Category Archives: Australian politics

Senior public servants criticised by robodebt royal commission scrubbed from organisational charts

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Lawyer Annette Musolino is on leave, as PM’s department assistant secretary Russell De Burgh is replaced on staff listing

Two public servants adversely named by the robodebt royal commission have been quietly scrubbed from organisational charts, including the former top lawyer at Services Australia who had spent months assisting the commission.

Annette Musolino, who was general counsel at the Department of Human Services (DHS) at the time of the unlawful debt recovery program and later chief operating officer of the department, renamed Services Australia, is on leave.

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Morrison government struck secret deal to pay PNG to take refugees and asylum seekers

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Exclusive: Australian government is refusing to say how much it is giving Papua New Guinea under the agreement

The Australian government is refusing to say how much it is paying to Papua New Guinea in a secret agreement to hold about 75 refugees and asylum seekers in Port Moresby.

Parliamentary documents have revealed for the first time this week that the Morrison government signed a “confidential bilateral agreement” with PNG in December 2021, paying the PNG government to provide welfare and support for refugees forcibly sent to PNG by Australia.

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Australia news live: new fire ant infestation just 5km from NSW border prompts fears of southern invasion

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Invasive Species Council calls on governments to urgently fast-track funding for ramped-up eradication program. Follow live news updates today

Gold Coast’s offer to host the Commonwealth Games is set to fall at the first hurdle, with the Albanese government unlikely to financially back the lifeline, as AAP reports.

Gold Coast mayor Tom Tate has launched a late bid for the 2026 Games after Victoria pulled out of hosting the global sports event.

I just think that this is unlikely given the focus and the investment that we are making in Brisbane in the lead up to 2032.

I have always been a supporter of this concept because I think it will help people make better community-level decisions.

But I fear the process has not yielded enough consensus to garner a yes vote.

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Big W ditches in-store announcements that supported Indigenous voice to parliament

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Discount chain, owned by Woolworths, says decision is due to feedback from staff and customers

Big W has abandoned in-store announcements that expressed support for the Indigenous voice to parliament, citing responses from customers and staff.

The discount chain, owned by supermarket operator Woolworths, recently used an acknowledgment of country across its stores that affirmed support for the constitutional change to be voted on at an upcoming referendum.

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Labor to consider ways to protect ABC and SBS from future funding threats

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Michelle Rowland says review into security of national broadcasters will consider options to support their independence

A review into the security of ABC and SBS funding will examine ways to protect the public broadcasters from future threats of privatisation and arbitrary funding cuts, the communications minister Michelle Rowland has said.

Rowland told an ABC Friends dinner the communications department review would consider options to support the independence of the ABC and the SBS and it was open for public submissions.

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‘Teal-style’ search: NSW Liberals look beyond membership in bid to unseat Zali Steggall

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Party members in Warringah encouraged to nominate possible candidates via expressions of interest form

The Liberal party has launched a “teal-style” search beyond their own membership in a bid to find someone who could oust independent MP Zali Steggall from the former blue-ribbon seat of Warringah.

More than a year before an election could possibly be called, branch members were this week sent an email from the local federal electorate convention (FEC), asking for nominations from within the community – no matter their party status. This comes after federal leader Peter Dutton urged branches to begin their preselection processes.

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Minister orders briefing on $33m grant – as it happened

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New Zealand PM to address media shortly

New Zealand’s prime minister Chris Hipkins is set to address media at 10:15am New Zealand time about the shooting in Aukland this morning.

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‘Beloved son of the Labor party’: Simon Crean farewelled at state funeral

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Anthony Albanese among political figures, unionists and family members to pay tribute to former leader

Simon Crean has been remembered as a “beloved son of the Labor party” at a heartfelt state funeral in Melbourne.

Political figures from both major parties, including Anthony Albanese and Daniel Andrews, attended St Paul’s Cathedral on Thursday, where the former federal Labor leader was laid to rest at a state funeral.

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Australia to gain priority access to US military equipment under Washington proposal

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Aukus requests would be handled faster than almost all applications ‘other than from Taiwan and Ukraine’

Australian requests for US military equipment would be handled faster than almost all applications “other than from Taiwan and Ukraine” under a proposal before the US Senate.

The Australian government has long viewed the complex web of US export controls as a potential barrier to the Aukus security partnership.

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PwC-backed mental health platform was scrapped after $33m government trial launched without open tender

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Experts call for transparency over Project Synergy grant awarded to Innowell, whose platform is no longer used by the federal health department

A PwC-backed startup received tens of millions of taxpayer dollars through a closed, non-competitive grant to develop a digital mental health platform, which was almost scrapped due to health workers finding it an administrative burden.

Policy experts and transparency watchdogs have raised alarm about the grant and called on the federal government to explain why the money was not allocated through an open and competitive process to ensure value for money.

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Labor faces internal fight over native forest logging despite emissions pledge

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Labor’s Environment Action Network says draft national platform ‘very, very weak’ on opposing native forest logging and land clearing

Labor has significantly beefed up its commitment to reduce emissions in the gas industry but still faces a fight at its national conference over “weak” policies on native forest logging.

Labor’s Environment Action Network (Lean) has now signed up 294 branches for its push to end native forest logging and broad scale land clearing, but both policies were omitted from the draft national platform distributed to delegates on Monday.

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News live: Burney rules out voice debate with Price, saying ‘this is about Australians not politics’

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Minister for education Jason Clare said increasing access to a Commonwealth-supported place at university will cost $34m over the next four years – “That’s a pretty good investment”.

He said on ABC RN this morning:

If you’re a young Indigenous person today, you’re more likely to go to jail than you are to university.

The cost of having somebody in jail every year is about $120,000. The cost of a university place is $11,000.

Tuna sushi.

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Public servants complained about PwC ‘spamming’ them with unsolicited work offers, emails reveal

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Correspondence released by agriculture department shows level of discomfort among officials about embattled firm’s efforts to land new contracts

Senior public servants have complained about PwC “spamming” them with unsolicited bids for work, internal emails reveal, with department managers told to be vigilant about the potential misuse of government information and the importance of protecting taxpayer money.

The emails, released by the department of agriculture, provide more detail about a practice criticised by the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) and demonstrate the level of discomfort within the public service about PwC’s methods of trying to land new contracts.

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Albanese says it’s ‘dumb’ to expect change without Indigenous voice in talkback radio clash

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PM tells 2GB radio’s Ben Fordham that media have a responsibility not to ‘raise red herrings’ after being repeatedly questioned over impacts of voice proposal

Anthony Albanese has branded it “dumb” to suggest outcomes for Indigenous Australians can improve without a voice to parliament in the constitution, muscling up to conservative critics of the referendum proposal.

The prime minister made the comment in a testy interview on 2GB Radio, warning that media have a responsibility not to “raise red herrings” and urging Australians to read about the actual question for themselves.

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Alex Hawke and Sussan Ley among Liberal MPs facing preselection challenges

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Nominations for first batch of federal NSW seats reveal Scott Morrison allies Hawke and Melissa McIntosh face contest as does Paul Fletcher

Two of Scott Morrison’s allies are facing preselection challenges in their seats, as are two other senior federal Liberals – the deputy leader, Sussan Ley, and the manager of opposition business, Paul Fletcher.

Nominations for the first batch of New South Wales seats closed on Monday. Morrison backers Alex Hawke, the former immigration minister, and Melissa McIntosh, the member for Lindsay, are being challenged.

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Senator says treaty ‘the only way forward’ – as it happened

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Julian Leeser, the former shadow minister for Indigenous affairs and yes campaigner, has reassured ABC Radio that the voice to parliament is a “safe change” with cross-party support as the referendum draws nearer.

“Right from the beginning of my participation in this debate, I’ve called for a higher standard of debate and I’ve said that we should focus on issues of people,” he said.

I was proud to put my signature to the yes case. The yes case provides a positive reason for voting … It speaks to the practical results from change. It explains why recognition makes a difference to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. But it’s a safe change. It’s a change supported by people from all sides of politics.

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Is Labor cooking up a ‘ministry of truth?’ No, it’s just an opposition scare campaign – with a side of hypocrisy | Paul Karp

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The Coalition now opposes the type of social media regulation it supported in government – and its about-face is aimed at fuelling the campaigning journalism of Labor’s critics

Labor has a patchy record when it comes to free speech online.

In 2008, it attempted to filter the internet – an idea that limped on despite enormous practical difficulties until it was ditched in November 2012.

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Australian government spending on big four consultancy firms up 1,270% in a decade, analysis shows

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PwC, Deloitte, KPMG and EY face scrutiny as critics warn core functions of democracy should not be outsourced

The amount of taxpayer money given to the big four consultancy firms for management advisory services has increased by more than 1,270% in a decade, according to new analysis from the Centre for Public Integrity.

The analysis comes as the big four face intense scrutiny after disclosing the misuse of government information and multiple conflicts of interest, as well as concerns that taxpayers are being ripped off for work the public service once conducted itself.

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Australia news live: ‘are you really worth seven times the salary of the PM?’ Labor senator asks Deloitte chief

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Former competition watchdog Allan Fels tells parliamentary inquiry federal government must act now to avoid conflicts of interest. Follow the day’s news live

Divers are trying to retrieve hundreds of drones that plunged into Melbourne’s Yarra River over the weekend due to a technical error.

The drones were part of a light show for the Matildas’ game against France on Friday night but fell into the river due to a technical glitch. The retrieval operation began on Sunday and is continuing on Monday.

We want to see all drones taken back out of the river because we know if they are left there they will leach chemicals which can damage the environment.

We want investors to come into the market to take advantage of the great demand for rental accommodation.

But we don’t want to stifle that by putting unnecessary burden (on landlords).

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Voice backers sign off on ‘simple, hopeful’ message for referendum pamphlet

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Yes and no camps have been writing their competing essays, to be published by AEC on Tuesday

Supporters of an Indigenous voice to parliament say they are “ready to prosecute their simple, hopeful message” and will submit the official yes case to the Australian Electoral Commission on Monday.

The yes and the no camps have been drafting their competing essays, limited to 2,000 words each, with the two documents to be published online by the AEC on Tuesday.

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