Australia news LIVE: Taskforce wants rich Boomers to use super for aged care; Big money to be taken out of politics in electoral overhaul (2024)

The 2026 Commonwealth Games could be staged in Malaysia after the country’s Olympic committee said there was a £100 million ($194 million) offer to assist with hosting.

The cash has come from the compensation paid by the state of Victoria, which withdrew last year citing cost overruns leaving the multi-sport event without an official host.

“The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) has offered Malaysia the opportunity to replace Victoria as hosts of the Commonwealth Games in 2026,” a statement on the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) website said.

“The offer includes significant financial investment of £100million to support the local delivery and legacy planning of the 2026 edition.”

The statement said a “formal invitation” to host was received last month from the CGF.

Although they stopped short of confirming that a “formal invitation” has been made, a CGF spokesperson did acknowledge interest in the possibility of Malaysia hosting the event in 2026.

“Malaysia has a fantastic track record of delivering sporting events and the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur were hugely successful,” the spokesperson said.

AAP

The Coalition’s plan to let first-time buyers use their superannuation for a home deposit would be “one of the worst public policy decisions” of the century, a leading economist said as industry analysis found it would drive property prices up by $75,000 across the nation’s capital cities.

But opposition housing spokesman Michael Sukkar has rubbished the analysis, saying the Coalition is determined to help all young Australians who aspire to own a home.

Superannuation peak body the Super Members Council found the scheme to allow first home buyers to withdraw $50,000 from super for a deposit would fuel demand, pushing property prices up by 9 per cent. It would add almost $80,000 to median prices in Sydney, nearly $70,000 in Melbourne, $78,000 in Brisbane and $86,000 in Perth, its modelling showed.

The council’s chief executive, Misha Schubert, said that price spike would lead to higher mortgages for all buyers.

Read the full story here.

The opposition’s health and aged care spokeswoman Anne Ruston is speaking about the government-appointed taskforce that has rejected arguments for a taxpayer levy to fund the country’s growing aged care bill.

The Liberal senator said on RN Breakfast the Coalition wanted to make the aged care sector sustainable into the future.

“How that occurs may include older Australians paying a share of their care and supported services into the future,” Ruston said.

The Liberal senator said the opposition wanted to know what is “the quantum of the problem” they were trying to solve, and how do the suggestions in the report and how are they likely to address the concerns.

She was also asked about the recommendation to phase out lump-sum accommodation deposits that people make when going into residential care and be replaced by a rental-only model.

Ruston said there were numerous ways that Australians could pay for their accommodation, but said it was “really complicated stuff”.

“What we want is to make sure Australians have got the choice and control about what they’re doing … and that Australians can choose how they would like to fund their care into the future,” she said.

“That includes the accommodation component of it, so there’s no simple answer here.”

The prime minister was also asked whether he edited his photos, after Catherine, the Princess of Wales, apologised for causing “any confusion” after admitting to editing a family photograph.

The photo was withdrawn by picture agencies amid suspicions it was digitally altered.

Anthony Albanese was asked on ABC radio if he had ever experimented with altering a photo.

“No I haven’t … I think I know what you’re referring to there, with the photo of the Princess of Wales.

“I think it’s unfortunate that this has become a public issue. I think the real issue is everyone wishes the princess the best of health for her recovery,” Albanese said.

He said he relied on the press gallery to take his photos, rather than Photoshop or editing software.

Anthony Albanese has been asked whether his government has given up on a federal treaty with Indigenous Australians.

He told ABC radio this morning that treaties were being negotiated by states and territories and the government didn’t change their position.

Here’s what the prime minister said:

There isn’t a single Indigenous community of course in Australia, it’s made up of a range of First Nations.

And those negotiations in places like Victoria are probably more advanced, each state and territory is progressing [and] moves in their own way, whether it be Tasmania, Victoria, South Australia, of course, has their Voice on a state level.”

Staying with the prime minister, who also announced a $4 billion remote housing package for the Northern Territory to build thousands of homes in Indigenous communities.

Anthony Albanese says the federal and territory governments would provide $400 million a year to build 2700 homes over a decade.

The governments are focusing on housing for Indigenous Australians because it was key to other opportunities in life.

“If you have overcrowding, then you will have not just housing problems, you’ll have health problems. You’ll have problems with justice issues inevitably that come from the tension that comes from overcrowded homes and communities, and you’ll have difficulty getting education,” Albanese said on ABC radio this morning.

He said housing security would enable people to go about the other things that the government needs to close the gap on, and the funding was a “major step forward”.

The prime minister said the nature of the construction was also important because it would be done through Indigenous housing and it would also create jobs in the community.

Housing in the communities wouldn’t be one-size-fits-all solution. but would be based on three-bedroom homes, Albanese said.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says the government isn’t proposing a new tax or levy to fund aged care.

It comes as a government-appointed taskforce recommended wealthy Australians should draw down their superannuation and pay more for their aged care costs.

“We’re certainly not proposing a new tax or levy to fund aged care,” the prime minister told ABC Radio this morning.

“The taskforce hasn’t recommended that, they’ve considered the evidence and met several times.”

He said the government wanted to sit with the opposition and get an agreement because aged care was an issue that couldn’t be solved in a year.

“Or indeed for a term of government,” he said. “This is a problem that arises from the ageing of the population that’s been identified for a long period of time.”

The prime minister said the proposal doesn’t punish wealthy Australians, but it was about making the system more sustainable into the future.

Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth has been asked about a government-appointed taskforce’s recommendation that wealthy Australians should draw down their superannuation and pay more for their aged care costs.

The taskforce rejected arguments for a taxpayer levy to fund the country’s growing aged care bill, saying it would be unfair to future generations when older Australians were retiring with growing levels of wealth.

Speaking on Nine’s Today program, Rishworth said the government wanted to develop a sustainable, strong aged-care system that would be fit for purpose.

“What we know is there will be double the number of 65-year-olds and, triple the number of 85-year-olds, and so we need to be able to provide an aged care system that is fit for purpose,” she said.

“We’ve already been doing a lot of work when it comes to putting nurses back into nursing homes, for example, and increasing the pay of our aged care workers.”

She said the government would look at the 23 recommendations the taskforce made in the report.

“There is a challenge in front of us, one, that that will happen over the next few decades that we must address if we’re going to have a sustainable health care system.”

The minister said there would need to be a lot of work needed to fund a sustainable system.

“Our aged care system, whether that’s at home or in an aged care facility, is of high quality, and we’ll look after our older Australians,” Rishworth said. “There is a challenge … we need to tackle this to provide the best possible care.”