O75 Public Administration

Surveys to shed revealing light on health of the nation

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Original article by Sean Parnell
The Australian – Page: 4 : 14-Aug-19

Health Minister Greg Hunt will announce on 14 August details of the Intergenerational Health and Mental Health Study, which is expected to cost $90 million and take three years to complete. It will comprise four surveys that will be overseen by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, with the first being a mental health and wellbeing survey. It will be followed by a National Health Study, while there will also be a National Nutrition and Physical Activity Study and a National Health Measures Study. The surveys are being undertaken because of concerns that policy and reforms are being based on out-of-date information.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HEALTH, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Hong Kong protests not terrorism: PM

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 14-Aug-19

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has questioned China’s use of the term terrorism in regard to the current protests in Hong Kong. With protesters having brought Hong Kong’s airport to a standstill on 12 August, China accused the protestors of "serious crimes with sprouts of terrorism emerging". Morrison says he would like to see the tensions in Hong Kong de-escalated, and for Hong Kong authorities to heed the concerns of its citizens. Morrison’s call for the de-escalation of tensions in Hong Kong has been echoed by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

xLoner’s ideology of death

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Original article by Deborah Cornwall, Sascha O’Sullivan
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 14-Aug-19

New South Wales Police Commissioner Mick Fuller says the man alleged to have murdered one woman and stabbed another during a bloody rampage in Sydney on 13 August had no apparent connections to terror groups. Mert Ney, who was carrying a butcher’s knife and shouting "Allahu akbar!" , was tackled by onlookers until police and emergency services could arrive. Fuller said information found in Ney’s possession suggested he had "ideologies relating to terrorism but he has no links to terrorism". Prime Minister Scott Morrison says the attack was "deeply concerning", while NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian, who is currently in London, said her thoughts were with all the victims and witnesses of "this horrific incident".

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence virtually unchanged at 115.5

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 14-Aug-19

ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence eased 0.3% to 115.5 in the week ending 11 August, consolidating at an above average level. Current finances were up by 2.6% for the week, while future finances gained 2.4%. The economic conditions sub-indices were down, with current economic conditions falling 4.3%, closing below its long-term average, while future economic conditions lost 0.3%. The ‘time to buy a major household item’ index fell 2.6%, while the four-week moving average for inflation expectations was stable at 4.0%.

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

Morrison pledges $500m climate funds for Pacific

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Original article by Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 2 : 13-Aug-19

Prime Minister Scott Morrison is to announce a climate change package when he meets with leaders at the upcoming Pacific Island Forum. The package will provide $500 million over five years from 2020, with the money to be used on climate and disaster resilience and on renewable energy investment. The package announcement comes amid growing criticism of Australia’s domestic emission policies by Pacific leaders, with Fiji Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama saying on 12 August that Australia needs to quickly end its reliance on coal.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Billions for big projects must roll on

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Original article by Michael Roddan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 13-Aug-19

Infrastructure Australia’s latest audit has stated that the current boom in infrastructure spending needs to be maintained over the next 15 years if living standards are to be maintained. Infrastructure Australia states the annual cost of road congestion is tipped to grow by $18.9 billion to $38.8 billion in just over a decade without additional investment, while it states energy prices have risen 50 per cent since its last audit, which was undertaken in 2015. Australia’s population is expected to increase to 31.4 million over the next 15 years, but Infrastructure Australia says spending in major cities like Sydney and Brisbane is not keeping pace with population growth, particularly in outer suburbs.

CORPORATES
INFRASTRUCTURE AUSTRALIA

Unionist in bogus safety campaign

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 2 : 13-Aug-19

A CFMEU official has been found to have engaged in unorganised unlawful industrial action, coercion and adverse action against crane company Red Cranes. Federal Circuit Court judge Robert Cameron has found that Tony Sloane orchestrated a sham safety campaign against the company after it terminated the employment of a union delegate after he suffered a series of knee injuries that Red Cranes felt posed a safety risk. Cameron’s findings against Sloane followed legal action by the Australian Building and Construction Commission.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, FEDERAL CIRCUIT COURT OF AUSTRALIA, RED CRANES, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION

Fast-track visas for world’s best

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 13-Aug-19

Federal Immigration Minister David Coleman is to release details of a new migrant program on 13 August, with visas for 5,000 high-skilled people from around the world to be fast-tracked each year. Coleman says the Global Talent Independent Program will focus on no more than five or six sectors, with fintech, quantum computing and agtech some of the sectors to be targeted. The 5,000 migrants to be targeted under the Global Talent Independent Program will be included in the current annual skilled migration cap of 70,000.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS

Unemployment matters: At the Federal Election the L-NP picked up four marginal seats with total unemployment and under-employment over 25%

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 13-Aug-19

The latest data for the Roy Morgan employment series shows that in July 1.19 million Australians were unemployed (8.7% of the workforce) with an additional 1.3 million (9.6%) now underemployed. Employment was up 361,000 to 12,382,000 in July, while unemployment was down 147,000 on a year ago to 1,182,000 Australians, with the unemployment rate having fallen by 1.3% to 8.7%. However, the underemployment rate has risen 1% to 9.6% over the past year. Roy Morgan’s real unemployment figure of 8.7% for July is significantly higher than the current ABS estimate for June of 5.2%, although Roy Morgan’s underemployment estimate of 9.6% is comparable to the current ABS underemployment estimate of 8.2%. Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine says unemployment and underemployment played a decisive role in the recent federal election, with the L-NP Government picking up four marginal seats from the ALP which have total unemployment and underemployment of over 20%.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Backbench push unfair dismissal

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 12-Aug-19

The business sector is calling for changes to industrial relations laws, and Coalition backbenchers are also pressuring the federal government for action in this area. The Business Council of Australia has called for the replacement of the ‘better off overall test’ with a new test that would only require each class of employee, rather than each individual employee, not to be worse off when the Fair Work Commission is asked to approve an enterprise agreement. Meanwhile, Liberal National party senator Amanda Stoker claims unfair dismissal laws as they apply to small and medium businesses represent a "block to growth", while she also says the modern award system is too complicated.

CORPORATES
BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, LIBERAL-NATIONAL PARTY OF QUEENSLAND