AUSTRALIA – POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Kerryn Phelps expected to win Wentworth by-election although about 4000 postal votes still to be counted

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 22-Oct-18

Independent candidate Kerryn Phelps is expected to win a close Wentworth by-election – although as Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine said two days before the by-election, when asked who would win on Sky News: "Nobody would know!" At 7pm Sunday night the two-party preferred result was 51.1% for Phelps v 48.9% for the Liberals’ Dave Sharma. Sharma had 36,093 votes on a two-party basis while Phelps had 37,719, a difference of 1,626. The Liberals were gaining about 63.56% of postal votes already counted on a two-party basis, with 528 postal vote envelopes received but not processed. However, about 4,000 postal votes are yet to be returned to the Australian Electoral Commission. The Wentworth result rewrites the record books, with an 18 per cent swing against the Liberal Party on a two-party-preferred basis. Before Saturday night, the biggest 2PP swing recorded in by-elections since 1949 was in 1995 when the Liberals won the seat of Canberra – a 16.1 per cent swing.

CORPORATES
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Ex-union boss backs govt on casual pay

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Original article by Dana McCauley, Anna Patty
The Age – Page: 24 : 19-Oct-18

Industrial Relations Minister Kelly O’Dwyer will make an application to join the Commonwealth as a party to a Federal Court test case on the paid leave entitlements of casual workers. The WorkPac case has prompted concern that casual employees would be entitled to both a casual loading and paid leave. The ACTU has warned that the test case presents a risk to the job security of every permanent employee, but the peak union body’s former president Martin Ferguson says that allowing casuals to "double dip" is contrary to long-established industrial relations rules.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF JOBS AND SMALL BUSINESS, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, WORKPAC PTY LTD, ACTU, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

New piracy laws plug illegal download loophole

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 6 : 19-Oct-18

The federal government will seek to expand the list of websites that can be blocked by ISPs for featuring pirated content such as films and TV shows. The proposed legislation will also enable copyright holders to seek a court order requiring companies such as Google to remove sites that feature pirated content from their search results. The move has been welcomed by industry players such as Foxtel, Free TV Australia and Village Roadshow.

CORPORATES
FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, FREE TV AUSTRALIA LIMITED, VILLAGE ROADSHOW LIMITED – ASX VRL, CREATIVE CONTENT AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN INDEPENDENT DISTRIBUTORS’ ASSOCIATION, AUSTRALIAN SCREEN ASSOCIATION LIMITED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Companies told they need to report protesting workers within 24 hours

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 8 : 18-Oct-18

With unions set to commence a month of rallies on 18 October, Industrial Relations Minister Kelly O’Dwyer has warned that it is a prelude to the workplace turmoil that can be expected if Labor wins the next federal election. Meanwhile, the Australian Building & Construction Commission has told employers that they are required to advise it of any workers who participate in the rallies without authorisation within 24 hours. The ABCC has again stressed that employees could be prosecuted, prompting the construction union to accuse it of attempting to intimidate workers.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF JOBS AND SMALL BUSINESS, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ACTU, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK OMBUDSMAN

Payday lenders to face probe

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Original article by Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 21 : 18-Oct-18

The Senate will undertake an inquiry into payday lenders and short-term credit providers after the proposed probe was backed by the Greens and Centre Alliance. Payday lenders and so-called "buy now, pay later" credit providers were excluded from the financial services royal commission’s terms of reference. Shares in Afterpay Touch Group, Zip Co and Cash Converters fell sharply in response to news of the inquiry.

CORPORATES
AFTERPAY TOUCH GROUP LIMITED – ASX APT, ZIP CO LIMITED – ASX Z1P, CASH CONVERTERS INTERNATIONAL – ASX CCV, CREDIT CORP GROUP LIMITED – ASX CCP, AUSTRALIA. SENATE STANDING COMMITTEE ON ECONOMICS, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, CENTRE ALLIANCE, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, THORN GROUP LIMITED – ASX TGA, RADIO RENTALS, NIMBLE PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

As TPP clears the Senate, Morrison hails export boon

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 18-Oct-18

The Senate has voted 33-15 to pass a bill to ratify the 11-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership, after it gained the support of Labor and several cross-benchers. Unions had opposed the TPP, particularly the provisions with regard to labour market testing and investor-state dispute settlements, and Labor will seek to remove these clauses from the TPP if it wins the next election. Prime Minister Scott Morrison notes that economic modelling suggests that the TPP will increase Australia’s national income by about $15.6bn a year by 2030.

CORPORATES
TRANS-PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, CENTRE ALLIANCE

Indon FTA on track despite Israel uproar

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Original article by Andrew Tillett, Jacob Greber
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 18-Oct-18

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has downplayed concerns that a proposed free-trade agreement with Indonesia may be jeopardised by any change in Australia’s policy on Israel. According to media reports, Foreign Minister Marise Payne has been warned by her Indonesian counterpart that the nations’ bilateral relations would be damaged if Australia relocated its Israeli embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Farmers are concerned that Australia’s live cattle exports to Muslim countries could be affected.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, INDONESIA. MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL FARMERS’ FEDERATION LIMITED, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

Nats leader’s warning as Joyce circles

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Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 18-Oct-18

There is growing speculation that the position of National Party leader Michael McCormack could be under threat, and some Nationals MPs are said to support restoring Barnaby Joyce to the role ahead of the next federal election. Joyce himself has emphasised that he has not lobbied his colleagues regarding a leadership spill, although he concedes that he would accept the party’s leadership if the opportunity arose. Nationals frontbenchers David Littleproud and Darren Chester both say a leadership spill is unlikely.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF AGRICULTURE AND WATER RESOURCES

Howard in late bid to rescue Libs

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Original article by Dennis Shanahan
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 18-Oct-18

Former prime minister John Howard will campaign in the seat of Wentworth on behalf of Liberal candidate Dave Sharma. Malcolm Turnbull held the seat with a margin of 17 per cent, but Howard has warned that there is a high risk that the Liberals will lose Wentworth for the first time. He has also sent a letter to voters stressing that a Liberal win is necessary to ensure a stable government. Meanwhile, independent candidate Kerryn Phelps has condemned an email campaign in which it was alleged that she has withdrawn from the by-election after being diagnosed with HIV.

CORPORATES
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Phelps to trounce Liberals in key seat, party polling shows

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Original article by Andrew Clennell
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 17-Oct-18

Liberal Party candidate Dave Sharma seems set to lose the Wentworth by-election on 21 October, according to the party’s latest polling. It shows that independent candidate Kerryn Phelps leads Sharma 55-45 on a two-party-preferred basis. The Liberals’ previous polling in Wentworth showed that Sharma had a narrow lead over Phelps. Meanwhile, Phelps is under scrutiny for allegedly breaching electoral laws by making election-related social media posts without the required authorisation.

CORPORATES
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN ELECTORAL COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION LIMITED