Chalmers ‘simply making things up’: Hume
The deputy Liberal leader, Jane Hume, has responded to Jim Chalmers’ claim that the Coalition would end the super guarantee, accusing him of making stuff up.
Before heading out to Googong with Angus Taylor for a press conference, Hume rejected Chalmers’ comments and told reporters at parliament:
I think the treasurer has a leaf out of the Mad Men Don Draper book: if you don’t like what they’re saying about you, change the conversation.
The super guarantee is here to stay and the treasurer is simply making things up.
Key events
Alan Jones trial enters third week
Kat Wong
The Alan Jones indecent assault trial in Sydney is now into its third week. Jones has pleaded not guilty to 20 indecent assault charges and two counts of sexual touching against six men.
Complainant C, who used to drive Jones’s car, is continuing his evidence in the Downing Centre local court.
He said he told his friends and colleagues the broadcaster was a “grub” when he described the way Jones would grope him.
C, who drove Jones while working for 2GB radio as a young man, last week told the court the broadcaster would touch his penis in the car and kiss him in the lift at work and at Jones’s home.
He didn’t tell anyone about the alleged behaviour while he was still working for Jones, but years later he started telling friends and colleagues, C said.
Today, complainant C said that when they asked what it was like to work for the radio host, he replied:
He was a grub.
Alan used to grab me on the cock, in the car, in the lift.
I recall using very vulgar language to describe him.
The trial before judge Glenn Walsh continues.
‘You will be condemned by history’: Steele-John
Jordon Steele-John has accused the government of backing the “gas industry and the billionaires instead of … disabled people and our families”, as debate on the NDIS legislation in the Senate continues.
He’s making an impassioned plea for the government and Coalition not to go ahead with the legislation and says the cuts are “not needed”.
Both major parties say the scheme as it is is unsustainable. Last year, the scheme grew more than 11%, well above the government’s previous target of limiting growth by less than 6%. Under the changes, the government wants growth to be limited to 2% (which is below even the inflation rate).
Steele-John says:
Shame on you. You betray not only this community, but the national character. You will be condemned by history. The blood and the lives of those who will suffer and die will be on your hands, and will live in your consciences forever.
And come the next election, we will consider what to do with our votes, and we will remember, who backed us up, who fought our corner in this moment, and who decided to turn away … We will ensure that every single life, every single cooked decision. Every single automated nightmare, created by this bill, is laid directly at your door.
Minns government accuses NSW Liberal leader of ‘pandering to One Nation’ over gun buyback
Penry Buckley
The NSW treasurer, Daniel Mookhey, has accused the Liberal leader, Kellie Sloane, of “political pandering to One Nation” as she doubles down on her criticism of the state’s participation in Australia’s biggest gun buyback in 30 years.
The Liberal leader, Sloane, who witnessed the Bondi attack, voted with her party for tougher gun laws in the immediate aftermath, including limiting the number of firearms for recreational users to four, and for farmers to ten. The Nationals voted against restrictions, while the Liberals have since walked back their support.
Under the joint federal and NSW buyback announced on the weekend, individuals will be compensated for surrendering firearms that exceed the new limits or which have been reclassified, affecting an estimated 274,000 registered firearms.
Sloane, who has said the government needs to respond to “legitimate concerns” about the policy, including its costs, told 2GB yesterday it was “absolute bullshit” that the buyback would prevent another Bondi attack. One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has also criticised the policy. This morning, Sloane again said she did not think the buyback would prevent another attack like Bondi, telling Sunrise:
It won’t. Sadly, it won’t. I mean, there’s a reason that Chris Minns was the only premier in the entire country to stand with Anthony Albanese and support this proposal, which is half-baked. It’s half-baked and it’s a very expensive solution to the wrong problem.
We need to be very clear-eyed about who the real enemy is. And it is not law-abiding farmers. It is not law-abiding sporting shooters in our suburbs. It is terrorists. It is terrorism. It is hate.
Asked about Sloane’s response to the buyback this morning, the NSW treasurer, Daniel Mookhey, told reporters it was “incontrovertible that if you reduce the number of guns in circulation, you make the community safer”. He accused the opposition leader of engaging “in a gold-medal opportunity … of preemptive political pandering to One Nation”.
Victorian teachers vote to accept government’s pay offer
Benita Kolovos
Victorian public school teachers accepted the state government’s latest pay offer, calling off a statewide strike planned for this week and ending the year-long negotiations.
Australian Education Union members voted 79% in favour of the offer on Monday and confirmed planned industrial action on Wednesday will not proceed.
Teachers will receive total pay rises between 28.3% and 32.4% over four years, plus a $2,000 bonus at the start of the agreement.
Early-career teachers will receive a $12,343 increase by October 2026, bringing their pay in line with New South Wales. An experienced teacher’s salary will rise from $118,063 to $151,419 by 2029, including a $15,393 increase in 2026, which brings their salary ahead of NSW.
The deal also improves conditions, including fewer after school meetings and four professional practice days each year.
AEU’s branch president, Justin Mullaly, said the outcome was thanks to the powerful campaign by tens of thousands of public school staff. He said in a statement:
Increases like these are why it pays to be a union member. This outcome has been won through the direct efforts of AEU members, who demanded pay and conditions that reflect the value and importance of their work in Victorian public schools.
The premier, Ben Carroll, and education minister, Gabrielle Williams, are due to hold a press conference at 11.30am.
Labor and Coalition continue negotiations on NDIS bill
Back in the Senate, the shadow health minister, Anne Ruston, says the Coalition is working with the government as well as the crossbench to make “improvements to this bill”.
After Greens senator Jordon Steele-John’s attempt to suspend standing orders to dump the bill was shut down, the chamber is now debating the substance of the legislation.
Ruston has plenty of criticism for the government over the bill (no surprises there) over fears from the disability community about who will get kicked off the scheme, the lack of consultation, fraud and exploitation of the system and concerns over gaps between the NDIS and state services which are yet to come online:
We all want to see the scheme protected [as] the scheme’s growth and expenditure are unsustainable at current levels.
One of the things that stood out during the Senate inquiry was the disability community’s outrage and heartbreak that they were not consulted on these reforms before they were introduced. There has been no consultation with the disability community, representative organisations or even state and territory ministers on these reforms …
There is a clear risk that alternative supports will not be in place for participants who are exiting the scheme when these changes commence.
Nationals MP pushes controversial ‘babies born alive’ bill in the house
Over in the House, the Nationals MP Llew O’Brien is debating his bill to force doctors to provide medical care and treatment for babies born alive after the termination of a pregnancy.
He’s surrounded by Liberal frontbenchers Andrew Hastie and Tony Pasin and backbenchers Rick Wilson, Nationals MPs Alison Penfold and David Batt and One Nation’s Barnaby Joyce.
It’s not a new bill: back in 2024 the now Nationals leader Matt Canavan pushed for similar rules to be introduced, defying an order from then-Liberal leader Peter Dutton that Coalition MPs must not engage in any debates on abortion.
The bill will go nowhere because Labor, which has a majority in the house, won’t support it.
To understand what the issue is, and what the facts are, have a read of this explainer by my colleague Tory Shepherd here:
Greens move to suspend standing orders to ditch ‘cruel’ NDIS bill
The Greens senator Jordon Steele-John has moved to suspend standing orders in the Senate, which was about to begin debating the NDIS bill, in order to have the legislation thrown out.
Steele-John says the bill ignores evidence from parliamentary hearings and will do harm to people with a disability and their families:
This bill must be discharged, thrown into the parliamentary bin because it will do harm to the Australian disabled community and our families.
It appears that the major parties in this place are, despite all of the evidence given, on so many different fronts, from so many different community groups, and so many different parliamentary hearings, that this bill is dangerous, will do harm, will cause those who have finally reached independence to go back into isolation, back into the dark, shut in, shut up, shut away, despite the most compelling evidence that I have taken in nearly 10 years in this place … [there is] unanimous united feedback that this bill will do harm. It is cruel. It is unnecessary.
The government and the Coalition are still in negotiation to make a deal on the bill, so the Greens won’t have the numbers to shut this down.
New Tasmanian Liberal senator sworn in
Chris Gatenby has be sworn in as Tasmania’s newest senator, replacing Wendy Askew who announced she would leave federal politics in June.
A few days later her colleague, Liberal frontbencher Jonno Duniam, also announced he would depart but that won’t be until later in the year.
Gatenby is a former Liberal Party president and former senior adviser to the Tasmanian premier, Jeremy Rockliff.
Kat Wong
North Sydney Olympic pool re-opens after power issue forces closure
North Sydney Olympic pool has re-opened following a temporary closure just one week after its five-year restoration.
On Thursday afternoon, a power issue forced staff to clear the pool of swimmers and temporarily shut the complex.
But after staff and contractors completed works to address the problem, the pool was open and operating as usual by Saturday, North Sydney Council confirmed:
Council thanks the community for its patience and understanding during the temporary closure and looks forward to welcoming visitors back to the facility.
North Sydney Olympic pool reopened to much fanfare following a costly five-year, $122m redevelopment.
The famous art deco pool, which first opened in 1936 and has been a training ground for countless elite athletes, was due to reopen in 2022 after closing for a major refurbishment. But it was hampered by delays and ballooning costs.
Nab records rise in ‘watch loans’ indicating consumer stress
Jonathan Barrett
National Australia Bank has recorded an increase in the number of struggling customers amid relentless pressure on Australian households.
The bank said today that levels of “watch loans” were moving higher, reflecting current and potential customer stress.
Watch loans are a leading indicator of a customer’s financial problems, whereby a lender has identified that a borrower may struggle to meet future commitments.
Nab said the Middle East conflict, higher interest rates and recent budget tax changes are creating challenges and uncertainties for customers.
The big bank recorded a $1.83bn quarterly cash profit, according to results published this morning, 2% higher than the average of the prior two quarters.
Chalmers ‘simply making things up’: Hume
The deputy Liberal leader, Jane Hume, has responded to Jim Chalmers’ claim that the Coalition would end the super guarantee, accusing him of making stuff up.
Before heading out to Googong with Angus Taylor for a press conference, Hume rejected Chalmers’ comments and told reporters at parliament:
I think the treasurer has a leaf out of the Mad Men Don Draper book: if you don’t like what they’re saying about you, change the conversation.
The super guarantee is here to stay and the treasurer is simply making things up.
Taylor won’t confirm if backpackers will be carved out of Coalition migration targets
Angus Taylor and Matt Canavan might be in for a slightly awkward conversation over which visa classes are going to see cuts to get migration numbers down.
The Coalition has said it will tie migration numbers to housing builds, but the Nats have warned that working holiday visas (ie backpackers) shouldn’t be touched because they’re vital farm workers.
Taylor, who’s doing a press conference in Googong, a town just outside Canberra in NSW, says there will be more to say later about which visas get cut:
We’ll have more to say as we get closer to the election on the composition of visas. What I will say, though, is we will cap migration numbers based on housing supply. Sadly, we’re seeing housing supply [in] freefall …
We’ll look at different visa classes and make appropriate decisions. What we don’t want to do, and to Matt’s point, is we don’t want to undermine the skilled labour that our agricultural sectors need.
Coalition, One Nation would end super ‘as we know it’ claims Chalmers
Jim Chalmers, who’s become a bit of a fan of the ol’ Parliament House doors-stop (for the unintiated, it’s basically where journos will hang out at the entrances of the Senate and house to ask incoming pollies what their thoughts are on the news of the day).
Chalmers has recently taken it upon himself to – when convenient – enter through the House of Representatives doors rather than the ministerial entrance, so he can give the TV stations a couple of quotes.
This morning he’s taken aim at Jane Hume, the Liberals and One Nation, and claims they’re a threat to super. He accuses Hume of throwing the future of compulsory super in doubt during her earlier interview on News24 (see here):
The Liberals via Jane Hume put the future of compulsory super [in] doubt … The Liberals, the Nationals and One Nation would end compulsory superannuation as we know it.
Their policy and their ideology on super would absolutely decimate the economic security and retirement incomes of millions of Australian workers … Last week, Andrew Bragg at the press club compared super for younger workers as akin to super for cats and dogs.
What Hume said this morning was:
I do think that superannuation is highly valued by Australians, it’s not something that you need in your working life, it’s something you need in your retired life … The best indicator of economic security in your retirement is owning a home and that should be a priority.
Former public service commissioner announced as Julie Bishop’s replacement at ANU
Gordon de Brouwer has been appointed chancellor of the beleaguered Australian National University, to replace Julie Bishop after months of turbulence.
De Brouwer is a bit of a Canberra institution, most recently having served as the Australian Public Service Commissioner and who has held senior roles in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, treasury and the Reserve Bank.
The decision was made independently of the university’s council after a string of controversies around ANU’s governance. The ANU had voluntarily requested an undertaking from the university quality and safety body, TEQSA, to help make the appointment.
In a statement, De Brouwer said:
I am committed to helping ANU build confidence in its future, with strong governance, a compelling shared strategy and a culture in which our people can do their best work.
The finance minister, and senator for the ACT, Katy Gallagher, has also congratulated the new chancellor who will begin this week:
The ANU is a great national institution and a vital part of Canberra, and I look forward to working with Dr de Brouwer as he leads the University into its next chapter.
