Category Archives: Scott Morrison

Guardian Essential poll: Labor loses ground in first week of campaign but remains ahead of Coalition

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Albanese’s disapproval rate rose by five points but over half of all respondents still believe Labor will win the next election

Labor appears to have lost ground in the opening week of the federal election campaign according to the latest Guardian Essential poll, but a majority of respondents still think Anthony Albanese will be Australia’s next prime minister.

The latest survey of 1,020 respondents shows Labor’s standing in the two-party preferred “plus” measure is down three points in a fortnight, and there has been a two point increase in the number of undecided voters. But 55% of respondents believe Labor will win on 21 May.

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Australian politics live: PM says Coalition ‘won’t be doing any deals’ with independents; green energy ‘first mover advantage’ lost, says Albanese

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Record number of Australians enrol to vote; Morrison says he won’t allow embattled Warringah candidate to be ‘silenced’; Australia losing green energy opportunities due to Coalition inaction, Albanese says; Shorten launches Labor’s NDIS policy; nation records 18 Covid deaths. Follow all the latest news

These two are debating each other on Sky News tonight

Former South Australian senator Nick Xenophon, who is making another tilt at the Senate, wants a royal commission into housing affordability in Australia.

With house prices rising in Adelaide, and around the country by almost a quarter in just a year, the issue of young Australians being able to afford to buy their own home is becoming more and more vexed, and there are policy failures all round at a local, state and federal government level.

Only a royal commission can tackle this issue head-on by looking at a range of solutions that will get us back on track to make the dream of home ownership attainable once again.”

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Australian politics live: Morrison to visit Perth as Liberal divisions grow over Katherine Deves; Albanese gets mixed reception at Bluesfest

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Anthony Albanese gets mixed reception at Bluesfest in Byron Bay, while Scott Morrison has a brain fade moment at a press conference and walks away from a young woman asking him about climate policy; NSW records four Covid deaths and Victoria one. Follow all the latest news

New South Wales has released its Covid numbers for the last 24 hours, with 11,166 new cases and sadly four deaths.

It might be a little later today before we hear from the Liberal campaign, given the time difference with Western Australia.

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Voters in hotly contested Liberal-held seat rank climate and environment over economy, poll finds

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Integrity also considered key issue in poll that highlights pressures Coalition may face as it seeks to hold socially progressive seats

Voters in the Liberal-held seat of North Sydney have ranked climate and the environment as a higher priority than the economy, while they see integrity in politics as narrowly more important than the cost of living, a new poll shows.

With Scott Morrison placing the economy at the centre of his re-election pitch and playing down his broken promise to establish a commonwealth integrity commission, the poll highlights pressures the Coalition may face as it seeks to hold socially progressive seats.

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Ruston will ‘take the universal out of universal healthcare’, Labor says – as it happened

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Labor says Anne Ruston as health minister if Coalition re-elected should ‘send a shiver down the spine’; WA records eight Covid deaths, NSW six, Victoria two and Tasmania one. This blog is now closed

Marise Payne has told the ABC’s Insiders she does not share the views expressed by Katherine Deves about transgender and gender diverse people that have prompted calls for her to be dropped as the candidate for Warringah.

She tells host David Speers:

I don’t share Ms Deves’ comments that she has made, but importantly she has apologised and withdrawn those views and as the prime minister said yesterday, in public life, we do have to be very careful about the way we express our opinions.

It is a matter for the organisation in New South Wales. I need to get on with my job, that’s what I’m doing. I don’t agree with the remarks she made, I’ve made that explicitly clear.

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Anne Ruston defends past comments that Medicare ‘is not sustainable’ after PM names her as health minister if re-elected

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Minister says Coalition is ‘not cutting Medicare’ as Labor accuses her of wanting ‘to take the universal out of universal healthcare’

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.

The prime minister, Scott Morrison, announced on Sunday that Ruston would take over the health and aged care ministry vacated by the retiring Greg Hunt, if the Coalition wins the election on 21 May.

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NSW Liberals should decide whether Katherine Deves is disendorsed, Marise Payne says

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Foreign minister says she has made it ‘explicitly clear’ she does not agree with comments made by Warringah candidate

Senior government frontbencher Marise Payne has distanced herself from the controversial Liberal candidate for the Sydney seat of Warringah, saying it is a matter for the party organisation whether Katherine Deves is disendorsed.

The foreign minister was pointed in her remarks on the range of captain’s picks overseen by Scott Morrison in lieu of normal preselection processes in New South Wales, telling the ABC’s Insiders program: “Some of them are fabulous candidates.”

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Scott Morrison faces Liberal mutiny over Warringah candidate Katherine Deves’ trans views

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NSW treasurer Matt Kean and long-time Liberal activist Walter Villatora call for Deves to be disendorsed

Scott Morrison is facing a mutiny over the Liberal party’s controversial candidate in Warringah, Katherine Deves, with intensifying calls for her to be dumped because of “hurtful and divisive” comments about transgender people.

Liberal moderates have been concerned for some time that Deves’ candidacy would prove damaging to the Liberal party’s standing with centre-right progressive voters in key metropolitan contests.

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Anthony Albanese says PM’s broken federal Icac promise ‘fails the laugh test’ as Chalmers defends Labor campaign

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Shadow treasurer says Labor ‘match-fit’ for campaign and denies first week was a ‘shitshow’

Anthony Albanese has attacked Scott Morrison for blaming a lack of Labor support as the reason he couldn’t legislate his proposed anti-corruption commission, saying the argument “fails the laugh test”, as the federal opposition defended their rocky start to the election campaign.

On Saturday, as Labor unveiled a commitment to legislate a national anti-corruption commission by the end of 2022 if elected, both the prime minister and opposition leader faced questions over their ideal model for an integrity body, with Albanese suggesting Labor’s version would be stronger than the Coalition’s proposal that was widely panned and opposed by some government MPs.

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Anthony Albanese commits to anti-corruption watchdog by end of 2022, if Labor wins election

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Scott Morrison under pressure over integrity commission failure and $500,000 payout to ex-ministerial staffer

Anthony Albanese says he will legislate a national anti-corruption commission by the end of 2022 if Labor wins the election.

Albanese’s commitment, to be confirmed on Saturday, follows Scott Morrison declaring this week he will only revive his government’s heavily criticised integrity commission proposal if Labor and the Senate are prepared to pass it unamended.

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Australia news live updates: One Nation dumps Brisbane candidate; Anthony Albanese and Jenny Morrison attend same Easter service; 26 Covid deaths

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Rebecca Lloyd reportedly ditched from One Nation because she refused to work with party leaders; airport staff shortages cause baggage issues; more aged care deaths in 2022 than first two pandemic years combined; campaign trail ‘truce’ for Easter weekend; NSW records 16 Covid deaths, Victoria records seven deaths; Queensland records two deaths; first election debate confirmed for 20 April. Follow all today’s news

NSW has recorded 16 Covid deaths and more than 15,000 cases.

Queues are so far moving faster than expected at major airports, after a week of huge delays. There were some concerns about another chaotic day at the airport on Good Friday. About 80,000 passengers were due to travel through Sydney airport alone.

Queues are moving well at Sydney airport even as hundreds of people fill the country’s busiest airport as they head out for Easter holidays.

Airports around the country will remain busy over the break and school holiday period.

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‘Massive policy failure’: retired judges blast Morrison’s broken promise on federal Icac

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Former supreme court judge Anthony Whealy says Coalition’s explanation for not legislating a promised anti-corruption commission is ‘spurious’

Retired judges have criticised the Morrison government’s broken promise on the federal anti-corruption commission as a “massive policy failure”, saying the Coalition’s explanation for walking away from the pledge was “spurious”.

The Coalition is under pressure over its failure to introduce legislation establishing its proposed anti-corruption commission, despite promising to do so prior to the last election.

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PM cancels afternoon campaigning – as it happened

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Members of Scott Morrison’s security detail injured during campaigning in Tasmania; at least 45 more Covid deaths around Australia, with 21 in NSW. This blog is now closed

If you are in Sydney, you can have a little treat – free public transport (for 12 days).

As AAP reports:

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Rachelle Miller challenges Scott Morrison to release details of settlement following workplace bullying claims

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Lawyers for Miller say the former Coalition staffer wishes to remove ‘any impediment’ preventing the PM giving a ‘full and truthful account’ of her case

The former Coalition staffer Rachelle Miller has challenged Scott Morrison to publicly release details of the settlement payment she will receive after alleging harassment and bullying while working for senior ministers.

It comes after the government cited confidentiality and privacy concerns in refusing to provide the information. But even after Miller’s lawyers said she was eager to “release” the Commonwealth and ministers from being bound by confidentiality around commenting on her case, Coalition ministers are still declining to comment.

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Scott Morrison effectively ditches his promise to establish a federal anti-corruption commission

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Prime minister says if Coalition wins election he would only introduce legislation if Labor agreed in advance to back heavily criticised model

Scott Morrison has effectively abandoned his promise to establish a federal anti-corruption watchdog, confirming he would only proceed with legislation in the new parliament if Labor agreed to pass the Coalition’s heavily criticised proposal without amendments.

Morrison pledged before the 2019 election to legislate a federal integrity body in the parliamentary term that has just ended. The prime minister broke that promise, failing to introduce his own proposal before the 46th parliament was prorogued.

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Morrison abandons support for trans sport ban after hand-picked candidate apologises for tweets

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Liberal Katherine Deves apologises for post describing trans kids as ‘surgically mutilated and sterilised’ as Zali Steggall calls for her disendorsement

Scott Morrison has backpedalled after flagging the Coalition might support a bill banning transgender women from playing women’s sport, following a backlash from Liberal moderates and independents.

Morrison said on Wednesday the Coalition “does not have any plans” for Liberal senator Claire Chandler’s private bill to become a government one.

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There is ‘no one News Corp view’ on election, head of company’s Australian arm tells staff

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News Corp Australasia executive chairman issues all-staff memo, with scrutiny on election coverage likely to increase

Rupert Murdoch’s Australian lieutenant has told News Corp journalists there is “no one News Corp view” about the election and that individual editors are free to decide which party to endorse.

Executive chairman of News Corp Australasia, Michael Miller, said it was important to remember that “electorate issues in Surry Hills differ greatly to those in Broken Hill” and that audiences “expect us to interrogate all parties and all sides”.

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PM distances government from private member’s bill – as it happened

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Morrison says Warringah candidate Katherine Deves has ‘apologised’ over social media posts; nation records at least 39 Covid deaths. This blog is now closed

Adam Bandt, the Greens leader, will also be talking about the Greens’ tax and Medicare plans at the National Press Club today, as Sarah Martin reports:

The Fireproof protests continue in Sydney:

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Christian lobby groups push major parties to support unamended religious discrimination bill

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FamilyVoice says Labor not to blame for ‘Morrison’s failure’ to pass bill as Albanese pledges to extend school chaplaincy program with secular pastoral care

Christian lobby groups are pressing both major parties to recommit to the unamended religious discrimination bill as Labor guarantees to extend the chaplaincy program with a secular choice for schools.

Guardian Australia understands Labor has told FamilyVoice it has “consistently supported” the $61m-a-year chaplaincy program but will move to give schools the option of a secular pastoral care worker.

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Australia politics live updates: Joyce announces $1.5bn Darwin port facility; Coalition costing of Labor policies ‘laughable’, says Gallagher

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Deputy PM promises $1.5bn investment for new Darwin port; Labor senator takes shot at Coalition’s ‘dodgy costings unit’; Scott Morrison promises to create 1.3m new jobs in the next five years; Anthony Albanese announces greater mental health support for regions; nation records 38 more Covid deaths. Follow all the day’s news

Scott Morrison has called in to Adelaide radio station FiveAA to speak with David Penberthy.

Penberthy wanted to know whether Morrison’s standing contributed to the collapse in the Liberal party’s vote in the recent South Australian state election.

It’s a federal election.

It’s a macro number that we do right across the economy.

I think prime minister Ardern was appropriate when she said she wasn’t going to engage in a domestic election in Australia. I would say this – this is a recommendation of the royal commission. This is a recommendation that arises out of the situation that we see older Australians facing. Neglect, people are being neglected.

Now, what we are saying is let’s work to bring in more nurses to the sector ... a lot of nurses leave the sector every year, or leave their employer. We need to train more Australians to get into this workforce, and yes, as is currently the place, migration will be part of the story but not all of the story.

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