AUSTRALIA – POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Coalition seeks to sidestep high court ruling that Aboriginal non-citizens can’t be deported

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Paul Karp, Calla Wahlquist
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 13-Feb-20

Attorney-General Christian Porter has indicated that the federal government may legislate to override the High Court’s majority decision that non-citizens of indigenous descent cannot be deported. Porter says the High Court ruling has implications for the government’s policy of deporting people who are convicted of serious crimes while in Australia on a visa. Legal experts have stated that it is too soon to determine the broader implications of the judgment.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Age Pension for all beats hike in super

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Adam Creighton
The Australian – Page: 2 : 13-Feb-20

Mercer has used a submission to the federal government’s review of the retirement income system to call for the superannuation guarantee to remain at 9.5 per cent and to abolish means-testing for the age pension. The super guarantee is legislated to be progressively increase to 12 per cent by 2025, and some Coalition MPs have also called for the increase to be scrapped. Michael Littlewood, who helped design New Zealand’s retirement system, says there are major problems with Australia’s retirement system.

CORPORATES
MERCER INVESTMENTS PTY LTD

Tax cuts set to bolster economy

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Simon Benson
The Australian – Page: 6 : 11-Feb-20

Data from the Australian Taxation Office shows that taxpayers received an average tax refund of $967 for the 2018-19 financial year. In total, some $6.1bn was returned to working Australians in the form of tax cuts and refunds, largely to those with annual income of $37,000 to $90,000. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg say the income tax cuts are now flowing through to the economy, which is continuing to grow at a time when many other countries are experiencing negative growth.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Nat rebels humiliate leader

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Geoff Chambers, Greg Brown
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 11-Feb-20

Former National Party MP Llew O’Brien has been elected deputy speaker of the House of Representatives. O’Brien quit the party following Barnaby Joyce’s failed leadership challenge, although he remains a member of the Liberal-National Party of Queensland; he has also given assurances that he will support the government’s legislative agenda. Meanwhile, O’Brien has revealed that he opposed a plan by Nationals leader Michael McCormack to hold a partyroom meeting in regional Victoria during Melbourne’s 2019 spring racing carnival. Chief whip Damian Drum was McCormack’s choice as deputy speaker.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, LIBERAL-NATIONAL PARTY OF QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Energy split as Lib says zero target too tough

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Greg Brown, Elias Visontay
The Australian – Page: 4 : 11-Feb-20

More than 80 countries have committed to a target of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, and some members of the Liberal Party’s moderate faction believe that Australia should also adopt this target. However, moderate Liberal Jason Falinski doubts that Australia could achieve this target, given that it is a major energy and agriculture exporter. Conservative Liberal senator Eric Abetz also questions the viability of a 2050 zero emissions target. There is also dissension within the Coalition’s ranks with regard to taxpayer funding for new coal-fired power stations.

CORPORATES
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Australia prepares to extend China travel ban due to coronavirus

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Eryk Bagshaw
The Age – Page: Online : 11-Feb-20

The federal government’s 14-day travel ban on non-citizens entering Australia from the Chinese mainland will expire on 15 February, and sources have indicated that it is likely to be extended. The move will prevent about 56 per cent of the Chinese students at Australian universities from arriving in time for the start of the academic year. Meanwhile, more than 100 Australian citizens and permanent residents are still in Hubei province, but the government has no plans for a third evacuation flight.

CORPORATES

Australia will take new emissions reduction target to Glasgow climate summit

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Rob Harris
The Age – Page: Online : 10-Feb-20

Energy Minister Angus Taylor says the federal government will develop a new long-term carbon emissions reduction strategy ahead of the United Nations climate summit in November. He has stressed that the government is of the view that new technologies rather than taxes are the key to reducing carbon emissions. However, the government has declined to commit to a target of net zero emissions by 2050. Meanwhile, independent MP Zali Steggall plans to introduce a private member’s bill to establish an independent Climate Change Commission.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Outdated tax gives LNG away for free

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Patrick Commins
The Australian – Page: 4 : 10-Feb-20

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has downplayed speculation that the federal government will make changes to the Petroleum Resources Rent Tax. However, Jason Ward from the Centre for International Corporate Tax Accountability & Research says changes to the PRRT are needed as it was originally designed for the oil industry, and Australia’s booming LNG industry means the tax is no longer "fit for purpose". The nation is now the world’s biggest exporter of LNG.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, CENTRE FOR INTERNATIONAL CORPORATE TAX ACCOUNTABILITY AND RESEARCH, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Campuses may lose $2bn in fees

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Tim Dodd, Heidi Han
The Australian – Page: 7 : 7-Feb-20

The federal government’s travel ban has prevented nearly 100,000 Chinese university students from arriving in Australia for the start of the academic year. S&P Global says the universities’ operating margins will be hit if the travel restrictions are not lifted in the next few weeks. The firm estimates that the travel ban could cost universities up to $2bn in fees, and notes that the broader economy will also be impacted. Some universities will offer online courses for the first several weeks of the semester.

CORPORATES
S&P GLOBAL INCORPORATED

Unions lean on ALP over super choice bill

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 7-Feb-20

The union movement is urging Labor to vote against proposed legislation that would ban enterprise agreements from stating that workers must join a union-backed superannuation fund. Labor senator Tony Sheldon recently warned the party’s caucus against voting for the bill, while ACTU assistant secretary Scott Connolly says the proposed legislation would have a major impact on industry funds such as UniSuper.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ACTU, UNISUPER LIMITED