A landmark High Court ruling could make it harder to win approval for new fossil fuel projects, after the court upheld a challenge to the expansion of the Mount Pleasant coal mine in NSW.

In a 3-2 decision, the court rejected MACH Energy’s appeal over a proposed 22-year extension of the Upper Hunter mine. It found the NSW Independent Planning Commission failed to properly consider conditions that could minimise the project’s Scope 3 emissions — those produced when its coal is ultimately burned, including overseas. Those downstream emissions represent 98 per cent of the project’s total greenhouse gas emissions.

The immediate impact is greatest in NSW, where future coal projects assessed under the same planning rules will need to meaningfully address downstream emissions and possible mitigation.

It does not create an automatic national rule but the decision increases the legal and approval risks facing fossil fuel developments where environmental laws require indirect impacts to be considered.

Listen to today's episode 🎧 

Greed-o-meter

A growing divide is emerging between small and large Australian businesses when it comes to growth. Just 30% of small businesses plan to hire over the next 12 months, compared with 59% of medium-sized businesses and 64% of large businesses, according to CreditorWatch’s latest Business Sentiment Survey. The gap is also evident in expansion plans, with larger businesses much more likely to be looking at both local and international growth.

Source: CreditorWatch

Fear & Greed Q+A today

Cybersecurity isn’t just an IT issue. At Class Ignite 2026, Sean Aylmer spoke with Lydia Pearson from MyProsperity, Nathan Steiner from DocuSign and Greg Hansen from HUB24 about managing cyber risk and why better security can also make for a better business:

• Why email remains one of the biggest cyber risks for accountants, financial advisers and their clients.
• Why a cyber breach can hit much more than data - damaging client relationships, revenue and the wellbeing of business owners.
• How client portals can reduce risk while also making communication, document sharing and signing easier for clients.
• Why cybersecurity is as much about people as technology, and the importance of building security awareness across a business.
• How businesses can manage third-party risk when data and workflows increasingly move between different technology platforms.
• Where smaller businesses should start if they don’t have a huge cybersecurity budget.

News in brief

ASIC alleges $34m in illegal kickbacks: ASIC is suing former financial adviser Osama Saad, alleging entities he controlled received about $34 million from businesses connected to the failed First Guardian and Shield investment funds. The regulator alleges Saad steered 217 clients’ retirement savings into First Guardian while putting his own interests ahead of theirs.

ATO stands firm on credit cards: The Tax Office will stop accepting credit card payments after November 30 despite warnings it could push some taxpayers into arrears or default. Small businesses owe the ATO about $36 billion in collectable tax debt, with industry groups warning some rely on cards to meet payment plans.

Coles’ robots: Coles is considering using robots to pick and pack online grocery orders inside its supermarkets as it looks to cut costs and speed up deliveries. The supermarket giant is in early discussions with British logistics group Ocado about a trial in Melbourne.

BHP sells nickel assets: BHP has sold its mothballed Kambalda nickel concentrator and exploration tenements in WA to South Africa’s Gold Fields, bypassing Andrew Forrest’s Wyloo Metals. Gold Fields is expanding aggressively in Australia and recently made an unsuccessful initial $38 billion takeover offer for Northern Star Resources.

Australia prepares for the Moon: Australia has unveiled Roo-ver, its first lunar rover, which is scheduled to travel to the Moon’s south pole in 2030 as part of NASA’s Artemis program. Designed and built locally, it will analyse lunar soil while testing Australian technology built to withstand extreme temperatures and dust.

Fear-o-meter

Chartered Accountants on AI use:

Artificial intelligence has become a mainstream tool for Australian retail investors, with research from Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand finding more than six in ten investors (61 per cent) now use AI to help inform investment decisions, up from 48 per cent a year ago.

The survey of more than 1000 Australian retail investors with more than $10,000 invested in the stock market and other investments also found more than one in five investors (22 per cent) now use the technology extensively.

The findings, from the eighth annual CA ANZ Retail Investor Confidence Survey, reveal the growing role AI is playing in how Australian investors research investment opportunities, analyse information and make financial decisions.

CA ANZ Chief Executive Officer, Ainslie van Onselen, said the findings show AI is changing the way investors access and assess information.

“What is striking is not just how many investors are using AI, but how quickly it has become part of the investment research process. In just one year, we've seen AI move from an emerging technology to a mainstream tool for investors.”

Forwarded from a friend? Sign up to our daily newsletter