Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says the reputation of Australia’s Defence Force is strong despite a Federal Court judge’s finding that Victoria Cross recipient Ben Roberts-Smith committed war crimes in Afghanistan and bullied other soldiers.

“The determination that was made yesterday is a determination of civil proceedings between two parties that didn’t involve the government, and it would be inappropriate to comment on the detail of that given the potential that is there for future action that the government might be a party to,” Albanese said in Singapore.

“Can I say, though, [of] the Brereton inquiry and report, we are committed as a government to implementing the recommendations to the extent possible and that is very important.

“We have indicated very clearly that we would take up that responsibility.

“With regard to our international standing ... Australia’s international standing is extraordinarily strong including the standing of our Defence Forces and our Defence personnel.”

The Brereton inquiry was a four-year probe into alleged war crimes perpetrated by Australian soldiers in the Afghanistan war.

That’s where we’ll leave our live coverage for today, thank you for joining us. We’ll be back on Monday to keep you informed throughout the day. Until then, have a great weekend.

If you’re just tuning in, here’s a quick recap of the main developments:

• The Australian War Memorial will leave in place displays of disgraced soldier Ben Roberts-Smith’s uniform, medals and portrait, after the Federal Court found he murdered four unarmed prisoners in Afghanistan. Channel Seven said earlier today Roberts-Smith had resigned as a senior Queensland executive. The Federal Court yesterday dismissed Roberts-Smith’s multimillion-dollar defamation suit against The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, in a historic victory for the media outlets.

• Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the reputation of Australia’s Defence Force was “extraordinarily strong” despite the findings against Roberts-Smith. He said the government was committed to implementing the recommendations of the Brereton inquiry into alleged war crimes perpetrated by Australian soldiers in the Afghanistan war.
• Albanese is in Singapore to deliver the keynote address – considered his most significant foreign policy speech yet – at the Shangri-La Dialogue regional security forum tonight.
• A historic pay rise for one in five Australian workers has increased pressure on the Reserve Bank to lift official interest rates, as business groups warned it would add to inflation and unions said millions of people still faced a real wage cut. A Fair Work Commission decision today will lift minimum award rates by 5.75 per cent from next month, while an important technical change will deliver about 180,000 people on the national minimum wage a pay rise of 8.6 per cent.

• In NSW, the two males found dead with gunshot wounds inside a home at Yamba on Thursday have been identified as Wayne Smith, 58, and his son Noah, 15. Police are treating the deaths as a suspected murder-suicide.
• In Victoria, a teacher and student were rescued by a police helicopter in the early morning after spending a night alone in the Grampians when they became lost on a bushwalk.
• To overseas news, and a first-ever default on US debt has been avoided after the US Senate passed bipartisan legislation backed by President Joe Biden that lifts the government’s $31.4 trillion ($47.5 trillion) debt ceiling.

Residents of an apartment building close to the historic inner Sydney warehouse that was destroyed by fire more than a week ago will be allowed back into their homes tonight.

More than 70 residents from nearby apartment buildings were evacuated when the fire broke out in the former hat-making factory on Randle Street in Surry Hills about 4pm last Thursday.

Crews have been working to demolish sections of the damaged building to ensure surrounding buildings are safe, and to allow police to enter the site to continue their investigation into the fire.

Firefighters handed the site over to police on Wednesday.

NSW Police said engineers, who carried out rigorous safety assessments, had deemed one apartment block on Chalmers Street safe for occupation this afternoon. They said work was continuing to render another building on Chalmers Street safe for residents. People who live in that building may be able to return late next week. It could be several weeks before another building on Randle Street is considered safe to be occupied.

“The priorities for the emergency operation are to render the fire ground safe to allow on-site investigations, coordinate for the safe demolition of the remaining structures, limit the impacts on traffic and public transport, and importantly, house displaced residents and ensure the timely return to their properties,” police said in a statement.

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Police are still trying to ascertain the whereabouts of two unaccounted for people among a large group who were sleeping rough inside the building the night before the fire,.

“While police have not received any reports of missing people, investigators are unable to definitively say there is no one inside,” the statement said.

“As soon as the site is declared safe, forensic examinations and other inquiries will be conducted, which includes the deployment of cadaver-detection dogs.”

The protester accused of forcing the evacuation of Woodside’s headquarters on Thursday after orchestrating a faux gas leak has been placed under house arrest, as police consider further charges amid claims that workers have fallen ill.

Disrupt Burrup Hub protester Kristen Morrissey fronted Perth Magistrates Court on Friday after being charged with acts creating false apprehension as to the existence of threats or danger.

Morrisey, a music teacher at two top Perth private schools, was bailed to the Floreat address of her elderly parents and ordered not to leave, other than for work, or come within 100 metres of property owned or occupied by Woodside.

The 49-year-old was warned more charges could be laid once police had finished interviewing the hundreds of workers affected after she allegedly released non-toxic ethyl mercaptan (“stench”) gas into Woodside’s headquarters, some of whom had reported feeling ill after the incident.

WA Police indicated the matter might be escalated to the District Court and could land Morrissey a jail term, supplying as evidence data on the possible side effects of the chemical, and a video of Morrissey calling on other members of the public to join the group’s cause.

Morrissey’s court appearance came 24 hours after she released the non-toxic stench gas, which the court was told emanated over 20 floors and sent more than 2500 workers fleeing.

Australia Post will raise the price of parcel and package delivery services by as much as 10 per cent from July, citing soaring costs and ballooning group losses as the main reasons for the rise.

The postal operator told customers about the new prices on Friday, outlining changes to fees for several services including business mail, domestic and international parcel services.

The price increases will range from a jump of 3.5 per cent to 9.95 per cent, depending on the product category.

With the federal government conducting a review into its long-term viability, Australia Post has made no secret of the headwinds threatening to topple the business.

Read the full story here.

Wayne Smith and 15-year-old Noah have been identified as the father and son found dead in a home in northern NSW on Thursday afternoon in what police suspect was a murder-suicide.

Police were called to the home on Kookaburra Court, Yamba, about 1.10pm after reports their bodies had been found. Smith, 58, and Noah, had suffered gunshot wounds.

Initial inquiries indicate Smith was a licensed firearms holder, and detectives have requested his licensing history from the NSW Firearms Registry.

“It’s an absolute tragic situation,” Superintendent Shane Cribb from the Coffs Clarence police district said on Friday.

“The main thing is to wrap as much support around everyone as we can.”

Read the full story here.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says the reputation of Australia’s Defence Force is strong despite a Federal Court judge’s finding that Victoria Cross recipient Ben Roberts-Smith committed war crimes in Afghanistan and bullied other soldiers.

“The determination that was made yesterday is a determination of civil proceedings between two parties that didn’t involve the government, and it would be inappropriate to comment on the detail of that given the potential that is there for future action that the government might be a party to,” Albanese said in Singapore.

“Can I say, though, [of] the Brereton inquiry and report, we are committed as a government to implementing the recommendations to the extent possible and that is very important.

“We have indicated very clearly that we would take up that responsibility.

“With regard to our international standing ... Australia’s international standing is extraordinarily strong including the standing of our Defence Forces and our Defence personnel.”

The Brereton inquiry was a four-year probe into alleged war crimes perpetrated by Australian soldiers in the Afghanistan war.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has met Singapore deputy leader Lawrence Wong at Singapore’s presidential palace before giving the keynote address at tonight’s Shangri-La Dialogue security forum in the city state.

Albanese and Wong – standing in for Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who is ill with COVID-19 – discussed geopolitical issues.

They also discussed the countries’ economic ties, among them the establishment of a net-zero shipping corridor and renewable trade and finance incentives under the green economy agreement signed last year.

“Australia is proud to count Singapore as such a close friend,” said Albanese, who thanked Wong for Singapore’s positive reaction to Australia’s AUKUS submarines plan.

Wong welcomed efforts of the Albanese government to deepen Australia’s links with South-East Asia, saying they had similar strategies on international and regional affairs.

Albanese’s address at the national security forum is considered his most significant foreign policy speech yet.

In a statement, Albanese said: “This visit has been an opportunity to affirm our friendship, and map the next steps to implement our new Australia-Singapore Green Economy Agreement.

“We are ambitious for what we can achieve together on the path to net zero, pushing boundaries and setting new standards to drive green trade and investment.

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“My visit to Singapore was an opportunity to look ahead with ambition for the next phase of this important relationship.

“South-East Asia and ASEAN matter to Australia – that’s why I’m here this week. We are tied together by more than geography – we are linked by family, friends, business, education, tourism and a shared interest in the stability of the region into the future.

“I look forward to outlining Australia’s commitment to a better future for our region at the Shangri-La Dialogue this evening.”

The Australian War Memorial has rejected calls to remove a display celebrating Ben Roberts-Smith’s military service from its collection, but is considering what additional materials it can add to the exhibit following his damning defamation judgment.

A permanent display on Roberts-Smith at the memorial in Canberra includes the veteran’s Victoria Cross medal and his military uniform.

A portrait of Roberts-Smith posing in a fighting stance commissioned by the war memorial also hangs on its walls.

The Greens and international law expert Ben Saul have called on the War Memorial to remove Roberts-Smith’s uniform from display after a Federal Court judge found The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age accurately described him as a murderer in a series of 2018 stories.

“Collection items relating to Ben Roberts-Smith VC MG, including his uniform, equipment, medals and associated art works, are on display in the memorial’s galleries,” Australian War Memorial chairman Kim Beazley said.

“We are considering carefully the additional content and context to be included in these displays.”

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The former Labor leader, who took over as chairman of the War Memorial Council in February, continued: “The memorial assists in remembering, interpreting and understanding Australia’s experience of war and its enduring impact. This includes the causes, conduct and consequences of war.

“The memorial acknowledges the gravity of the decision in the Ben Roberts-Smith VC MG defamation case and its broader impact on all involved in the Australian community.

“This is the outcome of a civil legal case, and one step in a longer process.”

Seven West Media chairman Kerry Stokes, who helped fund Roberts-Smith’s defamation case, was chairman of the War Memorial Council when the items were added to its collection.

Roberts-Smith has resigned from his position as a senior Queensland executive for Channel Seven.