Tanks for the memories, Joel
This photo comes courtesy of Liberal MP Andrew Hastie ... and it proves 12 years is a long time in politics.
This week’s Throwback Tuesday photo comes care of Liberal MP Andrew Hastie and proves 12 years is a long time in politics.
The former soldier shared a snap of himself popping out of a tank in 2008 at the Robertson Barracks in Darwin, taken during a farewell parade ahead of his deployment to Afghanistan. And who happens to be standing behind him? Labor’s Joel Fitzgibbon.
The opposition frontbencher freelanced last week when he backed the Chinese Communist Party’s position that a global COVID-19 inquiry “was always going to happen” and Scott Morrison shouldn’t have pushed it. Fitzgibbon also accused the Prime Minister and Morrison’s predecessor Malcolm Turnbull of “demonising China” by tightening foreign investment rules.
That didn’t sit well with Hastie, chairman of the powerful parliamentary intelligence and security committee, who also happens to be a member of secret bipartisan group the Wolverines, formed to speak out against China’s expanding power.
“Joel Fitzgibbon was happy to ride with me when he was minister for defence in 2008,” Hastie says. “Now he’s attacking me and my colleagues for standing up for Australia’s sovereignty … Make up your mind, Joel.”
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Art to mark shared viral experience
Sydney’s Northern Beaches Council will consider a novel proposal on Tuesday night — a permanent sculpture series installed along its famous Manly to Palm Beach walk to chronicle the coronavirus pandemic.
Councillor Penny Philpott’s motion calls for “a major artwork to remember COVID-19, funded by the community as part of the Coast Walk art trail”.
Liberal councillor Rory Amon already has flagged his intention to vote against the proposal, calling it “bizarre” and “tone deaf”. But Philpott — an artist herself — has told Strewth her idea is not for a morbid memorial and isn’t political in any way.
She envisages a collaborative “memory” artwork, a narrative, to tell local stories in a prominent site near the water. “In years to come this will be part of our history about how our community coped,” Philpott explains. And she plans to put her money where her mouth is, giving two months of her councillor fee to kickstart funding.
There’s no vision per se or sketches planned yet, but Philpott hopes it will help put the northern beaches on the international culture map.
About 7000 local residents work in the arts, making it the third largest community of creative types in NSW. Many fell into the $60bn JobKeeper black hole, along with the 27 per cent of arts workers who lost their jobs last month.
“I really feel for the artists because most of them work on contract and are not eligible for government funding. This is a way to help them survive,” Philpott says. Her other idea is for a “series of community performances/concerts/films … to celebrate the return to ‘normal life’ ”.
Viva la end to social distancing!
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Kitchen’s punishment enough: Joyce
Backbencher Barnaby Joyce was asked on the Seven Network’s Sunrise if he agreed with deputy Nationals leader David Littleproud’s call to sack Joel Fitzgibbon from his shadow portfolio over the C-word (China). His answer?
“Well, I’d have to say that now that Joel’s reporting to us from his kitchen — he had a lot better view the other day — I feel sorry for Joel.
“He has been kicked out of the lounge room and put into the kitchen. I’m kicked out of the house and put on the lawn. I don’t need him to fall any further.
“I’m just going to leave him in the kitchen … As far as the comments … you know, if we start sacking people for comments, there will be no one left in the parliament.”
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Senator puts brave face on illness
Labor senator Alex Gallacher won’t let his battle with lung cancer keep him from the Canberra Bubble™.
After being diagnosed in January, the 66-year-old South Australian is back from extended leave and plans to work half days when parliament sits next month. He’ll continue receiving his triweekly immunotherapy treatment in the ACT.
“The oncologist said: ‘You’re cruising through this.’ All going well, I’ll complete the rest of the parliamentary year … we’ve got to stick up for the people of SA,” Gallacher told Adelaide paper The Advertiser.
After four months in isolation he has managed to stay positive, despite his doctor warning that contracting COVID-19 would be fatal. “I’m trying to change my use-by date to best before, I’ll just keep going as long as I can,” he says.
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Ardern shaken, not stirred
A 5.8 magnitude earthquake hit New Zealand during a live interview with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Monday morn. Nestled in Wellington’s Parliament House — nicknamed the Beehive — Ardern was chatting about partner Clarke Gayford building a second backyard shed. “We’re just having a bit of an earthquake here, Ryan, quite a decent shake here,” she told Newshub reporter Ryan Bridge, unfazed. No word yet on how the second shed held up.
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Trying times for rugby league
With kick-off just days away, NRL boss Peter V’landys has revealed his next mission — to get crowds back by July. Cue this paper’s Peter van Onselen, who tweeted: “This has been a rugby league dilemma long before coronavirus … how to get crowds to the games.”
This has been a rugby league dilemma long before Coronavirus...how to get crowds to the games 🤷â€â™‚ï¸ https://t.co/O0Fcz1ag2v
— Peter van Onselen (@vanOnselenP) May 24, 2020
strewth@theaustralian.com.au
Libs should be-Ware what they say about JWH
Could things get any worse for the Liberals in Hughes? Well, strap in. Diary can reveal that Liberal candidate Jenny Ware once called John Winston Howard ‘out of touch’.
Believe in your selfie, Andrew
Kevin Rudd appears to have met his selfie match in Andrew Charlton.