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| Scott Morrison to take over home affairs after Turnbull survives leadership spill – politics live | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Peter Dutton will hold his first press conference as a back bencher at 1.15. | |
| He has chosen the favourite of the backbencher press conference locations - the Senate courtyard. | |
| Everything is totally fine - this is the face of a man who thinks everything has been absolutely worth it. | |
| Can’t you tell? | |
| Take-away from that press conference: with treasury and home affairs, Scott Morrison is effectively running the machinery of government right now. | |
| We have gone international! From the Chinese state media: | |
| Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull survives challenge to leadership from Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton https://t.co/MYOkFqQg5i pic.twitter.com/63VJuCx9Bn | |
| And how did the government manage to narrowly win that vote? Murray Watt thinks he knows: | |
| Pauline Hanson just missed the vote on company tax cuts, meaning it passed 2nd reading stage. Now in committee. She must now make amends, by voting against them, at 3rd reading stage, to kill them off. https://t.co/1hymXh7C9k | |
| The government has narrowly won a vote to keep its company tax cut bill alive. It won a vote on the second reading stage 35-34. It is now moving amendments to exclude the big four banks from the lower tax rate. It’ll no doubt anger the banks, but might win the government more support from the crossbench. | |
| Finance minister Mathias Cormann says: “In the interests of a compromise, the government is willing to move these amendments to exclude the … big four banks to accessing the reduced company tax rate,” he said. Cormann challenges Labor to now support the amended bill. | |
| Labor, you’ll remember, have campaigned hard against giving tax cuts to the big banks, which have had their reputation trashed in the royal commission. “If it’s all about the big four banks, no doubt you will vote in favour of these amendments and then vote in favour of the legislations as a whole,” Cormann says. It’s safe to say Labor is unimpressed. | |
| Labor senator Doug Cameron responds: “Well, what a pathetic performance that was from Senator Cormann, from a pathetic government that’s on the rocks.” | |
| Malcolm Turnbull goes to leave, but Julie Bishop stops him and asks if she can say something. | |
| Bishop refuses to say if she was anticipating a challenge from Greg Hunt for the deputy leadership and instead echoes Turnbull: | |
| I have seen leadership challenges before and this was a resounding vote of support in the leadership team. We don’t take it for granted, but what I say to all those who didn’t vote for the Prime Minister, we now have the opportunity to focus on what the electorate want to hear from us. And that is we are directing all our energies, all our efforts into lower taxes, lower costs, particularly energy costs, and more jobs in the Australian people. That is what we are going to continue to deliver.” | |
| Malcolm Turnbull will not say if any other members of his cabinet voted against him: | |
| It is a secret ballot, my job is to do everything I can to ensure that we are united and work together. As you know, I don’t bear any grudge against Peter Dutton for having stood up and challenged me today, and I invited him to continue in his position. It is really important that we put this sort of, differences – there are always differences in political parties, of course – that we put these differences behind us and get on with our job of looking after the 25 million Australians who have put us here. That is our job, looking after them. And we have to put 25 million Australians first. They hate it when we are talking about each other, political dramas, meat and drink for the press gallery but Australians want lower taxes, lower energy bills, record spending on essential services, strong economic growth, and record jobs growth. Our job is to work for the people who put us here. | |
| Malcolm Turnbull confirmed he asked Peter Dutton to remain in the cabinet, but Dutton declined. | |
| Scott Morrison will take over the home affairs portfolio. | |
| What did he say to his colleagues? | |
| What I say is exactly what I said to them in the party room – to all of my colleagues, that we need to be united. And united we are able to deliver the great results that we have for all Australians. | |
| You cannot deny the achievements of our government. We have delivered lower taxes, record spending on essential services, we have started to turn the corner on energy prices. We are seeing the strongest economic growth we have had for a long time, and last year was the strongest jobs growth in the history of the country. | |
| He comes out with a giant smile and all of the sweeping hand movements. | |
| Our job is to ensure that we do everything we can to ensure their taxes are lower, their energy bills are lower, that the economy is growing, that their businesses have great prospects, but they have a better chance of getting a job. Here are more opportunities, and we have the resources to enable us to spend on essential services, or record amounts into health and education, infrastructure, and keeping Australians safe. | |
| Australians expect us to be focused on them, and talking about their issues. They don’t like us being focused on ourselves or talking about each other. That is why it is very important that today the Liberal party room has confirmed our leadership of the party. A reminder for parties and governments to be united and determined to keep delivering for the people for whom they work – 25 million Australians. We know that disunity undermines the ability of any government to get anything done. Unity is critical. We cannot allow, as I said in the party room today, our internal issues to undermine our work, to create a risk, a real risk, that Bill Shorten will be the prime minister. | |
| Craig Kelly has broken his long-held silence (it may actually be about three hours since we last heard from him) and told ABC radio it was time to move on: | Craig Kelly has broken his long-held silence (it may actually be about three hours since we last heard from him) and told ABC radio it was time to move on: |
| It is now time for stability. It is time to get back and to argue the differences between the good work we are doing in the Coalition and the alternate, which is the reckless and ideological and economically damaging policies that the Labor party offers this nation. It is our job, as every single Coalition member, to make sure that we get together and we do not allow Bill Shorten to become the next prime minister of this country. | |
| Malcolm Turnbull has called a press conference, with Julie Bishop, for 12.30pm – in the prime minister’s courtyard. | |
| Which, as we know, is the most serious of the press conference locales. | Which, as we know, is the most serious of the press conference locales. |
| And it is almost a week to the moment he stood in that same spot and declared victory on the Neg battle in the party room. | And it is almost a week to the moment he stood in that same spot and declared victory on the Neg battle in the party room. |
| Trent Zimmerman is trying to find the silver lining. | Trent Zimmerman is trying to find the silver lining. |
| He was doorstopped and described the feeling in the party room as: | He was doorstopped and described the feeling in the party room as: |
| I think there is relief that what has been a messy week, to be frank, is now behind us, and there is a strong sense that we need to move on and we need to be focusing on those issues that Australians want us to be focussing on. | |
| We have been a good government, we will continue to be one and hopefully the events of the last week are now behind us. | |
| Narrator: They were not | Narrator: They were not |
| After rubbishing it for weeks, the government is now attempting to carve out the banks from the company tax bill in a last-ditch attempt to win the bill. | |
| This could be to keep the bill alive past the second reading stage. | This could be to keep the bill alive past the second reading stage. |
| If Peter Dutton eventually becomes prime minister, how many voters will have heard of him?The progressive thinktank the Australia Institute has run regular polling on “ministerial recognition” for a couple of years. Its most recent poll was conducted in March and April. | If Peter Dutton eventually becomes prime minister, how many voters will have heard of him?The progressive thinktank the Australia Institute has run regular polling on “ministerial recognition” for a couple of years. Its most recent poll was conducted in March and April. |
| One of the questions: “Which, if any, of the following government ministers have you heard of?” Results: | One of the questions: “Which, if any, of the following government ministers have you heard of?” Results: |
| Julie Bishop is the most recognisable minister (79% of voters). She’s been at the top since March 2016. | Julie Bishop is the most recognisable minister (79% of voters). She’s been at the top since March 2016. |
| Christopher Pyne is the second-most recognisable (58%). He’s enjoyed that position for as long as Bishop. | Christopher Pyne is the second-most recognisable (58%). He’s enjoyed that position for as long as Bishop. |
| Peter Dutton’s visibility has been on the rise. He is now the third-most recognisable minister (57%). He overtook Scott Morrison in September last year. Morrison has dropped from third to fourth (54%). | Peter Dutton’s visibility has been on the rise. He is now the third-most recognisable minister (57%). He overtook Scott Morrison in September last year. Morrison has dropped from third to fourth (54%). |
| Then there’s a big gap. | Then there’s a big gap. |
| Mathias Cormann comes in fifth, at just 33% of voters. He’s followed by Greg Hunt (31%) and Michaelia Cash (31%), Josh Frydenberg (30%), Kelly O’Dwyer (26%) and Arthur Sinodinos (23%). | Mathias Cormann comes in fifth, at just 33% of voters. He’s followed by Greg Hunt (31%) and Michaelia Cash (31%), Josh Frydenberg (30%), Kelly O’Dwyer (26%) and Arthur Sinodinos (23%). |
| * The Australia Institute surveyed 1,557 Australians between 27 March and 7 April 2018 online through Research Now, with nationally representative samples by gender, age and state and territory. | * The Australia Institute surveyed 1,557 Australians between 27 March and 7 April 2018 online through Research Now, with nationally representative samples by gender, age and state and territory. |