index australian politics
[Link] Anne Ruston defends past comments that Medicare ‘is not sustainable’ after PM names her as health minister if re-elected
Read: 18/4/2022 www.theguardian.com
Labor says the appointment of Anne Ruston to the health portfolio in a re-elected Coalition government would mean cuts to Medicare, pointing to past comments by the senator that the costs of the health scheme were unsustainable.
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[Link] Scott Morrison says he 'misspoke' after incorrectly quoting increase to JobSeeker payment
Read: 18/4/2022 www.abc.net.au
The Prime Minister had been asked about what the Coalition had been doing to ease cost-of-living pressures, particularly for Australians experiencing rental stress. Mr Morrison cited the increase to the JobSeeker rate last year as evidence his government was working to boost support.
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[Link] Former Australian foreign minister features in UK video promoting Britain’s ‘new plan for immigration’
Read: 18/4/2022 www.theguardian.com
The former Australian foreign minister Alexander Downer has appeared front-and-centre of a UK Home Office video promoting the British government’s controversial “new plan for immigration” which includes sending asylum seekers to Rwanda.
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[Link] Fireproof Australia: who are the radical Extinction Rebellion splinter group?
Read: 10/4/2022 www.theguardian.com
It was the re-election of a Coalition government in May 2019 that altered the trajectory of Sam Noonan’s life and politics.
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[Link] Michaelia Cash shelves pledge on federal Icac as Liberal MP urges debate
Read: 8/2/2022 www.theguardian.com
The government will abandon an election promise to establish a commonwealth integrity commission, with the attorney general, Michaelia Cash indicating there is not enough time to legislate before voters return to the polls.
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[Link] AEC preparing to combat Trump-style misinformation in 2022 election
Read: 27/1/2022 www.theguardian.com
Social media companies should commit to taking down unauthorised political material in agreed timeframes to combat misinformation in elections, according to the Australian electoral commissioner, Tom Rogers.
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[Link] PM disappointed government senator reportedly growled at Jacqui Lambie
Read: 1/12/2021 www.abc.net.au
Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young and Labor leader in the Senate Penny Wong both raised points of order, saying a government senator was growling during Senator Lambie's question.
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[Link] Russell Broadbent quits committee after leak of Christian Porter donation report
Read: 30/11/2021 www.theguardian.com
Liberal MP Russell Broadbent has announced he will resign as chair of the privileges committee and has called for an investigation into an alleged breach of confidentiality revealing its deliberations on Christian Porter.
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[Link] WA Police officers who refuse vaccine will be stood down on full pay, union says
Read: 29/11/2021 www.abc.net.au
The WA Police Union says about 20 officers are likely to be stood down for refusing to be vaccinated against COVID-19 before Wednesday's deadline, but they could continue to receive full pay for months.
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[Link] High-profile Liberal woman quits party to run as independent after alleging ‘inappropriate’ behaviour
Read: 29/11/2021 www.theguardian.com
A high-profile NSW Liberal woman is quitting to run as an independent at the next federal election, partly to protest the handling of an internal complaint in which she alleged “inappropriate” behaviour by some senior men within the party and government.
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[Link] Australia’s Future Fund invested in weapons manufacturers that have sold arms to Myanmar military
Read: 29/11/2021 www.theguardian.com
Australia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Future Fund, has invested in a Chinese state-controlled weapons manufacturer that has sold combat aircraft to the Myanmar military, which is accused of crimes against humanity.
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[Link] Should politicians like Peter Dutton suck up Twitter’s hot-gives and -takes or pursue vindication?
Read: 28/11/2021 www.theguardian.com
You’ve got to wonder how Peter Dutton, one of the most wealthy and overstretched members of federal parliament, fathoms up the wherewithal to sue for defamation an unemployed, crowdfunded refugee advocate who called him something nasty on Twitter. Busy? You bet you are.
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[Link] ‘Keep the bastards honest’: former Australian Democrats leader joins high-profile group backing independents
Read: 27/11/2021 www.theguardian.com
As Scott Morrison comes to the end of a ragged parliamentary week, the organisation bankrolling independents challenging Liberal incumbents in their urban heartland has amassed an election war chest of more than $4m, and bolstered its advisory body.
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[Link] Australian taxpayers funding $59m in government ads in run-up to 2022 election
Read: 15/11/2021 www.theguardian.com
Taxpayers are paying at least $59m for major government advertising campaigns to run in the lead-up to the 2022 election.
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[Link] Morrison considering tax cut extension that could deliver $1000 extra to millions
Read: 15/11/2021 www.9news.com.au
Millions of Australians could be $1000 better off as the Morrison Government considers extending tax cuts. The Low and Middle Income Tax Offset provides a maximum benefit of $1080 to those who earn between $48,001 and $90,000.
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[Link] ABC chair Ita Buttrose accuses Coalition of ‘political interference’ and ‘intimidation’
Read: 15/11/2021 www.theguardian.com
The ABC chair, Ita Buttrose, has accused the Morrison government of political interference and attempting to intimidate the public broadcaster after the Senate established an inquiry into the ABC’s complaints handling process.
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[Link] Thick blue line: Victoria builds the country’s biggest police force
Read: 14/11/2021 www.theage.com.au
Victoria has become one of the most heavily policed states in Australia after a two decade-long law and order rivalry between the ALP and Coalition helped build the country’s largest law enforcement organisation.
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[Link] Scott Morrison’s approval rating at lowest point since aftermath of black summer bushfires
Read: 8/11/2021 www.theguardian.com
Voter approval of Scott Morrison is at its lowest level since before the outbreak of the pandemic, while the government’s handling of international relations has taken a hit over the past month, the latest Guardian Essential poll suggests.
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[Link] The plan to tighten Australia’s voter ID laws is just a clumsy uptake of US culture wars
Read: 7/11/2021 www.theguardian.com
It resembles many initiatives of the Morrison government, and most of the ideas which have emerged from Australian conservatism more broadly in the past decade or more, in that it is opportunistic, unoriginal, and so unnecessary as to be baffling.
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[Link] Australia puts fossil fuel company front and centre at Cop26
Read: 4/11/2021 www.theguardian.com
The Australian government has been criticised for prominently hosting a fossil fuel company at its pavilion at the Cop26 climate summit in Glasgow.
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[Link] NSW premier orders grants review as it’s revealed $20m school solar program went mostly to Coalition seats
Read: 3/11/2021 www.theguardian.com
New South Wales premier Dominic Perrottet ordered a review of grants funding in the state at the same time it was revealed more than 90% of schools selected as part of a $20m pilot to fund solar power systems were in Coalition-held seats.
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[Link] French officials vent fury over Australian leak of Macron text message
Read: 2/11/2021 www.theguardian.com
Elysée officials have expressed fury at the Australian prime minister Scott Morrison’s decision to leak a private text message from the French president, Emmanuel Macron, as the diplomatic rift between the two countries deepened.
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[Link] Government blocks bid to investigate Christian Porter over legal fee donation
Read: 23/10/2021 www.abc.net.au
The Coalition has blocked a bid to have former attorney-general Christian Porter investigated over his financial disclosures, despite the Speaker of the House having argued there was a case for further scrutiny.
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[Link] Federation 'ill-equipped' to deal with 21st-century challenges as Australia grows 'vulnerable'
Read: 21/10/2021 www.abc.net.au
More than 250 stakeholders are behind a report, as part of the National Resilience Project (NRP), that makes recommendations on topics including energy security, climate change responses, global and regional security risks, and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
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[Link] What's happening in SA's parliament and why could it spell trouble for the Attorney-General?
Read: 21/10/2021 www.abc.net.au
Deliberations begin today into an inquiry that will probe into the conduct of the state's Attorney-General and Deputy Premier Vickie Chapman. It's one of the unfolding consequences of the party defection of Liberal backbench MP Dan Cregan, and the government's reduced numbers in parliament.
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[Link] Indonesia and Malaysia 'worried' AUKUS will start a regional arms race with China
Read: 19/10/2021 www.abc.net.au
Malaysia and Indonesia have said they share strong reservations over Australia's decision to acquire nuclear-powered submarines, even though nuclear weapons were not part of the plan.
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[Link] Northern Territory chief minister and US senator Ted Cruz in Twitter spat over Covid vaccines
Read: 19/10/2021 www.theguardian.com
The Northern Territory chief minister, Michael Gunner, has hit back at US senator Ted Cruz who criticised the Northern Territory’s vaccine policy, telling the firebrand Texan conservative “you know nothing about us”.
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[Link] Facebook says Craig Kelly’s content on United Australia Party page OK after banning MP
Read: 19/10/2021 www.theguardian.com
Facebook says the United Australia Party’s page does not violate the social media giant’s community standards despite carrying prominent content from Craig Kelly, whose accounts have been banned for breaching the social media company’s misinformation policy.
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[Link] ‘It needs more work’: Liberal MPs call for tougher federal integrity commission
Read: 17/10/2021 www.theguardian.com
A growing number of Liberal MPs are pushing for the government to toughen up its proposed federal integrity commission, amid criticism from the crossbench and experts that the draft bill is too weak.
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[Link] Attorney general’s department advised Coalition Toondah Harbour development could breach wetlands convention
Read: 9/8/2021 www.theguardian.com
The Coalition government decided a controversial apartment complex and marina proposed for Queensland’s Moreton Bay should proceed to the next stage of the assessment process, despite legal advice from the federal attorney general’s department warning it was unacceptable because of the risk it p
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[Link] Morrison government battling to keep commuter car parks scandal documents a secret
Read: 9/8/2021 www.9news.com.au
The federal government is battling to keep documents at the centre of its commuter car parks scandal secret.
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[Link] Australia Post pays former CEO Christine Holgate $1m in settlement after Cartier watch saga
Read: 6/8/2021 www.theguardian.com
Australia Post will pay its former chief executive Christine Holgate $1m to settle claims relating to her departure from the organisation during the Cartier watch controversy.
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[Link] Swallow hard reality pill on virus deaths
Read: 5/8/2021 www.afr.com
Each life saved by the Sydney lockdown costs $330 million. It’s an unjustifiable expense that imposes large and disproportionate burdens on small business and the less well off.
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[Link] ‘Prices going up’: competition watchdog tells governments to limit asset sales as public loses trust
Read: 30/7/2021 www.theguardian.com
Competition watchdog Rod Sims has called for curbs on state and federal government privatisations, saying the public has lost trust after seeing prices rise following asset sell-offs.
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[Link] Former South Australian Labor MPs set to relaunch Family First Party
Read: 28/7/2021 www.abc.net.au
Two former South Australian Labor MPs, including the state's former health minister, have banded together to revive the Family First Party and intend to run candidates in the next state election.
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[Link] Labor hopeful withdraws candidacy after party’s tax change
Read: 28/7/2021 www.smh.com.au
The executive director of progressive think tank Per Capita, Emma Dawson, has withdrawn from federal Labor’s preselection contest for the seat of Melbourne after voicing her disgust over the party’s decision to support tax cuts for high-income earners.
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[Link] ‘Death of the river system’: Nationals make it legal to illegally take water from Upper Darling
Read: 6/5/2021 www.michaelwest.com.au
NSW parliament will tomorrow vote on a motion that may decide the very future of the devastated Murray Darling River System. Nationals MP and Water Minister Melinda Pavey last Friday introduced a scheme that allow floodplain harvesting licences to be issued across Northern NSW.
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[Link] Tech industry revolt against Porter’s appointment grows
Read: 7/4/2021 www.afr.com
Pressure is rising on Prime Minister Scott Morrison to reverse his decision to appoint Christian Porter as the Minister for Industry, Science and Technology, as more technology industry players spoke out against him taking responsibility for a sector that has sought to increase the participation of
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[Link] Christopher Pyne's firm hired by defence contractor awarded $98m in government work while he was minister
Read: 29/1/2021 www.theguardian.com
Christopher Pyne’s lobbyist firm has been engaged by a private defence contractor that was awarded tens of millions of dollars of government work while he was defence minister.