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Coronavirus Australia live update: Victoria reports five deaths and 15 new Covid cases as NSW records six | Coronavirus Australia live update: Victoria reports five deaths and 15 new Covid cases as NSW records six |
(30 minutes later) | |
Premier Daniel Andrews hints restrictions will be eased in Melbourne on Sunday as NSW strives to boost testing. Follow all the day’s news live | Premier Daniel Andrews hints restrictions will be eased in Melbourne on Sunday as NSW strives to boost testing. Follow all the day’s news live |
Graham Readfearn has the latest on the stranded Tasmanian whale pods. It is not good news: | |
AAP has an update on what is happening with the iCare bonuses: | |
NSW Labor has introduced draft legislation to end executive bonuses at scandal-ridden insurance agency icare. | |
The opposition’s move follows claims that eight icare executives shared $8 million in salaries and bonuses over two years. | |
NSW opposition spokesman Daniel Mookhey said the State Insurance and Care Governance (Employees) Bill would strip icare of the power to pay its executives more bonuses and introduced it to the upper house on Wednesday morning. | |
“Icare should never have paid them millions in salaries and bonuses,” he said in a statement on Wednesday. | |
The agency is an employer-funded workers insurer, owned by the state and overseen by the NSW treasurer, but independent from government. It was one of three organisations that replaced WorkCover in 2015. | |
It provides workers compensation insurance to more than 326,000 businesses, insuring 3.6 million employees. | |
The insurance agency has been under scrutiny since July when NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet came under fire after reports of poor financial management and staffing issues with the agency. | |
There was further scrutiny when it was revealed two icare-paid ministerial staffers had been recruited to work on secondment in his office. | |
“Icare’s top executives ruined the NSW workers compensation scheme,” Mr Mookhey said. | |
“I expect Dominic Perrottet to vote for Labor’s legislation. If he doesn’t, he’s voting to pay icare’s top executives more bonuses.” | |
This rule is one of the reasons I am not allowed an office cat at parliament house. | |
And that’s that for Paul Fletcher. | And that’s that for Paul Fletcher. |
Daniel Hurst will have a story on that for you soon. | Daniel Hurst will have a story on that for you soon. |
Back to Paul Fletcher for one last question: | Back to Paul Fletcher for one last question: |
Q: Just on some of the laws that the Right to Know campaign want to change. One of them is around defamation which was touch on earlier. I wondered in your opinion, there’s a lot of people in the sector who say that it is no longer fit for purpose. Do you still think that the defamation laws in this country are still acting as they’re intended to? | Q: Just on some of the laws that the Right to Know campaign want to change. One of them is around defamation which was touch on earlier. I wondered in your opinion, there’s a lot of people in the sector who say that it is no longer fit for purpose. Do you still think that the defamation laws in this country are still acting as they’re intended to? |
Paul Fletcher: | Paul Fletcher: |
There have been, surprisingly, no arrests made yet at a protest against the federal government’s changes to higher education policy, held today at the University of Sydney. | There have been, surprisingly, no arrests made yet at a protest against the federal government’s changes to higher education policy, held today at the University of Sydney. |
Previously, dozens of students and staff have been arrested and fined at earlier protests held at the university, even as they stuck to groups smaller than 20. | Previously, dozens of students and staff have been arrested and fined at earlier protests held at the university, even as they stuck to groups smaller than 20. |
Yesterday, staff spoke out against “undemocratic” behaviour from NSW police, saying it was suppressing freedom of speech to arrest protestors under Covid regulations, while letting other students have lunch, or even attend classes of 30 to 40 people. | Yesterday, staff spoke out against “undemocratic” behaviour from NSW police, saying it was suppressing freedom of speech to arrest protestors under Covid regulations, while letting other students have lunch, or even attend classes of 30 to 40 people. |
Today, the protest has coincided with an outdoor teaching event, held by staff, who are delivering lectures on the importance of protest, the issues with university casualisation and other criticism of the higher ed changes. | Today, the protest has coincided with an outdoor teaching event, held by staff, who are delivering lectures on the importance of protest, the issues with university casualisation and other criticism of the higher ed changes. |
There are over a hundred students and attendees sitting outdoors listening currently. | There are over a hundred students and attendees sitting outdoors listening currently. |
The student newspaper, Honi Soit, report that the university asked the police not to break this event up today. | The student newspaper, Honi Soit, report that the university asked the police not to break this event up today. |
Friends and readers in the arts, feel free to respond. | Friends and readers in the arts, feel free to respond. |
Q: So ministerial responsibility – could you explain what it actually means? | Q: So ministerial responsibility – could you explain what it actually means? |
Paul Fletcher: | Paul Fletcher: |
Q: A simple yes, no and don’t know. Firstly in regard to a follow up from the question. Isn’t the doctrine of ministerial responsibility actually that you are responsible for what happens within your ministry? And haven’t you failed to actually follow that through by doing nothing about the auditor general’s report? | Q: A simple yes, no and don’t know. Firstly in regard to a follow up from the question. Isn’t the doctrine of ministerial responsibility actually that you are responsible for what happens within your ministry? And haven’t you failed to actually follow that through by doing nothing about the auditor general’s report? |
Secondly – in regard to Annika Smethurst’s issue – you have said how concerned you’ve been over the last 11 months about the raids on journalists, but the reality is that you have done absolutely nothing. Is that correct or not? | Secondly – in regard to Annika Smethurst’s issue – you have said how concerned you’ve been over the last 11 months about the raids on journalists, but the reality is that you have done absolutely nothing. Is that correct or not? |
And thirdly – in regard to your other portfolio, which is arts – we know for example that ushers in cinemas receiving jobkeeper – isn’t it true that there has been no special support for the arts ministry, for those people who are actually producing content and contributing to the arts in Australia? You asked for a simple answer. | And thirdly – in regard to your other portfolio, which is arts – we know for example that ushers in cinemas receiving jobkeeper – isn’t it true that there has been no special support for the arts ministry, for those people who are actually producing content and contributing to the arts in Australia? You asked for a simple answer. |
Paul Fletcher: | Paul Fletcher: |
Q: What are you doing about phone scammers who are terrorising people, pretending to be from the Tax Office, threatening people with arrest and what not, if they don’t hand over money. It is actually a thing at the moment? | Q: What are you doing about phone scammers who are terrorising people, pretending to be from the Tax Office, threatening people with arrest and what not, if they don’t hand over money. It is actually a thing at the moment? |
Paul Fletcher: | Paul Fletcher: |