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| Coalition strengthens corporate regulator to head off calls for a banking royal commission – politics live | Coalition strengthens corporate regulator to head off calls for a banking royal commission – politics live |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 11.38pm BST | |
| 23:38 | |
| Down in the Blue Room, the social services minister Christian Porter is unveiling a new $30m campaign to tackle family violence. | |
| Christian Porter | |
| The point of the ads is to break habitual behaviour and responses, particularly those that we end up teaching to young men and boys, which all of the research tells us are a foundation stone for later behaviour which results in violence being occasioned against women. | |
| So the notion is, in essence, this: if you have a situation where one in six women experience physical or sexual violence and the research tells us we have a concurrent situation where one in four young people who don’t think it’s serious if a guy, who is a normally quiet fellow, hits his partner when he is drunk, then those two outcomes must be linked. | |
| We are trying to hit directly at that attitudinal and habitual behaviour that hits in the mind of particularly young men and boys. | |
| 11.31pm BST | |
| 23:31 | |
| Ben Doherty | |
| Readers on the blog yesterday know lots of motions passed the Senate late on Tuesday. Here’s another one that Murph didn’t get to last night. | |
| The Senate ordered the government to produce all the documents it held in relation to its contractors running the Manus Island and Nauru detention centres. | |
| The motion, ordered the government to produce, by 9:30am Thursday, “any contracts between Broadspectrum (formerly known as Transfield Services) and its subcontractor Wilson Security in relation to operations on Nauru and Manus Island, Papua New Guinea... (and) any sub-contracts engaged in by Wilson Security and other entities in relation to operations on Nauru and Manus Island, Papua New Guinea”. | |
| The Panama Papers - released by The Guardian and more than 100 news organisations globally - showed Hong Kong brothers Raymond and Thomas Kwok, charged with bribing a government official in 2012, were covert directors of the company that ultimately controls Wilson’s operations in Australia. | |
| Thomas Kwok was jailed for five years. Raymond Kwok was acquitted. | |
| The motion, moved by Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young, orders the government to produced any documents it holds in relation to the Kwok family. | |
| Outside the chamber, Hanson-Young said there was “a major shadow hanging over the government’s dealings with Wilson Security”. | |
| Under the Senate order, the government must produce the documents before the Senate by 9:30am Thursday or provide a response as to why the documents cannot be tabled under a ‘public interest immunity’. The motion was supported by Labor, the Greens, and cross-benchers, and opposed by government senators. | |
| 11.28pm BST | |
| 23:28 | |
| Just in case the Kidman sale was out of the blue for some readers – I don’t think I had the chance to stretch to it yesterday – Australia’s largest landholder, S Kidman & Co, has agreed to sell the company to China’s Dakang Australia Holdings and the locally listed Australian Rural Capital Ltd for $370.7m. Under the deal, Dakang Australia plans to acquire 80% of Kidman while ARC is looking to take the remaining 20% stake – subject to approval by the Foreign Investment Review Board. | |
| 11.25pm BST | |
| 23:25 | |
| The bottom line on submarines was a decision shortly, but no clarity about whether it’s pre-election or post-election. | |
| 11.21pm BST | |
| 23:21 | |
| Are we going to see good news on submarines, the prime minister is asked? Turnbull says an announcement on submarines will be made shortly. I’m not going to be drawn on dates. | |
| Q: Can we reasonably anticipate good news as South Australians? | |
| It’s kind of you to inquire. | |
| 11.19pm BST | |
| 23:19 | |
| “Real Julia” is the next question. Where is the old Malcolm, the prime minister is asked. Will we see more of the old Malcolm after the coming election? | |
| The prime minister says he’s not going to run a commentary on himself. But he’s still in favour of same sex marriage and he’ll vote yes at a plebiscite. He’s still a republican. | |
| But he says Australians are predominantly interested in growth and jobs. In Adelaide they are interested in surface vessels being built in Adelaide starting in 2018, and having a strong indigenous defence industry. | |
| 11.15pm BST | |
| 23:15 | |
| Next question is on the Kidman sale. Does it give you any concern philosophically, the prime minister is asked, selling a major agricultural asset to foreigners? | |
| The prime minister says the government looks at these transactions very very carefully. He says foreign investment is important and where it’s not contrary to the national interest it should proceed. | |
| Remember we do benefit from foreign investment. | |
| (One Nationals MP, John Williams, has already been on radio this morning suggesting the treasurer should impose conditions on the sale.) | |
| 11.12pm BST | |
| 23:12 | |
| The prime minister is asked about today’s banking announcement. Is this the result of backbench concern about Labor’s proposal for a royal commission? | |
| Malcolm Turnbull says he’s already talked tough to the banks. | |
| The customer has to be at the centre of everything they do. They are a business that is built on trust. My focus has been on getting action here. This is not a response to anything that’s happened recently – this is an issue we’ve been addressing very methodically. | |
| 11.09pm BST | 11.09pm BST |
| 23:09 | 23:09 |
| Malcolm Turnbull opens his Adelaide radio interview by noting how glad he is to be on radio, where he can talk to owner drivers who are back at work courtesy of the government abolishing that wicked tribunal in the special parliamentary sitting. Heellllooooo owner drivers! (That last bit is me, not the prime minister). | Malcolm Turnbull opens his Adelaide radio interview by noting how glad he is to be on radio, where he can talk to owner drivers who are back at work courtesy of the government abolishing that wicked tribunal in the special parliamentary sitting. Heellllooooo owner drivers! (That last bit is me, not the prime minister). |
| 11.04pm BST | 11.04pm BST |
| 23:04 | 23:04 |
| The prime minister is coming up on radio in Adelaide. The Labor leader Bill Shorten has done breakfast television this morning. | The prime minister is coming up on radio in Adelaide. The Labor leader Bill Shorten has done breakfast television this morning. |
| Shorten was asked about Labor’s chances at the election. | Shorten was asked about Labor’s chances at the election. |
| We are the underdog. To use the horse racing analogy, we are coming into the home stretch. We have policies, passion and we are determined to provide a competition for the Australian people and it will be choices about policies which affect people, not just the usual political games. | We are the underdog. To use the horse racing analogy, we are coming into the home stretch. We have policies, passion and we are determined to provide a competition for the Australian people and it will be choices about policies which affect people, not just the usual political games. |
| We believe we can win ... we have a real chance. It is about having policies. I think people want to see more than ... the superficial personality politics. | We believe we can win ... we have a real chance. It is about having policies. I think people want to see more than ... the superficial personality politics. |
| And on the story of the day – strengthening Asic’s powers – not good enough. “Nothing less than a royal commission ..” | And on the story of the day – strengthening Asic’s powers – not good enough. “Nothing less than a royal commission ..” |
| Bill Shorten | Bill Shorten |
| We think regulators, the exciting cop on the beat regulators of the bank should be properly funded. The truth of the matter is nothing less than a royal commission will be satisfactory. The banks don’t want a royal commission and Mr Turnbull doesn’t want a royal commission but there are tens and thousands of customers who have been ripped off. | We think regulators, the exciting cop on the beat regulators of the bank should be properly funded. The truth of the matter is nothing less than a royal commission will be satisfactory. The banks don’t want a royal commission and Mr Turnbull doesn’t want a royal commission but there are tens and thousands of customers who have been ripped off. |
| We hoped things would get better but they haven’t so I do believe that a royal commission with its widespread powers will get to the bottom of it. | We hoped things would get better but they haven’t so I do believe that a royal commission with its widespread powers will get to the bottom of it. |
| The regulators try to do the best they can but after every banking scandal don’t we always hear a contrite banking executive saying “we have learned our lesson” and then they seem to go out and do it all again. | The regulators try to do the best they can but after every banking scandal don’t we always hear a contrite banking executive saying “we have learned our lesson” and then they seem to go out and do it all again. |
| 10.55pm BST | 10.55pm BST |
| 22:55 | 22:55 |
| Good morning good people and welcome to Wednesday in Canberra. As I made my way into the parliament early this morning, I was almost mown down by senators heading out of the building to the airport. Yes, the special sitting of parliament is over. We’ve now entered the pre-budget/election-without-an-election period that will characterise the next couple of weeks. | Good morning good people and welcome to Wednesday in Canberra. As I made my way into the parliament early this morning, I was almost mown down by senators heading out of the building to the airport. Yes, the special sitting of parliament is over. We’ve now entered the pre-budget/election-without-an-election period that will characterise the next couple of weeks. |
| Despite the departure of our elected representatives I’m powering on with Politics Live today for two reasons: the government will unveil its riposte to Labor’s campaign for a banking royal commission mid-morning and we need to wash up the sum of the past few days. I’m glad to have your company. | Despite the departure of our elected representatives I’m powering on with Politics Live today for two reasons: the government will unveil its riposte to Labor’s campaign for a banking royal commission mid-morning and we need to wash up the sum of the past few days. I’m glad to have your company. |
| The news cycle this morning is very ‘morning after the night before’. Readers with me yesterday know that Labor over the course of the evening used the opportunity of the special sitting to foist a couple of nasties on the Turnbull government – most particularly a new inquiry into donations in New South Wales. The cabinet secretary Arthur Sinodinos will be directed to attend this inquiry and answer questions about party fundraising. | The news cycle this morning is very ‘morning after the night before’. Readers with me yesterday know that Labor over the course of the evening used the opportunity of the special sitting to foist a couple of nasties on the Turnbull government – most particularly a new inquiry into donations in New South Wales. The cabinet secretary Arthur Sinodinos will be directed to attend this inquiry and answer questions about party fundraising. |
| The government is thundering about precedents, and reasonably so, because this is a highly unusual turn of events. I suspect, however, the government’s complaint would have more credibility if it had not taken the decision to convene royal commissions that called a couple of former Labor prime ministers before them to explain their conduct. The lesson to learn from winner-take-all politics is it’s definitely contagious. | The government is thundering about precedents, and reasonably so, because this is a highly unusual turn of events. I suspect, however, the government’s complaint would have more credibility if it had not taken the decision to convene royal commissions that called a couple of former Labor prime ministers before them to explain their conduct. The lesson to learn from winner-take-all politics is it’s definitely contagious. |
| And quite apart from the politics, the problems with Australia’s donations disclosure regime are serious, and our political system seems incapable of responding to them. The culture of political fundraising in Australia needs a good dose of sunlight, and anything that delivers that is worth doing. | And quite apart from the politics, the problems with Australia’s donations disclosure regime are serious, and our political system seems incapable of responding to them. The culture of political fundraising in Australia needs a good dose of sunlight, and anything that delivers that is worth doing. |
| Moving on. | Moving on. |
| As well as the various previews of today’s banking announcement, there are some interesting stories around, including a budget story from Fairfax Media’s Peter Martin which suggests the government is planning to launch a tougher crackdown on generous superannuation concessions than Labor’s proposal. | As well as the various previews of today’s banking announcement, there are some interesting stories around, including a budget story from Fairfax Media’s Peter Martin which suggests the government is planning to launch a tougher crackdown on generous superannuation concessions than Labor’s proposal. |
| As Martin notes, Labor has promised to cut the income threshold for more heavily taxing contributions from $300,000 to $250,000. “The Coalition now plans to cut it to $180,000. The change, to be unveiled on budget night, will tax more highly the super contributions of an extra 244,000 Australians and will net $2bn a year, compared with Labor’s $500m a year.” | As Martin notes, Labor has promised to cut the income threshold for more heavily taxing contributions from $300,000 to $250,000. “The Coalition now plans to cut it to $180,000. The change, to be unveiled on budget night, will tax more highly the super contributions of an extra 244,000 Australians and will net $2bn a year, compared with Labor’s $500m a year.” |
| With policies like this, you’d almost think we had a revenue problem that needed fixing, but of course that’s impossible. | With policies like this, you’d almost think we had a revenue problem that needed fixing, but of course that’s impossible. |
| Yes, it is too early for sick burns. Let’s canter on. The Politics Live comments thread is now open for your business, so come on, get happy. Magic Mike and I are also at your disposal on the twits (consistent with the requirement to gather news and file constantly for ten hours at a stretch): he’s @mpbowers and I’m @murpharoo Feel free also to stop by my forum on Facebook and join the conversation there. | Yes, it is too early for sick burns. Let’s canter on. The Politics Live comments thread is now open for your business, so come on, get happy. Magic Mike and I are also at your disposal on the twits (consistent with the requirement to gather news and file constantly for ten hours at a stretch): he’s @mpbowers and I’m @murpharoo Feel free also to stop by my forum on Facebook and join the conversation there. |
| But for now, boil the kettle and butter your crumpets. Here comes Wednesday. | But for now, boil the kettle and butter your crumpets. Here comes Wednesday. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 10.57pm BST | at 10.57pm BST |