AUSTRALIA – POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Snap Morgan Poll shows electors prefer Turnbull to Shorten but Shorten preferred to Dutton

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 23-Aug-18

A special Snap SMS Morgan Poll conducted with a cross-section of more than 1,250 Australian electors on August 22 shows that Malcolm Turnbull (52%) is seen as the Better Prime Minister compared to Opposition Leader Bill Shorten (44.5%), while a further 3.5% cannot say. However, Bill Shorten (59%) is clearly seen as the Better PM compared to Liberal Party leadership challenger Peter Dutton (36.5%), while a further 4.5% cannot say. Analysis by gender shows that 53% of men regard Turnbull as the Better PM, a lead of 10% over Shorten (43%); Turnbull has a lead of 5% as Better PM among women (51%, compared with 46% for Shorten). Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine says that if the Liberal Party chose to elect Peter Dutton as the new Liberal Party Leader they would be setting Bill Shorten and the ALP on course for victory at the next Federal Election. She notes that Dutton is not significantly stronger in his home State of Queensland than any other state; just 40% of electors in Queensland see Dutton as the Better PM, while 53% say Shorten would be the Better PM.

CORPORATES
MORGAN POLL, ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

ACCC power would be a catastrophe

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Original article by Ben Potter
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 9 : 22-Aug-18

Danny Price of Frontier Economics has warned that giving the competition regulator the power to break up vertically integrated energy companies would undermine investor confidence in both the sector itself and other industries that could potentially be subject to such regulation. Price adds that consumers would be worse off, as AGL Energy, EnergyAustralia and Origin Energy have accounted for the bulk of investment in new electric power generation capacity over the last decade.

CORPORATES
FRONTIER ECONOMICS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGL, ENERGYAUSTRALIA PTY LTD, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, AUSTRALIA. ENERGY SECURITY BOARD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, BLOOMBERG NEW ENERGY FINANCE, MELBOURNE BUSINESS SCHOOL, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Senate set to dump company cuts

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Original article by Rosie Lewis
The Australian – Page: 6 : 22-Aug-18

The company tax cuts package is likely to be rejected by the Senate, despite the Federal Government’s move to exclude the four major banks from the lower tax rate. One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has signalled that she will not support the bill, including the amendment to exclude the big four banks. Meanwhile, Finance Minister Mathias Cormann has told crossbenchers that the tax rate for large companies will need to be reduced at some point, to ensure that Australia is globally competitive.

CORPORATES
ONE NATION PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, CENTRE ALLIANCE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Malcolm Turnbull hangs on with 48-35 leadership ballot win over Peter Dutton, reshuffle on the cards

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Original article by Louise Yaxley
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 22-Aug-18

Nine federal government frontbenchers have offered to resign in the wake of the leadership spill, including Greg Hunt, Steve Ciobo and Michael Keenan. However, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has only accepted the resignation of Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton, although Turnbull has indicated that he asked Dutton to remain in his portfolio. Dutton in turn says he contested the leadership because he believed that he has the best chance of winning the next election. Dutton added that he felt that it would not be appropriate for him to remain in cabinet.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HEALTH, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HUMAN SERVICES

PM braces for challenge

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Original article by Simon Benson, Geoff Chambers, Dennis Shanahan, Greg Brown, Jared Owens
The Australian – Page: 1 & 7 : 21-Aug-18

Supporters of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull believe that he has sufficient numbers in the Liberals’ partyroom to retain the leadership if it is forced to a vote. However, Turnbull is said to have lost the support of half of the Liberal members of cabinet; they are now prepared to back Peter Dutton, as are up to six members of the outer ministry. Turnbull’s backdown on the national energy guarantee has prompted speculation that there could be a leadership spill when Parliament sits in September.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, LIBERAL-NATIONAL PARTY OF QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING, PACIFIC ISLANDS FORUM

Dutton breach deepens Lib crisis

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Original article by David Crowe
The Age – Page: 1 : 21-Aug-18

Doubts have emerged about the eligibility of Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton to be in Parliament, amid speculation that he could challenge the leadership of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. Dutton is a beneficiary of a family trust that owns two childcare centres; they receive direct subsidies from the federal government under rules that took effect in July. The Constitution prohibits MPs from having a pecuniary interest in a government contract, and constitutional law expert Professor Anne Twomey says the question of whether Dutton would face disqualification is "borderline". A spokesperson says legal advice suggests that Dutton is not in breach of the Constitution.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGL

Trust in politicians plummets

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Original article by Chris Merritt
The Australian – Page: 5 : 20-Aug-18

Trust in the federal government is at its lowest point since 2008, according to a survey by Griffith University and Transparency Inter­national. The decline in trust is linked to an increased belief that some federal MPs are corrupt, with 67 per cent of those surveyed favouring the creation of a federal anti-corruption body. Attorney-General Christian Porter says the government is examining existing anti-corruption arrangements and whether there is scope for them to be improved.

CORPORATES
GRIFFITH UNIVERSITY, TRANSPARENCY INTERNATIONAL, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT

PM’s leadership on knife edge

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Original article by Simon Benson, Dennis Shanahan, Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 20-Aug-18

The Federal Government held an emergency meeting of cabinet ministers at Parliament House on the evening of 19 August, amid growing unrest among the Coalition’s ranks over the proposed national energy guarantee. The leadership of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is also under scrutiny, although Christopher Pyne says he still has the support of the majority of cabinet ministers. However, a senior minister has suggested that a leadership challenge is inevitable, while a number of MPs are said to have told Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton that they will support him if he decides to challenge Turnbull.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS

Sky ban like a Soviet gag: Fifield

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Original article by Samantha Hutchinson
The Australian – Page: 4 : 17-Aug-18

The Victorian Government’s decision to ban Sky News content from video screens on Melbourne train station platforms has been criticised by Communications Minister Mitch Fifield. Fifield has likened the state’s ban to the censorship policies of the Soviet Union, and says it undermines media reforms which are aimed at ensuring the viability of Australia’s media industry. The ban was imposed in response to a Sky News interview with far-right extremist Blair Cottrell, which Sky claims was not broadcast on train station platforms.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, SKY NEWS, VICTORIA. DEPT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, JOBS, TRANSPORT AND RESOURCES, METRO TRAINS MELBOURNE PTY LTD, TRANSPORT FOR VICTORIA, PUBLIC TRANSPORT VICTORIA (PTV)

Turnbull in bid to quash rebellion

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Original article by Simon Benson, Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 17-Aug-18

The national energy guarantee continues to divide the federal government, amid revelations that Labor has been given a copy of the legislation while Coalition MPs have yet to see it. George Christensen and Andrew Hastie are the latest Coalition MPs to signal their opposition to the inclusion of the Paris agreement’s carbon emissions reduction target in the NEG. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has sought to quell dissent by flagging government intervention to prevent the three largest energy generators and retailers from manipulating electricity prices.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LIBERAL-NATIONAL PARTY OF QUEENSLAND, AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGL, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, ENERGYAUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY