PM meets with world leaders at sidelines of UN meeting
Anthony Albanese and the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, have represented Australia on the floor of the United Nations general assembly meeting in New York.
Along with the Dfat secretary, Jan Adams, the pair listened to US president Donald Trump’s address to the 80th anniversary session of the UN.
(L-R) Australian PM Anthony Albanese, foreign affairs minister Penny Wong and communications minister Anika Wells attend the general debate of the 80th session of the United Nations general assembly in New York. Photograph: Lukas Coch/EPA
Trump dismissed moves by allies including Australia to recognise Palestinian statehood, insisting world leaders should instead demand the return of hostages taken by Hamas in the 7 October attacks.
On the sidelines, the PM met with a range of world leaders, including Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine, Prabowo Subianto of Indonesia, Lương Cường of Vietnam and Norway’s prime minister Jonas Gahr Støre.
Anthony Albanese speaks to president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, at the start of the US general assembly. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP
He also met the Nato secretary general Mark Rutte and the boss of the World Trade Organization, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.
More on Trump’s speech here:
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Updated at 00.26 CEST
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Nino Bucci
Victorian police say family violence increases during AFL grand final weekends
Family violence reports increase on the AFL grand final weekend, but there was no increase on the day of the game itself.
Family Violence Command acting assistant commissioner Sharon McKinnon said there was a 9% increase in family violence incidents over the grand final long weekend in September last year compared with 2023.
There were 796 family violence incidents during the three-day long weekend, up from 729 incidents the year before.
But the number of family violence incidents on the actual day of the game for the past five years has remained consistent, with no apparent increase. McKinnon said:
The Christmas, New Year and Easter periods remain the most prevalent times for family violence offending.
Our key message is that police will take all reports of family violence crime seriously and will always respond to keep victims safe and hold perpetrators to account.
Police will always continue to work through peak holiday periods to provide safety to the community.
There is never an excuse for family violence and police will ensure that each crime is investigated and that all offenders are held to account.
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Updated at 01.20 CEST
Acting NSW police commissioner says Mal Lanyon a ‘highly accomplished and respected leader’
As reported earlier, Mal Lanyon has been named the new commissioner of the NSW police force, succeeding Karen Webb.
Peter Thurtell, the acting commissioner of the force, said in a statement this morning:
Commissioner-elect Lanyon is a highly accomplished and respected leader, bringing more than 37 years of policing experience to the role. His dedication to public service and his deep understanding of the challenges facing modern policing make him exceptionally well-suited to lead the NSW police force into its next chapter.
The NSW police force is in safe hands. Under Commissioner-elect Lanyon’s leadership, we can move forward with confidence to meet the challenges ahead and continue delivering for the people of New South Wales.
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Updated at 00.56 CEST
Gambling evolution making it harder to monitor how many people gamble
Liz Neville, the director of the Australian Institute of Family Studies, said the study shows the gambling industry is rapidly evolving, making it harder to monitor how many people are participating and facing gambling harm.
Neville spoke to RN Breakfast this morning:
I think it tells us that the gambling industry in all its forms – and bearing in mind that the survey covered things ranging from lotteries, bingo, scratchies, pokies, race betting, sports betting, the full gamut of gambling activities – I think what it tells us is that this is a rapidly evolving industry.
And there’s many forms and types of activities that are emerging that we are having trouble, I think, keeping up with from a purely conventional approach to monitoring of gambling participation and harm.
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Updated at 00.46 CEST
More Australians gambling every month, research says
Henry Belot
The number of Australians gambling and the prevalence of harm has increased, with nearly one-third of adults betting each month, according to new research from the Australian Institute of Family Studies.
The survey of 3,881 people in 2024 has prompted the institute’s director, Liz Neville, to call for “a more robust approach” to preventing gambling harm, including a careful examination of current policies.
The government is yet to respond to a landmark parliamentary inquiry in June 2023, which recommended several policy changes including a comprehensive ban on advertising and the creation of a more powerful national regulator.
More Australians are gambling and gambling harm is increasing, new research shows. Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty Images
The study found 65% of adults gambled at least once a year, which was an 8 percentage point increase on the data recorded in 2019. It found 15% experienced guilt or stress about their gambling and sold possessions to help chase their losses.
The Australian Gambling Research Centre’s research fellow, Dr Gabriel Tillman, said the findings confirmed the increasingly negative impact of wagering.
The fact that more than 3 million Australian adults are experiencing harms from their gambling, and these numbers have increased in recent years despite harm-reduction measures should concern Australians.
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Updated at 00.36 CEST
Tom McIlroy
Australia’s bid to host the COP31 climate talks in Adelaide this year still a work in progress
Anthony Albanese and the climate change and energy minister, Chris Bowen, are seeking to press the case to host the COP31 climate talks with Turkey during their visit to New York this week.
Bowen met his counterpart, Murat Kurum, on the sidelines of the UN summit and the prime minister is seeking a meeting with Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in coming days.
Albanese said he wanted to make the case for the Pacific to host the talks in conjunction with Australia. Turkey also wants to host, so unless a compromise can be reached, the summit will default to Bonn in Germany.
Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images
“The Pacific is important,” Albanese said on Wednesday morning, Australian time.
One of the things that’s complicated is it is a joint bid by Australia and the Pacific, so any arrangements we will discuss with our Pacific neighbours, as we have been.
I’ve already had discussions with a range of Pacific leaders who are here as well. I will be having discussions with President Erdogan as well.
The prime minister did not say when he would speak to the Turkish leader but he still has a number of bilateral meetings before leaving the US.
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Updated at 00.21 CEST
Mike Huckabee says it’s not a low point in US-Australia relationship, but he’s ‘comforted’ Sussan Ley wrote to US Republicans
Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel, said the relationship between the US and Australia is not at a low point, but said it is at a “point of stress”. He told RN:
I don’t know that I would call it a low point. It’s a point of stress. That’s fair to say. It’s a point of strong disagreement, not mild. This is a strong disagreement. And we feel like the government of Australia has made a very serious mistake.
Huckabee was asked about opposition leader Sussan Ley’s letter to US Republicans, where she said a Coalition government would reverse Albanese’s decision to recognise a Palestinian state:
Well, it would tell me that not everybody in Australia agrees with maybe the leadership. And I’m comforted by that because it does tell me that there are those who are looking at this from what’s best for not just the Middle East, but best really for a global resolve of a situation that is hurting many and helping no one.
Leader of the opposition, Sussan Ley. Photograph: James Ross/AAPShare
Updated at 00.05 CEST
US ambassador to Israel says US feels ‘very strong disappointment’, perhaps ‘disgust’, about Australian decision to recognise Palestinian state
The US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, said there is “very, very strong disappointment” in Washington DC about Australia’s decision to recognise a Palestinian state, saying some would possibly use the word “disgust” about it.
Huckabee spoke to RN Breakfast this morning as Anthony Albanese continues his trip to the UN general assembly in New York. The US ambassador said:
The United States’ position is one of strong disagreement with nations that are calling unilaterally for a Palestinian state. … The bigger problem is something that we continue to try to say to these European nations, to Australia, to Canada, and others. It is having the opposite effect of what I think these countries want …
I think it’s possible for nations to disagree on some things and agree on others and still maintain a relationship. That’s not to say that there is not very, very strong disappointment, and perhaps the word disgust would be a more appropriate term for how the US feels toward what we thought are our friends.
We think [they] should be standing together with us and opposing Hamas and demanding the hostages’ release.
US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee. Photograph: Ronen Zvulun/ReutersShare
Updated at 23.57 CEST
Tom McIlroy
Albanese looking forward to meeting President Trump
Anthony Albanese says he’s looking forward to meeting the US president, Donald Trump, at the White House next month.
The prime minister was left off Trump’s schedule in New York this week but the stand-alone Oval Office meeting has been confirmed by both sides during the UN visit this week.
“President Trump agreed to a meeting some time ago,” Albanese said after a visit to Macquarie Bank’s Manhattan headquarters. “We had another chat about it on the phone, and we’ll have a meeting in Washington DC on 20 October.
“What [we] do is have discussions with President Trump that are diplomatic and where we have discussions with each other. I don’t broadcast everything.”
Donald and Melania Trump. Photograph: Alexi J Rosenfeld/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 23.47 CEST
Mal Lanyon named as NSW new police commissioner
Anne Davies
Former deputy commissioner, Mal Lanyon, has been named New South Wales’s new police commissioner, replacing Karen Webb.
The appointment of the 38-year veteran of the NSW police is due to be announced by the premier, Chris Minns, this morning.
Incoming NSW police commissioner Mal Lanyon. Photograph: Richard Milnes/Shutterstock
He is expected to take over on 1 October.
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Updated at 23.46 CEST
Albanese says 20 October meeting with Trump demonstrates ‘important relationship’ between US and Australia
Prime minister Anthony Albanese said Australia and the US maintained an “important relationship” after the White House confirmed he would meet with Donald Trump in Washington DC on 20 October.
Albanese told reporters in a press conference in New York that he didn’t “broadcast everything,” but his office has had discussions with Trump that have laid the foundation for the meeting. He said earlier:
The United States is an important relationship for us and today the meetings, as I foreshadowed, in spite of some of the commentary, as I foreshadowed, if people listen to what we say, we had agreed on a meeting.
And today the meetings that president Trump are having – he’s in New York for one day – are understandably focused on peace in the Middle East.
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Updated at 23.24 CEST
Good morning, and happy Wednesday. Nick Visser here to take over the morning blog from Martin Farrer. Let’s dive in.
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PM meets with world leaders at sidelines of UN meeting
Anthony Albanese and the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, have represented Australia on the floor of the United Nations general assembly meeting in New York.
Along with the Dfat secretary, Jan Adams, the pair listened to US president Donald Trump’s address to the 80th anniversary session of the UN.
(L-R) Australian PM Anthony Albanese, foreign affairs minister Penny Wong and communications minister Anika Wells attend the general debate of the 80th session of the United Nations general assembly in New York. Photograph: Lukas Coch/EPA
Trump dismissed moves by allies including Australia to recognise Palestinian statehood, insisting world leaders should instead demand the return of hostages taken by Hamas in the 7 October attacks.
On the sidelines, the PM met with a range of world leaders, including Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine, Prabowo Subianto of Indonesia, Lương Cường of Vietnam and Norway’s prime minister Jonas Gahr Støre.
Anthony Albanese speaks to president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, at the start of the US general assembly. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP
He also met the Nato secretary general Mark Rutte and the boss of the World Trade Organization, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.
More on Trump’s speech here:
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Updated at 00.26 CEST
Tom McIlroy
Albanese to make case for US capital to flow to Australian economy
Anthony Albanese and Australia’s ambassador to Washington, Kevin Rudd, are preparing to attend a major investment event in New York in the next few hours.
Hosted by Macquarie, the event will include a strong pitch from the prime minister for American capital to flow into the Australian economy.
It comes ahead of his national address to the UN on Tuesday night, local time.
Albanese will say some of the biggest names in American business are expanding their footprint in Australia, namechecking Google, Microsoft and Amazon for efforts in digital infrastructure, cloud computing and quantum.
The prime minister will say:
American capital and Australian manufacturing are a natural fit. And if we move now, we can make them an unbeatable combination. We can put our investment partnership at the centre of a defining global opportunity.
The world’s shift to clean energy represents the biggest change since the industrial revolution. We are looking at ever-increasing global demand for clean energy and the technology that generates and stores it.
And if you started with a blank piece of paper and wrote down every asset and resource you would need to thrive in that economic environment, at the end of it, you would hold in your hand a list of Australia’s strengths.
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Albanese expected to meet Trump for first time at world leader reception in New York
Donald Trump’s presence is already dominating the UN general assembly in New York, with the US president set to host a reception for visiting world leaders on Tuesday night, local time.
We expect the event will be the first time that Anthony Albanese will meet Trump in person, likely a short hello as part of the formalities. The prime minister and his partner, Jodie Haydon, are attending the reception to represent Australia, along with dozens of other leaders in town for the UN.
The White House press office has released timings for the event, expected to start about 9am Sydney time.
The president will speak at the reception, before returning to Washington DC, about two hours later. We don’t expect to have much information from inside the room, given journalists are barred from observing the proceedings.
Trump and Albanese have not held a formal bilateral meeting in New York, despite a big push by Australian diplomats to get the two leaders together this week, though the White House has confirmed they will hold a proper one-to-one meeting next month.
Trump addressed the UN earlier in the day and his presence is being felt in every meeting, from recognition of Palestine, to climate change, to wider geopolitical affairs.
Haydon will also attend the Fostering the Future Together reception hosted by Melania Trump today.
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Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the best overnight and breaking news before Nick Visser gets on board.
After Donald Trump’s excoriating speech to the UN general assembly in which he scolded Australia and other countries for recognising Palestine, Anthony Albanese will meet the US president at a reception in New York in a couple of hours. The pair will hold a proper one-to-one meeting next month. We’ll bring you all the details.
The number of Australians gambling and the prevalence of harm has increased with nearly one-third of adults betting each month, according to new research. More coming up.
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