New registration conditions for Monash IVF in Victoria
Victoria’s Department of Health has imposed conditions on Monash IVF’s registrations in the state, effective today, after a series of bungled embryo implants.
The company said today it had already implemented process changes required by the health department, including actions and obligations related to the confirmation of the intended biological sources for each cycle; requirements to Monash IVF’s patient management system; changes to record keeping; and staff education and training. The changes also include periodic auditing and reporting to health officials.
Monash IVF’s board of directors said in a brief release this morning:
The Company will continue to prioritise the care and safety of its patients and will keep ASX informed of any material developments in accordance with its disclosure obligations.
Key events
NSW Health has issued a public health warning after discovering a dangerous batch of MDMA tablets with high dosages and ketamin.
Authorities are concerned the substances are still in circulation and will be available at the Hypersonic festival at Sydney showgrounds on Saturday:
The first warning concerns multiple MDMA (ecstasy) tablets and capsules containing a higher dose than usually circulates in tested community samples.
Ketamine-like substances, or analogues, have also been detected in white powder and crystalline matter. Both substances were detected by the NSW government’s drug checking trial at last weekend’s Strawberry Fields event in Tocumwal, in Southern NSW.
NSW Health’s chief addiction medicine specialist, Dr Hester Wilson, has also raised concerns about the impact of these drugs given warm temperatures expected in Sydney this weekend.
High doses of MDMA can cause severe agitation, raised body temperature, seizures or fits, irregular heart rhythm and death.
Hot environments, such as at music festivals, increase the risk of harm from MDMA. Taking a break from dancing, seeking shade and drinking water are important measures to reduce the risk of overheating.
At music festivals there are experienced onsite medical providers and teams of well-trained peer volunteers from programs such as DanceWize NSW who are ready to support you at many major festivals. Other event staff are also trained to help patrons.
Nick Visser
That’s all from me. Henry Belot will take things over from here. Enjoy your weekends!
Some more details from the public place shooting in Sydney’s west
NSW police held a press conference a few minutes ago to discuss the public place shooting that left one man dead.
The victim is a man in his 20s, and police currently have two people – a man in his late teens and another in his early 20s – in custody. No charges have been laid so far.
Supt Brendan Gorman said all three men were known to police, but said an investigation into the matter had just begun and there was no further information. Gorman praised officers who responded to the scene “within seconds” of the shooting.
“Anyone with any information or any dashcam footage is encouraged to contact NSW police force,” he added.
Sussan Ley is ‘still up for the job’ of opposition leader – Australian Politics podcast
Ever since she was elected opposition leader, Sussan Ley has faced strong criticisms from within her party and across the parliament. Some commentators even predicted she’d be out of the job already.
But she has made it to the last sitting week of parliament for the year. On the other side of the aisle, the Albanese government managed to meet their own deadline to legislate changes to outdated nature laws – by settling on a deal with the Greens.
Political editor Tom McIlroy speaks to Ley about her disappointment about the long awaited reforms, Barnaby Joyce resigning from the Nationals and why she thinks “it’s never been about me”.
Take a listen:
Fire and Rescue NSW responds to 100th e-bike battery fire this year
Fire and Rescue NSW says it has responded to 100 lithium-ion battery fires involving e-bikes this year so far.
Officials said a fast-moving blaze “tore through” a two-storey terrace in Sydney’s Redfern early Friday morning. Firefighters arrived to find “intense flames erupting from the ground floor and pushing up over the second-storey balcony”.
The fire was brought under control in about 30 minutes.
Initial investigations suggest the fire likely originated from an e-bike fitted with a lithium-ion battery.
Fire and Rescue NSW issued renewed advice for safety after the blaze, saying users of such devices should always use the correct charger; only use e-bikes and e-scooters from reputable retailers; never charge batteries overnight or while you’re asleep; and that the should not modify the batteries or devices to increase speed or range.
REDFERN | ***VISION ALERT*** 100th e-bike battery fire sparks terrace blaze. Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) has responded to its 100th lithium-ion battery fire involving an e-bike this year, after a fast-moving blaze tore through a two-storey terra… https://t.co/MCdoxg41T2
— Fire and Rescue NSW (@FRNSW) November 28, 2025
Adeshola Ore
APAN launch anti-Palestinian racism nationwide register
A Palestinian advocacy group is launching a national register to document anti-Palestinian racism.
The Australian Palestinian Advocacy Network’s dual-language national website will go live on Sunday. The website will be available in English and Arabic.
It comes after the Special Envoy to Combat Islamophobia, Aftab Malik, in September called an inquiry into anti-Palestinian racism. Malik said anti-Palestinian racism should not be “absorbed by Islamophobia” but noted there appeared to be a connection between the two.
Nasser Mashni, president at APAN, said the register would give people a “safe place” to report their experience and help push for action against racism.
Man dies after shooting in public place in Sydney’s west
A man has died after a public place shooting in western Sydney.
As we reported earlier in the blog, New South Wales police have been responding after the shooting in the suburb of Blacktown and established a crime scene.
Police now say they arrived and found a man with gunshot wounds to his neck, chest and leg on arrival. The man was treated by paramedics, but died at the scene.
At the same time, officers tried to stop a vehicle in the area that was allegedly attempting to leave the scene. The car did not stop and police began a pursuit, which ended when the car crashed a short time later.
Two occupants ran from the scene and were arrested a short time later. They have been taken to Blacktown police station. No details about any pending charges were available.
Perth beach closed after shark sighting
Lifeguards in Western Australia have closed a public beach after reports of a shark in the water.
Surf Life Saving WA said Floreat Beach in Perth is closed along a large stretch.
Police operation under way after public place shooting in Sydney’s western suburbs
A police operation is under way in Sydney’s Blacktown after a public place shooting, NSW police has said.
Emergency services are currently treating one person in the area. Two others have been arrested after a short pursuit, police said.
There is no threat to the public but police are urging the community to avoid the area as there is a large emergency service presence.
More information will be provided as it becomes available.
Watt rules out environmental standard on a project’s climate impact
Dan Jervis-Bardy
While environmentalists broadly welcomed the final package of laws, most note the one major omission: any requirement for decision-makers to consider a project’s climate impact when weighing up whether to approve or reject it.
Watt steadfastly refused to consider the Greens’ demand for such a measure during the negotiations, insisting that greenhouse gas emissions were regulated through other ways – principally the safeguard mechanism.
The only climate-related inclusion was a new requirement for some proponents to disclose their expected emissions as part of the application process, even though it can’t be factored into the decision-making.
Guardian Australia asked the minister if he thought climate impact would ever be inserted into the EPBC Act – possibly as a future standalone national environment standard.
In response, Watt was unequivocal.
We will not be producing a national environmental standard along those lines. We’ve been very clear that we don’t support the idea of a climate trigger in this legislation. That’s a widely held view within our government, that we do need to take serious action on climate change, but that we should do that through the range of climate legislation, climate policies that my colleague (minister) Chris Bowen is doing such a good job of implementing.
Dan Jervis-Bardy
Watt blasts critics of nature laws
The environment minister, Murray Watt, has fired back at state premiers after they criticised the new federal nature laws as “disastrous” and a threat to jobs.
The Albanese government’s deal with the Greens to re-write the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EBPC) Act provoked an angry response from Liberal premiers in Tasmania and Queensland, who claimed it would damage their state’s forestry and mining industries respectively.
Under a concession to win the Greens’ support, the government agreed to subject native forest logging to national environment standards in 18 months’ time – effectively removing a long-running and contentious exemption for the industry.
The government announced a $300m to support the forestry industry although details of the package have yet to be thrashed out.
In a statement on Thursday, the Tasmanian premier, Jeremy Rockliff, claimed the deal would “put jobs in regional Tasmania at great risk” and said the support package was “woefully inadequate”.
At a press conference after the bill passed parliament on Friday morning, Watt accused the Tasmanian government of peddling “myths and lies” about the implications of the changes for the state’s forestry industry.
He said:
I’m not at all surprised that we see a Coalition government in Tasmania that has spent the last 20 or 30 years running culture wars around forestry, getting back to their old tricks.
The Queensland LNP premier, David Crisafulli, was also highly critical of the Labor-Greens deal, describing it as “disastrous with a capital-D”.
In response, Watt said:
I think that the sorts of statements that are coming out of the Queensland government are wildly exaggerated.
Mark Dreyfus appointed special envoy on international human rights
Former attorney general Mark Dreyfus has been appointed Australia’s new special envoy on international human rights.
Dreyfus lost his position as attorney general in a cabinet reshuffle shortly after the May election as Labor party factions battled for frontbench positions.
In a joint statement, Anthony Albanese and Penny Wong said Dreyfus would undertake this new role in addition to his existing work as a backbench MP:
Dreyfus will renew Australia’s tradition as a global champion for human rights – a role we have played since we were an original signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948.
In particular, Mr Dreyfus will take a special advocacy role for the abolition of the death penalty, as well as for the rights and protections of children, older persons, people living with a disability and LGBTIQ+ individuals – all issues on which Australia has a long record of international leadership.
His high standing as a parliamentarian means he can work effectively with other parliamentary representatives in our region leading their countries’ human rights agendas.
Invasive Species Council welcomes removal of feral horses from Kosciuszko national park
Anne Davies
The Invasive Species Council’s chief executive, Jack Gough, said the removal of feral horses from Kosciuszko national park was a proof that “we can put truth, science and care for nature above politics and fear”:
No one likes to see animals killed, but the sad reality is that we have a choice to make between urgently reducing the numbers of feral horses or accepting the destruction of sensitive alpine ecosystems and habitats, and the decline and extinction of native animals.
The independent MP for Wagga Wagga, Joe McGirr, whose electorate covers one-third of Kosciuszko national park, said:
Today the NSW parliament has corrected a serious mistake. The Wild Horse Heritage Act put symbolism ahead of science and ideology ahead of evidence – and our most fragile alpine landscapes paid the price.
Repealing this law restores integrity to environmental decision-making in New South Wales. It puts the protection of endangered species, alpine wetlands and drinking-water catchments back where it belongs – in the hands of our professional national parks staff.
Anne Davies
Environmental groups say removal of brumbies from Kosciuszko national park a turning point for conservation
Environmental groups are celebrating a hard-fought win to remove feral horses from Kosciuszko national park, saying it marks a turning point for fragile alpine landscapes and the native wildlife, such as the southern corroboree frog and broad-toothed rat.
The Kosciuszko wild horse heritage repeal bill 2025, first introduced by the Wagga Wagga MP, Dr Joe McGirr, and supported in the upper house by Legalise Cannabis MLC Jeremy Buckingham, passed with bipartisan and crossbench backing from Labor, Liberal, Greens, Legalise Cannabis and independent MPs.
It was opposed by the NSW Nationals, which saw the Coalition again split over a controversial policy issue.
At a press conference a few moments ago Snowy River guide, Reclaim Kosci co-founder and Invasive Species Council Indigenous ambassador Richard Swain said:
Today, Country can breathe again. This is a victory for truth over mythology, and for those who have fought for generations to protect these high places and the life they hold.
For years, we’ve watched the alpine wetlands dry out, the snow-grass trampled, the frogs and fish vanish. To finally see our parliament stand with Country and the people who have fought for it – that’s something to be proud of. It shows that courage and compassion can walk together.
Australian Iranian community welcomes listing of IRGC as state sponsor of terrorism
The Australian Iranian Community Organisation has written to the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, praising a decision to list Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps as a state sponsor of terrorism.
The listing was formalised on Thursday after the domestic intelligence agency Asio found the IRGC had orchestrated attacks against the Australian Jewish community in late 2024.
Siamak Ghahreman, the president of the Australian Iranian Community Organisation, said he’d welcome “strong enforcement action against intimidation, coercion and foreign directed violence”:
For many Australians of Iranian background, this decision is also deeply personal. Our community includes refugees, former political prisoners, human rights defenders, and families who have directly experienced harm and intimidation linked to the IRGC.
For years, AICO and many community members have consistently called on successive Australian governments to use all available legal mechanisms to formally designate and restrict the IRGC.
(This) decision meaningfully reflects those long-standing concerns and advocacy.
New registration conditions for Monash IVF in Victoria
Victoria’s Department of Health has imposed conditions on Monash IVF’s registrations in the state, effective today, after a series of bungled embryo implants.
The company said today it had already implemented process changes required by the health department, including actions and obligations related to the confirmation of the intended biological sources for each cycle; requirements to Monash IVF’s patient management system; changes to record keeping; and staff education and training. The changes also include periodic auditing and reporting to health officials.
Monash IVF’s board of directors said in a brief release this morning:
The Company will continue to prioritise the care and safety of its patients and will keep ASX informed of any material developments in accordance with its disclosure obligations.
Josh Taylor
How Instagram’s age assurance fares
As part of my reporting on what the platforms show to various age demographics, I’ve had a phone set up with dummy social media accounts.
I set up one on Instagram recently for someone under 16 to see what would happen when the under-16s social media ban came into effect.
A notification popped up today stating “due to laws in Australia, soon you won’t be able to use social media until you’ve turned 16”.
I was then given two options: to go through downloading my data and prepare for my account to be deactivated, or review the age on the account and take a video selfie to prove I’m over 16.
I chose the latter, and the app accessed my front-facing camera, and made me move my head from side to side, similar to how one might set up face-unlock on their phone.
I was then presented with a notification stating it would likely take between one and two minutes but could take 48 hours. But shortly after I received a notification that I was in the clear.
Obviously the age-assurance trial data shows that people closer to the age of 16, as well as minority groups, may have more difficulty in this technology getting it right, and given I am an adult with a moustache it was fairly seamless and quick.
