AUSTRALIA – POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Labor’s tax grab faces Senate block

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 12-Dec-18

Labor may not have sufficient support in the Senate for its proposal to abolish cash refunds for excess dividend imputation credits if it wins the 2019 federal election. Labor would require the support of the Greens and four crossbenchers to pass the reforms before the current Senate is dissolved on 30 June. However, nine of the 10 crossbenchers oppose the policy, with Fraser Anning describing it as a "socialist retiree tax". In addition, none of the current senators support Labor’s proposal to restrict negative gearing to new homes, although some favour capping the number of properties that can be negatively geared.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, ONE NATION PARTY, CENTRE ALLIANCE

Huge taxpayer bill

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Rob Harris, Claire Bickers
Herald Sun – Page: 4 : 11-Dec-18

Analysis shows that the pension, travel and office entitlements of former Australian prime ministers have cost taxpayers about $19m in total since 2010. Meanwhile, new figures show that the ousting of ex-prime minister Malcolm Turnbull in August has cost more than $4.5m in severance pay This includes nearly $1.9m in payouts for 35 staffers who opted not to remain in the prime minister’s office following the leadership spill.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Libs believe election is still winnable

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 11-Dec-18

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton is among the senior Liberal MPs who are optimistic that the Coalition can win the 2019 federal election. He notes that the Coalition won an election under former prime minister John Howard despite a worse performance in public opinion polls than at present. He adds that Prime Minister Scott Morrison will be much more effective in campaigning than predecesser Malcolm Turnbull. The Coalition’s internal polling is believed to show that it is faring better than published polls suggest.

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

Coalition bid to end double dipping

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Tom McIlroy
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 11-Dec-18

Australian Industry Group CEO Innes Willox has welcomed the federal government’s response to a Federal Court ruling on the leave entitlements of casual employees. Industrial Relations Minister Kelly O’Dwyer says it is unfair that companies could be required to pay both a casual loading and paid leave. She says the government will clarify the situation via regulation under the Fair Work Act. It also plans to introduce legislation aimed at providing casuals who are employed on a regular basis with the right to request that they become permanent employees.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF JOBS AND SMALL BUSINESS, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, WORKPAC PTY LTD, ACTU, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Labor trade-off over pattern bargaining

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 11-Dec-18

Industrial relations is likely to be a key issue on the agenda at Labor’s upcoming national conference. Labor sources have indicated that the party is set to reinstate pattern bargaining as part of its industrial relations platform. However, Labor is expected to restrict pattern bargaining to workers in sectors that have low wages, such as childcare and cleaning. The ACTU is leading a union push for pattern bargaining to be allowed across all industries. Labor’s policies on free trade and asylum seekers are also expected to attract debate at the national conference.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ACTU, NATIONAL PRESS CLUB (AUSTRALIA)

New industrial relations laws to simplify bargaining

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 : 7-Dec-18

Industrial Relations Minister Kelly O’Dwyer says amendments to the Fair Work Act will enable new enterprise bargaining agreements to take effect sooner. The Four Yearly Review and Other Measures Bill will allow the Fair Work Commission to ignore minor technical errors when approving EBAs. Unions had previously seized on such errors to block EBAs that they opposed. The FWC will also no longer be required to review modern awards every four years, a move that had the support of both unions and employers.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF JOBS AND SMALL BUSINESS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP, SHOP, DISTRIBUTIVE AND ALLIED EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD, RETAIL AND FAST FOOD WORKERS UNION INCORPORATED, WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Shorten allows encryption laws to pass

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Primrose Riordan, Richard Ferguson
The Australian – Page: 6 : 7-Dec-18

The federal government’s encryption laws were passed by the Senate on 6 December, after Labor withdrew proposed amendments to the bill. The legislation will provide security agencies with improved access to encrypted data messages, thereby boosting their attempts to combat terrorism attacks while making it easier to pursue organised crime gangs and paedophiles. Opposition Leader Bill Shorten said Labor hopes to get the government to agree to adopt its proposed amendments in the 2019 parliamentary year.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, AUSTRALIAN SECURITY INTELLIGENCE ORGANISATION

PM’s big stick to be stuck in Senate

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Greg Bright
The Australian – Page: 6 : 7-Dec-18

The Senate’s standing committee on economics will examine the federal government’s bill to force electricity retailers to divest assets after Labor referred it to the upper house. The lower house debated the bill on 6 December, before parliament rose for the year, but further debate will not be possible until early April as the committee is not slated to report on the bill until 18 March. Shadow treasurer Chris Bowen has accused the government of trying to push the bill through the lower house with no scrutiny and minimal debate.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. SENATE STANDING COMMITTEE ON ECONOMICS

One-year delay likely for negative gearing changes

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 6-Dec-18

It is unlikely that Labor would be able to legislate its proposed negative gearing reforms in time for the start of the 2019-20 financial year if it wins the next federal election. The poll is tipped to be held on 11 or 18 May 2019, which would give a Labor government just six weeks to enact its reforms for them to take effect on 1 July. This means the reforms would most likely take effect in July 2020, although a Labor source has raised the possibility that the legislation could be backdated if it is passed after 1 July.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, CENTRE ALLIANCE, ONE NATION PARTY

Divestment powers put on fast track

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 6-Dec-18

Australia Energy Council CEO Sarah McNamara has flagged a possible legal challenge to the federal government’s legislation to force the divestment of energy assets. McNamara says there is still uncertainty regarding the constitutional validity of the bill, despite a compromise which will require the Federal Court to approve any application for asset sales. The bill is expected to be passed by the lower house after four crossbenchers backed a motion for it to be debated and voted upon before parliament rises for the year.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN ENERGY COUNCIL, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY