The Australian Financial Review is this morning reporting that a new gas tax looms as the government tries to raise revenue to begin budget repair.
The Fin’s economics editor, Jon Kehoe, writes that the Albanese government is seeking to raise billions of extra dollars from the petroleum resource rent tax (PRRT).
Major companies such as Woodside Energy, Santos and Shell and their tax advisers have signed confidentiality agreements with Treasury on the PRRT consultation.
Since Treasury resumed the stalled work for Labor late last year, it has cast the net wider to probe other PRRT areas, such as deductions, in an attempt to raise revenue sooner for the government from the profits-based tax.
“They’re trying to find a way to bring the PRRT receipts forward,” a source familiar with the discussions said.
The timing of any changes remains unclear, but the May 9 budget is shaping as a likely trigger point.
Big news out of the US this morning. The New York Times is reporting Donald Trump has been indicted in New York, over a hush money payment made to the adult film star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 election.
It comes as the Albanese government has argued the Fair Work Commission should “ensure the real wages of Australia’s low-paid workers do not go backwards”.
The workplace relations minister, Tony Burke, and the treasurer, Jim Chalmers, noted the government submission to the commission’s annual minimum wage review “does not suggest that across-the-board wages should automatically increase in line with inflation”, implicitly leaving room for those on higher award wages to receive a lower increase.
Greenwich: “I don’t need or want Senator Hanson’s support”
Greenwich is doing the rounds of breakfast news shows responding to Latham’s homophobic tweets – a time he says he’d normally be walking his dog, Max, with husband Victor – but is now speaking with ABC News Breakfast.
Pauline Hanson has called on Latham to apologise to Greenwich, but the independent MP says he has not heard from the NSW One Nation leader.
When it comes to Senator Hanson those are really empty words. I don’t need or want Senator Hanson’s support.
She is someone who will target the LGBT community when she wants to. She just did it last week with a motion in the Senate.
What I’d like to see is more work being done to call out people like Pauline Hanson and Mark Latham.
Look, obviously, she’s embarrassed by the content of what Mark Latham tweeted, but the work she has done in our Senate to target the trans community in particular, is pretty cruel.
Greenwich says he will not seek Latham censure motion
Greenwich says he does not expect any action from his workplace (the NSW parliament) but does hope his colleagues will support reforms removing discrimination from the state.
Patricia Karvelas:
Now, MrLatham has been reelected to the New South Wales upper house following last week’s election. What’s the recourse? I mean, if someone had said this to you in any other workplace, it would pretty much be a sackable offence. And yet, in your workplace, what is the recourse? What happens?
Greenwich:
I’m not expecting anything to happen in our workplace.
What I can hope for in our workplace is to pass reforms that make it clear to the rest of the community that the majority of parliamentarians support and celebrate the LGBT community and want to see discrimination removed.
We’re talking about state laws, where you can currently fire someone from a school for being gay or expel a student when they come out.
Just as horrific as Mr Latham’s comments are, the impact of current legislation in New South Wales is more horrific, and I’m more focused on dealing with that, rather than dealing with some sort of censure or condemnation, motion against Mark Latham which will only give him to spray his vile homophobia on the floor of the parliament.
Independent member for Sydney Alex Greenwich says he is more motivated to deliver LGBTIQA+ reforms after homophobic remarks against him were tweeted from One Nation leader Mark Latham.
Greenwich has told ABC Radio he does not want to engage with that content of Latham’s tweet, or engage with Latham in the next parliament.
Asked whether he believes Latham’s deletion of the tweet goes to show even he knows he went too far, Greenwich says:
I’m not sure. I don’t want to even begin to understand how Mark Latham’s mind works. I’m certainly not expecting him to apologise.
We’re talking about a person who adopts the cruelest politics from the US and tries to impose it in NSW parliament.
I’ve described him as a cruel and lazy person. I don’t intend to engage with the content of the tweet, nor do I intend to really engage with him in the next parliament.
… It is extremely hurtful when there is a vile homophobic attack, which is directed to you. It’s not the first time this has happened to me. I’m lucky I’m someone who is supported by an amazing electorate, and amazing husband and family.
… That hurt, though, quickly turned into motivation to make sure we stamp out laws which allow my community to be discriminated against.
For those wondering how I’m doing after Latham’s homophobic attacks today, I’m fine and I’m more motivated than ever to deliver long overdue LGBTIQA+ reforms… and I have the most handsome husband. pic.twitter.com/MRA8pI6xE5
Birmingham denies Greens have effectively become the federal opposition
The opposition leader in the Senate, Simon Birmingham, is speaking with ABC Radio after the final sitting week has wrapped up before the May budget.
In a sitting period in which the Greens have taken the lead in negotiations with the government, Birmingham denies Greens leader Adam Bandt has effectively replaced Peter Dutton as the opposition leader.
No, that’s a ridiculous proposition.
Asked why the Coalition dealt itself out of negotiations, Birmingham said:
If I look back to the week before this one, most of that week was spent on the Referendum Machineries Act, a bill that was passed with the opposition’s support after plenty of negotiation.
We will choose on what is effectively responsible to negotiate on, what is keeping with our values and policies to negotiate on and make decisions on a case-by-case basis.
“Players are getting sick of it,” Ugle-Hagan says of racism in AFL
Western Bulldogs forward Jamarra Ugle-Hagan last night recreated Nicky Winmar’s famous anti-racism gesture as he led the team to victory over Brisbane.
Scoring the first goal of the game, Ugle-Hagan lifted his jumper and pointed to his skin five days after he was racially abused during and after the club’s round-two loss to St Kilda.
Here’s what Ugle-Hagan had to say about the gesture at last night’s post match press conference:
I was thinking back in the day, [Winmar] would have had it a lot worse. Now, players are getting sick of it and we’re making a stance and we’re pointing them out and sorting it out, and everyone is getting behind us.
Those comments hurt you as an individual. You can hear a thousand compliments and then one bad comment, you will remember the bad comment more than the other thousand compliments.
We’re making a stance and making an impact and hopefully we change and educate the people that have no idea that that is racism and it shouldn’t be a thing or allowed.
Western Bulldogs forward Jamarra Ugle-Hagan has made a powerful stand against racism as he led the team to victory over last night’s match against Brisbane.
After scoring the first goal of the game, Ugle-Hagan lifted his jumper and pointed to his skin, recreating the iconic anti-racism gesture by St Kilda Saints great Nicky Winmar almost 30 years ago to the day.
Five days ago, Ugle-Hagan was racially abused during and after the club’s round-two loss to St Kilda.
In Canberra, the final sitting week has wrapped up before the budget is delivered in May.
Today, the federal government will call for the Fair Work Commission to lift wages for the lowest paid workers when it makes its submission to the industrial umpire’s yearly update to the minimum wage.
The government will say wages shouldn’t be outstripped by inflation, which has reached 6.8% annual growth, but the opposition and business groups have called for moderation and said inflation could stay higher for longer if wage rises are “excessive”.
In NSW, the independent member for Sydney Alex Greenwich has said he is more motivated to deliver LGBTIQA+ reforms after homophobic remarks against him were tweeted from One Nation leader Mark Latham.
Voters in the Melbourne electorate of Aston are preparing to head to the polls tomorrow for a byelection after former cabinet minister Alan Tudge announced he would step down from parliament.
