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The Apprenticeshop (Rockland, Maine USA)

Since 1972, The Apprenticeshop has been dedicated to inspiring personal growth through craftsmanship, community and traditions of the sea. Located on the waterfront in Rockland Maine, the Apprenticeshop offers programing for youth and adults that ranges from 2 hours to 2 years. Students of all ages come here from around the world to learn traditional boat building skills, sailing and maritime arts. Inspired by the philosophy of experiential educator Kurt Hahn, and his own experiences in education and Outward Bound, Lance Lee started the original Apprenticeshop in 1972 within the complex of the Maine Maritime Museum, in Bath, Maine. Lee felt, as Hahn did, that education should encourage both thought and action simultaneously, not one or the other. Today, as a non-profit organization, the Apprenticeshop is recognized as one of the finest and oldest traditional boat building schools in the country.

From the beginning, the structure of the Apprenticeshop was built around craftsmanship, seamanship and community. Craftsmanship developed as apprentices worked alongside a master builder and one another to learn the traditional methods of wooden boatbuilding. Seamanship was practiced as apprentices sailed vessels built by the shop in their off time, and the shop itself was built and maintained by the apprentice community. the program became a catalyst for the revival of traditional wooden boatbuilding in a time when the craft and a way of learning essential to individual education and cooperative experiences were deemed to be extinct.

The shop moved from Bath to Rockport in 1982 and, a decade later, moved again to an historic lumber mill in Nobleboro and became part of the newly formed Atlantic Challenge Foundation. The lack of easy access to the water prompted the move to the Rockland waterfront in 1995. In 1999, the shop moved to it’s present location on two and a half acres of waterfront in Rockland’s north end.

The Apprenticeshop 643 Main Street, Rockland, Maine 04841 Phone: 207-594-1800

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• Success Stories
• Boatworks 101 Brings All On Board for Apprenticeship

Boatworks 101 Brings All on Board for Apprenticeship

Recreational boating is big business in the San Francisco Bay area, and the boatyards maintaining the boats cannot find enough skilled workers. To meet this need, Boatworks 101, a Registered Youth Apprenticeship program sponsored by Spaulding Marine Center, was created to train the next generation of marine maintenance technicians. Spaulding’s president, Bill Edinger, conceived the program in response to the regional industry’s skill shortage.

As boat options grow beyond rowboats and dinghies to sailboats, wooden boats, and antiques, maintenance grows progressively more complex. Technicians must, therefore, be able to work with many different systems and materials: electrical wiring, marine instruments, painting, welding and fabrication, fiberglass and other composites, gasoline and diesel engines, marine plumbing, sailboat rigging, and more. One attraction of the occupation is that technicians can specialize in one or more of these aspects and earn a higher income.

Boatworks apprentices begin with nine months of instruction and work experience at the Spaulding Marine Center, where they complete a curriculum produced by the American Boat and Yacht Council, leading to industry certification. The program is registered with both the U.S. Department of Labor and the California Division of Apprenticeship Standards. After the Spaulding boatyard was passed to the founder’s heirs, it became a nonprofit organization and added a marine museum and training center to its continuing work servicing boats. Half a dozen additional boatyard owners quickly joined as partners and participated in the planning. Their duties include hosting apprentice visits, and sharing responsibility for providing further on-the-job training over an additional six-month training period, as apprentices move to a new worksite every month to gain more diverse experiences. This program also gives employers and apprentices a chance to know one another before making or accepting a job offer. Spaulding will remain the employer of record, and the partners pay for the apprentices’ compensation.

Boating is an expensive recreational sport, all but unknown in diverse low-income communities and largely comprised of the daughters and sons of boatowners. Boatworks recruits widely to assure its apprentices represent the region’s population, opening the way to an occupation where general workers in the region earn a median income of nearly $53,000 and specialists can earn much more. In addition to working on boats in the yard, the apprentices have a chance to take excursions on the water and jointly build a small wooden boat.

The goal of the Boatworks youth apprenticeship is to help apprentices acquire a diverse skill set, qualifying them for initial employment and setting the stage for further specialization. According to Jay Grant, the lead instructor, the most important skills they learn are how to solve problems and ask for advice. Apprentice Sidney Wewerka said she appreciates the opportunity to engage in individual projects and delve further into her specialty of choice.

Bill Eddinger sees the six apprentices in the 2021 cohort as just the start of the program and plans to increase to 12 apprentices next year, scaling further from there. Bill believes they will hire all apprentices upon completing the program.

Learn more about the Spauling Marine Center and Boatworks 101 program.

Publish Date: 04/07/2022

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Tangled in Steel With No Way Out: How the Crew Stuck in Baltimore Is Faring

Twenty-two seafarers from India find themselves not only trapped in the ship that struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge, but also in an unexpected spotlight.

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By Eduardo Medina

Reporting from Baltimore

Even from miles away, the destruction of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore is a jarring visual: Chunks of steel jut above the water like metallic icebergs. Twisted gray beams protrude in crooked positions. From a park near Fort McHenry, visitors can see the giant cargo ship that struck the bridge and remains lodged in the wreckage.

Less visible, however, are the 22 crew members from India who have remained on the ship, named the Dali, since the disaster on Tuesday.

Little is publicly known about them other than that they are seafarers who embarked on a journey aboard the 985-foot-long cargo ship that was on its way to Sri Lanka, carrying 4,700 shipping containers, when it lost power and struck the Key Bridge, causing the structure to collapse.

Since the accident, which killed six construction workers, the crew members have found themselves in an unexpected spotlight. While keeping the ship operable, they are answering a deluge of questions from officials investigating the nighttime catastrophe, as the evidence of what occurred lies around them in mangled ruins stretching across the bow and deck.

While officials investigate what could have caused the tragedy, another question has emerged this week: What could the crew members, who have limited access to the outside world, be going through right now?

“They must feel this weight of responsibility that they couldn’t stop it from happening,” said Joshua Messick, the executive director of the Baltimore International Seafarers’ Center , a religious nonprofit that seeks to protect the rights of mariners.

Even so, officials have praised the crew’s swift mayday message that was transmitted over the radio as the ship lost power on Tuesday. Before the Dali struck the bridge, traveling at a rapid eight knots, the mayday call helped police officers stop traffic from heading onto the bridge, most likely saving many lives, the authorities said. A local harbor pilot with more than 10 years of experience was onboard, as well as an apprentice pilot in training.

As the ship remains stuck in the Port of Baltimore, where it may remain for weeks, the lives of the crew members have entered an uncertain phase. But one thing is certain: They will no longer cruise through the sea around South Africa toward their destination in Sri Lanka anytime soon.

But they are not going to imminently dock at the port either, as they must wait for enough debris to be cleared to free the ship and reopen the channel to one of the busiest ports in the United States. On Saturday, the governor of Maryland said officials planned to remove the first piece of the debris.

So, for now, crew members are most likely working a grueling schedule to maintain the ship that is similar to the one they would be if they were out at sea. The difference, though, is that they are in an immobile state as the eyes of the world fixate on them, experts said.

“The captain of the vessel and the crew have a duty to the ship,” said Stephen Frailey, a partner at Pacific Maritime Group, which helps with marine salvage and wreck removal.

According to Chris James, who works for a consulting firm assisting the ship’s management company, Synergy Marine, the crew members have ample supplies of food and water, as well as plenty of fuel to keep the generators going. Indeed, when Jennifer Homendy, the chair of the National Transportation Safety Board, went onboard the ship this week, she observed the cook cooking. “It smelled very good,” she said.

But there is still no exact timeline for when the ship might be extracted from the wreckage, Mr. James said. Once the N.T.S.B. and the Coast Guard finish their investigations, he said, “we’ll look at potentially swapping the crew out and getting them home.”

India, the home country of the crew members, is one of the world’s largest hubs for seafarers, according to John A. Konrad, a ship captain and the chief executive of gCaptain, a maritime and offshore industry news website. Though Indian captains and engineers are paid less than their American counterparts, Mr. Konrad said, they make a decent living when they work for three or more months out of the year at sea.

Working on a cargo ship, he said, is a 24-hour ordeal with no weekends off: Every day, decks are checked for maintenance and safety, cooks and cleaners serve the other members, and workers in the engine room keep things on track.

Cargo ship crew members do have some leisurely activities available to them onboard, though, such as video game breaks in cabins, workouts in gyms, table tennis sessions and movie nights. The Dali crew has at least a TV, magazines and books onboard, said Andrew Middleton, who runs Apostleship of the Sea, a program that ministers to sailors coming through the port.

Clistan Joy Sequeira, an Indian seafarer who was not on the Dali but who docked in Baltimore from another cargo ship on Friday, said in an interview that he feared the repercussions that the bridge collapse could have on his industry and his country.

“I’m scared that because this crew is Indian, our international image will suffer,” said Mr. Sequeira, 31. “Maybe we lose jobs.”

Some in Baltimore’s port community have had some contact with the Dali crew, albeit brief, through third parties or WhatsApp. Mr. Messick said he sent the crew two Wi-Fi hot spots on Friday because they did not have internet onboard.

Mr. Middleton said he had been keeping in touch with two crew members, reminding them that “we’re here for them.”

“When I’ve asked how they’re doing, their answers range from ‘good’ to ‘great,’” he said. “So, by their own accounts, they’re OK.”

Mr. Messick said he had also sent a care package to the crew through a salvage company helping with operations. In the package were candy, home-baked muffins from a concerned local and thank-you cards from children.

With so many questions still unanswered about the crew members’ next steps, Mr. Messick said he was eager to provide them with trauma care and emotional support. On Friday, he wrote a letter to the captain, which was delivered by another vessel.

“We’re here to support you,” it read.

Mike Baker contributed reporting.

Eduardo Medina is a Times reporter covering the South. An Alabama native, he is now based in Durham, N.C. More about Eduardo Medina

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Sean 'Diddy' Combs' son accused of sex assault in lawsuit that also names music mogul as defendant

LOS ANGELES — Sean “Diddy” Combs, who is a subject of a federal sex trafficking investigation , has been named as a defendant in a new lawsuit that alleges his son sexually assaulted a woman while she was working on a yacht the music mogul had chartered for a trip at the end of 2022. 

The allegation is the latest in a wave of lawsuits accusing Combs , 54, of sexual assault, sexual trafficking and engaging in other criminal activity. He has denied all the allegations, calling them sickening.

In the suit filed Thursday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, Grace O’Marcaigh alleges that Christian Combs, 26, sexually assaulted her in late December 2022 while she was working on a boat charter that had been “sold as a wholesome family excursion” but turned into a “hedonistic environment.” 

The alleged assault happened just days before Sean Combs hosted a New Year’s Eve yacht party with a long list of celebrity guests . 

Christian Combs is accused of sexual assault, sexual harassment and infliction of emotional distress in the lawsuit. Sean Combs is being sued for premises liability as the person who chartered the yacht and for aiding and abetting his son in the alleged assault. 

A lawyer for the father and son called Thursday's suit "lewd and meritless" and said it was "filled with the same kind of manufactured lies and irrelevant facts we’ve come to expect" from O’Marcaigh's lawyer, Tyrone Blackburn.

The lawyer, Aaron Dyer, said his legal team plans on filing a motion to dismiss the suit.

 “Like father, like son," Blackburn said Thursday night after the suit was filed. "It gives us no joy or pleasure in filing this suit against Christian Combs who has clearly adopted his father’s pattern and practice of depravity."

In the yacht studio

In her suit, O’Marcaigh alleges that Christian Combs drugged and sexually assaulted her. She included transcriptions of audio clips that she states are evidence of her denying his advances as he gropes her. The suit states that the clips were recorded by a producer in the studio. 

O’Marcaigh, who was 25 at the time of the alleged assault, worked as a steward providing dinner and drink service on the yacht from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. and witnessed partying and drug use between a “constant rotation of suspected sex workers” and celebrities, the suit states. She also alleges in the complaint that she suspected bottles of alcohol were laced with drugs because women began to fall over themselves, panic or pass out after just one drink. 

Around Dec. 28, 2022, O’Marcaigh was informed that Christian Combs would be joining the party to record with music producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones in the yacht’s makeshift studio, the suit states. 

Christian Combs had been staying on shore at a villa, but often joined his father in the evenings, according to the suit. The woman’s suit alleges that he arrived “heavily intoxicated” and that he paid an inappropriate amount of attention to her. Christian then pressured O’Marcaigh to take shots of tequila that she believes he brought onboard, according to the suit.

After she took the shot, O’Marcaigh states in the lawsuit, Christian Combs became aggressive and insisted she drink more. 

O’Marcaigh became fearful and began to feel the effect of the tequila, which she “quickly suspected” had been spiked, the suit states. 

The situation “escalated” as Christian Combs groped O’Marcaigh’s legs, breast, anus and vagina, the suit states. The suit details audio recordings in which it states O’Marcaigh can be heard declining alcohol, saying she had to leave, and telling Christian Combs to stop touching her with what sounds like kissing noises in the background.

The audio was recorded by Jones, the producer who was in the studio during the alleged assault and who has alleged in his own lawsuit that he was required to record Sean Combs “constantly” and had hours of footage in which the music mogul and his staff allegedly engaged in criminal conduct. 

NBC News has heard two clips of audio transcribed in the suit purportedly from the night of Dec. 28, 2022, but has not verified who was recorded. 

“Excuse me, you don’t touch my legs like that. I’ll move my legs where I want to,” O’Marcaigh is heard saying in the recording detailed in the suit. “If I want to do this, then I will. You don’t touch my legs like that.” 

“Listen, you and everybody in the crew,” Christian Combs allegedly replies. 

“I can’t, I have to go down,” O’Marcaigh says. “I have to go down.”

Christian Combs then insists that O’Marcaigh stay with him, but she responds that she cannot unless he makes that request to a crew leader, the suit states, citing the audio recording. 

O’Marcaigh answered this way because she knew “anyone of authority” who could approve the request would be asleep and Christian Combs would not be able to contact them, the suit states. 

“Who can I talk to? I’m going to say I requested you right now,” Christian Combs said, according to the suit.  

“Well, you can take your hand off my ass for the first thing,” O’Marcaigh responded. 

O’Marcaigh then attempted to resume her duties and finish her shift once she was able to leave the studio, the suit states. Christian Combs allegedly found her a short time later and insisted she find him a place to sleep.

She directed him to the yacht cinema, which was used as an extra sleeping area, where he blocked her in, the suit states. 

Christian Combs allegedly began to grope her and took off his clothes. 

“His penis was erect, and he grabbed her arms and was trying to force PLAINTIFF to perform oral sex on him,” the suit states. 

The suit includes photos of bruising on O’Marcaigh’s forearm and alleges it was caused when Christian Combs grabbed her. 

O’Marcaigh fought him off until someone else walked in, according to the suit. 

Since the alleged attack

The alleged assault had a deep impact on O’Marcaigh’s mental health as well as her professional and personal lives, the suit said. When O’Marcaigh complained to the yacht captain the next day, the suit alleges, the captain did not believe her and failed to investigate.

She alleges that the captain retaliated against her until she was terminated in May 2023. 

Her mental health deteriorated, and the woman had anxiety and panic attacks as well as severe suicidal ideations, the suit said. O’Marcaigh alleges that the emotional strain affected her physical health and that she developed an eating disorder and epileptic seizures following the assault. 

She is seeking unspecified damages. 

"I am here to fight for those who can’t fight for themselves and I applaud Grace for being so brave to come forward with her truth," attorney Rodney S. Diggs said of his client. "Hopefully her story will inspire others to come forward."

O’Marcaigh’s suit is the first to accuse Christian Combs of sexual assault. Since November, his father, Sean Combs, has been accused in lawsuits of sexual assault by four women, which he has repeatedly denied. 

One of those suits has been settled , and the others have not been resolved.  

Jones, a producer who worked for Sean Combs from September 2022 to November 2023, alleged the rapper sexually harassed him, pressured him to engage in sexual acts and forced him to procure sex workers. He said he witnessed Sean Combs giving drinks laced with drugs to people at parties. 

An attorney for Combs said Jones’ “reckless name-dropping about events that are pure fiction and simply did not happen is nothing more than a transparent attempt to garner headlines.”

On March 25, agents with Homeland Security Investigations searched Sean Combs’ properties in Los Angeles and Miami. A source familiar with the investigation told NBC News that a federal investigation began before this year and that authorities were aware of the layout of Combs’ properties before the raids. 

During the searches last month, federal agents discovered guns and seized his phones as part of a warrant issued from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, law enforcement sources have said. Christian Combs was detained at his father’s Los Angeles home last month when Homeland Security Investigations executed a search warrant, but he was not arrested. 

Investigators are also looking into allegations of statutory rape against Sean Combs, the source said. 

NBC News previously reported that at least three women and one man have been interviewed by federal investigators in relation to allegations of sex trafficking, sexual assault and the solicitation and distribution of illegal narcotics and firearms. 

Aaron Dyer, one of Combs’ attorneys, issued a statement following last month’s property searches and said that Combs “was never detained but spoke to and cooperated with authorities.” He described the search as an ambush, saying there’s been a rush to judgment based on “meritless accusations made in civil lawsuits.”

“There has been no finding of criminal or civil liability with any of these allegations,” Dyer said. “Mr. Combs is innocent and will continue to fight every single day to clear his name.”

Diana Dasrath reported from Los Angeles and Doha Madani reported from New York.

Diana Dasrath is entertainment producer and senior reporter for NBC News covering all platforms.

Doha Madani is a senior breaking news reporter for NBC News. Pronouns: she/her.

Satellite images capture how Russia is shielding its warships in port from threats like Ukraine's exploding drone boats

• Satellite images show Russia has placed barriers at its ports to defend the Black Sea Fleet. 
• The measures are designed to protect Russian warships from Ukraine's uncrewed surface vessels.
• Kyiv has relied on this fleet of exploding drone boats to damage and destroy Moscow's naval force.

Newly captured satellite imagery shows Russia has put up barriers at a major port to defend its Black Sea Fleet warships from Ukraine's unrelenting exploding drone boat attacks.

The protective measures at Novorossiysk, a city in western Russia located along the Black Sea, appear to be building on similar efforts in Sevastopol, where Moscow's naval assets have been targeted by Ukraine throughout the full-scale war.

"Due to an increased risk of Ukrainian strikes in their traditional homeport of Sevastopol, Novorossiysk now serves as a crucial role in sheltering the Black Sea Fleet's most valuable assets," Britain's defense ministry wrote in a Sunday intelligence update .

The UK said it recently identified four barges placed at the entrance of the Novorossiysk port in a bid to "enhance the defenses" of the facility against attacks from Ukrainian uncrewed surface vessels, or USVs.

Ukraine, lacking a proper fleet of warships of its own for naval combat, has turned to a fleet of these USVs — essentially just drone boats packed with explosives — to damage and destroy Russian warships both in port and at sea since late 2022. It's an asymmetrical style of warfare that Moscow has proven unable to consistently defend against.

Satellite images captured on March 30 by Maxar Technologies and obtained by Business Insider show what appear to be moored barges placed at the entrance to the Novorossiysk port. The barriers also appear in March 18 imagery shared by British intelligence, indicating they're at least a few weeks old.

Brady Africk, an open-source-intelligence analyst at the American Enterprise Institute think tank, confirmed the placement of the barges and said the increased security at Novorossiysk is a relatively recent development, unlike Sevastopol, where defenses have been present throughout the war.

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"Russia has placed moored barges and floating boom defenses at both Sevastopol and Novorossiysk ports," he told BI, adding that Sevastopol is also guarded by netting and trained dolphins.

March 23 satellite images of the entrance to Sevastopol Bay show the floating boom defenses and netting in place.

"While these defenses may complicate Ukraine's ability to strike Russian warships within Sevastopol or Novorossiysk ports" with its fleet of exploding USVs, Africk said Kyiv has "demonstrated the ability to locate and strike Russian ships outside of port or target them with missiles instead."

On March 24, for instance, Kyiv confirmed it launched multiple missiles at Sevastopol during the previous night, hitting four Russian warships and various infrastructure belonging to the battered Black Sea Fleet.

Following that attack, a pro-Ukrainian partisan group known as Atesh said that Russia was putting up new barriers at the entrance to Sevastopol Bay and blocking the passage of ships, the Kyiv Independent reported on March 27. BI was unable to confirm these claims, which were made shortly after the March 23 satellite imagery was captured.

Despite Russia's efforts to curb threats to the Black Sea Fleet, which includes barriers at ports, machine gun crews on warships, and aircraft patrols of the region, Ukraine has still managed to take out roughly a third of Moscow's warships since the full-scale war began more than two years ago.

These losses recently led the Kremlin to reshuffle its naval leadership. Earlier this week, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu officially appointed Vice Adm. Sergei Pinchuk to the commander of the Black Sea Fleet — a move that British intelligence suggested was the result of Ukraine's successful USV attacks in recent months.

As the new fleet commander, Pinchuk now has a daunting task ahead of him. The UK said last weekend that he "has likely sought to improve the survival chances of Russian vessels by adopting further preventative and defensive measures, including narrowing the entrance gap to port facilities."

Whether these efforts — like the construction of barriers at Novorossiysk — are effective remains to be seen. Kyiv has vowed to continue going after the Black Sea Fleet, and its fleet of USVs have been upgraded over time to be more efficient and deadlier, a general in the Security Service of Ukraine previously remarked.

"Forcing the enemy to flee from the Black Sea was the goal we sought and it was achieved," Brig. Gen. Ivan Lukashevych, whose team carries out USV operations, said in translated remarks shared with BI in February.

"If there is a threat," the Ukrainian general added, "we will definitely find it, localize it, and destroy it."

Watch: Video of Russian naval ship explosion shows a much-needed win for Ukraine

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PM says transparency around aid worker’s death ‘in Israel’s interest’ – as it happened

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• Emerson says breaking up supermarkets ‘too heavy handed’ as Dutton derides ‘Mickey Mouse review’
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• 2d ago What we learned; Monday 8 April
• 2d ago 21-year-old man charged with murder of Hannah McGuire
• 2d ago Transparency around Zomi Frankcom's death 'in Israel's interest': Albanese
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• 2d ago Dutton doubles down on claim supermarket review was ‘predetermined’
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What we learned; Monday 8 April

We’ll be wrapping up the blog for the night. Thanks for reading along and join us back here tomorrow. Here’s what happened today:

The Albanese government has appointed Air Chief Marshal Mark Binskin as a special adviser to look at the “sufficiency and appropriateness” of Israel’s response to its strikes that killed Australian humanitarian worker Zomi Frankcom .

Anthony Albanese said Australia expects full cooperation from the Israeli defence force and that it is “in Israel’s interest” for there to be transparency around the deaths.

Craig Emerson’s interim supermarket review found the existing voluntary food and grocery code was “not effective” and that the code should be mandatory and come with “heavy penalties” including fines of up to $10m. Opposition leader Peter Dutton called the report commissioned by Labor a “Mickey Mouse review”.

A major flood warning remains current for the Warrego River, which comes as parts of south-west Queensland face major flooding .

Residents are continuing to return to their homes north-west of Sydney and along the Hawkesbury River after a weekend of wild weather which saw floods damage more than 60 homes in the greater Sydney region, leaving 17 uninhabitable.

A 21-year-old man has been charged with the murder of 23-year-old Hannah McGuire , after a woman’s body was found in a burned out car in bushland at Scarsdale, 25km south of Ballarat, on Friday morning.

The Afternoon Update, with a news roundup of what’s happened today, is live.

If you haven’t already, you can subscribe to the Afternoon Update newsletter, which will bring it to your inbox every day, and you can start your day with our Morning Mail newsletter by subscribing here .

EPA issues warning to councils after asbestos found in Melbourne parks

Victoria’s environment watchdog is warning local councils to tighten quality controls on potential asbestos in mulch, as it investigates suspected illegal dumping of the contaminated material, which has been discovered at several parks .

The Victorian Environment Protection Authority on Sunday said it had ordered Hobsons Bay council , in Melbourne’s west, to hand over records of its supply chain for mulch production and conduct wider testing for asbestos, after the material was found in several reserves in the council area.

The EPA on Monday said its inspections uncovered contaminated material at six parks, five in the Hobsons Bay council area and one in Merri-bek council, in Melbourne’s north. The EPA has sent materials containing suspected asbestos from four sites to be tested, with results expected on Tuesday.

Full story here:

21-year-old man charged with murder of Hannah McGuire

A 21-year-old man has been charged with murder after a woman’s body was found in a burned out car in regional Victoria, AAP reports.

Emergency services were called to a vehicle on fire in bushland at Scarsdale, 25km south of Ballarat, on Friday morning.

The remains of a 23-year-old Clunes woman were located inside the car. She has been identified as Hannah McGuire.

Two Sebastopol men, aged 21 and 22, were arrested shortly before 5pm on Sunday.

The 22-year-old man was later released, while the 21-year-old man was charged with murder on Monday afternoon.

Investigators will allege the man charged knew McGuire.

The charged man will appear in Ballarat magistrates court on Tuesday.

No date yet for the prime ministerial wedding

One last, and more light-hearted, moment from the interview with Anthony Albanese on ABC Afternoons, that has just wrapped up.

In closing, he was asked whether he and his fiancee Jodie Haydon had had a chance over the Easter weekend to set a date for their wedding.

The prime minister was not biting.

“I can confirm that I will not be discussing the date with yourself or anyone else on a TV program,” he said. “Diaries bounce around and the difficult task of setting a date as prime minister is something that is ahead of us.”

Coalition’s stalling on migration bill ‘beyond comprehension’, PM says

Anthony Albanese is being asked on the ABC about boat arrivals to Australia, after criticism from the opposition that government policies have created a “pull factor”.

While refusing to comment on reports that about 10 people arrived on the mainland, the prime minister has said that “people who come as unauthorised boat arrivals in Australia will not be allowed to be settled here”.

We want to make it very, very clear that there is no incentive on coming to Australia by boat, that people won’t be allowed to settle here. Because we don’t want people risking their lives and we also don’t want the quite evil trade of people smuggling to be able to profit from such activities.

Asked whether the government’s stalled deportation measures contained in the migration bill that failed to pass the Senate before Easter could have been marketed by people smugglers, Albanese was critical of the Coalition for refusing to vote for the bill.

We put forward that legislation in good faith. It passed through the House of Representatives on one day and then the Coalition changed their mind and deferred it on the very next day. The Coalition need to explain why it is that they deferred that legislation given that they have failed to come up a single policy disagreement that is in that legislation. It is beyond my comprehension how it is that the Coalition have contradicted their own rhetorical position by not passing this legislation.

The prime minister is responding to a question about whether Israel is being held to a higher standard than Hamas in its conduct of war, as opposition foreign affairs spokesperson, Simon Birmingham, said on the weekend .

Hamas are a terrorist organisation and that is why they are outlawed. They don’t respect the rule of law and they are an organisation that targets civilians and with the atrocities that occurred on October 7, which is why we unequivocally condemn it. Democratic nations have different responsibilities. They have responsibilities to comply with international law and that is what we expect of Israel.

Transparency around Zomi Frankcom's death 'in Israel's interest': Albanese

Anthony Albanese says that Mark Binskin is well regarded globally and that Australia expects full cooperation from the Israeli defence force and their authorities, as Binskin participates in the investigation into the aid worker deaths.

We are confident that that will be made available. Because it is in Israel’s interest as well for there to be transparency around these incidents. They have shaken the world.

Prime minister calls for ‘proper accountability’ from Israel over deaths of aid workers

Anthony Albanese is speaking on ABC Afternoons at the moment about the appointment of former ADF chief Mark Binskin as a special adviser to look at the “sufficiency and appropriateness” of Israel’s response to its strikes that killed Australian Zomi Frankcom and six of her World Central Kitchen colleagues.

He is calling Frankcom’s death a “tragedy” that has “shaken the world” and says that the Australian government does not find Israel’s investigation into the deaths to be satisfactory.

This is a tragedy. You have Zomi Frankcom, who was there, working, supporting her fellow humans. Doing work in Gaza, providing aid in a way that should have kept her safe. She did everything possible to do the right thing, as did her organisation, and we had circumstances where one car was hit then another car was hit, then a third car was hit. We need proper accountability, we need full transparency about the circumstances and I think that is what the Australian public would expect.

Strong number of first home buyers enter property market, February ABS data shows

A fresh batch of data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics released today shows that first home buyers are making it on to the property ladder in respectable numbers, despite affordability challenges, AAP reports.

The ABS recorded a 4.3% uptick in the number of new loan commitments to first-time owner-occupier purchasers in February.

While this followed a 5.6% fall in January, first home buyer loan numbers were 13.2% higher than a year ago.

With more than 9,300 first home buyer loan commitments recorded over the month, activity was well down from the highs reached in January 2021 but broadly in line with pre-pandemic levels.

National Australia Bank senior markets economist Taylor Nugent said lending approvals for first home buyers had proved resilient.

He said this suggested higher mortgage rates were not proving much of a hurdle, or at least compared to the rising cost of renting.

“Higher mortgage rates and affordability constraints are being offset by tightness in rental markets and underlying strength in housing demand,” said Nugent.

Reflecting higher house prices, the value of loans to first home buyers rose 4.8% over the month to be 20.7% higher annually.

CommSec economists Ryan Felsman and Craig James said demand for homes continued to rise given a “relatively firm job market, a healthy stock of savings and rising migration offsetting higher interest rates”.

They said it was a promising sign first home buyers remained active.

“There is a general perception that interest rates have peaked, and this may be seeing greater urgency by homebuyers to secure their purchase, fearful of a more significant influx of buyers when interest rates actually start their descent,” they added.

Car industry lobby head grilled over letter to Labor about vehicle efficiency standards

The head of the car industry’s main lobbying group has been questioned about how a document – which warned Labor of the political risks of its proposed vehicle efficiency standards – was given to the energy minister Chris Bowen ’s office.

The Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries has been one of the key bodies critical of the proposed changes designed to improve the fuel efficiency of vehicles and bring down overall transport emissions.

Appearing at a parliamentary inquiry into lobbying on Monday, its chief executive, Tony Weber , was presented with the document obtained by former senator, Rex Patrick , under freedom of information (FoI).

The document, which contains no letterhead or date, outlines the “political risks” of introducing a “harsh” standard, warning consumers would blame the government for any loss of choice or increase in the cost of cars.

It reads: “The issue is like the Voice – most people are supportive of the concept, until they see the detail. Once it becomes a cost of living and consumer choice argument, it’s dead.”

It also describes carmakers, referred to as original equipment manufacturers or OEMs, as “almost schizophrenic” on the introduction of vehicle efficiency standards.

“Many OEMs will be privately critical of the policy settings in this area but will publicly position themselves from a marketing perspective to embrace it. This leads to the announcements of EVs that are planned in a situation where there are no real plans to actually build and provide them.”

ACT senator David Pocock asked Weber why the document was allegedly given in hard copy, and had no letterhead or date. Pocock also asked whether it had been given to the minister’s office informally by a lobbyist in Parliament House. Pocock suggested it was done so to avoid being captured in an FoI – which was unsuccessful.

Weber said he needed time to read the document but did not dispute it had come from the peak body. Weber said it could have been a background document provided in a meeting with officials but took other questions on notice around its origin and how it was handed to the minister’s office.

Hello, I’m Kate Lyons and will be seeing you through until the end of the day.

In case you missed it and are in need of a mid-afternoon pick-me-up, Eliza Spencer , from our rural network, has this utterly delightful story about Woody the (formerly) escaped merino sheep.

The sheep was found wandering the streets of Woodstock, a small New South Wales town on the central tablelands late last year.

At some point he had escaped the shared community paddock and taken up residence near the local tip, relying on food and water left by residents.

Prompted by concern about his large fleece, authorities decided to bring him in.

Volunteers from the Woodstock Rural fire service began the chase on Wednesday, and a livestock transporter, Matthew Blazley, made the capture.

Woody is well, and was sheared of about 10kg of wool, having missed an estimated three shearing seasons.

Many thanks for joining me on the blog today, the lovely Kate Lyons will be here to take you through the rest of our rolling coverage. Take care!

RACGP welcomes drug checking service in Sydney

Australian GPs have welcomed New South Wales’ first drug checking pilot program.

As Catie McLeod reports, the state’s first drug checking service will open at Sydney ’s supervised injecting room after the government resisted calls to introduce pill testing at music festivals.

The NSW and ACT chair of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP), Dr Rebekah Hoffman , welcomed the move as “an important step forward”.

Under this pilot, those who present with their drugs will be given an analysis of the substance, including what mix of drugs is actually present, as well as targeted harm reduction advice. The samples will then be sent for further confirmatory testing of the drug makeup. Drug checking, including pill testing, saves lives. People can find out what substances the drugs they have been sold contain without fear of law enforcement action. Drug testing services also allow trained staff to talk candidly to them free of judgment about why they are using drugs and explain the many risks involved. Many people who submit drugs for testing discard them when they find out what they contain.

Dr Hoffman called on the NSW government to follow Queensland and the ACT by introducing drug testing services featuring fixed and mobile sites across NSW.

Road and rail disruptions continue following east coast floods

Sticking with the east coast floods: road and rail disruptions are continuing, with parts of the South Coast train line remaining closed due to flood damage.

The wild weather over the weekend caused some significant flooding on the South Coast line.   Thanks to the local community for your patience as we work to clean up the damage, with buses replacing trains south of Waterfall while we work to restore services as quickly as possible pic.twitter.com/Es4BIy3CR4 — Transport for NSW (@TransportforNSW) April 8, 2024

Bulldozers are set to cut through a temporary evacuation road in the Blue Mountains-Megalong Valley after a land slip shut off the only access road, isolating hundreds of residents.

The Blue Mountains mayor, Mark Greenhill, said cutting a temporary road through rock would take three days and would be contingent on careful geotechnical advice. Food and fuel drops via helicopter are underway.

17 homes left uninhabitable after east coast floods

AAP is reporting that 17 homes have been left uninhabitable following the east coast floods, with that number expected to rise.

Early this morning , that number was sitting at 14.

Residents are continuing to return to their homes north-west of Sydney and along the Hawkesbury River after evacuation orders were lifted following receding floodwaters.

About 800 people were under an evacuation order in the Sydney region where floods have damaged more than 60 homes, leaving 17 uninhabitable.

Dutton responds to appointment of Mark Biniskin as special advisor

Peter Dutton has also responded to the appointment of former ADF chief Mark Binskin as a special adviser to look at the “sufficiency and appropriateness” of Israel’s response to its strikes that killed Australian Zomi Frankcom and six of her World Central Kitchen colleagues.

We had more details on this earlier in the blog here .

Dutton said that Binskin is a “fine person” who has “been a great contributor to our country for many decades”, but has been given “mission impossible” from Anthony Albanese when it comes to this position.

Because this is about a political outcome for the prime minister, I’m sorry to say … What the prime minister is doing in importing Mark Binskin is not hoping for some discovery of a silver bullet or some thing that is being hidden by the Israelis. What the prime minister is doing here is trying to find a pathway through what is obviously a torn ALP. The caucus of the Australian Labor Party is split at the moment … what we have seen here by the prime minister is a political response and, frankly, while Mark Binskin is an excellent public servant and is beyond reproach, an incredible individual, he has been given mission impossible by this prime minister because the prime minister is after a political outcome for what is obviously a lot of anxious and difficulty within the left wing of his Labor caucus.

Dutton doubles down on claim supermarket review was ‘predetermined’

Continuing from our last post, Dutton also argued the review was a “Mickey-Mouse review”:

[What] we’ve got at the moment is a government with a predetermined outcome for a review conducted by Craig Emerson , you may as well have asked Wayne Swan to conduct a review. The review was written, the results were dictated by Jim Chalmers and I think this is a Mickey-Mouse review that has been conducted by Labor…

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