We’ve rounded up the news headlines from Australia and around the world.
1. Tony Abbott brings forward the special meeting to consider a leadership spill.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott has called a special party room meeting for 9:00am AEDT on Monday to consider the spill motion.
Two West Australian MPs are planning to move a motion to spill the leadership positions of the Liberal party at the meeting.
The move comes after Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull praised Mr Abbott earlier this morning for keeping the meeting on Tuesday, saying it “showed great respect for the party”.
“The virtue of having it on Tuesday … [is] that members coming to Canberra who will have been getting lots of phone calls and talking to their constituents, many of which will be uncertain, will want to have the opportunity to sit down and talk to each other in the nation’s capital in the course of that Monday leading up to the Tuesday,” Mr Turnbull said.
“He’s … shown great respect for the party room by saying that the meeting will be on Tuesday which is the normal party room meeting.”
Read more: Is Malcolm Turnbull calling MPs to ask for their support?
Some commentators have suggested Tony Abbott could avert a leadership spill by installing Malcolm Turnbull as Treasurer.
Mr Abbott told reporters outside Kirribilli house earlier that Joe Hockey still had his full support.
When asked by reporters if Mr Hockey still had his continued support, the PM replied, “of course he does”.
The Federal Employment Minister Eric Abetz rejected reports that he was among ministers campaigning for Joe Hockey to be replaced as Treasurer.
Senator Abetz said he continues to support the entire leadership team, including the Treasurer.
Speaking outside his house this morning, Mr Turnbull said members of the party room needed time to talk to each other directly rather than through the media.
“Members of the party room have got to have the time to talk to each other … that’s the whole purpose of Parliament, for people to come together and talk, that’s what we’re paid to do by our constituents,” he said.
“It is really important that we talk to our colleagues directly rather than giving them advice or lecturing them or trying to communicate with them through the media.
“We’ve got to respect our members … in the party room, whether they’re the PM or the newest elected backbencher.”
A version of this article was published by the ABC here. It has been republished with full permissions.
2. Lindt cafe workers armed themselves with knives as the cafe was overtaken by Sydney siege gunman.
Lindt cafe workers Jarrod Hoffman and Joel Herat have spoken to Channel 9’s 60 Minutes program about their 17 hour long ordeal with Man Haron Monis during the Sydney Siege.
Hoffman, 19, and Herat, 21, will speak about their decision to arm themselves with switchblades and kitchen knives soon after Monis took control of their workplace, on the current affairs program tonight.
Read more: Sydney Siege: Disturbing new details of what happened inside the Lindt Cafe.
Herat described the dilemma he faced to reporter Lize Hayes: “He was, you know, right below me sitting on the lounge and like, do I stab him? You know, what if I miss? What are the consequences of that, you know?”
Though they did not ultimately use their weapons, they revealed they were close to doing so as Monis terrorised the fellow siege victims.
3. Family violence groups call for government to restore funding.
By EMMA YOUNGER.
Anti-family violence service providers have called on the Federal Government to reinstate $2.4 million of funding that is set to be cut from the sector at the end of June.
The money is provided as grants for specialised family violence programs but the scheme was abolished in last year’s budget.
A fortnight ago, after Rosie Batty was named Australian of the Year, Prime Minister Tony Abbott pledged to take action this year to tackle the issue of family violence.
No To Violence, the Victorian peak body for organisations that work with men to end their violent behaviour towards family members, is among those calling for funding cuts to be reversed.
Its chief Rodney Vlais, who co-ordinates men’s behaviour change programs across the state, said the cuts undermined the Government’s rhetoric.
“By recognising this, [governments] really need to see this as an opportunity to put more money into addressing the source of the problem,” Mr Vlais said.
The programs are funded primarily by the Victorian Government but federal funding is being used in an effort to reduce long waiting lists.
Read more: The system let Rosie Batty down. But she stood up.
Mr Vlais said the funding cut would have a $300,000 affect on men’s behaviour change programs.
“I’ve certainly been made aware recently of some large programs that either have needed to close their books to new referrals or are in a position where they’ll have to do that very soon,” he said.
“Two programs [said] it now takes at least two months once a man has been referred or referred himself to the program before he can even have that first initial, vital appointment.”
Mr Vlais said he was extremely concerned the funding cut would drive waiting lists up even further.
A version of this article was originally published by the ABC here. It has been republished with full permissions.
4. Cambodia to deport US sisters who took naked photos at ancient temple.
A Cambodian court has convicted two women from the United States for taking nude photographs at an ancient temple in the country’s Angkor complex.
The Siem Reap provincial court said the sisters were each given a suspended term of six months in jail and fined 1 million riel ($315) for taking nude photos at Preah Khan temple inside the Angkor archaeological park.
They will not be allowed to return to Cambodia for four years.
Lindsey Adams, 22, and her 20-year-old sister Leslie will be deported on Sunday morning, according to the court’s decision.
Cambodian authorities detained the two American tourists soon after they were found taking photos of their partly naked backsides on Friday morning.
The Apsara Authority, which oversees all temples in Siem Reap including Angkor Wat temple, said in its statement that “after being questioned over this case, the two tourists had confessed and recognised that they made a mistake by taking naked back photos”.
It is the second incident in less than 10 days, after the authority arrested three French male tourists for taking nude photos at another temple complex of Banteay Kdey.
Apsara Authority spokeswoman Chau Sun Kerya said the women’s actions were offensive towards Cambodian culture and were inappropriate at such a sacred site.
A version of this article was originally published by the ABC here. It has been republished with full permissions.
Top Comments
Why on earth would the Lindt Cafe have switchblades available for those lads to arm themselves with?
I think they meant Stanley knives - which would be on hand for cutting open boxes.
They would have been the stanley knife type ones. Used to open boxes.
I respect Malcolm Turnbull for being forthright and transparent about his agenda on the leadership issue. Julie Bishiop however, appears evasive whilst it is clear that she has her eyes on the prize.
I don't believe Malcolm for one moment!