‘Blue Blob’ googly eye case back in court today
Tory Shepherd
The infamous “Blue Blob” case, in which a woman has been accused of damaging public art by sticking googly eyes on it, is in court again today.
Amelia Vanderhorst, from Mount Gambier in South Australia, has been charged with damaging the town’s $136,000 Cast in Blue sculpture after the eyes could not be removed without damaging the surface.
Locals refer to the sculpture, which represents a “giant mythical megafauna creature” reimagined in blue, as the Blue Blob.
According to the ABC, Vanderhorst did not enter a plea at her first court appearance in November, and the magistrate advised her to find a lawyer before today’s hearing.
The 19-year-old will appear today charged with property damage.
Photograph: Amelia VanderhorstShare
Updated at 17.48 EST
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Smoky haze over parts of Sydney, with impacted air quality stretching up to Newcastle area
Many Sydneysiders woke up to a smoky haze over the city as dozens of bushfires burn across the state, including on the Central Coast.
The NSW air quality monitor is currently reporting fair or poor air quality readings across Sydney and up into the Newcastle area, as well as in the lower Hunter and Lake Macquarie regions.
The government says smoke from hazard reduction burns and bushfires may be experienced across NSW over the coming months, which may impact air quality.
You can find health advice for bushfire smoke here, which includes spending more time indoors or in air-conditioned venues.
Smoke covering Sydney on Tuesday. Photograph: Daniel Shaw/Severe Weather AustraliaShare
Another potential death linked to triple zero connection failure
Dan Jervis-Bardy
The boss of telco TPG Telecom revealed a second customer might have died after failing to connect to the triple zero network using an incompatible Samsung phone.
Iñaki Berroeta revealed details of the case during evidence to a Senate inquiry that is examining problems with the emergency service network in the wake of a string of outages.
In his opening statement, Berroeta expressed his “deep regret” about a known incident on 13 November in which a customer using an incompatible Samsung device failed to connect to the triple zero network, and subsequently died.
He revealed the customer was notified via text message on 7 November that it would need to accept an urgent software update in order to make emergency calls, or the device would be blocked on 10 December.
This tragic incident happened around a week later.
Berroeta went on to reveal a second, previously unknown, incident from September, in which a customer from Wentworth Falls in New South Wales was unable to connect to triple zero after dialling with an older Samsung phone.
The customer was able to contact emergency services via an “alternative option” five minutes later and an ambulance was deployed, he said.
But Berroeta said on Monday, TPG was notified by a Telstra staff member that “there might be a person that passed away related to this incident”.
He said the telco has contacted NSW Ambulance but they were unable to verify the details.
We knew about the device not being able to make a call at that time, we investigated that device, including getting in contact with that device, but we did not know that there might be some person passed away.
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Updated at 18.05 EST
‘Blue Blob’ googly eye case back in court today
Tory Shepherd
The infamous “Blue Blob” case, in which a woman has been accused of damaging public art by sticking googly eyes on it, is in court again today.
Amelia Vanderhorst, from Mount Gambier in South Australia, has been charged with damaging the town’s $136,000 Cast in Blue sculpture after the eyes could not be removed without damaging the surface.
Locals refer to the sculpture, which represents a “giant mythical megafauna creature” reimagined in blue, as the Blue Blob.
According to the ABC, Vanderhorst did not enter a plea at her first court appearance in November, and the magistrate advised her to find a lawyer before today’s hearing.
The 19-year-old will appear today charged with property damage.
Photograph: Amelia VanderhorstShare
Updated at 17.48 EST
Joyce says he hasn’t left to ‘go to the Labor party or to the Greens’
Joyce added just now on RN Breakfast:
It’s not as if I’ve resigned to go to the Labor party or to the Greens. I’m on the same side of the political fence and I think that explains it as best I can.
If it’s hurt people, I apologise deeply. But if you want to continue on in politics and serve your nation, it was the most efficacious way to do it.
As I said, I’m 58, not 85. And there is more work to do.
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Updated at 17.19 EST
Joyce says he is not abandoning his electorate and is taking a risk going after a seat in the Senate
Barnaby Joyce, the newly minted member of One Nation, says he has not abandoned his electorate, adding that he will maintain “a laserlike focus for the next two years”.
Joyce spoke to ABC News this morning after Monday’s announcement, saying his relationship with the Nationals had broken down in an “irreparable way”. He added:
I think I have more to offer and there’s big issues in front of us.
The point is I’ll be retiring from New England. I’m not elected to the Senate, I’ll have to campaign for a seat that I would have to win in the Senate for New South Wales. So I don’t see this as jumping ships into a completely sure position, this is taking a large risk, and I’m taking it, and we will see how we go.
Read more from our report yesterday:
Barnaby Joyce. Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAPShare
Updated at 17.13 EST
Josh Taylor
Snapchat argued iMessage, Messenger should be included in ban
Snap Inc told the eSafety commissioner in October that if Snapchat was included in the under-16s ban, then other messaging services should also be added.
Snapchat, which is complying with the ban and is removing users under 16 ahead of the ban beginning tomorrow, told eSafety in a letter in October – obtained by Guardian Australia under freedom of information laws – that it was primarily a messaging service, which should be exempt from the ban, but if it wasn’t then other similar services should be included.
Snap said:
If Snapchat is considered in scope as an age-restricted social media platform, we anticipate that services such as WhatsApp, iMessage, and Messenger, each of which also offers ancillary services like location sharing or broadcast sharing in addition to messaging, would be deemed similarly in scope after a fair and consistent application of the rules.
An even-handed approach will help build trust and confidence in the framework and ensure that dominant players abide by the same rules as everyone else.
Snapchat app seen on a smartphone. Photograph: Aap Image/AAP
Messenger, iMessage and WhatsApp have not been included in the first 10 platforms asked to comply with the ban by tomorrow.
Guardian Australia reported on Tuesday that the company warned there would be difficulty enforcing the ban using facial age assurance after a 14-year-old was able to pass as being aged 16 or over on Snapchat.
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Updated at 17.04 EST
NSW RFS downgrade major alert for Bulahdelah bushfire, warning to continue monitoring conditions
The NSW Rural Fire Service downgraded the advice level for the large bushfire in Bulahdelah on the state’s mid-north coast late last night, saying conditions had eased across the fireground and firefighters were getting the blaze under control. Four houses have been lost in the area.
Another fire in Koolewong, where 16 homes have been destroyed, is also being controlled after burning at least 134 hectares.
Update 11:59pm: With easing conditions across the fireground the alert level has been downgraded to Advice. Those in the vicinity should continue to monitor conditions.
— NSW RFS (@NSWRFS) December 8, 2025
The #RFS is working closely with partner agencies to ensure a safe and coordinated process for allowing residents affected by the Nimbin Rd Fire, Koolewong, to return to their properties. We understand how important it is for residents to access their homes as soon as possible. pic.twitter.com/sUoUPVYBUI
— NSW RFS (@NSWRFS) December 8, 2025
There are more than 40 fires currently burning across NSW, all of which remain at advice level this morning.
Officials have urged communities to stay up to date on emergency alerts, adding conditions could change at any time. The fire danger rating remains high for much of the state today.
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Updated at 16.37 EST
Hogan added that saying he was “gutted” would not be overstating his feelings on Joyce, telling RN:
I’ve always quite liked Barnaby. I’ve felt our relationship has always been OK. But yeah, look, I’m really, you know, to say gutted is probably not overstating it.
There’s a thing, you know, to go to the crossbench, there’s a thing to leave the party, but then to actually join now another party, and he will be campaigning for us not to win seats, or us to not get Senate spots, I think is a real blow.
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Updated at 16.55 EST
Kevin Hogan says no one ‘gobsmacked’ by Barnaby Joyce’s decision to join One Nation
Kevin Hogan, the deputy leader of the Nationals, compared Barnaby Joyce to Mark Latham after the former said yesterday he would join One Nation.
The only other person I can think of that has left who has been a previous leader of a political party and joined One Nation is Mark Latham. And Barnaby Joyce joins those ranks as having been a previous leader of a party and joining One Nation. But I’ll leave others to make their judgment about that.
Hogan said Joyce’s move was “obviously very disappointing for us and very hurtful in some ways”, telling RN Breakfast this morning:
Barnaby has said this: he doesn’t want to be on the backbench. He doesn’t like where he sits. So I don’t think there was much that could have been done to stop that.
David [Littleproud] was always saying publicly and privately to Barnaby that the door was open for him to return. And obviously, he’s very disappointed that he left. So, look, I think it was always going to be a tough call. And I think no one is, you know, gobsmacked that he’s made the decision yesterday.
Kevin Hogan, left, and Nationals leader David Littleproud. Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAPShare
Updated at 16.20 EST
No tsunami threat to Australia after large earthquake near Japan
The Bureau of Meteorology said earlier there is no threat to Australia after a powerful, 7.6 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Japan overnight.
The temblor prompted evacuation orders and tsunami warnings in Japan, which were later downgraded to advisories.
The BoM said all of the Australian mainland, islands or territories would be unaffected by the quake.
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Domestic air fares surge amid Qantas, Virgin dominance
Luca Ittimani
Domestic air fares rose faster than inflation in October as Qantas and Virgin reaped the rewards of a busy sport finals season, the consumer watchdog has found.
School holidays around the country coincided with crowds of fans flying interstate for Brisbane’s AFL and NRL grand final triumphs over Victorian teams in Melbourne and Sydney.
Late September and October saw 5.5 million domestic passengers as a result, according to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s latest airline report.
Qantas and Virgin reaped the rewards of a busy sport finals season. Photograph: David Gray/AFP/Getty Images
Qantas and Virgin added 45 extra flights to meet the demand but services were more full than normal, with 84.4% of seats taken compared with an average of 81.6% over the last year.
That saw air fares hit the highest level in three years, accounting for inflation, the ACCC said. Prices and revenues have risen since 2022 despite jet fuel prices, a major component of airline costs, falling.
If another airline could match the two majors, prices might fall, but there is little competition and therefore less incentive for Qantas or Virgin to reduce ticket prices, the report read.
Virgin accounted for one-third of all domestic flights in October and Qantas, including Jetstar, accounted for nearly two-thirds, with other companies battling for the remaining 2% of passengers.
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Updated at 16.06 EST
Patrick Commins
RBA to announce final cash rate decision of the year today
The Reserve Bank is expected to keep the cash rate at 3.6% today, and the focus will be on any clues for whether the monetary policy board thinks it might have to hike the rate in 2026.
Data over recent weeks has shown an unexpectedly sharp rebound in inflation, while national accounts and household spending figures have pointed to an accelerating economy.
Financial markets are now putting a roughly 50% chance on a hike by May, and have fully priced in a move higher by August, according to ANZ.
Economists have also largely abandoned forecasts for rate cuts in 2026, with a handful predicting a hike next year.
The decision is at 2:30pm, and the RBA governor, Michele Bullock, will give her final press conference of the year an hour later.
The Reserve Bank building. Photograph: EyeOfPaul/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 15.59 EST
Good morning everyone, Nick Visser here to take the reins. Let’s get to it.
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Barnaby Joyce says One Nation’s growing popularity part of global rightwing swing
Nino Bucci
Nationals defector Barnaby Joyce says he believes One Nation’s increasing popularity is part of the global movement that explains the rise of Maga in the US and the recent success of other far-right figures, but joked he is much better looking than Nigel Farage.
But Joyce did not answer questions on the ABC’s 7.30 program on Monday night about whether he supported Pauline Hanson’s “long-running vilification of ethnic groups”.
Joyce first said he disagreed that Hanson did vilify ethnic groups, and then when asked about her comment that “we are in danger of being swamped by Muslims, who bear a culture and ideology that is incompatible with our own”, tried to divert the answer to one about the “extremities” of sharia law.
Asked “do you see any comparison with the rise in popularity of One Nation and the rise with the Reform Party in the UK under Nigel Farage?”, Joyce responded:
Yes, I do. And not only that, I think Australia’s late to the party, whether it’s Farage in the UK, whether it’s Le Pen in France, whether it’s Meloni in Italy, whether it’s within the Maga movement within the Republican Party of the United States, it’s a phenomen[on] across the world. Because Australia has compulsory voting, it’s stickier here, but now it’s happening.
Joyce also agreed with statements Hanson made earlier on Monday, that he would have no portfolio within the party, nor had they reached any agreement about a possible future handover in leadership.
He also largely backed what Kevin Hogan, the deputy Nationals leader, said about his reasons for leaving the party: that he did not want to sit on the backbench. Joyce said:
Well, Kevin is right to a degree. I believe that you’ve got to be as effective as you can possibly be, and I don’t believe … sitting in the corner of the Coalition for one and a half years, not getting a question … I’m 58 years old, not 85 years old, and I’m looking forward to giving greater service to our nation. And if I can get myself into a place that’s more efficacious, I’ll do precisely that.
Barnaby Joyce: ‘I’m 58 years old, not 85 years old.’ Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAPShare
Updated at 16.44 EST
Josh Butler
Albanese tells school students social media ban will ‘ensure Australian children have a childhood’
Anthony Albanese admits the under-16s ban on social media – coming into effect tomorrow – “will require some adjustment”, but told school students in a video address he believes it’s the right thing to do.
The restrictions – which will require TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook and others to remove children from their services – begin on 10 December. Albanese has written to all state and territory premiers and chief ministers today, thanking them for their support for the change.
“While this profound change will require some adjustment in the short term, this is the cultural change Australia needs to deliver greater peace of mind for parents and ensure Australian children have a childhood,” the PM wrote in his letters to those leaders.
The PM’s office has also shared a video which Albanese made for young people, and which will be played to students in schools nationwide this week. In the clip, Albanese again concedes the impact the change might have on some children, saying: “If you have questions, by all means, reach out. Talk to your parents, your teachers, and your friends. And if you feel like you need more support, Headspace and Kids Helpline is there to assist.”
Explaining why the government is making the change, Albanese said: “You’ll know better than anyone what it’s like growing up with algorithms, endless feeds and the pressure that can come with that. That’s why we’ve taken this step to support you.”
He recommended under-16s “make the most of the school holidays coming up rather than spending it scrolling on your phone”, urging them to “start a new sport, learn a new instrument, or read that book that has been sitting there on your shelf for some time. And importantly, spend quality time with your friends and your family. Face to face.”
Prime minister Anthony Albanese has made a video for school students. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAPShare
Updated at 15.05 EST
Josh Butler
Reddit reportedly considering legal challenge to social media ban
Reddit says it has “deep concerns” about the under-16s social media ban coming into effect tomorrow, but has agreed to comply with the legislation.
However reports suggest the platform is considering a legal challenge.
In a statement this morning, Reddit claimed Australia’s law was “legally erroneous”, and went past its original intent.
Reddit said it would begin suspending accounts of users confirmed to be under 16, and require new users to be at least 16 to create accounts. Its statement notes, like YouTube, “Reddit will continue to be accessible to browse without an account”. The platform said it would use an “age prediction model” to estimate users’ ages, which it described as “privacy-preserving”, which includes verifying birthdates through a third-party identity verification provider.
“This is often achieved by sending a photo of a government ID or taking a selfie. Reddit will not have access to this photographic information,” the platform said.
Reddit’s statement said it was “concerned about the potential implications” of minimum age laws.
“We believe strongly in the open internet and the continued accessibility of quality knowledge, information, resources, and community building for everyone, including young people … By limiting account eligibility and putting identity tests on internet usage, this law undermines everyone’s right to both free expression and privacy, as well as account-specific protections,” the statement said.
“We also believe the law’s application to Reddit [a pseudonymous, text-based forum overwhelmingly used by adults] is arbitrary, legally erroneous, and goes far beyond the original intent of the Australian parliament, especially when other obvious platforms are exempt.”
The Australian Financial Review reports that Reddit has enlisted top legal representation and is considering a court challenge which may go to the constitution’s implied right of freedom of political communication. A Reddit spokesperson would not comment on the reporting or confirm whether a challenge was in the works, saying only: “The only decision we’ve made is to comply with the law”.
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Updated at 16.34 EST
‘Full steam ahead’ for Aukus deal as Wong and Marles meet Rubio and Hegseth in Washington
The Aukus submarine deal is going “full steam ahead”, Australia and the US have confirmed after a high-level meeting in Washington.
Associated Press reports US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, and defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, met their Australian counterparts on Monday local time for annual talks expected to focus on Indo-Pacific security and countering China’s increasing assertiveness in the region, including in the South China Sea and directed at Taiwan.
Rubio, Hegseth, Australian foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, and defence minister Richard Marles gathered at the state department but in remarks before the meeting none mentioned China by name.
“This is a very strong partnership, it’s a strong alliance, and what we want to do is continue to build on it. We think we have a lot of momentum behind this alliance,” Rubio said, hailing cooperation between Washington and Canberra on critical minerals, defence production and troop deployments.
The US president, Donald Trump, and Australian PM, Anthony Albanese, signed a critical minerals deal at the White House in October after China imposed tougher rules on exporting its own critical minerals.
“We have to have critical mineral supplies and supply chains that are reliable, and that are diverse, and not overly invested in one place where they can be used as leverage against us or our partners of the world,” Rubio said on Monday.
Wong said the alliance “has always been to ensure it delivers concrete benefits for our security and prosperity and for that of the United States. And Aukus is central to that: a win for Australia, a win for the US and a win for the United Kingdom.”
“We are full steam ahead,” Wong added.
Hegseth echoed her comments, saying that “as we move full steam ahead on Aukus, we applaud Australia’s upcoming delivery of an additional $1bn to help expand US submarine production capacity. We’re strengthening Aukus so that it works for America, for Australia and for the UK.”
Marles said they were “living in a much more contested world, where it really matters to be doubling down with friends and allies and, obviously, America is front and centre and foremost for Australia in that respect”.
Richard Marles, Penny Wong, Marco Rubio and Pete Hegseth (L-R) meet for bilateral talks at the state department in Washington DC on Monday. Photograph: Anadolu/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 16.51 EST
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then it’ll be Nick Visser to pick up the slack.
There has been a high-powered meeting in Washington overnight, as the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, and defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, met Australia’s Penny Wong and Richard Marles. As you’d expect, they had warm words for the alliance between the two countries. They also confirmed it was “full steam ahead” on the Aukus deal to build nuclear-powered submarines for Australia, with Australia due to give the US $1bn to kickstart production. More from the meeting in a minute.
Domestic air fares rose faster than inflation in October as Qantas and Virgin reaped the rewards of a busy sport finals season, the consumer watchdog has found. More on that shortly.
A leading economist has warned interest rates are unlikely to be cut for much of 2026 as the Reserve Bank meets for its final monthly meeting of the year. More details soon …
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Updated at 16.02 EST
