Latest news with #Anthony Albanese
News.com.au
2 days ago
- Business
- News.com.au
New $800m payment for AUKUS was scheduled, Prime Minister says
Australia has sent another $800m to the US as part of the AUKUS deal, which the Trump administration has under review, but the Prime Minister says it was simply a part of the 'schedule'. Anthony Albanese was asked about the new payment that took the total to $1.6bn, which was reported in Nine newspapers on Wednesday. 'There is a schedule of payments to be made, we have an agreement with the United States as well as with the United Kingdom,' Mr Albanese told ABC's Afternoon Briefing. 'It is about increasing the capacity, their industrial capacity, and as part of that, we have Australians on the ground, learning the skills so that when it comes to the SSN-AUKUS, the submarines being built here in Australia, we have those skills.' Defence Minister Richard Marles earlier confirmed the report saying 'the payments are occurring in line with Australia's commitment to contribute US$2bn by the end of 2025, which underscores our commitment to the successful delivery of AUKUS Pillar I outcomes'. The US' review was announced in June and is being headed up by Elbridge Colby, the US undersecretary of defence. Mr Colby recently made headlines when it was revealed he was pressuring the Australian and Japanese governments to reveal what they would do if China invaded Taiwan. The AUKUS deal is a long-term arrangement that will cost upwards of $268bn, and as much as $368bn, over the next 30 years. Australia would buy nuclear submarines from the US, while developing our own capacity to build submarines in Adelaide. The new payment came as Opposition defence spokesman Angus Taylor said he was 'worried' about the government's position on defence. 'I worry that the government – I think it's not just me worried, I think every expert looking at this is making these comments – they're deeply worried that we're not on our way to having the defence force we need in such an uncertain time,' Mr Taylor said.
The Guardian
2 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Australia pays US another $800m for Aukus amid Trump administration review of security pact
Australia made a second $800m payment to America's shipbuilding industry – bringing total payments so far to $1.6bn which was promised before the Trump administration placied the Aukus agreement under review. As part of the Aukus deal – in which Australia would buy nuclear submarines from the US ahead of its own nuclear submarines being built in Adelaide - Australia has agreed to pay about $4.6bn towards boosting US shipbuilding capacity. After decades of under-investment, the US has fewer nuclear submarines than it needs for its own defence, and is building them too slowly to replace its ageing fleet, potentially jeopardising the sale of any submarines to Australia. The office of Australian defence minister Richard Marles has confirmed the second $800m payment was made in the second quarter of 2025 to boost US boat-building, with payments occurring 'in line with Australia's commitment to contribute US$2 billion by the end of 2025'. A further payment is due later this year. 'When the AUKUS pathway was announced in March 2023, Australia was clear that we would make a proportionate contribution to the United States industrial base,' a defence spokesperson said 'Australia's contribution is about accelerating US production rates and maintenance to enable the delivery of Australia's future Virginia class submarines.' Anthony Albanese confirmed the payment was made as part of an agreed schedule, committed to before the US announced its review of Aukus. 'There is a schedule of payments to be made, we have an agreement with the United States as well as with the United Kingdom, it is about increasing the capacity, their industrial capacity, and as part of that, we have Australians on the ground, learning the skills so that when it comes to the SSN Aukus, the submarines being built here in Australia, we have those skills.' Australia is also paying the UK about $4.6bn to assist its shipbuilding industry. In June, US president Donald Trump ordered a review into the Aukus deal signed by his predecessor Joe Biden. The review is being headed by the Pentagon's under secretary of defense for policy Elbridge Colby, who has previously declared himself 'skeptical' about the deal, fearing it could leave US sailors exposed and under-resourced. There is speculation the review could demand further financial contributions – or political commitments such as support in a conflict over Taiwan – from Australia in exchange for the sale of nuclear submarines and transfer of nuclear technology. The US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has already asked Australia to lift its overall defence spending to 3.5% of GDP, from its current level of 2%. The US has been demanding similar increases from other allies, including Nato countries. One of the most significant concerns over Aukus in the US is the naval superpower's capacity to spare any submarines to sell to Australia: the first sale is forecast for 2032. The Aukus agreement mandates that before any submarine can be sold to Australia, the US commander-in-chief – the president of the day – must certify that America relinquishing a submarine will not diminish the US navy's undersea capability. The US's submarine fleet numbers are currently a quarter below their target and the country is producing boats at half the rate it needs to service its own needs, US government figures show. Marles told parliament in question time that Aukus would deliver Australia a 'long-range submarine capability' required for a more contested region and world. 'We are living in a more volatile world with increasing challenges… we need a defence force which will give pause for thought for any potential adversary which seeks to coerce us.' The head of the Australian Submarine Agency, Vice-Admiral Jonathan Mead, told senate estimates in February this year Australia's funding to the US industrial base was a vital element of the Aukus deal. 'This contribution will help uplift the US submarine industrial base capacity and accelerate sustainment and production to enable the delivery of Virginia class submarines to Australia. 'Australia's contribution to the US submarine industrial base is to benefit both the United States and Australia.'
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Inside the Labor Party's bold push to increase taxes on property investors: 'Government now has a mandate to rectify inequity'
Labor Party activists are pushing to scrap the discount on capital gains tax when selling investment properties, despite Anthony Albanese ruling out such changes when in Opposition. Former Labor leader Bill Shorten lost the 2016 and 2019 elections with a plan to halve the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount to 25 per cent. The lesson of those election defeats led Albanese to rule out tinkering with capital gains taxes after he took over as Labor leader, and he went on to win the 2022 election and was resoundingly re-elected in May. But now a grassroots organisation within the Prime Minister's own party – Labor for Housing – wants the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount scrapped entirely, not just diluted. That meant someone who made a $100,000 capital gain on their investment property would be taxed on the entire increase, not just $50,000 of it. Labor for Housing co-convener Julijana Todorovic told Daily Mail Australia the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount for selling residential properties introduced in September 1999, needed to be dismantled. 'We think it should be removed entirely, so not immediately,' she said. 'Property should not be an investment for which you can claim the discount.' Ms Todorovic, a land rights lawyer, said the Albanese government should change policy before the next election campaign. 'Our view is that the Labor government now has a mandate to rectify inequity in Australian society,' she said. 'While it's clear from the election results that we can't be too radical, we must do something to stem the flow of generational inequity.' She argued the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount should be grandfathered for existing investors but scrapped for future purchases - a position the Greens took to the May election. 'We are proposing that residential property is removed as a category for which the discount can be claimed,' Ms Todorovic said. 'But we're proposing that this change is grandfathered to a certain date – so if people have structured their finances based on the discount, then they will have time to restructure – they won't be left high and dry.' Labor for Housing argued that scrapping the discount for properties would encourage investors to invest in technology and businesses, rather than putting all their funds into real estate and thereby driving up the country's massive house prices. 'Australia's capital resources have become landlocked by a CGT discount on property,' it said in a submission to the government's August Economic Reform Roundtable. 'As Australia electrifies, transitions to renewables and increases our data capacity, businesses are struggling to find adequate capital. 'By incentivising investment in the productive powers of the market, the government can increase the circular flow of capital in the economy, creating jobs and additional economic activity.' The Greens went to the last election with a plan to scrap the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount for future purchases of investment properties, and grandfather it to one property for those who already owned an investment property. While Labor has a landslide majority in the House of Representatives, it just needs the Greens to get its legislation passed in the Senate without the need to win the support of other crossbenchers. The Labor-aligned McKell Institute has called for the federal government to reduce the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount to 35 per cent for existing investment properties with a backyard. This means $65,000 of a $100,000 capital gain would be taxed, up from $50,000 now. But it has also called for the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount to be increased to 70 per cent for newly-built apartments, arguing this kind of policy would boost housing supply and encourage more off-the-plan unit developments. That means only $30,000 of a $100,000 capital gain would be taxed - and force more Aussies into apartments rather than homes with a backyard as Labor aims to build 1.2million homes over five years. The McKell Institute's Harnessing Aspiration report argued the existing 50 per cent capital gains tax discount encouraged investor speculators to buy up houses at a time when there is a shortage. 'There is a unique incentive for investors to speculate on existing detached houses rather than non-existing off-the -plan attached dwellings or established attached dwellings,' he said. 'The blanket tax treatment of each of these asset types means an investor is much more attracted to high-growth existing detached dwellings than moderate-growth attached dwellings, especially new builds.' The average, full-time worker earning $102,742 a year is priced out of buying the median-priced house in every state and territory capital city except Darwin. Ms Todorovic said Labor for Housing's call to scrap the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount was not about stopping property speculation, but merely to have it treated the same way as other forms of speculative investment. 'It won't – this isn't the tool to correct speculation, this is about removing incentives which preference land above other more productive investments,' she said.
RNZ News
3 days ago
- Health
- RNZ News
Toxic algae bloom lingers off Australia, killing marine life
By Laura Chung for AFP South Australian authorities hoped the bloom would disperse, but it has spread across the region. File photo. Photo: 123RF A vast toxic algae bloom has sparked growing concern in Australia as it lingers off the south coast, killing hundreds of marine species and disrupting fisheries. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese unlocked federal funds this week to cope with the Karenia mikimotoi algae as it persists four months after first appearing. South Australia's government said it was holding an emergency meeting Tuesday to be briefed by scientists on the phenomenon. The algae, which damages the gills of fish and suffocates them, stretched across 4400 square kilometres when it was first spotted in mid-March, according to the state government. While South Australian authorities hoped the bloom would disperse, it has instead spread across the region, the latest government update said. A marine heatwave in the area had "largely abated", it said, but remained in some deeper waters. Beaches on wildlife-rich tourist draws such as Kangaroo Island, Yorke Peninsula and Fleurieu Peninsula have been littered with the marine carcasses of sharks, rays, crabs and octopuses. "It's hard to overstate the extreme severity of the algal-bloom environmental crisis in South Australia," said marine ecologist Adriana Verges from University of New South Wales. "We are talking about extensive mortality of nearly 500 different marine species, including key habitat-forming sponges and other invertebrates, as well as fish. It's completely devastating." Karenia mikimotoi has been detected around the world, including in waters off Japan, Norway, the United States and China, since the 1930s and disrupted local tourism and fishery industries, causing millions of dollars worth of damage. Ian Mitchell, who manages a fish market in Adelaide, said some people had not caught anything since April. "It's the worst I've ever seen it," he told national broadcaster ABC. "I'm speaking to fishermen on a daily basis, and I've got fishermen in tears on the phone." The federal government announced on Monday A$14 million in financial assistance to impacted fisheries, clean-up efforts and research into preparedness. The prime minister said a "whole range of issues" had led to the event, including nutrient-rich floodwater runoff and above-average ocean temperatures. Historically fishing and aquaculture industries can take years to recover from these algae blooms, said Australian Marine Conservation Society chief executive Paul Gamblin. "It's an enormous red flashing warning that climate change has arrived off Australia and it is having enormous impacts," he told AFP. South Australia has not previously experienced a toxic algae bloom of this scale or duration. Local authorities have urged beachgoers to avoid swimming in water that is discoloured or foamy, warning that it can irritate the skin and affect breathing. Climate change has led to an increase in the frequency and duration of marine heatwaves across Australia, which significantly affects marine ecosystems. - AFP
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Aussie Labor Party's plan to raise taxes on property investors
Labor Party activists are pushing to scrap the discount on capital gains tax when selling investment properties, despite Anthony Albanese ruling out such changes when in Opposition. Former Labor leader Bill Shorten lost the 2016 and 2019 elections with a plan to halve the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount to 25 per cent. The lesson of those election defeats led Albanese to rule out tinkering with capital gains taxes after he took over as Labor leader, and he went on to win the 2022 election and was resoundingly re-elected in May. But now a grassroots organisation within the Prime Minister's own party – Labor for Housing – wants the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount scrapped entirely, not just diluted. That meant someone who made a $100,000 capital gain on their investment property would be taxed on the entire increase, not just $50,000 of it. Labor for Housing co-convener Julijana Todorovic (pictured) told Daily Mail Australia the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount for selling residential properties introduced in September 1999, needed to be dismantled. 'We think it should be removed entirely, so not immediately,' she said. 'Property should not be an investment for which you can claim the discount.' Ms Todorovic, a land rights lawyer, said the Albanese government should change policy before the next election campaign. 'Our view is that the Labor government now has a mandate to rectify inequity in Australian society,' she said. 'While it's clear from the election results that we can't be too radical, we must do something to stem the flow of generational inequity.' She argued the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount should be grandfathered for existing investors but scrapped for future purchases - a position the Greens took to the May election. 'We are proposing that residential property is removed as a category for which the discount can be claimed,' Ms Todorovic said. 'But we're proposing that this change is grandfathered to a certain date – so if people have structured their finances based on the discount, then they will have time to restructure – they won't be left high and dry.' Labor for Housing argued that scrapping the discount would encourage investors to invest in technology and businesses, rather than putting all their funds into real estate and thereby driving up the country's massive house prices. 'Australia's capital resources have become landlocked by a CGT discount on property,' it said in a submission to the government's August Economic Reform Roundtable. 'As Australia electrifies, transitions to renewables and increases our data capacity, businesses are struggling to find adequate capital. By incentivising investment in the productive powers of the market, the government can increase the circular flow of capital in the economy, creating jobs and additional economic activity.' The Greens went to the last election with a plan to scrap the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount for future purchases of investment properties, and grandfather it to one property for those who already owned an investment property. While Labor has a landslide majority in the House of Representatives, it needs the Greens or other Senate crossbenchers to get its legislation passed by the Upper House. The Labor-aligned McKell Institute has called for the federal government to reduce the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount to 35 per cent for existing investment properties with a backyard. This means $65,000 of a $100,000 capital gain would be taxed, up from $50,000 now. But it has also called for the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount to be increased to 70 per cent for newly-built apartments, arguing this kind of policy would boost housing supply and encourage more off-the-plan unit developments. That means only $30,000 of a $100,000 capital gain would be taxed - and force more Aussies into apartments rather than homes with a backyard as Labor aims to build 1.2million homes over five years. The McKell Institute's Harnessing Aspiration report argued the existing 50 per cent capital gains tax discount encouraged investor speculators to buy up houses at a time when there is a shortage. 'There is a unique incentive for investors to speculate on existing detached houses rather than non-existing off-the -plan attached dwellings or established attached dwellings,' he said. 'The blanket tax treatment of each of these asset types means an investor is much more attracted to high-growth existing detached dwellings than moderate-growth attached dwellings, especially new builds.' The average, full-time worker earning $102,742 a year is priced out of buying the median-priced house in every state and territory capital city except Darwin.
