Australian news and politics live: ADF, Airservices Australia say Virgin Australia warned of China live fire

The PM has been asked about the extensive list of Peter Dutton’s decades of property deals, published in the Nine Newspapers today.

Analysis of the Liberal leader’s trades suggests he has purchased about $12 million worth of property and sold almost all of it for a combined $18 million – pocketing a tidy profit of about $6 million.

But Mr Albanese – who last year came under fire for his (mortgaged) purchase with fiancee Jodie Haydon of a $4.3 million clifftop house on the NSW Central Coast – wouldn’t be drawn on his opponent’s dealings.

“I’m making no comment about Peter Dutton’s matters, that’s a matter for him,” he told reporters.

Asked further whether the property trades passed the pub test, Mr Albanese repeated that it was a matter for Mr Dutton.

Health Department officials have admitted it “made an error” after failing to raise a warning letter of anti-Semitism in the health sector with Health Minister Mark Butler in 2023.

The letter, sent by Melbourne psychiatrist Jacqueline Rakov in October and signed by 235 health practitioners, detailed anti-Semitic sentiment among fellow medical professionals.

It came 18 months before anti-Semitic comments by nurses at Bankstown threatening to kill Israeli patients were posted online.

Under questioning from opposition health spokeswoman Anne Ruston, the department’s secretary Blair Comley conceded to Senate estimates the correspondence didn’t reach the Minister.

“To the best of our knowledge, because we have looked into it, the minister never received a copy of the letter,” he said.

“We would say that the department made an error in the way it dealt with that piece of correspondence at the time and that, if we had our time again, we wouldn’t have made that judgement as a department.

“If we look at this instance, we would say that that piece of correspondence should have been triaged differently.”

Back on the Chinese ships, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese insisted the notification from the New Zealand Defence happened “at around the same time” as Airservices Australia was told.

“We had been monitoring along with New Zealand and the New Zealand vessel of course was tailing the taskforce as well, so they were conscious and notified Defence as well,” he said when asked about the surprise live firing exercise late last week.

“New Zealand notified the Australian Defence Force, which is what we were cooperating on.

“At around the same time, there were two areas of notification. One was from the New Zealand vessels that were tailing (the Chinese ships) … that occurred around the same time as when something like this was occurring Airservices got notified.”

The senate estimates exchange tried to pin Dr Kennedy down on whether he was aware of the political repercussions of providing independent advice.

“Do you reject then that Treasury knew that this policy costing was an Opposition policy, and therefore for public consumption,” Senator Hume asked.

“We were asked to do a costing by the government with specific parameters which we did, what the government does with it after that is a matter for them,” Dr Kennedy replied.

Senator Hume suggested Treasury “rushed” the findings and used “LinkedIn articles or data source from overseas with very, very different taxation arrangements, or data source that was eight years old” in providing a work of “low reliability” that could then be used by Dr Chalmers in attacking Coalition policy.

“How much of taxpayers money was used in paying overtime to cost Coalition policy?” Senator Hume asked.

Senator Hume then brought up Dr Kennedy’s past work as an advisor to then PM Kevin Rudd.

“This is an extraordinary attack on a Treasury official,” Senator Gallagher said.

“Yes, it’s awful what you did to him,” Senator Hume retorted

“What you are doing here is disgusting and outrageous,” Senator Gallagher replied.

“Is it your assertion that Treasury has not been politicised?” Senator Hume inquired of Dr Kennedy.

Dr Kennedy defended the public service and said it “would be a real shame” if treasury officials felt they couldn’t work for political parties, mentioning he had been appointed by Malcolm Turnbull to one post and Tony Abbot to another.

“Sometimes we are put in a challenging position, we serve our advice independently. I reject that assertion Treasury has become political,” Dr Kennedy said.

“Has the Treasurer let you down?” Senator Hume asked as she was cut off for going over her allotted time.

Treasury Secretary Steven Kennedy is facing senate estimates and has been put under the grill by Shadow Minister for Finance, Senator Jane Hume over whether his department had been politicised by providing costings for the Coalition’s policy to offer tax breaks for small business entertainment.

In a fiery exchange, which has also seen Finance Minister Katy Gallagher accuse Senator Hume of “talking over the top of witnesses” and “harassment”, Dr Kennedy has been peppered with questions of why his department costed the policy, when it was outside the department’s purview.

The Coalition’s policy, which would offer tax breaks of up to $20,000 for business-related meal and entertainment expenses was released without costings, and was leapt on at the time by Treasurer Jim Chalmers as potentially costing the Budget $1.6 billion per year.

Commissioning Treasury to analyse the policy was described as an “an egregious politicisation of the public service” by Shadow Treasurer Angus Taylor. Later Mr Taylor released costings by the independent Parliamentary Budget Office showing it was “under $250 million”.

The Australian military only learned about the Chinese navy’s plans to conduct live fire exercises in the Tasman Sea after a Virgin Australia crew raised the alarm.

Defence officials have cleared up the timeline in estimates, after Airservices Australia revealed earlier this week they had learned about the exercise last Friday after a Virgin Australia pilot heard a mid-air alert.

That was at 9.58am (Canberra time). The Chinese flotilla planned to conduct live fire exercises between 9.30am and 3pm.

New Zealand was shadowing the task group at the time, and the message did not filter through to Australian defence officials until 11.01am.

The timeline, confirmed by CDF David Johnston, contradicts assertions from the Government that the ADF had not been the last to know.

Defence chief David Johnston confirmed the Australia military had not received any direct warning of the exercises ahead of time, and only found out about the drills after Airservices Australia notified them.

No live firing was witnessed, and Beijing has not breached international law - but the Australian Government has criticised China for not giving at least 24-48 hours notice.

“The absence of any advance notice to Australian authorities was a concern, notably that the limited notice provided by the PLAN could have unnecessarily increased their risk to aircraft and vessels in the area in order to best minimise disruption to aircraft and vessels,” Admiral Johnston said.

“An early promulgation of high seas firing prior to the activities would have mitigated these risks, and is a best practice approach adopted by the ADF.”

Defence officials are up before Senate estimates this morning, where the activities of a Chinese naval task group are the hot topic.

Defence chief David Johnston has confirmed the flotilla, made up of three ships, is currently 250km southwest of Hobart - within Australia’s Exclusive Economic Zone.

He’s also agreed there is a chance the vessels are being accompanied by a nuclear submarine, but says he can’t say for sure.

“I don’t know whether there is a submarine with them. It is possible. Task groups occasionally do deploy with submarines, but not always,” he said.

Liberal Senator Jane Hume has hit out at Labor over a “smear campaign” against Opposition Leader Peter Dutton.

A discussion unfolded between Senator Hume and Employment Minister Murray Watt around Labor’s questions over Mr Dutton’s share trading and property portfolio.

After hitting a disagreement Senator Hume told the Labor minister: “You are a grub.”

“All Labor know how to do... they are the grubbiest people. Murray, you are the king grub,” Senator Hume said.

“I can assure you that Peter Dutton has done nothing improper here,” Senator Hume said.

“You’re disgusting,” she later added.

As public servants worry about their futures, Labor has thrown down the gauntlet and urged the opposition to shed light on whose jobs and rights could be on the chopping block.

Though the coalition has threatened to slash the public service if it forms government, the exact details of its plan is unclear, prompting Workplace Relations Minister Murray Watt to challenge his opposition counterpart Michaelia Cash to a National Press Club debate.

“No more weasel words, no more delay, front up and tell the Australian people what you intend to do to their jobs and wages after the election,” he said.

“I challenge Michaelia Cash to come out of hiding, reveal her secret plan to cut wages and debate me.”

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Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers says trade and tariff talks with the US have not concluded after his visit to Washington DC.

“We were able to continue, but not conclude, the important discussions that President Trump and Prime Minister Albanese had around two weeks ago or so,” Dr Chalmers said at a press conference in Washington DC.

“The discussion was wide-ranging, encapsulated critical minerals, the flow of capital, but also, of course, trade and tariffs. I was able to make the case for Australia.

“When it comes to the exemption that we seek from tariffs on steel and aluminium, Australia has a different case to make than other countries who have been the focus of the administration.

“The Americans run a very substantial trade surplus with Australia. They have done since the Truman administration in the 1950s. That trade surplus is 2 to 1.

“Our products are often an input into domestic production here. Bluescope and Rio and others make big investments in the US as well.

“We’ve got a different story to tell than other countries here in Washington DC when it comes to our case, to be exempted from these tariffs on steel and on aluminium as well.”