As it happened: King Charles to visit Australia; China revealed as country behind spy chief’s unnamed ‘A-Team’

That’s the live blog all wrapped up for another day.

To finish up, here are the top stories we covered.

• Prime Minister Anthony Albanese held discussions with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on the sidelines of the ASEAN-Australia special summit, and announced new deals to boost bilateral co-operation on issues including cybersecurity and nuclear non-proliferation.
• They also discussed the possibility of re-opening the probe into the disappearance of flight MH370, as the ten-year anniversary approaches.
• The chair of an inquiry into the handling of the Bruce Lehrmann trial has been found by a court to have held apprehended bias against former ACT top prosecutor Shane Drumgold due to extensive contact with a columnist with The Australian.
• Despite his recent cancer diagnosis, King Charles is reportedly planning a trip to Australia for later this year, with the Australian Republican Movement already planning to utilise the trip to gain support for their cause.
• ASIO Director-General Mike Burgess has hit back at calls for him to identify the “traitor” ex-politician whom he accused of betraying the nation in last week’s threat assessment.

Thanks for reading, the live blog will be back first thing tomorrow.

New regulations from Australia’s competition and consumer watchdog would “open the floodgates to scams”, according to telcos including TPG, Telstra and Optus, who are arguing against the proposed changes in a rare show of unity.

SMS scams are skyrocketing, with statistics from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) showing that in 2022 Australians lost a record $3.1 billion to scams – up 80 per cent from the year before – with SMS by far the method most preferred by scammers. Australians collectively lost $1.3 million a day to scams last year, according to the ACCC.

Telcos say the ACCC’s regulations will likely lead to an increase in the volume of scam SMS traffic coming onto their mobile networks.Credit: Istock

Those figures are set to significantly worsen according to Australian telcos, who are speaking out against draft regulations from the ACCC that would force them to provide open access to their networks for the delivery of bulk SMS messages.

The proposal effectively means mobile operators would face a “must-carry” obligation as well as regulated pricing on mass SMS broadcasts, changes the telcos say would lead to a rise in SMS scam traffic and stymie recent progress in restricting scammers from accessing their networks.

Click here to read more.

Efforts to eradicate deadly fire ants are on a fast track to failure because of political self-interest, ignorance and a lack of cash, an inquiry has been told.

Senators have heard damning evidence about Australia’s attempts to suppress and squash the pest since it invaded Queensland 23 years ago.

Fire ants pose a huge threat to outdoor living, tourism, agriculture and native ecosystems.Credit: Barry Rice/Supplied

Red imported fire ants have recently spread into northern NSW and there are fears Australia could go the way of the United States and China where it’s entrenched and costs billions of dollars every year in agricultural loses.

But agricultural losses are just the tip of the iceberg, the inquiry heard today.

If Australia loses the eradication battle, native ecosystems face being overrun, species could disappear, the health system will face a new burden from swarming bites becoming commonplace and electrical infrastructure will come under attack.

A parade of experts, former eradication program insiders and stakeholders have detailed a litany of failures that have plagued the eradiation.

Professor Helen Scott-Orr chaired a review of the national fire ant eradication plan and in 2021 submitted a report calling for a radical and urgent change of approach.

It warned eradication would not be possible under the plan and far more money was needed if Australia was to ward off ongoing losses reaching into the billions of dollars every year.

AAP

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim says he would be happy to re-open the investigation into the disappearance of flight MH370 if compelling new evidence emerges, while stopping short of backing an immediate resumption of the probe.

Ahead of the 10-year anniversary of the flight’s disappearance this Friday, Malaysian Transport Minister Anthony Loke said at a remembrance service over the weekend: “As far as the Malaysian government is concerned, we are committed to justice and the search must go on.”

This would be the first major search for MH370 since American company Ocean Infinity tried – and failed – to find the Malaysia Airlines plane in 2018.

A woman walks past a banner filled with signatures and well-wishes for the missing Malaysia Airlines jetliner MH370 at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in the days after the plane went missing.Credit: AP

Loke added that cost would not be an issue for the Malaysian government, buoying the hopes of relatives of the 239 people who were on board the flight.

Speaking on the sidelines of the ASEAN-Australia special summit in Melbourne, Ibrahim said that the flight’s disappearance had affected so many lives that anything that “could be done must be done”.

“If there is compelling evidence that it needs to be reopened, we will certainly be happy to reopen it,” he told reporters.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said world leaders “deeply regret the aircraft has been unable to be located” despite past searches of the area.

“It will be a very difficult time for people because they are not given the certainty that would come with a successful search mission,” he said.

“It is a difficult time for our friends in Malaysia. We certainly acknowledge that.”

Following a meeting at Government House in Melbourne, Albanese and Ibrahim announced new deals to boost bilateral co-operation on issues including cybersecurity and nuclear non-proliferation.

“Malaysia is one of Australia’s oldest and most important friends in the region,” Albanese said.

“Australia stands ready to play a bigger role in Malaysia’s pursuit of economic opportunity, investment, development and growth.”

The Chinese government said Monday it is eliminating an annual news conference by the premier that was one of the only times a top Chinese leader took questions from the news media.

Lou Qinlan, the spokesperson for the National People’s Congress, said on the eve of the opening of the annual session of the legislature that Premier Li Qiang would not hold a news conference at the conclusion of the meeting, as has been customary.

China’s Premier Li Qiang.Credit: AAP

Lou said that the congress would increase opportunities for journalists to ask questions of government ministers and other officials, as well as with the nearly 3,000 delegates to the congress.

“If there are no special circumstances, the premier’s press conference will not be held in the next few years,” he said, without further explanation.

The weeklong meeting of the largely ceremonial congress, which opens Tuesday, is being closely watched for any indications of what steps the government will take to boost the struggling economy. Qiang, the premier, will present an annual report at the opening that is expected to include the government’s economic growth target for 2024.

AP

The ACT’s former top prosecutor, Shane Drumgold, says he is delighted by the court’s decision today.

Earlier, ACT Supreme Court judge Stephen Kaye delivered a legal win for Drumgold after finding the chair of the public inquiry into the handling of the Lehrmann case, Walter Sofronoff, held an apprehended bias against him.

Former ACT director of public prosecutions Shane Drumgold.Credit: Rhett Wyman

“I am delighted with the court’s decision today, and I am looking forward to moving on with my life,” he said.

The judge ordered the ACT government pay Drumgold’s legal costs.

In a press conference with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim was asked if Malaysia is concerned about the rapid militarisation being seen both through the AUKUS agreement and in China.

Ibrahim insisted that Malaysia could be both a friend to the West and to China in his response:

We are an independent nation, we are fiercely independent, we do not want to be dictated by any force, so it remains to be an important friend to the US and Europe and here in Australia, they should not preclude us from being friendly to one of our important neighbours, precisely China. I was the context. If they have problems with China, they should not impose it upon us. We do not have a problem with China.”

Australia and Malaysia have agreed to a range of initiatives related to maritime emissions and the digital economy.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim at a welcoming ceremony at Government House, Melbourne today.Credit: Joe Armao

In a joint statement, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim outlined the new commitments between the two nations. They said:

The South-East Asian Economic Strategy highlighted the digital economy as a priority growth area for Australian business in Malaysia. In response to this opportunity, leaders announced a new agreement to encourage collaboration between Australian and Malaysian technology companies, which will boost two-way investment.

Leaders also welcomed new cooperation on maritime decarbonisation and clean energy which will reduce shipping emissions and drive co-operation on renewable energy uptake.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim held a press conference in Melbourne.

You can watch the stand-up back here:

An elderly man is dead, a woman has been rushed to hospital and another man is in custody after a police hunt that forced residents in Perth’s northern suburbs to take shelter indoors.

Police and St John Ambulance were called to the suburb of Greenwood just after 8am today after receiving reports a man in his 80s had been seriously injured.

Police have cordoned off the scene at Mattison Way in Greenwood.Credit: Connor McGoverne, Nine News Perth.

The man died at the scene, while a woman in her 70s was taken to Royal Perth Hospital with multiple stab wounds. She remains in a stable condition.

WA Police apprehended a 19-year-old man in a neighbouring about 9.20am.

The arrest came less than an hour after authorities issued a warning to residents in Greenwood to remain indoors amid news of a “serious incident” allegedly involving a man armed with a knife.

Read more from the team at WA Today here.