O75 Public Administration

CFMEU’s Setka to fight charge

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Original article by Pia Akerman
The Australian – Page: 3 : 15-Aug-17

The Supreme Court of Victoria has ruled that criminal charges of blackmail laid against two Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union officials should proceed. The CFMEU had sought to have the charges deemed invalid on the grounds that the alleged blackmail occurred during an industrial dispute. The charges against CFMEU Victorian secretary John Setka and his deputy Shaun Reardon relate to allegations of blackmail against two Boral executives in 2013. The CFMEU is expected to appeal against the court’s ruling.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, SUPREME COURT OF VICTORIA, BORAL LIMITED – ASX BLD, GROCON PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION

‘Alliance locks us in if US goes to war’

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Original article by Simon Benson
The Australian – Page: 4 : 15-Aug-17

Andrew Shearer says Australia should endeavour to become less economically reliant on China, so as not to allow China to potentially weaken the alliance with the US through economic pressure. Shearer, who was a national security adviser to the Howard and Abbott governments, also says the terms of the ANZUS alliance require it to support the US in the event of any regional conflict. His comments come as the North Korean missile crisis shows no signs of coming to an end.

CORPORATES
ANZUS TREATY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS LIMITED, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

Kiwi Joyce puts doubt on majority

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 15-Aug-17

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is confident that the High Court will rule that National Party leader Barnaby Joyce is eligible to be in Parliament. The Deputy Prime Minister is the latest federal MP to become embroiled in the dual citizenship saga, following revelations that he is be a New Zealand citizen because his father was born there. The Opposition has called for Joyce to stand aside until his status is determined by the High Court, while it has also questioned the legitimacy of the Government. A by-election in Joyce’s seat could result in the loss of the Government’s one-seat majority.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, ONE NATION PARTY, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES, NEW ZEALAND. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Slap for exemptions in Labor ‘tax grab’

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Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 5 : 11-Aug-17

The Federal Opposition has been attacked over its plans to exempt farmers from its proposed crackdown on the taxation of discretionary trusts. Labor has claimed that its proposed changes will raise $A17 billion over 10 years. Shadow treasurer Chris Bowen says the exemption of farmers is warranted on the grounds that their income fluctuates. However, Small Business Minister Michael McCormack says the same argument could be made for small business owners, and Labor is not planning to exempt them from its changes.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE

PM bid to block super union

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Original article by Simon Benson
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 11-Aug-17

The Fair Work Commission is expected to issue a ruling on the proposed merger between the Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union and the Maritime Union of Australia by the end of 2107. However, the Federal Government hopes to block the merger by seeking an amendment to the Fair Work (Registered Organisations Act) that would require the FWC to subject union mergers to a public-interest test. The CFMEU has criticised the move, but representatives of the mining and resources sector have lobbied the Government to block the merger.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, MARITIME UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, AUSTRALIAN MINES AND METALS ASSOCIATION (INCORPORATED), AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, NICK XENOPHON TEAM, TEXTILE, CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN WORKERS’ UNION-FEDERATION OF INDUSTRIAL, MANUFACTURING AND ENGINEERING EMPLOYEES

Energy chiefs forced to reveal cheaper plans

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Original article by Mark Ludlow, Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 10-Aug-17

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has secured an in-principle agreement with the CEOs of seven major power retailers to address the rising cost of electricity. Electric utilities will be required to disclose to customers on discount plans how much they will pay if they do not switch to an alternative plan when the discount period ends. The Australian Energy Market Commission estimates that the electricity contracts of about 50 per cent of customers have expired. Snowy Hydro CEO Paul Broad notes that some consumers miss out on lower rates because they simply never switch electricity suppliers.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN ENERGY MARKET COMMISSION, SNOWY HYDRO LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGL, POWERSHOP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, RED ENERGY PTY LTD, LUMO ENERGY AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN ENERGY COUNCIL

Bluescope wins labour dispute

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Original article by Anna Patty
The Age – Page: 23 : 10-Aug-17

The Fair Work Commission has ruled that it was appropriate for Bluescope Steel to hire contract labour to cope with a seasonal rise in demand at its steel mill in Victoria, rather than employing permanent employees for just eight weeks. The steel-maker had contended that its enterprise agreement allowed it to hire temporary workers without obtaining the consent of unions, an argument which had been rejected by the Australian Workers’ Union. BlueScope also argued that overtime restrictions prevented it from using existing staff, which the AWU also disputed.

CORPORATES
BLUESCOPE STEEL LIMITED – ASX BSL, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN WORKERS’ UNION-FEDERATION OF INDUSTRIAL, MANUFACTURING AND ENGINEERING EMPLOYEES

Lagging on robotics risks $2.2trn boost

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman, Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 28 : 9-Aug-17

A report produced by economic consultancy AlphaBeta has concluded that around nine per cent of Australian-listed companies are investing in automation, compared with 20 per cent of US companies. The report notes that an increased commitment to automation could boost the nation’s economic output by about $A1trn by 2030, while productivity would also increase significantly. The report was produced on behalf of Google.

CORPORATES
ALPHABETA, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

$1m poll could do job of $122m plebiscite

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Original article by Andrew Tillett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 9-Aug-17

Pollster John Scales of JWS Research has questioned the cost of the Federal Government’s proposed postal plebiscite on same-sex marriage. Scales argues that the estimated cost of $A122m is excessive, and his firm could poll 1,000 people in each federal electorate with a margin of error of 3.1 per cent, and at a cost of less than $A1.1m. Scales notes that postal votes have similar limitations to public opinion polls, adding that there was a response rate of just 47 per cent for Australia’s last postal vote in 1997.

CORPORATES
JWS RESEARCH PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, AUSTRALIAN ELECTORAL COMMISSION

Morrison warns all options open

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Original article by Andrew Tillett, James Eyers, Sally Patten, James Frost
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 8 : 9-Aug-17

Proxy advisers and institutional investors have welcomed the Commonwealth Bank of Australia’s decision to reduce executives’ short-term bonuses in the wake of the money-laundering scandal. However, they argue that CBA must take further action, while federal Treasurer Scott Morrison has told CBA chair Catherine Livingstone that the Government will look at a range of sanctions. The CBA scandal has resulted in increased pressure for the Government to hold a royal commission into banks, but Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has warned that doing so could jeopardise AUSTRAC’s case against CBA.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, CGI GLASS LEWIS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN COUNCIL OF SUPERANNUATION INVESTORS INCORPORATED, UNISUPER LIMITED, OWNERSHIP MATTERS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN SHAREHOLDERS’ ASSOCIATION