‘Complex’ blaze at Sydney recycling factory – as it happened​on February 4, 2025 at 7:02 am

The doctor’s union will be striking at John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle where a medical administration manager accidentally sent an email to junior doctors calling them a “workforce of clinical marshmellows [sic]”.

As Guardian Australia first revealed on Friday, the local health district has apologised for the incident which the union representing doctors, the Australian Salaried Medical Officers’ Federation (Asmof), called “tone-deaf” and “unacceptable.”

The NSW branch of Asmof has this afternoon announced on its instagram page that junior doctors will protest for a safer workplace on Thursday:

Junior doctors, aka clinical marshmallows, are saying enough is enough. They’ve had it with the Minns Government and how it treats healthcare workers.

Join us at the Royal Newcastle Centre this Thursday 11am, to stand with NSW Doctors and their demand for a safe workplace.

Thanks for joining us on the blog today, here’s our top stories from today:

• The embattled NSW transport minister, Jo Haylen, has resigned after days of revelations about her use of a ministerial driver for private trips.

• Allegra Spender and Jacqui Lambie introduced a motion on antisemitism that was backed by the government and the Liberal party.

• The government’s Senate leader, Penny Wong, accused her Liberal counterpart – Michaelia Cash – of spreading misinformation after Cash asked Wong whether the Albanese government would commit to no longer supporting “one-sided anti-Israel motions at the United Nations that fail to condemn Hamas”.

• The Greens will support Labor’s childcare legislation, which partially abolishes the activity test to guarantee three days of subsidies for families earning up to $530,000.

• The commonwealth ombudsman has announced it will investigate the mutual obligations framework, with a focus on whether income support cancellations are being made in a way that is lawful, reasonable and fair.

• Australia has sweltered through the second warmest January on record, according to Weatherzone, with temperatures 2.15C above the national long-term average.

• More than 100 firefighters have been battling a significant blaze at a recycling plant in Sydney’s west this afternoon, with stores of chemicals at the factory making it a “complex operation”.

Albanese lists ‘rental income’ from Central Coast property on register of interests

Someone on the Central Coast now has Anthony Albanese as their landlord after he rented out a $4.3m clifftop home he bought last year. The prime minister listed on his official register of interests in January that he was earning rental income from the “investment property”.

His purchase of the property with his partner, Jodie Haydon, during a cost of living and housing crisis was criticised at the time as tone-deaf.

Albanese defended himself at the time, saying his wife-to-be was a “coastie” and they bought it to be closer to her family.

He had also pointed out amid the criticism that he “knows what it’s like to struggle”, and reminded the public that his mum lived in public housing.

Australia farewells second-warmest January on record

Australia has sweltered through the second warmest January on record, according to Weatherzone, with temperatures 2.15C above the national long-term average.

Meanwhile this January did set the hottest month on record for Western Australia, which recorded 2.13C above average.

Nationally, the warmest January on record was in 2019 – which also turned out to be the hottest year on record – with temperatures 2.85C above average during the month.

All states and territories recorded above average temperatures this January:

• South Australia +2.52°C

• Queensland +2.16°C

• Northern Territory +2.14°C

• Western Australia +2.13°C

• New South Wales (including ACT) +2.02°C

• Victoria +1.71°C

• Tasmania +0.85°C

Lambie says federal hate crimes legislation amendment should wait until NSW’s laws are evaluated

The independent senator Jacqui Lambie has spoken about the hate crimes bill that has got attention today after Wentworth MP Allegra Spender proposed the reintroduction of a specific offence for serious vilification.

Speaking on ABC’s Afternoon Briefing, Lambie said that reintroducing an offence for vilification into the bill would be a difficult balancing act, with those concerned about its impact on free speech likely being against the move.

Lambie encouraged the parliament to wait until the NSW government – which has flagged it may introduce hate speech laws to parliament as soon as next week – put this into effect.

Then we can see through that legislation where the weaknesses are and then we can come back and go ‘you know what? They haven’t got that right’. So I think it is great that New South Wales is having a shot at this beforehand.

We covered what Spender is proposing a little earlier in the blog here.

More than 100 firefighters have been battling a significant blaze at a recycling plant in Sydney’s west this afternoon, with stores of chemicals at the factory making it a “complex operation”.

Fire and Rescue New South Wales (FRNSW) said earlier this afternoon that evacuations were under way within the 800 metre exclusion zone that had been set up around the factory in St Marys.

Emergency services responded reports just after 1.45pm today that the fire had caused gas cylinders to explode and that a black smoke was visible from the factory. FRNSW said in a statement:

Ongoing explosions and stores of chemicals are making it an extremely dangerous and complex operation.

Firefighters, including hazardous materials crews, are working to contain the fire, protecting adjoining properties and ensuring all individuals are accounted for … People are being urged to follow advice from emergency services personnel on scene.

The public has been advised to avoid the area.

Queensland University of Technology appoints former judge to review anti-racism symposium

The Queensland University of Technology (QUT) has appointed a former judge to lead an independent review into a controversial anti-racism symposium hosted on campus last month.

The Hon Justice John Middleton AM KC’s review will consider the content of the symposium, run by QUT’s Carumba institute, and its broader program of events and activities.

Middleton has been a federal court Judge, part time commissioner of the Australia Law Reform Commission and deputy president of the Australian Competition Tribunal.

QUT’s vice-chancellor, Margaret Sheil, said she appreciated Middleton had agreed to independently assess the symposium and awaited his findings, which would be made public once the review was completed.

On Wednesday, Sheil will front a parliamentary inquiry into antisemitism that has been called after widespread backlash over the symposium, which included a comedy event with a cartoon image of a character dubbed “Dutton’s Jew”.

The slide, presented by head of the Jewish Council of Australia, Sarah Schwartz, criticised what she described as stereotyping of the Jewish community by the Coalition, providing a “human shield” to talk about “hating on migrants … protecting everyday Aussies from left-wing anti-war protesters and … bolstering support for Israel”.

Hello, I’ll now be with you until this evening.

Thanks all for being with me on the blog today, I’ll be back with you bright and early tomorrow for more political shenanigans!

I’ll leave you with Jordyn Beazley to take you through the rest of the afternoon.

Here’s a brief roundup of what happened in the House and Senate this afternoon.

• The big focus was on cost of living. The government used questions from the opposition and dixers to bring up the opposition’s tax-free lunch policy, which they claim doesn’t pass the “pub test” for voters.

• The opposition tried to bat that away with questions on the cost of tax deductible lunches at big boardroom meetings, which Labor said is existing policy, and the Liberals struggled to shake the debate away from them.

• The Liberals attempted to challenge the government on the prices of goods and groceries and even put a question to the Prime Minister on how much food has increased (which Albanese had to come back to right at the end of QT)

• Healthcare and education, two key areas for Labor, were also brought up several times today by ministers. As I mentioned earlier, Labor is trying to pin Peter Dutton on his record as health minister and both areas also sit squarely within the cost of living, which the government are trying to stay on top of with their messaging.