PoliticsNow: Vegan radicals face 12 months in prison
Radical vegan activists could face 12 months jail for inciting protesters to trespass on Australian farms.
- Shorten silent on Huang lunch
- Jail for radical vegans
- Labor’s negative equity ‘lies’
- ‘Responsibility to run as leader’
Hello and welcome to PoliticsNow, The Australian’s live blog on the lead-up to the federal election.
Bill Shorten learns being the election frontrunner is not much fun as he faces attacks on multiple fronts. But Scott Morrison has one lingering problem of his own — Malcolm Turnbull.
Primrose Riordan 4.25pm: Another appointment
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg also appointed one of his former senior advisers, Philip Lindsay, as Australia’s Alternate Director to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) for a two-year term. Mr Lindsay is also a former adviser to Peter Costello and worked for Mr Frydenberg while he was assistant treasurer.
Primrose Riordan 3.15pm: Artistic ‘merit’
Communications Minister Mitch Fifield has appointed two former Liberal MPs to arts boards.
Former senator and Liberal Party President Richard Alston has been appointed to the Council of the National Gallery, while former Turnbull government MP Ewen Jones has been appointed as a member of the board of the National Film and Sound Archive for a three-year term.
Rosie Lewis 2.44pm: ‘A story in search of a scandal’
Tony Abbott has accused his prime ministerial successor Malcolm Turnbull and others of “trying to create something out of nothing” over a meeting Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton had with Huang Xiangmo, declaring no one in the government had been “bought” by the Chinese billionaire.
Read the full story here.
Simon Benson 2.16pm: Shorten’s wedding picture
Bill Shorten faces further scrutiny over his relationship with Chinese businessman and former ALP donor Huang Xiamgmo, who has links to the Chinese Communist Party, as wedding pictures surface. Read the full story here.
Richard Ferguson 1.45pm: Exemptions for activists law
Journalists and whistle blowers will be exempted from tough new penalties aimed at stopping radical vegan activists listing the names and addresses of farms and farmers online.
Attorney-General Christian Porter has revealed today that activists will face up to 12 months jail if they are convicted of inciting protesters to invade farms by sharing information on farms online, as radical group Aussie Farms has done.
“We have seen with Aussie Farms the malicious use of personal information, including farmers’ names, addresses and workplaces, designed specifically to encourage others to trespass on properties and damage businesses,” the Attorney-General said.
“This is not acceptable and the Morrison government will, if re-elected, introduce a new criminal offence specifically designed to protect Australian farmers from the sort of vigilante action we have seen this week.
“Penalties of up to 12 months imprisonment will apply to individuals who use a carriage service, such as the internet, to disclose personal information with the intention that another person would use that information to trespass on agricultural land. The law would also apply to other primary producers such as abattoirs.”
Adam Creighton 12.50pm: Truth behind ‘surplus’
As the great federal budget surplus of 2020 approaches, it’s easy to get caught up in the excitement and forget how we got here, and whether it even matters.
Rhetoric has galloped ahead of reality. “The budget is back in the black … and for the first time in 12 years, our nation is again paying its own way,” Josh Frydenberg said, to roars of applause from Coalition MPs behind him last week.
Yet it’s not, and if it does eventuate it will be thanks to squeezing unprecedented levels of tax from middle to high-income workers, not the “real progress” in Canberra the Treasurer speaks of.
To read the article in full, click here.
Paul Kelly 12.15pm: Labor’s fork in the road
This election is a fork-in-the-road poll where competing agendas mean radically different directions for the nation. This is no Tweedledum and Tweedledee contest. Yet the paradox is the absence of any public excitement or engagement about the choice Australia faces.
Bill Shorten’s program is the most radical proposed by an opposition since John Hewson’s 1993 Fightback manifesto. But the differences are also critical: Hewson’s was the only time a neoliberal blueprint from the pro-market Right was put to the people, while Shorten offers a progressive agenda, a fusion of traditional Labor ideas and modern Centre-Left fashion with climate change in the vanguard.
It is not just the ideological origins that are different. Where Hewson was an ideologue preaching progress through sacrifice, Shorten is a blend of populist and pragmatist. Where Hewson was a policy theorist who misjudged the public mood, Shorten is obsessed with reading public sentiment. Where Hewson was naive about politics, Shorten is a transactional political warrior.
To read the article in full click here.
Robert Gottliebsen 11.45am: Empower grid, not Greens
Bill Shorten’s plan to substantially increase the electrification of motor vehicles has suddenly brought into focus the looming grid crisis in our two major cities, Melbourne and Sydney.
It’s a crisis that has been concealed from the vast majority of the population and is unknown to most of the politicians.
The danger really came home to me when I met up with an affluent, long-time Melbourne acquaintance who lives in a street where there are six Tesla cars.
When they all try to charge their batteries at the same time, the power goes out in the street because the grid fails. Sometimes it fails when only three or four of them try to charge at the same time.
And so, I decided to delve deeper into what is causing this problem, how bad it is, and whether there is a solution.
To read the article in full, click here.
Richard Ferguson 10.45am: Shorten silent on Huang lunch
Bill Shorten has refused to answer what he discussed with Chinese Communist Party-linked billionaire Huang Xiangmo at a “boardroom lunch” in 2015, following a $55,000 donation.
“I understand the government wanting to repeat old news to distract from their own problems,” the Opposition Leader said in Ballina today.
“We imposed the voluntary ban on ourselves not to take foreign donations long before the law caught up with it.
“We asked the government to do the same thing but they did not. They love that money. They did not want to stop it flowing.”
Liberal powerbroker Michael Sukkar said the ABC’s Four Corners report on Monday night — which revealed that Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton had a meeting with the Chinese billionaire who paid at least $10,000 to former Liberal minister and lobbyist Santo Santoro — should also have referenced the Opposition leader’s lunch with Mr Huang.
Mr Shorten defended his attacks on Mr Dutton today, and said it was Malcolm Turnbull who had taken the lead on pointing out his former leadership rival’s dealings with Mr Huang.
“What has compounded the problem for the current government is that the former Prime Minister — the man the Liberal Party told us to vote for in 2016, the man we said we should vote for at the last election — has now blown the whistle on the conduct of the current Prime Minister and his senior ministers,” Mr Shorten said.
“The issue here is that it is not me saying that Mr Morrison is wiping this under the carpet. It is Malcolm Turnbull.”
Richard Ferguson 10.30am: Jail for radical vegans
Radical vegan activists could face up to 12 months in jail for inciting protesters to trespass on Australian farms if the Coalition is re-elected, Scott Morrison says.
Attorney-General Christian Porter will stand up later today to detail the stronger penalties against radical groups which have invaded farms and held up major cities with mass protests.
Militant activist group Aussie Farms is under scrutiny after they publicly posted a map and personal details of farms across the country.
The Prime Minister said in Tasmania a re-elected Coalition government would punish groups who put the personal details of farms and farmers online and left them open to vegan activists.
“Our government would introduce legislation that would ensure that those who engage in using information to incite criminal activity of people going and seeking to trespass or cause these types of injuries to the well-being of our farming industry, they will face jail terms of up to 12 months,” he said today.
“What is being done by Aussie farmers ... It’s not just their farm, it is their home. It is where their kids live and grow up.
“They are being targeted in the most mercenary way by an organisation that can only think of itself and not think to the real damage that is being done to the livelihoods of these hard-working Australians.”
The interactive map listed the location of hundreds of rural properties, including livestock farms, meat-works and dairies.
Mr Porter asked the Information and Privacy Commission earlier this week to investigate Aussie Farms after their protesters invaded farms and chained themselves to abattoir equipment across three states.
Last week, the government announced the Aussie Farms website would be subject to the Privacy Act which was amended to protest Australian farms.
Richard Ferguson 9.55am: Negative equity ‘lies’
Josh Frydenberg has accused Labor of “lying” about inaccurate figures behind its negative gearing reforms, and warns there could be “a big black hole” in their election costings as a result.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics has denied claims it had produced data showing that only 7 per cent of property investors bought new homes, despite opposition treasury spokesman Chris Bowen using those figures repeatedly to back his housing policy.
The Treasurer said Mr Bowen had been “caught out” over the ABS revelations and had to “come clean” about Labor’s sums in his budget reply speech later today.
“Bill Shorten and Chris Bowen have been tripping over their shoe laces and the election hasn’t even begun,” the Treasurer told Sydney’s 2GB radio this morning.
“The Labor Party in reality may see a big black hole in them because they have underestimated the number of negative gearers who use new homes.
“Clearly they are (lying) and clearly there is a black hole in their costings ... they have overstated the amount of savings they will get from this policy, and this is a $35bn slug on the taxpayer.
“Chris Bowen needs to come clean about the data.”
Mr Bowen took to Twitter to defend his negative gearing costings and said the PBO had reaffirmed his numbers.
“You are just plain wrong I am afraid Josh (Frydenberg). Independent Parliamentary Budget Office costs Labor’s policies including negative gearing and they have reaffirmed they stand by their costing. Nice try,” he tweeted this morning.
You are just plain wrong I am afraid Josh. Independent Parliamentary Budget Office costs Labor’s policies including negative gearing and they have re-affirmed they stand by their costing. Nice try.
— Chris Bowen (@Bowenchris) April 9, 2019
To read the story in full click here.
Richard Ferguson 9.50am: ‘Responsibility to run as leader’
Former foreign minister Julie Bishop says she had a “responsibility” to run for the Liberal leadership last year, but she leaves politics next month with “no regrets.”
“I felt had a responsibility to stand for the leadership at the time, in the circumstances of last August,” she told the Seven Network this morning.
“I am proud of the fact that I am the first female to have ever contested the leadership in the Liberal Party in its 75-year history.
“I do not have any regrets, I don’t look back with any bitterness about anything ... I had an extraordinary, wonderful career in politics and I loved every minute of it.
“Of course, there were some lows, but the highs definitely outweighed them.”
The Liberals have preselected former University of Notre Dame vice-chancellor Celia Hammond to succeed Ms Bishop, which the government holds on a margin of 20.7 per cent.
Labor has picked former Rudd minister and Fremantle MP Melissa Parke for the seat, in the hope of diverting Coalition resources away from key Western Australian marginal seats.
The Liberals have preselected former University of Notre Dame vice-chancellor Celia Hammond to succeed Ms Bishop in the seat of Curtin, which the government holds on a margin of 20.7 per cent.
9.45am: Party registrations
A number of small parties have now registered with the AEC, including the Victorian Socialists, the Australian Democrats, The Great Australian Party and Fraser Anning’s Conservative National Party.
The following party registrations have recently been approved: Victorian Socialists, Australian Democrats, The Great Australian Party, The Together Party, Fraser Anning’s Conservative National Party, and Child Protection Party: https://t.co/tCm5GNOH3o
— AEC (@AusElectoralCom) April 9, 2019
Janet Albrechtsen 9.10am: Under the first lady’s thumb
Every first lady is different from the last one. Some are flashy. Others are more low-key. Some have a passion for education. Others choose health as their focus. If Labor wins next month’s federal election, strap yourself in for a first lady like no other. She is really bossy, with a fashion sense more Soviet comrade than pearls, pink frocks and heels. And, if history is a clue to the future, she will get her way with the new prime minister more or less at will.
Move over, Chloe Shorten. Sally McManus will become the first lady to watch.
To read the article in full, click here.
Richard Ferguson 8.45am: $91.9m for Tassie hospitals
Scott Morrison has announced $91.9 million for Tasmanian hospitals, which will go into improving health infrastructure and cutting surgery waiting lists.
“I am pleased to announce .... $20m for hospital services and infrastructure,” the Prime Minister said in Launceston today.
“Cutting the elective surgery waiting list; an extra 6000 surgeries and endoscopies to be provided here in Tasmania.
“$34.7m for elective surgery and TazReach primary care support to reduce the time Tasmanians wait for elective surgeries.”
Mr Morrison will also invest $10m into the Menzies Multiple Sclerosis Flagship Program to improve the quality of life for 25,000 Australians living with MS, and boost research into a cure.
Mr Morrison’s cash splash for Tasmanian hospitals will help the government’s attempts to bring the Apple Isle back into the Coalition fold, after it lost all of its House of Representatives seats there in the 2016 federal election.
.@ScottMorrisonMP: To pay someone more, you’ve got to sack someone else to do it. That is the Labor Party’s policy. I don’t think anyone wants to get pad more as a result of their work colleague getting sacked.
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) April 9, 2019
MORE: https://t.co/YziLYeErvn #firstedition pic.twitter.com/EYfOxcqZr7
Richard Ferguson 7.45am: PM pitches for Tasmania
Scott Morrison is continuing his pre-election pitch to Tasmania with a Budget breakfast at the Launceston Chamber of Commerce.
The speech in Invermay is in the marginal Labor electorate of Bass — currently held by the ALP’s Ross Hart on 5.4 per cent.
The wipeout of Liberal Tasmanian MPs in 2016 is one of the reasons Malcolm Turnbull ended up with a one-seat majority.
A comeback in the Apple Isle could help the Prime Minister secure the Coalition a third term in office.
.@ScottMorrisonMP in Tasmania:
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) April 9, 2019
$6.5 billion for Tasmanian schools over decade, a per student increase of 60.6 per cent. Let no one tell you that our government has not been investing in the essential services that Tasmanians rely on.
MORE: https://t.co/YziLYeErvn #firstedition pic.twitter.com/JaM68j1SGN
Richard Ferguson 7.10am: Labor vows to stamp out smoking
Bill Shorten is continuing Labor’s fight against cancer with a $63.4 million promise to stamp out smoking and lung cancer.
Labor will put $40m into rebooting anti-tobacco campaigns, provide $6m to support efforts to eliminate tobacco from investment portfolios, and hand more than $17m to the Lung Foundation to roll out more lung cancer nurses and cancer awareness campaigns.
“Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in Australia,” the Opposition Leader said.
“Australia has been a world-leader in reducing smoking rates — but the Abbott-Turnbull-Morrison Government has failed to invest in continuing this work and progress has slowed.
Between 2013 and 2016 the proportion of daily smokers plateaued at 12.2 per cent.
“That’s why Labor will reintroduce and re-energise Australia’s landmark National Tobacco Campaign and support Australians with lung cancer.”
What’s making news:
Opposition Treasury spokesman Chris Bowen has been caught using inaccurate figures to promote Labor’s negative gearing policy, after the Australian Bureau of Statistics denied claims it had produced data showing that only 7 per cent of property investors bought new homes.
Queensland Labor has sought to blame the Morrison government for the prospect of further delays to the stalled Adani coalmine, with the state’s Environment Minister claiming there were still environmental “uncertainties” over the project.
Liberal MPs have turned up the heat on Bill Shorten for having had a lunch with the Chinese Communist Party-linked Huang Xiangmo in 2015 after he gave the Labor Party a $55,000 donation.
Cardiologists have questioned Labor’s “unusual” plan to target just one disease in its biggest election healthcare investment, amid growing calls for Bill Shorten to release more details of his cornerstone $2.3 billion cancer package.
Malcolm Turnbull has attacked Scott Morrison’s campaign against Labor’s electric vehicle policy as “peak crazy”, saying the Prime Minister’s claim that EVs lack grunt “could only be made by someone who hasn’t driven one”.
Bill Shorten’s electric vehicle policy troubleshooter Kristina Keneally knows more than most the dangers of pinning too much hope on the rapid rise of electric cars — her husband Ben Keneally was chief Australian strategist and marketer of failed EV venture Better Place.
Labor’s first official election ad starring leader Bill Shorten debuted on commercial television last night, launching the party’s Fair Go For Australia campaign.
Private funding push for new Games stadium
A new front has opened up in the battle over Brisbane’s 2032 Olympic venues, as the mayor leads a fresh push backed by hundreds of public submissions for private funding for a new stadium.
State Libs get a new leader Dutton can work with
Brad Battin’s ascension to the leadership on the third attempt is a triumph of persistence over the toxic malaise that has gripped the Victorian party for decades.