What we learned, Friday 5 December
That’s it for today, thanks for reading. Here are the main stories from today:
Have a great weekend.
Key events
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What we learned, Friday 5 December
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Billionaire Solomon Lew says he cannot recall worse cost-of-living pressures in his decades in business
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Oprah Winfrey says Australian social media ban will help young people experience “talking to a real person”
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Dozens of buildings damaged in Tasmanian bushfire
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Emergency fire warning for area south of Bulahdelah in NSW mid north coast
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Sewage risks spilling into Sydney Harbour from cracked wastewater pipe
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Chalmers cheers OpenAI’s new $7bn Sydney datacentre
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NSW RFS issues emergency warning for bushfire near Dubbo
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State Library of Victoria says recent public criticism is ‘unfounded’
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SA’s opposition leader steps down
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Fresh search for body, evidence linked to alleged Victorian cop-killer
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Canavan hopes to woo Joyce back to the Nationals
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Victoria’s midyear budget update
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NSW police investigate reports of a shooting outside a Sydney gym
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Australia will compete in Eurovision, SBS says
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Residents of Glunlusk, near Hobart, can return home, with caution, after bushfire threat
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Tasmania fire authorities battling bushfires, some property losses reported
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Adult time for violent crime passes Victorian parliament
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Sydney’s M4 tunnel fully reopens after drivers stuck for hours
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Heatwave warning for much of NSW, including Sydney, some areas forecast to hit low 40s
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Welcome
Billionaire Solomon Lew says he cannot recall worse cost-of-living pressures in his decades in business
Billionaire retailer Solomon Lew warns cost-of-living pressures are taking a toll on consumers, leading to a weaker earnings outlook for his company, AAP report.
Premier Investments, the parent company of back-to-school brand Smiggle and sleepwear brand Peter Alexander, expects to make $120m in earnings for the 26 weeks to 24 January.
That’s down from the $129.4m generated by the two brands, which are some of Australia’s most recognised, during the same period a year ago.
Peter Alexander delivered record sales across the Black Friday and Cyber Monday discount shopping period, Mr Lew said, but overall consumer sentiment was down.
“You only have to look at what’s taking place with people not paying their electricity bills in NSW and other states and having to apply for extended terms,” the 80-year-old retail legend told reporters following the company’s annual general meeting in Melbourne on Friday.
“I can’t recall this, in all my years in business, ever [seeing] a situation like this previously.”
Sydney records highest temperature in nearly two years amid heatwave as Tasmanian bushfires threaten homes
Here’s our wrap of the current bushfire and heatwave situation across the country:
Suspected human remains found at South West Rocks
Suspected human remains have been located after the search for a swimmer missing from a beach on the NSW mid north coast was suspended, police say.
About 4.20pm on 30 November, emergency services were called to Little Bay beach, Arakoon, following reports an 18-year-old man was in trouble in the water.
Officers attached to Mid North Coast police district responded, alongside Marine Area Command officers and Surf Life Saving NSW.
Authorities conducted a search of the area over several days, but were unable to find him.
About 7.30am on Friday, police were called to the same beach after reports human remains had been located by a member of the public.
The remains have been taken for forensic examination and a report will be prepared for the coroner.
Oprah Winfrey says Australian social media ban will help young people experience “talking to a real person”
American talkshow host Oprah Winfrey has praised Australia’s decision to ban social media for under-16s from next week, saying the move would help young people socialise more, Reuters report.
The law, due to take effect on Wednesday, will block children and teenagers from platforms such as TikTok, Meta’s Instagram and Snap’s Snapchat. The government says the ban will protect young people from harmful content and online predators. Winfrey said at an event in Sydney on Thursday night:
I think you’re going to change the lives of an entire generation of kids who are going to have better lives.
Winfrey, who is currently on a nationwide speaking tour of Australia, said she was particularly concerned about the impact of the internet on young boys.
There are all of these young people who cannot actually communicate or have a conversation, particularly young boys because they become addicted to porn so early and don’t know how to actually ask somebody out on a date, haven’t experienced the socialisation of talking to a real person.
So once again, Australia leads the way for the rest of the world.
New Hobart stadium could be year behind schedule
The Tasmania Devils are bracing for their new $1.13bn stadium home to be a year behind schedule, after the project secured a “historic” parliamentary green light, AAP reports.
The island state’s upper house on Thursday approved the 23,000-seat roofed venue at Hobart’s Macquarie Point, a condition of the Devils’ AFL and AFLW licence.
Tasmania has campaigned for decades for inclusion in the national competition, with the 11pm vote coming down to a handful of independent MPs.
“It’s an incredible result. There has been uncertainty. We’ve had to keep our eye on the ball,” the Devils chief executive, Brendon Gale, said.
The Devils will enter the AFL and AFLW in 2028 with the stadium slated to be completed for the 2029 season.
Mr Gale indicated the club, which will play its inaugural season out of Hobart’s Bellerive Oval and Launceston’s UTAS Stadium, was not convinced the Macquarie Point stadium would be ready on time.
“There is probably an assumption internally that we’ll be playing games in Hobart and Launceston for two years,” he said.
“That is probably a fair assumption at this stage.”
The AFL boss, Andrew Dillon, told reporters the team would be ready for 2028 but said timelines in the agreement could change.
A contract to build the stadium is expected to go out to tender in January.
The Tasmanian premier, Jeremy Rockliff, who inked the licence deal, and the Macquarie Point Development Corporation said they were confident the stadium would be finished by 2029.
Dozens of buildings damaged in Tasmanian bushfire
About 20 homes and shacks have been damaged by an out-of-control fire near Dolphin Sands, on Tasmania’s east coast, with authorities warning it’s not safe to return.
AAP reports that the Tasmania fire service commissioner, Jeremy Smith, confirmed 19 homes and shacks had been damaged, along with 15 outbuildings and four vehicles.
Two firefighters were also treated for minor injuries.
Despite temperatures rising rapidly across the country, conditions in Tasmania have improved as winds ease.
A watch and act warning remains in place for the seaside town of Dolphin Sands, a community still recovering after losing homes to bushfire in 2023.
Residents have been told it is not yet safe to return.
Who’s on the Daily Telegraph’s Sydney’s Power 100 list?
Worth taking a look at the always excellent Weekly Beast:
SA police thank public after appeal to find person behind high school threats
South Australia police have thanked the public after making an appeal for information about threats made to the Glenunga international high school.
Police launched an appeal on Monday about threatening emails received by the school. In a statement, deputy commissioner Linda Williams said there had been a substantial amount of information gathered following the appeal.
Police sought information about a person using the alias “Brian Cole”, and released images, phrases and keywords with spelling mistakes in a bid to catch the person responsible.
Williams said:
SAPOL would like to thank everyone who has taken the time to speak with police and assist us in identifying this individual.
Thanks to the information provided we have opened new lines of inquiry.
SAPOL would like to also thank colleagues at the Department for Education and SA Health for their support throughout the investigation.
Nick Visser
That’s all from me – Nino Bucci will be here for the arvo. Take care and enjoy the weekend.
Emergency fire warning for area south of Bulahdelah in NSW mid north coast
The NSW RFS has issued another emergency warning for parts of the Bulahdelah area as a grass and bushfire is burning about 5km south of the town.
The agency says:
If you are in the area of Crawford River along Emu Creek Road, south of Booral Road you are at risk. Seek shelter now or as the fire approaches to protect yourself from the fire. It is too late to leave.
Those in Nerong should monitor conditions and check and follow their bushfire survival plans.
Emergency Warning: Pacific Hwy Fire, Bulahdelah
A fire is burning near the Pacfic Hwy, Bulahdelah. If you’re south of Booral Rd, near Emu Creek Rd, Crawford River, you are in danger. Seek shelter now, or as the fire approaches. It is too late to leave. https://t.co/SwFG8PzKTA pic.twitter.com/85qFu7tjL2— NSW RFS (@NSWRFS) December 5, 2025
Sewage risks spilling into Sydney Harbour from cracked wastewater pipe
Penry Buckley
A leak from a cracked pipe on a critical wastewater main risks sewage spilling into Sydney Harbour, the New South Wales water utility says.
In a statement today, Sydney Water said it is managing a “significant wastewater infrastructure fault” involving a leak from a sewerage main eight metres below the ground at Pier Street in Darling Harbour.
The utility said it had put in place a temporary solution diverting flow to nearby Wentworth Park in Glebe, but said while the leak is “currently controlled, there is a risk the pipe could fail”. Water quality monitoring is taking place in the harbour, while 24-hour works are being carried out to resolve the issue, with noise and traffic impacts for the surrounding area.
The NSW minister for water, Rose Jackson, told reporters this morning the leak had occurred in an area of the network that was “over 100 years old”:
When we have leaks of that nature and we don’t know exactly what the detail is, it’s very difficult to access them. We don’t want to risk a more significant impact, particularly at this time of year. The reality is that when we’re talking about significant impacts with sewerage, things can get messy, so we need to get in there.
Chalmers cheers OpenAI’s new $7bn Sydney datacentre
Luca Ittimani
Politicians and investors are celebrating OpenAI’s backing for a $7bn Sydney datacentre as the American tech giant behind ChatGPT sets up shop in Australia.
The company has partnered with local business NEXTDC to build datacentre at its S7 in Eastern Creek, in Sydney’s west. OpenAI this week launched its Sydney office and unveiled new agreements with businesses including the Commonwealth Bank, Coles, Wesfarmers and the NRL.
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, has been celebrating a boom in datacentre investment all week and described OpenAI’s commitment as another “terrific outcome”:
It’s more proof Australia has the talent, clean energy potential, trade partnerships, and policy settings needed to be one of the big winners [from] AI.
NEXTDC investors are happy too, after the tech centre developer’s market value surged $400m to over $9bn today.
New South Wales now has over 20 datacentres under assessment to join the 90 in operation, making it one of the top jurisdictions globally on the latter front, according to the state government.
But those developments are coming at an environmental cost. Guardian Australia’s Petra Stock and Josh Taylor report datacentres will make up 11% of the state’s energy demand by 2030 and beat Canberra’s total daily drinking water consumption by 2035.
The new OpenAI-backed centre will be powered by new renewable energy and will have features that don’t require ongoing cooling with potable water, according to the federal government.
TikTok details how it will comply with under-16s ban
TikTok released details about how it will comply with Australia’s new ban on users under 16.
The social media giant said from 10 December, Australians between the ages of 13 and 15 will not longer be “able to have, or create, an account on TikTok”, adding:
Teens with an existing account will be notified that they will no longer be able to use their existing account, which will become inactive. If they previously published content, it will no longer be available for others to view on TikTok.
Those teens will be able to: preserve their memories by downloading information from the app; confirm that they are 16 or older; delete their accounts; be reminded when they become eligible to use their accounts again.
TikTok said it would continue using a “multi-layered approach that combines technology and human moderation to detect accounts used by teens who may not have provided their correct date of birth”.
If we believe a teen under 16 is using a TikTok account, we will remove their access. If they disagree with our decision, they can submit an appeal to confirm their age.
NSW RFS issues emergency warning for bushfire near Dubbo
The NSW Rural fire service just issued an emergency warning for a bushfire in the Dubbo LGA, urging those in the area to take steps to protect themselves as they are at risk.
The agency said:
If you are between Old Mendooran Rd, Dunedoo Rd/the Golden Highway and Leslies Road, or in the vicinity of Beni Road, you are at risk. Seek shelter now or as the fire approaches to protect yourself from the fire. It is too late to leave.
Anyone in the area is urged to seek shelter immediately in a solid structure like a house.
The fire is affecting homes and properties in the area of Beni and burning in an easterly direction. Embers are expected to be blown long distances ahead of the main fire front, starting spot fires.
Firefighters are waterbombing the area in hopes of stopping the fire’s spread.
Emergency Warning: Dunedoo Rd Fire, Beni
If you are between Old Mendooran Rd & Dunedoo Rd/the Golden Highway, near Beni Road you are at risk. Seek shelter now or as the fire approaches to protect yourself from the fire. It is too late to leave. https://t.co/bUnMnmXF2a pic.twitter.com/5UZfaRCXwS— NSW RFS (@NSWRFS) December 5, 2025
Benita Kolovos
Victoria’s new opposition leader says mid-year budget update shows ‘burden’ for next generation
The Victorian opposition leader, Jess Wilson, has responded to the mid-year budget update by pointing out the high level of interest expenses the government has incurred on it’s debt.
She says interest expenses have increased by $154m to an estimated $7.72bn for 2025-26 – describing it as a “a blowout of almost $1m a day.”
Wilson says the state’s debt – forecast to rise to $192bn by 2028-29 – is an “unconscionable financial burden for the next generation”. She goes on:
As Victoria’s alternative premier, my first priority is getting our finances under control so we can ease cost of living pressures and sustainably invest in the frontline community safety, health and housing services Victorians deserve. Labor cannot manage money and Victorians are paying the price.
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