As it happened: Russian-born Australian couple charged with espionage; Marles unveils $250m Ukraine aid package

Kathmandu: At least 60 people were believed missing in Nepal after a landslide swept two buses off a highway and into a swollen river on Friday. Three passengers were rescued as the continuous rain made rescue efforts difficult.

The three survivors were being treated in the hospital, government administrator Khima Nanada Bhusal said, adding they reportedly jumped out of the bus and swam to the banks, where locals found them and took them to a nearby hospital.

Landslides also blocked routes to the area in several places, according to Bhusal. Additional rescuers and security forces have been sent to help with rescue efforts.

The buses were swept off the highway around 3am (Nepal time) near Simaltal, about 120 kilometres west of the capital, Kathmandu.

One bus was carrying at least 24 people, while the other had at least 42, but more could have boarded en route, Bhusal said.

AP

Circling back to the prime minister’s press conference this morning, Anthony Albanese spoke to reporters in Opposition Leader Peter Dutton’s seat and confirmed Ali France would be Labor’s candidate at the next election.

France, a para-athlete and former journalist, has already run against Dutton at the last two elections, but the Liberal leader’s primary vote has remained relatively solid in the low-40s. But the seat is still marginal on two-party preferred terms with a 1.7 percentage point advantage to Dutton.

This time, France has a very personal reason for running: her son died from leukaemia in February.

“[W]e talked about this a lot,” France told reporters today. “He wanted to be with me for this campaign. He was excited about me running, and it makes me feel so good that I have made this decision. Obviously, I’m incredibly sad that he is not here. But he said to me many times on many different issues: ‘Don’t make me the excuse for not doing the important things’.”

France said her third attempt at unseating Dutton was particularly important.

“[There’s] a lot at stake for this country,” she said.

“If he implements his nuclear fantasy plan, we’re actually putting all the progress that we have made on renewables in the bin. I think it’s incredibly important for me to stand this time. I’m going to put absolutely everything into it, and I absolutely think that we can win.”

Australian basketball great Shane Heal is seeking to be paid tens of thousands of dollars after not receiving payslips during his time as coach of the Sydney Flames.

The 53-year-old largely unsuccessfully sued the Women’s National Basketball League club for unfair dismissal after his employment was suspended in January 2023 amid an external investigation.

Federal Court judge John Halley ruled in April that the Flames suspended Heal in response to players’ complaints, dismissing the bulk of his claim the complaints were only a “smoke screen” to get rid of him.

But the club admitted it failed to promptly provide payslips to Heal, constituting a breach of the Fair Work Act.

Today, his lawyer, Nicholas Simone, told a penalty hearing he was seeking a minimum charge of $41,250 imposed on the Flames, which would be payable to Heal, a four-time Olympian.

Mr Simone also argued the failure to provide Heal with payslips before and after becoming aware of the oversight constituted separate legal breaches, which would put the minimum penalty at $74,550.

“Mr Heal was left without knowledge of what his entitlements were,” he said.

Flames lawyer Paul Moorhouse told the court the parties were “a way apart” on a possible penalty, which he submitted should only be between $2062 and $4125.

AAP

Earlier today, this blog reported Prime Minister Anthony Albanese would host Tuvalu Prime Minister Feleti Teo in Brisbane as Australia looks to strengthen ties with the Pacific Island nation to build on a recent landmark treaty.

This afternoon, the prime minister confirmed the meeting had taken place and said on social media he was “delighted” to welcome the tiny nation’s leader.

“We discussed the Falepili Union our countries signed last year, and ways to promote peace and security in our Pacific region,” Albanese wrote on X.

The Falepili Union, signed in November last year, is aimed at boosting people ties, support on climate change and a groundbreaking arrangement to provide 280 Tuvaluans with special visas to Australia every year, as their nation sinks beneath the warming ocean.

It also allows Australia to provide Tuvalu with a defence guarantee under its treaty, but this has sparked controversy and concerns about Tuvalu’s sovereignty, as Canberra was given exclusivity on security arrangements.

The number of people arriving in Australia each month has continued to decline after peaking in January.

Australian Bureau of Statistics data released today showed 1,478,410 arrivals were recorded in May, an increase of 14 per cent from a year ago but below a peak of about 2,120,000 arrivals in January. However, provisional data for June shows a slight uptick on the May figure, but this may change once the official figure is released next month and remains solidly below the January peak.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has moved to tighten eligibility for foreign students who have largely driven the lift in immigration numbers since pandemic restrictions eased. Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has used the sharp rise in arrivals since 2022 to attack the government, pledging to cut migration further if elected at the next federal poll, claiming it would ease pressure on expensive housing markets.

The ABS data released today added to statistics this masthead reported in June as showing the government’s efforts to curb migration are starting to work.

That data showed the largest quarterly fall in immigrants since the nation’s borders were closed at the start of the pandemic.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says the arrest of a private in the Australian Army and her labourer husband, accused of spying for Russia, shows his government and Australia’s security agencies are effectively tackling foreign interference and espionage.

Speaking at a press conference in Brisbane earlier today, Albanese was asked for his reaction to the arrest that AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw and Australian Security Intelligence Organisation director-general Mike Burgess announced in Canberra this morning.

In response, the prime minister said:

Well, I’ve been briefed extensively by our security agencies, including the AFP, including as late as this morning. But also previously, I spoke with Commissioner Kershaw prior to the press conference. They have outlined the details. Because the matters are before the courts, I won’t make further comments except to say this: Australia’s security agencies are doing their job, and they’re doing it well. People will be held to account who interfere with our national interests, and that’s precisely what these arrests represent.”

Albanese said today’s news also showed “we live in uncertain times” and Australia’s security agencies were prepared.

“The evidence is what’s happened today,” he said.

“They’re on top of these issues. If you engage in action that is against Australia’s national interest, you will be caught by our security agencies. They are amongst the best in the world.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has criticised mining giant BHP’s decision to shut down nickel operations in Western Australia, branding the planned suspension until February 2027 as “very disappointing”.

Today, Albanese is in Opposition Leader Peter Dutton’s Queensland electorate of Dickson and held a press conference earlier, but technical issues meant this masthead’s livestream didn’t work. However, this afternoon, the prime minster’s office released a transcript of the doorstop in Brisbane.

Albanese was asked how much cheaper nickel from China and Indonesia was to blame for BHP’s suspension of its Australian nickel operations, announced yesterday, putting more than 3000 jobs at risk after a global crash in nickel prices.

“Well, this is a very disappointing decision by BHP. I do note that they’ve said that frontline workers will be redeployed, and we’ll be holding them to account there,” he said, indicating the BHP decision was made despite government support to keep operating.

“We’ve been working with BHP, making suggestions, for a long period of time. We have a policy in place on critical minerals that will provide access to capital and financing because we regard critical minerals as not just being a part of our economic policy, but it’s important for our national security as well.”

The prime minister said he expected West Australian Premier Roger Cook would be disappointed with BHP’s decision too.

“There has been some competition of course, from Indonesia, but it’s of a different quality as well to that produced at the Kwinana plant, where I’ve been a couple of times,” Albanese said.

A reporter then asked if he was indicating he didn’t blame cheaper nickel from overseas for the closure, as BHP had done.

Albanese responded: “Well, certainly markets are, of course, a factor here. We are concerned about that, but this is a decision that BHP have made. We, frankly, find the BHP decision very disappointing.”