Australia news live: flash flooding hits Queensland roads; $57bn of Victoria infrastructure threatened by climate hazards | Australia news
important events
Liberal senator says Coalition immigration policy ‘alienates’ immigrants and ‘does not meet the needs’ of society
liberal senator Andrew McLachlan He said he had “deep concerns” that the coalition’s immigration policy would divide the country and that he thought the country should not take a “negative approach to immigration”.
McLachlan parts ways with opposition leader Angus Taylor, The same person who said last week that the country should severely restrict immigration, tying immigration rates to the ongoing housing shortage. The senator told RN Breakfast this morning:
Coming from a multicultural community, I have deep concerns that with this policy package we will create two types of members of the community in the future. … If you both contribute to the wealth of the nation and have certain rights, you can have almost a stratification of our society. And I’m not sure that’s the Australian way.
McLachlan continued:
I don’t think our discourse meets the needs of the broader community. I think the rhetoric we use alienates immigrant communities. I think we should not approach the issue of immigration negatively. Of course this needs to be controlled and we don’t want to invite people in without creating a society that can accommodate them. Both economically and culturally. But we cannot continue to blame immigrants for the problems in our economy.
More than $57 billion of Victoria’s infrastructure is at risk due to climate hazards
Petra Stock
More than $57 billion of public infrastructure across Victoria will be at risk from extreme weather by 2030, according to new research from Infrastructure Victoria; Wildfires, floods and heat pose the biggest threats.
The independent consultant assessed risks to up to $318 billion in government-owned or controlled assets and found that transportation, energy and healthcare assets are most exposed to climate hazards. The value at risk could rise to over $71 billion by 2070.
Doctor Jonathan SpearInfrastructure Victoria’s CEO said the importance of climate-resilient infrastructure was highlighted.
After a summer where bushfires, floods and landslides have hit many Victorian communities, we know extreme weather is now a reality.
The government needs to update and fund adaptation plans. Funding high-priority, cost-effective infrastructure adaptation actions can save millions in recovery costs and lost productivity.
Erwin JacksonThe head of Australia programs at the Climateworks Centre, who was not involved in the research, said:
High-level policies need to start integrating both emissions reduction and adaptation, but also focus on key risks such as heat, bushfire, coastal flooding.
Part of the challenge, he said, is the scale of investment required to make infrastructure more resilient. Governments therefore needed to identify the most vulnerable communities and assets and work with the private sector to pave the way for investments in building adaptation and resilience.
Health minister admits change to private health insurance discounts for older people ‘unwelcome’ but says it is necessary
Minister of Health, Mark Butler, He said he understood changes to private health insurance discounts for older Australians had caused hardship to many older people, but said a system that gave people benefits based on age rather than income was “hard to sustain”.
If passed, the budget will eliminate subsidies that encourage people over 65 to get private health insurance. For Australians aged 65-69, discounts will drop from 28% to 24%, and for those aged 70 and over, discounts will drop from 32% to 24%. The savings will be transferred to elderly care.
Butler said he understood this was an “unwelcome change” but added:
We took this on very hard, but I think it was a responsible decision to re-equal private health subsidies based on household income rather than household age and put every dollar we saved there back into aged care. …
I know this is unwelcome to many people, but at a time when there is a real strain on our budget and a need to find every dollar we can for aged care, we have taken the view that where there are two adjacent households with the same income, paying them a different subsidy for their private health insurance based solely on age is not sustainable.
Shadow minister says restricting welfare benefits to citizens is ‘encouraging’, not ‘punitive’
josh taylor
shadow immigration minister Jonno Duniamhe said Angus Taylor‘s budget response proposal to limit welfare payments to Australian citizens only was not a penalty for permanent residents but a “pro-immigration policy” that would “promote a pathway to Australian citizenship”.
ABC 7.30 presenter sarah ferguson “How does penalizing tax-paying permanent residents appeal to the would-be immigrants the country desperately needs,” Duniam asked. he asked.
Duniam said the “countless” people who immigrated to Australia and became rich through opportunity were not punished, and people like them who wanted to come would not be punished either.
He said:
However, in almost all cases, they will have to wait several years under the visa system to receive the types of benefits you mention.
And in many cases, under Labour’s current approach, there are now waiting periods of between 4 and 10 years for the range of supports people may want to take advantage of.
So it’s not about punishment, it’s about trying to promote a pathway to Australian citizenship.
He said the Coalition was pro-immigration, noting Australia’s aging population, but added “we want to determine who comes here”. [and] how many”:
We want to ensure that they have homes to live in.
And finally for those who are Australian citizens (and I hope they are all who want to come here) can I say that we want to protect the services we provide in this country?
This was a very pro-immigration policy if I had ever seen it before.
But there will always be critics and they will say whatever they say.
Good morning
good morning, this Nick Visser At least I’m here again to soak in this dreary Tuesday in Sydney. Here are the highlights in the news:
More than $57 billion worth of infrastructure in Victoria is at risk from climate hazards, a new study has found. An independent consultant assessed the risks to government-owned or regulated assets and found many were exposed to climate hazards. By 2070, this value may exceed 71 billion dollars.
A flood warning remains in place for the Nerang and Coomera Rivers on the Gold Coast following moderate to heavy rainfall in the region since Sunday night, with reports of flash flooding on roads. According to the Bureau of Meteorology, rainfall is expected to continue on Tuesday; Further rises in river and stream levels and flooding are expected.
We will bring more soon.
