Category Archives: Liberal party

Australia news live: Higgins and Reynolds in defamation mediation talks; first apparent lithium battery-related fire deaths in NSW

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Zoe Daniel says Asean has not done enough on crisis in Myanmar

The independent MP for Goldstein, Zoe Daniel, was just on ABC RN to discuss the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Myanmar. She argued that Asean hasn’t done enough on the issue, and needs to do more.

There’s also I think, a desire within Asean for economic cooperation and to try to take that route with the junta as a form of leverage … My concern though is that, I think, that we might be heading down the path of a form of normalisation with the junta and you’ve currently got a situation where about 30% of the country is in stable control of rebel ethnic groups, and the junta is really only holding the major cities.

Any form of normalisation with the junta that is pushed by Asean, and I think will be raised with the Australian government for support this week, could backfire because it could in effect allow the junta to enter some of those areas that are reasonably stable and are actually managing themselves.

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Talk of nuclear power plant sites ‘conjecture’, says Liberal MP amid internal division on Dutton’s policy

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Rowan Ramsey says overturning ban on nuclear first is the ‘most logical thing’ to do as opposition leader prepares to nominate up to six locations

The Liberal MP Rowan Ramsey has said any talk of where nuclear power plants would be built or waste would go is “conjecture” that cannot sensibly be tackled until after the nuclear ban is lifted.

As the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, prepares to announce an energy policy nominating up to six possible sites for nuclear plants, he faces internal divisions about the level of government support required, proposed locations and questions about storage of nuclear waste.

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Opposition reshuffles shadow ministry after underwhelming Dunkley byelection result

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There have been internal calls for the Coalition to announce more policy in the lead-up to the next election

Luke Howarth, a conservative, has been promoted to shadow assistant treasurer and minister for financial services in a Coalition reshuffle that also promotes Melissa McIntosh into the shadow ministry.

The Coalition has signalled it will target Labor over home ownership, creating a new shadow assistant ministry for Andrew Bragg a moderate senator, and energy affordability, a portfolio to be taken by McIntosh, a member of the centre right.

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Liberals pick management consultant Simon Kennedy for Cook byelection

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The party misses the chance to have a female candidate in the safe seat vacated by former prime minister Scott Morrison

Simon Kennedy will contest Scott Morrison’s seat of Cook for the Liberals in the byelection triggered by the former prime minister’s resignation.

Kennedy, a consultant and the former candidate for Bennelong, won preselection in the first round on Monday night with 158 out of 296 votes, beating the mayor of Sutherland shire, Carmelo Pesce, and war widow and veteran family advocate commissioner, Gwen Cherne.

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Spill or no spill, Victoria’s Liberal party can agree on one thing: no more messiahs

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As discontent with leader John Pesutto rises, the fractured party is casting around for a replacement that will unite them

By all accounts, the Victorian Liberals are heading for another leadership spill. But true to form, the party room is divided over the details.

Following a month of discipline during the federal byelection in the seat of Dunkley, the disunity returned on Sunday as the state opposition leader, John Pesutto, announced two of his most senior staff had left his office.

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Australia news live: siege unfolds at Geelong home; PM says Dutton’s team ‘dominated by blokes’

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Albanese also flagged concerns over ‘nature of behaviour’ in comments in lead-up to Saturday’s Dunkley byelection. Follow the day’s news live

PM congratulates new MP Jodie Belyea for ‘strong and positive campaign’

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, joined community leader Jodie Belyea at a polling station on Saturday, his 61st birthday, and praised the strong campaign she ran, AAP reports.

And I’m now going to be your strong local voice in Canberra.

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Dunkley byelection: Labor’s Jodie Belyea triumphs but Liberals win modest swing

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Liberal candidate Nathan Conroy wins swing of more than 3% but well short of the 6.3% required, leaving Belyea as the newest federal MP

Peter Dutton’s Liberal party has won a modest swing in the Dunkley byelection but fallen short in the Labor seat vacated by the death of the popular local MP Peta Murphy.

The Liberal candidate, Nathan Conroy, has currently received 47.5% of the two-party preferred vote, a swing of more than 3% to the opposition, well short of the 6.3% swing required to win the seat off the Albanese government.

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Voters turn out for byelection; tributes to Jesse Baird and Luke Davies – as it happened

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Queensland government pledges over $40m to fertility treatments

More women and girls suffering complex medical conditions like cancer will have access to cheaper reproductive care after Queensland became the latest state to announce public funding for fertility treatments, AAP has reported.

When a significant health issue, such as cancer, impacts a person’s fertility, being able to afford access to fertility services should be the last thing Queenslanders need to worry about.

Longstanding and deep-rooted … abuse, racism and homophobia rampant within the NSW police.

About 8.30pm, the group moved onto the roadway, blocking all vehicle traffic at the intersection of Oxford and Flinders Street. With the assistance of additional police, the crowd were directed to move onto the footpath. Those who did not comply with police directions were physically removed.

The crowd later dispersed, with part of the group attending the Sydney Police Centre on Goulburn and Riley Streets, where they continued to protest.”

There were no reports of any property being damaged, person being injured, or any arrests being made.

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Daryl Maguire had ‘emotional hold’ over Gladys Berejiklian, Icac lawyer tells court

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The disgraced MP for Wagga was a ‘special kind of serial pest’ but ex-premier’s shared vision of the future with him clouded her judgment, court hears

Gladys Berejiklian’s former boyfriend, the disgraced ex-MP Daryl Maguire, was a “special kind of serial pest” who had an “emotional hold” over the former state premier, a lawyer representing the New South Wales corruption watchdog has told a court.

Defending the Independent Commission Against Corruption’s findings of corrupt conduct on the part of Berejiklian, Stephen Free SC told the court of appeal Berejiklian’s “vision for her future” with her Liberal colleague had impacted her judgment.

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Greens-Coalition alliance may force Chalmers to keep power to overrule RBA on rates

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Chalmers had announced plans to scrap the veto power but former treasurers and RBA governors say it is a vital ‘safety valve’

An alliance between the Greens and Liberal parties in the Senate could force Jim Chalmers to keep a government power that allows treasurers to overrule Reserve Bank decisions on interest rates.

Chalmers announced plans to scrap the veto power in the government response to recommendations from a panel which reviewed the Reserve Bank operations and made suggestions for improvement.

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Two-thirds polled in Dunkley back the stage-three tax cut changes despite cost-of-living attack ads

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Byelection poll puts Labor ahead by a nose as rightwing campaign on Anthony Albanese’s ‘broken promises’ ramps up

Voters in Dunkley have backed Labor’s tax cut package by more than two-to-one, despite the party facing a barrage of negative cost of living ads from Advance Australia.

According to a uComms poll for the leftwing thinktank the Australia Institute, Labor has its nose in front in the byelection seat 52% to 48% – although that result is within the poll’s 3.9% margin of error.

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Rightwing lobby group Advance Australia doubles donation revenue but half of donors unknown

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Campaigner for no vote in voice referendum received $5.2m last financial year, 47% of it ‘dark money’ from sources not revealed publicly

Advance Australia, the conservative lobby group that claimed success for defeating the voice referendum, more than doubled the amount of donations it received during the 2022-23 financial year.

But the origin of almost half of the funds remains unknown.

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Liberal MPs split on support for Labor’s stage-three tax cut changes

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Party room divides as some keen to allow new plan while others want to keep up attack on government’s ‘broken promise’ and warn against falling into a ‘trap’

Liberal MPs are split on whether to support the Labor government’s stage-three tax changes, with some angling to oppose the legislation even as leader Peter Dutton signals the opposition may not stand in the way of larger refunds for millions of Australians.

Julian Leeser has urged his colleagues to oppose the tax changes, while Keith Wolahan warned against falling into a “trap” set by the government. Dutton said the opposition would push for lower taxes, a statement some see as an inclination to wave through the changes, but the view is not universal inside the Liberals ahead of a crucial party room meeting in Canberra next week.

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NSW Liberals propose weakening unfair-dismissal protections under new industrial relations platform

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The policy platform, to be considered later this month, also seeks to abandon annual wage rises for middle and high income earners on award safety nets

The New South Wales Liberals are set to adopt an industrial relations policy to water down unfair-dismissal protections and abandon annual wage rises for middle and high income earners on award safety nets.

The policy, to be considered at the state council annual general meeting later in February, is an ambitious blueprint for reforms to the federal Fair Work Act likely to spark a hostile reaction from unions over weakening worker protections.

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Scott Morrison to resign from politics for ‘new challenges in the global corporate sector’

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Former prime minister quitting after 16 years in parliament to also ‘spend more time with my family’

The former prime minister Scott Morrison has announced he will quit parliament at the end of February, triggering a byelection in his seat of Cook.

In a statement on social media on Tuesday, Morrison said he had decided “to take on new challenges in the global corporate sector and spend more time with my family”.

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Victorian opposition drops support for treaty, citing ‘issues around cultural heritage’

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The Coalition backed a bill in 2022 to start the treaty process but spokesman Peter Walsh says ‘things have changed’

The Victorian opposition has dropped its support for a treaty with the state’s Indigenous people, citing concerns about cultural heritage laws.

The move was described by the state’s First People’s Assembly as “disappointing but not surprising”.

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Linda Reynolds seeks advice on bid to freeze Brittany Higgins’ assets in France

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The former minister aims to apply order in France where her former staffer, whom she is suing for defamation, now lives

Linda Reynolds says she is awaiting advice on whether a bid to freeze Brittany Higgins’ assets could apply in France where the former Liberal staffer she is suing now lives.

The Western Australian senator is suing Higgins, and her partner David Sharaz, in the state’s supreme court over social media posts that contained a list of complaints against the former defence minister.

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Child attacked by crocodile at Kakadu – as it happened

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PM says $15bn reconstruction fund is ‘open for business’ despite inability to apply for it

The prime minister was asked why the $15bn national reconstruction fund is “taking so long”, having passed through the parliament in March last year and being brought into effect in July.

Whether the website is there or not, is it is an interesting point that you’re making, but businesses that are interested in this would have looked at a video from the finance minister Kate Gallagher in November, that set out the investment mandate that was agreed to by the government and the National Reconstruction Fund, which importantly, is an independent body at arm’s length in terms of making those decisions because we want those decisions.

The money is available now.

I’ll examine the issue of the website, that is a reasonable point that you make. But people who are actually following this and interested in applying will have seen Katie Gallagher’s release setting out what the what the process is.

At a time when members of the Australian community are unhoused as a result of fire, as a result of flood, it seems unacceptable … that we could be giving large benefits to those who already have a great deal.

… inequality is an issue and the government has looked at ways in which we can improve that position.

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Lehrmann proceedings day 18 – as it happened

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Meakin agreed that The Project was “going further” towards identifying Lehrmann than Samantha Maiden’s article in news.com.au which was published first.

He said The Project was relying on Maiden’s article to promote the program that evening and that the promotion could improve ratings.

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Brittany Higgins told senior colleague she remembered Bruce Lehrmann on top of her, defamation trial hears

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Linda Reynolds’ then chief of staff Fiona Brown was first to interview pair after alleged rape, which Lehrmann has always denied

Former Liberal staffer Fiona Brown was dramatically compelled to give evidence in Bruce Lehrmann’s defamation trial on Monday on the proviso the federal court’s live stream was disabled while she was in the witness box.

Brown was Senator Linda Reynolds’ chief of staff at the time Brittany Higgins claims Lehrmann raped her on the ministerial couch, and was the first person to interview both of them. She took contemporaneous notes.

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