Australia news live: details of review into Monash IVF bungle to remain a secret; widespread flood warnings for NSW | Australia news

Key events

What we learned, 20 August 2025

With that, we’re wrapping up the blog. Before we go, here are today’s big stories:

Thanks so much for joining us today. We will be back with you early tomorrow.

Share

Charge dropped for foiled stunt at Woodside boss’s home

A conspiracy charge against a climate activist over a foiled publicity stunt protest at the home of Woodside Energy’s boss has been dropped.

Joana Partyka, 40, was accused of conspiracy to commit an indictable offence after counter-terrorism police arrested three activists at Woodside chief executive Meg O’Neill’s Perth home in August 2023.

The Disrupt Burrup Hub member wasn’t one of them and she was charged with the conspiracy offence some months later.

She was scheduled to fight the charge at trial in October but it was vacated when prosecutors withdrew the charge on Wednesday in the WA magistrates court.

Outside court, Partyka said the conspiracy charge showed the outrageous lengths to which authorities would go to silence peaceful climate protesters.

Police haven’t provided a reason for why they suddenly dropped the charges, but I think a reasonable inference to draw is that they had no case against me.

That’s enormously vindicating.

– AAP

Share

Updated at 03.50 EDT

Details of review into Monash IVF bungle to remain a secret

An independent review into two embryo mix-ups at a leading IVF clinic has found human error and technology limitations were to blame, but the details will remain a secret.

Monash IVF revealed staff transferred the wrong embryo to a woman at a Melbourne clinic in June, after a similar mistake involving a separate Monash patient in Brisbane.

The two cases sparked an independent review headed by leading barrister Fiona McLeod, which has been completed but will remain confidential.

In a statement to the ASX today, Monash IVF confirmed the report would not be released publicly to protect the privacy of affected patients.

The company said both cases were non-standard IVF treatments and the circumstances would “not arise in the vast majority of IVF procedures”.

It provided scant detail on the mix-ups, saying human error led to a woman being mistakenly implanted with another’s embryo in Brisbane in 2023 and giving birth to a baby who had no genetic links.

– AAP

Share

Updated at 03.40 EDT

New opposition leader, Josh Willie, says Tasmanian Labor has ‘proud history’

Tasmanian Labor has a proud history and I look forward to giving this role everything I’ve got to return Labor to government.

I’d like to thank Dean Winter for his service. He’s a proud Tasmanian with strong Labor values and he’ll continue to work to make Tasmania a better place.

I’d also like to thank Anita Dow for her service as deputy leader. She is someone the Labor team respects and can turn to for a comforting word, and she has provided great unity for many years.

I congratulate Janie Finlay for her election as deputy, and I look forward to working with her and the rest of the Labor team to return Labor to government.

New leader for Labor in Tasmania, Josh Willie. Photograph: Ethan James/AAPShare

Updated at 03.38 EDT

Tasmania Labor’s Dean Winter takes ‘full responsibility’ for election loss, congratulates new leader Willie

Former Tasmanian Labor leader, Dean Winter, has congratulated Josh Willie on being elected as his replacement.

Dean Winter will remain the member for Franklin. Photograph: Chris Kidd/AAP

In a statement, Winter took “full responsibility” for the election result and said it was “understandable that Labor has a new leader”.

I will continue to serve as a Labor member for Franklin in parliament, and to fight for those workers who the premier has callously abandoned in his clutch for power.

Thank you to my colleagues, staff and the broader labor movement who have supported me every single day. Especially Anita Dow, who has been an incredible deputy leader for our party and for me.

Finally, I’d like to thank my beautiful wife, Alli, and our kids George and Harriet for their love and support over the campaign. I look forward to spending some much needed time with them over coming weeks.

Share

Updated at 03.24 EDT

Josh Willie elected as new Tasmanian Labor leader, Janie Finlay as deputy

Tasmanian Labor has replaced Dean Winter as parliamentary leader with the partyroom electing Josh Willie to serve as opposition leader.

The party has just issued a short statement:

After yesterday’s events in parliament, the 2025 election was declared lost, and in accordance with Labor Party rules the leadership was spilled at today’s caucus meeting.

Yesterday, Winter unsuccesfully moved a motion of no confidence in Liberal leader Jeremy Rockliff’s government. The motion failed after the Greens and crossbenchers refused to support it.

Janie Finlay has been elected as deputy leader, unopposed.

Willie will address the media tomorrow.

Share

Updated at 03.13 EDT

Ed Husic: ‘ramp up’ sanctions, hold Israel decision makers ‘to account’ for Gaza

Labor MP Ed Husic has condemned the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s description of Anthony Albanese as a “weak leader” and called for more sanctions in response to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Here’s what Husic told the ABC:

When Prime Minister Netanyahu talks about betrayal, the betrayal is of humanitarian law, kids and innocent Palestinians.

We have 60,000 innocent Palestinians killed, half of which are women and children. And I would suggest respectfully to Prime Minister Netanyahu, the bigger focus should be to stop seeing kids being killed or starved.

Husic has continued to call for additional sanctions to be placed on Israeli government officials.

We should be prepared to ramp up sanctions. Many of our sanctions so far have focused on activity in the West Bank.

I would say, looking at what is happening in Gaza, we need decision-makers to be held to account for what is happening.

I think that is important and we should remain open-minded about sanctions and frankly I think we will need to escalate it. [This is] because of the fact that we are still suffering starvation and the Netanyahu government doesn’t seem to want to take a change of approach.

Share

Updated at 03.08 EDT

Court ends for the day in Lehrmann appeal hearing

The first day of Bruce Lehrmann’s appeal against the ruling in his defamation case has ended in the federal court.

Lawyers for Lisa Wilkinson spent much of the afternoon making submissions about how Justice Lee erred in his findings that criticised her conduct.

Sue Chrysanthou SC, for Wilkinson, said the reasonableness of her clients conduct included that Lehrmann was not named nor identified in the story on The Project:

It was not necessary for the purposes of the program to name and shame Mr Lehrmann.

The hearing will continue tomorrow at 10.15am, with Chrysanthou expected to resume her argument, before Zali Burrows, for Lehrmann, starts her response.

The appeal is expected to finish on Friday.

Share

Updated at 02.49 EDT

Australia won’t respond to Netanyahu’s criticism of Albanese, acting foreign minister says

The acting foreign affairs minister, Tim Ayres, says the Australian government will not retaliate against Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s claim that Anthony Albanese is a “weak leader”.

Here’s what the Labor senator told the ABC:

No. We are not going to respond in terms of the public statements.

The role of the government here is represent Australia’s national interest.

The prime minister did have a quite extended meeting with prime minister Netanyahu ahead of the cabinet meeting last weekend and the announcement of Australia’s position in relation to recognition [of a Palestinian state].

You can read more on this story here:

Share

Updated at 02.39 EDT

Disruption to international flights as WA ground workers set to go on strike

Penry Buckley

Hundreds of workers will go on strike at Perth Airport tomorrow after rejecting a pay offer, potentially creating chaos for passengers on long-haul flights from the busy international terminal.

Ground and passenger service workers employed by the Dubai National Air Travel Agency (dnata) at the airport have voted overwhelmingly to take protected industrial action between 5.30pm tomorrow until 10.00 am on Friday AWST, after rejecting a pay increase of 4% in 2025, 3.5% in 2026, 3% in 2027 and 2.5% or CPI for 2028.

It comes after a federal court decision on Monday saw Qantas fined a record $90m for illegally firing 1,820 baggage handlers and other ground staff in 2020, with Justice Michael Lee ordering $50m of the penalty to go to the Transport Workers Union (TWU).

TWU Western Australia assistant secretary Shane O’Brien said Perth ground workers were among the lowest paid in the country:

Outside of Western Australia, all ground staff are covered by an agreement that’s … between eight and 20% more currently than the workers in Perth doing the same job.

A spokesperson for Perth Airport said it was aware of the action but did not know what the impact on flights would be at this stage. The TWU expects flights with carriers including Emirates, Air New Zealand, Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines – as well as some freight services – will be affected.

In a statement, a spokesperson for dnata said the increases in its offer aligned with market conditions and were designed to “ease cost-of-living pressures”, but said it would continue to engage with the TWU “in good faith to reach a mutually acceptable agreement”.

Share

Updated at 03.02 EDT

NSW toll reform not expected to cut operator revenue, Transurban reassures investors

Tollway giant Transurban has reassured investors it still expects to earn billions of dollars in revenue even if New South Wales reforms cut tolls for commuters.

The NSW government is pushing for lower toll costs, setting up a new government agency to run tollways and offering reimbursement for weekly costs over $60 until the end of this year.

Photograph: Bianca de Marchi/AAP

It’s yet to announce more substantive mooted reform. Asked about the changes’ scope and effect on revenue, Transurban chief executive, Michelle Jablko, said:

It’s not just about price; there’s a network efficiency impact of any change and so all of that’s been taken into account.

The government’s been very clear … that they respect the value of contracts, that they respect revenue.

Sydney’s commuters should expect toll road reforms to be revealed before the end of the year, Jablko said.

It’ll be up to the government to choose when they make an announcement … I expect they’ll have something more to say over the coming months.

Share

Updated at 02.24 EDT

Australians still spending on lottery tickets, despite fall in size of top prizes

Australians have continued buying lottery tickets despite a tough economic climate and “below average” jackpot outcomes, the head of the Lottery Corporation has told investors.

The Lottery Corp, which was created after a demerger with gambling giant Tabcorp, reported revenue of $3.75bn in the 2024-2025 financial year, down 6.2% from the previous year.

According to its FY24-25 financial results, released today, the Lottery Corp earned $365.5m in net profit, down 11.7% from $414m recorded the year before.

Australians are still keen to try their luck even though prize money isn’t what it used to be. Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAP

In a presentation to investors, the Lottery Corp’s CEO and managing director, Sue van der Merwe, said the company’s executives were confident about its future success.

Van der Merwe said the company’s businesses, which include Australia’s lottery and Keno brands, performed well.

She said there was still “healthy underlying participation” in its core games, despite a 13% reduction in top prize offerings in its two jackpot games, and economic pressures that she acknowledged meant some consumers were more careful about how they spent their money.

Investors appear to have been reassured – the Lottery Corp’s share price on the ASX had risen 7.84% to $5.70 as of 1.39pm today.

Share

Updated at 02.12 EDT

Heaviest east coast rain on its way, with BoM forecasting more than 150mm in some places, including Sydney

The “wettest period” for New South Wales and southern Queensland is expected between now and Friday, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.

And still it comes. For many people living on Australia’s east coast, it feels like it has been raining non-stop for weeks. Photograph: Hollie Adams/Reuters

Miriam Bradbury, senior meteorologist at the BoM, says persistent rainfall is expected to accumulate over the coming days, and could reach totals of between 60 and 120mm, with some places recieving in excess of 150mm.

Some of those higher accumulations include places like Sydney [and] all the way up to around the Gold Coast in Queensland.

Rain on already saturated ground is expected to lead to riverine flooding.

A major flood warning has already been issued for the Namoi River with a moderate flood warning for the Peel River.

The BoM has issued widespread flood watches across NSW, including parts of the Mid North Coast, Hunter, Nepean and North West Slopes.

Share

Updated at 02.27 EDT

Judgment in Brittany Higgins defamation case brought by ex Liberal senator due in WA supreme court, next week

Western Australia’s supreme court is expected to deliver its judgment next week on the defamation trial against Brittany Higgins brought by her ex-boss, former Liberal senator Linda Reynolds.

The five-week trial, which began in Perth in August 2024, heard from more than 20 witnesses brought by Reynolds’ legal team as part of her case against Higgins over three social media posts she alleges damaged her reputation.

The case is one of a number of legal battles to stem from Higgins’ decision to publicly allege in 2021 she had been raped in Reynolds’ office by a colleague, Bruce Lehrmann.

Brittany Higgins (left) did not appear as a witness in the case brought to court by the former WA senator, Linda Reynolds. Composite: AAP

Lehrmann has always vehemently denied the allegation and he pleaded not guilty at the criminal trial, which was aborted due to juror misconduct. A second trial did not proceed because of prosecutors’ concern about Higgins’ mental health.

As part of his failed defamation trial against Network Ten and Lisa Wilkinson, a federal court in April found that, on the balance of probabilities, Lehrmann raped Higgins. His appeal is now before the courts.

In the WA case, the court heard a number of claims from Reynolds, including that Higgins and her now husband, David Sharaz, had schemed to “ambush” the former senator by concocting a “fairytale” of “political cover-up” to damage her.

Higgins did not appear as a witness but her lawyer argued the then-young Liberal staffer felt professionally and personally isolated after the alleged incident in Parliament House and stayed quiet about it in the lead up to the 2019 federal election out of fear of losing her job.

The judgment will be delivered next Wednesday, at 10am AWST at Perth’s David Malcolm Justice Centre.

Share

Updated at 01.50 EDT

Sally McManus: don’t assume everything will be better with AI

Sally McManus, the ACTU’s secretary, says she will be pushing for a worker-centric approach to regulating artificial intelligence, in this afternoon’s roundtable session.

Speaking on the sidelines on day two of the parliament house summit, McManus says she expected to feel a “bit lonely on AI this arvo” when it came to warning of the risks of the technology.

ACTU President Michele O’Neil (left) and Secretary Sally McManus at the roundtable on Tuesday. The peak union says the benefits of AI aren’t clear or certain. Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAP

The final roundtable session today is on “AI and innovation”. Here’s what McManus told the ABC:

We shouldn’t just say automatically we are all going to be better off because of AI; we’ve got to make sure we are.

The union boss says she isn’t advocating for “over-regulating” AI, but says there is a “doomer” view of the technology that comes with the fear of a “Trump-billionaire, let-it-rip” approach to regulating the technology.

It may boost productivity, it may also just boost profits. So we shouldn’t just say automatically we are all going to be better off because of AI – we’ve got to make sure we are.

That’s why you need governments.

Share

Updated at 01.34 EDT

Thanks for sticking with me through a busy Wednesday. Henry Belot will take the reins from here and guide you through the afternoon.

Share

Updated at 01.20 EDT

Judge erred in finding Lehrmann was reckless about consent during rape, court told

Court has resumed in Bruce Lehrmann’s appeal against the federal court decision that he was not defamed by Network Ten and Lisa Wilkinson.

Sue Chrysanthou SC, for Wilkinson, is speaking about a notice of contention, which is also being raised during the appeal. This relates to the fact that she argues that Justice Lee erred in how he characterised Lehrmann’s rape of Brittany Higgins.

Chrysanthou said Lee should have found that Lehrmann was not just reckless about Higgins’ lack of consent, but knew she was not consenting. “Intentional rape”, she said, was proven: Lehrmann knew about the lack of consent, as opposed to being reckless about consent.

Lee made several comments in his judgment, Chrysanthou said, which underlined this.

She said Lee described Lehrmann as “a person so bent on gratification”, and said he was “not caring”. Lee also accepted Higgins was “like a log” and used what Chrysanthou said was “an old-fashioned term, unfortunate perhaps in this context” that Lehrmann “went ahead willy-nilly” with the rape.

The hearing continues.

Share

Updated at 01.20 EDT

Rising east coast traffic increases Transurban toll revenue

Traffic is on the rise across the east coast, driving up revenue for toll road giant Transurban.

Sydney experienced the biggest increase in average daily trips on the company’s tollways , up 2.7% over the year to June, while Melbourne saw 1.2% increase and Brisbane 1.5%.

Sydney had a bigger increase in weekday traffic, while Melbourne and Brisbane’s increase was weighted towards weekends. Higher working from home and lower office occupancy could be playing a role, according to Transurban’s chief executive, Michelle Jablko:

That’s evidence of evolving work and lifestyle habits, so there has been a shift in travel patterns as a result of that.

Photograph: NSW Government

Unlike the other two east coast capitals, most of Brisbane’s increase was from large vehicle traffic, up 4.1%, which Jablko attributed to Queensland’s economic growth.

Congestion is set to ease in Melbourne’s west with the opening of the West Gate bridge but has grown in Sydney’s north west as populations increase near the M7 and M2 roads, the company says.

Higher toll prices boosted Transurban’s proportional revenue by between 4% and 5% for each city.

Combined with a 20% jump in revenue from its North American operations, Transurban’s proportional revenue rose to $3.7bn. However, its profits halved to $178m, as financing and operating expenses rose.

Share

Updated at 01.13 EDT

Just to recap some of today’s blooming algae happenings

As well as the national testing centre mentioned earlier, there will also be $4m in grants for local governments to help their communities, a bit over $4m for scientific research support, monitoring and data collection, on top of $28m previously announced joint funding.

Anthony Albanese. Photograph: Matt Turner/AAP

Prime minister Anthony Albanese also faced down some local outrage over whether the bloom should be declared a national disaster. There’ll be a new stream of funding available through the Regional Investment Corporation for those affected by the bloom, which is different to bushfires and floods, Albanese said:

We will create a new stream, a significant ecological event program in order to ensure that longer term support is put in place. It is very clear that slow onset events like marine heatwaves and algal blooms will continue to impact our natural environment, communities and businesses.

Share