O75 Public Administration

Big pay rise for Serco guards

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Original article by Daniel Emerson
The West Australian – Page: 3 : 24-Jun-14

Security firm Serco runs the sole private prison in Western Australia (WA) for the State Government. A deal was agreed on with the aid of the Community & Public Sector Union / Civil Service Association in 2006, under which the 220-plus staff at the Acacia facility receive the same pay as government officers. This means a wage rise of a minimum 4.25% in 2015, while those of police and other emergency services personnel are limited to the CPI of 2.75%. The WA Prison Officers Union now covers the Serco employees, and says the parity clause is crucial to keeping staff retention levels high

CORPORATES
SERCO GROUP PTY LTD, WESTERN AUSTRALIAN PRISON OFFICERS’ UNION OF WORKERS, COMMUNITY AND PUBLIC SECTOR UNION, CIVIL SERVICE ASSOCIATION OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA INCORPORATED, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF CORRECTIVE SERVICES, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF TREASURY AND FINANCE

A fresh take on what we’re calling a crisis

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Original article by Laura Tingle
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 10 : 24-Jun-14

Forecasts of economic crisis after the investment phase of the mining boom could prove ill-founded, and the boom could prove less significant than thought. Reserve Bank of Australia board member John Edwards claims that other forces have often surmounted the impact of higher commodity prices on the domestic economy. Edwards notes that output grew faster in the decade preceding the resources boom than it has in the aftermath. He adds that rather than being complacent, Australians have been saving, investing, learning and working more

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. PARLIAMENTARY BUDGET OFFICE, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

AGL ready to cut carbon impost from customer bills

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Original article by Damon Kitney
The Australian – Page: 20 : 24-Jun-14

The Australian Government is confident that the Parliament will pass legislation repealing the carbon tax. Innes Willox, CEO of the Australian Industry Group, said on 23 June 2014 that the tax is an "unnecessary burden" on businesses. AGL Energy announced on the same day that it was ready to remove the carbon tax from the bills of residential and small business customers from 1 July, if the carbon repeal legislation is passed by Parliament

CORPORATES
AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGK, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP, ENERGY SUPPLY ASSOCIATION OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, ENERGY RETAILERS ASSOCIATION OF AUSTRALIA INCORPORATED, NATIONAL GENERATORS’ FORUM, PALMER UNITED PARTY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, KPMG AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Business doubts over backdated tax refunds

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Original article by Mark Ludlow, Joanna Mather
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 24-Jun-14

The reintroduction of the carbon tax repeal bill to the House of Representatives on 23 June 2014 has prompted businesses to consider their actions if the carbon tax is indeed abolished. Diane Smith-Gander, the director of Wesfarmers and chairman of Transfield Services, spoke about the impact of the repeal of the tax on retailers at a Committee for Economic Development of Australia conference. The fact that the Australian Government wants the abolition of the carbon tax to be retrospective to 1 July will create problems for retailers, because of shoppers being entitled to a refund of any carbon tax component

CORPORATES
TRANSFIELD SERVICES LIMITED – ASX TSE, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, WESFARMERS BUNNINGS LIMITED, COMMITTEE FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGK, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, ENERGY AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, STANWELL CORPORATION LIMITED, CS ENERGY LIMITED, MACQUARIE GENERATION, INTERNATIONAL POWER (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD

Palmer’s $86bn budget saving plan doesn’t add up

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Original article by David Crowe
The Australian – Page: 2 : 24-Jun-14

Palmer United Party leader and federal MP Clive Palmer will soon hold talks with Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott on passing legislation for the Government’s 2014-15 Budget measures. Palmer has also outlined his own strategy for savings, with the national broadband network roll-out’s cost to be lowered from $A45bn to $A7bn by only serving rural areas. Palmer wants to buy submarines from the US for $A10bn rather than to spend $A37bn on new ones, by opting for nuclear-powered vessels. Experts have cast serious doubts on both policy proposals

CORPORATES
PALMER UNITED PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, NBN CO LIMITED, PAUL BUDDE COMMUNICATION PTY LTD, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, COMMITTEE FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN STRATEGIC POLICY INSTITUTE LIMITED, DELOITTE ACCESS ECONOMICS PTY LTD

Hockey avoids asset recycling restriction

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 20-Jun-14

The Australian Government’s asset recycling policy will reward state governments for privatisations if they use the gains to invest in new infrastructure. They will be paid a Federal Government contribution of 15%, and Treasurer Joe Hockey has asked the Commonwealth Grants Commission to ignore this bonus when it allocates goods and services tax revenue. He will also rely on appropriation from general revenue for the scheme, meaning he does not need to seek legislative approval in the hostile Senate

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. COMMONWEALTH GRANTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS

Ban on financial fees

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Original article by Jacob Greber
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 and 4 : 20-Jun-14

The Australian Government will wind back key measures of the Future of Financial Advice reforms, including the requirement that financial planners must act in the best interest of clients. Planners will also be barred from receiving up-front or trailing commissions for providing general advice to clients, while the requirement that clients must "opt-in" to receive financial advice will also be scrapped

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, INDUSTRY SUPER AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN CONSUMERS’ ASSOCIATION, NATIONAL SENIORS AUSTRALIA LIMITED, COUNCIL ON THE AGEING

Napthine cut funds to housing program

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Original article by Henrietta Cook
The Age – Page: 10 : 23-Jun-14

The Homeless Law legal service in Victoria reports that 52 new cases of clients being threatened with eviction have arisen between April and June 2014, of which 24 relate to public housing tenants. At the same time the State Government has further reduced the funding for its Social Housing Advocacy & Support Program, from $A5.8m to $A4.7m. This is despite a confidential report by KPMG showing that the scheme is a major contributor to Victoria surpassing the targets set by the national partnership agreement on homelessness

CORPORATES
HOMELESS LAW, HOMEGROUND, VICTORIA. DEPT OF HUMAN SERVICES. OFFICE OF HOUSING, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, COUNCIL TO HOMELESS PERSONS, JUSTICE CONNECT

AMA wants GP fee gone

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Original article by Dan Harrison
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 11 : 6/19/2014

The Australian Government’s May 2014 Budget contained a new co-payment of $A7 for visits to general practitioners bulk-billed to Medicare. However, Australian Medical Association (AMA) president Brian Owler has spoken out against the measure, arguing it is based on ideology as well as "unfair and unnecessary". Health Minister Peter Dutton had said the AMA was backing the initiative

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HEALTH, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HUMAN SERVICES. MEDICARE AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Abbott dared to call double dissolution

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1-Apr : 6/19/2014

The Senate has for a second time rejected the Australian Government’s bill to scrap the Clean Energy Finance Corporation. This has provided the Government with a trigger for a double dissolution election, although Deputy Liberal Party leader Julie Bishop has downplayed such talk. She argues that voters do not want the instability and uncertainty that characterised the previous administration. The Government’s poor showing in recent public opinion polls also makes an election unlikely

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. CLEAN ENERGY FINANCE CORPORATION, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT, INFRASTRUCTURE PARTNERSHIPS AUSTRALIA, THE ASSOCIATION OF SUPERANNUATION FUNDS OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED