Australia news live: Sydney forecast to have hottest ever October day as Melbourne braces for destructive winds

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Brittany Higgins drops defamation appeal – reports

Brittany Higgins has dropped her appeal against the Western Australia supreme court decision that she defamed Linda Reynolds in a series of social media posts, according to reports.

In August the state supreme court judge Paul Tottle ruled that the former defence minister’s reputation was damaged by a 2022 social media post from David Sharaz, which Higgins responded to, and an Instagram story published by Higgins in July 2023.

Tottle found Higgins had defamed Reynolds in an Instagram story on 4 July 2023, which shared a screenshot of headlines publicising Reynolds’ intention to refer Higgins’ $2.445m personal injury settlement to the federal anti-corruption body and accused her of mishandling her alleged rape and waging a campaign of harassment.

Higgins was ordered to pay Reynolds $315,000 in damages with an additional $26,109.25 in interest. She was also found liable for Reynolds’ court and legal fees which could amount to more than $1m

Higgins filed an appeal notice against the court’s judgment in September, but the ABC reported last night that she filed a notice to the WA supreme court to discontinue the appeal.

It comes a week after Reynolds launched bankruptcy proceedings against Higgins in an effort to claim more than $1m in damages and legal fees.

Critical minerals deal takes US-Australia relationship to ‘another level’, Albanese says

Speaking about the critical minerals deal with the US, Albanese told the breakfast event that it took the relationship between the two countries to “another level.”

In what those in the room took as a clear reference to China, Albanese said the supply of critical minerals would make an “enormous difference so that we reduce our vulnerability from people who would seek to manipulate markets in order to secure any potential advantage that they think they might achieve”.

“So we stand together,” he said. “It’s been a fantastic visit, I’ve got to say. And I’m overwhelmed by the extraordinary turnout.”

PM says Australia and US face uncertain world, but ‘don’t have to question’ our relationship

In Albanese’s comments to the congressional breakfast, he also thanked US politicians for backing Aukus.

“We do live in an uncertain world. That’s the truth,” Albanese told the breakfast event, adding:

It’s moving in ways not just in international geopolitics but just with the transformation that we’ve seen with artificial intelligence, with technology and the impact it will have on the nature of work.

However, he said that – in an uncertain world – there were “some things which are your foundations, of which you don’t have to question”.

“One of the things we don’t have to question is our relationship” with the US, he said.

Albanese thanks Kevin Rudd for his work in Washington

Anthony Albanese finished up his second and final day of a lightning-quick Washington DC trip, meeting US congressional leaders and whipping up support for the Aukus deal while praising Kevin Rudd’s work as Australian ambassador.

At a breakfast event at Blair House – the president’s guest house, where Albanese is staying – the PM called the critical minerals deal a “gamechanger”, and championed the Aukus security partnership as central to peace and security in the Indo-Pacific.

“I want to personally thank [Rudd] for the work that he does,” Albanese told the gathering of about 40 Democratic and Republican politicians.

If there’s a harder working ambassador on the Hill, then please let me know because Kevin works his guts out and he seems to know everything.

Albanese said Australia “has no greater friend or ally than the United States … We have stood side by side for over 100 years, through good times and through bad”.

Rudd, in his comments to the breakfast, thanked the congressional leaders for supporting Aukus. The ambassador said:

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts, because without you, it would not be possible.

Good morning

Nick Visser here to take things over. Let’s dive in.

Total fire bans in place across NSW

Hot, dry and windy weather means high fire danger is expected across most of Queensland and NSW on Wednesday.

Extreme conditions are forecast, and total fire bans are in place in the following areas today: greater Sydney, greater Hunter, Illawarra and Shoalhaven, the Upper Central West Plains and North Western.

Insp James Morris, a spokesperson for the NSW rural fire service, said:

We’re likely to see very hot temperatures, very windy conditions and very low humidity – very dry across most parts. That combined with increased fuel loads – that’s the biggest risk.

Firefighting resources have been positioned in high-risk areas, with additional crews on standby and firefighting aircraft and specialist teams ready to respond at short notice.

A Fire and Rescue NSW spokesperson said:

We’re asking everyone to take the time now to prepare.

Clear leaves and debris from gutters and yards, move flammable materials away from your home, and check that hoses and pumps are working. Know your plan – if you live in a bushfire-prone area, understand your trigger points for leaving early.

NSW health authorities urge residents to take precautions ahead of hot weather

A NSW Health spokesperson has reminded people to take precautions in Wednesday’s high temperatures, given hot weather has the potential to cause severe illness requiring hospital admission, and can even be deadly.

Heat can also exacerbate people’s underlying health conditions (including heart, kidney, respiratory disease, diabetes and mental illness) and can result in people presenting to hospital emergency departments (EDs) and other health care services.

Simple prevention strategies include staying indoors during the hottest times of the day, closing doors, windows, blinds and curtains early to keep hot air and sun out in the day, staying hydrated and carrying a water bottle when outside.

People experiencing signs of heat-related illness like headache, dizziness, nausea and vomiting, fatigue and cramps, should cool down right away, move out of the sun and seek shade or air conditioning, take a cool shower or bath if possible and take sips of water.

Don’t forget to keep your pets cool as well – we’ve assembled some tips for helping protect animals in a heatwave:

Sydney braces for potentially record-breaking heat

The Bureau of Meteorology expects today to be hot, dry and windy across large parts of New South Wales following days of record-breaking heat across several states.

If temperatures in Sydney’s CBD reach 39C as forecast for today, the city’s October heat record of 38.2C, set in 2004 at Observatory Hill, could fall.

The weather bureau expects temperatures approaching 40C in the western suburbs.

On Tuesday, both Queensland and New South Wales recorded their highest ever October temperatures.

The Queensland outback town of Birdsville broke a new record on Tuesday, hitting 46.1C at 2.28pm local time, according to the Bureau of Meteorology, making it the highest October temperature recorded in the state. The state’s previous October record was 45.1C at Birdsville police station on 31 October 1995.

NSW also recorded its highest ever October temperature, with Bourke airport reaching 44.8C at 4pm local time on Tuesday. The previous NSW record for the month was 43.9C at Brewarrina on 31 October 1919.

Read more here:

The weather bureau has issued a warning for damaging winds for almost all of the state of Victoria this morning.

Strong northwest to westerly winds averaging 50 to 60 km/h with damaging gusts to 100 km/h are likely to develop over southwestern Victoria and elevated areas during Wednesday morning, then extend eastwards over the remainder of the warning area including Melbourne during the afternoon, the bureau says.

Damaging west to southwesterly winds averaging 60 to 80 km/h with gusts to 100 to 120 km/h are likely to develop over the far southwest later Wednesday morning, and shift eastwards over the southern parts of the Central district including Geelong and the Mornington Peninsula during the early afternoon, and into south Gippsland mid to late afternoon.

Destructive wind gusts to 130 km/h are possible about the coast west of Cape Otway during the late morning and afternoon.

Conditions are expected to ease over the north and west later Wednesday afternoon

The SES advises people to avoid travel if possible and steer clear of potential hazards, to check that loose items, such as outdoor settings, umbrellas and trampolines are safely secured, to move vehicles under cover or away from trees and to stay indoors.

Welcome

Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then it’ll be Nick Visser with the main action.

Sydneysiders are bracing themselves for what could be the hottest October day ever recorded. The Bureau of Meteorology has forecast that today will be hot, dry and windy across large parts of New South Wales and that temperatures in Sydney’s CBD could reach 39C, beating the city’s October heat record of 38.2C set in 2004 at Observatory Hill.

Meanwhile, there’s a severe weather warning for Melbourne and elsewhere in Victoria this morning for “damaging, locally destructive winds”.

In other news, a US company has put in a bid for the beleaguered regional airline Rex. More on that soon.