Politics
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Repost: The Asian Century and the Australian Smoko. John Menadue and Greg Dodds
The Asian Century and the Australian Smoko was first published in April 2012. This repost might be interesting holiday reading. The Gillard Government has commissioned Ken Henry to report on Australia and the Asian Century. Our trade with China, Japan, India and other Asian countries is booming. Our luck is still holding. But our key Continue reading »
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No Room at the Inn – Asylum Seekers in Australia, Christmas 2013. Guest blogger: Kerry Murphy
In the time approaching Christmas, asylum seekers in Australia have been the target for increasingly harsh and punitive policies from the new Government. None of this is really surprising as the Coalition policy documents stated the broad outline of their intentions. It may help to outline the recent major events and to put them in Continue reading »
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Election aftermath – where to now on asylum seekers and refugees? John Menadue
Yesterday Sir William Deane launched a book ‘Refugees and asylum seekers – a better way’. A link to the book can be found at http://gallery.mailchimp.com/d2331cf87fedd353f6dada8de/files/Refugee_and_asylum_seeker_policy_Finding_a_better_way.pdf The book includes a chapter I wrote ‘Election aftermath – where to now on asylum seekers and refugees’. This chapter follows Election aftermath- where to now on asylum seekers and Continue reading »
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Is trench warfare the answer? John Menadue
Sensing concern about the government’s performance in the first 100 days, Tony Abbott reportedly told the Liberal Party caucus to ‘prepare for trench warfare’ when parliament resumes in 2014. I would have thought that the last thing that Australia needs is for the government to embark on trench warfare. I sense that the public is Continue reading »
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Budget deficits – how did they happen and what can be done. John Menadue
The government is announcing today an update of this year’s budget. This is the government’s first major economic statement since the election. It will focus particularly on the budget deficit. It will attempt to blame the previous government as much as possible. I addressed this issue of the budget deficit and how it has come Continue reading »
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Well-paid jobs or welfare? John Menadue
The Abbott Government’s confusion over Holden’s withdrawal from Australia reflects a much deeper hostility to the car industry. The main reason for this is that the car industry is highly unionised, pays good wages and has a high degree of alignment of interests between labour and capital. The right-wing finds that all quite offensive. Yet Continue reading »
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The Holden mess gets worse. John Menadue
Yesterday I posted a blog ‘Taunting Holden to Leave’. Let me add to the continuing story of this major stuff-up. The Abbott Government, through Industry Minister Macfarlane asked the Productivity Commission to advise on assistance to the car industry. He asked for a report by March next year. On Monday this week, Minister Macfarlane was Continue reading »
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Japan’s secret agenda. Guest blogger: Walter Hamilton
Using its dominance of both houses of the Diet, Japan’s ruling party has pushed through a new anti-terrorism and secrecy law. The strong-arm parliamentary methods used to secure its passage have added to public concerns about the way the law may be employed by the Abe Government to stifle dissent, curb public access to information Continue reading »
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Taunting Holden to leave. John Menadue
It has been quite remarkable to see Joe Hockey daring and taunting Holden to close. He apparently chose to take advantage of Tony Abbott’s absence in South Africa to show off his “dry” credentials and burnish his leadership aspirations. Having lost the argument over Graincorp, Joe Hockey talked tough on Holden. He dared Holden to Continue reading »
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Facts on boat arrivals. John Menadue
There have been a number of claims by Scott Morrison that Operation Sovereign Borders has resulted in a significant reduction in boat arrivals. The ALP has asserted that the reduction in boat arrivals follows the trend set by the Rudd Government. It has been difficult to check Scott Morrison’s claims as there has been quite Continue reading »
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In defence of compulsory voting. Guest blogger: Graham Freudenberg
One of the best features of Australian elections is the high voter turnout. This has been achieved by compulsory voting. The LNP in Queensland is now moving to abolish it in the state in which it was first established, by a Tory government, in 1914. This must not be allowed to go uncontested, like so Continue reading »
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Does Tony Abbott believe in markets? John Menadue
We are already seeing a division opening up in the Abbott Government between ‘wets’ and ‘dries’ and a lot of confusion. The Liberal Party and conservatives generally espouse the value of markets – that governments should not interfere unless there is clear market failure or overwhelming reasons of public interest. This belief in markets is Continue reading »
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Being in Government is different to being in Opposition. John Menadue
Tony Abbott is being mugged by the reality of Government and how he manages day to day events. He has very little of a developed policy framework on which to draw. In Opposition, Tony Abbott was adept at the political one-liners – ‘stop the boats’, ‘axe the tax’,’ reduce the deficit’ and ‘pay back the Continue reading »
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Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. John Menadue
On December 9 the Royal Commission will commence public hearings into the role of the Catholic Church in Australia on this issue. Francis Sullivan the Executive Director of the Truth Justice and Healing Council of the Catholic Church said on 3 December that “Catholics and non-Catholics will be shocked and disillusioned when they hear the Continue reading »
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The Japanese and Chinese provocations. Guest blogger: William Grimm
China has expanded its air defense zone, ramping up a dispute with Japan that goes from bad to worse and shows no sign of abating. Observers are even thinking about the unthinkable – armed conflict between the two countries. And such conflict would not be limited to them. As was demonstrated by their sending two Continue reading »
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Funding withdrawal forces the Alcohol and Other Drugs Council of Australia into Administration. Guest blogger: Ian Webster AO
The Alcohol and other Drugs Council of Australia (ADCA) has served Australia for 50 years. It has worked collaboratively – but honestly – with all governments from Menzies to Rudd. But last week the Abbott government cut off funding. Compared with the costs of alcohol and drugs, alcohol alone costing $36 billion per year (Foundation Continue reading »
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China’s new rules. Guest blogger: Walter Hamilton
China’s unilateral declaration of an “air defense identification zone” in the East China Sea is the most serious escalation of its territorial dispute with Japan since the large-scale mob attacks on Japanese property in China just over a year ago. China’s Ministry of National Defense has declared that as of two days ago new rules Continue reading »
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Tony Abbott and his very close confidante, Mark Textor. John Menadue
To refuse to apologise to President Yudhoyono would be entirely consistent with the type of advice that Mark Textor has given to a succession of Liberal leaders in Australia, including Tony Abbott. In his texting Mark Textor has made the point, according to Laurie Tingle in the AFR today “that (Australian) voters don’t give rats Continue reading »
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Australia’s Foreign Policy Trailing a Leaky Boat. Guest Blogger: Arja Keski-Nummi
Our foreign policy is more than boats or asylum seekers but that is what the Abbott government has reduced it to. We should all be concerned because what is at stake is much greater than stopping boats – it jeopardizes our ability to influence and be taken seriously on issues of greater importance to our Continue reading »
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A mega industry subsidy to private health insurance companies. John Menadue
Many business economists continue to criticise the previous government and possibly the current one over the government subsidy of $10 billion over seven years for the auto industry. But that subsidy is small beer. The government subsidy to the private health insurance industry (PHI) has been $30 billion plus, over seven years. This year Continue reading »
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Tony Abbott in Sri Lanka. John Menadue
Tony Abbott has continued his ‘stop the boats campaign” in Sri Lanka regardless of growing concerns about human rights abuses in that country. He offered two patrol boats as part of a ‘foreign aid package’. His justification for this is that it would help save the lives of people drowning at sea. Please spare us Continue reading »
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Systemic issues arising from the Victorian Parliament’s ‘Betrayal of Trust Report’ Guest blogger: Kieran Tapsell
On 13 November 2013, the Victorian Parliamentary Inquiry into the Handling of Child Abuse by Religious and Other Organizations handed down its Report, entitled “Betrayal of Trust”. It stated: “No representatives of the Catholic Church directly reported the criminal conduct of its members to the police. The Committee found that there is simply no justification Continue reading »
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Surely the Indonesians wouldn’t play politics over boat people! John Menadue
Well – yes they would. They have learnt it from Tony Abbott and Scott Morrison. The blokey Australians are no match for the subtle and sophisticated Indonesians. In Opposition, the Coalition took every opportunity to exploit boat arrivals. They were not genuinely interested in stopping the boats then. Their main objective was to stop the Continue reading »
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Lagging the field on climate change. John Menadue
Across the world there are clear signs that the tide is turning with acceptance of the reality of climate change, that humans are the cause and that we need to address the problem. But not in Australia. We keep acting like King Canute against the tide. The Abbott Government is proposing to abolish the carbon Continue reading »
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Yes we can – zero carbon emissions within 10 years in Australia. Guest blogger: Ann Long
On Wednesday 6th November Kiama’s Ss Peter and Paul Social Justice Group, together with Transition Towns Kiama, hosted a presentation by Gillian King from Beyond Zero Emissions, which explained a fully costed blue-print for Australia’s transition to 100% renewable energy. Beyond Zero Emissions (BZE), a not-for-profit research and education organisation, together with the University of Continue reading »
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Climate change as portrayed in ten major Australian newspapers. John Menadue
Last week the Australian Centre for Independent Journalism at the University of Technology, Sydney released a report on the above subject. It highlighted, amongst other things the unprofessional performance and influence of News Ltd publications in shaping the public debate in favour of the sceptics of climate change. This is despite the overwhelming consensus by Continue reading »
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A back-flip on the carbon tax. John Menadue
A number of my friends were impressed with the recent public debate between Bill Shorten and Anthony Albanese. They told me that they had expressed an interest online to join or rejoin the ALP after many years absence. Without exception they now say that they will not pursue their membership enquiry until the parliamentary wing Continue reading »
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A Click of the Fingers. John Menadue
We badly need someone close to Tony Abbot to click their fingers and break him out of the hypnotic trance that he has been in for a long time. He has been hypnotised into campaigning mode and has yet to be released. Many had hoped that as Prime Minister, Tony Abbott would successfully make the Continue reading »
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Mideast Road to Nowhere. Guest blogger Marcus Einfeld
This blog by Marcus Einfeld is in response to the blog by John Tulloh of 16 October on the above subject. John Tulloh’s 40 year career in international news gathering should have taught him that jumping into Israeli-Palestinian issues with instant judgements and simplistic solutions is unwise and simply assists to continue the conflict. The concept, Continue reading »
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Honest Joe Hockey. John Menadue
At the G20 Summit in Washington a week ago Joe Hockey said ‘People find it refreshing to hear that Aussie honesty’. It is nice to think that other people see us that way but I wonder what Treasurers at the G20 would make of it if they had been listening to what Joe Hockey had Continue reading »
