Australia news live: Sussan Ley clarifies claim about ‘far-left neo-Nazis’; Pauline Hanson asks PM to overturn Senate suspension

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Inflation slips to 3.4%

Inflation slipped to 3.4% in the year to November, still above the RBA’s preferred range of 2% to 3% but slightly lower than expected.

October had seen consumer price increases of 3.8%. The less volatile trimmed mean measure also fell from 3.3% to 3.2%.

Pauline Hanson asks PM to overturn parliament suspension after burqa stunt

One Nation’s leader, Pauline Hanson, has asked the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, to overturn a temporary ban from the Senate so she can participate in debate surrounding new legislation on hate speech and a national gun buy-back scheme if parliament is recalled early.

The prime minister has said he plans to do so after the Bondi terror attack, possibly before the 26 January holiday.

Hanson was censured by the Senate and suspended from the chamber for seven sitting days in November after repeating her burqa stunt, meaning she would be unable to appear as the suspension is still in effect.

She wrote in a letter to Albanese yesterday:

Despite my constant warnings about radical Islam infiltrating Australia, your government chooses to vilify me in every possible way … I am seeking your support to overturn the ban imposed upon me by the Senate to debate these urgent bills …

You can read the full letter below:

Sussan Ley clarifies claim about ‘far-left neo-Nazis’

Going back to Sussan Ley’s press conference earlier this morning: the opposition leader has attempted to clean up what might have been another important error, where she said a royal commission should investigate “far-left neo-Nazi extremism”.

Nazism and neo-Nazism is generally accepted as being an extreme right ideology, including by the United States Holocaust Museum, the Southern Poverty Law Centre and Asio’s director general, Mike Burgess.

Key figures in Australia’s neo-Nazi movements have called for the intake of migrants to be slashed or halted altogether, targeted Indigenous Australians and rallied against transgender Australians.

Ley, in her press conference, demanded a royal commission after the Bondi attack “must include reference to radical Islamic extremism as well as far-left Neo-Nazi extremism”.

Questioned later whether she thought neo-Nazis were left-wing, Ley initially downplayed the question by saying “these are political concepts about left and right, but what is most important is that radical Islamic extremism and Neo-Nazi ideology, however people may choose to frame that in a left-right continuum, that they are included”.

Asked again to clarify, she claimed: “far-left and neo-Nazi extremism were the words I used”, stressing “and” between the two concepts - a word she did not use in her initial comment.

It was potentially a misspeak while reading off notes. In an earlier written statement on a royal commission, Ley called for investigating “the role of radical Islamic extremism, as well as far left and neo Nazi extremism”.

It comes after Ley mistakenly referred to Russia as the Soviet Union last week, saying “the government should always stand ready to support the illegal occupation of Ukraine by the USSR”. Her office updated the official press conference transcript to replace the USSR and Soviet Union mentions with “Russia”.

BoM warns ‘sweltering’ heat prompting ‘really dangerous conditions’

As a severe heatwave impacts much of the country today, widespread areas across South Australia and Victoria are facing temperatures in the 40s.

Miriam Bradbury, senior meteorologist at the Bureau of Meteorology said both Adelaide and Melbourne are anticipating “sweltering conditions” peaking at 42C on Wednesday, with temperatures reaching as high as 44C in Elizabeth, in Adelaide’s north.

The hottest part of the day was expected early afternoon – around 2 or 3pm – with temperatures remaining close to their maximum into the evening.

Murray Bridge, in SA’s Murraylands region, is headed for 46C on Wednesday. Port Augusta, about 300km north of Adelaide, could reach 45C, followed by 47C on Thursday.

Severe intensity heatwave conditions stretched from the north-west to the south-east of the country – developing in Western Australia, and moving through South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales, the ACT and Tasmania – with widespread areas facing temperatures in the low-to-mid 40s, according to the BoM.

“It’s not just a normal burst of summer heat. These are really dangerous conditions,” Bradbury said.

It’s already 34C in Melbourne, 37C in Adelaide

Melbourne and Adelaide are both forecast to hit upwards of 42C today. At 10.30am in Victoria and 10am in South Australia, the mercury has already shot up.

Melbourne is 34 right now and Adelaide 37, with temperatures expected to rise into the evening.

Ley says parliament should have been called back earlier

Ley said she spoke with the prime minister earlier this week, but said even if federal parliament comes back early, it’s still been too long since the Bondi attack. Albanese has said parliament will be recalled as soon as possible once new legislation has been finalised.

Ley said:

It’s the prime minister’s decision when parliament comes back. I said then what I say today is that it isn’t coming back early if it comes back before its scheduled first sitting date. It’s still coming back too late, too late to address the crisis of antisemitism and the crisis of the Bondi terror attack.

Parliament should have come back before the end of last year and any day that we are not coming back is a day where it is a day wasted to get on with the really important work of addressing what our proposed commonwealth royal commission would do.

Ley sets out key demands for any royal commission into Bondi attack

The opposition leader, Sussan Ley, is speaking in Sydney, saying the federal government needs to do more after the Bondi terror attack, including convening a commonwealth royal commission.

Ley said any eventual royal commission should include three prongs: full accountability for executive and ministerial decisions; a “reckoning with antisemitism and extremist ideology”; and for the commission to have “real powers and real voices”.

Ley said:

It is time for the prime minister to start listening and come out of hiding. … [There] are real threats to our social cohesion and they threaten us with violent extremism if we don’t address the causes and the consequences with clear eyes and moral clarity. …

Today is the day for the prime minister to step up, step out and announce this commonwealth royal commission but it must, as a starting point, have those three critical areas within its terms of reference. Australians are watching. Victims’ families are waiting.

Heat-related ailments affect not only older people, doctors warn

Wright added that while almost one third of hospitalisations relating to extreme heat occurred in people aged 65 and over, heat-related severe health issues affected not only older people:

If someone cannot seek reprieve from soaring temperatures this can place an enormous strain on their body.

So, please spread the word to people in your life – stay cool, stay hydrated, and stay indoors if you can.

At the same time, please make sure to check in on people in your life to ensure they’re okay. This includes not only older patients, but also infants, those who are pregnant or breastfeeding, as well as people with chronic disease and those with conditions that may impair sweating.

‘Stay hydrated, and stay indoors if you can’: GPs’ advice for managing in the heatwave

With temperatures expected to soar above 40C in many areas today, the Royal Australian College of GPs is advising people to stay hydrated, indoors and to check on others who may be more susceptible to heat exhaustion and heat stroke.

Dr Michael Wright, president of the RACGP, warned against complacency in high temperatures. He said:

My advice for all Australians is to drink plenty of water, try to stay indoors if possible during those peak UV hours of 11am to 3pm … check in on friends and family members who are more vulnerable to the impact of heat waves, including older people.

… Heatwaves have caused the most hospitalisations related to extreme weather over the last decade, and the risk of hospitalisation increases with age.

Continuing on from the last post…

Wilson said the changes brought the size of the shadow cabinet back in line with the government’s, following the resignation of Labor MP Natalie Hutchins, meaning MPs won’t have to divide the additional salary and expense allowance.

The next party room meeting is scheduled for the first parliamentary sitting week of the year on 3 February. Liberal MPs are also scheduled to have a party room conference at the end of the month, where a ballot may also be held.

Southwick, who unsuccessfully ran against Groth for the deputy role when Wilson was elevated to the leadership, is considered a frontrunner to take the role this time. But the shadow attorney general, James Newbury, and Battin are also being sounded out to run, according to two Liberal sources.

Sam Groth to step down as deputy Liberal leader at next party room meeting

The Victoria deputy Liberal leader, Sam Groth, will step down from the position at the next party room meeting and his portfolios will be immediately handed over to other shadow ministers.

We had flagged this would occur when Groth announced his plans to quit politics due to infighting within the Liberal party on Monday.

The opposition leader, Jess Wilson, wrote to MPs on Tuesday to confirm the arrangements. She said:

Sam has advised me that he believes it is in the best interests of the party, as well for his family, for him to vacate the deputy leadership at the first party room meeting of the year. Further advice on timing of this meeting will be provided in due course. In the meantime, I have resolved to reallocate Sam’s shadow ministerial portfolios among existing members of the shadow cabinet.

David Southwick will take on tourism and major events, former leader Brad Battin gets sport and Bridget Vallence trade and investment.

Are crabs animals and should we experiment on monkeys?

Animal sentience, categorising crustaceans as animals and rehoming lab animals are all on the table as the Australian code for animal research is scrutinised for the first time in a decade.

More than 845,000 animals – including mice, rats, guinea pigs, rabbits and primates – are used in laboratories in Australia each year, based on data from Victoria, New South Wales and Tasmania. An estimated 192 million animals are used globally.

In Australia, the Health and Medical Research Council code sets the rules for their use, requiring researchers to minimise animal suffering and ethics committees to weigh harms against benefits before approving research.

Read more here:

Allegra Spender says she hopes Albanese reverses stance on royal commission

Independent MP Allegra Spender says she hopes the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, reconsiders a federal royal commission into the Bondi terror attack.

Spender spoke to RN Breakfast this morning, where she was asked if Albanese should about face:

I hope so, and I think he should. … I think Australians are absolutely shocked by what happened on the 14th of December. And we value as a country our safety and our social cohesion: that everyone, regardless of faith, regardless of background, regardless of sexuality, is safe and welcome in Australia. And that was violated on the 14th of December.

And I think that we need to make sure we understand exactly how this happened and how we can prevent this in the future.

Spender went on to say Albanese shouldn’t be criticised if he changes his stance on the royal commission, noting:

I think if he changes his mind based on feedback from the community, and this is informed feedback, and this is also community feedback, this is grassroots feedback, but this is feedback from judges and all sorts of people who really have thought about these issues. If he changes his mind on the basis of that feedback, I think that is a positive thing.