Dutton moves suspension motion over Palestinian visasPeter Dutton has interrupted the House proceedings with a motion to suspend standing orders to debate his Palestinian visa argument.Here is the line he is going with this morning:
This is not against people of a particular religious belief. This is not against people of a particular political persuasion. This is about keeping our country safe. And Anthony Albanese has failed the Australian public, and he should stand condemned.
Dan Tehan is seconding the motion.The motion reads:
That this House:
(1) notes that the Albanese Government has so far granted almost 3,000 visitor visas to individuals from the Gaza warzone;
(2) notes that in question time yesterday, the Prime Minister claimed that his government has done this under ‘exactly the same arrangements as previous offshore refugee and humanitarian visa grants’;
(3) notes that this is not true;
(4) notes that for the Syrian refugee intake, rigorous security checks were conducted prior to arrival in Australia at a number of key visa processing points, this included the collection and checking of biometric data against Australia’s security agencies and those of our international partners, these checks were supplemented by interview with Australian departmental officers, where claims and identity were assessed;
(5) notes that these measures have not been undertaken under the Albanese government’s change of policy to grant visitor visas, including to people who have expressed sympathy for the Hamas terrorist organisation; and
(6) therefore requires the Prime Minister immediately attend the chamber and explain why he misled this House.
ShareUpdated at 01.47 CESTKey eventsShow key events onlyPlease turn on JavaScript to use this featureTo read more about the job figures today, Peter Hannam has you covered here:ShareUpdated at 03.51 CESTPeter HannamAussie dollar rises on jobs figuresWhile the headline of a higher unemployment rate – 4.2% is the most since January 2022 – will gain attention, the jobs machine that is the Australian economy – so far – is the number of note.Markets have interpreted the data likewise, nudging the Australian dollar higher towards the 66 US cent mark, while stocks pared their gains for the day. (Higher interest rates make it more attractive to hold the Aussie dollar while also denting corporate profits – all things being equal.)ShareUpdated at 03.51 CESTJuly job figures almost triple predictions but jobless rate ticks upPeter HannamThe economy added more than 58,000 jobs in July, even as the jobless rate clicked up to 4.2%.The job gains were almost triple what economists had tipped.ShareUpdated at 03.50 CESTMonique Ryan welcomes Hecs indexation changesKooyong independent MP Monique Ryan has welcomed the changes to how Hecs will be indexed – the government is moving it from being linked to CPI, to the wage price index. Ryan, who hosted a petition on the issue which 288,000 people signed, said “when hundreds of thousands of Australians stand up and demand change, the government has no choice but to listen to them”:
Younger Australians in particular are facing not just insurmountable HECS debts, but a housing crisis. They are also bearing the brunt of the rising cost of living.
The major parties need to do a whole lot more to address the rising cost of housing, energy, and education.
We’ll keep pushing them – this is just the start.
ShareUpdated at 03.28 CESTJacqui Lambie to announce NSW Senate candidates tomorrowThe Tasmanian-based Jacqui Lambie has announced she will be naming the Jacqui Lambie Network’s NSW Senate candidate tomorrow.Lambie is working on taking the JLN national and the next federal election is one of the first tests for that.Independent Senator Jacqui Lambie in March. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The GuardianShareUpdated at 03.27 CESTPeter HannamMarkets put even odds on rate cut in SeptemberThe RBA, for what it’s worth, has said it’s been mildly surprised by how strong the labour market has been despite its 13 interest rate rises since May 2022. Then again, job ads have been dwindling – though remaining well above pre-Covid levels – so it’s possible we’ll get a month of weak demand for new staff.If we do, then calls for an early interest rate cut will likely increase. As things stand, markets are ignoring governor Michele Bullock‘s comments that the central bank is unlikely to cut its cash rate this year – they reckon it’s a 50-50 chance when the board next meets on 23-24 September.Stay tuned for the numbers when they drop at 11.30am Aest.ShareUpdated at 03.16 CESTPeter HannamLabour market figures for July due inWe’ll shortly receive the ABS labour market data for July, a set of figures no doubt of keen interest for those looking for work – or worried about their jobs – and also the Reserve Bank.As always, there may be complexity with the jobs numbers that might take a few minutes to decipher. For one thing, the ABS sometimes revises the previous month’s jobless rate, making it tricky to say the rate “rose” or “fell” or was “unchanged”.Economists, anyway, expect the July unemployment rate to come in at 4.1% – the level the ABS reported last month’s to have been. They also expect the economy to have added 20,000 new jobs, or well down on the 50,000-plus added in June. (Given the swelling population, we need about 30,000-plus extra jobs generated each month to keep the jobless rate steady.)And there are complications, such as how many of the jobs lost or added were full-time, the number of hours worked and whether more or fewer people were looking for work last month.ShareUpdated at 03.16 CESTHanson-Young confronts David LittleproudThe video team have done up the footage of Sarah Hanson-Young’s drive-by comment on David Littleproud a little earlier this morning in the press gallery:Greens senator confronts Nationals leader over Gaza in parliament hall – videoShareUpdated at 03.28 CESTWatt gives rundown on CFMEU law negotiationsMurray Watt’s first job as workplace minister is to get the CFMEU administration through the parliament. The government wanted it through the Senate today, but the Coalition want amendments (making the administration for a minimum of three years, rather than a maximum for example) and the Greens aren’t fans.So it is proving a bit difficult.Here was Watt this morning on ABC radio:
We’ve told the opposition that we don’t support that. The reality is that there are different levels of severity of allegations across different branches, and they need to be treated separately.
What we have said is that the administration would go for a period of three years in total, but also with the power for the administrator to release particular branches from administration, essentially, if they get a clean bill of health once someone’s had a good look at them.
But the issue is that if we make every single branch stay in for three years, that will divert resources away from the problem areas towards divisions and branches which have been found to be fine.
Administration is a costly exercise. We want to make sure that those resources are focused where the biggest need is.
Having said that, under our scheme, every branch, every State and territory branch of the construction division will go into administration at the outset, and then it would be up to the administrator to work out where the most significant problems are, rather than spreading their resources thinly across all of them for three years when it may not be necessary in all cases.
ShareUpdated at 03.05 CESTClare: Dutton ‘not fit to run a bath, let alone Australia’Jason Clare also responded to Peter Dutton’s comments again:
Now, just remember what yesterday was all about. Yesterday was the day that our Olympic champions came home. It should have been about them, and he made it about him.
This was a day where the whole country should have been able to come together to cheer on and thank our gold medallists, our silver medallists, our bronze medallists, everybody who put on the green and gold, and he made it about him.
That shows you something about what lies in the heart of Peter Dutton. A prerequisite to be prime minister needs to be a desire to want to bring the country together at times like that, and every day. And what was exposed yesterday was a calculation by Peter Dutton that he could use that as an opportunity to try and divide the country at a time where we should be together.
Every instinct in this bloke’s body, every calculation, is about how we can divide the country. It shows this bloke’s not fit to run a bath, let alone Australia.
ShareUpdated at 02.50 CESTHecs indexation changes likely to pass with crossbench and Greens supportJason Clare says he is unsure whether the Coalition will support the bill, but believes there will be enough support from the Greens and the crossbench for it to pass the parliament.ShareUpdated at 02.49 CESTLaws linking Hecs interest to wage price index instead of CPI to be introducedThe education minister, Jason Clare, will be introducing the legislation that will link Hecs interest to the wage price index rather than CPI.Clare:
Last year when there was a big spike in inflation and a big spike in Hecs indexation that hit a lot of Australian students and a lot of Australians with student debt really hard. They felt it. They thought it was unfair and so did we.
So, we’ve responded. We announced in the budget that we would wipe more than $3bn of student debt for more than 3 million Australians. And this is the legislation that will do the job.
What it will do is mean that the indexation rates from last year based on CPI will be replaced with the Wage Price Index.
It means that somebody with a student debt of, say, $26,000 will see their student debt drop by about $1,200 and somebody with a student debt of, say, $45,000 will see their student debt drop by about $2,000.
Jason Clare yesterday. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The GuardianShareUpdated at 03.00 CESTPaul KarpReport on social media delayed until November after cabinet reshuffleLabor MP Sharon Claydon has taken over as the chair of the joint select committee on social media after Kate Thwaites was appointed an assistant minister in the July reshuffle.The committee is looking at contentious topics including age verification and Meta’s decision to abandon deals under the news media bargaining code.The committee was due to submit an interim report today, but has instead tabled a short statement from the chair. Claydon said that “due to changes in the office holders of the committee, the committee was unable to complete a substantive interim report” and will now work towards an interim report in “coming weeks” and a final report in November.ShareUpdated at 03.42 CEST