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Coalition says it will introduce laws to make ABC 'fair and balanced' – politics live Spirits run high as energy debate dominates question time – politics live
(35 minutes later)
4.19am BST
04:19
Scott Morrison gets a dixer and in his answer appears surprised that the Opposition, would, well, oppose something the government has put forward.
Yesterday, we said yes to providing certainty for investment in boosting energy supply through the National Energy Guarantee that will make power more affordable, more reliable and achieve our environmental commitments. Business and industry have said yes to that, Mr Speaker. Economists have said yes to that, Mr Speaker. The Chief Scientist has said yes, Mr Speaker to the National Energy Guarantee. What has Labor done again? Labor has said no. Labor have no plans for investment certainty, they only have a plan to say no, Mr Speaker, on every single occasion as this government works to drive investment that support jobs,that supports certainty, that support higher-paid jobs and that support a growing economy, Mr Speaker. What they do is they look for any excuse to say no, any and every excuse and they will sink to seeking to discredit and bully an Energy Security Board with people appointed by Labor state governments and yet we have seen them in interview after interview seek to undermine those independently-appointed members of that board, seeking to bully and intimidate like the unions they defend and protect for that behaviour in this place on every single day, Mr Speaker. The recipe from those opposite is higher taxes, higher subsidies, $66 billion in higher costs for Australian business and consumers which...”
Sadly, we run out of time before we get to hear what that recipe creates.
4.14am BST
04:14
It’s official– the government has decided on it’s three word sell.
Affordable ✅ Reliable ✅ Responsible ✅ WATCH the PM on @TheTodayShow pic.twitter.com/cXDafferXo
4.13am BST
04:13
Barnaby Joyce is his usual healthy shade of beetroot, but Turnbull’s voice is already starting to fade. That’s the problem with the non-stop sell. Someone might need to pass him a Soother.
The Labor backbench is not as rowdy as the Coalition as yet. But it is only just warming up. Turnbull takes a dixer on energy and gets to use his smartest people in the room quote again. One would assume he includes Alan Finkel in that, given he is the Chief Scientist. We move on to Mark Butler and the affordability aspect of the Neg.
“Last night when asked whether she would personally guarantee to the people of Australia that their energy bills will be cheaper in three years’ time under the Prime Minister’s latest energy policy, the chair of the Energy Security Board said, “I don’t think anybody can guarantee a price reduction.” When the chair of the government’s Energy Security Board can’t guarantee that energy prices will fall for households, why should the Australian people believe the Prime Minister’s so-called guarantee?”
Turnbull is REALLY feeling the Halloween spirit. First werewolves, now scary movies.
“One thing we can guarantee is that if you impose a $66 billion subsidy on the Australian energy sector, and you get the taxpayers to pay for that, you can guarantee that electricity bills will be higher. If you continue to ignore the lead for dispatchable base load power you will get more blackouts and then you will get more volatility. We know how this Labor horror movie goes.It’s been playing in South Australia for years. We know what it does. They have no conception of the engineering and the economics that we need to deliver a reliable and affordable energy plan. And as forDr Shott, I can say to the LaborParty, she can’t be intimidated. She is one of the finest public servants in this country. This is what she said, this is what she said, “The guarantee is about providing a reliable power system and meeting the emissions target set in the Paris agreement.” What will happen when those mechanisms are put in price is prices are likely to come down and they are likely to keep coming down. That is exactly the same advice that we received in the letter from the Energy Security Board. The experts that we have been called on to listen to and take advice from.”
4.07am BST
04:07
The lols are coming early this question time. Bill Shorten opens with a question on the Coalition’s “latest energy policy” but can’t get it all the way out, because Josh Frydenberg is laughing harder than a middle aged man watching Monty Python.
Malcolm Turnbull, obviously feeling the Halloween spirit, gets a little supernatural with his answer.
Earlier today the Leader of the Opposition stood in front of some solar panels. And for a little while he was talking sense and then a beam of sunlight struck the panel and he was transformed, not into a werewolf but an economic fantasist. This is what he said. Renewable energy is getting cheaper - he did. He said it’s correct to say we have been moving down the renewable energy path and we are seeing the benefits and he said it needs to be subsidised! Now, Mr Speaker, this is the bit that we are struggling to understand. Mr Speaker, his comrade in arms, his comrade in arms was of course the member for Sydney. She said, she’s even more emphatic, she said the renewables are becoming cheaper all the time and are already cheaper than coal. Kieran Gilbert [from Sky] was not asking an unreasonable question when he said, “So why subsidise them?” She said,”It is not about subsidies, it is about certainty.” This is the Labor Party. It is about certainty. $66 billion of cost loaded on to Australian families and Australian businesses in order to subsidise technologies that are already the cheapest alternative according to the Labor Party.”
3.55am BST
03:55
Question time is almost upon us.
Taking a look at the morning’s events, energy will once again be the name of the game. But with the telecommunication ombudsman report, the NBN will most likely get a go as well.
I’m going to try to report on QT from the chamber, so wish me luck. If there are tech problems, you can bet I will be getting my running shoes on for you.
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03:51
You’ll find the amendments Gareth Hutchens had mentioned on the citizenship bill here.
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03:46
People are reacting very seriously to the allegations Andrew Wilkie raised in parliament this morning.
Vic gambling regulator STATEMENT: "We take any claims of this type extremely seriously and they will be thoroughly investigated." pic.twitter.com/Bfc3SaVHb4
3.42am BST3.42am BST
03:4203:42
Gareth HutchensGareth Hutchens
It looks like Peter Dutton’s controversial citizenship bill will be struck from the Senate notice paper this evening. It looks as though Peter Dutton’s controversial citizenship bill will be struck from the Senate notice paper this evening.
Last month, the Senate voted to give Dutton until today, 18 Wednesday, to bring his bill on for debate in the Senate because they were tired of him telling voters how crucial his bill was while simultaneously withholding it from the Senate so it couldn’t be debated. Last month the Senate voted to give Dutton until today to bring his bill on for debate in the Senate because they were tired of him telling voters how crucial his bill was while simultaneously withholding it from the Senate so it couldn’t be debated.
His office has reached out to key members of the Nick Xenophon Team in the last few days to talk about making amendments to the bill, but it all seems too late. His office has reached out to key members of the Nick Xenophon Team in the past few days to talk about making amendments to the bill but it all seems too late.
It was the NXT that derailed Dutton’s attempt last month to enact his citizenship laws, saying they could not support the bill package in its current form.It was the NXT that derailed Dutton’s attempt last month to enact his citizenship laws, saying they could not support the bill package in its current form.
It meant the government would have to either dump the package completely, or make substantial changes, to get the bill through parliament.It meant the government would have to either dump the package completely, or make substantial changes, to get the bill through parliament.
In yesterday’s Coalition party room meeting, Dutton told his colleagues that he would amend the citizenship package. In yesterday’s Coalition party-room meeting, Dutton told his colleagues that he would amend the citizenship package.
Guardian Australia has been told his office has been talking about reducing the English language test from level six (university standard) to level 5, and to amend the retrospective elements of the bill that have caused consternation. Guardian Australia has been told his office has been talking about reducing the English language test from level six (university standard) to level five, and to amend the retrospective elements of the bill that have caused consternation.
But those amendments would still not be enough to persuade the NXT to come onboard.But those amendments would still not be enough to persuade the NXT to come onboard.
The NXT has previously said the bill is “fundamentally flawed” and needs considerable redrafting.The NXT has previously said the bill is “fundamentally flawed” and needs considerable redrafting.
One of their major complaints is that Dutton wants to give himself - and subsequent immigration ministers - the power to overrule decisions by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal on citizenship matters. One of their major complaints is that Dutton wants to give himself and subsequent immigration ministers the power to overrule decisions by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal on citizenship matters.
That aspect of the bill does not appear to have been part of recent discussions about amendments.That aspect of the bill does not appear to have been part of recent discussions about amendments.
The Greens have not been contacted by Dutton’s office in the last week. They expect the bill will be struck from the Senate notice paper this evening.The Greens have not been contacted by Dutton’s office in the last week. They expect the bill will be struck from the Senate notice paper this evening.
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Christian Porter is defending the government’s planned welfare reforms. You may remember from earlier this morning (which already seems a lifetime ago) the UN special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Philip Alston, slammed the proposed welfare drug testing trial and said it was stigmatising social security recipients.Christian Porter is defending the government’s planned welfare reforms. You may remember from earlier this morning (which already seems a lifetime ago) the UN special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Philip Alston, slammed the proposed welfare drug testing trial and said it was stigmatising social security recipients.
If the real goal is to reduce the use of illegal drugs, why start with the poorest members of society? Will there also be a policy designed to drug test and crack down on the well-to-do who spend far more on drugs, and receive all sorts of tax deductions, social security payments and other government benefits? Or is it only the poorest whose drug use the government feels it should punish through social security-based measures?” If the real goal is to reduce the use of illegal drugs, why start with the poorest members of society? Will there also be a policy designed to drug test and crack down on the well-to-do who spend far more on drugs, and receive all sorts of tax deductions, social security payments and other government benefits? Or is it only the poorest whose drug use the government feels it should punish through social security-based measures?
Porter told Sky the measures should be given a chance.Porter told Sky the measures should be given a chance.
We’ve got 100,000 people who don’t do the right thing in the system, overwhelming two-thirds of people either don’t miss any appointments over six months, or they miss one, and they tend to move off the payment very quickly, but what we have identified is the present complexities and slackness of the compliance system means we have 100,000 people who routinely miss important things like job interviews, and they get stuck on the payment. So it is a very complicated, long and important piece of legislation. I am very confident that almost all of it will go through the Senate. Obviously the contentious issue is testing drugs in welfare recipients and to mandate treatment and it is no secret that there has been some opposition to that...I think government should be able to try things new things in the welfare space by virtue of the fact that a lot of the old approaches simply don’t work.” We’ve got 100,000 people who don’t do the right thing in the system, overwhelming two-thirds of people either don’t miss any appointments over six months, or they miss one, and they tend to move off the payment very quickly, but what we have identified is the present complexities and slackness of the compliance system means we have 100,000 people who routinely miss important things like job interviews, and they get stuck on the payment. So it is a very complicated, long and important piece of legislation. I am very confident that almost all of it will go through the Senate. Obviously the contentious issue is testing drugs in welfare recipients and to mandate treatment and it is no secret that there has been some opposition to that ... I think government should be able to try things new things in the welfare space by virtue of the fact that a lot of the old approaches simply don’t work.
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Over at the Press Club and Brendan O’Connor is addressing the impact of the gig economy on industrial relations and how Labor plans on dealing with it:Over at the Press Club and Brendan O’Connor is addressing the impact of the gig economy on industrial relations and how Labor plans on dealing with it:
Federal Labor is examining exactly what we should be doing for people who are selling their labour on particular digital platforms. Recently, we have had Airtasker negotiate with unions in New South Wales a better deal for people who are using Airtasker to find work. Labor hasn’t settled on exactly what we need to do but we will apply the values that we apply to our public policy generally. We should embrace technology but we have to ensure it is not used to obviate obligations under particular laws, to undermine people’s rights and that includes industrial rights. We have a long way to go. Not only in this country. I think globally a long way to go to tackle the complexity of what is happening with the use of technology, exemplified by Uber. We will have more to say about that before the election but it is a complex area of law and I am examining other jurisdictions as to how they are approaching it.Federal Labor is examining exactly what we should be doing for people who are selling their labour on particular digital platforms. Recently, we have had Airtasker negotiate with unions in New South Wales a better deal for people who are using Airtasker to find work. Labor hasn’t settled on exactly what we need to do but we will apply the values that we apply to our public policy generally. We should embrace technology but we have to ensure it is not used to obviate obligations under particular laws, to undermine people’s rights and that includes industrial rights. We have a long way to go. Not only in this country. I think globally a long way to go to tackle the complexity of what is happening with the use of technology, exemplified by Uber. We will have more to say about that before the election but it is a complex area of law and I am examining other jurisdictions as to how they are approaching it.
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3.15am BST3.15am BST
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Didn’t vote? You’re one of 1 million enrolled Australians who didn’t take up their democratic right and legal obligation. AAP reports the Australian Electoral Commission’s latest annual report found a 46% increase since the 2013 election in people not voting, with the lowest turn out, 91%, since compulsory voting began in 1925. Didn’t vote? You’re one of 1 million enrolled Australians who didn’t take up their democratic right and legal obligation in the same-sex marriage postal survey. AAP reports the Australian Electoral Commission’s latest annual report found a 46% increase since the 2013 election in people not voting, with the lowest turn out, 91%, since compulsory voting began in 1925.
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Julie Bishop has confirmed Australian forces have played a role in the recapture of Raqqa, which served as the Islamic State capital for some time.Julie Bishop has confirmed Australian forces have played a role in the recapture of Raqqa, which served as the Islamic State capital for some time.
AAP reports Bishop confirmed the Royal Australian Airforce provided support as part of the international coalition, but added there were complexities:AAP reports Bishop confirmed the Royal Australian Airforce provided support as part of the international coalition, but added there were complexities:
The Syrian city of Raqqa and at least 90% of territory held by Isis in Iraq has been taken back by coalition forces. About 80 Australians fighting for Isis in Iraq and Syria have been killed in the conflict and the government continues to track the movements of another 110 believed to be in the field.But as Isis forces flee south, entrenched conflicts between Iraqi and Kurdish forces have been reignited in Kirkuk and Sinjar. This is deeply troubling and it’s an example of the layers of complexity in Syria and Iraq.The Syrian city of Raqqa and at least 90% of territory held by Isis in Iraq has been taken back by coalition forces. About 80 Australians fighting for Isis in Iraq and Syria have been killed in the conflict and the government continues to track the movements of another 110 believed to be in the field.But as Isis forces flee south, entrenched conflicts between Iraqi and Kurdish forces have been reignited in Kirkuk and Sinjar. This is deeply troubling and it’s an example of the layers of complexity in Syria and Iraq.
Bishop said Australia remained focused on defeating IS, raising concerns it would “reappear with substance in other parts of the world including in the Philippines”.Bishop said Australia remained focused on defeating IS, raising concerns it would “reappear with substance in other parts of the world including in the Philippines”.
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02:5102:51
Scott Morrison took the Turnbull government’s message to Queensland, telling the ABC Brisbane audience the state’s Labor government’s 50% renewables target was “nuts”. That should definitely help bring Queensland on board at Coag.Scott Morrison took the Turnbull government’s message to Queensland, telling the ABC Brisbane audience the state’s Labor government’s 50% renewables target was “nuts”. That should definitely help bring Queensland on board at Coag.
He also explained exactly what the Neg was designed to do.He also explained exactly what the Neg was designed to do.
It works like this. You walk into the shopfront of a retailer – put it in that context – Origin, AGL, whoever it might happen to be. What they have to do, they have to buy energy from the system from all the producers, the wholesalers and others – which a) delivers on a reliability standard which is set by the Energy Market Operator and provides a portfolio of energy that meets the emissions reduction target. So, when you’re buying your energy, you know you’re getting a product which meets both reliability and meets Australia’s environmental obligations. So, this actually does deliver on the trifecta of affordability, of reliability and environmental obligations. So you get rid of the subsidies out of the system – and the reason you can do that is they’re no longer necessary, the price of renewables has come down, they can now compete on their own two feet as they should. So the energy retailers will find that the cheapest way of getting that energy package together to provide to you the customer.It works like this. You walk into the shopfront of a retailer – put it in that context – Origin, AGL, whoever it might happen to be. What they have to do, they have to buy energy from the system from all the producers, the wholesalers and others – which a) delivers on a reliability standard which is set by the Energy Market Operator and provides a portfolio of energy that meets the emissions reduction target. So, when you’re buying your energy, you know you’re getting a product which meets both reliability and meets Australia’s environmental obligations. So, this actually does deliver on the trifecta of affordability, of reliability and environmental obligations. So you get rid of the subsidies out of the system – and the reason you can do that is they’re no longer necessary, the price of renewables has come down, they can now compete on their own two feet as they should. So the energy retailers will find that the cheapest way of getting that energy package together to provide to you the customer.
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Over at the National Press Club, Brendan O’Connor is giving a speech on workplace relations.Over at the National Press Club, Brendan O’Connor is giving a speech on workplace relations.
Here’s his opening:Here’s his opening:
We cannot tackle inequality or build a future of inclusive prosperity unless Australia has a workplace relations system that is both productive and fair. We have to both address the challenges in the labour market that exist now and prepare for what is coming.We cannot tackle inequality or build a future of inclusive prosperity unless Australia has a workplace relations system that is both productive and fair. We have to both address the challenges in the labour market that exist now and prepare for what is coming.
Essential to that task is striking the right balance of power between workers and employers. The tilt of bargaining power away from workers and to employers has gone too far.Essential to that task is striking the right balance of power between workers and employers. The tilt of bargaining power away from workers and to employers has gone too far.
Too many of our fellow Australians can no longer see the link between hard work and fair reward. Inequality is at a 75-year high. Wage growth is flat lining. Work is too often hard to find, and insecure.Too many of our fellow Australians can no longer see the link between hard work and fair reward. Inequality is at a 75-year high. Wage growth is flat lining. Work is too often hard to find, and insecure.
For too many low and middle-income earners, access to education and training is limited. Workers don’t believe they have the power any more to negotiate a better deal at work. And many are deeply anxious about what the future will bring.For too many low and middle-income earners, access to education and training is limited. Workers don’t believe they have the power any more to negotiate a better deal at work. And many are deeply anxious about what the future will bring.
The consequences for our society and our economy are profoundly negative.The consequences for our society and our economy are profoundly negative.
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Another question time strategy hint from Labor, with Mark Butler discussing the chief scientist.Another question time strategy hint from Labor, with Mark Butler discussing the chief scientist.
I think Alan Finkel should be congratulated with his work over the last months, taking advice from experts overseas and through process developed a comprehensive plan. Malcolm Turnbull has turned his back on that plan. Yes, at the end of the day, Alan Finkel said there needs to be an orderly mechanism to combine climate and energy policy and he then said the clean energy target was the best mechanism. He said it was the mechanism that would deliver the best outcome for households on power prices and Josh Frydenberg reflected that when he did his presentation to the Coalition party room. He [had] a slide that said the clean energy target will lower prices. Malcolm Turnbull reflected that. The problem for us all is that Tony Abbott vetoed it and again Malcolm Turnbull ended up capitulating to Tony Abbott.I think Alan Finkel should be congratulated with his work over the last months, taking advice from experts overseas and through process developed a comprehensive plan. Malcolm Turnbull has turned his back on that plan. Yes, at the end of the day, Alan Finkel said there needs to be an orderly mechanism to combine climate and energy policy and he then said the clean energy target was the best mechanism. He said it was the mechanism that would deliver the best outcome for households on power prices and Josh Frydenberg reflected that when he did his presentation to the Coalition party room. He [had] a slide that said the clean energy target will lower prices. Malcolm Turnbull reflected that. The problem for us all is that Tony Abbott vetoed it and again Malcolm Turnbull ended up capitulating to Tony Abbott.
As a reminder, here is what Finkel said yesterday, when asked about the clean energy target, where he concluded there was more than one way to “skin a cat”:As a reminder, here is what Finkel said yesterday, when asked about the clean energy target, where he concluded there was more than one way to “skin a cat”:
The clean energy target is not a headline item. It is bullet point number two of three bullet points. It is not even introduced as a clean energy target, it is introduced as the need for a credible mechanism and there are multiple ways of achieving a credible mechanism.The clean energy target is not a headline item. It is bullet point number two of three bullet points. It is not even introduced as a clean energy target, it is introduced as the need for a credible mechanism and there are multiple ways of achieving a credible mechanism.
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Katharine Murphy
As promised ...
Also undetected yesterday because of the focus on energy, Peter Dutton told party room colleagues he would amend the citizenship package.
This is not high court citizenship issue but the becoming an Australian issue. He said the government would reduce the English test from level six (university standard) to level five.
But this won’t be enough to secure a crossbench breakthrough. The NXT says it will need more than this concession to reverse its opposition to the controversial overhaul.
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Stay tuned: we are hearing there is movement on the citizenship reforms after all. We shall have those details with you as soon as we can.
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ABC reforms to be introduced to the Senate
We are moving quickly today, so please stay with me while I try and keep up.
The communications minister, Mitch Fifield, is moving forward on the ABC reforms he promised to One Nation as part of the deal for their support on the media reforms.
I’ll let Fifield explain what is going on. After all, I would hate to be accused of not being fair or balanced while reporting facts.
From his statement:
The Turnbull government will today introduce legislative reforms to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) Act to enhance the ABC’s commitment to rural and regional Australia and require its news services to be fair and balanced.
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation Amendment (Rural and Regional Measures) Bill 2017 will implement reforms championed by Senator Bridget McKenzie to enshrine a formal commitment to rural and regional Australia in the ABC’s charter. The bill also requires the ABC to consult on changes affecting rural and regional audiences, through the establishment of a regional advisory council.
The bill will also require there be at least two members of the ABC board with a substantial connection to, or substantial experience in, a regional area through business, industry or community involvement. The government would already satisfy this obligation through its appointments to date. The bill also introduces greater transparency by requiring a number of additional particulars to be included in its Annual Report. These amendments will ensure the ABC has an even greater focus on, and regard for, the needs of rural and regional communities.
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation Amendment (Fair and Balanced) Bill 2017 will require news and information to be ‘fair’ and ‘balanced’, in addition to the already legislated requirement to be ‘accurate and impartial according to the recognised standards of objective journalism’.
The bill seeks to legislate what the ABC already expects of itself. The ABC’s own editorial policies already cover ‘fair treatment’, as well as requiring ‘a balance that follows the weight of evidence’. And the MEAA’s journalistic code of ethics refers to ‘fairness’ no less than six times.
The amendments will cement the standards expected by Australian taxpayers.
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Bob Brown wins high court fight against Tasmania's anti-protest laws
Turning my Eye of Sauron outside the Canberra bubble for just a moment (I know, I know, I should get out more) the former Greens leader Bob Brown has had a win in the high court.
Here is a bit from Michael Slezak’s report, which you’ll find here:
The former Australian Greens leader Bob Brown has won a landmark high court fight against Tasmanian anti-protest laws passed in 2014 and under which he was charged in 2016.
Brown, the third person arrested under the Workplaces (Protection from Protesters) Act 2014, argued the laws directly targeted implied freedom of political expression in the constitution and were therefore unconstitutional.
The landmark case stemmed from Brown’s arrest while filming a video about an anti-logging protest at Lapoinya state forest in Tasmania’s north-west in January 2016.
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Meanwhile Julie Bishop has announced a new consul general to Istanbul, Jeffie Kaine.
The Australian consulate general in Istanbul plays a significant role in fostering trade and investment between Turkey and Australia. Istanbul is the business and finance capital of Turkey. It generates almost one quarter of Turkey’s GDP and accommodates one fifth of Turkey’s population of almost 80 million. Istanbul is a popular destination for Australian travellers and a gateway to the Gallipoli peninsula.
Our enduring relationship with Turkey is grounded in our shared experience at the Gallipoli battles of World War I and covers a broad range of areas including Anzac commemorations, cooperation on counter-terrorism and participation in the MIKTA (Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, Turkey and Australia) forum.
Australia and Turkey enjoy close people-to-people links, with some 67,000 Australians claiming Turkish ancestry. Our economic relationship continues to strengthen, with two-way trade growing by 14.6% in 2015–16 and totalling almost $1.5bn.
Ms Kaine is a career officer with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. She was most recently director, head of mission/senior executive service section. In Canberra, she has held a range of positions, including in the Iraq taskforce and staffing branch. She has served previously overseas in the Australian permanent mission to the United Nations in Geneva and the Australian embassy in Jakarta.
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Trouble at (banking) mill
Katharine Murphy
While we’ve all been focused on energy (or perhaps that’s just me), trouble has broken out inside the government on another front. This fight is over plans to regulate the salary and appointment of banking executives, which is one of the things the government is doing to hold off calls for a royal commission into the banks.
The veteran Liberal MP Russell Broadbent kicked up a stink about this package in the Coalition party room meeting yesterday, and is reserving his rights, which means he might cross the floor to vote against the change.
Broadbent has told me governments should not be regulating the internal affairs of businesses. He says that’s like Labor’s plans for bank nationalisation in the 1940s.
“This is totally at odds with what the Liberal and national parties stand for,” Broadbent said. “I think Ben Chifley tried something like this in 1947.”
He says he is not “sticking up for the banks” but for a point of principle.
All pretty interesting. We’ll keep an eye on development.
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Andrew Wilkie is speaking more about the allegations he has tabled in the parliament this morning, regarding Crown casino. He won’t go further into the allegations during the press conference because parliamentary privilege does not extend to the Senate courtyard and press conferences. But Wilkie, a whistleblower himself, says he is also not going to do anything which could identify the group which have come forward to him.
He’s calling for a parliamentary inquiry into the allegations and wants the Victorian government and the federal government to investigate what has gone on.
I’m not going to talk to the specific allegations: You know where to find them in the Hansard record if you’re interested in seeing them. What I will say is that the three whistleblowers who have approached me, I’ve met them – I’ve confirmed their identity, and I think that the allegations have enough weight to them that we should take them seriously, and they should be investigated.
It’s now up to the federal government and the Victorian state government to take strong and immediate action. The federal government because some of the allegations would involve breaches of federal law, and obviously the Victorian government because the allegations, if true, would indicate breaches of Victorian law. So, I’m now looking to the prime minister and to the premier to find out what they’re going to do about these very serious allegations. Clearly there needs to be some sort of inquiry by the relevant law enforcement and regulatory agencies and I’m also looking to the parliament to form some sort of parliamentary inquiry into these allegations, and perhaps more broadly than just Crown casino, just to be able to reassure ourselves that if these allegations are true, that at least they’re limited to Crown seen know, but we will wait and see.
Now, I’ve have seen the footage that I have tabled today of the three whistleblowers, you will see that some considerable trouble has been taken to hide their identity. And that’s fair enough because these are three men who are making very serious allegations. It is a very risky thing that they’ve decided to do, to become whistleblowers. It is not an easy road, whistleblowing in this country, but I can reassure the media, that although their identity is concealed, that I have confirmed their identity and although I cannot make any comment about the accuracy or not of their allegations, I do know that these are three people who we should listen to, and we should take their allegations very serious.
Meanwhile you can play our own interactive pokie machine to find out just how addictive they are:
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Back to the politics.
Bill Shorten is at the Mt Majura solar farm , with about half the Labor shadow cabinet (that may be a slight exaggeration, but with Mark Butler, Chris Bown and Andrew Leigh, joining him, it’s quite crowded)
Labor is still examining the policy, but they are certainly no fans of the process. From Chris Bowen:
What we saw yesterday was Turnbull energy policy 72.0. The latest attempt, as they go from crisis to crisis with an energy policy. Just a few weeks ago we were told by the prime minister a clean energy target “would certainly work” Josh Frydenberg told us it would reduce electricity prices. A few weeks before that just in the last session, we were told that the answer to Australia’s energy needs was to keep the Liddell power station open, the coal-fired power station, words that don’t utter their lips anymore. T
The prime minister says it is about engineering and, but it’s about party politics. What is particularly concerning is the lack of modelling which goes with this policy. I’ve seen more thorough modelling in a high school economics essay than the government has been able to produce this far. Particularly scary is the fact that the treasurer said this morning the Labor party has all the information that the government has. Well, I tell you what, that means the government has no information, no modelling at their disposal.
This is not the fault of the Energy Security Board. They have been given an unrealistic timetable and unrealistic task by the government, again which has been driven by the rival factional and liberal politics of the party room, not by good policy. The Labor party has been offering bipartisan support to the government for months for a proper energy policy, but we are all of a sudden expected to think that this latest thought bubble from the government which we were told last week they had a different plan, the week before that a different plan and all of a sudden this is the one that the Labor party should automatically back without the modelling and research.
The Labor party will continue to be the adults in the room in this conversation. We will continue to offer support for good policy, but policy which is supported by the evidence and the facts, and the fact that this government has put this policy together with strings and Band-Aids, with no modelling, no thorough analysis, as has been confirmed by the energy board themselves, that they have to now go to do the work, well, let’s see that work, and if they publish it all for all to see, clearly.
The government is still hoping for bipartisan support, to help give business and industry some certainty that the policy would survive beyond the next few minutes. It would also help bring the Labor states on board, which would be the easiest way for the government to get this all happening. But it probably didn’t help that Scott Morrison was demanding Labor support the policy almost immediately yesterday, before anyone had even had a look at the policy. It seems that whatever political goodwill there was regarding this, is evaporating quite rapidly.
If you missed it here’s Peter Lewis on the energy policy shambles.
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01:27
Before the politics gets in the way again, here’s a bit of what Malcolm Turnbull told our Invictus Games team:
It’s good to see so many of you again. Last time we met we were in Sydney with Prince Harry and you’ve been hanging out with him at the Invictus Games where you’ve been so successful.
It’s great to see you again Gary. You kept Julie Bishop – Julie Bishop is here – you were part of our close personal protection team in Afghanistan years ago, not long before you suffered your injuries in the Black Hawk crash. And you kept us safe. You put your life on the line with your comrades to keep us safe there as you all do and have done every day.
We live in a dangerous world. There are many people that seek to do us harm and we know that the freedoms we exercise in this parliament are due to you and those like you who have carried out with that Anzac spirit the defence of our nation for generations.
We’re surrounded by parliamentarians, the servicemen and women of tomorrow, all of these young people – their freedoms, their future depends on the sacrifices you have made and so many other brave Australians will make in the years to come.
You’re an inspiration. We thank you for what you’ve done.
And Bill Shorten:
I want you to know, just as the prime minister has said, on behalf of all Australians – that by returning from adversity, by returning from places which many Australians will never have to go, coming through that storm, that difficulty and that uncertainty – coming through the other side – you served your country again, by your inspiration.
You are proof of the human spirit’s boundless resilience. I want you to know how many people you give hope to by your effort. They mightn’t always get the chance to tell you, but trust me, you give a lot of people, a lot of hope. And you are also a reminder of the duty that we owe all of those who’ve served, the duty to support the men and women of the ADF and their families.
Looking around this room, you can almost feel and see the pride that your families have in you. You should know that every Australian wishes they could be here, telling you how proud they are of you.
You represent: the purest expression of sport, the noblest example of mateship, the very best of Australia.
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1.21am BST
01:21
Wilkie has released a statement ahead of his press conference:
Today very serious allegations have been levelled at the poker machine industry.
Although the allegations focus on Crown in Melbourne, they could also suggest a broader pattern of behaviour in the poker machine industry, which would obviously have grave implications for people right around Australia, including in my electorate of Denison.
These allegations are obviously very serious. If members and senators, law enforcement and regulatory agencies, and the media, scrutinise the video record of the whistleblowers’ testimony, I’m sure they’ll agree that the claims warrant an immediate and strong response.
I call on the federal and Victorian governments to ensure the allegations are investigated thoroughly. The truth will not be uncovered without a parliamentary inquiry, as well as investigations by law enforcement and regulatory agencies.
Updated
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