Australia information dwell: Treasurer flags $1.2bn price range hit from cyclone; Angus Taylor to launch earnings tax knowledge however doesn’t promise tax reduce

Man drowns in Hunter area waterhole

A person in his 20s has drowned at a waterhole close to Dungog within the Hunter area of New South Wales.

About 3.45pm yesterday officers had been known as to a swimming gap at Girls Effectively at Higher Allyn – about 48km north-west of Dungog – following studies of concern for the welfare of a swimmer.

Police arrived and with the help of paramedics, police divers and rescue, a person’s physique was retrieved from the water.

He’s but to be formally recognized however is believed to be aged in his 20s.

Against the law scene has been established and inquiries are below means.

ABC Radio Nationwide falls silent

If you happen to, like many in our Guardian workplace, begin your morning with ABC Radio Nationwide – you’ll have observed the printed has reduce out.

The ABC app is silent, as are net broadcasting streams, however the analogue radio is taking part in classical music, with the occasional interlude of:

We apologise for this break in our program, we’ll return to regular programming as quickly as potential.

We’ve reached out to the ABC and can carry you the newest on what’s occurred as quickly as we now have it.

Crisafulli on Cyclone Alfred’s billion-dollar value

The premier of Queensland, David Crisafulli, appeared on the As we speak present this morning following media studies suggesting Tropical Cyclone Alfred will value the price range round $1.2bn.

Requested if he was involved the hit would possibly sign a restrict to the quantity of economic help affected residents would obtain, he mentioned the state authorities’s focus was “to make sure we go from response to recovery”.

We’ve received to do issues in another way. So I acknowledge it may cost a little a little bit bit extra up entrance to do this. However why would you substitute issues to the identical substandard? Ultimately, it’s going to value you extra in the long term to must consistently return and decide up the items.

However there’s additionally the social and the group disconnect that comes with that. We’ve, over time, we’ve rebuilt bridges to the identical normal in the identical location and anticipated a unique consequence. That’s loopy. And I’m decided not to do this. So sure, I acknowledge that it’s a little bit of a value up entrance, however long run it can pay for itself many, many instances over.

Energy has been restored to all households in a single day, the premier confirmed, and all faculties impacted by the cyclone have reopened.

Ndis prices stabilising and on observe for goal – Rishworth

The minister for social providers and the Nationwide Incapacity Insurance coverage Scheme (Ndis), Amanda Rishworth, says the scheme is monitoring $700m decrease than initially forecast this monetary yr.

That’s based on the newest Ndis month-to-month knowledge for the tip of February, inserting the year-on-year development fee at round 10%, down from the 12% development forecast for this monetary yr.

Rishworth mentioned the outcomes confirmed scheme prices had been stabilising and on observe to achieve an 8% development fee goal by July 2026.

Now we have had a robust give attention to offering better readability on what Ndis funding can and can’t be spent on, on stopping fraud, and on bettering planning to make it extra constant, clear and fairer.

We all know there’s extra to be achieved, however these reforms are bringing us nearer to the unique intent of the scheme – to offer real selection and management, and supply cheap and mandatory helps, to folks with a everlasting and vital incapacity to allow them to take part in on a regular basis actions.

The shadow treasurer, Angus Taylor, is doing the media rounds this morning forward of a pre-election tour to eight marginal seats in Tasmania, Victoria and New South Wales.

He instructed ABC Information Breakfast he’d be speaking concerning the “economic mismanagement of this Labor government and how it’s trashed Australia’s standard of living”.

On Monday, the Coalition will launch figures displaying Australians are paying extra earnings tax than the final monetary yr. Requested if he was flagging a brand new spherical of earnings tax cuts if the Liberals win the election, Taylor mentioned they had been placing them out to “make the point that Australia’s standard of living has collapsed”.

Requested why the Coalition hadn’t introduced extra insurance policies but, which drew criticism from colleagues within the Australian, Taylor mentioned they’d introduced “lots of policies”.

Re-establishing the fiscal guardrails that guarantee you may have sturdy financial administration, ensuring small companies have incentives to take a position. Fixing the housing provide on this nation via the housing infrastructure fund. And eliminating pointless pink tape.

The one factor about this job – and I’m positive it’s true of your job – you get lots of free recommendation. And that’s the nature of what you and I do.

A physique has been positioned throughout a seek for a lacking six-year-old woman, AAP studies.

The woman was final seen in North Nowra, in southern NSW, on Sunday afternoon.

Police had been notified when the woman couldn’t be positioned, with officers from South Coast police district launching an investigation and wide-scale seek for her.

Police mentioned a physique was positioned in the course of the search inside bushland within the North Nowra space about 6pm on Sunday.

“While it is yet to be formally identified, it is believed to be that of the missing girl,” police mentioned in an announcement.

An investigation into the incident is below means, and a report will likely be ready for the coroner.

Labor vows to spice up worth comparability device for physician appointments

Labor will spend $7m to spice up a prices comparability web site for medical specialists, in a bid to assist folks discover cheaper medical doctors’ appointments.

Well being minister Mark Butler will make the announcement as we speak in Perth, with the federal government pledging to – if re-elected – “fix” an current worth disclosure device known as Medical Prices Finder.

Butler’s workplace mentioned the web site was meant to make use of Medicare knowledge to point out the everyday value of specialists’ appointments. Arrange below the previous Coalition authorities in 2019, and continued below Labor, solely a small variety of medical doctors had truly uploaded their prices to the location.

Senate estimates heard in June final yr that solely 20 medical doctors had been disclosing their charges on the $24m web site. Butler’s workplace mentioned as we speak solely about 70 had now achieved so.

Labor’s pledge, to be included on this month’s price range and instituted if the federal government retains energy on the coming election, is that each eligible specialist throughout all non-GP specialities would have their common charges displayed on the web site.

A brand new $7m money injection would enable Medicare, hospital and insurer knowledge to be displayed on the location, in order to not impose any additional administrative duties on medical doctors. Insurers may also be required to point out their knowledge.

Butler:

It’s a service that has been left gathering mud and doesn’t assist sufferers decide specialist out-of-pocket prices.

The Albanese Labor authorities will assist Australians discover the very best worth once they want specialist medical recommendation and remedy, by upgrading the Medical Prices Finder to provide extra transparency on charges.

Natasha Might

Docs’ union to Minns: ‘fix the problem or let the system collapse completely’

In an announcement launched forward of the arbitration starting this morning in Sydney, the president of the medical doctors’ union, the Australian Salaried Medical Officers’ Federation (Asmof), Dr Nick Spooner, mentioned:

My psychiatrist colleagues are burnt out, and there’s no mild on the finish of the tunnel. They’re devoted to offering the very best care for his or her sufferers, however they can’t present secure care below these circumstances.

The answer to this disaster is just not difficult. It’s about valuing psychiatrists, paying them pretty, and guaranteeing that NSW has sufficient medical doctors to offer the care sufferers deserve.

The Minns authorities has a selection – repair the issue or let the system collapse utterly.

As a part of the arbitration proceedings, Asmof will name on the Minns authorities to behave instantly to repair the disaster by urgently recruiting extra psychiatrists to fill vacancies, absolutely funding coaching and registration charges to draw new medical doctors, and offering a 25% pay enhance for psychiatrists to stem the stream of medical doctors leaving NSW.

Additionally they wish to see the institution of a proper psychiatry workforce committee to supervise staffing and recruitment and implement a structured dispute decision course of to enhance working circumstances.

Natasha Might

Docs accuse Minns authorities of placing lives in danger in psychiatrist dispute

The medical doctors’ union is warning the NSW authorities’s refusal to take motion on the psychiatrists workforce disaster is placing lives in danger, because the matter goes to arbitration as we speak.

Psychiatrists resigned en masse from employees specialist positions final month after the federal government rejected their proposed answer of a particular levy to extend their pay by 25%, just like that which emergency medical doctors acquired in 2015.

With 140 vacancies unfilled earlier than the mass resignation, medical doctors claimed the rise in pay would stem the cycle of specialist medical doctors leaving the general public system due to the untenable workload for these left, and the ethical harm felt being unable to provide sufferers the standard of care they wish to.

The NSW authorities requested the Industrial Relations Fee to urgently intervene in January, with the date for expedited arbitration a full bench of the fee to listen to the dispute set from 17-21 March.

Of the 206 who supposed to resign, 62 have adopted via with resignations however many extra have both deferred their resignations or transferred to visiting medical officer contracts while they await the end result of the IRC course of.

Politicians have been warned in opposition to “election sweeteners” as economists flag rising fiscal holes in Australia’s price range, AAP studies.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has began feeding commitments to the general public forward of the 25 March price range and is predicted to announce catastrophe restoration funds for Queensland and northern NSW communities battered by ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred.

The cyclone is projected so as to add at the least $1.2bn to the upcoming price range, on high of $11.6bn blocked out for catastrophe assist, new figures present. It has already dealt a billion-dollar hit to GDP, might wipe one quarter of a share level from quarterly development, triggered the economic system to shed 12m work hours, and will put upwards stress on inflation.

In New South Wales, the physique of a six-year-old woman has been present in bushland north of Nowra after as wide-scale search and rescue operation was launched on Sunday. Inquiries are below means.

Nonetheless in NSW, the premier, Chris Minns, has introduced a mini cupboard reshuffle, triggered by the resignation of former transport minister Jo Haylen final month. Interim transport minister John Graham will completely stay within the portfolio, and Lismore MP Janelle Saffin will likely be promoted to a ministerial place.

And arbitration over a mass-resignation of psychiatrists in NSW over industrial disputes will start as we speak – extra on that to come back.

I’m Caitlin Cassidy, let’s get into it.