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Coalition's tax plan on a knife edge – politics live Shorten tells Hanson: remember the battlers – politics live
(35 minutes later)
Asked about her Monday night comments about the ABC, while on the ABC (where she said it was valid to be having the debate and told Tony Jones that 40% of his salary was probably coming from WA, which is the most WA thing to say, ever)
Linda Reynolds told Sky News she has no regrets about kicking the debate down the road, while the government desperately tries to stuff it back in a box:
“Not at all,” she said.
“I don’t walk back from anything I said. I made it very clear up front that the government won’t be privatising the ABC, but what I did say is Australian taxpayers spend $1.2 billion a year on the ABC and I get a lot of feedback from rural and regional Western Australia, that they would like to see more services from the ABC, because they don’t get the same access to the media markets that those of us living in capital cities do.
“So it is absolutely valid question to discuss where does that $1.2 billion go. I think it should be more focus on rural and regional Australia and I have had a lot of support for that position since then.
“And it is taxpayer money. And every single dollar of taxpayer’s money is accountable.”
Except, apparently, when government’s or government ministers don’t want you to know how some money is being spent - like Michaelia Cash’s legal bills. You have to wait until estimates for that. And then maybe, not even then.
The Senate has moved on to debating the amendments to the income tax bill.
You’ll find those here.
Over on Sky News, Linda Reynolds says the government is “achingly close” to having its bill passed.
A few early observations on the AEC’s redistribution of Victorian seats.
Labor is pleased because the final boundaries have not changed the proposal for Dunkley and have made only small changes to the proposal for Corangamite – both currently held by Liberal MPs, which the proposed redistribution turned notionally Labor or into a 50-50 contest. Given Labor will pick up the new seat of Fraser in Melbourne’s west, it could be looking at +3 seats from Victoria alone at the next election.
There’s also a suggestion that a few changes in Liberal MP Jason Wood’s seat of La Trobe and its boundaries with neighbouring seats Monash, Holt and Casey could help Labor, but the parties are still waiting for more info from the AEC.
On the plus side for Liberal MP Sarah Henderson and her successors, though, is the fact they will remain the member for Corangamite not the member for Cox.
Bill Shorten holds the seat of Maribyrnong, which had a big chunk taken out to create the new seat of Fraser. Previously Shorten said he will wait and see the final distribution before deciding which to contest, so he hasn’t ruled out a switch. However, Labor’s right faction has the numbers on the ground so will likely take them both unless there is an agreement to parachute a star candidate in from another faction.
That minister Bill Shorten was talking about in the post below was in response to Paul Fletcher’s interview on Sky News this morning.
Asked about the Telstra news, he said:
“Well as a former telco executive I can say these things do happen, from time to time in a very fast moving sector like telecommunications.
“Obviously it is never fun for people being made redundant and absolutely, my sympathies are with them. I understand the Telstra chief executive has said there will be a $50m fund to be used to support various aspects of those redundancies.
“It is worth making the point that the telecommunication sector is changing very fast. That has been the case for 20 years, but seems to be changing even faster now, with the arrival of new mobile technologies like 5G, but also the impact of the NBN, which is changing how people get their fixed line broadband.”
On the Telstra news, following Stephen Conroy’s comments that the structural change it has flagged was needed for quite some time, Bill Shorten says:
“I’m not going to start re-evaluating the Telstra announcement today just from that angle.
“For me the biggest news I took out of this morning’s announcement is that 8,000 people are told that their jobs will be ending.
“So the very first thing I want to say as Labor leader to these 8,000 Telstra workers and their colleagues is that this is a very tough time.
“To be told that after years and years all of a sudden you won’t have a job, this is big news.
“I want to make them a promise – we’ll make sure that Telstra pays people’s entitlements, everything that people have earned and deserved has got to be paid.
“We want to make sure people aren’t treated as being thrown on the scrap heap, there’s proper transition. I noticed today another Turnbull Government minister has boasted about his telco management experience on television and he said – he just said, ‘This is what happens. This is what happens.’ Well actually, it shows you again how out-of-touch this Turnbull government is. Eight thousand jobs being announced to go is not another day in the office.”
And the rebuttal in the aspiration debate:
I think that aspiration comes in all shapes and sizes. It’s a legitimate aspiration to want to make more money. That’s entirely legitimate and very important. But there are aspirations that go beyond that. I’ve got an aspiration to see aged care properly funded.
“Those aged-care workers have an aspiration to get a better tax cut than they’re getting. Aspiration can be for parents who want their kids to get an apprenticeship. Aspiration is for one of these Telstra workers to find a job more quickly than they would otherwise. If you have a child with disabilities in the school system,aspiration is getting them the support they need.
“Aspiration comes in all different shapes and sizes and I don’t let Mr Turnbull define aspiration by a bank account.”
Labor has held the press conference at an Ainslie aged care home, because of the comments Malcolm Turnbull had to say in question time yesterday.
Asked if he was taking Turnbull out of context, Bill Shorten says:
We didn’t put the words in his mouth. He said that an aged-care worker should aspire to get a better job. What a snob. What a snob.
“He thinks that aged-care is not a better job. Lisa, one of the workers in there said she wonders what it will be like when Mr Turnbull needs an aged-care worker.
“Will he tell the person caring for him to get a better job if they want a pay rise? Of course he won’t. For quality of life, they need quality aged-care workers.
“So rather than dismissing some occupations and telling people if they get low pay or low tax cuts, get a better job, I’ve got a different set of advice for Mr Turnbull. Why not work together to pay aged-care workers more?
“Why don’t you back Labor’s proposal which will see the great workers we met in there – the physios, exercise experts, carers and attendants – we could give them together a $3,000 tax refund in the next three years. That’s just a better plan.”
For the record, here is everything Turnbull said yesterday in relation to that:
The honourable member should remember that the 60-year-old aged-care worker in Burnie is entitled to aspire to get a better job, is entitled to get a promotion, is entitled to be able to earn more money ... [after interjections] no. Working in aged care is a good job, but you are entitled to seek to earn more. [More interjections] Everyone is entitled to aspire [more interjections] ... Every worker, every Australian, is entitled to aspire to earn a better income. Everyone is entitled to aspire to that.”
Ahhh, the dangers of the aspiration debate. So many minefields to stumble into.
Bill Shorten’s press conference starts just as Pauline Hanson’s speech finishes:Bill Shorten’s press conference starts just as Pauline Hanson’s speech finishes:
I’ve just got a message or Pauline Hanson - Pauline, remember who voted for you. You’re meant to be the champion of Queensland battlers. 1.9 million Queensland battlers will be better off under Labor’s tax plan than the government’s. It seems that now she’s come to Canberra, she’s forgotten who put her there and that’s a recipe for disaster.I’ve just got a message or Pauline Hanson - Pauline, remember who voted for you. You’re meant to be the champion of Queensland battlers. 1.9 million Queensland battlers will be better off under Labor’s tax plan than the government’s. It seems that now she’s come to Canberra, she’s forgotten who put her there and that’s a recipe for disaster.
“I say to Senator Hanson, back the battlers, Labor will. Let’s back them together. 1.9 million Queenslanders will be better off under our tax proposals, our tax refunds, than the government’s.“I say to Senator Hanson, back the battlers, Labor will. Let’s back them together. 1.9 million Queenslanders will be better off under our tax proposals, our tax refunds, than the government’s.
“Please stop just doing everything the Liberals ask of you and instead let’s just stand up for Queensland and stand up for 1.9 million Queenslanders who are better off under our plan.”“Please stop just doing everything the Liberals ask of you and instead let’s just stand up for Queensland and stand up for 1.9 million Queenslanders who are better off under our plan.”
So, in the biggest anticlimax since the Solo Star Wars movie was released, here is Pauline Hanson’s wish list:So, in the biggest anticlimax since the Solo Star Wars movie was released, here is Pauline Hanson’s wish list:
“My dilemma is, yes we have a blackhole. Are we going to actually fill that blackhole? My proposal is to go after the multinationals to pay their fair share of tax in this country.“My dilemma is, yes we have a blackhole. Are we going to actually fill that blackhole? My proposal is to go after the multinationals to pay their fair share of tax in this country.
“Look after the Australians, the hard-working families that need some relief and need help in this country.“Look after the Australians, the hard-working families that need some relief and need help in this country.
“Yes, suspend taxation, suspend increases in politician wages and those of bureaucrats.“Yes, suspend taxation, suspend increases in politician wages and those of bureaucrats.
“How can you actually say to those hard-working Australians, you can’t get a tax relief of even the highest amount of up to $7,000 a year, yet we are seeing bureaucrats receiving pay increases of up to $17,000 a year.“How can you actually say to those hard-working Australians, you can’t get a tax relief of even the highest amount of up to $7,000 a year, yet we are seeing bureaucrats receiving pay increases of up to $17,000 a year.
“That doesn’t pass the pub test. It doesn’t pass the pub test with me. That is why my job in the Senate is to represent the Australian people with the best of my ability.”“That doesn’t pass the pub test. It doesn’t pass the pub test with me. That is why my job in the Senate is to represent the Australian people with the best of my ability.”
Pauline Hanson’s +One Nation addresses the senate chamber this morning about her intentions for the governments tax cut bills @AmyRemeikis @murpharoo @GuardianAus #politicslive https://t.co/1eXHvoFUlj pic.twitter.com/xc0jUeb1aEPauline Hanson’s +One Nation addresses the senate chamber this morning about her intentions for the governments tax cut bills @AmyRemeikis @murpharoo @GuardianAus #politicslive https://t.co/1eXHvoFUlj pic.twitter.com/xc0jUeb1aE
Penny Wong has responded to the US withdrawal:Penny Wong has responded to the US withdrawal:
Labor is disappointed by the US decision to withdraw from the United Nations Human Rights Council.Labor is disappointed by the US decision to withdraw from the United Nations Human Rights Council.
It’s entirely a matter for the US which international bodies it chooses to be a member of. However, the absence of a nation looked to as global leader risks emboldening those who do not share our support for democracy and human rights.It’s entirely a matter for the US which international bodies it chooses to be a member of. However, the absence of a nation looked to as global leader risks emboldening those who do not share our support for democracy and human rights.
We acknowledge the concerns voiced by the US in making its decision. At times the UNHRC has taken decisions which Australia has also opposed.We acknowledge the concerns voiced by the US in making its decision. At times the UNHRC has taken decisions which Australia has also opposed.
But Labor believes it is better to remain engaged in international organisations like the UNHRC in order to promote our values and protect our national interests.But Labor believes it is better to remain engaged in international organisations like the UNHRC in order to promote our values and protect our national interests.
That is why Labor welcomed Australia’s appointment to the United Nations Human Rights Council. As the foreign minister said when Australia took up its position:That is why Labor welcomed Australia’s appointment to the United Nations Human Rights Council. As the foreign minister said when Australia took up its position:
“It is in our national interest to shape the work of the Human Rights Council and uphold the international rules-based order.”“It is in our national interest to shape the work of the Human Rights Council and uphold the international rules-based order.”
Labor is a long-standing and consistent advocate for human rights and civil liberties. We will continue to pursue effective human rights diplomacy that supports international and regional security in Australia’s national interest.Labor is a long-standing and consistent advocate for human rights and civil liberties. We will continue to pursue effective human rights diplomacy that supports international and regional security in Australia’s national interest.
We will also continue to work closely with key allies and partners, such as the US, through bilateral and multilateral mechanisms to promote and protect human rights around the world.We will also continue to work closely with key allies and partners, such as the US, through bilateral and multilateral mechanisms to promote and protect human rights around the world.
And all of that was for ... nothing.And all of that was for ... nothing.
“I will make my vote clear on the floor of parliament when it comes to vote.”“I will make my vote clear on the floor of parliament when it comes to vote.”
Pauline Hanson is setting this up to support the tax cuts:
“Hard-working Australians need a helping hand. They need to know that something will be done for them.”
Pauline Hanson has moved onto attacking the Greens.
Sarah Hanson-Young rises with a point of order, and is denied.
Hanson says that she has had to “toughen up in this place and it is a shame that others haven’t”.
Hanson, who cried on national television just two weeks ago, when she found out she was about to lose another of her senators.
There will be no member for Cox.
The Victorian Electoral Commission has just released this updated boundary change proposal:
The augmented electoral commission for Victoria today announced the outcome of its deliberations on the names and boundaries of the 38 federal electoral divisions in Victoria.
Tom Rogers, the presiding member and electoral commissioner, thanked the individuals and organisations who contributed to the redistribution.“All written objections and comments as well as the information presented at the inquiries in Winchelsea and Melbourne have been carefully considered in deciding the final boundaries,” Rogers said.“The augmented electoral commission has unanimously agreed to rename the Division of Batman to recognise William Cooper, and to modify the boundaries of 22 of the electoral divisions initially proposed. The augmented electoral commission has also unanimously accepted the redistribution committee’s proposed boundary changes to the remaining electoral divisions, the creation of the new Division of Fraser, and the adoption of three of the redistribution committee’s proposed new names.”
Electoral division names
Rogers said that the augmented electoral commission had adopted the majority of the names proposed by the Redistribution Committee for Victoria with the following alterations.
retaining the name of the Division of Corangamite (previously proposed to be renamed the Division of Cox), and
renaming the Division of Batman to ‘Cooper’, to recognise the contributions of William Cooper.
William Cooper
William Cooper was a spokesman for Aboriginal people who, as secretary of the Australian Aborigines League, presented a petition and led deputations to authorities, calling for direct representation in parliament, enfranchisement, land rights and federal control of Aboriginal affairs.In 1938 Cooper lodged a personal protest against the treatment of European Jews in Nazi Germany following Kristallnacht.
Victorian division names
Once the redistribution is formally determined on 13 July 2018:
11 of Victoria’s 38 electoral divisions (28.95%) will be named for an Aboriginal person or word;
the number of Victoria’s electoral divisions named after a woman will have increased by one to five, as well as one electoral division being jointly named for a wife and husband; and
more than 25% of Victoria’s electoral divisions names will be that of an original federation electoral division
Boundaries
The augmented electoral commission has modified the redistribution committee’s initial redistribution proposal by placing:
the part of the locality of Kilsyth in Yarra Ranges Shire Council in the proposed Division of Casey
the redistribution committee had proposed locating this part of the locality in the proposed Division of Deakin
the entirety of the locality of Vermont South in the proposed Division of Deakin
the redistribution committee had proposed locating part of this locality in the proposed Division of Chisholm
the part of the locality of Surrey Hills to the east of Warrigal Road and south of Canterbury Road in the proposed Division of Chisholm
the redistribution committee had proposed locating this part of the locality in the proposed Division of Kooyong
the entirety of the localities of Bulla, Clarkefield and Wildwood, and part of the localities of Diggers Rest and Oaklands Junction, in the proposed Division of McEwen
the redistribution committee had proposed locating these localities in the proposed Division of Calwell, with the exception of part of Diggers Rest which was proposed to be located in the Division of Gorton
the localities of Barunah Park, Barunah Plains and Wingeel in the proposed Division of Corangamite
the redistribution committee had proposed locating these localities in the proposed Division of Wannon
the locality of Gowanbrae, and those parts of the localities of Keilor Park and Tullamarine south of the Western Ring Road, in the proposed Division of Maribyrnong
the redistribution committee had proposed locating these areas in the proposed Division of Calwell
the part of the locality of Springvale to the east of Springvale Road in the proposed Division of Bruce
the redistribution committee had proposed locating some of this area in the proposed Division of Hotham
the part of the locality of Springvale South to the west of Springvale Road, and all of the locality of Clayton South in the proposed Division of Hotham
the redistribution committee had proposed locating these areas in the proposed Division of Isaacs
the entirety of Knox City Council in the proposed Division of Aston, including part of the locality of Upper Ferntree Gully and the entirety of the locality of Rowville
the redistribution committee had proposed locating this part of Upper Ferntree Gully in the proposed Division of Casey and part of the locality of Rowville in the proposed Division of Bruce
those parts of the localities of Dandenong, Keysborough and Noble Park to the east of Eastlink and to the south of the Pakenham Railway line in the proposed Division of Isaacs
the redistribution committee had proposed locating these areas in the proposed Division of Bruce
the localities of Bunyip North, Garfield North, Maryknoll, Tonimbuk and Tynong North in the proposed Division of Monash
the redistribution committee had proposed locating these localities in the proposed Division of La Trobe
the entirety of the locality of Williams Landing in the proposed Division of Gellibrand
the redistribution committee had proposed locating part of this locality in the proposed Division of Lalor
The augmented electoral commission has also made a small number of minor alterations, involving little or no elector movement, to adhere to features or administrative boundaries.
Mitch Fifield on Telstra:
This is a difficult day for the staff of Telstra and our thoughts are very much with them.
I have spoken to Telstra CEO Andy Penn who has assured me that the workforce reduction will occur over a number of years.
Telstra has established a $50m fund to assist affected staff during this transition. Telstra advises this will allow some staff to be redeployed within the company, while staff leaving the company will be given the assistance they need.
Australia has a telecommunications sector which is intensely competitive and constantly evolving.
All Australian businesses operate in a competitive environment which is why the government will continue to seek to secure the passage of our company tax plan through the Parliament.
She says Labor has come to see her this week to support their position to split the bill, so the first part can go through with majority support.
But she says that hundreds of thousands of Australian workers will miss out if Labor blocks stage two.
“You are denying those people you are supposed to support, the battlers and they are the battlers, it is not a fortune they are making.”
“... How can Labor and the Greens deny these tax cuts ... when they have accepted pay rises of up to 6% in recent times?”
Pauline Hanson says she doesn’t understand why the government won’t fund the income tax cut plans through multinational taxes, or why “it is so complex”.
“The government’s failure to split the bill into three stages creates a dilemma for me,” she says.
“... My dilemma is I know Australians are doing it tough.”
Pauline Hanson is using her speech as a campaign rallying cry for people to vote for One Nation in Longman.
She says when it comes to multinationals paying their taxes, the parties are as one and describes the Labor party as “like the scarecrow with no brains” and the Liberals “like the tin man with no heart”.
She says the income tax cuts are just to “buy your vote”.
Pauline Hanson is addressing the Senate on the tax cuts.
Which of course means, when she went on Sky News to talk about it, that Kelly O’Dwyer was asked about how women were treated in her own workplace – the Liberal Party.
Particularly after Jane Prentice was dumped.
Here’s what she said:
“There is no doubt that in the Liberal party, we can do better on better representation of women in the party serving the highest levels right down, and involved in the organisation as well, but we are not unique in that.
“I think this is actually a common problem for a number of political parties. The truth is, when you actually look at the legacy in the Liberal party and I, along with the prime minister and a number of my senior women colleagues are hosting an event for women in the Coalition – everyone is welcome, but it is predominately focused around women – we are actually going to be talking about some of the past successes that we have had.
“We’ve had the first woman elected to the parliament. We have had a whole series of firsts. I mean, Julie Bishop of course is our first foreign minister.”
As Katharine Murphy reported, the government is funding a study into workplace harassment – because once you report something to HR, then what?
Kelly O’Dwyer announced the study with the Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins this morning. Here is the statement her office sent out:
Australian women have the right to be safe in their homes, in their communities and in their workplaces.
That’s why the Turnbull Government is supporting practical action to address sexual harassment, today announcing it will contribute $500,000 towards the Australian Human Rights Commission’s Inquiry into Sexual Harassment in the Workplace to be led by Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins.
“No one should have to suffer sexual harassment at work, or in any other part of their lives,” the minister for women, the Hon Kelly O’Dwyer MP said.
“This inquiry will consider the drivers of sexual harassment in the workplace, the use of technology and social media, and the legal framework, as well as existing practices to inform practical recommendations that will assist Australian workplaces deal with this sensitive and difficult issue.”
“We already know that the personal and career consequences of workplace sexual harassment are very significant. The organisational impacts are also substantial, including reduced productivity, high staff turnover, absenteeism, compensation claims and early retirement. The inquiry will draw on economic modelling so we will have a better sense of how much it is costing individual Australians as well as Australian businesses.”
Sexual harassment continues to pervade Australian workplaces. More than 20 per cent of people over 15 years old in Australia have been sexually harassed, with 68 per cent of those harassed in the workplace.
The Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is uniquely placed to undertake a national inquiry into this issue, due to its independent status, its legislative mandate in relation to sexual harassment under the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth), and specific expertise in relation to workplace sexual harassment. The AHRC is currently undertaking an expanded Fourth National Workplace Sexual Harassment Survey, with final results due in August 2018. The Inquiry into Sexual Harassment in the Workplace will run for 12 months and cost a total of $900,000.
“Recent prominent international and national coverage has highlighted the prevalence and detrimental impact of sexual harassment on individuals and organisations. This inquiry will be a positive and meaningful step forward in reducing sexual harassment at work and ensuring that, where it does occur, it is dealt with carefully and appropriately,” Minister O’Dwyer said.
The funding committed to the AHRC inquiry follows significant actions already taken by the Turnbull government to improve women’s safety in the home, at work and online.
To date the Turnbull government has committed well in excess of $300m to address women’s safety. The most recent federal budget included an additional $54m for women’s safety initiatives, including $11.5m for 1800 RESPECT, $6.7m for DV-alert, $14.2m for the Office of the eSafety Commissioner to help make cyberspace safe for women, and $22m to combat elder abuse.
The Turnbull government is also continuing to put in place the right settings to deliver a stronger economy to provide the right economic settings for women to help them work, save and make choices about their lives.
More women are working than ever before, with over 5.8m now employed in Australia. The government is committed to ensuring that women have every opportunity to engage in paid work, have the right support to expand their skills, take advantage of employment opportunities and to save for their retirement.
The minister for women will build on the government’s efforts to improve women’s economic security when she delivers a Women’s Economic Security Statement in spring.