Australia politics live: admiral defends fourfold hike in Aukus contract; deadline looms for Qantas data ransom | Australia news
important events
Krishani Dhanji
Good morning,
Krishani Dhanji with you, thanks Martin Farrer for starting us. The House isn’t sitting today, but we still have Senate picks, so we’re looking forward to another big day.
We will probably hear more reactions to the first phase of the Gaza peace agreement signed yesterday and other dramatic predictions.
Stay with us!
Stephanie Convery
Going back to the interview on 730: In response to host Sarah Ferguson’s comment that Trump appeared to believe Israel was becoming isolated in the world, Israel’s deputy foreign minister said:
Look, Israel is going through a difficult time. Okay, we’ve had a lot of discussions with a lot of our allies and a lot of countries that we really expect to stand by us in these difficult times.
Look, Donald Trump is the best friend Israel has ever had. By putting pressure on Hezbollah, he managed to achieve a ceasefire with Lebanon. He was able to negotiate. This is the second ceasefire with Hamas due to pressure on Hamas. He understands that it’s not about the end result. This is not about the obsession with a Palestinian state, it is about the process, about taking constructive steps towards peace, stability and coexistence.
You can learn more about Haskel here:
Deadline looms for hacker threat to release Qantas data
josh taylor
Qantas is one of around 40 companies facing the potential publication of their data on the dark web after a hacker group. Scattered Lapsus$ HuntersHe reportedly sent a ransom note to Salesforce ordering payment to be made by today.
Qantas data includes personal and contact details of the companies’ customers and employees, including dates of birth, purchase histories and passport numbers. Qantas has previously said hackers may also have accessed frequent flyer numbers and membership tier data, which could include information about which people were given special access to Qantas’ chief executive’s lounge.
As has become standard practice following ransomware attacks by major organizations in Australia, Qantas has obtained a continuing injunction from the NSW supreme court providing protection to prevent stolen data from being accessed, viewed, released, used, transmitted or published by anyone, including third parties.
“We continue to offer a 24/7 support line and expert identity protection advice to affected customers,” a Qantas spokesperson said.
A Salesforce spokesperson told Guardian Australia earlier this week that the company “will not engage, negotiate or pay any extortion claims”.
Admiral defends four-fold increase in Aukus consultancy contract
Sarah Basford Channels
President Australian Submarine Agency He argued that a consulting contract that went from $2.8 million to $12.1 million in one year “provided value for money.”
At the Senate estimates hearing last night, Vice Admiral Jonathan Mead In the organizational review conducted by , he said: Boston Consulting Group The period from November 2024 to last month was crucial to ensure the agency had the right structure after its transition from the Aukus task force in July 2023.
The value of the first contract was set at $2.8 million in November 2024. It was extended two more times before reaching its final value of $12.1 million, more than four times the initial estimate.
Mead said the agency was tasked with “something that has never been done before in this country and is probably one of the most complex engineering tasks in the world.”
I can look you in the eye and say, I think we got your money’s worth, the agency looks very different now… [the Australian] The government had given us very specific results to help us find the most suitable path. Fly [Aukus] The leaders agreed to this as a tripartite. We were always under government control, but [also] Delivery will be made by our triple partners in accordance with the schedule.
Israeli deputy foreign minister targets Australia
Stephanie Convery
Israeli deputy foreign minister praised the US president, Donald TrumpHe called him “the best friend Israel has ever had” and last month targeted other European states as well as Australia for recognizing the state of Palestine.
Sharren Haskel He said on ABC’s 730 program last night that Gaza was “a failure of the two-state solution that was brought upon us and exploded in our faces” and that Australia and European states “gifted Palestine as a gift to Hamas” with their recognition.
Haskell claimed that the negotiating deadlock between Israel and Hamas broke down for two reasons: “One is military pressure, and the second is Trump’s pressure on Hamas.” He continued:
Unfortunately, during our very sensitive negotiation a few months ago, European countries, including Australia, gave gifts to Hamas and made it clear to them that the longer this war goes on, the more they will reward Hamas.
My point is that when Hamas praises you and thanks you, you have to understand that you are on the wrong side of history. And so they pushed back and destroyed the chances of the peace negotiations that we had at that time.
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I Martin Farrer with the best night stories and then it will be Krishani Dhanji with the main action.
Israeli deputy foreign minister praised Donald Trump He called him “the best friend Israel has ever had” and last month targeted other European states as well as Australia for recognizing the state of Palestine. His comments came as Gaza flotilla activists expelled by Israel returned to Australia this morning.
President Australian Submarine Agency He told the Senate last night that he estimated a consultancy contract had gone from $2.8 million to $12.1 million in a year, but defended it as “value for money”. More details coming soon.
