Environment minister says BoM website ‘not meeting many users’ expectations’
Josh Butler
The new Bureau of Meteorology website is “not meeting many users’ expectations”, environment minister Murray Watt admits, saying he’d hauled in the BoM’s chief to make some changes.
A refresh of the weather website has many users annoyed, with a large number of complaints about its accessibility and usefulness. Watt said he’d met with the acting chief executive, Peter Stone, “to discuss the public’s concerns with its updated website”.
In a statement, Watt said:
It’s clear that the new BOM website is not meeting many users’ expectations, with a significant range of feedback provided to the Bureau in recent days.
In the meeting, I made clear my expectations that the BOM needed to consider this feedback and, where appropriate, adjust the website’s settings as soon as possible. This includes urgent consideration of improvements to the website’s functionality and useability.
Watt said Stone had taken the feedback on, and said his ministerial office would stay on the case if users remained unhappy.
Australians deserve to have confidence in these important services … I strongly encourage Australians to continue to provide feedback to the BOM, to ensure changes can be made where needed.
Key events
The government isn’t playing a “blame game” with Rio Tinto over the future of the Tomago aluminium smelter, saying they would have liked to have an arrangement in place by now.
Energy minister Chris Bowen is on RN Breakfast this morning and says conversation with the mining giant is still underway, but has acknowledged high energy prices are a big factor as Rio Tinto’s considers the smelter’s viability.
Bowen says Rio’s statement shows there needs to be more renewables, not less, in the energy grid, which he emphasises the government is working towards.
We would have liked an arrangement to have been entered into by now, but that hasn’t been possible. But we’ll continue to engage constructively. I’m not here to engage in blame. (Minister) Pat (Conroy) is right that Tomago does have responsibilities to the community that has supported it for the last 40 years, but we’re not interested in a blame game here.
We fully acknowledge energy prices are a huge issue, 40% of the cost of the operation, they’ve made clear, and to quote them, there’s uncertainty about when renewable projects will be available of the scale we need. So they’re not saying they need less renewables, they’re saying they need more renewables. We agree with that.
It seems like the Coalition aren’t going quite as hard on Anthony Albanese’s Joy Division t-shirt as leader Sussan Ley did yesterday.
Staying on News Breakfast, Andrew Bragg says Albanese has to be careful as an “ambassador for our nation” and should “take great care in whatever he wears”.
I think it’s a matter for Mr Albanese to consider whether or not he’s wearing appropriate attire. Certainly some people have been offended by the wearing of that shirt.
Nationals senator Matt Canavan was less concerned, and offered a similar message to his colleague Bridget McKenzie a little earlier. He told the Today show:
I don’t really care what t-shirt he wears. I really don’t … I do care how he’s doing for the country and I don’t think a lot of joy is being felt by Australians right now.
Net zero a non-negotiable, Liberal senator says
The Coalition is still in the middle of a fight over the future of its energy policy, with big fractures between members over whether the 2050 net zero target should be kept.
The party is working towards something of a compromise, but there are a few moderates who don’t want that target to change – including shadow housing minister Andrew Bragg.
Optimistically, on ABC News Breakfast this morning, he reckons his party will “get there” on keeping the target.
Look, I think we’ll get there on net zero. I know there’s a lot of interest in it. I think ultimately there’s an ability there for the coalition to do this much better than labor. Labor’s net zero (policy) has been a disaster…
I think we could do net zero better than Labor in terms of emissions and cost and environmental protection, but you’ve got to keep net zero.
Host, James Glenday, asks Bragg about comments by Bridget McKenzie earlier this week that it’s not her job to get Liberals elected.
Somewhat dryly, Bragg says that while the Liberal party has to “look after itself” they are still in a Coalition with the Nats.
I know that you probably find it all very interesting to talk about, but we do have a culture of openness in the Liberal Party and the National Party, and we seem to talk about a lot of things. I mean, frankly, I wonder what the nation will talk about if the Liberal Party died, because I think we’d sort of run out of things to discuss.
Criticism of Albanese’s Joy Division T-shirt is ‘ridiculous’, O’Neil says
Pollies are still reacting to Sussan Ley’s comments on Anthony Albanese’s clothing choice when getting off a plane last week … if you missed it you can read about it all here.
Naturally, the government is trying to brush the whole thing off.
Sparring on Sunrise this morning, housing minister Clare O’Neil tells Nationals frontbencher Bridget McKenzie that of all the “remarkable dead ends” the Coalition has walked down, “this one takes the cake”.
Communities around the country are trying to focus and talk about the issues that matter to them, not try to make some fake news thing out of a T-shirt the prime minister gets wearing off a plane. It’s ridiculous.
McKenzie’s not so hot on the T-shirt criticism but pulls the government up for not having implemented the recommendations of a report by its special envoy to combat antisemitism released in July.
Look, there’s a lot to legitimately criticise the prime minister about trillion dollar debt, skyrocketing house prices and job losses in our heavy industrial sector wearing a T-shirt is not one of them … So yeah, get on with acting on antisemitism.
Krishani Dhanji
Good morning, Krishani Dhanji with you here, thanks to Martin Farrer for getting us started.
We’ve got another busy legislative day ahead of us, so let’s get straight into it!
Benita Kolovos
Victorian MP brings colleagues to tears during assisted dying debate
Meanwhile, Emma Vulin, the MP for Pakenham, brought her colleagues to tears during her contribution to the debate. Speaking through new text-to-speech technology, the Labor MP shared her experience living with motor neurone disease and said she may one day choose to use the state’s VAD laws:
I do not know how my journey with MND will end, but I do know this, the knowledge that I may have voluntary assisted dying as an option gives me strength. It allows me to live with more peace, to focus on the moments that matter, and to spare my loved ones from witnessing my prolonged suffering that serves no purpose.
Several Liberal MPs also spoke in the debate, with some reversing the position they took when Victoria’s VAD laws passed in 2017.
Opposition leader Brad Battin said the deaths of two close friends had led him to rethink his stance and back the amendments. Former leader John Pesutto also confirmed he had changed his view, while newer MPs – Brighton’s James Newbury and Kew’s Jess Wilson – also confirmed their support.
Here’s more about the amendments:
Victorian parliament’s assisted dying debate runs until 2am
Benita Kolovos
Labor MPs are expected to exercise their conscience vote to oppose a bill put forward by their own party to amend the state’s voluntary assisted dying scheme.
The lower house debated the proposed VAD changes well into the early hours of Wednesday morning before adjourning about 2am. It will resume this morning.
With MPs from both Labor and the Coalition granted a conscience vote, the outcome will cut across party lines – as it did during the debate.
The Labor MP for Greenvale, Iwan Walters, who is aligned with the SDA faction, moved an amendment on Tuesday afternoon to prevent the bill from being read a second time to allow for further consultation.
Walters told parliament the bill had “come to this place in haste, without due consideration of the anticipated and unintended consequences and with little robust consultation beyond a select group of advocates.”
He went on:
If enacted, these measures would substantially weaken the safeguards in the 2017 VAD act, with profound consequences for the safety of vulnerable people in our community.
The motion was defeated 66 votes to 17 but Labor MPs Anthony Carbines, Natalie Suleyman, Anthony Cianflone, Kathleen Matthews-Ward, Nathan Lambert and Daniela De Martino supported it.
WA governor apologises for 1834 massacre
Chris Dawson has apologised to Noongar people for the Pinjarra massacre.
At a Tuesday memorial service south of Perth to mark the 191st anniversary of the Pinjarra massacre, the state’s governor apologised to the Binjareb Noongar people for governor James Stirling’s “dreadful wrongs”.
“I say sorry to the Bindjareb people, who still feel the trauma of the punishment inflicted on their ancestors that day, when so many innocent lives were taken.”
In 1834, Stirling led 25 armed men in the Pinjarra massacre, firing at Bindjareb Noongar men, women and children for an hour. A number of landmarks in WA are named after the man behind the bloody massacre, including the Stirling Ranges.
A push by local Noongar people to rename Perth’s Stirling council was rejected in 2021.
Describing it as a “skirmish”, Stirling’s records say about 15 people were killed that day. Oral histories place the number much higher, but Mr Dawson said it was impossible to know the exact toll.
Dawson said traditional owners had been waiting to hear the truth of the massacre for more than 190 years. He said this action, and the apology, would be a step toward meaningful reconciliation.
“My call to all Western Australians, is that we speak the truth,” he said.
Read more about the massacre here:
One in 10 Australians couldn’t afford the medical care they needed last year, survey finds
Natasha May
Only one in three people feel confident they could afford necessary care if they became seriously ill, according to new national research released today by the Consumers Health Forum of Australia (CHF).
The group’s national consumer sentiment survey released today also found that one in 10 Australians couldn’t afford the medical care they needed last year.
The report was based on a survey of 5,000 Australians for their thoughts on the healthcare system across a range of areas in late 2024.
It also found nearly half (49%) of consumers reported at least one occasion during the last 12 months when they hadn’t accessed the healthcare they needed, and just over half (51%) were very confident they could get the care they needed if they were seriously ill.
Dr Elizabeth Deveny, chief executive of the Consumers Health Forum, said:
Consumers have told us that Australian health remains deeply unequal, particularly for young adults, people with chronic diseases and people struggling to make ends meet.
The survey is telling us that people are delaying or skipping care altogether because of cost and other access barriers. In 2025 the community expects that people can get healthcare when and where they need it.
Environment minister charts path to pass EPBC laws before Christmas
Dan Jervis-Bardy
The environment minister, Murray Watt, will introduce Labor’s new nature laws to parliament tomorrow and remains adamant the reforms can pass before Christmas despite resistance from the Coalition and the Greens.
The Albanese government will immediately push for a 25-day parliamentary inquiry into its planned rewrite of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC Act), which would report back just in time for the legislation to clear the Senate before parliament rises on 27 November.
But the government must first strike a deal with either the Coalition or the Greens – neither of whom are prepared to support the bill without major concessions.
Watt challenged the two parties to support the legislation, saying that five years on from Graeme Samuel’s review of the EPBC, it was “well past time to get this done”.
Every day of delay on these reforms is hurting our environment and costing business time and money. The Coalition and the Greens must decide whether or not they will back these important reforms or team up to delay them yet again. Will they put their own political gain ahead of the environment and business, or will they support our important laws.
Environment minister says BoM website ‘not meeting many users’ expectations’
Josh Butler
The new Bureau of Meteorology website is “not meeting many users’ expectations”, environment minister Murray Watt admits, saying he’d hauled in the BoM’s chief to make some changes.
A refresh of the weather website has many users annoyed, with a large number of complaints about its accessibility and usefulness. Watt said he’d met with the acting chief executive, Peter Stone, “to discuss the public’s concerns with its updated website”.
In a statement, Watt said:
It’s clear that the new BOM website is not meeting many users’ expectations, with a significant range of feedback provided to the Bureau in recent days.
In the meeting, I made clear my expectations that the BOM needed to consider this feedback and, where appropriate, adjust the website’s settings as soon as possible. This includes urgent consideration of improvements to the website’s functionality and useability.
Watt said Stone had taken the feedback on, and said his ministerial office would stay on the case if users remained unhappy.
Australians deserve to have confidence in these important services … I strongly encourage Australians to continue to provide feedback to the BOM, to ensure changes can be made where needed.
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the morning’s top stories before Krishani Dhanji takes the reins.
The environment minister, Murray Watt, has hauled the boss of the Bureau of Meteorology into his office and told him that its new website is “not meeting many users’ expectations”. Watt said he had asked Peter Stone to consider feedback from the public and make changes to the site.
A new survey shows that only one in three people feel confident that they could afford necessary care if they became seriously ill, and that one in 10 say they could not afford treatment they needed last year. Natasha May has more details in a moment about the new research released today by the Consumers Health Forum of Australia.
More coming up.
