What we learned today, Thursday 4 May
That’s where we’ll leave the blog for today – thanks so much for joining us. Here is a wrap of the day’s biggest stories:
The Albanese government has revealed that one of the biggest federal budget measures will be billions of dollars to fund a 15% pay rise for aged care workers.
Labor is one step closer to passing its $10bn social housing fund through the Senate, after reaching a deal with the Jacqui Lambie Network.
The suspended Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming has written to her party colleagues telling them she is commencing legal action against the leadership team following an ultimatum to the party’s leader, John Pesutto, to publicly exonerate her of being affiliated with Nazis.
The Albanese government has been told to take “urgent action” on poverty in the May budget after an inquiry heard evidence of women using rags because they could not afford pads or tampons, and people on income support struggling to survive.
A letter from one of the panel members of the Northern Territory’s fracking inquiry says the Fyles government has not fully implemented key recommendations, including those aimed at reducing the risk new gas developments pose for the climate.
The eSafety Commission says it is concerned about social media being “weaponised” during the Indigenous voice referendum, reporting a spike in abuse and vilification reported by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in recent times.
National Australia Bank has recorded a 17% surge in cash profit to $4.07bn over a six-month period, underpinned by rising interest rates.
Have a lovely evening, everyone. We will be back with you tomorrow morning.
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Voice referendum will be the biggest electoral event in Australia’s history
The electoral commission says the coming voice referendum will be the biggest electoral event in Australia’s history, and potentially the most complex.
The Australian electoral commissioner, Tom Rogers, told the Senate inquiry that they expected 17.2 million voters to cast ballots in the referendum, the most of any electoral event in the nation’s history.
He also noted “increasing and divisive social media commentary”, as well as the large number of voters, combining “to make this one of the most complex events the AEC has ever delivered”.
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More on the government’s new aid policy.
Pat Conroy did not directly mention the contest with China for influence in the speech, but the government is clearly trying to play to Australia’s strengths in the region. In his prepared speech notes, Conroy said a commitment to genuine partnership was a “golden thread” running through the soon-to-be-launched development policy:
Australia has also heard the many voices calling for increased assistance to combat climate change. It is our region’s foremost concern and the single greatest threat to Pacific communities. Accordingly, responding to climate change will be a central feature of our new development policy.
Whether on climate, infrastructure, food security or economic development, we will engage with respect and in equal partnership.
Our partners have told us they want more opportunities to participate in Australia’s development program. We welcome this desire for more ownership. We also want our aid investments in the region to drive local employment and procurement opportunities. This will help deliver a double dividend of improved development outcomes as well as employment opportunities in communities where we are working.
Conroy said Australia was also “committed to ensuring all voices in society are heard”. He reaffirmed a pledge to ensure at least 80% of Australia’s investments advance gender equality, and he flagged “a new disability equity and rights strategy in the development program”.
The minister said Australia’s First Nations people were “our first traders and diplomats” and the government wanted to strengthen such connections. He said the government would ensure the expertise and perspectives of First Nations Australians were embedded across our foreign policy, including in the development program.
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New aid policy to boost Australia’s influence, the government says
Climate change assistance will be a central feature of a new international development policy to be unveiled by the Albanese government within weeks.
The last couple of months have seen big-spending defence announcements – especially the nuclear-powered submarines under the Aukus pact. But the government says it also wants to “deepen its diplomatic and defence partnerships in the Indo-Pacific”.
The minister for international development and the Pacific, Pat Conroy, has used a speech tonight to promise to deploy foreign aid as a “central part” of Australia’s approach to the world.
Conroy said the government wanted to restore the “international development program to its proper place as a critical national asset of statecraft”.
He said 22 of Australia’s nearest 26 neighbours were developing countries – and “when they grow, we grow; when they falter, we feel the effects”.
Addressing an event held by the Australian Institute for International Affairs in Brisbane, Conroy said every dollar of foreign aid spent by Australia was “an investment in a stronger, more stable region in which Australians are safer, and can cooperate and trade”.
He said the development program was also “a powerful way to solve problems, make friends and increase Australia’s influence”.
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Online debate around many political issues ‘coarsening’: eSafety commission
More on the eSafety commission’s concerns that social media is being “weaponised” during the Indigenous voice referendum.
Toby Dagg, of the eSafety office, said eSafety had noticed online debate around many political issues “coarsening” and had seen an increase across the board in the number of complaints it fields, but said it could be due to more awareness around making complaints, and new laws making it easier to complain about abuse.
Dagg said:
People tend to be a lot more ready to employ personal ad hominem attacks and threats.
Specifically related to the referendum, Dagg said eSafety was monitoring for keywords associated with abuse of Aboriginal people and the percentage of complaints made by Indigenous people as well as reviewing complaints for themes relevant to the voice.
Senators on the committee noted the campaign hadn’t really properly started yet, and had months still to go.
More generally, Dagg said eSafety was concerned about the likelihood of “volumetric attacks”, or “abuse at scale”. This could include coordinated pile-ons of people organised by critics, or people with higher profiles being swamped with complaints. He said eSafety had been talking with the major social platforms around the referendum campaign.
“We’ve had some success engaging industry, talking about the potential for their platforms to be weaponised in the context of the voice referendum,” Dagg said, noting similar issues had arisen during the 2017 marriage equality postal vote.
Generally they’re pretty attentive to those risks, particularly the major platforms.
Dagg said steps were being taken by many major platforms to increase support resources for abuse, and to provide prospective advice to users who may face harms through the campaign.
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Social media is being ‘weaponised’ during Indigenous voice referendum: eSafety Commission
The eSafety Commission says it is concerned about social media being “weaponised” during the Indigenous voice referendum, reporting a spike in abuse and vilification reported by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in recent times.
Toby Dagg, of the eSafety office, told the Senate inquiry probing the administration of the referendum that the regulator often sees spikes in abuse of Aboriginal people around the time of the Indigenous round of the AFL football competition, which is coming up next week. But eSafety is also seeing upticks in complaints they believe are linked to the voice.
Dagg told the committee:
Yes, we have seen some uptick in complaints that centre on material posted relevant to the voice that seeks to denigrate or insult or threaten or otherwise abuse those who identify as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander – those expressing support for either position, either yes or no.
Dagg said the commission doesn’t seek to express support for either side of the referendum or any political debate, but said they were concerned about abuse related to the vote, expected later this year.
It’s not as much of an increase as we might see around events like the Indigenous round, not the kind of surge we saw in the leadup to the marriage equality vote, but an increasing proportion of complaints made to us around the context of the voice.
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Anthony Albanese pays tribute to Bruce Childs
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has paid tribute to former senator and “giant of the labour movement” Bruce Childs, who has passed away.
Albanese wrote on Twitter:
Bruce Childs was a friend, a mentor to myself and many others, and a giant of the labour movement.
Trade union secretary, ALP official, Senator, National ALP Left convenor, peace activist. A man of principle.
He was respected by all for his passionate conviction, his kindness and his gentle manner.
— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) May 4, 2023
The world was better for his contribution and my heart goes out to his family and the many friends of this much loved man.
Vale Bruce Childs.
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Police officer stabbed yesterday in SA discharged from hospital
One of the two police officers that were stabbed at a home in Crystal Brook in the mid-north of South Australia yesterday has been discharged from hospital.
Brevet Sgt Jordan Allely was airlifted to Royal Adelaide hospital in a serious but stable condition with stab wounds to the right leg and arm.
South Australia’s police commissioner, Grant Stevens, told reporters today Allely was in surgery for several hours last night and he has continued to show signs of progress throughout the day, but still has “some way to go”.
Brevet Sgt Ian Todd was also airlifted to the Royal Adelaide hospital in a critical condition with life-threatening stab wounds to the neck and arm. Stevens told the Today show earlier today Todd’s condition had improved.
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NT government accused of failing to address climate risks before approving Beetaloo Basin gas project
A letter from one of the panel members of the Northern Territory’s fracking inquiry says the Fyles government has not fully implemented key recommendations, including those aimed at reducing the risk new gas developments pose for the climate.
Environment groups say it shows “serious outstanding issues” remain with plans to expand the gas industry in the Beetaloo Basin, a day after the NT government cleared the way for a move from exploration to production.
Dr David Ritchie, who was tasked with overseeing the implementation of the Pepper inquiry’s 135 recommendations, wrote there had been “material departures” from some of its recommendations.
They include recommendations to mitigate the risk of excessive greenhouse gas emissions, the risk of distrust in government and the risks to Aboriginal people and their culture.
Read the full story here:
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‘Australia has become a lot harsher for those with less’: parliamentary committee releases interim report into poverty
A cross-party parliamentary committee urged the Albanese government to take action to address poverty in the May budget, but the committee did not go so far as to recommend a specific rise in the jobseeker payment.
An interim report released on Thursday by a committee examiningpoverty recommended targeted measures to tackle “rising inequality and entrenched disadvantage, including through the income support system”.
The Greens recommended in the party’s additional comments in the report that the government raise the rate of jobseeker and other support payments to $88 a day, regardless of age, and the government establish a national definition of poverty.
The committee acknowledged recent calls by the newly formed economic inclusion advisory committee for the government to commit to a substantial rise in the base rates of jobseeker and related working-age payments.
The committee heard from people from across the country who had directly experienced poverty.
A woman called Genevieve said in today’s Australia there was a “huge divide” between the haves and the have-nots:
Australia has become a lot harsher for those with less, and the safety net for low-income, single-parent families has all but disappeared.
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Councils and police shutting down pro-LBGT events will embolden the far right, activists say
LGBT activists and allies have voiced their disappointment in the cancellation of a drag story time event in Melbourne, with LBGT officer for the National Union of Students, Grace Hill, saying this will only embolden the fringe groups.
There’s a clear pattern of intimidation happening across the country by far-right and neo-Nazi groups and it is extremely problematic that councils are responding by cancelling pro-LGBT events.
Decisions by councils and Victoria police to shut down these pro-LBGT events only emboldens the far right and neo-Nazis to increase their campaigns of terror and diminishes hard-won LGBT rights.
Omar Hassan, a rally organiser from the Campaign Against Racism and Fascism, which was preparing to protest in support of the event, said they are increasingly frustrated by the success of these groups.
We called this community rally after being increasingly frustrated by the success the far right was having, and the failure of a single council to respond with a clear political defence of LGBT rights.
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Moira Deeming to legally challenge suspension from Victorian Liberals
The suspended Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming has written to her party colleagues telling them she is commencing legal action against the leadership team.
Deeming had issued an ultimatum to the party’s leader, John Pesutto, to publicly exonerate her of being affiliated with Nazis by 2pm Thursday or face legal action, six weeks after she was suspended for attending an anti-transgender rally.
Pesutto stood the threat down.
In an email, seen by Guardian Australia, Deeming wrote:
Given that the leadership did not make the statement of exoneration, or confirm my return [to the party], and that no mediation or even any minutes exist to settle this dispute, I have advised my lawyers to prepare a legal challenge over my suspension, because I believe that we need to come together as colleagues and have a do-over meeting.
If my suspension is re-confirmed, we can make sure that the legal conditions are explicitly agreed upon and then we can all get back to working for Victorians.
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Plants, fungi and animals turning up on the dark web
Animals, plants, fungi and their parts are being routinely traded on the dark web, mostly for use as drugs or medicine, university research has found.
The University of Adelaide’s check on marketplaces, forums and messaging apps found a large amount of wildlife was available. Using a database of more than 50 dark websites, the research team identified 153 species being routinely traded.
The study’s lead researcher, Phill Cassey, said:
Most plants were advertised for their use as drugs, often as psychedelics, but some for their purported medicinal properties.
Fungi and animals were also traded for use as drugs, including the infamous Colorado River toad, which is known for its ability to exude toxins from glands within its skin that have psychoactive properties.
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Greens resist pressure to fold on Labor’s housing Australia future fund
The Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather has hit back against the pressure mounting on the party to support Labor’s $10bn housing affordability future fund.
The Greens’ 11 Senate votes are now sufficient to pass the bill, which guarantees a minimum of 1,200 social and affordable houses in each territory and state over five years, after the government struck a deal with the Jacqui Lambie network. On Wednesday, eight state and territory housing ministers wrote to senators urging them to pass the bill.
Chandler-Mather wrote on Twitter:
We have said repeatedly we are willing to negotiate on our calls for a freeze on rent increases, investing $5bn a year in public and affordable housing and doubling rent assistance.
Of course [the] Greens aren’t going to waive through a plan that gambles money on the stock market to maybe build 1,200 homes total per state when millions are currently in housing stress.
There are millions of people hurting right now, we don’t need a future plan for housing that gambles money on the stock market, we need a plan to invest billions of dollars right now in public & genuinely affordable housing & to freeze rent increases. And really the question is…
— Max Chandler-Mather (@MChandlerMather) May 4, 2023
Every weekend we knock on hundreds of doors across the country and we hear the same thing again and again: ‘Don’t back down until you force Labor to actually invest billions of dollars in building public housing and freeze rent increases.’
Our Paul Karp has more on the situation here:
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Bob Brown Foundation to appeal MMG mine lease decision
The Bob Brown Foundation will appeal a lease granted to China-owned miner MMG to prevent protesters, media and the public accessing public land 8km outside the dumping area in Tasmania’s Tarkine rainforest for the company’s Rosebery mine.
The foundation lodged the appeal to the full bench of the supreme court of Tasmania after the lease was granted by a single judge, Justice Alan Michael Blow.
The foundation has been campaigning for more than two years to prevent the company from dumping waste in the rainforest, which is home to a number of threatened species, including the Tasmanian devil and the critically endangered swift parrot.
The Foundation’s takayna/Tarkine campaigner, Scott Jordan, said:
The idea that a company can take possession of one area of public land to prevent public scrutiny of what it does on another leased area is inconsistent with the allowable purposes in the Mineral Resources Development Act 1995.
We will also be seeking a ruling that Justice Blow erred in not allowing [the] Bob Brown Foundation to subpoena the former minister for resources Guy Barnett. Barnett gave four contradictory accounts of what he had considered in granting the lease.
It was impossible for the court to know which of those accounts, if any, were true without proper cross examination.
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Magistrate commends activist Deanna ‘Violet’ Coco for ‘noble’ beliefs but says she went too far
A magistrate has commended high-profile NSW environmental activist Deanna “Violet” Coco but said she had gone “too far” by defacing a Perth police station.
Coco, 32, was convicted and fined $200 after she admitted spray painting four yellow Woodside Energy logos on the front windows of the Perth police centre a day earlier.
The Western Australian magistrates court was told her actions at the police station were an act of solidarity with local campaigners targeted by police amid an escalating crackdown on protesters.
Coco, who was jailed and then released last year after being charged with offences relating to activism in New South Wales, was remanded in custody on Wednesday night after her arrest.
More on this story here:
Thanks Natasha May for taking us through this morning! I’ll be with you for the rest of today.
That’s it from me for today. I leave you in the excellent hands of Jordyn Beazley.
Second teenager charged after three killed in car crash of stolen vehicle
A second teenage boy has been charged in relation to the Maryborough crash which killed three people Sunday.
On Monday, a teenage boy was charged with three counts of dangerous driving causing death, and one count of unlawful use of a motor vehicle, after allegedly stealing a Mercedes and crashing it into the back of a Holden.
The traffic crash killed 17-year-old Kelsie Davies and 29-year old Michale Chandler in one car, and a 52-year-old nurse in another.
Queensland police have today charged a second 13-year-old boy in relation to the alleged theft of a vehicle which was involved in the crash.
Police will allege the Mercedes-Benz was stolen from a Maryborough address around 8.40pm, and was then involved in the fatal crash around 10.45pm.
Police said in a statement:
The second 13-year-old boy who has now been charged was not in the vehicle at the time of the fatal crash.
Police have found no evidence a passenger ran from the alleged stolen Mercedes-Benz after the crash as initially suggested.
The 13-year-old Maryborough boy has been charged with two counts of unlawful use of a motor vehicle, and one count each of driving without a licence, possessing dangerous drugs.
He is due to re-appear in Maryborough children’s court at a later date.
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Monash cancels drag storytime event after neo-Nazis threats
Monash council’s drag storytime event scheduled for 19 May has been cancelled, amid security threats from neo-Nazis and fascist fringe groups.
It is the fifth queer event in Melbourne to be shut down in the last six months.
In a statement, the city of Monash’s CEO, Dr Andi Diamond, said the council said they had been briefed by Victoria police who told them there was a risk to the safety of staff, attendees and council facilities.
Councillors and staff have received messages that nobody should be expected to receive in their workplace, as have our LGBTIQA+ community. In recent days these threats have escalated to direct threats of violence involving the event itself.
Our drag storytime event was designed to introduce children to diverse role models and encourage acceptance, love, and respect of our LGBTIQA+ community. It is so disappointing that some people have a long way to go before this is achieved.
Diamond apologised to the LGBTIA community for this outcome.
I hope they understand we did not make this decision lightly and we share their disappointment.
Fascist fringe groups have been targeting queer events in Melbourne for over six months now, with 200 people linked to fringe groups protesting a meeting of Monash council last week.
Updated
Benita mentioned a little earlier Victorian premier Daniel Andrews’ statement in question time saying he was saddened Monash City council had to cancel a drag queen storytime event after threats of violence. My colleague Cait Kelly has more information on exactly what occurred …
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A candlelight vigil was last night held in Brisbane to mark domestic violence awareness month.
Australians killed due to domestic violence were remembered by the premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, attorney general, Shannon Fentiman, the daughter of murder victim Doreen Langhams, Shayne Probert, and the mother of murder victim Bianca Girvan, Sonia Holiday.
Here are some of the images from the event:
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Jenny Craig operations to continue in Australia despite US closure
Global weight loss company Jenny Craig will continue its operations in Australia and New Zealand, despite the US branch filing for bankruptcy.
A spokesperson for the Australian outfit said:
You may have heard the news that Jenny Craig USA are intending to file for bankruptcy.
While this is unfortunate news for our colleagues in the USA, the Jenny Craig operations here in Australia and New Zealand do act independently.
Here in Australia and New Zealand we currently continue to operate and support our clients.
Abuse and mental health concerns raised around voice referendum
In the voice hearing, Labor senator Louise Pratt asked about concerns regarding abuse around the referendum, noting vilification of LGBTQI people during the marriage equality postal survey. She said the Victorian government, for instance, had put in place extra counselling services during the debate, and that members of the LGBTQI community had voiced concerns around mental health.
The National Indigenous Australians Agency acknowledged the referendum could be a “challenging period” for Indigenous people, noting concerns around vilification and impacts on mental health.
The NIAA said the Department of Health already provided counselling services specifically related to Indigenous people, and referred questions to that department. NIAA said it was considering how to moderate comments on its own social media, noting racial comments “which can be quite prevalent”.
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Asio has given advice on foreign interference risk for voice referendum
The Senate hearing into administration of the Indigenous voice referendum has heard that the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation has given security advice around the risk of foreign interference in the vote.
Anthony Cole, first assistant secretary at the counter FI centre at the Department of Home Affairs, said the matter of foreign interference was a matter for intelligence agencies - but noted the election integrity assurance taskforce has received security advice from Asio relating to the referendum.
Liberal senator James Paterson noted that the department obviously couldn’t reveal sensitive security advice in an open forum like the hearing, but asked if they could provide any general update on what that advice said – but Cole said he was unable to even do that.
Paterson accepted that reasoning but said he would push on under what he said was the “reasonable assumption that it is a risk, based on what we’ve seen around the world”.
He noted recent allegations from Canada of interference in their political system. Paterson said the Chinese communist party had sought to meddle in elections and votes, not only to secure a specific outcome but to sow “division and disunity and undermine national cohesion” in those political systems.
As Paterson raised concerns about China’s involvement in election issues, noting reports of foreign interference online, Cole said his department felt that it had appropriate powers to deal with such issues.
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Gallagher says work of budget repair won’t finish with the budget on Tuesday night
Circling back to the finance minister’s interview with Sky News, asked how much of a big deal a surplus would be for her, Gallagher said:
The significant improvement we’re seeing in the near term is welcome. And a part of that is obviously the things that we’re selling overseas and getting good money for, our employment levels are very strong and that means our payments for people are less than what they would have been normally expected to be. So there’s a combination of things there.
But also a big part is around the restraint we’re showing, the fact that in October we banked a lot of the revenue upgrades. You’ll see a continuation of that approach where we’re serious about budget repair, we want to show restraint.
We want to make investments where we can afford them, but there’s a bigger budget repair story that we need to continue to work on and you’ll see that work doesn’t finish on Tuesday night – if anything, you know, it accelerates as we work on the longer term and medium term pressures.
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Daniel Andrews to Monash city council: ‘equality is not negotiable’
The Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, has made a statement in question time following reports Monash City council has cancelled a drag queen story time event after threats of violence.
He said:
I’m saddened to have to rise to make a statement to the house in relation to quite shameful conduct out of the City of Monash last week and decisions that, very sadly, the CEO and the mayor of that council have have had to make in relation to cancelling a number of events.
Events that are about celebrating diversity, events that are about sending a message to often some of the most vulnerable people in our Victorian community that they are loved, they are respected, they are safe, and they are supported by their government and their community.
Now I make this statement not just as the premier of the state where equality is not negotiable. I also make this statement as a longtime ratepayer in the city of Monash.
Andrews also criticised the protesters who derailed the council’s meeting last week:
My message to those people is very clear: if you want to behave like the worst elements of the Floridian Republican party, well get to Florida.
Head over there where your hateful views might be worth something. They’re worth nothing here. We won’t stand for this sort of behaviour.
It’s appalling and I can make the point it’s not about free speech. This is hate speech plain and simple. It is wrong. It is out of step with the values of fair minded, decent, mainstream Victorians, it is on the fringe.
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Back to Victorian parliament’s question time …
Deputy premier Jacinta Allan also made a couple of digs at Pesutto over the 2pm deadline Deeming set him:
I appreciate the leader of the opposition for being distracted in the lead-up to question time today. He was very focused on two o’clock today, Speaker, for reasons other than question time.
Then later:
You might be more interested in the bickering on your team. We’re more interested in getting the work done.
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Gallagher on energy measures in budget
On what might be in the budget to help the energy transition, Gallagher says there is a need to support “the transition that’s occurring in front of our eyes” and seize the opportunities that come with it. But she also says it’s a process which is “not going to be solved in one budget”.
Updated
Gallagher is not pretending this budget has been an easy one.
It’s been a very challenging set of circumstances. It’s my first full budget process.
Katy Gallagher asked about jobseeker: ‘There’s certainly a lot of speculation around the place’
Circling back to the finance minister, Katy Gallagher, on Sky News. She still is not confirming whether the government will be raising jobseeker for those over 55.
Gallagher says:
Well, there’s certainly a lot of speculation around the place at the moment about what the budget has got in it and what it does, and I can confirm there will be a a significant or substantial cost of living package that’s included in the budget that’s targeted to those who are most vulnerable and you will see that on Tuesday night.
We’ve made no secret that we wanted to review all the payments, every budget, to make sure we could do what we can – you’d expect governments to do that and been doing that work through this budget.
But we’ve also been mindful of other pressures on the budget and other areas where we have to invest as well. A budget is thousands of decisions taken together, which create that final budget document which was really about how you balance up all of those competing pressures.
We are in the very irritating part of the budget process this final few days before Tuesday where there’s a lot of speculation and we’re all sitting here saying “Wait, see what’s in the budget on Tuesday.”
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Victorian Labor minister to Pesutto: ‘On this side we actually work together’
I expected Labor would capitalise on the division within the Liberal party during question time and within seconds, they delivered.
Planning minister Sonya Kilkenny was asked by Liberal leader John Pesutto about Jacinta Allan’s expanded responsibilities, to which she replied:
I thank the member for his question. The difference between this side and that side is on this side, we actually work together.
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Pesutto misses Deeming deadline
Victorian Liberal leader John Pesutto has missed a deadline set by suspended MP Moira Deeming to issue a statement declaring he does not believe she is a Nazi or Nazi sympathiser or face legal action.
Deeming gave Pesutto until 2pm on Thursday to make the statement, which she claims was part of an agreement struck when she was suspended from the parliamentary Liberal party in March.
She wrote in an email to Pesutto this morning:
If by 2pm today, we do not have an agreed upon statement that exonerates me from the charges laid against me, (as per the partyroom agreement) I will consider that the leadership have failed to honour the suspension agreement and I will be forced to challenge it officially, demand re-entry to the party room and instruct my lawyers to commence legal proceedings.
It’s unclear where things go from here. Pesutto’s camp denied he ever made an agreement to issue a joint statement with her while some Liberal party MPs are furious that she’s threatening legal action.
There’s some talk of moving another expulsion motion against her if she follows through with the threat.
In any event, it will make for an interesting final question time of the sitting week.
Katy Gallagher on possibility of surplus
Andrew Clennell is now interviewing the finance minister, Katy Gallagher.
When he asks how big the surplus will be, Gallagher doesn’t confirm the budget will be in surplus. She says:
Well, Andrew, people will have to wait for Tuesday night to see the budget in full, but I think the treasurer and I have been clear that for some time now there’s a significant improvement in the short term … the medium term remains a significant budget challenge …
Updated
And more on the possible surplus …
Sky News is reporting that government sources have told the media organisation that final revenue numbers have shown a surplus will be recorded this year.
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ACMA expects Facebook, Apple and Twitter may provide ‘forward looking information’ about measures they’re taking for the referendum
Pertinently to the referendum, the communications regulator also has administration of a voluntary industry code on misinformation and disinformation. That voluntary code has eight signatories (including Meta & Facebook, Apple, TikTok and Twitter), with ACMA holding “preliminary conversations” about their preparations for the referendum.
There are transparency reports for the code due to be reported this month, with ACMA witnesses expecting those companies may provide “forward looking information” about measures they’re taking for the referendum.
ACMA is also engaging with platforms who are not signed up to the code, including message board Reddit and Snapchat. They said those meetings included encouraging them to sign up to the voluntary code, and chatting about their arrangements and preparation for the referendum.
ACMA is additionally working to identify larger platforms who aren’t engaged with the code yet, like message board Discord, seeking further clarification on how they will manage risks around the vote.
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ACMA reaching out to online platforms on misinformation around Indigenous voice
The Australian Communications and Media Authority says it is reaching out to platforms including Discord, Snapchat and Reddit about the Indigenous voice referendum, to discuss their policies around misinformation online.
Today the Senate’s Finance & Public Administration References Committee is holding an inquiry into administration of the referendum, with a focus on mitigating the potential for foreign influence, and issues around mis- or disinformation.
ACMA says it has oversight of advertisements on TV and radio, including those that will go around the referendum. They told the hearing they hadn’t had any complaints or enquiries about authorisation messages on referendum material yet.
The regulator said it would enforce the “blackout period” for traditional advertising in the lead-up to the referendum - from midnight on the Wednesday night before the referendum (which must be held on a Saturday), TV and radio cannot broadcast ads about the vote. ACMA also manages issues around broadcasters maintaining compliance with codes about accuracy and impartiality, as well as offensive content.
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Wallace: ‘It’s in my interest, as well as Australia’s interest, that we get these on time and on budget’
Wallace was asked what guarantees he could give Albanese that the program would not be delayed or run over budget. Wallace replied to the effect that the UK and Australia were in it together:
Well, first of all, the best guarantee is, if there is delay and it is over budget, my submarines will be delayed and over budget. And I don’t want that either.
And the submarines that we put out right now, they have a shelf life. And you have to replace them. So, there is no, ‘Let’s take a big gap’. We have to deliver them. We have to deliver them together. The shared technology requires us to also make sure we’re building together. The reactive things like that will be predominantly a shared technology, or certainly, we’ll be helping each other as far as we can.
So, I think, first and foremost, it’s in my interest, as well as Australia’s interest, that we get these on time and on budget.
But delays would not be unprecedented. The Guardian has previously reported that Britain’s £31bn replacement for its ageing Vanguard class Trident nuclear submarines had been plagued by delay since first approved in 2007.
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UK defence secretary plays down concerns Aukus’s final stage could suffer delays and cost blowouts
Ben Wallace joined the Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, for a tour of the shipyards in Barrow-in-Furness. Albanese is visiting the UK ahead of the coronation of King Charles on Saturday.
The final phase of the plan is to build the “SSN-Aukus” – a nuclear-powered submarine based on a British design and incorporating US technology – at the Osborne shipyard in Adelaide.
The first such boat is expected to be finished and provided to the Royal Australian Navy in the early 2040s – about five years after the first UK-built SSN-Aukus is scheduled to enter into that county’s service. The Australian government has pointed to this gap as a deliberate move to reduce risk surrounding the yet-to-be-completed new design.
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It is also true to say the government hasn’t ruled out a budget surplus …
For example, see this exchange between Radio National’s Patricia Karvelas and treasurer Jim Chalmers earlier in the week:
Karvelas:
Treasurer, is a budget surplus possible next week given the magnitude of recent commodity-based revenue upgrades?
Chalmers:
Certainly there’ll be a substantial improvement this year because of a few things, not just commodity prices, but also lower unemployment and stronger wages growth. But the numbers are still bouncing around a bit. There are still a couple of decisions to finalise and we don’t print the budget until the weekend so it’s a bit premature. The other thing is even with this quite substantial near-term improvement in the budget, the pressures on the budget in the third and fourth and subsequent years are actually intensifying rather than easing. We’ve got a structural challenge in the budget, which isn’t dealt with by this temporary improvement.
Karvelas:
I think that’s right in terms of the budget structure but when you say a substantial near-term increase, could we even have a one-off surplus? Is that a possibility next week?
Chalmers:
I think it’s premature still because, as I said before, there’s still a bit to finalise. We’ve got a week to go until the budget. It doesn’t get printed, as I said, until the weekend.
Karvelas:
But it’s possible, right?
Chalmers:
Well, it’s sort of premature because there’s a couple of things still to be determined. But your broader point about whether or not there’s an improvement, there is - in the near term - a substantial improvement, but then a deterioration after that. And it is partly because of the prices that we’re getting for our exports, but also we are over-performing when it comes to the unemployment rate and when it comes to the beginnings of wages growth, which is very welcome, and that feeds into a better bottom line in the near term as well.
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‘Short-term improvement’ but no confirmation Labor will deliver a budget surplus
Sky News is reporting that Labor will deliver a budget surplus on Tuesday ahead of an interview with finance minister, Katy Gallagher.
Gallagher is quoted as saying she and the treasurer have been “clear for some time now that there’s a significant improvement in the short term” but the longer term years remain a “significant budget challenge”.
Guardian Australia understands that while Gallagher said the improvement was “welcome” she did not, in fact, confirm that the budget will be in surplus.
It’s a reasonable supposition that it will be - in fact economist Chris Richardson has noted there was a “wafer thin” surplus in the 12 months to March.
And there she blows!!
— Chris Richardson (@ChrisEconomist) April 28, 2023
The budget was in surplus in the past yr, with the 12 mths to March 2023 showing a surplus of $1.034 bn
Yes, that's wafer thin. & there's no economic difference between a billion in surplus & a billion in deficit
But it's a $204bn turnaround in 25 mths pic.twitter.com/GNPvuS7iiD
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May the 4th be with you!
The Albanese government continues to embrace the spirit of Star Wars Day … NDIS minister Bill Shorten superimposing his face on to Han Solo’s and education minister Jason Clare spruiking cheaper childcare for all the baby Yodas out there.
This is the way. #MayTheFourthBeWithYou pic.twitter.com/H61g3uYkaK
— Jason Clare MP (@JasonClareMP) May 3, 2023
Greater Union, the cinema I first saw Star Wars at when I was a kid, may be gone but the Resistance lives on!
— Bill Shorten (@billshortenmp) May 4, 2023
Happy May the 4th✨✨ pic.twitter.com/Uac9wW1fwR
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For the full story on suspended Victorian Liberal MP, Moira Deeming threatening to take legal action opposition leader, John Pesutto, you can read Benita Kovolos’s article here:
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‘The whole higher education system has been pushed to the brink’: more than 1,000 university staff mobilised at rally
More than 1,000 staff and students from Victorian universities mobilised in Melbourne yesterday at a mass rally organised by the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) pushing against insecure work and wage theft in the sector.
Melbourne, Federation, Deakin, Monash and La Trobe universities all walked off the job to march to Melbourne’s Trades Hall, a union site dating back to the 1800s, while RMIT also held a campus action.
A massive turnout from @NTEUVictoria to Trades Hall today.
— Luke Hilakari (@lhilakari) May 3, 2023
So many unionists here that they all couldn’t fit in Solidarity Hall so the rest rallied on the street.
It’s time universities started to take the demands of their staff seriously, because they are not backing down. pic.twitter.com/c0FC4dHmC0
National Union of Students education officer Xavier Dupé said it was the largest university strike in memory and there was “more to come”.
This is unprecedented in Melbourne. You could feel the anger in the air. Students are angry because we can see our tutors being ground down every day by huge workloads, job insecurity and pay which hasn’t kept up with the cost of living crisis. The whole higher education system has been pushed to the brink.
Beneath the Eight Hour Day monument voting alongside 1000+ @NTEUVictoria comrades to escalate our campaign against uni management, incl with more state-wide strikes.
— Daniel Lopez (@NoLuckLopez) May 3, 2023
This has been a long time coming. And now we’ve gotten started, ain’t gonna stop till the sector is transformed. pic.twitter.com/QOKi22oags
We’re angry because we have to watch our Hecs debts rising with inflation, cope with rent increases and higher food prices, and then sit in overcrowded classrooms because university managements refuse to pay enough staff.”
Take a deep dive into the challenges confronting university staff and students here:
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NSW Nationals MP faces expulsion over plum parliament job
NSW Nationals MP Ben Franklin is facing expulsion from his party as colleagues consider referring his potential nomination for a powerful role within the NSW parliament to the state’s corruption watchdog, AAP reports.
Premier Chris Minns is backing a bid from Franklin, a close friend, to become upper house president in a move that would make it easier for Labor to pass legislation in the split chamber.
The president does not vote on bills, so the elevation would slice a vote from the opposition, making it easier for the government to pass laws.
The crisis prompted the Nationals to call a snap party-room meeting on Thursday morning, when MPs also discussed referring the matter to the Independent Commission Against Corruption.
Deputy premier Prue Car accused the Nationals of trying to use the corruption watchdog to mediate political grievances.
Car:
If Ben decides to nominate, it’s a matter for him personally, and the National party needs to sort that out within itself.
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Pesutto says whether Deeming takes legal action against him is ‘a matter for her’
Pesutto:
If Moira Deeming is going to take action to sue me and effectively sue the parliamentary Liberal party, I think that would be a matter for her to consider. She’s free to do what she wants. I’m focused on holding the Andrews government to account.
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Deeming gives Pesutto deadline to declare he doesn't think she is a Nazi sympathiser
Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming has urged opposition leader John Pesutto to signal he does not believe she is a Nazi sympathiser or face legal action.
Guardian Australia has confirmed Deeming has given Pesutto until 2pm on Thursday to make a media statement to this effect. The ultimatum is the latest in deepening divisions within the branch of the Victorian Liberal party.
Earlier today, Pesutto denied bullying allegations made against him by a female Liberal MP who claimed she was reduced to tears in a party room meeting.
Pesutto is reported to have accused Renee Heath - an ally of Deeming - of leaking partyroom meeting minutes to Sky News host Peta Credlin. The minutes relate to a meeting in March when MPs met to decide the fate in the party of Deeming after she attended an anti-transgender rally that was gatecrashed by neo-Nazis.
Speaking to ABC radio, Pesutto denied the bullying allegation and said he only raised a “process” issue about the meeting minutes.
Liberal MPs Matthew Guy - former opposition leader - and James Newbury have also declared there are “terrorists” in the party room attempting to undermine Pesutto’s leadership.
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Albino echidnas and white wallabies
Local Wires volunteer John Grant told the ABC he has only seen “three or four” albino echidnas in his 10 years working for the animal rescue service.
Albinism occurs in mammals when they inherit one or more mutated genes from both parents that interfere with the body’s production of melanin, which is the pigment that determines the colour of skin, fur and eyes.
Seeing the white wallabies of Bruny Island was definitely the highlight of my trip to Tasmania last year – which is saying a lot considering how good the cheese they make there is too.
Had to take pics to prove my eyes didn’t deceive me - white wallabies at Bruny Island, Tasmania. pic.twitter.com/Gwd8UayTDM
— Natasha May (@natasha__may) August 11, 2022
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Rare albino echidna spotted in central-west NSW
The echidna, christened “Raffie”, was seen wandering around by a staff member of Bathurst regional council.
The council has released pictures of the rare mammal it says “is just too beautiful not to share” but is warning locals to be considerate:
If you see Raffie out, please feel free to take a couple of snaps but do not approach, touch, or try and contain him. It is important to leave wildlife alone, as you could risk them losing their scent trail or leaving young unattended in the burrow. Of course, if you spot any injured wildlife, please contact Wires.
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Pesutto claims elements of Herald Sun story on the stoush ‘completely wrong’
Pesutto:
I’m not asking you to take my word for it, but I will ask you to talk to the colleagues, particularly those who went on the record.
It’s a clear dig at his colleagues who have been leaking to reporters. Former opposition leader, Matthew Guy, earlier called out “faceless leakers” for undermining the Liberal party.
Updated
Pesutto says Liberal MPs not keen on ‘reform project’ should ‘consider their position’
If people don’t want to be a part of that reform project, then I think it’s important that they consider their position. Do they want to remain in the parliament long-term?
Some MPs who spoke to Guardian Australia have claimed Pesutto brought the party-room secretary, Renee Heath, to tears after accusing her of leaking the minutes of the March meeting to Sky News anchor Peta Credlin.
Pesutto, however, claims he only raised a “process” issue about the meeting minutes, which she is responsible for under her role as secretary.
Updated
Victorian Liberal leader John Pesutto asked if he is a bully
Pesutto starts his press conference with a three-minute minute spiel covering the latest headlines, then has his deputy, David Southwick, and the party’s upper house leader, Georgie Crozier, comment before he finally addresses the allegations. Asked if he is a bully, Pesutto says:
I think you all know me. I think Victorians are getting to know me. I’ve been dealing with many of you over many years and I’ve known and worked with so many of my colleagues in this parliament.
I’m leading with a collaborative inclusive and professional style. I understand that reforming the party is not easy. It will take a lot of time and a lot of work.
And I just want Victorians to know that as a new leader taking over the Liberal party as of last December, I’m committed to that reform project, but it is going to take some time. I’m asking Victorians to stick with me as I go on that journey.
Updated
Pesutto press conference
Victorian Liberal leader John Pesutto is holding a press conference at parliament following allegations he bullied MP Renee Heath during a party room meeting earlier this week.
Updated
Chalmers asked if aged care pay rise will worsen budget’s structural deficit
Treasurer says the government will weigh up the three objectives of next Tuesday’s budget (cost of living relief, responsible restraint and laying the foundations for future growth).
We’ll take the pressure off the budget in some areas and there will be additional pressures on the budget in other areas and we will make room for important priorities like the one we’re talking about today.
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Chalmers urges banks to pass on rate increases to savers as quickly as to borrowers
Asked about the record profits NAB posted this morning, as mortgage holders are feeling the pain of the reserve bank’s interest rate rises, the treasurer says:
I think that is the main thing that makes people really unhappy in our community is the sense that interest rate hikes get passed on quite quickly to borrowers and sometimes more slowly to savers. If they are going to pass it on to borrowers quickly they should pass on to savers quickly as well.
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Wells on nurse staffing requirements
Wells is defending the nurse staffing requirements against any unintended flow-on effects in the aged care sector.
(The Coalition has previously pointed to recent closures of Wesley Mission’s three aged care homes and predicted more will close due to an inability to meet the government’s deadlines to have the new staffing measures in place.)
Wells says:
The point to make here is that we are paying 24/7 nurses. We are paying for the pay rise. Stuart Brown, who is the aged care accountant that everybody uses, estimated that this pay rise will cost $8bn and we are providing $11.3bn to make sure that the full costs are covered.
Wells says on-costs like leave liabilities and super have also been accounted for.
Updated
Chalmers says government has ‘gone out of its way’ to budget for aged care pay rise
This is what is possible when we put the national budget on a more responsible and more sustainable footing.
… We have gone out of our way, here, to make sure that we can afford and that we can work through in a responsible and methodical way, this historic pay rise for aged care workers today.
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Wells hails ‘enormous’ increase in rate per aged care resident per day
The other part of the announcement is a historic increase to the daily rate for residents in aged care. Wells says:
One of the last decisions the Morrison government made was to award the indexation rate at a percentage of 1.7%.
Today’s announcement, when you sum it up, is a 17% increase per resident per day in aged care.
That is enormous and that properly and fairly addresses the costs of delivering quality aged care in this country.
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Anika Wells says 15% aged care pay rise is a ‘seismic shift’
Aged care minister Anika Wells:
Today, we turn a corner for aged care in Australia … long deserved, long-awaited for, and now with the Labor government it is here.
What that means for aged care workers… nearly $140 a week extra, or $7,000 a year extra in your pay packet.
If you are a registered nurse it means $198 a week extra, or nearly more than $10,000 a year extra.
That is life-changing money for people.
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Jim Chalmers and Anika Wells on aged care pay rise
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, and the aged care minister, Anika Wells, have stepped up to speak about the pay rise for care workers in Canberra.
You can get the full picture about that budget commitment from my colleague Josh Butler:
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Reports Jenny Craig shutting doors in US
There are reports that a household name in the weight loss business, Jenny Craig, is shutting its doors in the US but will remain open in Australia.
NBC News is citing internal communications to employees:
In an email sent to employees late Tuesday, the company said it will close ‘due to its inability to secure additional financing’.
A US employee has told Bloomberg it’s possible franchise-owned locations could remain open. 7 News is reporting Australian and New Zealand arms of the business will continue operations as usual.
JENNY CRAIG: Australian and New Zealand arms of the business to continue operations as usual. Just the US version going under. Statement coming soon from company. @7NewsMelbourne
— Blake Johnson (@BlakeJohnson) May 4, 2023
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Governments release response to review of child abuse redress scheme
The Australian and state and territory governments have just released their final response to a damning March 2021 review of the child abuse redress scheme.
The response has been vastly delayed and failed to meet the former federal government’s self-imposed deadline, prompting criticism from survivors.
It promises to overhaul the redress scheme to simplify its processes, ensure more sensitive and appropriate handling of abuse survivors and applications, and expand its eligibility criteria.
It will open up eligibility to those who are behind bars and to non-citizens and those without permanent residency status, a problem that has restricted child migrants from compensation.
The current barriers for prisoners and those with serious criminal convictions had prompted much criticism. Advocacy groups say they failed to recognise the nexus between child abuse, trauma and later offending.
The government’s response to the review accepts the criticisms. It says:
This change will give prisoners the choice to apply for redress while in gaol or wait to apply upon release from gaol, making the scheme more trauma informed and survivor focussed. The Australian government is working with state and territory partners to ensure that people in gaol are adequately supported in applying to the scheme and to ensure appropriate survivor privacy and safety.
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Treasurer and aged care minister to speak on record 15% pay rise for care workers
Stay tuned, we are expecting the treasurer, Jim Chalmers, and the aged care minister, Anika Wells, to step up to speak about the pay rise for care workers in next week’s budget.
More than 250,000 aged care workers are set to receive a record 15% pay rise to meet the Fair Work Commission’s ruling.
A historic budget for aged care workers, only possible with a Labor Government.
— Anika Wells MP (@AnikaWells) May 3, 2023
More to come with @JEChalmers today. pic.twitter.com/u0iwpLPDDL
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Tanya Plibersek pays tribute to former senator and ‘hero of the peace movement’ Bruce Childs
The environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, has paid tribute to mentor and former senator Bruce Childs, who has died.
A hero of the peace movement, a unionist, a feminist, and the most decent person I’ve known in politics.
As a senator, Bruce fought relentlessly for the rights of working people. He campaigned for peace at the height of the cold war.
And he was an early supporter of feminism, demanding a greater role for women in politics and public life.
I was very sad to learn this morning of the passing of Bruce Childs.
— Tanya Plibersek (@tanya_plibersek) May 4, 2023
Bruce Childs was a Senator, a mentor, a close friend, and a personal hero of mine.
A hero of the peace movement, a unionist, a feminist, + the most decent person I’ve known in politics. I will miss him deeply. pic.twitter.com/rkhtDzZpr8
As a Senator, Bruce fought relentlessly for the rights of working people. He campaigned for peace at the height of the Cold War. And he was an early supporter of feminism, demanding a greater role for women in politics and public life.
— Tanya Plibersek (@tanya_plibersek) May 4, 2023
I was lucky to work for him in my early twenties. He was defined by his thoughtfulness, kindness, strategic brain, and inexhaustible patience.
— Tanya Plibersek (@tanya_plibersek) May 4, 2023
Thinking of Bruce's family, friends, and our whole Labor family. A giant who will be remembered for generations.
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Queensland to manufacture new bomb disposal robots
Robots with the ability to find and neutralise bombs will soon be protecting Australia’s sailors, soldiers and aviators in the field.
The Albanese government has signed a $46m contract with Queensland company L3Harris Micreo to manufacture up to 80 of these robots.
A statement from the defence industry minister, Pat Conroy, says the “world-leading technology” will replace the current in-service robots, which were used in the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts.
Conroy made the announcement on a visit to Cairns, whose naval base will be part of the upgrades to Australia’s northern bases announced in the defence strategic review.
Conroy said a “genuine” partnership between the government and defence industry companies, including in Queensland, was critical to improving operations.
The new robots for the Australian defence force, to be made in Queensland, are an example of building our local industry and workforce on innovative technologies.
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Search was related to alleged offence by journalist’s housemate: WA police boss
Blanch told ABC radio police had not targeted Kloser:
The warrant was specifically in relation to two individuals who have been identified and charged with taking noxious gas and flares into the (Perth) exhibition centre.
Blanch said police had simply searched the house and Kloser’s possessions while looking for evidence in relation to the alleged offending, and her occupation was not a consideration.
Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance media directork, Cassie Derrick, said the execution of the warrant was disturbing and amounted to harassment:
The bottom line is that this kind of police action utterly undermines journalism and the public’s right to know.
– with AAP
Updated
WA police head defends raid of journalist's home and seizure of photos of Burrup rock art removal
The Western Australian police commissioner, Col Blanch, has defended the treatment of a journalist who had her home searched and equipment seized during an investigation into a protest.
Eliza Kloser, a journalist with Ngaarda Media, captured the removal of the art from Murujuga on the Burrup peninsula in the Pilbara on Friday morning.
She said she was stopped twice by two different police patrols within minutes, the first while taking photos on public land, and the second while she was leaving the area on a public road.
Later that afternoon, Kloser was at her home in Karratha when police knocked on the door and said they were executing a warrant.
Earlier that day, Kloser’s housemate, Gerard Mazza, had been arrested in relation to an alleged planned disruption of Woodside’s annual general meeting at the Perth exhibition centre. Mazza has been charged with “aggravated burglary with intent on a place”.
Kloser said she had no prior knowledge of Mazza’s alleged planned disruption and has never had any involvement in activism.
Kloser told police she was a journalist, and had already been stopped twice earlier that day by police at Murujuga, where she had been taking photos.
But officers spent a significant period of time searching through the photos on a camera she predominantly uses for work, she said, before declaring they would be seizing its memory card.
Her bedroom and clothing were also searched.
Updated
Never one to miss an opportunity to kick the Liberal party when it’s down, Daniel Andrews has commented on allegations of bullying within the Liberal party, saying:
If they care about occupational health and safety, they will dob their leader [John Pesutto] into WorkCover.
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Victorian Liberal leader denies allegations he bullied MP Renee Heath
Victorian opposition leader John Pesutto has denied bullying allegations made against him by a female Liberal MP who claims she was reduced to tears in a partyroom meeting.
Pesutto is reported to have accused Renee Heath of leaking partyroom meeting minutes to Sky News host Peta Credlin. The minutes relate to a meeting in March when MPs met to decide the fate in the party of colleague Moira Deeming after she attended an anti-transgender rally that was gatecrashed by neo-Nazis.
Speaking to ABC radio, Pesutto denied the bullying allegation and said he only raised a “process” issue about the meeting minutes:
The partyroom overwhelmingly saw a common sense in what I was proposing and they endorsed that.
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Police officer stabbed yesterday in SA has ‘come through the surgery quite well’
South Australia police commissioner Grant Stevens says the prospects for Ian Todd, the police officer who required surgery after being stabbed yesterday, have improved.
Stevens told the Today show:
He is still in an induced coma but the prospects are looking much better than yesterday.
We’re very pleased at this point in time he got through this surgery.
… The family were able to get some rest last night having heard he’d come through the surgery quite well.
Updated
Pesutto expects most of Liberal partyroom to vote against Indigenous voice
The Victorian opposition leader, John Pesutto, says he expects most of his partyroom will vote no in the Indigenous voice to parliament.
The Victorian Coalition has voted to allow its MPs to choose their position on the proposal to enshrine the advisory body on Indigenous affairs in the constitution. Pesutto has maintained he has an “open mind” to the referendum question, putting him at odds with his federal counterpart Peter Dutton.
Speaking to ABC radio on Thursday, Pesutto said MPs aligned with the centre-right had a fundamental issue with changing the constitution:
I would suggest that probably most people would be erring to the side of no. But that doesn’t mean there’s not a substantial number who will vote yes.
Pesutto said regardless of his position on the voice, he would not campaign for one side because it was not a priority as state opposition leader.
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Pandemic pooches pestering posties
The million dogs welcomed into Australian households during pandemic lockdowns are causing problems for posties, AAP reports.
Australia Post is asking dog owners to secure their pooches because more posties than ever are being attacked, harassed or chased by dogs.
There were 1885 incidents involving dogs and posties between last July and March – surpassing the 1587 recorded during the full 2021/22 financial year.
The organisation said in a statement today:
Australia Post has attributed some of the increase to the over a million additional dogs brought into Australian households between 2019-2021, including during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Andrews bats off questions on future of operation of Myki ticketing system
Andrews has remained tight-lipped on whether Victoria will stick with the company behind its maligned Myki ticketing system or order an overhaul by a new operator.
Victoria’s transport department is expected to announce a winning bidder to run and update the ticket system soon, given the operator of Myki’s contract will expire at the end of the year.
The government has committed to introducing technology that would allow commuters to use their phone to touch on, but it’s not clear whether this will require new ticket readers and gates.
Andrews batted off questions about the tender process saying he did not want to run “negotiation at a press conference”:
Just to be clear, Myki’s contract ends at the end of the year, so there’s always going to have to be a new procurement process. So that’s not special. We have to get a special outcome and you don’t get that by essentially having a tender negotiation at a press conference or breaking the proper processes. That needs to be had here to protect the interest of taxpayers, passengers and everybody.
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Week after V/Line fares slashed was busiest since before Covid, says Daniel Andrews
The Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, is at V/Line headquarters in Melbourne this morning to spruik the cheaper fares that were introduced last month.
He says 1.5 million people took a trip on public transport across regional Victoria since the cheaper fares were introduced on 31 March. In the first week alone, there were 420,000 passengers – making it the busiest week on V/Line since before Covid.
Daily fares are now capped at $9.20 or $4.60 for concession holders, bringing the regional network fares in line with metropolitan Melbourne. It was a key promise from Labor during the November state election.
Andrews said:
My mum travels from north-east Victoria, she comes down to Melbourne for regular medical appointments. Like most 79-year-olds, she’s got some health issues [for which] has to come to Melbourne to see her specialists … Instead of being on a train full of passengers that are all paying $40-50, they’re paying $9.20, or in fact less, if you’re on a concession card … This is a direct benefit and directly supports people at a time when the cost of living pressure is all too real.
He said the new fares would also encourage people from Melbourne to travel to regional Victoria, boosting the local economies
Updated
Greens under pressure to back $10bn social housing bill after Labor strikes JLN deal
For where the government’s housing future fund stands after the minor party deal, our chief political correspondent Paul Karp has the full story this morning:
The deal, which guarantees a minimum of 1,200 social and affordable houses in each territory and state over five years, adds pressure on the Greens, whose 11 Senate votes would now be sufficient to pass the bill.
It follows all eight state and territory housing ministers writing to senators on Wednesday urging them to pass the bill, warning that any obstruction will put delivery of new housing “at risk … delaying Australians’ access to safe and secure housing”.
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NAB profit surges to more than $4bn in six months on back of rate hikes
National Australia Bank has recorded a 17% surge in cash profit to $4.07bn over a six-month period, underpinned by rising interest rates.
The NAB chief executive, Rob McEwan, said in a statement on Thursday:
The higher interest rate environment has also been an important near term driver of revenue this period.
Australia’s major lenders have profited from the string of cash rate hikes dating back to May last year by increasing borrowing costs at a faster pace than deposits. This has led to an increase in its net interest margin, the main gauge of profitability.
Margins increased by 14 basis points to 1.77% in the six months to March, compared to the previous corresponding period.
McEwan said there were early signs that inflation was moderating and that the bank was optimistic about the economic outlook.
NAB also lifted its dividend.
Updated
May the fourth be with you
Today is also unofficially Star Wars Day. For a film series which offers lessons on the maintenance of a stable democratic state, it is unsurprising some our leaders in Canberra are getting into the spirit…
It’s that day again. #MayTheFourthBeWithYou pic.twitter.com/GFOwOS7IA2
— Jason Clare MP (@JasonClareMP) May 3, 2023
Happy Star Wars Day to all who celebrate. May the force always be with you. @JasonClareMP @RobMitchellMP #MayTheFourthBeWithYou #StarWars
— Graham Perrett (@GrahamPerrettMP) May 3, 2023
Never know who you will meet behind the scenes at ABC Melbourne. #MayThe4thBeWithYou @ZakHepburn pic.twitter.com/tsnRRCXMU2
— Patrick Gorman MP (@PatrickGormanMP) May 3, 2023
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Pocock will not block social housing fund bill in Senate
Pocock has indicated he won’t block the housing fund in the upper house, but he wants the government to listen to the expert advice.
I’m not going to stand in the way of a $10 billion fund. But I do expect the government to take on board advice from experts around indexing a fund or allowing it to disperse more when it returns more. And that isn’t the case in this instance.
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Pocock: government must be able to guarantee payments to housing providers
Pocock says he shares the Greens’ concern there is no guaranteed minimum spending on social housing if the government’s future fund doesn’t generate a return.
Clearly I think they’re going to have to guarantee that amount if they are going along the lines of availability payments, where they’re giving community housing providers X amount per year to maintain a social affordable home, they’ve got to be able to guarantee those payments.
So there’s sort of a implicit acknowledgment and acknowledgment that it has to be a floor.
But just so frustrating to see this become political rather than about policy.
Updated
Pocock calls for indexing of housing future fund
Independent senator David Pocock has told ABC Radio he also holds concerns about the structure of the housing future fund. He wants to see the government index the fund and allow it to “disperse more when it returns more”.
He says those two changes are what would secure his support for the legislation.
Updated
Tyrrell hails ‘massive victory for Tasmania’
As we mentioned, every state and territory is set to receive a guaranteed 1,200 affordable homes across the next five years after Tasmanian independent senator Tammy Tyrrell forced the concession from the government in exchange for her support for its housing future fund.
Tyrrell says only half the homes would have been built in her state without the deal:
This is a massive victory for Tasmania. Without this guarantee, we would be looking at maybe 600 homes, depending on how the market performs.
This guarantee doubles the amount of homes Tasmania will receive, in the same amount of time, regardless of the performance of the future fund.
– with AAP
Updated
No silver bullet on housing affordability, Collins says
But the housing affordability fund won’t fix the immediate rental affordability crisis. On whether there needs to be a lift to rental assistance in the budget, Julie Collins says “there is not a silver bullet”:
What we’re doing is working as quickly as possible with states and territories to turn around very serious housing issues in Australia.
Updated
Construction on social housing has started, minister says
Julie Collins says social housing construction has already started since the Albanese government came into power because it knew it would take time for the housing future fund to pass parliament and generate returns:
We’re talking about over five years, from once the fund’s been established, what we already have done is unlock the $576m from the national housing infrastructure facility immediately.
We already have homes under construction through our federal government funding since we’ve come to office today. We did that as an interim measure while we waited for the housing Australia future fund to get up and running.
We know that once the bill passed the parliament that it will take some time to generate some returns and those returns then being available for investment, which is why we’ve done that.
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Social housing fund plan relies on stock market ‘gamble’, Greens say
Greens leader Adam Bandt still isn’t backing the government’s social housing fund because of the way it’s constructed – “a gamble on the stock market” with no guaranteed minimum spending if the fund doesn’t generate a return. Bandt said if the government had gone ahead with its proposal last year not one house would have been built.
But this morning housing minister Julie Collins is saying Bandt is incorrect.
Asked how many houses would have been built, Collins said:
All existing future funds provide consistent and reliable annual disbursement. We’re talking over a decade the average is 9%.
Collins also stresses that the housing fund is “not the only thing” the government is doing when it comes to housing.
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Jacqui Lambie Network senators back housing affordability plans
Senators Jacqui Lambie and Tammy Tyrrell have agreed to back the government’s housing affordability legislation.
The housing minister, Julie Collins, has told ABC Radio the deal was struck after the government agreed to build 1,200 social housing homes in every state and territory:
We’ve agreed to make sure that every state and territory gets a fair share of housing from the housing future funding from other federal government programs.
In the past both territories had received zero social housing from some federal government programs, Collins said:
What we want to do is make sure that every state and territory gets their fair share of funding.
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Five drug-induced deaths a day in 2021, data shows
There were 1,788 drug-induced deaths among Australians in 2021, according to preliminary estimates in a new report by the drug trends program at the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre at UNSW Sydney.
This is equivalent to five drug-induced deaths a day and comprised 1% of all registered deaths in Australia for that year.
Natural and semi-synthetic pharmaceutical opioids like morphine and oxycodone are the primary opioids involved in overdose deaths, followed by heroin.
Drug trends program lead Amy Peacock said about 500,000 people are missing out on drug and alcohol treatment due to a lack of funding:
Many of these deaths occurred in the home. There is opportunity for others present to avert death and reverse the effects of an opioid overdose if they administer a medicine called naloxone.
The Australian Government has funded the availability of naloxone for free, without a prescription, for anyone who may be at risk of witnessing or experiencing an overdose.
‘This is Labor’s inflation’
Angus Taylor won’t name any specific areas where he thinks spending could be cut. He says it’s a matter of sticking to the “very simple formula” of making sure the economy is growing faster than they’re spending.
He criticised the spending the Albanese government added to its October budget:
This is not inflation coming out of the Ukraine, it’s not coming out of Russia. This is coming out of Canberra. This is Labor’s inflation.
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Rate hike a ‘wake-up call’ for Labor, Taylor says
The shadow treasurer, Angus Taylor, described Tuesday’s rate hike as a “wake-up call for government”.
Less than a week out from the Albanese government’s budget, Taylor says if he was in charge of the books he would want to create a clear plan to bring down inflation and a budget surplus.
He’s told ABC News Breakfast this morning:
It is clear that Australia is now running world-leading inflation. We don’t want to lead the world in this way …
First and foremost, we need to see budget surpluses, budget balance over the next four years.
The best way to take the heat off inflation is for the government to manage its spending. That is the most important way to do that.
Guardian columnist Greg Jericho weighed in on the rate rise yesterday:
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Update on two police officers stabbed in SA
Yesterday two police officers were stabbed and an alleged offender shot dead in South Australia’s mid-north.
The South Australian police commissioner, Grant Stevens, says one officer is recovering well while the other came out of surgery late last night.
Stevens has told ABC News Breakfast this morning:
I visited Jordan Allely last night and he’s recovering well. He was in hospital overnight.
The other police officer, Ian Todd, was in surgery until about 11. 30 last night. He’s now recovering from surgery. We’re still waiting to see what the outcome of that procedure will be. His family are with him and all of our best wishes are with him and his family.
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Good morning! Thanks to Martin for getting us started. I’ll be with you until the afternoon.
PM tours UK shipyard building submarine
Anthony Albanese has toured a shipyard in northern England where the UK’s first Aukus submarine will be built, AAP reports.
The prime minister said during a visit to the port town of Barrow-in-Furness yesterday:
We’re talking about the most sophisticated manufacturing task on the planet, which is why it has to be got right.
Australia and the UK will both build the new nuclear-powered military submarines, known as SSN-AUKUS, with Australian personnel picking up skills that will lead to subs being constructed in South Australia. Albanese said:
I look forward to having Australians training alongside the highly skilled submarine builders here in Barrow-in-Furness.
The prime minister said the Australians he met at the BAE Systems shipyard would “bring those skills back home to build a stronger manufacturing sector in Australia”.
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Albanese says he invited King and Queen to visit Australia
Anthony Albanese has made his first comments since meeting King Charles yesterday, saying it is clear the monarch has a “great affection for Australia”. He also said he has invited the monarch to visit. The prime minister described the private audience he had with the king at Buckingham Palace as “very warm”
He told reporters while visiting Barrow-in-Furness in northern England yesterday:
I appreciated the discussion that we had and that King Charles has a great love for and affection for Australia. It comes from his time as a student there but also his many visits to Australia.
The prime minister said he had extended an invitation to visit Australia during the meeting.
I can confirm that I once again reiterated that King Charles and Queen Camilla would be very welcome visitors to Australia as would any other member of the royal family.
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Government to give $1.5m to increase voice awareness
The government will commit almost $1.5m to the Museum of Australian Democracy and Constitution Education Fund Australia to spread awareness of referendum processes ahead of the Indigenous voice campaign later this year.
Indigenous Australians minister Linda Burney today will announce the institutions “will jointly deliver a grassroots civics program which will provide accessible, neutral and easy-to-understand information about the constitution and referendum processes”.
The CEFA will get $1m to “create a range of e-learning materials and digital content to engage all Australians and enhance their understanding of Australia’s democratic systems, the constitution and voting generally throughout the course of the year”.
MOAD will get $475,000 to boost “reach and visibility of their existing civics education products through digital channels, libraries and other public institutions around Australia in the coming months”.
Guardian Australia reported in March that the government had authorised $9.5m of spending for a voice civics and awareness campaign to include the “facts of the voice”. The money was contained in the “decisions taken but not announced” section of October’s budget, revealed in a legislative instrument made by the finance minister, Katy Gallagher.
Burney said on Thursday that since Australia hadn’t held a referendum since 1999, no Australian aged under 42 had ever voted in one:
For many Australians, this will be the first referendum they’ve ever participated in and it’s crucial they have the facts to make an informed decision.
Delivering this civics program will ensure all Australians can contribute respectfully and knowledgeably to the national conversation about the referendum before voting day.
MOAD director Stephanie Bull said her institution would develop digital content around the referendum, while CEFA’s chief executive Kerry Jones said her group would “present the information in an attractive and comprehensive format to a wide range of electors”.
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our rolling news coverage. I’m Martin Farrer and I’ve got details of the top breaking stories this morning before Natasha May comes along to take over.
The federal budget is not until next week but the Albanese government has revealed that one of the biggest measures will be billions of dollars to fund a 15% pay rise for aged care workers. It means about 250,000 workers such as nurses, personal care workers and cooks will be better off from July. Anika Wells, aged care minister, will be making the announcement today.
The government will give almost $1.5m to help the Museum of Australian Democracy and Constitution Education Fund Australia to spread awareness of referendum processes before the voice campaign later this year, Linda Burney will announce today. It comes as the veteran Indigenous rights activist, Gary Foley, warned last night that the Indigenous voice to parliament will face the same fate as its predecessors and be ignored by governments. Speaking in Melbourne, he said the voice would make “no difference” to the lives of First Nations people and not be taken seriously by federal governments.
A new report out today will reveal that Australia sees five drug-induced deaths a day – 1% of all registered deaths in Australia for 2021 (the year that was looked at).
There’s been a dramatic claim by the Russian government that Ukraine tried to assassinate Vladimir Putin with a drone attack on the Kremlin. It appears the attack happened overnight on Tuesday local time with footage on social media showing an explosion above the Kremlin. Russia said the attack had been thwarted by air defences. Ukraine said it did not attack Russian territory and said the attack was the result of “local resistance”.
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