ELECTIONS – AUSTRALIA

Celia Hammond wins Liberal preselection for Curtin

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Original article by Andrew Burrell
The Australian – Page: Online : 11-Mar-19

Former vice-chancellor of the University of Notre Dame Celia Hammond has been selected by the Liberal Party as its new candidate for the seat of Curtin. The seat is currently held by former foreign minister Julie Bishop, who is not standing again at the upcoming federal election. Foreign policy analyst Erin Watson-Lyn, who was being backed by moderate allies of Bishop, secured only one vote in the preselection. Prime Minister Scott Morrison has tweeted his congratulations to Hammond, who joined the Liberal Party in December.

CORPORATES
UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME, LIBERAL PARTY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE

Tony Abbott’s Paris backflip reveals the emptiness of last year’s leadership madness

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Original article by David Crowe
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 8-Mar-19

Tony Abbott has backtracked on his call for Australia to pull out of the Paris climate agreement. Abbott was all for pulling out of the agreement last July, and it is now clear that his crusade was all about trying to hurt then Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and replacing him with a new leader, rather than energy policy. Abbott is clearly worried that Zali Steggall, who is running against him as an independent candidate and who has been campaigning strongly on climate action, has a good chance of beating him.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Former PM Malcolm Turnbull slams Liberal Party in BBC interview

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Original article by
News.com.au – Page: Online : 8-Mar-19

Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull has claimed in an interview with British journalist Andrew Neil that he was ousted because the Liberal Party believed that he would win the 2019 election. Turnbull maintains that the Coalition had been in a winnable position when he was ousted in August. He says public opinion polls of the time showed that support for the Coalition and Labor was evenly split, and that the Coalition was ahead in marginal seats. Turnbull adds that the Liberals can still win the election, but notes that successor Scott Morrison is faring worse than him in the polls.

CORPORATES
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

PM says it’s enterprise versus envy

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 5-Mar-19

Prime Minister Scott Morrison will tell a business summit on 5 March that the differences on economic policy between the Coalition and Labor are the greatest they have been for over 40 years. Morrison will also announce a $328 million commitment for programs aimed at preventing domestic violence and support for victims. Morrison will also tell the summit that the 2019 federal election presents a choice between "enterprise and envy".

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Bishop bows out of politics, saying Coalition will win

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 9 : 22-Feb-19

Former foreign minister Julie Bishop is confident that the Coalition will win the upcoming federal election, citing its strong credentials regarding border protection and economic management. Bishop has ended speculation about her political future by confirming that she will not recontest the safe seat of Curtin in Western Australia. Bishop has been in federal parliament since 1998, and she served as deputy leader of the Liberal Party from 2007 to 2018.

CORPORATES
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF JOBS AND SMALL BUSINESS, UNITED NATIONS. SECURITY COUNCIL

Labor split erupts over Adani coal mine

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Original article by Mark Ludlow
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 2 : 19-Feb-19

CFMMEU Mining and Energy Queensland president Steve Smyth has accused the state government of a "go-slow" on approving Adani’s $2 billion Carmichael coal mine. It has been suggested that the government is trying to delay approval of the mine until after the federal election, so as to minimise any potential political damage to Opposition Leader Bill Shorten. Smyth says people in regional Queensland want to see the mine proceed, while he contends that thousands of jobs in the Galilee Basin are at risk if the state government does not approve the mine.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ADANI MINING PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, QUEENSLAND. DEPT OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND MINES, WARATAH COAL PTY LTD, GVK INDUSTRIES LIMITED, QUEENSLAND. DEPT OF ENVIRONMENT AND HERITAGE PROTECTION

Business bashing poll on the cards

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 15-Feb-19

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has accused Labor of siding with large energy companies over its role in having the federal government withdraw legislation to force them to sell assets if they fail to reduce electricity prices. With the Greens having secured the consent of Labor and six crossbenchers to have the legislation amended so that the government could not subsidise new coal-fired power stations, the government withdrew it, knowing that it would have been defeated in the House of Representatives. The government will now take the legislation, which has been attacked by energy companies and big business, to the upcoming election.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGL, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN ENERGY COUNCIL

Free TV targets tech ad imbalance

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Original article by Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: 24 & 26 : 11-Feb-19

Free TV Australia CEO Bridget Fair has called for a level playing field with regard to the media’s political advertising rules. She says the ban on broadcasting political advertising on traditional media creates a big disincentive for advertising on commercial TV, given that the ban does not apply to digital media. Fair has welcomed the recommendations of the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission’s review of digital platforms, but she says urgent action is needed to address competition issues in the media sector.

CORPORATES
FREE TV AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED

Budget risks in pensioner pork

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 25-Jan-19

Speculation that the federal government may give pensioners and families on low incomes a one-off cash payment prior to the election has prompted suggestions of ‘pork barrelling’. Some observers have likened it to the strategy of former prime minister John Howard ahead of the 2007 election, which he lost. Chris Richardson of Deloitte Access Economics says a low jobless rate and a strong economy means such largesse is not necessary, while Opposition Leader Bill Shorten says the government is now in election mode.

CORPORATES
DELOITTE ACCESS ECONOMICS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

PM’s cash splash for oldies

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 9 : 24-Jan-19

Sources within the federal government have indicated that it may offer pre-election sweeteners to age pensioners and families in the form of one-off cash payments. The potential measure is said to be aimed at ensuring that people who will not directly benefit from the government’s income tax cuts package are not disadvantaged. The first stage of the tax package took effect at the start of 2018-19, but Labor has committed to scrapping the second and third stages it wins the 2019 election.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY