O75 Public Administration

Treasury ignored in race to cut taxes

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Original article by Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 2 : 2-Jan-19

The Treasury has confirmed that it did not undertake any economic modelling on the federal government’s plan to bring forward tax cuts for companies with turnover of less than $50m a year. However, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg says the tax package had been subject to revenue costing. Legislation to reduce the tax rate for small and medium enterprises to 25 per cent in 2021-22 rather than 2026-27 was passed with the support of Labor in October.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Dual citizenship crisis could have been avoided

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Original article by Tom McIlroy
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 2-Jan-19

Former attorney-general Daryl Williams proposed changes to section 44 of the Constitution in 1997 which would have avoided the need for MPs to resign in recent years due to their dual citizenship status. The National Archives has released cabinet papers which show that the Coalition government was open to holding a referendum on the issue if it had bipartisan support in parliament. The total cost of by-elections and legal bills arising from the dual citizenship crisis is tipped to exceed $24m.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL ARCHIVES OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN ELECTORAL COMMISSION, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS

Allens calls for copyright rejig to meet AI age

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Original article by Lucas Baird
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 2-Jan-19

Andrew Wiseman of law firm Allens has called for an overhaul of Australia’s copyright laws to provide protection for original material that has been generated by artificial intelligence systems. He argues that other countries are addressing the issue of the copyright status of such works, and that it is regularly discussed at international conferences. However, John Fairburn of Minter Ellison cautions against acting too quickly without fully considering the issue.

CORPORATES
ALLENS, MINTER ELLISON

GetUp’s $500k donation to change poll climate

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Original article by Brad Norington
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 21-Dec-18

Activist group GetUp has received a $495,000 donation from the Sunrise Project, an Australia-based charity that campaigns for 100 per cent renewable energy. GetUp’s national director Paul Oosting says the donation will be used to finance its activities prior to the 2019 federal election, when it is expected to hand out how-to-vote cards for the Greens and Labor. Western Australian Liberal MP Ben Morton claims that the Sunrise Project is a "clearing house of political donations from others". Sunrise Project executive director John Hepburn denies that it is a clearing house for activist groups.

CORPORATES
GETUP LIMITED, SUNRISE PROJECT, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, GREENPEACE, MINERAL COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA

Coalition resists national workplace fatality law

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 6 : 21-Dec-18

A Senate committee has recommended the adoption of a national approach to industrial manslaughter laws, proposing that existing Queensland laws be used as a template. However, in its response to the committee’s recommendation, the federal government indicated that it is against the proposal, stating that it is not realistic to suggest that such laws would end workplace deaths. It noted that there is scope for those found to be responsible for workplace deaths to be prosecuted under existing laws.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Boral risks millions after code warning

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 21-Dec-18

Boral subsidiary De Martin & Gasparini has been given an official warning from the federal government for breaching its building code. Boral will be banned from tendering for construction projects that receive federal funding if it breaches the code again. Boral is the first company to receive an official warning for a breach of the code, which was introduced alongside the reinstatement of the Australian Building & Construction Commission in 2016.

CORPORATES
BORAL LIMITED – ASX BLD, DE MARTIN AND GASPARINI PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

ISIS threat alive, allies warn as Trump pulls out

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Original article by Cameron Stewart, Paul Maley
The Australian – Page: 1 & 7 : 21-Dec-18

Liberal senator Jim Molan says President Donald Trump has made a serious mistake in deciding to withdraw all remaining US troops from Syria. Australia was one of few allies of the US to be informed of the decision before it was formally announced. Britain’s Defence Minister Tobias Ellwood has also expressed concern about the decision, warning that Islamic State is still a threat despite Trump’s claims that it has been defeated in Syria. The withdrawal of US troops from Syria had been part of Trump’s 2016 presidential election campaign platform.

CORPORATES
UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, GREAT BRITAIN. MINISTRY OF DEFENCE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, UNITED STATES. DEPT OF DEFENSE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF DEFENCE, LOWY INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL POLICY

Private sector wage rises hit two-year high

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 2 : 21-Dec-18

The federal government has released data showing that there was an average pay rise of three per cent for new enterprise agreements struck in the private sector during the September quarter. However, the average pay rise for existing private-sector agreements was just 2.7 per cent. The number of private-sector workers who are covered by enterprise agreements fell by 90,000 during the quarter. Meanwhile, the average pay rise for public sector workers was 3.4 per cent in the quarter.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF JOBS AND SMALL BUSINESS, ACTU

Part-time workers drive jobs spike

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 21-Dec-18

Official data shows that the Australian economy added 37,000 jobs in November, with a 43,400-strong increase in part-time jobs offsetting the loss of 6,400 full-time positions during the month. The data shows that full- and part-time jobs have grown by 180,200 and 105,500 respectively over the last year. Meanwhile, Australia’s official unemployment rate rose from five per cent to 5.1 per cent in November, while the labour market participation rate increased by 0.2 per cent to 65.7 per cent.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF JOBS AND SMALL BUSINESS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, CAPITAL ECONOMICS LIMITED, COMMONWEALTH SECURITIES LIMITED, INDEED INCORPORATED, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Feds slap down NSW over net zero emissions

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Original article by Ben Potter, Simon Evans
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 8 : 20-Dec-18

Tensions between the federal government and its New South Wales counterpart have deepened following the Council of Australian Governments’ Energy Council meeting on 19 December. Federal Energy Minister Angus Taylor used a procedural rule to block a motion to develop a national pathway to net zero emissions by 2050. The motion was put forward by NSW Climate and Energy Minister Don Harwin and had the support of many state and territory energy ministers. Harwin says he will continue to push for his proposal.

CORPORATES
COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENTS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, NEW SOUTH WALES. DEPT OF PLANNING AND ENVIRONMENT, SOUTH AUSTRALIA. DEPT FOR TRANSPORT, ENERGY AND INFRASTRUCTURE, AUSTRALIAN ENERGY MARKET OPERATOR LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. ENERGY SECURITY BOARD, QUEENSLAND. DEPT OF ENERGY AND WATER SUPPLY