WA news LIVE: Identity of Invasion Day rally ‘bombmaker’ to be kept secret

The identity of a Perth man accused of throwing a home-made bomb into an Invasion Day rally crowd on Monday will remain a mystery after a Magistrate ruled to suppress his name over concerns for his own safety.

The 31-year-old man is accused of trying to cause what police called a “potential mass casualty event” at Forrest Place as thousands of people gathered in the Perth CBD to oppose the date of Australia Day.

The device, which was allegedly designed to explode on impact, did not detonate.

The man appeared in Perth Magistrates Court on Tuesday dressed in a blue forensics jumpsuit.

He abandoned his bid for bail after the Magistrate granted a suppression order to conceal his identity.

He is charged with intending to cause harm and making an explosive device and will be back before the courts next month.

Here’s what’s making news across the country and around the world today:

• Two of the rebel Nationals whose votes led to the historic Coalition split face losing their jobs at the next federal election, with senior Liberals warning the junior Coalition partner that it will struggle to claim a quota and retain senators in Victoria and NSW.

• The financial crime watchdog is using bank transaction records and customer data to zero in on 10 suspected domestic paedophiles who paid Australian children to share their own abuse.
• Under age Snapchat users are verifying their accounts by scanning the faces of people who are decades older and of a different gender, exposing a major loophole in the Albanese government’s signature policy.
• A former French senator has been found guilty in a high-profile drug-facilitated sexual assault case, more than a year after France was shaken by a mass rape trial that made Gisèle Pelicot a symbol of the fight against sexual violence.

Good morning readers, and welcome to our live news blog for Wednesday, January 28.

Making headlines today, Perth is again expected to be the strongest performer in the country for house price growth in 2026.

According to KPMG’s Residential Property Outlook, released on Wednesday, Perth house prices are tipped to grow by 12.8 per cent this year and 5.1 per cent next year.

Perth unit prices are also expected to increase by 11.6 per cent in 2026 and 3.9 per cent in 2027.

Meanwhile, WA MP Andrew Hastie’s name continues to come up in talks of a leadership challenge to Federal Liberal leader, Sussan Ley.

Conservative MPs Angus Taylor and Hastie both covet the leadership but at this stage, with parliament due to return next week, Ley’s supporters are increasingly confident that she has the numbers to stay in the top job and are questioning how long Littleproud can survive as Nationals leader.

Stay with us as we bring you the news of the day, as it happens.