Australia news as it happened: Wong planning repatriation flights from the Middle East; Police officer shot dead in rural Tasmania

Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong spoke earlier today about planned repatriation flights for Australians stuck in the Middle East.

Watch what she had to say below.

You can keep up to date with our rolling coverage of the Israel-Iran conflict here.

A man who had served with the Tasmanian police for 25 years has been identified as the officer killed while on-duty in the state’s north-west earlier today.

A statement from the force said that police officers were executing a court-issued warrant to repossess a private rural property when the man was allegedly shot by a member of the public.

The alleged offender is in custody and has not been formally charged.

Commissioner Donna Adams called the incident “absolutely devastating”.

“Officer safety is my highest priority, and this incident is a stark reminder of the risks our officers face every day,” she said. “We are doing everything we can to support our officer’s colleagues and family, who are understandably devastated.”

While the family of the 57-year-old constable have asked that he is not yet publicly identified, Adams said he was “a respected and committed officer who has served the community with dedication,”

She said that there were no ongoing threat to the public but asked locals to avoid the area, which continues to be treated as a crime scene.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has spoken about the upcoming jobs and skills summit set to be run by the Labor Government, saying that it will prioritise “productivity, budget sustainability and resilience in the face of global volatility”

“Our economy is not productive enough, and that is why we are gathering people in this genuine attempt to build consensus,” he said on ABC’s Afternoon Briefing.

Chalmers said that the invitation list was still being finalised, but called it “quite a tight” conversation between 20 and 25 people. Guests are set to include the chair of the Productivity Commission Danielle Wood, as well as major business and union representatives.

“This is a genuine attempt to build consensus around the next steps in our economic agenda. We have already got a very ambitious agenda when it comes to making our economy more competitive and dynamic and more productive. ”

Senior NSW police officers held a press conference this afternoon in response to a shooting at Auburn in Sydney’s south-west.

Watch it below.

You can also read more of our coverage about the incident here.

Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong has provided an update about Australians in the Middle East, saying the government is working to arrange repatriation flights once airspace in the area is reopened.

Speaking from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s crisis centre, Wong said that 350 Australians in Iran and 300 in Israel were seeking assisted departures from the government.

“I understand how concerned, how distressed many Australians are about what is occurring. I understand particularly those who are in the Middle East … how worrying this situation is,” she said.

“I also recognise for families of people who are in the region, this is a distressing time.”

“At the moment, airspace is closed. This means that governments have closed down airspace because of the risk of strikes on civilian aircraft … We have to wait until airspace is open before we can try to get people out by air.”

Wong confirmed that staff at DFAT’s crisis centre were working on plans for assisted departures when it was safe to do so. She urged Australians overseas to monitor updates on the Smartraveller website.

You can keep up to date with our rolling coverage from the Middle East here.

A Tasmanian police officer is dead after a serious incident in the state’s north-west.

Police attended a residential property in rural North Motton earlier today, when a member of the public allegedly shot an officer as they approached the property. Another police officer fired towards the alleged offender, who subsequently surrendered.

The police officer was critically injured and died at the scene. The alleged offender sustained minor injuries.

“This is a traumatic incident and wellbeing support is being provided to those involved and affected,” a statement from Tasmania Police said.

“As is normal process in any serious incident involving police, a full professional standards investigation is under way.

“The coroner has been notified and is attending the scene.”

Australia risks stalling efforts to cut transport emissions if it does not reintroduce tax breaks and incentives for the purchase of electric and hybrid vehicles.

The Australian Finance Industry Association issued the warning on Monday with its EV and hybrid car report, which revealed Australians financed almost 105,000 low-emission vehicles last year – a rise of more than 40,000 cars.

But the figures also revealed the removal of a tax exemption for plug-in hybrid cars this year delivered a sharp decline in sales.

The report comes after flat sales for electric vehicles this year and amid speculation over changes that will occur when penalties for exceeding emissions under Australia’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard begin in July.

The association’s study found finance companies provided $6.17 billion for electric and hybrid vehicle loans in 2024, representing a 50 per cent rise from 2023.

More than 104,800 low-emission vehicles were purchased under finance during the year, including more than 60,000 hybrids and 44,000 battery electric vehicles.

AAP

The Australian sharemarket is slightly higher at lunchtime, with energy giant Santos surging on the back of a $30 billion takeover bid from a consortium led by Abu Dhabi’s national oil company.

The ASX 200 was up by just 2.7 points as at 1.45pm AEST, with six of 11 sectors in the green. Energy shares again led the way, with the conflict in the Middle East pushing oil prices higher.

Santos jumped 11.8 per cent at lunchtime after announcing it had received a takeover offer from the XRG consortium, which includes the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, Abu Dhabi Development Holding Company and global private equity giant Carlyle.

The non-binding bid of $US5.76 ($8.89) a share represents a 28 per cent premium to Santos’s closing price on Friday. Fellow energy giant Woodside added 3.1 per cent.

Meanwhile, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) announced it would conduct a wide-ranging inquiry into markets operator ASX Limited after a series of failures at the company, saying it has concerns about ASX’s ability to provide a stable and secure infrastructure.

You can read our full market wrap here.