Australia news LIVE: AEMO continues energy trading suspension; VIC, NSW making major investment in kindergartens

Epidemiologists have suggested Victoria’s remaining double-dose COVID-19 vaccination mandates are unjustified, except for in vulnerable workplace settings.

Melbourne University’s Professor Nancy Baxter said reducing transmission wasn’t the major reason to have vaccine mandates anymore, given vaccines’ effects on transmission waned over time.

“[We’ve eliminated] density restrictions, mandatory mask-wearing and recommendations for working at home … those [measures] that we know will be effective against transmission,” Baxter told a Victorian parliamentary inquiry into the state’s pandemic orders. “It’s unclear why we’re maintaining mandatory vaccines just for that.”

Professor Catherine Bennett from Deakin University said things had fundamentally changed since two-dose vaccine mandates were introduced.

“It did make a difference in terms of our population-level response and our control, but I don't think there was ever going to be an argument – even before Omicron – for keeping the two-dose mandates in place,” Bennett said.

“The difference between being unvaccinated and vaccinated was already disappearing with our very high vaccination rates.”

The inquiry also heard Ambulance Victoria is winding back its reliance on non-paramedics called in to help respond to emergencies as part of a COVID-19 surge workforce.

The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Foundation had 230 people cancel their membership in the past 12 months because of vaccine mandates, the inquiry was told.

AAP.

The ASX 200 has extended its losing streak to five sessions in a row, closing 0.2 per cent lower at 6591.1 points, despite rising by one per cent this morning following a sharp US interest rate rise, which was aligned with market expectations.

The local sharemarket pared back its early gains as the day progressed, with US equity futures weighing down the index as investors reconsidered the prospect of future rate increases.

The real estate sector was the biggest riser, growing by 1.1 per cent, while utilities fell by 1.7 per cent as havoc continues to wreak the national energy market. AGL Energy was down by 3.7 per cent by market close.

Jamie Hannah, VanEck deputy head of investments and capital markets, said he expected the Reserve Bank to lift interest rates by 50 basis points next month, with today’s solid jobs figures highlighting the lack of spare capacity in the Australian economy.

Read more here.

The ABC’s new head of news has issued an apology to employees who have experienced bigotry and racism after an internal investigation uncovered examples of cultural insensitivity at the public broadcaster.

Justin Stevens said in a staff email that he had received the findings of a project led by an internal advisory group that explored the experiences of Indigenous and culturally and linguistically diverse staff members.

Stevens said the most disturbing aspect of the report was accounts from Indigenous and culturally diverse employees of experiencing racism and cultural insensitivity while working in the news division.

Outlining the “toxic behaviour” some non-white staff members have experienced, Stevens said: “Some feel they’re not welcomed into or embraced by the workplace and other team members as they ought to be.”

Read more here.

Long-serving Liberal Eric Abetz will officially depart the Senate after Jacqui Lambie ally Tammy Tyrrell won Tasmania’s final seat.

The Australian Electoral Commission confirmed the final list of six senators this afternoon following the distribution of preferences.

Abetz, who was first elected in 1994, said in a statement it was “both a privilege and an exceptional onerous task to look after the welfare of our 500,000 plus fellow Tasmanians, as well as a $2 trillion Australian economy and our 25 million fellow Australians”.

“It is also appropriate to observe that the last time I had the honour of leading the Liberal Senate ticket I easily out-polled the Labor Senate ticket leader with below the line votes,” he added.

Here's how the Senate's 76 seats are divided up:

• Coalition – 32
• Labor – 26
• Greens – 12
• One Nation – two
• Jacqui Lambie Network – two
• David Pocock – one
• The final seat in Victoria between the Liberals and the United Australia Party is too close to call

Either the Jacqui Lambie Network, One Nation or Pocock's vote will be needed alongside the Greens for the government to reach the 39 votes necessary to pass legislation in the Senate without the support of the Liberals.

With AAP

Good news for travellers today as New Zealand said it will ditch the requirement for travellers to produce a negative COVID-19 test before arriving in the country.

In the hope of luring more tourists ahead of a bumper snow season, COVID-19 Minister Ayesha Verrall announced New Zealand’s pre-departure testing regime would be axed for all arrivals as of Tuesday, June 21.

Unvaccinated travellers will also be able to enter the country without needing to quarantine for the first time since the pandemic began.

Local tourism figures believe New Zealand was missing out on tourists – particularly short-term visitors – due to the requirements.

Australia ditched testing requirements in April, while the US removed the rule earlier this month.

Read more here.

AAP.

Aid group World Vision is furious after an Israeli court convicted a Palestinian aid worker on charges that he funnelled tens of millions of dollars in relief funds to the militant group Hamas.

Mohammad el-Halabi, who has been detained for six years, was yesterday found guilty of supporting a terror organisation but acquitted of treason. His sentencing hearing is in July.

El-Halabi, head of Gaza operations for World Vision, an international Christian aid group, was arrested in June 2016, accused of siphoning off up to $US50 million ($71 million) to pay Hamas fighters, buy arms and fund the group’s activities.

El-Halabi has denied the charges and refused several plea deal offers. He has told Reuters the charges were “a set of lies” meant to target humanitarian work in Gaza.

World Vision Australia – which says it was funded by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to provide services in the region – disputes Israel’s claims. It says audits by DFAT, World Vision internally and an independent company found no evidence that money or supplies were diverted.

Tim Costello, former World Vision chief executive, slammed the guilty verdict as “a travesty of justice”.

“The verdict overnight announces the demise of the rule of law in Israeli courts,” he wrote in an opinion piece published by this masthead.

Read more here.

Link Administration Holdings has suffered a twin blow after the competition watchdog raised “significant concerns” about its impending tie-up with Dye & Durham on the same day investors filed a large class action in the UK.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said on Thursday that Dye & Durham’s $3 billion takeover of Link raised competition concerns in the property conveyancing sector given Link’s ownership of a large stake in PEXA, an online property settlement platform. Dye & Durham also provides conveyancing and legal practice software and manual property settlement services in Australia.

“Consumers may not be familiar with these companies in name, however, this acquisition is relevant to anyone buying or selling property,” ACCC deputy chair Mick Keogh said. Link owns 42.77 per cent of PEXA.

“We have significant preliminary concerns that this transaction would enable D&D and PEXA to engage in mutual preferential dealing that would hinder existing competition or raise barriers to entry in one or more markets in the conveyancing workflow,” Keogh said.

Read the full story here.

That’s all from me today. I will hand you over to Amelia McGuire.

Thanks so much for all the comments and interactions today. I look forward to joining you again when I’m back on the blog next week.

We have plenty more stories to come this afternoon so please stay with us.

Bye for now.