O75 Public Administration

NSW to consider testing international travellers before they board for Sydney

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Original article by Amelia McGuire
The Age – Page: Online : 14-Dec-20

New South Wales has reported no new locally-acquired COVID-19 cases for 11 consecutive days, but the number of cases among returned travellers has risen to 34. NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard has indicated that the state government is looking at the viability of requiring airlines to test passengers and flight crews for the coronavirus before they board a plane to Australia. Meanwhile, six returned travellers in hotel quarantine in Victoria have tested positive for COVID-19, and an additional 24 have symptoms of the virus.

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NEW SOUTH WALES. MINISTRY OF HEALTH

Canavan calls for retaliatory levy on iron ore to China

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Original article by Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 6 : 14-Dec-20

Former resources minister Matt Canavan contends that the federal government should respond to China’s import bans and punitive tariffs by imposing a levy on iron ore exports. Australia ships nearly 900 million tonnes of iron ore to China each year, and Canavan argues that a levy of just one per cent would raise more than $800m annually; this could be used to compensate companies that have been hit by China’s trade sanctions. Canavan notes that iron ore has not been affected by the trade war, as China cannot quickly and easily source an alternative supply.

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Chinese Communist Party insiders infiltrate Western consulates

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Original article by Sharri Markson
The Australian – Page: 1 & 7 : 14-Dec-20

Members of the Chinese Communist Party are working in at least 10 foreign consulates in Shanghai, including those of Australia, the US and the UK. This follows the examination of a leaked copy of CCP membership records, which has also found that CCP members are working in companies such as Boeing and AstraZeneca, as well as Western universities. Australia hires local staff for its Shanghai consulate through the Shanghai Foreign Agency Service Department, which is a Chinese government agency, and the leaked database indicates that it has at least 12 active CCP branches

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COMMUNIST PARTY (CHINA), BOEING COMPANY, ASTRAZENECA PLC

China not playing by trade pact rules

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Original article by Ben Packham, Will Glasgow
The Australian – Page: 4 : 9-Dec-20

Trade Minister Simon Birmingham says the federal government is considering "all dispute settlement options" in response to China’s recent move to ban a range of imports from Australia. He has also suggested that the targeted nature of the import bans raises questions about China’s adherence to the free-trade agreement that the two nations signed in 2015. China has yet to explain why it has banned meat exports from Queensland-based abattoir Meramist, although there is speculation that it is in retaliation to the federal government’s Foreign Relations Bill.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, MERAMIST PTY LTD

COVID travel ban extended, as Australia reaches astonishing virus milestone

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Original article by
The New Daily – Page: Online : 9-Dec-20

Australians will be prohibited from travelling overseas until at least 17 March. Health Minister Greg Hunt has cited the ongoing COVID-19 health crisis overseas for the decision to extend the ban, which was slated to expire on 17 December. The ban also prevents international cruise ships from entering Australian waters. Meanwhile, the number of active cases across Australia has fallen to 42, with returned travellers in hotel quarantine accounting for all but one of these cases. Victoria has had no active cases for 39 days; however, six returned travellers have been isolated in a special ‘hot’ hotel in Melbourne after showing symptoms of the coronavirus. Another returned traveller has tested negative for COVID-19 after arriving in Melbourne on 7 December.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HEALTH

Union takes Tax Office bosses to Federal Court in work from home row

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Original article by Noel Towell
The Age – Page: Online : 9-Dec-20

The Australian Services Union has commenced legal action against senior executives at the Australian Taxation Office. The ASU alleges that the executives – including Commissioner of Taxation Chris Jordan – were in breach of workplace laws and the ATO’s enterprise agreement, which includes working at home provisions. The union claims that ATO staff who had been working from home due to the pandemic were ordered to return to their offices without the required notice period when the federal government announced stimulus measures such as the JobKeeper wage subsidy scheme.

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AUSTRALIAN SERVICES UNION, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE

Labor snubs job-saving IR reboot

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 14 : 9-Dec-20

Labor has advised that it will not support a key provision in the federal government’s industrial relations omnibus bill. The controversial reform would allow the Fair Work Commission to approve enterprise agreements that do not comply with the ‘better-off-overall test’ in the Fair Work Act. The FWC will be able to take into account factors such as the impact of COVID-19 in approving non-compliant agreements. ACTU secretary Sally McManus says the proposed reform is ‘diabolical’, although it has been welcomed by business groups

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AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, ACTU

Kelty approves of super-union divorce move

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Original article by Ewin Hannan, Greg Brown
The Australian – Page: 5 : 9-Dec-20

The federal government’s hopes of getting the unions demerger bill through parliament before it rises for the year have been boosted after Labor signalled that it will not opposed the legislation. Former ACTU secretary Bill Kelty has expressed support for the legislation, and he contends that breaking up the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining & Energy Union would be quite easy as it is an ‘amalgamation of divisions’. However, Electrical Trades Union national secretary Allen Hicks says that despite targeting the CFMMEU, the legislation would have ‘unintended consequences’ for the entire union movement, and he has urged Labor to reject it.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ACTU, ELECTRICAL TRADES UNION

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence up 1.8pts to 109.3 as more Australians say now is a good time to buy major household items

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 9-Dec-20

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence rose 1.8pts to 109.3 on December 5/6. It is now 13.8pts above the 2020 weekly average of 95.5 and 0.3pts higher than a year ago (109.0). This is the first time Consumer Confidence has been higher than a year ago since June 2019. Now 24% (unchanged) of Australians say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year, while 31% (also unchanged) say their families are ‘worse off’ financially. In addition, 38% (unchanged) of Australians expect their family to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, and 13% (down 2ppts) expect to be ‘worse off’ financially (the lowest figure for this indicator since January 11/12. Some 17% (unchanged) of Australians expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months, while 21% (down 2ppts), expect ‘bad times’ (the lowest figure for this indicator since March 2013). Meanwhile, 43% (up 2ppts) of Australians say now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items (the highest figure for this indicator since February 8/9), while 25% (unchanged) say now is a ‘bad time to buy’ (the equal lowest figure for this indicator for nine months).

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

Bright future ahead: OECD forecasts great things for Australia

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Original article by Patrick Commins
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 2-Dec-20

The OECD is upbeat about the outlook for the Australian economy, forecasting that it will grow by 3.2 per cent in 2021. This compares with its previous forecast of 2.5 per cent. The domestic economy is now expected to contract by just 3.8 per cent in 2020, rather than 4.1 per cent as forecast by the OECD in September. The Paris-based organisation has also cautioned against withdrawing fiscal and monetary policy support prematurely. Meanwhile, economists have forecast that the economy grew by between 2.8 per cent and four per cent in the September quarter, ahead of the release of national accounts data on 2 December.

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ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT