O75 Public Administration

Secret compo: Higgins’ 40 years of lost wages

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Original article by Janet Albrechtsen, Ellie Dudley, Rhiannon Down
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 15-Jun-23

Details of the former Coalition government’s settlement with Brittany Higgins’ remain confidential, although some media reports have sugggested that her payout was up to $3m. Higgins’ draft statement of claim shows that she had sought more than $2.5m in compensation. The document stated that she had been diagnosed as medically unfit for ­employment and had little prospect of future employment. She was therefore seeking damages for economic loss, including 40 years of foregone income, as well as the loss of a potential future career in politics. Chantille Khoury from Law Partners Personal Injury Lawyers says Higgins’ payout seems "unusually high". Higgins has held several jobs since her alleged rape at Parliament House, including media adviser for the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria.

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LAW PARTNERS PERSONAL INJURY LAWYERS

Coal boom to fund Qld’s green power shift

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Original article by Mark Ludlow
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 8 : 14-Jun-23

A $1.5bn cost-of-living package is the centrepiece of the Queensland government’s 2023 budget. It includes a $550 energy rebate for all households in the state, plus a rebate of up to $1,000 for vulnerable households. Treasurer Cameron Dick does not expect the package to boost inflation, although Gene Tunny of Adept Economics notes that other states are also ramping up their expenditure, which will be taken into account by the Reserve Bank when adjusting monetary policy. Dick’s fourth budget has also allocated $19bn to pumped hydro, wind, solar and battery projects that will be owned by the government. This spending will see the budget return to deficit in 2023-24, following a record surplus of $12bn for 2022-23. A $10bn increase in coal royalties is the major contributor to the surplus.

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QUEENSLAND. TREASURY

Svitzer agrees to one-year outsourcing ban

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 14-Jun-23

Some 63 per cent of Svitzer Australia employees have voted in favour of the tugboat operator’s new four-year enterprise agreement. The Maritime Union of Australia withdrew its support for the agreement in the lead-up to the ballot, although the deal had the support of the Australian Institute of Marine & Power Engineers. Svitzer has agreed to some concessions after nearly four years of negotiations; amongst other things, it has given an undertaking to not outsource work performed by its employees during the first year of the agreement.

CORPORATES
SVITZER AUSTRALASIA SERVICES PTY LTD, MARITIME UNION OF AUSTRALIA, THE AUSTRALIAN INSTITUTE OF MARINE AND POWER ENGINEERS

Morrison, Gallagher deny misleading parliament over Higgins rape allegation

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Original article by James Massola, Paul Sakkal
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 14-Jun-23

The Brittany Higgins rape case came under scrutiny in federal parliament on Tuesday. Finance Minister Katy Gallagher admitted to the Senate that she had been given information about Higgins’ allegation several days before it was reported in the media; however, Gallagher said she had been asked to keep that information to herself and did so. Gallagher also rejected suggestions that she had misled the Senate about when she had been informed of Higgins’ allegation. Meanwhile, former prime minister Scott Morrison also denied misleading parliament over his handling of the rape allegation. Bruce Lehrmann has consistently denied that he had raped Higgins.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE

IR reforms will blast $13bn hole in economy

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Original article by Geoff Chambers
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 14-Jun-23

Modelling undertaken by the Centre for International Economics highlights the potential impact of the federal government’s second tranche of industrial relations reforms on productivity in the mining sector. The modelling, which was commissioned by the Minerals Council of Australia, is based on a one per cent fall in productivity; it concludes that the restrictions on the mining sector and supply chains resulting from the reforms could potentially reduce economic activity by $13bn a year and reduce consumption in the mining sector by $6bn. MCA CEO Tania Constable says a one per cent hit to productivity is a "conservative estimate". The CIE also modelled several other scenarios.

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CENTRE FOR INTERNATIONAL ECONOMICS, MINERALS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA

AFP war crimes probe collapses over risk of tainted evidence

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Original article by Nick McKenzie
The Age – Page: Online : 14-Jun-23

A new joint taskforce will investigate alleged war crimes in Afghanistan that involved Victoria Cross recipient Ben Roberts-Smith. The taskforce comprises detectives from the Office of the Special Investigator and a team of Australian Federal Police investigators who are not connected to a previous five-year AFP inquiry into the war crimes allegations. The Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions had concluded in March that Roberts-Smith should not be prosecuted as a result of the earlier inquiry, due to concerns that the AFP investigators may have unwittingly used tainted evidence; that evidence comprised information from the separate war crimes inquiry headed by Paul Brereton.

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AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, AUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE SPECIAL INVESTIGATOR

Rates must stay high ‘into next year’: Carney

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 14-Jun-23

Former Bank of England governor Mark Carney has downplayed the prospect that official interest rates will be reduced in the near-term. Carney has warned that interest rates in Australia and abroad will need to remain high until well into 2024 in order to bring inflation under control. He adds that a "very robust" banking system means that Australia is much better placed to cope with higher interest rates than some countries. The Reserve Bank of Australia has flagged further interest rate rises in coming months as it seeks to restore inflation to the target range of 2-3 per cent.

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BANK OF ENGLAND, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Roy Morgan Business Confidence virtually unchanged in May as Federal Budget fails to provide a confidence boost

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 13-Jun-23

In May 2023, Roy Morgan Business Confidence was 90.3 (up 0.1pts since April). The Business Confidence survey was conducted after Treasurer Jim Chalmers delivered the Federal Government’s Budget in early May, but before the RBA raised interest rates by 0.25% to 4.1%. Business Confidence has now spent four consecutive months below the neutral level of 100, the longest stretch in negative territory since October 2020 during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Business Confidence is now 21.9pts below the long-term average of 112.2. Now 40.2% (up 1.5ppts) of businesses expect the business will be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 25.1% (down 2.6ppts) expect the business will be ‘worse off’. Meanwhile, 46.3% (up 5.8ppts) say the next 12 months will be a ‘good time to invest in growing the business’, while 47% (down 4.7ppts) say it will be a ‘bad time to invest in growing the business’. However, only 38% (up 0.6ppts) of businesses expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months, while 61.2% (up 1.1ppts) expect ‘bad times’.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Andrews’ great wall of silence

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Original article by Patrick Carlyon, Mitch Clarke, Carly Douglas
Herald Sun – Page: 7 : 7-Jun-23

The Victorian government is under scrutiny over revelations that Premier Daniel Andrews addressed a forum in Melbourne on Monday night to which access was restricted to the Chinese media. Andrews has indicated that he has "no idea" why Australian journalists were banned from attending the Post Pandemic China-Australia Economic Co-operation Forum. Opposition leader John Pesutto says it is unacceptable for any political leader to give speeches in secret. Liberal senator James Paterson recently raised concerns that one of the forum’s sponsors is a "front group" for China’s top spy agency.

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VICTORIA. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, LIBERAL PARTY OF VICTORIA, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

25pc childcare pay rise could be unsustainable

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 7-Jun-23

Unions and early childhood education providers have applied to the Fair Work Commission for authorisation to negotiate pay deals via the federal government’s new multi-employer ‘supported bargaining’ stream. The proposed pay rise of 25 per cent would apply to 65 employers in the sector and about 12,000 early childhood educators. However, Australian Industry Group CEO Innes Willox says a big concern is that other employers will ultimately be "roped into" the pay deal, despite not being involved in the negotiations.

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AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP