Ms. Saffin has been the member for Lismore in the NSW Legislative Assembly since 23 March 2019, having previously been the federal MP for Page from 2007 to 2013 and a member of the NSW Legislative Council from 1995 to 2003.
Wednesday 23 September 2020
Queensland is set to expand the border zone into more areas of Northern New South Wales from 1 October 2020
ABC
News,
22 September 2020:
Queensland
is set to reopen its borders to parts of New South Wales after
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced the state's border bubble
will soon include five additional local government areas.
From
1:00am on October 1, residents in Byron Bay, Ballina, Lismore,
Richmond Valley and Glen Innes local government areas will be able to
travel into Queensland.
It
comes as the state recorded zero new coronavirus cases overnight,
leaving just 16 active cases.
The
extended border zone will include 41 New South Wales postcodes,
spanning 11 local government areas.
Residents
will have to apply for a border pass to travel into Queensland.
Queensland
residents will also be able to travel to those areas from October 1.
"I
think this is a great effort to consider how we can make our border
zones more effective," Ms Palaszczuk said.
"These
areas have a lot in common with Queensland, they do a lot of their
business in Queensland so we believe this is the right measure to
take."
CHO
flags easing of further restrictions
Deputy
Premier Steven Miles said there were 152,000 residents in the border
zones who would now be able to travel into Queensland.
"These
are people who might live in New South Wales, but many feel more of
an affinity with Queensland," Mr Miles said.
He
said the changes were possible because of the very low number of
coronavirus cases in regional New South Wales…..
While
I’m sure Scott Morrison will be quick to take full credit for this
extension of the border bubble, I strongly suspect that NSW Labor
MLA for Lismore Janelle Saffin (left) would have been working behind the scene to make this happen.
Ms. Saffin has been the member for Lismore in the NSW Legislative Assembly since 23 March 2019, having previously been the federal MP for Page from 2007 to 2013 and a member of the NSW Legislative Council from 1995 to 2003.
Ms. Saffin has been the member for Lismore in the NSW Legislative Assembly since 23 March 2019, having previously been the federal MP for Page from 2007 to 2013 and a member of the NSW Legislative Council from 1995 to 2003.
NSW Nationals in disarray in 2020
NSW Nationals Leader and Deputy-Primer John Barilaro is reportedly on mental health leave from 18 September 2020 and MLA for Port Macquarie Leslie Williams quit the Nationals on 20 September to join the NSW Liberal Party.
This junior partner in the Coalition is showing the strain of having such a divisive leader. Barilaro has been at the helm for less than four years and in that time the Nationals have lost four seats in the state parliament - Lismore, Murray, Barwon and now Port Macquarie.
The Nationals now hold only 12 seats in the 93 seat NSW Legislative Assembly.
The Nationals now hold only 12 seats in the 93 seat NSW Legislative Assembly.
The Sydney Morning Herald, 21 September 2020:
Two
senior NSW Nationals figures have quit the party and Port Macquarie
MP Leslie Williams has had her membership of the Liberals accepted a
day after abandoning the Nationals in disgust.
Former
Nationals leader and deputy premier Troy Grant last week resigned
from the party, while former Water Minister and deputy leader Niall
Blair has not renewed his membership.
Mr
Grant and Mr Blair did not want to comment on their decision to leave
the Nationals, but a source close to Mr Grant said he did not
"support the direction of the party".
Ms
Williams' membership of the Liberals was rubber-stamped on Monday
morning, ensuring she did not have to sit on the crossbench when NSW
Parliament resumes on Tuesday.
Her
shock resignation on Sunday came after John Barilaro, the NSW
Nationals' leader, and his MPs threatened to destroy the Coalition by
moving to the crossbench if they did not get a raft of changes over a
contested koala planning policy.
Ms
Williams released a statement on Sunday saying: "Sadly, the
events of the past weeks and months have cemented my decision."
The former head of the New South Wales Young Nationals and chair of its women’s council Jess Price-Purnell has also resigned from the party after being threatened with expulsion from the party because she publicly criticised John Barilaro's handling of the Koala planning policy issue.
The former head of the New South Wales Young Nationals and chair of its women’s council Jess Price-Purnell has also resigned from the party after being threatened with expulsion from the party because she publicly criticised John Barilaro's handling of the Koala planning policy issue.
Labels:
Berejiklian Government,
John Barilaro,
NSW Nationals
Tuesday 22 September 2020
Debt laden Clive Palmer's United Australia Party currently being considered for deregistration by the Australian Electoral Commission
Australian Electoral Commission notice of 17 September 2020:
This political party appears to be on the chopping block because it now has less than 500 members.
In recent years Clive Frederick Palmer appears to have exclusively funded this political party through his companies Mineralology Pty Ltd and Palmer Coolum Resort Pty Ltd.
It currently has debts of $8,829,343 of which $8,208,389 is owed to Google Australia Pty Ltd and another $609,039 to IPG Marketing Solutions.
According to an Australian Securities and Investments Commission media release billionaire Clive Palmer is due back in court on 27 November 2020 in relation to; two counts of contravening section 184(2)(a) of the Corporations Act 2001 (Act) - dishonest use of position as a director and two counts of contravening section 408C(1)(d) of the Criminal Code Act 1899 (Qld) – fraud by dishonestly gaining a benefit or advantage in that he allegedly dishonestly obtained a benefit or advantage for Cosmo Developments Pty Ltd and/or the Palmer United Party (PUP) and others by authorising the transfer of $10,000,000 contrary to the purpose for which the funds were being held. It is alleged that he dishonestly used his position as a director of Mineralogy Pty Ltd (Mineralogy), a mining company owned by him, in obtaining that advantage.
Labels:
AEC,
Clive Palmer,
court,
deregistration,
fraud,
political party
Orara Valley branch of NSW National Party dissolved to protect sitting Nats MLA for Coffs Harbour
The Sydney Morning Herald,
20 September 2020:
The
NSW Nationals have been accused of branch-stacking and then
dissolving a rural branch after members raised questions about the
preselection process of a state MP.
The
MP, Gurmesh Singh, was selected at a November 2018 meeting for the
seat of Coffs Harbour. But office holders of one of the seat's two
branches raised doubts about the voting process and his eligibility.
Members
of the Orara Valley branch, who had raised the questions, say they
turned up to their annual general meeting in July 2019 only to find
their numbers had suddenly swelled by almost double.
The
newcomers included Andrew Fraser, Mr Singh's predecessor as MP for
Coffs Harbour and currently chairman of NSW Nationals. They
intervened to spill existing office holders before the meeting ended
in chaos.
"We
wondered just what the hell had gone on," Barry Lee, the
branch's then vice chairman, told The Sun-Herald at his house in
Bonville, near Coffs. "We were not experts at fighting these
kinds of battles."
After
months of emails and letters to party headquarters, then state
director Ross Cadell told the members on January 31 – his final day
in the role – that Orara was "no longer [a] constitutionally
formed branch", effectively dissolving it.....
The
local party spat has the potential to create wider ripples for the
NSW Nationals, who recently threatened to take down the government of
Premier Gladys Berejiklian over koala planning laws they said
undermined farmers' rights to clear land as they see fit.
One
of the first MPs to complain about the koala guidelines was Mr Singh,
who, according to a Channel Seven report, told Planning Minister Rob
Stokes that his family's properties could be affected.
Mr
Singh told The Sun-Herald he had spoken to Mr Stokes "about
various issues" involving the koala planning policy……
Mr
Singh referred all questions about his eligibility to run as a
Nationals candidate at the 2019 election to the state's central
organisation. Mr Singh declined to say whether he had been a member
for the requisite six months prior to the election, nor whether he
had received a waiver from the party's organisation as an
alternative.
The
Sun-Herald also asked Mr Fraser for comment about why he changed
branches from Coffs to the Orara Valley, and whether his transfer had
been approved by the local branch three months before he voted at the
July meeting.
Mr
Fraser has told the local newspaper he had property in the Orara
Valley, making him eligible to switch branches.
Documents
seen by the The Sun-Herald show the small branch's numbers swelled
from 12 to 23 as a result of those transfers. Mr Cadell, who now
works as a lobbyist at Newcastle Ports, defended the party's actions
in closing down the Orara branch.
"The
rules were entirely followed," he said. "The only problem
was they didn't like the rules. It was a large amount of people [who
switched] but it is quite regular for people to transfer between
branches."
Members,
though, describe being bewildered by the sudden interest in their
branch from party heavyweights, with one saying: "We abhor
branch stacking within the Labor Party but we witnessed it ourselves
... I couldn't believe it."…...
He opposed amendments to the NSW Water Act aimed at increasing transparency concerning ownership of water licenses.
Singh along with Chris Gulaptis wwas strongly behind National Party Leader and NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro, as he attempted to remove SEPP protections for koalas and koala habitat.
Singh also supports his electorate Coffs Harbour as the site for any future nuclear power station.
It is also alleged that he attempted to quash a Coffs Harbour City Council move to request state and federal funding during the pandemic - apparently even going so far as to enlist the assistance of the Minister for Local Government Shelley Hancock in an attempt to block a specific project.
The Oz Group Co-op Ltd of which Singh was then chair and founding director received $1 million in federal government funding in February 2018 - the same year he stood for National Party preselection.
There have been a number of allegations of conflicts of interest on Singh's part since he entered the NSW Parliament.
Labels:
Coffs Harbour electorate,
NSW Nationals
Monday 21 September 2020
Were you wondering why so many federal political parties & their candidates never seem to be held accountable for how they fund election campaigns? Well, wonder no more
”The
AEC does not appropriately act upon identified non-compliance. It is
not making effective use of its enforcement powers and as such has
not implemented a graduated approach to managing and acting on
identified non-compliance.” [ANAO,
“Administration
of Financial Disclosure Requirements under the Commonwealth Electoral
Act”,
17 September 2020]
After quite a few Australians on social media bragged on Monday of last week about our independent agency conducting federal elections, it seems we all found out three days later that in fact it has rather mucky feet of clay......
Australian
National Audit Office (ANAO), Auditor-General Report No. 8 Of
2020–21, Administration of Financial Disclosure Requirements
under the Commonwealth Electoral Act, excerpt:
Conclusion
6. The
AEC‘s management of the financial disclosures required under Part
XX of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 is partially effective.
7. The
arrangements that the AEC has in place to administer the financial
disclosure scheme are limited in their effectiveness as:
a.
across the four year period examined, while the AEC has obtained 5882
annual and election returns, as at 30 June 2020, 75 returns have not
been obtained. There have also been delays with the submission of
returns to the AEC with 22 per cent of annual returns and 17 per cent
of election returns lodged after the legislated due date;
b.
the AEC does not make effective use of available data sources to
identify entities that may have a disclosure obligation that have not
submitted a return;
c.
there is insufficient evidence that the returns that have been
provided are accurate and complete;
d.
there is limited analysis undertaken of returns that are obtained;
and
e.
risks to the financial disclosure scheme are not managed in
accordance with the risk management framework.
8. Compliance
monitoring and enforcement activities are partially effective with
the result that the AEC is not well placed to provide assurance that
disclosure returns are accurate and complete.
Supporting
findings
9. Across
the four year period examined by the ANAO the AEC has obtained 5882
annual and election returns, and as at 30 June 2020, has not obtained
75 returns. Compliance with legislated timeframes has also been an
issue, with 22 per cent of annual returns and 17 per cent of election
returns lodged after the legislated due date. Forty four entities
have submitted annual returns on average over 30 days late on two or
more occasions, with 12 (27 per cent) having lodged, on two or more
occasions, on average over 120 days late. Additionally, the AEC does
not make effective use of available data sources to identify entities
that may have a disclosure obligation and have not submitted a
return.
10. There
is insufficient evidence that annual and election returns are
accurate and complete. While the AEC checks that all fields have been
completed and looks for some obvious errors it does not compare the
figures disclosed with other data available from internal or external
sources, instead relying on its annual compliance review program to
provide sufficient evidence that the annual and election returns are
accurate and complete.
11. The
effectiveness of the analysis undertaken by the AEC is limited.
Annual returns submitted by third parties and donors are not
analysed. Election returns submitted by candidates, senate groups or
election donors are not analysed. The analysis that is undertaken of
annual returns submitted by political parties and associated entities
is limited as there is no detailed analysis of the financial
information, and effective data analytics and data matching
techniques are not employed by the AEC.
12. Risks
to the financial disclosure scheme have not been managed in
accordance with the AEC’s risk management framework. While the risk
appetite and tolerance statement of this framework states that the
AEC has a low/moderate risk tolerance for risks associated with the
disclosure function there is no evidence that risks relating to all
entities that have a disclosure obligation have been assessed and are
being managed appropriately. Additionally, there is no treatment plan
in place for the risk that has been identified by the AEC, being the
risk of non-compliance by political parties.
13. While
the AEC has identified some lessons that it could learn from other
electoral bodies that regulate financial disclosure schemes, there is
little evidence of any resulting changes having been made to how the
Commonwealth scheme is administered. The AEC has also not taken
adequate steps to implement agreed recommendations from a review it
commissioned in 2012 of the disclosure compliance function (which
concluded that the AEC needed to become more proactive in its
approach).
14. The
AEC does not apply an appropriate risk based approach to planning and
conducting compliance activities.
- While most reviews are planned on the basis of a risk assessment, there are a number of limitations in the risk assessment methodology employed.
- Over the period assessed the AEC did not undertake a compliance review of any election donor returns or of any annual returns that included no financial disclosures (that is, a nil return).
- The number of reviews, and the resources allocated to them, have declined considerably across the five year period analysed. These reductions do not reflect an assessment that the risk of non-disclosure or non-compliance has reduced and this situation is also at odds with the significant growth that has occurred in the total value of receipts and other figures included in the financial disclosure returns provided to the AEC.
15. Planned
compliance activities are not implemented in a timely and effective
manner. Of the 168 reviews that were planned to have been conducted
over the five year period examined by the ANAO, 58 (35 per cent) have
not been completed. While completion rates have improved in the last
two years this is due to the AEC significantly reducing the number of
planned reviews, narrowing the scope of planned reviews, and reducing
the value of the transactions being tested. There has also been a
marked decline in the number of full reviews that are being conducted
on large entities with disclosure obligations.
16. The
AEC does not appropriately act upon identified non-compliance. It is
not making effective use of its enforcement powers and as such has
not implemented a graduated approach to managing and acting on
identified non-compliance.
The
full report at:
Sunday 20 September 2020
COVID_19 reached Australia around 236 days ago but Prime Minister Scott Morrison did not act on fully implementing contact tracing of overseas air arrivals until Day 234
Australian Prime Minister and Liberal MP for Cook Scott Morrison and his office were quick with the excuses and blame for others when found out, but a man already notorious for being chronically workshy has just reinforced his reputation.
There was a reason most of the jobs he held between leaving university and entering the Australian Parliament lasted no more than two years' duration and, unfortunately the drought, then the bushfires and now the pandemic are showing us that reason.
News.com.au, 18 September 2020:
There was a reason most of the jobs he held between leaving university and entering the Australian Parliament lasted no more than two years' duration and, unfortunately the drought, then the bushfires and now the pandemic are showing us that reason.
News.com.au, 18 September 2020:
Scott
Morrison was warned that COVID-19 contact tracers urgently needed
airlines to keep more data on travellers in January but failed to
secure agreement on the mandated collection of information for
travellers until today’s national cabinet.
Correspondence
obtained by news.com.au confirms that Queensland Premier Annastacia
Palaszczuk wrote to the Prime Minister on January 31, just days after
the first confirmed case in Australia on the “matter of national
importance”.
As
the states dealt with the influx of international passengers, they
were shocked to learn that incoming travellers’ passenger cards
were essentially thrown in the bin or unable to be accessed on
privacy grounds.
In
the letter, the Queensland Premier warned the Prime Minister that the
states’ ability to respond to the emerging public health crisis
would be greatly assisted “if your government, as the primary
recipient of information concerning people entering Australia, could
undertake to contact anyone considered at-risk”.
“It
is important that in times such as these we work together to respond
quickly and effectively to minimise the potential risk this emerging
public health issue poses to our community,” she wrote.
The
correspondence also asked the Morrison Government to share
information with the states about arrivals from Wuhan, the epicentre
of the outbreak.
“Only
the Federal Government has the details on their incoming boarding
card of who they are, where they are staying and their mobile phone
contact numbers.
“We
need to contact those people. I don’t know at the moment in
Queensland where people from the Hubei province currently are because
the Federal Government has that information.”
Ultimately,
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said the full Tigerair manifest,
including emails, contact numbers and other known details of all the
passengers was given to the Queensland Government.
But
despite the pleas of state leaders since January, the mandatory
collection of data on domestic flight has taken more than six months
to finalise.
Privacy
laws have proved a minefield for public servants to navigate, with
the Morrison Government forced to find “work arounds” to provide
contact details on international travellers while the collection of
information on domestic flights was even worse.
The
Prime Minister confirmed the new arrangements today for the mandatory
data collection on domestic flights to assist states and territories
when it comes to contact tracing.
“From
1 October, part of the mandatory manifest information will be name,
email address, a mobile contact number, and a state of residence,’’
Mr Morrison said.
“There’s
still some work to be done there. That will be arranged with the
major airlines, with the Department of Infrastructure, and those
arrangements are being put in place now.
“Now,
that is just simply to help our state and territory agencies in the
contact tracing that they may be required to do, when it comes to
tracking when people are moving from state to state, and that
information will, of course, be treated sensitively by the states and
territories in the same way that public health information is always
treated.” [my yellow highlighting]
ABC
News,
19 September 2020:
Flights
with confirmed cases of COVID-19 are published by state health
authorities.
According to New South Wales Health, there were nine domestic flights that
passed through the state that had confirmed cases of COVID-19 from
May to August.
Health
authorities list the rows considered to be "close contacts"
of the confirmed case.
Those
who have been in close contact with a confirmed case are required to
self-isolate for 14 days.
* CREDIT: Image of Scott Morrison from The Monthly.Around 10% of the Australian workforce are temporary migrants and overseas students - what help are we giving then during the COVID-19 pandemic?
UNSW Newsroom, media release, 17 September 2020:
A nationwide survey of more than 6000 international students and other temporary migrants conducted in July 2020 has found 70% lost all or most of their work during the pandemic.
Thousands have been left unable to pay for food and rent. These migrants make up 10% of the Australian workforce.
As if we weren’t humans: The abandonment of temporary migrants in Australia during COVID-19 is the latest report from UNSW Law Associate Professor Bassina Farbenblum and UTS Law Associate Professor Laurie Berg, co-directors of the Migrant Worker Justice Initiative.
The survey revealed more than half the respondents (57%) believe their financial stress will deepen by year’s end, with one in three international students forecasting their funds will run out by October. Thousands expressed anguish and anger over the federal government’s decision to exclude temporary migrants from JobKeeper and JobSeeker support.
Beyond their immediate humanitarian plight, hundreds linked their distress to the Prime Minister’s message that those unable to support themselves should “make [their] way home”. They expressed feelings of abandonment and worthlessness: “like we do not exist”, “they don’t see us. They can’t hear us”.
In addition, a quarter experienced verbal racist abuse and a quarter reported people avoiding them because of their appearance. More than half of Chinese respondents reported experiencing either or both of these.
“Over 1600 participants described being targeted with xenophobic slurs, treated as though they were infected with COVID because they looked Asian, or harassed for wearing a face mask”, says A/Prof. Farbenblum.
“Many reported that because of their Asian appearance they were punched, hit, kicked, shoved, deliberately spat at or coughed on by passers-by in the street and on public transport.”
For example, one female Vietnamese student said: “People were saying some racist comments and pushed me, saying that I was the reason for COVID and I should go away.” Another Chinese student said: “I have been harassed by teenagers and throwing eggs on my way home from school”.
While previous studies have documented aspects of the financial hardship of temporary migrants, this is the first study that reveals the depth of social exclusion, racism and deeper emotional consequences of Australia’s policies, which have significantly impacted Australia’s global reputation.
Following their pandemic experience, three in five international students, graduates and working holiday makers are now less likely or much less likely to recommend Australia as a place to study or have a working holiday. This includes important education markets such as Chinese and Nepalese students (76% and 69% respectively were now less likely to recommend Australia).
“I feel [the] Australian government doesn't think of temporary visa holders as human beings but merely a money-making machine,” said one female Indian international student. “It’s appalling to see the PM consoling the citizens saying that we are all in this together but at the same time telling migrants to go back home in a pandemic.”
Another international Master’s student observed, “It's completely hypocritical that we’re important for tax purposes, and in the sense that we contribute billions of dollars to the economy as university fees, but are treated as some breed of untouchables”.
A/Prof. Berg says that Australia will bear the diplomatic and economic consequences of these policies for decades to come:
“Many of those suffering in Australia now will return home to become leaders in business and politics, holding roles of social influence around the region. Their experiences during this period will not be quickly forgotten.”
Read the full report.
Excerpt from the report:
Current
sources of financial support are deeply inadequate to meet need
•
Since the first lockdown in March, a third (33%) of all respondents
indicated they had sought emergency support to meet their essential
needs (37% of international students).
•
Charities and others provided food, one-off cash payments and other
forms of emergency relief, but education providers were the source of
the overwhelming majority of support received.
•
Education provider support was limited to one-off payments, mostly to
university students, among whom a quarter (26%) received support.
Only one in ten students (11%) at private colleges received support.
The overwhelming majority of those who received support got a one-off
payment of under $1000.
•
The Red Cross provided support to 2% of respondents. Two thirds of
these were international students, among whom 68% received a one-off
payment of $500 or less.
•
State governments provided support to 4% of respondents, almost all
of whom were international students.
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