O75 Public Administration

Politicians paying off Canberra mortgages thanks to taxpayers

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Original article by Jessica Wang, Eliza Barr
Herald Sun – Page: Online : 7-Jan-26

Independent senator David Pocock has called for a review of federal politicians’ travel allowances, amid revelations that some are using their expense claims to help finance a mortgage. Interstate-based MPs and senators receive a nightly travel allowance of $322 to cover accommodation, food and incidental expenses during weeks when parliament is sitting. However, the rules allow them to receive the allowance even if they are staying at a home that either themselves or their partner own in Canberra; they can therefore redirect this money to paying off the mortgage on this home. Pocock, who lives in Canberra, says the allowance is necessary but must be in line with community expectations.

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Flood farmers face big stock losses

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Original article by Brittney Levinson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 7-Jan-26

The federal and Queensland govenments will jointly provide $38m in disaster relief assistance for farmers who have been affected by severe floods in the state’s northwest. Grants of up to $75,000 will be available, including upfront payments of $10,000. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced the package during a visit to Cloncurry, which is one of the regions that have been hit by the heavy rains since late December. Queensland’s Department of Primary Industries has advised that the number of livstock that is dead or missing now exceeds 20,000.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, QUEENSLAND. DEPT OF PRIMARY INDUSTRIES

ANZ-Roy Morgan Inflation Expectations were at 5.6% in mid-December – up 0.3% points from the month of November

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 7-Jan-26

The weekly ANZ-Roy Morgan Inflation Expectations hit a two-year high of 5.6% for the week of 8-14 December 2025, up 0.3% points from the full month of November; this is the highest the index has been on a weekly basis since December 2023. A look at monthly Inflation Expectations for November 2025 shows the measure at 5.1% for the month, up 0.1% points from the prior month of November, but since then inflationary pressures have increased. Looking back over the last six months, since mid-June, weekly Inflation Expectations have moved in a band of 4.7% to 5.4%, and averaged 5.0%. A look at Monthly Inflation Expectations on a State-based level for November shows increases around Australia in four States, but significant declines in Western Australia and South Australia. The data for the Inflation Expectations series is drawn from the Roy Morgan Single Source, which has interviewed an average of around 5,300 Australians aged 14+ per month over the last decade.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Labor accused of breaking law on migration rules

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Original article by Luke Kinsella
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 7-Jan-26

The federal government is under scrutiny over the growing backlog of visa applications for the partners of Australian citizens. This reached a record high of 96,839 in June 2025, and it has increased by 72 per cent since Labor took office in May 2022. Both Labor and Coalition governments have capped partner visas, but migration expert Peter McDonald contends that this is illegal and applications for such visas should be processed when they are received. Former immigration department bureaucrat Abul Rizvi says the government will eventually have to abide by the law on partner visas; however, he concedes that this would result in a higher permanent migration intake and an increase in net overseas migration.

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AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Take this expert advice, PM

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Original article by Greg Brown, Sarah Ison
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 7-Jan-26

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese may yield to the growing pressure to hold a federal royal commission into the Bondi Beach terrorist attack. While Albanese has stated that Labor’s priorities are a review of the nation’s intelligence agencies and passing new hate speech and gun control laws, he has expressed willingness to "examine anything else required" in response to the terrorist attack. Sources have indicated that the government may formally announce a national public inquiry within days. Meanwhile, 32 intelligence and security experts have released a joint statement urging the government to hold a royal commission into both anti-Semitism and Islamist extremism.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Fix cruel taxes for younger workers: Kelty

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 7-Jan-26

Former ACTU secretary Bill Kelty has urged the federal government to pursue tax reform, contending that the current tax system disadvantages younger workers in particular. Amongst other things, Kelty has advocated reducing the tax rates of wage earners who do not receive income from capital gains, trusts and negatively-geared properties. The Parliamentary Budget Office has forecast that the average tax rate for workers will rise to 27.8 per cent of their income over the next decade; this compares with about 24.5 per cent at present. Kelty notes that in contrast, investors who receive income from property and shares incur a maximum capital gains tax rate of just 23.5 per cent for assets that they have held for more than 12 months.

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ACTU, AUSTRALIA. PARLIAMENTARY BUDGET OFFICE

Maduro defiant in the dock as Trump talks big on oil

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Original article by Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 7-Jan-26

President Donald Trump claims that US companies can rebuild Venezuela’s oil infrastructure within 18 months, but concedes that it will require a "tremendous amount of money". He adds that oil companies will be reimbursed for this expenditure either by the US goverment or via revenue. Venezuela currently produces about 1.1 million barrels of oil per day, and Rystadt Energy estimates that increasing this to three million barrels per day will require about $US183bn of investment over the next decade. Meanwhile, Venezuela’s former president Nicolas Maduro has told a New York court that he had been kidnapped by US forces at his home in Caracas, and that he is still Venezuela’s leader.

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UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

Labor’s changes to listing hate groups will target Islamist and far-right extremists operating just inside the limits of law

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Original article by Josh Butler
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 24-Dec-25

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke says the federal government’s proposed legislation will crack down on hate groups that do not currently meet the criteria for being listed as a proscribed terrorist organisation. Burke has indicated that Hizb ut-Tahrir and the National Socialist Network are among those that will be targeted, stating that such groups hate Australia and should not be operating in this country. He adds that both Hizb ut-Tahrir and the National Socialist Network "have gone right to the limits of the law" but avoided prosecution under existing hate laws. Dr Josh Roose from Deakin University says the new laws should also target individuals who operating outside of established groups and extremist online ‘influencers’.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, DEAKIN UNIVERSITY

Pay rises slow but still beat inflation

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 7 : 24-Dec-25

Data from the Department of Employment & Workplace Relations shows that the average pay rise in new enterprise agreements across the economy was an above-inflation 3.8 per cent in the September quarter; this compares with 4.2 per cent in the June quarter. The average increase in public sector wages was 3.6 per cent, compared with four per cent in the private sector. Workplace Relations Amanda Rishworth says the data shows that Labor’s industrial relations reforms are "reinvigorating" enterprise bargaining. However, the figures show that 2.65 million workers were covered by enterprise agreements in the September quarter, down from a record 2.81 million in the three months to June.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT AND WORKPLACE RELATIONS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Do everything you can, Herzog tells PM

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Original article by Noah Yim
The Australian – Page: 5 : 24-Dec-25

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese invited Israeli President Isaac Herzog to visit Australia in 2026 during a telephone call between the two leaders on Tuesday. Herzog has been Albanese’s main point of contact with the Israeli government in recent times, following criticism of him by Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Albanese’s office has released a statement noting that Herzog stressed the need to take action to combat anti-Semitism, extremism and jihadist terrorism in Australia. The Bondi Beach terrorist attack was a key focus of the Christmas messages of both Albanese and Opposition leader Sussan Ley.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET