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Chris Bowen grilled on Labor's renewables policy – politics live Chris Bowen grilled on Labor's renewables policy – politics live
(35 minutes later)
6.08am GMT
06:08
Paul Karp
The Senate committee examining the government’s same-sex marriage bill exposure draft is due to release its report after 5pm.
Guardian Australia understands the committee - which includes marriage equality opponent David Fawcett, pro marriage equality Liberals Dean Smith and James Paterson, Labor, the Greens and Nick Xenophon Team’s Skye Kakoschke-Moore - has produced a consensus report.
The fact the committee was able to reach a consensus will raise hopes of a cross-party marriage equality bill and possibly force reconsideration of a free vote in the Liberal party room.
Smith, who has described the plebiscite policy as “dead”, and a group of moderates including Trent Zimmerman and Tim Wilson believe the government position must default to a free vote, as Tony Abbott said the 44th parliament would be the last to be bound on same-sex marriage.
Conservative figures Tony Abbott, George Christensen and Josh Frydenberg have moved to shut the call down, while others including the leader of the House, Christopher Pyne, seem open to it if and when a bill is produced.
5.54am GMT
05:54
The other point Peter Whish-Wilson made was that Pauline Hanson voted for a tax cut - the one for those over $80,000 to address bracket creep - so she had effectively delivered a boost to Fahour’s executive salary by $315 per year.
5.46am GMT
05:46
Pauline Hanson has won the matter of public importance around the salary of Australia Post chief executive Ahmed Fahour.
Due to excessive remuneration paid to the CEO and their Directors, the need to remove and replace the Board of Australia Post.
Hanson has spoken against the salary since the issue has been running. Here is an example:
I'm so angry to see Australia Post paid its CEO, Ahmed Fahour $5.6 million last year. I don't care what others say! THIS IS TAXPAYER MONEY! pic.twitter.com/GXHkWI852k
Greens senator Peter Whish-Wilson, who has campaigned against excessive executive salaries, has just stood up in the debate and accused Hanson of pushing this issue because Fahour is a Muslim. He mentions a blog post on the One Nation website that stresses Fahour is “Lebanese-born”.
Pauline Hanson is doing this because Ahmed Fahour is a Muslim. A high profile, successful muslim.
5.36am GMT5.36am GMT
05:3605:36
So as we stumble down the weed infested path to yet another soul destroying carbon policy debate, this week former Abbott chief of staff Peta Credlin confirms the political nature of the campaign, nothing to do with the environment.So as we stumble down the weed infested path to yet another soul destroying carbon policy debate, this week former Abbott chief of staff Peta Credlin confirms the political nature of the campaign, nothing to do with the environment.
Peta Credlin says the carbon tax wasn't about environmentalism #pmlive #auspol pic.twitter.com/H3VyXvE4yIPeta Credlin says the carbon tax wasn't about environmentalism #pmlive #auspol pic.twitter.com/H3VyXvE4yI
5.25am GMT5.25am GMT
05:2505:25
Chris Bowen has spoken to David Speers on Sky with a confusing interview.Chris Bowen has spoken to David Speers on Sky with a confusing interview.
But working through the details, this is what I have gleaned re renewables.But working through the details, this is what I have gleaned re renewables.
1. Labor’s existing policy on the RET is the current level - 23.5 per cent of Australia’s electricity generation in 2020 will be from renewable sources - which is a bipartisan position.1. Labor’s existing policy on the RET is the current level - 23.5 per cent of Australia’s electricity generation in 2020 will be from renewable sources - which is a bipartisan position.
2. Then, Labor has an objective of getting to 50% renewables by 2030 which is beyond the RET. Bowen says this “goal” - his word - is supported by a range of policy initiatives, (including an emissions trading scheme and and electricity emissions trading scheme). The policy says Labor will “ensure that 50% of the nation’s electricity is sourced from renewable energy by 2030”.2. Then, Labor has an objective of getting to 50% renewables by 2030 which is beyond the RET. Bowen says this “goal” - his word - is supported by a range of policy initiatives, (including an emissions trading scheme and and electricity emissions trading scheme). The policy says Labor will “ensure that 50% of the nation’s electricity is sourced from renewable energy by 2030”.
Q: Objective sounds a lot softer than a RET?Q: Objective sounds a lot softer than a RET?
Well it’s further out isn’t it than the Renewable Energy Target? ...independent analysis has shown it will create 28,000 jobs (net) and create billions of dollars of investment. That is the cost...what is (Coalition) policy to meet the Paris targets? What is their cost?Well it’s further out isn’t it than the Renewable Energy Target? ...independent analysis has shown it will create 28,000 jobs (net) and create billions of dollars of investment. That is the cost...what is (Coalition) policy to meet the Paris targets? What is their cost?
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A rare Coalition ministerial turfing.A rare Coalition ministerial turfing.
Matched by a not-so-rare Labor eviction.Matched by a not-so-rare Labor eviction.
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04:2604:26
The Senate has voted to sit late to consider the ABCC bill.The Senate has voted to sit late to consider the ABCC bill.
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4.21am GMT
04:21
The Senate is currently voting on whether it should stay late to debate the ABCC bill until it passes.
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4.20am GMT
04:20
Paul Karp
Labor’s shadow employment minister, Brendan O’Connor, has circulated a series of amendments to the ABCC bill, now that debate has been reopened by Derryn Hinch agreeing to trim the period of the building code phase-in period.The amendments:
Hold that to the extent the code is inconsistent with the Fair Work Act, the government’s procurement policy does not apply
Exempt essential services from the code, due to reports it will cause industrial action at electricity grid companies, including in South Australia
Allow agreements to specify the number of apprentices to be employed and to allow checks that workers can legally work in Australia
The amendments haven’t gone to the Greens party room but they are inclined to support them – but no word back from the Nick Xenophon Team on their position.
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4.19am GMT
04:19
Where’s Malcolm?
The West Australian is reporting that the prime minister has not been seen in the state for six months.
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4.14am GMT
04:14
Paul Karp
The Liberal defector and senator Cory Bernardi has asked his first question in Senate question time since he formed the Australian Conservatives.
He asked if the Coalition would introduce real-time disclosure of commonwealth spending, prefacing the question with the observation that public debt amounts to $90,000 per Australian child.
The finance minister, Mathias Cormann, said the Coalition shared his concern about the state of the budget and noted that Bernardi was, until recently, “a valued member of the team that worked to repair the damage Labor did to the budget with $250bn of budget improvements over the medium term”.
Cormann called on Bernardi to pass the omnibus welfare bill and said he would take the suggestion of real-time disclosure of spending on notice.
His first question shows Bernardi plans to outflank the Coalition on the right in fiscal policy, taking up the Abbott line that the government hasn’t done enough to cut the deficit because it was scared off by the 2014 budget.
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4.13am GMT
04:13
Anthony Albanese to Malcolm Turnbull: The government’s punished Victorians for electing a Labor government but [is] shortchanging them on infrastructure funding ... Victoria receives 8%, despite having 25% of the nation’s population. Why is the prime minister now holding West Australians hostage by threatening to withhold $1.2bn in funding, because [the] future Labor government would not proceed with their discredited Perth freight link?
Turnbull:
The honourable member has overlooked the fact that Western Australia is a great exporting state and it needs the infrastructure to get the exports to the market and to the port.
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4.07am GMT
04:07
Labor to the transport minister, Darren Chester: Is the prime minister aware that the Perth freight link will not take freight to the ports but stops 3km short of it? Why is this discredited project a priority for the prime minister instead of expanding transport in Perth through the Metronet?
(Remember the freight link was supported by the Coalition and Metronet was supported by Labor at the last election.)
Chester does not answer the question.
The closest he gets is,
the freight link will give significant travel time savings for the community in Western Australia.
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4.01am GMT
04:01
Bowen to Morrison: Can the treasurer confirm in the last bill, he has introduced a bill with cuts to family, pensioners, carers and new mums and held the NDIS to ransom, threatened to increase taxes on all Australians, while persisting with his $50bn of company tax cuts. Does this show the treasurer is incompetent and out of touch?
The question is hard to answer and Morrison does not.
Those mock opposite, Mr Speaker, every time I raise the issue they want to spend more money on welfare and send the bill to their kids. If you want to raise spending on welfare and keep it at high levels, at least have the courage to insist that the generation that you say wants that higher welfare also pays for it, and don’t send the bill to the children of the future on their credit card.
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3.57am GMT
03:57
The immigration minister, Peter Dutton, is asked a government question about hardworking Australians etc etc.
It gives him the chance to raise the numbers of 457 temporary workers brought in under Bill Shorten as workplace relations minister. Then he combines it with foreign electricians who have experience with generators, “in hot demand in South Australia”.
Geddit? May the gods save me ...
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3.54am GMT
03:54
Bowen to Morrison: Bowen asks about the Michelle Grattan report that the treasurer was responsible for the link between the NDIS and the omnibus. Bowen asks whether Morrison was thrown under the omnibus?
Morrison does not answer the question but says Chris Bowen used to “parade himself around the board rooms”, pretending to be the reasonable face of Labor economic policy.
This is a shadow treasurer who knows better but is under the thumb of a weak and unprincipled leader of the opposition who will say anything, and do anything, and it’s a shame that he signed up to it.
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at 4.06am GMT
3.49am GMT
03:49
A government question to Christopher Pyne about energy. He talks about how Vili’s pies and cakes in Adelaide needs its own generator now to guarantee electricity supply. Vili’s has a fetching photo of Tony Abbott in a hairnet on its website.
Updated
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