O75 Public Administration

Rate rise cycle not over yet: Bullock

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Original article by Matthew Cranston, Jack Quail
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 17-Jun-26

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has welcomed the Reserve Bank of Australia’s decision to leave the cash rate on hold at 4.35 per cent. Chalmers has attributed the monetary policy board’s unanimous decision to factors such as the federal government’s "responsible" budget and the US-Iran peace deal. However, RBA governor Michele Bullock has not ruled out further interest rate rises, noting that inflation remains high and the government’s budget tax reforms have resulted in increased uncertainty across the economy. Bullock adds that the RBA expects economic growth to slow but it is not forecasting a recession.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence is virtually unchanged at 70.7 in mid-June

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 17-Jun-26

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence was virtually unchanged at 70.7 in mid-June, down 0.1pts from a week ago. However, Consumer Confidence is 14.7pts lower than a year ago (85.4), and just 0.4pts below the 2026 weekly average of 71.1. Analysis by State shows that Consumer Confidence increased in New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia, but was down in Queensland and Western Australia. Now just 17% of Australians (up 2ppts) say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year, while 54% (down 1ppt) say their families are ‘worse off’. Looking forward, 21% (down 1ppt) of respondents expect their family to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 43% (unchanged) expect to be ‘worse off’. Only 6% (unchanged) of respondents expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months, while 46% (up 1ppt) expect ‘bad times’. Meanwhile, 19% (unchanged) of Australians say now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items, while 44% (down 1ppt) say now is a ‘bad time to buy’.

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

Overall Australian unemployment and under-employment at over 3.2 million in May; Real Unemployment at 1.7 million

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 17-Jun-26

In May 2026, Australian ‘real’ unemployment rose 69,000 to 1,704,000 (10.7% of the workforce, up 0.6%), but under-employment dropped 136,000 to 1,503,000 (down 0.7% to 9.5%). In total, 3.21 million Australians (20.2% of the workforce) were either unemployed or under-employed in May. Roy Morgan estimates the overall workforce size (which adds together the employed and unemployed) at just under 15.9 million in May (15,860,000 to be exact, down 231,000 on a month ago, and representing 67.7% of Australians aged 14+). Employment was down 300,000 to 14,156,000 in May; this was driven by falls in both full-time employment (down 224,000 to 8,921,000) and part-time employment (down 76,000 to 5,235,000. Overall employment represents 60.4% of Australians aged 14+. The May Roy Morgan Unemployment estimates were obtained by surveying an Australia-wide cross section of people aged 14+.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Review puts top bureaucrats’ pay under spotlight

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Original article by Nicola Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 17-Jun-26

The independent Remuneration Tribunal is undertaking a 14-month review of senior federal public servants’ remuneration packages. It will assess the salaries of the top 26 bureaucrats, whose salaries range from $816,000 to $1,035,690 a year. The tribunal is seeking feedback from the public as to whether their salaries and benefits are "appropriate", and it recently completed the first public consultation phase of the review. Departmental secretaries are entitled to a range of benefits, including domestic airline lounge memberships, business-class airfares and relocation expenses if they do not live in Canberra.

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AUSTRALIA. REMUNERATION TRIBUNAL

Compo run for foreign criminals

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 11-Jun-26

The High Court has rejected the federal government’s argument that it should not be liable to pay compensation to people who were held in indefinite detention. The government had contended that it should have immunity from compensation claims arising from the court’s landmark 2023 ruling in the ‘NZYQ’ case that indefinite detention is unlawful. More than 300 foreign-born criminals were released into the community as a result of that ruling. Legal experts warn that in addition to this cohort, asylum-seekers and refugees who were held in detention could also be entitled to compensation.

CORPORATES
HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA

One Nation’s incredibly sloppy financial reports reveal more than $1m in missing or worthless assets

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Original article by Sarah Martin
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 11-Jun-26

Professor Matthew Pinnuck from the University of Melbourne says the quality of One Nation’s financial statements is "very poor and unprofessional", and raises questions about the party’s fitness for government. Professor Pinnuck’s comments are based on his assessment of the financial returns that One Nation lodged with Queensland’s Office of Fair Trading from 2016 to 2022; he says the financial statements show that One Nation had been bought and sold substantial assets over this period, but they had not been recorded on the party’s balance sheet. One Nation has not filed annual returns with the Office of Fair Trading since 2022.

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ONE NATION PARTY, QUEENSLAND. OFFICE OF FAIR TRADING, UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE

Non-compete clause: Taylor confidant’s shock call on One Nation

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Original article by Rosie Lewis, Greg Brown, Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 11-Jun-26

Liberal MP Tony Pasin says the Coalition should work with One Nation to ensure that Labor is defeated at the next federal election. Pasin contends that the Liberals and One Nation should identify electorates where each party has the best chance of winning, and focus their campaigning on these seats rather than competing with each other in all electorates. Pasin says he is concerned that the Liberals and One Nation will spend the next two electoral cycles fighting each other, resulting in a "very bad Labor government" retaining office. Meanwhile, opinion is divided within the Liberals as to whether the party should direct preferences to One Nation at the next election.

CORPORATES
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, ONE NATION PARTY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence increased 2 points to 70.8 in early June – first time above 70 since early March

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 11-Jun-26

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence rose 2 points to 70.8 in the week to 7 June; this is the first time the index has been above the mark of 70 for over two months. However, Consumer Confidence is 15.9pts lower than a year ago (86.7), and just 0.4pts below the 2026 weekly average of 71.2. Analysis by State shows that Consumer Confidence increased in New South Wales, and Queensland, but was down slightly in Victoria, Western Australia and South Australia. Now just 15% of Australians (up 1ppt) say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year, while 55% (up 1ppt) say their families are ‘worse off’. Looking forward, 22% (up 4ppts) of respondents expect their family to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 43% (unchanged) expect to be ‘worse off’. Only 6% (unchanged) of respondents expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months, while 45% (up 1ppt) expect ‘bad times’. Meanwhile, just 19% (up 3ppts) of Australians say now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items, while 45% (unchanged) say now is a ‘bad time to buy’.

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

Roy Morgan Business Confidence hits a new record low of only 76.1 in May after Reserve Bank raises interest rates

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 11-Jun-26

In May 2026 Roy Morgan Business Confidence hit a new record low of 76.1 and has now fallen by 28.9pts so far during 2026. This result is 0.4pts below the previous record low reached a month ago, and 0.8 points below the pandemic low of 76.9 in April 2020. Business Confidence is also down 23.5 points from a year ago. Now 25.2% (up 1.2ppts) of respondents say their business is ‘better off’ financially than a year ago, while 44.9% (up 0.9ppts), say the business is ‘worse off’ (the highest figure for this indicator since December 2023). Just 29% (down 3.6ppts) of respondents expect the business will be ‘better off’ financially this time next year (the lowest figure for this indicator since August 2015), while 34.1% (up 4.5ppts) expect the business will be ‘worse off’ (a record high figure for this indicator). Meanwhile, just 28.8% (up 0.5ppts) of respondents say the next 12 months will be a ‘good time to invest’ in growing the business, while 50% (unchanged) say the next 12 months will be a ‘bad time to invest’. The latest Roy Morgan Business Confidence results for May are based on 1,181 detailed interviews with a cross-section of Australian businesses from each State and Territory.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Roy Morgan New Zealand Poll: Support for National-led Government surges in May as Labour support falls

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 3-Jun-26

Roy Morgan’s New Zealand Poll for May 2026 shows that support for the National-led Government (National, ACT & NZ First) is up 4% to 51.5%, opening a large lead over the Labour-Greens-Maori Party Parliamentary Opposition (down 6.5% to 41.5%). Amongst the Government support for National increased 5% to 30.5%, although support for NZ First was down 0.5% to 11% and support for ACT was down 0.5% to 10%. For the Parliamentary Opposition, support for Labour fell 7.5% to 26.5%, support for the Greens increased 1.5% to 12.5% and support for the Maori Party was down 0.5% to 2.5%. A further 7% (up 2.5%) of electors supported a minor party outside Parliament. The survey results for May would lead to the National-led Government winning 63 seats (down five seats from the last election) and the Labour-led Parliamentary Opposition would win 50 seats (down five seats). This latest New Zealand Roy Morgan Poll on voting intention was conducted by telephone – both landline and mobile – with a New Zealand-wide cross-section of 870 electors from 27 April to 24 May. Meanwhile, the Roy Morgan Government Confidence Rating rose 9 points to 84.5 in May.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, MORGAN POLL, NATIONAL PARTY OF NEW ZEALAND, ACT NEW ZEALAND, NEW ZEALAND FIRST PARTY, LABOUR PARTY (NEW ZEALAND), GREEN PARTY OF AOTEAROA NEW ZEALAND, THE MAORI PARTY