News and politics recap: Albanese says Liberals, Nationals, One Nation a coalition after escalator trip

We are wrapping up another day of our live coverage of Australia’s news and politics.

Thank you for following our blog updates. Join us again tomorrow as we bring you the latest news and events as they happen.

In the meantime, read the latest edition of The Nightly here.

The widow of former Labor strategist Tim Picton has honoured her late husband as a man who “lived his life with remarkable intensity” in an emotional speech to unveil a new scholarship in his name.

The 36-year-old had died after injuries sustained in an alleged “coward” punch attack outside a Perth nightclub in late December.

Priya Brown was joined by their four-year-old daughter Charlotte and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on stage at Labor’s 50th National Conference on Thursday to announce the new scholarship.

The award will be targeted at the next generation of Labor campaign leaders to allow them to go on exchange and undertake other personal development opportunities.

“I know Tim would have been deeply humbled by it,” Ms Brown said.

Read the full story here.

An Australian law professor associated with the United Nations Human Rights Council has been referred to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio for calling for the arrest of US President Donald Trump and US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and attacking Israel while accepting $200,000 in funding from the Chinese government.

Ben Saul, who holds the Challis Chair of International Law at Sydney University, has “repeatedly used his mandate” as the UN special rapporteur on human rights and counter-terrorism “to undermine US counterterrorism policy”, Republican Congressman Joe Wilson wrote to Mr Rubio on Tuesday.

“I write to urge the Administration to take action regarding additional United Nations Special Rapporteurs by conducting a review to examine whether any should be sanctioned for abusing their UN mandates to advance campaigns that target the United States and its allies,” the letter from the long-time the South Carolina congressman representative said.

Sydney University, which was criticised last week in the anti-Semitism royal commission over an anti-Israel encampment during the Israel-Hamas war, offered fulsome support for its academic, who is not paid for the UN role.

Read the full story here.

Anthony Albanese has held his first call with new UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham after the resignation of Sir Keir Starmer.

Beyond congratulating Mr Burnham for his new appointment to 10 Downing Street, the Prime Minister discussed their shared commitment to the AUKUS pact, boosting trade and economic investment, according to a read out of their conversation.

The duo also spoke about Australia’s under-16s social media age ban which the UK have expressed intentions to follow but strengthen, as well as the risks and opportunities AI delivers.

They also discussed serious challenges including the impacts of the Middle East conflict, as well as lighter topics like their shared passion for Rugby League.

Anthony Albanese has invited new British Prime Minister Andy Burnham to Australia as the pair discussed AUKUS and trade relations between the countries.

Mr Burnham was sworn in as Great Britain’s Prime Minister earlier in the week, after Sir Keir Starmer announced his resignation.

He is Britain’s sixth Prime Minister in a decade.

Mr Albanese offered his congratulations to the new Prime Minister via phone call, as the pair discussed AUKUS, the Middle East war, and the UK’s plan to implement a social media ban for children under 16.

Senior Australian military officials have snubbed a celebration of the People’s Liberation Army held at the Chinese embassy as strategic tensions between both nations continue to simmer following Beijing’s missile test in the Pacific this month.

The Nightly can reveal uniformed representatives from the United States, New Zealand as well as several Asian and Middle Eastern nations gathered in Canberra on Thursday for the private event marking the 99th anniversary of the founding of the PLA.

At the same time Foreign Minister Penny Wong has used a speech in the Philippines to warn China that Australia and other neighbouring nations will not be bullied by its “provocative” actions, after its involvement in another “destabilising and dangerous” incident this week.

Her comments follow another confrontation between the China Coast Guard and the Philippine Navy in the South China Sea on Monday, which has drawn criticism from Australia and other nations.

Diplomatic tensions between Australia and its largest trading partner have also been steadily growing since a PLA-Navy submarine test fired a nuclear-capable missile into the South Pacific earlier this month.

Read the full story here.

The Liberal’s Jane Hume has labelled the Federal Government’s plan for a specialised workplace court as “bureaucracy” with no detail.

Employment Minister Amanda Rishworth announced the plan to form the specialised court to bypass Fair Work Commission cases to the Federal Court earlier on Thursday afternoon in Adelaide.

Ms Hume, who is the shadow Employment and Industrial Relations Minister, has dismissed the plan as “just a media release” that would complicate legal proceedings.

“Why don’t we simplify the system rather than create a new court and create a new bureaucracy?,” Ms Hume asked on the ABC.

“(Amanda Rishworth) says she’s going to refine the detail, but there is no detail. There’s just a media release at this stage.”

The Australian is reporting a group of anti-Israel activists have gathered outside the national Labor Party conference in Adelaide, confronting politicians as they left the building.

Reports say protesters shouted at the politicians, including “shame” and “how many Palestinian kids have to die until you will leave the Labor Party?”.

It is believed the ALP will announce its official stance on Israel and Palestine at the weekend.

The parents of an Australian doctor who joined the Islamic State have spoken to 7NEWS about their shock at learning he is still alive and the “anger” they have towards their son.

Tareq Kamleh, nicknamed by the world’s media as ‘Doctor Jihad’, was a 30-year-old paediatrician living in Perth, but went to the Middle East in 2015, joined ISIS and featured in propaganda videos for the terrorist group.

It was widely believed he had been killed in a battle in Syria in 2017.

But about four weeks ago, Imad Kamleh received a call from Red Cross who said his son was alive and in prison in Baghdad.

It has since been revealed Tareq Kamleh is among 13 Australian men in the prison, linked with ISIS, now hoping to return to Australia.

“It was a shock for us,” said Kamleh senior.

Read the full story here.

Origin Energy has revealed details of a data breach after an alleged hacker claimed to have stolen personal details from millions of customers on Wednesday.

In a statement released on Thursday afternoon, the major Australian energy provider confirmed there had been “unauthorised access and disclosure” to some of its customer’s personal information.

Origin says customers’ names, dates of birth, phone numbers, and account information were among the impacted data.

The last four digits of credit card numbers and bank accounts were also stolen.

Read the full story here.