POLITICIANS – AUSTRALIA

Joyce leadership hopes take a tumble

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Original article by Jess Malcolm, Rhiannon Down
The Australian – Page: 5 : 13-Feb-24

National Party leader David Littleproud says shadow veterans’ affairs minister Barnaby Joyce will be supported rather than reprimanded in the wake of an incident in Canberra. Littleproud says Joyce is "deeply embarrassed" about the incident, in which he was filmed lying on a pavement while making a profanity-laden phone call. Joyce has acknowledged that he should not have mixed alcohol with prescription medication. However, some Nationals MPs have suggested that he now has little chance of regaining the party’s leadership.

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NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Teal demand 75pc emissions target by 2035

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Original article by Rosie Lewis
The Australian – Page: 4 : 17-Jan-24

Teal MPs in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth are pushing for a much more ambitious 2030 emissions reduction target than the federal government’s legislated policy of 43 per cent. Some of them want this target to be reset to around 50 to 60 per cent. The independent MPs contend that people in their electorate want "real "climate action" rather than "another decade of delay". Kylea Tink, Allegra Spender and Kate Chaney are among the teals who advocate stricter emission controls beyond the 2030 target, proposing a 2035 target of around 75 per cent. The government aims to set a 2035 target by February 2024.

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Dutton must explain Woolies boycott: PM

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Original article by Sarah Ison
The Australian – Page: 3 : 16-Jan-24

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Opposition leader Peter Dutton needs to clarify his stance on Woolworths after the retail giant advised that it will not stock Australia Day-themed merchandise. Albanese says Dutton should specify whether his call to boycott Woolworths is only meant to apply until after the national holiday or should be ongoing. Albanese adds that the boycott would presumably also apply to Kmart and Aldi, and notes that the three retailers collectively employ about 200,000 people, so Dutton should explain the impact of his proposed boycott on their jobs.

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WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, KMART AUSTRALIA LIMITED, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD

Penny Wong most trusted Australian politician; Peter Dutton most distrusted

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 13-Dec-23

A Roy Morgan Snap SMS survey has found that Senator Penny Wong has emerged as the political leader with the highest Net Trust Score. She was followed by Shadow Indigenous Affairs Minister Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, who came to the forefront of Australian politics as a lead spokesperson for the successful ‘No’ campaign in the October Voice referendum. Penny Wong retains the position she held in March 2022. Nampijinpa Price and Treasurer Jim Chalmers also record more trust than distrust. Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has emerged as the most distrusted politician (up from second-most distrusted last year). Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has moved into Net Distrust territory, having been a trusted leader in 2022. Meanwhile, Andrew Forrest is the only business leader to record a Net Trust Score. These Roy Morgan Snap SMS surveys were carried out from 28 February to 1 March 2022 and from 16-20 November 2023.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Labor’s Voice box of priorities

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Original article by Rosie Lewis
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 5-Jul-23

Indigenous Australians Minister Linda Burney will address the National Press Club in Canberra on Wednesday. Burney will identify health, education, jobs and housing as the four major policy priorities on which the proposed Indigenous Voice to parliament will be asked to privide advice. Burney will also state that unlike government, the Voice will focus on the next generation rather than the next election. Burney will argue that the Voice must be enshrined in the Constitution rather than merely legislated, to ensure that it cannot be abolished by a future government.

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NATIONAL PRESS CLUB (AUSTRALIA), AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Lidia Thorpe withdraws accusation made in parliament of sexual assault against Liberal senator

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Original article by Josh Butler, Paul Karp
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 15-Jun-23

Controversial independent senator Lidia Thorpe has used the protection of parliamentary privilege to allege that she had been sexually assaulted by Liberal senator David Van. Thorpe interjected while Van was making a speech regarding the Brittany Higgins rape case; Thorpe stated that she feels "really uncomfortable" when a ‘perpetrator’ is speaking about violence, and accused him of sexual assault and harassment. He immediately denied her allegations. Thorpe subsequently withdraw her allegations in order to comply with Senate standing orders, but indicated that she will have more to say on the matter on Thursday.

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LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Morrison, Gallagher deny misleading parliament over Higgins rape allegation

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Original article by James Massola, Paul Sakkal
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 14-Jun-23

The Brittany Higgins rape case came under scrutiny in federal parliament on Tuesday. Finance Minister Katy Gallagher admitted to the Senate that she had been given information about Higgins’ allegation several days before it was reported in the media; however, Gallagher said she had been asked to keep that information to herself and did so. Gallagher also rejected suggestions that she had misled the Senate about when she had been informed of Higgins’ allegation. Meanwhile, former prime minister Scott Morrison also denied misleading parliament over his handling of the rape allegation. Bruce Lehrmann has consistently denied that he had raped Higgins.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE

Environmentalists take Tanya Plibersek to court over coal mine assessments

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Original article by Mike Foley
Brisbane Times – Page: Online : 6-Jun-23

The Environment Council of Central Queensland has launched legal action against Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek in the Federal Court. The Council is asking the court to review Plibersek’s decision not to take global warming into account when assessing Mach Energy’s application to expand its Mount Pleasant open-cut coal mine and Whitehaven Coal’s application to expand its Narrabri underground mine; both mines are in NSW. The Council is being represented in court by Environmental Justice Australia, with senior lawyer Retta Berryman saying if the judicial review is successful it could compel all coal and gas projects to be assessed for climate change impacts.

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ENVIRONMENT COUNCIL OF CENTRAL QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF CLIMATE CHANGE, ENERGY, THE ENVIRONMENT AND WATER, MACH ENERGY, WHITEHAVEN COAL LIMITED – ASX WHC, ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AUSTRALIA

Coalition’s $50 JobSeeker rise more generous than Labor’s proposal, Pocock says

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Original article by Amy Remeikis, Paul Karp
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 3-May-23

The federal government is under scrutiny over reports that an increase in the JobSeeker payment in the 9 May budget will be restricted to people aged 55+. Independent senator David Pocock has called for an across-the-board increase in unemployment benefits and the youth allowance, saying it appears that younger people are being "left behind". Pocock adds that Labor risks being unfavourably compared to the former Coalition government, which increased JobSeeker and other support payments by $50 a fortnight in April 2021. Liberal MP Bridget Archer and teal MPs have also called for an increase in JobSeeker for all recipients.

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AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Put stop to Senate defectors

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Original article by Joe Kelly, Angelica Snowden, Rachel Baxendale
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 15-Feb-23

Centre for Public Integrity chair Anthony Whealy says federal parliament should pursue reforms to address the issue of senators who quit their political party but remain in the upper house. He contends that when electors vote for a party’s candidate in the Senate they are registering a vote for that party, so the "will of the people should prevail". Former Greens senator Lidia Thorpe has joined a growing list of upper house members who have switched political allegiances in the last decade. Former attorney-­general George Brandis has described Thorpe’s decision to become an independent as a "cynical and egotistical act" and a "blatant insult" to people who had voted for the Greens rather than Thorpe.

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THE CENTRE FOR PUBLIC INTEGRITY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS