Midday News Bulletin 25 November 2024

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In this bulletin;
The deputy prime minister’s chief of staff launches legal action over claims she was forced out of her job;
Housing to be a key focus during parliament’s final sitting week;
And in sports, Australia’s most successful Olympian, Emma McKeon, announces her retirement.
One of the most senior women in government is launching legal action in the federal court over allegations she was ousted from her job after making a complaint about bullying.
Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles’ chief of staff, Jo Tarnawsky, went public with the claims in October, claiming she has been locked out of her office since May.
She says she is lodging the legal proceedings due to a lack of action from the government.
“Six weeks ago, I spoke out publicly to reveal what was happening to me behind closed doors. As far as I know, there has been no investigation into the behaviours I reported, nor regarding the actions taken by the deputy prime minister against me. But if the government won’t hold its own poor behaviour to account, then I will ask the courts to do that.”
The legal action is being brought against the federal government, Mr Marles and the prime minister’s chief of staff Tim Gartrell.
Ms Tarnawsky has not claimed that Richard Marles or Mr Gartrell perpetrated the alleged bullying.
Mr Marles previously told parliament he felt “deeply sad” about the situation, but could not comment further due to legal processes.
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The final sitting week for the year will have a housing focus with Labor’s two key housing policies to be brought for final votes in the Senate.
The Help to Buy shared equity scheme would see the government lend up to 40 per cent of the cost of a house to eligible buyers whilst the Build to Rent bill offers tax concession to incentivise developers to build affordable rentals.
The two housing bills have struggled to attract the support of the opposition or the Greens, with Labor knocking back fresh demands from the latter.
Housing Minister Clare O’Neil says she hopes the bills will pass this week.
“We want to see these bills get through the parliament, because there is a housing crisis on foot which is affecting the lives of millions of people. Our Parliament can do more about this, and we want that to happen this week with the passage of these two bills.”
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The Prime Minister’s Assistant Minister has condemned violence against women, and reiterated the government’s efforts to prevent this violence.
Speaking on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, Patrick Gorman says it’s completely unacceptable that once every 10 minutes a woman is killed.
“When it comes to what our government is doing, we have our national plan to end violence. It has 113 initiatives. We’ll continue to go through that work, but it’s also today a chance to remember that there’s so much that we can do at a community level.”
Mr Gorman added that there will be community marches protesting against gendered violence back in his home city of Perth.
This comes as hundreds protested in Sydney and Melbourne over the weekend to plead for an end to violence against women and girls.
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The family of an Australian student who was allegedly injured during an Israeli military raid in the West Bank are calling for an independent investigation.
20 year old Ranem Abu-Izneid was flown back to Melbourne with injuries so severe doctors say she could lose vision in one eye.
The Palestinian Australia New Zealand Medical Association is helping to coordinate her medical treatment.
The association’s Amireh Fakhouri says Ms Abu-Izneid’s family want answers.
“They want the Australian government to facililate an urgent inquiry and investigation to figure out how this happened and why this happened to an innocent medical student who is an Australian citizen.”
In a statement to SBS, the Department of Foreign Affairs said: “The Australian Government is seeking further information about the circumstances of the incident. Owing to our privacy obligations we are unable to provide further comment”.
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In sports,
Australia’s most successful Olympian, Emma McKeon, has announced her retirement from competitive swimming.
The 30-year-old has won 14 medals across three Olympics, including a record six gold medals.
She had already announced that Paris would be her final Olympics.
In a post on Instagram, McKeon says she has taken the months since the Paris Games to reflect on her future and says she has achieved a great deal in the sport – and wants to see how she can push herself in other ways.