PoliticsNow: United States rejected 148 Nauru refugees
PoliticsNow: Border Force officials have confirmed the United States has rejected 148 refugees from Nauru.
- Morrison cancels QT
- Gillard’s impromptu speech
- ‘Make no mistake, institutions knew’
- Museum, centre of excellence to be built
- Gillard returns for apology
- Turnbull comes home
Hello and welcome to PoliticsNow, The Australian’s live blog on the happenings at Parliament House in Canberra.
Scott Morrison has apologised to victims of child sexual abuse in his first day in the parliament as the leader of a minority government, cancelling Question Time at the request of child sex abuse survivors. Kerryn Phelps is meanwhile holding her lead over Dave Sharma in the Wentworth by-election recount.
Rachel Baxendale 9.40pm: US rejects 148 refugees from Nauru
Border Force officials have confirmed the United States has rejected 148 refugees from Nauru.
Deputy Commissioner of Operations Mandy Newton told Senate Estimates there were currently 652 people on Nauru, including 541 who had been found by Australia to be refugees, 88 whose refugee status was yet to be determined, and 23 who had been found not to be genuine refugees.
Ms Newton said the asylum seeker population on Nauru included 52 children.
A further 27 people, including 11 children requiring medical treatment were transferred from Nauru today.
Ms Newton said 276 asylum seekers had so far been accepted from Nauru by the US, with the approval of another 31 imminent pending medical checks.
“There’s 148 that have been negative determinations from Nauru,” Ms Newton said.
She also confirmed there are currently 65 contracted medical professionals available to the 652 asylum seekers on the island, including senior medical officers, GPs, an obstetrician, psychiatrists, psychologists, paramedics and mental health nurses.
Ms Newton said the US had taken 163 refugees from Manus Island, meaning it has so far taken a total of 439 people from Nauru and Manus combined.
A total of 190 asylum seekers from Nauru and Manus were rejected by the US, including 148 from Nauru and 42 from Manus.
Of those rejected by the US, 91 were Iranian, 22 Somalian, 21 Sri Lankan and 14 Pakistani.
There were eight rejected from each of Iraq and Sudan, while eight stateless citizens were also rejected.
The US rejected seven refugees from Afghanistan, five from Bangladesh, two from Lebanon and one each from Cameroon, Egypt, India and Myanmar.
Ms Newton said the US State Department did not provide reasons for the refusals.
The 439 people resettled by the US include 127 stateless people, 102 from Pakistan, 94 from Afghanistan, 35 from Sri Lanka, 16 from Iran, 12 from Myanmar, 10 from each of India and Somalia, seven from Bangladesh, three from Sudan and one from each of Indonesia and Nepal.
Of the 52 children on Nauru, 45 have been found to be refugees, while the status of the remaining seven is yet to be determined.
None have been found not to be genuine asylum seekers.
Rachel Baxendale 7.34pm: When officials were first advised of embassy move
Officials from the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet have confirmed to Senate Estimates that they were first advised of the Morrison government’s announcements that it was “open to” moving Australia’s Israeli embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and reconsidering the Iran nuclear deal on the morning of Monday 15 October.
The announcements were briefed to the media that evening and formally announced the next morning.
Officials including Deputy Secretary Caroline Millar and First Assistant Secretary (International) Justin Hayhurst revealed they had been briefed over the phone by the Prime Minister’s office on the Monday morning during questioning from Labor foreign affairs spokeswoman Penny Wong.
While the announcement has been welcomed by many Australian Jewish groups, it sparked an emergency meeting of Arab ambassadors in Canberra, and a threat from Indonesia to reconsider its trade deal with Australia.
A senior Department of Premier and Cabinet official also confirmed during Senate Estimates that, to his knowledge, Scott Morrison has not spoken to his Indonesian counterpart Joko Widodo since announcing he was “open to” moving Australia’s Israeli embassy to Jerusalem last Tuesday.
As The Australian has previously reported, the pair exchanged texts amid threats from Indonesia to put trade negotiations with Australia on ice over the Jerusalem announcement.
Department of Premier and Cabinet First Assistant Secretary (International) Justin Hayhurst confirmed he was aware of the text exchange.
Asked by Labor foreign affairs spokeswoman Penny Wong whether the Prime Minister had spoken to President Widodo since the announcement, Mr Hayhurst said Mr Morrison had “communicated” with President Widodo.
“I don’t know all of the forms of that communication,” Mr Hayhurst said.
“Would it be correct that PM&C would usually be aware of a Prime Minister and President phone call?” Senator Wong asked.
Mr Hayhurst replied, “That’s right.”
“So from your knowledge, has there been any conversation as opposed to text message since the decision was made?” Senator Wong asked.
“Not to my knowledge,” Mr Hayhurst replied.
Elias Visontay 7.31pm: Laundy defends Turnbull
Federal Liberal MP and Malcolm Turnbull ally Craig Laundy has defended the former prime minister’s muted support for Dave Sharma’s Wentworth campaign, as Mr Turnbull touched back down in Sydney after voters abandoned the party in their former blue ribbon seat at Saturday’s byelection.
“Malcolm was strongly of the opinion that the people of Wentworth are a pretty switched-on crew and would see that as an extremely cynical move and it would actually work the opposite way,” Mr Laundy told Seven News.
While his father remained silent, Alex Turnbull capped off his vocal byelection campaigning on Sunday, tweeting that “my work here is done. back to the dumpster fire of asian capital markets”, accompanied by a screenshot showing that he had blocked tweets that mentioned politics from his feed.
The Singapore-based hedge fund manager was outspoken on social media during the campaign against the party that dumped his father, first urging his followers to support Labor candidate Tim Murray before moving towards endorsing Independent Kerryn Phelps.
The former prime minister, who flew out of the country to holiday in New York and Singapore just days after his ousting in August as the nation’s leader and subsequent vacation of his seat, failed to make a strong public endorsement for Mr Sharma in the way other Liberal politicians became visible on the campaign.
Mr Laundy was one of many government MPs that travelled to the electorate for the campaign, and he noted resentment among local Liberal party volunteers at polling booths over Mr Turnbull’s treatment by his party.
“(They said) it was a particularly dumb idea to dump Malcolm Turnbull as Prime Minister,” Mr Laundy said.
Meanwhile more Liberal MPs came out yesterday criticising the former prime ministers silence in the seat, as Liberal MP Sarah Henderson said she was “disappointed of course that Malcolm wasn’t a bit stronger in his support for the Liberal vote”.
Responding to the historic electoral loss, Veterans Affairs minister Darren Chester said: “We handed the people of Wentworth baseball bats, we can hardly be surprised that they’ve used them”.
Rachel Baxendale 7.18pm: Kitching quizzes Cormann
Labor Senator Kimberley Kitching gleefully quizzes Mathias Cormann on his role in the August leadership spill, in light of the publication today of Sky News Political Editor David Speers’ book on the subject, On Mutiny.
She begins with reference to a press conference Senator Cormann held with his senior Senate colleagues Michaelia Cash and Mitch Fifield on the Thursday morning before the Friday spill which saw Malcolm Turnbull deposed as prime minister, when the trio declared they had determined Malcolm Turnbull no longer had the support of the majority of the Liberal partyroom.
The following day the partyroom voted to spill the leadership 45 to 40, meaning that without the support of the three senators, Mr Turnbull would have remained leader.
Senator Cormann says he stands by his statement that “a majority of colleagues in the Liberal Party partyroom are of the view that there should be a change”.
“That is what I said, and I stand by that statement,” he says.
Kitching asks: “And do you stand by your conclusion that before you and Senators Cash and Fifield withdrew support for him, Malcolm Turnbull no longer had support in the Liberal partyroom?”
“Well you’re now seeking to verbal and draw a bow,” Cormann says.
“I mean obviously it’s a matter of public record as to how many people voted a particular way in the partyroom meeting on the Tuesday, and I mean it’s a matter of public record also that subsequently a number of colleagues who supported Mr Turnbull in that partyroom ballot indicated to me that on reflection they were of a different view and that they believed that the result meant that we would not be able to sufficiently reunite as a team in that configuration.”
Kitching presses Cormann again, asking if he got the numbers wrong and moved to support Peter Dutton too early.
“Again, my position in relation to this is well and truly on the record,” Cormann says.
“I don’t believe that the situation as emerged post that partyroom meeting on the Tuesday was sustainable.
“I believed that we had reached a point where the leadership of the Liberal Party and the leadership of the government had to be properly resolved.
“I communicated that to the former prime minister, and I believe that I made the decisions that I felt were right for the country, for the government and for the Liberal Party, and I sought to execute them in the right and honourable way, but ultimately these are matters for others to comment and to judge.
“When you have certain roles and responsibilities, I believe that you’ve got to step up and make decisions based on what you think is right. It would have been much more comfortable for me personally to go and hide in a cupboard somewhere and let this go by, but in the end I formed a view and I made relevant decisions which are very much a matter of public record.”
Senator Cormann says he did not initiate the spill or do the numbers, but that the spill on Tuesday, when 35 of his colleagues voted for Peter Dutton, meant change was inevitable.
“I could not ignore the reality of 35 colleagues voting a particular way on the Tuesday, and the context of further colleagues subsequently approaching me with their view, and ultimately, the judgement that the former prime minister had lost majority support in the partyroom was borne out by the outcome in the relevant vote later that week, and obviously, subsequently the Liberal Party partyroom made a decision on who my colleagues thought was in the best position to provide strong leadership to our team and to unite our team and to provide strong leadership to the country and to the government, and that is of course the Prime Minister, and Mr Frydenberg as deputy leader,” he says.
Cormann challenged over vote
Challenged over the fact that he voted for Mr Dutton, and not for the now Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his deputy Josh Frydenberg, Cormann says: “Well again you might think that it is very pleasurable for you to pursue these matters.”
“Let me say, If I may, I have always been open and transparent in these matters in terms of how I vote,” he says.
Kitching asks: “Were you tricked by Peter Dutton about the level of support he had in the partyroom?”
“No,” Cormann says.
“Do you still go walking with him in the morning?” Kitching adds.
“That’s got nothing to do with this,” Cormann responds.
Kitching then reads an excerpt from Speers’ book: “At 8:45am Turnbull received a text message to let him know Cormann, Fifield and Cash were in the adjoining meeting room. They had come to deliver an important message. Turnbull told what was left of his leadership group that he would shortly return, but Morrison said ‘You need a witness for this’ and went with him. Once again, it was Cormann who did most of the talking on behalf of the three. They could not face parliament in this position he told the prime minister, as the three presented their resignations. Turnbull accepted them but made his feelings clear. They were leaving the government a ‘burnt out wreck’. He felt betrayed, particularly by Cormann, and believed his friend was being weak and treacherous at a time when he should have been strong.”
“So what I’m asking you, is Malcolm Turnbull right to feel betrayed by you?” Kitching asks Cormann.
“Well no, but I understand why he would have been disappointed,” Cormann says.
“Let me say this was not the first conversation obviously in relation to these matters.
“I mean this was a very difficult week. It was a difficult week for the government, but it was also a difficult week for me personally.
“I can say that I agonized over some of the decisions that I was forced to make.
“I had served Mr Turnbull loyally from the moment that he became prime minister. I worked very hard to help him be successful.
“I worked very hard to ensure that the Turnbull government was able to be as successful as possible, but during that week certain events and certain circumstances arose.
“I sought to make the right decisions for the right reasons at all times and on making decisions and judgements I sought to give effect to them in a way that was right and honourable, including in the first instance having a one-on-one conversation with Mr Turnbull which was followed by various other conversations subsequently.
“My preference would have been for there to have been an orderly transition, for there to be an orderly and managed transition.
“That is not the way it played out, but in the end the reason I formed the view I did is because I believed that the best prospect of having a government that was as united, as strong and as effective as possible in delivering for the Australian people was to ensure that that week the leadership of the Liberal Party was resolved with certainty, and I didn’t believe on the Tuesday morning that had been the case.”
Kitching asks Cormann what he means by an “orderly transition” of leadership. He obfuscates.
“I think we’re now getting well and truly beyond what relates to this. I think I’ve been very candid and very helpful. These are matters in the past. The government’s looking forward,” Cormann says.
“You’ve just said, just a couple of minutes ago you would have preferred an orderly transition. What do you have in mind by that?” Kitching persists.
“I would have preferred an orderly transition, but in the end, there was another partyroom and another ballot, and the government since has been working very hard to make Australia stronger,” Cormann says.
Kitching reads another excerpt from Speers’ book: “The Dutton camp meanwhile ran their operation from the Monkey-pod room, which was close to Dutton’s office but actually shared a wall with Pyne’s office, and the walls weren’t exactly soundproof. Those in Pyne’s office could regularly hear the Dutton-backers discussing who they needed to target and who they were worried about. They could also hear when Cormann wasn’t happy.”
Kitching asks: “Were you involved in the Dutton camp’s coup plotting?”
Cormann says he wasn’t.
“I didn’t initiate the processes that ultimately led to the outcome. That is a matter of public record,” he says.
Quizzed over the Speers account, Cormann says: “I attended meetings in a whole range of offices right around parliament that week.”
“It might well be that during that week there was a time I was not happy. I can confirm that.”
Asked how many hours he spent dealing with the leadership challenge that week, Cormann says: “I can’t answer that.”
“Did you sort of happen to also engage with your ministerial duties, or was that on a part-time basis while you dealt with these internal issues?” Kitching asks.
“No. I deal with my responsibilities full time all the time,” Cormann says.
Rachel Baxendale 5.13pm: Cormann accuses Wong being ‘180 degrees contrary’
The debate between Penny Wong and Mathias Cormann over the government’s position in the House of Representatives following Wentworth continues.
Cormann quotes a comment from Bill Shorten on October 14 as evidence that things haven’t really changed as a result of the government losing a seat.
“The fact of the matter is that next Saturday night, whoever wins Wentworth, Scott Morrison will still be Prime Minister on Sunday,” Shorten said at the time.
“I’m not saying I’m happy about that, but it’s a fact. He will be the Prime Minister, a couple of the crossbenchers have guaranteed the government confidence, so some argument that people in Wentworth are going to bring down the whole government, as much as I wish it might be true, it is simply not true.”
Cormann accuses Wong of being “180 degrees contrary” to Mr Shorten in her line of questioning.
“I mean either you are undermining Mr Shorten, or you’re suggesting that Mr Shorten changed his position after the weekend,” he says.
Wong then quotes Scott Morrison ahead of the Wentworth by-election.
“So when the Prime Minister said: ‘if an independent is elected at the Wentworth by-election that will throw us into a hung parliament and a lot of uncertainty’ he was correct?” she asks.
Cormann says Mr Morrison’s statements stand for themselves.
“And I’ve also referred to the statement made by Mr Shorten which indicates that essentially nothing will change,” Cormann says.
“When I say that nothing has changed, you criticize me for it, but I’m essentially just channeling what Mr Shorten said on Saturday.”
“So you’re agreeing with Mr Shorten, not Mr Morrison. That’s not very loyal of you,” Senator Wong hits back.
“Mr Morrison then said the next day on the 16th of October, ‘throwing the parliament into a hung parliament would only create instability and uncertainty’. So was Mr Morrison right when he said that?”
“Well of course Mr Morrison was right, and of course we would have preferred if the people of Wentworth had elected Dave Sharma as their local member, but we respect the decision that the people of Wentworth have made,” Senator Cormann says.
Rachel Baxendale 4.34pm: Who’s seen religious report?
Mathias Cormann faces a series of questions regarding the Ruddock review of religious freedom from Labor senators Jenny McAllister, Kimberley Kitching and Penny Wong and Green Janet Rice.
There’s a lot of back and forth about who has actually seen the report, given Senator Cormann at one stage told the Senate Cabinet had received it.
Eventually he clarifies that only former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, current Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Attorney-General Christian Porter had access to the report since it was handed to the government in May.
The report’s recommendations were leaked to Fairfax Media earlier this month.
Asked whether it was possible that staff members in Mr Turnbull, Mr Morrison or Mr Porter’s office had access to the report, Senator Cormman said: “In terms of how that document was subsequently handled within those offices, I couldn’t tell you.”
Senator Cormann says the government does not believe an investigation into the leak is necessary.
“I’m not in a position to confirm that the report was leaked,” Senator Cormann says, prompting scoffs from Labor and Greens senators.
“I haven’t seen the actual report.”
Rachel Baxendale 4.28pm: ‘Nothing’s changed’ in Wentworth
Labor leader in the Senate Penny Wong kicks off Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet Senate Estimates by asking Deputy Secretary Stephanie Foster and Finance Minister Mathias Cormann whether the government has sought advice on the consequences of losing its majority as a result of the Wentworth by-election.
Ms Foster says no such advice has been sought to her knowledge.
Senator Cormann weighs in, claiming “nothing has actually changed” as a result of Wentworth.
“Up until this weekend we needed 75 out of 148 votes in the House of Representatives and if the result is as it looks like it will be and as you suggest it will be, then we will need 75 votes out of 149, 75 out of 149 is the same number as 75 out of 148, and the Labor Party continues to just hold 69 seats in the House of Representatives,” Senator Cormann says.
“The number of Labor-held seats in the House of Representatives has of course not changed, so fundamentally we as the government in the House of Representatives require the same number of votes as we did before this weekend.”
Senator Wong asks: “If you lose Wentworth, how many seats do you hold in the parliament, Senator Cormann?”
“Well, 75,” Senator Cormann says.
“And if you continue to supply the Speaker, how many deliberative votes do you have in the absence of a casting vote?” Senator Wong asks.
“Well, 74,” Senator Cormann says.
“Correct. Which is less than a majority,” Senator Wong says.
Greg Brown 2.32pm: Question time cancelled
Scott Morrison has cancelled question time at the request of child sexual abuse survivor groups.
The Prime Minister and Bill Shorten both agreed to cancel questions out of respect for the victims of child sex abuse who are in Parliament House.
“Question time we believe can wait until tomorrow,” Mr Morrison says.
Greg Brown 2.27pm: Climate change not to blame in Wentworth: Pitt
Nationals MP Keith Pitt says climate change was not the reason for the massive swing against the Liberal Party at Wentworth, arguing the Greens would have won the seat if emissions policy was the biggest issue.
“If climate change was the issue for the people of Wentworth they would have voted for the Greens,” Mr Pitt told Sky News.
“If that is the only reason that they voted against our side of government, you would think they would go to the Labor Party.”
Mr Pitt said Malcolm Turnbull should have stayed in parliament until the next election.
“His colleagues, his party, raised him to the highest office in the land and I think that it wouldn’t have been that big of an ask to see his time out until May rather than force another by-election on the people of Australia,” Mr Pitt said.
1.52pm: Phelps maintains Wentworth lead
Independent MP Kerryn Phelps has maintained her lead as counting continues in the Sydney seat of Wentworth.
The latest Australian Electoral Commission figures published at 1pm on Monday show Dr Phelps on 51.14 per cent of the two-candidate preferred vote with a lead of 1676 votes.
Still to be counted were 1456 declaration votes, including postal and provisional ballots.
Dr Phelps, whose vote will be crucial in the minority parliament, said she had yet to have a conversation with Prime Minister Scott Morrison but had received a text message from him saying “counting was still going on”.
“Certainly I would be wanting to have a conversation with the prime minister,” she told Sky News.
“The first order of business is to get kids off Nauru.”
She said asylum-seeker children needed urgent medical attention in Australia. Then an independent body should be set up to assess their resettlement options. Asked whether Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton should be referred to the High Court over his childcare interests, she said: “We need to be very rigorous and inquiring about any legislation or motions or referrals and make sure the right decisions are made.”
Senior Liberals are licking their wounds from the likely by-election defeat. Cabinet minister Simon Birmingham said it was up to his party to quell the profound fury of the electorate with strong communication about the government’s policy achievements.
He said the coalition paid the price for dumping Malcolm Turnbull as prime minister, which triggered his resignation from Wentworth.
Nationals frontbencher Darren Chester said the people of Wentworth had sent a message after losing their popular local member.
“I think once you hand the voters a baseball bat, you can hardly be surprised if they use it,” Mr Chester told the ABC.
A win for Dr Phelps will leave the House of Representatives with six crossbenchers, 75 coalition MP sand 69 Labor MPs.
Three crossbenchers, Cathy McGowan, Rebekha Sharkie and Bob Katter, want the government to run its full term.
Independent Mr Wilkie will not guarantee confidence, while Greens MP Mr Bandt said an election had to be called because “the sooner we turf out this rotten government, the better”.
AAP
Greg Brown 1.38pm: Labor firms with bookies
Labor has firmed to $1.25 favourites to win the general election after the government’s probable loss in the Wentworth by-election.
Betting agency Sportsbet has shortened the odds for Bill Shorten’s team from $1.30 last week, while the Coalition has blown out from $3.20 to $3.50.
“As the dust settles, the punters are putting their support behind a Labor victory at the election and although May is the most likely date, December and an early election have attracted plenty of interest,’’ said sportsbet.com.au’s Will Byrne.
Greg Brown 12.39pm: More from Gillard
Gillard thanks Scott Morrison and Bill Shorten for the “real emotion” of their speeches.
“Thank you for the very great honour you have paid to me today by acknowledging me in the room. It means a great deal to me,” the former Labor prime minister says.
Scott Morrison hands a copy of the apology to Cheryl Edwardes, the chairwoman of the National Apology Reference Group.
Rosie Lewis: 12.38pm: Gillard’s impromptu speech
Unscripted, Julia Gillard is asked to come to the stage. She’s given “two seconds” to speak.
Gillard says she was sitting where she wanted to be, with survivors and their families and friends.
“Thanks to all of you for your courage, your determination, for your stoicism,” she says. “It took many years to get to this moment but (we are) only at it not because of me but because of you.”
Greg Brown 12.31pm: ‘A triumph of hope over experience’
Bill Shorten also addresses victims at Parliament House, calling their visit “a triumph of hope over experience”.
“In coming here you actually give all us who work here the compliment,” the Opposition Leader said.
“Because you have been let down.
“It was never your fault, it is not your fault and I terribly apologise the fact that you were not believed.”
He said it was the “moral duty” of the parliament to implement the recommendations of the royal commission.
Greg Brown 12.26pm: Morrison thanks Gillard, continues apology
Scott Morrison and Bill Shorten both hold the hand of abuse victims’ advocate Cheryl Edwardes as the Prime Minister reads the government’s apology to victims of child sexual abuse in the Great Hall of Parliament House.
“This will be the first place that I read the formal apology, which will be provided to you today. And it is being done for you here in this place,” Mr Morrison said.
“Today the Australian government and this parliament, on the of all Australians, unreservedly apologises to the victims and survivors of institutional child sexual abuse.
“For too many years our eyes and hearts were closed to the truths that we were told by children.
“That too many years government institutions refused acknowledge the darkness that lay within our community. Today we commit to protect children now and into the future.”
Mr Morrison said governments had failed to protect people. He thanked Julia Gillard for establishing the royal commission into child sexual abuse.
“Today we say we are sorry. Sorry you are not protected. Sorry you are not listened to. We are sorry for refusing to trust the words of children, for not believing you. As we say sorry, we also say we believe you,” he said.
Rosie Lewis 12.17pm: Gillard’s standing ovation
Julia Gillard, the prime minister who instigated the royal commission into institutional child sex abuse, received a standing ovation as she was introduced to victims and their families in the Great Hall.
“Thank you,” one man yelled.
Another asked if she could join Scott Morrison and Bill Shorten on stage.
There are no spare seats in the Great Hall following the apology, delivered in the House of Representatives.
Scott Morrison asks those in the Hall to take the hand of those next to them as he reads the official apology he tabled in parliament.
.@ScottMorrisonMP: ‘Today, the Australian government and this parliament, on behalf of all Australians, unreservedly apologise to the victims and survivors of institutional child sexual abuse.'
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) October 22, 2018
MORE: https://t.co/2mTvvfsiVO pic.twitter.com/tEKdEtpHAM
Greg Brown 11.45am: MPs rise to support motion
All lower house MPs stand to support the motion. Parliament is suspended until 2.30pm.
Members rise in their places to signify their support for the National Apology motion.
— Australian House of Representatives (@AboutTheHouse) October 22, 2018
Greg Brown 11.42am: ‘Make no mistake, institutions knew’
Shorten takes a swipe at churches and institutions that covered up child sexual abuse.
“Make no mistake, institutions knew,” Shorten says.
“They knew and they did worse than nothing. Too often, they put their land, their buildings, their reputation, their revenues ahead of the safety of children in their care. They bullied and intimidated the victims, adding vicious insult to injury.
.@billshortenmp: It makes you angry to think we were raised to respect these intuitions all of the time not understanding the danger some of our fellow children were in.
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) October 22, 2018
MORE: https://t.co/BeIUmirNqe pic.twitter.com/pLYSMhb8Fq
“They used their wealth and their resources and their lawyers and their insurance companies to suppress the truth, to engage in a strategy of litigation to exhaust and to bankrupt survivors.
“And they protected the perpetrators, sometimes for decades. Instead of being sent to jail, the people who committed these crimes were quietly shipped to another town, another unsuspecting parish, and another pulpit, to hypocritically and sanctimoniously sermonise on a Sunday about values which were the exact opposite of what they were practising in private every day.”
Greg Brown 11.35am: Church supposed to be community’s pillar: Shorten
Shorten says it makes him “angry” Australians were taught to respect institutions where child sexual abuse took place.
“It makes you angry to think that we were raised to respect these institutions all of the time, not understanding the danger that some of our fellow children were in, institutions we were taught to respect, people in authority that we were simply told to trust by virtue of their office,” Shorten says.
“Some of these people were supposed to be the pillars of our community. They had the power, the status, the authority, but they wielded these as weapons.”
Greg Brown 11.32am: No compromise, caveats: Shorten
Shorten says the parliament has the responsibility to pass the recommendations of the royal commission into child sex abuse without “compromise” or “caveats”.
“It is not the time for government or institutions to haggle over the dollars, to hide behind the lawyers, no time to pretend that a token payment handed over in secret 40 years ago can be changed by retrospective formula into an adequate sum,” Shorten says.
“This is not the time to ask for more time, as if this process has been rushed. People have already died waiting for the justice they are due.”
Greg Brown 11.27am: ‘Australia believes you’
Shorten says sorry on behalf of the Labor opposition.
“We are sorry for every childhood stolen, every life lost. We are sorry for every betrayal of trust, every abuse of power. We are sorry for trauma measured in decades for scars that can never heal,” he says.
“We are sorry for every cry for help that fell on deaf ears and hard hearts. We are sorry for every crime that was not investigated, every criminal who went unpunished. And we are sorry for every time that you were not heard, and not believed.
“We hear you now. We believe you. Australia believes you.”
Greg Brown 11.23am: ‘Our nation let you down’
Bill Shorten speaks in support of the apology.
“Australia failed tens of thousands of children, across generations, and across the country. Our nation let you down,” the Opposition Leader says.
“Today, we offer you our nation’s apology, with humility, with honesty, with hope for healing now, and with a fire in our belly to ensure that our children will grow up safe in the future.”
Greg Brown 11.20am: Museum, centre of excellence to be built
Morrison says the government will commit to establishing a national centre of excellence to raise awareness and understanding of the impacts of child sexual abuse.
“To deal with the stigma, to support, help and seeking and guide best practice a for training and other services,” he says.
The Prime Minister will also create a national museum dedicated to victims of abuse.
“We will work with survivor groups to ensure your stories are recorded, that your truth is told, that our nation does not turn from our shame, and that our nation will never forget the untold horrors you experienced,” Morrison says.
“Through this, we will endeavour to bring some healing to our nation, and to learn from our past horrors. We can never promise a world where there are no abusers, but we can promise a country where we commit to hear and believe our children, to work together to keep children safe, to trust them, and, most of all, respect their innocence.”
He tables the apology to the parliament.
Greg Brown 11.13am: ‘To generations past and present, sorry’
Morrison says today the nation faces its “failure to listen, to believe and to provide justice”.
“Today, we say sorry,” he says.
.@ScottMorrisonMP: ‘Today as a nation we confront our failure to listen, to believe and to provide justice. And again today, we say sorry to the children we failed, we say sorry. ’
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) October 22, 2018
MORE: https://t.co/pbvqY2HDZA pic.twitter.com/rVeZQ4oput
“To the children we failed, sorry. To the parents whose trust was betrayed and who have struggled to pick up the pieces, sorry. To the whistleblowers who we did not listen to, sorry. To the spouses, partners, wives, husbands, children, who have dealt with the consequences of the abuse, cover-ups and obstruction, sorry.
“To generations past and present, sorry.”
Greg Brown 11.09am: ‘That will always be our shame’
Mr Morrison offers “love” and “honour” for victims.
“We honour every survivor in this country. We love you. We hear you. And we honour you. No matter if you are here at this meeting place, are elsewhere, this apology is to you, and for you,” he says.
“And later, when the speeches are over, and we stand in silence, and we remember the victims who are not with us any more, many, too sadly, by their own hand. As a nation, we failed them, we forsook them, and that will always be our shame.”
Greg Brown 11.07am: ‘Why weren’t the children protected?’
Mr Morrison says nothing can right the wrong that was done to children who were victims of child sexual abuse.
“Today, Australia confronts a trauma, an abomination, hiding in plain sight for far too long. Today, we confront a question too horrible to ask, let alone answer, why weren’t the children of our nation loved, nurtured and protected? Why was their trust betrayed?” Morrison asks.
.@ScottMorrisonMP is delivering a National Apology to victims of child sexual abuse in Australian institutions.
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) October 22, 2018
‘Today we finally acknowledge and confront the lost screams of our children.'
MORE: https://t.co/pbvqY2HDZA pic.twitter.com/QJN9SoZhIX
“Why did those who know cover it up? Why were the cries of children and parents ignored? Why was our system of justice blind to injustice? Why has it taken so long to act? Why were other things more important than this, the care of innocent children? Why didn’t we believe? Today, we dare to ask these questions, and finally acknowledge and confront the lost screams of our children.”
Greg Brown 11.04am: Morrison begins apology
Scott Morrison has started delivering the apology for survivors of institutional child sexual abuse.
The Prime Minister has decried the “unthinkable theft” of the innocence of children.
“Whether you sit here alongside us, here in this chamber, in the Great Hall outside, elsewhere in the nation’s capital, in your living room, in your bed, unable to rise today or speak to another soul, your journey to where you are today has been a long and painful one, and we acknowledge that and we welcome you today, wherever you are,” Mr Morrison said.
Rosie Lewis 11.02am: Gillard returns for apology
Former Labor prime minister Julia Gillard has returned to the House of Representatives to hear Scott Morrison’s apology to children who suffered sexual abuse in institutions.
Earlier, she said: “The tone of the day will be quite different to what a normal parliamentary day will be — and it needs to be.”
Coalition, Labor and crossbench senators are also in the chamber for the apology.
With AAP
Peter van Onselen 10.40am: All Turnbull’s fault, as always
If Turnbull had campaigned in Wentworth he would have been accused of causing a distraction. Because he didn’t, the loss is all his fault.
Greg Brown 10.30am: Burke open to lifetime ban
Manager of Opposition Business Tony Burke says Labor has “deep, deep problems” with proposed legislation to close the “backdoor entry” for asylum seekers settled in New Zealand but has given a veiled warning to his party against opposing measures that could save lives.
Mr Burke left the door open to a “conversation” on the legislation that is stalled in the Senate but said it would be “hypothetical” on whether Labor would budge in its opposition.
Mr Burke’s comments were in contrast to the firm opposition to the proposal from opposition defence spokesman Richard Marles.
Mr Burke said Labor first wanted to know if Scott Morrison was prepared to send asylum seekers to New Zealand if legislation passed that would ban them from ever entering Australia.
“There are deep, deep problems with that bill,” Mr Burke told ABC radio.
“But what I’ve also said is I remember too clearly when we had something that would have stopped the drownings with an agreement with Malaysia all those years ago and Scott Morrison and Tony Abbott let the politics take precedence.
“600 people drowned after that was blocked and Labor will not behave that way. None of this goes any further until we know whether or not Scott Morrison was serious or whether that was just yet another political game in the lead up to Wentworth.”
Greg Brown 10.25am: ‘We’ve got to walk the walk now’
Education Minister Dan Tehan says the government needs to “walk the walk” rather than simply talk about unity, after Saturday’s Wentworth result. “We’ve got to do it now,” Mr Tehan told Sky News.
.@Kieran_Gilbert: Is it possible to unite? These division seem too wide? @DanTehanWannon: It is possible to unite, that is the test. We have to dig deep and unite. If we don’t then the Australian people will judge us badly.
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) October 21, 2018
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“We’ve got six months until the election and we can talk but we have got to walk the walk now, and that’s the key test for us. There can’t be a cigarette paper’s difference between any of us, we have got to have a sense of unity, a purpose that is absolutely unified. And we have got to deliver.”
Mr Tehan said the Coalition party room needed to have a “frank” and “fearless” discussion about climate change policy, after some Liberal MPs blamed a lack of action on emission reductions for the Wentworth result. “This will be an issue like a number of other issues that will obviously go to the party room, we need to have a good frank fearless discussion about it and then we have got to get a position and then we have got to back that position in 100 per cent, everyone has to back it in,” he said.
Michael Roddan 10.20am: Policy costings step up a gear
The independent Parliamentary Budget Office is being inundated with requests for policy costings as minor parties and independent MPs gear up for next year’s federal election.
Parliamentary Budget Officer Jenny Wilkinson told a senate estimates hearing in Canberra the amount of time taken to respond to requests to cost policy proposals had blown out from 15 days to 25 days. “This has been a function of a really significant increase in demand for our costing services,” Ms Wilkinson said.
In the last quarter of the 2017-18 financial year, the PBO costed about 180 policy proposals for MPs and political parties. However, in the first quarter of the new financial year, this had more than doubled to 438 policy ideas. Ms Wilkinson said the PBO had to redeploy some of its workers from its fiscal analysis team to work on policy costings. “I think it is where we are in the parliamentary cycle,” she said.
The stress on the PBO’s resources come amid calls, including from the Productivity Commission, to devote more analysis and budgetary work to the independent department to bring more rigour and transparency to the policy process.
Primrose Riordan 10.02am: No penalties for data breaches
The government is yet to hand out any penalties to businesses or organisations for serious data breaches under a new notification scheme, Australian Information Commissioner Angelene Falk has said.
Data breaches occur when businesses either get hacked or accidentally expose personal information publicly.
The mandatory data breach notification scheme came into force in February this year and Ms Falk said there had been 245 notifications of data breaches in the last quarter.
Ms Falk confirmed no penalties had been handed out so far, but she said her office was able to direct businesses to adjust how they informed the public about a breach.
She said the approach of her office is to work with businesses to amend the notification to the public about their personal information being leaked publicly.
Ms Falk said the industries most affected were health and finance.
Nick Cater 10.00am: Wentworth not real Australia
A by-election in Sydney’s eastern suburbs is no place to test the national temperature, any more than dipping your toe into a glass of chardonnay at the Bondi Trattoria can tell you if it’s warm enough for a swim.
Wentworth is a land removed from the daily struggles faced by other Australians, a place where rising electricity prices barely touch the hip-pocket nerve, where God’s own airconditioner blows gently off summer waters, and “action” on climate change, by which they mean “subsidies”, boosts the share portfolio.
Read the article in full here.
Greg Brown 9.55am: Lifetime ban ‘incredibly harsh’
Opposition defence spokesman Richard Marles says proposed legislation to close the “backdoor entry” into Australia for asylum seekers sent to New Zealand was “incredibly harsh”.
With Scott Morrison under growing pressure to get people off Nauru and Manus Island, Mr Marles slammed any notion of Labor supporting legislation that would pave the way for asylum seekers to be sent to New Zealand.
“I mean, the lifetime ban for people who have been on Nauru or Manus makes no sense at all and is incredibly harsh — again, would be just appallingly by the rest of the world,” Mr Marles said.
“What we’d be talking about there is that someone settles in another country, perhaps New Zealand, perhaps America, gets a job, an academic, whatever, seeks to come to a conference in Australia and cannot.
“It’s ridiculous and there’s not a version of legislation of that kind anywhere in the world and it would be an appalling thing for us to move down that path.”
Mr Marles said the government should be working harder to get asylum seekers on Manus Island and Nauru settled in third-party nations.
“If this government had a focus about doing it people wouldn’t be on Manus and Nauru now, five years down the track. The fact that people have been left to languish is a disgrace, and whilst the agreement with the United States is good it doesn’t resolve the situation for everybody,” Mr Marles said.
Greg Brown 9.45am: ‘Libs not acting in Australia’s interest’
Labor senator Murray Watt says the “absolute shellacking” the government endured in Wentworth was because of disunity.
“We’ve seen this time after time, year after year, from this government: division getting in the way of acting in the interests of the Australian public. And Wentworth voters punished the government for that on the weekend,” Senator Watt said this morning.
“But rather than listen to that message and get their act together — come up with a coherent energy plan, come up with a good climate change plan, come up with all sorts of other united positions — ever since the Wentworth election we’ve continued to see government members fighting with each other about who was to blame and where they should go now.”
Greg Brown 9.35am: ‘Revive NEG’
Opposition energy spokesman Mark Butler has urged the government to revive the junked national energy guarantee after the hammering at the Wentworth by-election.
Mr Butler said the people of Wentworth deserted the government because of its failure to take action on climate change.
“What I’m calling on today is firstly for those Liberal MPs to put their money where their mouth is and actually stand up in the Coalition party room and take on Tony Abbott and the hard-right, for once, on climate and energy policy. That is what their communities are demanding that they do,” Mr Butler said.
“I’m also calling on the Prime Minister to reverse his position to drop the national energy guarantee. There would be no more symbolic decision than returning to the table with Labor to negotiate a bipartisan energy policy to start to expand renewable energy, bring down carbon emissions and, as we know from all of the modelling, bring down electricity prices as well.”
Oh ... what’s that you say #WentworthVotes, you want renewable energy... just not in Wentworth? 🙄 #auspol pic.twitter.com/z3EG8KGdeL
— MortyAU (@MortyAU) October 21, 2018
Greg Brown 8.50am: ‘Voter anger’ lost Libs Wentworth
Trade Minister Simon Birmingham says the government needs to ensure voters understand how the Morrison government’s policies will help Australia meet the Paris targets.
.@Kieran_Gilbert: Was climate change a factor in the weekend's poll?
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) October 21, 2018
.@Birmo: The politics of @TurnbullMalcolm’s removal played a far greater role in the Wentworth by-election than any particular issue or policy.
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Senator Birmingham, a senior moderate, said the government needs to ensure it has a “good, strong story to tell” in every policy area, including climate change.
“Across every policy area we have to make sure that we have a good strong story to tell and now we do in terms of our work to meet and exceed the 2020 climate targets and we need to make sure voters understand that, just as a Liberal-National government has implemented policies to help ensure we will do that, we will do the same in relation to our 2030 targets too,” Senator Birmingham told Sky News.
The South Australian said the removal of Malcolm Turnbull as prime minister was the biggest factor in the probable loss of Wentworth.
“Voter anger over Malcolm Turnbull’s removal as prime minister was profound, especially in his electorate of Wentworth, we have to acknowledge that,” Senator Birmingham said.
Greg Brown 8.40am: Turnbull back home
After dodging the media at Sydney Airport, Malcolm Turnbull also managed to avoid waiting reporters at his Point Piper mansion, after holidaying in New York and Singapore.
#BREAKING: @TurnbullMalcolm has returned to his Sydney home as the Liberal party is set to lose his former seat of Wentworth. #9News pic.twitter.com/LdMJGRGb3O
— Nine News Australia (@9NewsAUS) October 21, 2018
Greg Brown 8.35am: Taylor shows off climate policies
Energy Minister Angus Taylor has sent two press releases showcasing the government’s action on climate change on the morning moderate MPs had called for stronger messaging on the issue after the Wentworth by-election result.
Mr Taylor, who was dubbed “the minister for lowering electricity prices” by Scott Morrison, announced the government would spend $6 million to fund a “ultra-rapid charging network” for electric cars along major driving routes.
“Electric vehicles have the potential to lower transport costs, enhance fuel security, and increasingly create more sustainable cities with less pollution and better health outcomes for our communities,” Mr Taylor said.
In a separate press release, he said the government’s Australian Renewable Energy Agency was providing $7.5m for a trial of a renewable hydrogen-powered electricity generation plant in Sydney.
“The innovative project will use surplus solar and wind energy to power a 500kW electrolyser, splitting water into oxygen and hydrogen molecules,” Mr Taylor said.
Greg Brown 8.20am: ‘I won’t pull a swifty’
Leader of the House Christopher Pyne has ruled out appointing a crossbencher to become Speaker in the House of Representatives to help shore up the Morrison government’s numbers.
“I certainly do not intend to pull a swifty like the Labor Party did in the Gillard government when they asked Peter Slipper to abandon the Liberal party and they knifed poor old Harry Jenkins, who was the speaker at the time,” Mr Pyne told ABC radio.
Mr Pyne played down potential instability that could arise from being a minority government.
“We are actually a lot less vulnerable than the Gillard government was in the 43rd parliament,” Mr Pyne said.
“We have 74 votes on the floor of the house, we require one crossbencher and a number of different crossbenchers have guaranteed support for the government.
“In fact even Kerryn Phelps the putative member for Wentworth has indicated her view that the government should see out its term, that is what the public expect.”
Greg Brown 8.05am: Libs ‘not party of far right’
Defence Minister Christopher Pyne says the Liberal Party “isn’t a party of the far right” as he urged his colleagues to stay in the political mainstream after the massive swing in the Wentworth by-election.
Mr Pyne claimed the Liberal Party’s internal polling a week ago showed the government was on track to lose the by-election 59-41 per cent on a two-party preferred basis, as he rebuffed claims Scott Morrison’s troubled week contributed to the result.
Mr Pyne, a leading South Australian moderate, said the party needed to stay in the mainstream if it wanted to win the election. His comments come after moderates told The Australian the government needed a stronger message on its action on climate change.
“I think the message from Wentworth is very clear, disunity is death and it is critical to be in the mainstream of politics if you want to win, the Liberal Party is a party of the centre right it isn’t a party of the far right,” Mr Pyne told ABC radio.
“We have a very clear policy on climate change, we want lower prices, we want reliable energy and we intend to meet our international targets, our international obligations to reduce our carbon footprint.
“We have potentially seven months until the next election, if people want to continue to fight amongst themselves there is no doubt the result of the election will be a Labor victory and the last thing we need is Bill Shorten to be the prime minister of Australia.”
Mr Pyne refused to comment on whether Malcolm Turnbull should have endorsed Liberal candidate Dave Sharma in the final week of the campaign.
He said it was “well past time” the government moved on from the change in prime minister.
Sascha O’Sullivan 8.00am: Turnbull bolts
Malcolm Turnbull dodged reporters at Sydney Airport arrivals this morning, bolting out of the airport through the loading dock.
👀
— 2GB 873 (@2GB873) October 21, 2018
Guess who's back... https://t.co/Haq0beS6nv
Flying in from Singapore on QF2, Mr Turnbull took a side exit out of the airport, rather than arriving through the VIP exit where cameras and reporters waited for him.
Mr Turnbull refused to sign an endorsement letter for Dave Sharma, the Liberal party candidate for Wentworth, at the crucial by-election over the weekend. This morning, he slipped through the airport before any questions could be asked about his lack of participation in Mr. Sharma’s campaign.
Mr Turnbull flew to New York in early October, after being ousted from the top job, before flying to Singapore to visit his son Alex.
What’s making news:
Malcolm Turnbull has come under fire from senior Coalition figures including Scott Morrison and the Liberal Party’s national president for failing to issue a public endorsement for candidate Dave Sharma in the final days of the disastrous Wentworth by-election campaign.
The penny finally seemed to drop for Scott Morrison when losing the Wentworth by-election and his government’s one-seat majority became a real possibility.
Scott Morrison’s control over parliament will become a day-to-day proposition if the Liberals’ loss of Wentworth is confirmed, although it is likely the Prime Minister will have the numbers to block a vote of no confidence in his government.
Moderate Liberal MPs have urged Scott Morrison to take action on climate change and embrace the “broad church” of its voters after the mammoth swing in the Wentworth by-election.
Scott Morrison knew the government was in dire straits in Wentworth early last week — about the time he made his Jerusalem embassy announcement — and felt the Liberal Party actually clawed back ground in the by-election battle, leading to Saturday’s close result.
Kerryn Phelps has declared lobbying for children to get off Nauru will be her “first order of business” if she wins Wentworth, as Liberal MPs warn Scott Morrison against watering down the government’s tough border protection policies.
Support for moving Australia’s Israel embassy to Jerusalem remains strong among Liberal MPs, but independent candidate for Wentworth Kerryn Phelps says she will seek high-level security briefings about the foreign policy implications of the move should she be elected.
While the Liberal Party pushed more than $1 million into Wentworth, including hundreds of thousands of dollars in direct mailouts, Labor “ran dead” to help independent Kerryn Phelps get over the line, not posting a single newspaper or other advertisement for candidate Tim Murray.
A threat from Tony Abbott sowed the seeds of Malcolm Turnbull’s demise, according to the first book on the subject to be published after the August Liberal leadership spill.
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