Banning politicians posting videos of bureaucrats to social media ‘not something’ they can do, Senate clerk says
Earlier this morning, the retiring clerk of the Senate, Richard Pye, was asked about a recent push by senior public servants to stop politicians from uploading videos of them to social media.
To recap, the secretaries’ board - which includes heads of departments and agencies - warned that uploading clips of public officials answering questions in public forums, like Senate estimates, risked exposing them to “ridicule, hostility and abuse”.
Pye said he offered the committee advice about the move, telling Senate estimates this mornin that it’s “simply ... absolutely not something that a witness can do”.
This is not to minimise the fact that there are some people who have been very bruised by their experiences before Senate and House committees, and the treatment of footage that has come out of those ... but it is profoundly unhelpful, I thought, on the day for the matter to be raised in that way without any notice to anybody, not through the secretariat, not to the chair, not to other members of the committee, when the secretary’s board had raised the matter in a submission to the Joint Committee on Parliamentary Standards ...
Pye added any proposals to deal with the issue would require “difficult discussions”.
He continued:
It’s going to require a lot of sensitivity and ingenuity to make sure that in trying to clean up the conduct associated with the way in which social media clips are dealt with, we need to remind ourselves that the accountability that is involved in these processes, the scrutiny - particularly in that case of a contested government policy - that that can’t be thrown out in these issues. That needs to be something that is given a great deal of weight.
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More MPs sign civility pledge in honour of Helen Haines
More federal MPs are signing the civility pledge from Compassion in Politics Australia in honour of Helen Haines, who was a signatory to the promise before she was allegedly attacked last week.
Cipa’s website shows half a dozen federal and state politicians as signatories to the pledge, with more to come. Federal independent Kate Chaney and Greens leader David Shoebridge are listed online as having signed, while Greens deputy Steph Hodgins-May posted on social media that she too had signed on to the pledge.
Independent Allegra Spender said she would add her name to the pledge.
The Cipa pledge is simple and brief:
In my political life, I pledge to act with honesty, respect, and compassion.
The organisation says it is “primarily targeted at MPs, senators, councillors, MLAs, MLCs”, it also wanted “those in and around politics to sign up” – suggesting journalists, lobbyists, civic leaders, academics, commentators and “anyone who despairs at the state of politics and wants change.”
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Haines’s first words after alleged attack relayed to parliament
Independent MP Allegra Spender said she had spoken to Phil Haines about his wife’s first words since she was allegedly attacked.
In Spender’s address to the House of Representatives, she said:
Phil told us about your first words when you woke up after the [alleged] attack, and said that your first concerns when you awoke were for your staff and gratitude to the first responders, nurses and bystanders.
That exactly speaks to the character of who you are.
People have spoken about your empathy and grace, and they deserve recognition. But I think it paints a sort of picture of you as a sort of benign force wandering through the parliament. What I will say is that you are also a force for change.
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PBO notes Haines is only independent to have all policies costed
Every senior bureaucrat appearing in the Senate estimates finance and public administration hearing this morning has shared their thoughts and well wishes for Helen Haines but the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) has noted why the independent MP for Indi is so well respected.
The Parliamentary Budget Officer, Sam Reinhardt, said the office “recognised that Dr Haines played an important role in parliamentary accountability and transparency”.
But, and perhaps more importantly, that Haines puts her money where her mouth is.
Reinhardt said she had been the “only independent member to have all her commitments costed in the last two election commitments report”.
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Biosecurity lockdown called in Sydney suburb after fire ants found
The detection of a pest with the ability to wreak havoc on Australia’s economy has triggered a biosecurity lockdown.
South-west Sydney suburb Enfield will be subject to a biosecurity control order from Monday after fire ants were discovered at the area’s freight centre in late September.
The lockdown will cover a two-kilometre radius from the Enfield intermodal logistics centre, where red fire ants – likely to have been imported from overseas via a shipping container – were discovered.
Fire ants are notorious for their extremely painful sting and pose a major threat to agriculture and native wildlife.
Australian Associated Press
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More big batteries switched on in first half of 2026 than whole of 2025
More big batteries were switched on, and more renewable energy reached financial close, in the first six months of this year than the whole of 2025, a report by the Clean Energy Council has found today.
Between January and June, 12 renewable energy projects totalling 2.6 gigawatts reached financial close, compared with 2.3GW in 2025. The six month period also saw five new solar and wind farms start generating electricity and a further eight begin construction.
Nine large-scale batteries were connected to the grid, adding 7.1 gigawatt-hours of storage in six months, compared with 5.1GWh in 2025. A further 6.5 GWh reached financial close.
Jackie Trad, the renewable industry group’s chief executive, said:
Australian sun and wind cannot be cut off by conflict overseas. Each new solar, wind and battery investment helps make Australia more energy independent and economically resilient, shielding Australians from global fossil fuel price shocks and supply disruptions.
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Where will those in NSW be able to surrender their guns under the buyback?
From Monday, six police stations across the state will accept surrenders, including those in Sutherland, Penrith, Narellan, Grafton, Griffith and Dubbo, and 34 others stations will join the program from 1 December and more in January.
The scheme will be open for 12 months in NSW, with around 18% of licence holders eligible to participate. The state government estimates up to 274,000 firearms could be surrendered under the program.
Officials said the NSW government will also consult on “limited and exceptional circumstances” where certain types of licence holders can apply to the police commissioner for additional firearms above the 10 gun limit. The government said in a statement:
Under this draft proposal, the only licence holders who may be eligible to apply for additional firearms through this process are licence holders with the genuine reason of sport/target shooting; vertebrate pest animal control; or business/employment, and they will have to explain to NSW Police the genuine need for each additional firearm over the cap.
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NSW to open gun buyback program bookings from noon today
The NSW government just announced what it calls the biggest gun buyback “in a generation”, with eligible firearms licence holders able to book beginning midday today to surrender firearms and ammunition.
The Minns government said the buyback scheme will begin in NSW next Monday, 2 November, which will give residents a “clear and safe pathway” to give up surplus or reclassified firearms. They will receive compensation under a fixed price schedule.
Registered licence holders will hear from the NSW Firearms Registry today, which outlines the booking process. Walk-in surrenders will not be accepted.
Yasmin Catley, the NSW minister for police, said in a statement:
Fewer guns in the community mean a safer community. It means fewer guns at risk to fall into the wrong hands. It’s that simple. The buyback is a significant undertaking in public safety. NSW police across the state are well placed and trained to safely and securely deal with the surrender and destruction of firearms.
The program comes after the Bondi terror attacks, which prompted the NSW government to pass new, tough gun laws that include caps on the number of guns an individual can own from between four and 10, depending on the reason.
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Leave the ‘nasty personal politics of Maga’ in the US, Andrew Hastie says
Liberal MP Andrew Hastie has admitted to overreaching in his language during his political career but notes that is why members are asked to withdraw unparliamentary remarks.
However, Hastie says there can be “no place for the targeted destruction of character, or the relentless demonisation of personality”.
Because it only takes one person with a twisted mind or a perverted sense of reality to strike out, to weaponise a car, a kitchen knife or a firearm, and to feel justified in doing so because they judge that an online assassination must be followed up with a real-life assassination.
What is said in parliament and online shapes the political culture, Hastie says, and all politicians can do better.
So let’s play the ball, not the person, and leave the nasty personal politics of Maga in the United States.
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Politicians have been a ‘poor example’ to communities, Monique Ryan says
Continuing from the previous post, independent MP Monique Ryan has urged politicians to reflect on their behaviour in the days following the alleged attack on Haines.
The [alleged] attack on Helen united the country in shock and grief, but within days, politicians reverted to partisan brawling. That’s a poor example to our communities. If we can’t come together to act after the gentlest of us has been [allegedly] subjected to unthinkable violence.
We can pledge to debate robustly with honesty, respect, and compassion. We can work together against rising inequality. We can support digital protections against impulse farming and anonymous abuse. We can legislate truth in political advertising. If we achieve greater integrity in government, we will restore trust in it. The media has to rethink how it weaponises anger and amplifies the most divisive voices. But the public is responsible too. We all share the public square.
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Helen Haines is the ‘very best of us’, Monique Ryan says
Independent MP Monique Ryan, wearing an orange shirt and a white blazer in honour of Haines, has paid tribute to the parts of Haines’s life outside parliament.
Helen Mary Haines is the very best of us, a woman of luminous generosity and kindness, the most intelligent and measured of voices, someone who stands firmly for a more accountable and more civil parliament.
She can put anyone at ease. She makes an excellent sponge. She grows a beautiful garden. She tells great stories about being a small Colac schoolgirl, unafraid to take on the nuns, about riding her bike through the snow … during her PhD studies, who adores her husband – and this week the whole country has seen why.
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Zali Steggall offers emotional tribute to Helen Haines
Speaking through tears, one of Haines’s crossbench colleagues, Zali Steggall, has said she has been going around in circles in attempts to express all she wants to say.
She tells the parliament:
We are all struggling to process the shock and grief at what has happened.
Steggall regales the chamber with stories of the first time they met in-person in 2019 and their parliamentary friendship.
There have been plenty of tough times in the last seven years, from the Black Summer bushfires to Covid. But through it all, you’ve been there to support and guide the community of Indi, myself, and many others in this Parliament
Helen, I’ve had so many chats with you sitting in this chamber. You’re the matriarch of the crossbench, always a voice for respectful political debate.
We have heard your words loud and clear: kindness over hate. It’s time to diffuse the tension and consider how our words are being received by others in the community beyond this place. Helen and Phil, we have an opportunity before us to move forward with hope and kindness. We have a responsibility to bring Australia together.
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Taylor urges government to call out ‘all extremism’ and celebrate Australia
Angus Taylor has urged government to call out and confront “actual sources of intolerance, of intimidation, of political violence in our country”.
He tells parliament:
The government has been absolutely right to call out far-right extremism. But all extremism must be called out. Every source must be named, must be targeted, and must be fought, especially through our additional funding for intelligence and law enforcement.
Taylor has urged judges to come down harder on those guilty of acts of intimidation or violence.
He also calls on Australians to celebrate their country:
Too many Australians have been taught to feel guilty and shame about our country and about our history. Is it any wonder that some feel deep animosity towards our democracy, our institutions, and our nation? Is it any wonder that we see war memorials graffitied and statues defaced?
Taylor disagrees with link between parliamentary debate and violence
Taylor has called on politicians to reflect on Australia’s democracy.
In the past week, it has been suggested by some there is a causal connection between robust parliamentary debate and political violence. I disagree with this view.
The Westminster system is about settling differences through robust and rigorous debate, not violence… Importantly, we debate with adversarial vigour, but we never allow that vigorous parliamentary debate to spill over into violence. People who resort to intimidation and violence cross a line that must never be crossed.
The choice to use violence is a rejection of robust debate, a refusal to accommodate difference and disagreement. The antidote to violence isn’t to compromise our system of robust debate, but to cherish, champion, and strengthen that system.
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Alleged attack on Haines ‘unfathomable’, Angus Taylor says
The opposition leader, Angus Taylor, has thrown his support behind Haines and thanked the locals who offered their help in the moment of the alleged attack.
In his address to parliament, he says:
Helen Haines epitomises civility, and that’s why the violent [alleged] attack on her seems so unfathomable. In those horrific moments last Monday, and in the critical hours and days afterwards, one man’s cruelty stood in stark contrast to the courage and decency of so many Australians.
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‘Helen Haines is a fighter’: PM
The prime minister says he has regularly spoken with Haines, especially on the issue of rural and regional health:
She always engages, always looks you in the eye, and never lets up.
And she always works on the principle that disagreement only truly functions when it doesn’t depart from respect and humanity.
Right now, the member for Indi is on the hardest road of all. As we pray for her, we console ourselves with this one solid truth, as Phil, who I’ve spoken to daily, keeps reminding me every day, Helen Haines is a fighter. As Phil returns to Helen and their family, may he take with him our love, and the love of the nation.
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Australian democracy cannot be conflated with ‘rising tide of rage’, PM says
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, says Australia must not rush to conclusions but also cannot shrug off the “very real rise in anger that distorts and corrodes our public discourse”.
He told the parliament:
Enabled by the anonymity and speed afforded by social media, we are seeing rage and aggression increasing, not just in politics, but towards workers in hospitality and retail, in schools and in hospitals, towards police, paramedics, and other officials, we are seeing a normalisation of the language of grievance and violence.
We must not conflate the robustness of Australian democracy with this rising tide of rage, we’ve always had disagreement in Australia. It’s part of our story. Ours is an unbroken democracy, and our continuous system of government shines as a beacon to the world. But we cannot allow disagreement to become a full stop. We keep talking.
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Anthony Albanese spoke with Helen Haines’s husband, Phil Haines, on Monday morning.
Phil spoke lovingly of Helen’s superpowers as empathy, kindness, and compassion. He spoke of hope and change, and the need for a gentler, more cohesive path. I want Phil to know that we are with him and Helen, and with their children and their grandchildren, and will remain with them.
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Albanese pays tribute to Helen Haines in parliament
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has offered his support and well wishes for the independent MP for Indi, Helen Haines, after she was allegedly attacked in her electorate last week.
He addressed the House of Representatives this morning:
The shock from what happened last Monday is like a stone in our hearts.
Haines’ seat has been filled with an orange cockatoo sign as many MPs wear flowers on their lapel in tribute to the MP.
We look across to the member for Indi’s place, and despite ourselves, half expect to see a face, like a trick that the heart plays on the mind, if only to grant us a moment’s respite from the truth.
Right now, our friend and colleague is in hospital, grievously injured. The shape of her life and her family’s lives changed for ever.
Many politicians are wearing orange and white as a tribute to Haines.
An orange cockatoo sign has been placed on her seat in the House of Representatives because the symbol is synonymous with Haines. She explained in 2024 that it came about after volunteers for her predecessor, Cathy McGowan, “were like a flock of cockatoos” with their orange shirts on.
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Federal Labor flags concern as state support plunges
Confidence in Victoria’s Labor government is plunging weeks out from an election, as federal minister Mark Butler expresses concern about the state party’s uphill battle.
The health minister conceded on Monday that the 28 November Victorian election would be “a tough one” for Labor, as fresh opinion polls show a 10% negative swing compared with support on election night in 2022.
He told ABC News Breakfast:
After 12 years and some of very difficult years for Victoria, particularly through COVID, it’s no surprise that this is going to be an uphill battle for [Victorian premier] Ben Carroll and the Labor team
Primary support for Labor has slumped four points to 24% since Carroll ascended as premier in July, according to the latest Newspoll conducted in October and published by The Australian on Monday.
Labor’s dive in the polls solidifies opposition leader Jess Wilson’s box seat position to become the next premier, with primary support for the coalition surging to 33%.
That represented a lift of 2%, while One Nation’s vote edged one point to 20%.
Labor’s two-party preferred vote has plunged 10% since the 2022 election, according to the Newspoll, placing the Coalition ahead 55–45.
– Australian Associated Press
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MPs to place orange cockatoo sign on Haines’ seat in parliament
Crossbench MPs will honour Helen Haines today by placing an orange cockatoo sign on her seat in parliament as lower house members, including the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, will pay tribute and send well wishes to her this morning.
The orange cockatoo is synonymous with Haines. She explained in 2024 that it came about after volunteers for her predecessor, Cathy McGowan, “were like a flock of cockatoos” with their orange shirts on.
Haines wrote:
The association and symbolism has grown from there, representing a community flocking together to build a vibrant democracy. Volunteers have crafted cockies out of old yard signs and injected much fun, intrigue and conversation into the independent campaigns of Indi.
Haines remains in a serious but stable condition in a Melbourne hospital after she lost both legs following an alleged attack near her electorate office in north-east Victoria a week ago.
The MP’s husband, Phil Haines, provided an update at the Alfred hospital on Wednesday, saying “both her heart and her mind are in good shape”. It’s understood Phil will attend parliament today.
Haines was the first federal politician to sign a civility pledge as part of the Compassion in Politics movement to make politics more respectful. Crossbench MPs will sign the simple pledge and encourage others to do so today.
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Steggall calls for civility and respect
Independent MP Zali Steggall has called for more respect in times of disagreement, telling ABC that leadership and words matter.
She says:
We absolutely need to make sure there is more civility and respect.
Steggall says this issue can be seen on social media.
Social media is a platform where they can send abuse and threats through direct messages, call my electorate office, or send pretty revolting stuff
It’s just quite shocking how disconnected from manners and reality sometimes people get when they launch into their diatribes and make threats.
Steggall says there was an incident that was reported to the AFP and resulted in someone outside her electorate being charged.
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Politicians may feel less safe in home electorates than parliament, Tehan says
Following the alleged attack on Helen Haines, security measures have reportedly increased around Parliament House.
But Liberal MP Dan Tehan says the security in parliament is “pretty good”.
There’s been a lot of money and a lot of effort and a lot of thought going into security here at Parliament House.
I think the vulnerability is actually when we’re out doing our job in the community, and that’s probably where we need to put the focus.
Anonymous online voices allow people to ‘do and say anything’, Tehan says
Liberal MP Dan Tehan has raised concerns about the impact of anonymous online accounts on inflammatory political discourse.
He told ABC Radio National:
The problem we’ve got at the moment is the anonymous voices online.
I’m a big believer in freedom of speech and always have been, but I’ve always strongly believed that you have to put your name to your words. That’s the key.
In the community, those who disagree tend to do so respectfully, he said.
What you tend to see online is the people who are there, anonymously, will just do and say anything.
Now, whether that then heightens it, I don’t know, but … it’s always the question of balance.
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Auditor-general examining if detention in Victorian police cells breaches human rights
The Victorian auditor general is investigating the detention of people in police cells, after Guardian Australia revealed the practice routinely led to the force breaching its own guidelines.
The Victorian auditor general’s office (Vago) confirmed it was set to examine whether Victoria police and the department of justice “manage prison and police cell capacity to support human rights and the efficient functioning of the justice system”.
Guardian Australia reported in November last year that the process of “decanting” was resulting in people being moved hundreds of kilometres across Victoria as the government grappled with tougher bail laws and a shortage of prison beds and corrections workers.
This was also leading to people spending more than the 14-day target in police cells, and in some cases meant they were serving their entire sentences there.
In announcing the audit earlier this month, Vago said:
Police cells are designed to hold people for short periods, such as after arrest and for bail hearings. However, in 2025 there were media reports of police holding prisoners in police cells beyond the recommended 14-day limit.
When cells at one station are full, police may transport individuals to other stations. In some reported cases, police have transported individuals hundreds of kilometres away.
This can mean that prisoners miss their court appearances and do not have easy access to their lawyers and health services. This undermines both prisoners’ human rights and the proper functioning of the justice system.
Vago noted that Victoria’s recent bail reforms were also likely to increase pressure on prison beds and staff capacity.
It said in a statement to Guardian Australia that the audit was under way and was expected to be tabled early next year.
You can read more on this issue here:
Related: Prisoners spending entire jail term in police cells as Victoria’s justice system buckles
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Safety concerns and threats have changed ‘dramatically’ for politicians: Butler
Cabinet minister Mark Butler has said this sitting week offers an opportunity to discuss ways to keep MPs, their families and staffers safe.
Asked by ABC Radio National if much had changed during his time in parliament, Butler said:
It’s changed dramatically in my time.
I’ve been here for almost 20 years and security has changed, and the federal police, in my experience, have been very, very responsive to our requests when there are threats or the possibility of me going to an event.
But just the number and the nature of threats of violence and death, not just to MPs, but to their children and to their partners and to their staff, is like nothing we saw 20 years ago.
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Politicians to sign ‘civility pledge’ following alleged attack on Haines
The speaker of the house, Milton Dick, will call for civility in parliament today, and some politicians are expected to sign a “civility pledge”.
Independent MP Helen Haines was the first to sign this pledge before she was allegedly attacked last week.
Fellow independent Kate Chaney, on Monday told ABC radio she would be adding her name:
I think there’s something really symbolic about the fact that Helen was [the first] federal MP to have signed this. It is a very simple thing.
It just says ‘in my political life I pledge to act with honesty, respect, and compassion’.
That feels to me like a simple and poignant way to honour the contribution Helen’s made to the parliament and continue to try to embody those values that she personifies in the way that I do my work in parliament.
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Cheaper contraception and UTI treatments as pharmacy program expanded
Australian women will find it cheaper to access the pill and UTI treatment after visiting a pharmacist, as the federal government expands a trial program to lower healthcare costs.
The 12-month trial, to begin from early 2027, will allow Australian women to access pharmacy treatment for uncomplicated urinary tract infections (UTIs) and initiation or re-supply of hormonal contraception.
The federal government will cover pharmacist consultation costs, of up to $38 per visit.
This program was previously restricted to concession card holders, but the health minister, Mark Butler, and minister for women, Katy Gallagher, announced on Monday that it would be expanded to benefit an estimated 900,000 women.
Gallagher said:
For too long, women’s experiences of the health system haven’t received the attention they deserve. We’re determined to change that. We’re making practical changes that give women more choice, make health care more accessible and help save women thousands of dollars over their lifetimes.
Butler added:
We want to make it easier for women to get care that fits into their lives.
The Pharmacy Guild of Australia has championed the move, describing it as “landmark reform”.
But doctors argue that women with less straightforward symptoms risk misdiagnosis when heading to a pharmacist rather than a GP.
Royal Australian College of GPs president Michael Wright said:
If the diagnosis is wrong, patients risk receiving antibiotics they don’t need while the real cause of their symptoms is missed or treatment is delayed.
– with AAP
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MPs to ‘try to do justice’ to wounded fellow MP Helen Haines
Parliament will mark a solemn start to the sitting week as politicians pay tribute to independent MP Helen Haines, who was rammed by a vehicle outside her electoral office.
The popular crossbencher was allegedly targeted in a deliberate attack when she was struck by a four-wheel drive on the main street of the Victorian town of Wangaratta on 19 October.
She has had both legs amputated and remains in hospital a week after the incident.
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, will deliver a speech to parliament on Monday, reflecting on the alleged assault and its impact, and invite colleagues to do the same.
Fellow independent MP Monique Ryan described Dr Haines as the parliament’s “most gentle, principled and kind” member ahead of her planned remarks in the lower house.
“People who love her will try to do justice to Helen’s integrity and leadership,” she said.
“I hope that all members will rise to the occasion as Helen would do were she with us.
“We’ll feel her absence deeply.”
A fundraiser for charity Save the Children, set up on Wednesday by Haines’ family in lieu of flowers, had surpassed $1.2m in donations by Sunday afternoon.
– Australian Associated Press
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Hanson says One Nation cartoons ‘not going anywhere’ despite criticism
Pauline Hanson says One Nation’s controversial cartoon series “will not be going anywhere”, after growing outrage over its offensive portrayal of federal politicians including previous depictions of some being run over by motor vehicles.
Hanson said her party’s Please Explain animation series had “nothing to do with the tragic attack on Helen Haines”, and claimed major party politicians wanted the series “censored”.
The series has garnered further criticism after videos from 2023 and 2024 were re-circulated online and discussed on Sunday morning political talk shows on the ABC and News24.
In one 2023 video, titled Under the Bus, Hanson appears to drive a bus over independent senator Lidia Thorpe, who had been depicted as lying under the vehicle’s tyres. In another from 2024, titled The State of Melbourne, former Victorian premier Daniel Andrews is shown being run down by a car driven by cartoon character Bluey, with the video ending with suggestions Anthony Albanese was also about to be hit.
Those cartoons, published years before the attack on Haines, have been criticised for portraying violence against politicians. Shadow minister Ted O’Brien said on News24 the cartoons were “not timely”, and while admitting he hadn’t seen them, questioned whether they were “appropriate in the current climate”.
The scrutiny comes after criticism of the cartoon series labelling Liberal MP Andrew Hastie a “traitor” and mocking Jacqui Lambie’s health condition. Hanson previously stood by those cartoons, but later apologised to Lambie and claimed she hadn’t seen that clip.
But Hanson, posting on social media on Sunday afternoon, rejected criticism of the other clips. She claimed “the Labor and Liberal Dirt Units are already back at work, attempting to use this tragedy to silence their critics and deflect from their own failings. Too many media organisations are happy to help them fling the dirt.”
The Please Explain cartoons have nothing to do with the tragic attack on Helen Haines. They will not be going anywhere. Liberal and Labor politicians want our cartoons censored because they don’t like the scrutiny.
Those seeking to exploit this tragedy to silence their critics should be ashamed of themselves.
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Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’ll be bringing you the news from Canberra as parliament resumes, with MPs to pay tribute to Helen Haines and senators to return for the first week of estimates hearings in five months.
Let’s get started.
