the state’s Department of the Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation said:

We are aware of social media reports regarding a reported crocodile sighting today at the Noosa Spit and are investigating the matter further.

The Boyne River near Gladstone, some 300km to the north, is commonly considered the southern boundary of typical crocodile habitat.

The official urged the public to report crocodile sightings using the QWildlife app, or by filling out a form on its website, noting:

We investigate every crocodile sighting report we receive.

An aerial view of Noosa. Photograph: Peter Harrison/Getty ImagesShare

Updated at 19.25 EDT

Watt says SA’s algal bloom won’t be solved overnight

Murray Watt said the government was concerned about the event, but conceded it was “a naturally occurring phenomena that is not going to be solved overnight”. He said:

We all want to see those beautiful beaches return to the state they’re normally in. We want to be able to see recreational and commercial fishers be able to get back to what they’re doing and we want to see all those incredible species returned to health.

We will continue working to support the South Australian government’s response.

The environment minister, Murray Watt. Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAP

Watt said he would meet with the SA government on his visit and tour some affected beaches:

I have been in regular contact with Minister Close and our departments have been working closely together on the response to the bloom.

Last week I sent the head of the oceans and marine division of the department to South Australia to meet with the state government and local scientists, and to inspect the algal bloom itself. Her reports back to me confirmed the severity of the algal bloom and emphasised the need for more monitoring of the situation.

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Updated at 19.09 EDT

Two dead after light plane crash in Queensland

Two people died after a light plane crashed in south-eastern Queensland on Sunday afternoon, AAP reports.

Emergency services said a twin turboprop Reims Cessna F406 aircraft crashed into a grass area at Devon Park, near Oakey, west of Toowoomba about 3pm on Sunday.

Photograph: Dave Hunt/AAP

Two men believed to have been onboard the aircraft died in the crash, police said, with investigators saying forensic testing was ongoing to identify them.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau said it would transport the recovered aircraft wreckage to its technical facilities in Canberra for further study.

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Updated at 18.56 EDT

Hutton says Greens ‘taken over by a cult’ after expulsion from party

Hutton issued his own statement declaring that the “Greens have been taken over by a cult”:

They have abandoned the historic mission I believed they had when I founded the party, a mission to help bring about an ecologically sustainable world. Like all cults they are deeply authoritarian and don’t believe in freedom of speech.

They should change the name of the party from the Greens to the Extreme Transgender Party.

Hutton told the Guardian he was seeking legal opinion and also considering “political options”.

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Updated at 19.17 EDT

Queensland Greens founder mulling legal options after official expulsion from party

The founder of the Queensland Greens is considering both his legal and political options after being officially expelled from the party over what it considers his pursuit of speech harmful to trans people.

The decision to terminate Drew Hutton’s life membership of the Greens was upheld by delegates of the state branches on Sunday, who voted to back the findings of the party’s Constitution and Arbitration Committee’s (CAC) and reject Hutton’s appeal that sought to reframe the issue as one of free speech. Queensland Greens convener Gemmia Burden said in a statement:

This decision reflects the Greens’ position as endorsed by its membership – that trans rights are non-negotiable human rights, a position publicly reaffirmed in 2022. No one should be subjected to violence or hate speech on the basis of their gender, nor their race, sexual identity, ethnicity, or religion.

It is disheartening to see that Mr Hutton has prioritised his perceived right to free speech over the safety of others.

Drew Hutton founded the Queensland Greens. Photograph: Krystle Wright/The GuardianShare

Updated at 19.17 EDT

Butler says algal bloom causing havoc never seen ‘in all my decades’

The health minister, Mark Butler, whose electorate spans many Adelaide beaches impacted by the algal bloom, said he’s seen the impacts of the devastation first-hand. He told RN Breakfast earlier:

Only the weekend before last, you know, I was taking a walk and I saw a dead shark, a number of dead rays, dead fish, dead cuttlefish, scenes I’d never seen in all of my decades walking along Adelaide beaches.

This is a deeply, deeply concerning and distressing situation, but it’s also quite a new situation, not just for South Australia, but for the country.

Butler said the federal government was standing ready to give “careful consideration” to requests for assistance from SA.

Clumps of off-brown sea foam created by a devastating algal bloom lie scattered along the shoreline at Glenelg, one of the most popular beaches in South Australia. Photograph: Mark Willoughby/Zuma Wire/ShutterstockShare

Updated at 19.17 EDT

Tasmania could be in political limbo for weeks

Tasmania faces a protracted period of political limbo as election votes are counted and major parties court the crossbench, AAP reports.

The incumbent Liberals claimed more seats, 14, than Labor’s nine in Saturday’s snap election but neither can reach the 18-seat mark required for majority.

The Liberal premier, Jeremy Rockliff, whose refusal to resign after losing a no-confidence vote sparked the poll, has been given “first crack” at forming government by the Labor leader, Dean Winter. However, Winter hasn’t ruled out trying to get the numbers to govern if Rockliff is unable to form a working government.

It could be weeks for three in-doubt seats to be confirmed via preferences, and any formal minority agreements might not be arranged until after the numbers are settled.

Rockliff on Sunday said he had reached out to independents on the crossbench, pledging to work collaboratively.

Tasmania’s Mercury newspaper had an apt front page this morning.

The Mercury’s front page today. Photograph: The MercuryShare

Updated at 18.15 EDT

Environment minister heading to Adelaide amid devastating toxic algal bloom

The environment minister, Murray Watt, will head to Adelaide today amid the growing crisis surrounding a toxic algal bloom off the coast of South Australia.

As Guardian Australia’s Tory Shepherd reported this weekend, the bloom has grown to twice the size of the ACT and has killed at least 12,000 animals across 400 species, including Port Jackson sharks and starfish.

Watt said the government would stand ready to support SA:

We’ve said consistently that we’re willing to support the South Australian government as they manage this event, and the visit that I’m paying today will ensure that I can keep the cabinet well informed about what the situation is and what support may be required.

Beaches are littered with fish carcasses and scientists warn they are only ‘the tip of the iceberg’. Photograph: Mark Willoughby/Zuma Wire/ShutterstockShare

Updated at 18.10 EDT

Mark Butler says Australia will not negotiate on PBS

Butler was asked about the Trump administration’s threats on pharmaceutical imports and how the Albanese government would respond if they negatively impact Australian companies. Butler said:

We won’t be negotiating about our PBS. We know that the big pharma industry in the US is lobbying that government … very hard to try and reduce the schemes that Australia and other countries have … where we’re able to negotiate good prices for medicines on behalf of the people we represent.

Now, it’s no surprise that big pharma wants to see higher prices because that means bigger profits. But you know, our position is absolutely rock solid. We will not be negotiating around that.

Butler said the Albanese government’s position on the PBS was ‘rock solid’. Photograph: AAP

Read more here:

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‘It’s all about delivery’: Butler says new parliament will get to work on campaign promises

The federal health minister, Mark Butler, just spoke to RN Breakfast about the government’s plans when parliament sits for the first time since the May election tomorrow. Butler said the Albanese government would push forward to deliver on the key campaign commitments that saw Labor surge to victory in May:

It’s about getting it done. It’s about repaying the confidence that the Australian people gave to the Labor party and re-electing us with an increased majority. Our job now is to deliver on those promises. Promises we made.

The federal health minister, Mark Butler (centre). Photograph: Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images

Butler reaffirmed the three top priorities are:

Cutting student debt by 20%, an average of $5,500 off the debt for many Australians.

Upping safety at childcare centres.

And protecting penalty rates and overtime pay for Australian workers.

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Updated at 17.55 EDT

New poll ‘brutal’ for Coalition, Barnaby Joyce says

Support for Labor has crept up amid a retreat in backers of the Coalition, according to the first Newspoll since Anthony Albanese’s election win in May, AAP reports.

The survey, published in The Australian on Monday, showed a 1.4 percentage point rise in Labor’s primary vote since the election to 36% while the Coalition slipped from 31.8% to 29%.

Barnaby Joyce, seen in 2024. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian

And on a two-party-preferred basis, the Labor government has bolstered its lead to 57% to 43% over the coalition in the Newspoll.

“They are brutal numbers,” Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce told Seven’s Sunrise on Monday. He added:

Obviously, it’s going to be a hard time … any person in a lower house seat … if you had a three in front of your primary vote you would be very, very worried.

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Updated at 17.46 EDT

Peter Ryan, former giant of ABC business journalism, dies

Peter Ryan, a Walkley Award-winning journalist who worked in the field for 45 years, has died in Sydney after a battle with cancer. He was 64.

Ryan spent 35 years at the ABC before he retired as the broadcaster’s senior business correspondent last month to spend more time with his family. He served as the ABC’s Washington bureau chief, head of TV news and current affairs in Victoria and the executive producer of Business Breakfast, among other roles. He won a Walkey in 2017 for an exposé on the Commonwealth Bank scandal.

The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, called Ryan “an absolute legend” last month, writing at the time:

Every day as you wake up and you think about what’s happening in the economy, if you only needed to listen to one voice to be sure that you got its essential elements, it would be Peter’s.

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Updated at 17.33 EDT

Good morning

Good morning and happy Monday. Nick Visser here to take you through the news. Here’s what’s on deck:

Tasmania’s snap election delivered another hung parliament this weekend as the leaders of both the Liberal and Labor parties appeal to the crossbench in hopes of forming government while the votes are counted. That could take weeks as the three seats in doubt solidify and MPs voice their allegiances.

Federal MPs will head to Canberra tomorrow for the first time since 28 March, with an election, several international crises and an ever-evolving mesh of tariff threats in between. The 48th parliament will first turn to a proposal to slash Hecs debt, as treasurer Jim Chalmers has promised.

Stick with us.

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Updated at 17.28 EDT