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Drought approaching 'wartime-like situation', Labor says – politics live
Drought approaching 'wartime-like situation', Labor says – politics live
(32 minutes later)
The drug testing bill is on its way to the Senate
House of Representatives passed Social Services Legislation Amendment (Drug Testing Trial) Bill 2019 https://t.co/FusF2Vwh1A #auspol
Labor is supporting the government’s call to abolishing the $4bn fund (the Coalition has wanted it gone since 2014, and when it couldn’t, just stopped spending the money from it, meaning it has sat there untouched) mostly because it doesn’t want to be seen as standing in front of emergency response fund (which is where the government wants to put this money)
Jacqui Lambie has been calling for more tafe funding for Tasmania since returning to the Senate. That’s why she is so angry. The money that is there, for that purpose, is now being officially taken away.
Oh FFS.
From AAP:
Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has claimed Australian war veterans want refugee medical evacuation laws scrapped.
Mr Dutton is locked in negotiations with Tasmanian senator Jacqui Lambie, herself an army veteran, as he seeks to repeal the so-called medevac laws.
“I believe very strongly that most Australians and certainly the vast majority of veterans would want us to abolish this law,” he told 2GB Radio on Thursday.
There does not seem to be any evidence for this, other than Dutton is courting Lambie’s swing vote on this.
We were expecting a press conference on the party’s position on free trade agreements after a lively caucus debate this morning, but it has now been called off.
We are still waiting to get the details of what has been agreed upon, but expect something on scrapping old investor state dispute settlement clauses with Indonesia, independent economic analysis of the trade deals, and a concession on future labour market access.
The unemployment figures are out
Jobless rate edges down to 5.2% (s/a) but on a weak 14.7k lift in employment. Trend steady at 5.3%
That vote Paul Karp has been telling you about on the $4bn education investment fund, is happening. Labor created it, when it was in government.
The Greens put in a motion to protect it.
Labor is voting against the motion.
Jacqui Lambie is ESPECIALLY pissed about it.
Jacqui Lambie has just got stuck into the deal struck between the Coalition and Labor - describing it as “pretty pathetic” that Labor has agreed to abolish a $4bn education investment fund in return for $50m for TAFE.
“I can get more out of the government with just one of me, than all of you put together,” Lambie said.
Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi says the $50m is “measly” and criticises Labor which she said “used to be the party of public education”.
Mathias Cormann has moved the bill out of the committee phase and is now setting a limit on the time for debate - so we’re going to have a final vote by 11:45.
Is there anyone in this building not having a tantrum right now?
Is there anyone in this building not having a tantrum right now?
And if so, feel free to swing by the Guardian office for a chocolate.
And if so, feel free to swing by the Guardian office for a chocolate.
Because this whole place is one giant sulk right now, on all sides.
Because this whole place is one giant sulk right now, on all sides.
Like I said, totally and absolutely, fine
Like I said, totally and absolutely, fine
1 senior Nat is furious that the PM dropped payment announcement on 2SM same time Nats held their Presser. “They’re shitting on us. Is PM going to go on TV when Dutton is? We look dopey standing around like swinging dicks at Class B presser because Class A is up at same time.”
1 senior Nat is furious that the PM dropped payment announcement on 2SM same time Nats held their Presser. “They’re shitting on us. Is PM going to go on TV when Dutton is? We look dopey standing around like swinging dicks at Class B presser because Class A is up at same time.”
Everything is fine
Everything is fine
Please see my statement below. pic.twitter.com/xMUpnuVp08
Please see my statement below. pic.twitter.com/xMUpnuVp08
Labor senator Murray Watt has revealed the opposition has done a deal with the government to pass the emergency response fund bill, which abolishes the education investment fund and redirects it to”future emergency response and natural disaster recovery”.
The bill is currently being debated in the Senate - where the Greens attempted to stop its progress with amendments saving the education investment fund, and Jacqui Lambie has an amendment that limits the amount that can be taken to three quarters of the education investment fund.
Watt has moved opposition amendments that reflect the deal - to increase the quantum of the emergency response fund and lift the amount it can pay out each year from $150m to $200m, with the extra $50m to be spent on “disaster preparedness and mitigation infrastructure”.
The government leader in the Senate, Mathias Cormann, thanked the opposition for their “constructive engagement” on the bill, indicating the government will support the opposition amendments.
Cormann explains that an extra $50m will be given “to establish a $100m TAFE revitalisation grants program in partnership with the states”, with 50/50 funding from the states.
It seems the same $50m is being characterised as about disaster mitigation infrastructure and upgrading TAFEs! But - in any event - a deal has been done so we expect the bill to pass this morning.
It’s safe to say not all members of Labor’s movement are happy with the party’s decision to support the Indonesian free trade agreement.
Today ALP MPs agreed to support the Indonesia Free Trade Agreement - in breach of the ALP national platform.These deals are bad for Aussie jobs and let multinationals sue Australia if our laws hurt their profits.When is Albo going to stick up for Australian Workers? #auspol pic.twitter.com/bniqISjxvb
Joel Fitzgibbon also notes that while the FHA changes are being put into the parliament today, the Senate doesn’t sit again until November.
He says the lump sum payments are not enough and the government’s response has not been enough.
It is putting its budget surplus in front of the livelihoods of Australian farmers.
Joel Fitzgibbon continues:
Labor will use ... every mechanism available to it to try to prevent the government from taking people of the modest Farm Household Allowance and obviously they could be constitutional restrictions on what we can do in the parliament because it is effectively a money bill, proposition to spend more money, but I will make this point about that, while we may be barred from making amendments which have fiscal implications, restoring the payment for these families until this drought breaks, and we all pray outcomes in the not too distant future, is a modest amount of money, a very modest amount of money, in proportion to the total Commonwealth budget.
And if the Prime Minister wants to maintain this fiction, so loose with the truth is he, that he is spending $7 billion on drought, then people everywhere will be asking well, why Prime Minister do you find it necessary to cut, cut these farming families’s of this modest payment.
Joel Fitzgibbon:
The time for in action and talking is behind us. It is time now to act in a meaningful way and I make the appeal to the Prime Minister again. Establish a bipartisan rural Cabinet, drought Cabinet, drought advisory committee, whatever he wants to call it, because the opposition understands the seriousness of the situation the country now faces.
This really is approaching a wartime -like situation. And we stand ready to work with him to make the decisions that will be necessary to ensure another farming families can stay on the land, that rural communities can survive, and we can secure our food sources in this country without becoming too dependent on the importation of our food and fibre.
Joel Fitzgibbon says the government’s response to the farm household allowance was “not good enough”, describing it as “modest” and “inadequate”.
Dipping into state politics for a moment, because of the review Anthony Albanese has ordered into NSW Labor:
Earlier today, Kaila Murnain tendered her resignation as General Secretary of the NSW Labor Party.
The terms of the separation agreement are confidential, but consist of Ms Murnain’s basic legal entitlements.
The full terms of the settlement will be reported to the next meeting of the Administrative Committee.
The Party is actively considering seeking the recovery of all of its costs related to the Inquiry, including the sum payable to Ms Murnain, under its insurance policies and from its previous lawyers.
A new branch secretary will not be elected until the review into the branch currently being conducted by Professor Michael Lavarch has provided its recommendations on the role of the General Secretary.
Joel Fitzgibbon will hold a press conference at 10.45 today to give Labor’s response to the government’s latest drought announcement.
Speaking of Ed Husic, you might remember that yesterday’s blog included a speech he made to the federation chamber about the rise of rightwing extremism – which is exactly what Asio warned about in its public annual report, released late yesterday.
Ed Husic, talking to Sky, says there is “very little modelling” done on the trade agreements but Labor will “support them, because it is the right thing to do”.
He says Labor wants to keep a close eye on “what they do to jobs” but that the agreements open up markets in way they haven’t been previously.
