Canavan will challenge Littleproud for Nationals leadership – as it happened​on May 9, 2025 at 7:50 am

That’s where we’ll leave the blog for today. Thanks for reading our coverage of a big week of news following the federal election. Have a great weekend. Here were today’s top stories:

• The Liberal leadership race was firming as a contest between the deputy leader, Sussan Ley, and the shadow treasurer, Angus Taylor, after Dan Tehan ruled himself out. Nationals senator Matt Canavan launched his own leadership challenge against David Littleproud.

• Speculation swirled over the re-elected Albanese government’s new ministry, with suggestions the communications minister, Michelle Rowland, could replace Mark Dreyfus as attorney general in Labor’s second-term cabinet and Mark Butler and Jason Clare face moves to new portfolios.

• Flood water surged into Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre in what could be the most significant top-up in a generation.

• Erin Patterson’s triple murder trial continued, with the court hearing her children ate the leftovers of her beef wellington lunch after their mother and relatives fell ill eating the same meal the previous day.

• A 26-year-old man was due to face court charged with domestic violence-related manslaughter over the death of a baby in regional New South Wales.

• The independent MP Zoe Daniel was yet to concede defeat in the seat of Goldstein despite Liberal Tim Wilson claiming victory a few days earlier. On social media, Danielasked people to “respect the process and the voters” in her electorate by waiting for a “definitive” result.

• In other political news, former Liberal MP Gladys Liu demanded a “heartfelt apology” from Senator Jane Hume over her remarks claiming “Chinese spies” could be handing out pamphlets for Labor at voting booths

Tech Council says Husic a ‘champion of technology’ after cabinet removal

The chair of the Tech Council of Australia (TCA), Scott Farquhar, has released a statement following the government’s decision to dump the industry and science minister, Ed Husic, from the federal cabinet.

Faruqhar said Husic had been a “champion of technology” even before he took on the the portfolio, adding:

He recognises the importance of it to Australia, and he has been a solid and consistent advocate for innovation and development of the local industry.

The national reconstruction fund will stand as an important legacy for the industry.

We look forward to continuing momentum with the government in progressing flagship policies, including our shared goal of 1.2 million tech jobs by 2030, and on industry and government collaboration on research and development, digital infrastructure and tech adoption to support the productivity agenda.

Faruqar said the TCA expected the new cabinet and wider ministry would continue to “reflect the priorities of Australians and of industry”.

He said the council would support a minister dedicated to the digital economy, “given its importance to our economy and productivity” to “continue to momentum in this space” and “demonstrate Australia is serious about innovation”.

Labor rank-and-file urge Albanese to recognise Palestinian statehood

Grassroots Labor members in the party’s Friends of Palestine group have written to the freshly re-elected prime minister, Anthony Albanese, urging him to recognise Palestinian statehood at an upcoming United Nations conference.

The letter, sent today and signed by Wendy Turner, Peter Moss and Marg D’Arcy, said:

Labor’s clear parliamentary majority provides the government with an unprecedented opportunity to pursue a broad, progressive agenda, domestically and internationally.

The issue of Palestinian statehood will be considered at a United Nations special conference in June.

We call on the Australian government to implement long-held ALP policy and join the overwhelming majority of the international community in recognising Palestinian statehood at this conference.

The group also urged the government to restate its support for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and reject Israel’s plan for expanded military intervention.

The letter comes a few days after the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, announced plans for a new “intensified” offensive in Gaza that he said would involve Israeli troops holding on to seized territory and significant displacement of the population.

You can read more about the situation here:

Shoebridge says he won’t seek Greens leadership

Greens senator David Shoebridge says the party is “gutted” by the loss of leader Adam Bandt and that he won’t put his hand up to replace him.

Bandt was defeated at this election in the seat of Melbourne by Labor’s Sarah Witty after 15 years as the progressive inner-city electorate’s representative.

Shoebridge has been interviewed on the ABC’s Afternoon Briefing, where he said of Bandt:

He’s been a terrific leader of our party room, incredibly consensus-driven, really getting an incredibly united team behind him.

We were worried about the redistribution [of the Melbourne electorate’s boundaries] but I think the way the preferences flowed, it really made it quite hard for Adam.

Asked about the process to replace Bandt as party leader, Shoebridge said:

The party room will come together next week to determine who our new leader will be.

That is a process that I expect to be collaborative and respectful and honest and frank.

I look at my colleagues, the breadth of talent and skills … and I think we will have a strong future with a future leader.

I can make this announcement – it won’t be me. I won’t be putting my hand up to be the party leader.

Nationals senator Matt Canavan has announced plans to challenge David Littleproud for the leadership of the junior Coalition partner next week.

Amid growing bloodletting within the Liberal party and the Nationals after Saturday’s electoral drubbing, Canavan said new leadership was needed.

Littleproud has led the Nationals since May 2022, replacing former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce.

The shock challenge comes a day after firebrand Coalition senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price said she would move to the Liberal party room, positioning herself as a possible deputy leader in a ballot due on Tuesday next week. That decision has angered Nationals MPs.

On Friday afternoon, Canavan said changing the Coalition’s climate policy would be a key ambition if his leadership tilt was successful.

Canavan told The Australian the Coalition should scrap Australia’s goal of net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

He wrote:

Our plan should be based on how we can save the country, not save the party.

I am standing for my party’s leadership so that I can tell my kids I did everything I could to fight for a better life for them.

Canavan has been an outspoken critic of the transition to renewable energy and served as resources minister from 2017 to 2020.

China has accused Australia and its allies the US and the Philippines of attempting to “stoke confrontation in the name of cooperation”, condemning recent joint military exercises by the three Pacific countries in the South China Sea.

The Royal Australian Navy’s destroyer HMAS Sydney joined a guided missile frigate from the Philippines navy and aircraft from both the US and the Philippines to conduct drills in the contested sea last week.

Asked about China’s view of the joint exercises, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told reporters in Beijing they were a deliberate provocation.

The US and other countries outside the region have patched up small groupings in the South China Sea to stoke confrontation in the name of cooperation, flex military muscles in the name of freedom and create trouble in the name of upholding order.

They are the biggest source of risks undermining the peace and stability in the South China Sea.

Lin condemned the Philippines particularly, accusing Manila of being a “pawn” for more powerful countries and causing “trouble at sea”, and said:

It has also brought in and collaborated with forces outside the region to create disruptions and flex military muscles in the South China Sea, acting as a pawn for these forces. Such acts will only backfire.

China claims a huge swathe of the South China Sea – inside its so-called “nine-dash line” – as its exclusive territory, and has ignored a 2016 ruling from the permanent court of arbitration which found that China’s claim had no basis under international law.

Australia’s Department of Defence said its joint exercise with the US and the Philippines was designed to “build mutual understanding and interoperability between nations and armed forces”.

The department said:

Australia and our partners share a commitment to upholding the right to freedom of navigation and overflight, other lawful uses of the sea and international airspace, and other maritime rights under international law.

The exercises come at a time of heightened tension over navigational freedom at sea. They follow similar joint exercises between the same three countries, and Japan, in the South China Sea in February.

And in April, in the shadows of Australia’s federal election, a flotilla of Chinese warships circumnavigated Australia, and conducted live-fire drills in the Tasman Sea, between Australia and New Zealand.

A man has been charged over the death of a baby in Wagga Wagga, NSW.

A 26-year-old man, known to the child, will appear in court today with charges over alleged involvement in the death of a four-week-old baby boy, New South Wales Police said in a statement.

Child Abuse detectives were notified after the baby was taken to Wagga Wagga Base hospital on 27 July 2023 in a critical condition suffering unexplained serious injuries, police said. The baby was transferred to Sydney Children’s hospital where he died three days later.

In July 2023, detectives attached to the state crime command’s child abuse squad established Strike Force Wighton to investigate the suspicious death of a four-week-old baby boy.

Strike Force Wighton was established, and after extensive investigation detectives arrested the man in Albury this morning. He has been charged with domestic violence related manslaughter. He was refused bail to appear before Albury local court today.

Zoe Daniel not conceding Goldstein despite Liberal Tim Wilson claiming victory

The independent Goldstein MP, Zoe Daniel, has asked people to “respect the process and the voters” in her electorate by waiting for a “definitive” result.

Daniel had given a victory speech on Saturday night, before her Liberal challenger, Tim Wilson, claimed victory after staging a dramatic comeback that, if ultimately successful, would make him the first MP to reclaim a seat lost to a teal independent.

But Daniel, a former ABC journalist who won the seat in Melbourne’s inner south-east from the Liberals in 2022, is yet to concede.

This afternoon, Daniel posted a statement on Instagram, noting that the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) was yet to declare the seat and that:

I understand everyone’s desire to rule a line under the election result in Goldstein. I would also prefer it was resolved.

However, there are still up to 10,000 votes to count including postals, absentee and prepoll declaration votes.

Please respect the process and voters until a definitive decision is made.

Wilson is ahead of Daniels by 1,320 votes, with 87.2% of the vote counted, according to the ABC.

Hi, I hope you’ve had a good day so far. I’ll be here until this evening.

Thank you for joining me on the blog today. Handing over now to Catie McLeod, who will keep you posted with the afternoon’s news.

Patterson trial adjourned for the day

Back to the Patterson trial.

Erin Patterson’s son has recalled a “fond” memory of his mother taking a photograph of a mushroom in mid-2020 while on a walk together.

His pre-recorded video evidence, where he is interviewed by a police officer, has been shown to his mother’s murder trial.

In the video, he told the interviewer about going on a walk in Korumburra’s Botanic Park with his mother during Covid and seeing mushrooms.

“I remember Mum took a picture of them because she thought they looked nice,” he said.

“I don’t remember what they look like.”

Patterson’s son said he had never foraged or picked mushrooms with his mother.

He also told the interviewer about helping his mother clean up after the lunch in July 2023. He said he did not see any leftovers from the meal that needed to be scraped into the bin. Asked about the plates from the lunch, he said they were white dinner plates and that they were all the same.

The trial before Justice Christopher Beale will resume on Tuesday.