Thanks for joining us today. We’ll be back tomorrow. Until then, here were today’s top stories. The Albanese government announced it would deploy a E-7A Wedgetail, a military surveillance plane, as 12 countries face attacks from Iran in the region. The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, confirmed that the government has offered humanitarian visas to five Iranian football players who have been in Australia for the Asian Cup. Human rights activists have expressed urgent concerns for the safety of the remaining players after they were seen arriving at the Gold Coast airport on Tuesday afternoon. Qantas will hike its international air fares as oil prices fluctuate and seats sell out in the wake of US-Israel attacks on Iran. David Littleproud has announced he will step down as Nationals leader so he can spend more time with his family. But he says he won’t be giving up his Queensland seat of Maranoa. Labor is toughening immigration laws to stop people from some countries travelling to Australia on some temporary visas and seeking to stay permanently because of the Middle East war. The home affairs department only began drafting the proposal to block Iranians on some temporary visas on Friday, a Senate inquiry heard. The energy minister, Chris Bowen, says the biggest risk to fuel availability in Australia right now is panic buying. The Liberal leader, Angus Taylor, has welcomed Australia’s involvement in the Middle East. Taylor also welcomed the decision to grant five players on the Iranian women’s soccer team humanitarian visas. Surging oil prices have raised the risk of the Reserve Bank hiking interest rates in a week’s time, economists have warned. The NSW government has announced the proposed rezoning of a neighbourhood chosen as one of the world’s coolest, which it says will deliver as many as 18,300 homes, a more than 3,000 increase on its previous plans. Activist vows to wait at Sydney airport despite no sign of Iranian footballers The Iranian football team have not yet landed in Sydney and it remains unclear if they will. At least a dozen supporters had gathered outside a gate at Sydney’s domestic airport in anticipation the team might have been on a flight that landed from the Gold Coast about 20 minutes ago. However, the team was not on the plane. It has not yet been confirmed if the football team’s planned route is from the Gold Coast to Sydney before they return to Iran. Arash, one of the supporters who was standing outside the gate, says he still wants to take his chances the football team might pass through the airport. We are here to support them. We are here to make sure they don’t force them to go overseas with them if they want to stay. Arash said he would wait at the airport for another plane that’s due to land from the Gold Coast at 7.20pm. Protesters gather at Sydney airport as destination of Iranian footballers unknown Our reporter, Jordyn Beazley, is at Sydney’s domestic airport where about half a dozen people have gathered at Sydney’s domestic airport in anticipation members of the Iranian football team may soon land here. It’s not yet confirmed if they are in fact stopping over in Sydney. The people are standing outside a gate where a plane from the Gold Coast, where members of the football team were last seen, has just landed. A number of the people waiting at the gate are wearing shirts with Iranian flags. One is wearing a shirt that says “MIGA” (Make Iran Great Again). Qantas will hike its international air fares as oil prices fluctuate and seats sell out in the wake of US-Israel attacks on Iran. Qantas International is increasing fares this week in response to oil costs, with amounts varying between routes, a spokesperson said in statement. While the company hedges against change in jet fuel prices, it was not fully covered for the 150% spike seen in recent weeks, in the wake of surging oil prices, the spokesperson said. The conflict has disrupted flights around the world and has closed major airports and airspaces across the Middle East, forcing international travellers to take alternative routes such as those offered by Qantas, which does not operate flights through the region. The Australian airline’s Europe flights have continued to operate as scheduled and seats have rapidly filled up as it rebooks and refunds passengers from its partners, such as Emirates, the spokesperson said. Routes such as Perth-London, Perth-Paris and Singapore connections are more than 90% full in March, when they would normally be just 75% full, the spokesperson said. Qantas reported surging new bookings for flights around the world in coming months, with trips to and from Europe from April to June enjoying a particular increase in recent weeks. The company is considering adding capacity to its Europe routes, which connect through the United States, Asia and South Africa, the spokesperson said. Officer who lobbed munition at Melbourne protest, injuring activists, cleared by police force Victoria police say an officer who discharged a munition during a protest, injuring at least three activists, did not breach any law, policy or accepted practice within the force. The officer used a device known as a “stinger” grenade during a protest in the Melbourne CBD last October. The stinger grenade is designed as a crowd-control device. It makes a loud noise, creates a blinding flash and fires rubber projectiles. Guardian Australia revealed that two people were considering legal action regarding the use of the munition. A third person has since contacted lawyers regarding a possible claim. Footage of the incident showed an officer throwing the device towards a group of protesters, before it struck an umbrella, fell to the ground, and detonated. In a letter sent in February to Scout*, one of the injured protesters, police confirmed an internal investigation had cleared the officer responsible of any wrongdoing. The letter sent by professional standards command said that in addition to speaking with Scout, the investigating officer spoke with other police, consulted CCTV footage, still images, and police radio recordings and assessed operational reports and technical documents: The police officer’s actions were consistent with their training, and I am satisfied that they had no intention of causing injury or harm to yourself or other members of the public. In fact, my investigation revealed that the police officer had made a considered decision to place the munition in a specific location in an attempt to minimise risk to those present. [But] the munition [struck] an umbrella … causing the device to deviate in flight and land close to yourself, prior to detonation. *Name has been changed Iranians will be most affected by temporary visa rule changes, Senate inquiry told The home affairs department is updating the Senate on how many temporary visa holders there are across the region affected by the war between the US and Israel, and Iran. A department official reveals: Iran: 7,200 temporary visa holders Lebanon: 1,150 Palestine: 157 Syria: 207 Kuwait: 2,584 Oman: 1,067 Qatar: 1,096 United Arab Emirates: 6,435 Israel: 11,070 Saudi Arabia: 9,801 Iraq: 558 The official is asked which group is most likely to be affected by the proposed changes to migration law. She answers it’s Iran. Nationals from Iran are the most impacted by the current events, and at this point in time, it would be challenging for somebody applying for a temporary visa to meet the genuine temporary entrant test, And so that would be the group who, based on the current circumstances, are most likely [to be affected by this amendment]. Home affairs department instructed to draft proposal blocking some Iranians from entering Australia on Friday The home affairs department only began drafting a proposal to block Iranians on some temporary visas on Friday, a Senate inquiry has heard. Department officials are appearing this evening for a snap hearing after the bill was introduced earlier today, hours after the home affairs minister, Tony Burke, announced he had facilitated five asylum applications from members of the Iranian women’s football team. Under questioning by the shadow home affairs minister, Jonathon Duniam, a department representative said he had been given instructions to draft the proposal on Friday. The proposal gives the home affairs minister the power to issue an “arrival control determination”, which prevents temporary visa holders from certain regions visiting Australia where global circumstances change in order to “protect the integrity and sustainability of Australia’s immigration system”. That means the law, if passed, could be used to prevent Iranian tourists from travelling to Australia if their visa was issued before the US and Israel attacked Tehran, and where there is a concern they might overstay their visa or apply for protection while in Australia. Read more here: Danai says she expects more members of Iran’s women’s football team to seek asylum in Australia: I am expecting a few more to seek asylum. It’s really hard to speculate … I’m thinking they have more courage. A lot of community members have been trying to contact them through different channels to tell them “you’re going to be safe here”. Migration agent who spoke to Iranian footballers says women worried about families back home A migration agent who provided information to the five Iranian football players who have claimed asylum in Australia spoke to the ABC this afternoon. The five women have been granted humanitarian visas in Australia while other team members were seen boarding a bus headed for the Gold Coast airport. Naghmeh Danai, an Iranian-Australian migration agent, said she was involved in informing some players about their options for seeking asylum in Australia: I was involved to explain to them and reassure them that everything is going to be under control, and the visa processing is going to be done by the Department of Home Affairs. They were very worried about their families back in Iran because … if they go back to Iran they can be facing a lot of danger, a lot of consequences, like imprisonment or even above that. Military involvement in Middle East ‘profoundly distressing’, McKim says Greens senator Nick McKim says Australia is “cheerleading” on an illegal war on the basis of a lie after the government announced Australia would send a number of military assets to support Gulf nations. “Honestly, what’s harmed our relationships in the region is cheerleading on an illegal war, starting by the US and Israel,” he told the ABC a short time ago, continuing: Labor is now committing us more and more deeply to an illegal war on the basis of the lie that … these assets, these missiles are being committed in a defensive capacity only – when in fact we know that they are going to take up the strain that will allow the US, in particular, to use its military assets to continue the firestorm that is currently raining down on Iran. And, as always in wars, it’s innocent people who are going to pay the price with their lives and their futures. It’s profoundly distressing. ASX recovers $35bn but Iran concerns remain Investor hopes for a swift resolution to the Middle East conflict propelled Australian shares higher today, though the market recovery moderated over the course of the trading session. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 finished the day up 1.1% to close at 8,692.6 points, recovering about $35bn in value after yesterday’s $90bn plunge. Oil prices surged to a four-year high early in the week before coming back down below $US90 a barrel, after Donald Trump suggested the Iran conflict would end soon, sending global stock markets higher. Equity markets have been pulled up and down by the Middle East, given energy disruptions and increased oil costs contribute to global inflation by elevating costs across nearly all goods and services. The ASX was forecast to rise more than 2% today, according to overnight futures pricing, but the rebound proved weaker than expected amid lingering investor concerns. It’s unclear in the longer term whether shipping volumes through the crucial strait of Hormuz would simply bounce back, or if there would be added risk and freight cost, in the event of a quick resolution to the conflict. Josh Gilbert, market analyst at eToro, said oil was the main driver of market moves: Markets are going to remain volatile and reactive to every development in the Middle East over the coming days and weeks and the situation on the ground is still serious. Our reporter Andrew Messenger is still at the Gold Coast airport, where the Iranian football team was seen arriving about an hour ago. At this stage, it’s unclear whether the team is still in the airport, or if they have flown out. About 10 members of the Queensland police public safety response team were seen entering the airport a short time ago. Granting Iranian soccer players asylum was ‘the right thing to do’ says Hastie Andrew Hastie, the shadow industry minister, says granting asylum to Iran’s women’s soccer team “was a very unique case” and was “the right thing to do”. “These are women who face persecution back in Iran and I think the government has done the right thing in granting them asylum. Anyone who draws a parallel between this and [Islamic State] sympathisers is wrong,” he told the ABC a short time ago. He said indications some of the women were being coerced into leaving Australia were “very concerning”, and “a sign that maybe the regime is a little more resilient than the United States thought a week or so ago.” We’ve done what we can for the five who accepted asylum and I think it was the right thing to do. Military support for Gulf countries critical to ‘get oil moving’, Hastie says Andrew Hastie, the shadow industry minister, says he doesn’t think Australia is at war, but is “certainly assisting” the United States and the larger European military contribution, he told the ABC a short time ago. “We should view this as part of a larger package designed to get oil moving and protect the Gulf states who are so fundamental to economic security,” he said, continuing: I do support the effort because I think it’s in Australian national interest. I’m concerned this war continues on for much more than the week that President Trump … hinted at this morning. I’m worried this goes on for four or five weeks and what that means for our economic position in the world given we are so dependent upon the importation of liquid fuel. … But we didn’t get a choice … We’re price-takers, not price-makers in this war at the moment. The best thing we can do is assist in getting the strait of Hormuz opened up and protecting critical infrastructure. Kylie Moore-Gilbert: protecting Iranian footballers ‘a rare opportunity to hold the regime to account’ Kylie Moore-Gilbert, the a security studies expert at Macquarie University who spent 804 days in a prison in Tehran, has commended the way the government handled giving asylum to the Iranian women’s football team. “I think they acted swiftly and did the right thing,” she told the ABC just now. “I commend Albanese’s swift action on this. I think it became a global story and it became politically unfeasible for them not to do anything … given the evidence, that perhaps some of these women were being coerced and controlled by the Iranian delegation.” She said it was “concerning” that the rest of the team were on their way to the airport and would leave Australia soon. “Whether or not that’s what they desire is still unknown,” she said, continuing: This is a rare opportunity to hold the regime to account for the way it treats women and girls, and if there’s any evidence of [coercion], seize upon it and do our very best to protect these women in a very difficult situation. Speaking about Motjaba Khamenei, Iran’s new supreme leader, she said: He’s said to be even more hardline than his father, and he’s even closer to the IRGC. I think it’s going to get really, really messy and this crisis will become protracted. Amnesty International Australia has raised urgent concerns for the safety of members of Iran’s women’s football team and is calling on Australian authorities to ensure all players have been clearly informed of their right to seek protection in Australia. “The Iranian women’s football team face serious risks to their safety if they return to Iran. We stress that they have the right to seek protection and safety in Australia and must have an opportunity to exercise that right”, said Zaki Haidari, Strategic Campaigner at Amnesty International Australia. He continued: Customs and immigration officials, as well as Australian Border Force officers, have an opportunity to intervene and remind the team of their rights to seek protection in Australia. Amnesty International Australia understands that the players’ families remain at risk and are facing ongoing pressure from Iranian authorities. We call on the Australian Government to extend their offer of protection to their families as well. Five members of the team have been granted humanitarian visas to stay in Australia after telling Australian government officials they did not wish to return to Iran. It is unclear whether other players, or members of the travelling party, will also seek to stay in Australia. The group has travelled to the Gold Coast airport, and it is expected they will leave Australia tonight. Albanese acknowledges ‘genuine and personal’ interactions with Littleproud The prime minister says David Littleproud informed him that that he would be stepping down as leader of the Nationals before today’s question time. In a statement, Anthony Albanese said the conversation was, “as always … genuine and personal”. “I have always valued that and I thank him for it,” he said, continuing: David and I come from very different political traditions and backgrounds but we share a mutual respect for the great honour of serving in the Parliament of Australia and have been able to work together on many issues affecting his community, the regions and our national interest. It is a significant achievement to be chosen to lead your party and David can look back on his four years as Leader of Nationals and ten years as Member for Maranoa knowing he has given his utmost. I wish him well and I am sure he will continue to make a contribution on the backbench in the service of his regional Queensland electorate. Thank you, as ever, Krishani Dhanji. It’s been a big day so far, let’s dive straight in to the remainder of the day’s news. Thank you all for joining me today. From start to finish it’s been an extremely hectic day, and it’s certainly not over yet! In the words of David Littleproud, I’m buggered. I’ll leave you with the wonderful Daisy Dumas for the afternoon, and I’ll see you here bright and early tomorrow. Taylor says Littleproud made a ‘great contribution’ as leader Speaking to journalists following David Littleproud’s announcement, the Liberal leader, Angus Taylor, describes the outgoing Nationals leader as a man of his word and a “man of his handshake”. Taylor has many kind words for Littleproud, and says he’s glad the Nationals MP will continue to represent his Queensland seat of Maranoa. He has played a crucial role, as he said in his press conference a few moments ago, in shaping the direction of the Coalition, shaping the direction of policy across our side of politics over the last four years. David is a man of great dignity who has led his party with great energy and commitment … I know he will continue to support the National party, the Coalition and this great country. And I thank him for his extraordinary service. Taylor doesn’t take any questions. Littleproud takes a veiled swipe against Ley On his way out (of the leadership) Littleproud takes a few swipes at the former Liberal leader, Sussan Ley, under whom he at one point said his party could not “be part of a shadow ministry”. He says it was a mistake for the Coalition to dissolve all of its policies and start afresh, saying “all we did was leave a vacuum for someone else to walk into”. He also says that he came out “swinging” after four of his party members went the backbench. Where I come from, if one of your mob gets knocked over, and it’s not for the right reason you come swinging back. That’s how we operate. Littleproud also sings the praises of Angus Taylor, who dumped Ley. I just look you the eye, shake your hand. That’s how you do business. You know, I can do that with Angus Taylor, and the new leader will be able to do that. Littleproud gets emotional as he says he’s not giving up his seat of Maranoa, but will be stepping down as leader, so he can spend more time with his family. He says he’s proud of what he’s achieved as leader of the party over the last three years. I want to come back to this place, as I did when I first got into parliament, with that spring in my step, the excitement of coming here, throwing a few grenades, having a couple of beers and enjoying myself, and I haven’t had that for a while. Littleproud won’t say who he thinks will put their hand up to take over the leadership. He also says he’ll be happy to serve the party in “whatever capacity” but that he doesn’t have the “energy” to lead. David Littleproud and his wife, Amelia Littleproud, made the shock announcement at Parliament House just after question time. First elected in 2016, Littleproud is a former agriculture and water resources minister, and has led the Nationals since May 2022. Littleproud says: I’ve got to a juncture where I believe it’s time. I believe that it is now time to transition to a new leader. I had intended to leave the leadership after the Coalition was reformed, but I thought it was my responsibility to transition into a new leadership and the Coalition and I’m satisfied from what I’ve seen of Angus Taylor, and the way that he has handled itself, that we are now competitive. I’m buggered. I’ve had enough. Littleproud has led the party through a rocky nine months since last years election, twice splitting with the Liberal party and helping scuttle Sussan Ley’s brief tenure as the leader of the opposition. His main rival in the job, former leader Barnaby Joyce, defected to One Nation in November. Littleproud survived a challenge from fellow Nationals MP Colin Boyce in January. Question time ends After a final dixer to Jason Clare, the PM calls time on question time for the day. But before everyone leaves, the prime minister and Angus Taylor pay tribute to Les Cook, who was regarded as the last surviving Australian to fight in the battle of Crete. Cook passed away aged 103. Bowen asked (again) to assure no fuel shortages Liberal shadow minister Melissa McIntosh asks the government if it can assure the public that there’s no fuel shortage in western Sydney. Chris Bowen, a western Sydneysider himself, says that the country has 1.56bn litres of petrol in reserve (which means in the country or on Australian assets, not overseas). For the millionth time, he tells Australians to stop panic buying. The best way we can do that is to remind people that our fuel supplies are secure and there is no need for panic buying. And we can remind people that, because of the actions of this government, we have 2.97bn litres of diesel in our minimum stock obligations. And we have 1.56bn litres of petrol in reserve. And for what feels like the billionth time, the opposition tries to make another point of order on relevance against Bowen. It doesn’t get far. Bowen tells the opposition that if it wants to make a constructive suggestion, “we’ll listen in good faith”. Government asked about ‘convict bridge’ on Great Western Highway in NSW Back to the crossbench, independent MP for the seat of Calare in NSW’s central west, Andrew Gee, asks the infrastructure minister when a promised bridge will finally be delivered to replace the “convict bridge”. Part of the Great Western Highway has been closed because the convict bridge has failed. Gee says it “defies belief that the main access road in and out of the Central West relies on a bridge built by a convict chain gang in the 1800s.” He asks if the minister will put pressure on the NSW government to deliver an expressway into Sydney. Catherine King says the federal government is waiting for the NSW government to make a request for help. What the NSW government went and did is another study of the highway to look at where are the projects that are sensibly we with work on together. The Iranian football team has just arrived at the Gold Coast airport. The bus pulled up in the back part of the domestic terminal, away from the general public. But media can see players leaving the bus, travelling into the domestic terminal. A large number of media and some protesters are present. A large number of police – both Queensland and federal officers – are surrounding the domestic terminal. The bus has just left – it appeared to be empty of passengers. Bowen asked again about fuel shortages The pressure remains on Chris Bowen as Liberal MP Rick Wilson asks the energy minister about Dom, a potato farmer who says that he called to order fuel and was told there was no fuel and a three week waiting list for deliveries. So when will Dom get the fuel he needs, asks Wilson. There’s not much else Bowen adds on his previous answers, and repeats that regional communities are facing issues of shortages, but the shortages are due to panic buying not supply into the country. Bowen says that the Coalition should come up with an alternative action. Dan Tehan tries to make a point of order because Bowen hasn’t said when Dom will get access to fuel again, but that doesn’t go anywhere. Bowen says: There can be real pressures on regional supply of diesel while our national fuel supply is in very good shape – which is the point the government has been making. It is the massive spikes in demand we are seeing which is causing supply chain constraints, not an interruption of shipping to Australia. Chaney calls for greater funding for AI safety Will the upcoming budget include money for AI opportunities and safety, asks independent MP Kate Chaney, saying Australians current national AI plan is largely “hands off” and leaves risks up to an AI safety institute. The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, says he doesn’t accept that the government’s AI plan has been “silent” on the AI challenges, and that the government has “made a commitment to robust legal, regulatory and ethical frameworks.” Chalmers won’t say what money there might be in the budget for AI safety, but says the government will be “attentive” to the concerns raised by the public. We have made a commitment to robust legal, regulatory and ethical frameworks. We are engaging internationally to protect rights and build trust so that we can deal with some of the issues that the member has raised. Difficulties not ‘as a result of a lack of fuel’ in Australia: Bowen The Nationals leader, David Littleproud, takes to the dispatch box next and says an independent fuel distributor in his electorate is receiving just 10% of their normal fuel volumes, and asks Chris Bowen when farmers can expect their fuel supplies to return to normal. Bowen goes back to his point that the problem is not supply, saying that the latest shipment of fuel into Australia came in as expected. He says the problem is people panic buying 200% of what they would normally order. For those farmers, and for the other farmers who are experiencing difficulties getting diesel, I can say this very clearly. The difficulties you are experiencing are not currently as a result of a lack of fuel coming to our country. The spotlight remains on Chris Bowen as Liberal MP Mary Aldred asks him “where there are fuel supply shortages” and what the government is doing to fix it. Bowen says again that panic buying is the “biggest risk” to fuel security. It is very important that we all communicate that the biggest risk to fuel availability in Australia right now is panic buying. We need to be honest with people – stockpiling fuel in a property is not an undertaking without risk. The opposition tries to make another point of order, which Milton Dick says is “pushing the friendship”. Bowen repeats his previous answer that he is meeting with stakeholders to come up with actions on how to help the situation. Speaker threatens to remove the Coalition’s ability to make points of order Back to the Coalition, and Nationals MP Jamie Chaffey asks Chris Bowen what the government is doing to address fuel shortages. Bowen again says he understands the pressure the regions are facing, and concerns over supply chain pressures. He says the National Oil Emergency Supply Committee has been convened three times, and has met with state and territory ministers and stakeholders. Before he can get further, the Nationals deputy leader, Kevin Hogan, tries to make a point of order, because he says “meetings aren’t action” … it doesn’t go well. Milton Dick says: He [Bowen] couldn’t have been more directly relevant … As I said, if this continues, I will simply not take points of order. I just won’t take them. Bowen adds to his answer that he will ensure that minimum stock obligation requirements will now be collected weekly and reported weekly rather than quarterly. Bowen asked about diesel subsidies To the crossbench, independent MP Nicolette Boele asks “the very busy and important minister for climate change and energy” why the government continues to subsidise diesel fuel by $11bn a year. Why does the government jeopardise our energy security by keeping miners, farmers and motorists hooked on taxpayer-funded, artificially cheap and unreliable diesel? Chris Bowen says that the government’s first priority is to secure the security of liquid fuels that the country relies on. He then says the government is focused on renewable energy and the manufacturing of low emissions fuels. But on the diesel subsidy, he says the status quo remains: Our policy in relation to the diesel fuel rebate hasn’t changed. It does provide support for farmers in particular in relation to their farm operations. If you want to read more on the diesel subsidies, read below: Protesters have briefly blocked a bus taking the Iranian women’s football team out of their Gold Coast hotel. The group of a few dozen physically sat in front of the vehicle to block it. They chanted “save our girls” as the vehicle attempted to make its exit. Protesters say they believe the bus is heading to the Gold Coast airport. A group of Queensland police officers moved them on. The bus is now leaving. The Guardian saw at least one of the football players through the window in tears. A protester who was inside the Gold Coast hotel where the Iranian football players were staying said they saw one of the players being walked onto the bus by a person who appeared to be holding her wrist. ‘This is an international crisis … not a political opportunity’: Bowen The focus is fuel reserves today, and Dan Tehan is up next, asking the government again to say where there are fuel shortages in Australia. Tehan says industry is required under law to provide the energy department detailed weekly updates on fuel stock levels across the country. Before Bowen can get a full sentence in, the speaker, Milton Dick, calls out Liberal MP Andrew Wallace for interjecting too much. Instead of nodding, Wallace talks back (a big no-no for Dick) and is promptly yeeted out of the chamber. Now back to Bowen who acknowledges there are real issues for rural and regional communities across Australia, but that there aren’t supply problems and panic buying is making the situation worse. He warns the Coalition not to politicise the issue. An agency informed us they have seen demand increase in Mildura, for example, by 100% at their service stations. In the Adelaide Hills and Barossa, by 280%. Now, Mr Speaker, I think most reasonable people would understand that puts pressure on supply chains. When demand goes up so much, it puts huge pressure on supply chains. But it can also be the case, and it is also the case, that fundamentally Australia’s fuel security is good because of the minimum stock obligations that we have put in place. This is an international crisis, not an economic opportunity or a political opportunity. Angus Taylor begins and asks the prime minister where there are fuel shortages in Australia. Anthony Albanese quickly turns question time into “quotation time” (not my joke), quoting the Nationals leader, David Littleproud, from a few days ago telling Australians not to panic buy. He then tries to turn the attention back to the Coalition for not building up Australia’s fuel supplies, and quotes Jonathon Duniam who said, “I will say I do accept that successive governments have let Australians down.” Unhappy with the answer, Dan Tehan gets up to make a point of order, both for the PM not saying where the shortages may be, and for quoting the opposition. The PM retorts: I’ll tell you where [the shortages are] not … the four refineries that shut on their watch … They’re not in Texas, which is where they [the Coalition] had their fuel security under this minister [Taylor]. Now, Australia is fuel-secure right now. We have as much fuel coming in through our ports now as we did before the war in the Middle East began. US-Israel war likely to last for months, not weeks, CBA analyst says The US-Israel war will last for months, not weeks, says a CBA analyst who predicts the conflict “will continue to escalate from here, despite recent comments” by Donald Trump. Madison Cartwright, the bank’s senior geoeconomics analyst, said the war was “on an escalatory path” and that the strait of Hormuz “will likely remain functionally closed” as long as the hostilities last. The global benchmark oil price, Brent crude, was trading at a little over $US70 at the end of February, but spiked as high as US$118 before Trump in the past 24 hours signalled a possible end to the war by saying America’s military objectives were “pretty much complete”. Oil most recently fetched $US88.68 a barrel, according to Bloomberg. But Cartwright, while acknowledging the “high uncertainty”, said “we believe the conflict will be measured in months not weeks”. As motorists face a spike in petrol prices, she warned of a “more pronounced” fallout in global markets and economies from a more protracted war. Iran views the conflict as existential and retains enough missile and drone capability to prolong fighting. By contrast, the US and Israel have not achieved their core objectives. She said these three objectives were: “a permanent eradication of Iran’s ballistic missile capabilities; Iranian commitment to zero nuclear enrichment; and the end of the current regime in Tehran.” The strait will unlikely fully reopen without a ceasefire, a surrender of Iran, or a mutual agreement between the warring parties. All are unlikely at this point. Duniam ‘confident’ on migration bill Jumping back to the Coalition’s press conference, the shadow home affairs spokesperson, Jonathon Duniam, says he’s comfortable with the government’s process, having received a verbal briefing from minister Tony Burke earlier today. His language is a little stronger than Ted O’Brien’s to the chamber earlier. Duniam says while there will be an internal process and Senate inquiry hearing tonight before forming a formal position on the bill, he says it’s a “straightforward” piece of legislation. I’m comfortable with the process, the tests that apply, the thresholds, the exclusions and exceptions that exist to provide safety for those who need it. I feel confident, of course, we’ve got an internal process to go through, and we’ll go through that, including the Senate inquiry, but it is a relatively straightforward piece of legislation. If enacted and the minister makes a determination to revoke a visa, they are only temporary revocations. It can only be up to six months. Victorian anti-price-gouging laws will not extend to limiting fuel prices, Allan says Leaving federal parliament for a moment, as we flagged earlier, the Victorian government’s fuel price cap takes effect today. Under the state government’s anti-price-gouging laws, retailers must set their fuel price at 2pm for the following day. This price is then published on the government’s Servo Saver page within the Service Victoria app at 4pm. The price will apply for 24 hours from 6am the next day. The premier, Jacinta Allan, told reporters earlier today: Everyone has had that experience of driving past a petrol station in the morning and seeing the price at one level [then] going back in the afternoon and the price having jumped quite significantly. With the global uncertainty having the potential of putting further pressure and price rises on the cost of fuel, we have been looking at real, meaningful, practical ways that we can provide support to families, to save hundreds of dollars a year and put information into the hands of motorists across Victoria. Asked whether the government would be able to limit how high fuel prices could rise, Allan responded: No. I understand what’s behind that question, because I think all of us are not just watching the ongoing conflict in the Middle East with concern about the conflict itself, but a keen understanding of what that can impact in terms of global supply chains and the potential for price spikes in the area of fuel. What the Servo Saver app does is it puts the information in the hands of motorists. The consumer affairs minister, Nick Staikos, said petrol stations that fail to register or report their prices now face fines of more than $3,000 for each breach, or up to $25,000 if taken to court. Migration laws to block people on temporary visas ‘make sense’: opposition The shadow home affairs minister, Jonathon Duniam, says the government’s migration laws, introduced to parliament a short time ago, “make sense”. The Coalition said earlier that it backs in-principle the migration laws that would give the government powers to block people on temporary visas amid conflict in the Middle East. Asked whether there’s a double standard in supporting the five Iranian women on the national soccer team to get humanitarian visas while potentially banning other Iranian people from arriving in Australia, Taylor said there’s “no inconsistency” because the Iranian women’s team are “already here”. Duniam says: We’re talking about 20 female sports players who may potentially all seek asylum, who knows, five have been granted, and then many, many, many, many more that could potentially take advantage of a weakness in our system if people want to apply for asylum from outside of Australia. The Liberal leader, Angus Taylor, has welcomed Australia’s involvement in the Middle East, after the government this morning announced it would deploy an E-7A Wedgetail surveillance aircraft and missiles to the United Arab Emirates in a defensive capacity. Speaking to reporters at Parliament House, Taylor also welcomed the decision to grant five players on the Iranian women’s soccer team humanitarian visas. Taylor said: We very much welcome the decision and announcement made by the government to support our allies in their work against this regime. The shadow defence minister, James Paterson, says he received a briefing from the defence department this morning, and says supporting the UAE and Gulf nations against Iran’s attacks is in Australia’s national interest. When your friends ask you for help, if you’re able to help, you should help. And there’s no question that the United Arab Emirates and other Gulf states are our friends. Greens call migration bill to block temporary visa holders from the Middle East a ‘new low’ The Greens leader, Larissa Waters, says Australians will be “appalled” that after the government granted humanitarian visas for five of the Iranian women’s soccer players, they moved on the same day to “shut the door” on thousands of others. The Greens are holding a press conference at Parliament House, and Waters says that Labor has a “terrible track record” on refugee rights but calls this a new low. What a new low from this Labor government, what an appalling act of cruelty – from backing and resourcing an illegal war, raining down bombs on civilians, to then shutting the door on those same civilians who have the legal right to enter our country. You cannot get more morally bankrupt or hypocritical than that. Greens senator David Shoebridge says that the bill shows “deep cruelty”: Let’s see the truth being exposed here, the war parties create refugees, and then today they’re coming together to shut the door on them. It’s obscene. Minns unsure if he’ll be premier when Sydney motorway is completed The NSW premier, Chris Minns, says he does not know if he will still be premier by the time the troubled construction of the M6 motorway is completed. As we reported earlier, the NSW government has issued the consortium building the M6, CGU, with a notice forcing it to continue construction or face possible legal consequences, two years after large sinkholes opened above the site of the $3.1bn motorway tunnel. Asked at a press conference today if the M6, a state-owned toll road originally scheduled to be completed by late 2025, will open during his premiership, Minns says: I don’t know, but I’m very pleased to say that the surface works are completed. I know the area well because I live in the suburb, and look it would be nice to have, but I don’t think what people are saying Sydney needs is another toll road. The premier has been forced to downplay rumours of his retirement, after he told a press conference this month about the completion of tunnelling on the Metro West project that he would not be premier by the time the metro was finished. It is expected to open in 2032, but Minns told budget estimates last month this did not mean he was planning to step down if he is reelected as premier in March next year. Greens push Labor to pull Australian troops out of US military The bells have been ringing almost non-stop in the Senate this morning – there’s been a few things going on, so let’s catch you up. The government has guillotined debate for its superannuation bill so it can pass the parliament tonight. Labor secured agreement from the Greens (with no amendments), so between the two parties, they agreed for the bill to be voted on by 7:30pm tonight. That cuts down debate time for the Coalition and the independents. But while the Greens teamed up with the government on that motion, the minor party has slammed the decision to commit military assets to the Middle East, and put forward a separate motion calling on the government to withdraw Australian troops from the US military and note that the Australian public don’t support joining “another US-led forever war”. The trade minister, Don Farrell, deflected the criticism from the Greens and said: The Albanese government has been clear that we are not taking offensive action against Iran. And we have been clear that we are not deploying Australian troops on the ground in Iran. The Greens motion doesn’t have support from the government or Coalition so it doesn’t go anywhere. The combined value of Australia’s overly inflated residential property market passed $12tn for the first time at the end of last year, new Australian Bureau of Statistics data has revealed. The total worth of dwellings has now climbed for 13 straight quarters, or for more than three years, with the combined value of homes up by 26% since September 2022. The average home price climbed by 2.7% through the final three months of 2025 to $1.07m, with the highest average home price in NSW at $1.3m. Western Australia became the third state after NSW and Queensland to achieve the dubious honour of recording an average home price of more than $1m, after values boomed by 16.8% in 2025. There were also rapid increases in average home values in the Northern Territory (up 15.1% last year to $580,000) and in Queensland (up 13.9% to $1.07m). The average dwelling price in South Australia climbed by 10.6% in 2025 to $938,100, the ABS data showed, while the average home value in NSW, Victoria and the ACT were up by a more sedate 3-3.6%. Coalition supports migration bill ‘in principle’ The shadow minister for foreign affairs, Ted O’Brien, speaks after Hill and says the Coalition supports Labor’s bill “in principle”. He says the opposition’s final position will be informed by a Senate inquiry hearing on the bill this evening, but he sees few hurdles. Like Hill, O’Brien says the bill and the powers within it are designed to protect the integrity of the migration system. But he also takes a swipe against Labor’s migration policy, which has meant migration numbers “have been too high, and standards too low”. These powers are designed to protect the integrity and sustainability of Australia’s migration system particularly where international events increase the risk of visa overstays. The bill allows the minister to make an arrival control determination which can temporarily suspend the effect of certain temporary visas for people outside Australia where it is in the national interest. Labor introduces bill to block temporary visa holders during Middle East war The minister for citizenship and multicultural affairs, Julian Hill, is introducing a bill that would give the government power to block people travelling to Australia on temporary or tourist visas on the basis of shifting global circumstances. The bill would allow the government to block people coming from Iran on temporary visas over concerns they would stay beyond the duration of their visa, due to the escalating conflict in the Middle East. It comes after the government granted five humanitarian visas to members of Iran’s women’s soccer team. Hill tells the house there are many temporary visa holders outside Australia at any given time who hold a “temporary right of entry to Australia granted to support travel for a genuinely temporary purpose”. The migration system must be able to respond quickly and at scale to events where it may be necessary to limit travel to Australia on a temporary basis … [The bill applies] when events or circumstances outside Australia mean there is an increased risk that certain temporary visa holders will not depart Australia. Hill says there are some exceptions to the bill, which would allow entry for a person on a temporary visa if they have a dependent child under 18 in Australia, are an immediate family member of an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or are a holder of a humanitarian visa. It also won’t have any effect on permanent visas. Labor is about to introduce changes to immigration rules designed to stop people with temporary visas coming to Australia, on the basis of shifting global circumstances. As the war in the Middle East escalates, the changes would allow the home affairs minister, Tony Burke, to block people from countries including Iran from travelling to Australia on tourist and other temporary visas. The assumption from authorities would be that they may seek to stay in Australia permanently because of the conflict. The visas could have been issued any time within the past six months. Labor believes loopholes in the current laws could be exploited. Some guardrails will be included in the new laws. The Coalition supports the move in principle. Naplan tests to roll out on Wednesday, coinciding with holy month of Ramadan About 1.4 million students are set to sit down for Naplan tests tomorrow, the annual national assessment loved by statisticians and loathed by many education experts. Naplan measures how students in years 3, 5, 6 and 9 are progressing in literacy and numeracy, with this year marking the second cycle since the test was brought forward from May to March with new proficiency levels. The chief executive of the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (Acara), Stephen Gniel, said Acara had worked with the Islamic Schools Association of Australia, as the test window coincides with Ramadan, to help schools and teachers support affected students. We’re encouraging schools to schedule their tests as soon as possible in the test window and to run Naplan tests first thing in the morning to ensure fasting students’ energy levels are at their highest. Gniel assured students that there was no need to study for the tests. The best preparation that kids can do is make sure they go to school regularly … This is about knowing where each student is up to. Schools and education authorities will receive preliminary results early in term 2, with full results to be published in early August. Builders told they must continue work on $3.1bn Sydney tunnel or face possible legal consequences Two years after large sinkholes opened above the construction of a $3.1bn Sydney motorway tunnel, the consortium charged with the project’s completion has been issued a notice forcing it to continue the build or face possible legal consequences. The NSW minister for roads, Jenny Aitchison, said CGU – a joint venture of CPB, Ghella and UGL – had on Monday been issued a “notice of default”, forcing it to recommence work on the 90% complete M6 tunnel by 1 May. Work at the site in Kogarah ground to a halt in June after the discovery of a “challenging” geological feature close to the sinkholes. In a statement, Aitchison said the government had taken “decisive action” after attempting to remedy the impasse, including by presenting an engineering solution to CGU: Transport for NSW has issued a notice of default to CGU after more than two years of work to try to resolve the issues affecting this project. The Department has made clear there is a technical solution available within the current contract – and it is a reasonable community expectation that it is delivered. The new twin 4km tunnels, connecting Sydney’s south to the wider motorway network, were approved in 2019 and scheduled to open in 2025. That date was pushed back to 2028 after the sinkholes opened, then workers discovered a “high-angle reverse fault” in the bedrock in the same 245-metre section of the project. The premier, Chris Minns, criticised CGU’s unilateral move to down tools, claiming the contractor remained responsible for designing and building the tunnels. Victoria’s fuel price cap now in place Victoria’s fuel price cap comes into effect today, as Australians brace for Iran war-linked rises in petrol prices. Under the state government’s anti-price gouging laws, retailers are required to set a daily cap on prices. Retailers must set the price by 2pm for the following day. The capped price is published on the state government’s Servo Saver app at 4pm. The price will apply for 24 hours from 6am the next day. Petrol stations that fail to register or report their prices face fines of more than $3,000 for a single breach or more than $24,000 if taken to court. No questions to PM on UAE deployment in Labor partyroom No Labor MP asked questions to the prime minister about the Middle East deployment of ADF members in their weekly caucus meeting today, according to a partyroom spokesperson. The partyroom, which meets weekly when parliament is sitting, heard a report from Anthony Albanese about his phone call with Donald Trump overnight, the humanitarian visas granted to Iranian women’s football players, and the decision to deploy a surveillance aircraft and personnel, as well as contribute missiles, to the United Arab Emirates. Albanese has stressed Australia isn’t contributing to the offensive efforts against Iran, characterising the government’s contribution as being about protecting Australians in the region – but we’re told there were no questions to the PM about the military decision. Several Labor MPs asked the energy minister, Chris Bowen, and the treasurer, Jim Chalmers, about reports of petrol and diesel shortages, though. Bowen repeated his public statements about Australia having adequate supplies of diesel, and that there had been no interruption to shipping to Australia, but conceded that demand had spiked and some suppliers were having difficulty in meeting demand. Chalmers said the ACCC was keeping an eye on petrol prices spiking, and said some of the increases at the bowser were not defensible by suppliers or retailers. Australians are bracing for the Iran war-linked rises in petrol prices to deliver another cost-of-living blow, with ANZ’s weekly sentiment survey showing inflation expectations recorded their biggest increase on record. Consumer confidence collapsed to its weakest level since mid-2023, the latest survey also showed, as average fuel prices in the major cities have jumped by about 25 cents since the start of the month, according to Motormouth. Inflation expectations spiked by 0.8 percentage points to 6.1%, the highest since late 2022 during the last global energy shock triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. NAB economists have warned inflation could reach 5% by the middle of the year, from 3.9% now. The ANZ survey was completed before the weekend’s surge in global oil prices to nearly US$120 a barrel. The Reserve Bank’s governor, Michele Bullock, has flagged that the central bank may have to respond to higher oil prices amid a global inflationary pulse linked to the Iranian war. Financial markets and economists expect the cash rate to stay at 3.85% at the conclusion of the RBA board’s next board meeting in a week’s time. Greens attack Labor’s ‘mission creep’ in Iran war The Greens will push the Albanese government on its decision to send aircraft and air-to-air missiles to the United Arab Emirates, believing it’s not in Australia’s national interest. At a party room briefing this morning, the minor progressive party discussed the Labor government’s announcement to deploy 85 defence force members by midweek to the region, along with a specialist surveillance aircraft and air-to-air missiles. Earlier this morning, the Greens’ defence and foreign affairs spokesperson, David Shoebridge, said Labor’s “mission creep” and “deception” has been frightening. Shoebridge said: Labor has gone from supporting the war politically, to having Australian personnel part of US military attacks, to now putting troops on the ground. If we want to protect people in the region, the best thing the Albanese government could do is call for an end to the war, withdraw support and stop all military engagement. Human rights groups welcome protection for Iranian women’s soccer players Refugee and human rights groups have welcomed the granting of humanitarian visas to five members of the Iranian women’s soccer team. They say it represents a recognition of the very real dangers the women would have faced in returning to Iran. The government has granted visas to five players, but said the door is open to more women if they want to seek asylum. The Refugee Council of Australia’s chief executive, Paul Power, said: Australia’s protection system exists for exactly these kinds of situations, to ensure that people who face serious harm if returned to their country have the opportunity to seek safety and have their claims properly considered. Amnesty International welcomed the decision but says it also remains concerned about the wellbeing of the rest of the Iranian women’s team players. Amnesty International Australia’s Zaki Haidari said he hopes the government continues to “protect people who have a well-founded fear of persecution in their home country”. We thank the Australian public and international supporters who have shown solidarity with the Iranian women’s soccer team, offering their support and advocating for them to be welcomed and allowed to remain in Australia. We celebrate the courage of these women and commend their bravery in peacefully speaking out for their rights. Super bill a ‘down payment’ on genuine taxation reform say Greens The Greens say they will support the government’s superannuation tax reforms, as a “signal of our determination to see a serious, progressive tax reform package in the upcoming budget”. Under the superannuation tax changes, the concessional tax rate on earnings for balances between $3m and $10m will double from 15% to 30%. Balances above $10m will be subject to a new, higher 40% rate. The Greens Treasury spokesperson, Nick McKim, says he’s disappointed that the government watered down its original bill which proposed to tax unrealised gains. We are going to support the bill as a down payment on genuine, progressive tax reform in this budget. This budget is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for ambitious tax reform, and we are opening the door for Labor to walk through. The current tax system has turbocharged the housing crisis, wealth inequality and a deepening intergenerational divide. What’s happening today? After a particularly busy morning with confirmation that five women on the Iranian women’s football team have been granted asylum in Australia and that the government will deploy a surveillance aircraft and missiles to the UAE in a “defensive” capacity to protect civilians, what’s actually going to happen in parliament for the rest of the day? Great question (if I do say so myself). The parties are currently holding their party room briefings where they discuss positions on policy, and generally give each other a bit of a gee up for the week ahead. The parties will soon conduct their post party room briefings to the media (which we’ll bring you the details of once they happen). Both houses will begin sitting at noon today, and while the agenda in the House of Reps will be a little on the thinner side, the government’s superannuation bill will be debated in the Senate today, where it will pass this week with the Greens’ support. And of course we can look forward to question time at 2pm! The NSW government has announced the proposed rezoning of a neighbourhood chosen as one of the world’s coolest, which it says will deliver as many as 18,300 homes, a more than 3,000 increase on its previous plans. The rezoning of the 800-metre area around the under-construction metro station at Burwood will include buildings between eight and 42 storeys high, expanding on a plan announced in August last year to build 15,000 homes. The NSW planning minister, Paul Scully, says: Burwood already ranks as one of world’s best neighbourhoods and with both the Sydney CBD and Parramatta set to be a quick 10-minute trip from the new Burwood North Metro station it’s a no brainer to support its continued growth. The government is attempting to plug the gap following the rejection of a proposal to redevelop the Rosehill Racecourse to build 25,000 homes. This month it announced the creation of a new suburb – to be known as Bays West – around Glebe Island, the home of Sydney’s remaining working port, with as many as 8,500 new homes. At budget estimates last month, Scully rejected the opposition’s suggestion the government was 40% behind on its National Housing Accord targets to build 377,000 new homes by 2029, but said: “I would prefer to be much further advanced.” Analysis by the Urban Development Institute of Australia suggests NSW will fall 157,000 dwellings behind the national five-year targets, but Scully said with two-and-a-half years remaining, NSW had the highest number of dwellings under construction of any state, and was seeing growth in housing completions. Australia ‘dragged into another US forever war’, say Greens The Greens are scathing of the government’s decision to deploy a military surveillance aircraft and missile to the UAE to protect civilians in Gulf nations against attacks from Iran. The Greens leader, Larissa Waters, says the assertion by the government that the troops on the surveillance aircraft and the military assets are only being used for defensive purposes is a “fig leaf”. Waters says Australians don’t want to get dragged into this conflict and into another “forever war”. Labor shouldn’t be sending troops to help a military that’s killed 150 schoolchildren in a primary school bombing. That will only escalate an illegal conflict that’s already spiralling out of control, and leave Australia trapped in yet another forever war. Greens senator David Shoebridge says the deployment of troops (85 defence personnel will be sent on the surveillance E-7A Wedgetail) is contrary to the national interest. It’s been just over a week and the mission creep and deception from Labor is frightening. Labor has gone from supporting the war politically, to having Australian personnel part of US military attacks, to now putting troops on the ground. ‘You can’t fix a problem if you can’t admit there is one’: McKenzie Leader of the Nationals in the Senate, Bridget McKenzie has lashed out at the government over concerns around fuel shortages around the country. The government has been trying to allay fears and calm the country, and has said panic buying makes the problem worse. The energy minister, Chris Bowen, says Australia enters the crisis “very well prepared”. McKenzie tells journalists at Parliament House that Bowen should be doing more to protect regional supply chains and stop Australians getting “slugged at the bowser”. This has huge implications for Australian industry and Australian households. You can’t fix a problem if you don’t admit there is one. And last week, we saw senior cabinet ministers telling us that prices were holding steady. The shadow energy minister, Dan Tehan, says Australia is now an active participant in the war in the Middle East, after a decision to deploy surveillance aircraft to help protect civilians – including Australian civilians – in the region. Speaking to RN Breakfast soon after the prime minister announced the deployment of the E-7A Wedgetail surveillance aircraft, upon request by the United Arab Emirates, Tehan said that on principle, it was the right thing for Australia to be playing a role in the conflict. “Given that Australia will be providing military assistance to the UAE, are we now active participants in this war?” he was asked. I think by the very nature of that action, yes, we are [participants to this war]. And we’re doing that because we want to keep Australians safe and we want to see an end to this evil Iranian [regime]. We want to be doing our bit to keep the region safe and obviously bring this conflict to an end. You know, the best thing that can happen now is for the Iranian regime to say, enough’s enough. He says the Coalition looks forward to receiving a briefing from Labor on any requests made to Australia to provide military support in the Middle East. No issues of fuel supply, but Australia not building 90-day stockpile, says Bowen Chris Bowen’s had a very busy morning: shortly before appearing at a press conference with the prime minister, the energy minister spoke with RN Breakfast, saying for the hundredth time that there’s no need for petrol stockpiling. He says Australia enters this crisis “very well prepared”, and adds that panic buying makes the situation worse, not better. On criticisms that Australia isn’t following the International Energy Agency recommendation for a 90-day fuel stockpile, Bowen says that isn’t for fuel being held domestically but “to sell to international markets to help reduce prices”. We haven’t had 90 days and not [on] one day of the Abbott-Turnbull Morrison government did we have 90 days. There’s a good reason for that, Sally, it’s very expensive to build 90 days’ worth of supply, that would cost $20bn over the next four years. Now, I’ve seen David Littleproud and Ted O’Brien saying they want to move to 90 days, well, I look forward to seeing the costings. Four flights scheduled to depart from Dubai to Australia today Four flights from Dubai to Sydney, Melbourne and Perth are scheduled to depart from Dubai today, though the situation remains volatile. The first flight, from Dubai to Sydney, is due to depart in a few minutes. The government has confirmed that 2,697 Australians have arrived back home from the UAE on 18 direct flights since the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran. The government is still encouraging all Australians in the Middle East to take up commercial flights when they’re available, and have been bussing Australians from Qatar to Riyadh to fly out of the Saudi Arabian capital. Australian shares are poised to rebound strongly today after Donald Trump called the war on Iran a “short-term excursion”, raising investor hopes that oil supply in the Middle East would soon normalise. Futures pricing indicates the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 will rise more than 2.2% this morning to the 8,750 point market, erasing a large part of yesterday’s steep losses. Equity markets have been pulled up and down by the Middle East conflict given energy disruptions and increased oil costs contribute to global inflation by elevating costs across nearly all goods and services. The latest bout of optimism was sparked by Trump’s comments overnight indicating the conflict could end sooner than expected. He also said vessels were already beginning to move more freely through the crucial Strait of Hormuz. Oil prices fell overnight in response and Wall Street stocks climbed, paving the way for a bounce on the ASX today. Chris Weston, the head of research at Melbourne-based financial firm Pepperstone, said this morning that the “pressure valve” has clearly been released for now. However, volatility across energy markets remains exceptionally elevated. Burke posts picture with five Iranian women’s football team players Tony Burke has posted a picture meeting the five Iranian women’s football team players who will now live in Australia with humanitarian visas. The government announced this morning it had been working with the players and security agencies over several days to grant them asylum. Burke quickly took to social media to spread the good news (and post the obligatory “signing the important document photo”). PM says superannuation reforms will pass the Senate this week After reaching agreement from the Greens to pass their watered superannuation reforms, the prime minister, ending his press conference, says the bill will now pass the Senate this week. It will assist income earners, but it will make the superannuation system more progressive and I thank the majority of the Senate for agreeing to what is a very sensible reform. You can read more about that bill, and the three-year journey to get to this point here: PM tight-lipped on other details from Trump call Despite providing some details on the phone call between himself and Donald Trump regarding the Iranian women’s, the PM tries to dodge subsequent questions. My colleague, Tom McIlroy, asks Albanese – who last week called for de-escalation in the region – whether he communicated that call to Trump. Albanese is short, and says “I refer you to previous answers.” Another journalist asks Albanese if he sought assurances from the US president that the war was drawing to a close, and again receives the same answer from the PM. Albanese adds: When I get off the phone and I don’t hold a press conference and talk about all of the details. But the PM did call a press conference following that call and did already give us some of the details. Albanese emphasises Australian involvement is purely defence: ‘We are not protagonists’ The government has been at pains to say that Australia is only providing defence capability, and is not participating in any offensive action against Iran. The deployment of the Australian military surveillance aircraft, the government has said, was at the request of the UAE. Earlier Richard Marles confirmed 85 Australian personnel would be deployed with the E-7A Wedgetail aircraft, which he said was the “normal crew”. Albanese says: Our involvement is purely defensive, and it’s in defence of Australians who are in the region, as well as in defence of our friends in the United Arab Emirates, who are good friends of Australia and Australians, we have a free trade agreement with them that’s opened up the markets of the Middle East. PM says Trump called ‘just before 2am’ Albanese says he spoke to Donald Trump early this morning, ahead of the US president taking to his social media platform Truth Social to report Australia was granting asylum to the five Iranian women’s football players. The prime minister says he doesn’t reveal details of private conversations but that Trump was concerned about the welfare of the team, and adds that the discussion between the two was “very positive”. President Trump rang me this morning, just before 2am we had a very positive discussion. He was concerned about the Iranian women in the soccer team and their welfare and their safety if they returned home, he conveyed that to me. I was able to convey to him the action that we’d undertaken over the previous 48 hours, and that five of the team had asked for assistance and had received it and were safely located. Asked later by another journalist whether the PM discussed anything further on military deployments with Trump, Albanese doesn’t give much away: It was a warm conversation between myself and President Trump, primarily about the Iranian soccer team. But obviously we also discussed world events. • This post was amended on 10 March 2026 to correct a transcription error: Anthony Albanese said he and Donald Trump shared a “warm”, not a “raw” conversation. Bowen says diesel supply arriving in Australia ‘as expected’ Following Wong, the energy minister, Chris Bowen, warns Australians again to not panic buy petrol, and tries to assure the public that the country has enough fuel stock. He says Australia has 32 days of reserve petrol. My key message is that every single expected arrival diesel supply in recent days and expected in coming days and weeks has arrived on schedule as expected, so there is no need for panic buying. While there are challenges and uncertainties in all international supply chains at the moment, the preparations that the government has put in place for the minimum stock obligation are working. If it’s necessary to access those minimum supplies, we will, but we’re not there at this point. Bowen says he has a great deal of empathy for farmers concerned about supply chains but says, “This is managing a huge spike in demand, not an impact on supply at this point.” Wong issues flight update, warns ‘security situation deteriorating’ Wong says the government is working “around the clock” to help the tens of thousands of Australians to evacuate the region. She says 27,000 flights to and from the Middle East have been cancelled since 28 February. Australian consular officials are on the ground to help Australians, and Wong says 2,600 Australians have now returned from the Middle East on commercial flights. She adds that Qatar has begun allowing limited commercial flights out. There are many more Australians still in the Middle East and we do understand these are difficult decisions for Australians and their families. The security situation is deteriorating and it is likely to get worse before it gets better. We’ve also been focused on trying to offer options to Australians where no flights were involved. Military aircraft deployed at the request of the UAE: Marles All the bigwigs are at this press conference. After Albanese, the deputy PM and defence minister Richard Marles addresses the media, and confirms that the deployment of the E-7A Wedgetail was at the request of the United Arab Emirates. The government will also provide Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missiles to the UAE. Marles says that surveillance aircraft is “one of the leading capabilities in terms of airborne, long-range reconnaissance and command”. The airframe will be leaving Australia today, and the expectation is that it will be in the region in the middle of the week and operational by the end of the week. We have also received a request from the UAE to supply advanced, medium-range air missiles and ramps, and we will be supplying a number of those to the UAE. Marles emphasises again that the aircraft is being deployed in a defensive capacity to protect Gulf nations under attack from Iran. ‘If you want our help, help is here’: Albanese Albanese says the government has preparing for some time to provide support for the Iranian women’s football team, who have been playing in Australia in the Women’s Asian Cup. The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, confirmed this morning that five have been given humanitarian visas. The prime minister says the government will provide support if other players also want to seek asylum. We’ve been preparing for this for some time. Indeed, the minister for home affairs, Tony Burke, travelled to Queensland on Sunday, returned and then travelled again last night. Australians have been moved by the plight of these brave women. They’re safe here, and they should feel at home here. The AFP have had plans in place with Commissioner Krissy Barrett directly involved, and once it was made clear that these women wanted assistance, the Australian police moved them to assist to a safe location where they remain. We’re willing to provide assistance to other women in the team, noting that this is a very delicate situation, and it is up to them, but we say to them, if you want our help, help is here, and we will provide that. The prime minister, speaking to reporters in Canberra, has said the government will deploy a E-7A Wedgetail, a military surveillance plane, as 12 countries face attacks from Iran in the region. Anthony Albanese says the United Arab Emirates alone has already been forced to shoot down over 1,500 drones and rockets. Albanese says again that the deployment will be in a defensive, not an offensive capacity. We’re taking defensive action to support our partners efforts to keep Australians safe, deployed ADF assets will operate according to the right of collective self-defence. Australia will deploy an E-7A Wedgetail to the Gulf to help protect and defend Australians and other civilians, the Wedgetail will provide long-range reconnaissance capability, which will help to protect and secure the airspace above the Wedgetail and supporting Australian defence force personnel will be deployed for an initial four weeks in support of the collective self-defence of Gulf nations. Duniam welcomes humanitarian visas for Iranian football players The shadow home affairs minister, Jonathon Duniam, has welcomed the government’s announcement that it will offer asylum to five women on the Iranian football team in Australia. On Sky News, Duniam says it’s a “good” outcome, and that he’d spoken with Tony Burke several times over the weekend. He says he hopes more of the Iranian women’s football team make the same decision to seek asylum in Australia. Asked whether US president Donald Trump “drove” the outcome, Duniam says: I do know that the government were actively working on this for a number of days in relation to the pressures that these women were probably facing and what we as a country would think is right. So I don’t think he’s driven it. I think that despite the radio silence and the minister outlined why there wasn’t a running commentary on this, and I think it is reasonable. Burke confirms Trump has called Albanese Burke has confirmed the US president, Donald Trump, has spoken with Anthony Albanese (who will be up to speak in Canberra shortly). Until this morning the government had remained tight-lipped about helping the women. Even on Sunday the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, said she didn’t want to get into “commentary” on the team, but that Australia stood in solidarity with the men and women of Israel against the regime. Burke says it’s because Labor was working on options for them to stay. I do know that the president called the prime minister and the views of the president put on this, I think, reflected what all good people have been thinking. Everybody’s been looking at this situation and saying, surely, is there something we can do? We’ve been making sure that we had the options, that the women had the opportunity to come forward, and there’s been a good police presence at different points … But can I say the first conversation didn’t have an immediate case of the women saying that they decided. This was a difficult decision for them, and I think we all understand exactly why. ‘Joy and relief’: Burke describes meeting the five Iranian women Burke says there was joy and relief when he spoke to the five women last night to organise their humanitarian visas. He confirms that the women have been moved from the hotel where they stayed in Brisbane to a safe location by the federal police. He adds that he spoke with the Asio director general, Mike Burgess, and AFP commissioner, Krissy Barrett. I don’t want to begin to imagine how difficult that decision is for each of the individual women, but certainly last night, it was joy, it was relief, and people were very excited about embarking on your life in Australia. They were moved from the hotel to a safe location by the Australian Federal Police … I made final confirmation with the director general of Asio Mike Burgess to make sure that he was completely comfortable in terms of security clearances for the people who I was about to make the offer to. Burke thanks the media for exercising restraint, saying “reporting of different stories could have had an impact on the capacity of the women to be able to make requests”. He also thanks his caucus colleagues and the shadow home affairs minister, Jonathon Duniam. The opposition has been calling on the government in recent days to provide asylum to the women. Tony Burke has called a press conference in Brisbane this morning to confirm that the government has offered humanitarian visas to five Iranian football players who have been in Australia for the Asian Cup. The home affairs minister says in the early hours of yesterday morning the conversations with the women began in “earnest” as the government looked for the “maximum number of opportunities” to support the group in Australia. Burke says the other women on the team who have not sought asylum will still have the opportunity to do so. Burke says it was “such a privilege” to meet with the women. They are welcome to stay in Australia, that they are safe here, and they should feel at home here. I signed off last night for their applications to go on to humanitarian visas. And a little bit after 1:30am this morning, the processing was completed by the Department of Home Affairs, I say to the other members of the team, the same opportunity is there – Australia has taken the Iranian women’s soccer team into our hearts. These women are tremendously popular in Australia, but we realised they are in a terribly difficult situation with the decisions that they’re making. Jerry cans are out of stock at shops around Australia as consumers rush to stock up on petrol, fearing a price spike. Petrol prices are averaging close to 220 cents per litre in Australia’s biggest cities and have skyrocketed in the smaller capitals as the US war on Iran sends oil prices surging. The Albanese government has urged consumers not to panic-buy petrol but some shoppers have scoured shelves for jerry cans, which can be used to store extra fuel. Supercheap Auto’s 20-litre jerry cans were sold out at all Sydney and Melbourne stores while Costco’s diesel yellow jerry cans were sold out online on Monday afternoon. The most-searched term on the Bunnings website on Monday afternoon was “jerry can fuel”. A Bunnings spokesperson said: We are seeing increased demand for fuel containers in our stores across the country. Our teams are working hard to ensure product is still available for our customers, with more coming to stores this week. Just one Bunnings across the 60-odd warehouse in Sydney, Newcastle and the NSW south coast had Bunnings’ most popular jerry can in stock, according to the company’s website. A handful of stores in the Melbourne-Geelong area had that 20-litre AdVenture jerry can in stock. Good morning, Krishani Dhanji with you here, thanks to Martin Farrer for getting us started. The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, will speak in a moment from Brisbane, after travelling to meet the Iranian women’s football team. The prime minister is also due to speak a little later this morning after Donald Trump sensationally suggested Australia was granting asylum to five of the players. And in Parliament House, the Greens will greenlight the government’s bill to increase tax on superannuation accounts above $3m, ending a three-year stoush on the policy. It’s going to be a big day – I’ve got my coffee, I hope you’ve got yours – let’s get cracking! Surging oil prices have raised the risk of the Reserve Bank hiking interest rates in a week’s time, economists have warned. Traders bet heavily on interest rate rises on Monday after oil prices surged to US$115 a barrel. Markets expect rates will now stay higher for longer, with one indicator, Australian three-year bond yields, rising to a new record high for the decade. The next rise could come as soon as March because of the inflationary lift in petrol prices, combined with recent data suggesting the economy is running hot, UBS economists said on Monday. It had been more likely the RBA would wait until May, they wrote in a note, but: The data ... as well as now higher energy prices, means there is still a significant risk of an earlier hike. The rate-setting board will make a decision next Tuesday, 17 March. Fears of a rate rise have risen since the RBA governor, Michele Bullock, last Tuesday said every meeting was “live”. Her remarks showed the bank was ready to lift rates again, Warren Hogan, economic adviser at Judo Bank, told Guardian Australia: Her tone had shifted radically ... The oil price response [and] the risk that it opened up in their thinking was quite severe. However, NAB’s chief economist, Sally Auld, said it was “too early” for the RBA to know whether a rate hike was needed, so markets had “over-priced” a March rate hike. In a worst-case scenario, the RBA may even have to cut rates, Auld said, pointing to the prospect of a global recession caused by a prolonged conflict and high oil prices. The shadow defence minister, James Patterson, says joining the ongoing war in the Middle East “would have to meet an incredibly high bar” but Australia should “consider” any requests from Gulf countries for military assistance. Cabinet’s national security committee met yesterday to consider requests for Australia to provide help to countries feeling the brunt of Tehran’s missile attack, sparked by bombings ordered by the US president and Israel. Appearing on ABC’s 7.30 program last night, Patterson said he had requested to be briefed on the meeting. He said Australia “should consider” the Gulf countries’ request but also ensure it didn’t interfere with national interests. Australia’s core national interest is decided in the Indo-Pacific ... This by the sound of it ... [is] a friendly nation to Australia, perhaps a Gulf state, that has been on the receiving end of some of the indiscriminate rocket fire from Iran ... has asked for our assistance. I think we should consider that request, although we have to carefully consider whether or not we have the capabilities available to contribute and that it would not in any way detract from our own national interests. Patterson also called for defence spending to be increased from the 2% of GDP it was increased to by the former Coalition government. The US president, Donald Trump, has pushed Australia to ramp up spending to 3.5%, which it has so far resisted. Donald Trump’s dramatic announcement about the granting by Australia of asylum to five Iranian women footballers was the big breaking news of the night. Trump said he had spoken to Anthony Albanese who had told him the news but added that other members of the team felt they had to return home. We are expecting Tony Burke, the home affairs minister, to give a statement about the women shortly in Brisbane, when we can hope that he will clarify the situation. In the meantime, here’s our news story: The European Union will sign defence partnerships with Australia, Iceland and Ghana in the coming days, Reuters has reported EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas saying on Monday. “There are many other interested countries knocking at our door,” Kallas added in a speech in Brussels. You can read more about the EU’s shift to, in the words of the EU chief, Ursula von der Leyen, “a more realistic and interest-driven foreign policy” here: Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer, with the top overnight stories before Krishani Dhanji takes up the running. Donald Trump’s dramatic announcement about the granting by Australia of asylum to five Iranian women footballers was the big breaking news of the night. We’ll have the latest in a moment. The ASX share market is expected to open down another 0.5% this morning after a fall in stocks in Europe and the US overnight on the back of continued war in the Middle East and surging oil prices. More coming up, including the threat of higher interest rates.
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