An overhaul of the government’s migration policy has been further delayed, as fresh polling confirms the issue is behind a surge of support for One Nation.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese revealed migration would not be on the agenda of Tuesday’s cabinet meeting in Perth.

Labor was expected to unveil changes to its migration settings in a speech by the home affairs minister at the National Press Club earlier in August.

But the address was cancelled at the eleventh hour due to cabinet not agreeing to the changes amid internal division.

The prime minister said it would be some time before the policy is finalised.

“We have a series of plans in place. There’s more work to do, and we’ll work on that and make announcements at appropriate times,” he told ABC Radio on Tuesday.

“We want to make sure we get it right, and we have got migration policy as front and centre.”

Labor has forecast it will have an annual net overseas migration figure of 225,000 people.

Migration numbers have been the focus of debate after One Nation MP David Farley claimed the party’s figures would include an extra 100,000 people annually, on top of the 130,000 it had already committed to, making it higher than Labor’s.

The comments prompted an intervention from Senator Hanson on social media, stating the party remained committed to a 130,000 person a year target.

Mr Albanese said the incident demonstrated the party was not coherent when it came to migration policy.

“One Nation on Sunday pointed out the hypocrisy when they said 130,000 plus an additional more than 100,000 because you need essential workers in aged care, in agriculture, in all of these areas as well,” he said.

“One of the things that the business community have said to me here in Perth is the importance of skilled migration in construction.”

Labor MP Dan Repacholi said concerns from the One Nation MP about migrants working in regional communities not being impacted by migration policy changes were valid.

“David Farley’s right, we do need to make sure that we’re looking after people in rural and regional Australia,” he told Nine’s Today program on Tuesday.

“We need to make sure migration is at the right numbers. Because we need to make sure that we’re getting the fruit off the trees, we’re getting the grapes picked in both of our areas, and we’re making sure that we’re filling these jobs.

“We have thousands and thousands of jobs around the country that aren’t being filled right now and we need to make sure we’re doing that.”

An Utting Research poll in Nine newspapers surveyed 1000 One Nation supporters and showed immigration was the top concern for voters who had switched allegiances to the minor party.

The poll found 91 per cent said the country was heading in the wrong direction, with 39 per cent of those saying immigration was the main reason for it.

It’s above the 35 per cent who blamed cost-of-living issues for why the country was going down the wrong path, followed by politicians and government at 32 per cent and the economy at 26 per cent.

The coalition has yet to indicate a number for what it wants the annual net overseas migration target to be, only indicating the figure would be tied to housing completions.

Opposition Leader Angus Taylor said the coalition’s target would likely be under 200,000 people annually.

“It’s got to be a number that we can deal with. What I can say is it’ll be substantially below the numbers we have seen in recent years,” he told Seven’s Sunrise.

“The real mistake we’ve seen in recent years is to allow the immigration numbers to get way above what we can cope with as a country, and the single most important indicator of that is how many houses we’ve got.”

Embattled home builder Bathla Group has been placed into voluntary administration, leaving customers in limbo in what it says is a “perfect storm” of circumstances.

It joins the long list of Australian residential builders and property developers which have entered voluntary administration or liquidation due to soaring material costs, labour shortages and fixed-price contracts. 

Founder and director Bhart Bhushan described the move to voluntary administration as an “orderly restructure of business”.

“Our first thoughts are with our employees and the customers who have put their faith in us to deliver their dream of home ownership,” Mr Bhushan said in a statement on Tuesday.

“It is my sincere hope this process can allow that to happen by working collaboratively with the administrators, our suppliers, contractors and lending partners.”

In a statement posted on the Bathla website, Mr Bhushan said the decision had been taken in the best interests of all stakeholders, to provide the most feasible opportunity to continue delivering much-needed housing in western Sydney and other key markets.

Mr Bhushan said the group had confronted a perfect storm of circumstances that contributed to its struggles.

These include a significant softening in sales, impacts from the changes made in the federal government’s May budget and falling confidence in key markets.

He also said significant increases in construction costs absorbed by his company played a part. 

Documents filed with ASIC state Teneo has been appointed as administrator of the company as well as its related entities. 

According to the Bathla website, the family-owned company was established in NSW in 1997. 

It since expanded into regional NSW, South Australia and most recently to Victoria.

In the 2025/26 financial year, 1522 construction firms have collapsed in NSW, including Bathla Group, Beechwood Homes, Novati Constructions and Built Lifestyles in 2026. 

Australia’s biggest for-profit childcare group has fallen into the red after taking a multi-million-dollar hit from the closure of underperforming centres and as parents faced affordability issues.

But G8 Education, which operates 350 centres across Australia for more than 29,000 children under multiple brands including Buggles, Bambinos and Early Learning Services, says it has managed to stabilise its workforce, with vacancy rates low at two per cent.

The group made a first-half bottom-line net loss of $38.8 million for the six months ended June 30, down from a profit of $22.5 million in the prior calendar period.

“While affordability remains a significant challenge for families (and) booking frequencies increased slightly, inquiries remain lower than last year across the sector,” chief executive Pejman Okhovat said in an earnings briefing on Tuesday.

However, the result skewed lower after G8 Education wrote down the value of 40 underperforming centres, which it wants to divest or hand back to the landlords, by $47.1 million. 

Asked if the group was looking at further closures, chief financial officer Steven Becker said G8 Education couldn’t rule it out.

The 40 closures were announced in April, after it was rocked by allegations that a former worker had committed offences at one of its centres in 2025.

G8 Education said it’s collaborating with a leading child protection organisation, Act for Kids, to roll out a protective behaviours program for children in all of its centres.

Last year, it was revealed that a former employee had been arrested and charged over abuse allegations.

G8 Education was one of the childcare companies caught up in the scandal after it was alleged eight children at its Creative Garden Early Learning Centre in Point Cook, in Melbourne’s western suburbs, between October 2021 and February 2024 had been abused.

The alleged victims were aged between five months and two years old.

“While G8 Education is co-operating fully with Victoria Police, the Victorian government and other relevant authorities as part of the ongoing investigation, the outcomes are uncertain at this time,” it said.

During the first half, revenue fell 11.1 per cent to $413.6 million, which the group linked to the centre closures and occupancy rates, which were down 7.5 per cent from the same period last year to 57 per cent.

“Demand continues to be impacted by affordability pressures, lower birth rates and ongoing supply growth, and broader economic conditions,” Mr Okhovat added.

Longer term, G8 Education expects national fertility rates to increase based on Australian government population data for 2025, which forecasts a rise to 1.62 children per woman by 2035/36, from 1.42 in 2025/26.

Looking ahead, G8 Education said operating conditions in the second half will be similar to the first half due to a supply imbalance and that its focus would be on “controlling the controllables”.

Mr Okhovat said federal government support for the sector continues with the extension of worker retention payments – which fund a 15 per cent wage rise to help operators keep workers – until 2028 and a higher childcare subsidy payment.

Shares in G8 Education jumped by almost nine per cent to 15.2 cents in morning trading.

RBC Capital Markets analyst Wei-Weng Chen said it was a tough interim result for the group, but while it was largely in line with consensus, it was also “better than we feared”.

G8 Education did not declare an interim dividend.

Asia shares slipped on Tuesday while oil prices extended losses, ‌after threats from the US for an “economic D-Day” of sanctions on Iran turned out to be a damp squib.

US Treasury yields were off their recent highs following a report that ‌the Treasury Department might tap into its cash account to finance increased debt buybacks, which could reduce the need for additional sales of short-term bills.

The tech sector is holding ‌its breath for Nvidia’s results on Wednesday; investors are aware how hard it will be for the chipmaker to meet lofty expectations.

Analysts are generally looking for quarterly revenue to almost double to around $US92 billion ($A128 billion), with full-year earnings guidance seen in a range of $US103 billion ($A144 billion) to $US105 billion ($A147 billion).

“Those are really high expectations to be met,” said Fabien Yip, a market analyst at IG.

“Judging from Nvidia’s track record, it won’t be surprising if they meet the headline numbers, but I think the more piece is people are trying to understand ‌whether there are concerns ‌on the circular deals powering ⁠its growth and whether that growth percentage is sustainable in the upcoming quarters.”

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares ​outside Japan was down 0.5 per cent, while Japan’s Nikkei lost 0.9 per cent and South Korea’s Kospi slid 2.7 per cent.

Also weighing on tech sentiment was Alibaba’s launch of a $US10.2 billion ($A14.2 billion) share sale at a steep discount to fund its AI ambitions as well as disappointment over Samsung Electronics’ shareholder-return plan.

Nasdaq futures were off 0.08 per cent while S&P 500 futures were flat. EUROSTOXX 50 futures edged 0.05 per cent lower.

On Monday, the Trump administration warned countries to cut their business ties with Iran or face secondary sanctions as part of what it billed as an “economic D-Day,” though ⁠the Treasury Department stopped short of imposing any penalties.

Oil prices fell in the wake of ‌the announcement and ​were little changed on Tuesday, with Brent crude futures down 0.1 per cent to $US92.08 ($A128.54) a barrel. US crude edged 0.1 per cent higher to $US85.09 ($A118.78) per barrel; both measures fell more than 2.0 per cent ​overnight.

“We do not ‌expect China – Iran’s largest trade partner – to bow to US pressure to cease commerce with Iran,” said Joseph Capurso, a strategist at the Commonwealth Bank of ​Australia.

“The US’ campaign against Iran puts at risk the trade truce between the US and China ahead of the leaders meeting next month.”

Still, the threat of being cut off from the dollar-based financial system stoked rumours that some countries and banks might need to buy dollars in anticipation, lending support to the ​greenback.

The ​US dollar extended gains against its Canadian counterpart and last stood at ​C$US1.3844 ($A1.9326) after a rise of more than 0.5 per cent overnight.

On Monday, US President Donald Trump ‌threatened to raise US tariffs on all cars, trucks and automotive parts from Canada to 50 per cent starting on January 1, escalating a trade fight after negotiations collapsed last week.

The euro strayed from a three-month high and last bought $US1.1668 ($A1.6288), while sterling added 0.06 per cent to $US1.3638 ($A1.9038).

Market participants will be focused on Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh’s speech in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on Friday, where investors are hoping for some clarity on the outlook for US interest rates.

“Fiscal uncertainty is unlikely to fade soon … there is scope, though, for the Warsh-led Fed ​to ease some monetary policy uncertainty by clarifying its reaction function – specifically, how long it is willing to keep rates on hold to see inflation return to ​its 2.0 per cent target,” Standard Chartered analysts said.

“All eyes ⁠will be on Chair Warsh’s Jackson Hole speech for a signal, if not forward guidance.”

Spot gold was up 0.5 per cent ​at $US4,675.51 ($A6,526.81) an ounce.

A federal minister from WA has questioned how the Productivity Commission reached its recommendation to overhaul the state’s costly GST deal, despite the prime minister vowing to leave it in place.

The commission found the “perverse” deal struck in 2018 by the Morrison government had cost federal taxpayers $23 billion in top-up payments to WA since it was struck, and said in a report it needed to be scrapped.

The federal budget forecasts the deal will cost $6.6 billion in 2026/27 and $60 billion in total by the end of the decade.

But Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the deal was not going anywhere, arguing the resource-rich state needed its fair share of GST.

The report had revitalised calls from other jurisdictions for the GST deal to be changed, as Mr Albanese prepares to meet with state and territory leaders on Wednesday at national cabinet.

Resources Minister Madeleine King, who is from WA, welcomed the prime minister’s decision to keep the GST deal in place.

However, she cast doubt over how the Productivity Commission came to its conclusions.

“There’s no kind of halfway house in that report. It was all about winding back the arrangements that the Productivity Commission itself had recommended in 2018 to the government of the day,” she told ABC Radio on Tuesday.

“I don’t actually quite agree that it has gone through it as methodically as it might have. When you look through the report, you’ll notice there’s zero reference to suggestions made by the WA government.

“This is the government representing the population that will be the most widely affected by any changes.”

Ms King said other states have benefited from the GST besides WA.

“States have all benefited because the iron ore royalties that Western Australia has earned for the country have been distributed, for the most part, like 90 per cent all around the country,” she said.

“That’s a good thing for the country. We want that industry to keep going and to keep going well, and it is good to have Western Australia incentivised to do so.”

While premiers and chief ministers outside of WA said the GST needed to be changed, opposition frontbencher Dan Tehan said his home state of Victoria was also better off under the deal.

“Victoria, like Western Australia uses its own natural resources, grows its economy, and makes sure that it is as productive as it possibly can be,” he told ABC Radio.

“What we’ve seen in Victoria is it’s locked down all its natural resources and hasn’t been able to develop the state like it was in the past.”

Developers will be blocked from building data centres near homes, schools or prime agricultural land as part of a national agreement with the states that the prime minister is struggling to land.

Anthony Albanese will detail further obligations for data centres in a speech to the Business Council of Australia annual dinner, ahead of a showdown with Queensland Premier David Crisafulli at national cabinet on Wednesday.

As well as requiring new data centres to add more renewable energy to the grid than they take out and to minimise water use, they will also have to lessen community impacts by being appropriate for their size and avoiding sites that could be used for housing instead.

That could put an end to proposals like one currently being planned in Macquarie Park in Sydney’s north, where developer NextDC is trying to build a data centre next door to a metro station.

The City of Ryde has strongly objected to the proposal, saying it would result in underutilisation of transport infrastructure and undermine attempts to reduce the housing shortfall.

In his speech, Mr Albanese will say Australia must harness the positive opportunities of AI while minimising the downsides.

“Australia is in a strong position to attract investment in data centres, but maintaining social licence will be essential,” he will say on Tuesday.

“That means ensuring energy bills do not rise, water security is maintained and locations are appropriate.

“Getting this right can ensure Australia is the infrastructure partner for our region, aided by our status as a Five Eyes partner.”

Mr Albanese has pledged to introduce mandatory requirements for AI and data centres in early 2027 and the meeting with state and territory leaders on Wednesday will be the next step to get national agreement on the standards.

But Mr Crisafulli will push back on the requirement for data centres to use renewable energy, arguing it would drive away investment and push up power bills.

The Queensland government is developing its own approach, which will allow data centres to use gas and coal power, as well as requiring them to provide a social impact assessment and sign agreements with local councils.

“We are technology agnostic. And by doing so, we will be able to bring on all forms of energy,” he told reporters on Monday.

Business Council chief executive Bran Black has welcomed the prime minister’s front-footed approach to AI.

In a separate speech to the Business Council dinner, Mr Black will argue Australia must not lag behind the rest of the world in adoption of AI and other innovative technologies.

Tracking AI adoption will be part of a national roadmap he will unveil at the event to make Australia a top-10 investment destination and fix the nation’s falling productivity and living standards.

Mr Black will also voice the business community’s opposition to tax changes in the budget, and reiterate concerns about a “complex and out-of-balance” industrial relations system and excess regulation.

Businesses were encouraged to see Treasurer Jim Chalmers launch a new Productivity Commission review of reporting requirements on Monday.

The review, alongside Treasury’s release of a consultation paper on climate-related financial disclosures, was a “positive step towards reducing unnecessary compliance costs and red tape,” said Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive Andrew McKellar.

Artificial intelligence will stretch parts of Australia’s electricity network, with energy demand from data centres expected to rise by almost seven times over the next decade.

But the outlook for the National Electricity Market has improved and is expected to remain reliable into the 2030s if renewable energy, storage and transmission projects are delivered on time.

The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) issued the findings on Tuesday in its annual report into future electricity supply and demand across eastern and south-eastern states and territories.

The report comes amid fierce debate over data centre regulation, with state and federal leaders expected to discuss rules governing their energy and water use at Wednesday’s national cabinet meeting.

Queensland and the Northern Territory have previously rejected proposals to require large data centres to invest in additional renewable energy resources to meet their needs.

But AEMO’s Electricity Statement of Opportunities report found data centres would continue to amplify demand on Australia’s National Electricity Market over the next decade.

Australian data centres would use five terawatt hours of energy in 2025/2026, or about three per cent of all energy from the grid, the report found.

Their power consumption would rise by almost seven times to 34 terawatt hours by 2035/2036, it predicted, representing 13 per cent of grid power.

The forecast did not account for all data centres proposed for Queensland, nor did it model proposed renewable energy requirements.

Despite surging demand, Australia’s energy outlook had improved since the last report with no reliability gaps identified before 2030, AEMO chief executive Daniel Westerman said.

“The reliability outlook has improved, supported by record levels of new generation and storage, and a strong pipeline of projects expected over the next decade,” he said.

“As electricity demand continues to grow and ageing generation retires, continued investment in generation, storage, transmission and consumer energy resources will be needed to maintain stability.”

A record 9.1 gigawatts of new energy generation and storage reached full output in 2025/2026 – twice as much as the previous year – while another 40 gigawatts of renewable generation and battery storage developments were planned, and 33 gigawatts of energy projects received government investment.

But these projects would need to be delivered on time to maintain energy reliability, the report warned, and coal-fired power stations would need to work until their planned retirement dates, with three scheduled for 2028 and 2029.

The findings showed investments in household batteries and large-scale renewable projects were making a difference, Energy Minister Chris Bowen said.

“There is more work to do and AEMO is clear we need to keep building, but this report shows the pipeline is strong and reliability is improving,” he said.

A regional town is preparing to honour the sacrifice of two police officers murdered in cold blood. 

Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson and Senior Constable Vadim de Waart-Hottart were fatally shot at a property just outside of Porepunkah, in Victoria’s High Country, on August 26, 2025.

The officers were executing a warrant for Dezi Freeman’s arrest with 10 armed officers at the the secluded property, 310km northeast of Melbourne.

The shootings and ensuing manhunt, which ended when Freeman was shot dead by police seven months later, left deep scars on the region.

On Tuesday – the day before the one-year anniversary of the killings – a permanent monument to the two officers will be unveiled at Wangaratta Police Station during an hour-long service including speeches to farewell the officers.

Both Det Sen Const Thompson and Sen Const de Waart-Hottart worked at the station, which was inundated with flowers in the days after the shooting.

The search for Freeman was the largest tactical policing operation in Australian history, involving hundreds of officers and specialised resources. 

Police tracked Freeman to a shipping container at Thologolong in Victoria’s remote northeast seven months after he disappeared into dense bushland following the Porepunkah shooting. 

The 56-year-old was fatally shot after emerging from the container holding a black handgun following hours of negotiations on the morning of March 30.

The weapon Freeman was holding was later confirmed as the police-issued handgun of Sen Const de Waart-Hottart.

Twin coronial hearings for the murdered officers and Freeman are unfolding in the Victorian Coroners Court.

State Coroner Liberty Sanger held a directions hearing into both cases in May, and an inquest could be scheduled for March 2027.

A surge in visitors is expected in Wangaratta on Tuesday and in Bright, where a second memorial will be held on Wednesday.

The Bright event will be hosted at the local police station with a second monument to be revealed.

Det Sen Const Thompson, 59, was nearing the end of a long and distinguished career on the force when he was shot dead.

Sen Const de Waart-Hottart, 35, has been remembered for his love of the outdoors and travel, having volunteered for service after relocating to Australia from Belgium.

Australia’s second-biggest supermarket chain is about to reveal how soaring petrol prices, three interest rate hikes and subdued consumer confidence have dented its sales.

Coles will announce its 2025/26 earnings for the 52 weeks to June 28 on Tuesday, a day before Woolworths does the same.

Coles had been gaining on its larger rival, which has been distracted by various issues, including a recent court case brought by the competition watchdog after it was accused of offering illusory discounts to shoppers.

But that came to an end in February, when Woolworths reported stronger sales growth than Coles.

The trend continued with the third-quarter results announced in May, with Coles reporting 3.6 per cent comparable sales growth versus Woolworths’ 5.3 per cent.

When it comes to earnings, Coles is expected to report an adjusted net profit of around $2.2 billion, on underlying earnings close to $4.2 billion, which would be better than the prior year, according to analysts.

Woolworths shares have also outperformed Coles, rising 18.9 per cent over the past 12 months compared to a 9.9 per cent rise for its rival.

In comparison, the stock exchange’s benchmark S&P/ASX200 index has gained just 1.5 per cent in the past 12 months.

“Investors have gone back to basics by buying up the supermarkets,” said eToro lead analyst Josh Gilbert.

“This week, we’ll find out how good a deal they got.”

Woolworths had a better story than Coles, which had a margin problem to manage, Mr Gilbert said.

“Suppliers are lining up for price increases, fuel, freight and packaging costs are all climbing, while liquor is still the drag it has been all year.”

Sales at Coles’ Liquorland business fell 3.2 per cent in the first half, compared to 3.6 per cent growth at its much larger supermarket business.

At the time, supermarket boss Leah Weckert said the liquor market remained subdued and competition had increased, “particularly at the big-box end of the market” – a likely reference to Dan Murphy’s bottle shops, owned by Endeavour Group.

US President Donald Trump has escalated the country’s trade stand-off with Canada, announcing plans to raise tariffs on a range of Canadian imports to 50 per cent from January 1, 2027.

Tariffs on cars, large and small trucks, car parts and steel will be increased to 50 per cent, Trump said on his Truth Social platform.

“Build in the US and there are ZERO TARIFFS,” Trump wrote.

According to Canadian government figures, the US currently imposes tariffs of 25 per cent on imported cars, trucks and related parts under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962.

Tariffs of between 10 per cent and 50 per cent are also imposed on imports of steel, aluminium and copper.

Trump again justified his threat by accusing Canada of taking advantage of the US.

“Canada has been ripping off the United States of America for years,” he wrote, while also claiming that the US did not depend on trade with its neighbour.

“WE DON’T NEED CANADA, THEY NEED US!” Trump wrote.

Negotiators from the two countries had held talks into Friday night in an effort to reach an agreement and avert tariffs threatened by Trump.

After the negotiations collapsed, tariffs of 50 per cent on a range of Canadian goods came into force overnight.

The measures affect Canadian goods worth about $US20 billion ($A28 billion), equivalent to about five per cent of total imports, including hockey sticks, furniture, honey and wine.

Canada vowed reciprocal “dollar-for-dollar” tariffs, with Prime Minister Mark Carney saying these would apply from September 8.