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The Burning Question in 2025 is: will Australian society & the national economy survive Peter Dutton 2.0 aka #TrumpNotSoLite's fierce ambition to lead an ultraconservative, 'aniti-woke' federal government for the next 4 years?

Leader of the Opposition and Liberal MP for Dickson Peter Craig Dutton is on the record as admiring Donald John Trump and even seems to be looking forward to working with him should the Liberal-Nationals Coalition win government at the forthcoming federal general election - indeed he claims that a number of his close colleagues are well connected with members of the Trump Administration.

This is Peter Dutton opining to the mainstream media since 20 January 2025.

The Nightly, 24 January 2025:

Opposition leader Peter Dutton has argued that young men are ‘fed up’ with feeling ostracised and are sick of being treated like ogres.

He believes push-back on “woke” practices, such as being overlooked for jobs under affirmative action policies, was gaining momentum, and the decline of “wokeism” would be accelerated after the election of Donald Trump as US president.....

Speaking on Mark Bouris’ Straight Talk podcast, Mr Dutton said in the US and elsewhere young males felt “disenfranchised and ostracised”.

“They’re saying, ‘Well, hang on, I have nothing but respect for women, and I would never treat my female friends differently than my male friends’,” he said.

“But I’m being told that I’m some sort of ogre, or I have some belief structure which is true to that, which I know is, is, you know, what I hold in my heart.

“I think there’s just a point where people are fed up and they are pushing back and saying, ‘well, why am I being overlooked at work for a job, you know, three jobs running when I’ve got, you know, a partner at home, and she’s decided to stay at home with three young kids, and I want a promotion at work so that I can help pay the bills at home’ and so I think all of that has morphed.”

The Saturday Paper, 25 January 2025:

‘They’re excited by Trump’: Dutton’s inclusion strategy

Amid the “revolution” of Donald Trump’s return to the White House is one cause that has caught the Coalition’s eye: the dismantling of diversity, equity and inclusion efforts....

One Liberal MP expects this tone will have some influence on the Coalition in Australia’s election campaign. “They’re excited by Trump. They will try and use mechanisms from his playbook here. And they do it already, right?”

Dutton has championed what he describes as “anti-woke” issues since his first term as a backbencher. “I think there is going to be a new revolution that comes with the Trump administration in relation to a lot of the woke issues that might be fashionable in universities and at the ABC,” Dutton told a sympathetic Sharri Markson on Sky News this week.

“They just aren’t cutting it around kitchen tables at the moment, where people can’t pay their bills under the Albanese cost-of-living crisis.”

In her Sky News interview, Markson was one of the few journalists to raise with Dutton the executive order signed by Trump recognising only “two sexes, male and female”.

In her Sky News interview, Markson was one of the few journalists to raise with Dutton the executive order signed by Trump recognising only “two sexes, male and female”.

He responded that people are “sick of being ostracised and vilified”, but he did not engage on the question of gender. Rather, the opposition leader shifted to Indigenous recognition.

On Thursday, Coalition deputy leader David Littleproud was less guarded, telling Sky News the issue of gender needed to be reconsidered in Australia. “It doesn’t need to get emotional…” he said. “It comes back to respecting that biological basis that we can’t get away from when we’re born.”....

Nationwide News, 22 January 2025:

‘Had enough’: Peter Dutton predicts anti-woke revolution for Australia

Peter Dutton has declared he would be the better PM to deal with US President Donald Trump amid a worldwide political revolution as voters decide they have had enough of the “woke” agenda.

But despite hinting he could ride the wave of the Trump victory all the way to the Lodge, Mr Dutton declined to expressly dump the Coalition’s current commitment to the Paris agreement on climate change.....

Mr Dutton has recently declared he will not display two flags at official press conferences if elected.

“We’re not going to have reconciliation when we have people living under three different flags,’’ Mr Dutton said.

We have one national flag, and that’s incredibly important.”....

The Guardian, 25 January 2025:

Peter Dutton has announced a long-awaited shadow ministerial shake-up before this year’s federal election, appointing former immigration minister David Coleman to the foreign affairs role....Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, took on the new government efficiency platform, which echoed the new US Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), led by Elon Musk.

Given that it appears that Dutton is more than flirting with the idea of emulating Donald Trump's election campaign and some of his divisive policies perhaps it would be sensible to take a closer look at the 47th US President aka Trump 2.0 in the year of 2025.

Donald J. Trump has been the 47th US President for seven days now and during this period he has signed at least fifty-seven Executive Orders, with forty-six signed on the day of his inauguration.

20 January 2025 immediately after the inauguration ceremony on first day of the presidential term

On that first day Donald Trump signed at least 45 Presidential Actions/Executive Orders.

One of note was Granting Pardons And Commutation Of Sentences For Certain Offenses Relating To The Events At Or Near The United States Capitol On January 6, 2021 which saw an est. 1,500 persons, previously with a conviction against their names for violence and/or conspiracy in relation to the violent insurrection in Washington DC during 6 January 2021, pardoned. With those still serving prison sentences released and those still before the courts having their cases immediately dismissed.

There was also Executive Order "ProtectingThe Meaning And Value Of American Citizenship" which sought to remove the right to citizenship going forward for those children born to non-citizen parents whether those parents were in the United States lawfully or unlawfully.

Also amongst these orders were presidential actions withdrawing from the World Health Organisation, dismantling environmental protections, opening untouched areas up to mining exploration, rolling back climate change mitigation measures & regulations and denying the rights of women to reproductive choice and reasserting the position that all living persons remain the biological gender assigned to then at birth with this position to be adopted by all federal agencies and employees.

In addition Trump issued Executive Order "Initial Rescissions of Harmful Executive Orders and Actions". These rescissions cover Orders and Actions during the entire Biden presidency from noon 20.01.21 to noon 20.01.25.

Included in this rollback is:

> Executive Order 13989 of January 20, 2021 (Ethics Commitments by Executive Branch Personnel), thereby making it legal for members of both Houses in the 119th US Congress to accept gifts & inducements (eg. 'golden parachutes') from lobbyists and interested third parties.

> Executive Order 14009 of January 28, 2021 (Strengthening Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act)

> Executive Order 14070 of April 5, 2022 (Continuing To Strengthen Americans’ Access to Affordable, Quality Health Coverage) and

> Executive Order 14087 of October 14, 2022 (Lowering Prescription Drug Costs for Americans) which means that a) medical insurance became inaccessible to potentially millions of American citizens and b) prescription drugs just became very expensive again and in practice inaccessible to the poor, vulnerable and to many with chronic life-threatening conditions.

Public Citizen, Inc., American Federation Of Government Employees and State Democracy Defenders Fund filed CivilCase 1:25-cv-00164 bringing an action seeking declaratory, injunctive, and mandamus relief against Defendants Donald J. Trump, in his official capacity as president of the United States, and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), an agency of the United States, to ensure that the so-called “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) complies with the requirements established by the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), 5 U.S.C.§§ 1001 et seq

The Trump State Department implements a landmark "One Flag Policy" barring U.S. outposts at home and abroad from flying any other flag but the Stars and Stripes, effectively blocks U.S. embassies and outposts from flying Pride and Black Lives Matter flags.

21 January 2025 the second day and first full day of the current presidential term

The Episcopalian 14th Bishop of Washington speaking directly to the president from the pulpit of St. John’s, Lafayette Square during the official thanksgiving church service, said the following:

Let me make one final plea, Mr. President. Millions have put there trust in you. And, as you told the nation yesterday, you have felt the providential hand of a loving God.

In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now.

There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in Democratic, Republican and Independent families, some who fear for their lives.

And the people, the people who pick our crops and clean our office buildings, who labor in poultry farms and meatpacking plants, who wash the dishes after we eat in restaurants and work the night shifts in hospitals. They may not be citizens or have the proper documentation, but the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals. They pay taxes, and are good neighbors. They are faithful members of our churches and mosques, synagogues, madaras, and temples. I ask you to have mercy, Mr. President, on those in our communities whose children fear that their parents will be taken away, and that you help those who are fleeing war zones and persecution in their own lands, to find compassion and welcome here. Our God teaches us that we are to be merciful to the stranger for we were all once strangers in this land.

Truth Social post

Excerpt from Trump's first US press conference during the question and answer segment when he was asked about the wildfire federal disaster relief funding called into question by the intent of the 20 January presidential memorandum Putting People over Fish: Stopping Radical Environmentalism to Provide Water to Southern California.

The State of New Jersey, Commonwealth of

Massachusetts, State of California, State of Colorado, State of Connecticut, State of Delaware, District of Columbia, State of Hawai‘I, State of Maine, State of Maryland, Attorney General Dana Nessel for the People of Michigan, State of Minnesota, State of Nevada, State of New Mexico, State of New York, State of North Carolina, State Of Rhode Island, State of Vermont, State of Wisconsin and City and County of San Francisco, filed Case No. 1:25-cv-10139 bringing an action to protect their states, localities, and residents from the President’s flagrantly unlawful attempt to strip hundreds of thousands American-born children of their citizenship based on their parentage.

The States of Washington, Arizona, Illinois, and Oregon filed Case 2:25-cv-00127-JCC bringing an action to protect the States—including their public agencies, public programs, public fiscs, and state residents—against the illegal actions of the President and federal government that purport to unilaterally strip United States citizens of their citizenship. Seeking an emergency temporary restraining order.

Note: This brings the total of state entities opposing the contents of one executive order issued by President Trump in court to twenty-five.

22 January 2025 the third day of the presidential term

In response to the Executive Order of 20 January 2025 "Granting Pardons And Commutation Of Sentences For Certain Offenses Relating To The Events At Or Near The United States Capitol On January 6, 2021", three US District Court judges asserted the independence of the Court. The first in Criminal Action No. 21-00073 (BAH) by not going beyond what established law required. In her reasons stating; No “national injustice” occurred here, just as no outcome-determinative election fraud occurred in the 2020 presidential election. No “process of national reconciliation” can begin when poor losers, whose preferred candidate loses an election, are glorified for disrupting a constitutionally mandated proceeding in Congress and doing so with impunity. That merely raises the dangerous specter of future lawless conduct by other poor losers and undermines the rule of law. Yet, this presidential pronouncement of a “national injustice” is the sole justification provided in the government’s motion to dismiss the pending indictment." and denying the request that this dismissal be “with prejudice.”

While the second in Criminal Action No. 22-413 (CKK) ended her reasons with All of what I have described has been recorded for posterity, ensuring that what transpired on January 6, 2021 can be judged accurately in the future.

and the third in Criminal Action No. 24-CR-135 (TSC) the Order transcript opening with; The Government’s Motion to Dismiss the Indictment pursuant to Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 48(a), ECF No. 29, is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part.

The Government’s only stated reason for pursuing dismissal with prejudice is that the President, in addition to pardoning the Defendant, has ordered the Attorney General to do so.

See Gov’t’s Mot. at 1, ECF No. 29 (citing Unnumbered Proclamation, __ Fed. Reg. __ (Jan. 20, 2025).¹

The Court does not discern—and neither party has identified—any defect in either the legal merits of, or the factual basis for, the Government’s case. Indeed, while a pardon exercises the Executive’s “exclusive authority and absolute discretion to decide whether to prosecute a case,” United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. 683, 693 (1974), it “does not necessarily render ‘innocent’ a defendant of any alleged violation of the law,” United States v. Flynn, 507 F. Supp. 3d 116, 136 (D.D.C. 2020).

More broadly, no pardon can change the tragic truth of what happened on January 6, 2021. On that day, “a mob professing support for then-President Trump violently attacked the United States Capitol” to stop the electoral college certification. Trump v. Thompson, 20 F.4th

10, 15 (D.C. Cir. 2021). The dismissal of this case cannot undo the “rampage [that] left multiple people dead, injured more than 140 people, and inflicted millions of dollars in damage.” Id

23 January 2025 the fourth day of the presidential term

Trump addressing the World Economic Forum

at Davos via a live feed.

Excerpt from official transcript of Donald Trump's Davos speech taken from the Question and Answer segment with Trump speaking:

And the big problem is we need double the energy we currently have in the United States — can you imagine? — for AI to really be as big as we want to have it. Because it’s a very competitive — it will be very competitive with China and others.

So, I’m going to give emergency declarations so that they can start building them almost immediately.

And I’m — I’m — I think it was largely my idea, because nobody thought this was possible. It wasn’t that they were not smart, because they’re the smartest, but I told them that what I want you to do is build your electric generating plant right next to your plant as a separate building, connected. And they said, “Wow, you’re kidding.” And I said, “No, no. I’m not kidding.” You don’t have to hook into the grid, which is old and, you know, could be taken out. If it’s taken out, they wouldn’t have any way to get any electricity.

So, we are going to allow them to go on a very rapid bas- — basis to build their plant — build the electric generating plant. They can fuel it with anything they want, and they may have coal as a backup. Good, clean coal.

You know, if there were a problem with a — with a pipe coming in — as an example, you’re going with gas — oil or gas — and a pipe gets blown up or, for some reason, doesn’t work, there are some companies in the U.S. that have coal sitting right by the plant so that if there’s an emergency, they can go to that short-term basis and use our very clean coal.

So, that’s something else that a lot of people didn’t even know about. But nothing can destroy coal — not the weather, not a bomb — nothing. It might make it a little smaller, might make it a little different shape. But coal is very strong as a backup. It’s a great backup to have that facility, and it wouldn’t cost much more — more money.

And we have more coal than anybody. We also have more oil and gas than anybody.

So, we’re going to make it so that the plants will have their own electric generating facilities attached right to their plant. They don’t have to worry about a utility. They don’t have to worry about anything. And we’re going to get very rapid approvals.

24 January 2025 the fifth day of the presidential term

By 24 January Donald Trump has signed around 60 Memos, Briefing Statements and Presidential Actions/Executive Orders. Each and everyone coming together to form a concerted attack on the US Constitution, existing law and the administration of federal government.

In addition by the fifth day Trump had publicly withdrawn federal protective services from his former national security adviser John Bolton, former top health official Dr. Anthony Fauci, his former top diplomat Mike Pompeo and former Iran envoy Brian Hook. All of whom have been out of favour with him and perceived to be 'critics'.

On a flying visit to North Carolina Donald Trump announced the reorganisation and possible closure of Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), continuing to assert the misinformation he spread as presidential candidate during Hurricane Helene - including that some FEMA employees refused to help people who displayed Trump signs on their properties.. 

Trump stated a general preference that in future the states take care of disasters. Let the state take care of the tornadoes and the hurricanes and all of the other things that happen. And I think you’re going to find it a lot less expensive. You’ll do it for less than half, and you’re going to get a lot quicker response.

So, that seems to be the recommendation, but we’ll be making that recommendation over the next couple of weeks.

Any additional federal aid to California in relation to the Los Angeles wildfires will come not through FEMA but through the White House and have specific conditions attached before it can be accessed by this Democrat governed state. With Trump stating two prerequisites: I want to see two things in Los Angeles: Voter ID, so that the people have a chance to vote, and I want to see the water be released and come down into Los Angeles and throughout the state. Those are the two things. After that, I will be the greatest president that California have ever — has ever seen.

Oregon Capital Chronicle, 24 January 2024:

As U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement intensifies its efforts to apprehend and deport undocumented immigrants throughout the country, concern is rising among Indigenous communities residing in urban areas about reports of Indigenous people being detained in the Valley.

Since President Donald Trump issued his executive order for an increase in ICE raids, Navajo tribal leaders have received alarming reports that their tribal members are being detained, heightening uncertainties over the implications these actions have for their communities and the safety of their people.

“We now know that Navajo people and enrolled members of other tribes are being detained in Phoenix and other cities by ICE,” Navajo Nation Council Speaker Crystalyne Curley said during a committee meeting on Thursday. “The reports that we have received indicate that we need to coordinate an operation or some type of response to help our enrolled tribal members here on the Navajo Nation.”....

In State of Washington et al v Donald Trump et al filed as CASE NO. C25-0127-IC a US District Court Judge granted a 14 Day Temporary Restraining Order, stating in part; Plaintiff States face irreparable injury as a result of the signing and implementation of the Executive Order. and

There is a strong likelihood that Plaintiffs will succeed on the merits of their claims that the Executive Order violates the Fourteenth Amendment and Immigration and Nationality Act.

The Laken Riley Act having passed both Houses this week awaits Trump's signature to become federal law.

This Act requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to detain certain non-U.S. nationals (aliens under federal law) who have been arrested for burglary, theft, larceny, or shoplifting. The bill also authorizes states to sue the federal government for decisions or alleged failures related to immigration enforcement.

Under this bill, DHS must detain an individual who (1) is unlawfully present in the United States or did not possess the necessary documents when applying for admission; and (2) has been charged with, arrested for, convicted of, or admits to having committed acts that constitute the essential elements of burglary, theft, larceny, or shoplifting.

Deportation flights have begun.

President Trump is sending a strong and clear message to the entire world: if you illegally enter the United States of America, you will face severe consequences. pic.twitter.com/CTlG8MRcY1

— Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) January 24, 2025

To be continued......

Scott Morrison & his fellow Robodebt cronies have one less place left to hide with the FOI release of Cabinet papers being posted on the Internet last week

 

On 7 June 2024 The Guardian ran the following article:

The federal court has ruled against a decision blocking access to early robodebt documents drafted under the former Coalition government, as part of one man’s long-running fight to shed light on the scheme’s origins.

Justices Geoffrey Kennett, Anna Katzmann and Shaun McElwaine ruled that a December 2022 decision made by the administrative appeals tribunal (AAT) to keep some robodebt documents exempt, including draft costings and new policy proposals, should be set aside due to procedural unfairness and because the AAT had incorrectly agreed with the cabinet confidentiality exemptions Services Australia applied.

The documents could add more details to the public record about what the former prime minister Scott Morrison – who was then responsible for the social services portfolio – and other senior ministers, including Christian Porter, Alan Tudge and Marise Payne, were privy to in the scheme’s initial stages.

The man seeking the key robodebt documents, IT expert Justin Warren, first made the freedom of information request to the then Department of Human Services, now named Services Australia, in January 2017. The department identified 13 documents, totalling 287 pages, but refused him access on the basis they were cabinet documents and related to the agency’s investigation methods.

The original FOI application was submitted on 14 January 2024 and Services Australia dug in.

What started as formal consideration by the Australian Information Commissioner (2018-2023) morphed into Administrative Appeals Tribunal rulings (2022-23) and ended before the full bench of the Australian Federal Court Warren v Chief Executive Officer, Services Australia [2024] FCAFC 73, where the decision of the Tribunal having been set aside, the matter was remitted to the Tribunal for rehearing and determination according to law.

On 25 October 2024 political activist Asher Wolf posted a 26 page copy of FOI documents received by Justin Warren at the end of that seven-year & five month battle of wills.

These can be found, read and downloaded at

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1d21K_oEaGbaNNWlfsuY2_t5X8wViG8CD/view

Ms. Wolf reminded us that during the term of the Turnbull & Morrison federal governments that "The government estimated $763 million in net savings from Robodebt over four years. It ended up *costing* $3 billion dollars"

Scott John Morrison, that disgraced former federal minister for social services, treasurer and later Australian prime minister, first sanctioned by Parliament, then effectively sacked by the national electorate before being subpoenaed to appear before the Royal Commission into the Robodebt Scheme, has lost another hiding place with the release of these Cabinet papers.

Liberal MP for Dickson & Leader of the Coalition Opposition Peter Dutton called the CSIRO an unreliable scientific body producing "discredited" work and is now reaping what he has sown

"In the growing heat of debate over Coalition nuclear energy policy, Mr Dutton described the CSIRO’s GenCost report on the cost of electricity generation as “discredited” and “not a genuine piece of work” and suggested it was “well documented” that the CSIRO cannot be relied on." [InnovationAUS, 15 March 2024]

 

Open letter from Dr Doug Hilton, Chief Executive, CSIRO

15 MARCH 2024

NEWS RELEASE

Science is crucial to providing the data and models that allow society to tackle profound challenges; challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic, transition to net zero, keeping Australian industry productive and sustainable, and protecting our unique biodiversity.

For science to be useful and for challenges to be overcome it requires the trust of the community. Maintaining trust requires scientists to act with integrity. Maintaining trust also requires our political leaders to resist the temptation to disparage science.

As Chief Executive of CSIRO, I will staunchly defend our scientists and our organisation against unfounded criticism.

The GenCost report is updated each year and provides the very best estimates for the cost of future new-build electricity generation in Australia. The report is carefully produced, its methodology is clearly articulated, our scientists are open and responsive to feedback, and as is the case for all creditable science, the report is updated regularly as new data comes to hand.

The GenCost report can be trusted by all our elected representatives, irrespective of whether they are advocating for electricity generation by renewables, coal, gas or nuclear energy.

No matter the challenge we are tackling, CSIRO’s scientists and engineers can be relied on by the community to work creatively, assiduously and with integrity.

Dr Douglas Hilton

Chief Executive, CSIRO

Some of the mainstream media headlines generated by Dutton's attempt to deny the considerable downside of introducing nuclear power stations into Australia's energy grid........

The Guardian

CSIRO chief warns against ‘disparaging science’ after Peter Dutton criticises nuclear energy costings

Douglas Hilton says he will 'staunchly defend' scientists as opposition leader repeats incorrect claim that CSIRO report does not accurately...

15.03.24

Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Nation's science agency CSIRO hits back at Dutton claim that nuclear power costings were 'discredited'

The CSIRO has rebuked politicians seeking to undermine its research showing nuclear energy would be much more expensive than solar or wind...

15.03.24

The Sydney Morning Herald

‘Don’t disparage the science’: CSIRO hits back at Dutton on nuclear energy

Australia's top science agency has made a rare political intervention as CSIRO chief executive Doug Hilton defended his agency's findings on...

15.03.24

News.com.au

Nuclear question Dutton won’t answer

Peter Dutton has failed to answer a key question in a fiery clash with Bill Shorten over nuclear energy.

15.03.24

The New Daily

CSIRO hits back at Dutton's 'unfounded' criticism

Australia's national science agency has taken aim at Liberal leader Peter Dutton in a highly unusual public intervention.

15.03.24

The Canberra Times

CSIRO Chief defends GenCost report from political attack

Dr. Doug Hilton stands by CSIRO's GenCost report findings amidst political criticism from Coalition leader Peter Dutton.

15.03.24

The Age

CSIRO hits back at Dutton attack on its nuclear energy reports

Australia's top science agency has made a rare political intervention, with CSIRO chief executive Douglas Hilton defending his agency's...

15.03.24

Hunter Valley News

CSIRO boss defends scientists after Dutton attack

CSIRO chief executive officer Douglas Hilton has issued a rare public statement to urge politicians to "resist the...

15.03.24

The Wimmera Mail-Times

CSIRO boss defends scientists after Dutton attack

CSIRO chief executive officer Douglas Hilton has issued a rare public statement to urge politicians to "resist the...

15.03.24

Then on the same day the Centre for Independent Studies, a conservative seemingly pro-nuclear 'think tank' which also supported the No position in the 2023 national referendum and whose executive director just happened in 2008 to have been a senior adviser to former federal Liberal Party Leader Brendan Nelson and in 2009 was himself he a candidate to replace Nelson in his northern Sydney electoral seat of Bradfield, attempted to ride to Peter Dutton's rescue on social media with a whitewash of the Opposition Leader's comments and an interesting interpretation of the contents of CSIRO news release.

Centre for Independent Studies @CISOZ

CIS responds to @CSIRO's open letter.

"Not all criticisms are unfounded. If the CEO wants to defend the methods and conclusions of a particular report from criticism, he should do just that, rather than simply asserting that the report can be trusted when serious flaws still exist."

15.03.24

Australia Day aka Invasion Day or Day of Mourning 2024: far right media and politicians making an increasingly ugly day even uglier

First it was verbal attacks on local government councils which intend to change how they celebrate Australia Day or hold their citizenship ceremonies on a January day other than the 26th or split their official and community activities over two days. 

Then the mainstream media, led by baying News Corp staff opinion writers and political commentators, looked about for other imaginary 'woke' enemies of the public holiday designated Australia Day.

Following an early January 2024 announcement by the Woolworths Group that while it sells Australian flags all year round it will not be stocking additional items for Australia Day due to a decrease in store sales in recent years, the meeja decided this announcement made its supermarkets a suitable target.

Opposition Leader and LNP Member for Dickson (Qld) Peter Dutton eagerly jumped on the bandwagon accusing the Woolworths Group and others of "peddling woke agendas" and calling for a boycott of all Woolies stores - with predictable response from those who voted "No" at the 'Voice' referendum.

An even more predictable response came from racist cranks and the 'cookers' amongst us.

Teneriffe store, inner Brisbane City Qld
IMAGE: 7 News, 16 January 2024

Cleveland Central store, south-east Brisbane Qld
IMAGE:  Herald-Sun, 16 January 2024

Woolworths Group, 24 January 2024:

A message from Woolworths CEO Brad Banducci to customers

Dear Customers,

Over the last two weeks, there's been much commentary in the media and we have had direct feedback from our customers and our team regarding our approach to selling Australia Day merchandise.

I have tried to read all customer complaints and team incident reports, and I’m writing this in the hope of clarifying our position and also asking everyone to treat our team with respect.

In terms of the Woolworths position:

As a proud Australian and New Zealand retailer, we aren’t trying to ‘cancel’ Australia Day. Rather, Woolworths is deeply proud of our place in providing the fresh food that brings Australians together every day. As evidenced during COVID or increasingly natural disasters such as what is currently unfolding with Cyclone Kirrily in Northern Queensland. Woolworths will always support Australians in the moments that matter.

In terms of merchandising - our commercial decision to not stock specific Australian Day general merchandise was made on the basis of steeply declining sales. The decision to stock this mostly imported merchandise has to be made almost 12 months in advance. So as a business decision, it doesn’t make commercial sense.

Rather than stocking imported Australian themed merchandise, Woolworths is focused on what we do best 365 days of the year – providing the best of Australian fresh food for Australia Day long weekend gatherings with family and friends and working hard to ensure we deliver great value.

There are many other ways in which we are supporting our customers and our team to celebrate Australia, such as acknowledging the best of Australian products in our stores and online and supporting our team to mark Australia Day with their local community.

As a first generation Australian who gratefully calls Australia home, I look forward to getting together with my family and I hope that you too spend Australia Day in your own way and cherish what it means to be Australian.

Brad Banducci

Woolworths CEO