Australia live news updates: Burke blames high inflation on Coalition’s ‘neglect’; Dutton says ‘fault all round’ in energy crisis

Dutton is being grilled (again) on where he got information that the United States could provide two nuclear submarines to Australia by the end of the decade.

Speers presses Dutton on whether he used classified information to make that point, eventually gleaning from the opposition leader it was a “commonsense conclusion”.

Dutton: Well, based on my judgement of what I thought was possible for our country, and I had visited the electric boat company in Connecticut. I had spoken with them there. I had obviously looked at the what we could do here domestically. I worry that …

Speers: The question is whether you are using classified to make this point. You said you haven’t.

Dutton: No, not at all.

Speers: Where is this publicly available information that they can provide two nuclear subs by the end of the decade?

Dutton: David, in the article that I published in the Australian, I made it clear that I think this government is trying to crab-walk away from the Aukus deal. I don’t think they ever truly in their hearts …

Speers: That’s not the question I asked. My question was where did you get this information that is not classified that the US can provide two nuclear submarines by the end of the decade to Australia?

Dutton: David, I looked at the information which I had spoken about publicly before. I detailed that in my article in the Australian because I wanted to call out the government and stop them from making a terrible mistake by walking away.

Updated at 19.44 EDT

Asked if he would support Labor’s new renewable target, Dutton avoided the question.

Speers: Do you support the new target?

Dutton: Well, we will see what the Labor party puts forward.

Speers: Well, they have. They are signed up. Do you support it?

Dutton: Well, let’s see what they put forward because they’ve got to negotiate with the Greens to get there, David, so this does have echoes of Julia Gillard and …

Speers: Well … they’ve now signed up to a target. I’m wondering whether you support it.

Dutton: Our position is what we took to the election. We are not supporting legislation and we have been clear about that.

Speers: I know you are not supporting the legislation, but the target is 43% by 2030 – what’s your view?

Dutton: Our view is that we will end up – people haven’t put a figure on it – but would suspect we will end up with something like 35%. We had the target of 26-28%. In terms of our own target, we will announce that before the next election.

And on and on it went.

Updated at 20.35 EDT

Dutton continues to repeat these issues happen “at night” as a means of saying this issue has “nothing to do with renewables”:

My point is that that is happening of a night-time, David. This is nothing to do with renewables, the debate over the last couple of weeks. We want an honest, reasonable, unemotional debate about it.

Updated at 19.31 EDT

Dutton says Bowen is a ‘bunny in the headlights’

Dutton is being grilled on the energy crisis now by Insiders host David Speers, who pressed the opposition leader on why he is criticising the Labor government for how they’re dealing with a crisis rooted in his own time in government.

We were agnostic in terms of the technology or energy source … this is the point. Labor would have turned off coal years ago. Chris Bowen’s argument still is this very day to exclude gas and coal. This is an argument over the last fortnight about firming up.

As was pointed out, you basically dedicated your introduction to it this morning – the mechanisms are there, there for Angus Taylor. All the same policy settings and ingredients were none. It was a failure of Chris Bowen in his response and the regulators, if they are saying the companies have gamed this.

When it was noted that there weren’t any blackouts or load shedding in the past couple of days, Dutton pauses before finding a new angle:

I wouldn’t get too excited about the first 14, 21 days … If you have a look at what Aemo and others have said, they have raised real concerns about the companies. The sense of panic from Chris Bowen that is out there at the moment wasn’t there when Coalition was in government.

I think he is a bunny in the headlights.

Updated at 19.39 EDT

Dutton says there is ‘fault all round’ for energy crisis

Opposition leader Peter Dutton is on ABC’s Insiders this morning, and was immediately questioned on the previous government’s energy legacy.

Dutton begins by saying there is “fault all round” after being shown a clip of NSW premier Dominic Perrotet saying an “ideological war” prevented private sector investment in clean energy.

Dutton, though, was not having it, and attempted to frame the problem as a fault of the new Labor government:

There is fault all round here, David, over a long period of time people have been taking different positions, including state governments, as was pointed out. We’ve got a huge gas supply in the north and west of this country.

In a Labor state in WA, there is the ability for certainty to be put into the energy market. We have constraints in terms of the gas pipeline bringing gas from north to south, and we’ve got moratoriums in Victoria, for example, both Liberal and Labor governments where they haven’t wanted that gas.

For the federal government, the Coalition’s part, yes, over a long period of time we’ve had huge investment into renewables, a practical approach to gas, to coal, et cetera. We invested in something like 26,000 emission reduction policies and programs, and we will continue to do that.

Updated at 20.56 EDT

Albanese says focus now on climate targets and creation of Jobs and Skills Australia

Prime minister Anthony Albanese has spoken to the Sun Herald this morning, outlining his domestic agenda ahead of the first sitting of the new parliament.

Albanese has had a busy first month as prime minister, travelling overseas twice already and dealing with rising inflation and the energy crisis on the east coast.

But he confirmed to the papers he wanted to continue pursuing his domestic agenda, including legislating climate targets, 10 days of domestic and family violence leave, the creation of Jobs and Skills Australia, holding a national employment summit and another national cabinet meeting.

It’s four weeks since we were elected today; it has been a pretty busy four weeks. Normally governments would still be moving offices now.

We’ve asked people to bring forward the legislation to create Jobs and Skills Australia; to create the Nationally Determined Contribution [to emissions reductions] and the target – 43% by 2030 and then [zero by] 2050. That legislation will come forward and there may be some appropriation legislation required.

There will be the 10 days’ pay domestic and family violence leave legislation; there will be legislation required for the cancelling of the cashless welfare card. There will be a fair bit basically, it’s a matter of when it’s prepared for the first fortnight of sitting.

Albanese also confirmed there will be another two sitting weeks before the budget on the last Tuesday in October.

Updated at 19.24 EDT

NSW records 6,348 new Covid cases and seven deaths

NSW has reported 6,348 new Covid cases and seven deaths:

Updated at 19.05 EDT

Vic records 5,472 new Covid cases and 19 deaths

Victoria has recorded 5,472 new Covid cases and 19 deaths overnight:

Aboriginal Flag to be permanently flown on Harbour Bridge

Building on the announcement mentioned below, here is the AAP report on the Aboriginal flag having a permanent home on the Sydney Harbour Bridge:

The Aboriginal flag will have a permanent spot on the Sydney Harbour Bridge, with the NSW government committing $25m to install a third flagpole by the end of the year.

Flying the Aboriginal flag alongside the Australian and NSW state flags was an important gesture towards Closing the Gap, NSW premier Dominic Perrottet said about the 2022-23 budget announcement:

Our Indigenous history should be celebrated and acknowledged so young Australians understand the rich and enduring culture that we have here with our past.

Installing the Aboriginal flag permanently on the Sydney Harbour Bridge will do just that and is a continuation of the healing process as part of the broader move towards reconciliation.

The flagpoles are about 20 metres high, the same as a six-storey building, while the flags require an attachment strong enough to withstand all weather conditions.

Transport for NSW and Aboriginal Affairs will engage with key Aboriginal stakeholders about the project.

Updated at 18.57 EDT

Good morning

Good morning and happy Sunday, Mostafa Rachwani with you on another cold day on the east coast.

We begin with news that the NSW government has announced that the Aboriginal flag will have a permanent spot on the Sydney Harbour Bridge. The AAP is reporting that the government has committed $25m to install a third flagpole by the end of the year.

The commitment comes amid a bit of a spending spree from the NSW government in advance of its budget next week. Yesterday, the government announced a $100m investment into women’s safety in public places, at home and in the workplace. It comes only days after the government announced a $12bn investment in the early childhood sector.

Sticking with NSW, the Australian Energy Market Operator has confirmed a large fire at an electrical substation in Illawarra will not affect electricity supply. The fire was contained last night at the the substation on the Princes Highway at Yallah, south of Dapto, with Aemo confirming in a tweet it will not disrupt supply.

There is still much going on, so let’s dive in.