Australia’s first national climate risk assessment has finally been released by Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen and the findings are disturbing. Rising sea levels threatening 1.5 million Australians, heat-related deaths will skyrocket in Sydney and Melbourne, ecosystems will collapse under the weight of global warming – this is the most comprehensive climate report ever produced, and it raises urgent questions about whether government targets are anywhere near ambitious enough. The Albanese government has announced its 2035 emissions reduction target, but will middle-ground politics be enough? With the world still heading toward 2.9 degrees of warming, the stakes for Australia – and for global climate leadership – could not be higher.
But climate risk isn’t the only crisis this week. The Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne caved to pressure from the Zionist lobby, cancelling a panel on the impact of war on children’s health after just one complaint. Doctors and academics are outraged, calling it censorship and an assault on medical freedom. This disturbing trend of silencing voices – whether at hospitals, universities, literary journals like Meanjin, or arts festivals—highlights a deeper erosion of cultural freedom in Australia, all while the United Nations has issued its clearest determination yet: Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. The message is stark – silence equals complicity.
On the international front, the Prime Minister’s trip to Papua New Guinea fell flat, with hopes for a landmark defence treaty reduced to vague promises. With Pacific nations weighing up Chinese investment against Australian diplomacy, questions grow about whether Australia is losing its strategic influence in the region. Meanwhile, Defence Minister Richard Marles has announced a $1.7 billion investment in Ghost Shark underwater drones – an innovation that might see a quiet crab-like move away from the troubled AUKUS submarine deal.
And then there’s the ongoing implosion of the Liberal–National Coalition. With primary support collapsing to 27% and MPs threatening resignations over climate policy, the party seems more interested in American culture wars and fringe figures like Charlie Kirk than addressing real Australian issues. With Sussan Ley struggling to hold her team together, and the right drifting further into One Nation territory, the Coalition looks destined for long years in opposition.
Photograph: Martin Von Stoll.
Song listing:
‘Confessions Of A Window Cleaner’, Ed Kuepper.
‘Wherever We Go’, Vera Blue.
‘Hungry Face’, Mogwai.
‘The Hard Road’, Hilltop Hoods.
‘Sign O’ The Times’, Prince, remix by Michael Saxom.
