What we learned: Monday 25 March
That’s a wrap everyone, but before we sign off let’s recap the day’s main events:
The Albanese government announced details of its submission to the Fair Work Commission’s annual wage review, calling for the real wages of Australia’s low-paid workers to “not go backwards”.
The national security legislation monitor said laws may need paring back.
The Asio chief defended investigating journalists for potential threats to security.
A student called on MPs to ‘do their job’ to stop discrimination in schools.
The ombudsman found a Russian soldier documentary did not breach ABC standards and was not propaganda.
The Greens reshuffle moved McKim, Shoebridge to new roles.
Crossbench MPs joined the Australian Conservation Foundation in slamming the Albanese government’s offshore gas bill.
The assistant minister for trade, Tim Ayres said Australia has not supplied weapons to Israel for past five years.
The Greens lost a motion for a debate on the gas bill.
Catherine King accused the Liberals of having ‘glass jaw’ about low female representation.
Have a lovely evening!
Updated
Community legal centres overwhelmed and underfunded, peak body says
Hundreds of thousands of people are being turned away from underfunded and overstretched community legal centres, AAP reports.
Community Legal Centres Australia released its latest snapshot of operations, A Sector in Crisis, on Monday, which estimates that more than 350,000 people had been turned away in the past financial year.
Community Legal Centres Australia chair Gerard Brody says legal centres have been saying they are at breaking point for some time.
People are missing out on the help they need to prevent problems getting worse and to make it through crisis.
Local legal services are being forced to limit programs, cut off waiting lists and some are struggling just to keep their doors open under the current funding arrangements.
When communities lose their local legal services, it hurts everyone living and working in that community.
Updated
RMIT staff begin week of strikes
University staff at Melbourne’s RMIT have walked off the job for a week in a bid for better wages and working conditions amid the cost-of-living crisis.
Staff massing on Bowen Street as #RMITStrikes. 1000 days of waiting for a new deal is way too long - shame on @RMIT! #HigherEd #universities https://t.co/1LijXhbQWO pic.twitter.com/ZlJ8007eT0
— NTEU Victoria (@NTEUVictoria) March 25, 2024
The strike comes more than 1,000 days after the most recent enterprise agreement expired, and follows the rejection of a non-union ballot.
The National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) alleges the university’s management has refused to offer staff a decent pay rise, to ease workloads or to address insecure work.
RMIT NTEU members loud & proud #rmitstrike @NTEUVictoria @NTEUnion pic.twitter.com/x3M1ELo42j
— Alison Barnes (@AlisonBarnes25) March 25, 2024
NTEU Victorian division secretary Sarah Roberts says staff didn’t take the decision to strike lightly, noting it would lead to class cancellations.
The sort of bully-boy industrial tactics RMIT has tried to use against staff have no place in any workplace let alone Victoria’s public universities.
A spokesperson for RMIT said it respected NTEU members’ right to take protected industrial action and the university’s priority was on “ensuring continuity of teaching and support to our students”.
We have contingency plans in place to ensure minimal disruption. We are absolutely committed to progressing bargaining in good faith as quickly and efficiently as possible to reach a positive outcome for our staff.
Updated
Nationals’ Coulton ‘disappointed’ inland rail making little headway, blames Labor’s King
Nationals MP Mark Coulton has admitted he is disappointed the inland rail has not progressed further during his time representing the electorate of Parkes in Canberra.
Coulton, who today announced he will not contest his seat at the next federal election, is speaking with ABC’s Afternoon Briefing about his career.
In his maiden speech Coulton demanded two projects happen, an expressway over the Blue Mountains and the inland railway. The first hasn’t made any progress at all while the second project has stalled because of serious concerns about how the line will affect adjacent communities.
Coulton admits he is “disappointed” and criticises the infrastructure minister Catherine King:
I am very concerned that this minister has taken the course she has. The [Dr Kerry] Schott report that she instigated did not say that the project should be slowed up, it didn’t say it was in the wrong place, but the minister, sadly, doesn’t seem to have the vision and drive it takes to be a minister to drive a project like this. I think it will succeed, it will get there in the end because it makes perfect sense.
Of course, many of the people affected by the project say the opposite. Check out Guardian Australia’s interactive feature to listen to what those communities have to say:
Updated
South Australia Liberal leader Speirs says party should consider copying ALP’s formalised factional system
Onto state politics where South Australia’s Liberal party has pledged internal changes after a disappointing by-election result.
Ballot counting is still under way in Adelaide’s eastern suburbs seat of Dunstan but early signs point to an historic loss for the Liberals, AAP reports.
With about one-third of votes still to be counted, Labor’s Cressida O’Hanlon holds a 3.8% two-party preferred lead over Liberal candidate Anna Finizio after a 4.4% swing.
If confirmed, it would be the first time a South Australian opposition party has lost a seat to the government in 116 years.
South Australian opposition leader David Speirs acknowledged the disappointing result but said he wasn’t going anywhere. He told ABC Radio today:
I have canvassed many of my colleagues over the last 48 hours ... and my colleagues were firmly supportive of me continuing in this role.
But he said change was needed after the surprise swing. The party should consider emulating Labor’s system of formalised factions as a more structured approach to organising, he said.
Now, we haven’t made a decision on that ... but it’s something we should look at because I look at the discipline of (Premier) Peter Malinauskas’ party and the way it binds different groups together and I envy that.
Updated
Good afternoon! And thank you Amy for – as ever – a very lively blog.
I will hand the blog over to Natasha May who will guide you through the evening’s news.
We will be back early tomorrow morning with the second day of this parliament sitting, which is also the second last one before the autumn break.
Until tomorrow, please take care. Ax
Updated
Offshore gas bill never intended as ‘exemption’ for resources sector to nature positive reforms, King says
The resources minister, Madeleine King, has responded to criticism of Labor’s offshore gas bill, addressing a central concern that if the environment minister disagrees with changes to regulation, that by itself does not invalidate it.
A spokesperson for King says:
If there is disagreement between the two ministers, the regulations could still be validly made. However, if that were to happen then companies would be required to seek separate environmental approvals through both the OPGGS Act and the EPBC Act. Therefore, the Minister for Environment retains the right to effectively snap off the existing streamlining arrangement in place.
The bill is not and was never intended as an exemption for the resources sector to nature positive reforms. Nature positive will require the regulator NOPSEMA to adopt the National Environmental Standards in future. The Greens need to stop peddling misinformation about this bill for their own political gain.”
Updated
Voice of youth missing from law reform commission’s report on religious discrimination, expert says
We are going to be talking for quite some time about the religious discrimination issue and the Australian law reform report into whatshould be done.
But RMIT professor, Anna Hickey-Moody, who is an expert in youth studies, thinks the voice of students is missing from the debate.
The proposed changes offer very little protection for same sex attracted youth in religious schools.
Despite the fact that the Australian Law Reform Commission states ‘students are at the centre of this inquiry’, the methods they have employed unfairly marginalise youth experiences.
Over 40% of Australian secondary students attend religious schools.
However, in assessing the impact of the current religious discrimination legislation, the ALRC spoke mainly to adults.
They assessed 428 written submissions, only one of which was from a minor.
The ALRC also undertook 131 interviews with consultees, all of whom were over 18.
They included students in their survey – but they had over 25,000 responses from adults in the sector and under 15,000 responses from young people.
How can this be seen as placing students ‘at the centre’?
The voices and experiences of queer religious young people have been largely excluded from this process and this is a significant flaw in the process.”
Updated
Government not likely to deal with university loan indexation before new FY
Around the ‘smile’ discourse in Jason Clare’s answer on university loans, was seemingly this admission that the government won’t be acting in time to address the issue of indexation before the new financial year.
We want to make sure that more Australians get a crack at going to university. That is what the Universities Accord is all about. One of the central recommendations in that report, as I said in answer to the member for Ryan’s question last week, was about how we make HECS or what we now call HELP fairer and simpler. We are considering those recommendations at the moment and will respond in the next few months.
🚨Sounds like govt & @JasonClareMP are not going to do ANYTHING to make HECS indexation fairer before the next indexation date of 1 June 2024 despite the cross bench asking them to address this in May 2023! Simple solution is move the indexation date to Oct 2024 now! #qt #auspol
— 🌏 Zali Steggall MP (@zalisteggall) March 25, 2024
Updated
Regions, outer suburbs expected to benefit from new university study hubs
Ten new regional university study hubs will be rolled out across Australia as part of a federal government commitment to boost tertiary attainment for students living outside urban centres.
The new sites, spread across the Northern Territory, South Australia, Queensland, Tasmania, Western Australia and Victoria, add to three dozen already operating, with more flagged to come.
Establishing study hubs was a key recommendation of the University Accord to provide better access for First Nations students, students with disability, those from lower socio-economic backgrounds and first-in-family university students.
Minister for education, Jason Clare, says the accord makes it clear more people from regions and outer suburbs need to get a university qualification.
We know that postcode is a massive barrier for young people getting that chance. The evidence is that where university study hubs are, university participation goes up.”
The Australian Technology Network of Universities and Universities Australia (UA) have backed the reforms, with UA’s chief executive officer Luke Sheehy urging Labor to prioritise further measures to boost university participation in the upcoming federal budget.
Updated
When you smile the whole world smiles with you
But the sparring between Jason Clare and Peter Dutton’s wasn’t quite that benign:
Updated
A picture is worth a thousand words
Here is how Guardian Australia’s Mike Bowers saw QT:
Dan Tehan gets thrown out under 94A
Peter Dutton attempts to smile again
Anthony Albanese looks quizzical
Jim Chalmers carries a lot of papers
Updated
Shorten concerned about how parliament’s Great Hall is used for private events
Bill Shorten continues and says that the organiser was approached on the night by Nine journalist Andrew Probyn who asked him about “falsely promoting” Shorten’s attendance on the night.
At that point, Mr Singh evacuated the Great Hall and barricaded himself in a cupboard or a bathroom, I’m not sure which.
For the benefit of the house I table that transcript from the news package as well.
Shorten has made a complaint to the ACCC and wants the Speaker to look into the use of the Great Hall for the event.
I‘m concerned about the reputational risks of the Parliament of Australia to allow such events to be hosted on its premises. Would you please provide an update at your earliest convenience as to what can be done to prevent this happening again.
Milton Dick is looking into it.
Updated
Shorten says private NDIS event attendees felt ‘justifiably’ misled about his role as keynote speaker
Following that, NDIS minister Bill Shorten gives a lengthy personal explanation about a private NDIS event that was held in the Great Hall of the parliament on 22 March, which billed Shorten as a keynote speaker.
Shorten says he had advised the organiser, Devinder Singh, a month before that he would not be attending, but says attendees were not advised until the day of the conference.
Shorten:
The event was promoted as having myself providing the keynote speech and interview. However, this is despite the Department of Social Services providing advice to the organisers on the 27th of 28th of February the month before that I would not be attending and then again on the 7th of March, writing to the organiser asking that marketing materials be updated to reflect this. DSS noted in their correspondence that it was imperative that attendees and prospective attendees are accurately informed about speakers at the conference.
… However, in subsequent promotional material for the event, the organisers continued to market my appearance.
Attendees were being charged $185 to attend online, and $700 to attend in person.
Shorten says his staff were told that vendors paid up to $4,000 to have space at the event and were told that not only would Shorten be speaking, but they would have access to him.
As the Australian disability community knows, the government and I’ve been traveling around the country hosting NDIS reviews in town halls, all for free.
My staff personally spoke to attendees outside the event on Friday morning where many were still under the impression I’d be attending and giving the keynote address. The attendees understandably felt misled. This is also reflected in the multiple disappointed attendees who posted comments on my LinkedIn [page]. Many attendees justifiably feel misled, have sought refunds from this conference organiser, and they should be refunded, in my opinion.
Updated
Parliamentary Clerk Assistant James Catchpole is retiring
He receives a standing ovation from the house.
You would probably recognise him as one of the attendants who sit in front of the Speaker – he ends up in a lot of the parliamentary footage and has been a firsthand witness to some of the parliament’s biggest moments.
Catchpole receives an ovation from the house, which he acknowledges with a head nod.
Updated
King accuses Liberals of having ‘glass jaw’ about low female representation
It seems like question time has been extended to allow for this dixer:
How will Labor tax cuts benefit Australian women and why is it important to have women in the room when governments make these decisions? What happens when women are not included?
Catherine King then goes through the Liberal preselection processes:
… you have to wonder, is that because of the inability to preselect women and have women in the party room?
Sussan Ley is not happy with the direction this is taking:
The practice is clear, ministers can be asked about matters not the political parties and not other political party’s actions or purported actions.
King continues:
When women are not in the room, these decisions do not get made. We had Senator [Jane] Hume in her review of the Liberals 2022 election campaign, she found the Liberal Party had the lowest number of women in their parliamentary ranks since 1993.
But when faced with the prospect to do something about this, to preselect a woman, they went for the same bloke who lost the seat last time.
When given the choice between a far-right conspiracy theorist and a woman, they chose the conspiracy theorist.
Ley asks for another ruling and Milton Dick tells King to stick to the question.
King:
They seem to have a glass jaw on this issue. I wonder why they are so sensitive about this issue. On this side of the house we know that it matters having women in the cabinet room, in our party room, we know it matters having a majority of women in government because that means the decisions that we make – paid parental leave, improving child care, making sure we build good retirement income for women – it matters when women are in the room.
Question time ends.
Updated
Fuel efficiency gets thrown into the mix
The chamber is a bit of a mess, but for some reason we are still going.
Angus Taylor is now up and he asks about the fuel efficiency standard.
Toyota has said Labor’s [fuel efficiency standard] will cause price rises that will rationalise company offerings and it will have a huge impact on not just trade but farmers, families, remote area workers and many more. Why are Australian families facing higher prices and fewer choices because of this government’s policy?
Chris Bowen goes through the usual spiel but Taylor asks: ‘Have you been rolled?’ (There are reports Labor’s fuel efficiency standards will not be as strident as first put forward).
Updated
I have no quarrel with you, good Sir Knight, but I must cross this bridge
The Gen X is strong in the chamber today.
We had Little Britain earlier, and now we have Monty Python.
Ed Husic:
When asked whether there are different views on that side, always negative, always nasty all the time but they are celebrating an anniversary today. It was 10 years ago today when the Coalition brought in knights and dames, as absurd as Monty Python’s knights …
Just waiting for someone to mention Seinfeld and we will have the Gen X trifecta, where I assume the chosen Gen Xer will be found – one Gen Xer to be forgotten by all.
Updated
Greens leader asks about resources bill that would ‘weaken voices of traditional owners’
Adam Bandt gets the next non-dixer and asks:
Labor promised to strengthen environment laws and backed the Uluru Statement, but after big gas corporations … complained about traditional owners winning court cases, Labor is waving a bill through the house that gives the resources minister the power to override federal court decisions and remove additional protections. Why is Labor working with the Liberals to approve new projects, and weaken the voices of traditional owners?
Madeleine King (after a preamble):
What we’re doing right now is making sure consultation provisions are indeed improved so they are clearer for everyone concerned, be they owners or the wider community that hosts these projects, or has concerns over them no matter where they are from.
This is the point of the consultation we are undertaking now. We have extended it and many people have submitted to it.
This Senate inquiry last week revealed that traditional owners, as well as the wider community, as well as of course proponents, are frustrated by the lack of certainty around the consultation provisions as they now stand.
I am of the view, and this government, that we would rather pursue reform to make it more certain through legislation, rather than let this endless lawyers’ picnic continue.
You may shake your head, member for Melbourne, but the truth is the Greens political party would prefer lawyers to get a lot of money pursuing this through the courts and wasting everybody’s time - wasting the courts’ time, I might add, rather than leading environmental regulators look over proposals and make sure that consultation is required to be face-to-face, has guardrails around it, introduces certainty for everybody.
Not just, you know, bits of pieces of who has interest on money, to go to court, who has access - millionaires go to courts, as you well know, and publicly funded bodies to get donations from rich international trusts - they go to process these through the courts. I want to end the lawyers picnic, and stop the - they are dodgy.
Updated
Chris Bowen says vehicle efficiency standards consultation ‘very close to conclusion’
The LNP’s Michelle Landry asks Chris Bowen a bit of a franken-question:
The minister said Labor’s new family car and ute tax is bringing Australia into line with United States status by 2028. The Biden administration has abandoned its original policy with fear that it would increase the price of new cars for families. Why are Australian families facing higher prices and fewer choices because of his government’s failed energy policies?
Bowen:
A lot in there, but I will focus on the new vehicle efficiency standards. On this side of the house, we have had enough of Australian motorists being second-class citizens. They have been the dumping ground for motoring companies sending out to Australia [what] they aren’t able to send to other countries.
What the minister for transport and I have been doing is a very similar process to that taken by the previous government when they thought about doing this, Mr Speaker.
Putting out a preferred model and consulting on it. That is what we have been doing. That consultation is very close to a conclusion. We will have more to say. We have looked at the United States as part of that.
But the difference is, when the member for Bradfield was consulting on his model he got rolled and they rolled over the policy. They were happy to have Australian motorists treated at the back of the queue for the world’s motoring companies, and we aren’t.
We believe we should have similar status to the rest of the world and we got out of the G2 of Australia and Russia, the only two countries without vehicle efficiency standards.
Updated
Victoria police assistant commissioner caught speeding says he is ‘mortified’
A Victoria police assistant commissioner responsible for road policing says he’s “truly sorry” after he was caught speeding.
In a statement issued on Monday, Victoria police confirmed Road Policing assistant commissioner Glenn Weir was detected speeding on 29 February in Parkville while driving to a meeting.
They said a mobile speed camera detected Weir’s unmarked police vehicle travelling at 58km/h in a 50km/h zone on Manningham Street at 10.55am.
According to police, Weir was of the belief he was in a 60km/h zone at the time.
He received notification of the fine on Friday and although eligible for a warning due to his good driving record, he said he will pay the $337. Weir will also receive one demerit point.
He said in a statement:
I take full responsibility for this error and am mortified it has occurred. I’ve spent my entire career advocating for road safety and this incident proves nobody is immune from making a mistake on the road. No matter how far over the limit, all speeding is unacceptable.
For someone in my position this is especially true. I am truly sorry.
Updated
Jason Clare took a question on tertiary education costs from independent MP Dai Le, but the answer dissolved into a back and forth with Peter Dutton.
Clare:
Are you smiling? Are you smiling? Are you smiling?
… I have never seen you so happy. Smile a bit more.
… Now he is angry. Like a try-hard Tony Abbott, all the anger without the onion.
Paul Karp said Dutton had been heckling Clare over the first part of his answer (where he talks about growing up in Fowler) which is what led to the exchange.
You are so good. You’re unbelievably good. Tell us more about yourself. Tell us more about your first friendship.
(The answer was that is what the university accords are working on, which is the standard answer at this point of time)
Updated
Dixer on defence export agreement with Germany
Pat Conroy, the defence industry minister, takes a dixer to promote the news from last week that the German parliament had approved the acquisition of more than 100 Boxer Heavy Weapon Carrier vehicles from Australia.
Conroy says the deal - which was flagged last year when Anthony Albanese visited Berlin - is the largest defence export agreement in Australia’s history. The vehicles are to be built by Rheinmetall at its Military Vehicle Centre of Excellence in Redbank, Queensland.
Because this is a dixer, Conroy cannot resist taking aim at the Coalition. He says the shadow defence minister, Andrew Hastie, “took real glee” last year in suggesting that the export deal with Germany might be dead.
For the record, in July last year, Hastie accused the government of handling the relationship with Germany “very poorly”.
Hastie told Sky News that the decision to select a South Korean bidder for the infantry fighting vehicle project happened two weeks after the export deal with Germany was announced, “and we’re told that that deal with the Germans is now at risk – this is poor relationship management from the government”.
Then in September Hastie told Sky News saving the deal with Germany was emerging as “a test of leadership for Anthony Albanese” because “now it’s going to slip through his fingers”.
Updated
Labor asked about gas supply shortfall warning
LNP MP Cameron Caldwell (just had to check that as there is a trend of similar looking middle aged men filling the Coalition backbench) asks:
Labor’s energy policy is driving prices up and reliability down, as the Energy Market Operator revealed that gas generators might need to run on diesel to keep the power grid running and the lights on … during the looming catastrophic gas supply shortfall, this will add unnecessary costs to household and the users. And it will hinder efforts to cut carbon dioxide emissions. [Are] Australians facing high prices and fewer choices because of this governments failed energy policies?
Chris Bowen:
I’m not sure if he read the case statement of opportunities because if he had he might have asked the question differently because every statement of opportunities since 2013 has warned of shortfalls, every single year has warned of a shortfall from 2013 to 2022.
The difference is last week’s gas statements of opportunities pointed to the actions of this government … in the shortfall move out to the outer years.
The outer years – because of the gas code of conduct has been put in place by this government.
There was a vote on the gas code of conduct in the other house. And the Greens moved the disallowance of the gas code of conduct as is their want, I didn’t understand why because the gas code of conduct applies to domestic not international but the Greens knew that, they had support from Pauline Hanson’s One Nation and senator Babbett of the Palmer United party. A collision of some interesting persuasions there but they had the support and Senator Canavan and turn up and vote for the disallowance and the rest of the Liberal party because they didn’t want to support the code of conduct.
The fact of the matter is the gas code of conduct, like other policies that we put in place by the minister of resources and industry, the treasurer and I the prime minister, have been dealing with the situation of gas shortages that those opposite were warned about, they promised a gas led recovery and all they did was gaslight the Australian people for nine years.
Updated
Mark Butler on vaping legislation
Butler took a dixer on vaping legislation so he could say:
The bill introduced last week will outlaw the supply, the manufacturer and the commercial possession of vapes in this country other than the genuinely therapeutic reasons. To those who say this amounts to probation, I say it is no more prohibition than the regulation of codeine in recent years.
Our extensive consultation around this shows health experts, parent groups and school community leaders expect decisive action from this parliament and that is why so many of them would have been so troubled by the report that [New Corp journalist] James Campbell wrote on the weekend that the opposition is planning to entrench vaping and milk it to fund their election policies. Milk it to fund election policies.
Paul Fletcher is not impressed with this straying off topic and Milton Dick sort of agrees, so Butler returns to the legislation, but he has got his point across so will be taking that as a win.
Updated
Marles takes dixer on Aukus
Richard Marles takes a dixer to do the usual “compare and contrast”. The defence minister says his government’s Aukus announcement last week was “really positive” but the opposition “cannot avoid playing politics”.
Marles says the A$4.6bn (£2.4bn) that Australia would send to the UK over the next 10 years would enable the expansion of the Rolls-Royce nuclear reactor production line at Derby (but the government has not yet spelled out exactly what it will fund in more detail).
Marles says contrary to claims by the opposition late last week, all of this money was “fully provided for in the allocation that was part of the initial Aukus announcement last year”.
Updated
Milton Dick stops PM during answer because he says Peter Dutton is yelling at him
Dick:
The leader of the opposition continually yelling at me has never happened at all before from the position of the leader of the opposition. It has to stop. If the leader of the opposition wishes to take a point of order he shall always receive the call. That is the appropriate action rather than simply yelling at me.
Dutton:
The prime minister was asked a very tight question. There are families who just can’t work out how they can pay their bills under this government at the moment, and we get a glib response from the prime minister. I ask whether it is your ruling that the prime minister is relevant to the question he has been asked.
The question Dutton had asked Albanese was:
The prime minister promised on 100 occasions to the Australian people before the election that he would cut power prices by $275. He has never mentioned that figure since. At the moment, 500 families a week enter into energy hardship arrangements because they cannot pay their bills, a nearly 60 per cent increase on Labor’s watch. Will the prime minister apologise to struggling families?
Albanese went into the “22 different energy policies” answer, along with the Coalition voting against the energy bill relief, which is what has Dutton so annoyed.
Updated
Chris Bowen tells Coalition ‘bring on the debate’ over nuclear
Bowen continues on his favourite topic:
They have dropped their small modular reactor policy. $14 billion dollars for one nuclear reactor. So now they have a large nuclear reactor policy, six of them around the country, but the poster child is Hinckley C in the United Kingdom, which has committed $86 billion.
It is that genius policy to put downward pressure on prices.
They said it would see bills go down. $86 billion a pop!
For one reactor! And they want six!
Bring on the debate.
Updated
Chris Bowen continues with his answer:
I imagine, Mr Speaker, we could have quite a debate about energy bill before the next election. Quite a debate, because government policy is very important when it comes to energy bills. Govern policy can impact bills. For example, if a government chose to bring in the most expensive form of energy available, Mr Speaker. Which would be nuclear energy, Mr Speaker! We have seen the opposition drop their small modular reactor policy….
Dan Tehan has a point of order on relevance, because NATALIE WANTS TO KNOW WHEN SHE WILL GET HER $275 CHEAPER POWER BILL!
Milton Dick is not playing today. He has his Headmaster Dugald hat on:
The question wasn’t that. The question was why are Australians facing higher energy prices? Natalie was mentioned as part of that question. That’s the question, right? I’m dealing with the member for Wannon. That’s the question. It is incorrect to get up and just simply say what you would like to say. So the minister is dealing with the end part of the question.
So he is honestly disagreeing with that part of the question and he will answer it accordingly.
(There is a beat)
I assume.
Coalition presses Labor on power prices
Liberal MP Tony Pasin summons Chris Bowen to the despatch box with:
A cafe owner, Natalie, in my electorate, is at breaking point. She said ‘It is the worst it has been in my seven years of running the business’. The minister repeatedly promised to cut prices by $275*, but energy bills are up $288 for South Australia businesses. Why are Australian families facing higher choices and fewer choices?
*By 2025.
Bowen:
I would have thought the honourable member would have welcomed the announcement last week by the Australian Energy Regulator that the regulated price of the default market offer for small businesses in South Australia would fall by 8.2 per cent, Mr Speaker.
Fall by 8.2 per cent. That is in the way it always goes. There was a default offer in 2022 they didn’t show a fall for small businesses in South Australia, but a 5.7 per cent increase for small businesses in South Australia. But to be fair for the honourable member, nobody knew. That was the effective policy of the government of the day, to keep it secret, to change the law so that nobody knew. A very cunning plan by the member for Hume to deal with higher energy prices, by keeping them secret.
Updated
Monique Ryan to Labor: ‘Why would you not support our clean-up politics act?’
Kooyong independent MP Dr Monique Ryan asks Mark Dreyfus:
At the National Press Club on the 12 October 2022, you said you would work hard to ensure that there is as much transparency as possible specifically around ministerial diaries. My clean-up politics act would require publication of all ministerial diaries for all Australians to see. Why would you not support our clean-up politics act?
Dreyfus:
Our government is, as she has indicated in the preamble to her question, completely committed to accountability, completely committed to integrity*. That is why we have reformed the administrative review system.
But when it comes to the suggestion that there should be some blanket categorisation under the Freedom of Information Act where any category of document is automatically available, we don’t accept that position. There should be a series of exemptions which are to be considered by decision-makers when requests are made for the release of government documents.
Those exemptions are set out in great detail in the Freedom of Information Act. They have served Australia well and will continue to do so.
They have served Australia. We are against the blanket categorisation of all documents available.
*There are very loud guffaws at this
Updated
Julian Leeser has a question on crime and the eSafety commissioner
Leeser:
I refer to the disturbing trend of people posting videos to social media that glorify crime, including an example of thugs invading people’s homes at night and terrified occupants being confronted and accosted by these criminals. The government support the Coalition’s bill … with criminal penalties for posting these videos and expand the powers of the eSafety Commissioner to deal with them, if not is that because the government believes that no action needs to be taken by the commonwealth?
Looks like we are taking the current state political obsession with youth crime and taking it into the federal sphere.
Michelle Rowland says:
Of course the top priority of this government is keeping Australians safe. That includes two things, firstly in relation to law enforcement authorities within states and territories but also obviously on the commonwealth-level, but also in terms of the online environment.
What governments, industry, regulators and civil society do in order to keep Australians safe online, and on that point I was very pleased on Friday to visit Riverbank public school in my electorate with the Madeline foundation [and see how the] $6 million allocated by this government is able to roll out a suite of tools in order to equip young people to be aware for the online environment.
The government shares concerns that young offenders are using social media to [promote] their criminal activities online. While we will consider the private members bill introduced today, I want to be clear to the house about some of the powers that exist under the online safety act which came into force when those opposite were in government.
The online safety act already provides that eSafety Commissioner with powers [over] material that would be refused classification in Australia including material that promotes or instructs people and of violence.
Furthermore, there are long-standing provisions in the telecommunications act and in the criminal code specifically, if it criminalises the use of a carriage service including by devices such as computers or mobile phones, to post menacing harassing or offensive content.
I do point out the role of eSafety in this regard and eSafety has established relationships and procedures with law enforcement agencies and social media platforms.
What this has done is enable a very efficient means of removing and referring concerning content to limit its bread and to protect victims, I understand from the eSafety Commissioner that the platforms are very responsive to law enforcement requests for the removal under this protocol.
Updated
Question time begins
Sussan Ley is up first today:
My question to the minister for Indigenous Australians. Given the unprecedented amount of violence in Indigenous communities following the government’s withdrawal of the Cashless Debit Card trial, what actions has the minister taken to restore order and protect vulnerable women and children, how much of the $250 million package for essential Australia announced by the minister in February 2023 has been spent and on what?
Linda Burney:
Just a reminder to her that the Cashless Debit Card trial is not in central Australia. It has never been in central Australia.
… I met with the leadership group in central Australia just two weeks ago and spoke to them and what their priorities were in terms of the expenditure, expenditure of that money, they are very keen to see resources go into young people and they also very keen to see resources go into some of the smaller communities around central Australia.
The investment of that $250 million is running very smoothly and as I reported to the house several weeks ago, it has been spent in terms of youth services. When we first came into government all of the youth services were about to fall off a cliff because it is not rubbish deputy, sorry leader, and we spent $20 million in terms of propping up those youth services. We invested also into family violence and made major investments in health, particularly in relation to the diagnosis of things like foetal alcohol syndrome and other neurological issues.
That is proving very resourceful. We have spoken just last week to the Northern Territory leader in relation to the rollout of particularly law and order in central Australia and finally can I just say through you Mr Speaker, that the announcements that were made last week by the Prime Minister goes very much to the heart of $4 billion additional in terms of housing for the Northern Territory which will have enormous roll-on effects in terms of child safety and child participation is in school.
The Minister of Education made a major investment in terms of education, 1,000,000-dollar commitment to getting the schools up to the Gonski standards in Northern Territory which was going to take by the way to 2050 but will happen in the next year or two
Updated
Labor MP Daniel Mulino used the last 90-second statement slot to try out a bit of standup comedy.
He took the “bitch and fold” technique and, like a true Gen Xer, tied it to a British comedy character. In this case Vicky Pollard:
Vicky Pollard is one of the great figures of modern British satire. You’ve all heard her ‘yeah but no but yeah’, it’s actually far more clever than people give Vicky credit for because she indicates initial assent, then she gives us a wiggle room and doesn’t overcommit. That’s the back. No.
Well, the opposition is like the reverse Vicky Pollard.
But unlike Vicky, they don’t start with yes. Of course they start with no. So for the opposition. It’s no but yeah, but no.
This is the opposition’s attempt to start negative, but then claim that all along now we’re actually in favour of what it is that actually works.
Let’s think of the tax cuts. What was their initial response to our revamped tax cuts? No. But when it came to the vote, what was it that year? No, but yeah.
Let’s think about real wages, a $1 increase in the minimum wage, No. An increase of 50% for aged care workers, No. Closing loopholes, double No. But when it came to it, they’re coming in every day and complaining that real wages aren’t high enough.
… At least Vicky Pollard is likeable and relatable. When you hear the yeah from the opposition, it follows a whole series of noes. And it’s those noes that people should take into account when they’re thinking about how those opposite things and most importantly, how they act.
Updated
Faruqi: ‘There’s crickets from the Labor government as Israel blocks food aid from reaching Palestinians in northern Gaza’
Just prior to question time, the deputy leader of the Greens, Mehreen Faruqi, issued a statement saying: “There’s crickets from the Labor government as Israel blocks food aid from reaching Palestinians in Northern Gaza.”
That follows claims by the aid agency Unrwa on Sunday that Israel had definitively barred it from making aid deliveries in northern Gaza, where the threat of famine was highest. The Unrwa head, Philippe Lazzarini, had said this move was “outrageous” and “makes it intentional to obstruct lifesaving assistance during a man made famine”.
The Israeli government has long said Unrwa cannot be part of the future in Gaza, and that international community should direct aid through other agencies.
Just over a week ago, when the Australian government reinstated funding to Unrwa, Penny Wong called on Israel to “allow more aid into Gaza now”. Israel denies blocking aid but our colleagues published this detailed guide over the weekend:
Updated
We are now just a few minutes out from the first QT for the week – and the third last one before the autumn break sees parliament adjourn until budget week.
Grab what you need.
Given the ‘dystopian future’ warning from Andrew Hastie (as one blog watcher pointed out, aren’t wind farms usually used as helping to depict a utopian society?) here is a photo gallery from 10 years ago, showing just how terrible the future could be.
Opposition accuse Labor of gagging them on draft religious discrimination legislation
The opposition is accusing Labor of gagging them from sharing the details of its proposed changes to religious discrimination laws, describing the situation as “absurd” and “reaching a farcical level”.
The shadow attorney general, Michaelia Cash, has called on the Albanese government to release the two draft bills as soon as possible, saying the process shouldn’t play out behind closed doors.
It was revealed early last week the government had two draft legislation in tow. One would amend the Sex Discrimination Act, presumably to repeal a controversial passage - section 38 - that gives religious schools blanket exemptions to discriminate on the basis of sexual and gender diversity among other things.
A second bill would introduce protections against religious discrimination within Australia – a promise years in the making since the Turnbull government passed laws legalising same-sex marriage.
But Anthony Albanese has said the bills won’t go ahead unless the Coalition agrees to offer its support to pass them. And we don’t know exactly what the bills are proposing to change because the government won’t release them publicly until it gains that support.
Cash said the opposition has copies of the draft legislation but have been sworn to secrecy over them.
Mr Albanese went to the election talking about transparency, but his government has failed to live up to his promises. We have copies of the government’s draft legislation, but we are not allowed to distribute it. We are allowed to speak with stakeholders about the legislation, but to our surprise and alarm it seems that many groups simply don’t know what’s in it.”
Cash said the opposition is working on tweaks to the proposed changes that take “faith communities forward, and not backwards”.
Last Thursday, the Australian Law Reform Commission’s report into the potential pathways on changes to the law was publicly released. It recommended repealing the blanket exemptions but added faith groups and schools should be able to preference hiring employees in line with their beliefs, so long as it is proportionate, “reasonably necessary” and does not breach discrimination laws.
Updated
The (complaining about) wind farms revolution
Isn’t it wonderful (as Sarah Basford Canales reminded me) how little things change in Australia:
Joe Hockey has repeated his criticism of the aesthetics of windfarms, saying he finds them “quite appalling” and that they detract from the beauty of Australia’s landscapes.
Speaking at a Bloomberg summit in Sydney on Tuesday, the federal treasurer replied in the affirmative when asked if he would repeat comments made to radio host Alan Jones that he finds the wind turbines around Lake George “utterly offensive”.
According to Renew Economy, the treasurer told the Sydney summit: “Renewable energy is hugely important, it’s a part of the fabric of development of a diverse energy supply right around the world.
“We have some beautiful landscapes in Australia, and frankly, putting up those towers is just to me, quite appalling in those places.
Just wait until these people see a coal mine!
Updated
Andrew Hastie rails against wind farms
“Destructive, dangerous, ugly” – WA Liberal Andrew Hastie opens his 90-second statement with what sounds like a Monday when you run out of coffee, but no. It’s wind farms.
Last weeks so-called consultation in Mandurah was nothing short of a charade, a tiny attempt to pacify my community while advancing the corporate interests of wealthy activist investors.
Locals were even told by a representative of a massive energy company which stands to profit from this project, that my opposition is quote, ‘interfering with democracy’.
They don’t want the truth out there. That the stunning beauty of our coastline will be damaged and compromised and the massive wind farm make our ocean look like a scene out of a dystopian science fiction movie.
There are massive sunk costs with this wind farm which will be paid for by Australian families and businesses and it will increase our energy dependence on a foreign power.
We’re not a laboratory for Labor’s radical energy policies or the vested interests of crony capitalists. This is our home. It’s our region and we will protect it
Updated
On gas emissions and WA
For some context about the gas bill now being debated in federal parliament, it’s worth pointing out how Western Australian greenhouse emissions are going.
WA is one of the big gas states and it has not been very active in trying to cut its carbon pollution, as we noted here earlier today:
For a state with about 10% of the nation’s population, its emissions are about 17% of Australia’s total. And in stark contrast to other states and the ACT, WA hasn’t bothered to come up with an overall emissions reduction target.
Yes, it would like the power sector to reach 80% renewables but it’s not a legislated target – and presently (and currently), clean energy is only supplying about one-third of the state’s power.
That’s despite being blessed with sun, wind, space and a state-owned grid ... much like Queensland, which has a 75% reduction goal on 2005 levels by 2035.
In other words, lift your game WA!
Anyway, the gas bill that Labor seems keen on will likely increase emissions in WA unless the extra fossil gas can be offset or sequestered. Don’t bet on early reductions soon.
Updated
Greens lose motion for debate on gas bill
And the division goes as expected and the Greens motion was lost.
The moves on to the main speeches for the Greens amendment, but it is pretty close to QT, which means that the house has to move to 90-second statements (the airing of the MP grievances/fate reports).
Updated
Greens set for defeat on gas debate motion in House
The House is dividing, but with Labor and the Coalition on a unity ticket here, the Greens motion will be defeated.
It’s not the end – there will be more pushback in the Senate – but if the Coalition continues its support, it will get through there without the need for the Greens or crossbench support as well, meaning the bill’s passage is pretty much a fait accompli.
Updated
The Greens’ Griffith MP, Max Chandler-Mather, has also spoken against the urgency of the gas bill the government is trying to get through the house without debate (the Coalition is in agreement here).
MCM tells the house:
Now, if the government claims that are this won’t do what the Greens are claiming, well then let it go through a committee process.
Let the experts come in, let’s actually properly scrutinise this, not trying to rush it through on a day when we’re already experiencing a massive climate catastrophe.
And it should be alarming to members of the public that stuff like this can happen without the proper scrutiny without the proper debate, but the government isn’t even willing to stand up and defend their own bill.
They tried to claim ‘well, there’s nothing to see here. Nothing’s changing. Don’t worry, we’re not really doing anything’.
Well, if that’s the case, why move the bill at all? But that’s the thing, right?
[If this bill won’t] change anything –well, if that’s the case, don’t change it. Because the reality is, is what this does, is at the behest of gas corporations like Santos is giving them more power to bulldoze over the top of First Nations students and those Australians who are trying their very best to stop the madness between the major parties who are in the middle of a climate catastrophe being caused by coal and gas, what they are doing is trying to open more of.
Future generations will remember this, they’ll look back at moments like this, and they think ‘what were you doing?’
This government should be ashamed that it is has fallen to the Greens to try and stop this madness.
Updated
Bandt calls Labor ‘climate con artists’ over ‘rushed’ gas bill
There is an increasing tension between the Labor government and the teal crossbench on issues like environment, transparency, economic and social issues.
The government is making it clear it wants to negotiate with the Coalition on a lot of these issues as part of the ‘middle of the road’ approach the Albanese government takes. Negotiating with a progressive Senate would mean going further than this government is comfortable with when it comes to these policy areas.
Why? Because politically, it leaves them open to attack from the Coalition, in an election year, that the government is a Labor-Greens alliance. And in some areas, this is still seen as an election killer.
(Which ignores that in other areas and demographics, it is a vote winner – but our politics hasn’t caught up on the duality of this yet. Both things can be true.)
The Green’s leader, Adam Bandt is becoming increasingly frustrated at the Greens being frozen out on these policies. On the attempt to rush the gas bill through the house, Bandt said:
Rather than let that [review] process finish and come back to us with a full package, about what you environment was in consultation provisions might look like, rather than do that, they’ve said, in the meantime, ‘no. What we want to do is slip this bill through, with no speakers from the Labor backbench having the guts to come up and even speak to it’.
And the Liberals offering the only speaker in support of it to say ‘this is great. It’s exactly the legislation that we want to pass this through. Quickly, please, please Parliament don’t notice it don’t scrutinise it. So that we can rewrite those consultation provisions and take away people’s rights. And hopefully no one will notice’.
Well the Greens have noticed, the crossbenchers have noticed. First Nations organisations have noticed, the environment groups have noticed, the climate groups have noticed that Labor are climate con artists trying to rush through a bill a week before Easter to remove First Nations’ right[s], while working with the climate deniers in the Coalition to fast-track gas projects.
Well we are here to call you out. You don’t even have the guts to come and speak to this bill, at the very least defer [it] ‘til you’re done your consultations
Updated
Australia has not technically exported ‘weapons’ to Israel, but it has permitted defence-related exports
Just a small point of explanation on my previous two posts: it is true that the government has repeatedly stated that Australia has not exported “weapons” to Israel for at least the past five years.
One reason it continues to be a point of debate is that Defence has also confirmed that it has issued more than 320 permits for Israel-bound defence exports since 1 January 2017.
Defence has repeatedly stated that this can include dual-use items (the government says such permits are “required for a broad range of goods and technologies such as software, radios or chemicals that have legitimate civilian and commercial applications”).
A major issue is that Defence has refused to be more specific about what it has approved. Some exporters have also marked their exports to Israel under the “arms and ammunition” category in official export figures.
More transparency would enable a more factually informed debate.
Updated
Bandt attempts motion on gas projects in House of Representatives
Over in the House, the Greens leader, Adam Bandt, is trying to suspend standing orders to discuss a motion on offshore gas projects.
You can read Paul Karp’s analysis about what is going on with Labor and the gas bill (as well as some other issues) here:
Updated
Ayres says Australia has not supplied weapons to Israel for last five years
The assistant minister for trade, Tim Ayres, was scathing in his response to the Israel-related motion pushed by the Greens senator David Shoebridge. See previous post for the details of the motion.
Ayres told the Senate:
The proposition that has been advanced this morning by Senator Shoebridge so lacks honesty, so lacks seriousness, so lacks the morality that the petard upon which Senator Shoebridge hoists himself every day. Because if you’re going to be serious, if you’re going to have morality, if you’re going to have honesty, you know what you have to do? You know what you have to do? You have to tell the truth. You have to tell the truth. You have to have some regard to the facts. You have to have some moral seriousness about the position that you advance.
And this political party [the Greens] has never been a serious partner for this government on the most serious international issues and this proposition that has been advanced is so shallow, is so dishonest, is so designed to achieve only one thing - and that is to dishonestly stoke division in the Australian community. That is what it is for.
That is why there are thousands of memes, antisemitic memes being circulated in the Australian community because this show that purports to be a political party advances the kind of propositions that they do.
Ayres said Australia had supplied no arms to Israel over the course of the last five years:
One of the reasons that we know that this is the case in terms of the proposition that has been advanced is that it has been explained to Senator Shoebridge so many times by the minister for foreign affairs, in estimates and in here – evidence has been provided by defence officials over and over and over again.
If you just choose to ignore the facts and promulgate a false narrative on this story, all you are about is promoting division.
Shoebridge’s push to suspend standing orders failed, 12 votes in favour and 25 against. The Greens - plus former Greens senator turned independent Lidia Thorpe - were the only ones to vote to suspend standing orders to debate the motion about ending military-related trade with Israel.
Updated
Greens move in Senate to debate military exports to Israel accused of stoking division in Australian community
There have been heated scenes in the Senate as the Greens’ defence spokesperson, David Shoebridge, failed in a bid to suspend standing orders to bring on a debate about military-related exports to Israel.
Speaking in the Senate, the assistant minister for trade, Tim Ayres, accused the Greens of mounting an argument “so shallow” that it must be designed “to dishonestly stoke division in the Australian community”.
Shoebridge had tried to suspend the normal business of the Senate in order to move a motion calling on the government “to immediately end all trade of military equipment with the State of Israel”.
Shoebridge told the Senate that Australia “must not be complicit in the genocide”, and that Australians deserved “a far more ethical government than the Albanese Labor one”. He told the chamber:
If you want to know why this is urgent, it’s because more than 30,000 Palestinians have already lost their lives - the majority women and children - and this government is content for ongoing two-way military trade with the state of Israel. [It is] content to send weapons and weapons parts to Israel to literally fuel the genocide and then perhaps as offensively also welcomes signing new contracts with major Israeli arms manufacturers for equipment that is literally being tested on the Palestinian people as we speak.
Shoebridge cited the contract awarded to the Israeli company Elbit Systems to supply systems to Hanwha Defense Australia as part of the project to deliver the Redback infantry fighting vehicle to the Australian army.
Ayres, in response, said Australia’s export control system was designed to ensure that military and dual use items that are exported from Australia are used responsibly. Ayres told the Senate that Australia “has not supplied weapons to Israel since the conflict began and for at least the past five years”.
(Continued in the next post)
Updated
Greens back bill giving regulator powers to break-up large businesses
The Greens are still pushing for their divestiture powers bill, planning to introduce the legislation this week and hoping for more Senate support – and accusing Anthony Albanese of “dancing to the tune” of big business groups.
The Business Council of Australia today claimed the bill - which would seek to give the consumer regulator the power to apply to courts to have large businesses broken up, in a bid to attack market concentration in the supermarket sector - would make the cost-of-living crisis worse, as well as risking jobs and investment.
Greens senator Nick McKim backed in their bill again at a press conference, noting that such powers existed in the United States and United Kingdom. He accused the prime minister of “dancing to the tune of the BCA and big corporations”, after the Labor leader recently flatly rejected such changes.
This won’t change the size of the supermarket sector. Earth to Prime Minister Albanese, the sector will remain the same size, [it will] just have more competition which will put downward pressure on prices.
McKim said negotiations continued with the Nationals - who have backed the idea in theory - as well as the Liberals and other Senate crossbenchers.
Updated
Greens say failure to protect LGBTQ+ people from discrimination in bill would mean broken election promise from Labor
Adam Bandt is accusing the government of a potential broken election promise if it sticks with shelving the religious discrimination changes, calling on Labor to release the legislation so all can see their proposed changes.
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, last week said the government would only proceed with the changes if it got bipartisanship from the Coalition opposition, and it seems negotiations are happening privately between the major parties.
In a press conference today, Bandt said “if any legislation is going to come, of course everyone should be able to see it” and pressured the government to stick by its earlier pledges to make changes to anti-discrimination law.
The first question we haven’t got answered is whether the Prime minister is going to stick with his election commitment. Labor’s at a fork in the road. Is Labor going to stick with the promise that it made to millions of people, they they will protect them from discrimination, or is Labor going to give Peter Dutton a veto?
If Labor is committed to its election platform, we want to see some legislation released and the Greens are prepared to work with the government. But as it stands, Labor may be about to break an election commitment it made to the whole country.
Updated
Australian manufacturing orders at lowest levels since GFC
For those who pay attention to these sorts of indicators (and you should, because they act as the canary in the coal mine) new orders with Australian manufacturers are down. And when we say down, we mean it – it’s the lowest levels since the GFC (excluding the lockdowns for obvious reasons)
The ACCI (Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry)-Westpac industrial trends survey reports the opening quarter of the year saw orders drop further from a weakened end to 2023. Andrew Hanlan, a senior economist with Westpac, reported:
The Westpac-ACCI actual composite weakened in the opening quarter of 2024, shifting down from a break-even mark of 50.1 at the end of 2023, to a reading of 43.1.
That sub-50 result suggests that conditions in the manufacturing sector deteriorated in the period. The March quarter survey reported a decline in new orders, a fall in output, a reduction in overtime and a material downsize to employment.
The mood of manufacturers about the general business outlook for the next six months moved deeper into pessimistic territory. Those expecting a deterioration shifted from a net 41% to a net 56%.
Updated
Greens and crossbench unite against Labor legislation on offshore gas projects
As Paul Karp has been reporting, the Greens and teal crossbenchers are united in pushing back against the gas legislation which has been offered up by the government.
To save you scrolling back, here is some of the crossbench reaction (as reported by Paul):
Independent MP Zali Steggall said it was “absolutely outrageous” because although the resources minister will need to consult the environment minister, it is still the resources minister that is the final decision-maker.
The Greens senator Dorinda Cox accused the government of a “lie” for saying in the voice referendum it wanted to consult First Nations people, then going on to push changes diminishing consultation rights. The Greens leader, Adam Bandt, said the government were “climate con artists”.
Independent MP, Zoe Daniel, said amendments were “inadequate” and questioned why the government is in a rush to pass the bill.
Senator David Pocock said introducing a “backdoor” into the approvals process for offshore gas “stinks”, labelling it a “cynical move”.
MP Sophie Scamps said the government was talking out “both sides of its mouth”.
Updated
Nationals MP Mark Coulton announces retirement at next election
The Nationals MP for Parkes, Mark Coulton, has also announced his upcoming retirement.
Coulton has been in the parliament since 2007.
Updated
Crossbench MPs join Australian Conservation Foundation in slamming Albanese government’s offshore gas bill
The Australian Conservation Foundation and crossbench have slammed the government’s offshore gas bill, warning that amendments expected to be tabled today do not fix the bill.
Annika Reynolds, the national climate adviser of ACF, said it is still “deeply concerned” the amendments do not address “fundamental concerns” that the resources minister could issue no regulations that “diminish First Nations’ rights to be consulted”.
Independent MP Zali Steggall said it was “absolutely outrageous” because although the resources minister will need to consult the environment minister, it is still the resources minister who is the final decision-maker.
Greens senator Dorinda Cox accused the government of a “lie” for saying in the voice referendum it wanted to consult First Nations people then going on to push changes diminishing consultation rights. The Greens leader, Adam Bandt, said the government were “climate con artists”.
Independent MP Zoe Daniel said amendments were “inadequate” and questioned why the government is in a rush to pass the bill.
Senator David Pocock said introducing a “backdoor” into the approvals process for offshore gas “stinks”, labelling it a “cynical move”.
Independent MP Sophie Scamps said the government was talking out “both sides of its mouth”.
Updated
Nine’s Paul Sakkal wins young journalist of the year award
Paul Sakkal of the Nine newspapers has been named as the winner of the 2023 Wallace Brown Young Journalist of the Year award. Judges specifically praised his coverage of last year’s voice referendum. The award, named after the former Courier Mail journalist who was known for mentoring younger journalists, was open to those aged 30 and below and with no more than five years of experience in the federal parliamentary press gallery.
Updated
Greens reshuffle moves McKim, Shoebridge to new roles
Seems portfolio reshuffles are in fashion. Just a few weeks after the ‘everyone gets a prize’ reshuffle Peter Dutton announced (which now means there are more people on the shadow front bench than the opposition backbench) the Greens have announced a reshuffle of portfolios to “push” the government to do more than it is.
Senator Penny Allman-Payne is the new social services spokesperson, with a focus on fixed incomes (taking over from the retiring Janet Rice)
Senator David Shoebridge is now officially the Home Affairs, Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs spokesperson (expanding his ‘government overreach’ interest. Nick McKim previously held these positions)
Senator Nick McKim will be the Forests spokesperson, pushing for an end to old-growth logging, particularly in his home state of Tasmania (previously, Rice also held the forests portfolio). Along with NSW, Tasmania is one of only two states who still have not committed to ending their native forest logging industry.
Rice’s replacement, Steph Hodgins-May, will receive portfolios following her official swearing in, which should be in May.
Updated
Letters that sparked Howard gun-control measures to go on display in Parliament House
Tomorrow, the letters between Walter Mikac and former prime minister John Howard will be going on display at Parliament House.
Mikac’s wife Nanette, and their two young daughters, three-year-old Alannah and six-year-old Madeline were three of the 35 people killed during the Port Arthur massacre.
Mikac wrote to Howard in the nine days after the national tragedy advocating for a change to Australia’s gun laws. The letter sparked a defining moment in Australia’s history which saw the Howard-Fischer government push through firearm reform, including restricting the sale of high-powered weapons.
Tomorrow, attorney general Mark Dreyfus and Peter Dutton will officially open a display of the letters in Parliament House, to serve as a reminder of why the laws were put in place, and why it is critical governments push back against attempts to weaken the legislation.
Updated
Supermarket breakup and transparent elections bills moved by independent MPs
Over in the house and the independents have introduced their private members bills.
Bob Katter has introduced his bill to break up the supermarket duopoly which was seconded by his partner in inflatable pig costumes, Andrew Wilkie (although the pair left the pink pigs at home today).
Curtin MP Kate Chaney has introduced her transparent election bill, which is the latest attempt by the crossbench to bring some truth to political advertising. Zali Steggall seconded that.
Updated
Russian soldier documentary did not breach ABC standards and was not propaganda, ombudsman finds
The international documentary about the Russia-Ukraine war which screened on Four Corners last week did not breach editorial standards and was not propaganda, the ABC ombudsman has found.
Ukraine’s War: The Other Side, an immersive film about Russian soldiers on the front line, received 235 complaints after it was criticised as propaganda by the Ukrainian ambassador to Australia Vasyl Myroshnychenko.
Made by British film-maker Sean Langan, the documentary offered a human perspective on life on the Russian frontline.
The ombudsman, Fiona Cameron, said she understood some of the sentiments expressed in the film would be confronting but the Langan film presented a “rarely seen microcosm of the war” and the film-maker’s presence on the front line was not an endorsement of Russian actions.
Updated
Tim Wilson prepares for teal rematch in Goldstein
We are going to be seeing a few of these re-matches in the teal seats as the former Liberal MPs who lost their seat weigh up returning for another go.
The Liberal Party has preselected Tim Wilson for the seat of Goldstein at the next election. It’s a party decision made in what they believe is their best interest. I am proud to be a community-backed Independent, acting in the best interest of my community. I will run again. pic.twitter.com/PVvQ9UJVAU
— Zoe Daniel MP (she/her) (@zdaniel) March 24, 2024
Updated
Energy Council CEO accepts role with Alinta Energy
The Australian Energy Council’s CEO, Sarah McNamara, will finish up with the organisation at the end of April, after accepting an executive role with Alinta Energy.
Ben Barnes, who is the council’s general manager corporate affairs, will take on the interim chief position while the search for a new CEO is undertaken.
Updated
SA Liberal backbencher Rowan Ramsey announces retirement at next federal election
South Australian Liberal backbencher, Rowan Ramsey, has announced he’ll be retiring at the next federal election after nearly two decades in the job.
Ramsey, who was elected as the member for the large outback electorate of Grey in 2007, said he was ready for the next chapter.
This has not been an easy decision to make as I still have unwavering enthusiasm for the job. However, like many, I am aware my ‘piece of string’ has a definite if undetermined length and consequently, with my wife Teresa, who has been such an important support, we have decided it is time to tackle the next chapter of our lives.
The seat of Grey, which covers nearly a million square kilometres, has been held by the Liberals since 1993 and is currently held by Ramsey on a 10.1% margin.
Updated
Equality Australia student says religious discrimination debate ‘will be bad regardless’
On the question of the government wanting bipartisanship from the Coalition before moving ahead with any law changes, James Elliot-Watson said:
I mean, Albo, you are the the prime minister, you set the agenda, you set the tone.
If you want it to be a respectful debate, then you say that at the start, because the only way this is gonna get done is with a debate and the queer community is well used to [it] by now, going through the wringer every time we have to fight for our own protections.
So let’s just do it.
It’s going to be vitriolic. It’s going to be bad regardless, you’re not going to get bipartisan support for the same people who were against the voice, the same people who were against same sex marriage, the same people who are always against these kinds of protections.
They don’t care about everybody in Australia.
So, the prime minister should and he should act.
That’s what I think.
Updated
‘How can being told that homosexualty is a demonic possession by your school not fuck you up?’
James Ellliot-Watson said religious discrimination wasn’t just a piece of legislation – it was people’s lives.
This is also my story. It should never have been my story. It shouldn’t have defined my life in the way that it did.
And that’s why we’re here to try and make sure that the law protects people and protects some of our youngest and most vulnerable people in the community.
And it just beggars belief that, you know, the Canberra bubble doesn’t want to deal with it, like, just get it done.
How did it define his life?
When people asked me a question like that, I sort of think how could it not define my life? How can being told that homosexuality is a demonic possession by your school not fuck you up?
How could being told your homosexuality means that implicitly there is something wrong with you and you are lesser than those around you not fuck you up?
How can being told that your sexuality is something that needs to be changed, shouldn’t be celebrated, acknowledged or embraced, but rejected, not fuck you up?
That’s kind of the way I think it needs to be presented.
Because I think a lot of people think that this doesn’t happen anymore or that this kind of bigotry and discrimination is from another century.
It’s not. It’s here today now and we need laws to protect people from that kind of view.
Updated
Student says MPs should ‘do their job’ to stop discrimination in schools
Equality Australia has held a press conference in Parliament House at the launch of their report looking at the impact a lack of protections for LGBTQ+ people can have on staff and students at religious schools and organisations.
A student – James Elliot-Watson, and his twin brother, Bradley – spoke at the press conference with a very strong message for the prime minister and all parliamentarians looking at religious discrimination.
(You can read about James and Bradley’s story, here)
James spoke with Guardian Australia after the press conference and said:
Well, basically I said MPs are paid in excess of $200,000 so everybody should do their fucking job. And I think that’s especially true for the leader of the government and my prime minister.
The purpose of parliament is to enact laws that ensure the safety, integrity and protection of the Australian citizens and that’s what this is about.
It needs to protect vulnerable children from legal discrimination practices that religious institutions are allowed to engage by change the law.
Let’s get it done.
Updated
Asio chief defends investigating journalists for ‘potential threats to security’
A little more from Asio boss Mike Burgess’s appearance in front of the INSLM, Jake Blight:
Burgess said he would have concerns about easing provisions relating to Asio’s scrutiny of journalists because they were regularly targeted by foreign intelligence services. He said Asio sometimes had to scrutinise journalists for that reason.
If we do, we are investigating them for potential threats to security.
Anything that changes that equation would be problematic from my point of view.
Updated
Parliament looms
The parliament session is just about to begin – the MPs are starting to pour into the parliament.
Updated
Environment groups unsatisfied by ‘technically pointless’ Labor changes to offshore gas bill
The resources minister, Madeleine King, is going to introduce changes to the government’s offshore gas bill which add safeguards including:
Requiring the environment minister to give a notice that changes to consultation requirements are consistent with ecological sustainability development (ESD) principles; and
A sunset clause so that the override of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act is phased out after 12 months.
However, environmental groups are still not satisfied with the changes to the fffshore petroleum and greenhouse gas storage (OPGGS) bill.
Kirsty Howey, the executive director of Environment Centre NT, said the changes “falls far short of requiring compliance with the EPBC Act”, because the requirement for new regulations to be consistent with ecologically sustainable development principles is “practically meaningless”.
According to the explanatory memorandum, seen by Guardian Australia:
The validity or enforceability of regulations made under the OPGGS Act will not be affected if the resources minister is not satisfied that the designated regulations would not be inconsistent with the ESD principles, or fails to consult with the environment minister as required”
Howey said this meant the new safeguard is “technically pointless [and] nothing more than window dressing”.
She said:
If they pass this then the Labor government will actually weaken environmental protections re offshore gas put in place by Ian MacFarlane when he approved the endorsed program in 2014.
Louise Morris, the oil and gas campaign manager at the Australian Marine Conservation Society, said that ESD “is a principle, not something that has any legally enforceable powers or structures”.
She said:
This is a get-out-of-jail free card, and [has] basically given free reign to industry to rewrite environmental regulations for NOPSEMA approvals, and undermines the minister for environment’s role.
Updated
ASIO chief Mike Burgess is facing questions from INSLM Jake Blight over how his agencies decide certain information is “secret” or “top secret”.
Burgess has acknowledged that some information in his agency is not secret, including whether staff are making complaints.
On the the offence of what Blight called “mere receipt” of information, Burgess took issue with that description.
Secrecy provisions are here for deterrence purposes. Once someone has received something, the deterrence provisions are not having the desired effect… It’s what happens next… And that’s the problem we need to focus on.”
Back to religious discrimination and Tony Burke was once again laying out the government position in his doorstop.
Burke was out this morning speaking about the fair wage commission submission, but it also helps that he is one of the government’s best communicators, so having him available to speak on things like religious discrimination, which is about to blow up, is also in the government’s favour.
He’s less likely to get bogged down in the details, as you can see with his answer here:
The key thing is whether or not there’s bipartisan support. Australia doesn’t need a deep, divisive debate at the moment. So, in good faith, we provided the draft legislation to the Opposition. They’ll work it through and we’ll see what they come back with. It’s in Australia’s interest that the legislation be dealt with, but we’ve given it to the Opposition in good faith and we don’t want it the way it was handled previously under the previous government, where it was just a dragged out, ugly debate. It’s not what Australia needs.
Q: Is that a concrete document or is that a take it or leave it proposal or are you willing to negotiate?
Burke:
It’s been provided to the Opposition. Those discussions are very much between them, the Prime Minister and the Attorney General.
That never ending drum beat you might be hearing behind every single government MP press conference is the phrase ‘cost of living, cost of living’ being repeated ad nauseam.
Why? Because when the economy takes a downturn, people get angry and they tend to take that anger out on incumbents (understandably) at the voting booths.
With the election to be held by May next year, the government knows it has to make cost of living it’s number one focus.
So does that mean there is more help for energy bills in the coming budget?
In an earlier door stop* Jim Chalmers said:
Well that’s under consideration. We’ve made it clear that there are a range of options available to the Government, whether it’s another round of electricity bill relief or other ways that we could help ease some of these cost‑of‑living pressures.
The biggest cost‑of‑living relief in the budget will be a tax cut for every Australian taxpayer on 1 July, and a bigger tax cut for more people to help with these cost‑of‑living pressures. If we can do more on top of that in an affordable, responsible, meaningful, methodical way, then we will obviously look to do that. We haven’t taken a decision on that. We’re obviously working our way through the major decisions in the budget over the next few weeks.
I want to say this about electricity bill relief. Electricity prices have gone up I think about 3.5 per cent since the middle of last year, without our energy plan it would have been more than 18 per cent. Now you would remember that the Liberals voted against giving hundreds of dollars to families to help with their energy bills.
*quick, unscheduled press conference
Chalmers would like to see some questions of the LNP on what they would do:
The Liberals and Nationals in this Parliament who have been whinging about this voted against helping people with their energy bills - they voted against hundreds of dollars for families to help cope with energy bills in the household budget and they need to explain why they did that. We hear all of this politicking from the Liberals and Nationals, it’s time for them to explain if people are under such pressure with their energy bills, why did they vote against helping them? That’s the question for the Liberals and Nationals today.
Asio boss says ‘secrecy offences do not exist to prevent wrongdoing being uncovered’
Asio’s director general, Mike Burgess, in his opening statement to the public hearing on secrecy offences:
In my view, secrecy offences do not exist to prevent wrongdoing being uncovered.
But Burgess said there were right and wrong ways to disclose and that whistleblowers should first go through official channels, including the inspector general of intelligence and security.
Burgess said Asio acknowledges the public’s right to information but that this had to be balanced by the need to protect national security.
Updated
Security legislation monitor has ‘a lot of concerns’ with secrecy offences
Australia’s Independent National Security Legislation Monitor (INSLM), Jake Blight, has flagged his concern with the blunt nature of secrecy offences – especially offences for leaking or receiving any information marked “secret” or “top secret” – while speaking at an opening remarks at a public hearing today.
It is fair to say that at this stage I have a lot of concerns with this offence.
He noted that government determined how widely this designation was applied and suggested it may be being used more wider than is really necessary.
Blight also suggested Australia may need clearer definitions of what security, international relations and defence within secrecy laws and that he also held concerns about the impact of secrecy laws on journalism, particularly the offence of receiving (as opposed to retaining) information.
I am minded to agree that at the very least merely receiving information should be removed from this offence.
He said retaining and then using it was another matter.
Asio’s director general, Mike Burgess, is now beginning to give evidence.
Updated
Chalmers more interested in budget than leader polling
Is Jim Chalmers happy that Peter Dutton’s polling isn’t going anywhere, despite Labor’s polling (at least on primary vote) decreasing?
Chalmers tells the Seven network:
I really don’t obsess over these polls ‑ I read them, like everyone in this place I’m interested in them, but I don’t pore over them, I don’t obsess over them.
What I do pore over is trying to land this budget in May, less than eight weeks away, seven weeks tomorrow, and that will be the best combination of a bit of a cost‑of‑living relief, some more budget repair, but also trying to lay some of the foundations for growth in our economy into the future too.
Updated
Joyce dismisses prefered leader ratings: ‘the incumbent leader, overwhelmingly, is always ahead’
Barnaby Joyce was then asked by the Seven network host why Peter Dutton is not doing better in the polls.
Q: … if people are swinging away from the Labor government on a lot of these issues, why is Albo’s approval rating at 44% and Dutton’s at 37% … and Dutton’s disapproval rating is going up. Are you disappointed in that?
Joyce:
No, I feel that Peter Dutton’s a very strong leader, and what I always say…
Q: Well, the figures don’t seem to show it though.
Joyce:
But that’s always the way. You always see that the incumbent leader, overwhelmingly, is always ahead on the approval rating, because it’s just what people see on the television set every night. But I’ll tell you what, both of them, both Mr Albanese and Mr Dutton only stand in one seat.
What wins is either the Coalition or the Labor party, but overwhelmingly, like everywhere else in the world, if people can go shopping, they are going shopping, cause they want us both to be straight with them and say, look, mate, the power issue’s just not working, we’ve got to take a U‑turn, we’ve got to understand the reality of your life, not our wishes, and your life is you want to get back to the reality of affordable, reliable power, and what we’re delivering you is garbage.
So that went back to an argument about energy policy, with Tanya Plibersek jumping back in:
The reality is, Barnaby, 24 power stations said they were going to close under you, and it is nothing to replace it. Nothing to replace that capacity.
Joyce:
Well, what are you doing about it? You’re closing them, Tanya. Tanya, you’re the government, and you’re closing them.
Plibersek:
No, we’re massively expanding the power and transmission lines.
Joyce:
You’re still closing them, Tanya.
(The government is not closing the power stations, private companies are closing power stations.)
Updated
The energy powering the darkest timeline
Tanya Plibersek and Barnaby Joyce continue to have their “debates” on breakfast television, because we are in the worst timeline and this is what is considered peak political discourse in this country. Here is the pair “discussing” energy policy:
Plibersek: Well, that is not nuclear, is it, Barnaby? Nuclear’s expensive and 30 years away.
Joyce: You are taking people to swindle factories and solar factors which just are not doing the job.
Plibersek: Well, wind and solar are cheaper.
Joyce: Just not doing the job. No, they’re not. See, you keep saying that every time…
Plibersek: And that’s why power prices came down in the last ‑‑
Joyce: …somebody gets a bill, they know what you’re saying is a heap of bumpkin, it’s a load of rubbish, and ‑‑
Plibersek: And your solution is nuclear in 30 years.
Joyce: It’s not that ‑ well, your solution just doesn’t work. It just does not work.
Plibersek: It is working, Barnaby, and that’s why the power ‑‑
Joyce: It’s self‑evident it doesn’t. See, when you talk like that, that’s why…that’s why it goes down, that’s why your vote goes down.
Updated
The question that was raised there is one you will be hearing more and more as millennials and Gen Z start to embrace their political power.
Guardian Australia has looked at this in a new series titled: Who screwed millennials?
You can hear the first episode,( and probably get angry) here:
Updated
Chalmers dismisses rise in Greens support
Regarding the recent SA byelection in the electorate of Dunstan, Jim Chalmers was asked earlier this morning about how concerned he is about the loss of Labor support to the Greens in some areas, as voters (particularly younger ones) look for different answers from their politicians. Chalmers said:
We know that we’ve got to deal with the Greens on the left and the Liberal and National parties on the far right. That’s just the reality of politics in 2024.
But in terms of the swing against Labor, the primary swing against Labor, they didn’t hold the seat before Saturday, they’re going to hold the seat after Saturday. That’s a stunning outcome. We shouldn’t talk it down.
And as for the Greens, it’s easy enough for the Greens to promise the world and dash off press releases and commit hundreds of billions of dollars to different things. We’ve got to govern the country in a methodical and a responsible way, and part of that is making sure that all of our commitments add up.
We will get all kinds of looney stuff from the Greens on the left, from the Nationals and Liberals on the far right, we understand that. We’re a good, middle-of-the-road government
Updated
Given the minimum wage chat today, some perspective of where Australia sits in the rankings might helps:
The best way to compare minimum wages across countries is by the "Minimum Wage Bite", - min wage relative to median FT earnings.
— Greg Jericho (@GrogsGamut) March 24, 2024
Australia does not have one of the highest in the world, in fact it is very average pic.twitter.com/dFDURhAO45
AAP on Newspoll: Labor slips slightly but Albanese still leads Dutton as preferred leader
AAP has taken a look at the latest Newspoll: Federal Labor’s primary vote has slipped while the Coalition’s has edged up, the latest Newspoll shows.
But in the preferred prime minister contest, Anthony Albanese maintains a healthy lead over the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, 48% to 34%.
The poll, conducted for the Australian newspaper, shows Labor’s primary vote falling a point to 32% while the Coalition lifted a point to 37%.
Labor’s two-party-preferred lead over the Coalition has been reduced two points to 51-49%.
Labor won the last election on a two-party preferred vote of 52.1%, compared with the Liberal-Nationals vote of 47.9 per cent. A total of 31% of voters polled indicated they would not support Labor or the Coalition.
The combined support for Labor and the Coalition at 69% confirmed the continued trend away from the major parties. The Greens lifted a point to 13%, while Pauline Hanson’s One Nation also rose a point to 7%.
Support for other minor parties and independents, including teals, has fallen two points to 11%, the Newspoll shows. It found little change in the approval ratings for either leader in the past month.
Updated
Labor’s position: religious schools can employ who they like, but workers have rights against discrimination
One of the sticking points with religious discrimination is section 38 of the Sex Discrimination Act, which allows religious schools to discriminate against people on the basis of their sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, intersex status, marital or relationship status.
The law reform commission recommended it be repealed. A little earlier this morning, Tony Burke laid out the government position:
The position of the government’s been put forward for a long time, which is that religious schools should be able to have full choice to be able to employ people who share their faith.
So when you’re employing people, that full discretion should be there.
Once you have employed somebody, then all the normal rights against discrimination should be held by by that worker
So religious schools and organisations can discriminate on the hiring, but once hired, that employee has the rights of any other worker and can’t be discriminated against for sexuality etc?
Burke:
… it goes it goes to the firing issue. That would be an example of discrimination if it was done for a reason for one of those protected categories.
But the concept of when you are hiring people – to be able to hire people of your own faith, like you are there to be a religious institution, parents are sending their children to religious schools for that purpose and it’s completely reasonable in the government’s view, that you are able to employ on that basis.
Updated
Ask Amy: what is the role of the independent national security legislation monitor?
For those who don’t know, the Independent National Security Legislation Monitor (INSLM) looks at the “operation, effectiveness and implications” of Australia’s national security and counter-terrorism laws.
Think of it as a performance review for national security legislation – it’s role is also to consider the laws and their impact on individual rights, and whether that impact is proportionate to threats. Also considered is whether all the laws which have been passed in the national security space remain necessary.
In order to answer those questions, the INSLM can compel answers, can access all relevant material (no matter what the security classification) and holds public and private hearings. A report is then prepared for tabling in the parliament.
Updated
National security legislation monitor says laws may need paring back
Australia has more far-reaching and tougher secrecy laws than other comparable countries which may need paring paring back, according to Australia’s new Independent National Security Legislation Monitor (INSLM), Jake Blight.
The INSLM and his office are examining Australia’s secrecy laws to determine whether they are fit for purpose or too draconian, with the first hearings in his review being held in Canberra this morning.
Blight told ABC Radio National this morning that he wants to guard against overreach in how the laws are applied, both to those who hold the nation’s secrets and to the journalists and others who may receive information and report it.
It’s also important to remember that there is undoubtedly information which if disclosed, can cause harm … In empowering our national security, police and law enforcement agencies to do their important work, we have to always be careful that the very democracy we’re asking them to protect isn’t getting undermined and that’s a democracy underpinned by freedom of communication, accountability, and which is supported by a free press.
Blight pointed to the fact that it is an offence to disclose and also to receive anything stamped “secret”, whether that involves deep national security information or details of internal bullying investigations – or the purchase of stationery. He asked whether there should be an assessment of the level and nature of potential harm from any disclosure incorporated in the offences.
Blight is flinging open the doors of his office quite a bit wider than his predecessors and will conduct a news conference this morning before the hearing begins at 9.30 with evidence from the Asio director general, Mike Burgess.
Updated
Catholic schools commission says aim not to discriminate, but to maintain religious identity
The National Catholic Education Commission, however, has roundly rejected claims Catholic schools discriminate “or are seeking to discriminate, against staff or students on the basis of sexuality or gender”.
Executive director Jacinta Collins said the mission of Catholic schools was “to uphold the dignity of each individual”.
Catholic schools are not seeking the right to discriminate based on personal attributes, but rather to maintain their religious identity and mission.
The current exemptions are designed to ensure that discrimination legislation doesn’t impinge on religious freedom and enables faith-based schools to continue to build a community of faith by preferencing the employment of individuals who share and support the ethos and mission of our schools.
In the absence of religious freedom legislation these exemptions safeguard the internationally-protected religious rights and freedoms that Australia has committed to.
Collins said if individuals do not support the Catholic schools ethos, “they are able to choose another school for enrolment or employment”.
This is what a free, pluralistic society is about.
Catholic education remains committed to advocating for legislative frameworks that respect the religious identity and mission of Catholic schools while ensuring a fair balance with other protected rights.
Updated
Equality Australia to launch report on LGBTQ+ people inside faith-based organisations
Equality Australia will be launching its report: “Dismissed, Denied and Demeaned: a national report on LGBTQ+ discrimination in faith-based schools and organisations” a little bit later today.
It will detail the experiences of LGBTIQ+ people within faith based organisations and explain the need for protections for students, staff and others involved with religious organisations.
Updated
Chalmers says inflation is moderating
What about inflation risks?
Jim Chalmers:
The primary concern of the Reserve Bank is inflation. And inflation has moderated really substantially since those peaks in 2022. We’ll get a monthly figure later in the week. It might bounce a little bit up. It might bounce a little bit down. But overall, the direction of travel is really clear.
So inflation is the primary thing that they are focused on. We also know that the national accounts … is growing considerably and consumption has been especially flat, and the Reserve Bank will be focused on that as well.
But if you take a step back for a moment and think think about the inflation figures and the wages figures we’ve been talking about and the jobs figures – we have a rare trifecta in our economy. We have unemployment coming down. Inflation is moderating and real wages growth for the first time in years. All three of those things are good things
Updated
Chalmers: we can have cost-of-living relief and wage growth
Here is how Jim Chalmers was selling the wage submission (at least on ABC TV this morning). The treasurer said it wasn’t a binary choice between cost of living relief and wages growth:
We don’t see cost of living relief as ‘instead of’ decent wages growth. We want to see wages growth on top of the billions of dollars of cost of living relief that the Albanese government is rolling out.
… The tax cuts we’re rolling out for everyone, or cheaper childhood education or cheaper medicines - none of those are a substitute for getting wages growing in the economy once again.
What we’ve demonstrated is a willingness to roll out that cost-of-living help at the same time that we get wages moving again in our economy.
Because we recognise, even if our opponents don’t, that one of the best ways that we can help people to deal with cost of living pressures is to get wages moving again so people earn more and keep more of what they earn.
So the message is firmly, firmly on cost of living.
Updated
Lambie says state-based laws sufficient to deal with religious discrimination
Still on religious discrimination, but this time with Jacqui Lambie (who is now speaking to ABC radio RN after previously speaking to ABC TV), the crossbench senator is asked what her views are when it comes to the issue.
Lambie is holding tight to her position from 2019 (at least for now) which is she doesn’t see the need for federal laws, as the Tasmanian state laws are working well.
For the states that don’t have those sorts of laws (like NSW) Lambie thinks they (and the federal government) should look to Tasmania:
I think if you’ve followed Tasmanian laws, and they’ve worked very well down there and actually your bill is based on that, you might have … a good good bit of airing out there and actually be able to settle this once and for all.
Lambie says she will have the chats, but when asked her own belief, says:
I think there’s a very fine line between having choices … and running … a business or a school or anything else.
People send their kids to faith based schools with expectations and I think we’ve got a walk a very, very fine line with all of that.
Updated
Burke does not say if Labor will pursue religious discrimination bill if they cannot get bipartisen support
So will the Albanese government leave things as they are (as in not touch the law) if it can’t get bipartisan support?
Tony Burke:
I hope that we have bipartisan support, but you know, that’s in the hands of the opposition and putting public pressure on them or something like that … I don’t think, I don’t think it’s helpful.
I don’t think it’s constructive for me to do in this interview … the information has been provided to them.
We’re hopeful that there’s bipartisan support. It’s an issue that’s been hanging around a long time, and the country’s in a better position if we get it done.
Updated
Burke on religious discrimination: ‘we want to be a country where people get along with each other’
On the religious discrimination issue, Tony Burke said the government’s “bottom line” was community cohesion.
The bottom line is we want to be a country where people get along with each other. We want to be a country where people aren’t targeted because they have a particular religious faith or that they have done.
We want to be a country where people aren’t targeted because of because of sex.
Where people aren’t targeted because of race, for any disability, for any of the discriminatory categories, because they’re LGBTIQ. Plus, as you described a moment ago, all forms of discrimination – including people being discriminated because of their faith or because they’re because they aren’t part of a religious faith.
Updated
Employment minister: ‘real wages of low-paid workers shouldn’t be going backwards’
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, and the employment minister, Tony Burke, have been out and about this morning talking about the fair work commission submission on wages.
Burke said on ABC radio RN Breakfast:
The way we’re dealing with the submission is to say that the real wages of low-paid workers shouldn’t be going backwards. That that’s very much where we draw a line that we don’t want crossed. And that’s because people on lower wages have the least capacity to be able to deal with rising prices and the different challenges that have been happening with cost of living.
So should minimum wage workers prepare for lower rises than in recent years?
The challenge here is to make sure that for the people on low wages, that they don’t go backwards, and for the commission to be able to use the best economic advice to be able to set wage rates so that we continue to have the situation where we see those lines crossed and as inflation goes down, wages go up and real wage growth becomes something sustainable for people again.
Updated
Lambie on brutal campaign: ‘you have to let bygones be bygones’
The state election campaign was quite brutal and the Liberals targeted the Jacqui Lambie Network during the campaign with a “fake” website. At the time, Lambie called it “grubby”.
So how is she feeling now?
It’s not a choice. You have to let bygones be bygones. I would hope that you know, they’ve learnt that being nasty during elections is not helpful, and hopefully, you know, they’ll take that. They’ll take that to that[the negotiating] table and fix that.
But seriously, I think that Australians, not just Tasmanians, have had enough of the nastiness and the false advertising that goes on during elections - whether it is state or federal. You know, you have to let bygones be bygones because first and foremost, you have to put Tasmania there at the top of the list so we’ve just got to go in there with a clean slate and get started.
Updated
Labor to recommend wage rise to Fair Work
The Albanese government has announced details of its submission to the Fair Work Commission’s annual wage review, calling for the real wages of Australia’s low-paid workers to “not go backwards”.
The national minimum wage is currently $23.23 per hour, around 55% of median full-time earnings. Inflation is currently at 4.1% in the year to December, so the government submission implies a wage rise of at least 0.95c an hour for the lowest paid.
A draft of the submission said:
Going forward, inflation is expected to moderate further, improving real wages and easing some of the financial pressure on households.
However, the current economic environment is challenging, with many households experiencing cost of living pressures. Despite increases in nominal wages, and the return of annual real wages growth, the real value of award wages has been eroded in recent years given the global inflationary environment.
Low paid workers and their families are particularly affected by cost-of-living pressures because they typically do not have savings to draw on to cover rising costs.
The government submission is substantially the same as last year, when the FWC ended up ordering a 5.75% minimum wage rise.
The treasurer,Jim Chalmers, said:
We’ll recommend the Fair Work Commission ensures the real wages of Australia’s low-paid workers do not go backwards ...
Our economic plan is all about helping Australians earn more and keep more of what they earn, which is why we’re focused on delivering strong and sustainable wages growth and why we’re giving a tax cut to every Australian taxpayer on 1 July this year.
Peter Dutton wants Australians to work longer for less, but we take a different view.”
The workplace relations minister, Tony Burke, said:
After a decade where keeping wages low was a deliberate design feature this is what it looks like when a government deliberately gets wages moving.
Jacqui Lambie says her candidates, not her, are at the negotiation table
Jacqui Lambie says she has spoken to the leader of both the Liberal and Labor parties, but she won’t be at the negotiating table – because she’s not one of those elected.
I’ve spoken to Jeremy and also spoken to Bec White. We’ve done all of that. It makes it difficult to me, I can’t go to the table because it is my candidates in State Parliament - those ones elected. They need to be on the table and I need to be a foot behind them watching the proceedings happening so I can give them my … knowledge or whatever they need to make the decision and which way they’re going.
Updated
Tasmanian election sees crossbench take balance of power
Tasmania’s election ended exactly where most people predicted – with Liberal leader Jeremy Rockliff looking at a crossbench, wondering where to make a deal for minority government.
The Jacqui Lambie Network is in the box seat, with, at least this stage, two seats. The group’s founder, Jacqui Lambie, was still pretty stoked with the result this morning:
We’re rapt. We didn’t have TV or radio or TV personalities. They are normal people. We also don’t have big donations coming into us. So I think that all up, I can’t wait to see the spend.
But ours was about $90,000, plus some of them chipped in about $3,000 or $4,000 along the way for themselves as well. So I think to come out with that is phenomenal.
Good on the 15 of my people that ran. You stayed tight. You stayed on the line. You should be bloody proud of this morning. I said that to them on Saturday night. Well done!
Updated
Good morning
Welcome to the second sitting week of the session.
It’s a short week this time round –just three days. And then there is no sitting until May, when the budget is handed down.
In these three days, the government will be looking to get on top of the religious discrimination debate, which is another culture war (with very real people at its centre) that is brewing.
For today, though, it’s all about wages – the minimum wage in particular. The government will be recommending the minimum wage rise in line with inflation. Inflation is coming down, but the economy is slowing, so you can expect a few raised eyebrows over this, particularly from the opposition.
You’ll have Karen Middleton, Paul Karp, Josh Butler, Daniel Hurst and Sarah Basford Canales to guide you through it and Mike Bowers to take you there. Amy Remeikis – that’s me – will have the blog for most of the day.
Ready? Third coffee is brewing.
Let’s get into it.
Updated
