Labor targets Turnbull over penalty rates as Shorten defends union record – as it happened

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/live/2018/jun/25/coalition-polls-tax-hanson-politics-live

Version 14 of 15.

And on that note, we will finish up, so we are nice and fresh to see how all those party room meetings turn out tomorrow.

Because no matter what happens, someone won’t be happy. You can’t please all the people all the time. And you definitely can’t please Tony Abbott all the time, which is why industry is trotting out tomorrow, to talk about why the Neg is worth it.

So stay turned for that.

Thank you to the Guardian’s brain trust for prodding me through another day, and to Mike Bowers for bodily carrying my carcass through the day, despite having hurled his body down mountains yesterday. (Minus-something temperatures are at least good for skiing).

And of course to you, for reading, tweeting and messaging – I am getting back to each of you, but it might take some time.

We’ll back early tomorrow morning, where we can jump on board the merry-go-round again. How many times will we hear the word aspiration? How many times will Pauline Hanson accuse the other parties of bullying her? How many dixers will it take to send me screaming from the room? We have so much excitement ahead of us!

In the meantime – take care of you.

The energy minister Josh Frydenberg has just joined the News Corp columnist Miranda Devine on her internet radio program ahead of a series of meetings tomorrow where critics of his national energy guarantee will exercise their option to thrash about in protest.

After a slightly bumpy start where Devine thought Tony Abbott could have pulled out of the Paris climate agreement before he took the decision as prime minister to sign up (I don’t know either) the subject of subsidising new coal plants came up. Modelling associated with the policy indicates that no (that’s zero) new coal plants will be built under the national energy guarantee (or for that matter, under a business as usual scenario) but setting aside that minor predictive inconvenience, Frydenberg says he’d love to see a new one built. L-o-v-e i-t.

Josh Frydenberg: “I would welcome a new coal-fired power station for our country because it supplies reliable baseload power and it has served us well in the past and will continue to serve us well in the future”.

Frydenberg noted that Australia’s energy market has a higher share of coal plants than the United States and the United Kingdom. But he said under the government’s policy “the reliability that coal provides the system will be valued and it’s much more likely to be staying in the system under the Neg than not”.

“We have twenty coal-fired power stations in Australia today with an average life of 27 years. While they may not live forever, they will certainly live longer than that 27 years and the Neg will provide that level of stability for the investors and the owners of those assets”.

While talking up coal, Frydenberg declined Devine’s invitation that he should pull Australia out of the Paris agreement.

Sarah Hanson-Young has moved a motion in the Senate to protect the Great Australian Bight under world heritage listing – it didn’t go well.

Her statement:

The Labor and Liberal parties have failed time and again to stand up for the Great Australian Bight and speak out against oil and gas drilling. If a spill happens in the Bight, oil will be on their hands.

Considering both Labor and Liberal parties have taken donations from multinational fossil fuel companies, South Australians will be unsurprised, but disappointed, at their opposition to this motion.

Between the Liberal candidate for Mayo Georgina Downer’s repeated ignorance on the risk to the Bight and the effect drilling would have on southern right whale migration, to the Liberals in the Senate voting against the Greens’ motion calling for World Heritage protection for the Bight, shows just how out of touch they are with South Australians, and the people of Mayo.

Just a few weeks ago, polling was released that showed 74 per cent of the people in Mayo supported the Greens’ push for World Heritage protection for the Great Australian Bight. Since launching the campaign in April, thousands of people have joined the push to see this protection made a reality. It would be a boon for tourism and show the world what the Bight has to offer in terms of unique, natural beauty.

There is no social license to drill for oil and gas in the Great Australian Bight. Kangaroo Island is the jewel in our tourism crown and would be devastated if an oil spill were to occur. The Greens will continue to fight with coastal communities and all South Australians who want their Bight protected from multinational fossil fuel companies that put profits ahead of people and the environment.

It may be that GetUp is the only one still annoyed by the foreign interference legislation – the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference sent this statement to Paul Karp:

Upon first reading, it appears our concerns that the bill could silence advocacy by charities, including the Catholic Church, have been addressed. Both the Government and the Opposition recognised that the bill could have deterred contributions from civil society groups, like the Catholic Church, that pursue the common good.

The ability to speak up on behalf of those who don’t have a voice, including the poor and disadvantaged in our society, is critical to creating good policy. These amendments help ensure the voice of civil society institutions such as charities and churches remains.

This is a thing that happened in the Senate:

Senator @fraser_anning currently introducing a motion in the hope the senate will vote to 'condemn' safe access zones. The motion accuses NSW of copying "the socialist government in Victoria" by enacting the zones outside clinics. Note the zones also exist in NT, ACT & Tasmania pic.twitter.com/R2IgdKvMKv

And the sideshow rolls on:

Siri, show me a picture of the pot calling the kettle black pic.twitter.com/eOQxSBQonI

Sussan Ley, who, along with Sarah Henderson, has bucked her party room to bring about an end to the live sheep trade – through a transition process – had a chat to Sky News about the WA situation.

Asked if she believed this was the end of the industry, Ley had this to say:

“I am saying to farmers’ groups, step up, come to government and ask for support for a transition – because I only ever want to see proper transition that looks after farmers.

“The bill that Sarah Henderson and I proposed does exactly that. It left this year alone, recognising there was a pipeline, but what we are seeing is an industry which has failed to regulate itself for 33 years – I can’t say that strongly enough.

“These people have deceived farmers and they have deceived us all.”

Question time aspiration count:

20.

(22 if you count aspire.)

We all get put out of our misery when the prime minister calls time on QT.

Bill Shorten stands up to make a personal explanation, over what Malcolm Turnbull said about his record as a union leader:

“I am proud to be a workers rep, proud to have improved the paying conditions of thousands of middle and working class Australians.

“Proud to have protected workers from corporate collapse like the kind that the prime minister was dragged to a royal commission on. Proud to have fought for the rights of asbestos victims, while government ministers fought for the perpetrators. I’ll always stand up for the workers, while my opponent will always stand up for the top end of town.”

Bill Shorten to Malcolm Turnbull:

Under this prime minister gross debt has crashed through a record $500bn. Does the prime minister agree that Australia has high levels of debt and high asset prices, and does the prime minister agree this is the number one domestic risk to our economy? And isn’t this the worst possible time to lock in a 10-year $80bn business tax giveaway, fuelling national debt?

(The national debt is $530.8bn for anyone wanting an exact figure.)

Turnbull:

“The government, under the member for Warringah, inherited a shocking debt situation from Labor in 2014. We inherited a structural deficit which it has taken years to turn around. Net debt is peaking this financial year... it will peak as a share of GDP in this current financial year and then decline, year-on-year, over the following decade, to under 4% of GDP.

“We have turned the corner on debt. Now, the honourable member referred to asset prices. Let me remind the honourable member that one of the many economic threats he poses to the Australian public and to Australian families is his attack on the savings of retirees.

“A shocking, shameful assault, which is going to force so many of them to sell out of their investments to avoid having the franking credits snatched away from them. That is not to speak of his campaign against property investment. He is going to increase capital gains tax and abolish negative gearing. Well, the largest single asset class in Australia is residential property. It is already softening. Many people would say that is a correction that was due. Well, everything is good in moderation, I suppose. But what do we think the impact of a ban on negative gearing is going to have on softening residential property markets?

“The Labor party will smash the savings of Australians. It will smash into the value of the largest single asset class. And do you know what, Mr Speaker? That is their avowed intention. The Labor party is a massive threat to the savings, the futures, the prosperity of all Australians.”

(Just for the record, the debt in 2012/13, when Labor was last in power, was $257.4 billion.)

It’s Mike Bowers time:

Chris Bowen had a question which basically asked – how can the government guarantee it won’t cut services again, to pay for its tax plan, if the world economy turns (which there are warnings of).

Scott Morrison: Strong economy.

And we are back to alternative approaches dixers and I want to stab myself with a butter knife.

Peter Dutton had some things to say.

Moving on.

Amanda Rishworth to Malcolm Turnbull:

“The government’s unfair child-care changes start on Monday. Why is this prime minister cutting child-care payments to 279,000 families on Monday, including over 2,200 families in Longman, while giving $17bn to the big banks?”

Josh Frydenberg, on behalf of Simon Birmingham, takes this one:

“I can inform the house that when the Labor party was last in office, child-care fees went up 53%! 53%!

“...How many did they deliver? Just 38, the double drop-off, and what about compliance checks, they also went down significantly when Labor was last in office and now the Turnbull government’s child-care reforms will see nearly one million families better off, Mr Speaker, one million families better off, and those opposite have tried to obstruct it all along! Even though in the member’s electorate, 4,800 families will be better off, Mr Speaker, and what about in the member for Kingston’s electorate, over 6,000 families will be better off, Mr Speaker!

“We will increase the subsidy for 370,000 families whose income is just over $67,000 a year will increase the subsidy from 72 to 85%, Mr Speaker, will encourage more than 200,000 families to re-enter the workforce or to take greater workforce participation, Mr Speaker.”