Australian news and politics live: Ley denies numerology as reason for name change, Albanese refuses US beef

New Liberal leader Sussan Ley has denied she added an extra “S” to her first name when she was younger due to a numerology theory it would bring her success.

It’s despite explicitly telling The Australian newspaper in 2015 that was the reason for the extra “S”.

“It was a flippant remark that I made to a journalist,” Ms Ley said.

“It’s actually not the reason. It was something I did during my rebel teenage years.

“And, you know, I went through a punk phase in those years and added the extra S. So, people have been fascinated by the numerology angle, but it’s actually not correct.”

The Government has welcomed the release on bail of Australian engineer Robert Pether from an Iraqi jail after four years.

Mr Pether, 49, who had been living in Ireland, was helping design Baghdad’s central bank when he and Egyptian colleague, Khaled Zaghloul, were jailed after a contract dispute between their employer and the Central Bank of Iraq.

They were sentenced in 2021 to five years in jail and fined $18 million on fraud charges. Both deny the charges and insist on their innocence.

“I know the personal toll Mr Pether’s detention has taken on him and his family and hope this news brings a measure of relief after years of distress,” said Foreign Minister Penny Wong.

“While Mr Pether remains subject to legal proceedings in Iraq, this is a positive development and follows persistent Australian Government advocacy over many years,” she said, adding that the case had been raised over 200 times and at the highest levels.

Australia has signed a new long-range precision strike missile (PrSM) deal with the United States, Defence Minister Richard Marles said on Friday.

“The Albanese Government’s investment in the Precision Strike Missile will expand and accelerate land-based long-range strike capabilities,” he said.

“This will enable deterrence against potential threats and ensure the Australian Defence Force is equipped to meet our strategic circumstances and keep Australians safe.”

The new cooperative program with the US provides the ADF access to PrSM munitions and provides options for future domestic manufacturing and maintenance of PrSM in Australia.

PrSM is a next generation surface-to-surface missile that can be fired from High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HiMARS) launch vehicles.

The signing of the agreement comes as the US steps up demands on Australia to hike its defence budget to 3.5 per cent of GDP.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has taken talkback questions on ABC Melbourne this morning, including from caller Lucy who said she was disappointed one of the Government’s first acts after the election was to approve the extension of the North West Shelf gas processing plant.

The Prime Minister pointed out that decision was made under the existing environmental rules, which business and green groups alike believe are outdated and not fit for the modern era.

“We do want a national change, reform of the environment act, including with a national environmental protection agency,” he said.

Mr Albanese reiterated that the North West Shelf plant operates under the safeguard mechanism, which means it has to cut or offset increasing levels of emissions every year.

Police say their job is not over in the investigation into the alleged murder of Pheobe Bishop, they still need to bring her home.

Speaking after the arrest of the 17-year-old’s housemates on Thursday, detective Craig Mansfield said police believed Phoebe’s body had been moved more than once after she was killed.

James Wood, 34, and Tanika Bromley, 33, were charged with one count each of murder and two counts each of interfering with a corpse on Thursday night.

Pheobe was last seen on May 15. She failed to board a flight to WA to visit her boyfriend and neither she nor her luggage have been seen since.

“Whilst this part of our investigation has culminated in the arrest, we are we are not finished with this investigation,” Detective Mansfield said.

Read the latest update from police.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has firmly rejected any suggestion that Australia might relax its biosecurity laws to allow US beef imports as part of ongoing negotiations over US President Donald Trump’s trade tariffs.

Speaking ahead of his first face-to-face meeting with Mr Trump at the G7, Albanese stressed that Australia’s restrictions on beef imports are based on serious concerns about disease risks and would remain in place, even for cattle raised in countries like Mexico or Canada before being processed in the US.

“No, we will not change or compromise any of the issues regarding biosecurity, full stop, exclamation mark. It’s simply not worth it. So it’s that simple,” Mr Albanese told ABC Radio Melbourne on Friday morning.

The Prime Minister also dismissed suggestions that anyone in his cabinet mimics Mr Trump, saying, “We don’t do that. We’re respectful.”

Liberal Senator for Tasmania and Shadow Health Minister Jonathon Duniam, says his party still has a path to victory if the state heads to another election after Premier Jeremy Rockliff lost a no-confidence vote in parliament.

Speaking on ABC News Breakfast, Duniam acknowledged the federal Liberals’ poor showing in Tasmania at the last federal election, where they failed to win a single lower house seat.

However, he argued the state Liberals can regain trust: “There’s a chance that if this election does come to pass, that the Liberal Party can actually go out and make sure they are listening to the people of Tasmania and responding to their needs.”

“We’ve got to make sure we’re focused on what Tasmanians want, and if we do that, we can earn their trust again.”

A defiant Jeremy Rockliff has vowed to fight and win an early Tasmanian election, after political brinkmanship with Opposition Leader Dean Winter spiralled in parliament and produced a shock snap poll.

It’s not yet clear when the election will fall, with Mr Rockliff seeking to convene parliament next week to pass an emergency budget bill.

Also caught up in the chaos is the billion-dollar Hobart waterfront stadium, and by extension the Tasmania Devils AFL team.

After two days of lengthy debate, Mr Rockliff lost a no-confidence motion in parliament on Thursday, which by convention demands his resignation.

Before the vote, he told Mr Winter, the Labor leader, that should the vote succeed, he would seek an election - just 15 months after the last state poll.

See more.

The Health Minister has defended the government’s approach to US beef imports as trade talks with the Trump administration heat up.

With the US imposing a 10 per cent tariff on Australian beef and pushing for greater access for American beef, including meat from cattle raised in Canada or Mexico but processed in the US, the Albanese government is reportedly weighing changes to biosecurity laws to secure an exemption.

“We will be making a decision on the national interest, as you would expect us to,” Mr Butler told Sunrise.

“We won’t compromise our biosecurity laws either. This is US beef that’s raised in Canada or Mexico, not cattle raised in the US itself but then brought into America, slaughtered there and proposed for export.”

Butler insisted, “This will be a decision taken on its merits, not for convenience, not to get a deal.” He clarified, “Our biosecurity officials have been reviewing that question to see whether that situation complies with our very strict biosecurity laws.”

Liberal Senator Jane Hume has sharply criticised the government’s proposed changes to superannuation tax, warning they could hurt many Australians in the long run.

Under the plan, the tax rate on super balances over $3 million would double, but the $3 million threshold won’t rise with inflation or wages.

Ms Hume told Sunrise on Friday morning, “If you’re an average 20-year-old today earning an average wage, you could end up paying this higher tax by the time you retire because the threshold stays the same while your super grows.”

She added, “It’s a deliberate design feature to not index the tax threshold. That way, more and more people will be caught up every year.”