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Australia coronavirus live news: Albanese sets Labor's vision for recovery; deficit could grow to $143bn – latest updates Australia coronavirus live news: Albanese sets Labor's vision for recovery; deficit could grow to $143bn – latest updates
(32 minutes later)
In a speech to caucus, the Labor leader will say Australia should not ‘snap back’ to insecure work. Follow all the latest news and updates, liveIn a speech to caucus, the Labor leader will say Australia should not ‘snap back’ to insecure work. Follow all the latest news and updates, live
US Marines will be returning to the Top End. In case you missed it, Linda Reynolds gave the all-clear (with physical distance caveats) for the annual rotation of US defence troops to commence (it was meant to be in March but was delayed because of Covid).
Just remember, when restrictions are eased, all the health authorities are expecting infection numbers to go up.
The lockdown hasn’t meant Australia has eradicated the virus, just suppressed the infection rate to a point where the health system can cope.
No new cases in Queensland
Not sure what the intention was then, or what John Barilaro thought would happen, but here is Murph’s much more elegant take on the whole sorry saga:
NSW Nationals leader John Barilaro has the “full support” of Gladys Berejiklian and the NSW government, despite helping to turn the Coalition’s preselection for Eden-Monaro into an absolute circus, while the rest of the nation was focused on an international pandemic. Helpfully, the Nationals continue to make it all about them, while their communities suffer with poverty, natural disaster, ongoing drought, climate change and shrinking economic and social bases.
Barilaro has already announced he’ll be leaving NSW state politics in 2023, so he seems safe until then, although he has plenty of state colleagues from his own party pretty pissed at him for embarrassing the party (every branch needs its own Barnaby Joyce apparently. Must be in the secret Coalition agreement.)
His federal colleague, David Littleproud, who has the job of bushfire recovery, as well as trying to inject some calm into the Nationals crazy, was not on the “full support’ train when asked about Barilaro on ABC radio this morning:
Over the weekend Guardian Australia’s Anne Davies wrote about the men in Gladys Berejiklian’s team who “are indulging in a kind of sabotage that should have been left behind when they graduated from the Young Liberals or Young Nationals”.
Josh Frydenberg and Mathias Cormann will give an economic statement to the parliament tomorrow, laying out what they know so far.Josh Frydenberg and Mathias Cormann will give an economic statement to the parliament tomorrow, laying out what they know so far.
We saw some of that last week in Frydenberg’s press club address.We saw some of that last week in Frydenberg’s press club address.
The Australian Council of Social Services, Dr Cassandra Goldie says people on social security payments cannot be made the scapegoat:The Australian Council of Social Services, Dr Cassandra Goldie says people on social security payments cannot be made the scapegoat:
You can read more here about the experts who are calling for the federal government to put aside ideology and establish a permanent equitable safety net for Australians:You can read more here about the experts who are calling for the federal government to put aside ideology and establish a permanent equitable safety net for Australians:
And just excuse me a minute as I attempt to wrap my head around this quote. It’s been about 10 minutes and I am still trying to make sense of it, but I have always been a bit slow:And just excuse me a minute as I attempt to wrap my head around this quote. It’s been about 10 minutes and I am still trying to make sense of it, but I have always been a bit slow:
Bob Katter says he is being “forced” to travel to Canberra because north Queensland has not been quarantined from the rest of Queensland. From his release:Bob Katter says he is being “forced” to travel to Canberra because north Queensland has not been quarantined from the rest of Queensland. From his release:
*for the record, it is Dr Jeannette Young*for the record, it is Dr Jeannette Young
You’ll also find more information on Anthony Albanese’s coming announcement, here (thanks to Daniel Hurst).You’ll also find more information on Anthony Albanese’s coming announcement, here (thanks to Daniel Hurst).
A reminder for those looking for international Covid-19 news, you’ll find all you could want, and more, over at our other daily blog:A reminder for those looking for international Covid-19 news, you’ll find all you could want, and more, over at our other daily blog:
South Australians will also get some sit-down dining establishment time – as long as it is outside.South Australians will also get some sit-down dining establishment time – as long as it is outside.
From today, that state will allow outdoor dining, as well as open community services such as libraries and pools and churches, and reopen university and Tafe facilities for tutorials – but physical distancing restrictions remain in place.From today, that state will allow outdoor dining, as well as open community services such as libraries and pools and churches, and reopen university and Tafe facilities for tutorials – but physical distancing restrictions remain in place.
Michael Gunner just had a chat to ABC News Breakfast.Michael Gunner just had a chat to ABC News Breakfast.
The Northern Territory will ease restrictions even further from Friday, with residents able to go to a pub, cafe or other dining establishment, and actually sit down for a drink and meal with other patrons (as long as physical distance restrictions are still met and no one stays longer than two hours).The Northern Territory will ease restrictions even further from Friday, with residents able to go to a pub, cafe or other dining establishment, and actually sit down for a drink and meal with other patrons (as long as physical distance restrictions are still met and no one stays longer than two hours).
But it will be some time before the borders are opened:But it will be some time before the borders are opened:
Speaking of jobkeeper, Samantha Maiden of news.com.au just published this story:
Gladys Berejiklian:
It is Gladys o’clock (all time is told through daily press conference and device battery levels now).
The NSW premier says there has been one new case of Covid diagnosed in the past 24 hours, from 5,200 tests.
Now that the federal government has moved into “back to work time” you will be hearing A LOT about the future of both the jobkeeper wage subsidy program and the jobseeker Covid allowance, which effectively doubled the unemployment benefit.
Both are set to expire in September. But the economy both are designed to keep afloat will not be in any shape to support the millions of Australians who will still be out of work. The unemployment rate is predicted to double by Christmas.
Still, there have been whispers both programs could be wound up BEFORE September. That seems ridiculous but every month seems like a year at the moment, so who knows. The calls to extend the programs are even louder but, so far, Scott Morrison and Josh Frydenberg have stuck to the September expiry line.
Dave Sharma, one of the few Coalition backbenchers trusted to speak on behalf of the government (you may have noticed Craig Kelly, Eric Abetz and other notable absences from your screens during this crisis) told Sky News this morning he saw the situation as a “wait and see” scenario, depending on what was happening in September.
Labor’s finance team of Jim Chalmers and Katy Gallagher said the latest Deloitte budget monitor pointed to a nation that couldn’t afford to wait to learn what support would or would not be available in the last quarters of the year:
The AFL Commission will meet later today to see work out when a return is possible.
11 June is the date it has circled but, as with everything at the moment, it really depends on the individual states.
The Greens also plan on announcing an economic plan for the arts today. From Sarah Hanson-Young’s release:
Thousands of Australia’s arts workers have been ineligible for the government’s jobkeeper scheme because of the contract nature of their work. With subscriptions to arts organisations falling, the sector is in real crisis, with not a lot of ways out.
The federal government has released its “spectrum objectives” for 850/900MHz bands.
You’ll find what they are looking for, here.
Watch this space. The 5G battle is only just heating up.
In Victoria, increased testing remains one of the linchpins to its plan to ease lockdown restrictions. Some 154,000 Victorians have been tested for Covid in the last two weeks alone. Today the government will announce new “rapid response” teams which will be deployed in the event of a new outbreak of the virus, or at the first signs of a community cluster.
Anyone with a sniffle is encouraged to get tested in Victoria, with the state hoping to have 50,000 more tests done over the next week. The new “outbreak unit” within the health department will head to areas suspected to be at risk. As the health minister, Jenny Mikakos, said:
Mobile testing units will also be sent out to areas suspected at being at risk of a cluster.
National income next financial year could fall nearly $200bn short of predictions in the previous budget update, according to a new report by Deloitte Access Economics.
The budget monitor, released today, also estimates the underlying cash deficit could be $143bn this financial year and $132bn in the next.
But the report argues that any push for rapid budget repair would be “misguided” and there is a need to accept a further period of higher deficits, in part to fund more infrastructure spending.
It also says the key problem Australia will face on the other side of the crisis is unemployment, so the budget’s fight against the virus will have to morph into a fight against joblessness. That task may require scaled-down wage subsidies to continue in the hardest-hit small businesses even after the scheduled end of the jobkeeper scheme in September, while there is also an “obvious case” to ensure the jobseeker allowance remains higher than its previously low levels.
The treasurer, Josh Frydenberg, is due to provide an economic update this week but the full budget has been pushed back until October.
Deloitte Access Economics has attempted to crunch the numbers based on the current state of play, although it heavily cautions that forecasts are subject to wide bands of uncertainty.
Here are some of the highlights from the report:
National income may fall $35bn below the previous Myefo projection in 2019-20, followed by “a jaw-dropping shortfall” of just under $200bn in 2020-21.
Most of this gap is due to a shortfall in economic output, or production levels, while a small portion is due to ongoing weakness in wage and price gains.
Unemployment is not expected to return to 5% until late 2024.
Because of fewer workers and lower incomes, the government’s takings from personal taxes are down $14bn compared with the previous forecast for 2019-20 and $37bn the following year.
Welcome to another week of Covid-19 coverage – this week, with added parliament.
It may be some time before Australia returns to anything even approaching what we knew as normal, but Australian politics is doing its best to return to a pre-Covid state. The Coalition continues to make a mess of its Eden-Monaro pre-selection, and sports rorts and issues involving Angus Taylor are slowly making their way back to headlines.
Meanwhile, Labor is starting to firm up its policy standpoints, as the dust settles and the state of the economy becomes even clearer. At this stage, the one thing everyone can agree on is that, in terms of the economy, what is coming towards Australia is not great. Not great at all.
Amid all that, helped along by the coming Eden-Monaro byelection, the government will also announce $650m in recovery funding for the communities hardest hit by the summer bushfires.
The special commission established to investigate the Ruby Princess debacle will hold another hearing today, with questions to be asked about what the cruise company told the NSW Port Authority.
And Daniel Andrews is expected to set out Victoria’s mud map towards loosening restrictions, with that state expected to take a more conservative approach to stage one than has been laid out in the rest of the states and territories.
We will have all of that as it happens, as more, as we navigate the latest day of announcements and politics. You have Amy Remeikis with you for the majority of the day.
Ready?