That’s where we’ll wrap the blog up for today, but first: a quick recap of the big events:
Take care and enjoy your weekend.
Updated at 03.17 EDT
Key events
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Greens push for Senate inquiry into early childcare safety
The Greens have announced they want a Senate Inquiry into the quality and safety of early childhood education and care as soon as Parliament resumes.
Senator Steph Hodgins-May, the Greens spokesperson for early childhood education and care, said in a statement:
A national Working With Children Check is long overdue. Whilst its reassuring to know that this will be in place by the end of the year, frankly, this is a decade after it was recommended by the royal commission.
Real action means more than introducing a check a decade after it was recommended. It means tackling for-profit cowboys sidelining quality and care in favour of profit, and a workforce in crisis.
The Greens are today announcing our intention to establish a Senate inquiry into the quality and safety of early childhood education and care as soon as parliament resumes. We recognise that we cannot keep waiting for these horrific headlines of abuse to take meaningful action.
The government must do more than Band-aids. It must sit down with everyone in the parliament willing to prioritise the safety and care of our children and enact meaningful reform to keep our kids safe.
Updated at 02.45 EDT
Death of NT man who stabbed himself during police search of home being treated as death in custody
A man who died during a police search of his home in the Northern Territory is being investigated as a death in custody.
The police officers executing the search warrant in the suburb of Rosebery south-east of Darwin were part of the joint anti-child exploitation team.
A 62-year-old man and his wife were at the residence when the search began at 7am, police said in a statement:
At approximately 8am, the man obtained a knife from within the residence and stabbed himself multiple times in the chest.
Police deployed a taser in an attempt to prevent the man from further harming himself. An officer also received a laceration to his hand while trying to disarm him.
Officers provided immediate first aid to the 62-year-old. St John Ambulance also arrived at the scene soon after but the man succumbed to his injuries and was declared deceased at the scene.
… Major Crime Investigators remain on scene and the incident is being treated as a death in custody.
Updated at 02.50 EDT
Lesser welcomes childcare working check reforms and says opposition will hold government to their timetable
The shadow attorney general, Julian Leeser, also appeared on Afternoon Briefing. He welcomed Rowland’s change in the timeline, giving assurance it would be in place before the end of the year:
This morning the federal attorney general gave an interview on radio national, where she said this would take a year. We put out a release because we just felt that that was much too long and so, I was very pleased to see the attorneys general across the country saying that they would get this done by the end of the year.
…we’ve chosen not to play politics with this and the reason is because I think people are sick of the finger-pointing exercise in relation to these sorts of issues.
We have given the government support to do this. We just want to see it get done and we will hold the government to the timetable there.
Updated at 02.33 EDT
Commissioner says working with children checks need to be stronger
Hollonds was asked if she was confident there will be reforms of who can get a Working with Children Check:
I think the announcement today does not make this particular screening tool any stronger. It does need to be stronger. It is very basic still. It is mostly about police convictions in the past. And I think the name itself, Working with Children Check kind of gives the impression that it is assessing your suitability to care for children, which it is clearly not. It is just checking whether you have police convictions, in most cases.
So you know we really need to do a lot more to be able to assess the suitability of people who want to care for children and so that employers can have the confidence that they are employing the right people and so, the national register of educators that is being proposed is also really, really important.
We need to be doing proper referee checks, we need mandatory child safety training on top of their basic early childhood educator training. All of these things will help to strengthen the safeguarding scaffolding that we need, not just in the early childhood sector but beyond.
Updated at 02.25 EDT
Children’s commissioner welcomes agreement to working with children reforms
The national children’s commissioner, Anne Hollonds, says she is “hugely relieved” the national Working With Children Check reforms have been committed to by states and territories. Appearing on ABC’s Afternoon Briefing, Hollonds was asked if the plan that they have come up will make children safer.
I am hugely relieved at this announcement today and I’m really grateful to the attorney general for her decisive action and her commitment to get this job done and, yes, if this happens, it will absolutely make a difference to the safety of children.
Remembering that this is just the first step of a whole range of actions that need to be taken, but it is a very important first step.
Commissioner Anne Hollonds in 2024. Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAPShare
Updated at 02.24 EDT
About 30 writers and authors withdraw from Bendigo writers festival over code of conduct
Henry Belot
Around 30 authors and academics have now withdrawn from this weekend’s Bendigo writer’s festival over a speaker code that one says requires “complete self-censorship” over Israel’s war in Gaza.
The festival’s code, viewed by Guardian Australia, says speakers should uphold respectful engagements which involves avoiding language or topics that “could be considered inflammatory, divisive, or disrespectful”. A source told Guardian Australia Bendigo writers’ festival (BWF) sent some speakers the code of conduct on Wednesday – two days before the opening day.
The code says that for “La Trobe Presents” panels, speakers must comply with the principles espoused in La Trobe University’s anti-racism plan, including the plan’s definitions of antisemitism and Islamophobia.
Academic and author Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah, First Nations poet Dr Evelyn Araluen and Wiradjuri writer and poet Jeanine Leane were among the first to have withdrawn from the festival over the code.
An updated list of withdrawals, updated by the group Readers and Writers against Genocide, now includes 30 names including Thomas Mayo, Jock Serong, Jess Hill, and Kirstin Ferguson. In a social media post, Ferguson said her decision to withdraw was based on freedom of expression:
My decision is not about my personal position on any specific political or social issue, which I have never shared publicly. However, I do hold firm views about the importance of protecting any person’s right to speak on topics important to them – even those topics that may be considered inflammatory, divisive or even disrespectful by some.
A spokesperson for the Bendigo writers’ festival said it was “committed to holding an event that engages in respectful debate, open minded discussion, and explores topical and complex issues.”
“The festival and presenting partner La Trobe University felt it was necessary to emphasise the importance of safety and wellbeing for all participants by introducing a code of conduct,” the spokesperson said.
Updated at 02.35 EDT
Academic welcomes ‘powerful statement’ from attorneys general on working with children check
Prof Daryl Higgins, the director of Australian Catholic University’s Institute of Child Protection Studies who has long advocated for a national Working With Children Check system, says today’s announcement is a “powerful statement from our attorneys general” but adds that it is a shame it took such “horrific incidents” for the action to be taken.
It’s been a long time coming, but it’s pleasing to see the national approach to the Working With Children Check system announced today. The banned in one jurisdiction, banned in all commitment is a powerful statement from our attorneys general that all Australian children deserve the same level of safeguarding.
I welcome the commitment to greater information sharing between jurisdictions, but caution that this needs to be carefully implemented to ensure important intelligence does not fall through the cracks.
It’s a shame it took such horrific incidents against our most vulnerable members of society, our children, for this action to be taken. We can’t become complacent.
We need all governments to continue to work in a bipartisan way to further strengthen systems and hold those who would do our children harm to account. We also need to refocus our attention on primary prevention through better systems of design and improved professional development for childcare educators to empower them to call out anything untoward and to confidently make safeguarding their number one priority.
Updated at 01.37 EDT
Natasha May
Thanks Daisy for taking us through another big day of news. I’ll be with you for the rest of the afternoon!
Daisy Dumas
That’s all from Ima Caldwell and me today – thanks for joining us. I’ll leave you in the hands of the lovely Natasha May for the rest of the day’s breaking news.
Updated at 01.06 EDT
Wet season forecast shows earlier onset in the east, later in the west
The Bureau of Meteorology has released its forecast for Northern Australia’s 2025-26 wet season, starting 1 September.
In Queensland rainfall onset is likely to be earlier than normal for most of the state, with an even higher chance in parts of the central interior.
The wet season is also forecast to arrive earlier than usual in the Northern Territory, except for parts of its western interior.
In Western Australia the rainy season will arrive later than normal for much of the north and west of the state.
There is a roughly equal chance of an earlier, later or near-normal onset for areas along the Western Australia–Northern Territory border.
Melbourne cinema to pay tribute to ‘one of a kind’ David Stratton
Cinema Nova in Melbourne will pay tribute to the late film critic David Stratton, with two free screenings of 1952 classic, Singin’ In The Rain.
A statement from David’s family suggested his devotees “celebrate David’s remarkable life and legacy by watching his favourite movie — Singin’ In the Rain.”
Speaking about this weekend’s screenings in Stratton’s memory, Cinema Nova co-director, Natalie Miller said in a statement:
David was one of a kind. His incredible knowledge of films leaves me in awe. His support of the Australian film industry was amazing, and I am thankful that I knew him professionally and as a friend.
And, Australia’s most underrated native animal is …
The rakali, or native water rat, has been voted Australia’s most underrated native animal in a poll by ABC Radio National, as part of Science Week 2025.
Gathering more than 20% of the 65,000 votes cast, the rakali beat nine other finalists, including the giant cuttlefish, dugong, turtle frog and palm cockatoo.
Dr Ann Jones, host of Radio National’s What the Duck?!, said in a statement:
The rakali is the quintessential underrated Australian animal – it’s widespread but secretive, it’s fluffy but a kick-arse fighter, it surprises and delights observers and its very presence repels introduced black rats out of its territory. It can travel great distances over land, but swims better than Kieren Perkins (sorry Kieren). The rakali is worthy of this crown. It is more than a rat – it is the Ruler of ALL the Rats.
Updated at 00.18 EDT
Football fans to set alarms for return of Premier League
It’s that time of the year again when diehard football fans prepare for late nights or set their alarm clocks to go off at ungodly hours: the Premier League is back, full of thrills but facing a threat to its superpower, as Barney Ronay writes.
The new season kicks off this weekend, with champions Liverpool beginning the defence of their title against Bournemouth in the curtain raiser at 5am AEST on Saturday morning. For the first time, the most-watched league in the world will be broadcast by Nine Entertainment-owned Stan Sports, after Optus Sport transferred its sports streaming rights for a sum of about $300m.
Even without Ange Postecoglou, who was sacked by Tottenham despite the Australian coach’s success in the Europa League final, Nine has recognised the broader appeal of the Premier League and will show one game from each of the first three rounds this season on its main free-to-air station Channel Nine.
Read more here:
Updated at 00.09 EDT
Albanese’s latest gifts: a plaque, a felt hat and a vase
Josh Butler
Anthony Albanese has declared receiving a gift of a terracotta plaque from Pope Leo and a white felt hat from the Canadian prime minister in his latest update to the parliamentary register of interests.
The start of the new parliamentary term, after the election, means all MPs and senators are nearing the deadline to lodge their register of interests, which includes properties, bank accounts, stock holdings and gifts they’ve received. Many have already done so ahead of the deadline, but a number still have their list outstanding. We’ll be bringing you more reporting on those declarations soon.
Albanese’s register, published online this week, notes two investment properties – his former home in Marrickville and the Central Coast beach house he purchased with his fiancé, Jodie Haydon, last year, as well as the rental income from both.
The prime minister declared he had received gifts including a wooden carving of the famous Indonesian Garuda statue from President Prabowo Subianto, which is displayed in Australia’s embassy in Jakarta.
Albanese, who visited Rome for the Pope’s inauguration and met the new pontiff, also received: a carved terracotta plaque; a white felt stetson hat from Mark Carney, Canada’s leader; and a vase and bowl from “Sky News / The Australian”.
The PM also noted he’d received tickets to the first and third game of the State of Origin rugby league series from the NRL in May and July.
Updated at 00.34 EDT
Attorney general promises no standards in child protection scheme will drop as a result of harmonisation
Rowland also said the scheme won’t be exactly the same in all states and territories but the government will be aiming to achieve a consistency in standards:
When we talk about harmonisation, we are not looking at a scheme to make every single state exactly the same. We are not looking to redo individual state systems. We are looking for consistency.
And one of the key points that came about from today’s agreement in SCAG is that no state and territory would be required to lower the … standards that they have. Now, they are different in between each state and territory and I’m happy for my colleagues, individually, to speak towards that.
But the key issue here is that we have agreed that no jurisdiction will be required to lower their standards. To the contrary – we want all standards to lift – to lift across the commonwealth so that we have the most robust scheme.
Updated at 23.36 EDT
Rowland says working with children reforms have been accelerated
Rowland said all states and territories have agreed to “pull out all stops” to ensure the reforms are implemented as soon as possible, bringing forward the the timeline:
We took this urgent reform to SCAG [the Standing Council of Attorneys General] as a priority, initially expecting that this could take up to 12 months as a feasible time frame that the commonwealth, states and territories could agree to for implementation. So I’m extremely pleased to accelerate delivery of the reform with states and territories agreeing to working towards implementation by the end of this year.
There is a firm commitment from all states and territories to pull out all stops, and we are working together as a team.
… This is not a set and forget exercise. We will continue to work together, including in future meet[ings] of SCAG to help keep our young people safe.
Updated at 23.33 EDT
Rowland announces states have agreed to toughen working with children checks
The attorney general Michelle Rowland is addressing the media after discussing national reforms to Working With Children Checks with state attorney generals:
The foremost priority of any government is to keep Australians safe and that particularly extends to the most vulnerable in our community – our young people.
And that’s why today, all jurisdictions have agreed to deliver ambitious reforms to address systemic gaps in the Working With Children Checks regime to improve the safety of children across Australia.
Attorney generals-today agreed to toughening the system, by ensuring that if you’re banned from holding a working with children check in one jurisdiction, you’re banned in all of them. Banned in one – banned in all.
Updated at 23.25 EDT