SBS News in Filipino Thursday, 29 May 2025
The future of the Coalition's commitment to net zero remains cloudy following the Liberals and Nationals reunion after eight days apart.
About 3500 people remain isolated along the New South Wales mid-north coast after record-breaking floods, despite waters receding in recent days.
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff General Romeo Brawner Jr. reiterates 'unwavering commitment' to Constitution and Chain of Command. SBS Filipino
29/05/2025 06:07 📢 Where to Catch SBS Filipino 📲 Catch up episodes and stories – Visit sbs.com.au/filipino or stream on Spotify , Apple Podcasts , Youtube Podcasts , and SBS Audio app.
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ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
What is passenger parenting and can it be overcome?
Parenting is an intense ride and always being the one in the driver's seat can take its toll. And having someone firmly entrenched as passenger can actually be damaging for both partners and the relationship. Recent research found that in heterosexual relationships, where it is mums most often taking the wheel, some dads can experience a phenomenon labelled "passenger parenting". The term was coined by Norma Barrett, the study's co-author and lecturer in public health and health promotion at Deakin University in Warrnambool, on the traditional lands of the Gunditjmara people in regional Victoria. She explains that while fathers are becoming increasingly engaged in daily family life, the persistence of a gendered norm means some feel on the "outskirts" when it comes to parenting decisions. And parenting alongside a passenger parent isn't easy, says Carly Dober, a psychologist and policy coordinator at the Australian Association of Psychologists. She says mothers who are carrying the lion's share of caring responsibilities because the men in their lives are not participating more may feel burdened. "It can be really stressful if you do feel you are the default parent and wearing the emotional and cognitive load of all decisions," she says. So, what can you do if you're stuck in a driver-passenger parent dynamic? And, because passenger parenting can look a lot like weaponised incompetence, we explain the difference. While some dads Ms Barrett spoke to were "happy to go with the flow" and be led by their partner, most wanted to fully share the whole experience but felt "shut out" from doing so. She says the "sidekick" parenting role often begins for practical and social reasons. For example, it's most often mothers who take time off to care for the baby. "There are physical reasons for that [being the birthing parent], and also if the baby is being breastfed then naturally it will be the mother that is going to do that," Ms Barrett says. Dads may have little to no time off before returning to work, and the parent spending the bulk of the time with the child becomes "specialised" in the gig of parenting. Ms Dober says dads might feel like they are not as equipped to do things like dress the child, how and when to feed the child, and what health appointments they need, for example. Some men in Ms Barrett's research expressed passenger parenting had a negative impact on their relationships. "They are trying to be more involved in decision making, like around caring for the baby, feeding the baby, trying to be part of it, and if struggles were arising, coming up with solutions — but not always feeling like they knew the right language or approach. Fathers can get stuck in their passenger role beyond the transition into parenthood, explains Ms Barrett, because even when mothers might return to work and the caring load should equalise, dads haven't had the same "parenting boot camp", leaving them on the backfoot. Do you feel like the passenger parent in your family? Or perhaps you're tired of always being the one in the driver's seat. Share with us at lifestyle@ Ms Dober says while some women may be happy to take a leadership role in parenting, others may feel there is a pressure to be the "expert parent". Whether it's a role they are comfortable with or not, it can be a difficult one to fulfil, with consequences for their wellbeing, career, and financial future. If current working patterns continue, the average 25-year-old woman today who goes on to have one child can expect to make $2 million less in lifetime earnings compared to the average 25-year-old man who also becomes a parent. Research also shows twice as many women as men experience parental burnout, due to the fact women still carry 70 per cent of the family mental load. "There are so many micro decisions in the day-to-day of parenting that really do add up — an infinite amount of decision to make," Ms Dober says. The relationship can be impacted if women feel they aren't supported, she says. "There might be resentment if you perceive your passenger parent is just deferring to you because they can't be bothered or prefer you managing it." In intimate partner relationships, weaponised incompetence is often evident in the division of domestic tasks and caring labour. It is when someone "demonstrates helplessness, real or false, in order to avoid certain tasks or responsibility, thus making other people [often their partner and/or co-parent] feel they have to step in and do it for them," Ms Dober told us for a previous article. What makes passenger parenting different is intent, she explains. "Weaponised incompetence is when you might be trying to gain more spare time to rest, socialise, or just tend to your own needs versus those of the family. "Passenger parenting is feeling like you have less agency. There isn't malicious intent — although it can look the same depending on some behaviours." Ms Dober says passenger parents will feel like they are missing out on something, and can "take a beating to their self-esteem". Parenting expert and dad to six daughters Justin Coulson says while some dads are "happy to take a back seat", in his experience, men overwhelmingly want to be more involved. While there are societal and structural barriers to reaching equality in co-parenting relationships, such as making it more viable for dads to take parental leave, there are some ways individuals can work towards improvement. Dr Coulson recommends couples have weekly check-ins. "On a Sunday morning when things are relatively quiet, my wife and I sit down and ask three questions. First, 'What's going well?' And we just take a minute to bask in the sunshine of success." Secondly, they ask "What hasn't worked this week?" "It's not a finger-pointing exercise, rather saying 'I've struggled here', of 'I could have done with more support on Wednesday night when three things were happening at once'," Dr Coulson says as an example. Lastly, "What could we work on this week?" "And the critical part of that is put together a plan to make that happen," he says. While Ms Barrett's research recommended couples have conversations early on about their parenting expectations, Ms Dober says those can change over time. She says parents can regularly touch base on what they would like to do more, or less of. For dads who feel like they don't have agency, that might be expressing what they would like to have more expertise in, or what challenges they think could benefit them in learning to do more? Ms Dober says parents need to be kind to themselves, and each other. "Understanding that parenting is hard — you're both on this journey together, and figuring out what parenting looks like for your family. "And that might be different to others, and to how you grew up."
ABC News
2 hours ago
- ABC News
Spicks And Specks: S12 Episode 2
ABC iview Home Watch all your favourite ABC programs on ABC iview. More from ABC We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn and work.
ABC News
2 hours ago
- ABC News
Operators and peak land conservation body call for Queensland to drop land tax for nature refuges
People operating nature refuges that play a pivotal role in the Queensland government's conservation goals say having to pay land tax is "dumb", and a disincentive to others wanting to protect habitats on their property. Nature refuges, also known as conservation covenants, are deals struck between the state government and landholders to protect their land in perpetuity. There are 592 such refuges around Queensland, protecting 4,930,731 hectares of important habitat. State land tax is applied to the accumulative property owned by an individual worth $600,000 or more, unless it is your home or subject to an exemption. Charities and primary producers, who run a great deal of the state's refuges, already receive a land tax exemption, but Queensland is the last state charging private landholders with refuges. Premier David Crisafulli last month flagged an ambition to rapidly expand protected areas in the state, with a focus on nature refuges. About 8.6 per cent of state has been protected, making the government about 14 million hectares short of its goal to protect 17 per cent of the state's land. A statement from the the Department of Environment, Science and Tourism said nature refuges "play a critical role in conserving biodiversity, safeguarding habitats, and enhancing ecological connectivity across landscapes". The federal government has set its own goal of preserving 30 per cent of the country by 2030. Andrew Taylor operates a nature refuge west of Brisbane, adjacent to the D'Aguilar National Park, with his partner Gabby. He said it was a "pristine" block that had never been farmed or cleared, which created a corridor between two parts of the national park. In order to prove the block's worthiness, Mr Taylor said he had to engage a third-party consultant at the cost of about $13,000 to assess the values of the property. "They identified that it was habitat for the black-breasted button quail, for scrub turpentine, and a few other species which are listed as vulnerable or endangered." Mr Taylor said they paid around $3,500 in land tax every year — a price he believes will "inevitably rise". The total cost of converting land to a nature refuge and the ongoing management can be a "disincentive" to people considering the taking the step, he added. While some councils offer support and rate relief for nature refuges, Somerset Regional Council, where Mr Taylor's property is located, does not. Mr Taylor said he had received a state grant of $25,000 in 2023 to help eliminate the invasive weed cat's claw, which paid for three workers for a week on the property. "I think people weigh up the financial pros and cons of converting a property and one of those financial disincentives is having to aggregate that land for the purposes of determining the threshold for land tax," he said. The ABC understands the Queensland government is considering a submission from the Australian Land Conservation Alliance (ALCA) for the exemption to be expanded to private land holders. ALCA policy lead Michael Cornish said because of existing exemptions, the change would come at a "low and reasonable cost" to the government. "We're not talking about millions of dollars here," he said. "For governments who might try to fund the entirety of their conservationist project themselves, it's a much cheaper lever to pull." In research published earlier this year, Griffith University conservation planning expert Dr Michelle Ward found half of the habitat of 220 "highly imperilled" species fell outside of currently protected areas. Dr Ward was encouraged by the Queensland government's focus on nature refuges, and said a land tax exemption would be a "great first step and incentive" to encourage landholders. "These landholders need to be adequately paid for taking land out of production and maintaining it as natural vegetation as well as managing the land," she said. "Conservation actions are not cheap … it's not just a single point in time that it needs to happen, it needs to happen over many years." In 2024, Victoria became the most recent state to introduce a similar exemption to what is being called for in Queensland. The change caused a surge of interest in nature refuges, according to Trust for Nature, an organisation that helps landholders through the process of converting their land. "In the past year we've had a record number of 53 covenants registered and 168 are currently in progress," Trust for Nature Victoria chief executive Corinne Proske said. Much of this interest has come in areas around Melbourne with high land tax, such as the Mornington Peninsula, Ms Proske said. She said areas with high developmental value were often those that needed the most protection. Queensland property owners tend to pay far less in land tax than in Victoria, but Mr Cornish from ALCA said an exemption for nature refuges would be a good opportunity for the government to "put their money where their mouth is". On the Sunshine Coast, Deon Venter and his wife Jane have converted 32 hectares of a 35 hectare block to a nature refuge. Many of the blocks around it have been developed, and the property provides part of a nature corridor directly into Tewantin National Park. "The amount of diversity is stunning, at both the botanical and animal level. Every time you walk through it you notice something new," Mr Venter said. They receive support from the council for weeding, and spend several thousand dollars of their own money annually on upkeep. Last year the couple had to pay $11,000 in land tax, despite the covenant meaning they legally cannot develop the site. "We believe we should get an exemption on the tax for a substantial part of the property since it is not an economic asset in any way, it is actually an economic drain," Mr Venter said. Wal Mayr, who runs a 25 hectare nature refuge in the Gold Coast hinterland with his wife Heather, said they were lucky to receive support from the council and state grants, outweighing the few thousand they pay in land tax. But it still rubbed him the wrong way.
