Because Australia is not just debating nuclear weapons in the abstract – it is moving deeper into the practical systems, facilities, and policies that could help enable them. The No Nuclear Weapons in Australia Declaration, backed by more than 150 Australian and Pacific organisations, including GetUp, warns that Australia is on a “current trajectory towards increasing involvement in the command, control, targeting, hosting and possible launch of nuclear weapons from Australia.” It specifically identifies the planned AUKUS hosting of US nuclear-capable B-52 aircraft in the Northern Territory and the planned hosting of US attack submarines which may again become nuclear-capable in coming years. Australia currently has “no legal ban” on foreign nuclear weapons being brought into Australia – or on being launched from Australia.   Current government policy raises further concerns. Australia’s 2024 National Defence Strategy says Australia’s “best protection against the increasing risk of nuclear escalation is US extended nuclear deterrence.” In February 2023, Defence Minister Richard Marles said Australia’s joint and collaborative facilities “support the effectiveness of the extended deterrence commitments the United States provides” and called that a “fundamental contribution” Australia makes to the alliance.  In other words, Australia is not standing outside the US nuclear posture – it is helping sustain it.   The risk is becoming more concrete under AUKUS and wider military integration. The Australian Submarine Agency states that from as early as 2027, one UK and up to four US nuclear-powered submarines will have a rotational presence at HMAS Stirling navy base in WA. Separately, the US Air Force says the B-52H Stratofortress “can carry nuclear or precision guided conventional ordnance,” and ABC reported US plans to deploy up to six B-52 bombers to RAAF Tindal.   The secrecy surrounding these plans and postures is deeply worrying. The US has a “neither confirm nor deny” policy on whether visiting submarines, ships, or planes carry nuclear weapons. In late 2025, Senate estimates heard there was “no impediment” to visits by dual-capable platforms and that Australia would continue to respect that US policy. That means Australians may never know whether nuclear weapons are being brought here.     Labor first committed to signing and ratifying the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in 2018, reaffirmed that commitment in 2021 and 2023, but Australia still has not signed. Recent US and Israeli attacks on Iran, condemned by UN experts as unlawful and in violation of the UN Charter, show how quickly conflict can escalate and how easily closely aligned states can be exposed to the consequences without democratic say.  When it comes to nuclear weapons, we have a right to know – and we have a right to say No.

Born in Yarloop Hospital, in the 1950s, first generation Australian from parents, fleeing war torn Europe.  The hospital  burned down in the 2016 bush fires that swept across the Darling scarpe and my family members only narrowly managed to save their farm house in the Wagerup hills.  I lived on a farm next door as toddler, waking up to the screeches of abundant red tailed black cockatoos, in the tall tree tops of a pristine forest. Today the only farm left in those beloved hills is surrounded by bare scorched earth and kilometres of rubber belts carrying the soul earth of our jarrah to the crushing plants.  Black cockatoos are so displaced, with loss of natural food sources and nesting trees in their native forest that they are now forced to invade suburbia, stripping what ever tree berries and nuts they can find, just to try and get some sustenance, to survive another day.  I see them in my Liquid amber tree scrounging for its meagre berries, and it breaks my heart. How cruel can our political leaders and Environmental Ministers be ?  Mistreating a domestic pet is punishable by law. But they turn a blind eye to Corporate greed, extinction of species  and mass destruction of biodiversity. As a teenager, I lived in Waroona when Dwellingup went up in flames. I spent many weekends and school holidays in those Northern Jarrah Forests and my uncles farms.  When I had kids, we went camping on the Murray river up in Dwellingup. Now they plan to extend the destruction. Strip mining through a European War  memorial. We may need jobs , revenue and aluminium - although easily substituted. But we need fresh air, fresh water and biodiversity even more -to survive.

too many people are being put at risk on the Stuart Highway every day. This highway is a major route through Australia, connecting remote towns and many Indigenous communities, but long distances, fatigue, high speeds and limited services make it dangerous. Families rely on this road for school, work, health care and visiting loved ones, so it should be as safe as possible. By raising money and awareness, we hope to support improvements that will reduce crashes, protect communities, and ensure everyone can travel safely and confidently.

We demonstrate that: · The minimum wage adequacy benchmark remains at approximately 36% of required living standards, where it should be approximately 50% post-GST · This 14-point gap creates systemic underpayment of low-income Australians · It generates unfunded liabilities in workers' compensation schemes · It produces impossible compliance contradictions between social security and injury compensation systems · It results in significant revenue shortfalls for state and federal governments Fiscal Domino Effect Revenue Stream Annual Shortfall Cause WorkCover Premiums ~$780 million Suppressed wage base State Payroll Tax ~$1.5 billion Suppressed wage base Federal Income Tax ~$6.24 billion Suppressed wages GST Collections ~$2 billion Suppressed consumption Total Estimated ~$10.52 billion/year This submission provides the evidence, analysis, and pathway for correction. We urge all addressed parties to: 1. Formally acknowledge the 2000 GST anomaly 2. Commit to the LECI development and implementation 3. Begin the systemic recalibration Australia needs   The time for temporary fixes has passed. We must complete the social policy framework that should have accompanied the 2000 tax reform.