Australia live news updates: Anthony Albanese welcomed by Indonesian president Joko Widodo; economists tip rate rise

More beds for Adelaide hospitals to deal with Covid cases and winter flu infections

An extra 80 hospital beds will be opened across Adelaide’s hospital network along a new acute assessment centre as part of a winter strategy to deal with the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and a rise in flu infections, AAP reports.

The extra beds are on top of the 180 opened in the past few weeks after the new Labor government took what it called urgent action to strengthen the hospital network.

The winter strategy also includes more resources for virtual and community care along with a program of free flu vaccinations.

It comes as flu cases continue to rise after the release of ambulance ramping figures which showed 3,412 hours were lost in May.

Covid-19 infections appear to have stabilised but daily case numbers have remained persistently above 2,000 in recent days, with more than 200 people in hospital.

“This is the first winter since the pandemic hit that our health system will be required to manage both Covid-19 and the flu, as well as normal winter demand, and we know this will be a challenge,” the health minister, Chris Picton, said.

“This is the state’s first winter demand strategy in four years and does everything we can with the situation we have inherited to generate more capacity.”

As part of the winter strategy, the acute assessment centre at the Royal Adelaide Hospital will allow patients who need to be admitted to bypass the emergency department.

The government is also working with private hospitals and day surgeries to perform more elective surgery procedures.

National Covid-19 update

What’s next for Albanese in Jakarta

Katharine Murphy

Another day of no Covid numbers out of the ACT due to an IT issue.

ATO confirms Covid tests or PPE bought for work-related purposes are tax-deductible from 1 July

Taxpayers who paid for a Covid-19 test for work-related purposes or bought their own PPE could be able to claim it as a deduction, the Australian Tax Office says.

AAP reports that with the end of the financial year looming, the ATO expects Covid-19 will continue to impact tax returns.

“We know that many have faced significant challenges,” the assistant commissioner, Tim Loh, said.

While taxpayers embraced working from home with gusto during the pandemic, many are now trying to determine what they can claim as a legitimate work expense on their annual returns.

From 1 July, people forced to buy tests to determine if they can attend or remain at work can claim the cost as a tax deduction.

They must have a record proving they paid for the test but the ATO will accept a bank or credit card statement alongside documentation from employers as evidence.

The ATO says employees cannot claim for tests supplied by employers or where the cost was reimbursed.

Only tests required for work-related purposes are deductible.

“If you purchased a Covid-19 test for a trip with your mates, you can’t claim a deduction,” Loh said.

Taxpayers will also be able to claim deductions for the cost of protective items that protect against illness or injury while at work.

“If you’re spending your working day in close proximity to customers and at risk of contracting Covid-19, you may be able to claim a deduction for protective items such as gloves, face masks, or sanitiser.”

The federal Covid-19 disaster payment will not be taxed and does not need to be included in returns.

Jobseeker and Pandemic Leave Disaster payments are taxable and do need to be included.

And a tweet to accompany Katharine Murphy’s last post.

Ceremonial welcome for Albanese in Jakarta

Katharine Murphy

Queensland announces commission of inquiry into DNA testing

Eden Gillespie

If you are interested in reading the lengthy Barilaro v Google defamation judgment, it has been posted online by the federal court here.

Commonwealth Bank declines to comment on partnership with embattled cryptocurrency exchange Gemini

The Commonwealth Bank is refusing to say what the future of its partnership with cryptocurrency exchange Gemini will be as the company faces a lawsuit from US regulators over alleged misleading and false statements made.

In November, CBA said it planned to integrate Gemini’s crypto exchange platform into its banking app.

We reported last month that Commbank had paused its cryptocurrency trading plans amid the ongoing turmoil in the crypto market. But last week, the US Commodities Future Trading Commission filed a complaint in the US district court that Gemini “directly and through others, made false or misleading statements of material facts, or omitted to state material facts, to the CFTC during an evaluation of the potential self-certification of a bitcoin futures contract by a designated contract market (DCM).”

The regulator has alleged Gemini personnel knew or reasonably should have known that statements made were false or misleading.

Commbank was asked by Guardian on Friday about whether it would continue working with Gemini in light of the allegations. On Monday a spokesperson for CBA “politely declined” to comment.

Back in November, Gemini’s global head of business development, David Abner, said:

We are proud to be providing exchange and custody services to CBA as they begin to unlock access to cryptocurrency investments for many Australians. The exponential growth of digital assets internationally, coupled with Gemini’s institutional-grade security and proactive regulatory approach, positions this partnership to set a new standard for banks and financial platforms in Australia and across the globe.

Northern Territory introduces EV incentive scheme to lower setup costs

Driving an electric vehicle in the Northern Territory is set to become cheaper, with the introduction of a government grants program to lower setup costs, AAP reports.

The incentive scheme slashes registration and stamp duty fees for plug-in EVs and provides subsidies for the installation of chargers in a bid to bolster the uptake of electric vehicles.

“We are progressively working towards a target of 50 per cent renewables by 2030 and zero emissions by 2050,” the chief minister, Natasha Fyles, said Monday.

From 1 July, registration fees will be waived for five years and stamp duty fees will fall by three per cent of vehicle purchase price.

This means no stamp duty will be paid on $50,000 of the vehicle cost, representing a saving of up to $1,500.

EV motorists and businesses will also be able to apply for grants to help buy and install chargers.

The $300,000 charger package includes 100 residential grants of $1,000 and 80 business grants of $2,500, which offsets about half the cost of installing a charger.

I’ll now hand over to the wonderful Josh Taylor who will take you through the afternoon. Stay warm.

WA recorded 4,849 positive Covid test results

Victoria police fails to achieve 1% target for Indigenous employment

Victoria police has failed to meet its Indigenous employment target of 1%, with just 0.55% of its workforce identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander.

It is an increase of 0.11% since its Aboriginal inclusion strategy and action plan 2018-2021 was released, but falls short of the target to boost participation to 1% – or 200 employees – by June 2021.

In a statement to AAP, Victoria Police said the Covid-19 pandemic restricted its recruitment procedures and in hindsight, its 1% target was “ambitious”.

“Victoria Police is committed to achieving a diverse and inclusive workplace that promotes equality and respect for Aboriginal people in our workforce and in the community,” a spokesperson said.

“We set ourselves an ambitious target of 1% of our workforce being Aboriginal and or Torres Strait Islander by June 2021.”

It comes weeks after the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission, Victoria’s police oversight body, found the force failed in its handling of complaints made by Aboriginal people. IBAC examined its handling of 41 complaints made by Aboriginal people and its oversight of 13 serious incidents involving an Indigenous person.

Of the audited complaints, 41% involved those aged 17 or younger and almost half (46%) were related to the use of force or assaults by police, often during an arrest.

Some 27 of the 41 audited complaints were classified in a way that a determination of “substantiated” could be found, Ibac said. But Victoria Police instead ruled only three were substantiated – two connected to inappropriate language and the third to duty failure.

Our full report on the employment target is here:

Tony Abbott questions need for First Nations voice to parliament

Still on the voice to parliament, the former prime minister Tony Abbott said he backed changing the preamble in the constitution to recognise Australia’s First Nations “heritage,” but has questioned the need for a voice to parliament.

The Uluru summit in 2017 resoundingly rejected a preamble, calling it empty symbolism.

Abbott, in an essay published in The Australian on Monday, asked why there should be an enshrined voice, with a record number of First Nations parliamentarians elected on May 21. He wrote:

With 10 Indigenous MPs, what’s the point of a separate Indigenous voice to the parliament now that Indigenous people are so well represented in the parliament itself?

With the Indigenous percentage of the parliament (elected without quotas or any form of “affirmative action”) now ahead of that in the population at large, any need for a separate “voice” to the parliament surely has passed.

Only one of those 10 MPs is in the Liberal party. The rest are in Labor and the Greens, who both support the Uluru Statement and have actively recruited First Nations people to winnable positions.

Abbott has proposed incorporating the words “to create a nation with an Indigenous heritage, a British foundation, and an immigrant character” in the constitution.

Dutton open to a First Nations voice to parliament, but wants a ‘look at the detail’ before making a commitment

The opposition leader appointed Julian Leeser as his spokesman for Indigenous Australians when he unveiled his frontbench on Sunday.

Leeser is an outspoken supporter of the Uluru Statement from the Heart, which calls for the establishment of a First Nations voice.

When asked what people could read from his decision to appoint Leeser to the portfolio, Dutton said his focus was improving the lives of Indigenous people.

“In relation to the statement … I’ve said we will consider what the government’s putting forward,” he told the ABC on Monday.

“I want to look at the detail (but) at the moment that detail is not available.”

Dutton said the Indigenous Australians minister, Linda Burney, had been “open and honest” that it wasn’t yet ready.

“I think what needs to take place first is we need for the public to understand what it is that’s being proposed,” he said.

He said reconciliation also involved improving health, education and housing outcomes for Indigenous people.

“I want to see those people in those communities leading a much better life akin to what we do in capital cities.”

(I will point out here that according to the ABS, 81% of First Nations people in Australia live in non-remote areas and 35% live in capital cities).

Dutton walked out on the apology given to the Stolen Generations in 2008. Pat Dodson, an indigenous Labor senator for WA, said Dutton was “very courageous” to acknowledge – after becoming opposition leader – that doing so was a mistake.

“I thought he was honest and I can see where the pain of the experiences that he cited as the causes for his walking out as conflicting with what was happening in the parliament – sometimes you feel like that in this place,” Dodson told The West Australian.

Dodson said the voice was about “nation building”.

“This is about our real opportunity for all of us to do something wonderful for our country and that is to get behind a referendum that supports the concept of a voice for First Nations peoples to the parliament so they can have a say on those key pieces of legislation or on policy matters that are going to impact their lives,” he said.

Minjee Lee’s brother, Min Woo Lee, has tweeted about the Australian golfer’s US Women’s Open win.