POLITICIANS – AUSTRALIA

One Nation rebel fires parting shot

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Original article by Rachel Baxendale
The Australian – Page: 2 : 15-Jun-18

One Nation has lost the balance of power in the Senate following senator Brian Burston’s decision to quit the party and become an independent. He says the falling out over One Nation’s stance on the Federal Government’s corporate tax package contributed to his departure from the party, which will now hold just two seats in the upper house. Burston will continue to support the tax package, and he hopes One Nation’s remaining senators Pauline Hanson and Peter Georgiou will do so as well. The tax package requires the support of eight of the 10 crossbenchers.

CORPORATES
ONE NATION PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE

Nats urged to broaden the base

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Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 4 : 14-Jun-18

National Party MP Darren Chester says that farmers will continue to comprise a significant proportion of the party’s membership base. However, he argues that the Nationals need to appeal to a broader range of voters in order to win more seats, arguing that people from non-farming backgrounds now live in electorates that have traditionally been the party’s focus. Chester added that the Nationals must also embrace a range of views on social issues in order to appeal to voters, noting that all but one Nationals electorate voted in favour of legalising same-sex marriage.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PRESS CLUB (AUSTRALIA), AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF VETERANS’ AFFAIRS

Subs blowout could scuttle tax cuts

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Original article by Andrew Tillett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 12-Jun-18

Centre Alliance senator Rex Patrick has sought to link his support for the Federal Government’s company tax cuts package to the construction of a new submarine fleet. Patrick has expressed concern about the cost of the 12 submarines and warned that he cannot support the tax package until the full cost of the new fleet is disclosed. The Senate budget estimates committee was recently told that it will cost about $A50bn to build the submarines, but Patrick estimates that they could cost taxpayers around $A200bn in total during their operational life.

CORPORATES
CENTRE ALLIANCE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF DEFENCE, AUSTRALIAN STRATEGIC POLICY INSTITUTE LIMITED, NAVAL GROUP

PM backs Joyce to recontest New England

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 6-Jun-18

National Party MP Barnaby Joyce intends to be a candidate for the seat of New England at the next federal election. Opinion within the party is divided regarding Joyce’s future, with some colleagues suggesting that he should consider quitting politics in the wake of his relationship with an ex-staffer. However, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and the Nationals’ deputy leader Bridget McKenzie say he should stay in politics. Former Nationals leader John Anderson says he will not seek pre-selection for New England.

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

Senior Nationals move to oust Joyce from parliament

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Original article by Ben Packham, Simon Benson
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 5-Jun-18

Former deputy prime minister John Anderson says Barnaby Joyce should consider resigning from Parliament for the sake of his new son. Anderson adds that he has not contemplated contesting Joyce’s seat of New England, despite being approached to do so by some National Party insiders. Sources within the party have suggested that Anderson would most likely gain pre-selection for the seat in the wake of revelations about Joyce’s relationship with a former staffer. Former prime minister Tony Abbott says Joyce still has a future in federal politics.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF AGRICULTURE AND WATER RESOURCES, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED

One Nation split boosts union clout

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Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 4-Jun-18

Further dissent within One Nation has emerged amid allegations concerning the Federal Government’s failure to pass legislation to subject union mergers to a public interest test. One Nation senator Brian Burston claims that his colleague Peter Georgiou opposed the Ensuring Integrity Bill in defiance of Burston and party leader Pauline Hanson. Burston says the latter then agreed to oppose the bill to ensure that the party was not viewed as being divided. A government source has backed Burston’s claim, stating that the government would have had sufficient support for the bill if Georgiou had voted for it.

CORPORATES
ONE NATION PARTY, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, MARITIME UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF JOBS AND SMALL BUSINESS, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP

Cash to fight subpoena over union raid tip-off

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 31-May-18

Shadow workplace relations minister Brendan O’Connor has repeated his call for Jobs Minister Michaelia Cash to resign over police raids on the offices of the Australian Workers’ Union in 2017. Cash has been issued with a subpoena to give evidence in the AWU’s legal action over the raids, which were undertaken as part of an investigation into the union’s political donations. Cash has described the subpoena as a "stunt" that is aimed at protecting Opposition Leader Bill Shorten, who was the AWU’s national secretary when the donations were made.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF JOBS AND SMALL BUSINESS, AUSTRALIAN WORKERS’ UNION-FEDERATION OF INDUSTRIAL, MANUFACTURING AND ENGINEERING EMPLOYEES, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. REGISTERED ORGANISATIONS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, GETUP LIMITED

MP deserts Hanson to back tax cut

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Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 31-May-18

The Federal Government’s hopes of passing its company tax cuts in the Senate have been bolstered after One Nation’s Brian Burston indicated that he will support the package in defiance of party leader Pauline Hanson. Burston suggests that the upcoming by-election in the seat of Longman in Queensland may have influenced Hanson’s decision to withdraw her party’s support for the tax cuts. Burston also says he only became aware of Hanson’s decision when he read about it in the media. The Government requires the support of eight crossbenchers to pass the legislation.

CORPORATES
ONE NATION PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, CENTRE ALLIANCE, AUSTRALIAN CONSERVATIVES, LIBERAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Labor leader vows to end great divide, revive wages

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Original article by Samantha Hutchinson, John Ferguson, Ben Potter
The Australian – Page: 4 : 28-May-18

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten told Victorian Labor’s state conference on 27 May that inequality is increasing in Australia. With federal Labor due to face five by-elections on 28 July, Shorten flagged plans to reduce national debt, cut income taxes, and boost education and health funding if Labor wins the next election. The previous day had seen Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews promised to impose jail terms on employers who underpay staff or whose employees are killed on the job.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA

Shorten blasted for doctored notes

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Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 25-May-18

Opposition leader Bill Shorten has denied suggestions that his office doctored the transcript of a TV interview given by Labor MP Linda Burney. Her staffer, David Tan, transcribed the interview that appeared on Sky News. Tan contends that he made an "innocent mistake", while Burney says Tan has been counselled over what has been described as a "grossly inaccurate transcription". Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said the transcript amounted to a "deliberate act of fabrication", while Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said the interview was "falsified".

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT