Chinese invasion of Taiwan could be ‘imminent’, Pentagon chief warns
Pete Hegseth made the remarks at an annual security forum in Singapore as the Trump administration spars with China on trade, technology and strategic global influence.
Politics
‘Not the act of a friend’: Australia fumes over Trump’s steel tariff call
Don Farrell flags meeting, brokered by ambassador Kevin Rudd, with US trade representative in Paris to ‘coolly and calmly argue for the removal of these tariffs’.
Who will bring the ACT watchdog to heel?
The ACT Integrity Commission attempted to slander me, and the journalism of this newspaper, when writing its Operation Juno report. Ultimately it failed. This is the untold story.
Time and training could be the making of Ley’s new team
The future for the Coalition looks bleak but, as George W. Bush famously said, you’d be wise to ‘misunderestimate’ it.
Senior Lib quizzed on chauffeur
A senior Victorian Liberal MP has demanded the party’s deputy leader Sam Groth explain himself after it was revealed the former tennis star used her taxpayer-funded chauffeur to drive him and his wife home following a day out at the Australian Open.
Call to arm: US in direct defence spending plea
US Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth has issued a direct call for Australia to lift defence spending in face-to-face talks with Richard Marles.
Turnout down as informal vote rises
The voter turnout in the 2025 federal election at 90.67 per cent is the second lowest in 100 years with 1.6 million eligible voters opting not to vote.
From shop floor to federal cabinet, minister recalls workplace lessons
Fostering more co-operative workplaces has been identified by Amanda Rishworth as a central goal as she reveals plans for her new industrial relations portfolio.
Children in care need ‘action, not reaction’, says Kerrynne Liddle
Senator Kerrynne Liddle, an Arrernte woman from Central Australia, argues that prevention rather than reaction must become the focus in child safety.
PM’s 2030 target on life support as emissions go up
Australia’s carbon footprint rose slightly last year driven by a 2.2 per cent increase in the electricity sector, complicating Labor’s plan of adopting a new and more ambitious 2035 target to reduce emissions.
Tingle’s parting shot at Coalition
Veteran journalist Laura Tingle used her final appearance as political editor for 7.30 to unleash on the now ‘irrelevant’ Coalition.
Ley’s David v Goliath moment as Lib veteran leads inexperienced team
Sussan Ley will lead one of the most inexperienced shadow ministries in modern history, with only 39 per cent of her picks previously serving as cabinet ministers.
Fourth senator for One Nation
One Nation has secured a fourth Senate seat, putting its representation in the upper house on par with the Nationals.
Gender spat at Labor headquarters
A triumphant Queensland Labor – fresh from the party’s barnstorming May 3 victory – needs to find a new state secretary to replace outgoing Kate Flanders. So what’s the problem? The preferred candidate is a bloke.
‘I’ll go after Libs for every cent’, says Deeming’s bankroller
Property developer Hilton Grugeon says he will pay whatever it takes to pursue John Pesutto’s donors, should the former Victorian Liberal leader be unable to pay his $2.3m costs bill.
Industry captains pool their resources
Concerns over softening private capital expenditure and growing red tape have brought 23 peak industry bodies together to plan a co-ordinated response on productivity.
Touching eulogy on female strength by a newly minted leader to her doting mum
Michael McCormack and Barnaby Joyce have joined Liberal figures in supporting Sussan Ley at the funeral of her late mother, whom she lauded for helping lead the way for strong women.
‘Simple farmer’ was a steady hand who helped save Nats
During more than two decades in Canberra, Peter Nixon was rewarded with ministerial appointments under five prime ministers. He has died aged 97.
Ley to farewell ‘extraordinary’ mum
Sussan Ley will farewell her late mum, who the Liberal Leader credited with teaching her ‘the values of resilience, self-reliance and persistence’.
One Nation picks up fourth senate seat; Truth, treaty still on ALP’s agenda: Dodson
One Nation has won the sixth senate seat in NSW, propelling Warwick Stacey to the upper house and bringing its senate total to four; Indigenous leader Pat Dodson says he’s ‘encouraged’ by Labor signals on the Uluru Statement.
‘Keep tariffs off for the sake of the world – and Australia’
The lawyer who ran the successful case against Donald Trump’s sweeping levies describes them as a ‘massive, illegal power grab’.
‘Indigenous not same as disadvantage’, says Liddle
Indigenous is not a byword for disadvantage and much of the Left’s ‘truth-telling’ ignores the nation’s many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander success stories, the Liberal Party’s new voice on Aboriginal affairs warns.
Capital expenditure crash: it’s a distress signal, Jim
Jim Chalmers’ hopes of a recovery in the business sector have been dealt a blow after private investment recorded its biggest annual contraction since 2020, in a shock to economists.
Invitation and exhortation: ‘go to Israel and see for yourself, Albanese’
Senior Australian Jewish leader Mark Leibler has urged Anthony Albanese to agree to the Israeli President’s request that he visit the country, saying it would give the PM a fresh perspective on the Gaza conflict.
Super tax to cruel Labor’s run-up to the 2028 election
Assessments for Labor’s unrealised capital gains tax are likely to hit more than 80,000 people just in time for the next federal election, encouraging opponents to start campaigns against it now.
One Nation secures Senate seat
One Nation has secured the sixth Senate spot in Western Australia through the ‘dark power’ of preferences, as Pauline Hanson’s conservative party bucks the national trend.
Energy industry wary of Queensland renewables reforms
The energy industry is concerned about the suitability of the Crisafulli government’s renewable energy reforms, fearing additional red tape and council interference will affect project viability.
Albanese fires back at ASPI in defence spat
The PM escalates Labor’s campaign against the taxpayer-funded institute, attacking its credibility after it warned a refusal to boost defence funding had produced a ‘paper’ military unprepared for conflict.
Shadow ministry reveal earns Sussan Ley ‘enemies’
Conservatives who voted for the Opposition Leader have expressed disappointment with her decision to demote many of their colleagues.
Australian universities ready to embrace ‘academic refugees’
Australian universities ‘stand ready’ to support Chinese students expelled from the US as the Trump administration ‘aggressively revokes visas’.
Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/page/4