Here is a look at what is making news around the country today.

Today’s national news includes Minister for Defense Industry Pat Conroy saying that AUKUS is a response to the arms race, not fuel for it; the majority of voters disapprove of PM Albanese’s performance; monthly retail sales dropping 0.2 per cent in October; and single-use vape imports to be banned starting 2024.

Nation

AUKUS is a response to the arms race, not fuel for it

The Indo-Pacific region is in the midst of a substantial arms race that Australia is responding to, not fuelling, with its planned acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines, Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy said. “The arms race is the greatest it’s been since 1945, and that is why I reject assertions… that Australia is somehow fuelling that arms race. We are responding to it.” Australia’s nuclear-powered submarine fleet will be used for intelligence gathering in peacetime and to strike enemy targets during a war, Mr Conroy said, The Hindu reported.

https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/australia-says-aukus-a-response-to-arms-race-not-fuel-for-it/article67582044.ece

Politics

Majority of voters disapprove of PM Albanese’s performance

More voters disapprove of Anthony Albanese’s performance than approve for the first time in his prime ministership, and 66 per cent of the Guardian Essential poll respondents think Labor is not doing enough to combat cost-of-living pressure. In the latest poll, 47 per cent of respondents disapprove of Mr Albanese’s performance and 42 per cent approve.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/nov/28/most-voters-now-disapprove-of-anthony-albaneses-performance-as-pm-guardian-essential-poll-finds

Economy

Monthly retail sales drop 0.2 per cent in October

Australia’s Retail Sales, a measure of the country’s consumer spending, dropped by 0.2 per cent month-on-month in October from the previous reading of a 0.9 per cent rise, according to the official data published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The figure came in worse than the market expectation for an increase of 0.1 per cent, FXStreet.com reported.

https://www.fxstreet.com/news/australias-retail-sales-drop-by-02-mom-in-october-vs-09-prior-202311280032

Health

Single-use vape imports to be banned starting 2024

Australia will bar imports of single-use e-cigarettes starting next year, cracking down on the nicotine products that are popular with youth, Aljazeera has reported. The ban will come into effect on January 1, Australia’s government announced on Tuesday, adding that it will also introduce legislation in 2024 to ban the manufacture, advertising or supply of disposable vapes.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/11/28/australia-to-ban-single-use-vape-imports-from-2024