Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 18h

A new study published in Nature Climate Action finds Woodside’s Scarborough gas project could cause 100s of heat-related deaths & exposed 500k people to unprecedented heat.

Govt can’t claim climate leadership while approving projects like this.
www.afr.com//policy/ener...

Forrest-backed study links Woodside mega-project to hundreds of deaths

The research, conducted by academics at ANU, suggests the massive offshore gas project off the coast of Western Australia will cause warming of 0.00039 degrees.

www.afr.com

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 22h

SA is showing leadership and common sense by banning AI in election ads.

The Federal govt should follow their lead and protect our democracy from the misuse of generative AI.
www.innovationaus.com/sa-cracks-do...

SA cracks down on AI deepfakes in political advertising

South Australia has become Australia's first state to ban AI-generated political ads and deepfakes aimed at misleading voters, with the changes coming into effect on Monday. Political parties, MPs and...

www.innovationaus.com

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 22h

We don’t have a gas shortage, we have a gas export problem. Santos are gaming the system and pushing up the price of gas paid by 🇦🇺 households & industry.

We don’t need new projects, we need to reserve uncontracted export gas for 🇦🇺 now!
www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10...

Why Santos is behind your soaring electricity and mortgage costs

It was a primary force behind Australia’s inflationary surge, it’s forced businesses either to the wall or to shift offshore, undermined national industry policy and resulted in the loss of countless ...

www.abc.net.au

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 1d

The failure to reform Scott Morrison’s JRG & fix the timing of indexation is saddling hundreds of thousands of students with tens of thousands $$ in debt.

It’s totally unsustainable & past time the Albanese Govt treated this reform with the urgency it deserves.
www.smh.com.au/national/nsw...

Decade of debt: The number of students owing more than $50,000 revealed

Australian Tax Office data shows the average uni graduate now takes more than a decade to clear their student loan, with 200,000 more owing $50,000 and above.

www.smh.com.au

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 1d

The Xbench opposes the Government’s attempt to weaken Freedom of Information laws.

Good to see the Opposition recognise these deep flaws - the bill should not pass.

We need more transparency, not less & I'll keep fighting for your right to know.
www.canberratimes.com.au/story/908628...

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 1d

Grattan’s new research shows households could halve their energy bills by 2050 as we electrify homes and cars. Clean energy isn’t just good for the planet, it’s cheaper too. Let’s go faster.
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

Australia’s household energy bills will halve by 2050, modelling suggests

Grattan Institute report argues fall in costs will provide federal government room for more action on climate

www.theguardian.com

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 2d

www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/2025/10...

Inside Albanese’s FOI reforms: ‘He hates transparency’

Labor’s reforms to freedom of information laws are opposed by every public submission made to the Senate, with the government’s record on secrecy worse than Scott Morrison’s.

www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 2d

The Albanese govt’s first term was the second most secretive on record.

Rather than changing their ways, they’re doubling down and tightening our FOI system to make it even harder to get information. Not a single expert or member of parliament outside of the Labor party has backed their new bill.

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 4d

Even after being found guilty of 'officer misconduct' for mishandling the Robodebt referral, Commissioner of the NACC continues consultancy role despite concerns of perceived conflicts of interest.

At $820k/year surely he can focus on doing one job well?

www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10...

Corruption watchdog head 'consulted' for ADF inspector general 11 times

Paul Brereton and Labor politicians had previously stated he had stepped away from the body and resigned as assistant inspector-general of the ADF prior to taking on the top integrity job.

www.abc.net.au

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 4d

No surprise that despite majority community support we still don’t have a ban on gambling advertising when the Albanese government accepts money from companies like Sportsbet for their fundraising.

When will they put Australians ahead of gambling companies?

www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

Sportsbet dines with government minister at Labor fundraiser despite calls to reject lobbying from industry

Exclusive: Dinner occurred on the same day that four crossbench MPs held a press conference calling on government to ignore lobbying from gambling industry

www.theguardian.com

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 5d

The Govt committed publicly to chipping in 42.5% of the cost of public hospitals by 2030.

But we’re now told that that is actually unlikely to happen.

Public hospitals are experiencing huge demand, so it’s frustrating to see the promises but no firm commitment on delivery.

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 5d

Where’s the evidence for why these changes to create more secrecy and less transparency are supposedly needed?

Public service can’t point to any.

This is a terrible bill that should die an early death in the parliament.
region.com.au/no-bots-abou...

No bots about it, government can't even identify if an FoI request is AI-generated | Region Canberra

Federal Government officials have admitted they can’t identify Freedom of Information requests from artificial intelligence bots, or even if they…

region.com.au

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 5d

Rumours of a deeply dysfunctional board have been rife for months.

Housing is too important to all Australians for the govt’s let delivery body to be hamstrung like this.

Time for better governance at Housing Australia.

www.smh.com.au/politics/fed...

Labor’s housing agenda in crisis amid complaints, resignations

A senior whistleblower says a slew of top executives at the agency in charge of Labor’s housing agenda quit amid claims of bad behaviour.

www.smh.com.au

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 5d

How do senior public servants get terminated from a role and still get a $900k payout on the way out?!

There needs to also be more transparency about the reason for the former Secretary's departure.

www.canberratimes.com.au/story/908376...

Revealed: secretary was terminated and received hefty payout after sudden exit

Department under fire for being 'cagey' about public servant's shock departure.

www.canberratimes.com.au

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 7d

Climate change is driving up insurance costs & making homes uninsurable

🇦🇺ns are paying the price while disasters worsen

As Minister Bowen said: "The cost of inaction will always outweigh the cost of action"

We need real action & investment in adaptation
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 9d

Fair territory representation is Labor’s own policy, yet the Govt has walked away from its promise of an inquiry.

The Senate should ensure smaller jurisdictions have a democratic voice. But the Territories are underrepresented.

Govt should keep its word.
www.canberratimes.com.au/story/907993...

'They promised': government walks back pledge on ACT Senate seats

'They seem to be walking back from that commitment,' David Pocock says.

www.canberratimes.com.au

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 9d

More than 2 years after the NACC was established, it hasn’t held a single public hearing. Now we learn the PM pushed to make it harder to hold them.

Public hearings are vital to building trust - the Govt should be making them easier, not harder.
www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/2025/10...

Exclusive: Anthony Albanese overruled push for public NACC hearings

The Saturday Paper can reveal that the prime minister and other ministers from NSW intervened in cabinet to constrain the operations of the country’s leading integrity body.

www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 11d

Even former gambling execs are calling for action on gambling ads.

Good to hear the Minister is restarting talks on reform, but what’s needed is courage from the PM to take on vested interests & pursue a complete ban on ads - just as the Murphy Review recommended.
www.afr.com/politics/fed...

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 11d

$1.5 million of 🇦🇺 taxpayer💰per head but asylum seekers still going without food.

Huge contract blowouts, added to the cost of the latest secret MOU with Nauru raises serious questions of gross mismanagement.
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

Refugees and asylum seekers on Nauru going hungry despite government spending $1.5m a year for each person

The Australian government is spending millions of dollars a year to house asylum seekers, yet many say they can not afford food and are forced to skip meals

www.theguardian.com

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 18d

YWCA Canberra are close to reaching a massive 2,500 responses to the 2025 Our Lives Survey.

There's still time to make your voice heard on issues like work, cost-of-living pressures, housing and personal safety.

Tap👇 to do the survey now:
sustineo.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...

YWCA Canberra | Our Lives: Women in the ACT

YWCA Canberra is undertaking an anonymous survey of Canberra women and non-binary persons aged 16 years and over to gauge the lived experiences of women and gender diverse persons in Canberra.

sustineo.qualtrics.com

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 19d

While some leaders may call climate change a "con job", we know it's impacting ever corner of our country.

Ignoring these warnings & failing to invest in action + adaptation betrays communities across the country and leaves us unprepared.
www.theguardian.com/news/2025/se...

Australia’s horrifying climate future in four charts – and how we can avoid the worst

Maps released by the Australian Climate Service show just how bad things will get for heatwaves, drought and coastal flooding

www.theguardian.com

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 19d

Govt should be investing now in pathways to upskill & retrain workers whose jobs are likely to be impacted by AI.

We're almost at the end of 2025 & still have no guardrails in place to regulate potential harms from the tech that is impacting every aspect of our lives.
www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09...

'Waiting for the axe to fall': Fears for jobs in AI boom

Artificial intelligence is coming for our jobs — but will it take them away, or just give us a powerful new assistant?

www.abc.net.au

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 19d

Both harm & participation are ⬆️ - especially in younger Australians.

Yet the Albanese Govt continues to ignore the work of their late colleague, Peta Murphy, by not implementing the Murphy Review recommendations in full - including a full ban on gambling advertising.
aifs.gov.au/media/nation...

National Gambling study finds More Australians harmed amid rising participation

New research reveals gambling participation and harm is rising in Australia and is linked to other serious issues including suicidal thoughts, intimate partner violence and financial stress.

aifs.gov.au

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 19d

The Govt should be introducing legislation to provide more transparency, not less.

Their proposed changes to FOI are deeply troubling, though not surprising given in the last parliament they were the 2nd most secretive in 30 years.

That needs to change.
www.canberratimes.com.au/story/907156...

Australia's FOI system is broken, but proposed reforms miss the mark

This proposed bill risks doubling down on the very problems it should be fixing.

www.canberratimes.com.au

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David Pocock @davidpocock.bsky.social · 21d

This is a warning the ACT govt must pay attention to.

Govts used to construct housing for key workers, now we face them being priced out of buying in our city.
www.canberratimes.com.au/story/907198...

Essential workers face being priced out of ACT homes: Property Council

House prices are up 115 per cent, but wages have only risen 84 per cent since 2007.

www.canberratimes.com.au

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