Drivers in capital cities faced increases of 12.4% in 2023 while the average driver in regional areas was hit with a 13.7% rise
Australian households are under increasing budget pressure when it comes to car travel as transport costs balloon to three times the inflation rate.
The typical household’s transport costs rose by about 13% in 2023, outpacing the inflation rate of 4.1%.
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Report says HECS needs to be ‘simpler and fairer’: Clare
Clare says the report includes recommendations about student allowances and proposals around indexation and how to reduce HECS payments He says it makes clear that “HECS has to be simpler and fairer”.
Bruce Chapman, the architect of HECS, has helped the panel with a recommendation which says there are ways to reduce upfront payments for people on lower incomes. For example, if we were to go down this path, it says that someone on an income of $75,000 a year would pay every year about $1,000 less. That is something that could provide people with an immediate cost-of-living benefit once they finish uni and are in the workforce, on top of the tax cuts that we’ve introduced and will hopefully go through the Senate this week.
This is bigger than one budget, but we do need to get started now to build the foundations for long-term reform.
Different models are suggested. The report also recommends that if we go down this path, we set up an implementation advisory committee to look at the detailed structure of it and make sure we get the legislation that underpins it right.
The report is that all universities look the same at the moment, roughly the same number of students teaching the same sort of subjects and says we would benefit from a bit more diversity – different universities doing different things. Some bigger, some smaller. Making sure they have got what is immediately needed.
Continue reading...Former celebrity blogger expected to face court. Follow updates live
What will happen if there’s a storm during today’s Taylor Swift concert?
With a thunderstorm forecast at Sydney Olympic Park this evening, many are asking what this means for the Eras tour?
The show will play, rain or shine. The only exception would be severe weather, which could impact the safety of artists and patrons. Such a decision would be made by NSW Police, the event promoters and Venues NSW staff.
Please follow venue screens and staff instructions in these circumstances.
Continue reading...Brad Banducci will face a Greens-led Senate inquiry, but it is Amanda Bardwell who will have to rebuild the supermarket giant’s reputation
Woolworths chief executive Brad Banducci is stepping down from Australia’s biggest supermarket chain – but he’s going down swinging.
Against a backdrop of multiple parliamentary inquiries and a year-long pricing investigation, Banducci maintains that the grocery sector is “unbelievably competitive”.
Continue reading...‘Export of zero-carbon goods can underpin a long period of high investment, rising productivity, full employment and rising incomes,’ economist tells press club. Follow the day’s news live
When it comes to treaty and truth-telling though, things are a little less clear. For all intents and purposes the government seems to be backing away from a designated federal process. We heard some of that yesterday, but Linda Burney continues it today.
For all Jacinta Price is accusing the Labor government of doing treaty “by stealth” that doesn’t appear to be the reality. Instead, existing processes look like being utilised.
I am having discussions with the cabinet about that, and I’m not going to go into those discussions. But the issue of truth-telling is incredibly important. And there are many, many ways in which that can happen, including the school curriculum.
The reality is the treaty process is well under way at a state and in many ways at a local level. You look at the Noongar agreement in and around Perth. For all intents and purposes, that’s a treaty.
What I’m suggesting is that we will listen to what people are saying.
I know that there are some people in the media, but I want to talk also to community leadership. I’m meeting with land councils today, for example, who are in Canberra this week for estimates. Those are the organisations that really worked very hard towards the referendum and I want to hear from them where they believe the next steps should be.
Continue reading...The ‘Juno’ training helicopters will support essential training for aircrew before the arrival of new Black Hawks from the US later this year. Follow the day’s news live
The ADF expects that the training helicopters will be available for operations in Oakey in Queensland by around the middle of this year.
The government will argue these helicopters have been chosen because they can perform a variety of roles “including personnel and equipment transport and Defence assistance to the civil community”.
We need a highly capable Army. When the tough but necessary decision was made last year to expedite the withdrawal of the MRH-90s from service, it meant that we needed to look at all options when it came to filling the capability gap and the training which our servicemen and women need.
We have been working with the United States and United Kingdom on ways in which we can bridge this gap, and their support and willingness with the acceleration of the Black Hawks and leasing of training helicopters will have a significant impact.
Continue reading...Many participants struggled to afford basics, cutting back on food or rationing medication, survey suggests
People experiencing poverty and job insecurity are increasingly unable to budget their way out of financial crisis, a new report from the Brotherhood of St Laurence has found.
The research, which asked 40 low to middle-income Victorians to detail their finances over 10 weeks, found inadequate income support, insecure work and the cost-of-living crisis are driving inequality across Australia.
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Labor tried to amend stage-three tax cuts, Albanese says
Anthony Albanese says Labor attempted to amend the stage-three tax cuts but its proposal failed by a single vote:
What we did in the parliament in 2019 is two things. One, we tried to amend our the stage-three tax cuts. We weren’t successful. We failed by just one vote. When that occurred, we thought that we weren’t prepared to stand in the way of all of the government to say they knew what the economy would look like in five years’ time.
One of the things, David, I have done is go to the National Press Club – and say we have changed our position. Why? We listened to people and particularly low- and middle-income Australians are under financial pressure.
What I can’t do as prime minister of Australia is to wring my hands and say, “If only there was something I co-do about it” What we needed to do was to look at what is the best way we can take pressure off cost of living without putting pressure on inflation.
We want it to be passed as soon as possible. Certainly, it needs to be passed during this existing session, so as to provide that easy transition for employers, the tax office, for others as well.
Circumstances have changed. We’ve responded.
Continue reading...Coalition-led scare campaign predicted for plan to place yearly cap on emissions for new cars sold in Australia
The Albanese government has unveiled its long-awaited plan for fuel efficiency standards for new cars while highlighting potential savings of $1,000 a year and predicting a Coalition-led scare campaign.
The proposed model, announced on Sunday, would place a yearly cap on the emissions output for new cars sold in Australia to incentivise carmakers to supply low- and zero-emissions vehicles and penalise companies that do not.
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The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, is speaking to ABC RN, and says news that the inflation rate has plunged to a two-year low of 4.1% is “welcoming, encouraging progress”.
… We know that people are still under pressure and we need to not be complacent about it. We need to continue to work as we have with our three point plan, having the surplus, making sure we deal with cost of living pressures without putting pressure on inflation, and dealing with … supply-chain issues as well.
With parliament resuming next week, this is a wake-up call that 2024 is the last chance for meaningful democratic reform ahead of the 2025 election …
Australians should go to the next election with strict political donation disclosure laws, truth in political advertising laws in force and information about who’s meeting ministers made public as a matter of course.
Continue reading...CPI came in at 4.1% in the December quarter, easing from the September quarter pace of 5.4%
Australia’s inflation retreated to a two-year low in the December quarter as food and fuel prices increased at a slower pace, fanning hopes the next move by the Reserve Bank will be an interest rate cut.
The consumer price index came in at 4.1% in the final three months of 2023 compared with a year earlier, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday. Economists had expected CPI to come in at 4.3%, easing from the September quarter pace of 5.4%.
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We’ve just spoken to St Vincent’s hospital and confirmed that the woman bitten by a shark in Sydney Harbour last night remains in hospital in a stable condition.
The woman, in her late 20s, was bitten on the right leg by a suspected bull shark in Elizabeth Bay last night.
Continue reading...Labor’s bid to skew package towards low- and middle-income earners given boost, as only 22% say it should go ahead unchanged
Almost half of voters support revising the stage-three tax cuts to help low- and middle-income earners while only about one in five believe the plan should go ahead unchanged in July.
That is the result of the Guardian Essential poll of 1,201 voters, which provides a boost for the Albanese government’s plan to reform the tax package, finding only 22% of respondents agreed the previously legislated cuts should be left untouched.
Continue reading...Anthony Albanese rejects calls for a fresh election by the opposition leader who continues to accuse the PM of breaking a promise
Peter Dutton has refused to commit the opposition to an official position on Labor’s amended stage-three tax cuts, as the government begins negotiations with the Greens and key independents.
Anthony Albanese said on Friday he would soon begin discussions with crossbenchers to get the updated tax cuts through parliament, as the Greens say they will push for further support for low-income earners.
Continue reading...Victorian electorate will be first test of support for overhaul that shifts more of the benefit to low- and middle-income earners amid cost-of-living pressures
Ilene Jones’s wishlist for a tax cut is simple – more money to spend on school fees, a laptop for her son and groceries.
“It’s just the basics. It’s not extravagant,” she says.
Continue reading...The latest advice from the Bureau of Meteorology is that Tropical Cyclone Kirrily will begin crossing the coast from 10pm tonight. Follow the day’s news live
As we flagged just earlier, wind gusts associated with Tropical Cyclone Kirrily have already begun around the Whitsundays, with gusts over 100km/h.
In a Facebook group for Whitsundays locals, a new resident has asked an innocent question:
Hey there I’m kind of new to town from Melbourne. Does anyone know how to tie my tree down so that it doesn’t blow away?
“I would use fairy lights.”
“If you hop around clockwise on your left leg 3 times and then do a Kangaroo hop to the right, the drop bears will take care of it by having the tree extend it’s roots deeper.”
“If you’re really from Melbourne you would know how to tie down a tree with the windy crap weather down there. Ride a kangaroo to bunnings [and] get some ratchets.”
“From the state of the supermarket shelves I’m guessing everyone is using toilet paper to tie their trees down.”
“Take the leaves off and store inside. The rest will be fine.”
Continue reading...Grid faces fresh strains as heatwave roasting inland Queensland and NSW extends to Sydney
Wholesale power prices across Australia’s main electricity market almost halved at the end of 2023 compared with a year earlier, stoking hopes households may soon see smaller bills.
Spot prices in the National Electricity Market (Nem) that serves the eastern and southern states fell to an average of $48 a megawatt-hour in the December quarter, down 48% on the previous year, the Australian Energy Market Operator (Aemo) said in a report released on Thursday. Carbon emissions also dropped to record lows.
Continue reading...Prime minister to use National Press Club address to defend new plan as the ‘right thing to do’
Anthony Albanese has pledged to more than double tax relief for Australians on the average income in a suite of low and middle income tax cuts paid for by trimming benefits to high income earners.
At the National Press Club on Thursday the prime minister will defend Labor’s plan by arguing it will still deliver “a tax cut for every taxpayer” and that modification of the stage-three tax cuts was “the right thing to do” in changed economic circumstances.
Continue reading...Follow the latest updates live
Homelessness increasing across Australia, report finds
In January every year, the Productivity Commission releases its Report on Government Services, which “monitor[s] the performance of Australian governments in the delivery of important services to the community”.
The first thing is to stay connected with the emergency messaging and understand the alerts that may and will come out as the cyclone approaches the coast.
But more importantly, use the next 48 hours to 72 hours to prepare yourself and your family for a potential cyclone crossing and flooding event after. You can do simple things like keep the fuel in your car topped up now, make sure you have enough food in your house for 72 hours, [and] make sure you have battery charging packs for your phone. Very simple things you can do.
Continue reading...PM says Labor government will receive advice by Wednesday’s caucus meeting on how best to assist Australians struggling with rising costs
Anthony Albanese has continued to raise expectations of further cost-of-living relief as some backbench MPs debate the possibility Labor could modify stage-three income tax cuts to pay for new measures.
On Monday the prime minister said “if we can find ways to put extra dollars in people’s pockets, particularly those low and middle income earners who are doing it tough, then we’re prepared to do so”.
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