O75 Public Administration

US halts arms, PM gets willing

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Original article by Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 1 & 9 : 5-Mar-25

US President Donald Trump has suspended all military support for Ukraine, including weapons that were already in transit to the war-torn country. Senior Defense Department officials said the pause will remain in place until Trump is satisfied that Ukraine’s leaders have demonstrated a ‘good faith’ commitment to peace. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has indicated that the federal government would consider providing soldiers for a ‘coalition of the willing’ peacekeeping force in Ukraine if it were asked to do so. However, Peter Dean from the US Studies Centre contends that the Indo-Pacific region should be Australia’s top priority.

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UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES. DEPT OF DEFENSE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES. UNITED STATES STUDIES CENTRE

RBA not in mood to keep cutting

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Original article by Jack Quail
The Australian – Page: 4 : 5-Mar-25

The minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia’s board meeting in February show that it considered leaving the cash rate unchanged at 4.35 per cent. The RBA board subsequently concluded that the case for an interest rate cut of 25 basis points was a "stronger one". However, the minutes emphasised that further interest cuts are by no means certain, a point that the RBA also made in a statement that was released after the two-day board meeting in mid-February. Money markets have now priced in two further interest rate cuts in 2025, beginning in July; the federal election must be held no later than 17 May.

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RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Zelensky ready to work with Trump to secure peace deal

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Original article by Hans van Leeuwen
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 5-Mar-25

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has sought to mend his strained relations with US President Donald Trump by stating via social media that his nation is committed to peace. Zelensky also said that Ukraine is ready to come to the negotiating table as soon as possible to bring a lasting peace closer, and his team stands ready to work under Trump’s "strong leadership" to negotiate a peace deal. Zelensky acknowledged that his controversial meeting with Trump and Vice-President JD Vance in the Oval Office last week "did not go the way it was supposed to be", and it is "time to make things right".

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UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

ANZ-Roy Morgan New Zealand Consumer Confidence up marginally by 0.6pts to 96.6 in February – before RBNZ cuts interest rates in late February

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 4-Mar-25

ANZ-Roy Morgan New Zealand Consumer Confidence rose marginally to 96.6 in February. The future conditions index, made up of forward-looking questions, eased 1 point to 103.2; the current conditions index rose 3 points to 86.7. Net perceptions of current personal financial situations rose 5 points to a net rating of -12% in February; only 26% of respondents said they are ‘better off financially’ compared to a year ago (up 3% points), while 38% (down 1% point) say they are ‘worse off financially’. Meanwhile, a net 21% of respondents expect to be ‘better off’ this time next year (down 2% points from a month ago), and a net 15% of respondents think it is a ‘bad time’ to buy a major household item. Two-year-ahead CPI inflation expectations rose 0.1% pts to 4.0%.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Cyclone Alfred looks to be final barrier to PM calling April 12 election

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Original article by Jacob Greber
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 4-Mar-25

A source within the federal government says there is a 50 per cent chance that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will announce the date of the election this weekend, with 12 April seen as the most likely option. However, some Labor insiders believe that Albanese will wait until the potential impact of Tropical Cyclone Alfred on south-east Queensland is known before going to the polls. The Bureau of Meteorology has upgraded the cyclone to a category two system, and it is forecast to make landfall somewhere between Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast later this week. The next most likely date for the election would be 3 May, given that Albanese will have to take into account Easter and Anzac Day when deciding on a date to go to the polls.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

PM rolls out $7.4b for aged care pay

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 4-Mar-25

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will announce on Tuesday that he has struck a deal with NSW to provide its public schools with a $4.8 billion funding boost over 10 years. It leaves Queensland as the only state not to sign up to new funding arrangements, while Aged Care Minister Anika Wells will announce on Tuesday a further 12 per cent pay rise for aged care nurses that is worth $2.6 billion over three years. The announcement of the funding deal for NSW schools and the pay rise for aged care nurses comes amid increasing speculation that Albanese will call a federal election for 12 April immediately after Western Australians go to the polls on Saturday.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HEALTH AND AGED CARE

Australian women earn nearly $30,000 less than men a year, the governments latest pay gap report finds

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Original article by Kate Lyons, Eelemarni Close-Brown
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 4-Mar-25

Data from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency shows that the gender pay gap narrowed at 56 per cent of employers in the year to March 2024. However, the data indicates that the gender pay gap at 72.2 per cent of employers still favours male workers, while just 6.5 per cent have a pay gap that favours women; some 21.3% of employers have a neutral gender pay gap, whereby the difference in wages for male and female workers is no more than five per cent. Meanwhile, the gender pay gap is largest in male-dominated industries such as construction and financial services.

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AUSTRALIA. WORKPLACE GENDER EQUALITY AGENCY

CFMEU to ignore pledge and campaign in election

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 4-Mar-25

CFMEU administrator Mark Irving KC has previously committed to barring the construction union from making political donations, engaging in party politics or supporting candidates. However, CFMEU national secretary and Victorian branch executive director Zach Smith appears to be ignoring Irving’s pledge, with Smith having promised to campaign against opposition leader Peter Dutton during the upcoming federal election campaign, over Dutton’s pledge to deregister the CFMEU if he is elected. Commenting on Smith’s promise, a spokesman for Irving said he has reaffirmed his commitment that the CFMEU will not engage in party politics while in administration, and that there is "no contradiction between that commitment and the union continuing to educate members on issues that affect them".

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CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY AND MARITIME EMPLOYEES UNION

Roy Morgan Poll: Coalition regains narrow lead after Reserve Bank boost proves short-lived: L-NP 50.5% cf. ALP 49.5%

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 4-Mar-25

If a Federal Election were held now the result would be a hung parliament, with the Coalition on 50.5% (up 1.5%) narrowly ahead of the ALP on 49.5% (down 1.5%) on a two-party preferred basis. The Coalition, or the ALP, would require the support of minor parties and independents to form government, the latest Roy Morgan survey finds. This latest weekly poll has not completely reversed the ‘Reserve Bank boost’ but has definitely shown the ‘boost’ to Labor has been significantly softened. The Coalition stretched their primary vote lead, with L-NP support up 3.5% to 40% while ALP support dropped 3% to 28.5%; the Greens were unchanged at 13.5%, One Nation down 1% to 4%, Other Parties unchanged at 3.5% and Independents up 0.5% to 10.5%.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED, MORGAN POLL, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, ONE NATION PARTY, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Ukraine a conflict too far for Diggers

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Original article by Ben Packham, Jacquelin Magnay
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 4-Mar-25

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has proposed to European leaders that a peacekeeping force be deployed in Ukraine as a part of a ceasefire plan in the war against Russia. However, although Australia supplied troops to the US-led ‘coalition of the willing’ in Iraq more than two decades ago, neither side of politics seems willing to commit Australian troops to a similar force in Ukraine, with a federal election only a matter of weeks away. Opposition leader Peter Dutton said on Monday that Australia should still support Ukraine in its struggle against Russia, with Dutton labelling Vladimir Putin a "murderous dictator", but he does not see the need for Australia to send troops to Ukraine, while a government spokeswoman said the deployment of Australian troops to the proposed peacekeeping force is not currently under consideration.

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