Australia news LIVE: Bowen defends cost of COP31 summit; Petrol prices tumble as global oil cost falls; Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang resigns

Emily KaineUpdated November 13, 2026 — 7:06am,first published 6:45amKey PostsWhat’s making news today By Emily KaineHello and welcome back to our rolling coverage of Australian and world news this Friday, November 13. Here’s what is making headlines today. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s controversial $6 million election promise to a golf club in his electorate was based on rough estimates and internet research, a Senate inquiry heard yesterday, raising fresh questions about the allocation of taxpayer funds in the PM’s seat. Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen has defended the cost to Australian taxpayers for his trip to this year’s COP31 summit in Turkey, including the tens of thousands of dollars spent on offering free coffees at the conference. He told reporters yesterday it was originally Opposition Leader Angus Taylor’s idea to make the offering back when he was minister for energy in 2021. Meanwhile, Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg slammed Australia’s net zero pace as she broke her recent boycott of COP conferences to denounce this year’s leadership for losing control of rising temperatures.And Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has resigned after he had two extramarital affairs, including one with a suspected Chinese spy.Chris Bowen at the COP31 conference in Turkey. Getty ImagesLatest Posts7.06amMicrosoft 365, Outlook, Teams down for thousands of usersBy A widespread outage hit Microsoft platforms including Outlook this morning, with many users encountering trouble using their email accounts and other errors across the tech giant’s suite of apps.Nearly 130,000 users on outage tracker Downdetector reported problems accessing Outlook. Reports have since fallen some, but many said they couldn’t send and receive emails, or have had trouble loading their inboxes altogether. Thousands also reported issues with Microsoft’s workplace messaging app Teams, as well as its AI assistant Copilot and wider Microsoft 365 services.Hundreds of thousands of users reported issues with Microsoft 365, Outlook and Teams today. GettyMicrosoft said it was investigating customer reports related to email and Teams.In updates posted on social media, Microsoft said it was aware of users “experiencing issues accessing Exchange Online mailboxes through multiple connection methods in the Americas”.6.43amTrump pulls Vance off Iran talks to focus on Democrat-state ‘corruption’By Washington: US President Donald Trump said the US does not need a deal with Iran and directed Vice President JD Vance, who has played a role in efforts to resolve the war, to focus “his complete and total attention” on alleged crime and corruption in Democratic-run cities and states.Trump’s directive came a day after The Wall Street Journal reported that Vance was considering face-to-face peace talks with a hard-line Iranian security official and a week after the vice president blamed the costly war with Iran for Republicans’ midterm elections drubbing.Donald Trump with Vice President JD Vance.AP“We don’t need a deal with Iran. Those days have long since passed. We’ve got their money, Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and we’ve got their Strait!” Trump wrote on social media, referring to the Strait of Hormuz.Vance has long been seen as sceptical of the war the US and Israel launched on Iran in February. His office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.6.32amPetrol prices tumble as global oil cost fallsBy Nick ToscanoAustralian motorists are finally seeing some relief at the petrol pump, new analysis shows, as steep falls in global oil prices start flowing through to service stations, wiping roughly 20¢ a litre off local fuel costs so far this month.For the first time since August, average petrol and diesel prices have started to tumble nationwide, driven by a sharp 20 per cent drop in the cost of Tapis Crude, Australia’s regional oil benchmark, over the past fortnight.Falls in global oil prices are finally being passed on to Australian motorists at the bowser, new figures show.Oscar ColmanNRMA figures to be released today show the national average for regular unleaded has fallen by almost 22¢ since late October to $2.23 a litre. Diesel prices, meanwhile, have fallen by more than 20¢ to $2.71 a litre. At some service stations, unleaded has now dipped back below the $2 mark.The price retreat comes as markets are responding to a long-awaited lift in Middle East oil shipments and signs that Donald Trump wants to de-escalate the Iran war following his party’s heavy losses in the United States midterm elections.Read the full story here.What’s making news today By Emily KaineHello and welcome back to our rolling coverage of Australian and world news this Friday, November 13. Here’s what is making headlines today. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s controversial $6 million election promise to a golf club in his electorate was based on rough estimates and internet research, a Senate inquiry heard yesterday, raising fresh questions about the allocation of taxpayer funds in the PM’s seat. Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen has defended the cost to Australian taxpayers for his trip to this year’s COP31 summit in Turkey, including the tens of thousands of dollars spent on offering free coffees at the conference. He told reporters yesterday it was originally Opposition Leader Angus Taylor’s idea to make the offering back when he was minister for energy in 2021. Meanwhile, Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg slammed Australia’s net zero pace as she broke her recent boycott of COP conferences to denounce this year’s leadership for losing control of rising temperatures.And Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has resigned after he had two extramarital affairs, including one with a suspected Chinese spy.Chris Bowen at the COP31 conference in Turkey. Getty Images1 of 1