Australia news live: Peter Hollingworth resigns; Wayne Fella Morrison inquest reveals ‘litany of failings’ | Australia news

It’s all happening this lunchtime. The Victorian opposition leader, John Pesutto, has stepped up to speak following Moira Deeming’s expulsion from the Victorian party room.

Today marks a real turning point for the state parliamentary Liberal party which I am honoured to lead.

We had a long meeting in here this morning as you know. We are as a team committed to being a disciplined untied and focused team.

We know that in order to be an effective opposition, which is our primary responsibility now to hold the Andrews Labor government to account.

But also to be the alternative government in 2026, we know we have to be inclusive, welcoming and engaged party that is in touch with our local communities, talking about the issues that are relevant to them.

Daniel Hurst

Officials continue to prepare for Joe Biden to attend the Quad in Sydney later this month despite the president hinting there was a chance the debt ceiling standoff could affect his plans to travel to regional events including the G7 in Hiroshima, Japan.

Multiple sources with knowledge of the Quad planning said it was “full steam ahead” with the preparations and they were proceeding on the basis the president would attend.

The Quad summit, to be held at the Sydney Opera House on 24 May, will be hosted by the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, and will also include the Japanese prime minister, Fumio Kishida, and the Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi.

Albanese, speaking in Sydney moments ago, also signalled his expectation that Biden would attend the Quad:

I look forward to welcoming President Biden to Australia.

Peter Hollingworth resigns from church citing ‘distress’ for victims

Christopher Knaus

Peter Hollingworth is leaving the Anglican church and will hand back his permission to officiate as a priest, citing a desire to “end distress” for victims and stop the “division” in the church.

Hollingworth was last month the subject of six misconduct findings, delivered after a protracted internal church process, including over his failure to act to remove paedophiles from the church’s ranks while he was Brisbane archbishop in the 1990s. But the process recommended Hollingworth be allowed to continue in his priestly duties in Victoria, saying he posed no unacceptable risk of harm.

Hollingworth, Australia’s 23rd governor general, has today announced that he will be returning his permission to officiate regardless.

He has issued the following statement:

I wish to announce that earlier this week I notified the Anglican Archbishop of Melbourne that I will be returning my Permission to Officiate (PTO).

Despite the Professional Standards Board (PSB) inquiry finding that I was fit to retain my licence because I was not a risk of harm to anyone, I am concerned that my continuing to exercise priestly functions as a bishop is a cause of pain to survivors. I want to end distress to them, and division within the church.

As Archbishop of Brisbane from 1990 to 2001, I was ill-equipped to deal with the child abuse issue and, like some other church people, was too defensive of the church on the advice of lawyers and insurers. I say that as a matter of context, not as an excuse. I have lived with my failures every day since.

It is more than 20 years since allegations against me were first made. There have been five separate inquiries, including the five-year inquiry by the PSB. They have occupied countless time, energy, emotion and expense for many people.

Many times I have acknowledged that I made mistakes and issued apologies. My regrets have become even more profound over the years, as we have all gained a better understanding of the impact of child sexual abuse through the Royal Commission into Institutional Child Sexual Abuse and other investigations.

But I did not commit a crime. I did not cover up sexual abuse. And I was not an abuser. The PTO, commonly granted to retired priests, allowed me to conduct services at my local parish as well as marriages, funerals and baptisms. While I will no longer perform these duties, I will continue my lifelong commitment to social justice and service to the community.

Christopher Knaus

Peter Hollingworth resigns

Peter Hollingworth is leaving the Anglican church and will hand back his permission to officiate as a priest, citing a desire to “end distress” for victims and stop the “division” in the church.

Wayne Fella Morrison inquest: evidence speculated about ‘controversial syndrome’ known as ‘excited delirium’

The South Australian coroner has found “no single factor or mechanism” responsible for the death of Wayne Fella Morrison, an Aboriginal man who died in custody in September 2016.

The potential causes are multifactorial in nature and include the effects of marked 145 physical exertion, emotional and psychological stress and underlying coronary artery disease.

Morrison, 29, died at Royal Adelaide hospital after being restrained outside his cell at Yatala Labour prison.

In making the finding, the coroner, Jayne Basheer, relied on evidence from Dr Cheryl Charlwood that speculated the “controversial syndrome” known as “excited delirium” may have contributed to his death.

Charlwood, who said she was “not qualified to provide an opinion on whether Mr Morrison was suffering from an acute psychotic episode at the relevant time” described excited delirium as:

A psychiatric or drug-related episode that induces profound agitation and/or aggression, and which may predispose a person to cardiac arrythmia, potential muscle damage and death. Death is reportedly often seen after the person lapses into a tranquil state.

Morrison had no history of drug use.

“Excited delirium” was controversially cited by police in the US as a complicating factor in the death of George Floyd but its role was ultimately rejected.

For more on its history in Australia, read Guardian Australia’s previous reporting:

Australia’s largest bank says it does not think the federal budget will add to inflationary pressures in the economy or push up interest rates, AAP reports.

The Commonwealth Bank’s latest economic note came as opposition leader Peter Dutton sought to cast blame on the Albanese Labor government for driving up inflation and making the prospect of another rate rise more likely.

CBA economists said:

Our assessment is that the 2023 commonwealth budget does not add to inflationary pressures in the economy.

As such, we have not changed our forecast profile for inflation or our call on the RBA.

Our central scenario puts the current 3.85 per cent as the peak in the cash rate, while the near term risk sits with another rate hike.

Energy price relief in the budget would take 0.75 percentage points from headline inflation in 2023/24.

Medicare bulk billing incentives along with childcare subsidies will also put downward pressure directly on measured inflation, the bank said.

The CBA expects the Reserve Bank to cut rates by 50 basis points in the fourth quarter of this year and 75 basis points in 2024 taking the cash rate to 2.6%.

It’s what our economics correspondent Peter Hannam told you yesterday:

The South Australian coroner has declined to make adverse findings against the corrections officers involved in the restraint of Wayne Fella Morrison despite an excessive use of force at one point in his restraint.

In handing down her findings at the coroner’s court in Adelaide on Friday, the coroner, Jayne Basheer, made a brief appearance where she declined to read her findings in full.

The findings speak for themselves. I am mindful of how long the family has waited for this finding to be delivered. And I do want to take this opportunity to publicly express my condolences to the Morrison family.

The 164-page decision “revealed a litany of failings and shortcomings at every stage of Mr Morrison’s management whilst he was in the care and custody of the Department for Correctional Services”.

Basheer largely attributed the incident to the officers’ lack of training.

The conduct of individuals must be considered against the whole of the evidence which includes glaring deficiencies in the training of correctional officers at Yatala Labour prison which were exposed when these officers were called upon to manage a major incident.

The coroner found that the level of force used during the initial restraint was “reasonable and necessary”; however, the decision to carry Morrison by his arms and legs, face down, once restrained was not necessary and considered “an excessive use of force”.

Daniel Hurst

$55,000 Christmas charge to defence was made in error, BAE Systems says

BAE Systems Australia has responded to the revelations that it tried to bill the Australian Department of Defence $55,000 for Christmas cards and decorations.

A number of expense claims were detailed in an Australian National Audit Office report on the initial stages of the program to build nine new Hunter-class frigates for the Royal Australian Navy at the Osborne shipyard in Adelaide.

A company spokesperson said in a statement:

The costs reported on today were charged in error and were quickly identified through our stringent financial auditing process.

Every month, costs and expenses billed to the customer are audited to ensure they are reasonable and comply with the terms of our agreement.

In this case, the process worked in identifying the costs that did not meet this criteria or were incorrectly or mistakenly charged in error and were immediately rectified.

Benita Kolovos

Pesutto to speak in half an hour

John Pesutto, David Southwick and Georgie Crozier have left the party room. Pesutto confirms Deeming has been expelled and Heath stripped of her party secretary position.

Pesutto tells reporters:

Go get a coffee, we’ll be back in half an hour.

Benita Kolovos

Brighton MP, James Newbury – one of the signatories of the motion to expel Deeming – has also spoken:

You cannot sue your boss and expect to keep your job. Suing your party and your leader is a gross act of betrayal. But we are moving forward united as a team.

Benita Kolovos

Upper house MP David Davis just told reporters:

It was a strong and decisive, clear result. The party room is resolved to move forward. We’ve made a set of decisions.

I’ll leave it to the leadership group to talk in detail, but I think it’s a clear and firm direction forward. This is about the future and about us taking on the Andrews Labor government – and let’s be clear, there is plenty to take them on.

Benita Kolovos

‘We’re moving forward’, says Victorian MP who put name to expulsion motion

Roma Britnell and Cindy McLeish have exited the Liberal party room. The two MPs put their name to the motion to expel Moira Deeming. They’re both pleased with the result. Britnell says:

We’re moving forward.

Deeming expelled from Victorian Liberal party room, Heath sanctioned

Benita Kolovos

Controversial MP Moira Deeming has been expelled from the Victorian Liberal party room, while her ally Renee Heath has been sanctioned.

Nepean MP Sam Groth has confirmed Deeming’s colleagues voted to expel her during a party room meeting on Friday morning, meaning she will have to serve the remaining three-and-a-half years of her term on the crossbench in the upper house of the Victorian parliament. Groth told reporters:

I think it’s a real chance to draw a line in the sand for the party now. We’ve a meeting, we’re going to move forward.

We’re going to get behind John [Pesutto], and I think it’s a chance for us now, as I’ve said, right from the start of this whole drama – it’s time for the Liberal Party to start being a viable option … it’s time to [unite] together behind John to do and do what is best for the state.

Guardian Australia understands the party voted 19-11 to expel Deeming and to remove Heath.

The expulsion motion was put forward by five MPs – Roma Britnell, Wayne Farnham, the former opposition leader Matthew Guy, Cindy McLeish and James Newbury – who alleged Deeming was “bringing discredit” on the parliamentary team.

Heath, who accused Pesutto of bullying last week, was also sanctioned and stripped of her party secretary position after another former opposition leader, Michael O’Brien, moved a successful motion.

Deeming, who had earlier been suspended by the party for nine months, was not present for the meeting.

Benita Kolovos

Upper house member Renee Heath – a Deeming ally – has just left the party room and told reporters she’s no longer the Liberals secretary.

Benita Kolovos

We’ve just ticked over the two hour mark for the Liberal party room meeting with no word yet on whether Deeming has been expelled. MPs backing the motion were very confident it would get up.

A heap of Deeming supporters have just left the party room.