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| Coronavirus Australia latest updates: Queensland watches hotspots as Victoria's hotel inquiry continues and parliament returns – follow live | Coronavirus Australia latest updates: Queensland watches hotspots as Victoria's hotel inquiry continues and parliament returns – follow live |
| (31 minutes later) | |
| Brisbane on high alert after youth detention centre outbreak as politicians gather in Canberra the first time in 10 weeks. Follow live | Brisbane on high alert after youth detention centre outbreak as politicians gather in Canberra the first time in 10 weeks. Follow live |
| The Australian Council of Social Service is ramping up its campaign to have the unemployment benefit permanently increased. | |
| CEO Cassandra Goldie said with unemployment, in real terms, predicted to reach 13% in the next few months, people cannot afford for the welfare payment to drop below the poverty line again: | |
| “Instead of cutting $300 per fortnight from millions of people’s already sparse incomes next month, we need parliament to put in place a permanent, adequate jobseeker rate, which before the temporary Covid increase, [had] not been increased in over 25 years. | |
| “There are 2.3 million people facing the $300 per fortnight cut on September 25 unless parliament acts in these two weeks. Troublingly, more than 1.1 million children are living in households that stand to have their incomes cut on 25 September. | |
| “At the same time, there is only one job for every 12 people on jobseeker or youth allowance, borders continue to be closed, and Victoria continues to endure a long, necessary lockdown that is really tough on people and taking a toll on jobs. | |
| “As well as being a health crisis, this is an unemployment crisis. | |
| “People are in an impossible situation and we’re hearing from many who are only just able to cover the basics now with the current jobseeker rate and are worried about how they will pay for housing, food, and the costs of their children. | |
| “As parliament resumes today, many people are distressed by the prospect of the planned dramatic cut in their incomes. In this parliamentary sitting, the government must urgently deliver a permanent, adequate increase to jobseeker and other income supports so that people can have security to cover the basics whilst they rebuild their lives,” Goldie said. | |
| The federal government’s aged care response during the pandemic is going to be one of the big issues in this parliament sitting. | |
| Last week, the government announced a further $171m in funding to address some of the issues. | |
| But lobby groups, such as Aged and Community Services Australia, which represents non-profit aged care providers, says it is not enough: | |
| “Any additional investment is obviously very welcome but we need to see big changes to prevent outbreaks,” Acsa CEO Patricia Sparrow said in a statement. | |
| “While there is community transmission we can’t guarantee cases won’t get into aged care but our policies should aim for this and support early intervention. | |
| “The better alternative is the kind of investment that will save lives and health budgets. | |
| “The latest announcement of funds is just another stopgap. It is not enough to act as a prevention measure. It’s just more of the same drip-feed that’s kept aged care on life support even prior to the pandemic. | |
| “A national aged care advisory group could be another step forward but only if it ensures resources like infection control experts as they have in hospitals and increases staff. Undertaking audits and reviews is not an end in itself. | |
| “Community transmission is the enemy of aged care and it is going to continue for some time. Once a single case gets into a facility it can be impossible to contain. | |
| “All states and the federal government must implement specific aged care policies that are about prevention instead of just responding to disaster when it has already occurred. | |
| “Many state governments are maintaining a failed policy to keep first cases of Covid-19 within the aged care setting. | |
| “Aged care homes are not hospitals. They aren’t staffed like hospitals. They are not funded like hospitals. They are homes,” Sparrow said. | |
| Also, it snowed in Canberra over the weekend. Including a few flurries which hit the city. | |
| But don’t worry – hell hasn’t frozen over quite yet. | |
| Meanwhile, parliament is getting ready to sit. | |
| When branch-stacking allegations were levelled at Victorian Labor, Scott Morrison said it was a test for federal leader and NSW MP Anthony Albanese’s leadership. | |
| The man at the centre of last night’s story has also responded: | |
| For some context on what has been happening in AMP, you might want to read this story from Michael McGowan last week. | |
| The Age and the AFR have been doing extensive reporting on AMP and the executive for quite a while as well. | |
| There has been some BIG changes in AMP this morning. | |
| Victorian Liberal Tim Wilson was mentioned in a recorded conversation powerbroker Marcus Bastiaan had where 60 Minutes reported him as saying: “We’re going to have to fight very hard to beat [Tim] Wilson and we can’t get rid of [Kelly] O’Dwyer because if we do we’ll be blamed for losing the election,” Mr Bastiaan said in 2018. | |
| Tim Wilson also responded to the story last night: | |
| Michael Sukkar has responded to last night’s 60 Minutes and the Age story: | |
| For the first time, more than 1 million Australians are out of work. | For the first time, more than 1 million Australians are out of work. |
| That’s one million people. | That’s one million people. |
| Which means there is renewed focus on raising the jobseeker rate permanently – because when there are 13 job-hunters for each job ad, all of a sudden the usual Coalition government “best form of welfare is a job” lines don’t sit so great. | Which means there is renewed focus on raising the jobseeker rate permanently – because when there are 13 job-hunters for each job ad, all of a sudden the usual Coalition government “best form of welfare is a job” lines don’t sit so great. |
| Unless you are Michael McCormack. Asked about raising the rate, the deputy prime minister responded: | Unless you are Michael McCormack. Asked about raising the rate, the deputy prime minister responded: |
| Well that has been quite the 24 hours in Australian politics, hasn’t it? | Well that has been quite the 24 hours in Australian politics, hasn’t it? |
| The 60 Minutes and the Age story into branch stacking in the Victorian Liberals has started parliament off with a bang. | The 60 Minutes and the Age story into branch stacking in the Victorian Liberals has started parliament off with a bang. |
| In Queensland, the list of potential hotspots grows, as contact tracers race to find all the people linked to the Wacol Youth Detention Centre Covid cluster. | In Queensland, the list of potential hotspots grows, as contact tracers race to find all the people linked to the Wacol Youth Detention Centre Covid cluster. |
| And in Victoria, the hotel quarantine inquiry continues. | And in Victoria, the hotel quarantine inquiry continues. |
| In the Northern Territory, Michael Gunner and Labor look like holding on, but with a reduced majority. Which means the plan to keep the borders closed for up to another year-and-a-half looks like a goer. Over in the west, the borders don’t look like opening any time soon and in South Australia, the borders have tightened with Victoria. | In the Northern Territory, Michael Gunner and Labor look like holding on, but with a reduced majority. Which means the plan to keep the borders closed for up to another year-and-a-half looks like a goer. Over in the west, the borders don’t look like opening any time soon and in South Australia, the borders have tightened with Victoria. |
| All in all, there is a lot of work for the MPs to do, but the government has started the day by sending Michael McCormack out to quell the branch-stacking allegation story. Perhaps not the best plan, but here we are. | All in all, there is a lot of work for the MPs to do, but the government has started the day by sending Michael McCormack out to quell the branch-stacking allegation story. Perhaps not the best plan, but here we are. |
| There will also be quite a few MPs who will be screen only, with the parliament allowing virtual attendance for the first time. So that should be fun. | There will also be quite a few MPs who will be screen only, with the parliament allowing virtual attendance for the first time. So that should be fun. |
| And while passing the legislation which will extend jobkeeper for another six months is the headline bill for this sitting, there is also the economy to keep an eye on (spoiler – it is not looking fantastic) and also Angus Taylor wants to wedge Labor over coal (obviously the most important issue facing the parliament right now). | And while passing the legislation which will extend jobkeeper for another six months is the headline bill for this sitting, there is also the economy to keep an eye on (spoiler – it is not looking fantastic) and also Angus Taylor wants to wedge Labor over coal (obviously the most important issue facing the parliament right now). |
| We’ll cover off all the parliament and Covid news as the day goes on – you have Amy Remeikis with you for the day, as well as Mike Bowers and the entire Guardian brains trust. | We’ll cover off all the parliament and Covid news as the day goes on – you have Amy Remeikis with you for the day, as well as Mike Bowers and the entire Guardian brains trust. |
| Ready? | Ready? |