What we learned; Thursday 7 November
This is where we’ll leave the blog for today, but first a quick summary:
Questions about the central bank’s decision to keep interest rates on hold were levelled at Reserve Bank governor Michele Bullock at her regular parliamentary grilling.
Penny Wong said Kevin Rudd will “continue to do an excellent job” as Australian ambassador to the US.
Malcolm Turnbull warned Anthony Albanese not to “suck up” to the new US president and says Aukus is “a dud deal”.
The government announced a new minimum age limit will be 16 for social media platforms.
Ray Hadley announced he would retire from 2GB.
Kevin Rudd deleted social media posts critical of Donald Trump to avoid the comments “being misconstrued”, the foreign affairs department has confirmed.
Anthony Albanese confirmed he had a “very constructive” chat with Donald Trump this morning. Peter Dutton said the president-elect is “not somebody to be scared of”.
Nine Entertainment’s acting CEO Matt Stanton announced another $50m in cost cuts just months after cutting 200 jobs from the media business.
Labor revealed plans to electronically monitor some people freed from immigration detention.
The responsible minister called off meeting with the chair of Queensland’s truth-telling inquiry.
Tony Burke introduced a bill to increase power to send non-citizens to other countries.
The Greens said Labor was “trying to out-Dutton Peter Dutton” on deportation.
Labor will seek to publish the sealed robodebt findings at the “first appropriate opportunity”.
And public sector employees have reached 2.5 million people with wages of $232bn a year.
Enjoy the rest of your Thursday evening.
Updated
Australia’s big investors have been told to keep the faith on climate finance, with the United States expected to - again - dismantle climate policies under a Trump administration, AAP reports.
Chair of the Superpower Institute economist Rod Sims told an investor summit today the world must press ahead with climate action because president-elect Donald Trump will remove America from serious climate action.
He told the Investor Group on Climate Change’s annual conference in Melbourne:
The US can rejoin the ranks of like-minded countries when it is ready to do so.
Professor Sims, a former head of the competition commission, also urged the group’s members, who have $5 trillion under management in Australia, to get behind federal Labor’s Future Made in Australia program.
But be clear you are supporting its economic logic of addressing market failures, and particularly green energy intensive exports, and not supporting government funding to make things in Australia for its own sake.
If you think the world will not decarbonise, you think there will not be a sufficient market for our green energy intensive products.
But Australia can show the world what’s possible if it starts producing green iron, aluminium, fertiliser and green transport fuel, Prof Sims added.
Barden, the Australian Food and Grocery Council chief, also refused to answer a question about the major supermarkets’ profit margins while the ACCC supermarkets inquiry was being heard publicly.
During the hearing this afternoon, which is being live-streamed, the counsel assisting the inquiry, Naomi Sharp SC, told Barden that Coles and Woolworths had told the ACCC their supermarket businesses were “high volume, low margin”.
Sharp asked Barden what feedback the Australian Food and Grocery Council (AFGC) members had provided about the net price of the goods they supplied to the supermarkets compared with the retail prices of the same goods.
Barden replied:
I would prefer questions related to two major players, profit margins and pricing to be taken in private hearing.
It’s just quite a narrow question focused around two major players whom the AFGC does need to collaborate closely with for the benefit of suppliers and consumers on a number of different matters.
And I think in those interests, it would be better for us to answer those questions in a private hearing to maintain those constructive relationships.
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Shrinkflation of food products a ‘difficult decision’ for companies, peak body says
The head of Australia’s peak body for grocery suppliers has defended so-called “shrinkflation”, saying it was a “difficult decision” for manufacturers and not one they “take lightly”.
The Australian Food and Grocery Council chief executive officer, Tanya Barden, has been giving evidence before the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s supermarket inquiry this afternoon.
As Guardian Australia reported last year, food companies have been regularly reducing the size of their products but not the price under a practice known as shrinkflation.
A growing list of companies were doing so to pass on costs and increase profits by avoiding a sensitive price hike that was more likely to attract the ire of customers.
Asked about shrinkflation at the hearing, Barden said:
It is often portrayed as being misleading or sneaky, but the reality is, it reflects a very difficult decision that a manufacturer has to make in light of significant cost increases.
They can put the price up for a consumer, or they can reduce the pack size, or they can cease to manufacture the product, or move the manufacturing of that product offshore.
Now, a manufacturer knows that a consumer is highly sensitive to price.
Sometimes, when faced with significant cost pressures [and] limited ability to absorb those, a manufacturer may decide that the consumer can’t bear any further price increase without ceasing to purchase a product.
Updated
Head of CDC will be separate role to chief medical officer, Senate estimates told
The head of the government’s Centre for Disease Control will be a separate role from the chief medical officer, the health department has told Senate estimates.
Blair Comley, the department secretary, is providing more details about the CDC, which is still in development and intended to be an expert advisory body:
Going forward, when the CDC is established that we will have the chief medical officer, and really the head of the CDC will be more akin to a Chief Health Officer looking at the surveillance, preventative health, etc, and information in a crisis response. But they’ll work very closely together.
So, for example, the chief medical officer would still be the chair of the AHPC [Australian Health Protection Committee], so have that direct link to the states and territories.
And the CDC head, we’d intend to be also a member of the AHPC, which is that key Coordination Group in the in the time of a crisis.
Comley said there is no suggestion the CDC will override state and territory public health decisions.
He elaborated it will be a progressive implementation of the CDC– the starting point will be communicable diseases, “setting ourselves up for the next pandemic or other shocks,” but over time it will have a focus on non-communicable diseases, including chronic diseases, as well.
Updated
Four men arrested in Victoria in ‘day of action’ against neo-Nazi group
Four men have been arrested today after what Victoria police called “a day of action” against the Australian neo-Nazi group the National Socialist Network (NSN).
Police sources have confirmed those arrested include neo-nazi leader Thomas Sewell, 31.
A 31-year-old man was charged with two counts of intimidating a police officer/family member.
The charges follow incidents alleged to have occurred in late October, police said in a statement, including “online commentary” linked to a rally on Bourke Street. He was also interviewed in relation to an incident outside an embassy where a flag was burned.
NSN members documented their attempts to disrupt a refugee rights rally in Docklands on October 22 on their social media channels, as well as a stunt outside the Chinese consulate in Toorak four days later.
The Wantirna South man was bailed to appear at Ringwood magistrates court on 18 February, and was released “pending further enquiries in relation to offences against the Racial and Religious Tolerance Act”.
A North Melbourne man, 25, along with a Baxter man, 23, and an Ashwood man, 21, were also interviewed by detectives in relation to the offences of serious racial vilification and grossly offensive public conduct. All were released and are expected to be charged on summons, police said.
The police interviews relate to an incident the evening of October 31, Halloween, when a number of men in offensive clothing are alleged to have verbally harassed two women in a Port Melbourne car park.
Updated
Man accused of stealing Eftpos machines and processing $670,000 in fraudulent reimbursements in Brisbane
A 38-year-old man has allegedly committed more than $670,000 in fraudulent reimbursement transactions using stolen Eftpos terminals.
Police say they have charged the man with 41 offences after the alleged Eftpos scam which targeted medical businesses.
It will be alleged between October 1 and November 2, the man was involved in a series of break ins, mostly on Brisbane’s southside, where he stole EFTPOS terminals.
He then committed the fraudulent reimbursement transactions using the machines, police allege.
They will further allege just before 6pm last night officers attempted to intercept a stolen motorbike travelling dangerously in Wishart.
Police took the man into custody at a fuel station.
He was subsequently charged with 17 counts of enter premises and commit by break, 13 counts of fraud, four counts of receiving tainted property, two counts of possess dangerous drugs, and one count each of unlawful use of motor vehicle, stealing, dealing identification, possess tainted property, and possess utensil.
He is due to appear at Brisbane magistrates court today.
Updated
Coalition wants government to pass social media ban for children by end of the month
The Coalition is challenging the government to rush through its proposed ban on children using social media as quickly as possible, with shadow communications minister David Coleman saying they want it passed by the end of this month.
Coleman, who has long called for age restrictions on social media, told a press conference that the legislation must be “strong” and without “loopholes” – but also said the opposition wanted it drafted and passed through both houses of parliament this month. He said:
This is an issue which we believe is urgent.
One kink in that plan – the government’s $6.5m trial of age assurance technology hasn’t even begun. So we don’t yet know whether the government’s plan is feasible, or if it is, what type of technologies or information Facebook, TikTok, Twitter or Instagram would need to block their platforms to those under 16.
Anthony Albanese and communications minister Michelle Rowland this morning didn’t rule out biometric scanning or having personal documents made available to the platforms to meet that age assurance barrier.
Coleman said the Coalition wanted the plan to be bipartisan, but he didn’t say what trade-offs in terms of privacy would be acceptable for the opposition. He claimed companies like Facebook already did age verification in some circumstances, but said the government should legislate “a standard which is sufficiently strong to be meaningful”.
Coleman said:
Let’s be very clear to Instagram, let’s be very clear to Tiktok, let’s be very clear to Snapchat, you are captured by this. Your products we believe, as Australians, are not safe for younger children, and we’re going to do everything we sensibly can to require you to protect those Australian children.
It won’t be perfect. Will people be able to point to examples of imperfections, sure. Will it be infinitely better than what we have today? Absolutely. And that’s why it’s so important that we get this done.
Updated
Public sector employees reach 2.5 million people with wages of $232bn a year
Federal and state governments employed 2,517,900 public sector staff as of June, the ABS reported today, up 3.6% for the fiscal year.
According to the ABS‘s June employment figures, jobs in the economy totalled 14.406 million, up 2.8% for the year. The private sector provides the bulk of jobs but such hires obviously grew more slowly than for the public sector – perhaps at a pace of about 2.5%, give or take.
Public sector wages, meanwhile, rose 8%, to $232bn for the 2023-24 fiscal year. Overall wages were up 4.1%, according to the separate Wage Price Index, so government employees enjoyed twice that increase. (We’ll get September quarter WPI next Wednesday, which will be closely watched by employees, among others.)
Other interesting stats include the fact state governments employ about four in five public sector workers (1.94 million), with about 15% hired by the commonwealth and the rest working for local governments. The federal wage bill rose 10% for the year.
Some of the wage increase will reflect an end to some of the Covid-era wage caps (for example in New South Wales). The higher spending, though, did add to demand in the economy (and hence, make it a bit harder for the Reserve Bank to cut interest rates).
According to UBS, an investment bank, the bigger staff bill added about 2% to GDP. (Overall GDP rose 1.5%, so subtracting that contribution, the economy would have shrunk.)
“In Australia, growth in nominal government spending will soon average about 8% year on year for about a decade,” UBS said, adding the RBA “will keep interest rates higher-for-longer” as a result.
Updated
Labor will seek to publish sealed robodebt findings at ‘first appropriate opportunity’
The government will seek to publish the sealed section of the robodebt royal commission “at the first appropriate opportunity” once they have appointed and then consulted a National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) decision maker.
A statement released Thursday afternoon by attorney general Mark Dreyfus explained the process by which the government intends to still go ahead publishing the confidential additional chapter of the robodebt royal commission report:
In her 7 July 2023 letter to the Governor-General presenting the final report of the Robodebt Royal Commission, the Hon Catherine Holmes AC SC recommended an additional chapter “remain sealed and not be tabled with the rest of the report so as not to prejudice the conduct of any future civil action or criminal prosecution”.
With civil and criminal matters largely complete, the Government had planned to table the additional chapter in the House of Representatives in the current sitting week.
Last week the Inspector of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) recommended that the NACC appoint an appropriate person to remake the decision on whether to investigate six people named in the confidential additional chapter, and the NACC accepted the recommendation.
The Government will now seek advice from the NACC decision maker, once appointed, on whether the tabling of the confidential additional chapter would prejudice any current or future decision of the NACC.
Updated
Labor ‘trying to out-Dutton Peter Dutton’ on deportation, Greens say
The Greens’ immigration spokesperson, David Shoebridge, has commented on Labor’s new deportation bill.
He said:
This bill gives the government fresh powers to pay countries like Nauru and PNG to take people against their will if the Minister orders them to be removed from Australia.
We already know that people who have been forcibly removed from Australia to Nauru and PNG live with untreated trauma, entrenched poverty and few if any rights. If this law passes then people who have come to Australia having fled persecution from Iran, Afghanistan or Russia will face either indefinite detention or removal to countries that have been bribed to take them.
Just 24 hours after we saw a politician take power in the US on a platform of punching down against migrants we have the Albanese government doing the same with this bill. We invite Labor to withdraw this Bill, stop trying to out-Dutton Peter Dutton on migration and respect the decision of the High Court.
Updated
Penny Wong: ‘We don’t want innocent Palestinians to starve’
Returning back to Senate estimates and just after lunch the topic of Unrwa funding reared again.
In case you need a quick refresher, the UN Relief and Works Agency, or Unrwa, has been providing food, water and medicine for the more than 1.9 million displaced Palestinians in the Gaza Strip since the recent conflict began in October last year.
The Israeli parliament voted to ban the aid agency and designate it a terror group last month after a report found nine Unrwa staff in Gaza “may have been” involved in the 7 October Hamas attacks that led to the deaths of more than 1,200 Israelis and the kidnapping of hundreds more.
Responding to the announcement, the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, said Unrwa did “life-saving work” while urging Israel to “comply with the binding orders of the ICJ to enable the provision of basic services and humanitarian assistance at scale in Gaza”.
The Liberal senator, Clare Chandler, asked what the government’s rationale behind the statement was.
Wong replied:
Well, we don’t want children to starve ... we don’t want innocent Palestinians to starve. And let me just take you through some of what we know. We know that there is not enough humanitarian assistance entering Gaza. We know that the humanitarian situation in Gaza is unacceptable. We know that the ICJ [international court of justice] and international law requires Israel to facilitate aid into Gaza, but that has been getting worse. Insufficient aid has been allowed through.
Chandler said Australia’s statement was urging Israel to keep Unrwa’s “reserve privileges and immunities” untouched despite its alleged ties to Hamas.
Wong said:
One thing I never hear from you, Senator, I never hear you talk about the experience of civilians in Gaza. I never hear you talking about the children. I never hear you talking about polio, or the number of trucks entering, or the number of people displaced, or the number of people who face food insecurity. Those are the realities.
Updated
‘It does reflect data’: Ahpra chief on push for GP check ups for older doctors
The medical board’s preferred option to ensure older doctors are practicing safely would be for them to get a regular GP check up after they turn 70, the board has told Senate estimates.
The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation agency (Ahpra) has been consulting on the issue . The CEO of Ahpra Martin Fletcher said:
It’s really important to say this is not a mandatory retirement age, but it does reflect data.
Our data that shows an increase in complaints about the performance of doctors over 70, and also that those complaints are often more likely to result in regulatory action than for doctors under 70.
It’s fair to say there’s been a lot of interest in this consultation. We’ve had over 200 submissions, a lot of debate about this, and there is quite a lot of work to do, I think, obviously, to consider all those submissions.
One in 20 doctors practicing in Australia are over 70, according to Fletcher who said they make up 5.27% of registered practitioners.
Ranjana Srivastava has written for us on this topic, noting the absolute difference in complaints is small: in 2023, for every 1,000 doctors there were 69 complaints in the over-70 group and 38 in the under-70. Regulatory action occurred in 23% of complaints in the first group and 14% in the second. You can read more here:
Updated
Thank you Tory and go well! Still plenty more news coming your way this afternoon.
I’m running away to join the circus, Natasha May will be your sensible guide this afternoon. Thanks for being here!
Melbourne lord mayor says ‘the best days for our city are ahead of us’
More on that news about Melbourne lord mayor Nicholas Reece being re-elected:
Reece is linked to the Labor party and his deputy Roshena Campbell with the Liberals, formerly running for the party at the Aston byelection. But neither was running on their party’s ticket.
Liberal Owen Guest has been elected to council, alongside Gladys Liu, who was on Anthony Koutoufides’ ticket but was formerly the Liberal MP for the federal seat of Chisholm.
Greens councillor Olivia Ball has also been re-elected, along with Kevin Louey, who has served four terms and is considered a bit of a kingmaker.
Reece is holding a press conference outside Queen Victoria Market. He says:
I am so proud and humbled to have been elected the lord mayor of Melbourne. It is truly the honour of my life to be serving our city in this role I’m looking forward to the next four years knowing that the best days for our city are ahead of us. It is truly the honour of my life to be serving our city in this role.
He thanks his deputy, Roshena Campbell, saying:
She’s been by my side through this hard fought contest, and she’s been nothing short of amazing. It is also no small thing that Roshena Campbell is the first person of Indian heritage to serve in the position of deputy lord mayor in the 182 year history of Melbourne. It’s very much a sign of modern Melbourne that we are a diverse and inclusive city and a city of opportunity, where anything is possible.
Updated
And that was that, the last question time until 18 November. Then only two weeks left this year!
Updated
Australia urges Israel to ‘allow free, unfettered humanitarian access to Gaza’
Independent MP Sophie Scamps wants to know about Israel’s banning of Unrwa and what the government can do to “ensure that the people of Gaza do not die of starvation and preventable diseases such as polio”.
Pat Conroy, the defence industry minister, says the government supports Unrwa because they don’t want civilians to starve to death:
Let me begin by condemning the attacks of October 7 and the resulting war and civilian deaths. We call for an immediate release of all hostages for an immediate ceasefire and for the free and unfettered flow of humanitarian aid. Unrwa does life-saving work, and that’s why successive Australian governments have funded it since 1951.
The humanitarian situation in Gaza is catastrophic. Only Unrwa has the mandate and the infrastructure to receive and distribute aid on the scale that’s needed right now.
The government will continue to urge a reversal of the decision, he says:
We call on Israel to allow free, unfettered humanitarian access to Gaza in line with the International Court of Justice ruling.
He says Australia has made its opposition clearly known, and continues to work through diplomatic channels to urge access for aid workers and supplies. “We’ve provided a total of $94.55m in humanitarian funding to the region since October 23,” he says.
This includes $6m to Unrwa, which continues to flow, along with the other partner agencies we’ve funded in Gaza, including Unicef, the World Food Programme, the Red Cross, the UN operations services and the UN Population Fund. We’ve also provided our regular annual contribution of $20 million to Unrwa.
Updated
Attorney general says ‘very high threshold’ must be met before someone is release on parole
The Liberal MP Melissa Price is asking about a convicted terrorist released on parole into the community. She asks what their offence was, which state or territory they were released into, and whether they pose a threat.
Attorney general Mark Dreyfus says there is a “very high threshold” to be met before a person is released and they’re put under strict supervision:
The decision is informed by advice from relevant agencies.
And the safety of the community is the most important consideration in these decisions. Parole keeps the community safer. It means mandatory controls and mandatory supervision are in place, which would otherwise not be available at the conclusion of someone’s sentence.
“We are not going to talk about the details of individual offenders,” he says, when pushed for specifics, then talks about people released under the former Liberal government.
Updated
Aukus is about advanced manufacturing as well as defence, Albanese says, because of the new submarines being developed.
He says:
It has a massive spin-offs as well that we’re seeing through education with many Australians engaging already in the United States and in the UK. So this is about Australia’s national interest. I’ll always stand up for Australia’s national interest.
Updated
Bandt says Trump a ‘dangerous demagogue’ and asks Albanese about Aukus
Greens leader Adam Bandt asks about Donald Trump’s election win. He says the win is “bad for women, bad for people of colour, bad for the climate, and bad for democracy”:
Many people are terrified about what having this dangerous demagogue in charge will mean for the world, including here in Australia. To help keep Australia safe, will you now cancel the Aukus nuclear submarine agreement so that we’re not tied at the hip to Donald Trump?
Prime minister Anthony Albanese says the submarines are in Australia’s national interest, because there’s no more effective way for a country to defend itself than with submarines:
Because of stealth, because of the amount of time that they can stay under the water, because of undetectability, because of the depths they can dive and how long they can stay under for, in terms of Australia’s national interest, I was convinced – and I was convinced through proper briefings with the defence department and with defence officials – that this is the correct way to go.
He says “oh, seriously” and deputy opposition leader Sussan Ley is booted from the chamber for interjecting.
Updated
The Liberal National party MP Llew O’Brien asks if any of those released into the community have been charged with sexual assault. Burke says that would mostly be up to state and territory authorities. He says:
The concept of people on visas who have committed crimes previously being in the community with no restrictions is what used to happen.
And that’s why I give the example – you refer to those particular crimes – 102 convicted sex offenders were released with no conditions into the community from detention by the leader of the opposition.
Updated
Tony Burke: ‘The cheapest option is to get them out of the country’
The Nationals MP Pat Conaghan is asking the prime minister to confirm whether those released into the community are getting welfare and housing benefits. Home affairs minister Tony Burke says:
The most expensive option is when they are in detention. The next most expensive is when they are in the community, and the cheapest option is to get them out of the country.
The arrangements when they are in the community and the expenses involved there are using procedures that were put in place and that existed for the entirety of the previous government.
Updated
Nicholas Reece re-elected as Melbourne lord mayor
Incumbent Melbourne lord mayor Nicholas Reece has been re-elected, with councillor Roshena Campbell to become his deputy.
Reece became lord mayor in July after Sally Capp stepped down.
His ticket received the most number of votes followed by the Greens, the Liberals and the former AFL footballer Anthony Koutoufides.
Updated
Burke explains new immigration regulations introduced today
Treasurer Jim Chalmers was up answering a Dorothy dixer on inflation, when shadow treasurer Angus Taylor interjected, so Chalmers started talking about headline inflation – please see Peter Hannam’s post earlier for an explanation.
Then there’s a barney about emotion as a motive for questions, and health minister Mark Butler gets involved and… now we’re back to inflation.
Nup, we’ve moved on, shadow immigration spokesman Dan Tehan’s up on the high court’s decision on ankle bracelets and curfews for former immigration detainees – see Paul Karp’s extensive work below for catch ups.
Home affairs minister Tony Burke explains the new regulations he brought in this morning and says they’re now being applied by the department. Legislation will also be introduced. He says:
First of all the decision from the high court that has been referred to is not the decision the government wanted, but it is a decision we prepared for so this morning I was with the governor general, signing in new regulations and those … allowed what was cut out by the high court yesterday to now go through reconsideration on a new test which is viewed as being legal, and for that new test to be applied to the full caseload.
The government’s preference is for the people not to be here at all, he says:
And that is why we introduced powers today in the legislation to improve the government’s capacity to remove people from this country in that situation.
Updated
Government pressed on scam protections after announcing new laws
The independent MP Allegra Spender is asking about scam losses. She says:
94% of scam losses are borne by individuals and only 6% by banks. This is despite banks having far greater tools at their disposal to stop scams. Does the minister think that consumers are responsible for and have the ability to prevent 94% of scam losses? And if not, will you take action to make banks and other companies pay for losses in proportion to their ability to prevent them?
Stephen Jones, the assistant treasurer, says he introduced anti-scam legislation today. You can read all about that here:
Spender says she specifically asked about who bears the losses. Jones says:
The focus of our legislation and the focus of the question is around how we prevent scams occurring in the first place. And when they do occur, how we ensure the victims are compensated.
And he says most scams originate on social media, so they need to be kept to account as well.
Updated
Choice CEO stares down criticism from retailers
Returning to the first day of public hearings in the ACCC’s supermarkets inquiry, the head of consumer advocacy group Choice has stared down criticism from retailers.
In September, Choice released the results of the second quarterly, government-funded report on supermarket prices across Australia.
It found that the cost of both Aldi’s and Coles’ baskets - including specials - had decreased since Choice’s first survey earlier this year, while the price of the Woolworths basket with specials had increased.
Choice prepared the report by visiting 104 supermarkets in June, including Aldi, Coles, Woolworths, and IGA, and recording the the prices of 14 common grocery items.
At the ACCC hearing today, Choice chief executive officer Ashley de Silva was asked about criticism by the Australian Retailers Association that Choice was not “comparing like for like” across brands and different stores.
De Silva disputed this, saying Choice made an effort to look at comparable items rather than the “exact same product” in different stores.
He said:
There seems to be sometimes an underlying sentiment that we’re not showing the best possible value or the cheapest possible products in any store.
We’re not looking to find the cheapest possible price. We’re looking to understand general pricing practices at the stores and what value in a comparable basket looks like across stores.
So it’s true that we may be buying a national brand from, say, a Coles or Woolworths, but because of Aldi’s model, be buying one of their house brands there.
We look at country of origin, we look at ingredients, nutritional information.
Updated
Giles ‘baffled’ that opposition wants to criticise fee-free Tafe program
Deputy opposition leader Sussan Ley tries to ask skills and training minister Andrew Giles a question but also mentions his previous portfolio – immigration.
She can’t refer to a former portfolio. So she restarts, addressing it to him just as the member for skills and training …
And it’s about fee-free Tafe places anyway. She wants to know how many people have dropped out of courses.
(Yes, we have been through this many times this week.)
Giles says 580,000 people have enrolled, then repeats his explanation that the data isn’t there yet for graduations.
Ley says:
The question addressed the number of dropouts of completions, the only thing the minister is addressing is commencements.
Giles says he’s “frankly baffled” the opposition wants to talk the program down.
Updated
Australian ambassador to China visited Tibet recently to raise human rights concerns, Senate estimates told
The Australian ambassador to China, Scott Dewar, made a hushed visit to Tibet last month to raise concerns over human rights violations, Senate estimates has revealed.
Daniel Sloper, a senior official in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, told senators the ambassador visited the autonomous region from 20 to 24 October and met with executive vice chairman, Chen Yongqi, the region’s third-most senior official.
Sloper said Dewar’s visit was to “examine the local situation and also to raise Australia’s concerns over the human rights there directly with senior officials”.
The Liberal senator, Simon Birmingham, asked whether it was officially announced by the ambassador.
Sloper said he’d have to check but “it was certainly public knowledge in China. It was reported in domestic media”.
Last month, James Larsen, Australia’s ambassador to the United Nations, delivered a joint statement from 15 countries, including Australia, the US and the UK, on the “ongoing concerns about serious human rights violations” in Xinjiang and Tibet.
China’s foreign ministry shot back, claiming Australia is plagued by “systemic racism” and “hate crimes” and that the statement was “political manipulation under the pretext of human rights”.
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‘We’re determined to get this right’: Rowland on gambling ads
Rowland says they’ll satisfy three key areas: Protecting children, breaking the nexus between sport and online wagering, and addressing “that particular cohort that is at risk which is young men who are being targeted with that advertising to a saturation level”.
“We’re determined to get this right,” she says, adding it will add to previous efforts including BetStop.
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Communications minister says ‘we are making good progress’ on gambling ad reforms
Communications minister Michelle Rowland is responding to a question about when the government plans to bring in gambling advertising reforms. She says they’re carefully considering the late Peta Murphy’s report. She says:
I’m sure everyone in this place has constituents, everyone in this place knows someone who has been personally impacted by the scourge of what happens when people have addictive problems with gambling and the fact that this is costing our economy some $25bn a year.
It’s important to note that there are issues in this report that go not only to issues of federal responsibility, but also to states and territories, that is why we are doing this in a coordinated way and we are making good progress.
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Dutton says Trump is ‘not somebody to be scared of’
Peter Dutton is congratulating president Trump and the Republican party. The opposition leader says his party will ensure “president Trump is not somebody to be scared of, but somebody that we can work very closely with”. He says it’s a “historic outcome:
We want the United States to continue to be the great democracy that it is.
We have worked together closely with our friends through the Anzus alliance, through the Aukus arrangement, which the Coalition signed with the Americans and the Brits during our term in government.
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Albanese says he will ensure Australia always has a say in decisions that ‘shape our world’
Albanese goes on to say:
As an ally, as an economic partner, as a stable democracy, as a leader in the region, and a power in our own right, my government will always make sure that Australia has a seat at the table and a say in the decisions that shape our region and that shape the world.
We’re investing in our defence capability, we are promoting security across our region, we are seizing economic opportunities so we reap the benefits for the Australian people. In all of these endeavours over decades, we have worked together with the United States.
Both sides of politics here in Australia, but both sides of politics in the United States as well. This has been to the enduring and mutual benefit of both of our nations and I look forward to working with president Trump in the future in the interests of both of our nations.
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Albanese speaks of 'very constructive' chat with Trump as question time begins
It was a rowdy question time yesterday, leading speaker Milton Dick to look like he wanted to roll his eyes, walk away, and shout at someone all at once.
So we’ll see how today goes.
Prime minister Anthony Albanese is leading with his conversation with president-elect Donald Trump:
Just after 10am this morning, I spoke with president Trump and I congratulated him on his election victory. It was a very constructive discussion.
We affirmed the strong relationship between our two nations and committed to working together for the benefit of our people, including through Aukus. Our government’s approach has always been about investing in our capabilities and investing in our relationships.
That’s true at a national level and it’s also true at a personal one. As prime minister, I have made it a priority to invest in relationship with world leaders to build trust and respect in Australia’s best interests. I built that with president Biden and I will do so with president Trump.
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Indigenous communities often struggle to access fresh food or eat three meals a day, hearing told
Consumer advocates have been giving evidence this morning at the first of a series of public hearings in the consumer watchdog’s inquiry into the supermarket sector.
Martina Kingi, from the Indigenous Consumer Assistance Network, told the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) that people in remote communities often struggled to access fresh food or eat three meals a day.
Kingi said:
If you can get two meals a day you’re doing pretty well.
It’s very rare to eat a salad when you’re in community, or even have any kind of fresh salad available.
There’s been a few times where I’ve ... been in community for work and forgotten a tomato for my ham and cheese tomato sandwich or something, and gone to this store ... and there’s no tomatoes. So, it’s a lot of packaged food.
Kingi said remote Indigenous communities had to deal with significantly inflated grocery prices and that:
There are some stores that don’t even advertise the prices on their goods.
I was recently back home in Derby [in the Kimberly region of Western Australia] and there were plenty of products that did not have prices on them.
Kingi said privately-owned stores operating in remote communities needed to be more transparent about why they charged higher prices, beyond simply blaming freight costs, as some of them were just “there to make a buck”.
Guardian Australia recently reported on an investigation by consumer advocacy body Choice that found remote communities were paying more than double the capital city prices for everyday groceries.
Choice representatives have also been giving evidence at the ACCC hearing today.
Read more:
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‘A ban isn’t the answer’: Tammy Tyrrell says social media ban won’t address problems young people face
Independent senator Tammy Tyrrell has raised major questions over the government’s proposal to ban kids under 16 from using social media, saying Australians have “no idea” how the idea will even be enforced.
“The policy behind the proposed social media ban is as deep as a kiddy pool. We have no idea what technology the government wants to use to enforce this. They want to rush this bill through before the tech trial has even begun and hope that it still checks all the boxes in 12 months time,” she said.
The Tasmanian senator said she had kids of her own, and that she had “set them up with social media accounts when they were younger.”
“I had the same concerns about online content that parents have today,” Tyrrell said.
“A ban isn’t the answer. It’s not going to stop kids accessing social platforms and it doesn’t actually address the problems young people are facing online. It’s a feel-good moment for the older generations without asking the people affected what’s best for them.”
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Private hospital sector in focus in Senate estimates
Shadow health minister Anne Ruston is asking the Senate estimates about health minister Mark Butler’s comments about releasing the government’s Private Hospital Sector Financial Health Check, a review of the sector’s viability, on Friday.
Ruston raises concern about Butler’s statement that “there will be no silver bullet from Canberra or funding solution from taxpayers to deal with what are essentially private pressures in this system”.
Blair Comley, the department secretary, says, the financial health check led to a better fact base and the government is actively considering its issues:
One of the things that came out of that private financial health check is that this is by no means a uniform sector. There’s a lot of variation, which was reported in the public document that was put out.
It also indicated that variation includes variation across different types of services, particularly called out obstetrics and mental health as being particular areas of challenge and a high level value.
So the government said there’s no magic bullet. The minister made it clear that we would continue - we established in that process a CEO forum, which I chair, that has both private hospitals, private health insurers, a representative of the AMA and a representative of the states.”
Read more about the Health Check here:
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Mining company pushes for judicial review of Plibersek’s order to protect sacred site from Blayney gold project
The mining company behind the proposed McPhillamys gold project near Blayney in central western New South Wales has begun proceedings for a judicial review of the Aboriginal heritage protection order made by environment minister Tanya Plibersek.
In a statement to the ASX on Thursday, Perth-based Regis Resources said it had commenced formal legal proceedings in the federal court in respect of the decision, which was made under section 10 of the federal Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act 1984.
It is seeking a declaration that the s.10 is “legally invalid” and that it be redetermined by a different minister. It’s also seeking costs.
Plibersek made the partial s.10 declaration in August in response to an application by Wiradyuri elder Aunty Nyree Reynolds, a member of the Wiradyuri Traditional Owners Central West Aboriginal Corporation (WTOCWAC). The order blocked the construction of a proposed tailings dam, which Regis said “made the project in its current form unviable”.
In a statement of reasons released last month, Plibersek said the proposed tailings dam, which would have been built in the headwaters of the Belubula River and involved concreting over natural springs, would cause “irreversible damage and permanent loss” to Aboriginal cultural heritage sites, particularly related to the Blue Banded Bee dreaming.
The Orange Local Aboriginal Land Council, supported by NSW Aboriginal Land Councils, said it was neutral on the mine but opposed the s.10 application, arguing that the responsibility for heritage protection should fall with Local Aboriginal Land Councils and branding WTOCWAC a “rebel” group. The federal laws allow for any traditional owner to make an application.
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More modern contraceptives and menopause therapies under consideration for PBS
Advice on including more modern contraceptives and menopause hormone therapy on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) is being prepared for the health minister, Mark Butler, who is “very concerned” about the issue, the health department says.
In the health department’s Senate budget estimates, the Greens senator Larissa Waters about the lowest cost comparative test she says has come up as a barrier towards more modern contraceptives and menopause hormone therapy (also known as HRT) being listed on the PBS:
What policy work, if any, is being done in considering whether that rule should in fact be chucked out the window and a better rule that factors in people’s quality of life be either added or replace that other rule?
Waters said the response from first assistant secretary Duncan McIntyre, that there was action in the area, was welcome news.
McIntyre said:
Certainly PBAC [Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee] has indicated this is an area of concern for them.
The minister has indicated he is very concerned about this issue as well so he has directed PBAC to provide him with advice about how that might be managed in a way that ensures that patient outcomes are considered in the broadest way appropriate.
One of the challenges for the PBAC process is that PBAC can only consider medicines for the listings on the PBS that sponsors choose to bring forward.
As a result of the minister’s direction, PBAC has had a number of discussions including holding meetings with stakeholders about oral contraceptives and HRT medications.
PBAC is considering that information and is on notice to provide advice to the minister as a result.
The department told Waters the contraception medication Slinda is being considered for listing on the PBS.
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Burke introduces bill to increase power to send non-citizens to other countries
The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, has introduced a bill to “strengthen the government’s power to remove people who have had their visas cancelled to third countries”.
This bill is far more extensive than the removals bill that was stalled in the Senate earlier this year, and does far more more than supporting the government’s power to reimpose electronic monitoring and curfews.
According to the explanatory memorandum, the bill:
Authorises the government to pay a third country to accept unlawful non-citizens from Australia; and
Ensures that bridging visas granted to people released from immigration detention because they can’t be removed are terminated when a mandatory notice is given to them that a country is willing to accept them.
It says:
If a person becomes an unlawful non-citizen due to the cessation of a [bridging visa R] ... the person may be taken into immigration detention under section 189 of the Migration Act, and may be liable to be removed under section 198 of the Act. In certain circumstances, if a foreign country that is a party to a third country reception arrangement has granted permission for the person to enter and remain in that country, there would then be a real prospect that the person may be removed to that country under section 198 in the reasonably foreseeable future.
This is extremely significant. It responds to the NZYQ high court decision of November 2023 that indefinite detention is unlawful where it is not practical to remove someone, which has resulted in the release of 224 people from immigration detention.
If this bill were passed, it appears Australia could pay Nauru or another country to offer a visa to these 224 people, and then use that offer to re-detain the person in immigration detention.
As the high court found in ASF17 that refusal to cooperate with removal means detention is lawful, this could see people detained indefinitely if they refuse to go to the third country (which they may have no links to).
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Faruqi and Wong trade blows over Zomi Frankcom investigation
The Greens senator, Mehreen Faruqi, and foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, traded blows in Senate estimates this morning over Australia’s investigation into the killing of aid worker Zomi Frankcom by Israeli defence forces.
Faruqi asked for a progress update on efforts by Australian officials to retrieve audio evidence from Israel taken from an Israeli drone the day Frankcom was killed.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade deputy secretary, Craig Maclachlan, said the department had sought the information but had not been given an audio transcript, nor the audio, of the incident. He said:
It’s up to [Israel] to determine whether or not they wish to release it. It has not yet been released to us.
Wong added she had “personally raised” the matter with her Israeli counterpart.
Faruqi responded it had been eight months since Frankcom’s death and Wong had not called for an independent investigation into the incident. She said:
Don’t shake your head disparagingly ... at me. I repeat, minister, what is stopping you from doing anything real to hold Israel to account? Is it the pressure from the US? Is it the pressure from the pro-Israeli lobby? Is it because your government doesn’t think brown lives are valuable?... ”
Wong began responding but was briefly interrupted by Faruqi. The minister asked for Faruqi to listen respectfully just as she had during the “very offensive tirade”.
Wong continued:
I’ve spent my whole life advocating for equality, for an end to prejudice, in a world where every human being is valued, regardless of their cultural heritage, their faith, who they are, where they come from.
And I have the experience also of migration, and I’ve spoken about this in the Senate, including in support of you. I regard the assertion that you made as deeply offensive and false, and it is an example of the way in which you are seeking to make really awful assertions in an attempt to make a political point. One of the things that has been lost in this debate is the capacity for people to disagree about issues without denigrating one another, but your default is to denigrate.
The two began speaking over each other until the committee chair, Raff Ciccone, ended Faruqi’s questioning and handed the call to One Nation senator Malcolm Roberts.
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Meta says age-assurance technology not reliable
The lack of grandfathering for existing users in age assurance, as flagged by the prime minister today, also suggests every existing user will need to prove their age, and Meta’s Antigone Davis said that it will impact the whole population.
Davis said the company would comply with whatever final result the government lands on, but said that age-assurance technology had not been settled as a reliable technology yet:
The idea that somehow you can sort of force the industry to be in a technological place that it isn’t is probably a bit misunderstood in terms of where the industry is.
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Meta says government’s social media ban poses a privacy risk
The parent company of Facebook and Instagram has warned that forcing every social media site to assure the age of users presents a privacy risk, given the need to assure age on every platform.
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, announced on Thursday that social media sites will be required to ban users under 16, with no grandfathering for existing users. It will come into effect 12 months after legislation passes and the onus will be on platforms to implement age-assurance technology to check the ages of users.
Albanese has said there will be “privacy protections” in place to protect identifying information, but did not outline what those protections would be.
Meta, which is arguing for app stores to conduct age assurance rather than the social media sites, released an Ipsos survey of Australian parents on Thursday showing while parents are overwhelmingly in favour of teens under 16 needing parental approval (82%), 70% would prefer this approval process to be done on the app store rather than for each individual app.
Meta’s global head of safety, Antigone Davis, told reporters that teens download as many as 40 apps, and requiring age assurance for each app would be complicated, time-consuming and present a privacy risk:
The current state of age-assurance technology ... requires a level of personally identified information to be shared. It’s usually in the form of an ID or document ID, documentation or biometric type data, facial feature data for young people, and if it’s parental consent, the data that will be involved there to verify the parent is just another additional layer of data to establish.
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Minister calls off meeting with chair of Queensland’s truth-telling inquiry
Queensland’s truth-telling and healing inquiry says its minister has called off their first meeting.
Chair Joshua Creamer was scheduled to meet with minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander partnerships, Fiona Simpson, this afternoon. The new Liberal National party government has ordered a halt to the inquiry and plans to repeal its legislation in a few weeks. A spokesperson for the inquiry said:
The inquiry has today been advised by minister Simpson of the need to postpone the meeting with the truth telling and healing inquiry that was scheduled for this afternoon. There is no alternate date currently advised.
Creamer said yesterday he’d been yet to speak to Simpson or premier David Crisafulli.
“People have said to me, this is like the chief protector days, a single person deciding what’s best for every Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island person in the state,” Creamer said on Wednesday.
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Households face more bill stress as energy prices rise
The Australian Energy Regulator (AER) is warning that without systemic change, some Australians will continue to struggle to pay their power bills, AAP reports:
Releasing an annual electricity and gas markets report, AER said affordability would likely be an “ongoing challenge for the foreseeable future”. Chair Clare Savage said:
We recognise that more must be done to drive systemic change for energy consumers who struggle to pay their energy bills.
Debt levels and other indicators of financial difficulties are expected to escalate from late 2024 to early 2025, even more than anticipated.
“We are reviewing the payment difficulty protections that currently exist and considering how these protections could be strengthened,” Savage said.
Economist Nicki Hutley said no one should have to choose between cooling their home or putting food on the table in a predicted period of sweltering temperatures.
So-called “game changer” reforms were submitted to the nation’s energy ministers almost a year ago, setting out a suite of proposals to break the cycle of energy debt, with some changes endorsed in July.
“We know Aussie households and small businesses are doing it tough,” federal energy minister, Chris Bowen, said:
Our government is providing energy bill relief now while working to deliver an overdue reliable, modern energy grid that won’t be exposed to international price spikes.
The report found retail energy prices were typically higher in regional and remote areas than in urban areas, with estimated annual customer electricity bills in 2023/24 ranging from $1,413 for a customer in urban Victoria to $3,102 in rural NSW.
The average amount of debt per customer increased most in NSW (17%), South Australia (10%) and Queensland (6%).
In gas markets, the regulator predicted supply risks in the short to medium term with gas to remain a critical fuel for electricity reliability and large industries for some time.
Meanwhile, consumers who can afford rooftop solar, batteries and electric vehicles have become an even more integral part of the energy system.
Residential solar in the national electricity market now exceeds 20 gigawatts – 2.9GW more than last year – equivalent to 25% of generation capacity.
New wind, solar and storage installations are expected to triple in the next 12 months as people look for more ways to take power into their own hands.
But current consumer protections were designed for a one-way supply of electricity directly to a home or business and not a system where a customer consumes, trades and produces energy.
Savage said a report is due by the end of the year on next steps for additional help for consumers in energy stress.
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Labor reveals plans to electronically monitor some people freed from immigration detention
The government wants to reimpose ankle bracelets and curfews on some people released from immigration detention by legislating that the conditions are no longer the default, reversing amendments pushed by the Coalition and accepted by Labor.
On Thursday the home affairs minister, Tony Burke, made new regulations to regain the power to impose the conditions “only if the minister is satisfied” that the bridging visa holder “poses a substantial risk of seriously harming any part of the Australian community by committing a serious offence”.
That is in response to Wednesday’s high court decision that the existing regulations breached the separation of powers and amounted to punishment.
The YBFZ decision is set to temporarily result in 150 non-citizens no longer being electronically monitored and 130 having their curfew lifted. A further 27 will have charges dropped for alleged offences of breaching visa conditions, and two who were convicted may now have those overturned.
According to its explanatory memorandum, the new regulation introduces a “confined and specific test … related to protecting any part of the Australian community from serious harm”. It says:
The new test requires consideration of the risk of particular criminal conduct occurring and the nature, degree and extent of harm the [bridging visa R (BVR)] holder may pose to any part of the Australian community.
Four visa conditions – financial and debt reporting, ankle bracelets and curfews – can now only be imposed “if the minister is satisfied on the balance of probabilities that the BVR holder poses a substantial risk of seriously harming any part of the Australian community by committing a serious offence”.
Serious offences include those punishable by imprisonment of at least five years and involving loss of life, serious personal injury, sexual assault, child abuse material, child sex offences, family or domestic violence, inciting violence, or people smuggling or human trafficking.
The minister must also be “satisfied that the imposition of the condition(s) is, on the balance of probabilities, reasonably necessary, and reasonably appropriate and adapted for the purpose of protecting any part of the Australian community by addressing that substantial risk”.
The explanatory memorandum said the new regulation clarifies the “protective purpose” of the visa conditions “by referring to an objective way of demonstrating whether the offences that the minister is concerned with are serious or not”:
This is in contrast to the way the invalid provision had purported to operate previously, which was that the minister was required to impose the conditions unless satisfied that the imposition of the conditions were not reasonably necessary to protect any part of the Australian community.
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Record number of medicines submitted for approval
The health department has received a record number of submissions for new medicine approvals from pharmaceutical companies for its upcoming meeting, more than double the previous record for a single meeting.
The “unprecedented” number of submissions will not be able to be dealt with in the meeting and will require an additional meeting – the health department is unsure whether the situation is a “one-off spike” or “the new normal”.
The March 2025 Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) meeting received a total of 63 submissions, of which 51 will require economic evaluations which need to be undertaken by contracted external evaluators, the department has told Senate health estimates.
Caroline Turnour, the assistant secretary from the department’s office of health technology assessment (HTA) said:
That is by far a record number for one meeting, what we have described as unprecedented. The largest number we’ve ever had before is 25.
PBAC – a group of clinicians, health economists, consumer representatives and industry representatives – considered 32 major submissions would fully take up the capacity of the March meeting.
The department said the minister yesterday announced an additional meeting of PBAC to be called in May to allow the submissions that couldn’t be considered in March to be considered.
The deputy secretary, Penny Shakespeare, said it was an issue of external health technology assessment (HTA) experts, not the department’s capacity.
Blair Comley, the secretary of the entire department, said it was highly specialised work with a limited labour pool of people who are qualified to ensure the quality of the assessment is not compromised. He said:
We don’t know if this is a one-off spike or this is the new normal, we don’t know that.
However, the conversation I’ve had with the team is we don’t want to be in a position in the future if we get a spike that we’re not able to manage it.
So the team is actively looking at how we expand our HTA capacity in Australia. I’ve also asked the question about do we have to have contingency arrangements for international evaluators as a safety net for a future spike.
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Nine Entertainment to cut $50m more in costs
Nine Entertainment’s acting CEO Matt Stanton has announced another $50m cut to costs just months after cutting 200 jobs from the media business.
Speaking at the annual general meeting, Stanton said a program dubbed Nine2028 would be established to make changes to the company’s operation, as the share price has almost halved this year.
The broadcasting division is down 9% on the 22/23 financial year and publishing is down 3%. Stanton told investors:
Like you, we are disappointed by the market valuation of Nine, which seems too heavily focused on our traditional television business while largely ignoring the digital growth opportunity of our key assets across publishing, streaming, audio and marketplaces.
We have committed to take a further $50m of underlying costs out in FY25 – equating to a two-year total of around $100m.
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Josh Butler is across the (existing) detail of the government’s plans to stop children under 16 accessing social media:
And here’s the video of Albanese making the announcement:
Albanese confirms conversation with Trump this morning
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has confirmed in a post on X that he spoke with US president-elect Donald Trump this morning:
Good to speak this morning with president Trump to personally congratulate him on his election victory. We talked about the importance of the alliance and the strength of the Australia-US relationship in security, trade and investment. I look forward to working together in the interests of both of our countries.
Good to speak this morning with President Trump to personally congratulate him on his election victory.
— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) November 7, 2024
We talked about the importance of the Alliance, and the strength of the Australia-US relationship in security, AUKUS, trade and investment.
I look forward to working…
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Dfat ‘reluctant’ to outline how many people being investigated within passport office
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Dfat) is “reluctant” to outline the number of people under investigation within its passport office, noting the numbers “may change”.
Last week, the Australian National Audit Office revealed at least 18 passport office officials were facing investigation after an audit report found conflicts of interest were not declared and preferred suppliers had wrongly been identified ahead of time across $1.6bn in contracts.
The department’s chief operating officer, Clare Walsh, said the number of officials being looked at “may change” as Dfat was “still going through the detailed investigation that is warranted”.
“I’m very reluctant to say it’s 18 at this stage of the investigation,” Walsh said.
The deputy secretary, Craig Maclachlan, said Dfat had a “preference” for ANAO not to reveal the number but the audit report went ahead and published it anyway.
Walsh said:
I’m reluctant to say whether the number’s bigger or smaller, because we just haven’t ... aren’t at that stage in the investigation where I could be confident in providing an accurate answer to.
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Australian shares flat as traders digest Wall Street surge
Australian shares were flat early on Thursday, as traders digested the US election-fuelled surge on Wall Street overnight.
The S&P/ASX 200 was trading at the 8,200 mark shortly after trading commenced, in line with opening levels. Some of the exuberance seen on US equity markets was already replicated on the ASX late yesterday.
Shares in National Australia Bank were down more than 2% after the release of its annual results, while shares in Sigma Healthcare surged 30% after the competition regulator said it would not oppose its planned merger with Chemist Warehouse.
While equities and crypto assets soared in the US after it became clear Donald Trump would win the US presidential race, bond prices fell as investors fretted that the incoming president’s spending policies and promised tariffs could fuel another bout of inflation.
The US dollar has been strengthening against its global counterparts, including the Australian dollar.
A trade war between the US and China would also have a significant impact on Australian companies, especially in the resources sector. Australian iron ore miners including Rio Tinto, BHP and Fortescue were all trading either flat or slightly positive early on Thursday.
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Penny Wong says Greens have ‘no plan’ to keep Australia safe when questioned about US alliance
The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, has dismissed questions by the Greens in Senate estimates this morning about Australia’s ties with the US.
After the election of Donald Trump for a second term in the US yesterday, Greens senator Jordon Steele-John asked Wong whether the Albanese government was considering, or re-thinking, Australia’s military relationship with the US.
Wong was initially curt but went on to say Labor and the Greens “fundamentally don’t share the same views” about Australia’s strategic interests and the minor party is “out of step with any rational assessment of Australia’s interests in relation to Aukus”.
Wong continued:
We don’t think Australia is safer in the world by walking away from partnerships and alliances. We think fundamentally, a middle power such as Australia, we work within our alliance with the US, and we work in our partnerships, which we are seeking to strengthen and deepen with many other countries. That is what assures Australia’s safety and security, not domestic yelling and going it alone.
The shadow foreign affairs minister, Simon Birmingham, then asked Wong what she thought Australians should know about the Greens’ policies.
Wong responded:
I’ve said publicly previously … the Greens have no plan, no practical plan, to keep our country safe or strong or in difficult times.
Birmingham responded: “Indeed.”
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Here is the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, congratulating president-elect Donald Trump – you can see some more responses from political leaders as his win started looking likely in this piece from Paul Karp.
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Health department says concession card holders will benefit from PBS freeze
Concession card holders will benefit from the freeze on their PBS co-payments for five years, the health department has told Senate estimates this morning.
Nikolai Tsyganov, the assistant secretary for pricing and Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) policy, affirmed the current PBS general co-payment for Medicare card holders is $31.60 and for concession card holders is $7.70.
Labor senator Louise Pratt asked how long they are frozen for, to which Tsyganov replied:
The current 2024 level of PBS level of co-payments is frozen for all patients for 2025 – so both general and concessional patients. But concessional patients will benefit from the freeze for five years. So the $7.70 will be frozen for five years.
Australians have saved an estimated $484.4m in 2023 due to the reduction in PBS general co-payment – based on 5.36 million people who have benefited across 38.7m prescriptions, he also said.
From the move to 60-day prescriptions for 300 medicines, patients have saved an additional $86m, he said.
From July 2022 through to November 2024 there have been 265 new medicines listed on the PBS where new budget funding has been approved by government, and an additional 476 new and amended medicines which fit within the existing PBS budget, Tsyganov said.
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Nine chair thanks Peter Costello and Mike Sneesby
The Nine Entertainment chair, Catherine West, has thanked former chair Peter Costello and former chief executive Mike Sneesby for their contribution to the media company at the first annual general meeting since the departure of the two men.
West said Costello played a key role in securing the news media bargaining code and Nine’s merger with Fairfax Media.
She said:
Mike started Stan nearly 10 years ago and progressed to CEO, during which time Nine strengthened its place in digital media in Australia, secured the rights of the Olympic Games through to Brisbane 2032 while overseeing the company’s increased focus on values and purpose.
West said Nine was undergoing a recruitment process for a new CEO.
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Headline or underlying: which is the RBA targeting?
Among the many faux fights coming out of Canberra is whether the Reserve Bank is “at war” with the treasurer, Jim Chalmers.
Given there are real wars in Europe and the Middle East, use of “war” was always hyperbole. Anyway, it is fair to say there is a trade-off between more government spending (eg election promises) and interest rates falling as fast as many would like. (See more on this issue here.)
Anyway, some media (eg The Australian) jumped on a bit of nerdy issue – whether Chalmers had contradicted the RBA over whether the central bank was targeting headline or underlying inflation.
Asked about this matter, Bullock said the RBA was actually talking about headline inflation when the bank talks about getting inflation back to between 2% and 3%. That said, the RBA uses the underlying rate “to give us an indication where headline inflation is trending”.
As we have seen, headline inflation is back within that band, as of the September quarter. So why isn’t the RBA considering an interest rate cut?
“The key word is ‘sustainably’,” Bullock said. Yes, CPI is down but that’s mostly because of energy rebates (state and federal), and unless they are extended headline inflation will start to rise from the middle of 2025.
The RBA can’t model what hasn’t been announced. Presumably there will be some “cost of living relief” promised by major parties going into next year’s federal election.
When they get announced, we’ll be back asking about how “sustainable” those rebates are, and hence where headline inflation is heading.
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Kevin Rudd deletes tweets critical of Donald Trump
The former prime minister Kevin Rudd, who is now Australian ambassador to the US, has deleted social media posts critical of president-elect Donald Trump to avoid the comments “being misconstrued”, the foreign affairs department has confirmed.
In Senate estimates on Thursday, a Dfat official said a statement from his private office account confirmed the “past commentaries” had been removed from his personal website and social media channels “out of respect” for the office of president of the United States and following the election of Trump.
The statement, which was read out in estimates, said:
This has been done to eliminate the possibility of such comments being misconstrued as reflecting his positions as ambassador and, by extension, the views of the Australian government. Ambassador Rudd looks forward to working with President Trump and his team to continue strengthening the US-Australia alliance.
This morning, the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, said Rudd was doing a “terrific job” as ambassador.
“It says a lot about how important we regard the relationship with the United States that we appointed a former prime minister,” he said.
In a now-deleted tweet, Rudd called Trump “the most destructive president in history” and that he “drags America and democracy through the mud”.
In an interview in March, Trump called Rudd “nasty” and claimed he “won’t be there long” as ambassador.
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Ray Hadley to retire from 2GB
Former cab driver and rugby league caller Ray Hadley has announced he will step down from his 2GB mornings program next month after clocking up a record-breaking 160 consecutive ratings wins. He told his listeners:
It’s been a hell of a ride from a young bloke who wanted to call the races.
But the time has come for someone else to do the job.
My own four children made many sacrifices for me over the years, allowing me to realise my ambitions, and I want to spend more time with them and my seven grandchildren.
Nine Radio’s content manager, Luke Davis, said Hadley’s contribution to Australian radio and millions of listeners over the years can be marked by volume, impact and tenure, telling staff:
Ray was the founding member of the Continuous Call Team – which has been our country’s leading rugby league radio coverage for the past 38 seasons – inventing the ‘fun & football’ format that has proven so successful on weekends.
Ray has amassed 99 State of Origin and 35 grand final game calls.
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Penny Wong says Australian government still 'seeking a call' from Donald Trump
In the foreign affairs and trade committee in Senate estimates this morning, the foreign minister, Penny Wong, said the Australian government is still “seeking a call” from president-elect Donald Trump after his win on Wednesday.
The shadow foreign affairs minister, Simon Birmingham, said the UK prime minister, Keir Starmer, the Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Saudi Arabian crown prince Mohammed bin Salman had all noted they had received calls from Trump.
Wong said she would update once the call occurred with the prime minister, Anthony Albanese. A Dfat official said Albanese had not met with Trump previously.
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Greens senator Nick McKim says Trump an economic ‘wrecking ball’
So WA Liberal senator Dean Smith kicked off the questions about Trump, and Greens senator for Tasmania Nick McKim has gone in even harder at Senate estimates.
McKim warns Donald Trump will be an “unstable wrecking ball in perhaps the most influential position in the entire global economy”, and isn’t happy the RBA doesn’t have precise answers about what’s going to happen next.
Isn’t that why the RBA chiefs get paid “the big bucks”, he wonders. The key question for Australian borrowers, though, is this one:
Do you think that a Trump presidency increases the risk that the cash rate in Australia will need to be held higher for longer?
Bullock replies bluntly: “I don’t have a view on that.”
Her assistant governor, Christopher Kent, does have a stab at explaining why the RBA can’t tell what a Trump presidency will mean. For one thing, should he carry out his threat to slap tariffs of 60% on Chinese imports, “you can’t imagine …that China will do nothing”, he says.
That “something” might be retaliation (which Kent doesn’t go into), or it could be extra stimulus measures than have already been announced. It’s no accident that the Chinese government is holding a special meeting of its parliamentary standing committee from 4-8 November.
Kent notes that while the Australian dollar has lately slid against the US dollar, its wider trade-weighted measure (tracking currencies in their proportion of our trade) hadn’t changed “very much”. In fact, it even strengthened overnight.
But in any case, who can tell what Trump will do when he takes office?
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Penny Wong says Australia has ‘few ways to move the dial in the Middle East’
In Penny Wong’s opening statement to Senate estimates, the foreign affairs minister noted the conflict in Gaza, where the death toll has officially surpassed 43,000 according to the Gaza health ministry.
Wong acknowledged Australians were “understandably traumatised” by the past year but said Australia had “few ways to move the dial”:
I understand people want their government to make this war end, but this isn’t Vietnam. It isn’t Iraq. Australia is not contributing to the war, nor are we supplying weapons for it on our own, Australia has few ways to move the dial in the Middle East. That is why we are so focused on partnering with other countries, which also want to end this war, deliver life-saving aid and uphold international law.
Wong said the federal government had committed $94.5m in humanitarian assistance to support civilians affected by conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon in the period.
The Labor senator said “Palestinian civilians cannot be made to pay the price of defeating Hamas”, noting the sanctions Australia has applied against Israeli extremist settlers in the West Bank.
She said:
Ultimately, I hope all of us want the Middle East cycle of violence to end. That can only happen when the promise of two states is fulfilled, a Palestinian state and an Israeli state, the state of Israel living side by side in peace and security within internationally recognised borders.
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A reporter asks Albanese if he is rethinking his approach to the next election after Donald Trump’s election. He says he ran the last campaign saying no one would be held back or left behind:
We needed to make sure that gaps in equality in terms of income did not continue to grow, and that’s why we’ve been very focused on our industrial relations legislation. Our IR legislation is about giving people a fair crack, giving people a fair wage. Same job, same pay.
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Albanese says he won’t apologise for comments about Trump
Anthony Albanese is asked if he’ll apologise for unflattering things he has said about Donald Trump in the past. He says “no, I look forward to working with President Trump” and that he’ll speak with him soon.
“I’ve demonstrated, I think, my ability to work with world leaders and to develop relationships with them, which are positive,” he says. He goes on to say that former prime minister Kevin Rudd is doing a “terrific job”, and that Australia is prepared if Trump goes ahead with tariffs:
We’ve had considerable briefings, whether it be across security, economic and other issues, but Australia is a supporter of trade. We’re a trading nation and we will continue to be advocates for free and fair trade.
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National cabinet to discuss social media ban on Friday
National cabinet will meet to discuss the proposal tomorrow, but Albanese is confident of support, he says. Asked why not teach children to safely navigate social media rather than banning them, Albanese says that “assumes an equal power relationship”:
The fact is that young women see images of particular body shapes that … have a real impact, in the real world, and young men, through some of the misogynistic material that they get sent to them – not because they asked for it – but if you’re a 14-year-old kid getting this stuff, at a time where you’re going through life’s changes and maturing, it can be a really difficult time and what we’re doing is listening and then acting.
Rowland says she recognises those harms don’t end at a specific age and it is also important for children to be equipped to deal with the potential harms of social media. She says the common understanding of what constitutes social media includes Instagram, TikTok, Facebook and X:
YouTube would likely fall within that definition as well. That goes to some of the issues also of exemptions – like whether it is done in a logged-out state and there will be the potential for regulations and also for the eSafety commissioner to make determinations of what could constitute low-risk for the purposes of that exemption regime.
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Rowland is asked whether all adults will have to prove their age, whether that will put off social media users, and what sort of pushback she expects from the likes of billionaire Twitter (X) owner (and mate of Donald Trump) Elon Musk.
She says the details will be worked out during the age assurance trial, and that any business operating here will be covered:
Every company that operates in Australia, whether domiciled here or otherwise, is expected and must comply with Australian law or face the consequences.
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Rowland says a trial of age-assurance technology is looking at how users will identify themselves and prove their age. “This is a complex area but it is one that we are determined to get right,” she says.
Albanese says it won’t be perfect:
What we are wanting to state upfront, from the very beginning, is we don’t pretend that you can get a 100% outcome here. [On underage people buying alcohol] people have to produce ID, but I bet this weekend I wouldn’t be surprised if somewhere in Australia, someone who is under 18, it is possible that they might get access to some alcohol.
Rowland says Labor has taken ‘pragmatic approach’ on social media ban
The communications minister, Michelle Rowland, says Labor will seek agreement from the national cabinet, and that the government had taken a “pragmatic approach” to choosing 16 as the minimum age for social media access:
We’ve consulted widely with experts, with parents, with youth organisations, with advocacy groups, with academics and, of course, our state and territory colleagues.
I want to particularly thank New South Wales and South Australia for jointly hosting the social media summit, which was most instructive in this record … what our approach does is helps to achieve a balance between minimising harms caused to young people accessing social media, while still enabling connection and inclusion.
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Government announces new minimum age limit of 16 for social media platforms
Albanese says the there will be “no penalties for users”, for parents or young people:
The eSafety commissioner will provide oversight and enforcement. The legislation will come into force 12 months after passage. There will be a review of the legislation following its commencement to make sure. This is world-leading legislation.
There will be exemptions, and a flexible definition of social media service to avoid unintended consequences, he says. There will be privacy protections on the information collected for age-assurance purposes, and it won’t feature grandfathering arrangements. He says:
We don’t argue that the changes that we will be legislating will fix everything immediately. We have laws such as people can’t buy alcohol if they’re under 18 and, from time to time, that can be broken. But those laws set what the parameters are for our society and they assist in ensuring the right outcomes.
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Albanese ‘calling time’ on the harm social media doing to Australian children
A ban on social media for under 16s will put the onus on social media platforms to keep kids off, the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, says. He’s holding a press conference, and says:
This one’s for the mums and dads.
Social media is doing harm to our kids and I’m calling time on it. I’ve spoken to thousands of parents, grandparents, aunties and uncles. They, like me, are worried sick about the safety of our kids online. And I want Australian parents and families to know that government has your back.
I want parents to be able to say, ‘Sorry, mate, that’s against the law for me to get to you do this’.
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Trump victory points to higher global interest rates, RBA’s Kent says.
The Reserve Bank is up before Senate estimates this morning and not surprisingly the first question is how a second Trump administration will affect Australia.
“At this stage we would be sticking to our inflation outlook”, the RBA governor, Michele Bullock, says after noting it was “too early” to tell what the return of Donald Trump to the presidency (from 20 January) would mean for interest rates and the wider economy.
Assistant governor Christopher Kent, though, explains what the market movements are telling us. US stocks, in particular, surged to record highs overnight as the US dollar had its best day since 2022, according to Bloomberg. Higher yields on US debt was one driver for the US currency, as investors bet US interest rates won’t fall as fast as previously expected.
“Higher US deficits through tax cuts in the US are in prospect, and one of the things that means is probably higher long-term interest rates in the US, higher inflation in the US, and quite possibly higher growth for a time,” Kent said. And since the US debt market is huge, the move would “have upward effects on global interest rates”.
And that’s before Trump tariffs get slapped on imports, particularly those from China – Australia’s biggest trading partner by far. (Most of Australia’s other big export markets, eg Japan and South Korea, also depend a lot on Chinese growth.)
Kent said:
Because US customers will be buying less [fewer] goods from the rest of the world, and they’ll need less foreign exchange, but it means less demand by the US for global goods.
“So that’s sort of a negative for growth elsewhere”, which is why European stocks were “down a little bit overnight”.
It’s perhaps notable that Bullock let Kent pass on those views, when she could have made them herself.
• This post has been edited from an earlier version to correct a quote from the RBA governor
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Amid everything else going on today, the government will introduce legislation to make social media companies responsible for the first time for scams that occur on their platforms. Catie McLeod reports:
NAB posts $7bn profit as mortgage arrears jump
National Australia Bank has recorded a $6.96bn full-year net profit, down 6.1% from last year’s strong result, as more home and business owners fell behind on their loan repayments.
While its net profit for the 12 months to September was down from a year ago, it is the second-highest result recorded during the pandemic years.
The major bank warned there was a risk of an “increase in bankruptcies, business failures and higher unemployment” if interest rates remain elevated for a protracted period of time:
Elevated interest rates to combat inflationary pressures have resulted in increases in arrears, primarily in the home loan and small and medium business portfolios.
The Reserve Bank left its key interest rate unchanged earlier this week after underlying inflation remained above the central bank’s target range.
NAB reported a jump in the number of 90-plus-days mortgage delinquency rate, representing those who have fallen behind by more than three months, from 0.9% of its housing book to 1.08% over the past 12 months.
NAB declared a total dividend of $1.69 for the year, up 2c from a year ago.
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ACCC to begin public hearings for inquiry into supermarkets
Customers and food suppliers will air their grievances over supermarket prices as the consumer watchdog digs into the grocery giants, AAP reports:
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) will begin a series of public hearings for its inquiry into the supermarket sector.
Consumer advocacy groups and supplier representatives are first up, with Choice and the Australian Food and Grocery Council set to attend on Thursday. The commission’s deputy chair, Mick Keogh, said:
We have received a large volume of information … and these hearings will provide an opportunity for us to seek clarification on a range of the very complex matters.
Aldi, Metcash, Woolworths and Coles will all appear at the hearing in coming days.
Coles and Woolworths have come under fire as Australians accuse them of benefiting from the cost-of-living crisis.
The federal government has vowed to take action, announcing in January it would set the consumer watchdog for the supermarkets and directing the ACCC to conduct an inquiry into the sector.
Many consumers have lost trust in supermarket pricing while suppliers have said they are forced to agree to unfavourable terms, according to the commission’s interim report.
A final report on the inquiry is due to be delivered to the government by February.
The ACCC in September launched a court case against Coles and Woolworths, claiming the retailers had misled customers with illusory discount schemes.
Both grocers deny the allegations and say the legal cases against them are misconceived.
The federal government will provide $30m in extra funding for the ACCC to continue investigations and enforcements in the supermarket and retail sector.
It has also proposed changes to merger laws and a mandatory food and grocery code of conduct that proposes multimillion-dollar penalties for serious breaches.
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While I am very reluctant to direct you away from this Australian blog, US vice-president Kamala Harris has just taken to the stage to make her concession speech. So if you just can’t get enough of United States politics, head to our US blog … then come straight back here after, ta.
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Labor to introduce fee-free Tafe legislation
The Albanese government will today introduce new legislation to offer at least another 100,000 fee-free Tafe places a year from 2027.
The bill’s introduction intends to add further free spots in vocational education after a partnership with states and territories offered 180,000 places in 2023 and 300,000 a year from 2024.
Another 20,000 places for construction and housing courses is now being finalised, the government said.
A national advertising campaign will be launched this weekend to increase awareness about the places aimed at addressing key workforce shortages.
The skills and training minister, Andrew Giles, said:
More than half a million Australians are gaining the skills they want and which we need to build Australia’s future. We want more Australians to take advantage of the opportunities on offer, which is why we’re launching this advertising campaign.
The opposition is yet to announce whether it would wind back the policy if elected at the next federal election but has been critical of completion rates.
The deputy opposition leader, Sussan Ley, said 13% of enrolments had resulted in a qualification as of 31 March 2024, with the program costing $1.5bn.
“Fee-free Tafe has not made a meaningful impact in alleviating skills shortages,” she said.
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Nationals senator Bridget McKenzie’s attacks on prime minister Anthony Albanese’s flight upgrades hit some turbulence yesterday. The shadow transport minister apologised and updated her official register of interests after revealing she had not declared 16 flight upgrades.
Two were in July and August, not so long before she claimed she had never been offered a single upgrade on Qantas. We’ll see how this lands:
Donald Trump’s election ‘not good for those who believe in climate action’, Turnbull says
And on Donald Trump as a threat to the fight against climate change, Malcolm Turnbull says his election was “not good for those who believe in climate action”.
“He’s said the quiet bit out loud,” Turnbull, says, referring to Trump’s slogan “drill, baby, drill”.
Turnbull says both Labor and the Liberal party will be influenced by Trump’s victory:
I think Dutton’s approach will be to project himself as a Trump-like strong man and present Albanese – as he’s seeking to do – as weak.
Please refer to yesterday’s question time, when the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, and others in his team repeatedly referred to Albanese as “weak”, despite protestations from speaker Milton Dick. But Dutton should think “very carefully” about that approach, Turnbull says, because Australia is different, “more sober” and rational, and has compulsory voting, so “rushing off to the Trumpiest extreme” could just “get more teals elected”.
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Turnbull warns Albanese not to ‘suck up’ to new president and says Aukus 'a dud deal'
Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, who had some colourful moments in his relationship with Donald Trump in his first presidency, is up now being colourful on the ABC. He says the Australian prime minister “has to stand up for Australia and not follow the conventional approach, which is being urged on everyone, which is to suck up to Trump and be utterly deferential:
I had a very successful relationship with Trump because I stood up to him, stood my ground, incurred his wrath, won his respect, and then got very good outcomes for Australia.
Karvelas asks Turnbull about his comments that Trump is a “threat to democracy”. Turnbull demurs over the exact wording, but says Trump isn’t committed to democracy or the rule of law in the way previous presidents have been:
He did sort of encourage a mob to try to overthrow the peaceful transfer of power in 2021, on January 6.
And he says he doesn’t think Australia will “ever” get any Virginia-class submarines from the US because the US is not producing enough even for themselves. We signed up to a dud deal, he says:
The deal that Morrison instigated and Albanese signed up to is a very, very asymmetrical deal. All of the risk was on Australia. We have no agency and no leverage over this, and that’s why I think the most likely outcome is we’ll end up with no submarines, and that will be entirely our own fault because we signed up to a dud deal.
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Birmingham says Liberals have ‘no plans’ to change abortion laws
Still on Birmingham on the ABC, host Patricia Karvelas asks whether he thinks cost of living, immigration, abortion and character of the candidate will shape Australia’s next election, as it did the US’s. Birmingham says cost of living will be the No 1 issue, and Karvelas presses him on abortion, and whether he would vote to remove an anti-abortion bill brought in by his colleagues Matt Canavan and Alex Antic. He says he would personally vote in favour of removing it, and:
We have been clear, in terms of the Liberal party leadership, that Peter Dutton and the Liberal party have no plans, no intentions, to see any changes to abortion laws, that we respect the states’ rights in that regard, and I am very clear in terms of my respect for women’s reproductive rights.
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Simon Birmingham says Australia needs to make sure Aukus delivered speedily
Simon Birmingham, the shadow foreign affairs minister, says Australia’s priorities relate to the security environment and “the need to ensure that Aukus is delivered upon as quickly and effectively as possible”:
That is clearly mutually beneficial to both of our nations and, when it comes indeed to the strength of our two economies, it is mutually beneficial for us each to be as strong as one another, to be able to underpin those security considerations.
And they are some of the key arguments you’d advance when it comes to dealing with trade and tariff agendas, or with ensuring that we are actually delivering upon those Aukus commitments that have been made and secured.
He says Australia has a “very good deal”, that it has been secured, and that it is unique to Australia because of the shared capability. Asked about whether Australia should pitch in more money for production in the US, he says it would be “irresponsible to foreshadow that we wanted to change things”:
This is something that enjoys strong bipartisan support in both of our countries. It was launched and, of course, initially negotiated by the Morrison government with the Biden administration, but has enjoyed support across the parliament in Australia, across the Congress in the United States, and it has done so because of those mutually beneficial aspects.
He says the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, took a “risk” appointing former prime minister Kevin Rudd as ambassador. Rudd is “not bigger than Australia’s interests”, he says, and he hopes he is able to continue to “be as effective as he has been to date”.
On tariffs, Birmingham says Australia has successfully carved out exemptions (on steel and aluminium) before. And he describes Trump thus:
He takes an approach with policies that are sometimes less conventional than people are customarily used to, and he makes a strong and bold pronouncements that are less normal and more surprising than people are used to.
We’ll have to look carefully at the “totality” of measures, Birmingham says, when asked about Trump pulling out of climate change agreements.
I want to see Australia stay committed to net zero by 2050 … I don’t anticipate any change in those commitments.
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Penny Wong says Rudd will ‘continue to do an excellent job’ as ambassador
The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, has congratulated Donald Trump on his election on ABC Radio this morning.
“We will obviously continue to work very closely with America as an old ally and a true friend,” she says.
She is talking about a recent meeting with Mike Pompeo, who is set to work in Trump’s administration. It was a “very important engagement,” she says.
Asked about Trump’s foreshadowing of tariffs on all imports, she says he “has run a campaign based on change”, so it won’t come as a surprise.
On former prime minister Kevin Rudd as Australia’s ambassador to the US, she says he has been “highly effective with both Republicans and Democrats”:
So we’re confident that Mr Rudd will continue to do an excellent job in engaging with the new administration.
On Aukus, she says Australia is buying submarines as a deterrence “to enable peace”.
“That is the objective and that is the intention,” she says. “It is an important part of making sure we maintain a peaceful, stable and prosperous region. That’s why we want this, this capability.”
And she says the “sovereign capability” is supported by legislation and public comments in the US.
On Ukraine, she says the alliance is “one on which we share so many strategic objectives”, and democratic values. “And it’s an alliance which has, through its history … there have been times where leaders and governments have disagreed”.
And on working-class white men deserting the Democrats and lessons for Labor, Wong says “we don’t need the US election to understand that cost of living is the first priority of Australian voters right now”.
“People are doing it tough,” she says, and points to Labor’s tax cuts, Medicare measures, cheaper measures and energy bill relief as examples of what they’re doing.
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The high court’s ruling of ankle bracelets and curfews for former immigration detainees as unconstitutional unfolded rapidly yesterday, and it will keep moving today. The Albanese government will scramble to bring in rules to “allow for an adjusted process for electronic monitoring devices and curfews”. See Paul Karp’s report for all the details:
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Good morning, all – and thanks, Martin Farrer, for your overnight work. Tory Shepherd with you, trying not to sound like I stayed up too late watching telly with a bachelor’s handbag and bottle of shiraz.
The reactions to Donald Trump 2.0 will be coming thick and fast today. It’s also the last sitting day of the week, estimates will keep bringing the goods, and there’ll be legislation, interest rates and student debt on the agenda.
Donald Trump’s return to the White House presents a series of disruptive challenges to Anthony Albanese, writes our political editor, Karen Middleton, this morning.
But, she writes “the Australian government is focused on what it can control” rather than what it can’t as it contemplates a second Trump administration.
Read her full piece here:
And there’s more on that reaction from politicians here:
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RBA chief to face grilling in parliament
Questions about the central bank’s decision to keep interest rates on hold will be levelled at the Reserve Bank governor, Michele Bullock, at her regular parliamentary grilling, writes Australian Associated Press.
The RBA board has yet to declare victory in Australia’s war on inflation and on Tuesday kept the interest rate on hold, bringing up a calendar year since the last rate rise.
Bullock and assistant governor Chris Kent may get a hostile reception on Thursday, with the Greens senator Nick McKim likely to press them on why they have still not dropped the cash rate from 4.35%.
McKim called on the government to override the central bank and use its powers to cut rates back in September, when the quarterly inflation rate still read 3.8%.
That figure is now back within the RBA’s target band at 2.8%.
But the board in its post-meeting statement on Tuesday said it would be “some time yet before inflation is sustainably in the target range and approaching the midpoint”.
The bank’s preferred measure of underlying inflation, the trimmed mean, is still at 3.5% and proving much stickier, given elevated services price growth.
“While headline inflation has declined substantially and will remain lower for a time, underlying inflation is more indicative of inflation momentum, and it remains too high,” the board said.
The jobs market was still running too hot for Bullock’s liking, even though the RBA increased its peak unemployment prediction to 4.5% from 4.4%.
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PM says Australia ‘will strive to strengthen’ co-operation with US
Anthony Albanese says the election of the US president marked an important moment for Australia and the Asia Pacific region, and vowed to work closely with Donald Trump’s administration. This was his full statement as the election result became clear:
I congratulate President Trump on his election victory.
The election of the president of the United States is always an important moment for the world, for our region and for Australia.
Our government will work closely with the new Trump administration to realise the benefits of our strong economic partnership.
The United States has long played a leadership role in the stability and security of the Indo-Pacific. Australia will strive to strengthen the co-operation between our two nations in the region.
Australia and America are old allies and we are true friends. Our nations are bound by a history of shared sacrifice, a commitment to common values and – above all – enduring respect and affection between our peoples.
I look forward to talking with President Trump and working with him in the best interests of both our nations.
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Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live politics blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the best of the overnight stories and then Tory Shepherd will take the controls.
There’s really only one place to start this morning and that is Donald Trump’s election win. Anthony Albanese sent his congratulations and said he looked forward to talking with Trump and working with him “in the best interests of both our nations”. Peter Dutton, Scott Morrison and Tony Abbott all delivered messages of congratulation to Trump, with the latter saying Trump had the self-belief the “west needs … in spades”. More reaction coming up.
We also caught up with the expat and Australian Trump supporters who celebrated at watch parties – “We want to bring this to Australia” – and with the Kamala Harris backers drowning their sorrows.
Trump’s win had an immediate effect on the financial markets overnight, sending the US dollar soaring at the expense of the Aussie dollar. But it also saw Wall Street stocks hit another all-time high as investors moved into more risky assets amid the prospect of a new government united across the presidency and Congress. The ASX200 futures market looks becalmed this morning although that might change later as the Reserve Bank governor, Michele Bullock, is quizzed in parliament. More details on that soon.
