Australian news and politics live: Sussan Ley defends ditching net-zero target, eyes gas to save on bills

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Former Liberal Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has given a scathing take on the party’s newly announced energy policy.

Mr Turnbull, who was a rather progressive Liberal Party member, resigned as leader in 2018 before a ballot selected Scott Morrison as Australia’s new PM.

“It’s Groundhog Day. They’re sending a message to most Australians that they do not take climate change seriously,” Mr Turnbull told ABC Sydney.

“They’re guaranteeing that they will marginalise their vote. It’s as though they’re worried about competing with Pauline Hanson rather than holding Anthony Albanese to account.”

Mr Turnbull said Liberal Party members have “the memory of goldfish and the dining habits of piranhas”.

“They seem to just keep on forgetting and making the same mistake again and again.”

Mr Turnbull has remained critical of many Liberal Party matters since he resigned as Prime Minister.

Sussan Ley appeared at a metals manufacturer in the electorate of Cook, in southern Sydney on Friday.

She leaned on the line that “if energy is unaffordable, everything is unaffordable”, which is similar to one that Peter Dutton used during the election.

Pushed on how the Liberals’ new energy and climate policy would bring prices down, the Opposition Leader says they will inject more electricity supply, particularly by bringing more gas into the domestic market.

“There are ways of injecting more gas into the system and that supply is critical,” she said.

“It’s a transition fuel that allows us to reduce our emissions. Right now, we’re helping the rest of the world do that because, right now, Australia is probably the second or third largest exporter of LNG.”

The Prime Minister has expressed support for the Australian Border Force after new vision emerged of fishing boats being carried on board the agency’s Ocean Shield vessel, which are eventually expected to be given to people smugglers.

Earlier this year, an investigation by The West Australian uncovered the details of the secret program, which involves asylum seekers on unseaworthy vessels being transferred to safer crayfishing boats before being turned back.

Asked on the ABC about the latest evidence of the scheme broadcast by Nine, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese would only say he backs the work of the ABF to keep borders secure.

“I support the Australian Border Force undertaking what actions they believe are necessary to secure our borders. And the Opposition, I thought, supported that. We will continue to be consistent about that,” he said.

“They undertake a range of activities which have done that, that have ensured that people who are unauthorised arrivals aren’t able to stay in Australia.”

A Gold Coast teenager has been charged with terror offences after he allegedly possessed and shared videos depicting violent acts from a prescribed terrorist organisation.

Counter terror officers with the Queensland Joint Counter Terrorism Team, consisting of AFP, Queensland Police and ASIO officers, swooped on the man’s Gold Coast home on Thursday, where they seized electronic devices that allegedly contained violent extremism material.

“During an earlier search warrant executed at the same home in April 2025, investigators seized two mobile phones, a laptop and a handwritten diary,” the counter-terror team said in a statement on Friday.

“Following a forensic analysis of the digital material, investigators will allege the devices containing videos depicting violence and propaganda material for a proscribed terrorist organisation.”

The police have charged the Pacific Pines man with four counts of using a carriage service for violent extremist material and one count of possessing or controlling violent extremist material.

Police allege the material was shared with friends and family members between January 2024 and April 2025.

Read the full story.

Anthony Albanese has accused Opposition Leader Sussan Ley of “taking Australia backwards” after “capitulating” to the Nationals on net zero.

Ms Ley has claimed that the Liberals’ plan will help drive down energy prices, which she’s accused Labor of worsening through its renewables agenda.

But the Prime Minister claimed on ABC RN Breakfast that external factors, like the wars in “Ukraine and the Middle East” were to blame for the failure to deliver cheaper power.

He added that the Liberals opening the door to extend or possibly build new coal-fired power stations “doesn’t stack up”, adding they “don’t have a plan to reduce prices”.

“They’re fundamentally dismissive of the science of climate change. We’ve seen a capitulation by the Liberal Party to the policy that was announced effectively by the National Party,” Mr Albanese said.

“People like Barnaby Joyce and Matt Canavan have essentially got their way.”

Sussan Ley was pressed about how the Coalition could say it would keep Australia as a signatory to the Paris Agreement if it was going to water down emissions reduction targets.

Under the global agreement struck in 2015 – when Tony Abbott committed Australia to it – countries have to submit nationally determined contributions, or NDCs, every five years stating their targets for cutting emissions.

The intention is for countries to cut emissions enough to limit global warming to 1.5C, or no more than 2C.

Australia has just lodged its pledge to cut emissions by 62-70 per cent by 3025, and the treaty forbids “backsliding” on such commitments.

Ms Ley insisted that it was “possible to update those commitments and to still stay within the agreement”.

“Staying in Paris is about updating those NDCs, about sitting at the table with countries and acknowledging that we do want to play our part,” she told ABC TV.

Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers has told a conference of Australia’s leading share market investors that he would back Australia as a blue-chip investment bet.

“In a world short on certainty, Australia is a reliable, secure and stable, long position,” Mr Chalmers said in a speech at the Sohn Hearts and Minds investment conference at Sydney’s Opera House.

Dr Chalmers went on to tell the investors that Australia would be a top pick as it has an excellent credit rating, strong economic growth, budget surpluses and low unemployment.

Among the investors gathered were Wilson Asset Management investment boss Geoff Wilson, Barrenjoey founder Matthew Grounds, and former US President Donald Trump adviser turned bitcoin apostle Anthony Scaramucci.

Liberal moderate Jane Hume said her party “certainly haven’t backed away from reducing emissions” despite its decision to dump net zero as a target, along with interim goals.

“They’ve simply said that they are going to deliver affordable, more reliable energy, at the same time taking a responsible approach to delivering our commitments to the Paris Agreement,” she told Sunrise.

“The most important thing now is that we return a Coalition government back onto those government benches, because unless there’s a Coalition government there, your bills will keep rising and emissions will stagnate.”

Senator Hume had argued in favour of keeping the net zero by 2050 target.

Opposition Leader Sussan Ley has done the rounds on morning TV and radio to reinforce her fresh arguments about energy prices.

“I am very firmly focussed on the future, because when I look at Australians’ electricity bills going up 40 per cent and there’ll be mums and dads watching your program this morning with the heat of summer coming on, wondering if they’ll be able to run the cooler where they need to, when they need to, and what the cost of that will be?” she said.

“This is so important and Labor has not got it right.”

Asked whether effectively adopting a Nationals policy risked the Liberals losing their identity, Ms Ley said that was “all commentary” and “I’m not interested in the commentary”.

Data from NSW regulator IPART shows median household power bills rose by almost 34 per cent between 2019 and late 2023, and have started easing since then.

In WA, which runs on a separate power grid with most elements government-owned, prices went up 8 per cent at the same time.