News and politics live: ‘Melons’ podcast host got ‘real’ Albanese as PM reveals Trump tariff pitch in call

Nigel Farage said his win against a comedian wearing a bin over his head in the Clacton byelection was a victory over the establishment.

But Count Binface recorded the best-ever result by a novelty candidate in the UK and suggested it was actually a humiliation for the Reform UK leader.

Mr Farage unexpectedly resigned from parliament in July to recontest his seat, ahead of a Parliamentary inquiry into his undeclared £5 million ($9.5m) donation from an offshore billionaire crypto investor.

He pitched himself as a battler against the system and urged voters in the seaside town of Clacton to “stick two fingers up to the establishment.” But the major parties collectively boycotted the by-election, leaving Farage to run against the joke candidate “Count Binface”.

In the end, a record number of candidates ended up standing 34, but none bar Count Binface posed any serious threat.

Mr Farage easily won his seat back and, without any serious opposition from the political parties, gained on his 2024 result of 21,225 votes, returning 22,239 ballots — a vote share of 62 per cent.

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Anthony Albanese is being urged by the Productivity Commission to unwind his Liberal predecessor’s expensive GST deal hated by east coast states that stopped Western Australia from being punished for its iron ore riches.

With the Federal Labor holding 11 of Perth’s 12 electorates, the Prime Minister has suggested his government would be careful about leaving Western Australia worse off than it is now.

Labor premiers in WA and NSW are at loggerheads over Commonwealth grants to the states and territories that provide a guaranteed minimum share for every dollar of GST collected, regardless of their revenue raising ability.

An interim Productivity Commission report released on Friday, ahead of a meeting of State treasurers, is calling on the Federal Government to scrap a deal former Liberal treasurer and prime minister Scott Morrison introduced in 2018, designed to stop WA from being punished for its iron ore riches.

But this deal to ensure no states are worse off is now costing $6 billion a year with the bill during the past eight years more than four times what was envisaged in 2018.

WA fears any change could potentially cost Western Australia $60 billion over a decade.

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NSW Premier Chris Minns has escalated the cross-border battle over GST by comparing Western Australia’s behavior with wealthy Gulf states.

It comes ahead of the Productivity Commission releasing a highly anticipated interim report this afternoon into WA’s 2018 GST deal.

“New South Wales needs a better and fairer share of the GST,” Mr Minns said.

“As it stands today, we get 83 cents in the dollar. Every dollar that we send to Canberra, we get 83 cents back.

“We’re now in a situation where Western Australia is so wealthy and so rich that they’re competing and bidding on New South Wales rugby league games and putting tens of millions of dollars on the table. That’s how rich they are.

“I mean, you’re seeing similar behavior from Gulf states like Saudi Arabia and the UAE and Dubai, almost for the same reason because they’re digging up natural resources and got billions of dollars to spend.”

Inducements from gambling companies to keep people having a punt are excessive and should be stopped, the Prime Minister says.

As the Federal Government and Coalition edge closer to a deal on betting reform, Anthony Albanese said measures needed to be put in place to tackle gambling addiction.

The Prime Minister said he was confident of the reforms being able to pass parliament in the coming week.

“(Inducements) are over the top and they need to be wound back. In particular, some of the inducements that will encourage people into the system are just not on,” he told reporters in Canberra on Friday.

“The problem is addiction, and when someone has an addiction, if there are inducements that are encouraging that addiction, that’s a bad thing.”

The comments followed a Senate inquiry which heard gambling companies plied customers with drugs and sex workers to keep on the platform.

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Airservices Australia chief executive Rob Sharp has defended the decision not to report a near-collision involving two planes at Sydney Airport last Sunday as a mandatory occurrence.

Mr Sharp said Virgin Australia flight VA555 had been cleared for take-off by a qualified and experienced controller before the clearance was immediately cancelled.

“VA555 was approaching to take off, a qualified, experienced controller advised clearance, but immediately cancelled that clearance,” he said.

“The controllers were under what’s called an endorsement process, so they weren’t trainees, they were experienced and regular endorsement process.

“So there was a qualified controller who was also supervising.”

Mr Sharp said the aircraft remained stationary at the beginning of the runway after the clearance was cancelled.

He also defended Airservices Australia’s decision not to report the incident to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB).

“We do take our reporting requirements very seriously. We work closely with our regulators and very openly,” he said.

“In this particular case, however, we don’t think the threshold for reporting was actually met.”

Mr Sharp said the decision was based on the fact the clearance was immediately rescinded, the Virgin aircraft remained stationary and the approaching Qantas aircraft was still 1.3km away.

“The distance of 1.3km is quite substantial,” he said.

“So based on that criteria, it didn’t meet the mandatory reporting requirements from our perspective. However, we’re quite open to reviewing the data that that surrounds it if there’s improvements to be made, we will make them. But that was the review decision at the time.

Mr Sharp said Airservices Australia would continue to work with the ATSB as questions surrounding the incident are examined.

“We will work closely with the ATSB because there are some data points that still need to be resolved and clarified. We look forward to any learnings that emerge from that particular incident.”

The number of new home loans in Australia fell by 5.4 per cent in the June quarter following Labor’s Budget tax changes, new figures show.

The average value of new owner-occupier loans fell to $731,000 from $735,000 as the average new investor loan dipped to $708,00 from $710,000.

The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics data covers Labor’s May Budget changes that scrapped negative gearing for future purchases of existing investment properties and replaced the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount with indexation and a minimum 30 per cent tax.

A former director of Woodside Energy has been appointed to the Reserve Bank of Australia’s monetary policy board.

Melinda Cilento, who is now the chief executive of the Committee for Economic Development of Australia, will replace economics professor Ian Harper on September 1 on a nine-member panel that votes on interest rate decisions.

She has been appointed as a part-time monetary policy board member for a five-year term and will be part of the RBA’s next two-day meeting on September 28 and 29.

Ms Cilento has previously also served as a non-executive director of Woodside Energy, a commissioner with the Productivity Commission and as a chief economist and deputy chief executive with the Business Council of Australia.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers on Friday announced her appointment, replacing Professor Harper who had spent a decade on the Reserve Bank board and the specialist monetary policy board that debuted last year.

Former Victorian premier Jacinta Allan has announced she will not contest the November state election, ending her 27-year political career.

Ms Allan confirmed on Friday she would not recontest Bendigo East, the seat she has held since 1999.

“This all seems commonplace today… but 27 years ago these opportunities were anything but the status quo. We had to fight for them and fight I did,” she said at a press conference on Friday.

“Twenty-seven years ago, at the age of 25, as the newly elected member for Bendigo East, I wasn’t the status quo either. I was the first woman to represent Bendigo in any Australian parliament. I was the youngest woman to be elected to the Victorian Parliament. I was proudly the first Labor member for Bendigo East.

“I stated in my inaugural speech to the Victorian parliament ‘I intend to make a difference’.

“Today, as I announce I will not be recontesting the 2026 election, I can proudly say I did just that.

“I am proud to say I didn’t waste a day,” Ms Allan said.

The announcement comes just two weeks after she was dumped as premier and replaced by Ben Carroll following a dramatic Labor leadership change.

Ms Allan has largely stayed out of the public spotlight since the leadership coup last month and has not returned to parliament.

Her decision brings an end to weeks of speculation over whether the former premier would step away from politics.

The next election will now see a new Labor candidate face off against Nationals candidate Andrew Lethlean, a popular local publican.

Ms Allan became Victoria’s first female premier from regional Victoria when she took the top job in 2023, after previously serving as deputy premier.

Her departure marks the end of one of the longest political careers in Victorian Labor.

Anthony Albanese says any incident at Sydney Airport must be reported “immediately” after a string of close-calls at the aviation hub.

“There needs to be immediate reporting of any incident and following of any investigation any measures which have to be taken need to be taken,” the Prime Minister said.

The comments come after the most recent incident where Virgin plane was forced to abort takeoff when a Qantas aircraft crossed the same runway on Sunday.

Sydney Aiport traffic control is under investigation following the number of incidents.

The Prime Minsiter has refused to answer more questions about the ongoing “melons” decable.

“I’ve responded to those comments. I’ve responded on the podcast. The important thing going forward - I do a range of interviews. I’m very broad,” he told the media on Friday when asked if the appearance was an appropriate decision.

Anthony Albanese insisted Japanese Prime Minster Sanae Takaichi’s visit was positive, despite the controversy that continues to ensue.

“I engage with leaders in an appropriate way. I’ve developed positive relations with leaders right around the world in our region,” he said.

“And one of the things that we have done as well is develop particularly good relations in our region.

“That includes with Japan and I refer you to the Japanese ambassador’s comments who spoke about what a really positive and warm and convivial dinner we had at the lodge between myself and the Prime Minister.

Mr Albanese shut down questions, saying “I’ve already done one full-scale press conference in Canberra this morning.”