AUSTRALIA – POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Senior Nationals move to oust Joyce from parliament

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Ben Packham, Simon Benson
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 5-Jun-18

Former deputy prime minister John Anderson says Barnaby Joyce should consider resigning from Parliament for the sake of his new son. Anderson adds that he has not contemplated contesting Joyce’s seat of New England, despite being approached to do so by some National Party insiders. Sources within the party have suggested that Anderson would most likely gain pre-selection for the seat in the wake of revelations about Joyce’s relationship with a former staffer. Former prime minister Tony Abbott says Joyce still has a future in federal politics.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF AGRICULTURE AND WATER RESOURCES, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED

One Nation split boosts union clout

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 4-Jun-18

Further dissent within One Nation has emerged amid allegations concerning the Federal Government’s failure to pass legislation to subject union mergers to a public interest test. One Nation senator Brian Burston claims that his colleague Peter Georgiou opposed the Ensuring Integrity Bill in defiance of Burston and party leader Pauline Hanson. Burston says the latter then agreed to oppose the bill to ensure that the party was not viewed as being divided. A government source has backed Burston’s claim, stating that the government would have had sufficient support for the bill if Georgiou had voted for it.

CORPORATES
ONE NATION PARTY, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, MARITIME UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF JOBS AND SMALL BUSINESS, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP

Fifield attacks ABC on independence

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 24 : 4-Jun-18

Communications Minister Mitch Fifield has made his sixth complaint to the ABC in just five months with regard to the public broadcaster’s news coverage. The latest complaint concerns the ABC’s reports on the selection of the date for five upcoming by-elections. Meanwhile, Fifield has stressed the need for the ABC to be impartial and independent, and argues that all media organisations in Australia should be open to feedback from politicians and the general public.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Unions push ALP for work reforms

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Troy Bramston
The Australian – Page: 5 : 1-Jun-18

The state conference of the Australian Labor Party’s New South Wales branch will be presented with a number of union-backed motions concerning changes to workplace laws. The motions cover issues such as the right to strike, pattern bargaining, wage theft, ballots on protected industrial action, workers’ compensation and unions’ right of entry to workplaces. Unions and party branches are expected to test support for the reforms at the state conference ahead of Labor’s national conference.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN MANUFACTURING WORKERS’ UNION, TRANSPORT WORKERS’ UNION

Key senators link company tax cuts to hit on tech giants

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Joe Kelly, Simon Benson
The Australian – Page: 4 : 1-Jun-18

Centre Alliance senator Stirling Griff has indicated that the party remains open to supporting the federal government’s corporate tax cuts package. He says Centre Alliance would need concessions such as the introduction of a tax on digital companies in return for backing the tax package. Griff adds that his party is reviewing the third stage of the government’s personal income tax cuts package, and may still be open to supporting the bill in its entirety or legislating the third stage separately. Centre Alliance has two seats in the upper house.

CORPORATES
CENTRE ALLIANCE, ONE NATION PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Howard: End freeze with China

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Dennis Shanahan
The Australian – Page: 1 & 8 : 1-Jun-18

Former prime minister John Howard has made the point that Chinese president Xi Jinping likes Australia. With the relationship between Australia and China somewhat strained at the moment, Howard suggests that a face-to-face meeting between their respective leaders would be a good starting point in helping to ease tensions. He notes that the "turning point" in a 1996 dispute between Australia and China over naval rights in the Taiwan Straits was a meeting in Manila between himself and Jiang Zemin, China’s president at the time.

CORPORATES
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, SYDNEY. AUSTRALIA-CHINA RELATIONS INSTITUTE

GST stoush looms ahead of byelections

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Andrew Tillett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 : 31-May-18

Federal Treasurer Scott Morrison recently received the Productivity Commission’s final report on changes to the distribution of goods and services tax revenue. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has told parliament that the report will be released prior to the five upcoming by-elections in late July. He also said the government will take its time in formulating a response to the report’s recommendations, and stressed that no state or territory will be disadvantaged by any changes to the GST system.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LIBERAL PARTY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA, CENTRE ALLIANCE

Cash to fight subpoena over union raid tip-off

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 31-May-18

Shadow workplace relations minister Brendan O’Connor has repeated his call for Jobs Minister Michaelia Cash to resign over police raids on the offices of the Australian Workers’ Union in 2017. Cash has been issued with a subpoena to give evidence in the AWU’s legal action over the raids, which were undertaken as part of an investigation into the union’s political donations. Cash has described the subpoena as a "stunt" that is aimed at protecting Opposition Leader Bill Shorten, who was the AWU’s national secretary when the donations were made.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF JOBS AND SMALL BUSINESS, AUSTRALIAN WORKERS’ UNION-FEDERATION OF INDUSTRIAL, MANUFACTURING AND ENGINEERING EMPLOYEES, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. REGISTERED ORGANISATIONS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, GETUP LIMITED

MP deserts Hanson to back tax cut

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 31-May-18

The Federal Government’s hopes of passing its company tax cuts in the Senate have been bolstered after One Nation’s Brian Burston indicated that he will support the package in defiance of party leader Pauline Hanson. Burston suggests that the upcoming by-election in the seat of Longman in Queensland may have influenced Hanson’s decision to withdraw her party’s support for the tax cuts. Burston also says he only became aware of Hanson’s decision when he read about it in the media. The Government requires the support of eight crossbenchers to pass the legislation.

CORPORATES
ONE NATION PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, CENTRE ALLIANCE, AUSTRALIAN CONSERVATIVES, LIBERAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Labor open to strip super from Fair Work

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Joanna Mather, Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 31-May-18

Sources have suggested that the Australian Labor Party will continue to oppose a move to require the majority of superannuation funds’ board members to be independent. However, shadow treasurer Chris Bowen is said to be willing to support the Productivity Commission’s recommendation to shift responsibility for selecting default super funds from the Fair Work Commission to an expert panel. Meanwhile, the PC’s deputy chair Karen Chester has downplayed concerns that the super industry would be dominated by the 10 funds on the expert panel’s list.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION, ACTU, INDUSTRY SUPER AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, FINANCIAL SERVICES COUNCIL