What we learned today, Wednesday 4 June
With that, we’ll end our live coverage of the day’s news. Here’s a summary of the main news developments:
Independent Nicolette Boele has won the Sydney seat of Bradfield, defeating Liberal Gisele Kapterian with a wafer-thin margin of 26 votes.
Erin Patterson has told a court her estranged husband asked her if she had used a dehydrator to poison his parents, and admitted resetting her phone out of fear police would discover photos she had of foraged mushrooms.
Jeremy Rockliff, the minority Tasmanian Liberal premier at risk of being turfed from the role by a parliamentary no-confidence motion, has conceded the numbers are against him.
More than two and a half centuries after Capt James Cook arrived in Australia on the HM Bark Endeavour, the Australian National Maritime Museum has published its final report on the ship’s resting place.
The Greens have warned Australia’s $4tn superannuation system has become a taxpayer-subsidised wealth accumulation scheme, signalling they’ll take a tough line in negotiations on Labor’s plans to hike taxes on accounts worth more than $3m.
Thanks for reading. Have a pleasant evening.
Updated
Greens signal a tough line in negotiations on Labor’s super plan
The Greens have warned Australia’s $4tn superannuation system has become a taxpayer-subsidised wealth accumulation scheme, signalling they’ll take a tough line in negotiations on Labor’s plans to hike taxes on accounts worth more than $3m.
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, confirmed on Thursday he wanted the Senate to consider the government’s existing proposal to double the earnings tax on superannuation balances above $3m – from 15% to 30%. The change affects only an estimated 80,000 people, and still leaves in place highly favourable tax treatment for retirement savings.
The Greens want the $3m threshold lowered to $2m, and for indexation rules to be added to the proposal. Labor says its plan is the best and fairest approach.
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