Former NRL star Nathan Merritt faces drug and gun charges, and his father says he is seriously ill. Police raided Merritt's Marrickville home on Thursday, hours after a ram raid on a Fendi store in the Sydney CBD. Merritt has not been charged over the ram raid. Police allege he possessed cocaine and a pistol, and he spent a night in custody. Merritt, 43, has said he has months to live with liver and oesophageal cancer. He is on bail and is due back in court in early November.
Documents show Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was invited to a media event celebrating a $6 million upgrade to Marrickville Golf Club, five days before the ABC reported he held an undisclosed honorary membership. The event did not go ahead. Albanese told parliament the grant would fix a sewerage problem, but a department brief did not mention sewerage and instead described clubhouse, bar and revenue upgrades. Opposition Infrastructure spokesperson Bridget McKenzie accused him of misleading parliament.
The NSW Government has announced that the Sydney Metro South-West extension will open on Friday 30 October. The 66-kilometre route runs from Bankstown to Sydenham and connects with the existing line to Tallawong. Trains will run every four minutes at peak times and every ten minutes in the evenings and on weekends. The government says the trip times will be shorter for many passengers. Six of the 360 train doors will temporarily stay closed because the gap to the platform is too wide, and pink South-West Link buses will keep running over the first weekend.
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Ten new Metro stations will open in Sydney’s western suburbs on 30 October, cutting travel times to the CBD. The stations will serve Bankstown, Punchbowl, Wiley Park, Lakemba, Belmore, Campsie, Canterbury, Hurlstone Park, Dulwich Hill and Marrickville. NSW Premier Chris Minns said the project would provide faster, reliable transport for southwest Sydney. The Metro West project’s cost has risen from $12 billion to $25 billion.
Sydney's south-west metro extension will open on Friday 30 October, ending more than two years of replacement buses. The first service is set to start at 4.31am. The former T3 heavy rail line closed in September 2024 for conversion to a driverless system. Once open, the line will run 66km from Tallawong to Bankstown, and a Bankstown to Central trip is expected to take 28 minutes. Premier Chris Minns thanked commuters for their patience, calling it a huge moment for south-west Sydney.
The opposition claims recipients of a $560 million infrastructure funding program were gagged by confidentiality clauses. The Senate is examining the Major and Local Community Infrastructure Program, which included a $6 million grant to Marrickville Golf Club in Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's electorate. Good governance groups say the projects were selected without a proper merit-based process. The government says the scheme meets commitments made during the 2025 election campaign. Bureaucrats are due to appear before the committee on Thursday.
A young couple from Homebush bought a three-bedroom home at 9 Ingham Avenue, Five Dock, for $2.55 million at auction on Saturday. The price was $100,000 above the reserve. Auctioneer Ricky Briggs said consumer confidence had fallen, with fewer registered bidders and lower attendance, after the latest interest rate rise. In Marrickville, a young couple renting locally paid $981,000 for a two-bedroom apartment. In Sutherland, a young couple expecting their first child paid $1.88 million for a five-bedroom home with a pool.
A constitutional expert has labelled a $6 million grant to a golf club in Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s electorate as “grey corruption”. Anne Twomey, a University of Sydney professor emerita, submitted the assessment to a Senate inquiry. The grant was awarded under a closed, non-competitive process last July. Twomey described the scheme as a “farce” and said the funding was a misuse of public money.
A constitutional expert has labelled a $6 million grant to a golf club in Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s electorate as “grey corruption”. Anne Twomey, a University of Sydney professor emerita, submitted the assessment to a Senate inquiry. The grant was awarded under a closed, non-competitive process last July. Twomey described the scheme as a “farce” and said the funding was a misuse of public money.
Marrickville Golf Club received $57,860 in closed, non-competitive grants over five occasions. The club secured $6 million for redevelopment under the Albanese government, with past grants including upgrades to facilities and grounds. Constitutional lawyer Anne Twomey questioned the grant process, describing them as political largesse without proper assessment. The club also received state grants for solar panels and water system maintenance, with Summer Hill MP Jo Haylen involved in presenting cheques.
