Greens’ ‘stunt’ designed to put Payman in difficult position, PM says
Paul Karp
Albanese said he understands it is a “very difficult period” for the Islamic community, but added :“which is why we need actually real solutions not gestures and stunts from the Greens”.
This stunt from the Greens was designed to put Fatima Payman in a difficult position. It was designed to do that. It wasn’t designed to assist Palestinians in Gaza. It wasn’t designed to advance the peace process. And it was counterproductive.
Albanese said that Payman had done an interview with ABC’s Insiders on Sunday, which “she chose to do in order to disrupt Labor and what we are doing today, the day before the most significant assistance that has been given to working people in a very long period of time”.
Key events
You’re going to hear a lot more about inflation in the coming days, as the government talks about the tax cut changes. That is always the question when anything to do with additional money for workers is raised ‘what will this mean for inflation?!’ (We don’t seem to have the same questions over those with large savings accounts).
NAB has surveyed on what people plan to do with their additional dollars each week and the results? People want to try to save some money:
More than a third (36%) plan to save extra money from their stage 3 tax cuts, including more Gen Zs (53%), those earning between $100,000 and $150,000 (49%) and women (39%).
People also plan to spend their tax cuts on offsetting the higher cost of living (29%), paying down debt (22%) and investing (12%), while just 8% say they’ll splurge it on non-essentials.
Almost 8 in 10 (77%) say they’re trying to save more money and, on average, they’re looking to create around $17,000 worth of savings.
Professional Pharmacists Australia (not the guild – the group which represents non-owner pharmacists) have welcomed the eighth community pharmacy agreement between the government and pharmacists but with some reservations.
The Community Agreement is what lays out what the government will pay pharmacies for dispensing medication, what allowance pharmacists outside of the cities will receive and what services can be offered (vaccinations etc).
PPA welcomes all of that, but wants to see more to improve working conditions for employee pharmacists.
Union members call on employers to ringfence funding for staffing to address the significant workplace pressures and burnout experienced by employee pharmacists.
Additionally, funding must be set aside to provide access to high-quality learning and development in paid time and to pay staff appropriately if employers genuinely want the public to access good quality services and safe use of medicines.
With extra compensation flowing for the implementation of 60-day dispensing, increased funding for existing professional services, and the expectation of new funding models for the introduction and implementation of full-scope of practice activities on the horizon, there should be no more excuses from employers for creating Australia’s lowest paid health care workforce.
What’s to come today
There has been a bit going on this morning – and it won’t slow down anytime soon. The government wants all eyes on cost-of-living relief – so the tax cuts, energy bill assistance and minimum wage increases, which come into effect from today. There is also the vaping changes (which will change again in October) which means vapes can no longer be sold without a prescription (until October).
The new governor general, Sam Mostyn, will also be officially sworn in today.
The house won’t sit until 11.30am given the trip to Government House today.
Paul Karp
PM says Samantha Mostyn will be ‘an outstanding leader’ ahead of swearing in as governor general
Albanese also commented on Samantha Mostyn being sworn in as governor general today.
He said:
I think she’ll bring dignity, compassion, hard work and integrity to the role. Samantha Mostyn, I think, will be obviously, she’s Australia’s second female governor general. But she will bring her experience. She grew up in a defence family here in Canberra. She’s also worked in business, in sport, in the not-for-profit sector. She’s someone who’s eminently qualified and I think she’ll be an outstanding leader for our nation.
Paul Karp
Albanese questioned over stage-three tax cuts and inflation
Anthony Albanese was also asked about Labor’s revamped stage-three tax cuts, which take effect from today, and whether they will add to inflation.
He said:
I’m confident that this is real and substantial assistance whilst being responsible. We have been able to achieve a revamped tax cut. Labor’s tax cuts will deliver $107 billion. People on the average wage will receive about $2,000.
But in addition to that, of course, we’ll see a wage increase for 2.6 million workers on the minimum wage or award wages, of 3.75%. In addition to that, there’s a bump in people’s superannuation. In addition to that, there is $300 energy bill relief.
No, [it won’t harm inflation] … The truth is that numbers do bounce around but the trend is in the right direction. We have almost halved inflation and that’s because of the discipline that we have shown in budget policy where we have brought inflation down and where we have continued to make a difference. And one of the ways that we have done that is by making sure that we’ve produced two budget surpluses in a row, something that the Coalition never did and that is assisting to put that downward pressure [on inflation].
Greens’ ‘stunt’ designed to put Payman in difficult position, PM says
Paul Karp
Albanese said he understands it is a “very difficult period” for the Islamic community, but added :“which is why we need actually real solutions not gestures and stunts from the Greens”.
This stunt from the Greens was designed to put Fatima Payman in a difficult position. It was designed to do that. It wasn’t designed to assist Palestinians in Gaza. It wasn’t designed to advance the peace process. And it was counterproductive.
Albanese said that Payman had done an interview with ABC’s Insiders on Sunday, which “she chose to do in order to disrupt Labor and what we are doing today, the day before the most significant assistance that has been given to working people in a very long period of time”.
Paul Karp
Greens’ resolution on Palestine did ‘nothing to advance the peace process’: PM
Albanese took aim at Peter Dutton for failing to discipline his members for supporting Vladimir Putin or Covid conspiracies.
He said:
What we have is a process where people participate, people respect each other and people don’t engage in indulgence such as the decision last week.
Labor supports a Palestinian state existing alongside an Israeli state. We don’t support a one-state solution. The resolution moved by the Greens [does] nothing to advance the peace process. Pretending that the Senate recognises states is quite frankly untenable.
And the resolution that was moved by the Greens … didn’t acknowledge two states at all, unlike Senator Wong’s position, which was a principal position of a two-state solution to advance a cause of a sustainable peace in the region. That’s what we need and that’s a collective position that Labor has had.
Paul Karp
‘No individual is bigger than the team’, says PM on Fatima Payman
Anthony Albanese has spoken to ABC Radio about the suspension of Labor senator Fatima Payman.
Albanese said:
Well, let’s be very clear. It’s not because of her support for a policy position that she’s advocating. It’s because of the question that you’ve just asked me.
Today is July 1. It’s a day where we want to talk about tax cuts. We want to talk about our economic support for providing that cost of living relief without putting pressure on inflation.
And instead you have seamlessly segued into the actions of an individual, which is designed to undermine what is the collective position that the Labor party has determined. No individual is bigger than the team. And Fatima Payman is welcome to return to participating in the team if she accepts she’s a member of it.
Negative gearing and capital gains tax discount a ‘generational war’ waged by Labor and Liberals: Max Chandler-Mather
Max Chandler-Mather also addressed the cost of negative gearing and capital gains tax discounts as the latest housing policy battle between Labor and the Greens heats up:
What these numbers are is a generational and class war being raged by the Labor and Liberal party on young people and renters that see the rich get richer, and everyone else’s life get tougher.
What these numbers mean is property investors go to auctions, bid up the price of housing and beat out renters and first home buyers desperately trying to buy their first home.
This is $165 billion of fuel that Labor are pouring on the raging fire that is Australia’s housing crisis. And it’s only going to get worse unless Labor step up and phase out negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount.
Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather has held a doorstop interview this morning where he criticised Labor for suspending Fatima Payman after she said she would cross the floor again.
It is utterly extraordinary and disgraceful that the Labor Party has suspended a young Muslim woman and first term senator, just for speaking up for Palestine.
Muslim leaders and organisations express support for Payman
Muslim leaders, across peak bodies, mosque and community organisations have released an open letter in support of Fatima Payman and criticised the decision by the Labor leadership to suspend her from caucus indefinately.
The letter said “political calculations and attempts to walk both sides have devastating consequences in Palestine and will ultimately end in failure” and called on the Australian government to “recognise Palestinian statehood and implement military sanctions on Israel immediately”.
Australians and millions across the world demand decisive action in the form of sanctions and an immediate stop to weapons trade and training. Australia is currently undertaking war games with the United States and Israel. Australia also just removed checks on defence exports to the USA and the UK, which both are key weapons suppliers to Israel.
The dreams and hopes of Palestinians are not any lesser than ours and those of our children. A vote in the Senate to recognise Palestine as a state would have sent a strong message internationally and domestically.
The Australian Labor Party must echo the voices of the people it represents. This fundamental principle of representation has been abandoned in an effort to protect their positions. Party politics has clearly been allowed to dominate the voices of the people.
Ceasefire and aid are more pressing needs than recognising Palestinian state: Aly
Fatima Payman has said she made her decision to cross the floor as the Palestinian people “don’t have 10 years to wait” – that was in response to the equivalence some people have drawn with Labor MPs who supported marriage equality, or were personally affected by the issue themselves.
Anne Aly says:
I think the immediate need right now for people in Palestine is a ceasefire and humanitarian aid. That is the immediate need right now. Australia recognising Palestinian statehood would send a strong message but it will not lead to statehood, and it will not lead to a ceasefire or increased humanitarian aid which is needed right now.
‘I hope she stays’: Anne Aly on Fatima Payman
Anne Aly says she hopes Fatima Payman remains a Labor senator:
I hope she stays, I really do.
I fought long and hard to ensure that we have a diverse representation in our parliament. And when I say diversity, I mean different kinds of diversity, whether it’s diversity of background, ethnicity, age, gender, a whole range of different diversities. I think our party is better for that diversity and I think our government and this parliament is better for their diversity.