Australia senate stops gay marriage vote

Senators Penny Wong and Mathias Cormann in the Upper House (EPA)

The Australian government's proposal to hold a national vote on legalising same-sex marriage has been defeated in the upper house of parliament.

The government said a non-binding ballot, or plebiscite, was the quickest way to amend the Marriage Act.

Same-sex couples can have civil unions or registered relationships in most Australian states but they are not considered married under national law.

Opinion polls indicate that most Australians support same-sex marriage.

However opposition parties and many supporters of same-sex marriage argued a plebiscite would be expensive and could unleash a divisive campaign.

Instead, they say parliament should make the decision itself.

The proposal's defeat in the senate means the issue will be taken off the agenda at least until the next term of parliament.

Marriage equality has proved a tricky issue for Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. He is personally in favour of same-sex marriage but is reluctant to allow his own MPs a free vote on the issue.

Labor Senator Penny Wong told parliament that, after much soul-searching, she had decided to oppose the plebiscite.

Attorney-General George Brandis during the vote for the same-sex marriage plebiscite bill (EPA)

"We do not want our families and our children publicly denigrated," she said.

"This hate speech is not abstract, it is real, it is part of our daily life."

Greens Senator Janet Rice spoke about the challenges of her 30-year marriage to transgender woman Penny.

"We know that our same-sex marriage is just as important and valid and deep and wonderful and loving as our heterosexual one was," she said.

"People's human rights should not be subject to a popular vote."

Attorney-General George Brandis accused the Labor Party of "playing politics with gay people's lives".

"A vote against this bill is a vote against marriage equality," Senator Brandis told parliament.

"Those who claim to believe in marriage equality, but nevertheless, for their own cynical, game-playing reasons, are determined to vote against it, should hang their heads in shame."

Labor announced last month that it would not support the bill, condemning it to fail in the senate this week.

The move was celebrated by same-sex marriage supporters who widely favour the issue being voted on by parliament, without the need to put it to the public.

All Blacks hotel room in Sydney 'bugged'

The All Blacks have been training in Sydney ahead of their first Bledisloe Cup game against Australia's Wallabies (Reuters)

New Zealand Rugby says a hotel room where the All Blacks held meetings in Sydney was bugged before a match against Australia.

The New Zealand Herald reported that a "sophisticated" listening device had been concealed in a chair.

The All Blacks are due to play the Wallabies on Saturday.

The CEO of New Zealand Rugby, Steve Tew, said in a statement that Australian police and the Australian Rugby Union had been informed.

He said: "We are taking this issue very seriously, and given it will be a police matter, it would not be prudent to go into further details."

Australia government denies asylum seeker abuse claims

A photo taken by Amnesty International shows the inside of a tent housing asylum seekers in Nauru (Image: AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL)

Australia's government has "strongly" refuted claims it deliberately ignores abuse of asylum seekers.

Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International released a report criticising conditions at a detention centre on the island of Nauru.

The report concluded that Australia must intentionally allow abuse of detainees to deter asylum seekers.

A statement from the Immigration Department criticised Amnesty for not consulting the government.

"There was no consultation with the Department of Immigration and Border Protection from Amnesty International in preparation of this report," the statement said.

"We strongly refute many of the allegations in the report and would encourage Amnesty International to contact the Department before airing allegations of this kind."

The statement said Australia did not exert control over the laws of Nauru, a sovereign country. It said the Australian government welcomed independent scrutiny of its facilities.

Nauru, the world's smallest republic, holds one of Australia's migrant camps (GETTY IMAGES)

Australia transports asylum seekers who arrive by boat to off-shore processing centres in Nauru and Papua New Guinea.

The Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch report was written after an incognito visit to Nauru last month. The organisations said Australia's actions seemed designed to discourage other migrants from attempting to get to Australia.

No documentary evidence was provided in the report to support the claim.

But interviews with 84 refugees and asylum seekers unearthed claims of rape and assault at the hand of Nauruan locals, inadequate medical care and cramped, uncomfortable living conditions.

The detention centre at Nauru is run by a company called Broadspectrum and medical services are provided by International Health and Medical Services. Both companies have a contract with the Australian government.

One woman quoted in the report said she had married a man 15 years her senior in order to feel safe on the island. Another said Nauruan men had driven her into the jungle with the intent of raping her.

Although most held on the island have been identified as genuine refugees and released into the community, many felt afraid to leave their accommodations, particularly at night, the report said.

The report also alleged that Nauruan police tended to downplay or ignore asylum seekers' reports of abuse.

Australia: Hundreds rally in over juvenile 'torture' footage

Demonstrators gathered in major cities across Australia (Image: Reuters)

Hundreds of people have rallied in cities across Australia following allegations of abuse against boys in juvenile detention.

Demonstrators gathered in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane to express shock at footage showing indigenous boys being tear-gassed.

The video also shows a boy wearing a "spit hood" while cuffed to a chair.

Australia's Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, has called for an investigation.

However, he rejected calls for a broader national inquiry.

round 700 people rallied in Melbourne and 300 in Sydney, according to Reuters.

Footage of the abuse first emerged on national broadcaster ABC's Four Corners programme.

Filmed at the Don Dale youth detention centre in the Northern Territory, the programme focuses on the treatment of Dylan Voller, who was assaulted, stripped naked and kept in solitary confinement aged 13 and 14.

At one stage he was strapped to a restraint chair while wearing a hood for almost two hours. He was also among a group of six children who were subdued with tear gas.

The United Nations Human Rights Commission said it was shocked by the footage.

"We encourage the Government to extend the scope of the investigation... to establish that such appalling treatment is not taking place in any other place of detention in Australia," it said in a statement - adding that authorities should compensate the children.

The six boys are seeking damages for mistreatment, according to ABC.

Indigenous people represent about 3% of Australia's population but are 26 times more likely to be in detention than non-Indigenous youth, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.

Australia PM sees uncertainty, instability as UK on brink of Brexit

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is seen during an event at Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia, May 13, 2016 during campaigning before the July 2 federal election. AAP/Lukas Coch/via Reuters

Australia Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said on Friday he expects a period of uncertainty and some instability in global markets as Britain was on the verge of Brexit but the immediate impact on Australia will be limited.

"The impact on Australia immediately, directly, from a legal point of view, will be very limited because it will take some years for the United Kingdom to leave the European Union, to negotiate an exit," he told reporters.

"However, we've seen already large falls on stock markets and there will be a degree of uncertainty for some time."