Australia news LIVE: Nearly 800 threats against MPs in six months, AFP says, as Labor bolsters safety after Haines attack; Israelis head to polls for first election since October 7 attacks

Emily KaineUpdated October 28, 2026 — 7:18am,first published 6:45amKey PostsWhat you need to know this morning By Emily KaineHello and welcome back to our rolling coverage of news from Australia and around the world this Wednesday, October 28. Here’s what is making headlines today.Politicians will receive a safety boost that could include a wider use of emergency alarms, as the government fast-tracks a security review following last week’s attack on independent MP Helen Haines. The AFP received almost 800 security complaints from federal politicians in the first six months of this year, commissioner Krissy Barrett told the Senate yesterday.The woman accused by Greens senator Jordon Steele-John of sending hundreds of messages has hit back, expressing dismay the WA senator went public with details about their relationship. The Perth woman said she had been shocked when she saw intimate details posted on Instagram by Steele-John, and that the senator was trying to discredit her.Crossbench MP Allegra Spender is leading the charge to block Labor’s changes to investor taxes. Spender is trying to convince the government to abandon overhauling the capital gains tax discount, a key change made in a suite of tax reforms announced in the May budget.And Israelis have headed to the polls for their first national elections since the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, and Israel’s subsequent bombardment of Gaza which has killed more than 70,000 Palestinians. The election is widely seen as a referendum on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has spent nearly two decades in power. You can follow along with our live election coverage here.Member for Wentworth Allegra Spender during question time at Parliament House in Canberra on Tuesday 27 October 2026.Alex EllinghausenLatest Posts7.18amWilson says uptick in headline inflation today ‘likely’By Emily KaineShadow treasurer Tim Wilson has said this morning he expects an increase in the headline inflation rate when the ABS releases fresh inflation data later today. “I’m expecting a lift in the headline inflation rate, and I’m expecting that probably core inflation will remain relatively static. But it’s currently 3.6 per cent, so it’s well above where the Reserve Bank wants it to be,” he told News24.Wilson said the projected inflation rate increase meant the RBA would have to consider another interest rate hike at the beginning of November and blamed government spending for successive interest rate hikes this year. “Government spending has been the key driver of why we have elevated core inflation or underlying inflation. That’s why interest rates keep going up.”7.04amCanavan slams PM after golf club grant backflip By Emily KaineLeader of the National Party Matt Canavan has accused Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of having a “loose relationship with the truth” after he admitted claims he made about a $6 million grant given to a golf club in his electorate were wrong.Albanese conceded yesterday the grant was not designed to fund sewerage works, contradicting claims he made when he came under fire last month after revelations Labor-held electorates had received the vast majority of grants in an invitation-only program.One leading constitutional expert described the program as “grey corruption”.“It’s not just that the prime minister has a clear, loose relationship with the truth. It’s that he takes so long to come clean every time,” Canavan told Nine’s Today show.6.44amBrazil’s Flavio Bolsonaro headed to the US after losing election, sources sayBy Sao Paulo: Brazilian Senator Flavio Bolsonaro has left the country for the US after losing the presidential election and refusing to comply with a Supreme Court order to hand over his passports, two sources said.The US Embassy in Brazil did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Bolsonaro’s lawyer also did not respond.Flavio Bolsonaro (right). GettyIt was not immediately clear where Bolsonaro was heading, what time he would arrive or whether he would seek asylum. US President Donald Trump’s administration has previously alleged Flavio’s father, former President Jair Bolsonaro, was a victim of judicial persecution in Brazil.Flavio’s departure for the US threatens to deepen a rift between the two most populous nations in the Americas. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has accused Washington of colluding with the Bolsonaros to put them back in power, and Reuters reported ahead of Sunday’s election on a US State Department campaign to restore them to office.6.38amShadow treasurer doesn’t rule out Coalition cuts to healthcare, aged careBy Emily KaineShadow treasurer Tim Wilson has refused to provide detail about how the Coalition would budget for changes it had promised to deliver if in government, but did not rule out cutting spending on healthcare and aged care.Speaking to ABC’s 7.30 last night, Wilson was asked how the Coalition would pay for commitments it had made to extra defence spending, reversing Labor’s changes to investor taxes and tax breaks for big superannuation accounts.Shadow treasurer Tim Wilson.Alex EllinghausenDavid Speers asked: “Is there a risk you’re going to run the budget even deeper into deficit?”“That’s not our focus at all,” Wilson responded.What you need to know this morning By Emily KaineHello and welcome back to our rolling coverage of news from Australia and around the world this Wednesday, October 28. Here’s what is making headlines today.Politicians will receive a safety boost that could include a wider use of emergency alarms, as the government fast-tracks a security review following last week’s attack on independent MP Helen Haines. The AFP received almost 800 security complaints from federal politicians in the first six months of this year, commissioner Krissy Barrett told the Senate yesterday.The woman accused by Greens senator Jordon Steele-John of sending hundreds of messages has hit back, expressing dismay the WA senator went public with details about their relationship. The Perth woman said she had been shocked when she saw intimate details posted on Instagram by Steele-John, and that the senator was trying to discredit her.Crossbench MP Allegra Spender is leading the charge to block Labor’s changes to investor taxes. Spender is trying to convince the government to abandon overhauling the capital gains tax discount, a key change made in a suite of tax reforms announced in the May budget.And Israelis have headed to the polls for their first national elections since the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, and Israel’s subsequent bombardment of Gaza which has killed more than 70,000 Palestinians. The election is widely seen as a referendum on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has spent nearly two decades in power. You can follow along with our live election coverage here.Member for Wentworth Allegra Spender during question time at Parliament House in Canberra on Tuesday 27 October 2026.Alex Ellinghausen1 of 1