Good morning
Good morning, Mostafa Rachwani with you to take you through the day’s news.
We begin with Gina Rinehart, whose company Hancock Prospecting has just reported a bumper profit of $5.6bn. The enormous profit mostly comes from consistent iron ore volumes coming out of the Roy Hill, Hope Downs and Atlas Iron operations – with a record output from Roy Hill. In a statement, Hancock Prospecting also made a note of the $3.9bn it paid in taxes in the past year.
Elsewhere, Queensland’s truth-telling inquiry is under threat, with the newly installed LNP government intent on shutting it down. Premier David Crisafulli told a press conference on Thursday that he would repeal the Pathway to Treaty Act as one of his first acts in government. The bill would be repealed this year, he said, leaving scheduled sittings in December in flux.
We’ll bring you more on those stories, and everything else happening around the country as it comes. Stay tuned.
Key events
And if you haven’t yet listened, Reged Ahmad’s Full Story episode on the saga is a must listen, link below:
Earlier in that same interview, McKenzie admitted she had actually received flight upgrades that she hadn’t declared, after earlier this week being adamant she hadn’t.
McKenzie apologised on air, saying she has asked Qantas, Virgin and administrators of Rex for her flight records to clear up anything she hadn’t declared:
Earlier this week, I said I’d never received an upgrade. I checked my records, and checked that I declared an upgrade. So that, for me, you know, really instigated how to getting to the bottom of this.
And I think really the only way can do that is by getting a full log of flights and upgrades from the three domestic airlines. I’ve been calling on the prime minister as a way since last weekend to actually do the same.
And so I don’t probably believe I should be subjecting other people to standards I’m not prepared to subject myself to. So when that information comes in, I will be obviously updating my declarations.
I think for transparency and accountability, I have to obviously update a public declarations as quickly as possible.
Bridget McKenzie grilled on Dutton’s free flights from Rinehart
Nationals senator Bridget McKenzie has danced around questions around whether Gina Rinehart expects anything “in return” for the free flights she has given opposition leader Peter Dutton.
In a tense interview with Patricia Karvelas on RN Breakfast earlier, the shadow transport minister was happy to criticise the PM for reportedly asking for upgrades to Qantas flights (something he has denied happened) but was much more coy on what it meant for Dutton to be accepting flights from the country’s richest person.
This is what she said when asked if Rinehart would expect anything in return:
No, I don’t think so. Similarly to Ms Reinhardt sponsoring our Olympic swimming team and rowing team, her expectation was that those young athletes would be supported to represent their country as best they can, and they absolutely did.
So I don’t think we need to always think that people assisting has a quid pro quo, and that’s why it’s important to have public declarations and important to look at behaviour.
I don’t think that wanting a strong, prosperous and sustainable mining industry in this country is something that only Peter Dutton wants to see. The Coalition wants to see that. I think hundreds of thousands of workers, our allies, that are in receipt of our resources exports, want to see that continue as well. I’d be very concerned with any leaders in our parliament that don’t want to be seeing a prospect of sustainable mining.
Amanda Meade
New Radio National Breakfast host is Sally Sara
Seasoned foreign correspondent Sally Sara will take over as Radio National Breakfast host next year.
The presenter of ABC Radio’s The World Today since 2020, Sara has reported from more than 40 countries as an ABC foreign correspondent, including Africa, Iraq, India and Afghanistan.
Sara said:
I’m extremely grateful for the opportunity to join the Radio National Breakfast team. I can’t wait. I will work hard to engage the audience with stories from across the country and around the world.
Sara replaces Patricia Karvelas, who will present Afternoon Briefing on the ABC News channel next year, as well as Q+A and weekly political wrap The Party Room.
Good morning
Good morning, Mostafa Rachwani with you to take you through the day’s news.
We begin with Gina Rinehart, whose company Hancock Prospecting has just reported a bumper profit of $5.6bn. The enormous profit mostly comes from consistent iron ore volumes coming out of the Roy Hill, Hope Downs and Atlas Iron operations – with a record output from Roy Hill. In a statement, Hancock Prospecting also made a note of the $3.9bn it paid in taxes in the past year.
Elsewhere, Queensland’s truth-telling inquiry is under threat, with the newly installed LNP government intent on shutting it down. Premier David Crisafulli told a press conference on Thursday that he would repeal the Pathway to Treaty Act as one of his first acts in government. The bill would be repealed this year, he said, leaving scheduled sittings in December in flux.
We’ll bring you more on those stories, and everything else happening around the country as it comes. Stay tuned.
