O75 Public Administration

Superannuation funds should not be secret societies

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Original article by Robert Gottliebsen
The Australian – Page: 23 : 20-Nov-17

All Australians would hopefully agree with the notion that money within a superannuation fund belongs to its members, not to a union or an employer. They would also agree that fund trustees are responsible to their members and not to unions or employer groups, and that any payments made by funds to unions or employer groups be disclosed, along with the reasons for the payments. Legislation to enforce these notions is currently before federal parliament, and it is concerning to hear that unions and employer groups are protesting against its passage.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, ACTU, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Turnbull brands Palaszczuk regime lazy

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Original article by Mark Ludlow, Matthew Cranston
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 20-Nov-17

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has called on Queenslanders to cast their votes against the Palaszczuk Labor government when they go to the polls on 25 November. Speaking on 19 November, Turnbull said the Palaszczuk government had been a lazy one, and that its obsession with renewable energy in a state that has vast coal resources had led to high power prices. Queensland opposition leader Tim Nicholls conceded that the previous Liberal National Party had made mistakes, but that they would not be repeated under any government he led.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, QUEENSLAND. DEPT OF THE PREMIER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LIBERAL-NATIONAL PARTY OF QUEENSLAND, ONE NATION PARTY, ADANI MINING PTY LTD

Tax cuts will unleash investment

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Original article by Andrew Tillett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 7 : 20-Nov-17

Just over 80 per cent of companies taking part in a Business Council of Australia survey say they would increase investment if the corporate tax rate was cut to 25 per cent. Just under 75 per cent stated they felt a reduction in the tax rate would make them more competitive globally, while 70 per cent stated they would hire more staff. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says the results of the survey shows the federal government’s plan to cut company tax is the correct one.

CORPORATES
BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Labor wants Bennelong vote to rattle PM

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Original article by Aaron Patrick
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 20-Nov-17

Labor launched its campaign for the seat of Bennelong on 19 November, with the by-election for the seat to be held on 16 December. The by-election has been prompted by John Alexander’s discovery that he held British nationality. Former New South Wales Premier Kristina Keneally, who is running for Labor in Bennelong, urged voters to send a message to Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull that they are tired of his "awful government". Alexander, who has represented Bennelong since 2010, currently holds it with a margin of 9.7 per cent.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NBN CO LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HUMAN SERVICES. MEDICARE AUSTRALIA

Byelection win boosts Greens

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Original article by Georgie Moore
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 20-Nov-17

The Greens will now have three seats in Victoria’s lower house, following their strong win in the Northcote by-election on 18 November. With nearly 80 per cent of the votes counted, Greens candidate Lidia Thorpe led Labor’s candidate Claire Burns 56 per cent-44 per cent on a two-party preferred basis. Labor had previously held the seat, with the by-election resulting from the death of Fiona Richardson in August. The swing against Labor was over 10 per cent, while Thorpe becomes the first Aboriginal women to win a seat in the Victorian Parliament.

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

Headache as Senate fill-in ruled offside

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Original article by Rosie LewisJoe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 3 : 16-Nov-17

Retired army general Jim Molan is expected to be selected to replace the National Party’s Fiona Nash in the Senate. Hollie Hughes was initially chosen to replace Nash after the latter was disqualified due to dual citizenship. However, the High Court has ruled that Hughes is also not eligible to be in parliament due to her role at the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, which constitutes an "office of profit under the crown". Hughes had unsuccessfully contested the 2016 federal election and was appointed to the AAT in July 2017.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIALIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIAAUSTRALIA. ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS TRIBUNALHIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIAAUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPTUNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALESAUSTRALIAN GREENSJACQUI LAMBIE NETWORK

Roy Morgan spot on for Same Sex Marriage Survey

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 16-Nov-17

The ABS has released the results of the Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey, showing 61.6% of Australians support changing the law to allow same-sex couples to marry and 38.4% of Australians are opposed. The final ABS results are remarkably similar to the results of a Roy Morgan Snap SMS Survey taken in early October which showed 61.5% of Australians voting "Yes" on the survey while the remaining 38.5% of respondents were either voting "No", did not answer the SMS question or had no intention of voting. Analysing the results of the Roy Morgan Snap SMS Survey we were confident enough to headline the article: Australians are voting in favour of same sex marriage. Roy Morgan’s Industry Communications Director, Norman Morris, says the results of the Roy Morgan Snap SMS Survey a month ago shows that using the correct methodology and sampling techniques it is possible to interview a relatively small portion of Australians and receive a robust and accurate picture of how the Australian community feels about an issue.

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ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITEDAUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICSL1 CAPITAL PTY LTDNATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIAAUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTYAUSTRALIAN GREENS

Marriage equality within weeks

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 16-Nov-17

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says same-sex marriage will be legalised before Christmas, after 133 of the 150 federal electorates and every state and territory voted in favour of marriage equality. The Senate is expected to vote on the same-sex marriage bill in the last week of November, with the lower house to vote on it during the following week. Meanwhile, members of the Liberal Party’s conservatives faction continue to advocate some aspects of James Paterson’s private members’ bill, which provide greater protection for religious freedom than Dean Smith’s bill, which has cross-party support.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINETLIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIAAUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTYAUSTRALIAN GREENSAUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Parties blasted for failing to tackle debt pile

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Original article by Michael McKennaSarah Elks
The Australian – Page: 8 : 15-Nov-17

The Queensland Government’s rising debt has not been a major issue during the state election campaign, even though it is slated to top $A81bn by 2020-21. Former treasurer Keith De Lacy has criticised the Government and the Opposition over their lack of policy initiatives on the issue. He argues that the mounting state debt and the need for fiscal consolidation should have been key issues during the election campaign. Queensland had no net debt during De Lacy’s tenure as treasure in the Labor government of former premier Wayne Goss.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTYLIBERAL-NATIONAL PARTY OF QUEENSLANDONE NATION PARTYQUEENSLAND. DEPT OF THE PREMIER AND CABINET

Employers abandon EBAs over errors

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 10 : 15-Nov-17

A spokeswoman for the Fair Work Commission has indicated that about 200 applications to have enterprise bargaining agreements approved were withdrawn in recent months due to technical errors. The issue centres on the need for EBAs to comply with requirements regarding notice of employee representational rights. The lower house has passed a bill that gives the FWC the power to ignore such errors in EBAs, although the bill has not been introduced to the Senate. The Opposition supports the bill, but it is also seeking to overturn the FWC’s ruling on Sunday penalty rates.

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AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSIONAUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTYAUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT