Moira Deeming holds press conference after winning defamation case against John Pesutto
Benita Kolovos
Moira Deeming is holding a press conference at parliament after she’s had a win in court against opposition leader John Pesutto. She begins by saying:
This judgment is a public acknowledgment that there was never any justification, legal, moral or political for what was done to me and to my family. Not one Liberal party value was honoured or furthered in Victoria by this relentless and remorseless campaign to discredit me and everybody who stood by me, but I was never going to let it go unchallenged in this state.
Key events
Greens says Labor needs to put ‘real pressure’ on Netanyahu to ‘stop the invasion’
Earlier, the Greens issued a statement responding to the government’s decision to back two UN motions – arguing Labor was ‘shifting’ to the Greens position.
In a statement, Greens leader Adam Bandt said Labor was “recognising the Greens were right all along to call for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire, but tragically tens of thousands of people have been killed in Gaza in the meantime.”
The Greens opposed the invasion of Gaza from the beginning, and consistently called for an immediate, permanent and unconditional ceasefire. Labor attacked us, backed the invasion and refused to call for Benjamin Netanyahu to simply stop, but today Labor’s position has been exposed for the mistake it always was.
Since the Greens first called for a ceasefire, Gaza has been levelled, its health system has totally collapsed and a genocide is unfolding, while international courts have issued an arrest warrant for Benjamin Netanyahu and found apartheid is being committed.
Bandt said Labor must “put real pressure” on Netanyahu to “stop the invasion, starting with sanctions on his extremist government and ending the two-way arms trade.”
Benita Kolovos Pesutto to hold press conference this afternoon after court found he defamed Deeming
Victorian opposition leader, John Pesutto, has confirmed he will hold a press conference at 2.30pm.
It will be the first time he speaks following a damning federal court judgement this morning, which found he defamed former Liberal MP Moira Deeming five times after neo-Nazis gatecrashed a rally she helped organise in 2023. He was also ordered to pay her $300,000 in damages.
Pesutto has been under pressure from Liberal MPs to resign.
Graham Readfearn Climate 200 founder and energy expert Simon Holmes à Court has just given evidence to the nuclear inquiry sitting in Sydney, and he has laid out what he says is an “optimistic” timeline for a first working nuclear power station in Australia.
There’s not a hope in hell that we would have nuclear in Australia before 2040 and I have shown with a set of fantastical assumptions such as bipartisanship across federal and state level of government that 2044 is an optimistic schedule.
Holmes à Court, a high profile political figure due to his group’s support of independent federal candidates, said he was a big fan of nuclear technology and said he wished Australia had gone nuclear in the 1970s. But he attacked the Coalition’s claims a large-scale nuclear plant could be running by 2037.
He said his own 2044 target assumed sustained multi-partisan political support for the next 20 years, along with smooth approvals, projects sticking to schedule and budget, that nuclear units could be easily integrated into the electricity grid and that the public “ignores the terrible economics” of nuclear.
2044 would be an optimistic target for commercial operation of a first nuclear power unit. It is practically impossible to go faster and even 2044 relies on the Coalition controlling the house and senate six months from now, the states dropping bans and keeping that support in place for 20 years.
He gave an example of Czechia, which in 2022 he said had agreed to build a new nuclear plant to be built by a South Korean company. He said the current schedule had the company pouring first nuclear concrete in 2029 and the plant delivering power in 2038 – a 16-year timeline.
Representatives from electricity generators are among those giving evidence this afternoon.
Peter Hannam Australia’s jobs growth better than ‘any major advanced economy’, Chalmers says
As we noted in a pre-jobs post, it’s a bit of a mystery why the strength of the labour market doesn’t get more attention (in the media or elsewhere).
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, who will be tweaking the mid-year economic and fiscal outlook, has understandably cheered the drop in the jobless rate to an eight-month low of 3.9%.
Today’s new jobs numbers show unemployment is falling while wages are rising, inflation is moderating, and our policies are helping achieve a soft landing in our economy.
We’ve seen over a million jobs created since we came to office, a record for a parliamentary term and stronger jobs growth than any major advanced economy.
Myefo, by the way, should land next Wednesday. You can follow the jobs story here as it develops:
Caitlin Cassidy More Victorian year 12 students react to Atar results
Students are continuing to celebrate their achievements around Victoria as Atar results are released.
Dux at Kew High School, Katayoun, only learned to speak English five years ago after emigrating to Australia from Iran, and has gone on to achieve an Atar of 99.3. Almost one in five students at the public school achieved an Atar of 90.00 or above.
Brunswick Secondary College also achieved impressive results, with nine students obtaining an Atar above 95, led by dux Thi Vu, who is interested in studying medicine and obtained an Atar of 98.95.
School captain Harry Lalor was hoping to be a chef, until he received an Atar of 89. Lalor has done work experience in top-end Melbourne restaurants including Vue de Monde, and been on a cultural exchange to France.
I’m having a slight career change and I’m actually going to study law.
Critical incident after police pursuit and crash
A critical incident investigation has been declared after a police pursuit and crash near Coffs Harbour.
About 7.45am this morning police were patrolling the Pacific Highway at Tucabia, about 15km east of Grafton, when they attempted to stop a vehicle due to its alleged speed.
A pursuit began when the vehicle allegedly failed to stop, but was soon terminated due to the manner of driving, police said. Later, the car allegedly conducted a U-turn into the path of an oncoming truck.
The driver of the vehicle, a 19-year-old man, was treated at the scene before being taken to Coffs Harbour hospital in a critical condition.
The driver of the truck, a 50-year-old man, was not injured but was taken to Grafton hospital for mandatory testing.
A crime scene has been established and the scene will be forensically examined. A critical incident team will investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident – with the investigation also subject to an independent review.
Peter Hannam Jobs result ‘defies gravity’ as pundits consider latest labour market surprise
The drop in November’s unemployment rate to 3.9% caught a few people on the hop, not least because the economy ended the September quarter at its weakest growth pace since the early 1990s (bar the Covid contortions).
Among the early responses is VanEck, an investment house, headlined “labour market seemingly defies gravity”.
The drop in the jobless rate after it had plateaued at 4.1% for three months “significantly [reduces] the chance of an RBA rate cut any time soon,” Russel Chesler, the firm’s head of Investments & Capital Markets, said:
The RBA is expecting the labour market to loosen quite a bit more as we hit the home stretch of the current tightening cycle, with the quarterly unemployment rate increasing by 40 basis points to 4.5% and remaining there until the end of 2026.
Indeed, the RBA had forecast in November (ie recently) that the jobless rate would climb to 4.3% by December. This month will have to be a shocker for jobs for that result to transpire – which seems unlikely.
A report out this morning by Deloitte’s involving chief financial officers found an uptick in sentiment. Among the economic risks cited, one of the highest priorities was “securing and retaining key talent”.
Not exactly a strong sign that the labour market is about to get much looser.
Jordyn Beazley Former NSW Liberal MP Rory Amon appears in court
The former NSW Liberal MP Rory Amon – who has been charged with sexual offences against a teenage boy – appeared in court today, where a date was set for a case conference.
After his case was briefly heard at Sydney’s Downing Centre, the magistrate set the case conference between the parties – which will see the defence and prosecution negotiate and prepare for a potential trial – on 17 February. The matter will return to court on 27 February.
Amon did not respond to questions from the media as he exited the court with his defence team.
Amon, 35, was the member for Pittwater in Sydney’s northern beaches when he was arrested, and later granted bail, in August. He was also the shadow assistant minister for transport and roads, infrastructure and youth.
He stepped down from parliament after he was charged, saying the nature of the allegations meant he was unable to “fully represent my community”. He has denied all the charges.
Amon was charged with five counts of sexual intercourse with a person aged over 10 and under 14, two counts of attempted sexual intercourse with a child over 10 and under 14, two counts of indecent assault on a person under 16, and committing an act of indecency with a person under 16.
Josh Taylor Deeming says she has ‘every right to be’ in Liberal party
Moira Deeming said she has “every right to be” in the Liberal party as she did “nothing wrong” with the accusations “just disproven in court”.
I’m perfectly capable of being a professional. I was a teacher. I can work with people. It’s not about us. It shouldn’t even be about our relationships. We’re supposed to be here to serve Victorians. You know, if you can’t be professional enough to put everything aside and serve Victorians, then you shouldn’t be in parliament.
Deeming said the defamation judgment against Liberal leader John Pesutto was “very cathartic” but it should not have come to that.
This could have all been avoided. I don’t understand the decisions that were made that led to this outcome. I had no other way to defend myself and to have these things retracted. I was never the aggressor. All I did was defend myself. Apparently, all I did wrong was refused to defame innocent women without any evidence. But I would have thought that’s the right thing to do.
You know, I refuse to give up my principles and my advocacy for child safeguarding, and I would have thought that’s the right thing to do. I was pressured to resign, and why would I do that? The members wanted me as their representative. I never did anything wrong. I always acted in good faith.
She said she would be willing to serve in the Liberal party.
Benita Kolovos Moira Deeming is holding a press conference at parliament after she’s had a win in court against opposition leader John Pesutto. She begins by saying:
This judgment is a public acknowledgment that there was never any justification, legal, moral or political for what was done to me and to my family. Not one Liberal party value was honoured or furthered in Victoria by this relentless and remorseless campaign to discredit me and everybody who stood by me, but I was never going to let it go unchallenged in this state.
Simon Holmes à Court says nuclear by 2044 ‘optimistic’
Moira Deeming holds press conference after winning defamation case against John Pesutto
