Higher power bills to kick in from July
The Australian Energy Regulator released a draft decision on power price rises in March for consultation with power companies and other stakeholders.
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Its prices have remained relatively stable, with the average default offer in Victoria rising $8 in the final determination. Essential Energy in regional NSW had the highest variation between the draft and final determination, with a rise of $28.
Price rises were attributed to a range of factors affecting renewable and fossil-fuel sources.
A significant driver of higher power prices, the regulator said, was breakdowns at coal-fired power plants, which require increased reliance on gas-fired power plants that draw on the highest cost fuel source.
Renewables were also a contributing factor, with rising infrastructure costs to pay for new transmission lines needed to link wind and solar farms to population centres, as well as stretches of low wind that forced increased reliance on fossil fuels.
Renewables currently supply more than 40 per cent of the electricity in the grid, and the Albanese government is aiming to make it 82 per cent by 2030.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese promised at the 2022 election that the green power shift would cut power bills by $275 by 2025.
However, bills have risen by up to $400 for some residents in NSW and up to $250 for some Victorians since the Albanese government was elected.
Albanese said the renewables transition was an important element of the government's plan to cut emissions to address the impact of climate change
'People who question the science need to look out their window,' Albanese said on Monday as he addressed media from the National Situation Room, where he was briefed on the impact of floods on NSW North Coast.
'We know the cheapest form of new energy is renewables, backed by gas, backed by batteries and backed by hydro for firming capacity.
'We've always had floods and droughts in Australia … but what we do know is that they are more frequent and they are more intense.'
The regulator's chairwoman Clare Savage said customers could get better deals than the default offer by shopping around using the free, independent Energy Made Easy website.
'You cannot have a shift to renewables without having confidence because you will lose community support if people walk into this room here and flick on the switch and the lights don't go on,' Savage said.
'We need to make sure that there is security of energy supply at the same time as we support the transition.'
Savage said while the cost of expanding electricity networks had contributed to higher bills over the coming 12 months, she expected the new infrastructure to help lower bills over the medium to long term.
'As we start to see increased use of the system, from increased demand, we should see that cost pressure in bills come down,' Savage said, noting the uptake of electric cars and appliances such as hot water heaters and reverse cycle air conditioners.
Energy Minister Chris Bowen announced in April that the government would offer another round of energy bill relief worth $150 for households, valid until the end of the year. Homeowners with solar panels can also save 30 per cent on a one-off home electric battery purchase, in a scheme to start on July 1.
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'It's clear energy bills for Australians remain too high, and we're providing help for people doing it tough as we deliver longer term reform,' Bowen said.
The default market offer operates as a price cap and offers up to 27 per cent cheaper are available, depending on location.
Bowen said around 80 per cent of households are not on the cheapest plan and he encouraged people to visit the Energy Made Easy website or energy.gov.au.
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Sydney Morning Herald
8 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
US beef might be on the table, but we don't have to eat it
If the government deals with Donald Trump's tariffs by opening our nation to beef imports, Australians' response should be quite simple – don't buy American beef (' Albanese to put beef on the table in Trump trade talks ', June 6). Australians must make a point of checking where products come from and make the decision to buy Australian. In our capitalist system, the consumer is boss. If the issue of beef imports really is a biosecurity threat, as our farmers suggest, it is also our civic duty to avoid it. I do not buy the 'grown in USA' grapes that have recently replaced the Australian ones in my local fruit barn. I also don't trust home brand products from the big two supermarkets as many of them are imported. The added bonus of telling Trump where to put his tariffs is that we support Australian jobs and reduce our carbon footprint. Lesley Maguire, Marsfield Sure, we have a beef with Trump over tariffs and presidential demands, but our biosecurity protocols are sacrosanct. Importing beef from the US may be Russian roulette for our farmers. Our agricultural industries would be devastated should they be afflicted with the diversity of pests and pathogens assailing the natural environment. One of our greatest exports is the international reputation of our quarantine and biosecurity sentinels. Steve Dillon, Thirroul On Britain's exemption from US steel tariffs, Sussan Ley said: 'We stand ready to work with the Albanese government to ensure Australia can achieve the same outcome. The Coalition wants the government to succeed because that is in the national interest.' With two sentences, the Liberal leader has hopefully begun a period of bipartisanship and a return to true Liberal principles. I congratulate her and hope she can succeed in her rebirthing of a centrist Liberal Party. Rowan Godwin, Rozelle If the US Department of Agriculture's food safety and inspection service was affected by the DOGE cuts, the prime minister should be very careful in reviewing the ban on beef from the US, or any other food products for that matter. There's too much at stake. Judith Campbell, Drummoyne The government is willing to negotiate with Trump on beef but not on pork. Clearly, surrendering their pork barrels is a bridge too far. Richard Grant, St Leonards At long last, the federal government has come to understand and appreciate the value of Australia's primary export products. For far too long, our city-centric governments have failed to value or understand that the nation's wealth has always been based on our primary exports, be it minerals, livestock, wool, grains, wine or seafood. Cost of living was a big issue at the last election, the rising price of eggs a case in point. Some time soon, urban communities will finally learn to appreciate what people living in rural and regional areas have contributed to the nation's living standards, as prices increase and shortages of supply become evident. The nation's wealth is spent but not created in our cities. Bruce Clydsdale, Bathurst Bros become foes In Trump's fickle world, one thing was always certain: his chumminess with Elon Musk would end in a mudslinging fight (' Bromance is over: Musk accuses Trump of being in the Epstein files, June 6). So many times we have watched the humiliating drubbings dished out by Trump on those he deems disloyal or with whom he disagrees. This time, however, he may have met his match. Musk's bombshell post to the world that 'Trump is in the Epstein files. That is the reason they have not been made public', may prove to be Musk's leverage in the relationship. As he cynically posted: 'Have a nice day DJT.' Mary Carde, Parrearra (Qld) Trump Derangement Syndrome. Well, there it is, from his own pen, what we've been seeing for years but didn't know what to call it – and now he's named it for us. Shrinks will be studying Trump for a long time to come, but in the meantime, can we give him the honour he richly deserves – the front cover of Mad Magazine. Patrick McGrath, Potts Point Trump, the fabulist in chief versus Musk, a certifiable megalomaniac. 'Rumble in the Jungle' on steroids. Best show in town. Maureen Moss, Beecroft Peace Prize at stake The US veto of the latest UN Security Council ceasefire resolution simply reminds us that the power to bring the Gaza conflict to an end lies in the hands of one person, the president of the United States (' US vetoes Security Council call for a ceasefire', June 6). The UN itself is powerless, as Israel's ambassador Danny Danon made defiantly clear, saying that 'no resolution, no vote, no moral failure, will stand in our way'. If Donald Trump has set his sights on the Nobel Peace Prize, as often claimed, he should sign one of his famous executive orders to immediately top supplying Israel's war machine. Tom Knowles, Parkville (Vic) Stick with Israel Josh Szeps advises Jews to abandon Israel because supporting it at present conflicts with Jewish values (' It's time for Jews to abandon Israel ', June 6). But abandonment itself is an abdication of essential and core Jewish values of, among others, Chesed and Emunah, which mean loving kindness, steadfast loyalty and faith. To suggest that Israel should be abandoned because of the way its current government is prosecuting the tragic war in Gaza could not be more un-Jewish. Raymond Schwartz, Bellevue Hill Josh Szeps writes a powerful but problematic article. When he calls for Jews to abandon Israel, I presume he means diaspora Jews – that is, Jews living outside of Israel. But what about the seven million Jews living in Israel? Are we to eschew our friends, family and religious kinsmen, tarring them all with the same brush as their government? Do I know how to fix the abhorrent situation in Gaza? No. But I do know that no solution will come from turning away. It is now, more than ever, that we need to turn towards each other and find the strength to get through this latest threat to Jewish survival. Yehuda Bassin, North Bondi Josh Szeps brutally tears the scab off what the state of Israel is doing to the Palestinian people. Is there any legitimate reason why there is space in the world for a Jewish state but not for a Palestinian state? Richard Sergi, Summer Hill Smokes and ire First Chris Minns wants to increase the threat tobacco poses to public health by reducing prices, and now the police minister wants to give a boost to organised crime by excluding the police force from acting against the tobacco black market (' Police 'can't regulate' tobacconists ' June 6). Just whose interests is the government of NSW protecting? It certainly doesn't appear to be ours. John Croker, Woonona 30-year itch The opposition is attacking the government's proposal to adjust the taxation on higher superannuation balances (' Coalition shuts down deal on super tax ', June 5). A mainstay of its argument is the government's failure to index the proposed cut-in point of $3 million. The opposition says inflation will pull in ever more super-holders so that young workers in 30 years' time will have to pay this tax as soon as they start earning. Really? Even if wages do balloon like that, does anyone know of a taxation measure still in force from 30 years ago without change or adjustment? Perhaps the Coalition expects to remain in opposition for the next 30 years, with no opportunity to introduce any changes themselves. E. Mark Latham, Croydon Park Multi-party preferred The path to desperately needed taxation reform must involve bipartisan agreements with the conservatives (' Deal or no deal: Chalmer's mistake ', June 6). The Liberals may be weak, almost irrelevant at present, but they'll not always be so. The best way to achieve this is with the support of the conservatives, Greens and independents. Obviously, some concessions will be necessary by Jim Chalmers, but increased taxation is essential and must be set in stone. Geoff Harding, Chatswood Libs doomed by inability to learn It's hard to believe that the Liberals could sink much lower after their 'near-death' electoral defeat, but they continue to surprise (' Elder statesman has taken his party backwards ', June 6). A divorce with their whacky National partners, followed only days later by a reconciliation (of sorts); old stale, pale males (Abbott and Stockdale) sniping, undermining, and publicly putting the little ladies back in their places; and even a shadow cabinet position given to someone (Kapterian), before the vote count was completed, who didn't end up winning a seat in parliament. With their inability to learn from their past defeats, it seems that the Liberals will always be the party of greater ridicule and incompetence. Alan Marel, North Curl Curl Aside from the misogyny, may I suggest that the most prominent characteristic of a certain Mr Stockdale is his eyebrowage. Photos of him sitting beneath a portrait of Bob Menzies, also magnificently eyebrow endowed, make me wonder whether the only way for women to get ahead in the Liberal Party is to put those tweezers away. Kate Coates, Wangi Wangi It's bleeding obvious that the federal intervention into the NSW Liberal Party has always been a move to consolidate the influence of the conservative faction in NSW. Ironically, the intervention team is dominated by two right-wing fossils from Victoria, a state where the Liberal Party has long been on life support. If the present intervention team prevails, the Liberals will remain increasingly irrelevant, and Australia will be the worse for it. Bruce Spence, Balmain Anyone who follows the intrigues of Victorian state politics would know that former Labor premier Dan Andrews was able to win three elections, arguably owing to the disarray of the Liberal opposition. To send two relics from that disorder of the Victorian age (sorry, Victorian state) is quite insulting. I wonder if Alan Stockdale and former NSW Liberal leader Peter Collins caught up for a bevvy or two. Peter King, Windsor Downs Women's issue Hysteria is an old word that relates to the uterus – a 'woman thing'. I'm guessing that Mark Speakman, though the product of a uterus, has not, and probably will not, understand that his use of the word 'hysterical' has just lost him a swag of women's votes. Mine especially (' Catley slams Speakman after he calls her 'hysterical', ' June 6). Kathryn Coates, Wangi Wangi Pyrrhic victory Those who celebrated North Sydney Council's failure to implement a rate rise as a win for the community should now see the reality of this Pyrrhic victory (' Inside the fight to save famous oval that's slowly falling apart ', June 6). A much-loved iconic oval is in disrepair, council buildings leak when it rains, community services will need to be curtailed and there may have to be a fire sale of income-generating assets. All of this when current residential rates are lower than those of neighbouring councils and the ill-conceived pool continues to drain council finances at an alarming rate. Catherine Turner, Cremorne Left in limbo Workers' rights are under constant pressure, every hour of every day. The ABC keeping staff members on revolving fixed-term contracts is just another example (' Play School staffer sues ABC ', June 6). Such staff members are not chess pieces to be moved around at the whim of management. Flexibility to quickly and easily sack staff is not conducive to loyalty or good mental health. It also erodes the ability of staff to plan their lives. It is not a moral way to improve any organisation's bottom line. Greg Baker, Fitzroy Falls A fair race The final election result for the federal seat of Bradfield has been called, with independent Nicolette Boele declared the winner by a margin of just 26 votes over the Liberal candidate Gisele Kapterian (' Teal candidate Nicolette Boele wins final Bradfield recount ', June 5). The Australian Electoral Commission should be applauded for the thorough way in which the full recount was conducted over the past week and a half. The genuine commitment to democracy was evident at every stage and the staff were consistently polite and obliging. My respect for our democratic processes was constantly reinforced as I watched the process unfold. Each vote was treated with the respect it deserved and the intention of the voter was paramount. I feel nothing but gratitude for our amazing AEC and our democratic processes. Robyn Thomas, Wahroonga Waste costs schools I have been following reports in the Herald of the ICAC hearings into allegations about improper spending at the public schools building unit (' Unravelling top schools unit's network of consultants ', June 6). As a lifelong advocate for public schooling (I attended public schools, my children and grandchildren attended public schools and I taught in public schools), I am alarmed at the reported amounts of money that were spent on consultants and the awarding of contracts to friends. Public schools are crying out for money for building maintenance, extra resources, specialist staff, heating and cooling for classrooms, and proper classrooms for additional enrolments. Now we are learning where the money was being spent. Shame on those responsible, shame, shame, shame. Helen Russell, Leichhardt Rare birds It seems calling someone a 'bird brain' is no longer an insult (' Smart cockies crack the water fountain test ', June 6). Mexican sparrows have even found a way to make tobacco into a health aid – they put cigarette butts in their nests to repel parasites. Paul Doyle, Glenbrook It's good to know my visiting cockatoos might come in handy when I have a jar I can't open. Lisa Clarke, Watsons Bay Hard to swallow Jeremy Brender (Letters, June 6), why would anybody consider paying an exorbitant price for an egg and lettuce sandwich at Sydney airport when they could buy a $10.30 meat pie instead? Robert Peters, Maitland Name brand Maiden name? A woman's 'maiden' name is really her father's name. Patriarchy still rules (Letters, June 6). Betsy Brennan, Wahroonga Ruff and ready While I'm in full agreement with correspondent Alison Stewart's views on misogyny in the Liberal Party (Letters, June 6), I must, in defence of old dogs, take issue with her last sentence. You can, actually, teach them new tricks. It just takes a little longer. Jo Bond, South Melbourne (Vic) Postscript Who can trust a politician? We all know the answer to that one, yet Australians trusted Anthony Albanese enough to vote for him in record numbers only a month ago. Buyer's remorse seems to be creeping up fast, as it does in politics, not least among readers who had hoped for a meaningful shift away from fossil fuels. Labor's approval of Woodside's North West Shelf gas project until 2070 was viewed by many, including Herald columnist Ross Gittins, as an inexcusable breach of trust. 'Why, Albo, why? Make it make sense,' pleaded reader Ross Hudson. In bringing Labor back for a second term, Australians had also hoped for tax reform, but the prime minister's unwillingness to slap mining companies with a resources rent tax further undermined public faith. 'Albanese has lost his spine,' lamented Peter Nash. 'Labor has been intimidated by mining companies and by business opposition to changing negative gearing and capital gains tax.' People with fat super balances are also having trust issues after Labor announced its plan to raise earnings tax on accounts above $3 million. The government's extravagant tobacco tax seems to have backfired too, leading to a proliferation of illegal imported cigarettes and vapes. 'Labor's disastrous tobacco taxes are a timely warning about their proposed super taxes,' wrote William Lloyd. Albanese's rejection of American demands for Australia to jack up defence spending didn't inspire confidence among defence hawks. David Sinclair didn't mince words. On the matter of public security 'our PM either has his head stuck firmly in the sand, or in another part of his anatomy entirely.' The defection of Greens senator Dorinda Cox to Labor this week only created more suspicion. 'Albanese's welcoming of that political turncoat adds insult to injury,' said James Fliece. A cynical Sue Dyer added: 'The prime minister and Cox should come clean about when she applied and how this was facilitated and approved.' Labor wasn't alone in the firing line. Liberal elder Alan Stockdale's 'light-hearted' remarks about 'assertive women' – in an address to the NSW Liberal Women's Council no less – drew howls of derision. Alison Stewart had some advice for Liberal women: 'You can't teach old dogs new tricks. Look elsewhere for representation.' That's always an option Alison, but the question is, who do you trust?
The Advertiser
9 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Chaos: 'Part-time' pollies, super unliked tax, Trump's beef and the Wiggles!
A month on from the federal election and it has been chaos as usual on the Australian political scene despite a truce declared on the main post-plebiscite entertainment in the Coalition's civil war and spill talk surrounding Nationals leader David Littleproud dying down. Meanwhile, Labor has hit the ground running by approving Woodside's massive North West Shelf gas project for the next 70 years, putting a big question mark internationally over Australia's climate stripes and stewardship of ancient rock art, and then recruiting a rogue Greens senator who had fought tooth and nail to stop the approval. In fact, Dorinda Cox really let the Albanese government know what she thought about the decision just days before jumping aboard the Albo train because, as all parties involved suggested, including Greens leader Larissa Waters, their "shared values" make the new pairing a good fit. After Senator Cox left the Greens shrinking parliamentary army, bullying allegations against her emerged, including a complaint lodged by former Green and now Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe. The prime minister thought had been resolved, but maybe not, awks. A highly unsavoury text message that Senator Cox allegedly wrote was then leaked regarding her thoughts about Senate colleague Pauline Hanson. Her defection also now makes it four seats the Greens have lost to Labor in recent weeks after former leader Adam Bandt, Max Chandler-Mather and Stephen Bates were waved bye-bye by voters at the ballot box, a perk of the landslide election win that will provide Albo with joy long after he leaves office. Also waving goodbye for now is Liberal candidate for Bradfield Gisele Kapterian, who won the seat by eight votes after preferences were tallied a couple of weeks ago. However, the slender margin demanded a recount, the result of which saw Independent Nicolette Boele handed the seat this week by just 26 votes. She joins Zali Stegall, Allegra Spender and Sophie Scamps as the fourth Independent woman who has taken a formerly safe Sydney seat from the Liberal Party By the by, at least six MPs suspect their devices were hacked over the past year, according to the Department of Parliamentary Services via The Canberra Times, in what an expert says is likely just the tip of the iceberg. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has released the parliamentary schedule for the rest of 2025, and it is a little light on for sitting days. In fact, people who know these things suggest the schedule is the lightest attendance requirement for parliamentarians to travel to Canberra for about 20 years. A very senior MP was so taken aback by the situation that they labelled the workplace a "part-time" Parliament. "I must Google this, obviously in election years we will have fewer sitting weeks than normal, but I'd love to know the last year we only had eight sitting weeks in Parliament," the MP told ACM. "It's really part-time, isn't it? Especially now with the whole not sitting for almost eight weeks after the election." There are always four sides to every story. The ABC quoted a government source on Friday morning to say that US-slaughtered beef was being positioned as a bargaining chip to help reset trade ties in the face of US President Donald Trump's tariff regime that has slapped a 50 per cent impost on steel and aluminium, along with the 10 per cent universal duty. US beef producers have been able to access Australian markets since 2019 if they can ensure that the animals are born, raised and slaughtered in the US, while restrictions remain on Canadian and Mexican cattle slaughtered in America. Australia has been undertaking a review of those biosecurity rules, after the Trump administration requested they be lifted. The media report said pork would stay off-limits due to swine flu and other risks, but the beef bit prompted Nationals leader David Littleproud to urge Labor not to compromise Australia's biosecurity credentials in negotiations with the US. "The United States uses cattle from Mexico and Canada in their supply chain that poses a potential risk to our industry and ignoring those risks would be dangerous," he said. Meanwhile, the PM said in a radio interview that compromising on biosecurity was not on the table. "We'll never loosen any rules regarding our biosecurity," he said. "If things can be sorted out in a way that protects our biosecurity, of course we don't just say no ... but our first priority is biosecurity.. When ABC host Raf Epstein prodded Albo a bit more in asking whether beef slaughtered in the US that was raised in Mexico or Canada would be allowed into Australia, the PM said: "Full stop. Exclamation mark. It's simply not worth it.". Agriculture Minister Julie Collins backed that up in a statement, saying any decision to allow expanded access for US beef to Australia would be based on science and evidence and that "all products entering Australia have to meet rigorous biosecurity standards". Cattle Australia chief executive Chris Parker said the key issue that must be solved before any move can be considered relates to the traceability of cattle born across the US southern or northern borders. Meanwhile, the Chicago Tribune is reporting that US agriculture officials are warning that ground beef sold at Whole Foods markets nationwide may be contaminated with potentially dangerous E. coli bacteria. Why did the Greens entourage cross Adelaide's Hindmarsh Square? Because they didn't see any television cameras. On Monday, Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young scheduled a media conference to talk about "South Australia's drought and the Prime Minister's visit to SA". But when print journalists rocked up to hear what the Senator had to say, they found the square was bare. A quick phone call solved the mystery. The senatorial entourage bailed when none of the local television news crews turned up - must of all been up north following Mr Albanese around a drought-stricken sheep property. Nationals' deputy leader Kevin Hogan has slammed Labor's new super tax as "verging on the immoral", while the first policy position agreed by the Coalition's new shadow cabinet is to officially oppose the proposal. Labor's contentious plan to double taxes on superannuation balances above $3 million will be one of the first bills up for discussion when Parliament resumes next month, with a clear pathway to pass the legislation into law opened by the Greens which offered the government in-principle support earlier this week but will push for the policy to go further and drop the threshold to $2m. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was asked in a media conference whether it was fair that some farmers may have to pay the tax, and may end up having to sell their farms, as some of their farms are self-managed super funds? "Well, there's not anything new here. This has been before the Parliament for about two years," Mr Albanese said. "What we need to do is to make sure that our superannuation system is fair. That is what we are setting about to do." Treasurer Jim Chalmers' proposal, panned by economists, academics, ALP luminaries and business leaders since it was introduced in 2023, is to increase taxation on super balances over the high-value threshold from 15 to 30 per cent, including on unrealised capital gains. As it stands, the revenue-raising measure will not be indexed to inflation or wage growth. The situation perfectly illustrates why the words Canberra and chaos sit together so snugly. Around the grounds this week and the South Australian branch of the Liberal Party voted to walk back its support of net-zero, we suspect Alex Antic was somehow involved. The good people of Tasmania may be heading for a by-election after the upper house blew up the leadership of Premier Jeremy Rockliff. And a silly sexist quip made during a debate about gender quotas from the bloke appointed to run the NSW branch of the Liberal Party, Alan Stockdale, was a step back in time, or revealed he had never caught up with it. The lead balloon went down on Tuesday when Mr Stockdale told the NSW Liberal Women's Council that "women are sufficiently assertive now" and that the Libs "should be giving some thought to whether we need to protect men's involvement". The 80-year-old's joke was as popular as a few of the budgets the former Victorian state treasurer delivered for Liberal Premier Jeff Kennett. Stockdale apologised, however, party honchos were forced to spend a chunk of the week dousing the chaos the comments created, with federal leader Sussan Ley saying she "encourages assertive women to join the Liberal Party". Australia's fresh produce industry has formed a very healthy new relationship with The Wiggles for a national campaign to encourage children to eat more fruit and vegetables. The International Fresh Produce Association Australia campaign was launched at Hort Connections in Brisbane and comes as new research shows less than half of Aussie parents say that fruit and veg actually make up most of their children's snacks. The Wiggles have rolled out a jingle by rewording their classic banger 'Fruit Salad Yummy Yummy' to 'Fruit and Veggies Yummy Yummy'. Blue Wiggle Anthony Field said the collaboration was a natural fit. "We are so excited to be part of this campaign," he said. "With more than 30 years of singing songs like 'Fruit Salad Yummy Yummy' and 'Hot Potato', this partnership takes our commitment even further, really showing children just how fun and delicious healthy eating can be." Shire councillor Sherryl Chilcott sent ACM a video capturing the soothing sounds of large hailstones hitting a tin roof after being dumped from a thunderstorm that washed over Wagin, in Western Australia's wheatbelt, earlier this week. A month on from the federal election and it has been chaos as usual on the Australian political scene despite a truce declared on the main post-plebiscite entertainment in the Coalition's civil war and spill talk surrounding Nationals leader David Littleproud dying down. Meanwhile, Labor has hit the ground running by approving Woodside's massive North West Shelf gas project for the next 70 years, putting a big question mark internationally over Australia's climate stripes and stewardship of ancient rock art, and then recruiting a rogue Greens senator who had fought tooth and nail to stop the approval. In fact, Dorinda Cox really let the Albanese government know what she thought about the decision just days before jumping aboard the Albo train because, as all parties involved suggested, including Greens leader Larissa Waters, their "shared values" make the new pairing a good fit. After Senator Cox left the Greens shrinking parliamentary army, bullying allegations against her emerged, including a complaint lodged by former Green and now Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe. The prime minister thought had been resolved, but maybe not, awks. A highly unsavoury text message that Senator Cox allegedly wrote was then leaked regarding her thoughts about Senate colleague Pauline Hanson. Her defection also now makes it four seats the Greens have lost to Labor in recent weeks after former leader Adam Bandt, Max Chandler-Mather and Stephen Bates were waved bye-bye by voters at the ballot box, a perk of the landslide election win that will provide Albo with joy long after he leaves office. Also waving goodbye for now is Liberal candidate for Bradfield Gisele Kapterian, who won the seat by eight votes after preferences were tallied a couple of weeks ago. However, the slender margin demanded a recount, the result of which saw Independent Nicolette Boele handed the seat this week by just 26 votes. She joins Zali Stegall, Allegra Spender and Sophie Scamps as the fourth Independent woman who has taken a formerly safe Sydney seat from the Liberal Party By the by, at least six MPs suspect their devices were hacked over the past year, according to the Department of Parliamentary Services via The Canberra Times, in what an expert says is likely just the tip of the iceberg. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has released the parliamentary schedule for the rest of 2025, and it is a little light on for sitting days. In fact, people who know these things suggest the schedule is the lightest attendance requirement for parliamentarians to travel to Canberra for about 20 years. A very senior MP was so taken aback by the situation that they labelled the workplace a "part-time" Parliament. "I must Google this, obviously in election years we will have fewer sitting weeks than normal, but I'd love to know the last year we only had eight sitting weeks in Parliament," the MP told ACM. "It's really part-time, isn't it? Especially now with the whole not sitting for almost eight weeks after the election." There are always four sides to every story. The ABC quoted a government source on Friday morning to say that US-slaughtered beef was being positioned as a bargaining chip to help reset trade ties in the face of US President Donald Trump's tariff regime that has slapped a 50 per cent impost on steel and aluminium, along with the 10 per cent universal duty. US beef producers have been able to access Australian markets since 2019 if they can ensure that the animals are born, raised and slaughtered in the US, while restrictions remain on Canadian and Mexican cattle slaughtered in America. Australia has been undertaking a review of those biosecurity rules, after the Trump administration requested they be lifted. The media report said pork would stay off-limits due to swine flu and other risks, but the beef bit prompted Nationals leader David Littleproud to urge Labor not to compromise Australia's biosecurity credentials in negotiations with the US. "The United States uses cattle from Mexico and Canada in their supply chain that poses a potential risk to our industry and ignoring those risks would be dangerous," he said. Meanwhile, the PM said in a radio interview that compromising on biosecurity was not on the table. "We'll never loosen any rules regarding our biosecurity," he said. "If things can be sorted out in a way that protects our biosecurity, of course we don't just say no ... but our first priority is biosecurity.. When ABC host Raf Epstein prodded Albo a bit more in asking whether beef slaughtered in the US that was raised in Mexico or Canada would be allowed into Australia, the PM said: "Full stop. Exclamation mark. It's simply not worth it.". Agriculture Minister Julie Collins backed that up in a statement, saying any decision to allow expanded access for US beef to Australia would be based on science and evidence and that "all products entering Australia have to meet rigorous biosecurity standards". Cattle Australia chief executive Chris Parker said the key issue that must be solved before any move can be considered relates to the traceability of cattle born across the US southern or northern borders. Meanwhile, the Chicago Tribune is reporting that US agriculture officials are warning that ground beef sold at Whole Foods markets nationwide may be contaminated with potentially dangerous E. coli bacteria. Why did the Greens entourage cross Adelaide's Hindmarsh Square? Because they didn't see any television cameras. On Monday, Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young scheduled a media conference to talk about "South Australia's drought and the Prime Minister's visit to SA". But when print journalists rocked up to hear what the Senator had to say, they found the square was bare. A quick phone call solved the mystery. The senatorial entourage bailed when none of the local television news crews turned up - must of all been up north following Mr Albanese around a drought-stricken sheep property. Nationals' deputy leader Kevin Hogan has slammed Labor's new super tax as "verging on the immoral", while the first policy position agreed by the Coalition's new shadow cabinet is to officially oppose the proposal. Labor's contentious plan to double taxes on superannuation balances above $3 million will be one of the first bills up for discussion when Parliament resumes next month, with a clear pathway to pass the legislation into law opened by the Greens which offered the government in-principle support earlier this week but will push for the policy to go further and drop the threshold to $2m. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was asked in a media conference whether it was fair that some farmers may have to pay the tax, and may end up having to sell their farms, as some of their farms are self-managed super funds? "Well, there's not anything new here. This has been before the Parliament for about two years," Mr Albanese said. "What we need to do is to make sure that our superannuation system is fair. That is what we are setting about to do." Treasurer Jim Chalmers' proposal, panned by economists, academics, ALP luminaries and business leaders since it was introduced in 2023, is to increase taxation on super balances over the high-value threshold from 15 to 30 per cent, including on unrealised capital gains. As it stands, the revenue-raising measure will not be indexed to inflation or wage growth. The situation perfectly illustrates why the words Canberra and chaos sit together so snugly. Around the grounds this week and the South Australian branch of the Liberal Party voted to walk back its support of net-zero, we suspect Alex Antic was somehow involved. The good people of Tasmania may be heading for a by-election after the upper house blew up the leadership of Premier Jeremy Rockliff. And a silly sexist quip made during a debate about gender quotas from the bloke appointed to run the NSW branch of the Liberal Party, Alan Stockdale, was a step back in time, or revealed he had never caught up with it. The lead balloon went down on Tuesday when Mr Stockdale told the NSW Liberal Women's Council that "women are sufficiently assertive now" and that the Libs "should be giving some thought to whether we need to protect men's involvement". The 80-year-old's joke was as popular as a few of the budgets the former Victorian state treasurer delivered for Liberal Premier Jeff Kennett. Stockdale apologised, however, party honchos were forced to spend a chunk of the week dousing the chaos the comments created, with federal leader Sussan Ley saying she "encourages assertive women to join the Liberal Party". Australia's fresh produce industry has formed a very healthy new relationship with The Wiggles for a national campaign to encourage children to eat more fruit and vegetables. The International Fresh Produce Association Australia campaign was launched at Hort Connections in Brisbane and comes as new research shows less than half of Aussie parents say that fruit and veg actually make up most of their children's snacks. The Wiggles have rolled out a jingle by rewording their classic banger 'Fruit Salad Yummy Yummy' to 'Fruit and Veggies Yummy Yummy'. Blue Wiggle Anthony Field said the collaboration was a natural fit. "We are so excited to be part of this campaign," he said. "With more than 30 years of singing songs like 'Fruit Salad Yummy Yummy' and 'Hot Potato', this partnership takes our commitment even further, really showing children just how fun and delicious healthy eating can be." Shire councillor Sherryl Chilcott sent ACM a video capturing the soothing sounds of large hailstones hitting a tin roof after being dumped from a thunderstorm that washed over Wagin, in Western Australia's wheatbelt, earlier this week. A month on from the federal election and it has been chaos as usual on the Australian political scene despite a truce declared on the main post-plebiscite entertainment in the Coalition's civil war and spill talk surrounding Nationals leader David Littleproud dying down. Meanwhile, Labor has hit the ground running by approving Woodside's massive North West Shelf gas project for the next 70 years, putting a big question mark internationally over Australia's climate stripes and stewardship of ancient rock art, and then recruiting a rogue Greens senator who had fought tooth and nail to stop the approval. In fact, Dorinda Cox really let the Albanese government know what she thought about the decision just days before jumping aboard the Albo train because, as all parties involved suggested, including Greens leader Larissa Waters, their "shared values" make the new pairing a good fit. After Senator Cox left the Greens shrinking parliamentary army, bullying allegations against her emerged, including a complaint lodged by former Green and now Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe. The prime minister thought had been resolved, but maybe not, awks. A highly unsavoury text message that Senator Cox allegedly wrote was then leaked regarding her thoughts about Senate colleague Pauline Hanson. Her defection also now makes it four seats the Greens have lost to Labor in recent weeks after former leader Adam Bandt, Max Chandler-Mather and Stephen Bates were waved bye-bye by voters at the ballot box, a perk of the landslide election win that will provide Albo with joy long after he leaves office. Also waving goodbye for now is Liberal candidate for Bradfield Gisele Kapterian, who won the seat by eight votes after preferences were tallied a couple of weeks ago. However, the slender margin demanded a recount, the result of which saw Independent Nicolette Boele handed the seat this week by just 26 votes. She joins Zali Stegall, Allegra Spender and Sophie Scamps as the fourth Independent woman who has taken a formerly safe Sydney seat from the Liberal Party By the by, at least six MPs suspect their devices were hacked over the past year, according to the Department of Parliamentary Services via The Canberra Times, in what an expert says is likely just the tip of the iceberg. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has released the parliamentary schedule for the rest of 2025, and it is a little light on for sitting days. In fact, people who know these things suggest the schedule is the lightest attendance requirement for parliamentarians to travel to Canberra for about 20 years. A very senior MP was so taken aback by the situation that they labelled the workplace a "part-time" Parliament. "I must Google this, obviously in election years we will have fewer sitting weeks than normal, but I'd love to know the last year we only had eight sitting weeks in Parliament," the MP told ACM. "It's really part-time, isn't it? Especially now with the whole not sitting for almost eight weeks after the election." There are always four sides to every story. The ABC quoted a government source on Friday morning to say that US-slaughtered beef was being positioned as a bargaining chip to help reset trade ties in the face of US President Donald Trump's tariff regime that has slapped a 50 per cent impost on steel and aluminium, along with the 10 per cent universal duty. US beef producers have been able to access Australian markets since 2019 if they can ensure that the animals are born, raised and slaughtered in the US, while restrictions remain on Canadian and Mexican cattle slaughtered in America. Australia has been undertaking a review of those biosecurity rules, after the Trump administration requested they be lifted. The media report said pork would stay off-limits due to swine flu and other risks, but the beef bit prompted Nationals leader David Littleproud to urge Labor not to compromise Australia's biosecurity credentials in negotiations with the US. "The United States uses cattle from Mexico and Canada in their supply chain that poses a potential risk to our industry and ignoring those risks would be dangerous," he said. Meanwhile, the PM said in a radio interview that compromising on biosecurity was not on the table. "We'll never loosen any rules regarding our biosecurity," he said. "If things can be sorted out in a way that protects our biosecurity, of course we don't just say no ... but our first priority is biosecurity.. When ABC host Raf Epstein prodded Albo a bit more in asking whether beef slaughtered in the US that was raised in Mexico or Canada would be allowed into Australia, the PM said: "Full stop. Exclamation mark. It's simply not worth it.". Agriculture Minister Julie Collins backed that up in a statement, saying any decision to allow expanded access for US beef to Australia would be based on science and evidence and that "all products entering Australia have to meet rigorous biosecurity standards". Cattle Australia chief executive Chris Parker said the key issue that must be solved before any move can be considered relates to the traceability of cattle born across the US southern or northern borders. Meanwhile, the Chicago Tribune is reporting that US agriculture officials are warning that ground beef sold at Whole Foods markets nationwide may be contaminated with potentially dangerous E. coli bacteria. Why did the Greens entourage cross Adelaide's Hindmarsh Square? Because they didn't see any television cameras. On Monday, Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young scheduled a media conference to talk about "South Australia's drought and the Prime Minister's visit to SA". But when print journalists rocked up to hear what the Senator had to say, they found the square was bare. A quick phone call solved the mystery. The senatorial entourage bailed when none of the local television news crews turned up - must of all been up north following Mr Albanese around a drought-stricken sheep property. Nationals' deputy leader Kevin Hogan has slammed Labor's new super tax as "verging on the immoral", while the first policy position agreed by the Coalition's new shadow cabinet is to officially oppose the proposal. Labor's contentious plan to double taxes on superannuation balances above $3 million will be one of the first bills up for discussion when Parliament resumes next month, with a clear pathway to pass the legislation into law opened by the Greens which offered the government in-principle support earlier this week but will push for the policy to go further and drop the threshold to $2m. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was asked in a media conference whether it was fair that some farmers may have to pay the tax, and may end up having to sell their farms, as some of their farms are self-managed super funds? "Well, there's not anything new here. This has been before the Parliament for about two years," Mr Albanese said. "What we need to do is to make sure that our superannuation system is fair. That is what we are setting about to do." Treasurer Jim Chalmers' proposal, panned by economists, academics, ALP luminaries and business leaders since it was introduced in 2023, is to increase taxation on super balances over the high-value threshold from 15 to 30 per cent, including on unrealised capital gains. As it stands, the revenue-raising measure will not be indexed to inflation or wage growth. The situation perfectly illustrates why the words Canberra and chaos sit together so snugly. Around the grounds this week and the South Australian branch of the Liberal Party voted to walk back its support of net-zero, we suspect Alex Antic was somehow involved. The good people of Tasmania may be heading for a by-election after the upper house blew up the leadership of Premier Jeremy Rockliff. And a silly sexist quip made during a debate about gender quotas from the bloke appointed to run the NSW branch of the Liberal Party, Alan Stockdale, was a step back in time, or revealed he had never caught up with it. The lead balloon went down on Tuesday when Mr Stockdale told the NSW Liberal Women's Council that "women are sufficiently assertive now" and that the Libs "should be giving some thought to whether we need to protect men's involvement". The 80-year-old's joke was as popular as a few of the budgets the former Victorian state treasurer delivered for Liberal Premier Jeff Kennett. Stockdale apologised, however, party honchos were forced to spend a chunk of the week dousing the chaos the comments created, with federal leader Sussan Ley saying she "encourages assertive women to join the Liberal Party". Australia's fresh produce industry has formed a very healthy new relationship with The Wiggles for a national campaign to encourage children to eat more fruit and vegetables. The International Fresh Produce Association Australia campaign was launched at Hort Connections in Brisbane and comes as new research shows less than half of Aussie parents say that fruit and veg actually make up most of their children's snacks. The Wiggles have rolled out a jingle by rewording their classic banger 'Fruit Salad Yummy Yummy' to 'Fruit and Veggies Yummy Yummy'. Blue Wiggle Anthony Field said the collaboration was a natural fit. "We are so excited to be part of this campaign," he said. "With more than 30 years of singing songs like 'Fruit Salad Yummy Yummy' and 'Hot Potato', this partnership takes our commitment even further, really showing children just how fun and delicious healthy eating can be." Shire councillor Sherryl Chilcott sent ACM a video capturing the soothing sounds of large hailstones hitting a tin roof after being dumped from a thunderstorm that washed over Wagin, in Western Australia's wheatbelt, earlier this week. A month on from the federal election and it has been chaos as usual on the Australian political scene despite a truce declared on the main post-plebiscite entertainment in the Coalition's civil war and spill talk surrounding Nationals leader David Littleproud dying down. Meanwhile, Labor has hit the ground running by approving Woodside's massive North West Shelf gas project for the next 70 years, putting a big question mark internationally over Australia's climate stripes and stewardship of ancient rock art, and then recruiting a rogue Greens senator who had fought tooth and nail to stop the approval. In fact, Dorinda Cox really let the Albanese government know what she thought about the decision just days before jumping aboard the Albo train because, as all parties involved suggested, including Greens leader Larissa Waters, their "shared values" make the new pairing a good fit. After Senator Cox left the Greens shrinking parliamentary army, bullying allegations against her emerged, including a complaint lodged by former Green and now Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe. The prime minister thought had been resolved, but maybe not, awks. A highly unsavoury text message that Senator Cox allegedly wrote was then leaked regarding her thoughts about Senate colleague Pauline Hanson. Her defection also now makes it four seats the Greens have lost to Labor in recent weeks after former leader Adam Bandt, Max Chandler-Mather and Stephen Bates were waved bye-bye by voters at the ballot box, a perk of the landslide election win that will provide Albo with joy long after he leaves office. Also waving goodbye for now is Liberal candidate for Bradfield Gisele Kapterian, who won the seat by eight votes after preferences were tallied a couple of weeks ago. However, the slender margin demanded a recount, the result of which saw Independent Nicolette Boele handed the seat this week by just 26 votes. She joins Zali Stegall, Allegra Spender and Sophie Scamps as the fourth Independent woman who has taken a formerly safe Sydney seat from the Liberal Party By the by, at least six MPs suspect their devices were hacked over the past year, according to the Department of Parliamentary Services via The Canberra Times, in what an expert says is likely just the tip of the iceberg. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has released the parliamentary schedule for the rest of 2025, and it is a little light on for sitting days. In fact, people who know these things suggest the schedule is the lightest attendance requirement for parliamentarians to travel to Canberra for about 20 years. A very senior MP was so taken aback by the situation that they labelled the workplace a "part-time" Parliament. "I must Google this, obviously in election years we will have fewer sitting weeks than normal, but I'd love to know the last year we only had eight sitting weeks in Parliament," the MP told ACM. "It's really part-time, isn't it? Especially now with the whole not sitting for almost eight weeks after the election." There are always four sides to every story. The ABC quoted a government source on Friday morning to say that US-slaughtered beef was being positioned as a bargaining chip to help reset trade ties in the face of US President Donald Trump's tariff regime that has slapped a 50 per cent impost on steel and aluminium, along with the 10 per cent universal duty. US beef producers have been able to access Australian markets since 2019 if they can ensure that the animals are born, raised and slaughtered in the US, while restrictions remain on Canadian and Mexican cattle slaughtered in America. Australia has been undertaking a review of those biosecurity rules, after the Trump administration requested they be lifted. The media report said pork would stay off-limits due to swine flu and other risks, but the beef bit prompted Nationals leader David Littleproud to urge Labor not to compromise Australia's biosecurity credentials in negotiations with the US. "The United States uses cattle from Mexico and Canada in their supply chain that poses a potential risk to our industry and ignoring those risks would be dangerous," he said. Meanwhile, the PM said in a radio interview that compromising on biosecurity was not on the table. "We'll never loosen any rules regarding our biosecurity," he said. "If things can be sorted out in a way that protects our biosecurity, of course we don't just say no ... but our first priority is biosecurity.. When ABC host Raf Epstein prodded Albo a bit more in asking whether beef slaughtered in the US that was raised in Mexico or Canada would be allowed into Australia, the PM said: "Full stop. Exclamation mark. It's simply not worth it.". Agriculture Minister Julie Collins backed that up in a statement, saying any decision to allow expanded access for US beef to Australia would be based on science and evidence and that "all products entering Australia have to meet rigorous biosecurity standards". Cattle Australia chief executive Chris Parker said the key issue that must be solved before any move can be considered relates to the traceability of cattle born across the US southern or northern borders. Meanwhile, the Chicago Tribune is reporting that US agriculture officials are warning that ground beef sold at Whole Foods markets nationwide may be contaminated with potentially dangerous E. coli bacteria. Why did the Greens entourage cross Adelaide's Hindmarsh Square? Because they didn't see any television cameras. On Monday, Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young scheduled a media conference to talk about "South Australia's drought and the Prime Minister's visit to SA". But when print journalists rocked up to hear what the Senator had to say, they found the square was bare. A quick phone call solved the mystery. The senatorial entourage bailed when none of the local television news crews turned up - must of all been up north following Mr Albanese around a drought-stricken sheep property. Nationals' deputy leader Kevin Hogan has slammed Labor's new super tax as "verging on the immoral", while the first policy position agreed by the Coalition's new shadow cabinet is to officially oppose the proposal. Labor's contentious plan to double taxes on superannuation balances above $3 million will be one of the first bills up for discussion when Parliament resumes next month, with a clear pathway to pass the legislation into law opened by the Greens which offered the government in-principle support earlier this week but will push for the policy to go further and drop the threshold to $2m. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was asked in a media conference whether it was fair that some farmers may have to pay the tax, and may end up having to sell their farms, as some of their farms are self-managed super funds? "Well, there's not anything new here. This has been before the Parliament for about two years," Mr Albanese said. "What we need to do is to make sure that our superannuation system is fair. That is what we are setting about to do." Treasurer Jim Chalmers' proposal, panned by economists, academics, ALP luminaries and business leaders since it was introduced in 2023, is to increase taxation on super balances over the high-value threshold from 15 to 30 per cent, including on unrealised capital gains. As it stands, the revenue-raising measure will not be indexed to inflation or wage growth. The situation perfectly illustrates why the words Canberra and chaos sit together so snugly. Around the grounds this week and the South Australian branch of the Liberal Party voted to walk back its support of net-zero, we suspect Alex Antic was somehow involved. The good people of Tasmania may be heading for a by-election after the upper house blew up the leadership of Premier Jeremy Rockliff. And a silly sexist quip made during a debate about gender quotas from the bloke appointed to run the NSW branch of the Liberal Party, Alan Stockdale, was a step back in time, or revealed he had never caught up with it. The lead balloon went down on Tuesday when Mr Stockdale told the NSW Liberal Women's Council that "women are sufficiently assertive now" and that the Libs "should be giving some thought to whether we need to protect men's involvement". The 80-year-old's joke was as popular as a few of the budgets the former Victorian state treasurer delivered for Liberal Premier Jeff Kennett. Stockdale apologised, however, party honchos were forced to spend a chunk of the week dousing the chaos the comments created, with federal leader Sussan Ley saying she "encourages assertive women to join the Liberal Party". Australia's fresh produce industry has formed a very healthy new relationship with The Wiggles for a national campaign to encourage children to eat more fruit and vegetables. The International Fresh Produce Association Australia campaign was launched at Hort Connections in Brisbane and comes as new research shows less than half of Aussie parents say that fruit and veg actually make up most of their children's snacks. The Wiggles have rolled out a jingle by rewording their classic banger 'Fruit Salad Yummy Yummy' to 'Fruit and Veggies Yummy Yummy'. Blue Wiggle Anthony Field said the collaboration was a natural fit. "We are so excited to be part of this campaign," he said. "With more than 30 years of singing songs like 'Fruit Salad Yummy Yummy' and 'Hot Potato', this partnership takes our commitment even further, really showing children just how fun and delicious healthy eating can be." Shire councillor Sherryl Chilcott sent ACM a video capturing the soothing sounds of large hailstones hitting a tin roof after being dumped from a thunderstorm that washed over Wagin, in Western Australia's wheatbelt, earlier this week.
The Advertiser
9 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Albanese will need some nuance in facing a female opposition leader
Anthony Albanese loves a trophy, especially a human one. He prides himself on his various "captain's pick" candidates - good campaigners he has steered into seats. Way back in the Gillard days, he was key in persuading discontented Liberal Peter Slipper to defect. Slipper became an independent and Labor's speaker. The exercise helped the government's numbers, but the bold play didn't end well for Labor or for Slipper. The government was tarnished, and Slipper, relentlessly pursued by the Coalition and mired in controversy, eventually had to quit the speakership. The affair did produce Julia Gillard's famous misogyny speech, however. Now Albanese has another gee-whiz prize - Western Australian senator Dorinda Cox, who has defected from the Greens. Cox, after being defeated in a bid for Greens deputy leader, approached Labor and the PM drove her course to being accepted into the party. The manoeuvre makes a marginal but insignificant difference to Senate numbers - Labor will still need the Greens to pass legislation opposed by the Coalition. Taking in Cox is a risk, and some in Labor are looking at it askance. The prime minister's embrace of Cox contradicts Labor's argument when its Western Australian senator Fatima Payman defected to become an independent. It said then hers was a Labor seat and she should therefore resign. But this wouldn't be the first time expediency trumped consistency in politics. Cox, who is Indigenous and was spokeswoman for First Nations and resources in the last parliament, has been a fierce critic of extending the North West Shelf gas project, which the government has just announced. Albanese says he is confident she "understands that being a member of the Labor Party means that she will support positions that are made by the Labor Party". She has also faced allegations of treating staff badly. Labor discounts the claims against her, saying they are overblown and a product of Greens factionalism and toxicity. Certainly, she was given a tough time by the hard-left faction represented by deputy leader Mehreen Faruqi. Labor would be wise to ensure Cox feels supported in her new party home. Albanese perhaps calculates that the worst that can happen is there's a blow up and she defects to the crossbench. Labor could shrug and say, she was never really one of us. Snatching a senator from the Greens is particularly satisfying to Albanese because he hates the party so much. Last term, lower house Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather (defeated at the election) really got under his skin. More generally, the Greens held up important legislation, most notably on housing. In the new Senate, Labor will need only the Greens to pass legislation opposed by the Coalition. How new Greens leader Larissa Waters - who replaced Adam Bandt after he lost his seat - handles the party's relationship with the government will be crucial for the more contentious parts of Labor's legislative program. The usually low-key Waters will be under a lot of pressure. The Greens had a bad election, losing three lower house seats. Now they have lost a senator at the start of Waters' watch. Waters conceded on the Serious Danger podcast in late May that Labor had successfully run the narrative of the Greens as blockers. "So I do think we're going to need to be quite deft in how we handle balance of power in this term, [...] People want us to be constructive. They don't just want us to roll over and tick off on any old shit. They want meaningful reforms." Waters will want to pick her fights carefully, and also find ways of pursuing the Greens' agenda where the party co-operates. The first deal is likely to be on the government's legislation to increase the tax on those with large superannuation balances, which contains the controversial provision to tax unrealised capital gains. Opposition Leader Sussan Ley and her team will confront some of the same problems as the Greens - when to oppose and when to seek to negotiate with the government. For his part, Albanese will have a novel challenge with Ley - what stance to adopt against the first female opposition leader, especially but not only in parliamentary clashes. After facing two alpha male Liberal leaders, Scott Morrison and Peter Dutton, a new approach will obviously be necessary. As one Labor man succinctly puts it, "Labor can't monster a woman". There can be no repeat of Albanese, a frontbencher a decade ago in the Shorten opposition, interjecting to urge a female colleague engaged in a stoush with Ley to "smash her". For Ley, trying to deal with the Liberals' multiple difficulties in attracting women voters and candidates must be high on her agenda. Former Liberal federal president Alan Stockdale, one of the three-person group currently running the NSW division of the party, showed himself part of the problem when this week he told the NSW Liberal Women's Council, "The women in this party are so assertive now that we may need some special rules for men to get them pre-selected". READ MORE: Stockdale said later he was being "light-hearted". Tone deaf might be a better term. Ley jumped on him. "There is nothing wrong with being an assertive woman. In fact I encourage assertive women to join the Liberal Party." The jury is out on whether Ley will be able to make any sort of fist of her near-impossible job. But in the short time she's been leader, she has shown she is willing to be assertive. She emerged from the brief split in the Coalition looking much steadier than Nationals leader David Littleproud, even though she had to persuade her party room to accept the minor party's policy demands. In her frontbench reshuffle, she was willing to wear the inevitable criticism that came with dropping a couple of senior women who had under-performed. As deputy leader, Ley adjusted her style a while before the election, toning down the aggression and sometimes wild attacks, that had characterised her performance earlier in the term. A Liberal source said she found her "line and length". As leader, she will have others, notably deputy Ted O'Brien, to do the head-kicking, giving her room to attempt to develop a positive political persona. Labor leaned into attacking Dutton - never afraid to name him. With Ley, Albanese might adopt the Bob Carr approach of avoiding using his opponent's name. At least until he finds his line and length in dealing with her. Anthony Albanese loves a trophy, especially a human one. He prides himself on his various "captain's pick" candidates - good campaigners he has steered into seats. Way back in the Gillard days, he was key in persuading discontented Liberal Peter Slipper to defect. Slipper became an independent and Labor's speaker. The exercise helped the government's numbers, but the bold play didn't end well for Labor or for Slipper. The government was tarnished, and Slipper, relentlessly pursued by the Coalition and mired in controversy, eventually had to quit the speakership. The affair did produce Julia Gillard's famous misogyny speech, however. Now Albanese has another gee-whiz prize - Western Australian senator Dorinda Cox, who has defected from the Greens. Cox, after being defeated in a bid for Greens deputy leader, approached Labor and the PM drove her course to being accepted into the party. The manoeuvre makes a marginal but insignificant difference to Senate numbers - Labor will still need the Greens to pass legislation opposed by the Coalition. Taking in Cox is a risk, and some in Labor are looking at it askance. The prime minister's embrace of Cox contradicts Labor's argument when its Western Australian senator Fatima Payman defected to become an independent. It said then hers was a Labor seat and she should therefore resign. But this wouldn't be the first time expediency trumped consistency in politics. Cox, who is Indigenous and was spokeswoman for First Nations and resources in the last parliament, has been a fierce critic of extending the North West Shelf gas project, which the government has just announced. Albanese says he is confident she "understands that being a member of the Labor Party means that she will support positions that are made by the Labor Party". She has also faced allegations of treating staff badly. Labor discounts the claims against her, saying they are overblown and a product of Greens factionalism and toxicity. Certainly, she was given a tough time by the hard-left faction represented by deputy leader Mehreen Faruqi. Labor would be wise to ensure Cox feels supported in her new party home. Albanese perhaps calculates that the worst that can happen is there's a blow up and she defects to the crossbench. Labor could shrug and say, she was never really one of us. Snatching a senator from the Greens is particularly satisfying to Albanese because he hates the party so much. Last term, lower house Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather (defeated at the election) really got under his skin. More generally, the Greens held up important legislation, most notably on housing. In the new Senate, Labor will need only the Greens to pass legislation opposed by the Coalition. How new Greens leader Larissa Waters - who replaced Adam Bandt after he lost his seat - handles the party's relationship with the government will be crucial for the more contentious parts of Labor's legislative program. The usually low-key Waters will be under a lot of pressure. The Greens had a bad election, losing three lower house seats. Now they have lost a senator at the start of Waters' watch. Waters conceded on the Serious Danger podcast in late May that Labor had successfully run the narrative of the Greens as blockers. "So I do think we're going to need to be quite deft in how we handle balance of power in this term, [...] People want us to be constructive. They don't just want us to roll over and tick off on any old shit. They want meaningful reforms." Waters will want to pick her fights carefully, and also find ways of pursuing the Greens' agenda where the party co-operates. The first deal is likely to be on the government's legislation to increase the tax on those with large superannuation balances, which contains the controversial provision to tax unrealised capital gains. Opposition Leader Sussan Ley and her team will confront some of the same problems as the Greens - when to oppose and when to seek to negotiate with the government. For his part, Albanese will have a novel challenge with Ley - what stance to adopt against the first female opposition leader, especially but not only in parliamentary clashes. After facing two alpha male Liberal leaders, Scott Morrison and Peter Dutton, a new approach will obviously be necessary. As one Labor man succinctly puts it, "Labor can't monster a woman". There can be no repeat of Albanese, a frontbencher a decade ago in the Shorten opposition, interjecting to urge a female colleague engaged in a stoush with Ley to "smash her". For Ley, trying to deal with the Liberals' multiple difficulties in attracting women voters and candidates must be high on her agenda. Former Liberal federal president Alan Stockdale, one of the three-person group currently running the NSW division of the party, showed himself part of the problem when this week he told the NSW Liberal Women's Council, "The women in this party are so assertive now that we may need some special rules for men to get them pre-selected". READ MORE: Stockdale said later he was being "light-hearted". Tone deaf might be a better term. Ley jumped on him. "There is nothing wrong with being an assertive woman. In fact I encourage assertive women to join the Liberal Party." The jury is out on whether Ley will be able to make any sort of fist of her near-impossible job. But in the short time she's been leader, she has shown she is willing to be assertive. She emerged from the brief split in the Coalition looking much steadier than Nationals leader David Littleproud, even though she had to persuade her party room to accept the minor party's policy demands. In her frontbench reshuffle, she was willing to wear the inevitable criticism that came with dropping a couple of senior women who had under-performed. As deputy leader, Ley adjusted her style a while before the election, toning down the aggression and sometimes wild attacks, that had characterised her performance earlier in the term. A Liberal source said she found her "line and length". As leader, she will have others, notably deputy Ted O'Brien, to do the head-kicking, giving her room to attempt to develop a positive political persona. Labor leaned into attacking Dutton - never afraid to name him. With Ley, Albanese might adopt the Bob Carr approach of avoiding using his opponent's name. At least until he finds his line and length in dealing with her. Anthony Albanese loves a trophy, especially a human one. He prides himself on his various "captain's pick" candidates - good campaigners he has steered into seats. Way back in the Gillard days, he was key in persuading discontented Liberal Peter Slipper to defect. Slipper became an independent and Labor's speaker. The exercise helped the government's numbers, but the bold play didn't end well for Labor or for Slipper. The government was tarnished, and Slipper, relentlessly pursued by the Coalition and mired in controversy, eventually had to quit the speakership. The affair did produce Julia Gillard's famous misogyny speech, however. Now Albanese has another gee-whiz prize - Western Australian senator Dorinda Cox, who has defected from the Greens. Cox, after being defeated in a bid for Greens deputy leader, approached Labor and the PM drove her course to being accepted into the party. The manoeuvre makes a marginal but insignificant difference to Senate numbers - Labor will still need the Greens to pass legislation opposed by the Coalition. Taking in Cox is a risk, and some in Labor are looking at it askance. The prime minister's embrace of Cox contradicts Labor's argument when its Western Australian senator Fatima Payman defected to become an independent. It said then hers was a Labor seat and she should therefore resign. But this wouldn't be the first time expediency trumped consistency in politics. Cox, who is Indigenous and was spokeswoman for First Nations and resources in the last parliament, has been a fierce critic of extending the North West Shelf gas project, which the government has just announced. Albanese says he is confident she "understands that being a member of the Labor Party means that she will support positions that are made by the Labor Party". She has also faced allegations of treating staff badly. Labor discounts the claims against her, saying they are overblown and a product of Greens factionalism and toxicity. Certainly, she was given a tough time by the hard-left faction represented by deputy leader Mehreen Faruqi. Labor would be wise to ensure Cox feels supported in her new party home. Albanese perhaps calculates that the worst that can happen is there's a blow up and she defects to the crossbench. Labor could shrug and say, she was never really one of us. Snatching a senator from the Greens is particularly satisfying to Albanese because he hates the party so much. Last term, lower house Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather (defeated at the election) really got under his skin. More generally, the Greens held up important legislation, most notably on housing. In the new Senate, Labor will need only the Greens to pass legislation opposed by the Coalition. How new Greens leader Larissa Waters - who replaced Adam Bandt after he lost his seat - handles the party's relationship with the government will be crucial for the more contentious parts of Labor's legislative program. The usually low-key Waters will be under a lot of pressure. The Greens had a bad election, losing three lower house seats. Now they have lost a senator at the start of Waters' watch. Waters conceded on the Serious Danger podcast in late May that Labor had successfully run the narrative of the Greens as blockers. "So I do think we're going to need to be quite deft in how we handle balance of power in this term, [...] People want us to be constructive. They don't just want us to roll over and tick off on any old shit. They want meaningful reforms." Waters will want to pick her fights carefully, and also find ways of pursuing the Greens' agenda where the party co-operates. The first deal is likely to be on the government's legislation to increase the tax on those with large superannuation balances, which contains the controversial provision to tax unrealised capital gains. Opposition Leader Sussan Ley and her team will confront some of the same problems as the Greens - when to oppose and when to seek to negotiate with the government. For his part, Albanese will have a novel challenge with Ley - what stance to adopt against the first female opposition leader, especially but not only in parliamentary clashes. After facing two alpha male Liberal leaders, Scott Morrison and Peter Dutton, a new approach will obviously be necessary. As one Labor man succinctly puts it, "Labor can't monster a woman". There can be no repeat of Albanese, a frontbencher a decade ago in the Shorten opposition, interjecting to urge a female colleague engaged in a stoush with Ley to "smash her". For Ley, trying to deal with the Liberals' multiple difficulties in attracting women voters and candidates must be high on her agenda. Former Liberal federal president Alan Stockdale, one of the three-person group currently running the NSW division of the party, showed himself part of the problem when this week he told the NSW Liberal Women's Council, "The women in this party are so assertive now that we may need some special rules for men to get them pre-selected". READ MORE: Stockdale said later he was being "light-hearted". Tone deaf might be a better term. Ley jumped on him. "There is nothing wrong with being an assertive woman. In fact I encourage assertive women to join the Liberal Party." The jury is out on whether Ley will be able to make any sort of fist of her near-impossible job. But in the short time she's been leader, she has shown she is willing to be assertive. She emerged from the brief split in the Coalition looking much steadier than Nationals leader David Littleproud, even though she had to persuade her party room to accept the minor party's policy demands. In her frontbench reshuffle, she was willing to wear the inevitable criticism that came with dropping a couple of senior women who had under-performed. As deputy leader, Ley adjusted her style a while before the election, toning down the aggression and sometimes wild attacks, that had characterised her performance earlier in the term. A Liberal source said she found her "line and length". As leader, she will have others, notably deputy Ted O'Brien, to do the head-kicking, giving her room to attempt to develop a positive political persona. Labor leaned into attacking Dutton - never afraid to name him. With Ley, Albanese might adopt the Bob Carr approach of avoiding using his opponent's name. At least until he finds his line and length in dealing with her. Anthony Albanese loves a trophy, especially a human one. He prides himself on his various "captain's pick" candidates - good campaigners he has steered into seats. Way back in the Gillard days, he was key in persuading discontented Liberal Peter Slipper to defect. Slipper became an independent and Labor's speaker. The exercise helped the government's numbers, but the bold play didn't end well for Labor or for Slipper. The government was tarnished, and Slipper, relentlessly pursued by the Coalition and mired in controversy, eventually had to quit the speakership. The affair did produce Julia Gillard's famous misogyny speech, however. Now Albanese has another gee-whiz prize - Western Australian senator Dorinda Cox, who has defected from the Greens. Cox, after being defeated in a bid for Greens deputy leader, approached Labor and the PM drove her course to being accepted into the party. The manoeuvre makes a marginal but insignificant difference to Senate numbers - Labor will still need the Greens to pass legislation opposed by the Coalition. Taking in Cox is a risk, and some in Labor are looking at it askance. The prime minister's embrace of Cox contradicts Labor's argument when its Western Australian senator Fatima Payman defected to become an independent. It said then hers was a Labor seat and she should therefore resign. But this wouldn't be the first time expediency trumped consistency in politics. Cox, who is Indigenous and was spokeswoman for First Nations and resources in the last parliament, has been a fierce critic of extending the North West Shelf gas project, which the government has just announced. Albanese says he is confident she "understands that being a member of the Labor Party means that she will support positions that are made by the Labor Party". She has also faced allegations of treating staff badly. Labor discounts the claims against her, saying they are overblown and a product of Greens factionalism and toxicity. Certainly, she was given a tough time by the hard-left faction represented by deputy leader Mehreen Faruqi. Labor would be wise to ensure Cox feels supported in her new party home. Albanese perhaps calculates that the worst that can happen is there's a blow up and she defects to the crossbench. Labor could shrug and say, she was never really one of us. Snatching a senator from the Greens is particularly satisfying to Albanese because he hates the party so much. Last term, lower house Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather (defeated at the election) really got under his skin. More generally, the Greens held up important legislation, most notably on housing. In the new Senate, Labor will need only the Greens to pass legislation opposed by the Coalition. How new Greens leader Larissa Waters - who replaced Adam Bandt after he lost his seat - handles the party's relationship with the government will be crucial for the more contentious parts of Labor's legislative program. The usually low-key Waters will be under a lot of pressure. The Greens had a bad election, losing three lower house seats. Now they have lost a senator at the start of Waters' watch. Waters conceded on the Serious Danger podcast in late May that Labor had successfully run the narrative of the Greens as blockers. "So I do think we're going to need to be quite deft in how we handle balance of power in this term, [...] People want us to be constructive. They don't just want us to roll over and tick off on any old shit. They want meaningful reforms." Waters will want to pick her fights carefully, and also find ways of pursuing the Greens' agenda where the party co-operates. The first deal is likely to be on the government's legislation to increase the tax on those with large superannuation balances, which contains the controversial provision to tax unrealised capital gains. Opposition Leader Sussan Ley and her team will confront some of the same problems as the Greens - when to oppose and when to seek to negotiate with the government. For his part, Albanese will have a novel challenge with Ley - what stance to adopt against the first female opposition leader, especially but not only in parliamentary clashes. After facing two alpha male Liberal leaders, Scott Morrison and Peter Dutton, a new approach will obviously be necessary. As one Labor man succinctly puts it, "Labor can't monster a woman". There can be no repeat of Albanese, a frontbencher a decade ago in the Shorten opposition, interjecting to urge a female colleague engaged in a stoush with Ley to "smash her". For Ley, trying to deal with the Liberals' multiple difficulties in attracting women voters and candidates must be high on her agenda. Former Liberal federal president Alan Stockdale, one of the three-person group currently running the NSW division of the party, showed himself part of the problem when this week he told the NSW Liberal Women's Council, "The women in this party are so assertive now that we may need some special rules for men to get them pre-selected". READ MORE: Stockdale said later he was being "light-hearted". Tone deaf might be a better term. Ley jumped on him. "There is nothing wrong with being an assertive woman. In fact I encourage assertive women to join the Liberal Party." The jury is out on whether Ley will be able to make any sort of fist of her near-impossible job. But in the short time she's been leader, she has shown she is willing to be assertive. She emerged from the brief split in the Coalition looking much steadier than Nationals leader David Littleproud, even though she had to persuade her party room to accept the minor party's policy demands. In her frontbench reshuffle, she was willing to wear the inevitable criticism that came with dropping a couple of senior women who had under-performed. As deputy leader, Ley adjusted her style a while before the election, toning down the aggression and sometimes wild attacks, that had characterised her performance earlier in the term. A Liberal source said she found her "line and length". As leader, she will have others, notably deputy Ted O'Brien, to do the head-kicking, giving her room to attempt to develop a positive political persona. Labor leaned into attacking Dutton - never afraid to name him. With Ley, Albanese might adopt the Bob Carr approach of avoiding using his opponent's name. At least until he finds his line and length in dealing with her.
