Australia news live: Ben Carroll promises new direction for Victoria ahead of ‘high stakes’ election; Moira Deeming quits Liberal party | Australia news

Kellie Sloane backs in shadow cabinet member named during Icac hearing

Returning to Kellie Sloane: the NSW opposition leader has called for “procedural fairness” to be observed after a member of her frontbench – the shadow finance minister, Eleni Petinos – was named during Icac corruption hearings.

The inquiry heard a phone call featuring fugitive property developer and prohibited donor Jean Nassif, in October 2021, in which he allegedly claimed he had paid for the removal of the building commissioner, David Chandler.

He also allegedly claimed that “the fair trading minister is gonna to be one of my girls”.

The inquiry heard that two months after the call, the then Liberal premier Dominic Perrottet appointed Petinos as state minister of fair trading in a cabinet reshuffle.

In July 2022, Chandler handed in his resignation after an investigation into his conduct that had been requested by Petinos, which later cleared him of any wrongdoing.

Sloane, who says she checked in with Petinos yesterday, says:

The allegations were made, and [counsel assisting] herself said that it is yet to be determined whether this was serendipitous, whether it was just wishful thinking by Nassif, and these were opening statements.

It’s going to be impossible for me to make a running commentary of the matters of Icac and there is procedural fairness that should be accorded to all.

Perrottet and Petinos – who is currently on maternity leave – are not accused of any wrongdoing.

The inquiry continues today, with Michael O’Hara – a hotelier and Tudehope’s former business partner – finishing his evidence, followed by former Liberal staffer Dylan Whitelaw.

Ben Carroll was just sworn in as the next premier of Victoria at the state’s government house. He took the oath of office, saying he would at all times discharge the duties of his office.

NSW Liberal leader says Icac hearing ‘intensely uncomfortable listening’

The NSW Liberal leader, Kellie Sloane, described the first day of watchdog hearings into historic allegations of corruption in her party as “uncomfortable listening” and backed in members of her shadow cabinet named during hearings.

Yesterday, the Independent Commission Against Corruption (Icac) began the first of eight weeks of hearings as part of Operation Rosny. In her opening statement, counsel assisting, Peggy Dwyer SC, said evidence would show how a group of young Liberal power brokers known as the “Reformers” allegedly solicited illegal donations to support branch stacking efforts to move the party to the conservative right.

Sloane, who was not an MP at the time of the allegations, has told 2GB the hearing was “intensely uncomfortable listening”.

Yeah, look, the whole thing was intensely uncomfortable listening. I wish Icac the very best in rooting out any corruption. At the moment, these are allegations and opening statements. We’ve got 8 weeks. So we just have to listen to this. But, you know … my job is not to be distracted by this.

Two current members of Sloane’s shadow cabinet were mentioned yesterday, including the shadow attorney general and Liberal leader in the upper house, Damien Tudehope.

The inquiry heard that multiple people named in allegations had connections with Tudehope, including some who had worked as staffers in his office. His son, James Tudehope, is not named in allegations but has declined a request to give evidence having moved to New Zealand.

Sloane tells 2GB she stands by her comments that Tudehope, who is not accused of any wrongdoing and has stood aside from shadow cabinet during the inquiry after being called as a witness, is “a man of integrity”.

And in some other news down at Spring Street, the Victorian opposition leader, Jess Wilson, has issued a short statement confirming Moira Deeming has quit the Liberal party:

This morning I received the resignation from the Parliamentary Liberal Party from Moira Deeming.

Deeming was spotted on the crossbench in upper house question time.

She was disendorsed as a candidate for the party by the Liberal state executive earlier this month after she had accused fellow Liberal MP Matthew Guy of grabbing her “violently” in a headlock. She later claimed she misunderstood the meaning of headlock.

Police investigated the reported incident and concluded there was “no offence detected”.

She had taken legal action against the party president, Brian Loughnane, which initially sought to prevent the party from disendorsing her, but withdrew the action just hours before the meeting.

Carroll ‘honoured and humbled’ to be elected next premier in Victoria

Ben Carroll has posted a video saying he’s “honoured and humbled” to be elected as the next premier of Victoria.

He said his decision came amid polling showing a surging Liberal-One Nation wave in the state. He went on:

Yesterday, they asked me to put my hand up. … This was not an easy decision, but the stakes at this election are too high.

Only Labor can stop the risk of a Liberal-One Nation government that will hurt working people. But it is clear that on key issues that matter to Victorians, our government needs to go in a new direction. … As premier, I will deliver that new direction.

Carroll and Williams en route to government house to be sworn in

Victorian parliament has begun sitting but Ben Carroll and Gabrielle Williams are on their way to government house to be sworn in as premier and deputy premier.

Allan supporters Lily D’Ambrosio and Steve Dimopoulos, the latter of whom made a tilt for the deputy position, have said they will get behind Carroll.

Leaving the two-hour long meeting of MPs, Dimopoulos said: “Caucus always makes the right call.”

D’Ambrosio said:

We are here united behind Ben Carroll and, of course, his deputy Gabrielle Williams.

Cheek media’s co-founder Hannah Ferguson has declared she’ll challenge the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, in his seat of Grayndler at the next election, due by May 2028.

The popular commentator and podcaster made the announcement via social media, and said the inner west deserves better representation.

Ferguson had told the National Press Club last year she would run for the Senate, but says she reconsidered:

Towards the end of 2025, I realised that the more conversations I was having the more the question came up: why not Grayndler?

Ferguson says when she was born in Marrickville in 1998, Albanese had already represented the area for two years. She grew up in different parts of the country – from south-west Sydney to Orange but now calls the area home once again.

She says she intends to step away from Cheek Media at “some stage next year” to campaign full-time and ensure the company remains independent.

This is not about headlines or clickbait, its about hearing directly from people in my community who feel underrepresented. The political system is broken. The major parties are answering to vested interests, not the communities they’ve been elected to serve … I am not here to play politics, that is just another reason Australians are fed up with the political party machinery.

Labor MP Juliana Addisonhas just announced that Ben Carroll has been appointed leader of the Victorian Labor party.

It appears Sonya Kilkenny has stepped down.

Addison says:

I am delighted to announce that we have a new premier of Victoria. Ben Carroll has been unanimously endorsed by the State Parliamentary Labor party as our next premier of Victoria. I am also delighted to announce that Gabrielle Williams will be our deputy premier. I want to thank our former premier Jacinta Allan, an extraordinary person who has contributed so much to the parliament of Victoria. Personally, as a regional woman, to have her as our premier is something I’m incredibly proud of.

Applause heard from Victorian Labor party room

Loud clapping is being heard from Labor caucus room, which has to wrap up in the next five minutes given parliament kicks off at 12pm.

‘This will have been a very difficult day’: Albanese on Allan

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has paid tribute to the former Victorian premier Jacinta Allan – who has just stepped down this morning ahead of a leadership challenge – saying he has “worked closely with her” for decades.

Speaking in Western Australia while announcing plans for the country’s first new oil refinery in decades, he said:

Jacinta is someone who I think is a very decent human being, someone who’s motivated by her passionate belief in the lifestyle and in education, health, transport of Victorians.

She’s someone who can be proud, I think, of her achievements over a long period of time, and I wish her well for her future. This will have been a very difficult day.

Politics can be … a very tough business.

Transport infrastructure minister Gabrielle Williams has secured the deputy leadership of the Victorian Labor party, sources have confirmed.

In an unexpected turn of events, she will also be interim leader of the party until nominations close for leader. This is because Sonya Kilkenny has put her hand up to run against Ben Carroll.

KPMG sacks former executive who allegedly stashed client info in locker

KPMG has told a parliamentary inquiry that its former chief operating officer kept confidential client information in her locker, after repeatedly denying the allegation.

The firm has admitted to two breaches of client confidentiality but denied a third by Eileen Hoggett. The new KPMG chief executive, John Sams, wrote in a Friday letter to a parliamentary inquiry that Hoggett had denied keeping Lendlease audit information in a locker in the KPMG Sydney office. KPMG had found that she had, he said. Sams wrote:

The substantiation of this allegation reflects the importance of ensuring concerns are thoroughly and objectively investigated … I regret the way aspects of this matter were handled in the past. It is unacceptable that it has taken this long for the truth to come out, and that it has come to light in this manner.

Sams has had Hoggett sacked from the firm, a KPMG spokesperson said.

The regulator, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, has told the inquiry it is formally investigating Hoggett and former colleague Paul Rogers over their behaviour in the Lendlease audit. Neither of the former KPMG partners has commented publicly on the allegations.

Victorian Labor’s caucus meeting is going a lot longer than we had anticipated given Jacinta Allan stood down as leader before a spill brought forward by her deputy, Ben Carroll.

We know the attorney general, Sonya Kilkenny, has put her hand up for the leadership but sources say she has the support of about 15 MPs – while Carroll has the support of 40.

Sources in Carroll’s camp say they’re currently trying to negotiate an alternative that would prevent Kilkenny standing to prevent a ballot of rank and file members that would take six weeks.

It appears heated in there – there’s shouting, including from one person who we can hear from outside has said: “I’m just doing my job.”

“Hang on hang on, one at a time”, we can hear Jacinta Allan saying from outside the caucus room. She is chairing the meeting.

Origin Energy hack hits 900,000 current and former customers

Origin Energy has found about 900,000 current and former customers’ records have been accessed in a data breach.

Australia’s largest energy retailer said today it was contacting and supporting customers whose information has been accessed. Origin’s chief executive, Frank Calabria, said the company was still reviewing the incident, revealed last week. Calabria said:

To our customers, I am sorry. We don’t take for granted the trust customers place in Origin and our safeguarding of their information … We are working with cybersecurity and forensic specialists to ensure the incident is contained, and we’ve taken a number of steps to secure our systems.

Calabria warned customers to watch out for suspicious activity and a heightened risk of scams. He said Australian government agencies had been notified, adding:

Importantly, this is a criminal matter that is subject to an ongoing investigation by the relevant authorities, and given this, we are constrained by the level of information we can provide about the incident at this time.

The company last week dismissed reports it had reached a deal with its hacker to avoid data leaks. After The Australian published claims from a person claiming to be behind the hack on Friday, an Origin spokesperson said:

Origin notes there is considerable media speculation in relation to the data security incident we are actively managing. Our investigation is ongoing, and we currently have no further updates.