Morrison and his Coalition Government have announced 3,000 humanitarian visas for Afghan refugees but that is within the already allocated 13,750 refugee annual intake. He also pointedly mentioned that he would not tolerate refugees arriving “illegally” and would not create a “product” for people smugglers returning to his reductive narrative of framing Afghan refugees as potential threats to Australian security.
When politics is neither a duty or a service and reduced to simply a game of 4 years to set up winning at all costs then there is only 1 party to vote for ant that’s the opposition.
The Morrison Government is about to pull one of its best-ever scams. All of the Coalition’s many tricks take Australians to the cleaners, but this quiet little rort is aimed squarely at Australian democracy.
Source: Killing competition and a Federal ICAC, courtesy of the Coalition
The man in charge of Treasurer Josh Frydenberg’s office was running corporate affairs at Westpac’s BT when the superannuation giant was aggressively covering up a major scandal involving the gouging billions of dollars from its members.
Source: Frydenberg’s revolving door
Australian workers have received all-time low annual wages rise over the financial year just ended, reports Alan Austin. AUSTRALIA HAD ALWAYS rewarded workers with steady wage increases year on year as industrial cooperation and improving productivity have generated ever-rising company profits. That is, until 2013, when the current Coalition Government came to power. In the eight years since then, wage rises have fallen to a fresh all-time low six times, the latest at an appalling 1.71%, according to last week’s data.
Source: Morrison delivers for foreign corporations: Lowest wage rise on record
Australia has a long history of meddling in the affairs of its Pacific neighbors. In the Philippines, right-wing strongman Rodrigo Duterte’s “war on drugs” amounts to state terror — which Australia’s government has enthusiastically supported through military aid and legal advice.
Source: Australia Is Enabling State Violence in the Philippines
Australia is experiencing widespread, rapid climate change not seen for thousands of years and may warm by 4℃ or more this century, according to a highly anticipated report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The assessment, released on Monday, also warns of unprecedented increases in climate extremes such as bushfires, floods and drought. But it says deep, rapid emissions cuts could spare Australia, and the world, from the most severe warming and associated harms.
One is reminded that American President Richard Nixon repeatedly made the claim that he was speaking for “the great silent majority” of his country. One can note that he was not a member of such a group since he was making a noise in speaking.
Source: Coalition counts on deathly silence from ‘quiet Australians’
You’ve got to hand it to the Deputy PM, he does a pretty good WC Fields with practically no theatrical training. Sure, parliament is theatre, but a NIDA admission would elude most of them. Talentless. Barnaby Joyce, on the other hand, makes it look easy, especially when he is channelling a movie star whose schtick is playing a drunk. Probably due to cultural cringe, the Australian media largely ignored Barnaby’s bravura performance in last Wednesday’s Question Time and left it to the UK’s Daily Mail to write a glowing revue:
Source: Barnaby Joyce wasn’t drunk, that was just an Oscar-worthy performance
It’s fair enough to ask if Morrison has proved he is up to it, whether he has the courage, the ability and the wisdom to continue to see the country through these most testing times. Has the Prime Minister grown into the job? An increasing number of Australians think not. Has the Prime Minister grown into the job? An increasing number of Australians think not.Credit:Dionne Gain If you believe the polls, more and more Australians are nudging towards saying no: he does not. They question whether he has the physical, intellectual or mental ability or even the empathy to lead, to earn trust, build coalitions, forge consensus, or to be something more than a moneybags, a punching bag or a spokesman for the premiers.
Source: Prime Minister Scott Morrison in trouble but could again land on his feet
The Government department which covered up the security report into the alleged rape of Brittany Higgins is also the department found to have a culture of bullying, and is also the department whose staffer is threatening multiple legal actions against small publishers and other Australians. What is going on at Parliament House? Michael West investigates the Department of Parliamentary Services.
Source: Parliament’s Department of Cover-Ups faces bullying claims, tangle of lawsuits – Michael West
Unexplained legal judgments raise questions that deserve a hearing.
What makes it so scandalous is court case has dealt with suppressed evidence and applications to remove and redact documents in court file where there has been extensive argument to justify it. But when it came to my affidavit and written submissions there was no argument and/or application to have the affidavit and written submissions removed. What does “apparently” mean in her reason where she says, “given they contain apparently scandalous and scurrilous material about third parties”? “Apparently” means she was told by someone else. Who was it? Justice Jagot’s abuse of the law is obvious because even it was true and my documents did contain “scandalous and scurrilous material about third parties” those parts could have been redacted, like numerous other documents in this matter have been when challenged, and put back in the court’s online file. And who is this “third party” and what did I say about them?
“But I think the problem is the messaging around the vaccination, because if you’re telling people at some stage, ‘oh you shouldn’t have this vaccine, it’s probably not the best thing for you’ and then you want to change that message and say ‘oh, no we’ve changed our mind, it is good’, I think that makes it difficult for people who are considering whether to get vaccinated and when to get vaccinated. “Public health messaging needs to be really clear and when it changes, it can be difficult for people to deal with and have effects that were not intended and that may be what’s happened in Australia.
Source: Australia COVID: AstraZeneca vaccine creator says Australian lives at risk over mixed messaging
Far worse than the ALP’s Pink Bats and how many has this government let die
Is the Morrison Government’s COVID-19 vaccination rollout program one of Australia’s biggest ever public policy failures?
Source: Public policy failure of Coalition’s vaccine rollout
REAL CRIME IN AUSTRALIA ISN’T POLICED
Payments described as ‘waste of public money’ represent almost 14% of the $90bn program
Recent data confirms Australia’s economy is currently being managed more ineptly than at any time in the last sixty years, reports Alan Austin.
Source: Morrison’s recession: Australia’s worst since records have been kept
Just before the Audit Office released its scathing indictment of the commuter car parks program, Australia quietly added the auditing profession to our skills shortage list. These two events really sum up the Morrison government – an outfit obsessed with tactical politics, wholly uninterested in governing, and contemptuous when it comes to governance. That we are running out of auditors shouldn’t be such a surprise. Sports rorts, female change room rorts, safer communities rorts – the sorry list goes on and on. But the commuter car parks program sets a new standard – a new low.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has failed monumentally. Malcolm Turnbull before him failed and prior to him, Abbott, the destroyer, added to the damage of John Howard’s legacy. Why anyone under 35 would vote for the Liberals has got me beat. They would be like turkeys voting for Christmas.
Source: Wren’s Week: Liberal Party are intergenerational thieves
Scott Morrison this week more or less trashed Australia’s top advisory body on immunisation, in remarks that were at best ill-judged and at worst alarming. On Wednesday Morrison told a news conference he (or the government) made a “constant appeal” to the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) to review its advice on AstraZeneca according to the balance of risk. On Thursday he said on radio: “I’ve just simply said balance of risk is changing, guys, so how is that impacting on your advice, and it’s time to think about that”. The “guys” (and girls) on ATAGI are obviously as aware as anyone of the changing risk profile as cases increase.
Source: Grattan on Friday: Morrison wrong to try to influence advice from expert immunisation group
Scott and Gladys were so intent on dividing the country they forgot that pride comes before a fall. They both failed the test of leadership blinded by their populist electioneering. Now they are looking at others to blame when all they need is a mirror.
Watching New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian and her “gold standard” pandemic management unravel before our eyes is a bittersweet moment for many people — Victorians, in particular.For months on end, Gladys has been held up as the model all should follow. We have heard that Gladys’ gold standard contact tracing was second to none. That her approach to handling the pandemic was far superior to her mere mortal non-Liberal counterparts around the country. Even that she single-handedly “saved Australia”.
Source: Liberal Party pandemic management: Exemplary — thanks, Gladys!
The prime minister has until next May to hold an election. The government has ample time to play catch-up with the rollout. If further outbreaks are contained and the elusive herd immunity is achieved by then, lockdowns will have become a thing of the past. The relief at being able to move on may obliterate current disquiet. Further, in normal circumstances, policy virtue is not necessarily synonymous with political success. The last federal election was an indicator of this. The Coalition triumphed despite a threadbare policy program. In other words, policy prowess is only ever one measure of a government’s success.
Source: Is the COVID vaccine rollout the greatest public policy failure in recent Australian history?
“It’s our waste, it’s our problem”, said Scott Morrison as he announced the nation’s waste export ban culminating in 2024. Not really. It’s a good thing Australia has banned solid waste dumping to the Third World but we have left a gaping, toxic loophole; burning plastics for energy. Luke Stacey investigates.
Governance experts fear Australia is sliding down the “slippery slope” of corruption, calling on the federal government to overhaul its planned integrity commission in the wake of an auditor-general report into a program funnelling hundreds of millions of dollars into Coalition-held seats.
The problem with the system is that it premised on competition, not collaboration. This model of employment services, delivered by outsourced providers, seems to have mostly benefited the providers.
Source: The problem with employment services: providers profit more than job seekers
However, for the past 13 years, only one party has been in control of the situation no matter the sentiments of the electorate. It s point of political difference as they believe ‘fear’ wins them the power game. Forget the service.
Neither side of politics can honestly claim to be above blame here. Both the Coalition and the Labor Party have played their part in the increasingly inhumane immigration and welfare practices imposed in the name of ‘compassion’. Both side of politics have weaponised human lives. It needs to stop.
Source: Compassion – you’re kidding – » The Australian Independent Media Network
A takeovers binge is in swing in the jobless sector as the biggest private provider of employment services, the foreign multinational Max Solutions, mops up smaller players and posts strong revenues from government. Stephanie Tran investigates the Jobactive scheme and the failure of privatisation.
Source: Foreign multinational Max Solutions the biggest winner in pandemic jobs crisis – Michael West
Not only had Mr Morrison’s net approval slid to its lowest level since the 2019-20 bushfire crisis, popular support for the Coalition (down two points) and Labor (up two points) was deadlocked at 39 per cent. The four-point turnaround equates to Labor taking a 53-47 lead in a two-party-preferred vote and a significant defeat for the Morrison government if a federal election was held.
Source: Labor takes 53-47 lead as Scott Morrison’s approval rating plummets
Vying for the top job with Petter Dutton for being Australia’s worst Minister of everything
Stuart Robert has been the Minister for Employment for less than four months but already has the art of fudging figures and faking facts finely honed, writes Alan Austin.
Source: A new Employment Minister, but the deceptions continue
Incredibly, a survey finds 42% of Australians believe China will attack Australia, this despite exports to China surging 36% over in the last six months, and despite there being no logical rationale for war with China, or an attack by China. Marcus Reubenstein analyses the ludicrous position of Australia’s China hawks and the mainstream media pushing their agendas.
Source: War with China: zero logic yet the weapons lobby has 42% of Australians believing it – Michael West
The overwhelming response – which followed a plea for donations on Shanks-Markovina’s YouTube channel – showed the public was on their side, he said.“We have received more than 24,000 individual donations – that’s more people [than] who first voted John Barilaro into parliament,” he said in a statement.Among his supporters is former prime minister Kevin Rudd.
Source: More than $1 million raised for friendlyjordies legal battle
Here’s a Boat you wouldn’t want to be in and it’s not even on the water. There’s an LNP wall of silence in their way.
When Australian soldiers withdrew from Uruzgan Province, local builder Hammedullah Hammedie knew he had to flee as well. Because of his work for Australia, Hammedie says he was a target of the surging Taliban.
Source: ‘My destiny to die’: Afghan who helped Australian soldiers pleads for visa
Soon all his marveled PR will be shot on green screen as he won’t be allowed out in public
Who is this man who would have you believe that he is God’s gift to all that bothers us? Has the nation finally woken to his lack of leadership, his character and his lying? Can he keep up this façade of broken promises and false credibility?
A Liberal Party Senator has launched an attack on the ABC, branding it as a left-wing activist group undermining our society, writes Steve Bishop. A SENATOR from the Christian Right wing of the Liberal Party is “fabricating outrage” to foment division, paint mainstream Australia as radicals and suggest his extreme views are actually representative of Alex Antic‘middle Australia’. ASIO has warned about extreme right-wing threats but Senator Alex Antic has identified a “taxpayer-funded left-wing activist group at war with mainstream Australian values”. He says it’s also the most “virulent haven of taxpayer-funded identity politics in the country”. Alex has launched a petition to curb the excesses of this organisation which he accuses of undermining our society. A clue: it purveys such subversive programs as The Religion and Ethics Report, Country Hour and Bananas in Pyjamas. Yes, it’s the ABC.
More practical approaches have come from outside government circles. Former Prime Ministers have shown Morrison up. The ever-connected Kevin Rudd made his own intervention in lobbying Pfizer’s chairman Albert Bourla. This effort was bitchily dismissed by Hunt and watered down by the Morrison government. Rudd’s response was a snarl. He would “definitely not seek to associate himself with the Australian Government’s comprehensively botched vaccine procurement program.” The Australian model, if it can be called that, has pricked international attention. John LaMattina, former president of Pfizer Global Research and Development, was all understatement about it in an interview on Australian television: “If I was an Australian, and I was seeing the rest of the world getting all these vaccine doses, and my country … was late to the party, I’d be a little disappointed to say the least. And it isn’t as if they were blindsided.” The Financial Review was less reserved. Australia may well have developed “an enviable test and tracing system” that helped keep the COVID-19 death toll to less than a thousand. But it had “squandered its early victory over the virus, despite being one of the
Source: Australia’s Hermit Nation Strategy Unravels – » The Australian Independent Media Network
As has been the pattern with the Morrison government’s rorting of federal grants for electoral purposes, it turns out the “#carporkrorts” scandal is even worse than it first appeared.
Source: ‘Carporks’: #Carparkrorts are far worse than we originally thought
Josh Nicholas Mon 12 Jul 2021 03.30 AEST Last modified on Mon 12 Jul 2021 03.32 AEST Breaches of Australia’s quarantine system have substantially increased this year, with data showing there have been as many leaks recorded in the past three months as there were last year. There have been up to 30 breaches – where a community case of Covid has been traced back to an infection in quarantine – since the system was established in March last year for Australian citizens and permanent residents returning home. Twenty of those occurred this year.
Global export figures show which countries are handling current economic conditions well and those which aren’t. Australia is among the losers, along with Britain and the USA, writes Alan Austin.
Source: Australia’s disastrous trade decisions may take decades to repair
PLEASE will someone tell Scott Morrison that ‘normal’ no longer applies to the life of the future. Global warming IS the top priority. Failure to take action to keep emissions down – to actually reduce them – guarantees destruction of our last toehold on normality. Between politics, pandemics and pork barrelling, a ‘normal’ life is doomed!
Source: Politicians, pandemics and pork barrelling – » The Australian Independent Media Network
Crikey readers have taken umbrage at Barnaby Joyce’s return, and they’re not well pleased with the Coalition’s rorting either.
Source: Your Say: Now Barnaby’s back it’s time the Libs ditched the Nats
No shortage of fodder When asked about recent scandals that might warrant the establishment of a federal anti-corruption commission, Rowlings was not short for words. “Just in the past year, we have had some classic cases that should attract formal attention for possible corruption,” he said. Along with the sports rorts grants, he pointed to Angus Taylor’s grassland issue, the alleged use of federal electorate offices for branch stacking – possibly by both major parties – and ASIC’s failure to take action against corporations. Rowlings also pointed to a few more discrepancies that involve the architect behind the Coalition’s proposed CIC. There was Porter’s stacking of the Administrative Affairs Tribunal with favourable judicial officers right before the last election, which “he thought the Coalition was going to lose”, and then there’s the attorney general’s decision to approve the prosecution of Witness K and lawyer Bernard Collaery, after his predecessor George Brandis refused to do so. “The list can go on and on,” Rowlings concluded.
Source: Dude, where’s our federal anti-corruption body? – » The Australian Independent Media Network
As the US continues its slide toward cold war with China, pressure on Australia to maintain its dominance in the South Pacific has only grown. Ever the dutiful ally of the US, Australia is now earning accusations of imperialism from its Pacific neighbors.
If you follow a rule that when a politician cries “look over there!” you make sure you stay looking over here, there’s much to be deduced from Treasurer Josh Frydenberg’s Intergenerational Report, before we put it up on the shelf with its four predecessors.
Source: The real reason the budget is projected to stay in deficit for the next 40 years
The Morrison Government’s koala policies of extinction have finally been exposed by its own bureaucracy with the release of two major koala conservation policy documents.
Source: Morrison Government koala extinction policies exposed
This is a desperate quick fix to try to rescue power station owners from an onslaught of renewable energy they should have seen coming
It would be alarming if it wasn’t so, well, expected. The reception to an excerpt from former Liberal MP Julia Banks’ book in a weekend newspaper fell into two depressingly familiar camps – government supporters and critics. Both camps scrambled over each other in the race to discredit and dismiss Ms Banks, giving priority to their own political allegiances rather than address the real issues raised by her book.
Source: Julia Banks: Book reveals – again – that men are behind sexist politics
Simon Birmingham says voters chose Morrison government last election as he refuses to rule out similar programs in the future
Recent speeches by two senior figures at the Reserve Bank of Australia have contained disturbing inaccuracies, writes Alan Austin.
Source: Reserve Bank of Australia spruiks the Coalition with false information
This was and still is Phase 1 one of the Morrison Government Plan
Just when you thought it couldn’t, political integrity has dropped another notch. I thought we reached the low point in our rorting degradation last year when Gladys Berejiklian was metaphorically caught with her fingers in the paper shredder over $252 million worth of politicised council grants. The NSW Premier effectively said: ‘Yeah, it’s crook, you might not like it, but that’s the way it is, so too bad’. But on Sunday federal Finance Minister Simon Birmingham went further when confronted with the Morrison government’s $660 million #carparkrorts. According to the leader of the government in the Senate, it’s all our fault, “it’s what electorates expect”. At least Ms Berejiklian was capable of admitting to the pork barrelling.
Source: Government rorts drop political integrity down another notch
Australia’s economy will limp along after recovering from the pandemic, failing to regain the growth it had either in the years leading up to the crisis or the much higher growth in the decades before.
Source: Economy will be weak and in need of support after pandemic, say top economists in 2021-22 survey
This has Morrison’s fingerprints all over it, Promises with no action has been his leadership style from the get-go. It’s what salesmen without a product do.
The Victorian government says it is “completely false” for the federal assistant treasurer, Michael Sukkar, to blame the state for the commonwealth failing to build one of its controversial commuter car parks. The proposed Mitcham station car park in Sukkar’s electorate of Deakin was junked in May. It was one of two projects the Australian National Audit Office found had been selected for federal funding with no authorisation evident beyond a Coalition press release.
The car park fund dwarfs sports rorts, revealed by the auditor-general last year. And it’s the latest in a very long list of slush funds, misdirected grants and pork-barrels, many of which are now forgotten. Here’s a quick run-through.
Source: It’s the golden age of pork-barrelling. Here’s a list of snouts in the trough
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