PoliticsNow: We must get our house in order — Scott Morrison addresses Parliament House sex allegations
In an address to all Coalition staffers, Scott Morrison outlined three key actions the government was taking to fix parliament’s toxic culture.
- PM ‘shocked’ by staffer behaviour
- No breach on alleged rape night: guard
- Coalition staffer sacked over sex acts
- ASIO wants more extremists designated
Welcome to PoliticsNow, our live coverage of the latest headlines from Canberra and around the nation amid the ongoing pandemic response.
An emotional Scott Morrison says he was “shocked and disgusted” by the behaviour of Coalition staffers who performed solo sex acts on the desk of female ministers as he declared the culture of Parliament House must change. The Prime Minister says he has taken advice from the Solicitor-General over whether there’s a conflict of interest with Christian Porter remaining in cabinet.
A Parliament House security guard who let former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins and her male colleague into the office of Defence Minister Linda Reynolds has denied there was a security breach on the night of the alleged rape.
Joe Kelly11.30pm:Morrison apoligies to News
Scott Morrison has issued a late-night apology for making an “anonymous reference to an incident at News Ltd that has been rejected by the company” during his press conference earlier that day in which he claimed a woman was harassed in a female toilet.
The Prime Minister said he had no right to make the allegation without the permission of the woman involved and expressed deep regret for the comments.
“In the course of today’s media conference when responding to further questions I deeply regret my insensitive response to a question from a News Ltd journalist,” the Prime Minister said in his statement on Tuesday night.
Mr Morrison acknowledged that News Corp had rejected the claim. “I accept their account. I was wrong to raise it, the emotion of the moment is no excuse,” he said.
Mr Morrison also said he that especially wished to “apologise to the individual at the centre of the incident and others directly impacted” and conceded that he “had no right to raise this issue and especially without their permission.”
In his Tuesday morning press conference, Mr Morrison responded to a question from Sky News journalist Andrew Clennell by incorrectly claiming there was a person within NewsCorp who “has had a complaint made against them for harassment of a woman in a women’s toilet.” Mr Morrison claimed the issue was being pursued by the companies HR department.
On Tuesday night, Mr Morrison said that what mattered was “doing everything in my authority to take the actions that are needed to fix the culture in our Parliament and work to make Australia a safer place for women.”
“It is also of the utmost importance that I continue to focus on the needs of those facing our flood crisis, and continuing to lead our country out of the COVID-19 pandemic and global recession.
We have achieved a lot together. None of us may be perfect. We all have our faults, but when we come together as Australians we always achieve great things and can confront any challenge.”
Geoff Chambers, Ben Packham10.50pm: China ‘vax-mail’ to swap jabs for access
Indo-Pacific nations are under pressure to give Chinese firms favourable access to infrastructure and economic opportunities in return for the supply of Sinopharm and Sinovac vaccines.
China’s push to deliver vaccines into developing nations comes with “strings attached”, according to sources involved in the immunisation programs, at a time tensions between Beijing and Western nations over influence in the region are rising.
As the COVAX Facility and Quad nations — Australia, the US, India and Japan — lead the vaccination rollout in the Indo-Pacific, concerns have been raised that countries that accept China’s support will be forced into concessions and face efficacy and delivery challenges.
Olivia Caisley, Rosie Lewis10pm:Libs divided on quota debate
The Liberal Party is bitterly divided over quotas for women after Scott Morrison endorsed the measure and warned the status quo was not working, as a growing number of his MPs spoke out in favour of having a debate in a bid to boost female representation.
The Prime Minister has been advocating internally for quotas and will continue doing so, but it will ultimately be up to the Liberal Party divisions to form their positions on the quota issue.
Only 25.4 per cent of Liberal MPs across federal and state parliaments were women in July last year, compared with 22.4 per cent of MPs in May 2015 — an increase of just 3 per cent in four years.
Labor, by stark contrast, has increased its female representation from 11.82 per cent to 47.87 per cent since it introduced a quota in 1994.
Mr Morrison said on Tuesday he was open to a conversation about quotas as he called out the “rubbish and crap” women have experienced in workplaces across the nation, saying he believed the Liberal appetite for mandated female participation was changing.
“I want to give them (women) every support I can,” he said. “But I am making it pretty clear that when it comes that issue, I don’t hold the same reservations that others do. Why? We tried it the other way and it isn’t getting us the results we would like to see so I would like to see us do better on that front.”
Greg Brown, Richard Ferguson9.20pm:Porter future tied to ‘ministerial standards’
Scott Morrison says he is considering advice over whether it sits within “ministerial standards” for Christian Porter to remain as Attorney-General, as Labor escalates its demand for the nation’s first law officer to step aside from cabinet while historical rape allegations are investigated.
The Prime Minister said he would make “further decisions” on the future of Mr Porter based on advice from Solicitor-General Stephen Donaghue QC, after being asked whether he would reconsider his opposition to an independent inquiry into the allegations levelled at Mr Porter.
“I was getting advice from the Solicitor-General,” Mr Morrison said. “I have received that advice and I am now taking advice through the department regarding how that sits with ministerial standards and I will be making further decisions on that matter.”
Government sources say the advice being sought is not about an independent inquiry but whether there was a conflict of interest for Mr Porter remaining as Attorney-General while he is pursuing defamation action against the ABC.
Mr Morrison said last week Mr Porter would delegate responsibilities for the Federal Court and the ABC while the attorney-general was involved in personal legal proceedings.
Opposition legal affairs spokesman Mark Dreyfus said the “Prime Minister has no option but to stand Christian Porter aside. As Attorney-General, Mr Porter could even direct the ABC on how it ought to conduct its defence and order (it) to provide him with any legal advice it receives.
“Australia deserves more than a part-time attorney-general whose position has been so hopelessly conflicted … It’s long past time Mr Morrison showed some leadership and stood Mr Porter aside while a proper independent inquiry is held into the serious allegations hanging over him.”
Ewin Hannan8.40pm: Union civil war erupts in war of words
The CFMEU’s construction division chief, Dave Noonan, has accused the rival mining division of seeking to “render the union dysfunctional”, as the warring camps escalate a bitter dispute over rule changes designed to install Christy Cain as national secretary.
Correspondence between senior officials obtained by The Australian illustrate the bad blood between the union’s senior officials, with the mining and energy division accusing the construction division of trying to disturb the “long-settled power balances”.
In a seven-page letter to union officers on March 19, Mr Noonan said the leaders of the mining division — Tony Maher and Graeme Kelly — had appeared to undermine and frustrate the proper function of the CFMEU for months. “Their conduct has been in bad faith and has inflicted damage upon the union,” he wrote.
Mr Noonan pointed to attempts by the mining division to intervene in the construction division’s application to the Fair Work Commission for rule changes that relate to the conduct of the national executive and would allow Mr Cain, a senior maritime division official, to be appointed national secretary.
Alister Kentish, the mining division’s legal officer, has written two letters to the commission, expressing concern about Mr Cain’s appointment and claiming that his recent “representations to be holding the office are highly irregular and without foundation”.
He accused Mr Noonan of wrongly holding himself out as acting national secretary, despite recent judicial criticism of the claim. He said Mr Noonan had no capacity to call national executive meetings or submit matters to be voted on.
Amos Aikman 8.10pm: Tough talk to tackle Top End crime wave
Five years after Australians were shocked by images of young people being mistreated in Northern Territory jails, sparking a royal commission, the Labor government and the Country Liberal opposition are once again back to competing over who can be tougher on crime.
The Territory is again in the grip of a crime wave, which Chief Minister Michael Gunner and Police Commissioner Jamie Chalker have sought to blame partly on higher welfare payments during the pandemic stoking alcoholism, violence and child welfare problems.
Officials quote youth recidivism rates strikingly similar to those released in years past — an indication that the pathways from poverty and disadvantage to incarceration remain active, and that the policies introduced to break them have not worked.
Following a spate of unpleasant incidents — such as a woman who says she woke to find herself being sexually assaulted by a 15-year-old who had broken into her home — both parties announced plans to introduce similar law reforms to parliament.
Labor wants to tighten bail conditions, expand the use of electronic-monitoring ankle straps and give police extra powers to breathalyse and drug-test young people caught driving motor vehicles.
The opposition wants to remove the presumption in favour of bail (a policy introduced in response to the recommendations of the Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the NT), make breach of bail an offence, and impose electronic-monitoring on alleged young offenders not incarcerated.
Paul Garvey 7.40pm: Root and branch review of poll axing
Senator Dean Smith looks set to lead a sweeping review of the Liberal Party’s disastrous performance in the Western Australian election.
And Mr Smith may be joined in the efforts by Michael Keenan, with the former Federal justice minister also understood to have put his hand up to help in the autopsy.
Mr Smith has written to WA Liberal Party state president Faye Duda confirming his “strong interest and availability” in participating in the party’s post-election review. The letter, a copy of which has been obtained by The Australian, was also sent to industrial relations minister Michaelia Cash and state director Sam Calabrese.
The Liberal Party recorded its worst ever result at the March 13 WA election, winning just two of 59 lower house seats. Its previous worst-ever result in WA was the 13 seats it won in 2017.
A host of blue-chip seats fell to Labor for the first time in history, and Mark McGowan’s government now also has an absolute majority in the state’s upper house.
“It is essential the review process and its recommendations form the first step in rebuilding our party, and not be viewed as the final step in closing off our unsuccessful 2021 state election campaign,” Mr Smith wrote.
Agencies 7pm:Australian Covid relief arrives in PNG
An RAAF plane has arrived in Port Moresby with 8000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine, according to Foreign Minister Maris Payne.
She tweeted images of an AUSMAT team arriving with GeneXpert testing kits, tents and storage units to help fight the surging outbreak in Papua New Guinea.
🇦🇺 & 🇵🇬 are working together in close partnership during this challenging time. Today, a RAAF C-17 arrived in Port Moresby with an AUSMAT team, #COVID19 vaccines, GeneXpert testing kits, tents for triaging patients & mobile storage units to support the vaccine rollout. pic.twitter.com/HTg2RLjkFG
— Marise Payne (@MarisePayne) March 23, 2021
AFP 6.20pm:AstraZeneca may have included ‘outdated’ data in US vaccine trials
AstraZeneca may have included out-of-date drug data in information provided during US trials for its COVID-19 vaccine, a regulator said on Tuesday, citing concerns from a monitoring board.
The board “expressed concern that AstraZeneca may have included outdated information from that trial, which may have provided an incomplete view of the efficacy data,” a statement from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases said
AstraZeneca had said late on Monday that the vaccine was shown to be 79 per cent effective against symptomatic COVID-19 — and that it was 100 percent effective against severe illness.
Rosie Lewis 6.05pm:Morrison’s ‘harassment’ claim rejected
News Corp has rejected Scott Morrison’s claim that one of its employees harassed a woman in a Parliament House bathroom, warning the Prime Minister’s comments undermined people’s right to make complaints safely and confidentially.
The Prime Minister has been accused of “weaponising” an anonymous complaint after he said News Corp’s human resources department was investigating conduct by one of its journalists who harassed a woman in a female toilet.
News Corp Australasia executive chairman Michael Miller said Mr Morrison’s claim was “wrong” but confirmed HR had been in Parliament House to give staff “the opportunity to talk to us in confidence about their wellbeing” following reports of matters of “sexually inappropriate behaviour” in the building.
News Corp Australia executive chairman Michael Miller replies to Scott Morrison’s comments earlier today pic.twitter.com/pZmFpTvq44
— Kylar Loussikian (@kloussikian) March 23, 2021
Gerard Baker5.50pm: Western culture elites are giving away Lenin’s rope
“The capitalists will sell us the rope with which we will hang them.”
That quote, attributed to Lenin, was a colourful metaphor for what Marxists call the internal contradictions of capitalism. Belief in the inherent inevitability of the West’s imminent collapse sustained the Soviet Communists right up to the moment in 1989 when their own system proved more self-annihilating than anything capitalism could muster.
But the old maxim has taken on a new and more plausible form today. It was on display last week in the first encounter between US President Joe Biden’s foreign policy team and the modern claimants to Marxism-Leninism’s primacy in the Chinese Communist Party.
It was evident from the moment the two sides sat down that an emboldened Chinese leadership understands that the greatest ideological weapon it now holds in its increasingly existential struggle with America is the gleeful enthusiasm for self-destruction that characterises so much of elite opinion in the US.
When Yang Jiechi, the Communist Party’s foreign-affairs chief, lectured Secretary of State Antony Blinken about America’s human-rights record, its treatment of minorities and its system’s innate inequity, everything he said could have been lifted straight from the pages of the Democratic Party’s presidential election platform, culled from Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper stories, or jotted down in a student’s notes from lectures delivered daily at America’s top universities.
In fact, it probably was.
Ken Thomas 5.05pm:Biden jobs policies hit $3.8 trillion
US officials are putting together a plan for a multi-part economic and jobs package that could cost as much as $US3 trillion ($3.889 trillion) as a way to enact key elements of President Joe Biden’s campaign agenda.
The first proposal would centre on roads, bridges and other infrastructure projects and include many of the climate change initiatives Mr Biden outlined in the Build Back Better plan he released during the 2020 campaign.
That package would be followed by measures focusing on education and other priorities, including extending the newly expanded child tax credit scheduled to expire at the end of the year and providing for universal pre-kindergarten and tuition-free community college, sources said.
The packages could face a difficult path through the narrowly divided congress, and Democrats aren’t all in agreement on how they should move forward with their spending and tax proposals. Mr Biden is expected to be briefed on the details of the proposals this week. He would need to sign off on the legislative strategy for it to move forward.
Some details of the strategy under consideration were reported earlier by the New York Times.
The White House declined to elaborate on the proposals under consideration.
James Madden4.30pm:Anderson defends 10 staff for Media Watch
ABC Managing Director David Anderson has defended the ABC’s Media Watch program against suggestions that the weekly show is over-resourced.
LNP senator Gerard Rennick asked Mr Anderson: “Why does the ABC need almost 10 staff to make a program that goes for about 10 or 15 minutes a week?”
Mr Anderson said: “Media Watch is one of the few programs that will independently assess the media that we have in our nation.
“The numbers speak for themselves. Over 850,000 people are coming to MW on average every Monday night. I think they are coming there for a reason, it’s the quality of the work they do, and the research that goes into it.”
Geoff Chambers4.20pm:Training for staffers after sex-assault allegations
Government staffers will undertake mandatory face-to-face workplace, health and safety training in response to inapporpriate behaviour and sexual assault allegations in federal parliament.
In an address to all Coalition staffers on Tuesday afternoon, Scott Morrison outlined three key actions the government was taking to clamp down on parliament’s toxic culture.
The Prime Minister, who will set-up a Coalition staff reference group, told staffers the government would establish a register for staff induction and professional conduct across all ministerial offices.
The government will also implement a Coalition human resources team to promote best practice and provide guidance for staff.
James Madden3.50pm:ABC talks with Facebook, Google ‘ongoing’
ABC Managing Director David Anderson said “payment for content” agreements with tech giants Facebook and Google were yet to be resolved.
“Discussions are ongoing ... we are certainly attempting to do a deal,” he said.
“I’d like to think we are close one way or another to knowing if we’ll do a deal ... with Google,” he said.
Mr Anderson said discussions with Facebook had only really commenced about a month ago, and weren’t as far along as talks with Google.
He said any money derived from any potential commercial arrangements with the digital platforms would “go straight to public interest journalism”.
James Madden3.24pm: ABC boss agrees with ‘invasion’ headline change
Labor senator Nita Green has asked ABC Managing Director David Anderson about an Australia Day article that was published on January 25, and a complaint from Communications Minister Paul Fletcher that the article’s headline suggested the terms “Australia Day” and “Invasion Day” were used interchangeably.
“Was the ABC article inaccurate, and does ABC use those terms interchangeably?”
Mr Anderson said “it was not inaccurate, I think it was confusing”.
“Certainly our policy is to use the term Australia Day. It is Australia Day. I agree with the change (to the headline) that was made, I do not believe the terms should be used interchangeably, and the headline may have suggested that.
“I will say, we do acknowledge the terms Invasion Day and Survival Day as our First Peoples are deeply affected by this.”
Mr Anderson said he did not speak to the editor who made the change to the headline.
READ MORE:Ergas — ‘Invasion’ rhetoric perpetuates victimhood
Adeshola Ore3.15pm: ‘Desperate attempt to smear’: PM denies he misled House
Scott Morrison has denied misleading parliament about an internal review about what his staff knew about the alleged 2019 rape of former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins, accusing the oppsition of running a “smear” campaign against him.
Labor has again used question time to press the Prime Minister about why he spoke in parliament about the inquiry being conducted by the head of his department when he had been aware for nearly two weeks that the investigation had been paused following advice from federal police.
Mr Morrison said he told parliament last week that he had not been informed about the timing for the report that Prime Minister and Cabinet head Philip Gaetjens’ was conducting.
“What the leader of the opposition has brought to this place is a desperate attempt to smear,” he said.
READ MORE: PM accused of misleading parliament
James Madden3.12pm: ABC under fire over Zemiro tweets
In Senate Estimates, Liberal Senator Andrew Bragg has asked ABC Managing Director David Anderson about the use of social media by staff members of the ABC.
Senator Bragg highlighted a recent tweet by comedian Julia Zemiro that read: “Peter Dutton, you continue to disgrace,” and the Liberal MP asked if any action was taken.
Mr Anderson said that Ms Zemiro was a contractor, and not a full-time employee.
The ABC boss said it could not monitor Ms Zemiro when she was not contracted to the ABC, but he said that the national broadcaster’s code of conduct was strict in relation to content on social media, and breaches of that code “may or may not lead to termination”.
READ MORE: ABC boss ‘confident’ of journalism in Porter story
Adeshola Ore 3.00pm: PM unwaware of ministerial order to clean Reynolds’ office
Scott Morrison says he is not aware of any ministers ordering the cleaning of parliamentary office where the alleged 2019 rape of former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins occured.
The office of then defence industry minister Linda Reynolds was steam cleaned in the hours following the alleged rape, a claim first reported by news.com.au. The report said the steam cleaning was ordered by the Department of Finance.
“I’m not aware of any instructions that were provided by any ministers,” Mr Morrison told parliament.
“That was a matter determined by the Department.”
READ MORE: ‘No breach’ on alleged rape night
ROSIE LEWIS2.51pm: Morrison accused of weaponising media complaint
Scott Morrison has sought to deflect pressure over Brittany Higgins’ rape allegation and revelations Coalition staffers performed lewd sex acts in parliament by warning the media against suggesting their workplaces are better.
The Prime Minister claimed there had been a complaint made against a News Corp journalist for harassing a woman in a bathroom that was being investigated by the company’s human resources department.
Asked by Sky News political editor Andrew Clennell if he had lost control of ministerial staff, Mr Morrison responded: “If anyone in this room wants to offer up the standards in their own workplaces by comparison I would invite you to do so.”
When Clennell said media workplaces were “better” than federal parliament, the Prime Minister fired back: “Right now, you would be aware in your own organisation that there is a person who has had a complaint made against them for harassment of a woman in a women’s toilet. And that matter is being pursued by your own HR department. You are not aware of it? So let’s not all of us who sit in glasshouses here start getting into that.”
News Corp is the publisher of The Australian.
READ the full story here
Adeshola Ore2.46pm: ‘Former minister’ at centre of sex worker allegation: PM
Scott Morrison has addressed allegations that sex workers have been brought into Parliament House to visit MPs, saying the report referred to a former minister.
A report by The Australian and Channel 10 revealed that a group of Coalition male staffers had swapped graphic videos and photos of them performing solo sexual acts on the desks of female MPs over a two-year period. A man at the centre of the behaviour has been sacked and the Morrison government is searching for the names of other staffers involved.
The media report also published allegations that staffers were tasked with bringing sex workers into the building for MPs.
“I understand the report referred to a former minister,” Mr Morrison said in parliament.
Richard Ferguson 2.40pm:How can Porter return to work as AG, Labor asks
Attorney-General Christian Porter’s impending return to work has raised the ire of Labor senators in upper house estimates hearings, claiming he faces too many conflicts of interests to return.
As Mr Porter takes the ABC to court over the airing of rape allegations against him — which he strenously denies — Labor senator Murray Watt asked the government on Tuesday whether Mr Porter could continue to oversee policy on defamation, court funding, and ASIO warrants.
“We can cross out constitutional law, courts and tribunals, human rights, law reform including defamation, administration of criminal justice, legal services to the Commonwealth, courts and tribunals. We haven’t even got into IR Workplace Health and Safety,” he said.
“We’ve got legal services, including the Office of Parliamentary Counsel, the Australian Human Rights Commission, I mean, how can any Attorney General return to work and perform their duty?”
Acting Attorney-General Michaelia Cash and Assistant Attorney-General Amanda Stoker faced a barage of questions on Mr Porter’s potential conflicts, and both said it would be to Scott Morrison to determine if Mr Porter needed to hive off any of his duties.
“As the Prime Minister has stated, the advice will now be carefully considered, the advice that has been received from the Solicitor-General, so that arrangements can be put in place that are consistent with it,” Senator Cash said.
READ MORE: Ex-solicitor-general leads ABC team in Porter case
James Madden2.34pm: ABC boss: Highest quality journalism over Porter
ABC managing director David Anderson has delivered an opening statement before a Senate Estimates committee.
He said he can’t be drawn on the specifics of the legal case that Attorney-General Christian Porter has brought against the ABC, but offered:
“I am confident the journalism was of the highest quality and this will be borne out in court proceedings.” he said.
Mr Anderson said the ABC was the most scrutinised media organisation in the country, “and we welcome that scrutiny.”
Labor senator Nita Green asked Mr Anderson about the controversial ‘Inside the Canberra Bubble’ Four Corners episode, and whether the ABC edited the original program after pressure from the government.
“The ABC’s independence is completely intact and we have not changed any program after any contact from the government, or any parliamentarian. What we do is that we go to people where appropriate for responses. Those (responses) might frame the program, but we make our own editorial judgements.”
READ MORE: ‘Motivated by malice?’ ABC’s tough fight in Porter case
Adeshola Ore2.28pm: PM defensive over media workplace complaint
Opposition women’s spokeswoman Tanya Plibersek has accused Scott Morrison of diminishing women’s confidence to come forward about complaints of harassment after he mentioned an anonymous workplace complaint at a media organisation during a press conference.
This morning, the Prime Minister rebuffed a journalists question about the sexual assault allegations that have plagued parliament over the past month by mentioning a HR harassment complaint at a media organisation.
“Today the Prime Minister sought to use a confidential complaint about alleged workplace misconduct inside a media organisation to dismiss questions,” Ms Plibersek told parliament.
“Is it any wonder victims of sexual assault and harassment in this building and around Australia are afraid of coming forward when the Prime Minister of this country uses a confidential complaint in a nationally television media confernece as a way to try to stop journalists asking questions about these important issuses?
Mr Morrison replied “that is not what I was doing”, causing Labor MPs to erupt into a roar of interjections.
“I was simply making the point that the problems we are experiencing in this country are not confined simply to the officers of members for senators and ministers in this place and go well beyond that.”
Ellie Dudley 2.22pm: Fully vaccinated NZ quarantine positive with Covid
A New Zealand managed isolation and quarantine (MIQ) worker has tested positive for COVID-19, after receiving two doses of the Pfizer vaccine.
One family member of the case has also returned a “weak positive” result for the virus.
The worker — a cleaner at the Grand Millennium Hotel in Auckland CBD — tested positive for the virus during a routine swab test, which is a requirement of their job, on Monday.
They had previously received two doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, on February 23 and March 16, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said at a press conference on Tuesday.
Nikki Turner, Director of the Immunisation Advisory Centre, University of Auckland said although the person had received two doses of the vaccine, they had not yet reached immunity.
“Receiving both doses (of the vaccine) is important to provide full protection,” she said.
“This person had only recently received their second dose five days earlier, and so hadn’t yet reached full protection which requires two weeks.”
The case is not suffering from any symptoms of COVID-19.
“The good news for this person is that they are asymptomatic,” Dr Turner said.
“Yet if they hadn’t been vaccinated the risk to their health could have been much greater.”
“We are pleased to see that the vaccination is likely to be providing some protection even at this early stage. This is a good sign for our vaccination programme.”
There is one confirmed location of interest linked to the case, Mt Roskill Countdown, on March 20, between 3pm and 3.15pm.
People who visited the store during that time have been classed as casual contacts and are asked to get tested and stay at home until a negative test result is received.
READ MORE: NZ delays decision on travel bubble
Richard Ferguson 2.12pm: ABC lawyer in strife over anti-PM tirade
An ABC lawyer who provided legal advice for Monday night’s Four Corners episode on the Morrison government’s handling of Brittany Higgins’ rape allegations faces an internal investigation for posting disparaging tweets against Scott Morrison and the Coalition.
Sebastien Maury, who is credited on Monday’s Four Corners episode, has called the Morrison government “fascist” and labelled the Prime Minister an “awful human being”.
In tweets as early as this month, Mr Maury compared Attorney-General Christian Porter and his denial of rape allegations to the accusations of sexual assault levelled at US Supreme Court justice Brett Kavanagh.
In November last year after an earlier Four Corners episode on Mr Porter’s personal life, Mr Maury said Mr Porter should lose his job.
“Aaaaand here we go. Porter. Maybe not quite rising to the status of PM then after all … Honestly. If this doesn’t finish his career, then nothing means anything,” he said.
Mr Maury attacked Mr Morrison directly over a number of years, and in September 2019 called him an “awful human being.”
In a Senate Estimates hearing today, ABC managing director David Anderson was quizzed about Mr Maury.
“I was disappointed to hear that and we will be looking into that,” Mr Anderson said.
READ the full story here
Greg Brown2.00pm:Nothing wrong with ‘right wing extremism’ term: Keneally
Kristina Keneally has told Labor MPs there is nothing wrong with using the term “right-wing extremism”, after ASIO revealed last week it would not be using the term.
The opposition home affairs spokeswoman defended the use of the term after Labor frontbencher Ed Husic outlined his disappointment at the new directive from ASIO.
Mr Husic, who is a Muslim MP, used Labor’s caucus brieifing to say the directive from ASIO had been inconsistent with the descritpion of terror groups since September 11.
He said Muslims, who were usually disgusted at terror attacks, were always forced to call out Islamic terror and be loud in denouncing attacks.
“As soon as the term right-wing extremism is used we find there are requests for the language to change,” Mr Husic said.
“Even on the day of the Christchurch killer being sentenced, the Prime Minister still didn’t refer to right-wing extremism.”
READ MORE:ASIO calls for more extremists on terror list
Adeshola Ore1.54pm: ‘Liberals need a serious conversation about quotas’
Defence Industry Minister Melissa Price says the Liberal Party needs to have a “serious conversation” about establishing gender quotas.
This morning, Industry Minister Karen Andrews said she was “open to a discussion” on gender quotas in the wake of sexual assault allegations that have plagued Parliament House over the past month. Ms Andrews said she’d had an “absolute gutful” after a report by The Australian and Channel 10 revealed male Coalition staffers had filmed themselves performing sexual acts on the desks of female MPS.
“We need to have serious conversation in our party with men and women about what a quota would mean,” Ms Price told the ABC.
“There is no doubt in the business world that studies have shown this, that the more women about the boardroom, the better outcomes you have.”
READ MORE:More women join company boards
Greg Brown1.43pm:National conference an ‘amber light’ for Labor
Anthony Albanese says next week’s national conference will be an “amber light” for Labor’s campaign ahead of the election, with the green light to come after the May budget.
“After eight long years the government is out of control and out of time. We need no one held back and no one left behind. They are obsessed with themselves and we are better than that,” the Opposition Leader told Labor MPs in a caucus meeting on Tuesday.
READ MORE: Labor stoush looms on Palestine
ROSIE LEWIS 1.22pm:Morrison rallies partyroom to stand up for women
Scott Morrison has urged MPs to “stand up like they’ve never stood up before” to support Australia’s women after facing weeks of pressure over allegations of sexual assault and lewd sex acts within his government.
Rallying the Coalition partyroom, the Prime Minister encouraged colleagues to “blaze the trail and let it blaze bright, let it show the way for others that come” and said the behaviour of some was not reflective of all.
Later on Tuesday he will address Coalition staff, who he conceded needed support after a bad five weeks in Parliament House.
“This has been a very traumatic time, particularly for the women in our partyroom,” Mr Morrison said, according to a partyroom spokesman.
Mr Morrison said the events of recent weeks had “triggered horrible things for women” and he had seen trauma and distress on their faces.
He told female MPs “not to give up” despite it being tough, with personal sacrifices, tears, anguish and pain.
“Great things have not been achieved without going through that so let’s set our sights on that,” he said.
The Prime Minister is promising more action to stamp out sexual assault and harassment in parliament and the government.
READ MORE: Creighton — Be warned, WFH spells white-collar job losses
Greg Brown 12.50pm: PM taking advice from Solicitor-General on Porter
Scott Morrison has been taking advice from Solicitor-General Stephen Donaghue QC over whether there is a conflict of interest for Christian Porter to remain in cabinet as Attorney-General.
“I have been getting advice from the Solicitor-General. I have received that advice and ... now taking advice through the department about how that sits with ministerial standards and I will be making further decisions on that matter. I will alert you to those when they are made,” the Prime Minister said.
Mr Porter has launched a defamation action against the ABC and its journalist Louise Milligan, who aired an allegation he raped a 16-year old in 1988, which he denied.
The Prime Minister confirmed last week Mr Porter would not perform roles relating to the ABC or the federal court while the matter was being heard.
READ MORE: Outrage over MP’s ‘support’ for staffer
Rosie Lewis 11.55am: PM’s month-late mea culpa may be too late
Scott Morrison is attempting to reset the conversation on women.
Many will say it’s too late and the damage to his government is already done.
The Prime Minister knows just how bad the past five weeks have been for him politically and on Tuesday he wanted women to know he was listening.
When former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins went public with her allegation of rape on February 15, there was condemnation of the incident and the way Defence Minister Linda Reynolds handled the fallout.
But there was no special press conference called as there was on Tuesday morning following revelations in The Australian and on the Ten Network about Coalition staffers performing lewd sex acts, including in a parliamentary office of an MP.
It is only now, more than a month after Ms Higgins revealed her story, that Morrison really showed his outrage and emotion at what has gone on in Canberra’s corridors of power.
Following his tense exchange w/ @aclennell, I asked Scott Morrison to explain how he knows about an anonymous press gallery HR complaint but was never told by anyone in his own office or @lindareynoldswa' about a rape on her ministerial couch. Watch his response... @australianpic.twitter.com/nCR36buo9f
— Olivia Caisley (@livcaisley) March 23, 2021
Morrison is promising more action in the weeks ahead and knows he must continue to try and turn the tables on a sorry and toxic chapter in federal parliament.
Some women may have already turned away, but many others will be watching closely to see if this year really is one of change.
READRosie Lewis’ full commentary on Scott Morrison’s press conference here
Adeshola Ore 11.49am:Australia Post credit cards gone after Holgate quit
Australia Post’s acting chief executive Rodney Boys says the organisation has overhauled its credit card policy following the resignation of former chief executive Christine Holgate over the gifts of Cartier watches to executives.
Ms Holgate stood aside during an investigation into the watch saga and announced her resignation before the completion of the report, which found she did not have board approval before buying the watches.
Mr Boys told a Senate estimates hearing on Tuesday that the organisation removed the credit card for the office of the CEO, lowered company credit card limits and cancelled a number of cards in recent months.
He said Australia Post conducted an internal review of its processes in response to the scandal, of which 26 of the 32 recommendations had already been implemented.
He said the internal review “largely concurred” with the findings of a subsequent government-ordered investigation.
Australia Post chair Lucio Di Bartolomeo said Ms Holgate “stood aside” during the government-ordered investigation.
But he conceded that she was “reluctant to do so initially.”
He said on November 2 he received an email from Ms Holgate offering her immediate resignation.
Mr Di Bartolomeo said Ms Holgate was stood down from Australia Post to “allow the investigation to take place over this four-week period without any perceptions of interference.”
Mr Di Bartolomeo said after the the purchasing of the Cartier watches was exposed in Senate estimates, Communication Minister Paul Fletcher informed him that Australia Post should seek to stand down Ms Holgate during the four-week investigation.
He said Ms Holgate’s notice of resignation was emailed to each Australia Post director.
He confirmed Ms Holgate received her annual leave entitlements when she resigned, but no other severance package.
READ MORE: AusPost board nailed as Holgate cleared
EWIN HANNAN11.41am: Former MP Mirabella scores $387k Fair Work job
Former federal Liberal MP Sophie Mirabella is set to be appointed to the Fair Work Commission by the Morrison government earning $387,960 a year.
Sources on Tuesday confirmed Ms Mirabella would be one of five new appointments by Christian Porter to the workplace tribunal that are expected to be announced next week.
Ms Mirabella, who held the Victorian seat of Indi for 12 years, joined Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting as its general manager of government and media relations in 2016.
Labor’s industrial relations spokesman Tony Burke attacked the appointment, citing Mr Mirabella’s past support for John Howard’s WorkChoices laws which she called fair and necessary.
“Christian Porter’s decision to appoint former Liberal MP and Work Choices defender Sophie Mirabella to a plum job for life on the Fair Work Commission should send a chill down every Australian worker’s spine,” Mr Burke said.
He said the commission needed to have a balance of employer and union representatives but the Liberals had been stacking the tribunal with employers and conservative ideologues for eight years.
“Now they’ve gone a step further to make a blatantly political appointment of a Liberal politician,” he said.
“One of the least conciliatory people to ever come through the federal parliament will now be in charge of conciliation for every workplace in the country.
Sources said Ms Mirabella would be appointed a commissioner earning $387,960 a year.
The commission appointments are expected to be announced next week.
READ MORE: Flooding prompts reinsurance, share price analysis
Ellie Dudley11.22am: Defence choppers to assist with flood emergency
Acting Defence Minister Marise Payne has confirmed defence force helicopters will be deployed today to assist in search and rescue activities amidst NSW’s flood emergency.
Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel and equipment will also be used later this week to assist with the “clearance and recovery operation.”
“Defence is working with the NSW State Emergency Operations Centre to determine how it can further support and assist state emergency services with tasks such as assessing damage to properties, clearing roads and helping restore electricity and water,” Ms Payne said in a joint statement with Emergency Management Minister David Littleproud.
“Defence is well-equipped to provide further assistance if required, which was demonstrated last year when the ADF provided support during the Black Summer Bushfires, throughout COVID-19 and the recent bushfires in Western Australia.”
Mr Littleproud said the ADF would provide “comfort” to those in flood affected communities.
“The amount of flood and storm debris to be removed will be enormous and could be overwhelming for those trying to put their lives back together,” he said.
“They will be given comfort when the men and women in uniform turn up, stand shoulder to shoulder with them and get the job done.”
FOLLOWlive updates on heavy rain and flooding in NSW, Queensland and Victoria here
Dennis Shanahan11.15am:PM bares his throat and soul. Is it enough?
Scott Morrison has come out wielding a sword and shield against the ongoing disclosures of despicable sexualised behaviour within Parliament House and the Liberal Party.
The Prime Minister has bared his throat and soul in an early Tuesday press conference before the party room meeting with Coalition MPs and Senators, a meeting with all ministerial staffers and well before Parliamentary question time.
In an emotional statement of his personal position, the changing of his thinking during the last “terrible” month of allegations of sexual assault and misbehaviour and his aspirations and frustrations over changing the attitudes to women within the Liberal Party, Morrison has conceded errors and accepted some criticism.
But he has also warned that the necessary change of culture he is attempting to achieve within Parliament, within Coalition staff and within the Liberal Party is not restricted to just those areas.
READDennis Shanahan’s full commentary on Scott Morrison’s emotional press conference here
Ellie Dudley10.36am:Victoria set to further ease Covid restrictions
Victoria’s COVID-19 restrictions are set to ease from this Friday, with the state reporting to be entirely COVID-free with no active cases.
Masks will no longer be required in retail settings, and all office spaces can return to 100 per cent capacity.
Up to 100 people will be permitted to gather in homes and public gatherings will increase to 200 people.
Capacity at sports stadiums will increase to 75 per cent.
READ MORE:Don’t blackmail China, Beijing warns
Greg Brown 10.28am:Morrison open to female MP quotas
Scott Morrison says he is open to adopting a quota policy in the Liberal Party for female MPs, declaring the Coalition is falling short of getting women into parliament.
The Prime Minister said he has been frustrated since he was a state director of the NSW Liberal Party about the difficulty to get women pre-selected and encourage them into politics.
“When it comes that issue (quotas), I don’t hold the reservations (others hold),” Mr Morrison said.
“Why? I think other Liberals will come to this view over the point of time. We tried it the other way and it isn’t getting us the results so I would like to see us do better on that front.”
Mr Morrison said he needed women to “stand with me” and wanted to see more of them in Parliament.
“I want to see more women in this place, I have done anything to get more women in this place and I intend to do more,” he said.
“I have put more women in my cabinet than any other Prime Minister has before, and I look forward to doing more. I need women to stand with me as we go about this, as we stand together”.
READ MORE: Liberal minister calls for gender quotas
Greg Brown 9.56am: ‘We must get our house in order’: PM
An emotional Scott Morrison says he was “shocked and disgusted” by the behaviour of Coalition staffers who performed solo sex acts on the desk of female ministers as he declared the culture of Parliament House must change.
The Prime Minister said it had been a “traumatic month” for women in parliament since the Brittany Higgins rape allegation.
“These events have triggered, right across this building and indeed right across the country, women who have put up with this rubbish and this crap for their entire lives, as their mothers did, as their grandmothers did,” Mr Morrison said.
“It has been going on, we have been talking about it in this place for a month, they have been living with it for their entire lives.”
At times fighting back tears, Mr Morrison said he did not mean to appear insensitive with some of his comments on the issue, including his reflection that female protesters lived in a country where they did not have to fear being shot for political action.
“I acknowledge that many have not liked or unappreciated some of my own personal responses to this over the course of the last month, I accept that,” he said.
“I acknowledge that many Australians, especially women, believe that I have not heard them, and that greatly distresses me.”
Mr Morrison fought off tears and became emotional as he spoke of the respect he had for the women in his life.
He said he wanted women to have the same opportunities as men.
“I have the deepest of vested interest, criticise me if you like for speaking about my daughters, but they are the centre of my life,” Mr Morrison said.
“My wife is the centre of my life. My mother, my widowed mother is the centre of my life. They motivate me every day on this issue. They have motivated me my entire life, they have taught me the values and the faith that sustains me every single day in this job.
“Which is why I am here, I owe them everything.”
Greg Brown 9.50am:‘Stay calm, do not go out’: Morrison’s flood warning
Scott Morrison has urged Australians under threat from floods to “remain calm” as he warns the weather patterns in NSW and parts of Queensland remains “dynamic and extremely complex”.
“This is a complex weather event and becoming more complex,” the Prime Minister said.
“Severe weather, high winds, damaging surf and heavy rain is forecast for the east coast today and the system is causing heavy rain.
“As difficult as this issue is, people are remaining calm. We need to see them continuing to follow the instructions that are out there. If it is flooded, forget it. Do not go out for a surf.
“I say that to people including in my own electorate when I had reports of people going out there yesterday. Do not do it. You are putting not only yourself at risk but those who would come to have to help you also.”
He said people should feel confident that state agencies were “world class” and able to deal with the crisis.
READ MORE: Climate goals ‘still inadequate’
Ellie Dudley 9.39am: Victoria declares itself virus-free
Victoria has been declared officially COVID-free after announcing no active cases in the state for the first time since December.
Yesterday there were no new cases reported. 13,549 test results were received. Thank you to everyone who got tested - #EveryTestHelps.
— VicGovDH (@VicGovDH) March 22, 2021
More later: https://t.co/lIUrl1hf3W#COVID19Vic#COVID19VicDatapic.twitter.com/O5TkPLmnRn
Victoria is currently not accepting overseas travellers, which has helped the state wrangle the case numbers.
A total of 13,549 test results were recevied over the past 24 hours.
Richard Ferguson 9.34am: Morrison to front media in wake of sex allegations
Scott Morrison will shortly front the media on allegations Coalition staffers procured sex workers for MPs and took lewd photographs of sex acts throughout parliament.
A Coalition adviser who filmed himself performing a lewd act on the Parliament House desk of the MP he worked for has been sacked — and others may follow — prompting the Prime Minister to describe the behaviour as “disgusting and sickening”.
Mr Morrison said in a statement last night that he would have more to say in the coming days on his response to issues in the Parliament’s workplace culture.
It is also expected Mr Morrison will address the worsening floods in NSW and Queensland.
Richard Ferguson 9.30am: Senate hearing chaos as Cash fitness questioned
A senate estimates hearing has fallen into chaos after Labor questioned Acting Attorney-General Michaelia Cash’s fitness for the role and the Coalition chair, Sarah Henderson, suspended the session.
Labor senator Murray Watt opened up the estimates hearing by repeatedly accusing Senator Cash of refusing to help Australian Federal Police in a probe concerning a 2017 media leak over the time and place of police raids on the offices of the Australian Workers Union.
“Was there no other member of the ministry available to act as Attorney General?,” he said.
Senator Cash at the Tuesday hearing denied those allegations and said she understood Senator Watt was using parliamentary privilege.
“I would invite you to step out aside this place and make those accusations publicly,” she said.
Senator Henderson then said Senator Watt’s line of questioning was “outrageous” and suspended the hearing for a private meeting.
The hearing will see officials from the Attorney-General’s Department front senate estimates and it is expected Labor will probe how Attorney-General Christian Porter will deal with conflicts of interest when he returns to work on March 31.
Mr Porter is fighting a defamation suit against the ABC and its airing of rape allegations against him. Mr Porter strenously denies those allegations.
Adeshola Ore 9.20am: Staffers stage a prayer room sit in
A group of about 20 Labor and Greens staffers have held a “sit in” in the federal parliament’s meditation and prayer room to protest against the treatment of women in parliament.
It followed a report by The Australian and Network Ten about a group of Coalition staff who swapped videos and photos of them performing sexual acts on the desks of female MPs. One Coalition advisor involved in the behaviour has been sacked. The report also revealed staff and parliamentarians often had sex in a Parliament House room reserved for meditation or prayer.
The group of staffers are calling for mandatory consent training for all MPs and staffers and for predatory behaviour in parliament to be wiped out.
“We’re sick of coming to work and not feeling safe... We’ve up until this point felt like we’ve been silenced and we’re not going to be silent anymore,” Labor staffer Georgia Tree said.
“It’s good to see that Simon Birmingham is out there saying he wants cultural change but the fact that they said they just want training for staff is frankly upsetting.”
READ MORE: Gottliebsen — Tax grilling strikes fear in private companies
Richard Ferguson9.09am:Minister slammed for praising sacked staffer
Assistant Minister for Children Michelle Landry has been condemned for saying she “feels bad” for a Coalition staffer who was sacked for performing a solo sex act on a female MP’s desk.
The man left his job after The Australian and Network Ten reported a group of Coalition staff was swapping graphic videos of their sexual encounters in parliamentary offices.
The material shows at least four Coalition staffers swapping the images and videos on Facebook Messenger over a two-year period ending last year.
Ms Landry on Tuesday said she knew the staffer and said he was a “really good worker and he loved the place.”
“I feel bad for him about this but, you know, it’s unacceptable behaviour,” she said.
Industry Minister Karen Andrews said she was not sorry for the man sacked.
“I don’t feel bad at all for him. The behaviour was appalling. Not much more I can say to that,” Ms Andrews said.
Opposition home affairs spokeswoman Kristina Keneally said Ms Landry’s response to the staffer’s sacking left her without words and she should be more concerned for the female MPs and workers who had to clean up after the sacked man.
“How about feeling bad for the cleaners who had come in and clean up that disgusting mess? How about feeling bad for the female MP whose desk was disrespected? I am left without words,” she said.
READ MORE: Queen may appoint royal diversity chief
Finn McHugh9.06am: ‘Stamp it out’: Outcry over lewd sex act
Politicians and staffers committing lewd acts within Parliament House should be outed to clean up the building’s “toxic” culture, MPs say.
A Liberal staffer was sacked on Monday after filming himself performing a lewd act on the desk of a female MP in shocking revelations aired by Channel 10.
The footage was reportedly shared with a group of Coalition staffers who filmed themselves committing indecent acts inside Parliament House.
The culture within parliament has been under scrutiny following months marred by sexual assault allegations and sex scandals.
Independent MP Zali Steggall said parliament needed to confront its “toxic … cultural issues”, and while the conduct was “shocking”, it was not surprising.
“Words nearly fail you to think of just how disgusting that is,” she told the ABC.
“I’m quite astounded by the psychology of this and the desire to film oneself and share.
“It speaks to a pretty outrageous level of complacency, entitlement, that feeling that one would be so above the rules of decent conduct in a workplace, (and) this would somehow pass the test and be acceptable.”
Channel 10 also aired claims sex workers were brought into parliament, while employees regularly had sex in the building’s prayer room.
Finance Minister Simon Birmingham said the behaviour must be “stamped out” but insisted the majority of staffers were hard working and professional.
“It’s embarrassing, it’s sickening, it’s appalling, and it’s not to be tolerated. That’s the stance we are very clearly taking,” he told Sky News.
But Ms Steggall said the incident spoke to the “broader question of the standards expected of staffers” and called for the government to implement a professional stand of conduct.
“Leadership comes from the top,” she said.
“To say it’s just a small minority is actually not engaging with the problem and taking responsibility for the problem.
“I think there needs to be a much better look at taking of responsibility by the government and the Coalition.”
Labor frontbencher Bill Shorten said there should be “zero” tolerance for the “reprehensible” behaviour and called on anyone with knowledge of other acts to come forward.
“No wonder people hate politics … I am sure Prime Minister Morrison would have done his block on this,” he told Channel 9.
“It should be cleaned up and maybe if there is any good comes out of this, it is that people need to report the behaviour.
“We all need to just say: It is a privilege to work here, and that is the attitude which we should adopt all the time.”
Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young said the culture of Parliament House “reeks with toxicity” and she was “beyond (being) shocked anymore”.
“What is wrong with these people? … This is more like local boy college style behaviour that goes unchecked,” she asked Sky News.
“It’s just absolutely revolting. To treat women in this building like this, your female boss, I just find it absolutely disgusting.”
Nationals senator Matt Canavan said there “must be consequences” for anyone involved but said the men needed support.
“They have made shocking mistakes that they will pay a heavy price for, but I don’t want to see them ostracised or banished from society,” he told Sky News.
“They need to be supported, too, and hopefully learn from their mistakes and get on with their lives.”
Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Monday decried the behaviour as “totally unacceptable” and “not good enough”.
“The people who come to work in this building are better than this,” he said in a statement.
“The actions of these individuals show a staggering disrespect for the people who work in parliament and for the ideals parliament is supposed to represent.” — NCA Newswire
Ellie Dudley 8.31am: Defence aircraft to assist on NSW south coast today
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has confirmed two defence force aircraft will be assisting on the south coast today, as the state government puts in a request to their federal counterparts for ADF assistance with the clean up on the mid-north coast.
“We have asked for assistance to start some of the clean up where we can in the northern rivers and the mid-north coast,” she said.
“I am very certain that will be forthcoming.”
Ms Berejiklian said the “vast majority of people” are still in crisis management, but the NSW government are looking ahead to the clean up and recovery phases of the disaster.
Meanwhile, two ADF aircraft will be “at the disposal” of the NSW government to assist with extreme weather on the south coast today.
She also gave a message of hope to anyone who is stranded by flood waters currently that help is on its way.
“The weather conditions are drastic. For those reasons, we are limited in some regions in our way to help people,” Ms Berejiklian said.
“No matter where you live, no matter how isolated you feel, help will get to you.
“In the meantime please stay somewhere safe.”
FOLLOWlive updates on heavy rain and flooding in NSW, Queensland and Victoria here
Adeshola Ore8.27am: Out yourselves, minister tells lewd act staffers
Industry Minister Karen Andrews has urged Coalition staffers who filmed themselves performing sexual acts on the desks of female MPS to out themselves.
The Morrison government is searching for the names of staffers who were involved in swapping graphic videos and pictures of their sexual encounters in parliamentary offices over a two-year period. One staffer involved in the acts has been sacked.
“I’ve had a gutful. My conscience will no longer allow me to remain quiet,” Ms Andrews told the ABC.
“Those people who know who they are and if they had any integrity they would be putting their hands up as they left the building — never to return.”
READ MORE: Australia’s time of reckoning arrives
Patrick Commins8.23am: Where the best chances of securing a job are
Australians studying for jobs in the health and welfare sector have the best chance of securing employment in the coming five years, a new report from the National Skills Commission says.
The National Skills Commission’s latest Industry Employment Outlook report said Australia’s ageing population, demand associated with the National Disability Insurance Scheme, and a growing number of working parents in need of childcare would help drive another 250,000 new healthcare and social assistance jobs in the coming five years.
Total employment nationally was projected to climb by 991,600, or 7.8 per cent, by November 2025. There will be more jobs by 2025 in 17 of the 19 industries, the report said, with fewer jobs in the manufacturing and media and telecommunications sectors.
For young Australians trying to decide what to study, the report pointed to a career in health and welfare services as among the best options for eventually securing employment, including jobs such as managers, speech professionals, counsellors and social workers.
READ the full story here
Ellie Dudley7.52am: ‘Gaetjens inquiry suspension to ensure nothing was wrong’
Finance Minister Simon Birmingham has defended Scott Morrison against Labor accusations he misled parliament by not revealing that the head of his office had halted the inquiry into who knew about the rape allegations of former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins.
Philip Gaetjens told Senate Estimates yesterday the inquiry was put on hold under instruction from the Australian Federal Police, and he informed the Prime Minister of this on March 9. Nine days later, Mr Morrison told parliament he was yet to receive an update from Mr Gaetjens on the status of the inquiry.
“What the Prime Minister did was he advised Philip Gaetjens would be appearing before Senate Estimates to answer questions about the inquiry,” Senator Birmingham told the ABC today.
“Philip Gaetjens suspended this inquiry on the advice and following discussions with the police commissioner to make sure that nothing he was doing, nothing that was happening in relation to other investigations of this matter, could compromise the paramount importance of actually getting a successful investigation and prosecution of an alleged rapist.”
Senator Birmingham went on to discuss an inquiry into the culture of parliament house which will be conducted this year by the Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins.
READ MORE: The Sketch — Leaks and spills may be a portent of locusts
Ellie Dudley7.35am: Search on for staffers involved in lewd acts
Finance Minister Simon Birmingham has said the government is searching for the names of staffers who have filmed themselves performing lewd acts on parliament house desks, after one was identified and sacked on Monday.
“We have reached out to the journalist who reported the story, asking him to extend to the whistleblower an invitation to cooperate with the government to assist us in that regard,” he told ABC Breakfast. “We will undertake whatever other investigations we can.”
The man left his job after The Australian and Network Ten reported a group of Coalition staff was swapping graphic videos of their sexual encounters in parliamentary offices.
The material shows at least four Coalition staffers swapping the images and videos on Facebook Messenger over a two-year period ending last year.
Senator Birmingham described the act as “complete disrespect” against not only the member of parliament whose desk it was, but “the Australian public” and “every other person they work with.”
“I know that there are hundreds of people coming to work here today who, frankly, feel a
sense of shame,” he said.
“They shouldn’t. They should feel a sense of pride, because the vast majority of them are good, hard working people.”
READ MORE: Sloan — Crossbenchers and IR club sink sensible reform
Max Maddison7.28am:Ex-NSW MP Daryl Maguie may face criminal probe
Scandal-ridden former Liberal MP Daryl Maguire could face criminal charges for giving “false or misleading evidence” to ICAC, with the corruption watchdog seeking legal advice from the NSW public prosecutor.
The final report into the Operation Dasha probe — the Independent Commission Against Corruption’s investigation into former Canterbury Council councillors Michael Hawatt and Pierre Azzi — will also seek legal advice relating to “serious corrupt conduct” engaged in by Mr Hawatt, Mr Azzi and then director of city planning Spiro Stavis.
Released on Monday afternoon, the findings relate to activities between 2014 and 2016 where Mr Hawatt and Mr Azzi misused their positions to approve planning proposals at the council that saw them paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to vote favourably on development applications.
Read the full story here.
Ewin Hannan7am:Crackers behaviour by Fair Work deputy investigated
Fair Work Commission deputy president Gerard Boyce has been referred to NSW police for setting off firecrackers during a post-Christmas party staff gathering on the tribunal’s office balcony in Sydney.
The Australian can reveal Fair Work general manager Bernadette O’Neill has referred Mr Boyce’s conduct to NSW police after he let off two “throwdown” firecrackers at a staff get-together in December.
Under NSW law, it is illegal to buy, possess or discharge fireworks unless a person has a single-use licence or holds a pyrotechnician’s licence.
Ms O’Neill has also referred Mr Boyce’s conduct to Comcare, the national authority for work, health and safety.
The referral came a year after Mr Boyce, appointed by the Coalition, came under criticism for displaying “scantily clad” figurines in his chambers.
Read the full story here.
Greg Sheridan6.30am:Subs builder Naval Group agrees to terms
The Defence Department and the French ship builder Naval Group were expected to sign a formal contract overnight amending their partnership agreement to lay out the timetable and scope for achieving 60 per cent local industry content for 12 submarines to be built in Australia.
Naval Group chief executive Pierre-Eric Pommellet convened a special board meeting to ratify the legal agreement.
The Australian revealed the two sides had reached an in-principle agreement on the 60 per cent local content during Mr Pommellet’s visit to Australia in at the end of February.
Both sides needed to refine the text which will now become legally binding. Under the agreement each phase of work will include a fixed minimum percentage of Australian industry content. This will start in the earliest stages of work below 60 per cent, with the level of Australian content increasing with each successive phase of work over the life of the design and build of the 12 subs.
Read the full story here.
Rosie Lewis5.30am:No breach on alleged rape night: security guard
A Parliament House security guard who let former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins and her male colleague into the office of Defence Minister Linda Reynolds has denied there was a security breach on the night of the alleged rape.
The security guard, Nikola Anderson, also disclosed she had not been contacted by police or parliamentary investigators looking into the allegations for two years, until last week.
Ms Anderson’s account, given to the ABC’s Four Corners on Monday, contradicts the government’s explanation that the alleged perpetrator was sacked over a “security breach”.
Government sources have told The Australian the Liberal staffer accused of the rape was sacked from Senator Reynolds’ office over a security breach that included him gaining access to a minister’s office on false pretence and for failing to behave “honestly, with integrity”.
“What was the security breach?” Ms Anderson told the ABC. “I am one of the only people who knew what happened and no one has come to talk to me, no one has asked me what happened.”
Breaking: The security guard who found Brittany Higgins after the alleged rape reveals her role in the events of that night on #4Corners#auspolpic.twitter.com/A9ZCy6TZDY
— Sally Neighbour (@neighbour_s) March 22, 2021
The program also reported that it was Julian Leembruggen, a senior adviser to Scott Morrison, who was the staffer in the Prime Minister’s office told about the rape allegations within a fortnight of the incident in 2019.
Read the full story here.
Peter van Onselen5.15am:Coalition staffer sacked over lewd sex acts
A Coalition adviser who filmed himself performing a lewd act on the Parliament House desk of the MP he worked for has been sacked — and others may follow — prompting Scott Morrison to describe the behaviour as “disgusting and sickening”.
The man left his job after The Australian and Network Ten reported a group of Coalition staff was swapping graphic videos of their sexual encounters in parliamentary offices.
The material shows at least four Coalition staffers swapping the images and videos on Facebook Messenger over a two-year period ending last year.
The material was supplied by a whistleblower who agreed to disclose their activities on condition of anonymity.
Read the full story here.
Ben Packham5am:ASIO wants more extremists designated as terrorists
ASIO has revealed it wants more ideologically motivated extremist groups to be designated as terrorist organisations, in addition to the newly listed Sonnenkrieg Division (SKD).
The listing of SKD under the Criminal Code, announced by Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton on Monday, marks the first designation of a far-right extremist group as a terrorist organisation.
“It is not the only (ideologically motivated) group we have proposed,” ASIO director-general Mike Burgess told Senate estimates.
“Obviously, how that happened, and whether or not they meet the legal threshold, is a matter for others.”
The SKD is a UK-based neo-Nazi group which was last year outlawed in Britain, where its members have been convicted of encouraging terrorism, disseminating terror material, and preparations for a terrorist act.
Read the full story here.
More Coverage
More undergraduates signing up for teaching: Labor
The federal government has released new data showing more undergraduates are applying to become school teachers than in previous years, as it works to tackle the nation’s crippling teacher shortage.
A strong military needs to recruit people of purpose, values and loyalty
Australia’s defence is at risk due to delays in acquiring the capabilities needed to meet the clear and present danger, butthere are others risks as well.