AUSTRALIA – POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

YouTube blasts eSafety chief for ban on under 16s

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Original article by Sam Buckingham-Jones
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 10 : 25-Jun-25

The federal government’s proposal to exempt YouTube from its ban on allowing children under the age of 16 to access social media continues to attract scrutiny. YouTube contends that eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant has provided "inconsistent and contradictory" advice to the government in her recommendation to scrap the exemption; YouTube executive Rachel Lord notes that Inman Grant had previously expressed concern that the ban may limit young Australians’ access to ‘critical support’. Lord also argues that YouTube is a video-streaming platform rather than a social media platform.

CORPORATES
YOUTUBE INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE ESAFETY COMMISSIONER

GST warning in roundtable revamp

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Original article by Matthew Cranston, Greg Brown, Sarah Elks
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 25-Jun-25

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had pitched the federal government’s plans to bring unions, business leaders and community groups together in August as a productivity roundtable. However, Treasurer Jim Chalmers has sought to broaden the scope of the summit by describing it as an "economic reform roundtable". He has also reiterated that the goods and services tax will be on the agenda; Chalmers adds that changes to the GST will only be considered if they are revenue-neutral and in the national interest.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Blockade a wake-up call for fuel reserves

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

Defence and national security expert Jennifer Parker believes that Iran’s ally China will not allow the Strait of Hormuz to be closed to oil tankers. However, Parker says Iran’s threat to block the strait – which is used to ship about 25 per cent of global oil supplies – is a "timely reminder" that Australia needs to build a much larger onshore reserve of fuel. The International Energy Agency’s protocols require nations to hold at least 90 days of oil stocks in reserve; this includes both oil that is stored domestically and fuel that is in transit. The IEA estimates that Australia has just 56 days of onshore fuel reserves, including 31 days worth of petrol.

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INTERNATIONAL ENERGY AGENCY

Renumeration Tribunal sets 2.4 per cent pay rise for federal MPs

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Original article by Jessica Wang
Herald Sun – Page: Online : 12-Jun-25

Federal politicians, department secretaries and senior public servants will receive a pay rise of 2.4 per cent from 1 July. This is in line with the inflation rate, but below the pay rises that were awarded by the Remuneration Tribunal in the previous two years. The salary package of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will rise from about $607,471 per year to $622,050; Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ remuneration will in turn rise by $10,514 a year, to $448,625. The annual pay of other cabinet ministers will rise to $412,735.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. REMUNERATION TRIBUNAL, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Budget faces $9b hit from NDIS delays

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Original article by Michael Read
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 12-Jun-25

The federal government’s budget papers in March showed that it is targeting $19bn worth of savings related to the National Disability Insurance Scheme over the next four years. However, some $8.8bn of these savings are now in doubt, which will jeopardise the government’s goal of restricting growth in the NDIS to just eight per cent a year from mid-2026. Its annual growth rose to 20 per cent in 2022, prompting former NDIS minister Bill Shorten to commission a review of the scheme; amongst other things, it recommended the introduction of ‘foundational supports’.

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Bosses demand tax reform as a priority

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Original article by Matthew Cranston, Perry Williams
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 12-Jun-25

The Centre for Independent Studies’ chairman Nicholas Moore has welcomed the federal the government’s decision to make productivity a focus of its policy agenda for its second term in office. Business leaders and economists agree that tax reform should be a key priority for the government’s productivity roundtable in August. However, the former Macquarie Group CEO, who is an adviser to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, says tax reform is difficult and it has been an issue for 25 years; Moore adds that issues such as housing and the red-tape burden are likely to take precedence at the roundtable.

CORPORATES
THE CENTRE FOR INDEPENDENT STUDIES LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG

Wong’s Israeli sanctions create legal minefield

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Original article by Sarah Ison
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 12-Jun-25

The federal government is under growing scrutiny over its decision to back a joint statement imposing financial sanctions and travel bans on two Israeli cabinet ministers. Foreign Minister Penny Wong reiterated Labor’s support for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in announcing the sanctions on National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. The Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade has warned that Australian individuals or companies that have business interests in Israel should seek legal advice, because they could potentially be in breach of the sanctions and may incur large fines or even imprisonment.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE

PM leaves door ajar to super tax compromise

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Original article by Greg Brown, Matthew Cranston
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 4-Jun-25

The federal government will require the support of either the Coalition or the Greens to pass legislation in the Senate from 1 July. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has given indications that Labor may be willing to make changes to its superannuation tax reforms to secure the Coalition’s support for the legislation. Shadow treasurer Ted O’Brien recently stated that the Coalition would consider a deal with Labor if it agreed to abandon plans to tax the unrealised capital gains of super funds. Australian Chamber of Commerce & Industry CEO Andrew McKellar says the business community would welcome greater co-operation between the major political parties if it results in policy outcomes that are in the national interest.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY

Climate change spend surges to $9bn a year

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Original article by Matthew Cranston
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 4-Jun-25

Analysis by the Institute for Public Affairs shows that the federal government’s spending on climate change and net zero policies has increased by 400 per cent since it took office in May 2022. Labor allocated more than $9bn to such initiatives in its pre-election budget in March, compared with just $1.7bn in the former Coalition government’s last budget in March 2022. This compares with the $600m that was spent on climate change and net zero programs a decade ago. The IPA’s chief economist Adam Creighton says that despite the big increase in spending on net zero, the government’s own figures show that Australia’s carbon emissions have fallen by just 2.8 per cent compared with 2005 levels.

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INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese enjoys third honeymoon as ALP strengthens two-party preferred lead in May: ALP 58.5% cf. L-NP 41.5%

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

The latest Roy Morgan survey shows that support for the ALP has risen to 58.5% on a two-party preferred basis (up 3.2% since winning the federal election), well ahead of the Liberal-National Party Coalition on 41.5% (down 3.2%). The Albanese Government’s second election victory netted the party 94 seats in the House of Representatives, equalling the all-time record of the Howard Government in 1996. In addition, the two-party preferred result – currently at 55.3% for the ALP according to the AEC – is the largest since Malcolm Fraser won the 1975 election for the Coalition with a two-party preferred result of 55.7%. In the month of May primary support for the ALP increased to 37% (up 2.4% since the election), and is clearly ahead of the Coalition on 31% (down 0.8%). Support for the Greens dropped 0.7% from the election to 11.5% and support for One Nation was down 0.4% to 6%. In addition, support for Independents/Other Parties was at 14.5% (down 0.5%). Meanwhile, the Roy Morgan Government Confidence Rating increased 15.5 points to 97 during May. The latest Roy Morgan survey is based on interviewing a representative cross-section of 5,128 Australian electors from 5 May to 1 June.

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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