The investigation centred on allegations that Guy assaulted (Headlocked) Deeming during a Macedonian community function at the Sheldon Reception Centre in Sunshine West on 23 May. Deeming reported the matter to Victoria Police on 16 June after first raising the allegation with Opposition Leader Jess Wilson’s office.

In a statement released late Thursday, Victoria Police said:

“Police have concluded an investigation following reports of an assault at a function venue on Sommerville Road in Sunshine West on 23 May.”

The statement continued:

“It was reported a woman was assaulted by a man at the event… Following a thorough investigation, it has been determined there was no offence detected.”

The investigation concluded after police examined CCTV footage from inside the venue. As reported by The Australia Today, the footage contradicts Deeming’s allegation that Guy placed her in a violent headlock. Instead, the video shows the pair leaning towards each other while speaking in what appeared to be a noisy function room, with Guy briefly placing his hand on or near Deeming’s shoulder or upper back during the interaction.

Guy, who has consistently denied the allegation, welcomed the outcome.

“These claims were ridiculous and unsubstantiated, just as the police found,” he said.

Sources close to Matthew Guy have indicated he is now considering legal action for defamation.

Police did not interview Guy during the investigation, with the CCTV footage forming a central part of the evidence reviewed.

The matter has nevertheless intensified tensions within the Victorian Liberal Party, which has already endured prolonged internal divisions following earlier disputes involving Deeming and former Liberal leader John Pesutto. Several media outlets reported growing frustration among Liberal MPs over the complaint and its political fallout, although no formal party response had been announced at the time of publication.

Wilson declined to comment publicly while the police investigation was underway, saying those involved were entitled to due process and privacy. She is expected to address the matter following the conclusion of the investigation.

Deeming, who was overseas in London when police announced their findings, had not publicly responded to the outcome at the time of publication.

Her husband, Andrew Deeming, defended his wife on social media before the investigation concluded, writing that “as a husband, keep your f—ing hands off my wife.”

The police decision closes the criminal investigation but leaves the political ramifications for the Victorian Liberal Party unresolved, just months before Victorians head to the polls for the state election.

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The alleged incident is understood to have taken place at the Reception Centre in Sunshine on 23 May 2026, during a community dinner attended by several Liberal figures and community members.

Victoria Police confirmed the matter was reported to them on 16 June.
A police spokesperson told ABC, “The investigation into the incident remains ongoing, and police believe the people involved are known to each other.”

Before lodging the police complaint, the Liberal Upper House MP is understood to have approached the office of Victorian Opposition Leader Jess Wilson with the allegation that a senior Liberal MP had ‘headlocked’ them at a community event in the last week of May.

The Australia Today is given to understand that Ms Wilson’s office later met with the accused MP regarding the allegation.

In the meeting, the senior Liberal MP has strongly denied the allegation, describing it as “fabricated”.

In their defence, the accused senior MP is understood to have obtained CCTV footage from the reception centre. Sources familiar with the footage say there were 38 working cameras at the venue, recording more than three hours of footage from the time both MPs entered the building until they left for the night.

The Australia Today did not see any evidence of the alleged assault visible in the provided footage.

The Australia Today has been told that both Victoria Police and Ms Wilson’s office were informed that the alleged assault occurred at about 8.33 pm. However, the CCTV footage shows that at that time, both the accused MP and the Liberal Upper House MP can be seen sitting at the same table with no conflict.

A witness who was present at the next table told The Australia Today they did not see any such incident during the time they were at the community event.

“I was there at the next table, and nothing like this happened while I was there,” the witness said.

The police complaint has triggered another internal crisis for the Victorian Liberal Party, just months before the November state election and during Ms Wilson’s attempt to present the Coalition as a united alternative government.

The allegation has prompted high-level discussions within the party and comes at a politically sensitive time for Ms Wilson, who has begun a five-week tour of Victoria to campaign on Labor’s record on debt, infrastructure blowouts and community safety.

Recent polling has shown declining support for the Allan Labor Government, giving the Coalition an opportunity to sharpen its election pitch. But senior party figures fear renewed internal conflict could distract from that message and push voters towards minor parties and independents.

Australia Today reached out to both MPs. Neither MP at the centre of the complaint is willing to come out publicly.

Victoria Police inquiries are continuing.

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The post Alleged headlock, CCTV footage and Liberal party in crisis: Police examine Upper house MP’s alleged dinner assault claim first appeared on The Australia Today.

The changes will increase the maximum Paid Parental Leave entitlement to 26 weeks, more than double the amount available before Labor came to office, while also boosting payment rates and expanding eligibility thresholds.

Eligible families accessing the full entitlement will receive almost $30,000 in payments, with the weekly rate increasing to $1,004.70 from the start of the new financial year.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the reforms would give parents more time to spend with their newborn children during a critical stage of family life.

“The first months with a new baby are precious. My Government is making it easier for parents to spend that time together,” Albanese said.

“That’s why we’re expanding Paid Parental Leave again from 1 July, giving parents more time at home with their newborn and more support when they need it most.”

The reforms also increase the income limits used to determine eligibility. From July 1, the individual income threshold will rise to $186,487, while the family income limit will increase to $386,525.

The Government said more than 460,000 children have already benefited from previous expansions to the Paid Parental Leave scheme.

Minister for Women Katy Gallagher said the changes reflected modern family arrangements and would support greater sharing of caring responsibilities.

“By expanding Paid Parental Leave we are making the scheme stronger, fairer and better suited to the way modern families share care,” Senator Gallagher said.

“These changes give parents more time, more flexibility and more financial security, while helping make caring responsibilities more equal between women and men.”

The expansion comes alongside a broader package of increases to social security payments and family assistance measures that will take effect from July 1.

More than 1.2 million families are expected to receive higher Family Tax Benefit payments. The maximum rate of Family Tax Benefit Part A will rise to $235.48 per fortnight for children under 13 and $306.46 per fortnight for children aged 13 and over.

Family Tax Benefit Part B will increase to $200.34 per fortnight for families whose youngest child is under five years old and to $139.86 per fortnight where the youngest child is aged five or older.

In addition, income and asset thresholds for a range of welfare payments, including pensions and Parenting Payment Single, will increase, allowing recipients to earn or hold more assets before their payments are reduced.

Minister for Social Services Tanya Plibersek said the reforms would provide practical support for families facing cost-of-living pressures.

“Labor’s changes to Paid Parental Leave mean working parents get more time off and more money when they welcome a new arrival into their family.”

The Government said the changes form part of its broader effort to strengthen support for families while encouraging workforce participation and improving gender equality outcomes.

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The budget, delivered ahead of the March state election, is pitched as a restrained spending plan that offers short-term relief to households while preserving the government’s narrow path back to surplus in 2028.

Under the package, eligible motorists will receive a $100 rebate on car registration, while the weekly toll cap will be cut from $60 to $50. The government will also abolish toll administration fees and hold Opal fares at 2025 levels.

Mookhey said the measures were aimed at households being hit by higher fuel and transport costs.

He said in his budget speech,

“It is true that the price of oil is set far from this place, but the price to register a vehicle is decided right here.”

The government has framed the package as practical relief rather than broad stimulus, limiting the measures to one year as it tries to keep spending under control.

The budget shows NSW recorded a $3 billion deficit in 2025-26, slightly better than forecast in December. But the deficit is expected to widen to $2.3 billion in 2026-27, compared with the $1.1 billion forecast at the half-year update.

Despite that deterioration, Treasury is still projecting a slim $1.1 billion surplus in 2028, though Mookhey acknowledged “lots of things need to go right” for the state to get there.

The government says expense growth has been held to an average of 2.7 per cent over the next four years, the lowest rate of any NSW government over a comparable three-year period since records began in 1997.

But the budget is exposed to major risks, including inflation, interest rates, weaker housing revenue and global instability.

Treasury has modelled scenarios in which escalating conflict in the Middle East keeps oil prices elevated, pushing petrol prices as high as $3.38 a litre and diesel to $4.28 a litre next year.

The government is also forecasting an $8.4 billion fall in stamp duty and land tax revenue over four years, reflecting pressure in the property market.

That hit has been partly offset by stronger returns from OneFund, the state’s investment vehicle, which returned $4.6 billion in the past year. Revenue forecasts have been upgraded by $5.3 billion over the four years to 2029-30.

NSW is also expected to receive an extra $5.6 billion in GST revenue from the Commonwealth Grants Commission, helped by stronger property and mining revenues in other states and NSW’s relatively low share of Commonwealth infrastructure funding.

Beyond transport relief, the budget includes a major funding boost for domestic violence services, with $184.1 million in additional spending across prevention and support programs.

Mookhey described it as the biggest increase in domestic violence funding in NSW history, saying the sector had long deserved more support.

The government has also set aside about $6.4 billion over a decade to electrify the state’s 8000-bus fleet and encourage more bus manufacturing in NSW.

The budget gives Labor a clear pre-election message: modest relief for households, restraint on spending, and a promised return to surplus.

But that surplus remains fragile, dependent on inflation easing, global shocks fading, interest rates normalising and property revenue stabilising.

For NSW households, the immediate win is a cheaper rego bill and lower transport costs. For the government, the bigger test is whether a one-year cost-of-living package is enough to convince voters it has done enough before the election.

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The Albanese government’s changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax are now set to pass parliament after Labor secured Greens support in the Senate.

In return, Labor agreed to stop self-managed superannuation funds, or SMSFs, from borrowing money to buy residential property. The government also agreed to delay its controversial NDIS overhaul by extending a Senate inquiry until August 14.

The SMSF change means Australians will still be able to buy property through their self-managed super fund, but they will no longer be able to borrow money to do it.

The measure will apply only to future arrangements. Existing borrowing will be protected, and contracts already in train will be given a 45-day window after the amendments become law.

That means the so-called loophole is being closed slowly and cautiously, with current users shielded from the immediate impact.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers sought to minimise the significance of the reform, saying SMSFs account for less than 1 per cent of total residential property borrowing and less than half a per cent of new residential borrowing each year.

That admission raises an obvious question: if the loophole is so small, why is it being sold as a meaningful housing reform?

Labor is presenting the package as a serious attempt to rebalance the tax system, but the deal leaves much of the property investment structure intact. Negative gearing and capital gains tax concessions will continue in modified form, and the government has already watered down parts of its original proposal after pressure from business groups and investors.

The Greens, meanwhile, are claiming credit for forcing Labor to act on SMSF borrowing, while also admitting the changes fall well short of what they say is needed.

Greens leader Larissa Waters said that ending, rather than grandfathering, tax breaks would have done more to help renters buy homes. Greens economic justice spokesman Nick McKim called the deal a “small step in the right direction”.

That is the problem. Australians facing impossible rents and house prices are being offered another “small step” from a parliament that has spent years avoiding the scale of the housing crisis.

The Coalition is opposing the bill, but it too faces questions over its record on housing affordability, tax concessions and investor-friendly policy settings.

The result is a familiar pattern in Canberra: Labor declares reform, the Greens declare pressure, the Coalition declares opposition, and young Australians remain locked out of the market.

The political trade-off also extends to the NDIS.

Labor had hoped to pass its proposed NDIS overhaul before parliament rises for the winter break, but the Greens used the tax negotiations to secure an eight-week extension to the Senate inquiry.

The NDIS bill will now be delayed until at least mid-August, with Health Minister Mark Butler acknowledging the delay will cost the budget “a few hundred million” dollars.

Labor and the Greens have agreed to amendments limiting ministerial powers over participant support budgets, increasing transparency around automated decision-making, and adding protections around restrictive practices.

But the Greens say they will still fight the broader NDIS changes, which the government argues are needed to control scheme costs.

That leaves Labor in the politically awkward position of relying on Greens support to pass its tax package while continuing to clash with them over disability reform.

For the Greens, the deal delivers a political win but also exposes the limits of protest-party leverage once it becomes part of the legislative bargain. They have helped pass Labor’s tax changes while describing them as inadequate.

For Labor, the package is being framed as generational reform, but it looks more like controlled damage management: enough change to claim action, enough carve-outs to avoid a full backlash, and enough delay to keep difficult fights moving beyond the next political deadline.

The SMSF loophole may be ending, but the deeper housing crisis remains untouched by the scale of reform required.

For renters and first-home buyers, the message from Canberra is clear: relief is still being negotiated.

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The latest Capital Brief/DemosAU poll places One Nation on 30 per cent of the primary vote, three points ahead of Labor on 27 per cent. The Liberal-National Coalition has fallen five points to 18 per cent, while the Greens remain on 13 per cent and other parties and independents account for 12 per cent.

DemosAU used the results to conduct 20,000 Monte Carlo simulations, assuming uniform national swings from its January-to-March multilevel regression and post-stratification model.

If the polling figures were replicated at a federal election, the model projects One Nation would secure between 54 and 63 of the House’s 150 seats.

Labor would win between 71 and 81 seats, leaving it best placed to form either a majority or minority government. The Coalition would be reduced to between four and 11 seats, while the Greens would win up to four and other candidates between four and eight.

The result represents a significant deterioration for the Coalition. In May, DemosAU projected the Liberal and National parties would retain between 16 and 28 seats.

One Nation’s projected range has increased from 47–58 seats in May to 54–63 in June, placing the party within reach of becoming the official opposition and potentially transforming Australia’s two-party political system.

DemosAU Head of Research George Hasanakos said Labor remained the most likely party to form government, despite trailing One Nation on primary support.

Mr Hasanakos explained,

“On these numbers, One Nation would likely fall short of forming government, even with Coalition support, but a further improvement in support, or a further drop for Labor, could change the equation.”

The modelling should be treated as a scenario rather than a firm election forecast. It assumes the national movement in support would be replicated broadly across individual electorates, while candidate quality, preference flows and local campaigns could produce substantially different results.

The poll surveyed 1,497 Australian voters between June 16 and 18 and had an effective margin of error of plus or minus 3.3 percentage points.

Cost of living remained the dominant concern, nominated as a leading issue by 47 per cent of respondents. Housing affordability and homelessness followed on 17 per cent, with immigration on 12 per cent.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese continued to lead the three-way preferred prime minister contest on 35 per cent, followed by Senator Hanson on 28 per cent and Opposition Leader Angus Taylor on 19 per cent.

However, all three leaders saw their personal ratings decline. Mr Albanese’s net rating fell to minus 23, Senator Hanson’s dropped to minus three, and Mr Taylor’s declined to minus seven.

The poll also tested whether former prime minister and recently installed Liberal Party president Tony Abbott would improve the Coalition’s position if he returned as parliamentary leader.

The hypothetical change produced little movement, with One Nation attracting 31 per cent, Labor 26 per cent, and the Coalition remaining on 18 per cent.

Mr Hasanakos said the result demonstrated the scale of the Coalition’s challenge in winning back conservative voters.

“Tony Abbott is a long-established conservative voice. The fact he would be unable to make a dent in One Nation’s support shows how strongly conservatives have swung behind Ms Hanson,” he said.

“It’s also a sign of how resilient One Nation support could be, at least while Ms Hanson remains leader.”

One Nation presently has two members in the House of Representatives. Former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce joined the party in December, while David Farley won the previously safe Liberal seat of Farrer at a May by-election, becoming the first One Nation candidate elected directly to the federal lower house.

Deputy Liberal leader Jane Hume has questioned whether One Nation could retain a large parliamentary team, pointing to the party’s history of defections and internal disputes.

“One Nation has actually successfully elected over 50 people in the last decade or so, and yet fewer than 10 have actually lasted more than one term,” Senator Hume told Sky News.

“Either they leave in a huff, they decide that the party isn’t for them, they don’t like an authoritarian regime that is imposed by the One Nation structure, or One Nation realise that they were inappropriately selected in the first place. So let’s see how they go.”

Despite those questions, the new modelling shows One Nation’s rise is no longer merely a threat to individual Coalition electorates. If sustained, it could reshape the federal parliament and leave the Liberal and National parties facing their worst electoral defeat in modern Australian political history.

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Within days of debate over Hanson’s call for Australia to be “multiracial” but “monocultural”, the One Nation leader appeared at the Sikh Temple Perth complex in Canning Vale, wearing a head covering, meeting Sikh community members and taking part respectfully in one of Australia’s most visible multicultural spaces.

For many of her critics, the visit may appear contradictory.

How can a politician who questions multiculturalism walk into a gurdwara, honour Sikh customs and stand beside a community whose faith, language, dress and traditions are proudly distinct?

But there is another way to read the moment.

Perhaps this is exactly what Hanson means when she says Australia should have one culture: not one religion, not one language, not one food, not one ethnicity, but one shared civic culture built on respect, law, equality, service and national belonging.

The video supplied to The Australia Today shows Hanson at Western Australia’s Canning Vale gurdwara, where she is seen with community members outside the temple and later inside the premises wearing a blue head covering.

Inside the gurdwara, she appears in the prayer hall area and later among community members in the langar hall, where Sikh volunteers serve free vegetarian meals to all visitors regardless of faith, background, wealth or political views.

That image is powerful.

A Queensland senator known for her hardline views on immigration and national identity walks into a Sikh gurdwara in Western Australia and follows the rules of the house. She covers her head. She shows respect. She engages with elders. She stands in a place where faith and service are central to community life.

That is not exclusion.

That is participation.

For Hanson’s supporters, the visit may be seen as proof that her argument is not against people of different races or faiths, but against division, separatism and the idea that Australia should become a collection of disconnected cultural enclaves.

The gurdwara visit challenges the simplistic claim that wanting one national culture automatically means rejecting migrant communities.

In fact, the Indian community offers one of the clearest examples of how cultural identity and Australian belonging can sit together.

Indian Australians have built businesses, served in public life, joined the defence forces, worked in transport, health, farming, education and small business, and contributed deeply to local communities across the country.

Their temples are not isolated spaces. They are centres of prayer, charity, education and service. Langar is not just a religious meal; it is a public act of equality. Anyone can sit. Anyone can eat. No one is turned away.

If the core of Australian culture is fairness, service, dignity, respect for the law and helping your neighbour, then Indian Australians are not outside that culture. They are living it.

That is why Hanson’s Canning Vale visit matters.

It shows that the monoculture debate does not have to be reduced to fear or hostility. It can also open a more serious question: what is the common Australian culture that holds people together?

A common culture does not require everyone to pray the same way, dress the same way or eat the same food. Australia is not stronger when people are forced to erase their heritage. It is stronger when different communities are united by shared values.

The gurdwara itself is a perfect example.

Everyone entering follows the same basic rules. Cover your head. Remove your shoes. Show respect. Sit together. Eat together. Serve others. No one is asked to abandon who they are, but everyone is expected to honour the shared code of the place.

That is a form of common culture.

And it is not weak. It is disciplined, respectful and inclusive.

This is where the national debate often becomes dishonest. Too many people pretend there are only two choices: either unlimited multiculturalism with no common identity, or forced assimilation where migrants must hide their heritage.

Most Australians live somewhere in between.

They want migrants to contribute, respect the law, embrace democratic values, speak to their neighbours and feel part of the country. But they also understand that someone can be fully Australian while still being Sikh, Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Buddhist or of no faith at all.

They understand that a turban, a temple, a language, a festival or a community kitchen does not make someone less Australian.

The question is not whether people look or worship the same. The question is whether they share a commitment to the country they call home.

Seen through that lens, Hanson’s visit to the Canning Vale gurdwara becomes more than a political photo opportunity. It becomes a test case for her own argument.

If her monoculture means one race, one religion or one old version of Australia, then it will fail in a modern country built by many communities.

But if her monoculture means one national loyalty, one rule of law, one democratic standard, one expectation of mutual respect and one commitment to Australia’s future, then the gurdwara visit shows that people of all backgrounds can be included in it.

That is the version of the debate Australians deserve.

Because the Sikh community did not need to stop being Sikh to welcome Pauline Hanson.

And Pauline Hanson did not need to stop being Pauline Hanson to respectfully enter a Sikh gurdwara.

Both things happened at once.

That may be uncomfortable for critics on both sides, but it also says something important about Australia.

The country is at its best when communities are confident enough to share their traditions and strong enough to unite around common values.

If that is what Hanson means by monoculture, then the Canning Vale gurdwara visit may be one of the clearest examples yet that the idea does not have to exclude everyone.

It can include everyone willing to respect Australia, contribute to Australia and belong to Australia.

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Angus Taylor, the Liberal leader who should know better, recently accused One Nation of wanting to “judge people based on the colour of their skin” — a characterisation so detached from what Hanson actually said at her press conference that it crosses from misrepresentation into something closer to deliberate fabrication.

Hanson had just argued, on the record, that Australians should be treated equally “regardless of race, colour, creed, or where you are from.”

You may disagree with her politics. You may find her tone abrasive. But the political class’s instinct to caricature rather than confront tells you more about their intellectual bankruptcy than about her.

That said, Hanson’s own position and One Nation’s social media amplification of it suffers from a different kind of failure: a divisive cultural nationalism that undermines the very case it wants to make.

Let us start with what is simply correct. The English language is not a colonial relic to be apologised for. It is the operative language of Australian civic life, of courts, parliaments, hospitals, workplaces and schools.

One Nation has recently cited the 2021 Census figure of 872,000 people as evidence of a language crisis. The number is real, but the framing requires precision.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 872,206 people who spoke a language other than English at home self-reported that they spoke English not well or not at all. It is a self-assessed measure, not a tested or verified one, and it applies specifically to those already using a non-English language at home — not to the general population.

That caveat does not diminish the concern; it sharpens it.

On the ABS’s own figures, 3.4 per cent of the total Australian population fell into the not-well-or-not-at-all category in 2021. On a population of 25.5 million, the arithmetic produces roughly that 872,000 figure. And the claim that 23 per cent of households do not use English at home is similarly grounded — the ABS recorded 22.3 per cent of the population using a language other than English at home, which rounds to the figure One Nation has cited.

The numbers, properly qualified, are accurate. They represent a policy failure of the first order, not a data point to be explained away by progressive commentators as merely a sign of diversity.

No serious immigration programme can function if large cohorts of settlers arrive or remain without the language capacity to participate in the society that receives them.

This is not nativism. It is logistics. Hanson is right to press on this, even if she presses on it with a bluntness that invites easy mockery and alienates the very moderate opinion she needs to persuade.

The exchange with the SBS journalist at Hanson’s press conference crystallised the confusion at the heart of this debate. The journalist defended SBS’s broadcasting in more than sixty languages as a tool of integration. It was, charitably, a confused argument — and one that SBS’s own institutional history quietly refutes.

SBS did not begin as the multilingual colossus it is today. It launched on 9 June 1975 as Radio Ethnic Australia with just seven languages, with Greek the first to go to air, broadcasting in Sydney and Melbourne. The expansion to its current 63 languages across radio, podcasting, online and social media has been driven by quinquennial reviews tied directly to Census data, which is itself an institutional acknowledgment that language services are a function of demographic need, not a permanent cultural entitlement.

More telling still is what SBS has been willing to cut. After its 2016 Census review, twelve language services were discontinued or placed in recess — among them Fijian, Cook Island Maori, Norwegian, Swedish, Danish and Tongan — because the communities in question had either shrunk, integrated, or no longer required in-language services to navigate Australian civic life. After the 2021 review, Albanian, Bulgarian, Finnish, Romanian, Slovak and Slovenian were similarly decommissioned, while newer migrant languages from South Asia were added in their place.

The selection criteria SBS applies require a minimum population threshold and a demonstrable need linked to English language proficiency levels in the community. In other words, SBS itself operates on an integration logic: when a community no longer needs a linguistic bridge, the bridge is withdrawn. The journalist’s argument that multilingual broadcasting aids integration is thus contradicted by SBS’s own institutional practice. SBS does not broadcast in 63 languages because it believes permanent linguistic separation is healthy. It does so as a transitional service — and it removes languages when the transition is judged complete.

So, if SBS can decide that a language community no longer needs broadcasting support, it has already conceded Hanson’s central premise. It just lacks the courage to say so plainly.

This makes the case not for abolishing SBS — Hanson’s blunt instrument — but for something more structurally intelligent. Australia is one of the few countries in the world that funds two full public broadcasters. The combined annual taxpayer outlay on the ABC and SBS runs to approximately 1.3 billion dollars. Rather than defunding the ABC, as some on the right demand, or treating the present duplication as sacrosanct, as the left instinctively does, a merger that preserves SBS’s multicultural remit within a unified public broadcaster, with shared back-end infrastructure, combined streaming platforms, and clear editorial firewalls protecting the language and cultural programming, would serve both taxpayers and audiences better than the current arrangement.

The Australia Institute has already recommended consolidating the two broadcasters’ online news and streaming services, noting that sharing content, translation and publishing systems presents genuine efficiency gains without gutting the public interest mission of either.

The ABC’s own trajectory is instructive: in 2009, Radio Australia broadcast in eight languages, including Khmer, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Mandarin, French and Burmese. By 2018, following budget cuts in 2014 and 2016, it could be heard only in English and Tok Pisin. The ABC has, in fact, been moving away from in-language domestic services, not towards duplicating SBS. A merged entity would rationalise what is already a fragmented and sometimes redundant public broadcasting landscape, and produce a genuinely wholesome broadcaster with the best of both institutions — without the ideological overcorrection of abolition.

But the deeper problem with Hanson’s framing is not the data; it is the conclusion drawn from it.

The proposition that Australia needs “one strong Australian culture” that is cohesive and defined against a corrupted multiculturalism is not a policy framework — it is an emotional slogan.

What does “one Australian culture” mean, exactly? The culture of the gold rush? Of the White Australia Policy? Of the bush ballad or the inner-city café?

Australian culture, like every living culture, is not a fixed quantity to be defended. It is a negotiated, evolving set of civic norms built around what people actually share — and what they genuinely need to share is not the same thing as cultural uniformity. The distinction between monoculture and civic integration is crucial, and One Nation collapses it.

For example, an Indian-Australian woman who speaks fluent English, pays her taxes, knows her legal rights, votes, and raises children who think of themselves as Australian — she has integrated. That she also celebrates Diwali and cooks butter chicken is not a threat to social cohesion. It is colour in what would otherwise be a beige civic landscape. Demanding that she surrender this is not integration policy; it is cultural imperialism dressed in the language of belonging.

What Australia actually needs is not the fantasised monoculture, nor the performative multiculturalism of progressive elites who treat the 872,000 figure as a diversity statistic rather than a governance problem.

It needs a firm, unapologetic civic integration framework: English language proficiency as a verified prerequisite, not merely a self-declared one, for permanent residency; a migration intake calibrated to absorptive capacity rather than ideological targets; and a willingness to name the failure when communities of any origin develop parallel institutional lives that corrode shared norms.

The appeasement instinct that has overtaken Australian mainstream politics, and indeed much of the Western political class, is the real rot. Politicians on all sides have spent two decades treating ethnic communities as electoral blocs to be soothed rather than citizens to be engaged.

The consequence is that legitimate questions about language, integration and civic expectation have been ceded to Hanson by default, precisely because the centre lacks the courage to say things that might complicate a preference vote.

Hanson fills a vacuum created by elite neglect, and then the elite attacks her for filling it.

Taylor’s performance, attacking Hanson for racism on the very day she explicitly disavowed racial categorisation, is a symptom of this neglect turned aggressive. It is easier to throw a slur than to develop a policy. The Liberals, who presided over their own extended failures on immigration and integration policy, have no standing to lecture anyone on this ground.

Hanson is not always wrong. She is often inflammatory and strategically limited in her capacity to build the broad coalitions that lasting policy change requires. But the monoculture she reaches for and the civic integration she actually needs are not the same thing, and her rhetoric too often obscures this.

The English language argument is worth making with precision and dignity. The SBS argument is worth making with an understanding of what SBS actually does and how it actually works. And the broadcasting reform argument is worth making as a fiscal and structural proposition, not a cultural war.

“One Australian culture” is a slogan that forecloses the very conversation it claims to open.

Australia is not a monoculture. It never was. What it can be, what it must be, is a country with non-negotiable civic common ground: a shared language, a shared legal framework, and a shared expectation that those who make their home here contribute to rather than shelter from the society that receives them.

That argument is available to any thoughtful person across the political spectrum. It is a pity that it keeps being made, and kept being answered, in the worst possible terms by almost everyone involved.

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The roundtable brought together representatives from Victoria’s multicultural and ethnic media outlets for a discussion on crime, cost of living, small business pressures, community safety and the future of local cultural events.

Wilson, Mulholland and Battin told attendees that multicultural Victorians should not be treated as automatic voting blocs, arguing ethnic communities deserve direct engagement, practical policies and a real voice in state decision-making.

The Opposition said multicultural media outlets play a vital role in keeping Victoria’s diverse communities informed, connected and heard, particularly at a time when many families are facing economic pressure and rising safety concerns.

Liberal leaders used the forum to claim their party is the strongest supporter of multicultural Victorians, accusing Labor of taking migrant communities for granted after years of relying on their electoral support.

They argued that many multicultural families, small business owners and community organisations are dealing with the same pressures as the rest of Victoria, including rising household bills, payroll tax burdens, crime, youth offending and growing difficulty running community events.

The meeting came as crime and community safety remain central to Victoria’s political debate.

Brad Battin, a former police officer and the Shadow Minister for Police and Corrections, was a key part of the discussion and focused on how a Liberal and Nationals government would reduce crime and make Victoria safer for families, communities and businesses.

Battin told the roundtable that community safety was not only a policing issue but also an economic and social issue, with crime affecting local businesses, families, faith groups and community events.

He highlighted the Coalition’s plan to strengthen police numbers, restore frontline visibility, tighten bail laws and ensure serious offenders face stronger consequences.

“Victorians are sick of being told everything is fine when they can see what’s happening in their own communities,” Battin said.

“The numbers don’t lie. Under Jacinta Allan, crime is up, police shortages are getting worse and more Victorians are feeling unsafe.”

He said Victorians deserved a government that backed police, put victims first and took crime seriously.

The Opposition pointed to data it says shows criminal offending has risen sharply since Jacinta Allan became Premier in September 2023, including increases in total criminal offences, residential aggravated burglaries, family violence-related serious assaults, motor vehicle theft and weapons offences.

Wilson said community safety was a top priority for her team.

“Under Labor, cops are down, crime is up and Victorians are paying the price,” Wilson said.

“Community safety is a top priority for my team, and we have a comprehensive plan to end the crime crisis.”

She said a Liberal and Nationals government would recruit 3,000 additional Victoria Police officers, return Protective Services Officers to every metropolitan train station, implement “real Adult Crime, Adult Time” laws and introduce a tough one-strike bail rule for serious offences.

For multicultural media representatives, the roundtable provided an opportunity to raise issues directly affecting their audiences, including public safety in suburbs with large migrant populations, pressure on family-run businesses, the cost of compliance for community events and whether government communication is reaching non-English-speaking communities effectively.

Mulholland said multicultural and multifaith communities were central to Victoria’s identity and should be engaged throughout the political process, not only during election campaigns.

The Opposition argued Labor had too often relied on multicultural communities for votes while failing to address the issues affecting them in daily life.

Liberal leaders said their message to multicultural Victorians was that support should be measured through action: safer streets, stronger police presence, lower pressure on family businesses, better support for faith and cultural organisations, and respect for community media.

The roundtable also discussed concerns around Victoria’s Places of Public Entertainment permit system.

The Liberals and Nationals said they had forced the Allan Government to abandon proposed changes that could have made it harder and more expensive to hold community events, including cultural festivals, school fetes, farmers’ markets, Anzac Day services and local celebrations.

The Opposition said such events are often organised by volunteers and community groups with limited budgets, making extra red tape and compliance costs a serious barrier.

They argued that multicultural festivals are not simply entertainment but a core part of community connection, cultural identity and social cohesion.

The Australian Festival Association has previously described Victoria’s PoPE regime as one of the most difficult in the country, and the Opposition said Labor’s proposed changes would have placed further pressure on an events sector already struggling with rising costs.

The meeting formed part of the Coalition’s broader push to rebuild trust with multicultural communities across Melbourne’s suburbs and regional Victoria.

For years, Labor has dominated many migrant-heavy electorates, but the Opposition believes cost of living, crime, housing pressure, religious freedom, small business regulation and community safety are shifting the political conversation.

Wilson, Mulholland and Battin used the roundtable to signal that ethnic media will have a direct line to the Opposition as the Liberals and Nationals develop policies ahead of the next state election.

The event also reflected a wider political reality: multicultural communities are no longer prepared to be treated as predictable voters.

Many are asking practical questions about safety, economic opportunity, business confidence, education, housing and whether their cultural and faith institutions are respected.

The Liberals and Nationals are seeking to position themselves as the party willing to listen to those concerns and act on them.

Labor is expected to argue it has invested heavily in multicultural programs, settlement support, anti-racism initiatives and community grants. But the Opposition says those programs mean little if families do not feel safe, businesses are struggling, and communities feel taken for granted.

The roundtable ended with a clear political message from the Opposition: multicultural Victorians are not a voting bloc to be managed, but communities to be respected, heard and supported.

Whether that message cuts through will now depend on whether the Coalition can turn engagement into trust, and trust into votes.

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“Diversity is a strength of modern Australia. And no matter what language you speak, or faith you practice – every Australian deserves to feel safe, respected and valued.”

The Prime Minister’s comments came during a visit to Goodstart Early Learning Centre in Hampton Park, where he announced the continuation of a 15 per cent wage increase for eligible early childhood educators, alongside new conditions requiring childcare providers receiving the funding to meet national safety standards and limit fee increases.

The funding package will provide educators with up to $255 extra a week and is aimed at retaining workers in a sector that has faced longstanding workforce shortages.

In a press conference, Albanese said the investment would support families, workers and children, arguing that early childhood educators had been underpaid despite their role in children’s development.

“When we came to government, our child care sector was in crisis. People weren’t being paid enough, and people were leaving the sector.”

The Prime Minister said the government had sought to balance improved wages with affordability for families by linking funding support to limits on childcare fee increases.

“We’ve done it in a way as well so that caps are put on fee increases in the child care sector, meaning that this is good for families as well.”

Education Minister Jason Clare said the policy addressed three priorities: improving wages, keeping childcare costs under control and strengthening child safety.

“What we’re announcing today really is the trifecta. It’s about making sure that we pay our staff properly, that we keep fee increases as low as possible for mums and dads across the country, and that we make sure that we keep our kids safe.”

Clare said there were now 20,000 more people working in childcare centres compared with when the wage support was introduced 18 months ago, while workforce vacancy rates had fallen.

The government will require childcare centres receiving the wage funding to meet the National Safety Standard. Clare said about 95 per cent of centres currently met the standard, but the government wanted compliance to reach 100 per cent.

The announcement follows a series of concerns about child safety in early learning settings. Clare said additional measures, including mandatory training, a national register and CCTV trials, were part of broader efforts to improve protections.

“The truth is this work will never end and our greatest assets in places like this to keep our kids safe are the extraordinary workforce that we’ve got.”

Early Childhood Education Minister Jess Walsh said the wage increase recognised the importance of educators who deliver early learning services across Australia.

“This announcement funds a $255 a week pay rise for our early childhood educators,” Walsh said, adding that educators had told her the increase was helping them remain in the profession.

Goodstart Early Learning chief executive Ros Baxter said higher wages were important for recognising educators’ work and maintaining stability for children.

United Workers Union national president Jo Schofield welcomed the funding commitment, saying early childhood educators had campaigned for improved recognition and pay over many years.

The announcement comes as the federal government continues discussions about the future structure of Australia’s early childhood education system, including reforms being considered following a Productivity Commission review.

The Prime Minister said the government would continue focusing on policies aimed at reducing financial pressure on households, including childcare support, tax cuts and education initiatives.

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The post ‘No matter what language you speak’: Albanese highlights multicultural values during Melbourne visit first appeared on The Australia Today.

In a club statement issued on 17 June 2026, National Press Club chief executive Maurice Reilly said third parties undertook the incident and that no club personnel or contractors were involved.

“The National Press Club can confirm that the incident to disrupt Senator Hanson’s address was undertaken by third parties,” the statement said.

“No club personnel or club contractors had any involvement in this matter.”

The statement said the club had referred relevant footage and other evidence to the AFP for further investigation.

The disruption occurred during Hanson’s first National Press Club address in three decades of politics, as she outlined One Nation’s agenda on immigration, multiculturalism, media funding, housing, energy and national identity.

The banner was quickly removed by Press Club staff while Hanson continued her address.

The activist group GetUp claimed responsibility for the stunt.

In its statement, the National Press Club said a GetUp representative at the address was David Sharaz and that, at the time of writing, he was yet to be interviewed by the AFP.

“The organisation ‘GetUp!’ is claiming credit for the stunt. The ‘GetUp!’ representative at the address was David Sharaz,” the statement said.

“At time of writing, we understand he is yet to be interviewed by the AFP.”

The club said it appeared two people entered the club building the previous afternoon without permission and installed a separate drop-down screen in front of the media wall and light box.

“It is evident that a further person present during the address activated a remote device to trigger the unfurling of the coiled banner,” the statement said.

The statement also alleged Sharaz was seen filming the incident on his phone and left abruptly after the banner had lowered.

“David Sharaz was seen filming the incident on his phone and, after the banner had lowered, left abruptly,” the club said.

The National Press Club said the matter was likely to form part of the AFP investigation.

It said once the investigation had concluded, the club would consider legal options against the perpetrators, including seeking to recover costs for what it described as “significant damage” to the media wall and light box.

“When the investigation has concluded, the Club will consider its legal options against the perpetrators, including recovering costs for the significant damage to the media wall/light box,” the statement said.

“The Club sincerely apologises to Senator Hanson for the incident.”

The stunt has raised questions about security at one of Australia’s most prominent political media forums.

The National Press Club has hosted prime ministers, opposition leaders, ministers, diplomats, business figures and advocacy leaders for decades. The Hanson incident is now likely to prompt a review of how unauthorised equipment was allegedly installed inside the venue before a high-profile political address.

Hanson appeared unfazed when the banner appeared, asking whether it was “another first” for her National Press Club appearance.

The disruption came at a politically charged moment for One Nation, with the party gaining momentum in national polling and Hanson positioning herself as a direct challenger to the major parties.

During her address, Hanson argued that multiculturalism had failed and said Australia should be “multiracial” but “monocultural”. She also called for tighter immigration controls, criticised “radical Islam”, proposed abolishing SBS and said the ABC should become subscription-based in metropolitan areas.

Her remarks drew criticism from political opponents and advocacy groups, while supporters said the speech showed Hanson was willing to raise issues they believe the major parties avoid.

The banner stunt has shifted part of the focus from Hanson’s policy agenda to protesters’ conduct and the security of the Press Club event.

For Hanson and One Nation, the incident is likely to be framed as evidence that political opponents and activist groups are trying to disrupt rather than debate the party’s rise.

For GetUp, the protest was intended to challenge Hanson’s claim to represent working Australians.

For the National Press Club, the priority is now the AFP investigation and restoring confidence in its ability to host political addresses without unauthorised interference.

The investigation is continuing.

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The proposed laws would create a new aggravated offence of recruiting a child to commit a serious crime, targeting organised crime figures accused of using minors to carry out offences such as arson, carjacking and home invasion.

Premier Jacinta Allan said Victorians were “rightly appalled” by reports of criminal groups using children, including some with intellectual disability, to commit violent crimes for profit.

“Organised crime bosses who recruit kids to torch venues and invade homes deserve no sympathy.

They are preying on children and putting Victorians at risk.”

The new offence would apply even if the child does not ultimately carry out the crime.

Recruiting a child to commit a crime is already an offence in Victoria. The government says 64 charges have been laid under existing laws. Last year, Labor increased the maximum penalty for that offence from 10 to 15 years in prison. The new aggravated offence would go further by introducing a maximum life sentence where a child is recruited to commit one of 71 specified serious crimes.

The listed offences include arson, carjacking and home invasion, crimes that have become central to Victoria’s law-and-order debate amid concern over youth offending and organised crime recruitment.

Attorney-General Sonya Kilkenny said the legislation was intended to send a stronger warning to adults who exploit children.

“These laws send a clear message: those who recruit children to commit crime will face the full force of the law.”

The government says the legislation will also make prosecutions easier by removing the requirement to prove that the adult knew the child was underage.

Minister for Police Anthony Carbines said organised crime groups were deliberately using children as a way to distance themselves from the offences.

“Organised crime groups are recruiting children to do their dirty work. We will not stand by and watch this happen.”

The announcement follows months of concern over firebombings and violent attacks linked to Melbourne’s hospitality sector. Victoria Police’s Operation Eclipse has resulted in more than 65 arrests and 370 charges connected to recent arson attacks, according to the government.

It was reported in May that Melbourne’s hospitality industry had been hit by a wave of arson, shootings and intimidation, with police investigating dozens of incidents and organised crime links. The report said many of those arrested were minors allegedly recruited through encrypted apps and paid small amounts to carry out attacks.

The Allan Government has also provided $5 million to boost technology in the State Command and Coordination Centre, saying it will support Victoria Police operations against organised criminal activity.

The proposed life-sentence offence builds on the government’s broader “Adult Time for Violent Crime” approach. In December 2025, Victoria’s parliament passed laws that allow children aged 14 and over to face adult sentencing for some serious violent crimes, including possible life sentences in extreme cases.

Those laws were strongly criticised by legal and youth justice advocates, who argued that harsher sentences would not address the causes of youth crime and could harm vulnerable children. Human rights and justice reform groups said punitive responses risk worsening long-term offending rather than preventing it.

The government argues the new recruitment offence is different because it targets adults and organised crime figures who exploit children, rather than focusing only on young offenders.

Victoria’s crime debate has become a major political battleground ahead of the next state election. Opposition Leader Jess Wilson and the Coalition have accused Labor of failing to keep communities safe. In contrast, the Allan Government has accused the Liberals of planning to cut frontline services, including funding for the Violence Reduction Unit and Victoria Police.

The Coalition has also announced its own tougher “adult crime, adult time” justice policy, proposing to expand the list of offences that would expose young offenders to adult penalties and stricter bail consequences.

The government says increasing maximum penalties sets a benchmark for the seriousness of an offence and is likely to increase sentencing outcomes more broadly.

However, critics are likely to question whether heavier penalties will translate into more convictions, given concerns previously raised in parliament about the number of charges and convictions under earlier child recruitment laws. In November 2025, the opposition said there had been 32 charges under Labor’s child recruitment laws at that time and no convictions, questioning whether higher penalties alone would be effective.

For now, the Allan Government is framing the legislation as a direct strike at organised crime “puppet masters” using children to shield themselves from responsibility.

If passed, the new offence would mark one of Victoria’s toughest penalties aimed at adults who recruit children into serious criminal offending.

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The post Premier Allan brings new law to jail adults who recruit children for serious crimes first appeared on The Australia Today.

The funding will extend the Government’s 15 per cent wage increase for Early Education and Care Workers, ensuring educators continue to receive higher wages without the cost being passed directly onto parents.

Albanese said early educators played a critical role in children’s development and deserved fair recognition for their work. “Early educators help give our children the best start in life,” Albanese said.

“They do incredibly important work and they deserve to be fairly paid for it.”

The Government said the wage boost, combined with minimum wage increases, would mean a typical full-time early childhood educator would receive around $255 more per week, while early childhood teachers would receive approximately $410 more per week compared with December 2024 levels.

For the first time, workers in the Family Day Care and In-Home Care sectors will also become eligible for the payment from July.

However, childcare services will need to meet conditions to access the funding, including commitments to limit fee increases for families.

“Only child care centres who agree to limit their fees for parents will be eligible to receive funding for this wage increase for workers.”

The Government said the policy aims to balance workforce retention with cost-of-living pressures facing families.

Since the wage support program was introduced, the Government says the early childhood sector has added around 20,000 workers, representing an increase of about 8 per cent.

It also said job vacancies in early education had fallen by almost 31 per cent, while childcare fees at participating centres had grown at around half the rate of services not receiving the payment.

Education Minister Jason Clare said the wage increase had helped attract more workers into the sector.

“Turns out if you pay people more, more people want to do the job.”

The Government is also linking future payments to safety standards, with childcare services required to meet national safety requirements.

From July 2027, services that fail to meet safety standards under the National Quality Standard could have funding reduced or suspended.

Clare said parents deserved confidence that children were safe while attending early learning services.

“Nothing is more important than the safety of our kids.”

The Government said the reforms form part of a broader plan to make early education more affordable, accessible and improve quality across the sector.

Minister for Early Childhood Education Jess Walsh said the changes were aimed at addressing long-standing workforce challenges. “For too long, our early childhood educators were underpaid, undervalued and overlooked,” Walsh said.

“And as a result, they were walking out the door.”

The Government said the extended wage support would help create a more stable workforce while ensuring families continue to have access to affordable early learning.

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Hanson said the federal excise had made legal tobacco so expensive that many Australian consumers were turning to illicit products, creating what she described as a $5 billion black market.

According to Hanson, about 70 to 75 per cent of the cost of legal tobacco products in Australia is now federal excise, which is increased twice a year.

“One Nation will cut the tobacco excise by 50 per cent, and freeze indexation until 30 June 2028, with an option to review and extend,” Hanson said.

She said the move would reduce the retail price of tobacco products by about 35 per cent, or roughly $17 off a pack of 20 cigarettes.

“The aim is to reduce the incentive for consumers to go to the black market,” she said.

“This would improve consumer and business safety, reduce the black market and related criminal activity to manageable levels for law enforcement agencies, and potentially reverse the decline in government revenue.”

The announcement comes amid growing political pressure on the Albanese Government over the scale of Australia’s illicit tobacco and vaping market.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics recently estimated that consumption from illicit sources rose from 12 per cent of total tobacco consumption in 2017 to 80 per cent in 2025. The ABS also found the quantity of nicotine consumed in Australia increased by almost 40 per cent between 2017 and 2025, despite population growth of about 14 per cent over the same period.

The figures have intensified debate over whether Australia’s tobacco control strategy, built heavily around high taxes and restricted access, is still working as intended.

Hanson said the policy had failed if nicotine use was rising while legal sales and government revenue were falling.

She pointed to a sharp fall in tobacco excise receipts, saying revenue declined from $16.3 billion in 2019-20 to a projected $3.6 billion in 2026-27 and a forecast $2.1 billion in 2029-30.

The latest federal budget has also downgraded tobacco excise revenue sharply, with the growth of the black market now a major concern for the Treasury, police and state governments.

The tobacco excise is indexed in March and September each year, while the Albanese Government also introduced additional annual five per cent increases from September 2023 to September 2025.

Supporters of high tobacco taxes argue that the policy has helped reduce smoking rates over the decades by making cigarettes less affordable. Public health groups have warned that lowering excise could make legal tobacco cheaper, increase consumption and benefit tobacco companies.

Cancer Council Australia and other health organisations have warned against using the illicit market as a justification for tax cuts, arguing governments should strengthen enforcement, public education and support for quitting instead of reducing tobacco prices.

But Hanson and other critics argue that the scale of the illegal trade has changed the policy equation.

The illicit tobacco market has been linked to organised crime, firebombings, extortion, violence and black-market retail networks across several states.

Victoria has been at the centre of the crisis, with authorities investigating repeated firebombings and arson attacks linked to tobacco turf wars. Queensland and Western Australia have also moved to strengthen enforcement powers against retailers selling illicit tobacco and vapes.

NSW Premier Chris Minns recently added pressure on the federal government, arguing that high tobacco taxes had helped create the conditions for criminal gangs to profit from cheaper illegal products.

The Albanese Government has defended its approach, pointing to increased enforcement funding and action against illegal tobacco and vaping products. In 2025, the federal government announced $156.7 million to help law enforcement agencies tackle the black market.

Health Minister Mark Butler has previously said illicit tobacco and vaping products pose serious concerns for Australia’s tobacco control efforts and public health.

The debate now cuts across public health, law enforcement, tax policy and consumer behaviour.

Hanson’s proposal would mark a major reversal of Australia’s long-running tobacco tax strategy, which has relied on price pressure to discourage smoking.

For One Nation, the argument is that policy has gone too far and created a criminal economy more dangerous than the legal market it was designed to shrink.

For health advocates, the concern is that cutting excise would risk undoing decades of anti-smoking progress and make cigarettes more affordable again.

The issue is likely to become another flashpoint in federal politics as One Nation seeks to position itself as the party prepared to challenge what it calls failed government policy.

With illegal tobacco consumption now dominating the market by some official estimates, the fight over tobacco excise is no longer just about smoking. It has become a test of whether governments can balance public health, criminal enforcement, tax revenue and community safety.

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Senator Hanson said the campaign represents “the largest and quickest grassroots campaign Australia has seen”, claiming it demonstrates widespread public support.

“The Prime Minister couldn’t believe it — he called the donations fake,” she posted on social media.

“But One Nation published an independent audit to prove him wrong.”

She said the party had used public advertising, including a mobile billboard outside the Prime Minister’s office, and a donation heat map showing the geographic spread of supporters.

One Nation says it has been transparent throughout the campaign and criticised the Federal Government for not disclosing equivalent fundraising details.

The campaign was launched shortly after Labor introduced its own “Stop One Nation” fundraising drive.

According to One Nation, donations have continued to rise beyond the initial target, with most contributions coming from Australia’s east coast.

A party spokesperson said supporters were contributing as a “two-fingered salute” to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

“They’re enjoying watching him squirm each time he fronts the cameras,” the spokesperson said.

The campaign has included digital advertising, billboard trucks in Sydney and Melbourne, and installations near political offices and key public locations.

Labor has urged supporters to donate $27 to counter One Nation’s growing political momentum, with digital ads running across Meta platforms since early June.

Polling cited by Sky News Pulse / YouGov shows One Nation rising to 29 per cent on the primary vote, ahead of Labor on 26 per cent and the Coalition on 20 per cent.

Sky News commentator Peta Credlin said the campaign had strengthened One Nation’s position, arguing it reflected growing voter dissatisfaction with the Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister has previously questioned the fundraising figures, asking what evidence supported the claims. One Nation has responded by pointing to a privately commissioned audit, which it says confirms the donations were valid and processed through its systems.

The party says the funds will be used to expand its national campaign efforts in the coming weeks.

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The post One Nation raises $4 million, dares Albanese to show his fundraising figures first appeared on The Australia Today.

The latest Resolve Political Monitor, conducted for The Sydney Morning Herald, has Hanson ahead of Albanese on preferred prime minister, with the One Nation leader on 33 per cent, Albanese on 29 per cent and Opposition Leader Angus Taylor on 16 per cent.

The poll also showed One Nation climbing to 29 per cent of the primary vote, ahead of Labor on 28 per cent and the Coalition on 20 per cent.

The result comes after a week of intense political focus on Hanson’s party, including a high-profile fundraising drive, protests outside One Nation events and controversy over a neo-Nazi who appeared outside a Melbourne fundraiser.

Hanson has moved to distance herself from the extremist figure, saying neo-Nazis were with “the wrong party” and rejecting suggestions that One Nation welcomed such support.

The controversy followed a One Nation fundraiser in Melbourne featuring Hanson and Barnaby Joyce. The event was originally scheduled for Giorgio Casa in Moonee Ponds before being moved to South Melbourne after protest activity was planned.

ABC News reported that about 30 protesters attended the new location, shouting slogans including “Immigrants are welcome here, Nazis are not”. Dozens of police officers were present outside the venue.

Victoria Police confirmed a 22-year-old man was given a direction to move on and said there were no formal arrests.

The neo-Nazi figure Michael Nelson, who had recently been convicted of offensive behaviour over the disruption of an Anzac Day dawn service, was restrained by officers outside the South Melbourne venue. In videos posted online, he could be heard making pro-Hanson comments while being dealt with by police.

Hanson has rejected any association with neo-Nazi supporters, saying they did not belong with One Nation.

But the incident has given her opponents fresh ammunition.

Shadow Treasurer Tim Wilson claimed Hanson had “attracted extremists into her ranks”, arguing the episode showed the risks of One Nation’s political rise.

Labor has also sought to frame One Nation as a party of anger rather than answers.

Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen said One Nation had “anger, but not answers” and “slogans, but not solutions”. He warned voters that Hanson, Joyce and the Coalition would deliver “chaos” if they worked together at the next election.

The attacks come as Hanson attempts to convert polling momentum into a broader national campaign against Labor and the Coalition.

One Nation has been touring the country and holding campaign-style events while its “Fire the Liar” donation campaign targets Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Labor-held seats.

The online campaign had raised more than $3 million in less than three days, with about 50,500 Australians contributing at an average of about $60 per person.

Hanson has presented the fundraising success as evidence that voters are turning away from the major parties and looking for a political alternative.

The party has promised to spend the money on billboards, television and radio advertising, including in seats held by Labor.

The latest polling will add to the pressure on Albanese, whose government is facing voter frustration over cost of living, housing, migration, energy prices and broader economic insecurity.

Resolve pollster Jim Reed said Hanson’s support appeared to be expanding beyond One Nation’s traditional conservative base, including among some non-white and migrant voters who are concerned about immigration levels and pressure on housing and services.

That trend is politically dangerous for Labor because it suggests One Nation is no longer only taking votes from the Coalition. It is also attracting some working-class, outer-suburban and disillusioned voters who may once have been considered natural Labor supporters.

For the Coalition, the poll is equally alarming. Angus Taylor remains well behind Hanson on preferred prime minister, while the Coalition’s primary vote has fallen to a low point.

The result leaves Australia’s political landscape looking increasingly volatile, with One Nation positioning itself not just as a protest party but as a direct challenger to the major-party system.

However, the Melbourne controversy also highlights the challenge Hanson faces as her party moves into the national spotlight. With greater polling strength comes greater scrutiny, particularly over who is attracted to One Nation events and how the party responds to extremist figures seeking to attach themselves to its rise.

Hanson’s message is that One Nation is giving a voice to Australians who feel ignored by the political establishment. Her opponents argue the party is fuelling division and attracting dangerous elements.

The new poll suggests voters are at least willing to listen to Hanson in numbers that would have been almost unthinkable a year ago.

Whether that support can survive scrutiny, protests and claims of extremist association may now become one of the defining questions of the next federal political contest.

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In a speech delivered to graduates at the University of Austin, published on his Substack, Abbott said there is a “real danger that we might be living through the twilight of the West”, which he described as facing both external geopolitical pressures and internal cultural and economic challenges.

He pointed to rising strategic tensions involving Russia, China and Iran, as well as domestic issues across Western nations, including economic stagnation, social fragmentation, and political instability.

However, Abbott argued that internal challenges were now more serious than external threats, citing stagnant living standards, deindustrialisation, welfare dependency, and record levels of migration across Western countries.

He said Australia, in particular, had shifted from its earlier expectation of migrant integration towards a multicultural model that, in his view, risks weakening social cohesion.

“Now, under the doctrine of multiculturalism, they’re officially encouraged to maintain their old identity, not so much joining Team Australia as living in Hotel Australia.”

Abbott also linked these concerns to broader cultural debates, arguing that Western societies were increasingly engaged in “self-loathing” over historical issues such as slavery, empire and Indigenous dispossession, which he said was undermining confidence in their achievements.

Despite the warnings, the former prime minister said the West has overcome periods of crisis before, pointing to the 1980s reform era under leaders such as Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher and Pope John Paul II as an example of renewal driven by strong leadership and conviction.

He told graduates that Western civilisation remains “worth believing in and worth fighting for”, and urged them to draw on the Western canon of ideas to shape future leadership.

Abbott said universities like the University of Austin had a key role in developing future leaders by grounding them in history, philosophy and classical thought, enabling them to engage critically with enduring questions about governance, freedom, prosperity and human flourishing.

He concluded by encouraging students to “strive, to seek, to find and not to yield”, and to take responsibility for shaping a better future, adding: “to whom much is given, much is expected.”

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The post “Western civilisation must overcome its own self-doubt”: Former PM Tony Abbott warns English-speaking West first appeared on The Australia Today.

The Victorian Electoral Commission formally declared the result on Friday, confirming Tiwari had secured the single vacancy after preferences were distributed.

Tiwari finished first on primary votes with 2,013 first preferences, equal to 20.41 per cent of the formal vote. After the distribution of preferences, she defeated Belinda Stojcevski by 5,189 votes to 4,674, giving Tiwari 52.61 per cent of the final two-candidate-preferred vote.

The result gives Thomastown Ward a new representative after months without a councillor following Brooks’ resignation in January.

The by-election was conducted by post, with voting closing at 6 pm on Friday, 29 May. According to the VEC, 13,711 voters were enrolled in the ward, with 10,292 ballots returned. The final turnout was 75.06 per cent. There were 9,863 formal votes and 429 informal votes, representing 4.17 per cent of the total vote.

The contest featured a crowded field of nine candidates, including Tiwari, Edward Sukkar, Joseph Paola, Sarah Garnham, Stevan Kozmevski, Belinda Stojcevski, Aryan Singh, Andrew Filippopoulos and Paul Seidl.

Tiwari’s win came after she campaigned on local issues, including cleaner streets, safer neighbourhoods, better roads and footpaths, stronger services for seniors and families, and improved value for ratepayers.

In her candidate statement lodged with the VEC, Tiwari described herself as a Thomastown resident of more than 15 years, a local business owner and a “proud Labor member”.

“This is my home, where I’ve chosen to raise my family and build my business,” she said in her campaign statement.

“I’m stepping up to fight for our community.”

Tiwari also used her campaign to criticise the circumstances that led to the by-election, saying residents had been left without a voice after the previous independent councillor resigned.

“At a time when families are struggling with the rising cost of living, our community deserves better,” she said.

Her campaign focused heavily on practical suburban concerns, including ageing local facilities, neglected streets, stalled progress and the need to address the Acacia and Waratah Street intersection.

“No excuses. No empty promises. Just results,” her candidate statement said.

The City of Whittlesea confirmed that the VEC had formally declared the result of the recent by-election for Thomastown Ward.

Tiwari’s election restores full representation to the ward and adds a new voice to one of Melbourne’s fast-growing and highly multicultural local government areas.

The City of Whittlesea, in Melbourne’s north, has faced scrutiny in recent years over council governance, local representation and community infrastructure needs. The Thomastown Ward by-election was one of several local government contests being run across Victoria in 2026.

For Tiwari, the immediate challenge will be to convert a campaign built on frustration with council priorities into visible action for residents.

This also reflects the importance of preference flows in local council elections. While she led the primary vote, the final result was not settled until preferences were distributed, with Tiwari ultimately finishing 515 votes ahead of Stojcevski.

Her win is being celebrated by supporters as a local community victory and a breakthrough moment for a candidate who positioned herself as a resident, mother, business owner and advocate for better local services.

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The post Chaman Tiwari elected to City of Whittlesea council after securing 52.61 per cent vote first appeared on The Australia Today.

The fundraising blitz, branded “Fire the Liar”, was launched in response to Labor ads asking supporters to donate $27 to prevent One Nation from turning polling momentum into seats.

One Nation responded with its own $29 donation campaign, pledging to spend the money on billboards, television and radio advertisements targeting Labor-held seats, including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s electorate of Grayndler in Sydney’s inner west.

The party’s chief of staff, James Ashby, claimed more than 28,000 Australians contributed to the campaign, with the average donation sitting at about $59. He said an independent auditor had been engaged to verify the fundraising figures.

“We’ve been overwhelmed by the response,” Ashby said, arguing the donations showed growing frustration among voters over issues including the cost of living, housing pressures and migration.

Albanese questioned the accuracy of One Nation’s fundraising claims when asked about the campaign, saying, “Did she, though, what evidence is there?”

The Prime Minister declined to reveal how much Labor had raised through its own donation appeal.

The exchange marks an escalation in the political battle between Labor and One Nation, with Hanson’s party seeking to capitalise on recent polling gains and growing dissatisfaction among some voters.

One Nation has vowed to use the funds to expand its advertising campaign across key electorates. At the same time, Labor has warned supporters that a stronger One Nation presence could influence the balance of power in future parliaments.

The donation clash comes as both major and minor parties ramp up campaigning efforts, with cost-of-living concerns, housing affordability and immigration expected to remain central issues for voters.

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The post PM Albanese rattled after Pauline Hanson’s One Nation secures $2m war chest against Labor first appeared on The Australia Today.

The campaign, branded “Fire the Liar”, is aimed at raising money for billboards, television and radio advertisements targeting Labor-held seats, including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s own electorate of Grayndler in Sydney’s inner west.

The move comes after Labor launched social media ads urging supporters to chip in $27 to “prevent One Nation from turning polling momentum into seats”.

One Nation has responded by spoofing Labor’s black, white and orange donation advertisements and accusing the government of trying to silence voters who are turning away from the major parties.

“Albo thinks $27 buys him the right to silence us. We think Australians deserve a real choice,” the One Nation advertisement says.

“Donate to help One Nation’s quest to Fire the Liar! Billboards, TV, radio, that’s how we reach Australians that Albanese ignores. Help our candidates and donate before 30 June 2026.”

One Nation is seeking to raise $1 million and has said it will track donations through a real-time counter on its website.

The fundraising war follows a dramatic shift in national polling, with One Nation recently overtaking Labor on primary vote in a major national poll. The result has intensified pressure on both major parties and fuelled debate about whether Pauline Hanson’s party is moving from protest politics to a more direct electoral threat.

Hanson has described Labor’s donation campaign as “absolutely disgusting” and questioned why the Prime Minister was asking ordinary Australians to give money to fight One Nation at a time when many households are struggling with cost-of-living pressures.

One Nation’s new campaign accuses Albanese of breaking promises on issues including stage three tax cuts, energy prices, negative gearing and capital gains tax. It also references the Prime Minister’s 2025 campaign stage fall in Cessnock, which became a political talking point after Albanese repeatedly denied he had fallen from the stage.

Speaking in Bendigo on Tuesday, Albanese sought to link One Nation with the Coalition, saying the Liberal Party, Nationals and One Nation were “three right-wing parties” with a common agenda.

Senior Labor figures have attempted to downplay the fundraising blitz, saying political parties regularly ask supporters for donations.

Trade Minister Don Farrell said Labor had nothing to fear from One Nation, describing populist parties as movements that “come and go”.

Agriculture Minister Julie Collins acknowledged there was “an anti-establishment sort of feel” in the community while people were doing it tough, but said the government took community sentiment seriously.

The Coalition has also moved to frame One Nation’s rise as a symptom of voter frustration with Labor. Opposition foreign affairs spokesman Ted O’Brien said the minor party’s polling surge showed Australians had “lost confidence” in the Albanese Government because they were “getting poorer by the day”.

The exchange marks a sharp escalation in the political fight over One Nation’s rise.

For Labor, the donation drive reflects concern that Hanson’s party could convert polling momentum into seats, particularly in outer-suburban and regional electorates where voters are under pressure from housing, migration, energy and cost-of-living concerns.

For One Nation, the counter-campaign is designed to portray Labor as rattled by the party’s growing appeal and to turn that attention into a fundraising opportunity.

The timing is also significant. Donations made before the end of the financial year may be politically useful for parties building campaign war chests ahead of the next federal election cycle.

One Nation’s surge has unsettled the political landscape because it threatens both sides of politics. In regional and conservative seats, it risks eating into Liberal and National support. In outer-suburban and working-class areas, Labor faces the risk of losing disillusioned voters who feel the government has failed to respond to economic hardship.

The fight over $27 and $29 donations may appear small, but it reflects a larger shift in Australian politics: the major parties are no longer only fighting each other. They are fighting a growing anti-establishment mood that minor parties are increasingly turning into votes, money and campaign infrastructure.

Hanson’s message is that One Nation is being targeted because it is gaining ground. Labor’s message is that One Nation must be stopped before polling momentum becomes parliamentary power.

With both parties now using each other’s attacks to raise money, the campaign has turned into a political feedback loop, and a sign that One Nation’s rise is no longer being dismissed as a temporary protest vote.

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The post Would you pay $27 to stop Pauline Hanson’s One Nation or $29 to fire Albanese’s Labor? first appeared on The Australia Today.

From 26 May 2014 to 10 June 2026, PM Modi has served 4,399 consecutive days in office, overtaking Nehru’s 4,398 days as India’s first elected Prime Minister, who held office from 1952 to 1964.

The milestone has drawn widespread international reaction, with leaders from Australia and the Pacific joining global figures in acknowledging his extended tenure and India’s growing diplomatic influence.

Former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull congratulated Mr Modi and highlighted Australia–India cooperation, saying: “Congratulations @narendramodi on becoming India’s longest serving Prime Minister.”

“Thank you for your friendship with Australia and for your strong and consistent support of all forms of renewable energy including pumped hydro storage.”

Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott praised PM Modi’s impact on India’s development and global standing, stating: “Congratulations to Narendra Modi on becoming India’s longest serving PM. He hasn’t just held office, he’s dramatically improved his country, with more infrastructure, better IT, and practical things like power and sanitation extended to remote villages.”

“Under Modi, India has become the world’s third superpower while maintaining free elections, a riotously free media and a robustly independent judiciary. But for him, and the late Shinzo Abe, there would be no Quad so the entire free world owes him a debt of gratitude.”

Former Prime Minister Scott Morrison also extended his congratulations, saying: “Warm congratulations to PM @narendramodi on becoming India’s longest-serving elected Prime Minister.”

“A true statesman who has transformed India’s economy and standing in the world. Proud of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership we built together. Congrats my friend.”

Pacific leaders also joined in recognising PM Modi’s leadership, reflecting India’s growing engagement in the Indo-Pacific region. Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape described PM Modi as “a role model and an example of leadership”, noting his contribution to lifting millions out of poverty and strengthening ties with Pacific Island nations.

Fiji’s Prime Minister SL Rabuka “conveyed appreciation and admiration for PM Narendra Modi’s leadership and his service to India.” He also acknowledged India’s continued partnership and support, highlighting deepening cooperation in development, education, healthcare and people-to-people links.

“Fiji values India’s continued partnership and support, and I look forward to building on the many achievements we have accomplished together.”

PM Modi first assumed office on 26 May 2014 and has since led India through three consecutive national mandates, becoming the first elected Prime Minister in Indian history to cross the 4,399-day mark in continuous service.

His tenure has been marked by major infrastructure expansion, rapid digital transformation, large-scale welfare delivery systems and sustained economic growth. Supporters say these reforms have contributed to significant poverty reduction and improved access to services across rural and urban India.

India’s international profile has also strengthened during this period, with expanded engagement in global forums, trade agreements and strategic partnerships, including closer alignment with Indo-Pacific partners and participation in multilateral initiatives.

PM Modi’s rise from a modest socio-economic background to India’s highest elected office without a political dynasty is widely seen as an example of democratic mobility within the world’s largest democracy.

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The post Australian and Pacific leaders celebrate Modi’s record tenure, praising India’s rise as the world’s third superpower first appeared on The Australia Today.

In a statement released on Tuesday, Hanson said some international students were using Australia’s visa system to remain in the country through repeated visa applications, appeals and asylum claims, rather than pursuing genuine education opportunities.

“Foreign students should be required to return home before applying for further study in Australia to prevent abuse of the immigration system and reduce the backlog in deporting unlawful non-citizens,” Hanson said.

The One Nation leader claimed that “course-hopping” had become increasingly common, with some students allegedly enrolling in courses to obtain visas before withdrawing and applying for other study programs while remaining in Australia on bridging visas.

Hanson argued that the practice contributes to Australia’s temporary migration numbers and places additional pressure on housing and public services.

“Many of these people are occupying homes and accessing services that should be for Australians first,” she said.

She also criticised Australian universities, accusing some institutions of prioritising revenue from international students over educational outcomes.

“The system is being scammed, and universities addicted to foreign student money are part of the problem,” Hanson said.

As part of its proposed policy, One Nation wants foreign students who discontinue their studies to be prevented from remaining in Australia on bridging visas while applying for further courses. The party also proposes restricting access to appeal processes through the Administrative Review Tribunal for students who fail to meet visa requirements.

Hanson cited figures showing the number of foreign students on bridging visas had increased significantly over recent years, arguing that stronger measures were needed to maintain the integrity of Australia’s migration system.

The proposal forms part of One Nation’s broader immigration and population policy agenda, which has focused on reducing temporary migration and limiting international student numbers.

The federal government and universities have previously argued that international education remains one of Australia’s largest export industries, supporting jobs, research funding and economic activity across the country.

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The post ‘Send them home’: Pauline Hanson calls for crackdown on international students using ‘fake asylum claims’ first appeared on The Australia Today.

A Freshwater Strategy poll conducted for the Herald Sun between June 5 and 8 found Labor’s primary vote had fallen to 23 per cent, down four points since March and 14 points lower than Labor’s 2022 state election result. The Coalition was ahead on 27 per cent, while One Nation surged to 25 per cent, placing Pauline Hanson’s party ahead of Labor in Victoria’s state voting intention.

The poll also found the Coalition leading Labor 53 to 47 on a two-party-preferred basis, a result that would put the Allan Government on track for a heavy defeat if repeated at the election.

The figures have sharpened pressure on Allan, with 62 per cent of voters saying Labor should change leader before the November election. The result included 39 per cent of Labor voters, although 53 per cent of Labor supporters still backed Allan to remain leader.

Allan’s personal numbers are now a major problem for Labor. The poll put her net favourability at negative 37, while Opposition Leader Jess Wilson recorded a positive 15 rating and led Allan as preferred premier by almost two to one.

The result is understood to have reignited internal discussion within Labor about whether the Premier can recover before polling day. According to the Herald Sun, left and right faction figures have been engaged in an active “conversation” about Allan’s leadership, although there are no confirmed plans for an imminent spill.

Deputy Premier Ben Carroll was identified in the poll as the most appealing alternative among Labor’s potential replacements. Freshwater Strategy found switching to Carroll could lift Labor’s primary vote by two points, but the firm warned that replacing Allan would not be a quick fix because possible successors remain relatively unknown to many voters.

Freshwater Strategy head of research Jordan Meyers told the Herald Sun that Allan had become a drag on Labor’s vote, but said the party’s leadership problem was not easily solved.

“A clear majority of voters now say it is time for Labor to change leader,” he said.

“The complication for Labor is that changing leader is no quick fix.”

The poll confirms a wider trend of Victorian Labor losing ground after more than a decade in government. A March Freshwater Strategy poll had already shown the Coalition ahead 52 to 48 on a two-party-preferred basis, with polling analysts noting that Allan’s unpopularity was weighing heavily on Labor.

The latest numbers also point to a more fractured political landscape, with One Nation becoming a serious factor in Victoria rather than only a regional protest vote. DemosAU polling earlier this year had already shown One Nation rising to 21 per cent in Victoria, behind the Coalition on 29 per cent and Labor on 23 per cent.

The party’s surge is not confined to Victoria. National polling has shown One Nation overtaking Labor on primary vote for the first time in Newspoll history, with voter anger over housing, economic pressure and government performance driving support towards minor parties.

For Allan, the pressure is also playing out on the ground. She has recently been seen door-knocking in her Bendigo East electorate, a seat she has held since 1999. Her official parliamentary profile confirms she has represented Bendigo East since Labor’s 1999 election victory.

The Premier has also faced a separate political storm over a privately funded “ditch the witch” billboard campaign in Melbourne.

The campaign was condemned as sexist by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, former prime minister Julia Gillard and politicians across the spectrum, including Opposition Leader Jess Wilson. Allan said sexist language had no place in political debate and warned that such attacks damaged women in public life more broadly.

The billboard controversy may have drawn sympathy for Allan, but it has not shifted the broader political problem facing Labor. The government is under pressure over cost of living, crime, debt, integrity, housing and public services, while One Nation is increasingly presenting itself as an outlet for voters angry with both major parties.

The rise of One Nation also complicates the election contest for both Labor and the Coalition. For the Liberals and Nationals, it risks splitting the conservative and protest vote. For Labor, the danger is more direct: One Nation’s growth in outer suburban and working-class areas could hollow out traditional Labor support in seats where cost-of-living pressure is acute.

Allan’s supporters will argue there is still time to recover, particularly if voters focus on the risks of a three-way contest and the uncertainty of minor-party influence. Her critics inside and outside Labor will argue the latest poll shows the Premier has become the face of voter fatigue after years of Labor rule.

With the election due in November, Labor now faces a difficult choice. It can stick with Allan and hope the campaign narrows the gap, or risk a late leadership change that may bring only limited improvement.

Either way, the latest polling suggests Victorian politics has entered a far more volatile phase, with Labor no longer simply fighting the Coalition, but also fighting a rising One Nation vote that is feeding on public frustration.

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The post Victorian Labor crisis deepens as One Nation storms past Premier Allan in latest poll first appeared on The Australia Today.

Under the proposal, temporary visa holders and foreign citizens residing overseas would be required to divest residential properties they own in Australia. One Nation would also remove the ability for international students, non-permanent residents and non-Australian citizens to buy future residential property in the country.

“Australian homes should be prioritised for Australians. One Nation makes no apologies for putting Australians first,” Senator Hanson said.

Hanson said permanent residents would be exempt because they live, work and pay taxes in Australia and are often on a pathway to citizenship.

The One Nation leader argued the policy builds on existing government restrictions around foreign investment in housing, including rules limiting most foreign persons and foreign-owned companies from purchasing established dwellings.

“Labor extended that ban in the 2026-27 Budget. One Nation’s policy effectively only extends these bans to new homes,” she said.

The proposal comes amid growing national anger over housing affordability, with first-home buyers facing high prices, tight rental markets and increasing competition for properties.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has also sought to frame housing affordability as a key priority for his government, telling Parliament that home ownership remained a central aspiration for Australians.

“Every Australian aspires to own their own home,” Albanese said.

“We’re delivering real change and helping make that a reality.”

The Prime Minister acknowledged the challenges facing first-home buyers and said Labor’s housing agenda was aimed at giving them a better chance in the market.

“Right now, it’s too tough to buy your first home,” he said.

“We’re fixing that by changing negative gearing and capital gains tax breaks to give first home buyers a fair go.”

Hanson’s proposal, however, goes further than Labor’s current policy settings by seeking to force certain non-citizen property owners to sell existing homes within two years.

She also welcomed comments from former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce, saying he had “corrected the record” about One Nation’s housing policy after earlier confusion over whether permanent residents would be affected.

The policy is likely to spark sharp debate across migrant communities, universities, business groups and the property sector. Supporters will argue it gives Australian citizens priority in a strained housing market. Critics are likely to warn that it could create uncertainty for temporary residents, skilled workers and international students who live, work or study in Australia.

Housing affordability is expected to remain a major political battleground, with Labor, the Coalition and One Nation all attempting to appeal to voters frustrated by rising prices, rental stress and declining rates of home ownership among younger Australians.

For Hanson, the message is simple: Australian homes should go to Australians first.

For Albanese, the government argues that tax reform, housing supply and support for first-home buyers are the path to making home ownership more achievable.

The clash sets up housing as one of the defining political fights ahead, with parties competing over who can best respond to voters who feel locked out of the Australian dream.

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The post Temporary visa holders will be forced to sell homes under Pauline Hanson’s property policy first appeared on The Australia Today.

Under the proposed reforms, real estate agents will be required to publicly disclose a property’s reserve price at least seven days before an auction or sale. The changes, expected to take effect from 1 October, are designed to tackle underquoting and provide greater certainty for prospective buyers.

Properties without a published reserve price would not be permitted to proceed to auction. The legislation would also require the final sale price of a property to be publicly disclosed once sold, giving buyers more information about local market values.

Consumer Affairs Minister Paul Edbrooke said the reforms would help end situations where buyers spend time and money pursuing properties that ultimately sell far above advertised expectations.

“We’re stamping out underquoting. These new laws mean no more wasting your Saturday at auctions trying to buy a home that you could never afford,” he said.

The government noted that agents already face penalties of more than $48,000 for underquoting, as well as the risk of losing their commission.

The legislation also introduces several measures aimed at improving conditions for renters. A key reform would cap lease-break fees at a maximum of four weeks’ rent, reducing the financial burden on tenants who need to leave a rental property before the end of a lease agreement.

The new laws would also guarantee renters the right to obtain additional keys or security fobs and allow tenants to pay rental bonds directly online through the Residential Tenancies Bond Authority for the first time.

The government said the measures reflect the growing number of Victorians who rent and are intended to make renting more affordable and practical.

“No one should be trapped in a lease they can’t afford to leave, so we’re capping the cost of getting out,” Edbrooke said.

“If you’re paying rent, you’re entitled to your own set of keys, it’s that simple.”

However, the Liberal and Nationals Opposition has accused the Allan Government of presiding over a rental system that is becoming harder for both renters and rental providers to navigate.

Shadow Minister for Consumer Affairs Tim McCurdy said more than 38,500 Victorian renters lodged disputes through the rental dispute resolution system in the past year, including applications to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal and Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria.

He said the figures showed Labor’s rental framework was generating more conflict after more than 150 changes to Victoria’s rental laws.

“These figures should be a wake-up call for the Allan Labor Government,” McCurdy said.

“Labor promised a rental system that was fairer and easier to navigate. Instead, Victorians are facing growing complexity, more disputes and a housing market under increasing pressure.”

McCurdy said more than 38,500 disputes in a single year was “not a sign of a healthy rental system”, but evidence of a framework becoming increasingly adversarial.

The Opposition argues Labor’s regulatory changes have increased uncertainty and compliance costs for rental providers, contributing to weaker investor confidence and reduced rental supply.

“Every time a rental provider leaves the market, that’s one less home available for a Victorian looking for somewhere to live,” McCurdy said.

“At a time when housing affordability is already under enormous pressure, the Allan Labor Government continues to make it harder for people to provide rental housing.”

McCurdy said many rental providers were not large-scale investors, but ordinary Victorians who owned a single investment property.

“Many rental providers are nurses, teachers, tradies and small business owners who have worked hard to invest in one property and rely on that income to help meet mortgage repayments and support their families,” he said.

“When problems arise, they are increasingly being forced into lengthy and complex dispute resolution processes that leave them out of pocket and frustrated.”

The Opposition said the government’s claim that it had balanced the interests of renters and rental providers was becoming increasingly difficult to accept.

“When tens of thousands of Victorians are being forced into formal dispute resolution processes every year, it is clear the system is not working,” McCurdy said.

“Victoria needs a rental system that protects renters, supports rental providers and encourages investment in new housing supply.”

The reforms form part of the government’s broader housing affordability agenda and will now be considered by the Victorian Parliament.

If passed, the changes would represent one of the most significant updates to Victoria’s consumer and rental laws in recent years. But the political fight over the legislation is likely to centre on whether stronger protections will make the housing system fairer, or whether more regulation will further discourage investment in an already tight rental market.

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The post Allan government unveils auction transparency laws as Liberals warn rental system is failing first appeared on The Australia Today.