AUSTRALIA – POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Less than $20m for lockdown payments

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Original article by Patrick Commins
The Australian – Page: 5 : 17-Jun-21

Data from Services Australia shows that 42,784 in Victoria received the federal government’s Temporary COVID Disaster Payment during the second week of the state’s latest lockdown. The temporary scheme, which provides a grant of up $500 for people who lose income due to a lockdown of at least seven days, has cost $19,684,000 since Melbourne entered the second week of the lockdown that ended on 10 June. This is significantly less than Treasurer Josh Frydenberg had forecast when the scheme was announced. Melbourne residents must submit applications for the grant by 2 July.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. SERVICES AUSTRALIA

IR reform will avoid project blowouts

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 10-Jun-21

The federal government has received support from the resources sector for its plans to put greenfield workplace agreements back on the industrial relations agenda. The Australian Resources & Energy Group says protected and unprotected industrial action have contributed to significant cost blowouts at number of major resources projects in recent years. Greenfield agreements would cover the entire construction phase of a project. Such agreements were included in the omnibus industrial relations bill that was rejected by the Senate earlier in 2021.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN RESOURCES AND ENERGY GROUP

Producers fight industry oil levy

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Original article by Perry Williams
The Australian – Page: 17 : 10-Jun-21

It will cost taxpayers some $47.4m to maintain the Northern Endeavour in 2020-21, according to the federal government’s Budget papers. Meanwhile, oil and gas producers will lobby against a proposed industry levy to help finance decommissioning and remediation costs associated with the offshore oil production vessel in the Timor Sea. Some industry players believe that the Northern Endeavour’s former owner Woodside Petroleum should bear the cost; in 2015 it sold the vessel to Northern Oil & Gas Australia, which subsequently went into administration.

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WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, NORTHERN OIL AND GAS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Australia to discuss travel bubble with Singapore as leaders meet ahead of G7

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Original article by Paul Karp, Daniel Hurst
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 10-Jun-21

Prime Minister Scott Morrison will meet with his Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien Loong on 10 June. A proposed quarantine-free travel bubble between the two nations will be on the agenda, although the two leaders are expected to make a commitment to implementing such an arrangement rather than agreeing to a firm start date. The issue of China is also likely to be on the agenda, including China’s growing military presence in the South China Sea and the increasing strategic competition between the US and China. Morrison will then attend the Group of Seven leaders’ summit in the UK, where he will have guest status.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, SINGAPORE. PRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE, GROUP OF SEVEN (G-7)

ALP (51%) leads L-NP (49%) on a two-party preferred basis on the back of big lead in Victoria

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 10-Jun-21

During the Victorian lockdown in early June, support for the Federal ALP is 51% on a two-party preferred basis, up 0.5% points since March 2021 and ahead of the L-NP on 49% (down 0.5% points) despite a relatively well received Federal Budget delivered in May, according to the latest Morgan Poll on Federal voting intention. Primary support for the L-NP is at 40% (down 1% point) compared to the ALP on 35.5% (up 1% point). Greens support has dropped by 1% point to 11.5% while support for One Nation is up 0.5% points to 3% and support for Independents/Others is up 0.5% points to 10%. Voting analysis by State shows the ALP’s national lead is built upon a strong two-party preferred result in Victoria, with the ALP 53.5% cf. L-NP 46.5% in the State enduring its fourth lockdown – although set to end this Friday after two weeks. The Roy Morgan Government Confidence Rating is down 5pts from March 2021 to 113 and now at its lowest since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Now 48.5% (down 3% points) of Australians say the country is ‘heading in the right direction’, while more than a third, 35.5% (up 2% points) say the country is ‘heading in the wrong direction’.

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

Labor, unions to fight Morrison on IR push

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 9-Jun-21

The Australian Workers’ Union will oppose any renewed attempt by the federal government to introduce greenfield workplace agreements. Such agreements were included in the omnibus industrial relations bill that was rejected by the Senate earlier in 2021. AWU national secretary Daniel Walton contends that major projects have been approved without greenfield agreements being in place, and the government’s proposal would merely put downward pressure on wages. Shadow industrial relations minister Tony Burke has also accused the government of pushing for wage growth restraint.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN WORKERS’ UNION-FEDERATION OF INDUSTRIAL, MANUFACTURING AND ENGINEERING EMPLOYEES, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

PM calls for back-up over China

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 2 : 9-Jun-21

Prime Minister Scott Morrison will use a Perth USAsia Centre speech on 9 June to call for an overhaul of the World Trade Organisation amid the growing trade tensions with China. Amongst other things, he will urge the reinstatement of the WTO’s binding dispute settlement system, arguing that it is the most practical way to address "economic coercion". Morrison will shortly attend the Group of Seven leaders’ summit in the UK.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION, GROUP OF SEVEN (G-7)

Bosses and unions unite to urge senator’s vote against seriously flawed super reform bill

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Original article by Patrick Commins
The Australian – Page: 7 : 7-Jun-21

The ACTU and the Australian Industry Group have joined forces to call for the ‘Your Super, Your Future’ legislation to be rejected by the Senate. They contend that the bill still has some major flaws; it recently passed the lower house following the removal of provisions which allow the federal government to veto investments made by superannuation funds that are not deemed to be in members’ best interests. Amongst other things, the ACTU and the Ai Group are concerned that the bill will result in people being stuck in underperforming super funds.

CORPORATES
ACTU, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP

ALP warms to $130bn tax cuts

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Original article by Geoff Chambers, Greg Brown, Patrick Commins
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 27-May-21

Labor is finalising the tax policy that it will take to the next election, and there are indications that it may support the federal government’s stage-three tax cuts. Labor’s caucus is divided over the issue of the tax cuts, which will benefit high-income earners in particular; however, there is growing support for the tax cuts among senior Labor MPs, who are concerned about a potential voter backlash at the next election over any changes to a tax package that has already been legislated. Labor is not expected to retain the government’s Low and Middle Income Tax Offset, which was intended to be temporary.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Wave of sex crime cases hits federal politics

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Original article by Rosie Lewis, Geoff Chambers
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 26-May-21

The Australian Federal Police has received 40 reports of sexual and other misconduct involving federal MPs and their staffers in the wake of Brittany Higgins’ rape allegation. AFP commissioner Reece Kershaw has told a Senate estimates hearing that this includes 19 allegations of sex crimes. The AFP has referred 15 cases to state and territory police for assessment, while the AFP is still investigating one complaint. Kershaw has also advised that the Australian Capital Territory’s Director of Public Prosecutions is expected to receive a brief of evidence in relation to Higgins’ case within weeks.

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AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE