AUSTRALIA – POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Hunt for budget savings to extend beyond public service

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Original article by Luke Kinsella, John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 3-Dec-25

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher says the federal government has asked cabinet ministers to identify the five per cent of spending across their portfolios that is deemed to be the lowest priority. Her comments at a Senate estimates hearing suggest that Labor is seeking to cut spending across the public sector, rather than just the public service. Meanwhile, data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that public sector demand increased by 1.2 per cent in the September quarter, following two quarters of negative growth.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Labor to slash $5.6b from public sector

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Original article by Luke Kinsella, John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 8 : 26-Nov-25

The cost of running the federal public service is expected to top $111bn in 2025-26, having increased by 38 per cent since Labor took office in May 2022. Cabinet ministers and public service heads have been directed to find savings in their budgets of up to five per cent, in addition to the existing ‘efficiency dividend’ of one per cent. It is estimated that a five per cent spending cut across the public sector would result in savings of about $5.6bn. Finance Minister Katy Gallagher has indicated that any savings are likely to be redirected to other policy priorities.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE

PM has a secret China chat, as Xi’s Trump call sparks Taiwan fears

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Original article by Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 26-Nov-25

The federal government’s commitment to transparency is under renewed scrutiny after it declined to reveal what Prime Minister Anthony Albanese discussed in a private meeting with one of China’s most senior politicians, Zhao Leji. Albanese’s office said the meeting with the chairman of the National People’s Congress was a private conversation, and contended that it is only required to disclose the details of meetings with a nation’s leader. It is uncertain as to whether Albanese raised the issue of Taiwan with Zhao; however, Chinese President Xi Jinping has asserted during a phone call to US counterpart Donald Trump that returning Taiwan to China’s control is on his government’s agenda.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

Roy Morgan Poll: In November, support for One Nation increased to its highest since 1998; ALP maintains two-party preferred lead

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 19-Nov-25

The latest Roy Morgan survey shows that primary support for the ALP was down 2% to 33% in November, with support for the Coalition unchanged on 27% and the Greens down 0.5% to 12.5%. However, primary support for One Nation was up 2% to 14%, which is its highest level since July 1998. On a State-by-State basis, support for One Nation increased in the four largest States of New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia, but support was down in the smaller States of South Australia and Tasmania. This increasing support for One Nation should come as no surprise; Roy Morgan has been monitoring the rise of disaffected, disengaged Australians, who are 2.5 times more likely to support One Nation. On a two-party preferred basis the ALP has maintained its lead at 56.5% (down 0.5% from October), ahead of the Coalition on 43.5% (up 0.5%). If a Federal Election were held now the ALP would be returned to Government with an increased majority. The latest Roy Morgan survey is based on interviewing a representative cross-section of 5,248 electors over the four weeks from 20 October to 16 November 2025.

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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

Shaky Liberals fears party split

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Original article by Phillip Coorey, Ryan Cropp
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 19-Nov-25

There is growing concern within the Liberal Party of Australia that its stance on net-zero emissions could potentially cause the party to split. Multiple sources have indicated that some members of the Liberals’ moderate faction have held discussions about splitting from the party. However, Liberal senator and moderate Andrew Bragg contends that the recent decision to abandon the commitment to net-zero is not a reason to walk away from the party, and he argues that the fragmentation of the centre-right of Australian politics would result in less coherent policy.

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LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Victoria hits back at worst for business ranking

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Original article by Marcus de Blonk Smith
The Australian – Page: 4 : 12-Nov-25

The Victorian government has responded to the Business Council of Australia’s finding that the state is the nation’s worst place to do business for a second consecutive year. The government contends that investment in Victoria has been "the strongest among all states" over the last decade, growing by 53 per cent over this period. A government spokesman also contends that Victoria continues to rank first in terms of home approvals and home completions, adding that the government has also reduced or scrapped taxes 65 times. The BCA has again ranked South Australia as the best place to do business.

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BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA

States attack federal Labor’s tobacco policy

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Original article by Mohammad Alfares, Lachlan Leeming
The Australian – Page: 6 : 12-Nov-25

The federal government is attracting growing criticism over its tobacco policy, including its refusal to reduce excise tax in order to combat the burgeoning black market. Tasmania’s Police Minister Felix Ellis says the federal government’s response to the illegal tobacco trade has been one of the "worst public policy disasters" in the world at present. He adds that Tasmania intends to crack down on the illicit trade, but warns that the issue needs to be addressed at federal level. NSW Health Minister Ryan Park says federal counterpart Mark Butler has ignored his call to reduce the excise tax.

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TASMANIA. DEPT OF JUSTICE, NEW SOUTH WALES. MINISTRY OF HEALTH, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HEALTH, DISABILITY AND AGEING

Dire defence warning to PM, at eleventh hour

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Original article by Jamie Walker
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 12-Nov-25

Retired army major-general Greg Melick has used a Remembrance Day speech at the Australian War Memorial to criticise the federal government’s spending on defence. Melick contended that Australia needs a "grand strategy" to be prepared for war amid the deteriorating security situation in the Indo-Pacific region; he warned of the risk that defence spending may become a "matter of what we can afford and not what we need". The nation’s defence budget is slated to rise from about two per cent of GDP at present to 2.33 per cent over the next decade. Melick is also the outgoing national president of the RSL.

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AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIAL, THE RETURNED AND SERVICES LEAGUE OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Optus’ $1.5b in federal contracts in doubt

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Original article by Jenny Wiggins, Nicola Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 6-Nov-25

Optus is under renewed scrutiny after a mobile network outage in the Hunter Valley region on Wednesday, which prompted the telco to warn that triple-zero services in 18 postcode areas could be affected. It was Optus’s third network outage in two months, and came just days after a parliamentary committee began an inquiry into the triple-zero outage in September that has been linked to several deaths. Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Communications Minister Anika Wells has indicated that Optus’s contracts with federal government agencies are likely to be reviewed. The telco’s current contracts with the Australian Tax Office and the Department of Home Affairs expire in December 2026.

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SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT, REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS

ACCC’s big tech watchdog low on funding

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Original article by Sam Buckingham-Jones
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 6-Nov-25

The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission has confirmed that its digital platforms team’s funding is set to lapse at the end of 2025. Sources have indicated that the team now comprises about 10 researchers, experts and lawyers, compared with more than 30 at its peak. The team was established by the former Coalition government in 2020, in response to the recommendations of an ACCC inquiry into digital platforms. Some former members of the team are said to have taken up roles at the technology compaies that it had been set up to monitor. The future of the digital platforms team is part of broader concerns about a looming ‘funding clifff’ for the federal government ahead of its mid-year budget update.

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AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION