AUSTRALIA – POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Income tax rises to save budget

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Original article by David Uren
The Australian – Page: 4 : 20-Oct-17

The Parliamentary Budget Office estimates that personal income tax will account for 12.5 per cent of Australia’s GDP by 2020-21. This compares with 11.3 per cent of GDP at present and a record low of 9.3 per cent in 2009-10. The Federal Government’s May 2017 Budget had forecast that revenue from personal income tax will top $A253bn in 2021, which is 30 per cent higher than in 2016-17. Factors such as "bracket creep" and an increase in the Medicare levy to finance the National Disability Insurance Scheme are expected to offset low growth in wages.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. PARLIAMENTARY BUDGET OFFICE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Labor vows crackdown on sham collective wage deals

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Original article by Anna Patty
The Age – Page: 20 : 20-Oct-17

Shadow employment minister Brendan O’Connor says the Australian Labor Party will take action to prohibit the use of "no-stake" enterprise agreements if it wins the next federal election. Labor will target companies that get a small number of employees to vote in favour of an enterprise agreement and then apply it to their general workforce, including those at other work sites. Mr O’Connor says Labor will also pursue reforms to allow employees and unions to renegotiate sham enteprise agreements via the Fair Work Commission.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR ADVISORY COUNCIL, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, ACTU, CARLTON AND UNITED BREWERIES

Labor links expose GetUp! as a ‘front’

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Original article by Brad Norington
The Australian – Page: 3 : 19-Oct-17

Activist organisation GetUp may face further scrutiny over its links to the Australian Labor Party. The two latest additions to GetUp’s board have links to Labor, and include the party’s former digital director Daniel Stone. Liberal MP Ben Morton argues that GetUp is essentially a "front" for Labor and the Greens, rather than an independent organisation. The Coalition wants the Australian Electoral Commission to recognise GetUp as an "associated political entity". It previously failed to do so in 2011.

CORPORATES
GETUP LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN ELECTORAL COMMISSION, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Accusations ‘will hinder’ Crown probe

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Original article by Andrew Tillett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 19-Oct-17

Justice Minister Michael Keenan says AUSTRAC will investigate allegations that casino operator Crown Resorts has breached anti-money laundering laws. However, law enforcement officials have expressed concern that any case against Crown could be jeopardised after independent MP Andrew Wilkie raised the allegations in parliament. Amongst other things, he said former Crown employees had claimed that the company’s casino in Melbourne has evaded financial transaction laws and modified its poker machines to ensure lower payouts.

CORPORATES
CROWN RESORTS LIMITED – ASX CWN, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE, VICTORIAN COMMISSION FOR GAMBLING AND LIQUOR REGULATION

Cash plan to dam union ‘rivers of gold’

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 6 : 19-Oct-17

The Federal Government’s Proper Use of Worker Benefits Bill will be put before parliament on 19 October. The bill is aimed at preventing worker entitlement funds – which boast assets of about $A2bn – from making payments to either unions or employers. Some 14 unions have received an average of $A25m annually from worker entitlement funds over the last five years. Meanwhile, a bill that would enable the Government to block mergers between unions has been put on hold, as some senate crossbenchers have concerns about it.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, NICK XENOPHON TEAM, LIBERAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, MARITIME UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN ELECTORAL COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION

Business gets two-year tax cut amnesty

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Original article by Joanna Mather
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 19-Oct-17

The Federal Government has introduced legislation to clarify whether a company qualifies for the 27.5 per cent tax rate for small businesses. It hopes to end the uncertainty regarding the application of the lower tax rate to passive investment companies. The amendments introduced on 18 October state that a company will not qualify for the lower tax rate if it derives more than 80 per cent of its income from passive sources, which include interest and dividends. The new test for a passive investment company will apply from the start of the current financial year.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, BDO CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS AND ADVISERS, CPA AUSTRALIA

Labor open to a deal on energy

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 19-Oct-17

The Australian Government’s proposed National Energy Guarantee will require the support of the federal Opposition and the Labor-led state governments. Shadow treasurer Chris Bowen says federal Labor is willing to consider the energy plan when the Government provides more detail regarding the policy. Some business leaders have expressed support for the National Energy Guarantee, while Origin Energy has indicated that its Eraring coal-fired power station could potentially keep operating if the policy is implemented.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, AUSTRALIAN ENERGY COUNCIL, AUSTRALIAN ENERGY REGULATOR, AUSTRALIAN ENERGY MARKET COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN ENERGY MARKET OPERATOR LIMITED

Taxpayers to ‘lose billions on NBN’

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Original article by Adam Creighton
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 18-Oct-17

Infrastructure bodies such as Infrastructure Australia need more power and greater budgets to scrutinise the costs and feasibility of major government projects. This is the collective view of Gary Banks, Fred Hilmer and Brendan Lyons. Lyons is about to leave his role as head of Infrastructure Partnerships Australia, Banks was the first chairman of the Productivity Commission, and Hilmer was an adviser to the Keating government. Banks and Hilmer both predict that the $A49 billion National Broadband Network will be sold at a loss, while they both suggest there was no evidence of any cost analysis before the Federal Government announced its Snowy Hydro expansion plan.

CORPORATES
INFRASTRUCTURE AUSTRALIA, INFRASTRUCTURE PARTNERSHIPS AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION, NBN CO LIMITED

Labor vows to end pay-slashing ‘sham’ deals

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 6 : 18-Oct-17

Labor intends to change the Fair Work Act if it wins the next federal election, to prevent what it refers to as "sham" enterprise agreements being used by companies. The Opposition’s workplace relations spokesman Brendan O’Connor says Labor wants to do away with the sort of agreements that led to the recent dispute at Carlton & United Breweries in Melbourne, namely agreements that are voted on by workers that are not actually impacted by the pay and conditions that come under the agreement.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, CARLTON AND UNITED BREWERIES, ESSO AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, ACTU, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Strong backing for energy plan

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 18-Oct-17

The Australian Energy Regulator will be responsible for ensuring that electricity retailers comply with carbon emission reduction targets under the Federal Government’s National Energy Guarantee. The new energy policy also requires electricity retailers to meet reliability standards. Business leaders are generally supportive of the policy, although the Opposition has some concerns about it, while some state governments are highly critical. Former prime minister Tony Abbott maintains that the energy policy should not include an emissions reduction target.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN ENERGY REGULATOR, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE CHIEF SCIENTIST, BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP, AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGL, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, THE AUSTRALIA INSTITUTE LIMITED, LIBERAL-NATIONAL PARTY OF QUEENSLAND, SOUTH AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PREMIER AND CABINET, VICTORIA. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, QUEENSLAND. DEPT OF ENERGY AND WATER SUPPLY, COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENTS, AUSTRALIAN ENERGY MARKET COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN ENERGY MARKET OPERATOR LIMITED, CLEAN ENERGY COUNCIL LIMITED