What we learned: Tuesday 13 August
This is where we’ll leave the blog for today, but first let’s recap the main events:
The government services minister, Bill Shorten, announced a new federal ID system to be launched by the end of the year with “consent, choice and trust” at its heart.
David Pocock said no total gambling ad ban would be ‘complete betrayal’ of Peta Murphy’s legacy.
Independent Goldstein MP Zoe Daniel said that Bill Shorten has “got it wrong” when it comes to the ban on gambling ads.
Nancy Pelosi criticised Paul Keating’s comments on Taiwan as ‘Chinese real estate’. Keating then responded.
The NSW premier shut down the push for an Anzac Day pokie ban.
The government will move to strengthen laws for robodebt investigations.
Scott Morrison gave evidence in the Reynolds defamation case against Brittany Higgins.
In the Coalition party room, the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, said the Albanese government “hasn’t had a much-needed reset” despite reshuffling ministries in the mid-winter break.
The LNP’s Michael Sukkar was ejected from question time.
A Queensland man was jailed for child abuse-related offences as 16 children in the Philippines were removed from harm.
Amy will be back with you on the blog in the morning!
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Charges laid after Sydney house fire
A man has been charged with domestic violence offence and having the intent to endanger life after a house fire in south west Sydney.
About 1.50am yesterday, emergency services were called to the suburb of Belfield, after reports of a fire.
The house was unoccupied but a 76-year-old man and a 75-year-old woman were in a granny flat at the rear of the premises. They were not injured.
After an investigation, a 71-year-old man has been charged with destroying/damaging property with the intent to endanger life in a domestic violence incident.
He was refused bail and will appear at Burwood local court on Wednesday 16 October 2024.
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Kelton, in cross examination with lawyer Rachael Young SC, told the court she was sent to meet Higgins by Reynolds about the 2019 allegations but that a file note recording her actions can’t be found.
You don’t have your own secure area to keep documents and I gave my file note to the office manager in a sealed envelope to be kept in the safe in the front office.
When senator Reynolds’ stint as defence minister ended and the office was packed up, Kelton said she didn’t think to retrieve the note and she doesn’t know where it ended up.
The court has now been adjourned until 10.30am tomorrow morning.
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Reynolds’ former chief of staff says senator was ‘extremely visibly stressed’
Senator Linda Reynolds’ then chief of staff, Alexandra Kelton, is now giving evidence in the defamation trial at the WA supreme court via video link.
Kelton says Reynolds was shocked and surprised by a news.com article detailing the handling of the 2019 allegations and that the details were not in line with her recollection. Kelton said:
She seemed genuinely extremely surprised by what was reported in the article.
Kelton also told the court that Reynolds was very upset that several staff believed she had said Higgins was lying.
It was important to her that people knew that she believed Brittany and she wanted to clarify that those comments were only in relation to the media reporting and were only in respect to how things unfolded after the incident.
Kelton said at that time Reynolds gathered the staff and told them she wanted to apologise for comments calling Higgins a lying cow, and that it was important they understood it was not in relation to the March 2019 allegations.
She was extremely visibly stressed throughout this period.
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Queensland man jailed for child abuse-related offences as 16 children in Philippines removed from harm
A Queensland man has been sentenced to two years’ jail, and 16 children in the Philippines have been removed from harm after an international child protection investigation.
The 57-year-old man was sentenced by the Downing Centre district court on Monday 12 August for two child abuse-related offences, including trying to arrange sexual activity with children in the Philippines.
Australian federal police arrested the Mackay man at Sydney international airport in January 2023, after Border Force officers found child abuse material on his phone.
The officers saw messages detailing his intent to pay a facilitator to enable him to sexually abuse children in the Philippines.
The AFP then worked with the Philippine Internet Crimes Against Children Centre and the Philippine National Police, which led to 16 children being removed from harm in the Philippines.
AFP Detective Acting Inspector Emmanuel Tsardoulias said the investigation showed the commitment of police around the world to work together to combat the exploitation and abuse of children:
Our common goal is to protect children, wherever they live, and to ensure anyone who tries to harm them is identified and brought before the courts.
This is not a victimless crime. Children are not commodities to be used for the abhorrent gratification of sexual predators.
The AFP is working hand-in-glove with its partners here in Australia and abroad to find these offenders and bring them to justice.
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Thanks Amy, and good afternoon everyone!
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On that note, I will hand you over to Natasha May who will take you through the evening. I’ll be back with the team very early tomorrow morning for the third sitting day (huzzah). So until then, as always – take care of you.
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Senator Linda Reynolds’ then chief of staff, Alexandra Kelton, is now giving evidence via video link in the high-profile defamation trial at the WA supreme court.
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ACL says Labor will ‘fail Australians of faith’ by backing away from religious discrimination bill
The Australian Christian Lobby has also expressed disappointment that the government is backing away from a religious discrimination/freedoms bill (depending on which way you look at it).
In a statement the ACL said:
The Australian Christian Lobby has joined other religious groups in expressing their disappointment over the Prime Minister’s announcement that he would not proceed with laws that would have gone just some way towards improving much needed protection for religious groups, including against discrimination.
The Government’s commitment to this legislation was not the simple pre-election promise we all took it to be. Instead, it now appears it was shrouded in “ifs” and “buts” that allow scope for the Government to fail Australians of faith so dismally at this moment.
…The failure of the Albanese Government to introduce the promised Religious Freedom Bill follows their charity law proposals that promote legislation which would stifle the expression of religious belief, and most notoriously in the framing of an inquiry into religious school exemptions that appeared to target for eradication the exemptions from discrimination laws which faith-based schools currently depend on simply in order to keep faith with their ethos. This ethos is not about “discriminating”, but rather about reflecting the positive characteristics of an environment based on faith which make Christian schools increasingly in demand today throughout the country.
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Gallagher says ‘a lot going on’ in media world besides issues of gambling ad revenue
On the ABC, Labor senator Katy Gallagher has been asked whether the lost ad revenue is a consideration when it comes to a gambling ad ban:
There is a lot of going on in … [the] media world and not just issues of advertising revenue, it is other issues as well, the rise of digital platforms. And this government has a very strong interest in making sure we maintain a level of public interest journalism [and] free-to-air regional coverage across Australia.
But they touch on the same issues: revenue from advertising, but also more broadly about the changing media landscape.
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Australia’s wealth divide continues to widen
Well this makes for fun reading on a Tuesday afternoon (if you haven’t read it already):
As Stephanie Convery reports:
The wealth of the richest 200 people in Australia is equivalent to nearly a quarter of national GDP, with researchers warning that if this trend continues, wealth disparity will soon destroy any remaining semblance of equality in Australian society.
The wealth of the very rich has more than tripled in the past two decades, from 8.4% of Australia’s GDP in 2004 to 23.7% of GDP in 2024, with the top fifth of households holding wealth 146 times greater than the bottom fifth, according to research released on Tuesday by the Australia Institute.
Growth in capital gains – that is, increases in the value of assets, most of which is yielded by the already wealthy – has started to outstrip the national wages bill, held in check over the past 20 years only by the global financial crisis in 2008 and the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, the report said.
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Scott Morrison concludes giving evidence in Linda Reynolds defamation trial
The former prime minister was questioned in a defamation trial in the WA supreme court for a few hours this morning and described the distress of seeing his friend of 20 years and defence minister, Linda Reynolds, who brought the case, in a “highly fragile emotional state” not long after Brittany Higgins’ rape allegations were aired.
Morrison said he had seen Reynolds in the whip’s office immediately after parliamentary question time and that he was very concerned about her physical condition. He said he feared the outcome would be fatal for Reynolds.
He also dismissed that his government covered up Higgins’ allegations of rape as “completely and utterly false and without any foundation”.
Morrison said he had hoped Reynolds would return to the defence portfolio after taking sick leave, but she had not been capable because of her physical and mental state and instead the job was given to the now opposition leader, Peter Dutton. Reynolds was instead appointed to a government services role.
In cross examination by Higgins’ lawyer, Rachael Young SC, Morrison blamed deficiencies in the processes for dealing with these types of issues, not Reynolds. Morrison told the court:
The processes that were available to Miss Higgins and Reynolds and others, didn’t help any of them and that is what needed to be remedied.
He said the significant deficiencies let everybody down.
Morrison said the day after The Project aired, he ordered a review be conducted to look at the process of complaints in the parliamentary workplace.
He said prior to this, he was not aware of serious security breaches and issues with the senator’s office or that Higgins’ was disaffected with the handling of the allegations.
The public reporting on this brought to the head that the matter had not been resolved. Prior to that time, I am not aware of having it been raised.
Reynolds’ then chief of staff, Alexandra Kelton, will appear after the lunch break also via video link.
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Here is some more from Mike Bowers’ lens.
When the wage price index is up, but within “expectations”:
When you remember it is question time:
A well-worn path for the member for Deakin.
Melbourne things from across the aisle (we assume they are talking about coffee)
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Here is how Mike Bowers saw QT:
How it feels to set the hares running, and it’s not even your portfolio – a portrait:
How it feels to have to catch all those hares:
The merry wanderer of the night (talk shows):
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What we learned in question time
It can be hard to pinpoint whether anyone actually learned anything given the frenetic nature of question time (and the lack of actual answers) but we did see the firming up of some themes.
The opposition is attempting to firm up its attempts to define the prime minister, this time through the use of “tricky prime minister”. It has had a few previous runs at coming up with a moniker for Anthony Albanese, but so far none have stuck.
The government really, really wants you to know it has done things to address the cost of living.
Ministers were also pretty thrilled to have a chance to debate the economy with the opposition, particularly on the point of “$315bn in spending” because it leads to an attack line the government wants to make leading into the election – that the opposition wants to cut pensions and services.
Housing continues to be a massive sore point for the government and it does not yet have a handle on how to deal with both the Greens and the Coalition dogging it over the issue, while also not bending on negotiation points for the government’s bills. (Well, the Greens aren’t bending. The Coalition is not at the table.)
The Coalition, particularly Michael Sukkar, is getting better at finding the weak points in government responses. Especially if it is a favoured topic like unions.
The crossbench is not going to let the gambling ban go lightly.
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Liberal senator asks whether Labor can ensure ‘not a single Hamas supporter’ comes to Australia
In a follow-up question, the Liberal senator David Fawcett pointed to comments made by the Asio director general, Mike Burgess, when it comes to security checks for people who had fled Gaza. For completeness, this is what Burgess told Insiders on Sunday:
There are processes in place and I can assure your audience that when things get referred to Asio we deal with them effectively.
Of course there might be times when they didn’t get referred to us in time. Once we become aware of them, we’re able to do the assessments and deal with them effectively.
Fawcett asked whether that was “why multiple individuals leaving Gaza had their Australian visas [cancelled] after they had been granted”.
Minister Murray Watt told the Senate it was “an example of Asio doing its job and the government listening to the advice of Asio”. Watt said:
What we have done in some instances is cancel visas when security checks have revealed that those individuals should not be granted a visa. Again, this is exactly the same process as employed by the former government.
Fawcett then asked about media reports suggesting the government was considering a visa pathway to help Palestinians who arrived in Australia on temporary visas to remain in the country. Fawcett asked:
Will you make the commitment to the Australian people that not a single Hamas supporter will be brought into Australia under this scheme?
Watt said Burgess had explained Asio’s approach to the issue, adding that “we respect the advice of our security agencies and people like Mr Burgess and we act on that advice”.
Watt said the new minister for home affairs and immigration, Tony Burke, had made “the very obvious point that Gaza is a war zone” and that people were initially provided tourist visas “to get them out of a conflict zone quickly”. Watt added:
It is unrealistic to think that it is proper or safe to return people to a conflict zone like Gaza, which is why further consideration is being given to their status going forward.
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Watt says process for Palestinians’ visas will be the same as that for Ukrainians and Afghans
Over in Senate question time, the Coalition has continued to prosecute its argument for tighter screening requirements for Palestinians who have fled Israel’s assault on Gaza.
The Liberal senator David Fawcett began by quoting from the interview given by the Asio boss, Mike Burgess, on Insiders on the weekend.
Murray Watt, representing the minister for home affairs and immigration, said the government was following the same approach as applied with Ukrainians and Afghans in recent years.
Watt said he was “a little surprised” to see Fawcett “question the judgment of the director general of Asio”.
Fawcett raised a point of order on relevance and used the occasion to reiterate that he was questioning the government’s commitment to refer every visa application to Asio for security checks, and he was not questioning the judgment of Burgess, for whom he had “the highest regard”.
Watt told the Senate:
As I have already implied and will now make explicit, we are following exactly the same process as applied under the former government.
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Question time ends
And to the relief of everyone, question time ends.
Until tomorrow.
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Rowland says claims she met with gambling executives are incorrect
Michelle Rowland goes through what the government has done on gambling and says it is still consulting on the proposed legislation. She then adds:
Now, the member’s question also contains some imputations, and I think it is important to have the facts here.
… I will quote – independent MP Zoe Daniel said ‘Rowland had met 66 times with gambling executives in six months … according to documents uncovered by freedom of information inquiry’, and it goes on to be repeated, and I quote from the member for Goldstein, ‘she is conspiring with the sector to continue grooming young people’.
Mr Speaker, that is not what those FoI documents uncovered. In fact, the documents will show I met zero times … zero times with gambling executives, and we all continue to go about this process with the facts in an orderly way, because facts are important here, Mr Speaker.
(Rowland’s office says the legislation is still only at the proposed stage, not final, so this post has been amended)
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Independent Kate Chaney asks:
I understand there are AFL executives in the house today. Is it true that the government continues to water down its proposed gambling reform because of pressure from the powerful broadcast media, sports codes and gambling companies against the wishes of the Australian community?
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PM says Labor is continuing consulting post-referendum
Anthony Albanese:
When it comes to Makarrata of course means coming together after struggle. One of the things we are doing of course is consulting post-referendum….as you would expect us to do.
(Peter Dutton interjects and Albanese address him)
From a bloke who is responsible for questions being asked saying that interest rates would be determined by the Reserve Bank if the referendum was carried last year. [That] speaks about his honesty when it comes to Indigenous Affairs.
What we will do is consult, that is what we are continuing to do, continuing to do, consulting but also putting out there a range of ideas that I would hope would get the support of people in this parliament across the board on economic empowerment, on opportunities for job creation.
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Fletcher joins LNP attacks on PM over Makarrata commission
Paul Fletcher asks Anthony Albanese:
Have you ever committed to establishing a Makarrata commission?
(This is an example of a question being written on the fly, in response to previous answers.)
Albanese:
When it comes to Indigenous affairs, he [Fletcher] does have an interest. He held two forums during the referendum, one for yes and one for no.
That’s how interested and committed he is, to advancing the interests of Indigenous Australians. We are - I refer to my previous answer, I outlined - I outlined at Garma a plan for economic empowerment. I’m outlining practical plans for housing. We have an agreement through the skills agreement in the Northern Territory to lift people up on education.
Peter Dutton is very quickly on his feet:
It’s on relevance. It couldn’t possibly be tighter. It was direct and it deserves an honest and straightforward answer from the Prime Minister. Which has escaped him so far.
Dick says the PM is only 40 seconds in, but will have to be directly relevant for the rest of his answer.
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Jim Chalmers enjoyed saying these words a little too much in his last dixer answer:
This side of the House has a plan for a future made in Australia. That side of the House is an embarrassing shambles, divisive and divided in the third year of a 3-year term, and no view on production tax credits, still no costed policies and no economic credibility.
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Labor says status quo regarding gambling advertising ‘untenable’ but does not commit to full ban
Independent MP Sophie Scamps asks:
Australia has been a world leader in protecting our young people from smoking and vaping. There is irrefutable evidence that gambling is also a serious public health threat, especially for our young people through suicide, addiction and family breakdown. The public health community is united in their call for a complete ban on gambling advertising. As the health minister, will you heed the public health community’s call and support a full ban on gambling advertising to protect our children from being preyed upon for profit?
Mark Butler:
The prime minister outlined a range of those measures today in response yesterday to a question by the member for Goldstein. They are very significant.
And in two years they’re way more than any government Labor or Liberal, frankly, that is ever delivered in this parliament before it.
I won’t go through all of them. They’re very significant. I want to refer to bet stop, which I think is the most significant harm reduction measure ever initiated in this parliament.
As the prime minister also said yesterday, getting to the heart of the member’s question around advertising, the prime minister did say the status quo regarding the saturation of gambling advertising, particularly where children are exposed to it, is untenable.
He said the government is working through those issues and that work is led very appropriately by the minister for communications and the minister for social services.
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Albanese says aiming for bipartisanship on First Nations issues is ‘focus of my government’
Anthony Albanese goes through what he said yesterday and then adds:
One of the things that Senator McCarthy has said … yesterday in the parliament – we learn[ed] from the referendum and the pain and hardship that created [for] First Nations people in this country … the fact there was no bipartisan support.
She went on to say, ‘We want to walk down the pathway of trying to get maximum support for an objective that we as a nation, like the referendum was held, the yelling has to stop, and we need to work on ways in which we can achieve better outcomes.’
That’s the focus of my government.
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Dutton attacks Albanese over Makarrata commission promises
Peter Dutton has the next non-government question and asks:
Recently when asked about attaching a Makarrata commission with responsibility for truth-telling, the prime minister said, well, that is not what we have proposed, but on election night 2022 the prime minister promised to implement that would restate in full, the voice, truth-telling and treaty and repeated that promise on more than 34 occasions.
What is this tricky Prime Minister repeatedly, saying one thing and doing another?
That is three for “tricky” for those keeping count.
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Clare O’Neil continues:
The air is feeling a little fresher in here now without the member for Deakin in the chamber. Not for the first time, speaker, the member for Deakin is making absolutely no sense. If he is concerned about the impact this union is having on residential construction prices, that he can go into his caucus room and talk to his senator colleagues about helping our government clean up this union.
(There are more interjections)
What is up with these guys today, speaker?
Peter Dutton wants to know if Milton Dick ruled whether Clare O’Neil was being relevant to the question, in the point of order that Michael Sukkar raised (and the same one he was booted out in). Dugald Dick is having none of it.
Just so I am clear, you don’t have standing to raise another point of or on [a] clarification of a ruling. This has never happened before in practice.
I understand what you are trying to do. You are trying to get me to say what was your ruling and clarify. We have already made it when I dealt with the member for Deakin, if you were not happy with the way I handled that, you wanted something, you could have done that then.
It doesn’t enable you to do that in the future. We have done this a couple of times over the clarity of the house when a ruling is made, that is the time to take action. Not to then wait a couple of minutes, 30 seconds later to go, what was your ruling? OK?
O’Neil concludes her answer.
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LNP’s Michael Sukkar ejected from question time
Back to the house of reps chamber and Michael Sukkar is trying for round two:
The minister yesterday in question time claimed some experts believe CFMEU corruption and illegality has, and I quote, ‘no impact on residential construction in the view of some experts’. Can the minister name those experts?
Clare O’Neil:
I am not sure the point he is trying to make here. If he believes that the CFMEU are driving up residential construction costs ...
(there are interjections)
O’Neil:
If the member opposite believes that the CFMEU was driving up residential construction prices, then why other Liberals not helping us clean up this union in the Senate?
Now, Mr Speaker, whatever your view about this, the policy fix is the same. We have a union that is a problem and our government is taking steps to fix it and the Liberals are trying to stop us from doing it.
Sukkar has a point of order:
The point of order is relevance. This was under your instructions a very tight question. There was nothing expansive about the question. Refer to the minister’s statements and [ask] her to name those experts. [If] the minister cannot name those experts because she made that up, then ...
And is booted out of the chamber under 94A for adding additional commentary to his point of order.
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Morrison denies removing Reynolds from defence ministership for calling Higgins a ‘lying cow’
Stepping outside of question time for a moment for an update on Scott Morrison’s evidence:
Morrison told the court that he did not remove senator Reynolds from the defence portfolio because she called Higgins a “lying cow” while watching The Project.
I should stress that I found this statement by senator Reynolds, very out of character, extremely out of character.
He said that it is not OK for senators to refer to anyone (as a cow) and that Reynolds was referring to other matters and not the allegation of rape.
It was a statement completely out of character, made in a private setting, one wouldn’t expect to become public.
He said that if all members of parliament had their private conversations made public, “then we wouldn’t have a member serving in the parliament”. He said Reynolds could not continue in the defence portfolio because of the damage to her mental health from the allegations.
There was no other reason.
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Clare O’Neil: Labor has invested more on housing in the last budget than the Coalition has in nine years
Clare O’Neil:
I will share two facts with you for the one of them is that in the last five years that the Coalition were in power, the housing ministers around this country didn’t meet a single time. Five years! They didn’t meet a single time.
(Micheal Sukkar interjects and receives a warning)
O’Neil:
…We spent and invested more on housing in just our last budget than the entire nine years that the Coalition were in power. They have no credibility in this debate and this question does not lend them a single shred of credibility.
O’Neil doesn’t answer the question, but she doesn’t have to, given the preamble.
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Milton (Dugald) Dick:
We’ll handle this. Unlike yesterday when I ruled that it was a tight question, the minister had to be directly relevant, when you add commentary, reports, regarding things that happened in the past, obviously the minister is able to be directly relevant to those parts of the question. Yes, there was a part of the question, but when you add in other things, unlike yesterday, this is a broader question. You don’t need to respond. Resume your seat. Resume your seat.
Michael Sukkar tries to respond. Dick asks him if it is a different point of order.
Sukkar:
This question is similar to yesterday ...
Dick sits him down immediately and says O’Neil has two minutes and 30 seconds left to answer the question.
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Claire O'Neil accuses Greens of ‘shameless politicking’ as Coalition joins attack on housing policy
The Liberal’s Michael Sukkar is up next – and he has another housing question:
Yesterday the minister was forced to apologise after claiming that Treasury had modelled your failed build to rent policy. The minister claimed some experts believe CFMEU corruption and illegality has and I quote, “No impact on residential construction.” Can the minister name those experts?
This is in reference to a question Sukkar asked yesterday. O’Neil said that some experts said there was an impact and others said there wasn’t (after pressure on Sukkar about relevance to his question).
O’Neil:
And that question just following up on the shameless politicking of the Green. We have again....a Liberal MP come forward and ask a question not about how we’re going to build more homes for Australians, but about how we can play more politics in this Parliament. And I can tell you really clearly, speaker, that my focus in this role is not about what happens here in Parliament House.
Sukkar gets up with a point of order on relevance, but Speaker Dugald point out it has been 30 seconds (ministers are allowed preambles in answering). Dick:
No. Resume your seat.
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Clare O’Neil says Greens-Coalition block on Labor housing legislation an ‘unholy alliance’
Clare O’Neil:
I have to say I’m not surprised by the nature of that question. I mean, doesn’t it say it all. Questions like this are not going to help us build a single new home for a single person in our country. And I want the parliament – I want the parliament to really hear this.
Labor has a $32bn homes for Australians plan we’re implementing.
When we think about what we’re doing in this policy space, we’re thinking about the childcare workers sitting up in the gallery here, those are the people who have every entitlement to deserve the support of government to own their own home.
We are thinking about homes for Australians, not silly debates in Parliament House, like other parties in this parliament.
O’Neil continues with what the government legislation seeks to do and finishes with:
What the research shows, what the experts show, is the scheme in the Senate will build more homes. There is dispute about how many homes, but it will be tens of thousands of additional homes. What I would say to the parliament, if we want to stop success and progress on this matter, then we should play politics, business as usual.
We should continue to have the Greens building this unholy alliance with the Liberals who dropped the ball on this for another decade. We’ll continue to see them come in the Senate, say they care, but block progress and play politics instead.
I can tell you through all of this debate, through all of this debate, our government will have a single focus, more homes, more affordable housing, for more Australians and that’s our commitment to our citizens.
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Greens target Labor’s build-to-rent scheme
The Green’s Max Chandler-Mather is up with the first crossbench question:
Yesterday the Minister apologised for referencing treasury modelling on build to rent that did not exist. Then seemed to claim the 160,000 figure came from Property Council modelling of Labor’s scheme, which is also not true. In fact the property council says Labor’s plan won’t build any extra housing.
Experts say build to rent overseas sees big corporate landlords use “rent maximisation strategies” by algorithmically coordinating rent hikes & keeping properties vacant to drive up rents
Why does Labor want to give money to developers to hurt renters and drive up rents?”
(This is referencing an interview Clare O’Neil gave on ABC radio RN Breakfast on Monday morning, where she referred to the 160,000 figure as being based on Treasury modelling. Treasury had previously said during an inquiry hearing that it had not modelled it, so the Greens seized on that yesterday, and O’Neil apologised.)
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Anthony Albanese goes through other government spending measures and concludes with:
That is what this question exposes what they are against. This nonsense campaign from those opposite who produced nine budget deficits against this government that has produced two budget surpluses.
Ask it again.
Angus Taylor’s point of order rejected by speaker
Angus Taylor then makes the mistake of thinking he is dealing with Milton Dick, when he is actually dealing with his cranky question time alter ego, Dugald (Dugald is the speaker’s given name, but he has always gone with his middle name, Milton. When he gets cranky, those who have known the usually affable speaker for awhile like to say that Dugald has come out). Taylor:
The question was about his policies and how they are failing Australians...
Tony Burke:
As you previously ruled, a point of order can’t be [another] attempt to get up a media grab. When someone is being relevant. It’s a clear abuse, like the abuse that’s continuing now.
Dick:
Look, the question was about a figure, the $315bn figure mentioned. So, if you bring a figure into it, obviously the prime minister may contest on argue that figure. And what that means.
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Anthony Albanese details Coalition ‘plan’ for $315bn worth of budget cuts
Milton Dick gives a warning that he is “not happy” with the descriptor at the end of the question, but Anthony Albanese can answer it:
Albanese is properly thrilled to be answering this question – one, because people who have spent too long in parliament get excited over this sort of battle, and two, because this is a political fight the government has been itching to have for a while. Albanese:
I really do thank the member for Hume for his question, Mr Speaker. What he’s done is expose the Coalition plan for $315bn of cuts. He stood up, he stood up here at the dispatch box, and he spoke about $315bn of spending. The shadow finance minister said, on 1 August, I can tell you exactly what we wouldn’t have done, that additional $315bn of spending. That’s what they say.
Confirmed by the shadow treasurer, backed up by this leader of the opposition. Let’s have a look at what that is.
Indexation of the aged pension. Apparently they’re against that. Indexation of income support payments. They’re against that. They’re against that. We know they’re against the 15% pay rise for early childhood educators.
Etc, etc, etc.
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Sussan Ley continues Coalition attack lines
The opposition is once again mixing up their speaking order – Sussan Ley had the second question on Monday, but today it is Angus Taylor. Aren’t. We. Lucky.
Prime minister, after three failed budgets, Labor has added $315bn of spending, over $30,000 per household. Last week the RBA governor linked demand to inflation and said we revised up our forecasts for demand growth and that’s due to stronger forecast public spending. This Prime minister promised to reduce the cost of living but the RBA says his decisions are pushing up the cost of living. Why does this tricky prime minister repeatedly promise one thing and then do another?
That’s two for “tricky prime minister”.
(Labor says the $315bn figure, which has been used by the Coalition since August, is all government spending and is across six years not two as has previously been suggested by the opposition.)
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Question Time continues
Mary Doyle, the Labor MP for Aston kicks off the dixers* with:
Why is decent pay such an important part of the Albanese Labor government’s efforts to help ease cost of living pressures? And how does this approach differ to what has failed in the past?
So you can see where the government is going with this.
*A dixer is a question written either by the staff of the minister who is answering it, or the tactics team, and given to a backbencher to ask. It is a way of airing something the government wants more attention on, as well as giving a backbencher something to post on their social media as part of ‘here is what I did in parliament this week’ review.
We generally skip them, unless they give us something new in terms of lines or policies, because they are essentially verbal press releases.
Updated
There were so many interjections Dutton had to ask the question again, which he did so with glee.
Anthony Albanese goes through the list of what Labor has done (if you don’t know it by now, there are plenty of press releases which can tell you) and finishes with a sharp line (for the prime minister):
Every time we have a cost of living measure there are two things that are certain. We’ll work hard to make a difference. Secondly, they’ll oppose it.
Updated
Question time begins
Unlike Monday, we are straight into the questions and Peter Dutton once again gets the first one, asking:
Before the election the now prime minister promised to cut electricity bills by $275, provide cheaper mortgages and to ensure families will be better off on the cost of living.
Instead of reducing costs for working families, he’s delivered 12 mortgage rate increases, a 22% increase in electricity prices and food and groceries have jumped by over 11%. Why does this tricky prime minister repeatedly promise one thing and do another?
So we are back to trying to find a moniker, and today it is “tricky prime minister”.
It has previously been “slippery” so I guess that’s growth.
Updated
Some colour from just before Question Time
The House is a bit rowdy following the last 90-second statement ahead of question time. The government (and opposition) often try to time the final statements from their MPs to be as noteworthy as possible to try and get a little bit of buzz as politics watchers flick over ahead of QT.
Labor MP Tania Lawrence knew her job, livening up her speech on the government’s pay rise for early childhood educators with this final line:
[It] would be a cold day in hell before we see the miserable opposition support any sort of pay rise for workers in this nation!
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Greens continue criticism over Labor pause on LGBTIQA+ protections
Greens MP Stephen Bates has expanded on his comments about the government walking away from its commitment to protect LGBTIQA+ students in faith-based schools:
Enough broken promises. If this government cares at all about LGBTIQA+ workers, they would move right now to remove section 38 of the Sex Discrimination Act like the Law Reform Commission said to.
This Labor government has had the numbers to get this done for months and the Greens have offered time and again to work collaboratively to make this change.
The LGBTIQA+ community wants protections. Communities of faith want protections. The vast majority of the country wants this positive and progressive change.
When it comes to keeping progressive promises, it seems this Labor government is incapable of delivering without the LNP’s sign off.
The government had wanted the Coalition’s bipartisan support to ensure there would not be another “culture war” over the issue. But that wasn’t going to happen, at least this term, so they have instead parked the issue.
Updated
The chambers are starting to fill up with MPs as both the house and senate prepare for question time.
We’ll switch between the questions (and answers, if there are any) you need to know about and anything else happening outside as needed. (That’s what my fifth coffee was for!)
Morrison says he was not informed of security breach in Reynolds' office prior to media reports
In cross examination, Scott Morrison said that prior to the airing of the allegations of rape he had no knowledge of a security breach at or in the senator’s office in March 2019.
He told Brittany Higgins’ lawyer, Rachael Young SC, that he was disappointed that he had not been told about the issue in 2019:
That is true, I was not told by the Senator or her office.
As events transpired, Senator Reynolds chose not to do that out of respect for the confidence that she had entered into with Miss Higgins.
Updated
Question time looms …
The press club address has ended, which means there is just under 20 minutes until the second question time of the week.
From the way today has been going, you are going to see a lot more on the cost of living from both the major parties. The gambling ad legislation should also get some attention, at least from the crossbench.
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Advocates say state must stop turning to incarceration as the answer to youth crime
Benita Kolovos has been reporting on the Victorian government decision to back away from its commitment to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 14 by 2027.
Gai Campbell, the Victoria director of 54 Reasons community centre, which delivers Save the Children’s services in Australia, says the evidence is clear “more children behind bars does not equate to safer communities”:
By raising the age of criminal responsibility to 14, which is in line with legal, medical and human rights best practice, it allows rehabilitation to be prioritised over punitive punishment and gives young people the chance to break the cycle of re-offending.
If the government is serious about addressing youth crime in Victoria, the state needs to stop turning to incarceration as the answer and instead build on the positive directions set by the youth justice bill to invest more in early intervention and prevention services that address the root causes of offending among children.
Updated
Shorten to argue that sealed section on robodebt report should be unsealed
But does he believe the sealed section should be unsealed?
Shorten:
I haven’t won that argument yet.
… I don’t have the power, so anyway I will try and use whatever powers of persuasion[I have].
I think this legislation that we have got proposed by Minister Gallagher and the public service commissioner, I think that is a pretty interesting development and it is a good development.
Updated
Shorten says Labor is responding to robodebt royal commission
On the question of the sealed section of the robodebt royal commission report, Bill Shorten is asked by our own Sarah Basford Canales if it is time to unseal it, given further investigations are being discontinued.
Shorten had previously said the sealed section could not remain sealed forever. Sarah asks if there is to be no robojustice, should there at least be robotransperency.
Shorten:
I don’t buy we haven’t had robojustice. We helped organise the class action that saw the payments. It doesn’t compensate people, but it’s $1.8bn better than before. I think it’s a permanent entry on the Wikipedia [entries] of all of those ministers I think, that we learn new processes as a result and have been responding to the royal commission ‘s recommendations.
You can never get true justice because it should never have happened. It was unlawful. Having said that also, Minister Gallagher in the Senate and myself in the House of Reps, I will be moving this tomorrow, a public service amendment bill.
What has emerged out of felling up from the robodebt royal commission and accountability is that the Australian minister does not have the power to investigate former heads for breach.
The commissioner was close to finalising investigations into formant agency heads, it has become clear … We don’t have the power to look at former agency heads.
We are responding swiftly, we will, there will be legislation in the House tomorrow, it has been endorsed by our caucus today at 10:30am. We will put legislation in which will make it clear that the [head] has express power to investigate the activities of former agency heads. That will be another step towards accountability.
Updated
A summary from the Liberal party room
In the Coalition party room, the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, said the Albanese government “hasn’t had a much needed reset” despite reshuffling ministries in the mid-winter break.
Dutton took aim at Anthony Albanese for backing down on his Makaratta commission promise, saying you “can’t tell Indigenous Australians one thing” and other Australians another. Dutton suggested that key Labor promises, including a $375 power price reduction look like they were “lies” and also said the government was in a “mess” over gambling ad reforms.
There was concern in the meeting about Mike Burgess’ comments that Hamas sympathies wouldn’t be an automatic reason not to grant a person a visa. The shadow home affairs minister, James Paterson, and Liberal MP Julian Leeser will be up shortly to demand that Tony Burke depart from this advice and ensure no visas are given to Hamas sympathisers.
Liberal senator Linda Reynolds made a personal statement about her defamation case against Brittany Higgins. Sky News is reporting she told the meeting she will likely have to sell her home regardless of whether she wins or loses, and Guardian Australia has confirmed the thrust of the contribution was the enormous personal and financial cost to her.
Sky also reported Reynolds said she did “not want to hurt the Coalition’s election prospects” but she felt “the Labor party are dogs” and had destroyed her career and that she needed to defend her reputation.
Updated
Shorten says ‘we should lift’ supported wages for people with a disability
Back to the press club, Bill Shorten was asked about raising the supported wage of people with a disability.
Here is an primer on that issue, from the beginning of this year:
Shorten says:
We have seen moves to improve the wages, by successive governments, to be fair. Everyone on a supported wage receives the DSP. It’s not means tested. A lot of the supported employment workplaces, some of them have now moved to open employment. Some were set up by families decades ago when there was nothing.
I want to be sure before we move to closing supported workplaces, that we’ve got somewhere for people to go.
I don’t want to send them back to day care or to sit at home. We’ll work on this collaboratively and we should lift the wages. We will work with people, not just drop stuff on people.
Updated
Morrison says he feared for Linda Reynold’s life due to health impacts from Higgins case
Scott Morrison told the court that at one point he even feared for Linda Reynolds’ life.
For a period there we were very concerned that this could be a fatal outcome for her.
Updated
Morrison gives evidence on impact on Reynolds' health
Returning to Scott Morrison’s evidence in Linda Reynold’s defamation case against Brittany Higgins:
Morrison told the court that he became aware of the rape allegations on 15 February 2021, the same day that The Project aired allegations that Higgins’ had been raped in the senator’s ministerial office.
He said that after that and during question time in parliament, Reynolds’ had to leave the parliament and that he witnessed her quite visibly and physically stressed and in a highly fragile emotional state.
He said he witnessed the “weaponising of the issue for political purposes to discredit Senator Reynolds, the government and by extension myself”.
Morrison told the court that Reynolds took sick leave after that time and that she was not capable of continuing in her duties because of the impacts of the rape allegations on the senator’s physical and mental state.
“I appointed an acting minister [with the] hope and intention that Reynolds would be able to continue to serve in that role,” Morrison told the court. He said ultimately it was not possible and she took on a role working on the NDIS.
Updated
Shorten negotiating with Coalition and crossbenchers over NDIS bill
Just heading to the press club for a moment, Bill Shorten was asked where negotiations were at in the Senate for his latest NDIS bill.
I’m having constructive discussions with the Coalition. They make suggested amendments, we’re considering them carefully. I think with some of them, even if we don’t particularly like them, politics is the art of the possible.
And so, we are working constructively with the Coalition. The vote hasn’t happened yet. I don’t want to jinx myself. The short answer is we’re talking pretty animatedly with the states and we’re talking very constructively with not just the Coalition but with crossbenchers.
The Greens, I don’t know where they are.
Updated
Equality Australia says Labor has broken election promise over LGBTIQA+ walkback
Equality Australia’s CEO, Anna Brown, said the Albanese government had broken an election promise by not progressing with its commitment to pass legislation protecting LGBTIQA+ students.
Our community’s needs have again been overlooked and blatant injustices ignored.
This news is devastating to every Australian waiting for better protections including gay and trans teachers, pregnant women, people who are divorced or in de facto relationships, as well as people of faith.
More children are going to miss out on leadership roles or be refused enrolment, teachers will continue to lose their jobs or be denied promotions while many more live with the constant fear that someone will finally discover who they are.
Updated
Advocates target Labor over abandoning commitment on LGBTIQA+ protections
Advocacy groups and supportive MPs are starting to lash the government over its abandoning of a commitment to pass legislation protecting LGBTIQA+ students in religious schools. The Greens MP Stephen Bates said:
Yet another broken election promise from a prime minister too cowardly to do his job. Labor won the last election with a promise to protect LGBTIQA+ workers and people of faith from discrimination and he’s failed at both.
The government had said it would only move forward if it had bipartisan support from the Coalition, which isn’t happening. It has rebuffed attempts to negotiate instead with the Greens and other crossbenchers as it says it wants an end to the culture wars.
There will be seperate legislation on hate speech, but there will not be the religious freedoms/discrimination bill in this term of parliament.
Updated
Labor trumpets wage price index results
The treasurer Jim Chalmers and workplace minister Murray Watt (a double Queenslander ticket!) have released a very lengthy statement in response to the wage price index, so we will save you most of it.
The main takeaway is what you’ll be hearing in question time and beyond. We are getting to the pointy part of the election cycle where a government tries to define its own narrative. Here is part of where Labor is headed:
Today’s result means that for the first time in 15 years, wages growth has hit ‘four for four’, with annual nominal wages growing by at least 4% for four consecutive quarters.
In stark contrast, in the nine years the Coalition was in government there was not one single quarter when annual nominal wages grew above 4%.
The Liberals want people working longer for less, which is why wages growth stagnated on their watch and why the government inherited falling real wages growth when we came to office.
Under Labor, more people are working and earning more and since 1 July, they have been keeping more of what they earn.
That’s when the stage-three tax cuts kicked in, for those of you keeping record.
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A summary of very recent events
That has been quite the hour, so to catch you up if you are just joining us:
Scott Morrison has just started giving evidence in the WA supreme court, appearing in the defamation case Linda Reynolds has brought against her former staffer, Brittany Higgins. Morrison is appearing via video link from Sydney.
The wage price index was up 0.8% in the June quarter, in line with expectations
A Greens motion calling on the government to sanction Israel has failed. The government says it doesn’t “speculate” on sanctions and the Greens wanted Australia to go further than any other country has. Katy Gallagher did say the government wanted the “unacceptable” civilian deaths to stop.
Paul Keating has responded to Nancy Pelosi’s criticism of his comment that Taiwan was “Chinese real estate” with a statement of his own (Pelosi’s interview will be aired later on the ABC’s 7.30, but a comment was released by the ABC earlier this morning.)
Updated
Shorten addresses National Press Club
Bill Shorten has also begun his National Press Club address.
We will bring you the highlights from the question and answer section and anything else that pops up as new. Sarah Basford Canales is there covering the speech, so she will also update you on anything you need to know.
Updated
Scott Morrison gives evidence in Reynolds defamation case against Brittany Higgins
Former prime minister Scott Morrison has begun his appearance via video link from Sydney to give evidence at Liberal senator Linda Reynolds’ defamation trial in the Western Australian supreme court this morning.
Reynolds is suing her former staffer Brittany Higgins for defamation over three social media posts made in July 2023.
In early 2021, Higgins alleged that parliamentary colleague Bruce Lehrmann raped her in Reynolds’ ministerial suite in 2019.
Outside court this morning, and on day eight of the trial, Reynolds’ lawyer, Martin Bennett, said Morrison will be testifying about the degree of confidence he had in the senator and the reason why the former PM was forced to replace her as defence minister.
Lehrmann has always maintained his innocence and a criminal trial in the ACT against him was abandoned due to juror misconduct. A second trial did not go ahead because of prosecutors’ fears for Higgins’ mental health.
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Keating says ‘so-called democractic choices of Taiwan’ are not central or vital interests for Australia
Paul Keating finishes his statement with:
That said, I make this clear. In public comment, I represent the national interests of Australia, not the national interests of the United States nor indeed, the interests of Taiwan. I have remarked a number of times that so-called democratic choices by Taiwan are not central or interests vital to Australia any more than say, the absence of democratic forms in countries like Cambodia or Laos are vital to Australia.
Keating also gives some advice to the ABC, saying the national broadcaster “would do better to represent Australian strategic interests when it has the opportunity, rather than being excited by sensationalist comment from a person who shares not a jot of identity with Australian national interests”.
Updated
Keating suggests Pelosi was responding to a ‘truncated question’ on his comments
Keating references Joe Biden’s intervention in the Pelosi trip, which is covered here in this article from July 2022:
Keating continues:
Both the United States and Australia subscribe to the ‘One China’ policy and have done so since President Nixon and Chairman Mao met in 1972 to put the policy into place.
And both our countries believe it is in no one’s interest for Taiwan to be subject of some sort of violent takeover. This is why I said on 7.30 last week that Chinese and Taiwanese interests will ‘get resolved socially and politically over time.
That’s what will happen there.
Keating said he thinks that Pelosi would “have been unaware that I had also said that Taiwan ‘will get resolved socially and politically over time’, ie, between the two parties, without the need of confrontation or violence” as she was responding to a “truncated question”.
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Paul Keating responds to Nancy Pelosi criticism over Aukus comments
Paul Keating has responded to part of an interview from former US House speaker Nancy Pelosi where she criticised Keating’s comments regarding Taiwan.
The ABC’s Sarah Ferguson interviewed Pelosi for 7.30 this evening.
But Ferguson was on ABC Breakfast TV this morning to give a little forward sizzle, broadcasting a comment Pelosi made in response to Paul Keating’s recent comment that Taiwan was “Chinese real estate”.
Pelosi:
You don’t want to get my description of him for saying that. That’s ridiculous. It is not Chinese real estate and he should know that. Taiwan is Taiwan and it is the people of Taiwan who have a democracy there. I think that that was a stupid statement.
I’ve no idea about Keating, but I think that it was a stupid statement to make, and I don’t know what his connection is to China that he would say such a thing. But it is really not in the security interest of the Asia-Pacific region for people to talk that way.
Keating says:
Nancy Pelosi said of my recent 7.30 interview ‘it is not in the security interest of the Asia-Pacific region for people to talk that way’ – that is, of my remarks in respect of Taiwan.
This is from the former leader of the US House of Representatives who, in a recklessly indulgent visit to Taiwan in 2022, very nearly brought the United States and China to a military confrontation – for the first time since the second world war.
(continued in next post)
Updated
Gallagher accuses Greens of attempting to ‘reproduce’ Gaza conflict locally ‘for their own gain’
Katy Gallagher continues:
On the subject of sanctions, the government has already imposed sanctions on several Israeli extremists and will deny anyone identified as an extremist settler a visa to travel to Australia.
As for further sanctions, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade advises that no countries have applied the sanctions that the Greens have called for, and moreover, governments never speculate on sanctions, which the Greens know, but they have decided to play political games with this issue.
They are trying to reproduce the conflict here for their own gain, as other members of this government have drawn to the public’s attention, despite all the warnings about the cost to our community from taking this approach.
The international community is trying to dial down the temperature in the Middle East. It would be nice if some in this chamber tried the same approach.
The Greens have said they are presenting views from the community.
The Senate is dividing, but the Greens will not win this one.
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Labor says ‘unacceptable deaths’ of civilians in Gaza ‘cannot continue’ but do not support Greens motion
Labor senator Katy Gallagher says the “unacceptable deaths” of civilians “can not continue”:
We condemn the unacceptable deaths of innocent civilians as a result of Israel’s operations in recent weeks, and we have been calling for a ceasefire for nine months now. We’ve called on parties to immediately agree to President Biden’s UNSC [United Nations Security Council] endorsed ceasefire proposals, and we acknowledge that civilians are caught in the middle and that they must be protected at the same time, hostages must be released and humanitarian access must be increased.
But Labor won’t be supporting the motion.
Gallagher:
Let’s be clear about what this suspension from the Greens is all about, which is for Australia to cut diplomatic ties with Israel.
Altogether 160 countries have diplomatic relations with Israel. We have diplomatic relations, because it is in our interests. To do so, because this is how we put our views and advance our interests in the international community.
We put our view that we need an immediate ceasefire, increased humanitarian access, the release of hostages and to prevent regional escalation, we put our view that Israel must adhere to international humanitarian law and that civilians must be protected.
This includes when we join partners in condemning the comments by Israeli finance minister on starving civilians because the deliberate starvation of civilians is a war crime.
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Coalition will not support Greens motion on Israel
Liberal senator Claire Chandler says the Coalition will not be supporting the motion:
This is yet another piece of one-sided grandstanding by the Greens for their own political purposes. Because what we have here today is the suspension to the motion that doesn’t mention Hamas. It doesn’t mention the Islamic Republic Iran and its terrorist network and it doesn’t call for hostages to be released.
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What's in the Greens motion to sanction Israel?
Jordon Steele-John says the motion the Greens are putting forward, which calls for a sanctions on members of the Israeli parliament, “is a clear line in the sand”. The whole motion before the Senate reads:
The recent opinion of the International Court of Justice that the State of Israel’s occupation is illegal and that Israel is responsible for apartheid;
The widespread allegations of torture and sexual abuse against Palestinian prisoners in Israel’s prisons and detention centres, including from the UN Humans Right Office and B’Tselem;
Statements from Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Likud Member of the Knesset Hanoch Milwidsky that support the legitimacy of the rape of Palestinian prisoners;
The recent statement by Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich that the starving of 2 million Palestinians “might be justified and moral”;
The continuing genocide and war crimes in Gaza including the widescale deaths and injuries caused by the State of Israel’s bombings and other attacks.
Calls on the Government to sanction the State of Israel and members of the extremist Netanyahu Government, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.
Updated
Greens move motion to sanction Israel
The prayers have finished in the parliament and Jordon Steele-John is now moving the Greens motion calling on the government to sanction Israel.
Updated
Albanese and Wong address Labor caucus
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, addressed caucus about the 15% pay rise in early childhood education, including criticising opposition leader, Peter Dutton, for not supporting it. “There’s always a but with Peter Dutton,” he said.
Albanese said that some CFMEU leaders are “undermining the legitimate role of the trade union movement”.
Albanese was also asked about the riots in the UK. He responded by noting Asio had raised the terrorist threat level in Australia, criticising disinformation on social media, and speaking about the need for Labor’s “no one left behind” ethos to tackle inequality that is a contributing factor to social unrest.
The foreign minister, Penny Wong, was also asked about the Middle East peace process. Wong said the region is “particularly risky” with risks of escalation in Lebanon and viz-a-viz Iran and said the situation in Gaza is “continuing to worsen”.
Australia supports the Joe Biden plan, which was approved by the UN Security Council, describing it as an “important but narrow” pathway to peace. She referred to the follow-up plan underwritten by the US, Egypt and Qatar, which Albanese had referred to approvingly at the end of July and in Ausmin talks.
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Labor party room endorses proposed legislation
Labor caucus met this morning endorsing a raft of legislation including:
Amendments to let the public service commission investigate former agency heads, in light of robodebt.
Expanding tertiary student numbers to primary and secondary students.
Changes to Help debt indexation and creating prac payments.
The bill to allow appointment of administrators to the CFMEU, which will include new amendments on whistleblowers, complaints procedures and ensuring sacked officials can’t be bargaining agents for five years.
(continued in next post)
Updated
June quarter wage data in line with expectations
The June quarter wages data won’t cause the RBA any obvious conniptions. The annual and quarterly pace were in line with the March quarter.
After taking account of inflation, the wages were up 0.3 percentage points (versus the headline inflation of 3.8% for the June quarter). On a quarter-by-quarter basis, though, the 0.8% advance in wages was shy of the 1% headline inflation rates.
Markets weren’t much moved by the numbers, with the dollar and stocks pretty much where they were before the 11.30am release.
Private sector wages rose just 0.7% in the quarter, which was the equal-lowest for any quarter since the end of 2021, the ABS said. From a year earlier, they were up 4.1%.
Public sector wages, though, provided a bit of a spurt, rising at a pace of 0.9% in the June quarter from 0.6% in the March quarter. From a year ago, they were up 3.9%.
Comparing only June quarters, the public sector wages 0.9% gain was the most in 12 years, the ABS said. (The last time, those in the public sector notched up a 4% annual gain was at the end of 2010.)
”The stronger June quarterly rise for the public sector was largely due to the newly synchronised timing pattern of commonwealth public sector agreement increases,” said Michelle Marquardt, ABS’ head of prices statistics. All public service employees received pay increases effective 14 March 2024.
Updated
Parliament looms …
The parliament will sit at noon, where we will get a bit more of an idea on what the government thinks it can progress from the legislation sense.
Shortly after the parliament sitting begins it will be question time again, so brace yourself for that.
Bill Shorten will also address the National Press Club from 12.30pm.
Updated
Wages up 0.8% in June quarter
The wages of Australians grew at an annual seasonally adjusted pace of 4.1% in the June quarter, the ABS said. For the quarter alone, the wage price index advanced 0.8%.
Those figures are roughly in line with the annual pace economists had tipped of 4% for the April-June period, easing from the 4.1% the ABS had reported for the March quarter. The consensus was also for the WPI to advance 0.9%, or quicker than the 0.8% clip in the January-March months.
Wages are one of the lagging indicators but are closely watched by the RBA (who were initially worried about a prices-wages spiral that would push inflation higher and trigger higher interest rates).
Updated
Lidia Thorpe says Allan government making ‘wrong choices for children’
The independent Victorian senator Lidia Thorpe has reacted to news the Victorian Labor government is walking back its commitment to raise the age of criminal responsibility.
Benita Kolovos wrote about the backdown, here:
Thorpe said the Victorian government was going against the evidence:
Imagine the good we could do for children, their families and the broader community if that level of resourcing was put into building advantage and lifting children up.
The evidence-based solutions that have been proven to break the cycle of incarceration remain desperately under-resourced.
Remember that the Allan government recently cut funding for a youth support service crime prevention program. They are making the wrong choices for children.
Thorpe said advocates had been calling for the federal government to “lead a national approach to justice reform, like they do in other issues like environment and disability, but the government has failed to act”.
I am now strongly focused on that.
I am calling on the prime minister, the new Indigenous Australians minister, the attorney general to act now. They need to rein in the states and start leading positive change.
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Greens say discussion on CFMEU bill are still preliminary
As Amy has just reported, the Greens will attempt another suspension motion this afternoon related to the conflict in Gaza. The minor party held its party room briefing on Tuesday morning to plan the sitting week ahead.
The Greens flagged the motion would revolve around imposing sanctions on Israeli member of government.
On the federal government’s CFMEU bill, the Greens say they’ll consider the proposal but say it’s been in very preliminary discussions. With the government flagging further amendments, the Greens wouldn’t say whether they would agree to expedite the changes in this sitting fortnight.
Updated
Greens to move motion on sanctioning Israel and members of ‘extremist’ Netanyahu government
The Greens will move a motion “calling on the Australian government to sanction members of the state of Israel’s extremist Netanyahu government for their role in the continued genocide in Palestine” in the Senate later today.
Jordon Steele-John said with Labor frontbenchers “now admitting that sanctions” are needed, the government should support the Senate motion.
The science minister, Ed Husic, said on ABC TV yesterday that “Israel is not listening to the words and I think increasingly the international community will have to take a harder line on it.”
The Greens motion “calls on the government to sanction the state of Israel and members of the extremist Netanyahu Government, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich”.
Updated
Wage price index figures for June quarter due in today
Later this morning we’ll get the wage price index figures for the June quarter from the ABS, and most economists are expecting the annual pace of wage growth to remain about 4%. (It was 4.1% in the March quarter.
Given headline inflation picked up in April-June period to 3.8%, real wage increases will probably be fairly minimal (not news to many readers). A repeat of the 0.5 percentage point real wage increase in the March quarter won’t help the chances of an early RBA rate cut (and may revive calls for another hike).
In the meantime, a couple of measures out today – such as the monthly survey by Westpac and the Melbourne Institute – suggest consumers are feeling a bit more positive. (They cite the tax cuts now flowing and also relief over the RBA not lifting the cash rate last week.)
The Westpac/Melbourne Institute's monthly survey of consumer sentiment rose, advancing 2.8%. Relief about interest rates is cited as one reason (perhaps a misguided one?)... pic.twitter.com/3HpDN7CLHH
— @phannam@mastodon.green (@p_hannam) August 13, 2024
The ANZ/Roy Morgan weekly survey had a similar uptick, with the rolling four-week average now at the highest in six months.
More signs of returning consumer confidence, with the weekly @ANZ_Research/@RoyMorganAus survey pointing to an uptick across the three types of households they track. The rolling four-week gauge is at six-month high. pic.twitter.com/EdeMNgqrIQ
— @phannam@mastodon.green (@p_hannam) August 13, 2024
Slightly less encouraging, though, is the fairly static view consumers have about inflation, with the weekly and rolling four-week average hovering at 5.1%. A bit less stickiness in the price increases is what the RBA will want to see before interest rates can start falling.
Less promising is the inflation expectations measure which seem to be stuck at just above 5%... pic.twitter.com/F6CsXuuNf0
— @phannam@mastodon.green (@p_hannam) August 13, 2024
Watch out for the wage data landing here at 11.30am.
Updated
A Maugean skate has been hatched in captivity for the first time
What is a Maugean skate you ask? (Until recently, I was asking that too, so don’t feel bad). Adam Morton has you covered:
A quadrangular ray-like species, it has survived in brackish water on the bottom of Macquarie harbour – an immense body of water on Tasmania’s sparsely populated west coast – for tens of thousands of years. It is not found anywhere else.
And it is under threat from the Tasmanian salmon industry – the remaining population has almost halved in the past decade in Tasmania’s Macquarie harbour, the only place in the world where it still exists.
So, the environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, is taking the first captive-laid egg live birth as a win.
The hatchling broke through her shell on 10 July, after seven months of incubation in the University of Tasmania’s Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies (Imas). She’s expected to play a very big role in the ongoing captive breeding program which has Plibersek excited:
On Threatened Species Day last year, I announced over $2.1m to initiate this captive breeding program – part of the $5.7m in Albanese government funding to help protect the skate.
It is fantastic news that the University of Tasmania has achieved such great outcomes in such a short time.
Plibersek says the “battle is by no means won” and the government would be working with the industry to restore the health of the Tasmanian harbour. The Greens’ oceans spokesperson and Tasmanian senator, Peter Whish-Wilson, says that should be the priority:
This is heartening news for scientists who’ve worked hard to ensure the Maugean skate avoids imminent extinction, but captive-bred skate still need a healthy home to return to & sadly their last remaining habitat is being destroyed by a polluting & toxic salmon farming industry.
This is heartening news for scientists who've worked hard to ensure the Maugean skate avoids imminent extinction, but captive-bred skate still need a healthy home to return to & sadly their last remaining habitat is being destroyed by a polluting & toxic salmon farming industry. pic.twitter.com/ssa7qnJvI2
— Peter Whish-Wilson (@SenatorSurfer) August 13, 2024
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Advocates say claims free-to-air TV totally reliant on gambling ad revenue are ‘nonsense’
The chief advocate for the Alliance for Gambling Reform, Rev Tim Costello, has also taken aim at Bill Shorten’s claim that free-to-air commercial media was reliant on gambling ad revenue and needed to be considered.
Shorten’s comments (which isn’t a new concept, but was the most plainly a government minister had voiced them) on the ABC overnight have been echoed by other government MPs this morning, about finding the ‘balance’. Costello says that is “nonsense”:
No, they are not totally reliant. Kerry Stokes’s Seven … To say that Seven, with all its AFL gambling ads is totally reliant, is a nonsense. Nine, its balance sheet is still in the blue and Nine journalists in the Fairfax Media or in the Sydney Morning Herald have been speaking out, saying yes, we actually do think there should be a blanket ban. Murdoch, Rupert Murdoch can look after himself with Foxtel.
So this argument of Bill Shorten’s is … nonsense, economically.
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Here is independent MP Zoe Daniel at the earlier press conference the gambling reform alliance held, for those who missed it.
Murray Watt says opposition and Greens running ‘delay tactics and political games’ on CFMEU laws
Workplace minister Murray Watt has spent the morning laying out the government attack lines on the (likely) delay to the CFMEU administration legislation passing through the Senate:
It’s incredibly frustrating to see more delay tactics and political games from an opposition and the Greens who’ve been talking about needing to clean up work sites, inject better culture and now have the opportunity to do so.
It is really important that we get this legislation passed. I think all Australians are really disturbed by the constant revelations that keep on coming out, including more today about thuggery, bullying, intimidation and in its worst examples, criminality and corruption that unfortunately have infiltrated this union.
We need legislation to reform this union and ensure that it gets back to focusing on its members’ interests rather than some of the activity that’s been going on.
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Party room meetings are over – news soon
The party room meetings are breaking up, so we will have updates on what went on very soon.
The Greens were making the decision on how they would treat the government’s CFMEU administration bill, so we will have that answer shortly.
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Thank you to Emily Wind for jumping in for that hour while I worked on another project – you have Amy Remeikis back with you now through to after question time.
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Move to strengthen laws for robodebt investigations
The Albanese government is expediting changes to public service laws this week after former agency heads argued robodebt-related investigations launched against them cannot continue because they no longer work for the bureaucracy.
The finance minister, Katy Gallagher, has announced powers allowing the Australian Public Service Commission (APSC) to investigate department and agency bosses will be tightened up to ensure they can be “held to account”
The APSC is due to reveal the outcomes of its year-long investigation into 15 former and current public servants accused of breaching the code of conduct for their role in the robodebt scheme. During the inquiries, Gallagher revealed some former agency heads had argued that alleged code of conduct breaches could not be investigated because the laws did not expressly say so.
The finance minister said the changes would ensure former agency heads suspected of code of conduct breaches would be treated in the same manner as current and former APS employees.
This legislation will ensure that senior public servants are clearly accountable for their actions as public service leaders, even after leaving their roles.
The robodebt scheme was a shameful chapter of public administration. It pursued debt recovery against Australians who in many cases had no debt to pay. Where appropriate, those involved from the public service must be held to account. We want to make sure a scheme like this can never happen again.
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NSW premier shuts down push for Anzac Day pokie ban
An attempt to ban pokies on Anzac Day has been shut down by the NSW premier, AAP reports, despite his recent move to outlaw retail trade on the national public holiday.
Independent MP Alex Greenwich is now also proposing shutting down pokie rooms in casinos, pubs and clubs on 25 April.
Under the amendment, to be moved in state parliament today, the traditional Anzac Day pursuit of playing two-up would be spared from the ban.
The proposal has the support of anti-gambling advocates and other crossbench MPs – including Wakehurst MP Michael Regan and Lake Macquarie MP Greg Piper – as well members of the Greens and the Animal Justice Party.
Wesley Mission’s chief executive, Stu Cameron, said powering down pokies on Anzac Day was the “decent and most respectful thing to do”, especially since veterans experienced disproportionate levels of gambling harm.
But the premier, Chris Minns, said people traditionally gambled on Anzac Day and it was up to individuals to make their own decisions:
I completely acknowledge people have concerns about widespread, ubiquitous use of poker machines. Even if we did close down other forms of gambling on the day, two-up is still legal in NSW ... I’m not saying this is perfect, but I think that this is a commonsense decision.
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Rich getting richer amid calls to narrow wealth divide
Moving away from politics for a moment to bring you a new report, which claims ordinary Australians are struggling to make ends meet while the richest enjoy billions in untaxed capital gains.
As AAP reports, the wealth of Australia’s richest 200 people almost tripled as a proportion of national gross domestic product over the past two decades, according to an Australia Institute analysis of the Financial Review’s Rich 200 list.
“Australia is getting more unequal,” said David Richardson, a senior research fellow at the thinktank. The wealth of those on the list rose from the equivalent of 8.4% of national GDP in 2004, to 23.7% of GDP by 2024, the institute’s analysis indicates.
Growing economic inequality is making life worse for millions of Australians and holding our country back.
It’s harder to realise our collective potential and grow the economic pie when millions of Australians are being forced to fight for crumbs that fall from the tables of the wealthy.
The institute estimates the failure to fully tax realised capital gains in 2023/24 cost the government $19bn in foregone revenue. It is calling for more comprehensive capital gains tax, an annual wealth tax and the introduction of a wealth transfer tax on inheritance.
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Independent MP says Shorten has ‘got it wrong’ on gambling ad ban position
Independent Goldstein MP Zoe Daniel says that Bill Shorten has “got it wrong” when it comes to the ban on gambling ads.
As Amy reported earlier, Shorten has suggested that a blanket ban on gambling advertising – as recommended in the Murphy report – would harm free-to-air commercial media.
In a video shared to X, Daniel said, “Sorry Bill Shorten, but you’ve got it wrong” and called on him to implement the blanket ban:
I love sport and I also value the media, but our first responsibility is to protect people, especially our children, from the avalanche of gambling ads – not to protect the gambling and the media companies, and the sporting codes.
If we need to talk about the profitability of the media companies and supporting journalism, let’s have that conversation. But they can’t continue to profit from gambling ads that are causing untold harm to our communities and creating a new generation of gamblers.
Labor minister Bill Shorten told #qanda on the ABC that Australians will keep seeing gambling ads because the big media companies need the cash.
— Zoe Daniel MP (she/her) (@zdaniel) August 12, 2024
Sorry Bill, we are not having it. pic.twitter.com/zT7woXe1fT
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Why did police not support raising the age to 14?
Shane Patton responded:
Without going into it, blow by blow, the reality is – and I have publicly stated before – we had concerns about the significant levels of offending by those higher-aged group in that cohort.
Patton said he’s less concerned about offenders aged 10 and 11.
They’re committing much less serious offences, albeit there are some serious offences there, it’s something that we believe we’ll be able to manage.
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Allan says decision to walk back raise the age commitment wasn’t made under her leadership
On the decision to walk back from the commitment to raise the age to 14, Victorian premier Jacinta Allan said the decision wasn’t made under her leadership.
… The bill that is before … the legislative council this week raises the minimum age of criminal responsibility to 12. We are the first state jurisdiction in the country to make this change. Twelve is where it will stay.
And in terms of last year to this year, the decision had been made at a different time by a different government with a different premier. The decision has been made by the government to keep the minimum age of criminal responsibility to 12, to maintain a focus too on the child.
That is what the youth justice bill reforms are about, keeping a focus on the child, strengthening where we need to around that high- risk serious offending, but also too looking at how we can divert young people away from a life of crime.
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Victorian police commissioner welcomes shelving of plan to raise age of criminal responsibility to 14
Just circling back to the Victorian press conference, after the state government announced it was walking back its commitment to raise the age of criminal responsibility. The police commissioner, Shane Patton, said he welcomes the changes, and told reporters:
I would forecast that we would see more people being remanded, a harder approach on those hig-end offenders, as the attorney has said, those who are committing aggravated burglaries, those young people who are driving up the freeway at high speeds, they’re the ones we’re targeting. They’re the ones that we see these laws will impact on, and I would think that we will see more people being remanded for those offences until we can address the root causes of why they’re committing those offences.
We will work with government and continue to do so, but as I say, from our point of view, we welcome these amendments.
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Australian Submarine Agency says Aukus nuclear risk arrangement ‘consistent’ with country’s aims
The Australian Submarine Agency has defended the federal government’s agreement to shoulder responsibility for nuclear risks as part of the Aukus pact with the US and the UK.
Under a new treaty document tabled in parliament yesterday, Australia will indemnify the US and the UK “against any liability, loss, costs, damage or injury” arising from nuclear risks “connected with the design, manufacture, assembly, transfer, or utilisation” of any of the material and equipment.
An ASA spokesperson told Guardian Australia last night that the arrangement was “consistent with Australia’s commitment to being a sovereign and responsible steward of naval nuclear propulsion technology that will ultimately be owned and operated by Australia”. They said:
The indemnity reflects the activities that the UK and the US will undertake on Australia’s behalf under the Aukus partnership, including the US building a new Virginia-class submarine and the UK manufacturing naval nuclear propulsion plants for the SSN-Aukus.
The spokesperson said the indemnity was “limited by appropriate exclusions”, including that it “does not apply where the UK or the US have received payment for the same liability from a third party”.
They said the UK and the US naval nuclear propulsion programs had “unmatched safety records” and therefore “the likelihood of the indemnity being called upon is remote”. For more details about the new Aukus treaty, see this story:
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To learn more about Victoria walking back its commitment to raise the age of criminal responsibility, our Benita Kolovos is all across it here:
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Premier says reforms will mean ‘stronger consequences’ for repeat offenders
Jacinta Allan says the amendments will mean “stronger consequences” for youth offenders accused of repeat, serious crimes. She says:
These reforms deliver action at both ends of the spectrum, taking that whole of justice system response, helping kids get back on track and ensuring repeat offenders face serious consequences. I look forward to working with our parliament this week … to pass these changes as a matter of urgency, because every serious offender should feel serious consequences.
And every Victorian should feel safe.
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Victorian Labor to drop pledge to raise age of criminal responsibility to 14 amid host of youth justice reforms
The Victorian premier (Jacinta Allan), attorney general (Jaclyn Symes), police minister (Anthony Carbines), youth justice minister (Enver Erdogan) and police commissioner (Shane Patton) are set to begin a press conference on youth crime.
As we reported earlier, the government will be announcing it is walking away from its commitment to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 14 by 2027. They are also announcing a suite of changes to their youth justice bill, which is being debated in the upper house this week.
They include:
Amending the Bail Act to make it explicit to bail-decision-makers that if there’s an “unacceptable risk” that a person could commit a serious crime if released that’s a “clear reason to refuse bail”.
The Bail Act will also be amended to specifically call out aggravated home invasion, burglary, car jacking, dangerous driving and family violence as examples of “unacceptable risk”.
Amending the Bail Act to clarify the ability of police to apply for bail to be revoked when people have committed further offences while on bail.
The creation of a new seperate offence of committing a serious crime while on bail. This offence was removed as part of bail changes that came into effect earlier this year.
The introduction of a new magistrate in the children’s court to specially deal with criminal cases of repeat youth offenders. This reform will be fast-tracked and in place by the end of the year, the government says.
The introduction of additional police prosecutors to manage repeat youth offenders.
A new “council on bail, rehabilitation and accountability” (dubbed Cobra) to keep track of youth offenders. Made up of experts, police and schools they will keep government informed about youth offenders past, what’s driving their behaviour and “how to stop the cycle”.
An audit of other measures introduced in the bill.
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Birmingham defends Aukus clauses
Liberal senator Simon Birmingham has defended the exit ramps which are contained in the Aukus agreement (information about the agreement was tabled by Richard Marles in the parliament yesterday). The US or UK can pull out of the agreement with a year’s notice.
Dan Hurst has gone into detail on what we know about the deal here.
But Birmingham was defending the exit clause:
Nothing that any country seeks to do with another country can be guaranteed in ten, 20, 30, 40, 50 years’ time. But what we are seeking to do here is to build sovereign capabilities in Australia in terms of our own nuclear-powered submarine capability industry and to establish that workforce here in Australia. But of course, to do it in tandem through that technology exchange.
And we have just as the US and the UK, such a long alliance with each of those countries, and we should have absolute confidence in the ability to deliver on this program.
We should never take a backward step from that ambition, and we’ve got to be charging ahead with it, and we have to be looking at it in the same type of time frame as the depth of that alliance has been before us.
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More on Labor’s ‘balanced approach’
It appears the government is doubling down on the “other considerations” side of the gambling ban.
Murray Watt:
I have an immense amount of respect for the work Peta Murphy did. She was terrific colleague, a really intelligent person who considered these issues very deeply. She and her committee did put forward some recommendations which we are now considering.
We haven’t made decisions at this point in time. We are consulting all of the stakeholders who’ve got an interest in it and I’m confident that the ministers responsible will be able to put forward a balanced approach that does something about this issue while recognising some of the other impacts that it would have.
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Murray Watt emphasises ‘balanced approach’ to gambling ad ban
Back to gambling and workplace minister Murray Watt also spoke to ABC Breakfast TV where he was asked about the government’s plans, and the criticism it wasn’t going far enough:
I think we need a balanced approach to the issue. I’m a father. I see gambling ads on TV a lot. I’d like something more done about it and I know that’s what Michelle Rowland and Amanda Rishworth are working on right now but we need to recognise it’s an important revenue source for free-to-air TV when it’s under immense pressure from social media.
It’s an important revenue source for sporting codes and that’s why we’re taking the time to think this through properly and come up with a workable solution that takes those issues into consideration.
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Pelosi criticises Keating comments on Taiwan as ‘Chinese real estate’
The ABC’s Sarah Ferguson has interviewed former House speaker and Democrat power broker Nancy Pelosi. The interview will air this evening on 7.30. But Ferguson was on ABC Breakfast TV this morning to give a little forward sizzle, broadcasting a comment Pelosi made in response to Paul Keating’s recent comment that Taiwan was “Chinese real estate”.
Pelosi:
You don’t want to get my description of him for saying that. That’s ridiculous. It is not Chinese real estate and he should know that. Taiwan is Taiwan and it is the people of Taiwan who have a democracy there. I think that that was a stupid statement.
I’ve no idea about Keating, but I think that it was a stupid statement to make, and I don’t know what his connection is to China that he would say such a thing. But it is really not in the security interest of the Asia-Pacific region for people to talk that way.
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Pocock: no evidence that gambling companies are good faith actors
There is the possibility that the Coalition will support Labor’s capped advertising plan (as it exists at the moment – the legislation has not been presented and is yet to go through cabinet) which would mean the crossbench and the Greens would not have any negotiating power (Labor and the Coalition in the senate is enough votes).
David Pocock said he will be supporting legislation that was based on late Labor MP Peta Murphy’s inquiry:
I’ll be supporting what the Murphy review recommended, which was a full ban phased in over three years.
That has the broad support of the parliament, and is what I’m hearing from people I represent here in the ACT [is] they are sick and tired of seeing gambling ads every time they try and watch something with their kids …
… the suggestion that these gambling companies are good faith actors, and … they’re just going to do the right thing and stop targeting young people, there’s no evidence to back that up.
We know that young people are routinely seeing gambling ads, and this has to stop.
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While we are on the subject of gambling ads and commercial media, it might be timely to remind you that the Guardian globally banned all gambling advertising in June last year.
That followed the ban on fossil fuel advertising which was put in place in 2020.
Guardian Australia editor Lenore Taylor wrote on the Guardian gambling ad ban here:
Pocock: free TV problems are solvable but we can’t put it ahead of gambling issues
Pocock said there were answers to the advertising issue, if the government wanted to do the work.
Sure, we need to ensure that free TV is thriving and looked after, but making the argument that we can’t tackle a social harm because of the effect will have on free TV?
If we want to deal with free TV, let’s, let’s, let’s look at that. And I think we need to also look at the whole picture here. We’re talking about $186m of revenue for TV out of $3.2bn of total advertising revenue.
So this is, this is not something that we can’t solve. And I refuse to agree with someone who says we need to put gambling interests and big companies ahead of everyday Australians, of the people that we actually here in Canberra to make decisions for. Not for industry, for Australians, and this is about social harm.
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Pocock dismisses Shorten comments on ad ban harming free-to-air broadcasters
David Pocock also took Bill Shorten to task over his comments on the Bad Show [Q&A] that a blanket ban on gambling advertising would harm free-to-air commercial media.
I don’t think Mr Shorten was on that inquiry.
When they handed down their report, there was not a single dissenting report or additional comments.
Labor fully endorsed that, and we’re seeing the pushback that Labor are getting from Australians who care about this, who care about their kids and grandkids, and we’re seeing the pushback that they’re getting from backbenchers who know that this is the right thing to do.
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David Pocock says no total gambling ad ban would be ‘complete betrayal’ of Peta Murphy’s legacy
Independent ACT senator David Pocock says if the government does not introduce a total ban to gambling advertising (phased in over three years as recommended by the Murphy review) it would be “a complete betrayal of Peta Murphy and her legacy”:
It’s a betrayal of Australians.
80% of Australians want this, and we have a government that doesn’t have the guts to actually stand up to the gambling industry, doesn’t have the imagination to actually work with TV to find a way to ensure that they are viable.
Pocock said Labor’s attitude towards the gambling ban was “summed up by reports this morning that a Labor backbencher, on the condition of anonymity, said that “sometimes you have to be brave”:
Just think about that – you’re anonymously saying that you need to be brave.
I thank Mike Freelander and [Dunkley MP] Jodie Belyea from Labor, Keith Wolahan, from the Libs. [Nationals MP] Pat Conaghan, they’re all speaking up. They know this is the right thing to do. We’ve seen former prime ministers come out, but where is the courage from this Labor government?
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Greens mull supporting Labor’s CFMEU laws
In the Greens party room meeting later this morning, the party will make its decision on whether to support the government’s CFMEU administration legislation.
The government has introduced legislation into the parliament to allow for an independent administrator to be appointed to the CFMEU after the union challenged the move in court.
Under the bill, union bosses who attempted to frustrate the process could face fines of almost a million dollars or two years in jail. Civil penalties are also listed for union branches not complying with the administrator. The bill sunsets in three years time.
The Coalition is pushing for an inquiry into the bill, which would delay its passage through the parliament. Sarah Hanson-Young says the Greens are considering the bill:
We only saw the legislation tabled in the Senate yesterday. So, we need to go through that. We’re looking at the details. We understand that the government has amendments to the bill they only tabled yesterday.
So look, we’re going to go through that. But let me be clear – I can see that something needs to be done. I can see that noone should be ... tolerating thuggery, violence misogyny in workplaces or organisations, and I feel very strongly about that. But we’ll go through this legislation.
We’ll wait to see what amendments the government is putting forward, and we’ll make our decision. But I’m not interested at all in giving misogynists a free ride in any workplace.
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Greens to push for gambling ad ban via communication bill
As Paul Karp reported yesterday, Sarah Hanson-Young and the Greens would amend some seperate communications bills already in the Senate to include a total advertising ban on gambling.
It’s time we stop this insidious industry from wrecking people’s lives. We did it with tobacco. And we need to do it with gambling. We don’t argue that cancer patients should carry the cost of funding news and funding sport because we banned tobacco advertising.
We should be making vulnerable children and families that are being torn apart because of gambling to do that as well.
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Greens say media is in trouble but gambling victims shouldn’t carry the costs
The Greens communications spokesperson, Sarah Hanson-Young, has spoken to ABC TV this morning following Bill Shorten’s Q&A appearance, accusing the government of “not showing enough spine to stare down these big gambling lobby groups who have had a free ride for far too long”.
Hanson-Young didn’t deny that commercial media was facing challenges. But she said the government needed to address the harm being done to people.
We know that media across the country is in trouble. There is a struggle with the big social media giants. But it shouldn’t be vulnerable children and those families that are being torn apart because of gambling that are forced to carry the cost.
And that is just ridiculous to suggest that vulnerable families, individuals who have gambling addictions, should be the ones who are carrying the can rather than finding a better way to support media in this country.
I mean, frankly, I don’t think that it is going to wash with the community.
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Labor to launch revamped federal digital ID system
The government services minister, Bill Shorten, will today announce a new federal ID system to be launched by the end of the year with “consent, choice and trust” at its heart.
In a speech to be delivered at the National Press Club on Tuesday, Shorten will unveil the proof of concept designed to give Australians the option to share select aspects of their identity and credentials with services and businesses using a government app.
The new digital ID system, which the government has invested $11.4m in to build and launch by 2024’s end, will be called Trust Exchange, or TEx for short.
Shorten will say the system would allow users to hand over only the necessary information, or none at all, through a digital wallet containing official information already held by the federal government.
For example, a person checking in at the hotel could store key information – such as passport or a driver’s licence – in the digital wallet and scan a code to hand specific details over to the hotel rather than allowing a business to scan your documents.
Shorten is expected to point to other examples where the system could work, such as verifying your age at a nightclub or your qualifications with an employer. The minister will say:
The token will be a valuable promise to the club, but of zero value to a cybercriminal because the confirmation token will not contain any personal information.
Shorten will say the technology is “brand new” and “world-leading” and opts for a carrot over stick approach.
The strength of TEx lies in its potential to give Australians control of their data that will rival the gold standard General Data Protection Regulation in Europe but without the regulation and complexity.
We’ll learn more after the minister’s speech begins at 12.30pm.
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Good morning
Happy Tuesday – also known as party room meeting day/the calm ahead of the storm.
Usually, Tuesdays are a flurry of activity quite early on and then a bit of a lull before the parliament sits at midday.
Today is also Bill Shorten day. The government services minister is chasing his Q&A appearance last night with a National Press Club address. He’ll be announcing a new digital national ID, with “consent, choice and trust” at the centre.
It’s very Shorten language to describe a system where the government holds a digital wallet where people can store their ID, but can opt to share tokens showing their ID has been verified rather than the ID itself. The idea is to cut down on the number of vendors who can hold your ID. He’ll have more in his speech later today.
Last night, Shorten was selling the government’s message on everything from cost of living to gambling reform on the ABC, so he is pretty primed for attention today. He all but confirmed the government won’t be going for a blanket ban on gambling advertising, as Peta Murphy’s inquiry called for, saying he “wasn’t convinced complete prohibition works”.
On that point, he and his Liberal sparring partner, senator Jane Hume were in agreement, with Hume saying it was all about “balance”.
Shorten also said the quiet part out loud when it came to some of the commercial media concerns around the ban: “Some of you might say, ‘well, bugger them, just don’t worry, we don’t need free-to-air media’ … but free-to-air media is in diabolical trouble,” adding a lot of that trouble was coming from “big tech” like Meta.
The Coalition has not ruled out supporting the government’s gambling legislation, which would mean negotiations with the crossbench and Greens would not be needed. Still, we all have to see it first. We are all told that negotiations are “ongoing”.
Meanwhile, in Perth, former prime minister Scott Morrison is expected to enter the witness box to give evidence in the defamation trial Linda Reynolds has brought against her former staffer, Brittany Higgins. Morrison is expected to be asked about some of the statements he gave at the time.
When it comes to Canberra, you’ll have Karen Middleton, Paul Karp, Daniel Hurst and Sarah Basford Canales covering the day. Mike Bowers is already up and about wandering the hallways and you have me, Amy Remeikis, with you on the blog for most of the day.
Ready? Let’s get into it.
