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Key posts
- Qantas, Qatar executives to appear before Senate inquiry
- Emotional plea to voters as Yes campaigners face threats
- Seventeen dead as Russian rocket hits marketplace
- This morning’s headlines at a glance
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King points to invasive searches as ‘context’ for Qatar decision
Federal Transport Minister Catherine King has pointed to the invasive search of Australian women as “context” for the decision not to grant Qatar Airline the request for 28 additional flights to Australia.
She said she made the decision not to grant the airline the additional flights on July 10, and informed the prime minister before it was made public.
Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government Catherine King during question time on Wednesday.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
“If you remember, we had multiple … requests on behalf of the women who had been escorted at gunpoint after a Qatar airlines flight and had then been subject on the tarmac in ambulances to invasive body searches,” she said at Canberra Airport today.
King said the invasive search of five women at Doha was “context” for the decision.
“This is the only airline that has something like that, that has happened. And so, I can’t say that I wasn’t aware of it.
“But certainly, it wasn’t the only factor,” she told reporters at Canberra today.
The decision not to grant the airline the extra flights was made in the national interest.
Qatar can run more flights out of airports like Adelaide: Plibersek
Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek has spoken about the decision not to grant Qatar extra flights this morning.
She told Nine’s Today Show the decision was made by federal Transport Minister Catherine King.
“I think, you know, Catherine King has been very clear, if Qatar Airways wants to run more flights in and out of Australia, it can do that. It can run in and out of Adelaide, Canberra, the Gold Coast, Cairns,” Plibersek said.
Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek was asked about the Senate inquiry into the Qatar Airways decision this morning. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
She said the airline could also increase the size of its jets.
“It’s a pretty clear situation where people are saying they want more competition, well, Qatar can offer those extra airfares right now,” Plibersek said.
The minister was also asked about the Senate inquiry, that is expected to tap executives from Qantas to reveal their discussions with federal ministers.
“Look, I think the Senate runs inquiries all the time on all sorts of issues. The Senate will do what it pleases,” Plibersek told the program.
Qantas, Qatar executives to appear before Senate inquiry
A Senate inquiry will ask Qantas boss Vanessa Hudson and her predecessor Alan Joyce to reveal their talks with federal ministers after a storm in parliament over the lobbying behind a decision that shielded the company from greater competition.
The inquiry is also likely to call Qatar Airways and the Qatari ambassador to give their account of the decision to block more flights, amid claims it led to higher prices for travellers.
Departing Qantas boss Alan Joyce and his successor Vanessa Hudson will both be asked to appear in front of a Senate inquiry.Credit: Louise Kennerley / Bloomberg
With the government under fire, Trade Minister Don Farrell said Qatar Airways was “welcome” to lodge a new application to add international flights.
The chair of the Senate inquiry, Nationals deputy leader Bridget McKenzie, said she wanted the committee to hear from the Qatari government and its airline about their ability to add flights.
Here’s the full story, but stay tuned as a green paper on the future of Australia’s aviation industry will be released shortly.
Emotional plea to voters as Yes campaigners face threats
Returning to Australia, Indigenous leader Marcia Langton has claimed death threats and abuse are being aimed at the key advocates for a Yes vote at the October 14 referendum, in an emotional call on voters to save lives by voting for change.
Langton said there was “nothing to fear” from the Indigenous Voice and warned voters against the “deceit” of No campaigners who had claimed the outcome would divide the country on race, at her address to the National Press Club yesterday.
Professor Marcia Langton AO delivered an address to the National Press Club less than five weeks before the Voice referendum.Credit: James Brickwood
But she called on the government to prepare for the aftermath of the national ballot by setting out how it would ensure consultation with First Nations people, saying a No vote would be falsely seen as a “mandate to do nothing” that would entrench disadvantage and cost lives.
While she did not name individuals who had been subject to death threats, Langton expressed concern at the tone of the debate, and warned of more damage if the Voice was rejected on October 14.
Continue reading about her call to voters here.
Seventeen dead as Russian rocket hits marketplace
In the latest news from the war in Ukraine, a Russian attack has killed at least 17 people in a busy marketplace.
President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the attack, which officials said hit a crowded market in the city of Kostiantynivka, close to the battlefield.
He said a child was among the dead, and officials said at least 32 people were hurt.
“This Russian evil must be defeated as soon as possible,” Zelensky said, describing it as a deliberate attack on a “peaceful city”.
Ukrainian soldiers move an injured woman to an ambulance after a Russian rocket attack on a food market in the city center of Kostiantynivka, Ukraine.Credit: AP
Aides posted video footage showing an explosion after what sounded like a missile approaching, and people scurrying for cover or falling to the ground.
The European Union’s diplomatic service called it “heinous and barbaric” and said those behind it would be held to account.
Russia did not immediately comment on the attack, and has denied deliberately targeting civilians.
Read more on the attack here, from Reuters.
This morning’s headlines at a glance
Good morning, and thanks for your company.
It’s Thursday, September 7. I’m Caroline Schelle, and I’ll be anchoring our live coverage for the first half of the day.
Here’s what you need to know before we get started:
- Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, and is set to meet the Chinese Premier Li Qiang on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit.
- Indigenous leader Marcia Langton claimed death threats and abuse are being aimed at the key Yes advocates, in an emotional call on voters to save lives by voting for change.
- A Senate inquiry will ask Qantas boss Vanessa Hudson and her predecessor Alan Joyce to reveal their talks with federal ministers over the decision not to grant a rival more flights.
- The interest bill on mortgages has doubled over the past year to almost $83 billion, helping push Australia into a per capita recession.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks during the leaders talk of the ASEAN-Indo Pacific Forum in Jakarta.Credit: AP
- Commonwealth statutory declarations will join the digital age next year, with declarations can be executed through the myGov app, use electronic signatures and video-link witnessing.
- Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek revealed more species of native animals are at heightened risk of extinction, blaming cats for Australia’s two latest extinctions.
- And overseas, some experts believe Russia’s military has started placing car tyres on top of some of their bombers to protect them from Ukrainian missile or drone attacks.
- Authorities arrested two people for smashing a path through a section of the Great Wall of China, a cultural icon and United Nations protected heritage site.
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