00:00:03
Speaker 1: Two Australians have been identified as victims of last week's deadly train collision in Spain, according to local authorities. Spanish officials have identified all 69 victims from last week's train crash. The identities of the Australians have been communicated to their families and DFAT is providing assistance. The rail accident was Spain's second highest high-speed train collision this year. Mortgage holders are reeling after the Reserve Bank raised interest rates to an 18-year high. The cash rate has been increased to 4.85%. RBA Governor Michelle Bullock warns it will feel like a recession for the next year and admits Australians will feel poorer.
00:00:45
Speaker 2: Our central forecasts do not see us going into recession, but it does see growth slowing. It is going to make people feel like it's a recession because they feel poorer. Their spending can't grow very quickly because their incomes aren't growing very quickly. And this is a manifestation of the lack of productivity growth and the fact that we've had this massive supply shock imposed upon us and we're all poorer.
00:01:10
Speaker 1: Treasurer Jim Chalmers is blaming the Middle East conflict for the higher rate.
00:01:16
Speaker 3: Middle East is a big factor in the uptick in inflation. It's the primary driver. We take responsibility for our part of the fight against inflation. We're helping with the cost of living in a really responsible way at the same time as we manage the budget responsibly. You know that budgets aren't the primary driver of prices in our economy, but responsible economic management does play a helpful role. That's why we found $ 180 billion in savings.
00:01:46
Speaker 1: The Coalition is blaming the rate rise on out of control government spending.
00:01:51
Speaker 4: The interest rate increase today was not about oil prices or a war in the Middle East. It's not about those things. It's about government spending being out of control. And four and a half years now, we've had a government with the foot on the accelerator, spending like drunken sailors at the same time as the Reserve Bank has been trying to get interest rates down.
00:02:13
Speaker 1: Well, a specialist security squad will be deployed to patrol polling booths in Victoria for this month's state election. As political tensions escalate, the state's Electoral Commission has recruited nearly 50 security staff. The officers will call out threatening behaviour, disinformation tactics and breaches of voters' privacy as part of a major security crackdown. Severe storms lashed a large chunk of eastern Australia, Australia yesterday, a number of storms moved over Sydney yesterday afternoon, bringing strong winds and rain. One weather system brought hail to the city's northwest and on the state's north coast. A storm left a trail of giant hailstones south of Grafton. Near Cassino, one local spotted a tornado forming and there were storms across Queensland. Two backyards resembled snowfields in the town of Miles as a result. of giant hail falling there. Thousands of residents were left without power In Brisbane and the Gold Coast, Maryborough on the Fraser Coast also received hail. A legal showdown over Australia's teen social media ban is now underway in the High Court. Reddit is arguing the laws silence young Australians, stripping them of an important platform to share their political views. The government is defending the restrictions, saying they're designed to protect children from online harm. The case could determine whether the landmark ban stays in place.
Speaker 1: Two Australians have been identified as victims of last week's deadly train collision in Spain, according to local authorities. Spanish officials have identified all 69 victims from last week's train crash. The identities of the Australians have been communicated to their families and DFAT is providing assistance. The rail accident was Spain's second highest high-speed train collision this year. Mortgage holders are reeling after the Reserve Bank raised interest rates to an 18-year high. The cash rate has been increased to 4.85%. RBA Governor Michelle Bullock warns it will feel like a recession for the next year and admits Australians will feel poorer.
00:00:45
Speaker 2: Our central forecasts do not see us going into recession, but it does see growth slowing. It is going to make people feel like it's a recession because they feel poorer. Their spending can't grow very quickly because their incomes aren't growing very quickly. And this is a manifestation of the lack of productivity growth and the fact that we've had this massive supply shock imposed upon us and we're all poorer.
00:01:10
Speaker 1: Treasurer Jim Chalmers is blaming the Middle East conflict for the higher rate.
00:01:16
Speaker 3: Middle East is a big factor in the uptick in inflation. It's the primary driver. We take responsibility for our part of the fight against inflation. We're helping with the cost of living in a really responsible way at the same time as we manage the budget responsibly. You know that budgets aren't the primary driver of prices in our economy, but responsible economic management does play a helpful role. That's why we found $ 180 billion in savings.
00:01:46
Speaker 1: The Coalition is blaming the rate rise on out of control government spending.
00:01:51
Speaker 4: The interest rate increase today was not about oil prices or a war in the Middle East. It's not about those things. It's about government spending being out of control. And four and a half years now, we've had a government with the foot on the accelerator, spending like drunken sailors at the same time as the Reserve Bank has been trying to get interest rates down.
00:02:13
Speaker 1: Well, a specialist security squad will be deployed to patrol polling booths in Victoria for this month's state election. As political tensions escalate, the state's Electoral Commission has recruited nearly 50 security staff. The officers will call out threatening behaviour, disinformation tactics and breaches of voters' privacy as part of a major security crackdown. Severe storms lashed a large chunk of eastern Australia, Australia yesterday, a number of storms moved over Sydney yesterday afternoon, bringing strong winds and rain. One weather system brought hail to the city's northwest and on the state's north coast. A storm left a trail of giant hailstones south of Grafton. Near Cassino, one local spotted a tornado forming and there were storms across Queensland. Two backyards resembled snowfields in the town of Miles as a result. of giant hail falling there. Thousands of residents were left without power In Brisbane and the Gold Coast, Maryborough on the Fraser Coast also received hail. A legal showdown over Australia's teen social media ban is now underway in the High Court. Reddit is arguing the laws silence young Australians, stripping them of an important platform to share their political views. The government is defending the restrictions, saying they're designed to protect children from online harm. The case could determine whether the landmark ban stays in place.
