AUSTRALIA – POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Voter ID bill may discourage turnout and no evidence it will prevent fraud, committee says

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Paul Karp
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 11-Nov-21

The parliamentary committee on human rights has expressed reservations about the federal government’s legislation that would require voters to supply proof of their identity at polling stations on election day. Amongst other things, the committee is concerned that the voter ID laws may discourage people from voting; it also warns that the legislation may have a "disproportionate" impact on certain groups, such as the homeless and indigenous people in remote communities. The committee has also questioned whether the legislation would be effective in addressing election fraud.

CORPORATES

COVID testing firm kept $12m in JobKeeper cash amid soaring profits

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Clay Lucas
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 11-Nov-21

Pathological group Australian Clinical Labs has been a beneficiary of both the federal government’s COVID-19 testing program and the JobKeeper wage subsidy. The company’s revenue increased by 29 per cent in 2020-21, while its after-tax profit rose from $11.7m to $88.7m. Australian Clinical Labs received JobKeeper payments totalling $34.3m over the last two financial years, but it repaid just $21.9m. Australian Clinical Labs’ annual report for 2020 notes that revenue fell sharply in the months immediately following the onset of the pandemic in March of that year, making the firm eligible for JobKeeper. The company also receives a government subsidy for every COVID-19 test it performs.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN CLINICAL LABS LIMITED – ASX ACL

ALP (53.5%) lead over the L-NP (46.5%) cut slightly as PM Scott Morrison attends G20 & COP26 meetings

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 11-Nov-21

The latest Roy Morgan Poll on Federal voting intention shows that support for the ALP is now 53.5% (down 0.5% points since late October), cf. the L-NP on 46.5% (up 0.5% points) on a two-party preferred basis. The small swing to the L-NP came while Prime Minister Scott Morrison attended the Group of 20 summit in Rome and the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow. If a Federal Election were held now the ALP would be elected with a similar margin to that won by John Howard at the 1996 Federal Election (ALP 53.6% cf. L-NP 46.4%). Primary support for the L-NP was unchanged at 36.5% in early November and is still ahead of the ALP, which was also unchanged at 35%. Support for the Greens dropped by 2% points to 11.5 and support for One Nation was down 0.5% points to 3%, but support for Independents/Others rose 2.5% points to 14%. Meanwhile, the Roy Morgan Government Confidence Rating has dropped by 2.5ps to 95.5 in early November. Now 40% (down 1% point) of Australians say the country is ‘heading in the right direction’, while 44.5% (up 1.5% points) say the country is ‘heading in the wrong direction’. This Roy Morgan Poll on Federal voting intention and Government Confidence was conducted via telephone and online interviewing over the last two weekends. Roy Morgan interviewed 2,723 Australian electors aged 18+ on the weekends of October 30/31 and November 6/7.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, MORGAN POLL, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, ONE NATION PARTY

PM drives $1bn tech fund

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Geoff Chambers
The Australian – Page: 1 & 7 : 10-Nov-21

The federal government will establish a low-emissions technology commercialisation fund as part of its push for carbon neutrality by 2050. The $1bn fund will investment in Australian start-ups and businesses that are focused on emerging technologies such as carbon capture and storage. The government will contribute $500m to the fund, and it will seek a matching contribution from the private sector. Prime Minister Scott Morrison has also launched a new strategy aimed at encouraging Australians to buy electric vehicles; he had criticised Labor’s proposed target for annual electric car sales during the 2019 election campaign.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Labor mulls broader emissions safeguard

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Andrew Tillett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 8-Nov-21

Labor is still working on its climate policy in the lead-up to the next federal election, with shadow climate change minister Chris Bowen confirming that it will not include a climate tax or emissions trading scheme. Bowen has indicated that Labor will consider an expansion of the federal government’s ‘safeguard mechanism’, which requires large emitters to cut their carbon pollution. However, some Labor MPs are said to be wary of embracing the safeguard mechanism, due to concerns that it could make Labor vulnerable to a carbon tax-style scare campaign.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Morrison outlines $2 billion funding pledge to UN climate summit

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by David Crowe
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 2-Nov-21

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has used the COP26 climate summit to announce that Australia will contribute $2bn over five years to programs that will assist developing countries in the Pacific region to deal with climate change. He also reiterated the importance of technology in achieving net zero targets. Morrison noted that Australia has reduced its carbon emissions by 20 per cent since 2005, while the economy has grown by 45 per cent over the same period; he added that Australia’s emissions are on track to fall by 35 per cent by 2030, well ahead of its commitments under the Paris agreement. Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has told the summit of a ‘doomsday’ scenario if action is not taken to address climate change.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Federal government offers Hongkongers Australian permanent residency pathway

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Joshua Boscaini, Stephen Dziedzic
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 2-Nov-21

The federal government will offer two new permanent residence visa streams for Hong Kong passport holders who have lived in Australia for at least four years. Almost 9,000 people are expected to be eligible to apply for the new visas from 5 March, including temporary skilled workers, temporary graduate workers and student visa holders. Applicants for the new visas will not need to be sponsored by an employer or be in a job that is on the list of current skills shortages. In 2020, the government agreed to offer "safe haven" for Hong Kong passport holders after China’s introduced new national security laws in the former British colony.

CORPORATES

PM sinks Macron’s subs lie

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Geoff Chambers
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 2-Nov-21

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has responded to the latest furore over the decision to cancel Naval Group’s $90bn submarines contract. French President Emmanuel Macron has accused Morrison of lying about both the submarines contract and Australia’s decision to establish the AUKUS alliance. Morrison says he did not lie to Macron and informed him in mid-June that Australia had concerns about the Naval Group project and was looking at alternative submarines. Morrison says the decision to cancel the contract was made in the national interest. The federal government attempted to inform Macron of the decision two days before the AUKUS deal was announced, but Macron advised that he was not available to take a call from Morrison.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, NAVAL GROUP

Australia commits 10 million vaccines to south-east Asia

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Anthony Galloway
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 28-Oct-21

Prime Minister Scott Morrison addressed the Association of South-east Asian Nations on Wednesday. He said that Australia will supply south-east Asian nations with 10 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines by mid-2022, in addition to the four million doses it has already provided. Morrison also advised that Australia will provide the region with $124m to address "complex and emerging challenges" such as terrorism and energy security. He also stressed that the AUKUS alliance – and Australia’s deal to acquire nuclear-powered submarines – will have no impact on Australia’s commitment to both ASEAN and nuclear non-proliferation.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, ASSOCIATION OF SOUTH-EAST ASIAN NATIONS

PM’s no to methane cut

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Simon Benson, Geoff Chambers
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 28-Oct-21

The federal government will not agree to sign the Global Methane Pledge at the upcoming COP26 climate summit in Glasgow. The pledge is backed by the US and Europe, and would require signatories to reduce methane emissions by 30 per cent by 2030. Refusal to sign the pledge is believed to have been a key commitment made by Prime Minister Scott Morrison to gain the National Party’s support for a net zero emissions target of 2030. It was feared that Australia would be particularly hard hit by such a pledge, given the economy’s reliance on industries such as agriculture and coal mining.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET