Live: Telstra CEO to be grilled over nationwide outage and compensation

From midday Telstra’s chief executive and senior executives will be questioned at a Senate committee about the recent disruptive outage that put lives in danger when intermittent faults meant customers could not contact emergency services. One of the key questions will be about potential compensation. Already Victoria’s Premier Jacinta Allan flagged Telstra would match compensation…

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Amid the rise of fringe politics, Jacinda Ardern champions empathetic leadership

Jacinda Ardern is calling for more empathy in politics.  Since stepping down as New Zealand’s Prime Minister in 2023, Dame Jacinda has been warning against divisive and authoritarian leadership in favour of compassionate and values-driven governance. She says that a tendency towards strongman leadership is missing the mark with voters. “Often we hear discussion about…

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Future of Liberty Bell Bay site in doubt following manganese smelter’s closure

Australia’s only manganese alloy smelter has closed, leaving the future of the site uncertain and the country more reliant on imported alloys for steel production. The beleaguered Liberty Bell Bay smelter, roughly 50 kilometres north of Launceston, produced an alloy from manganese ore called ferromanganese, a critical component of steelmaking with applications across defence, construction…

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Horsham council rejects mining company WIM Resource’s invitation to join reference group

A regional Victorian council has declined to join a mining company’s community reference group, with the mayor saying the council is “disgusted” with the company’s attitude towards community concerns. WIM Resource invited Horsham Rural City Council (HRCC) to join its Community and Coexistence Reference Group (CCRG) for the proposed Avonbank mine in Victoria’s west. The…

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