“How many more humiliating backdowns will it take for the treasurer to admit his budget is a failure?,” asks Nationals MP Alison Penfold. who says the treasurer yesterday defended the inclusion of the “widow tax” in the legislation because the rule was consistent with the current CGT settings.
Jim Chalmers starts with a bit of an odd rebuke, saying “I’ll tell you what’s humiliating, Mr Speaker. The shadow treasurer’s inability to ask me a question himself”.
Chalmers says that the government took “particular care” in its response yesterday. it was still considering amendments that were being put forward in the Senate.
double quotation mark I think everybody here,. everybody watching at home and in the galleries as well, knows what’s really happening here. They are trying to distract from the fact that when the bills come back down from the Senate. that they will vote against tax cuts for workers.
And that’s what they’re trying to obscure, they’re desperately hoping that nobody notices that the three rightwing parties. their divisive anti-worker agenda will see them vote against tax cuts once again.
The opposition says that the question was about a “humiliating backflip”. Milton Dick agrees the treasurer should talk about the policy, not the opposition.
Chalmers ends his answer calling the legislation a “win” for first home buyers.
Independent MP Kate Chaney says she opted not to join a new political party aimed at the political centre. she didn’t see any “immediate benefit” for her community.
Appearing on Sky News, Chaney was asked about her fellow teal independent MPs Zali Steggall. Allegra Spender launching a a new political party called Community Strong Australia, with the stated aim of providing a centrist alternative for voters amid the rise of One Nation and turmoil inside the Coalition.
double quotation mark I still think that I can deliver a lot of value to my community as an independent. I’ll continue to do that and I couldn’t see any immediate benefit for my community or progressing the agenda to form to be part of a political party.
She added that she wouldn’t rule out joining a party in the future:
double quotation mark It’s true that the electoral reform package that the major parties pushed through will make it harder for independents to be elected…. at the moment it just doesn’t seem like a priority for me. I want to focus on the policy issues rather than thinking about political parties.
Thank you all so much for joining me on the blog this sitting week – it’s been an eventful one. to say the least!
There’s plenty more news to come this afternoon, and I’ll leave you in the very capable hands of Adeshola Ore.
Tl;dr: here’s what happened in question time
The Coalition tried to pin down the government on exactly when it knew about the impacts the CGT legislation would have on widows. divorcees. The housing minister avoided providing a timeline, and gave increasingly short answers.
Angus Taylor also accused the government of rolling out a welcome mat for a woman linked to Isis. The PM accused Taylor of using language that spy boss Mike Burgess had warned against.
The prime minister refused a call by the Greens to back a plebiscite for a 25% tax on gas exports.
The prime minister was also challenged on forcing social media companies to allow users to opt out of algorithms – we didn’t get a straight answer on whether the government would take. action.
And three MPs left the chamber today, two officially got the boot ( including one within the first minute ),. one left before Milton Dick could formally make him.
After a final dixer to education minister, Jason Clare, the PM calls time on QT for the week.
Before we get out of the chamber, I’ll leave you with this sledge from Clare to the opposition:
double quotation mark You’ve got the Liberal party, you’ve got the National party. you’ve got One Nation all competing against each other to see who can be the most extreme.
Whether it is on education or multiculturalism or anything else. They’re like the Neapolitan ice-cream of Australian politics, Mr Speaker. The problem is they all want to be vanilla!
Allegra Spender asks if Labor will force social media companies to allow users to opt out of algorithms
Allegra Spender. now of the Community Strong party, asks the prime minister if the government will force social media companies to allow users to opt out of algorithms as part of its digital duty-of-care legislation. She says “social media algorithms feed extremism and polarisation”.
Anthony Albanese says the government needs to do more to protect people and children from harm online.
He says the government will continue to consult on its digital duty-of-care legislation to figure out how best to do that.
double quotation mark We know that, as the member has said, algorithms drive people towards more. more extreme positions, so they start off in a mainstream position, talking about ethnicity, perhaps, or faith, and they end up over a period of time receiving in their inbox, not just children, adults as well, of course, can be impacted by this with Nazi-level propaganda, with calls for violence.
We’ve increased the funding for the eSafety Commissioner by four times. We’ve introduced fines of $49.5m to be available for breaches of the social media ban aimed at young people, but clearly we are going to need to do more,. that’s what the digital duty-of-care is about.
O’Neil dodges question on CGT legislation
Liberal MP Leon Rebello wants some clarification on exactly when the government knew about issues. the CGT legislation would have on spouses affected by divorce or death.
He asks the housing minister, Clare O’Neil, if she knew before or after the budget was handed down.
O’Neil’s response is even shorter this time, but she won’t say exactly when she was made aware of the issue.
double quotation mark We are aware of the issues that the member is raising. We are working through them in the usual way. This will be resolved in a future piece of legislation. I look forward to engaging with the member when it comes forward.
Australia Post ‘running licensees out of business’, Andrew Wilkie says
The Independent MP from Tasmania Andrew Wilkie says he’s spoken to many post office licensees “and it’s clear. Australia Post is running them out of business as it morphs into a parcel delivery service”.
He asks the communications minister, Anika Wells, if the government will stop that from happening.
Wells says under government rules there must be a minimum of 4,000 post offices around the country.
double quotation mark Australia Post is working with its licensees to modernise the arrangements that govern those commercial relationships. The licensing model is decades old … You only need to look at the mobile phones in your pockets to understand why. There is a dramatic decline in the letter business. there is a dramatic decline in the retail foot traffic, all that must be considered.
Opposition questions Labor on CGT changes and effect after divorce or death
When did the government first realise its legislation would “impose a new death tax on widows, divorcees. victims of domestic violence?”, asks Liberal frontbencher Andrew Hastie.
Clare O’Neil gives her shortest answer yet, and says vaguely the government “has been aware for some time”.
The finance minister. Katy Gallagher, told the Senate earlier today the government would change its legislation to protect partners affected by divorce or death from CGT changes in its subsequent tax legislation.
double quotation mark I think the government’s made clear in several statements that this is an issue that we’ve been aware of for some time,. the treasurer has spoken about the government’s deliberations.
‘Listen to the people’: Greens push for plebiscite on gas export tax
Over to the crossbench, Greens MP Elizabeth Watson-Brown asks the prime minister if he’ll “listen to the people”. hold a national plebiscite for a 25% gas export tax.
It feels like it’s been a minute since the debate was catching fire in parliament.
Anthony Albanese says he disputes suggestions from the public campaign for the tax that gas companies aren’t paying levies already.
He then talks about Australia being a “reliable partner” in the region. linking gas exports (and not taxing them) to receiving petrol from our neighbouring countries when the world has been facing a shortage during the crisis in the Middle East.
double quotation mark Some of the campaign [suggests] somehow gas companies or other companies in the resources sector do not pay tax. that there is no company tax, there is no resources tax, the PRRT does not exist, and will not grow in the future. It also ignores … the work that we’ve done on the gas reservation of 20% of exports. which is very important in Western Australia.
“How many more humiliating backdowns will it take for the treasurer to admit his budget is a failure?,” asks Nationals MP Alison Penfold. who says the treasurer yesterday defended the inclusion of the “widow tax” in the legislation because the rule was consistent with the current CGT settings.
Jim Chalmers starts with a bit of an odd rebuke, saying “I’ll tell you what’s humiliating, Mr Speaker. The shadow treasurer’s inability to ask me a question himself”.
Chalmers says that the government took “particular care” in its response yesterday. it was still considering amendments that were being put forward in the Senate.
double quotation mark I think everybody here,. everybody watching at home and in the galleries as well, knows what’s really happening here. They are trying to distract from the fact that when the bills come back down from the Senate. that they will vote against tax cuts for workers.
And that’s what they’re trying to obscure, they’re desperately hoping that nobody notices that the three rightwing parties. their divisive anti-worker agenda will see them vote against tax cuts once again.
The opposition says that the question was about a “humiliating backflip”. Milton Dick agrees the treasurer should talk about the policy, not the opposition.
Chalmers ends his answer calling the legislation a “win” for first home buyers.
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