Politics news

• Astronaut Katherine Bennell-Pegg named 2026 Australian of the Year

  25-01-2026 10:44 via smh.com.au
  
  As the first person to train as an astronaut under the Australian flag, Katherine Bennell–Pegg hopes to inspire the next generation to look at the sky and dream big.
  
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• ‘We did nothing wrong’: Littleproud challenges Liberals to reinstate three rebel Nationals

  25-01-2026 06:14 via smh.com.au
  
  Nationals leader David Littleproud would not say if he told Liberal leader Sussan Ley to resign, refusing to weigh into “delusional, petty games” as Liberals weigh a leadership contest.
  
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• Last-ditch push to land hospitals deal as states fight back

  25-01-2026 05:00 via abc.net.au
  
  The Commonwealth will try to force a deal on hospital funding at a National Cabinet meeting this week, after months of stalled negotiations with angry state leaders, who say the federal government is not contributing its fair share.
  
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• Anthony Albanese avoids tribalism and breaks with tradition with Rudd replacement

  25-01-2026 03:56 via smh.com.au
  
  Thanks to his long career as a public servant, Greg Moriarty has no social media posts to scrub nor remarks he needs to retract. This sets him up for success.
  
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• Anthony Albanese avoids tribalism and breaks with tradition in Rudd replacement

  25-01-2026 03:56 via smh.com.au
  
  Thanks to his long career as a public servant, Greg Moriarty has no social media posts to scrub or remarks he needs to retract. This sets him up for success.
  
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• 'I was sucked in': Dual citizen's warning over middleman passport websites

  25-01-2026 01:22 via abc.net.au
  
  As many British-Australian dual nationals grapple with new entry requirements, experts warn of exploitative and middleman websites. 
  
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• A British dual citizen's warning to hundreds of thousands looking to renew passports

  25-01-2026 01:22 via abc.net.au
  
  As many British-Australian dual nationals grapple with new entry requirements, experts warn of exploitative and middleman websites. 
  
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• Why smokers are turning to illegal cigarettes — and what WA can do about it

  25-01-2026 01:09 via abc.net.au
  
  Much has been made of how the WA government is trying to stop the supply of illegal cigarettes, but its more difficult challenge is what can be done to ease demand. 
  
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• Illegal tobacco boom exposes the demand problem behind WA’s black market

  25-01-2026 01:09 via abc.net.au
  
  Much has been made of how the WA government is trying to stop the supply of illegal cigarettes, but its more difficult challenge is what can be done to ease demand. 
  
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• Defence secretary, former Turnbull aide to become next Australian ambassador to US

  25-01-2026 00:00 via smh.com.au
  
  Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described Greg Moriarty as an “outstanding Australian public servant” in announcing he would take the prestigious posting.
  
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• PM says Trump's insult to troops 'not acceptable', as next ambassador to the US named

  24-01-2026 23:23 via abc.net.au
  
  Defence department boss Greg Moriarty is named the next ambassador to the United States, as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese criticises the US president's claim that allied troops did not serve on the front lines of Afghanistan. 
  
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• PM appoints next ambassador to US, says Trump's troops slur 'not acceptable'

  24-01-2026 23:23 via abc.net.au
  
  Defence department boss Greg Moriarty is named the next ambassador to the United States, as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese criticises the US president's claim that allied troops did not serve on the front lines of Afghanistan. 
  
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• PM appoints Greg Moriarty as next ambassador to the United States

  24-01-2026 23:23 via abc.net.au
  
  Defence department boss Greg Moriarty will be the next Australian ambassador to the US, replacing outgoing ambassador Kevin Rudd.
  
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• PM appoints Defence Department secretary as next ambassador to US

  24-01-2026 23:23 via abc.net.au
  
  Defence department boss Greg Moriarty is named the next ambassador to the United States, as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese criticises the US president's claim that allied troops did not serve on the front lines of Afghanistan. 
  
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• Children raised in 'broken' care system call for fundamental change

  24-01-2026 20:39 via abc.net.au
  
  Residential care is often a last resort for society's most vulnerable children, but being raised by a "system" can leave both physical and emotional scars. It's why those who have gone through it are asking for their voices to be included to reform it.
  
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• What these First Nations leaders want to see on the agenda in 2026

  24-01-2026 20:06 via abc.net.au
  
  Ahead of the national debate around Indigenous rights and recognition this January 26, the ABC has spoken to First Nations leaders about what they think are the top priorities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
  
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• 'Heal the nation': Does Australia need to formally reckon with its past?

  24-01-2026 20:06 via abc.net.au
  
  Ahead of the national debate around Indigenous rights and recognition this January 26, the ABC has spoken to First Nations leaders about what they think are the top priorities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
  
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• ‘Exactly what we need’: Call for shark danger rating system

  24-01-2026 19:30 via smh.com.au
  
  Australia’s fire danger ratings alerts millions to potentially fatal danger. Experts say we can do the same for sharks
  
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• Great politics and poor policy undid the Coalition. But one thing might have saved it

  24-01-2026 19:00 via smh.com.au
  
  The Liberals and Nationals failed to properly research the proposed hate speech bill, just as the PM neglected to explain the Voice. Voters deserve better.
  
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• Even Gen Z wants to keep Australia Day date: poll

  24-01-2026 18:04 via smh.com.au
  
  Support for January 26 as the national day has climbed over the past three years and now seven in 10 Australians want to keep the date.
  
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• Even Gen Z want to keep Australia Day date: poll

  24-01-2026 18:04 via smh.com.au
  
  Support for January 26 as the national day has climbed over the past three years and now seven in 10 Australians want to keep the date.
  
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• Hastie rebuffs Taylor’s deputy leadership suggestion as bid to roll Ley hits stalemate

  24-01-2026 09:55 via smh.com.au
  
  In a previously unreported phone conversation, the MPs spoke on Thursday as Taylor was in Europe, where he has been for weeks, and Hastie in Perth.
  
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• Perth's $290m film studios are finished, but there's nothing to shoot yet

  24-01-2026 01:01 via abc.net.au
  
  Perth's new film studio is almost ready to receive its first production. There’s just one problem – no one has signed up yet. Is that a sign of things to come from a facility the government has sunk millions into?
  
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• Perth's $290m film studios are complete, but there's nothing to shoot yet

  24-01-2026 01:01 via abc.net.au
  
  Perth's new film studio is almost ready to receive its first production. There’s just one problem – no one has signed up yet. Is that a sign of things to come from a facility the government has sunk millions into?
  
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• The Trumpian policies Pauline Hanson would roll out if One Nation ran Australia

  23-01-2026 23:45 via smh.com.au
  
  As One Nation and Pauline Hanson threaten to overtake the fractured Coalition as the nation’s leading conservative force, we test if the party’s policies make practical and economic sense.
  
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• Gen Z led the revolution in Bangladesh — can they win the election?

  23-01-2026 22:16 via abc.net.au
  
  After toppling Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh's newest political party faces its first election next month, testing a newly formed alliance.
  
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• Bangladesh students overthrew a dictator, now they're stepping into politics

  23-01-2026 22:16 via abc.net.au
  
  After toppling Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh's newest political party faces its first election next month, testing a newly formed alliance.
  
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• The one sure bet in the wake of the Coalition implosion

  23-01-2026 19:55 via abc.net.au
  
  Dissecting the implosion of the Coalition and figuring out what comes next has become a full-time vocation for the newly emancipated Liberals and Nationals.
  
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• In the smouldering wreckage of the Coalition, rumours are running rife

  23-01-2026 19:55 via abc.net.au
  
  Dissecting the implosion of the Coalition and figuring out what comes next has become a full-time vocation for the newly emancipated Liberals and Nationals.
  
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• Coalition crumbled, not by opposing One Nation, but by aping it

  23-01-2026 19:00 via smh.com.au
  
  The Liberals and Nationals used to stand against Pauline Hanson’s far-right ideas. Now they copy them and it’s not going well.
  
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• Lawyers request AFP probe into Israeli president as Australian visit looms

  23-01-2026 09:30 via abc.net.au
  
  The Australian Centre for International Justice has formally requested a police investigation into Israel's president for alleged incitement to genocide. He is expected to visit to Australia next month.
  
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• Partisan politics after Bondi sowed seeds of coalition’s demise

  23-01-2026 06:02 via smh.com.au
  
  The Coalition’s reckless response to the Bondi shootings led to its unravelling. Anthony Albanese and Labor now own the political centre.
  
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• ‘It’s moving’: Hastie’s supporters hit the phones in first signs of leadership challenge

  23-01-2026 05:53 via smh.com.au
  
  Sussan Ley is digging in and her allies are determined to get through the crisis sparked by a historic Coalition split. But supporters of right-wing MP Andrew Hastie are not waiting.
  
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• Labor identity Tim Picton remembered at memorial service

  23-01-2026 05:40 via abc.net.au
  
  Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is among political figures and business leaders who travel across the country to pay their respects to Mr Picton.
  
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• 'I am being censored': Councillor sanctioned over 'clown man' comments

  23-01-2026 03:58 via abc.net.au
  
  A Tasmanian councillor says she is being "censored and unfairly punished" after being sanctioned for social media posts she made regarding a fellow councillor.
  
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• Inside the Coalition split: From attack to collapse in 48 hours

  23-01-2026 01:58 via smh.com.au
  
  It was the end to the week that nobody saw coming. “Splitting the Coalition up wasn’t the plan,” says one Nationals MP. “Although I am not sure that was the case for everyone.”
  
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• Three hours of free solar to cut family power bill by $800 a year

  23-01-2026 01:39 via smh.com.au
  
  The government is hitting back at electricity retailers that are calling for a delay to the scheme for free power in the middle of the day.
  
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• Defiant Sussan Ley downplays split, vows to remain leader

  22-01-2026 22:49 via abc.net.au
  
  The Liberal leader did not speak about the Nationals' decision to terminate the Coalition on yesterday's National Day of Mourning, but on Friday insisted her focus was on the government.
  
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• Defiant Sussan Ley downplays Nationals' exit, vows to remain leader

  22-01-2026 22:49 via abc.net.au
  
  The Liberal leader did not speak about the Nationals' decision to terminate the Coalition on yesterday's National Day of Mourning, but on Friday insisted her focus was on the government.
  
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• After '14 years deprived of joy', Raqqa locals hope Syria's wars are finally over

  22-01-2026 21:53 via abc.net.au
  
  Syrian government forces have wrested back control of vast parts of its territory in recent weeks, as a new president moves to assert control over the war-torn country.
  
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• Live: 'Yes I will': Sussan Ley declares her leadership can survive Coalition split

  22-01-2026 21:02 via abc.net.au
  
  Sussan Ley has declared her leadership will survive despite speculation the Coalition split could further damage her hold on the party. Follow live.
  
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• Live: Sussan Ley to speak following Coalition split

  22-01-2026 21:02 via abc.net.au
  
  Opposition Leader Sussan Ley is due to speak this morning after the Nationals dramatically exited the Coalition for the second time. Follow live.
  
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• Live: Pathway back to Coalition not there right now, Littleproud says

  22-01-2026 21:02 via abc.net.au
  
  Nationals leader David Littleproud says he is open to working with Liberal leader Sussan Ley again "at some point", but right now the two parties need "a bit of time apart". Follow live.
  
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• Live: Littleproud says reports he yelled at Ley over phone are 'nonsense'

  22-01-2026 21:02 via abc.net.au
  
  Nationals leader David Littleproud says he is open to working with Liberal leader Sussan Ley again "at some point", but right now the two parties need "a bit of time apart". Follow live.
  
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• Live: Albanese says dislike between Liberals and Nationals is 'entrenched'

  22-01-2026 21:02 via abc.net.au
  
  The PM's comments came after Nationals leader David Littleproud said he was open to working with Liberal leader Sussan Ley again "at some point", but right now the two parties need "a bit of time apart". Follow live.
  
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• Live: Albanese predicts 'at least one more' Coalition MP will defect to One Nation

  22-01-2026 21:02 via abc.net.au
  
  The PM's comments came after Nationals leader David Littleproud said he was open to working with Liberal leader Sussan Ley again "at some point", but right now the two parties need "a bit of time apart". Follow live.
  
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• Albanese predicts 'at least one more' Coalition MP will defect to One Nation — as it happened

  22-01-2026 21:02 via abc.net.au
  
  The PM's comments came after Nationals leader David Littleproud said he was open to working with Liberal leader Sussan Ley again "at some point", but right now the two parties need "a bit of time apart".
  
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• David Speirs’s political comeback in doubt as public funding ruled out

  22-01-2026 20:20 via abc.net.au
  
  Former opposition leader David Speirs would “not fulfil the nomination requirements” if he applied to be a candidate at the upcoming state election, the state’s electoral commission says, raising significant doubts about his chances of a political comeback.
  
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• Sussan Ley’s Coalition wedged itself. They can’t see a rake without stepping on it

  22-01-2026 19:00 via smh.com.au
  
  We’ve seen oppositions destroy themselves over some divisive issue. But I don’t ever recall it happening over an issue they themselves foisted on the government.
  
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• Foolish and stupid, former Coalition is Hanson’s secret weapon

  22-01-2026 19:00 via smh.com.au
  
  The leadership of the former Coalition have proven themselves unequal to the task of opposition.
  
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