AUSTRALIA – POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Miners prefer casual jobs for loading

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 14-Jul-21

Representatives of labour hire firms have appeared before the Senate inquiry into job security. One Key Resources MD Ben Lewis said that less than one per cent of its workforce of about 900 asks to convert from casual to permanent employment each year, attributing this to the higher rate of pay when the casual loading is taken into account. He added that a similar proportion of workers opt to switch from permanent to casual employment. Chandler Macleod’s chief people officer Mark Graham also said that many of its casual workers have rejected an offer of permanent employment.

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ONE KEY RESOURCES PTY LTD, CHANDLER MACLEOD GROUP LIMITED

Victoria blasts Scott Morrison for double standard on Sydney COVID support

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Original article by Josh Butler
The New Daily – Page: Online : 14-Jul-21

The Victorian government has criticised its federal counterpart over the COVID-19 financial support package for New South Wales. A state government spokesman says Victoria had to "beg" for financial support during its recent outbreak of the Delta variant. A spokesman for Prime Minister Scott Morrison says both states received the same level of financial support during the first two weeks of their respective lockdowns, and Victoria would get the same support if it were forced into another lockdown of more than two weeks. Meanwhile, the ACTU and the federal Opposition contend that the support package is insufficient.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Don’t trust Labor to cut high-income tax: Treasurer

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 9 : 14-Jul-21

Labor leader Anthony Albanese says the party will decide its stance on the stage-three income tax cuts at "an appropriate time". He adds that the COVID-19 pandemic is Labor’s top priority at present. Labor is expected to formally commit to retaining the legislated tax cuts if it wins the next federal election, after the issue was discussed by the party’s leadership group in recent days. However, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg says Labor has consistently opposed the Coalition’s tax policy and it cannot be trusted to honour any commitment regarding the stage-three tax cuts.

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AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Virus exit plan leaves us behind: business

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Original article by Hannah Wootton, Mark Ludlow
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 5-Jul-21

Business leaders have generally welcomed the federal government’s four-step plan to reopen Australia in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, they have called for greater clarity regarding the timeframe for reopening the economy, as well as the vaccination targets that will be required for each step of the plan. The four-point plan aims to phase out snap lockdowns and state border closures in early 2022, while the nation’s international borders will re-open later in that year. Business Council of Australia CEO Jennifer Westacott says the success of the exit strategy will depend on co-operation from the state and territory governments.

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BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA

Australia ranks last for climate action among UN member countries

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Original article by Lisa Cox
The Guardian – Page: Online : 2-Jul-21

Australia Institute climate expert Richie Merzian says he is not surprised that Australia has been ranked last in a survey of 193 members of the United Nations in terms of action taken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. He says the federal government has no climate and energy policy, instead preferring to cherry-pick technologies, many of which support the fossil fuel industry. Australia’s last-place ranking on climate action was contained in a report on progress towards global sustainable development goals, with Australia ranking 35th in that area.

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THE AUSTRALIA INSTITUTE LIMITED, UNITED NATIONS

PM seeks deal to end lockdowns

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Original article by Greg Brown, Simon Benson
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 2-Jul-21

Prime Minister Scott Morrison will try to get an agreement from the premiers and chief ministers on the vaccination threshold that needs to be met in order to end COVID-19 lockdowns when national cabinet meets on 2 July. Morrison says the "magic number" for this threshold will be determined by medical science. The national cabinet has already been given modelling for a vaccination threshold based on the Alpha variant, while modelling for one based on the more contagious Delta variant is understood to be nearly finished. Meanwhile, some premiers have called for a big reduction in the number of international arrivals until the majority of Australians have been vaccinated.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Coal mine gets $175m federal loan

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Original article by Mark Ludlow
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 10 : 2-Jul-21

The $5 billion Northern Australian Infrastructure Facility has approved a $175 million loan to Pembroke Resources for its proposed Olive Downs coking coal mine in Queensland. The mine will support up to 700 jobs during its construction phase and over 500 jobs when it is up and running. Approval of the loan for the Olive Downs project comes only two months after federal Resources Minister Keith Pitt vetoed a $280 million loan by the NAIF for a wind farm project in North Queensland.

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NORTHERN AUSTRALIA INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY, PEMBROKE RESOURCES PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, SCIENCE, ENERGY AND RESOURCES

D-Day for dud superannuation funds

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Original article by Michael Read
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 1-Jul-21

Superannuation Minister Jane Hume says the federal government’s new online tool aims to encourage superannuation fund members to exit underperforming funds. The YourSuper tool will be launched on 1 July, and will initially allow super fund members to rank and compare default funds based on their performance over six years. The tool will be expanded to include the majority of non-default funds in mid-2022. The tool can be accessed via the MyGov portal or the Australian Tax Office’s website. It is part of the ‘Your Future, Your Super’ reforms.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE

Taxes down, super up from today

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Original article by Michael Read
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 1-Jul-21

The corporate tax rate for small and medium enterprises with turnover of less than $50m will be reduced by one per cent to 25 per cent on 1 July. Other changes that take effect at the start of the new financial year include an extension of the low- and middle-income tax offset and an increase in the superannuation guarantee from 9.5 per cent to 10 per cent. The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia estimates that the super change will boost the retirement income of the average worker by about $19,000. New measures aimed at first-home buyers also take effect on 1 July.

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THE ASSOCIATION OF SUPERANNUATION FUNDS OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Archives win $67m in urgent funding

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Original article by Troy Bramston
The Australian – Page: 3 : 1-Jul-21

The federal government has approved a $67.7m increase in funding for the National Archives of Australia to preserve and digitise its most at-risk records, including documents, photos, maps and film recordings. This had been recommended by former senior public servant David Tune, although the government will provide the additional funding over four years rather than seven. A group of prominent Australians recently signed an open letter to Prime Minister Scott Morrison urging the government to increase the National Archives’ funding.

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NATIONAL ARCHIVES OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET