Perth rents have risen 71.9 per cent since start of pandemic
Good evening Perth. Thanks for following along today.
We leave you with this somewhat disquieting fact: of all the places rents have skyrocketed since the start of the pandemic, Perth’s seen far and away the biggest rise across the capital cities.
Perth’s soared 71.9 per cent, to hit a median $550 a week.
Sydney’s rose 38.5 per cent to a median $720 a week, Melbourne’s 27.9 per cent to $550 (now same as Perth) and Brisbane 53.8 per cent to $600.
The median asking rent for units across the combined capital cities hit $630 a week in the June quarter, Domain figures show, up 40 per cent from $450 in March 2020.
Those of us with a secure roof over our heads tonight have plenty to be grateful for.
We’ll be back here tomorrow for a fresh-baked batch of news. Until then, good night.
Both South32 and forest protectors to appeal EPA call on jarrah forest mining
By Peter Milne
South32 will slash $830 million off the value of its alumina business after WA’s environmental watchdog recommended conditions that the diversified miner says threaten the long-term viability of its $2-billion-a-year operation in the state.
The Perth-based diversified miner’s shares tumbled almost 13 per cent on the news as it said it would appeal for less onerous conditions.
South32 mines bauxite at Boddington, 130 kilometres south-east of Perth.
“Several of the recommended conditions go beyond reasonable measures,” the miner said in a statement.
The WA Environment Protection Authority imposed the conditions after concerns were raised about mining in Western Australia’s jarrah forests. South32 plans to mine 3855 hectares of forest to continue supplying bauxite to its Worsley alumina refinery near Collie for another 15 years.
However, a major environmental group is pushing for stricter protections.
WA Forest Alliance senior campaigner Jason Fowler says the group will also lodge an appeal with the WA Appeals Convenor pushing for better defined management of risks posed by South32’s mining.
“After 38 years of strip mining the northern jarrah forest, South32 have only begun to rehabilitate 42 per cent of cleared land and have provided no evidence that their rehabilitation is effective,” he said.
Woodside’s push to be natural gas ‘powerhouse’ after $1.8b deal
By Nick Toscano
Woodside, the largest Australian oil and gas company, has agreed to buy a huge liquefied gas export terminal under construction in the United States, doubling down on demand for the fuel even as the world tackles climate change.
Perth-based Woodside on Monday said it had struck a $US1.2 billion ($1.8 billion) deal to buy all of Tellurian’s stock and gain ownership of its Gulf Coast Driftwood liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, boosting its foothold in the Atlantic Basin.
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The project, while yet to receive a final financial go-ahead, has already secured permits to produce 27.6 million metric tons a year of LNG – natural gas that has been super-chilled to the point that it turns into a liquid and can be loaded onto special ships.
At full capacity, Driftwood would be able to produce more than double the current LNG output from Woodside’s LNG assets in Australia.
“The acquisition of Tellurian and its Driftwood LNG development opportunity positions Woodside to be a global LNG powerhouse,” Woodside chief executive Meg O’Neill said.
Perth nurse who tried to kill ill husband collapses after hearing sentence
A former children’s nurse who was found guilty of attempting to murder her ill husband by injecting him with insulin has been sentenced to nine years in prison, collapsing as she heard the news in the Supreme Court of WA this afternoon.
Wendy Sym, 63, was suffering from carer’s burnout and had “hit the end of her tether” after caring for her husband who was suffering from dementia when she injected him with a lethal dose of the diabetes drug in January 2021.
Wendy Ruth Sym was found guilty of attempting to murder her husband, who she cared for.
Kenneth Sym was in Joondalup Hospital at the time of the incident and survived after medical intervention but died a few months later of unrelated issues.
His wife of 39 years was later charged with attempting to kill him after a nurse found a used vial of insulin in the bin of a toilet on the ward where Kenneth was admitted following a dangerously low blood sugar episode that left him unresponsive. He was a diabetic but had not been prescribed insulin.
How this Perth invention could help reduce concussions in sport
A Perth inventor has spent the last 12 years perfecting a helmet design he hopes will reduce the risk of concussion in contact sports.
Award-winning designer, Graeme Attey, told Radio 6PR he began designing the helmet after seeing two players suffer a sickening head clash during a game of AFL football.
“I thought this is crazy, I wanted to do something about it and try and stop these concussions that, I thought, were unnecessary,” he said.
The unique design of the helmet features balls which not only absorb the impact of a hit, but also roll with the helmet itself to minimise the direct acceleration to the head.
“It doesn’t matter what angle the impact strikes, the ball always has those same properties and in addition, it rolls around … within the lattice (of the helmet),” Attey said.
Attey said he had been liaising with the AFL to trial the helmets.
“It’s our full intention to start trialling them with different players and different clubs and gradually rolling these out in the AFL, hopefully in a fairly short space of time,” he said.
Prison officer in charge ‘not fit’ to face Dodd inquest
By Aaron Bunch
The senior officer in charge when an Indigenous teenager fatally self-harmed in custody has been excused from appearing at a high-profile inquest amid fears for his health.
Cleveland Dodd was found unresponsive inside a cell in a troubled youth wing of a high-security adult prison in the early hours of October 12, 2023.
Cleveland Dodd, 16, (inset) died after self-harming in his cell at the youth Unit 18 wing of Perth’s maximum-security Casuarina Prison.
The 16-year-old was taken to hospital in a critical condition and died about one week later, causing outrage and grief in the community.
The inquest’s first sitting in April heard senior officer Kyle Mead-Hunter was found partially clothed in a darkened office by a lower-ranking officer after Cleveland was found in distress.
He was on duty despite an earlier finding made against him for breaching a lawful order by the Department of Justice professional standards division.
Mr Mead-Hunter was expected to give evidence on Monday but Coroner Philip Urquhart said he had been excused after the court received a report from his psychologist.
It stated Mr Mead-Hunter was being treated for post-traumatic stress disorder and the symptoms render him “incapable of tolerating extended periods of questioning”.
“The psychologist did not expect Mr Mead-Hunter would be fit to attend the court within the next six months,” he said.
Mr Urquhart said the report said Mr Mead-Hunter’s upcoming appearance at the inquest had caused his health to deteriorate.
“I’m left with no option other than to excuse Mr Mead-Hunter from the summons he has received to attend the court to give oral evidence at this inquest,” he said.
“I have no doubt that Cleveland’s family will be disappointed with that decision.”
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WA leading nation in new house demand
By Sarah Brookes
Despite renewed government efforts to boost housing supply, it is expected to take until the latter half of the decade before housing supply catches up with soaring demand according to a new report released today.
Oxford Economics Australia Building in Australia report author Timothy Hibbert said while FY2025 will remain soft, national total building construction is set to rise from FY2026 and hit a record level of activity by the end of the decade.
He said WA was primed to outperform the other states over the next five years.
“While we will continue to experience a dwelling stock deficiency, activity will inevitably recover in the residential sector,” he said.
“A bifurcation has emerged by market. Western Australia is at the front of the pack, with leads for new house demand including land lot sales and lending for new construction well up on a year ago.”
Hibbert said the backlog of work pointed to home completions holding up over 2024, but strong nation leading population growth in WA would continue to power underlying housing demand.
Oxford Economics Australia estimated a significant dwelling stock deficiency of 146,000 at June 2024, and expected this will grow further to 164,000 by June 2027.
Man ‘armed with knife’ at Perth Train Station detained; Kelmscott teen still fighting for life
To overnight news now and a man allegedly wielding a knife and acting erratically has been restrained by security guards at Perth Train Station.
WA Police said the incident occurred around 5.30pm yesterday when the man was approached by Public Transport Authority transit officers.
It will be alleged the man lifted his shirt, revealing he was armed with two knives, before trying to run away.
Several guards detained him before police arrived and arrested the man.
A 16-year-old boy is in an induced coma after being stabbed during an altercation.Credit: Police Media
A 31-year-old man has been charged with possessing an article with intent to cause fear that someone will be injured and is due to appear in the Perth Magistrates Court next month.
And a 16-year-old boy stabbed in Kelmscott on Friday is still fighting for his life in hospital this morning after being involved in an altercation with a group of teenagers.
Police are also stilling searching for two people they believe may be able to assist with their investigations into the incident.
