Attorneys general are meeting in Darwin on Friday to work on nationalising the working with children check, after serious allegations of safety breaches and child abuse in the childcare sector. Under current timelines, a fully nationalised system would not be in place until mid-2028, about two years from now.
The Coalition has recently increased pressure on the government’s timetable and accused it of delaying the national system. Federal attorney general Michelle Rowland said the attorneys general would seek agreement today on a baseline of criminal offences that would automatically bar a person from being granted or holding a working with children check (WWCC), and would also discuss minimum standards for WWCC risk assessment processes.
All governments have made significant progress towards delivering a national approach to Working with Children Checks ... I am confident my state and territory colleagues will take the next big step today and agree on nationally consistent minimum standards and information sharing.
What is the political mood around Angus Taylor?
The opening days of an inquiry exposing a dark underbelly of the New South Wales Liberals have left Angus Taylor’s colleagues anxious and his factional enemies angry. The federal opposition leader is not a specific target of Operation Rosny, which is investigating allegations of corruption against people associated with the NSW branch, and he is not accused of wrongdoing.
However, Taylor is the highest-profile person mentioned so far and is the political figure with the most to lose.
Why is Australia sending firefighters to France?
Australia is sending firefighting teams to support rescue efforts in France amid raging wildfires in Europe. The government said a Chinook helicopter equipped with an 11,300-litre water tank and a support aircraft would be deployed, alongside 24 skilled aerial and ground crew from the New South Wales Rural Fire Service.
Together, they will support around-the-clock firefighting operations, providing much-needed relief to emergency services responding on the ground.
The wildfires in France are among the worst the country has experienced in decades, driven by multiple active fire fronts and a prolonged summer heatwave.
The NSW RFS is internationally recognised as an expert in bushfire management and represents the very best of Australian emergency management capability.
What will happen at Garma festival?
A children’s TV megastar, foreign dignitaries and thousands of visitors will converge on remote north-east Arnhem Land for the Garma festival, which carries the Yolŋu theme “Bukmak” – all of us, everyone, together. The four-day celebration of Yolŋu life and culture begins on Friday at the Gulkula ceremonial site, about 40km from Nhulunbuy on the Gove Peninsula, with organisers expecting between 5,500 and 6,000 people through the gates.
Foreign minister Penny Wong, education minister Jason Clare and Indigenous affairs minister Malarndirri McCarthy will be among those attending the gathering, which has become one of Australia’s most important forums for Indigenous policy and cultural exchange.
The political heavyweights will share the spotlight with Australia’s most famous blue heeler, with Bluey going bush for a special visit to Yolŋu country on Friday so families and djamarrkuli (children) can say yukurr (hello) and grab a selfie. After dark, all five Bluey episodes translated into Yolŋu Matha by the ARDS team will roll out on the big screen, with the crew behind the dubs on hand to share the moment.
Garma is Australia’s largest Indigenous gathering, a four-day celebration of Yolŋu life and culture in remote north-east Arnhem Land. Garma runs from Friday to Monday.
How widespread are barriers to dental care?
Three-quarters of the 25,000 Australians surveyed in the Australian Dental Association’s 2025 consumer survey said they faced barriers to accessing dental care, which could be forcing them to delay or avoid it. Cost was the biggest obstacle to regular dental care for young adults, but a lack of free time and reduced access to support were also factors.
The cost pressures outlined in the survey support a decades-long push to improve affordability of dental care by adding dental to Medicare. The average cost of a dental check-up and clean in Australia last year was just below $240, according to Cleanbill’s 2025 National Dental Listings Report.
The association also says social media is driving a surge in cosmetic dental procedures.
What is happening in the Fortescue compensation case?
A legal battle involving Indigenous land rights is set to return to court after native title holders rejected a court-ordered $150m compensation payout, Australian Associated Press reports. The federal court ordered in May that Andrew Forrest’s company Fortescue pay the Yindjibarndi Ngurra Aboriginal Corporation the sum in compensation for mining on its land without an agreement and destroying cultural sites.
Yesterday a meeting of Yindjibarndi native title body members voted unanimously to appeal the decision, in order to seek more from the miner.
Yindjibarndi Group chief executive Michael Woodley said:
It was a long, emotional day, which resulted in a decision by all attendees to put family and Ngurra [Country] first.
The decision represents the strong connection between Yindjibarndi People and our Ngurra, and what we hold as the key value of our community – that is, a successful future for the next generations.
What else is happening in today’s live blog?
Good morning, blog readers. Nick Visser here to take the reins and guide us through Friday. Let’s get to it.
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then it will be Nick Visser with the main action.
State, territory and federal attorneys general are meeting today to discuss reform on working with children checks. The meeting has been sparked by serious allegations of safety breaches and child abuse in the childcare sector.
A farewell will be held for Layla Jeffery, 13, in Donald today. Layla went missing in July and a 16-year-old boy has been charged over her alleged murder.
And a legal battle involving Indigenous land rights is set to return to court after native title holders rejected a court-ordered $150m compensation payout.
