Dutton worried that US could apply more tariffs but doesn’t support reciprocal Australian action
Dutton says he is concerned the US will impose more tariffs on other Australian goods, but he doesn’t think we should retaliate.
Asked by a journalist if he agreed with the idea of reciprocal tariffs, Dutton said:
No, I don’t. I’ve made that clear.
I am concerned about a second round [of tariffs], and I think there are some worrying signs at the moment.
If the government doesn’t get its skates on, we’re going to have further tariffs applied to Australia.
Key events
Caitlin Cassidy
The Trump administration has been accused of “blatant foreign interference” in Australia’s universities after researchers who receive US funding were asked to confirm they aligned with American interests, including only recognising two genders.
The questionnaire, sent to university researchers over the past fortnight, seeks a response within 48 hours to more than 30 questions to support “program determinations”, according to a copy of the questionnaire seen by Guardian Australia.
The questions relate to the priorities of the Trump government, including whether the organisation receives funding from China, whether there are DEI elements, and whether the project is taking “appropriate measures” to defend against gender ideology in line with Trump’s executive order on gender.
The questionnaires were distributed by various federal agencies on behalf of an executive memo from the office of the president, requiring them to identify all funding was consistent with “policies and requirements”.
Read the full story here:
Extreme fire conditions across south-eastern Australia
Extreme fire danger conditions will sweep across South Australia on Saturday, and Victoria and New South Wales will also battle high fire danger as the heatwave in the south-east peaks over the weekend.
Bureau of Meteorology senior meteorologist Miriam Bradbury said on Friday afternoon that those extreme fire dangers will trigger fire weather warnings as we go into tomorrow, and will promote “very, very dangerous conditions for any fires that are ongoing in the landscape, or any fresh fires that do develop”.
The danger is expected to ease in SA and Victoria on Sunday but increase across parts of eastern New South Wales.
Saturday temperatures in the south-east are going to be tough: Adelaide can expect 39C, 36C in Melbourne, 32C in Sydney (though Sydney will hit 36C on Sunday).
Saturday evening through to Sunday morning is likely to be very windy, especially for Tasmania, but also possibly parts of southern Victoria and south-east South Australia.
Catie McLeod
Thanks for joining me on the blog today. My colleague, Stephanie Convery, will take you through the rest of the day’s news. I hope you have a great weekend.
Josh Butler
Prime minister not a fan of Married At First Sight
Triple M also asked Albanese if he had any questions for contestants on the controversial Channel Nine show Married At First Sight, some of whom were also at the radio station that day.
Albanese replied “no I don’t”, saying he never “voluntarily” watched the reality show, but that his partner, Jodie Haydon, enjoys it.
He said:
I think what you’ve got to do, though, I do think you’ve got to watch it all the way through to get the characters and the way that it changes and the plots. I was concerned, I did watch the episode where the guy, you know, engaged in behaviour that’s pretty unacceptable.
Despite saying he had no questions for the contestants, Albanese later posted a selfie with two of them on his Instagram page.
Josh Butler
Anthony Albanese hints at Buy Australian campaign
Anthony Albanese says a “spiced up” new version of the Buy Australian campaign is on the way, in response to Donald Trump’s tariffs, recommending people buy locally made chocolates, whiskey and honey instead of American products.
In an interview with Perth’s Triple M radio, the prime minister rubbished suggestions that Australia should engage in reciprocal tariffs on the US – calling the idea “economic self-harm”, despite his former cabinet minister Bill Shorten advocating that idea this morning.
Albanese said:
Because that would hurt consumers here. But what we will do is continue to put forward our case.
Asked what Australia should do instead, the PM said people should buy local products:
We have great products and as part of the budget in a couple of weeks’ time, you’ll see a spiced up Made in Australia plan. We want to make more things here.
Albanese suggested Haigh’s chocolates, “Australian whiskey rather than bourbon and stuff that’s made in the US”, and Australian honey – “it’s better than the syrup and stuff that comes out of the US anyway”.
Natasha May
Sydney local health district psychiatry trainees raised concerns about supervision
The chair of the estimates, Greens MLC Dr Amanda Cohn, asks about the impacts of the resignations and transfer of staff specialist psychiatrists into VMO roles or locum roles, on junior doctors who are training to become specialist psychiatrists:
What work have you done to ensure that their training can actually continue and that they’re safely supervised?
NSW Health chief psychiatrist, Dr Murray Wright, said the provision of supervision for junior doctors is being maintained as part of safe care.
Cohn asks:
In areas where staff specialists psychiatrists who are primarily responsible for supervision of a registrar have resigned – they’re left or been re-engaged as a VMO or a locum, so they’re now on a, for example, a part-time arrangement or an ad hoc arrangement.
Is it your view that it’s sufficient for registrars to be supervised by a different person each shift or each week, and how are you actually ensuring that they have a long term relationship with a senior staff member?
Wright went on to say that VMOs were still able to provide supervision: “psychiatrists who … have returned as a VMO to help support our system, there should be no disruption in the continuity of supervision.”
Wright acknowledges:
There were concerns raised in Sydney LHD a couple of weeks ago, and the service general manager sat down with representatives of trainees and went through what the concerns were and dealt with them one by one. That’s the response – it’s at a local level.
Cohn tries to press Wright about details about how the concerns were resolved. Wright responds: “my understanding is they dealt with them to the satisfaction of everybody.”
In response to Cohn’s question, Jackson said “of course” she was concerned about trainee psychiatrists, as well as staff specialists leaving the state.
Natasha May
Psychiatrists take up visiting medical officer roles as they await commission decision
Following on from our last post:
Deputy opposition leader in the NSW legislative council, Sarah Mitchell, then asked Jackson if there were any new numbers from the past month she could provide since the premier provided figures to the lower house, indicating 52 psychiatrists had resignations finalised by 10 February.
Jackson said there was a 443 headcount of psychiatrists funded by New South Wales Health to work across the district:
At its peak, we had received 206 indications of an intention to resign. We now have 62 resignations processed and finalised.
We have 38 resignations withdrawn. We have 72 staff who’ve agreed to transition to VMO [visiting medical officer] roles. They are people that continue to provide care in the public system, yes, in a different contractual arrangement with NSW Health, but nonetheless, in terms of a head count of people who are providing care in the public system, VMOs are playing that role.
And we have 109 resignations deferred.
Asked about how much higher the pay is for a VMO, Jackson says:
When we engage someone as a VMO, that is done at a district by district level, and the conditions and the wages of those VMOs vary district by district.
To say ‘what is the cost of employing VMOs across NSW health districts’, and then present that figure as though that cost is associated with this current industrial campaign – that would be inaccurate because, for example, Far West [local health district] previously was entirely VMO based psychiatry.
Pearce says:
We have made these arrangements on a temporary basis, which is why there is a large number of our staff specialist psychiatrists who’ve deferred their resignations. A number of those people have taken up the VMO option whilst they await the outcome of the industrial relations commission [IRC] process.
The hearing at the IRC begin on Monday.
Natasha May
NSW Coalition accuses mental health minister of being unprepared for budget estimates
The NSW mental health minister, Rose Jackson, has been accused by the state opposition of coming to budget estimates unprepared, as she’s unable to say how many psychiatrists are now employed full-time in the state.
NSW budget estimates are taking place today across Jackson’s portfolio including mental health and northern NSW after the session last week was postponed due to the minister’s responsibilities amid ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred.
Liberal MLC Natasha Maclaren-Jones asked Jackson how many full-time staff specialist psychiatrists held permanent positions in the state at the end of December compared to how many are employed now, weeks after the mass resignations of the specialist doctors began.
While neither Jackson nor the NSW Health secretary, Susan Pearce, gave any current numbers, Jackson said she is “constantly being updated on … do we have enough people in the system, whether they are self specialists, whether they’re [visiting medical officers], or whether they are locums.”
Maclaren-Jones said:
Do you think it’s acceptable that you come to budget estimates and you’re not fully prepared?
I would expect that you would know how many full-time specialist positions are currently, either today or yesterday, when you were last updated and coming to budget estimates, I would expect that you would have that information.
NSW SES formally concludes response to Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred
The New South Wales State Emergency Service (SES) says it has today formally concluded its response to ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred today after its volunteers responded to 7,650 incidents over the last 15 days.
The SES has now handed over the management of the disaster to the NSW Reconstruction Authority as the cleanup and recovery continues.
During the response to Tropical Cyclone Alfred, NSW SES says it:
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Received 13,969 calls for assistance.
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Responded to 7650 incidents.
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Completed 90 flood rescues.
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Issued 1142 warning products.
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Deployed 3300 SES volunteers to assist communities.
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Coordinated the deployment and operations of 621 emergency service partner personnel.
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Completed 70 resupply missions to isolated communities.
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Undertook more than 2500 damage assessments.
The NSW SES Commissioner, Mike Wassing, said:
This has been an incredibly challenging event for many communities, and I want to sincerely thank our NSW SES volunteers for their unwavering dedication and commitment in responding to this crisis.
Our volunteers, alongside partner agencies, emergency services, and community groups, worked around the clock to conduct flood rescues, respond to calls for assistance and provide critical support where it was needed most. Their efforts have been truly remarkable.
24,000 NBN services remain affected after ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred
The number of NBN services affected across Queensland and New South Wales due to severe weather caused by ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred has been reduced to approximately 24,000, the agency that manages the national broadband network says.
The NBN Co says 23,000 services in south-east Queensland and 1,000 in northern NSW remain affected.
In a statement released earlier today, the agency has said recovery efforts are progressing well, and it is working through complex recoveries in areas where the network has suffered damage.
The agency has encouraged customers who may still be experiencing outages to check the NBN network outages page and with their retail provider for specific information regarding their service.
If no outage is detected, customers are recommended to restart their NBN equipment, including the connection box and wifi router.
NBN Co says it has announced up to $7m in cyclone relief funding for retail service providers, which can then be used to provide financial support to those whose broadband services have been affected.
NSW attorney-general defends hate speech laws
The New South Wales attorney general, Michael Daley, has defended the Minns government’s controversial hate speech laws.
The new laws criminalise certain activities outside places of worship, give police new powers in regard to protests in or near places of worship, and increase penalties for certain acts of racial hatred.
Daley has done an interview with ABC News this afternoon after the Sydney Morning Herald reported concerns from crossbench MPs who questioned whether the laws had been rushed through parliament under “false pretences”.
Their concerns come following revelations that a caravan filled with explosives in Dural in Sydney’s north and other antisemitic attacks across Sydney’s east were fabricated set-ups by organised crime.
Daley has stood by the laws, saying:
What behaviour that’s prohibited by these bills do the opponents of these bills want to see? Do they think there should be more hate speech?
Do they think it’s OK to threaten and vilify people because they are Jewish?
I don’t, and I never will, and I’m not changing my mind.
Second death from Japanese encephalitis this year recorded in NSW
A second person has died from Japanese encephalitis in New South Wales this year, NSW Health has confirmed.
The man in his 70s had earlier been reported to have acquired the disease while holidaying in the Murrumbidgee region, and was receiving care for it in hospital. He died on 6 March.
He is the second person to have died from the mosquito-borne virus in NSW this year, and the fourth since it was first detected in the state in 2022.
Another probable case of Japanese encephalitis – the fifth this season – has also been identified in a man in his 20s in northern NSW, who is considered most likely to have acquired the infection when travelling between Moree Plains, Tamworth and Gunnedah shires. He has been discharged from hospital and is recovering at home.
Japanese encephalitis is spread by mosquitoes and can infect animals and humans, but cannot be transmitted between humans. In some cases it can cause severe neurological illness, with headache, convulsions, reduced consciousness and death. There is no specific treatment.
NSW Health executive Dr Jeremy McAnulty emphasised the importance of vaccination and taking steps to prevent mosquito bites as protection against the disease:
People need to take mosquito borne infections seriously, especially as people start the clean-up from recent floods in an environment where mosquitoes thrive.
Standing water, like that left after mass rainfall and floods, makes for ideal breeding grounds for mosquitoes. This increases people’s risk of being bitten, especially if they’re working outdoors.
Vaccines for Japanese encephalitis are available through GPs and pharmacists for anyone who lives or works in some inland LGAs or high-risk occupations, and some people may be able to access it for free.
Health Services Union welcomes inquiry into Northern Beaches hospital
The Health Services Union has welcomed the announcement of a parliamentary inquiry into Northern Beaches hospital, saying the investigation is long overdue.
As we reported earlier, the NSW health minister promised the inquiry after the death of two-year-old Joe Massa at the hospital’s emergency ward in September.
In a statement this morning the HSU secretary, Gerard Hayes, said the union had repeatedly raised “serious concerns” about the hospital’s operations since it opened in 2018.
Hayes said the effects of the “profit-driven” public-private partnership model needed to be examined as part of the inquiry. The union had documented “numerous concerning practices” at the hospital, he said, including critical understaffing, low staff morale, charging of certain fees that had been abolished in public hospitals, and failure to properly implement patient safety protocols.
Hayes said:
We have consistently seen evidence that Northern Beaches Hospital prioritises commercial interests over patient care. From renting out maternity wards to film crews while mothers struggle with understaffed services, to charging grieving families unnecessary fees to release their loved ones’ bodies – these practices reveal a disturbing pattern.
While other hospitals across NSW are struggling with bed block, Northern Beaches Hospital has entire wards sitting empty or being used as film sets. This is a slap in the face to the patients who funded this facility through their taxes.
The HSU has grave concerns about a healthcare model that generates income by renting out its wards and equipment while patients wait for care …
The union is calling for the inquiry to carefully examine the financial incentives built into the public-private partnership agreement with Healthscope and whether these incentives conflict with the delivery of quality public healthcare.
Mike Cannon-Brookes says he ‘can appreciate double-take’ on Atlassian’s Formula One sponsorship
On his company’s Formula One sponsorship, Cannon-Brookes says he understands why people would be taken aback.
In the LinkedIn post, he says:
I can appreciate the double-take on Atlassian’s F1 sponsorship because … cars = fuel.
I’ve had conversations with the FIA, and am impressed with their plans to get to net zero.
They’ve shown consistent commitment (the 2026 cars are 50% electric, 50% combustion engine, and running on sustainable fuel). Atlassian Williams Racing is even further along (see their Sustainability Report). Their drive to net zero mirrors Atlassian’s own journey.
Every climate journey is about setting a target, having a plan, reporting publicly and demonstrating meaningful progress.
F1 can set a global example for sustainability in sports – and I believe it will.
Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes defends purchasing a private jet
The Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes, a leading campaigner for action to address the climate crisis, has defended his decision to sponsor the Formula One and buy a private jet.
Cannon-Brookes has written a LinkedIn post to explain his reasoning, after the Australian Financial Review’s Rear Window column published a story revealing the billionaire had picked up a Bombardier 7500.
In the LinkedIn post, Cannon-Brookes says this of buying a jet:
I’m not denying I have a deep internal conflict on this.
There’s a couple of reasons I’ve purchased a plane. Personal security is the primary reason (an unfortunate reality of my world), but also so I can run a global business from Australia, and still be a constantly present dad.
So, this is a hard, continual trade-off I’ve decided to make.
Although private aviation is far from a big contributor to global emissions, it is a carbon-intensive way to travel. Aviation is one of the most difficult sectors to decarbonise due to the distance of flights and the energy density of fuel.
It probably comes as no surprise, I have an extremely rigorous carbon regime for all my flying – including using direct air capture and sustainable fuels for the carbon and contrails, to far exceed my flight footprint.
Andrew Messenger
Queensland to indefinitely delay implementing anti-discrimination legislation
The Queensland government plans to indefinitely delay implementing human rights laws passed under the previous parliament.
The Respect at Work and Other Matters Amendment Act, which amended the Anti-Discrimination Act and passed over LNP opposition last September, is due to take effect in July.
Among other reforms, the bill introduces a positive duty on private businesses to eliminate workplace discrimination, and extends protection against discrimination to the homeless and to people suffering domestic and family violence.
The attorney-general, Deb Frecklington, told parliament on Friday morning she would introduce legislation to delay the bill from being enforced until further notice.
She said the legislation could create “unnecessary burden on organisations and institutions” and might create “very serious unintended and unwanted consequences”, and had been rushed by the previous government.
Frecklington said her department was “particularly concerned” about a section in the legislation protecting people with a criminal record.
She said:
Of key concern is whether the new attribute will undermine several high risk discretionary decisions, including decisions relating to weapons licensing, police protection notices and security provider licensing.
Reforming discrimination law is difficult and complex process that attracts significant stakeholder interests, which is why it shouldn’t have been rushed through by the former Labor government.
Sparked by a scandal around transgender students at a Brisbane Christian school, the Queensland Human Rights Commission conducted a years-long review of the state’s anti-discrimination act, developing draft legislation which was released for consultation last February.
You can read more here:
Dutton worried that US could apply more tariffs but doesn’t support reciprocal Australian action
Dutton says he is concerned the US will impose more tariffs on other Australian goods, but he doesn’t think we should retaliate.
Asked by a journalist if he agreed with the idea of reciprocal tariffs, Dutton said:
No, I don’t. I’ve made that clear.
I am concerned about a second round [of tariffs], and I think there are some worrying signs at the moment.
If the government doesn’t get its skates on, we’re going to have further tariffs applied to Australia.
Dutton criticises Albanese government’s handling of tariff negotiations
The opposition leader, Peter Dutton, has criticised the Albanese government’s approach to dealing with the Trump administration’s tariff regime.
Dutton has been speaking to reporters on the New South Wales Central Coast, where he said the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, could have negotiated a better deal for Australians.
Dutton, who is in campaign mode before the federal election, sought to paint the US’ imposition of 25% tariffs on Australian aluminium and steel imports as a failure by Labor.
When Trump first introduced a tariff on aluminium imports in 2018, the then-Coalition government led by Malcolm Turnbull negotiated an exemption after agreeing to limit exports to the US.
Dutton pointed to this at the press conference, saying:
We actually rolled our sleeves up. We negotiated with the Trump administration, and we got an exemption.
This prime minister can’t even get a phone call. And I don’t agree with what President Trump has done at all.
I think it’s not in our country’s best interests, and it’s not in the US long term best interests either. And I believe very strongly the prime minister could have got a better deal for Australia, but didn’t.