O75 Public Administration

Snowy 2.0 buried in a wage storm

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 10-Sep-25

The Australian Workers Union has struck a new enterprise agreement with Snowy 2.0 contractor Webuild that will boost the wages of tunnel workers. The ‘fly-in, fly-out’ workers will receive an upfront pay rise of $6,000 over a six-week roster cycle, plus an additional wage increase of 2.25 per cent every six months for four years; this will boost their annual wage to about $300,000. The wage deal also includes a 62 per cent increase in the tunnel workers’ hourly productivity allowance. The AWU’s NSW secretary Tony Callinan has conceded that the new agreement will result in a significant increase in Snowy 2.0’s labour costs. The renewable energy project is already well over budget and behind schedule.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN WORKERS’ UNION, WEBUILD

PM plans giant UN event despite possible COP out

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Original article by Geoff Chambers, Greg Brown
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 10-Sep-25

The federal government has released tender documents for the appointment of an event manager to handle the COP31 climate change summit in 2026, even though the host nation has yet to be decided. The government’s advance planning for the summit envisions that it will be attended by more than 52,000 people, and will be bigger and more complex than any event that Australia has hosted in the past. However, Turkey remains reluctant to withdraw its rival bid to host COP31, and senior Labor figures have conceded that this makes it increasingly likely that Labor’s bid will fail.

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Roy Morgan Business Confidence drops in August as businesses grow more worried about the next 12 months

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 10-Sep-25

In August 2025, Roy Morgan Business Confidence fell 4.4pts to 98.6, despite the Reserve Bank electing to cut interest rates by 0.25% to 3.6% at its meeting in mid-August. Business Confidence is now 11.4pts below the long-term average of 110, and it is 2.7pts lower than in August 2024. Now 28.5% (down 3.7ppts) of businesses says their business is ‘better off’ financially than this time a year ago, while 35.4% (up 1.9ppts) say the business is ‘worse off’. Meanwhile, 39.6% (down 1.3ppts) of respondents expect the business will be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 24.3% (up 4ppts) expect the business will be ‘worse off’. The latest Roy Morgan Business Confidence results for August are based on 1,189 detailed interviews with a cross-section of Australian businesses from each State and Territory.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence up 1.3pts to 89.3; driven by more positive views about personal finances

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 10-Sep-25

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence rose 1.3pts to 89.3 in the week to 7 September; it is now 7 points above the same week a year ago (82.3), and 2.4pts above the 2025 weekly average of 86.9. Analysis by State shows mixed results, with Consumer Confidence up in Victoria, Queensland and South Australia, unchanged in Western Australia, and down in New South Wales. Now 22% of Australians (down 1ppt) say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year, while 40% (down 3ppts) say their families are ‘worse off’. Looking forward, 29% (up 3ppts) of respondents expect their family to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 27% (down 4ppts) expect to be ‘worse off’ – this is the highest net rating for this indicator since the Federal Election. Meanwhile, 11% (down 3ppts) of respondents expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months, while 28% (down 1ppt) expect ‘bad times’. Just 26% (unchanged) of Australians say now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items, while 35% (up 3ppts) say now is a ‘bad time to buy’.

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

Government spending tops $1trn for the first time

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 10-Sep-25

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that the combined recurrent spending of the federal and state governments rose by 7.7 per cent in 2024-25, to $1.02 trillion. In contrast, government revenue increased by just four per cent during the financial year. The increase in recurrent spending was driven by a number of factors, with government employee costs rising by 8.8 per cent and social benefits up 11.9 per cent. EY’s chief economist Cherelle Murphy warns that fiscal sustainability across the federal and state governments will be at risk if the current spending trends continue, which could potentially result in credit rating downgrades.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, ERNST AND YOUNG

Australians evenly split on teaching religion in government schools

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 3-Sep-25

New Roy Morgan research reveals a profound shift in Australian attitudes towards religious education in government schools in the year to June 2025. Support was even at 50% in favour and 50% opposed to teaching religion at least once a week. This represents a complete reversal of sentiment over a generation. In 1997-98, support for weekly religious instruction was overwhelming, with 72% of Australians in favour and just 28% opposed. Over the following two decades, support gradually eroded, slipping below 70% in the early 2000s and into the low-60s by the mid-2010s. For the first time, support and opposition reached parity in 2021-22, marking a critical convergence. The trajectory then continued, with the "No" vote overtaking the "Yes" vote for the first time in the 2022-23 period, establishing a narrow majority of 51% to 49%. This shift from majority to minority support signalled the end of long-standing consensus. Support and opposition then held steady in 2023-24 at 51% to 49%. The data highlight a significant cultural shift in Australia, reflecting growing secularisation, greater diversity of beliefs, and evolving expectations about the role of religion in public education.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

New Zealand: In August, support for Labour surges to highest since the 2023 New Zealand Election

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 3-Sep-25

Roy Morgan’s New Zealand Poll for August 2025 shows that support for the National-led Government (National, ACT & NZ First) has fallen by 4.5% points to only 46.5%, its lowest level of support this year. In contrast, support for the Labour-Greens-Maori Party Parliamentary Opposition has risen to 50% (up 4% points from a month ago). Within the National-led Government support for National was down 2% points to 29%, support for ACT was unchanged at 10.5% and support for NZ First dropped 2.5% points to 7%. For the Parliamentary Opposition, support for Labour increased by 3% points to 34% (the highest level of support for any party since September 2024); support for the Greens was up 2% points to 13.5%, but support for the Maori Party dropped 1% point to 2.5%. A further 3.5% (up 0.5% points) of electors supported a minor party outside Parliament. This New Zealand Roy Morgan Poll on voting intention was conducted by telephone – both landline and mobile – with a New Zealand-wide cross-section of 873 electors from 28 July to August 24. Meanwhile, the Roy Morgan Government Confidence Rating was unchanged at 83.5 in August.

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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

Labor truth tax set to be blocked

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Original article by Sarah Ison, James Madden
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 3-Sep-25

The federal government’s proposal to charge a fee for submitting Freedom of Information requests appears set to be defeated. Opposition Leader Sussan Ley contends that Australians "should never have to pay for the truth", while she adds that secrecy is the "refuge of weak governments". The Greens have also criticised Labor’s proposal to impose a fee for FOI requests and ban people from making anonymous applications; justice spokesman David Shoebridge says the latter measure is another attack by Labor against "whistleblowers and truth tellers" within the government. Communications Minister Anika Wells has defended the legislation, arguing that the deluge of automated FOI requests is diverting public servants from important work.

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LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT, REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS

Allan off to Beijing – to win over voters

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Original article by Damon Johnson
The Australian – Page: 2 : 3-Sep-25

A Victorian government spokesperson has advised that Premier Jacinta Allan will head a five-day trade mission to China in mid-September. Allan will meet with Chinese politicians and business leaders, and the talks will focus on issues such as trade, education, tourism and innovation. She will be accompanied by a junior minister, as well as four Labor backbenchers whose electorate have a large number of Chinese-Australian voters. It will be Allan’s first major overseas trip since she replaced predecesser Daniel Andrews, who visited China six times when he was in office.

CORPORATES
VICTORIA. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence up 2pts to 88.0 in late August; driven by more positive views on buying conditions

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 3-Sep-25

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence rose 2pts to 88.0 in the week to 31 August. Consumer Confidence is now 4.9 points above the same week a year ago (83.1), and 1.2pts above the 2025 weekly average of 86.8. Analysis by State shows mixed results, with Consumer Confidence up in New South Wales and Western Australia, down in Victoria and South Australia and virtually unchanged in Queensland. Now 23% of Australians (up 2ppts) say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year, while 43% (unchanged) say their families are ‘worse off’. Looking forward, 26% (down 2ppts) of respondents expect their family to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 31% (down 2ppts) expect to be ‘worse off’. Meanwhile, 14% (up 2ppts) of respondents expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months (the highest figure for this indicator since February 2022), while 29% (unchanged) expect ‘bad times’. Just 26% (up 4ppts) of Australians say now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items, while 32% (down 3ppts) say now is a ‘bad time to buy’.

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