AUSTRALIA – POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Doherty target risks death of 25,000 people

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Original article by Richard Ferguson
The Australian – Page: 4 : 24-Aug-21

The federal government’s plan to reopen the economy once 80 per cent of Australians aged 16+ have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 is based on advice from the Doherty Institute. However, a group of economists and medical researchers has warned that this threshold is too low; they contend that the government should instead aim to fully vaccinate 90 per cent of Australians, including children. Australian National University economics professor Quentin Grafton says that retaining the 80 per cent threshold could potentially result in 25,000 deaths from COVID-19 and some 270,000 cases of so-called ‘long Covid’.

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UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE. PETER DOHERTY INSTITUTE FOR INFECTION AND IMMUNITY, AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY

Australia to resettle thousands upon thousands of Afghans

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Original article by Rob Harris
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 24-Aug-21

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has indicated that the federal government will look to resettle "thousands upon thousands" of Afghans, in recognition of their efforts in standing with Australian forces in Afghanistan over the past 20 years. He said the national security committee of cabinet is meeting daily to discuss the issue in Afghanistan, and that the government’s priority is to get Australian citizens, permanent residents and visa holders safely out of the country.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Australian government urged to expand refugee intake as Afghans seek to flee Taliban rule

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Original article by Ben Doherty, Daniel Hurst
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 20-Aug-21

Australia has set a figure of 13,750 humanitarian visas for the current financial year, with 3,000 of that number to be set aside for Afghan nationals fleeing the Taliban regime. However, Prime Minister Scott Morrison has stated that the 3,000 figure is a "a floor, not a ceiling" and that "we can think we can achieve more". It is possible that the allocation of 13,750 humanitarian visas may not actually be met, as COVID-19 travel limitations are particularly restrictive on humanitarian visa holders.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

ALP (54%) increases lead over L-NP (46%) – as Melbourne and Sydney lockdowns continue

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 19-Aug-21

ALP support is at 54% (up 0.5% points since early August) cf. L-NP on 46% (down 0.5% points) on a two-party preferred basis after Melbourne’s sixth lockdown was extended, Sydney’s lockdown was extended to the whole State of NSW and the ACT entered lockdown for the first time in over a year. This is the largest two-party preferred lead for the ALP since the bushfires crisis of early 2020. If a Federal Election were held now the ALP would be elected with the largest share of the vote since the 1977 Federal Election won by Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser with 54.6% of the vote. Voting analysis by State shows the ALP leading on a two-party preferred basis in Australia’s two largest States of Victoria and NSW and also holding leads in WA, SA and Tasmania. The LNP leads only in Queensland. Interviewing for the Roy Morgan Poll was conducted over the weekends of August 7/8 & 14/15, with a nationally representative cross-section of 2,747 Australian electors using a combination of telephone and online interviews.

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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

‘No place to hide’: pressure on Australia to end support for new fossil fuel projects after IPCC report

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Original article by Adam Morton, Graham Readfearn
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 11-Aug-21

Environmentalists have called for the federal government to halt all new fossil fuel projects in the wake of a new report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Kirsty Howey from the Environment Centre Northern Territory says development of gas resources in the Beetaloo basin must not proceed in the wake of the IPCC report; the federal government is providing up to $50 million in funding for exploration in the basin. Andy Paine of Frontline Action on Coal has also urged an immediate halt to fossil fuel projects, including the Carmichael coal mine in Queensland.

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INTERGOVERNMENTAL PANEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE, ENVIRONMENT CENTRE (NT) INCORPORATED, FRONTLINE ACTION ON COAL

Big carbon nations must cut too: PM

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Original article by Greg Brown, Dennis Shanahan
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 11-Aug-21

Prime Minister Scott Morrison says the federal government will update its 2030 emissions projections ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in November. He adds that the update will show that Australia is on track to exceed its Paris climate agreement targets. Morrison also contends that ‘catastrophic’ climate change will only be avoided if China, India and other developing nations take action to reduce their carbon emissions. China and India are regarded as developing nations, so they are not required to cut emissions immediately under the Paris agreement. Morrison is of the view that his government’s focus on reducing carbon emissions via technology rather than taxes will help to boost clean energy uptake in developing nations.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, UNITED NATIONS

Morrison refuses to say if he saw list of marginal seats to get car park funding

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Original article by Katina Curtis, Shane Wright
The Age – Page: Online : 6-Aug-21

The federal government’s $660 million commuter car park grants program has come under severe criticism from the Auditor-General. Only three of the 47 car parks promised in early 2019 have been built, and the Auditor-General has found that there was no criteria for assessing the merit of projects and that 77 per cent of those that were initially funded were in marginal Coalition seats. The Auditor-General has claimed that a list of "top 20 marginal seats" was used as the basis for deciding which projects to finance. Prime Minister Scott Morrison has refused to say if he saw such a list.

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AUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE AUDITOR-GENERAL, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Sky News Australia to face Senate inquiry after week-long YouTube suspension

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Original article by Amanda Meade
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 6-Aug-21

Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young wants to know why the Australian Communications & Media Authority has not taken action against Sky News Australia over the broadcasting of misinformation when YouTube has. Her query follows YouTube suspending Sky News content from its platform for seven days for breaching its medical misinformation policies. Hanson-Young chairs the Senate’s media diversity inquiry; she has recalled the inquiry during the week beginning 9 August in order to question executives from ACMA, YouTube and Sky News.

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SKY NEWS, YOUTUBE INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIAN COMMUNICATIONS AND MEDIA AUTHORITY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS

Australian government pays PR firm to copy existing Covid data into daily email to media

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Original article by Christopher Knaus
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 4-Aug-21

The federal government has attracted renewed scrutiny over questionable spending policies following revelations of a contract with Cox Inall Communications. The public relations firm is being paid to copy the daily COVID-19 vaccination data on the Department of Health’s website and email it to media outlets. The data is sent in the same PDF format in which it is displayed on the department’s website. The department has declined to comment on the cost of the contract, details of which have yet to be published on the government’s AusTender website. The department has an in-house media and communications team.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HEALTH, COX INALL COMMUNICATIONS

Updated national Covid plan suggests 80% of Australians could be fully vaccinated by end of 2021

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Original article by Sarah Martin
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 4-Aug-21

The federal government released an updated version of its National COVID Vaccine Campaign Plan on 3 August. Amongst other things, it outlines plans to ramp up the vaccine rollout by operating drive-through vaccination clinics in most states and territories by mid-October. Retail vaccinations hubs are also slated to commence in October, along with workplace vaccination programs. The rollout could also potentially be extended to schools by early December. The revised plan also indicates that 70 per cent of the eligible population could be fully vaccinated by November, potentially rising to 80 per cent by December.

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