O75 Public Administration

Right fright sees Labor go for woke

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Original article by Greg Brown, Rosie Lewis
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 8-Jul-26

The Australian Labor Party’s draft national policy platform has been amended to include a commitment to an anti-racism strategy. The revised draft platforms states that Labor will continue to oppose people who "foster extremism, hatred, ethnic division or incitement to violence". Senior Labor sources have indicated that the move to include this in the draft platform is a direct response to growing concern within the party about rising levels of racism and the growing support for One Nation. The draft platform also formalises Labor’s support for Welcome to Country ceremonies, which were not mentioned in its 2023 national platform.

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AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ONE NATION PARTY

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence down 1.2pts to 74.7 driven by more people concerned about the economy over the next year

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 8-Jul-26

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence fell 1.2pts to 74.7 in the first week of July; Consumer Confidence is now 13.9pts lower than a year ago (88.6), but 3.2pts above the 2026 weekly average of 71.5. Analysis by State shows that Consumer Confidence increased marginally in Victoria, Queensland and South Australia, but fell in New South Wales and Western Australia. Now 15% of Australians (down 2ppts) say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year, while 51% (down 1ppt) say their families are ‘worse off’. Looking forward, 22% (down 2ppts) of respondents expect their family to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 40% (up 1 ppt) expect to be ‘worse off’. Only 7% (up 1ppt) of respondents expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months, while 40% (up 5ppts) expect ‘bad times’. Meanwhile, just 19% (unchanged) of Australians say now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items, while 42% (down 1ppt) say now is a ‘bad time to buy’.

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

Recession off the cards but Australia faces dreary outlook, economists say

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Original article by Patrick Commins
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 8-Jul-26

Tim Robinson from the Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic & Social Research expects Australia’s economic growth to remain "quite weak" for the rest of 2026; he says this means a per capita recession is likely. The Commonwealth Bank’s head of Australian economics Belinda Allen also expects economic growth to remain weak in the near-term, but she is more upbeat about the outlook for 2027. Allen adds that she had never expected Australia to experience a recession, and notes that the impact of the Iran war on energy markets and the economy have not been as severe as the bank had anticipated. However, Allen believes that further increases in the cash rate are needed.

CORPORATES
UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE. INSTITUTE OF APPLIED ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL RESEARCH, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA

$12m cancel-culture cost to expunge uni’s ties to Cook

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Original article by Natasha Bita
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 8-Jul-26

A spokesman for James Cook University has advised that the north Queensland higher education institution is not proposing a change to its name. However, JCU’s governing council has endorsed a report produced by an internal committee which concluded that Captain James Cook’s legacy is "complex", and that for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people his discovery of Australia’s east coast in 1770 was the beginning of colonisation. The report also estimated that changing the university’s name would cost between $4.8m and $12m and risk a backlash from donors. Rebranding JCU would require state parliament’s approval.

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JAMES COOK UNIVERSITY

In June Roy Morgan Business Confidence up slightly by 1.4 points to 77.5 – but still fourth lowest of all time

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 8-Jul-26

In June 2026 Roy Morgan Business Confidence increased 1.4 points to 77.5, a slight recovery from the all-time record low in May of 76.1. However, Business Confidence during the June 2026 quarter was at a record low quarterly rating of only 76.7; this is 7.6 points below the previous quarterly low from the September 2020 quarter of 84.3. Business Confidence is also down 24.9 points from a year ago. Now 25.2% (up 1.2ppts) of respondents say their business is ‘better off’ financially than a year ago, while 44.9% (up 0.9ppts), say the business is ‘worse off’ (the highest figure for this indicator since December 2023). Just 26.1% of respondents (up 0.9ppts), said their business is ‘better off’ financially than a year ago, while 51.4% (up 6.5ppts), said the business is ‘worse off’ (the highest figure for this indicator since October 2020). Meanwhile, 33.4% (up 4.4ppts) of respondents expect the business to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 31.5% (down 2.6ppts) expect the business to be ‘worse off’.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

‘Provocative’: PM strikes back at Beijing

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Original article by Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 8-Jul-26

Chinese state media outlet The Global Times has defended the nation’s test-launch of a nuclear-capable missile in the Pacific, arguing that it was "both necessary and restrained". The daily tabloid also stated that countries in the Pacific region must "accept and get used to China’s nuclear program". The missile test has been criticised by the Australian government, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese describing it as a "provocative act" which risks destabilising the region. His comments were made during an official visit to the Solomon Islands, whose Prime Minister Matthew Wale urged China to "be our friend" but said "don’t threaten us". Former Home Affairs head Mike Pezzullo has questioned the timing of the missile test, which coincided with Albanese’s visit to Fiji to sign a defence agreement.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS

ANZ-Roy Morgan New Zealand Consumer Confidence up 4.8 points to 91.3 in June

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 7-Jul-26

ANZ-Roy Morgan New Zealand Consumer Confidence rose 4.8pts in June to 91.3, back to where it was in March; however, the index is still 16 points below its January peak. The future conditions index, made up of forward-looking questions, rose from 92.7 to 96.7; the current conditions index in turn rose 6 points to 83.2. Perceptions of current personal financial situations (better or worse off than last year) lifted from -25% to -23%; 46% of respondents (down 2% points) say they are ‘worse off’ financially than a year ago, while just 23% (unchanged) say they are ‘better off’. Looking forward, a net 10% of New Zealanders expect to be better off this time next year (down 2 points from a month ago, but well off its April low of 3%), while a net 11% think now is a bad time to buy a major household item. Two-year-ahead CPI inflation expectations eased from 5.3% to 4.6%.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Experts criticise Qld’s straight to jail law

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Original article by Marcus de Blonk Smith
The Australian – Page: 3 : 7-Jul-26

Queensland Premier David Crisafulli used his keynote address to the Liberal National Party’s state convention on Sunday to announce a new ‘breach bail, go to jail’ mandatory sentencing policy. Crisafulli said on Monday that the new policy was about tipping the balance ‘in favour of victims’, while he declined to say what the minimum mandatory sentence would be. Critics of the proposal claim it will place enormous pressure on the state’s detention centres, while the Queensland Law Society has previously warned that mandatory sentencing can lead to "serious miscarriages of justice"

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QUEENSLAND. DEPT OF THE PREMIER AND CABINET, LIBERAL-NATIONAL PARTY OF QUEENSLAND, QUEENSLAND LAW SOCIETY INCORPORATED

Japan’s Iron Lady caught up in PM’s Kylie gaffe podcast

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Original article by Elizabeth Pike
The Australian – Page: 2 : 7-Jul-26

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has attracted criticism over comments he made about his Japanese counterpart during a recent podcast. Albanese’s remarks about singer Kylie Minogue have overshadowed the comments about Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in the same podcast, which was hosted by comedian Nikki Osborne. Takaichi visited Australia earlier this year, and presented Albanese with a gift of two prestigious Shizuoka melons. He told Osborne that Takaichi had brought a "couple of melons", and accompanied this comment with suggestive hand gestures. Takaichi is Japan’s first female prime minister, and the fruit was given to Albanese to signify Australia’s decision to lift restrictions on Japanese melon imports.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, JAPAN. OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER

Allan referred to IBAC on Big Build deal

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Original article by Ryan Bourke
Herald Sun – Page: 11 : 7-Jul-26

The Victorian Opposition has formally asked the state’s Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission to investigate Premier Jacinta Allan, amid a growing scandal over the Big Build program. The IBAC referral is in regard to Allan’s former role as infrastructure minister; it has been alleged that her office had personally intervened in 2022 to ensure that the CFMEU secured control of the Gap Road Level Crossing removal project in Sunbury. Shadow attorney-general James Newbury says Allan’s alleged intervention could have increased the cost of the Gap Road project by more than $2m. Meanwhile, Allan has again rejected calls for a royal commission into corruption in the Big Build.

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VICTORIA. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, VICTORIA. INDEPENDENT BROAD-BASED ANTI-CORRUPTION COMMISSION, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY AND MARITIME EMPLOYEES UNION