News and politics live updates: Telstra CEO Vicki Brady after nationwide outage

Telstra chief executive Vicki Brady has responded to reports the company was warned about vulnerabilities in its network timing systems before this week’s nationwide outage, saying the telco regularly works with researchers, universities and industry experts to strengthen its network but the issue would form part of the company’s investigation.

“These timing synchronisation systems are well-known to be critical to a mobile network,” Ms Brady said, adding Telstra had engaged with the academic referenced in reports “on a wide range of things”.

Ms Brady also rejected suggestions that recent job cuts contributed to the outage, saying there was “no indication” Telstra’s restructuring had played a role.

Asked whether executives would forfeit bonuses over the incident, she declined to comment, saying remuneration decisions would be handled through the company’s governance processes and overseen by the board once the investigation into the outage was complete.

Telstra says Australians can once again “feel confident” calling triple-0, with chief financial officer Michael Ackland confirming the company has resolved the issue that affected some emergency calls during this week’s nationwide outage.

He said Telstra’s backup systems remain in place but welfare checks were no longer required after the fix was implemented, adding the telco believed “everything is back to normal” despite continuing to work with a small number of enterprise customers still experiencing flow-on impacts.

Mr Ackland also addressed the investigation into the death of a South Australian woman, saying Telstra was assisting police but had found “no record” of a failed triple-0 call from the phone numbers provided.

“To date, we can see no record of calls from those numbers accessing Telstra’s mobile network to call 000, and more broadly, no record of any calls from those numbers to the 000 platform,” he said.

He added that Telstra had confirmed there were no active outages affecting the area at the time and that another call from a different number was successfully connected to emergency services.

Mr Ackland said the company would continue working closely with South Australian authorities as investigations continue.

Telstra CEO Vicki Brady has apologised to Australians after the nationwide outage that disrupted mobile services, affected Triple-0 calls and caused widespread disruption, admitting the telecommunications giant had “let our customers and Australians down”.

Speaking publicly for the first time since the outage, Ms Brady said she had returned early from an overseas family holiday after learning of the incident and had been in regular contact with Communications Minister Anika Wells and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

“We have let our customers and Australians down. And, for that, I am deeply sorry,” she said.

“I understand how much Australians rely on us to keep in touch, to work, and stay safe. I also understand the broader impact on the community when services go down, from things like payments to transport.”

Ms Brady said Telstra had identified the cause of the outage and would complete a full investigation into what changes were needed to ensure it could not happen again.

“We understand what caused the issue and we will complete our investigation into the actions needed to prevent it from happening again. You have my commitment on that,” she said.

She also apologised for the impact the outage had on triple-0 services, saying the company took emergency communications “extremely seriously”, and thanked customers for their patience while staff worked around the clock to restore services.

Pressure is mounting on Telstra ahead of an expected appearance by chief executive Vicki Brady, with politicians from both sides of politics demanding answers over the nationwide outage that disrupted mobile services, affected triple-0 calls and caused widespread transport delays across Australia.

Ms Brady has reportedly returned to Sydney after cutting short an overseas holiday following the outage, but Telstra has not confirmed when she will publicly address the crisis.

Her expected appearance comes as scrutiny intensifies over how the outage unfolded and what the company will do to prevent a repeat.

Former deputy prime minister Wayne Swan was critical of the telecommunications giant’s corporate leadership, saying they needed to be financially penalised.

“There’s no question the bonuses of all the executives will be on the line,” he told Nine’s Today program.

“I’m sure the public will want to see a fair bit of accountability.”

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Police are investigating whether a death this week is linked to the nationwide Telstra outage that left thousands of Australians unable to call triple-0.

An elderly person died in a regional hospital in South Australia on Wednesday, which Liberal Senator Kerrynne Liddle said in a statement happened during the Telstra outage that morning.

“After contact from Telstra, media and relevant authorities, my office advised the family to reach out to SAPOL directly. The grieving family did that today,” her statement read.

South Australian police confirmed officers spoke to Senator Liddle and a staff member at her office on Thursday.

“As a result, contact was subsequently made with the family of an individual who died at a regional hospital on Wednesday 8 July,” SA Police said, ABC News reported.

“Police were not notified of the death. After being advised of the death, police immediately commenced an investigation into the cause and circumstances.”

The cause or circumstances surrounding the death are not known but will now be subject to investigation.

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Foreign Minister Penny Wong says the US-Iran ceasefire is now “fraying around the edges” due to the escalation in hostilities.

Speaking on ABC Breakfast this morning, she acknowledged Australians were worried about the cost-of-living impacts.

“People have been feeling it in the hip pocket, which is why we have been calling for some time for de-escalation, ceasefire … I think everybody wants a return to stability.”

She said Australia joined the international community in seeking stability, not just in the Middle East, but to the global economy.

Angus Taylor has accused the Albanese Government of leaving Australians in the dark during the nationwide Telstra outage, claiming ministers failed to communicate in the crucial early hours.

The Opposition Leader said he would have immediately sought answers from Telstra and updated the public, accusing the government of focusing on “political spin” instead of managing the crisis.

While stopping short of backing penalties or compensation before investigations conclude, the Opposition Leader said Telstra needed to explain what went wrong and how it would prevent a repeat.

Opposition Leader Angus Taylor has ruled out any alliance with One Nation, despite Pauline Hanson’s latest public plea for the Coalition to work together.

Speaking on ABC News Breakfast, Mr Taylor said defeating Labor remained his sole focus but insisted One Nation was “not the solution”.

“This is not our plan,” he said.

“Our plan is to get rid of a rotten Labor government... I want us to be in government in our own right.”

Mr Taylor argued the party’s policies would leave Australia worse off despite Pauline Hanson’s calls for unity.

He continued by saying One Nation would deliver “an extra trillion dollars of spending over 10 years” and described the party as “a one person show”, insisting it could not provide the change Australians were looking for.

Suspected Australian ISIS fighters detained in Iraq will face the “full force of the law” if they return home, Health Minister Mark Butler says, insisting the government will not assist them to come back but warning constitutional limits mean Australian citizens cannot be permanently barred from re-entering the country.

The comments come after reports 13 Australian men suspected of fighting for ISIS could be released from Iraqi prisons.

Speaking on Sunrise on Friday, Mr Butler said Australia’s intelligence and security agencies had been managing the issue of returning foreign fighters for more than a decade and would enforce the country’s toughest national security laws if the men returned.

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SBS has defended its decision not to adopt a controversial but widely used definition of anti-Semitism while revealing it poured more resources into its Hebrew language service after terror attacks in 2023.

The broadcaster’s role was to shine a light on racism, discrimination and prejudice in all its forms, SBS director of news and current affairs Amanda Wicks said, defining anti-Semitism as prejudice or discrimination against Jewish people.

Ms Wicks’ comments were made at the royal commission into anti-Semitism, which is investigating the role of public broadcasters including SBS and the ABC in promoting social cohesion.

Under repeated questioning, Ms Wicks said the broadcaster did not need a concrete definition as it relied on the police, Australia’s legal system and the broader community to determine when an incident was anti-Semitic.

“We are attributing that to someone else. We’re never in a position where something happens and we will need a definition,” she said.

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