Government confirms around 3000 Australians remain stuck in Iran
The government has confirmed around 3000 Australians are still stuck in Iran.
Many Australians have struggled to get out of Iran and found themselves marooned at its border with Azerbaijan.
Labor frontbencher Tanya Plibersek has told ABC insiders the government is doing everything it can to get these people out safely.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sydney Morning Herald
an hour ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
He proposed it 34 years ago. On Tuesday, Paul Keating's plan comes to fruition
The man who came up with the 12 per cent superannuation guarantee that will flow to millions of workers from July 1, Paul Keating, has likened the private pension system to a binding force between all Australians. But the former treasurer and prime minister has given a subtle hint to Jim Chalmers that his planned changes to the tax arrangements on super accounts with more than $3 million will affect far more people than the government is claiming. The super guarantee levy has increased half a percentage point every year since 2022, reaching 12 per cent with the 2025-26 financial year. Keating was instrumental in the first step towards universal superannuation, when in 1985 the ACTU sought to have 3 per cent of industrial workers' wages go into retirement savings funds run jointly by union and employer groups. Six years later, when he had moved to the backbench after his first failed leadership challenge against then-prime minister Bob Hawke, Keating first outlined what would become the country's retirement savings system. He said retirement needed to be based on both the age pension and privately funded superannuation, nominating 12 per cent as the contribution from workers towards their retirement income. At the time, he hoped the 12 per cent would be in place by 2000, noting that at such a level it would provide a retirement income that would be 'the difference between a full, active life and a life governed by budgetary exigencies and the vagaries of politics'. Keating on Monday said the superannuation system had now matured with the 12 per cent guarantee, delivering Australia the fourth-largest retirement accumulation in the world at $4.1 trillion, which is 150 per cent of GDP. The Reserve Bank has estimated super will reach $8 trillion by 2035, when Australia will have the second-largest retirement base in the world, behind only the United States.
Sky News AU
an hour ago
- Sky News AU
Warning for Albanese government after US President Donald Trump pressures Canada into rescinding digital services tax
Labor has been delivered a stark warning amid negotiations with the United States after the Canadian government said it was rescinding its digital-services tax to salvage trade discussions with Donald Trump. Canada's planned digital tax was three per cent of the digital services revenue a firm reaps from Canadian users above CA$20m in a calendar year, and payments were to be retroactive to 2022. The tax would have targeted major tech giants including Facebook-owner Meta, Google-owner Alphabet, Apple, Amazon and others. Trump abruptly called off trade talks on Friday over the tax targeting US technology firms, saying that it was a "blatant attack" before reiterating this on Sunday and pledging a new tariff rate on Canadian goods. The US President and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney will now resume trade negotiations in order to agree on a deal by July 21, Canada's finance ministry said in a statement. The back-and-forth comes as a warning for the Albanese government's news media bargaining incentive which will force technology giants to pay local news outlets for their content. After Trump began revealing his array of tariffs, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese vowed to defend the legislation targeting the tech giants. 'We have been crystal clear with the United States about what is not up for negotiation,' he said in April. 'Our government stands by our media bargaining code. We strongly support local content in streaming services, so Australian stories stay on Australian screens.' Assistant Treasurer Daniel Mulino last week stressed the incentive remained a 'key priority' for Labor amid negotiations with the Trump Administration. 'This is a policy the government remains committed to,' Mr Mulino said, according to the Australian Financial Review. Concerns about Australia's media bargaining code arose recently as section 899 of Trump's 'big beautiful bill' threatened a 15 per cent tax on nations the US believes unfairly treats its companies. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent rolled back the legislation after reaching an 'understanding' with the G7 where American companies would be exempt for the new global minimum 15 per cent corporate tax. Treasurer Jim Chalmers welcomed the news after engaging with Mr Bessent last week to make Australia's case against section 899. 'In that meeting he said he was progressing what he could to try and resolve these issues, and we're really pleased to see some of that progress in his announcement today,' Chalmers said. 'Australia will continue to engage constructively through the OECD on international tax rules that are fair and ensure multinationals pay their fair share in Australia."
The Age
an hour ago
- The Age
He proposed it 34 years ago. On Tuesday, Paul Keating's plan comes to fruition
The man who came up with the 12 per cent superannuation guarantee that will flow to millions of workers from July 1, Paul Keating, has likened the private pension system to a binding force between all Australians. But the former treasurer and prime minister has given a subtle hint to Jim Chalmers that his planned changes to the tax arrangements on super accounts with more than $3 million will affect far more people than the government is claiming. The super guarantee levy has increased half a percentage point every year since 2022, reaching 12 per cent with the 2025-26 financial year. Keating was instrumental in the first step towards universal superannuation, when in 1985 the ACTU sought to have 3 per cent of industrial workers' wages go into retirement savings funds run jointly by union and employer groups. Six years later, when he had moved to the backbench after his first failed leadership challenge against then-prime minister Bob Hawke, Keating first outlined what would become the country's retirement savings system. He said retirement needed to be based on both the age pension and privately funded superannuation, nominating 12 per cent as the contribution from workers towards their retirement income. At the time, he hoped the 12 per cent would be in place by 2000, noting that at such a level it would provide a retirement income that would be 'the difference between a full, active life and a life governed by budgetary exigencies and the vagaries of politics'. Keating on Monday said the superannuation system had now matured with the 12 per cent guarantee, delivering Australia the fourth-largest retirement accumulation in the world at $4.1 trillion, which is 150 per cent of GDP. The Reserve Bank has estimated super will reach $8 trillion by 2035, when Australia will have the second-largest retirement base in the world, behind only the United States.
