An “invite-only” grants program was overwhelmingly directed into safe Labor seats and marginal seats the party wanted to win at the 2025 federal election, a Centre for Public Integrity investigation of the $560 million program has concluded.

While projects in safe and marginal Labor seats sometimes received grants worth tens of millions of dollars, 45 electorates were not invited to the Major and Local Community Infrastructure (MLCI) Program and received no funding. Labor promised more than half a billion dollars in upgrades to sports facilities, parks and other community infrastructure at the election, and Infrastructure Minister Catherine King has said the MLCI was set up to pay for those promises.

The Centre for Public Integrity’s chair, former justice Anthony Whealy, said it appeared the program had been used to pork-barrel seats Labor wanted to win. He also remarked that If they cannot justify that process, then this is the misuse of public money at a serious level.

The tens of thousands of Indigenous Australians and their descendants who were forcibly removed under government assimilation policies have far greater physical and health challenges when compared with the wider Indigenous and non-Indigenous populations, according to a new report released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).

The report uses survey data from 2022 and 2023 of Stolen Generation members, and reveals the stark inequities and the long-term intergenerational impacts of forced removals, a policy adopted by all Australian governments up to the 1970s under racist assimilation laws, which led to Indigenous children being put into institutions, or were fostered or adopted out to non-Indigenous families, where many of them suffered harsh, degrading treatment and sexual abuse after being taken from their families.

About 200,000 people – or 45% of Indigenous Australians aged over 18 – have a parent, grandparent, aunt or uncle who was removed from their family. Compared with non-Indigenous Australians, survivors were more likely to have kidney disease, a severe or profound disability, and high psychological distress. The report also found that survivors and descendents experienced greater socioeconomic challenges and distress, such as being less likely to be able to pay for unexpected emergency costs, or experiencing more days where they were unable to afford their essential needs.

Dr Martin Edvardsson, the acting head of First Nations health at AIHW, said Australia lacked comprehensive data on the experiences and needs of Stolen Generation survivors and their families. Leonie Williamson, the deputy CEO of the Healing Foundation also said the report lays bare the devastating long term impacts of removing children from their family and communities. Both experts and other First Nation representatives urge for trauma-informed holistic support for survivors and their descendants from state and territory governments.

Labor’s plan to crack down on social media algorithms faces significant opposition in federal parliament, with opposition leader Angus Taylor warning against efforts by the government to “censor” free speech online.

Communications minister Anika Wells is expected to release draft legislation creating a digital duty of care for social media users in Australia as parliament returns this week. Among new rules being considered are functions requiring popular social media platforms to allow users to turn off algorithms controlling the content in their feeds, and to better identify problematic or illegal content to protect vulnerable users including children.

Labor said they want to better protect social media users from being fed content that reinforces dangerous stereotypes and behaviours, including in areas around body image, women’s safety and child protection. Opt-out options for algorithms would give users the choice to make their social media feeds only feature content from friends and groups they choose to follow.

Fines of more than $100m would be created for breaches, with new powers given to the eSafety commissioner and researchers to investigate compliance by big platforms. Prime minister Albanese is expected to spruik the plan at the United Nations general assembly in New York later this month.

But Taylor told News24 on Sunday the government should focus on fixing problems with its under 16s social media ban before taking on new rules like the digital duty of care. The shadow home affairs minister, the outgoing Liberal senator Jonno Duniam, likened the government’s plans to dumped anti-misinformation legislation introduced during Labor’s first term in government, stating that it is going to impede on people’s rights and freedoms.