Minister for Infrastructure Catherine King has rejected the suggestion the prime minister’s letter to UK counterpart Keir Starmer was an attempt to shift focus off the government’s handling of 34 IS brides and their children seeking a return home to Australia.
King was asked on the Today show this morning about the significance of Albanese’s letter that yesterday expressed Australia’s support to remove Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor from the royal line of succession.
“The royal family is really suffering significantly as a result of Andrew’s actions, and we’ve signalled that early support if the UK chooses to do that, to provide that opportunity for the UK to take a decision. It requires all of the Commonwealth countries to agree. It requires legislation with the states and territories. So the Prime Minister’s given that early indication that really we want to draw a line under this,” King said.
Host Karl Stefanovic asked: “You’re not trying to move the topic on, are you, from the ISIS brides?”
“No, not at all. I think you know, we can, can walk and chew gum at the same time as a government, as we always do,” King responded.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Australia would strip the former prince Andrew’s right to succeed to the throne due to the grave allegations against the disgraced royal.
It comes after officials in the UK told local media this week that UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer was considering legislation that would remove Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor from the line of succession.
Fifteen Commonwealth nations are required to pass laws to make such a change.
The ex-prince, stripped of his royal title in October last year over his connections to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, is eighth in line to the throne after the families of princes William and Harry, making it highly unlikely he would become Australia’s and the UK’s head of state.
Starmer has not publicly announced he will dump Mountbatten-Windsor from the line of succession. The BBC reported that any such move would probably occur only after police concluded their probe into the 66-year-old’s ties to Jeffrey Epstein which led to his arrest last week on suspicion of misconduct in public office.
But Albanese pre-empted any move by writing to Starmer yesterday, underscoring the strong appetite among politicians to be seen to denounce Mountbatten-Windsor.
The royal commission into the Bondi Beach massacre and antisemitism in Australia begins in Sydney today with its first public hearings. Royal commissioner Virginia Bell and counsel assisting Richard Lancaster, SC, will deliver opening statements explaining how they will perform their duties.
Later this week, Bell will visit Bondi, the scene of the worst terror attack in the nation’s history, to meet with survivors of the massacre and relatives of the 15 innocent people killed on December 14.
Those invited have been told that Bell will use the informal meeting to explain “limitations on the approach the commission can take to leading evidence of the circumstances of the attack and answer questions about how it will operate”.
With a tight mid-December deadline and expansive terms of reference, Bell and Lancaster have much work to do over the next year.
Key issues royal commission will examine
- How prevalent is antisemitism in Australia, and how does it compare to other forms of prejudice?
- What motivated the shooters?
- Did intelligence and security failures contribute to the Bondi attack?
- Did governments ignore warnings of rising antisemitism?
- What legal reforms and societal change is needed?
Good morning and welcome to our national news live blog for Tuesday, February 24. I’m Emily Kaine, and I’ll be helming our coverage today. Here’s what is making news this morning.
- The royal commission into the Bondi Beach massacre and antisemitism in Australia begins in Sydney today with its first public hearings. Royal commissioner Virginia Bell and counsel assisting Richard Lancaster, SC, will deliver opening statements explaining how they will perform their duties.
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Australia would strip the former prince Andrew’s right to succeed to the throne due to the grave allegations against the disgraced royal. It comes after officials in the UK told local media this week that UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer was considering legislation that would remove Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor from the line of succession. Fifteen Commonwealth nations are required to pass laws to make such a change.
- The Coalition’s proposal to enact new laws that would criminalise the actions of anyone helping terror-linked individuals return to Australia, after a group of IS-linked women and children attempted to return to Australia last week and were turned back, has been slammed by charity Save the Children.
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The Australian government has issued a warning for Aussies travelling to Mexico following the death of drug lord “El Mencho” in a military raid. The government is advising travellers to “exercise a high degree of caution in Mexico overall due to the threat of violent crime”.
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And in breaking news this morning, British police have arrested former cabinet minister Peter Mandelson on suspicion of misconduct in public office because of his ties to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, just days after Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was detained on similar grounds.
Follow along as we bring you rolling updates throughout the day.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: www.smh.com.au
