What happened this Wednesday 24 March
That’s where we will wrap up the blog for today. Here is what happened today:
- Two people have been confirmed killed by floods in New South Wales and Queensland. A 25-year-old man from western Sydney was found by police this morning, and David Hornman, 38, was found by police in the Gold Coast hinterland this afternoon.
- A NSW state MP has told parliament that a NSW government MP allegedly raped a sex worker in the Blue Mountains.
- A former Tasmanian state MP, Sue Hickey, told Tasmanian state parliament that the Liberal senator Eric Abetz made offensive comments about Brittany Higgins. Hickey claimed that Abetz told her in March that “anybody who is so disgustingly drunk, who would sleep with anybody, could have slept with one of our spies and put the security of our nation at risk.”
- Abetz categorically denied the statement, saying he helped set up a women’s shelter before he entered parliament and “to suggest that I would make light of a rape allegation is horrendous”.
- The prime minister, Scott Morrison, said the content of the alleged comments were “repugnant”, but “what I can only refer to is the absolute denial of those statements by Senator Abetz.”
- The Tasmanian premier, Peter Gutwein, said he had written to Morrison to “consider the matters raised”.
- Morrison also apologised for his comments at a press conference yesterday, when he revealed details of a harassment complaint at News Corp, which were denied. Morrison told Ray Hadley: “Blokes don’t get it right all the time ... what matters is that we’re desperately trying to and that’s what I’m trying to do.”
- NSW announced it would ease Covid restrictions from Monday, with dancing and singing allowed in all venues, no more home visitor restrictions, and masks no longer mandatory in any setting (though strongly encouraged on public transport).
We will be back tomorrow with all the latest news live.
Updated
Trish Doyle, the Labor MP for the Blue Mountains, made the statement to parliament on Wednesday.
Doyle said she had been contacted 18 months ago by a sex worker who said she “had recently been assaulted in my electorate”.
She alleged that the woman told her she consented only to oral sex, and had been “clear with her client from the outset”, and did not consent to penetrative sex.
Doyle told parliament:
She tells me she made herself clear that she was not willing to have penetrative sex with him, however towards the end the man moved around behind her and assaulted her in a way she had not consented to.
They met at a secluded lookout ... in the Blue Mountains. In her emails to me she said that once the assault began she just wanted it to finish. But on that she was emphatic. It was an assault, and it was against her explicit instructions. She did not consent. It was rape.
It is all the worse that this man who raped her is a government member of this chamber.
Read the full story here:
Updated
Liberal member Kent Johns has disputed independent MP Craig Kelly’s claim that he wasn’t told about alleged inappropriate behaviour by his staffer Frank Zumbo.
Scott Morrison’s insistence that Kelly remove Zumbo from his office over concerns of the behaviour towards young aides was one of the catalysts for Kelly quitting the Liberal party and joining the crossbench.
Kelly has claimed that “no specifics or no details of any allegation were ever put to me until recently”.
Johns, a former New South Wales Liberal party vice-president who lost preselection for the seat of Hughes to Kelly, told the ABC he raised allegations and staff concerns at least three times with Kelly between 2016 and 2018.
“He’s a liar,” Johns reportedly said. “He knew what was going on. He knew the behaviour was unacceptable, and he kept ignoring it. Craig Kelly had a duty of care, which he’s failed to fulfil.”
Zumbo has rejected the allegations of inappropriate behaviour. He also rejects Johns’ claims, arguing Johns is motivated by political considerations and an intense personal dislike of him.
Guardian Australia has contacted Kelly for comment.
Updated
NSW government MP allegedly raped sex worker, MP claims in state parliament
A NSW Labor MP, Trish Doyle, told parliament earlier today that a NSW government MP allegedly raped a female sex worker in the Blue Mountains.
Doyle said the woman contacted her 18 months ago.
The woman alleged that she consented to oral sex but did not consent to penetrative sex.
Doyle told the parliament:
She tells me she made herself clear that she was not willing to have penetrative sex with him, however towards the end the man moved around behind her and assaulted her in a way she had not consented to.
Updated
Tasmanian premier writes to Morrison about Abetz
The ABC is reporting that the Tasmanian premier, Peter Gutwein, has written to Scott Morrison to “consider the matter” of Eric Abetz’s alleged comments about Brittany Higgins.
Earlier today, a former state Tasmanian Liberal MP, Sue Hickey, claimed that Abetz made offensive comments about Higgins at the start of March in a private conversation. Abetz has categorically denied he made the comments.
Gutwein has now said that Hickey raised the issue with him weeks ago – and has written to Morrison that he should “consider the matters raised”.
Premier Peter Gutwein says Sue Hickey raised the allegations against Senator Abetz with him a few weeks ago, but not in detail. He's written to Prime Minister Scott Morrison to ask that he "consider the matters raised" #politas
— Emily Baker (@emlybkr) March 24, 2021
Updated
Queensland police are speaking now about the man who died in the floods in the Gold Coast hinterland.
They say the man’s last known location was at his father’s house, and he went missing on Monday.
“As of a short time ago, we have advised the wife and the family of that male that he’s now passed away”, a police spokesman says.
The man has been identified by AAP as 38-year-old David Hornman.
The spokesman says:
Shortly after lunchtime, a member of the public phoned police to inform them they have located a vehicle upturned in the river here. As a result of that information, swift water rescue, Gold Coast water police and the police dive squad have attended, recovered a vehicle and, unfortunately, located a male deceased in that vehicle.
Updated
Workers in Parliament House have called on their employers to set up a range of new measures around reporting harassment and assault.
Members of the Community and Public Sector Union released an open letter today with five key demands:
- An independent and confidential complaints process.
- Mandatory training for parliamentarians and staff, safe reporting mechanisms, and data reporting to workplace health and safety committees or equivalent.
- Provisions to mitigate gendered violence and sexual harassment in the MOPS Enterprise Agreement currently under negotiation.
- Appropriate, specialised and ongoing support services for all workers in parliamentary workplaces.
- The immediate implementation of the 55 recommendations of the Respect@Work report.
Updated
AAP has identified the man who died in Queensland’s floods as 38-year-old David Hornman.
He was last seen on Monday, according to AAP, when he was last known to be heading to a job in the Tamborine area of the Gold Coast hinterland.
His ute was spotted earlier today in the flooded Canungra Creek.
Updated
Man who died in NSW floods was on first day of new job
NSW police are speaking now about the flood death in north-west Sydney.
A spokesman said that the man was a 25-year-old Pakistani national from western Sydney and was on his first day in a new job as a contractor with a “large commercial organisation”.
Police said the car was “six metres under water” when divers found it, and signs and floodgates on the road were six to 10 metres underwater.
Police said:
The actual gate blocking the road was underwater for 10 metres. Given the unprecedented water levels, the gates could not be seen from the roadway at all.
The man called triple zero at 6.25am.
Police said:
He has been a new Australian for quite a considerable amount of time. He does have ties within the community around western Sydney.
Police said the man was driving a “brand new hire car”.
Updated
Person dies in Queensland floods
The ABC has reported that a body has been found in a submerged car in the Gold Coast hinterland in Queensland.
Police told the ABC the car belongs to a 38-year-old man who was reported missing on Monday.
Earlier today, a man was confirmed dead in the NSW floods.
NSW Health has announced it will deploy a “specialist medical assistance team” to North Richmond to give emergency care to people cut off from hospitals due to the New South Wales floods.
Deborah Willcox, the NSW Health deputy secretary, says:
The critical care team will be based in North Richmond and will be able to help stabilise patients, while arrangements are made for them to be transferred to an emergency department as early as possible.
The team will have two parademics, two nurses, two emergency medicine and retrieval specialists and one logistician. It will be deployed to triple zero calls.
Willcox said:
It is expected the team will be deployed for a period of seven days, but this will be continually assessed based on the needs of the surrounding communities.
The North Richmond facility will not be open for patient walk-ins, and people with non-urgent care needs are advised to go to their local GP service or pharmacy.
Updated
Liberal MP Julian Leeser is on the ABC saying that quotas for female MPs “may well help address the culture” – even as he says he is still undecided on the idea.
Leeser does say it is “a discussion we should be having”.
[The] philosophical position of the Liberal party is that people should be judged on individual qualities. That is where we started and that has been the position of most women in our party.
But I think this is a discussion and a debate that we should be having and I think quotas are something that may well help address the culture. But there is a broader cultural question in our parliament ... We need to address some of the broader cultural things that people like Karen Andrews have been talking about in the last couple of days – the exclusive, blokey, boozy culture that exists in some places in the parliament
Labor MP Annika Wells says the Coalition already has quotas.
The Liberal and National Coalition already has quotas based on geography and based on factions ... That is how they form the cabinet, that is how they have formed it for decades. But when it comes to quotas for women or for equity groups, that is a question of merit.
The entitlement and the discrimination underpinning that argument is just unbelievable. And the fact is that a quota works. I am a beneficiary of quotas and I can tell you they work because they force powerful people in the party, powerful men in the party, to look around and give these things more thought and consideration.
Updated
Hi all, Naaman Zhou here, taking over the blog. Thanks, as always, to Amy Remeikis for helming it today.
Updated
I have a meeting to dash off to, so am going to hand you over to the wonderful Naaman Zhou a tad bit earlier today – but I will be back for the final house sitting day for six weeks tomorrow.
A very big thank you to everyone who joined me today – I know there was once again a lot on, so I appreciate it. Our thoughts are with everyone who is still watching the flood waters. I know it doesn’t feel like it, but the nation is thinking of you, and we know the recovery will be hard. We’ll be there with you.
Have a lovely evening – and take care of you.
Updated
Andrew Leigh is continuing to beat the “did you see how much millionaires and billionaires got from jobkeeper, despite making a profit” drum.
It’s a slow burn, but people are starting to pay attention. Here is part of his speech today:
A year ago, billionaire Solomon Lew reportedly cried as he spoke on the phone to treasurer Josh Frydenberg, urging him create jobkeeper. Lew’s firm, Premier Investments, which owns Just Jeans, Jay Jays and Smiggle, qualified for over $45 million in jobkeeper support from taxpayers.
Today, Premier Investments announced a record profit, almost twice what it was making before the pandemic.
Premier Investments has paid its CEO a $2.5 million bonus – more than many workers will earn in a lifetime. They paid $111 million to shareholders, over $30 million of which will end up in Solomon Lew’s pockets.
The Business Council of Australia and the Australian Tax Office say firms getting jobkeeper shouldn’t pay bonuses. The head of the small business council says this kind of behaviour is “pretty close to theft”. The Australian Financial Review editorial today says Premier Investments should pay its jobkeeper back.
As much as one-fifth of jobkeeper may have gone to firms like Premier whose profits were rising. The Liberals may have squandered $10 to $20 billion.
Last month, Solomon Lew’s $40 million super yacht, Maridome, finally made it to Melbourne after being caught by Covid on the other side of the world. He must be delighted to have it back. Perhaps to thank the Australian taxpayer, he could rename his super yacht “Jobkeeper”.
For the record, Labor had also called for a wage subsidy program back in those early days.
Updated
The Australian is reporting “growing expectation” of a cabinet reshuffle.
Dennis Shanahan reports that Michaelia Cash could get AG (although that doesn’t mean Christian Porter would lose the other parts of his portfolio, which includes IR), bringing back the rumours from the last cabinet reshuffle that Peter Dutton could be moved to Defence, and says Stuart Robert is potentially the home affairs pick.
It’s all just conjecture. But here it is for the record.
There is growing expectation in senior government ranks that Scott Morrison will soon announce ministerial changes and not return Christian Porter and Linda Reynolds to their respective roles as attorney general and defence minister after their extended leave.
Peter Dutton is expected to become the new defence minister after having an expanded role on defence in the House of Representatives this year and Michaelia Cash to be confirmed as attorney general.
Long-term supporter of the prime minister, Stuart Robert, currently minister for the NDIS and government services, could be promoted to the home affairs portfolio if Mr Dutton is moved.
Updated
The amount of local industry content in Australia’s first few new submarines could fall below the 60% level outlined in a deal trumpeted by the Morrison government this week.
Defence officials revealed the staged increase in local content at a Senate estimates hearing this afternoon. Australia is spending nearly $90bn on the acquisition of 12 new submarines.
Yesterday, the acting defence minister, Marise Payne, said the government had reached a deal with Naval Group, the French shipbuilde, for the company to “spend at least 60% of the contract value in Australia over the life of the program reflected formally in the strategic partnering agreement, supporting Australian jobs in the defence industry”.
Greg Sammut, the general manager of submarines, said the contract contained “rather strict obligations” requiring the company to make changes if the local content level fell too low, but he would not disclose the details on the basis “they are commercially sensitive”.
He said:
We are going to measure at each submarine delivered.
Asked if the contract contemplated the first submarine to have less than 60% local content, Sammut said:
The contract would allow for that understanding that in some cases, in some cases, there may be equipment from major supplies that is done in the home country first, as it trains up Australian industry to be able to do that sort of work in Australia. So there is a contemplation that the level of Australian industry involvement in equipment for the first boat may be less than subsequent vessels.
Sammut said that by the third or fourth submarine, the project would reach “a steady state”.
The Australian government begun its negotiations with Naval Group nine months ago, he said.
Updated
Zali Steggall is now speaking to the ABC about the government not supporting her and Helen Haines’ (with support from the crossbench, including Rebekha Sharkie) motion to bring on a legislative debate to fix loopholes in the sexual discrimination legislation:
Well, that again, with respect, we heard in that press conference the Prime Minister talk about how important his family is, how that feels, how he loves them, and with respect, that is beside the point.
That is not what we are calling for. As Prime Minister, you have put your hand up for the job, there is a responsibility that comes at the job, you are in government and you have the ability to make the difference. Use that!
What we are hearing is well look, we’ll think about it, talk about it, meet about it, have another inquiry, review the report, this indefinite reflection of sometime down the road at some point we may just do half a measure that tweak this. That is not going to be good enough.
There is definitely, we can see in this place, a toxic culture that needs to be addressed.
I think there is a petulance and arrogance about coming to address the issue and still is not taking it seriously! One question I asked myself after I watched that press conference was how many senior women does he have advising him?
A 16-year-old woman has sent me this poem she wrote. She’s a student, and interested in politics, but says she has been watching the past few weeks and has become dispirited.
Here is the poem she wrote after watching the prime minister’s press conference yesterday. I thought it was worth a wider audience.
Brittany and the others
Good morning everyone
He begins
The people wait
The women hope
The serious situation
He says
Like it is a natural disaster
A series of protests
Anything but what it really is
Disturbing events
He carries on
Our ears are strained
Anticipation rife with tension
We must recognise this problem
He says as if it is the first time
we have heard it
Disgraceful acts
What is he getting at?
I try and deal with traumatic events
We stop
Trauma
Trauma
What a thing
To say
As if he has had
Experienced
Hands where we don’t want them
Breathing in our ear
Telling us to shut up and be good
Ice cold fingers trailing down
My body
My body
But is it mine anymore?
When he is done
I am frozen to the spot
Cold to the touch
Is this what Scott Morrison felt?
Maybe he should ask Jenny.
Updated
Kristina Keneally is asked whether or not Sue Hickey’s having been dis-endorsed by the Tasmanian Liberals should be taken into account with her claims and says:
She has brought these claims forward under parliamentary privilege.
I note after the denial by Senator Abetz, she has repeated the claims [and] stands by them ... I think we need to hear more from the prime minister on this.
These questions of the treatment of women, the behaviour of government MPs and staffers to contribute to this poor culture in Australia towards the poor treatment of women, this all fits with the prime minister.
Cultural change and leadership starts at the top. So, again, I come back to the point, has the prime minister read Sue Hickey’s allegations? Or is this another case of allegations from a woman that the prime minister is ignoring?
Is a prime minister going to talk to Senator Eric Abetz? Is the prime minister going to make a clear decision about whether Senator Abetz remains a fit and proper person to be on a parliamentary joint committee for intelligence ...
I’m not here to tell the prime minister how to do his job. He should know how to do his job. But the prime minister stood before the nation yesterday and, in an emotive tone, said he had heard that women felt they were not listened to, he had heard that women were frustrated, that these stories of assault, harassment and rape were not taken seriously.
Well, if the prime minister wants to wish all Australian women that he really has heard them, maybe he can start by taking seriously the series of claims that were made in the Tasmanian parliament today by a woman and her horror at what she says were the words of Senator Eric Abetz.
Look, the prime minister may decide after all of that he is quite comfortable with Senator Eric Abetz – that would be his decision.
Quite frankly, for him to stand in parliament today in question time and just dismiss outright that this, these claims had been made – without him even reading it, talking to Senator Eric Abetz, just as to women, once again – this prime minister is not listening to women’s allegations, stories and experiences.
Updated
Kristina Keneally is on the ABC’s Afternoon Briefing, talking about Sue Hickey’s claims of what Eric Abetz said.
Keneally says:
Noting he did deny them, but they are appalling comments, let me reflect that there is a repeated pattern of behaviour from this government when it comes to Brittany Higgins’s brave revelations of the alleged rape she experienced in the minister’s office.
And that repeated pattern is this: that she felt pressured to choose between a job and pursuing justice; that she was called a “lying cow” by the minister for defence, Linda Reynolds; that the prime minister has not even bothered to ask his own staff who knew what and when about the alleged rape and indeed; the prime minister’s personal fixer Philip Gaetjens has stopped the inquiry into the prime minister’s office
I am quite concerned that the prime minister in question time seems to accept their denial from Eric Abetz – and again this goes to a repeated pattern of behaviour – the prime minister did not read the dossier of the allegations against Christian Porter, took his word for it, didn’t order an inquiry, had not read the words of Sue Hickey but just accepted the words of Eric Abetz.
With [what] the prime minister ... has said to women, maybe he should start looking and reading the words of women and reflecting and asking questions before he acts.
Updated
Here was Michelle Landry’s full quote from yesterday:
I was horrified when I saw that last night. I think there is a real behaviour problem in this place and that we have to address it.
I am certainly strict about what goes on in my office. I don’t think people should be here after hours unless they are working and there needs to be a strict code on that.
In saying that, the young fellow concerned was a good worker and he loved the place. I feel bad for him about this, but it’s unacceptable behaviour by anyone and it should not happen in workplaces like this. This is the federal parliament of Australia and people should behave themselves.
Now she says she was misrepresented:
Capricornia MP @mlandryMP has told the House she feels she was misrepresented in regards to her comments yesterday about the staffer fired for engaging in solo sex acts in Parliament House. #auspol @10NewsFirst pic.twitter.com/jvP3oPZiQm
— Tegan George (@tegangeorge) March 24, 2021
There was video.
It was said on camera.
But Michelle Landry says she has been taken out of context when she said this yesterday.
(Presented in context)
Well this is an ... interesting ... take. #auspol @10NewsFirst pic.twitter.com/n1KvJO0S9E
— Tegan George (@tegangeorge) March 22, 2021
The Member for Capricornia telling the Parliament that she has been been taken out of context through the publication of a tweet that included video from her own press conference.
— Tim Watts MP (@TimWattsMP) March 24, 2021
Updated
A quick update to a report in the Guardian on the weekend. We reported that the government’s Covid-19 website – designed to check a person’s eligibility and link them with nearby GP clinics participating in the rollout – was causing confusion in regional areas.
The way the website was designed suggested to some in regional Australia that they would need to drive for hundreds of kilometres – in some cases across state borders – to receive a vaccine.
This was because the website is currently only displaying the 1,000 GP clinics now participating in the rollout, with no information for users that more than 3,000 additional clinics would be activated in coming weeks. It led to some bizarre situations. Residents in Katharine in the Northern Territory, for example, were told the closest clinic to them was in Darwin.
Those in Mount Gambier, South Australia, were told they’d need to drive across the border into Victoria to find their nearest clinic.
This morning, Prof Brendan Murphy, the health department secretary, said the issue had been fixed by placing disclaimers on the website, informing users that more clinics in their nearby area would come online soon.
The disclaimer reads:
Not all clinics have received vaccine deliveries and not all clinics are listed yet. More clinics will be added every week until the full rollout is completed. If you can’t find an appointment or a clinic in your location, please check back in a week.
Updated
The Queensland health minister, Yvette D’Ath, who has recently spoken about her own sexual assault experiences as a younger woman (in one case, as a child), has been speaking on a motion on women’s safety in the Queensland parliament.
She says that while attorney general she was groped by an international judge at a function in the Queensland parliament two years ago.
The Qld Parliament is currently debating a motion condemning the harassment and assault of women. Minister @YvetteDAth says she was groped by an international judge at parliament 2 years ago when she was AG @abcbrisbane @abcnews pic.twitter.com/pdfIfyacZP
— Jessica van Vonderen (@jessvanvonderen) March 24, 2021
Updated
This isn’t getting a lot of attention with everything that is going on, but it is important.
STATEMENT: We're absolutely sickened by the gov's determination to inflict colonial violence through the welfare system, pushing the #CashlessDebitCard on more ppl despite zero evidence to support it.
— AUWU #80aDay (@AusUnemployment) March 24, 2021
Income mgmt breaches human rights. #StopTheCDC
See: https://t.co/DQAC22UjbG pic.twitter.com/rJKmoZ8xli
Updated
Labor MP Chris Hayes is announcing his retirement to the chamber.
He says it’s time and he needs to put his health first.
Updated
The New South Wales State Emergency Service has received more than 11,000 calls for assistance during the floods.
In the past 24 hours alone, with the worst of the floods over, the SES received 1,100 calls. And since Friday crews have carried out 976 flood rescues across the state.
In the past few hours the state has also recorded its first fatality, after a man’s car was taken by floodwaters in Sydney’s north-west. The man’s body was discovered inside the vehicle when the car was located around 1pm.
Queensland recorded 1,405 requests for assistance between Sunday and Wednesday morning, the vast majority coming from the Brisbane, Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast regions. SES crews there have assisted in five flood rescues so far.
Updated
Anthony Albanese, on indulgence:
And I join with the prime minister in expressing my regret, on behalf of the Australian Labor party, for this tragic loss of life.
I join with the prime minister thanking the police and emergency service workers undertaking this difficult task, and the tasks to come.
A family has lost a loved one, with no doubt that although the person has not been identified, his friends, his community will be feeling this loss very soon.
And, on behalf of this side of the house, I join with the prime minister in expressing our condolences to all who have lost a loved one in this tragedy. And to remind people, as the minister did, earlier in question time today: don’t take risks – water and cars don’t mix.
At a difficult time like this, it is better to be delayed, to be inconvenienced, than for any risk to be taken, and I think that message is quite extraordinary that, with such a significant weather event, there hasn’t been more loss of life, frankly.
That is a credit to the way the community has responded, the people on the ground, to those be they permanent SES emergency service workers or magnificent volunteers, and the SES who put their lives at risk to help others, we thank them.
Updated
Scott Morrison, on indulgence:
Mr Speaker, on indulgence, as flagged, as well with the leader of the opposition, the minister representing the minister for defence has already advised the house two hours ago a vehicle was found with a man’s body inside and that man has not been formally identified.
It occurred near Hidden Valley Lane in the intersection with a road at Glenorry. This car was trapped in floodwaters. A crime scene has been established. I note here, Mr Speaker, that his body has not been formally identified at this point.
Somewhere right now teams of New South Wales police officers are undergoing the rather grizzly task of identifying that man’s body – a job my father used to do when he was a policeman.
This is in the same area he used to take me camping every Easter with my brother and now this is a crime scene.
Then after that occurs, Mr Speaker, those police will go and knock on the door of a family, probably in north-western Sydney, and they will break the horrible news about what has happened to one of their loved ones.
This is a terribly sad day for that family.
We have seen so much over the course of the past year and more as this country has battled so many things: floods, fires, viruses, drought and now these floods again. And now this family will get this news and they will grieve.
And as around them, the activity will occur as the floodwaters recede and the clean-up begins, but their house will be dark and their grief will be great. Because their loss will not recede.
I extend on behalf of the house our deepest condolences to that family. I thank, Mr Speaker, those New South Wale police who are doing that grisly task today and for every single time they have had to do this – you do a great service. A great service. A job that I wished didn’t have to be done, but they know it has to be done, so they put on that uniform and they go and do it every day. Great Australians. And then the team that will go and comfort the family and put their arms around them and the support that will come from friends and neighbours and those in the community, perhaps church groups, perhaps not.
I just pray a blessing on their family, Mr Speaker.
Updated
Question time ends
Here is what Scott Morrison said on 10 March, when asked about receiving solictor general advice on whether Christian Porter was fit to remain as attorney general
Q: Former solicitor general Justin Gleeson has called for the current solicitor general to assess whether Christian Porter is a fit and proper person to remain as attorney general. Is that something that you will ask him to look into?
Morrison:
No, and that’s not the advice that I’ve received from my department, as I’ve dealt with that issue. I mean, he’s entitled to his view. He’s not someone who’s been a particularly big fan of our government, I should say. But that said, he’s entitled to his opinion on this. But that is not the advice that I’ve been provided at any time during the course of managing this.
Q: Is it tenable for Christian Porter to continue as the attorney general given he’ll now be responsible for implementing the Respect@Work report? And will you consider moving him to a different position in cabinet as something of a circuit breaker, assuming he does return?
Morrison:
No, I wouldn’t consider moving to someone else. He’s a fine attorney general and a fine minister for industrial relations, and he is an innocent man under our law. And to suggest that there should be some different treatment applied to him, based on what have been allegations that the police have closed the matter on, I think that would be grossly inappropriate to take actions against him on that basis. And there’s no basis for doing that at law at all. And when it comes to the principles upon which we run our country, that would be highly inappropriate.
Since then, Porter has begun defamation action against the ABC.
Updated
Jim Chalmers gets booted out of question time after heckling Josh Frydenberg as he answers this question:
My question is to the treasurer. There are more than a million Australians still on jobkeeper and many are still dealing with the effects of border closures, delayed vaccinations and now floods.
Treasury has told Senate estimates today that it expects 100,000 to 150,000 jobs could be lost after the treasurer cuts jobkeeper this weekend. Why is the government leaving so many workers behind? How many of them could he afford to support beyond this weekend if he hadn’t wasted so much money on companies which didn’t need it?
Not that it matters, because Frydenberg doesn’t answer it and again. Getting out of question time does not seem to be the punishment the speaker thinks it is.
Updated
Luke Gosling to Scott Morrison:
The Northern Territory Working Women’s Centre [is] helping women with workplace issues including sexual harassment. The Respect@Work report recommended an increase in funding for centres like these, but instead the NT Working Women Centre has been defunded. Why?
Morrison:
Well, thank you, Mr Speaker, and I thank the member for his question. As I indicated in response to a question from the member for Warringah, the government will be making our response to the Respect@Work set of recommendations – the sex discrimination commissioner – before the budget, Mr Speaker.
That is being personally taken up by me as prime minister working with the acting attorney general as well as the assistant minister to the attorney general. And that will addressing the many recommendations that are set out in that report including ... the one that you have referred to in your question.
At the same time, the government, as the minister representing the minister for women has responded in this house, the government is working with the states and territories because in many cases the sorts of services that you are referring to are joint-funded, joint-funded, with state and territory governments, Mr Speaker. And that’s why it’s so important that, as we go to the next national action plan, that these funding arrangements are put together and worked together as they have been now for many years under the process started rightly by prime minister Gillard, supported by the Coalition while in opposition and taken forward while in government, which has included a billion dollars in additional funding for the national action plan program, Mr Speaker.
... The very services that you’re referring to, we do believe are important, and I’m sure that will be able to be addressed in the program that we’re now engaged in.
It is true that many programs that are funded across the commonwealth have programs funding that go for a set period of time and then ongoing funding is determined as it approaches the conclusion of that funding period.
That was, indeed, the case for many of the programs that were run by Labor when in government. One that I remember very well was universal access for early childhood education, Mr Speaker.
Or the national partnership agreement on homelessness, Mr Speaker. And these were agreements that in government we, particularly in relation to the homelessness agreement, we have made permanent funding arrangements. So it’s an important area of funding. I’ll be addressing many matters in the report within the weeks ahead, Mr Speaker, and I look forward to be able to update members on that when we next meet.
Updated
Tasmanian speaker stands by her statement
Sue Hickey has taken to her feet in the Tasmanian parliament again and says she stands by her statement accusing Eric Abetz of having made the statements she said he did.
Sue Hickey has again used the Speaker’s chair to make a public comment, this time responding to Eric Abetz’s response to her! #politas #auspol @WINNews_Tas pic.twitter.com/iLT3zFsDH7
— Alex Johnston (@swegen31) March 24, 2021
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Defence officials have denied that Australia’s new submarines will be obsolete by the time they enter the water.
Marise Payne, when asked whether Australia could afford the $85.5bn acquisition, said: “How can we afford not to do it? … We can afford it and we will afford it.”
In defence estimates this afternoon, the One Nation senator Malcolm Roberts said the final of the 12 submarines would not be delivered until the 2040s, and raised concerns about obsoleteness.
Greg Sammut, the general manager of submarines, said Australia was using a proven technology but officials would continue to look for ways to upgrade the technology over the life of the project:
No, senator, they won’t be obsolete by the time they enter the water.
The exchange comes a day after Payne, the acting defence minister, announced the government had reached a deal with Naval Group, the French shipbuilder, for the company to “spend at least 60% of the contract value in Australia over the life of the program reflected formally in the strategic partnering agreement, supporting Australian jobs in the defence industry”.
Labor’s defence spokesperson, Brendan O’Connor, said yesterday he expected the acting minister to answer detailed questions about the deal. If Labor was not satisfied with the responses, it would call on Linda Reynolds to appear before spillover estimates in April once she had returned to work.
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Scott Morrison waiting on ministerial standards advice on Christian Porter
Anthony Albanese to Scott Morrison:
The prime minister has confirmed that he has received advice from the solicitor general about the attorney general’s portfolio responsibilities. He has also confirmed that he has sought advice from his department in relation to the attorney general and ministerial standards. Is the prime minister preparing to make his attorney general a part-time minister or is he preparing to drop him all together?
Morrison:
Thank you, Mr Speaker. I am considering that advice with my department secretary, Mr Speaker, in terms of the application against the ministerial guidelines, and when I have concluded that assessment, Mr Speaker, I’ll make a determination and I’ll make an announcement at that time.
Updated
Tanya Plibersek to Scott Morrison:
Last the night the Senate heard that on 26 March 2019, just three days after the reported sexual assault of Brittany Higgins, that finance advised the office of the former special minister of state, now the immigration minister, that Senator Reynolds’ suite has been accessed after-hours. As a matter of government policy, is the special minister of state told about after-hours access to every ministerial office on every occasion? Why was the minister told on this occasion?
There is a lot of back and forth over whether Morrison can answer the question, given the AFP advice the matter not be talked about. After hearing from everyone, Tony Smith rules the question in order.
Morrison:
And without repeating some of the matters that already have been raised regarding what the secretary of Department of Finance has already said in evidence to the Senate economics committee, where they said they’d been advised by the AFP that caution needs to be exercised in responding to questions regarding these matters, Mr Speaker, and they cautioned – they have said in their own statement, they had been advised they should not go into the events at that time, Mr Speaker, particularly while this investigation is undergoing.
What I will undertake to do for the member is to provide a response to that in writing, Mr Speaker, to the house, after taking further advice on these issues and to ensure that I would not say anything here that might compromise any other investigation.
I think that would be the responsible thing to do.
Updated
This next question from Tanya Plibersek is about this:
Senator @SenatorWong is asking about which misconduct offence triggered the sacking of the staffer accused of raping Brittany Higgins.
— Tegan George (@tegangeorge) March 24, 2021
Minister @MarisePayne says she can't say too much because "there may be an association with the events" the AFP is investigating. #auspol pic.twitter.com/1Liqg5Zxgy
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In defence estimates, Senator Jacqui Lambie is pursuing senior defence leaders over the handling of the Brereton report into alleged war crimes in Afghanistan.
Under parliamentary privilege, Lambie asked whether interviewees had been informed that Dr Samantha Crompvoets, who conducted earlier interviews with defence force personnel about health and wellbeing issues, had been paid “to promote politically correct culture change” in the military.
The chief of army, Lieutenant General Rick Burr, said the quality of Crompvoets’ work was well known.
Later, the Liberal senator Concetta Fierravanti Wells contended under parliamentary privilege that people subject to allegations had already been “hung, drawn and quartered”. Burr replied:
My job as the chief of the army is to ensure I uphold standards expected in our army.
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Anthony Albanese to Scott Morrison:
Last Thursday, the prime minister repeatedly misled the parliament about the Gaetjens review. What does it say about the government that even the prime minister doesn’t feel the need to take responsibility for misleading parliament, as his own ministerial standards require?
Morrison:
Thank you, Mr Speaker. The assertion put forward by the leader of the opposition is just simply not true, Mr Speaker.
Simply not true. He comes to the despatch box, Mr Speaker, he says things that are untrue.
Now, that reflects on him, Mr Speaker, not on me, Mr Speaker.
It reflects on the leader of the opposition that he would seek to make such false statements. It is indeed the leader of the opposition who is guilty of the things he’s accusing me of, Mr Speaker, and bringing forward in that way. And, Mr Speaker, he should cease doing it.
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I still don’t see how being booted out of QT is a punishment.
So I was turfed out of question time for telling the PM (admittedly VERY loudly) that he was actually the PM! Seems to me he wants everyone else to act but he should show some leadership and act now on the recent distressing issues. #qt #frustrated #EnoughIsEnough pic.twitter.com/a07hgsAYgz
— Ged Kearney (@gedkearney) March 24, 2021
NSW police have sent out this media release about the flood fatality:
A man has died after his car was trapped in floodwaters in Sydney’s north west today.
About 6.25am (Wednesday 24 March 2021), emergency services responded to reports a car was trapped in floodwaters on Cattai Ridge Road, near Hidden Valley Lane, at Glenorie.
Officers from the Hills Police area command attended the scene, along with SES Flood Rescue, to search for the vehicle in Cattai Creek.
About 1.10pm, the vehicle was found with a man’s body inside. The man has not been formally identified.
A crime scene has been established and a report will be prepared for the information of the coroner.
Updated
One flood death confirmed in NSW
Gladys Berejiklian has confirmed to the NSW parliament a person has died in north-west Sydney’s floodwaters.
There has been no further information but we will keep you updated.
Updated
Catherine King to Scott Morrison:
I ask the Prime Minister for the 13th time - has the Prime Minister asked his staff if they sought to undermine Brittany Higgins’ loved ones?
Morrison:
Mr Speaker, on this matter, as it’s been raised, she’s also the member has referred to previous questions, Mr Speaker, my answer is the same as on those occasions, Mr Speaker. And I have nothing to further add.
His answers have been that he has no information to suggest that, and he did not ask anyone to do that - but he has never said whether or not he has asked his staff if it happened. There has been a lot of passive language to cover the non-answers.
Everyone is very loud and cranky today, and the whole chamber just received a general warning from the Speaker.
Anthony Albanese to Scott Morrison:
My question is to the prime minister. Yesterday in the house the prime minister defended his use of an alleged confidential complaint about workplace misconduct inside a media organisation to dismiss questions.
Given his midnight apology, which came only [after] half the front pages of today’s newspapers were published, will the prime minister now commit to give straight answers to simple questions about his handling of a reported sexual assault just metres from his office?
Morrison:
Thank you, Mr Speaker. And the leader of the opposition has made reference to the apology, Mr Speaker, that I have already provided last night, Mr Speaker.
As I arrived in Richmond late last night, Mr Speaker, and it is not – it was not done in the way that was characterised by the leader of the opposition.
Mr Speaker, it was not characterised like that. I had not seen those things that the leader of the opposition asserts that I have, Mr Speaker*. I have reflected, Mr Speaker, I had reflected very strongly over the course of that evening, Mr Speaker, on the matters that were raised in that press conference yesterday. And, Mr Speaker, I have apologised unreservedly for what I did in bringing that matter into that press conference and raising something I should never have raised and that was done, Mr Speaker, not respecting those individuals who were at the centre of that particular issue.
Now, Mr Speaker, I have given that apology. I have given that apology honestly and openly, Mr Speaker, and I will continue where there are situations in that nature where I believe that is necessary, then I will do that, Mr Speaker.
And I will do it honestly, Mr Speaker. If the leader of the opposition wants to take these matters and pursue them for some partisan advantage, that’s up to him, Mr Speaker.
I’m going to keep on giving issues that we have to focus on to make this country safer for women.
*He means the front pages of the paper. Morrison interpreted Albanese’s question as meaning he made the apology after seeing some of the front pages, although it could also be that the reference meant the apology came after deadline.
Updated
Lols
Bridget McKenzie: talk me through that as if I don't have an economics degree.
— Paul Karp (@Paul_Karp) March 24, 2021
Katy Gallagher: Said no man, ever.
A moment of feminist bipartisanship in #estimates #auspol pic.twitter.com/koNx31nfPa
Vince Connolly, the member for the (recommended to be abolished electorate) of Stirling, has been in parliament for almost an entire term now and still manages to deliver dixers like he’s a bunch of cats sewn into a skin suit, hoping his hand gestures will ensure no one will notice.
Zali Steggall has the independents’ question today:
“Yesterday morning you told the Australian people that you were listening, but with respect, you are not, because if you were you would have supported to immediately debate the sex discrimination amendment.
“The Australian Law Council has publicly advised that sexual harassment should be prohibited in all circumstances. If you don’t agree and you appeared not to yesterday, please tell us in what circumstances should sexual harassment be OK?”
Morrison:
Mr Speaker, sexual harassment should never be OK. It shouldn’t be OK in this place, it shouldn’t be OK in any place, Mr Speaker.
And there are steps that the government is going to be taking to address that matter, and our response to the work program that has been recommended to us by the sex discrimination [commissioner] and Respect@Work.
Mr Speaker, I personally – personally – have taken on the responsibility of ensuring this response is in place very soon. It will be made available before the budget, Mr Speaker.
I’m working with the acting attorney general and the assistant ,inister to the attorney general to ensure that that response, which goes to the very matters that you raise, the very matters that you raise, and the remedies that can be put in place by this parliament, Mr Speaker.
That report also goes to many actions that can be undertaken, I hope also by state and territory governments, where these matters are also subject to their laws. And I would hope, Mr Speaker, that that would also be taken up by those jurisdictions and I look forward to raising those matters when national cabinet meets after the easter break.
So I agree: it has no place anywhere, Mr Speaker.
Now, it is not for me to make commentary about what judgements people make about me and my – and whether I have listened or not, Mr Speaker. I can only say ... to the women of Australia, as I said yesterday, what Australian women are looking from me, Mr Speaker, is to demonstrate my understanding of the issues that they have raised and that I am listening to the great pain that they have been enduring, Mr Speaker.
And I acknowledge that there is further work not only for me to do, Mr Speaker, but for many people in this place, and that is what I am committed to doing.
I’m not going to stand here at this despatch box and do what blokes do and say: “I’m a bloke, I got the solution to your problem and here it is. And here is the fix.”
That would be to approach this issue, Mr Speaker, exactly ... [the wrong way].
Updated
Australian drug regulator 'not worried' by US queries on AstraZeneca trial
Australia’s drugs regulator, the Therapeutic Goods Administration, is not concerned by questions raised about AstraZeneca vaccine data in the US by the independent Data and Safety Monitoring Board, whose board said “outdated information” was included in the latest vaccine efficacy results.
Thehead of the Therapeutic Goods Administration, Prof John Skerritt, told the ABC on Wednesday:
We’re not particularly worried because by law we have to get the complete, unredacted set of data.
In fact, it’s a contractual requirement when we approve a product. That will come sometime during April, This was interim data that was released. So we will get the data, warts and all.
I would say what was released was encouraging.
A professor of epidemiology at La Trobe University in Melbourne, Hassan Valley, said such queries were not unusual for other drugs, but that due to the global attention on Covid-19, every data request was being made transparent and available in almost real-time.
He said:
This to me seems like a technical issue – there’s potentially been a misunderstanding as to what data should have been made available to the Data and Safety Monitoring Board and it seems that they believe that they have an incomplete view of the data.
This minor issue would normally occur in private, and any sort of clarification would normally occur outside of the public arena, but this is typical of the way things are unfolding right now in terms of the pandemic and all the processes occurring in slightly different ways.
Valley said that while the transparency was “welcome”, it was also “a little bit unfortunate” because it might lead the public to believe there was something wrong with the vaccine.
It has the potential to undermine confidence in the AstraZeneca vaccine.
Answering questions before Senate estimates on Wednesday, Skerritt said it was unclear whether issues continuously raised about the vaccine – such as concerns over the data and that the vaccine might be associated with blood clots and deaths in the elderly – had led to increased vaccine hesitancy in Australia.
The European Medicines Agency’s safety committee found the vaccine is not associated with an increase in the overall risk of blood clots, and the Therapeutic Goods Administration has not received any reports of blood clots caused by the vaccine. Investigations by health authorities have found no specific risk to elderly patients.
Skerritt said:
We’re on the horns of a conundrum in that we’re not here to force people to be vaccinated.
We, however, want – for the good of Australian society and starting normal life again – to have as many people vaccinated as possible. We’ve taken the view that transparency on everything is central. We don’t ever want the Australian public to feel the regulator is hiding stuff.
Updated
Brendan O’Connor to Scott Morrison:
The 10 Network has reported Government staffers allegedly brought in sex workers to Parliament House for a current Government MP. What steps has the has the Prime Minister taken to investigate these very serious allegations concerning a current member of the Government which constitute a blackmail risk and potentially jeopardise national security?
Morrison:
Well, the matter that the member has raised in his question is a very serious matter and, Mr Speaker, I can only add little to what I said to him yesterday - the processes that we were following yesterday was to make contact with the whistleblower on this issue and encourage them - encourage them - to bring that information forward that would allow us to take that matter further.
Now, I am advised that after that contact has been made, that the whistleblower at this point is not in a position to do that and that makes this issue very difficult to pursue, Mr Speaker.
Very difficult to pursue when the individual who has alleged these matters - we’re not in a position to know - the voracity or truth of that one way or another so I would only encourage,
Mr Speaker..that individual if they have information or if anyone has information on that to bring it forward so it can be properly addressed.
Now, Mr Speaker, in relation to other matters that were raised in these reports, then we would take the opportunity at the appropriate time with the individual who has already left the employment of the Government as a staff member,
Mr Speaker, that individual is currently under care and when they near a position to be able to talk more about these matters, Mr Speaker, I think that would be the appropriate time in which to have that conversation with that individual and we’ll take that opportunity when it presents.
The current deputy prime minister has the energy of a soggy piece of bread today in this dixer. It makes for a refreshing change. Usually it’s of a half raised loaf.
Doesn’t help his delivery any though.
We will make sure when those flood waters reside - subside, I should say, I’m sorry, recede, subside, recede...we will indeed make sure that we will build back better.
It’s almost like the homily chip in his brain began malfunctioning. Perhaps someone should suggest he try speaking like an actual human. I hear it helps.
Prime minister defends Eric Abetz
Julie Collins to Scott Morrison:
Is Senator Abetz a fit and proper person to represent the government on the parliamentary joint committee on intelligence and security given the speaker of the Tasmanian parliament quoted him responding to the allegations of serious sexual assault against the attorney general as saying, “Yes, it was the first law officer of the nation, Christian Porter, but not to worry, the woman is dead and the law will protect him.” Do you believe her?
Tony Smith:
I am just going to just point ... out that these questions [are] in danger of breaching the standing orders in as much as members cannot reflect on other members or senators accept by way of substantive motion. I am just pointing that out to be helpful. I am going to allow the question, but I’m pointing it out as a caution for questions, but also for any other contributions in other forms of the House. The prime minister has the call.
Morrison:
Mr Speaker, the comments that have been referred to by the speaker are obviously repugnant, Mr Speaker. But what I can only refer to is the absolute denial of those statements by Senator Abetz.
Now, I was not a party to this conversation, Mr Speaker. I was not a party to this conversation. There were two persons who allegedly were part of this conversation. I was not one of them, nor was the member who asked the question, Mr Speaker.
The matter has been ... absolutely denied, Mr Speaker, by Senator Abetz and that is a matter of public record. And, Mr Speaker, he will continue to serve in the role that he has.
Senator Abetz has been a significant contributor to this house, to the chamber opposite, Mr Speaker – I should say, to the Senate – over a long period of time, Mr Speaker.
He has served his state and he has served his nation. He has served as a minister in governments, Mr Speaker, both in the Howard government and over the term of this Coalition government since they were elected, Mr Speaker.
He will continue to serve, Mr Speaker, in that – in the roles that he now serves within the Senate. And I can only refer to his denial of those allegations, Mr Speaker. But ... the actual comments that have been quoted, Mr Speaker, of course, the government would find completely and utterly repugnant.
Updated
Question time begins
Julie Collins to Scott Morrison:
Is senator Eric Abetz fit to sit as the committee chair of intelligence and security given the Speaker of the Tasmanian Parliament quoted him as saying “as for that Higgins girl, anybody who is so disgustingly drunk who would sleep with anybody could have slept with one of our spies and put the security of our nation at risk”
Do you believe Speaker Hickey?
Morrison:
Mr Speaker, I note the statement that has been issued by Senator Abetz. Mr Speaker, where he said that Ms Hickey’s defamatory allegations under Parliamentary privilege are categorically denied. He said allegations of rape are serious matters and always have been treated as such by him.
He says sexual assault is an issue on which he, he says, “I have been consistently outspoken including domestic violence”, and he goes on to make a number of statements and I refer the member to the senator’s statement.
As it’s very clear that he completely denies and, Mr Speaker, those statements [will be tabled]
Question time is in about 5 minutes.
The footy does not help with that.
Scott Morrison finished his interview with 2GB by saying:
I’m just glad the footy is back on. It helps everybody.
Because there is apparently nothing the footy can’t fix.
Updated
Alicia Payne and Chris Bowen will hold a climate town hall tonight in Canberra – that’s on at the Australian National University from 7.30pm.
Updated
Greens senator Rachel Siewert has condemned the decision to continue the roll out of the cashless debit card:
The government has spent billions pushing this punitive scheme, and millions on flawed evaluations, trying to prove that the card works and to justify their punitive approach.
They have been unable to provide ANY compelling evidence that the card has had a positive outcome or achieved any of its supposed aims. From April 1, not only will millions be condemned to poverty, those in the so-called trial sites who are new to income support will be put on income management.
Managing money is not the problem, it’s the $44 a day people are trying to survive on!
The government say they will implement a “staggered approach” to ensure income support recipients who are new to the cashless debit card program can get the support they need during their transition.
I’m frankly staggered they are even trying this on – this card makes life harder for people.
While we are having a national conversation about violence against women, I am deeply concerned that this card may keep people in violent situations and the low rate of income supports severely limits the options for women and children leaving violent homes.
This government is flogging a dead horse. Give it up. The card doesn’t work. This cruel social experiment needs to end.
Updated
Scott Morrison:
I want to encourage Australians – here, of course, there are issues, but think about where things were 20 years ago, 50 years ago, and I can tell you, go and ask your nan and she’ll tell you the real story about the good old days.
And these days, there are a lot of improvements.
The other part of it, I think, Ray, I’ve said this before, you know, we live in a society where social media is corroding respect, I think, in our community, and the while people talk to each other, you know, if they think they can post it like this, they can also talk to each other like this, they can ring up offices and abuse people on the other end of the phone.
This is not how you build a culture of respect.
And if we work harder to respect each other – so before you go and put that post on Facebook and troll someone or sledge someone or say something terribly unkind, or other things, think about if I was sitting right in front of you, and other human beings sitting there: is that how you behave towards them?
Is that how you’d like someone to behave towards you?
And I’ve applied this rule to myself and I’m not perfect in this regard, none of us is.
But getting back to some of these basic moral principles about respect, caring for all one another, loving one another and treating others as you’d like to be treated yourself – I think that’s a pretty good way to go.
Ray Hadley then moved the conversation to people on the 2GB text line saying mean things about his upcoming wedding.
Updated
I have managed to transcribe some more of the ‘Ray Hadley and Scott Morrison discuss what women want’ show, where Morrison says he has received feedback that women don’t feel like they are listened to, when in meetings.
One of the points I made yesterday, right, and this was, one of the feedback I’ve had over this last month, is, you know, women will sit in a room, in a meeting, they won’t feel like they can speak up, or they’ll be talked over, or that they don’t feel that what they’ve got to contribute would be valued.
Now, what I’ve learned deeply in the feedback over these last month, is even those some who are in those meetings, would not want that to be happening, and may not feel they’re doing anything to create that environment.
That’s still how the woman feels in the room.
And so that means we just got to make a bigger effort to engage to, to incorporate the lessons.
And it’s just, it’s gonna take time to get these right across society, this is a societal challenge.
One of the things you learn pretty quickly in government, you know, government can solve all these problems, we can certainly do our bit.
But we’ve all got, we’ve all got a role to play here.
And everyone sort of sits back and says, ‘well the government has got to fix this’, well, it won’t be fixed, because it requires a change in the culture, the respect shown by by each and every individual.
And that means let’s come together, put all politics aside and all the sniping, and all the game playing and the point scoring, and all that sort of stuff, that’s not going to solve anything.
What’s going to solve things is people just genuinely trying to operate, better respect for each other and love one another.
That was a pretty good rule was laid down a long time ago.
And it’s one that I try and live my life by.
This has been something that has been bubbling along for a while – there are people who are trying to fix it, but so far it hasn’t gained traction.
Which is ridiculous.
Today in #Estimates officials confirmed that the Fair Work Act doesn't provide the full protections it should to members of LGBTIQ+ communities. Trans, gender diverse and intersex Australians deserve the same protections as everyone else. The Government should act.#auspol
— Janet Rice (@janet_rice) March 24, 2021
Updated
Here’s what Chris Hayes said in announcing his retirement at the next election:
Just very short and sweet that I indicate that I am not going to recontest the next election. I have been here now for 16 years. As you may recall, I was first elected at the byelection in 2005 when our former colleague, Mark Latham, imploded. In 2010, not that I was particularly happy about it, but I was transferred to the seat of Fowler. Werriwa was an area I spent a lot of time growing up.
But working in the electorate, Werriwa was about sports, we had families, it was about making sure you cooked the barbecue at the under-10s grand final and all that sort of stuff. Fowler was pretty different. It was the most multicultural community in the country.
And up to that point, I don’t think I’ve ever even met a Vietnamese person. If I did, I probably wouldn’t distinguish whether they were Vietnamese, Chinese, they were Asian.
So I had a lot of learning to do. Since 2010, the Vietnamese community have been very patient with me as I learned the customs, the traditions, things that are important to the various diasporas that make up Fowler. The Vietnamese communities have been pretty central. It’s the largest Vietnamese diaspora in the country.
And something that always resonated with me is before 2005, which was the fall of Saigon in April 2005, we had very few Vietnamese in this country. And since then, we have had people come here as refugees who have certainly taken their place in this country. You’ll find that their children are so well-represented right throughout our professions but have made a huge contribution.
So I consider it an absolute honour to be associated with this community that has contributed so much in fundamentally such a short period of time. That is the strength of our multiculturalism. And I know issues about diversity have been in the public eye for a while. But in my community, it is something that is welcomed, it is something we celebrate. So whether it’s the Vietnamese, the Chinese, the Cambodians, the Thais, or the more recent arrivals from the Middle East, our community has always been a welcoming community.
But as I say, after 16 years, I think it’s time to pull the pin. I unfortunately had a rather neglectful motorcycle accident a couple years ago and spent a lot of time in Canberra hospital.
And thank you for the doctors and nurses and orderlies and all those people who looked after me there. And I had a pretty well publicised incident in the parliament last year. So I do have a couple of health issues and I do need to go back to hospital to have further corrections.
I feel that I am slowing down. And I’ve always thought being a Member of Parliament is here for you making a contribution. If you start resting on the oars, I think if you truly believe why you’re here in the first place to make a difference for the better, you know in yourself that it’s time to call it a day.
And in doing so, that’s what I intend to do. I will, as I’ve indicated to the leader, I’ll serve out the rest of the term as chief whip, but I will not recontest the next election.
Updated
The estimates committee scrutinising defence has been provided with a timeline of Linda Reynolds’ decision to go on medical leave, which has been extended twice.
And Marise Payne, who is acting in the role, has said her understanding is the commonwealth is covering no part of Reynolds’ legal costs or settlement with former staffer Brittany Higgins over disparaging remarks – but Payne will take such questions on notice.
Reynolds issued a public statement on the morning of 24 February, just hours before she was due to address the National Press Club, and amid intense scrutiny of her handling of allegations that another staffer raped Higgins her Parliament House office in March 2019. Reynolds cited a pre-existing medical condition and was admitted to Canberra hospital as a precaution.
Defence department officials say they were advised on 24 February that Reynolds would be taking leave from 24 February to 1 March. Officials believe that notification would have come from the departmental liaison officer in Reynolds’ office.
Then on 1 March the department was advised of an extension of the period of leave, from 1 March to 8 March. On 4 March the department was advised of a further extension to 3 April – an end-date that remains current.
Asked why Reynolds’ leave kept being extended, Payne said the government “has been guided by her doctors’ assessments and medical advice on each occasion”. Payne confirmed that Scott Morrison would have obtained permission from Reynolds to speak directly to the minister’s cardiologist about her condition.
Updated
Marise Payne has told Senate estimates she is not aware of Linda Reynolds or her staff playing any role in the decision to have Reynolds’ office cleaned shortly after the alleged rape of then staffer Brittany Higgins in 2019.
But Payne has added the caveat that statement applied only “the extent of my own knowledge”.
Defence officials have also given details to estimates of the number of staff in the office of Reynolds – the then minister for defence industry – in March 2019. There were 11 non-defence MOP(S) Act staff, plus one MOP(S) Act staffer who came from defence but was on leave without pay. In addition there was one Australian public service staffer, who acted as the departmental liaison officer, and one one Australian defence force member, who was the aide-de-camp.
Defence officials have told the estimates committee that any disciplinary action was a matter for Reynolds’ then-chief of staff. The associate secretary at the Department of Defence, Catherine Jones, says once defence was notified of the security breach, it evaluated and provided advice to the chief of staff.
You didn’t evaluate entry into office, asks Labor’s Penny Wong.
Jones: “No.”
You evaluated the documentary breach?
“Correct.”
What was the level of seriousness of the security breach?
“I know advice was provided back to the chief of staff … we recommended action.”
Jones did not comment in detail when asked whether defence recommended dismissal of the staffer for the alleged security breach. She observed that it was “not unprecedented” for documents to be left out in offices.
Was defence notified of the cleaning of Reynolds’ office on or around 23 March 2019?
“No, and we wouldn’t expect to.”
Payne, the foreign minister and acting defence minister, answered the next question, when asked to specify what if any role Reynolds or her office played in the decision to have the office cleaned:
To the extent of my own knowledge, senator, none, however I caveat that with advice to the committee that I do not have access to the former chief of staff in this office and information in that context. But to the extent of my own awareness, none, senator.
We’re back on the jobmaker hiring credit. Treasury officials have said 609 young people have been hired and reimbursed through the program, despite 15,000 registrations of interest.
Most businesses accessing the scheme are micro businesses (70%), rather than small to medium (20%), not-for-profits (8%) and just one person was hired by a large business earning more than $250m.
Simon Birmingham said it was important to improving uptake that the government emphasised the program is “not a survival program” but a “youth employment program”, so it is open to businesses making a profit. He warns that “all parts of the commentariat” including the opposition and media should welcome businesses taking part.
Treasury officials noted Woolworths have said it will not take part despite hiring young people, because it feels doesn’t need to and there were “concerns expressed by large businesses about potential reputational risks”.
Labor’s Katy Gallagher challenged Birmingham: “Are you trying to blame us?”
Birmingham:
I spent hours defending the scheme in the Senate from claims made by opposition. You were claiming Australian business would be laying off existing employees to bring other people on ... and claiming [protections against that] were inadequate. Far from seeing that type of behaviour, we’re not seeing the uptake. We want to send a message to Australian business that the jobs are additional jobs, so business should participate with confidence and should not be targeted or attacked for using this program to hire more young Australians.
Gallagher labelled the program “a flop” and asked if the government would rejig it, and whether it would commit to spending the full $4bn allocated for the program.
Birmingham said it would “look carefully at the settings” and committed it would not change protections that businesses must maintain the job security of existing workers:
We want to ensure businesses doing well won’t be attacked by Greens and the opposition. The way the opposition greeted and attacked its establishment, suggested those who would be using would be undermining existing employees certainly did not help the reaction of business who perceived the program was politically contested and charged.
Officials said other causes for low uptake included the recovering jobs market, firms waiting until they graduated from jobkeeper, and it was hard to ascertain the eligibility of employees (such as how long they had been on jobseeker).
Updated
Labor’s Chris Hayes has announced he will not be contesting the next election. He has told the caucus “it’s time to call it a day”.
Hayes has been an MP since 2005.
Updated
Greg Hunt gave an update on the vaccines this morning (I was a bit late to it, sorry, because it happened at a time when everything was happening):
Just in terms of an update, yesterday was a record day with regards to the commonwealth aged care vaccinations. So, what we’ve seen in the last 24 hours is over 4,600 aged care vaccinations. We have had 45 first dose facilities, 20 second dose facilities, 679 facilities that have been vaccinated for first doses and 130 that have been vaccinated for second doses. The state and territory figures will come through during the course of the day.
And I should say this, we haven’t previously released the fact that now that we’ve done the numbers, there were 116,000 doses over the last week. We’d aimed during the phase 1a to have 80,000 doses a week. So, that 80,000 has been beaten, and 116,000.
And now, we will have for distribution and contingency over the course of the next three and a half weeks, 3.3m doses and that will lead to a distribution of exactly as we had planned, over 500,000 doses a week.
So, they’re very important. We’ve also received another shipment of Pfizer. That arrived yesterday; 159,000 doses. They will be distributed via aged care and via the states. And so, the program is accelerating at a significant rate.
The other question that I think some of you had asked was about the distribution given the floods. We had hoped that we would have by Monday evening, the number of practices that were flood affected down to 50. The trucks rolled through the rain, they rolled through the challenges and they actually got it down to 38. And so, that’s a real tribute to our distribution.
There are some practices that are still flood-affected and in towns where they just simply wouldn’t be able to practice. But, we’ll make sure that they have the doses and if they need a double dose in the second week, once they’re able to practice, that will be arranged.
Updated
Eric Abetz has released his official statement denying Sue Hickey’s accusations he “slut shamed” Brittany Higgins:
Ms Hickey’s defamatory allegations under parliamentary privilege are categorically denied.
Allegations of rape are serious matters and have always been treated as such by me. Sexual assault is an issue on which I’ve been consistently outspoken including domestic violence.
Ms Hickey’s suggestions otherwise is simply false. As some one who was on the inaugural committee of a women’s shelter and its honorary legal adviser for a decade prior to entering parliament, I reject outright her suggestions and gross mischaracterisation of our discussion.
Its noteworthy Ms Hickey has made her assertions some three weeks after she alleges they occurred.
At no stage has Ms Hickey ever raised concerns with me about any of our conversations.
Indeed, a fortnight later when we had a chance meeting in a coffee shop in Launceston Ms Hickey actually offered to buy me a cup of coffee which I politely declined because I was about to meet someone.
What has changed? The premier telling her on Sunday she was no longer wanted by the Liberal party.
On her way out the door she is trying to destroy the party – noting she has demeaned all her former female Liberal colleagues of parliament and especially the attorney general, the membership which initially endorsed her and even “unknown people”.
Updated
While the floods have brought destruction and suffering to many, in some regions the extra rains have provided a lifeline to drought-stricken communities.
Southern Downs mayor Vic Pennisi says the rain in the last few days has been a godsend for the town of Stanthorpe, who have had to truck in water for the last year:
I’ve never experienced winning the lotto. But now I know what it feels like.
We saw the water go down, down, down. Water restrictions, you know, trying to save every drop, getting to a point where it’s getting crucial ... finally, we’ve got to the point where it’s rain and urban water supplies are at full capacity. You know that’s like winning the lotto.
In fact, the rivers, which were previously at a dribble, are now breaking their banks, and the damns are overflowing.
To stand on the damn wall this morning and say all that water running over is as good as winning grain on. There was no better, no better moment for my time since being mayor. Well, expect for when my grandchildren were born.
The region is responsible for a huge percentage of the eastern state’s vegetable production and Pennisi said this would now allow farmers to return to full growing capacity:
Twelve months ago they were in a terrible situation ... I’d be surprised if most growers won’t get the full capacity now, and generally full capacity gives them a three-year working window. To secure their future for another three years, that’s great ... and to secure the food security of the east coast of Australia for another three years. That’s a great position to be in ...
But, we can’t relax because today is the first day we’re getting closer to the next drought, and we need to make sure that we’re better prepared than we were.
With dams now full, some towns in the region may be at risk of flooding but Pennisi said he was sure the community could come together to protect them:
We’ve got the best possible information with the best possible people at our fingertips to continue monitoring and dealing with anything that’s put in front of us.
Stanthorpe residents say they’re “deliriously happy”.
— Elly Bradfield (@ellybradfield) March 23, 2021
After 15 months of daily water carting Storm King Dam has reached 100 percent capacity.
Mayor Vic Pennisi says everyone can now breathe a sigh of relief.
📸: Luke Logan @abcbrisbane pic.twitter.com/0RXFEJMIXW
Updated
Richard Marles:
Scott Morrison likes to talk about Australia’s comeback. But “coming back” cannot mean going back.
Because the way our nation was before Covid is not the way it ought to be after Covid.
For Labor, reconstruction does not mean returning to the pre-Covid world. Recovery from the Covid-19 crisis must be only the first step in our nation’s reconstruction of a better country on a better path.
Australia is being presented with the most significant chance to reimagine our future that we have had since the end of world war two. And this is a moment that we simply have to grasp.
Because the reality is that Australia’s economy was drifting before we entered this crisis, and we cannot afford to drift out of it.
Let’s remember where Australia was about a year ago. The economy was experiencing lower-than-average growth. We had about 2 million Australians unemployed or under-employed. That means we had 2 million Australians looking for work. We were in a productivity paralysis. And Australian workers were facing a trifecta of challenges:
- An insecure jobs market;
- Flat wages; and
- Falling living standards.
Ross Garnaut has called it “the dog days”, where, in his words, “Australia drifted to the back of a slow-moving pack.”
When Australians talk to me about the challenges they face day-to-day – not enough hours at work, no pay rises, higher bills, the sense that they are being stretched to do more and more with less and less – these are actually not complaints. They are just an honest assessment of what’s happening today in our economy.
And really, it’s not even their own circumstances that worries them. It’s what they don’t know about the future, the horizons that they cannot see, which keeps them up at night. Because there is a growing anxiety that parents everywhere across our country now have about the kind of future that is waiting for their kids.
Australia has always had an unwritten contract between the current generation and the next: that we hand on a better deal than we inherited. Whether it is as a parent, or as a political leader – that is our mission.
And so are we confident that our kids will be better off than we are?
This, I believe, is the key question for all of us in positions of influence, as we step out of the Covid crisis and into recovery. And it should be the central contest for the next federal election. Will this generation fulfil our end of the bargain, for the next generation?
Updated
Richard Marles is at the press club, talking science and national reconstruction.
A major concern of the adult industry if the online safety bill passes if that there could be a push to put all R18+ and over content behind an age verification wall, as the UK tried and failed to do.
A parliamentary committee last year recommended the eSafety commissioner “develop a roadmap” to develop a similar system to require Australians to verify their age, leading to concerns it could create a honeypot of information on people who are accessing adult sites. The home affairs department even floated the idea of using its facial verification service for the proposal.
The government hasn’t responded to that report, but in Senate estimates on Tuesday night, eSafety commissioner Julie Inman Grant indicated that existing legislation states that pornography needs to be “behind a restricted access system” but she told Guardian Australia on Wednesday her office had no plans to pursue such a system:
We have no plans to put adult content behind ID walls or use facial recognition to verify age as part of the Restricted Access System.
This system only requires the confirmation of one attribute of a person – their age – and therefore we believe facial recognition is way too invasive for this simple task and can be inaccurate and carry too much bias.
The Online Safety Act does not enable the use of ID walls or facial recognition, and we would not support the use of either for this purpose.
Updated
Independent senator Rex Patrick has been grilling finance minister Simon Birmingham about an economic relief package for the entertainment sector and independent cinemas, who are laying off workers before jobkeeper expires on 31 March.
Birmingham indicates that a relief package is on the way soon:
I know minister [for communications and the arts Paul] Fletcher is looking at particular issues across the entertainment sector and looking at matters as they relate to independent cinemas. I’m confident he is close in terms of settling any adjustments to the types of support into those sectors.
Patrick pressed – noting that jobs are being lost now, and businesses would like a commitment that relief is coming this week. Birmingham said Fletcher was “very close” and aware of the time constraints.
Updated
Kate Jenkins, who is leading the report into parliamentary culture, spoke to estimates last night about confidentiality for staffers who came forward to speak with her:
Jenny McAllister: You made reference in your earlier comments to the committee about the importance of confidentiality and also I think about the significance, at least in your own work, of allowing people who provide information to the commission to be in control of the way that their information is provided and the handling of that. I just wanted to confirm that that extends to the arrangements around any complaints that might potentially trigger police involvement? Is it your intention to allow the complainant to continue to be in control of those questions or referral?
Jenkins:
Yes, yes. So our process is people come to us. If they by their choice want to seek to bring a criminal claim, yes, but we would not be progressing anything.
McAllister: And more broadly, in terms of the way that the parliament operates in the future, will you be giving consideration to the arrangements and protocols that might arise in relation to complaint handling and decisions to involve or not to involve police?
Jenkins:
I expect that is going to come up through the course of the inquiry. So we will be opening for people to make written submissions, provide interviews, potentially do surveys. And it is pretty evident that we know in terms of bullying, safe workplaces, both what you can do to prevent and how you respond when people have adverse experiences. So I expect that our report in November we’ll make some recommendations about those processes.
Updated
NSW to ease Covid restrictions from Monday
Sydney is no longer the town in Footloose – from Monday, dancing will once again allowed in NSW.
Gladys Berejiklian:
Today I’m pleased to announce the New South Wales government will be easing restrictions.
There will no longer be any restrictions on weddings and funerals.
You will be able to dance and sing in any environments, including places of worship.
You will be able to have as many people in your home as you can.
And for those of you fortunate enough to have large homes, if you have more than 100 people you must make sure all of them are registered electronically so we have a record of who they are.
In terms of mask wearing, it will no longer be mandatory in any setting, including public transport, although we do recommend it where you can’t guarantee social distancing.
We appreciate many more people will be catching public transport and while masks are not compulsory it is our strongest advice that if you feel you are on a service which is during the peak hour where you cannot maintain social distancing, we strongly recommend you wear a mask stop …
Can I also stress the following, these easing of restrictions will only work if all of us stay Covid-safe. What does that mean? It means good social distancing, most importantly, it means registering QR codes wherever we go.
That is the key to our success.
If there is an outbreak and we can’t identify all the people in a particular venue, we will be having to go backwards again and I don’t want to see that happen. We are doing really well.
And the way that we will continue to do well is a couple of things, firstly, it is registering. We’re not telling businesses how they should make it but my expectation is that every time you enter a premises, every time you attend an event which requires a QR code, that there are people in place to make sure that happens and it is up to the business or the organisers of an event to make sure that happens, but we desperately need everybody to get registering QR codes.
Updated
The Victorian government has announced $12m in funding for programs to help reduce Aboriginal youth incarceration.
The funding includes $3.4m for the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service to relaunch Balit Ngulu, a legal service for Aboriginal children and young people, and $4.5m to expand the community-based ABoriginal youth justice program and fund more Koori youth justice workers to work with children believed to be at risk of reoffending. There is also $200,000 for the Koorie Youth Council.
The programs have been championed by the Aboriginal Justice Caucus, made up of the community members of the Victorian Aboriginal Justice Forum. The forum is meeting this week.
Youth justice minister Natalie Hutchins said the funding would “help strengthen the ties to community, culture and Country which are integral in supporting Aboriginal children and young people to keep their lives on track”:
In the true nature of self-determination, we are working with Aboriginal communities to address overrepresentation – prioritising the initiatives they have asked for and investing in communities to deliver themThrough these programs we’re ensuring Aboriginal children and young people who do commit offences always have their cultural rights and family connections maintained and strengthened.
The funding announcement comes a week after the Victorian government announced a $188.9m expansion to the Dame Phyllis Frost women’s prison, as part of a $1.8bn upgrade to the prison system.
The Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service has accused the government of having a “harmful obsession with expanding Victoria’s prison system”, saying the growing prison capacity would be “disproportionately filled with Aboriginal people”.
VALS said the money spent on the prisons should instead have been spent on building more emergency education and public housing, and funding education and community services. CEO Nerita Waight said:
The Victorian Government will not Close the Gap by giving with one hand and locking us up with the other.
Updated
Labor has highlighted the under-subscription of the jobmaker hiring credit, which subsidises the wages of new hires under 35 who were previously on welfare such as jobseeker. According to reports, just 521 people were hired under the scheme at a cost of $800,000.
The finance minister, Simon Birmingham, said with unemployment at 5.8% the “stronger employment outcomes reduced the likely demand for such a program”.
He said the program had been targeted at youth unemployment because of advice it has a “longer term impact ... coming out of a recession” than unemployment in other cohorts.
Birmingham hints that although the government is considering changes to the program, it will still be targeted at young people. He noted that youth employment remains below pre-pandemic levels, with employment levels of those aged 24 and under 3.8% lower than before Covid hit.
He concluded that although there is a strong recovery across board there is still good reason to target young people to get back into jobs.
Updated
In Senate estimates, Labor has been asking why more conditions were not put on jobkeeper from the outset, to test companies’ actual (rather than anticipated) earnings and require companies that return to profitability to pay the wage subsidy back.
Treasury secretary Steven Kennedy said the government had considered more conditions but didn’t want to harm take-up of the scheme by sending a message that firms might not qualify or might have to pay it back.
Finance minister Simon Birmingham made a virtue of companies returning to profitability:
Successful businesses with confidence doing well is achieving the outcomes we want [from the program] – for jobs growth to occur and that to continue.
Andrew Leigh, the shadow assistant minister for Treasury, told Guardian Australia:
Among listed companies, one dollar in five went to firms with rising earnings. If this holds true across the program, it means $10bn to $20bn was wasted on firms whose earnings were going up, not down. This is waste on a colossal, unprecedented scale. Jobkeeper was meant to keep battlers in jobs, not help billionaires buy their next corporate jet.
Updated
Marise Payne has confirmed that Linda Reynolds won’t attend next month’s Raisina Dialogue in India.
Payne tells defence estimates the chief of the defence force will travel there, as will Payne. She says Reynolds is not making the trip based on advice from her health specialist.
Is a planned 2+2 meeting between the Australian and Indian defence and foreign ministers going ahead?
Not if the defence minister is not there, no.
Payne plays down the impact on the relationship; she says she hopes the 2+2 can go ahead some time this year.
Labor asks whether Reynolds is claiming travel allowance for the five weeks. Payne says she’s not aware but takes it on notice.
Updated
Here is how Scott Morrison answered that awful word salad from Ray Hadley – while also identifying the female MP on whose desk a staffer masturbated:
Yes, and that’s exactly what should happen.
And, you know, there have been problems here for a very long time.
And it’s not as you know, as people know, it’s not confined to one side of politics. And I don’t see how this thing should be sort of put in a partisan context. It shouldn’t be.
Because, I mean, there’s things for the Liberal party to deal with, these things in the National party to deal with, things for the Labor party. And the Greens as well. I mean, I’m aware of the things in the Greens in the New South Wales parliament
So I’m not pointing fingers here, I’m just saying, we just got to get on and fix it.
There was an act of great disrespect or was a woman in the thing that was released the other night. And that was what happened in the chief whip’s office, who is a female and a good friend of mine, and that was a great act of disgusting disrespect.
But this is one of, you know, many things – and these things happened quite a few years ago, to the first of my knowledge, it didn’t happen even when I was prime minister but well before.
So these are, these are terrible things. And they have been called out.
As for the other things we’ve talked about. I don’t know if that’s true or not, I’ve got no basis to know, one way or the other.
Regardless, I mean, it’s over got to start, though, I think, right, Ray, we’ve all got to respect each other a lot more. And then we talk about the culture of respect.
Well, and I don’t want to make this a men versus women, women versus men thing.
I don’t think Australians want that either. We’re all Australians. And, you know, there are great women, and there are great men, and they want to do the right thing.
And they don’t want to make this a whole identity issue.
They just want to live in a respectful community where people can live safely and well together.
That’s what I want. That’s all I want.
It’s a humble objective. I hope it is one that surely we can all share.
Updated
Ray Hadley says the journalist Scott Morrison told to “be careful” in yesterday’s press conference, because of allegations of harassment in his own media company in answer to a legitimate question about the culture of staffers in Parliament House, has accepted Morrison’s apology “because he knows it was a sincere apology”.
But that is not who the apology belongs to. The statement was false. News Corp says there was no such complaint. The apology belongs to the person who Morrison thought he was speaking about.
But anyways. Back to the blokes.
Ray Hadley:
There’s a couple of things that go over in my mind. The story on Four Corners* was not about women, it was about blokes in parliament, having homosexual sex and getting rent boys in, that’s what it was about, it wasn’t about women, it was about blokes having consensual sex with other blokes. And that’s disgusting**.
And what happened in the minister’s office is equally disgusting.
And blokes performing sexual acts on either women or men, consensually or not, is disgusting when it happens in the workplace.
But I just thought the narrative was lost yesterday that it became again about, you know, alleged attacks on women***.
And the other thing is, there’s a young woman, a senator from the Greens, who’s described, you know, some bludger, in the Senate groping at her or asking you for a date and monstering her.
I mean, can we identify these sorts of people? I mean, whether they’re working in this building, or your building, I don’t care whether it’s 1954, or 1968, or 2021.
Don’t call these blokes out. I mean, I’ve got young women working with me, if they came to me and said, ‘This bloke’s putting the hard word on me, trying to grab my bum.’ Well, he gets shortened up very quickly by me, and then by management, I’d imagine.
*Hadley is talking about the Network Ten report, not the Four Corners report.
**I am sorry you had to read that. Truly. There is nothing disgusting about consenting gay sex. The story was about inappropriate and disrespectful sexual conduct in work offices.
***I don’t even know where to start with this.
Updated
Scott Morrison: 'Blokes don't get it right all the time, but what matters is we are desperately trying to'
It seems like a million years ago, but here was some of Scott Morrison speaking to Ray Hadley this morning about his press conference yesterday:
I take responsibility for dealing with things in this House here and I will, but we also have to take actions – all of us to make sure women both are safe and feel safe.
And they shouldn’t have to feel unsafe. That’s the frustration, mate, and you know, we’ve all got to do it, we’ve all got to do our bit, and stop it at the start of the campaign – we’re running at the moment and the sort of language we use unconsciously or consciously.
And you know, blokes don’t get it right all the time, we all know that, and that what matters is that we’re desperately trying to and that’s what I’m trying to do.
And we will get this right. And we need to focus on that.
Because right now, there are so many other challenges occurring – these things we’ve just been talking about a terribly important. This morning I was in I was up there, seeing the floods up there, particularly around the Hawkesbury. But you know, this all goes back, as you said, to the floods up in north Queensland two years ago, repatriating victims of the volcano eruption in New Zealand, drought, fires Covid-19 and now these floods again.
Yeah, it’s been, it’s been quite a hard two and a half years in this job.
But I do it because I love my country, just what you do, and like everyone else listening to us.
Updated
A bit of background to Sue Hickey and her allegations about Eric Abetz in the Tasmanian parliament this morning (which he denies).
Hickey has had a fractious relationship with the Liberal party dating back to her election to parliament in 2018.
It culminated this week in the revelation she had been told by the premier, Peter Gutwein, she would not be re-endorsed as a Liberal candidate for the election due next year.
Hickey said Gutwein had given her the news while she was making him a cup of coffee. She quickly announced she would run as an independent.
She made the anonymous allegation about a Liberal having been critical of Brittany Higgins on local ABC radio yesterday. It prompted speculation about who she was referring to until she clarified – by naming Abetz – while protected by parliamentary privilege.
A former mayor of Hobart, and an outspoken social moderate in a party that has a membership dominated by conservatives such as Abetz, Hickey had expected to be elevated straight into cabinet after her election three years ago. She wasn’t.
On the first day of the new parliament, in a prime bit of mischief making, Labor and the Greens nominated her for Speaker against the government’s preferred choice, Rene Hidding.
She accepted the nomination, crossed the floor to vote for herself and against the government, and was elected Speaker with the opposition parties’ support.
The relationship with the government never recovered. She has supported it on supply and confidence – a position she says she will maintain as a now-independent Speaker – but has voted against it at times and been critical of some government MPs.
Given this, her dumping was not a surprise – but the timing raised eyebrows. It means the Gutwein government no longer has a majority on the floor of parliament, and has sparked speculation that it plans an early election.
Updated
Marise Payne said in light of Eric Abetz’s statement denying he made the comments, she will not be making any further statement on the matter.
Penny Wong: I hope you would at least say that that is not the view of the government.
Payne:
Of course it is no, of course it is not!
Wong: Can I just remind people, I am trying to ask this question with some sensitivity about the topic and for Miss Higgins, so I put to you, and I am inviting you to indicate, it is not the view of the government.
Payne:
Well, I absolutely indicate that the assertions made by the Speaker of the Tasmanian parliament do not constitute in any way, shape or form, the view of the government. Absolutely, confirm that for you, senator.
However, this is, as you say, a deeply, deeply difficult time. And I am also particularly aware, as you are of the impact of such remarks on Miss Higgins, as made by the speaker and that is a matter which I also bear in mind.
Wong: I’ll leave Senator Abetz to respond to this. I think we, across the parliament, whenever confronted with the sorts of views, whether they’re accurately reported or not, should be reasserting that every woman has a right to be safe, and victims are not to be blamed for the assaults which are perpetrated on them.
Abetz:
And I have no issue with that at all, Senator Wong and as somebody who devoted a fair bit of his professional time on a voluntary basis to assist victims, I can assure you that, that which has been asserted by the Speaker is categorically and utterly rejected by me.
Updated
Eric Abetz’s statement to the committee:
Can I say as somebody that helped set up a women’s shelter before I entered parliament, I was on the inaugural committee, I was it’s honorary legal advisor for 10 years.
I saw all sorts of victims of sexual assault, domestic violence, etc.
And to suggest that I would make light of a rape allegation is horrendous, categorically denied by myself, and a full statement will be made.
And so I thought in fairness Senator Wong, I should put that on the record, so the minister knows and everybody else knows and look at all say quickly for the record, this is allegedly a statement or conversation on the 1st of March – so horrified was the Speaker, allegedly, that when we happened to have a chance meeting in Launceston a fortnight later, she offered to buy me a cup of coffee, which I politely declined because I was meeting somebody else.
What has changed?
On Sunday, the premier informed her, she was no longer welcome or wanted in the Liberal party, and one can imagine what has occasioned these outbursts by her but, for the record, categorically denied and a full statement, not under parliamentary privilege will be issued very shortly.
Updated
Penny Wong says the comments were “deeply distressing” and she hopes they were not made.
Marise Payne says Eric Abetz has put on the public record that he denies making the comments. Wong prods her into saying it is not the view of the government. “Of course it’s not,” Payne says.
Updated
Eric Abetz 'categorically' denies making comments
Eric Abetz is back in defence estimates, and says a statement will be coming out very soon - but he “categorically” denies the comments Sue Hickey accused him of making.
“For the record, categorically denied, and a full statement not under parliamentary privilege will be issued shortly.”
Eric Abetz is the chair of the foreign affairs, defence and trade legislation committee – he was in the committee room earlier for defence estimates, but is not now in the room.
"You're leaving us, Senator?"
— Tegan George (@tegangeorge) March 24, 2021
"Just for a short while."
"We'll miss you."
"There are certain issues to which I need to attend."@10NewsFirst #auspol pic.twitter.com/HtWyNzcJ2p
Updated
Terminally ill Australian man John Jobber may have finally been given the chance to fly home from Ireland and fulfil his wish of dying back home in Tasmania.
After nearly a year of fighting to get Jobber home, his daughter Samantha John says she has finally secured plane tickets to Adelaide for her father.
This comes after two attempts to get him home were quashed last minutes by the multiple disruptions to Victoria’s hotel quarantine program.
“I’m just praying for no outbreaks in Adelaide,” Samantha said.
“Could you just imagine if Melbourne airport opened up now and Adelaide airport closed? That would just be exactly like the way things have been doing so far this year.”
Guardian Australia reported in January that Jobber had been trapped overseas since February last year. He intended to take a short trip to say goodbye to family and stay with his other daughter, Michele Jobber, in Ireland before entering palliative care back home. But, when the pandemic was declared, he became trapped.
His return was complicated by his late-stage kidney failure and dementia, meaning he could not fly alone and would need to be hospitalised during quarantine.
Now he has tickets with Qatar to fly with his daughter Michele to South Australia, where he will be taken into hospital from the airport and she will immediately hop back on a plane to Ireland.
Although delighted, Samantha said there are still massive obstacles to overcome to get him home.
I’ve got the worst fucking headache I’ve ever had. It’s kind of like a simultaneously a release of all this pressure and worry that it wouldn’t happen, combined with the layers of, ‘how we are going to get this done!’...
I have to get him from Adelaide to Melbourne and then onto the spirit of Tasmania between dialysis sessions.
It’s really good. It brings its own challenges, but that’s the big challenge out of the way. At least he will be in the same country.
I’m just so relieved.
You can read more about Samantha’s last attempt to get her father home here.
Updated
Eric Abetz’s office has been contacted for comment.
Tasmanian former Liberal MP accuses Eric Abetz of offensive comments about Brittany Higgins
The Tasmanian MP, Sue Hickey, who made the news this week when she said she was told she would not receive support for preselection while making premier Peter Gutwein a cup of coffee, has made a huge statement to the Tasmanian parliament:
I wish to make a statement to the House.
And I make this statement to the House not as the Speaker but as independent member for Clark to clarify statements I made in the same capacity on ABC Radio yesterday. It appears that these statements may have inadvertently brought into question the integrity of Senator John Duniam.
I have an obligation to set this record straight.
On Monday the first of March at the Hobart City Council’s citizenship ceremony, I casually asked the Honourable Senator Eric Abetz if the Minister allegedly accused of the alleged rape that occurred around 30 years ago was the Honourable Christian Porter MP.
The Senator quickly responded that yes, it was the first law officer of the nation, Christian Porter, but not to worry, the woman is dead and the law will protect him.
He then said, as for that Higgins girl, anybody who is so disgustingly drunk, who would sleep with anybody, could have slept with one of our spies and put the security of our nation at risk.
My immediate thoughts were, ‘What if that girl’s drink had been spiked?’
And even if she was drunk, wouldn’t a caring man see that she got home safely? No one, no matter how drunk, or what they wear, or where they walk at night deserves to be sexually assaulted.
I say to the senator on this matter, Ms Higgins did not choose to sleep with this man.
She was raped.
I asked senator Abetz why the security guards hadn’t stepped in knowing how drunk she appeared to be.
He responded abruptly that if any security member dared to question the validity of access to the parliament by anyone who held a security pass, they would be sacked.
I felt sick knowing that the last line of protection for this young woman was not able to be provided due to the practices and protocols of that Parliament. I accept that these are deeply held views by the Senator.
However, they are not endorsed by our wider community who view this judgment as slut-shaming. I know that there are many good men not only in our community but also in our Liberal party who would also find these comments completely unacceptable and out of touch.
Senate positions are highly coveted, and the selection process is very carefully managed by a select group of Liberals.
If we want the views of our parliament to reflect the views of our community, I respectfully suggest to these selectors that we have an obligation not to reward poor behaviour.
Updated
The department of defence confirms it was aware of one security breach in March 2019, related to defence information.
Katherine Jones, associate secretary at the department of defence, was asked whether it was notified of any security breach in March 2019.
“Yes there was one security breach in that category,” she replies.
Asked which of the three categories the security breach related to, Jones says: “I think noting what’s already on the public record, it relates to the information category.”
Did it relate to events on night on the alleged rape of Brittany Higgins, or a separate incident?
“Separate.”
Jones notes that this matter was “referenced by the prime minister yesterday”.
“It related to information – a document or documents, I’m not aware of the number of documents involved.”
She says defence was notified on 20 March 2019 “in relation to a breach that happened on 19 March”.
Updated
Back in Treasury estimates, the Green senator Nick McKim is asking about the phenomenon of billionaires making a killing during Covid-19.
“I don’t have the numbers for billionaires,” the secretary, Steve Kennedy says. Kennedy says his main focus has been keeping unemployment down and tending to economic growth.
McKim says there’s lots of material on the public record documenting that trend. Kennedy notes that relative poverty fell in Australia during the pandemic because of the fiscal measures.
McKim notes a number of those measures are coming off now. He asks if the Treasury tracks wealth inequality? Kennedy says not on a monthly basis, but in aggregate.
“There are not statistics for us to track on a quarterly basis”.
McKim says wealth is spiking. Kennedy says he hasn’t come today well prepared for this conversation.
Updated
Defence estimates is now focusing on the relationship between the Department of Defence and the office of the minister, Linda Reynolds.
Penny Wong says she assumes there are a number of defence staff who work in the Reynolds’ ministerial office.
The acting defence minister, Marise Payne, confirms there are 15 ministerial staff positions in Reynolds’ office currently. Of those 15, the current number of staff MOP(S) Act-contracted defence staff is six.
Payne says she is not aware of any reduction in number of staff in the office since Reynolds went on leave.
Katherine Jones, associate secretary at the Department of Defence, gives a very broad answer about the department’s visibility of potential security breaches (the line of enquiry is obviously related to the handling of Brittany Higgins’ allegations in 2019, when Reynolds was minister for defence industry, but the questions and answers are not specifically about this matter). Jones says:
“If the security breach relates to a defence employee, defence information or defence premises, then that security breach would be referred to the department. If it referred to something else it wouldn’t necessarily be referred to the department.”
Otherwise breaches would be dealt with by the office itself, Jones says.
Asked about document-related breaches, she says it would come to defence if it was defence submission.
Asked if ministerial offices were considered defence premises, Jones says no (so issues of access would not fall within the defence department’s purview).
Updated
Just half of phase 1a of Australia's Covid vaccine rollout has been completed
Phase 1b of the vaccine rollout began on Monday, with the program expanding to include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders over the age of 55, other healthcare workers and adults over 70. But Senate estimates heard just half of phase 1a, which has targeted the most vulnerable including aged care residents and hotel quarantine staff, has been completed.
The department of health also faced questions about the government’s vaccination website, which GPs say has led to booking issues and has placed stress on their practices.
Associate health department secretary Caroline Edwards said she did not accept the website was a “mess”.
“This website has had enormous traffic on its initial days, it didn’t crash,” she said.
“The vast majority of bookings went through, that’s a really important point to make, secondly what we did is we designed it in consultation with providers and other people about how they would want to work.”
She also said GPs had been alerted before the launch of the website and should not have been caught off guard by the bookings.
Updated
The conversation has moved on to social media.
Which can be a cesspit.
But that’s not where the national conversation has been – I understand people receive terrible messages (I get it, truly) but we truly need to move beyond words.
Updated
Scott Morrison tells Ray Hadley he doesn’t want to turn this into “a men versus women thing” because there are “great women and great men”.
I’ll bring you the whole transcript in a moment, but it’s very bloke-talks-to-bloke.
Updated
Government says it is not expecting more AstraZeneca vaccine imports any time soon
Australia’s Covid-19 vaccine distribution would be in jeopardy and roll out significantly slower if local manufacture of the AstraZeneca was not occurring, with the secretary of the department of health, Prof Brendan Murphy, saying the government has “no expectation” that any more supplies of the vaccine will be coming from overseas “anytime soon”.
Responding to questions about Australia’s vaccine rollout before Senate estimates on Wednesday, Murphy was asked how many of the 4m doses projected to be administered by the end of March had been delivered. As of Monday only 312,502 doses had been administered, with those being first doses.
This includes 61,766 doses in Victoria, 34,877 in Western Australia, 72,943 in NSW, 7,251 in the ACT, 8,790 in Tasmania, 16,949 in South Australia, 42,469 in Queensland and 5,395 in the Northern Territory. Murphy blamed the slow distribution on blocked imports from the EU which he said the government did not anticipate lasting when it made their initial vaccination projections.
AstraZeneca have had a number of attempts to get shipments released and they haven’t been successful,” Murphy said. “The challenge has been in Europe, they’ve got a raging pandemic and say that AstraZeneca need to make the European commitments before they will allow exports. The reason they’re allowing the Pfizer exports is because Pfizer has been able to meet the European contractual commitments.
“AstraZeneca continues to try, we continue to try through various diplomatic channels, but we have no expectation that we will get the additional vaccines anytime soon.
As of Tuesday night, the first locally produced AstraZeneca vaccines from the CSL plant in Melbourne were released. This would see the vaccination rollout gain pace “exponentially”, Murphy said. He acknowledged the situation would be dire if Australia had not established local production.
“It has been an absolutely crucial decision,” he said.
Updated
Scott Morrison says it has been “quite a two-and-a-half-years in the job”
But I do it, because I love my country,” he says.
Updated
Scott Morrison will be speaking to Sydney radio 2GB in just a few minutes.
Updated
The Treasury secretary Steven Kennedy says the department expects that 100,000 to 150,000 people will lose their jobs once the jobkeeper wage subsidy ends. But he says it was the department’s advice to the government that the program should end in March because if the wage subsidy continued too long, it would distort conditions in the labour market and prop up firms that were no longer viable.
“We are by no means pleased that there are businesses in difficult circumstances,” Kennedy says.
But he says “this program has done its work, frankly”.
Updated
With the Mehi River set to peak at 9pm tonight, residents in the NSW town of Moree say they are playing a terrifying waiting game.
Moree plains mayor Katrina Humphries described the atmosphere as “like waiting for a baby”.
A very big baby,” she laughed.
People are potentially going to have damage to their homes, their livestock, and that’s the great unknown with this. This one’s different to 2012, because we’ve had a huge amount of rain, so we’ve got a lot of local water ... We just we’re just sitting twiddling our thumbs. There’s no stopping it, there’s a lot of sandbagging and things going on. We’re doing the very best that we can.
We’re a very strongly bonded community you know we all, we’ve all got each other’s backs.”
Moree is fairly isolated, more than a five hours’ drive inland from Coffs Harbour, and with the highways cut off residents can only hope that the flooding is isolated to the lower side of town.
The loss of life is the number one thing that we fear, but having two or three meters of water for us is no fun, moving livestock as well. The mess and the smell, the spiders, centipedes and snake that come looking for high ground.”
But Humphries says there is a silver lining:
The good thing is that we’ve had this horrible mouse plague, and that’s gonna fix it. The mice have been absolutely horrific.”
Updated
David Littleproud says 290 ADF personnel will be deployed to flood zones in New South Wales to help with the cleanup once the waters start receding.
Their job will be out there cleaning up, making sure that we get rid of the debris, having boots on the ground, trucks that you take away the debris, making it easier for those who are going through the recovery process, this is what it is about, the journey of recovery starts tomorrow and with the Australian defence force on the ground.
Can I also say they will be supplemented with three helicopters on top of the two that we have already provided and we continue to work with Resilience New South Wales about further support on top of what has already been committed and we stand ready to do that.
Can I also thank the Singapore government, the Singapore ambassador in fact reached out and offered two Chinooks. We thank Singapore, they are great friends of Australia and they are here with us and our hour of need.
We will continue to work with New South Wales and making sure that they understand the opportunities that the federal government and our international friends and family can provide to us.
Updated
Morning all, I’m dipping into Treasury estimates. Unsurprisingly, Labor is focused on the impact of the withdrawal of the jobkeeper wage subsidy.
The Treasury secretary Steven Kennedy has told the committee the withdrawal of the payment will likely see unemployment tick back up, but he says there’s likely no impact on economic growth, given that’s going to normalise after two very strong quarters as the Australian economy recovered from the first recession in 30 years.
Labor senator Katy Gallagher notes that one person’s “bump is another person’s livelihood”. Kennedy says no one is pleased to see anyone losing a job, but he says the labour market is dynamic – jobs shed, jobs created.
Updated
Tanya Plibersek spoke a little earlier this morning to the ABC, where she was asked about the prime minister’s press conference yesterday:
The deeper problem with what the prime minister did yesterday which is, right now, we are engaged in a big review of culture here at Parliament House, to participate in that review, people have to have confidence that they can come forward and tell their story potentially.
What the prime minister did yesterday really undermined that.
It’s hard enough to get current and former staff, current and former MPs, to tell the sex discrimination commissioner what happened to them without the prime minister undermining any notion of confidentiality this way.
And more broadly yesterday, looking at that press conference, I actually thought the first half of the press conference, the prime minister seemed to understand that this is a big and deep cultural problem that we need to shift.
I actually really hope coming from yesterday that he has realised that it’s going to take more than words. It’s going to take more than a press conference.
We really need to start changing culture in Parliament House, much more broadly. We want every Australian workplace to be safe. We want every person to be safe in their home. Every person to be safe walking down the street. It’s going to take a lot of work. Having measures that make it very clear to all staff what the expectations are here in Parliament House is an important early step.
Updated
Penny Wong wants to know about the restructure of governance of naval shipbuilding.
The Naval Shipbuilding Expert Advisory Panel – which oversees or advises on a number of projects including the Attack-class submarines – is now seven members, down from 10 under an old structure. And it will now report to the new naval enterprise subcommittee of cabinet.
Wong says it looks like “the largest procurement project in the nation’s history, which is the Attack class, the massive spend on that procurement plus the frigates, has been essentially taken out of the sole purview of defence and put into a whole of government [structure], bypassing the defence minister, who I note is absent, with a direct report to a cabinet subcommittee.”
An adviser, Ron Finlay, replies: “That’s a characterisation we can’t comment on, but we do report – one of the ministers we report to is, of course, the minister for defence.”
Wong: “But only as a member of the subcommittee.”
Marise Payne jumps in to reject the premise of Wong’s questions – essentially, that Scott Morrison doesn’t have confidence in Linda Reynolds as defence minister.
Updated
And the photos are out
The PM @ScottMorrisonMP fits in an unplanned mid-sitting week trip to the flood zone in Richmond, surveying damage from this week's deluge from above before meeting ADF personnel on ground. (Pool Pix) #Auspol @SBSNews pic.twitter.com/EW5LzhGEzz
— Naveen Razik (@naveenjrazik) March 23, 2021
Marise Payne, the acting defence minister, says defence stands ready to provide any additional assistance to respond to the floods.
Payne says in an opening statement to defence estimates that for over 14 months now, defence personnel have been supporting the Australian community contend with natural disasters and Covid.
“This week the ADF is once again stepping up”, she says, to support the people of NSW through “devastating floods”.
This includes the provision of ADF helicopters to supplement state operators.
ADF personnel are assisting with tasks like cleaning up debris.
Payne says 170 army personnel have been placed on 24 hours notice to move to assist with the recovery.
She also mentions a figure of 290 ADF personnel who are also being prepared to deploy to assist.
Updated
The bells have rung for the House sitting, but day three of estimates is upon us as well.
The Treasury secretary is up from nowish, if you want to tune in.
Updated
The two News Corp major city tabloids have made their displeasure with Scott Morrison for attacking a Sky News journalist during his press conference yesterday abundantly clear this morning.
Despite the mea culpa from the PM late yesterday the Herald Sun and the Daily Telegraph carry very negative front pages and unflattering mocking headlines: “Sco-woe” and “Sco-D’oh”.
Morrison:
In the course of today’s media conference when responding to further questions I deeply regret my insensitive response to a question from a News Ltd journalist by making an anonymous reference to an incident at News Ltd that has been rejected by the company. I accept their account. I was wrong to raise it, the emotion of the moment is no excuse.
FRONT PAGE 📰
— The Daily Telegraph (@dailytelegraph) March 23, 2021
Read today's paper: https://t.co/H9DzehmZVI#sydney #NSW #newspaper #frontpage #news pic.twitter.com/yvYOq7zDdA
TODAY'S FRONT PAGE.
— Herald Sun (@theheraldsun) March 23, 2021
Wednesday March 24
Read the digital edition in our app or online > https://t.co/qEcoijKR39
.
.
.#Melbourne #Victoria #FrontPage #newspaper #news pic.twitter.com/QnX389rBM0
Updated
A German official has taken umbrage at comments from Dan Tehan, as reported by Daniel Hurst:
A senior German government official has dismissed claims from Australian government ministers that carbon border charges could become a new form of protectionism.
Dr Jürgen Zattler, a director general at the German federal ministry for economic cooperation and development, told Guardian Australia such a policy would be a tool to fight global warming, not a tool to protect domestic industry.
The European Union is considering the design of a carbon border adjustment mechanism to place a carbon price on imports from less climate-ambitious countries. It is intended to prevent “carbon leakage” – or local production shutting down and moving to countries without strong climate policies.
Linda Reynolds will skip global conference
AAP has an update on Linda Reynolds:
Defence minister Linda Reynolds has decided not to attend a major international conference next month, sparking more uncertainty about her future in the role.
Reynolds was expected to travel to India in April to attend the Raisina Dialogue.
But her office has confirmed the minister will not travel to New Dehli.
Reynolds went on leave a month ago to receive treatment for a pre-existing heart condition.
At the time, she was facing intense pressure over her handling of a rape allegations raised by former staffer Brittany Higgins.
The minister is due to return to work at the beginning of next month.
Updated
Scott Morrison is receiving a helicopter tour of western Sydney, surveying the flood damage.
Updated
Karen Andrews spoke to Leigh Sales last night about the culture within Parliament House.
This is after Greens senator Lidia Thorpe raised the harassment she has experienced since taking her seat in the Senate last year – a decade after Andrews was elected. Thorpe also raised the drinking culture, and likened it to “a nightclub” in terms of behaviour.
Andrews:
I was elected just over 10 years ago, I was quite frankly horrified by what I was seeing with a pretty strong drinking, partying culture here in Parliament House. And I can recall having a conversation with my husband when I said to him, ‘Look, I’m never going to do anything to embarrass you while I’m here.’ And I made the decision that I would just not socialise. So I extracted myself from that situation and concentrated on what I was paid to do, which was my job here in Canberra. It is quite exclusive here in Canberra.
It’s not an inclusive environment for women. We work differently. We behave quite differently in parliament.
Some of that is clearly intentional, some of it is not, but the impact is that many women here do feel quite socially isolated. We aren’t included in many of the discussions that happen, whether that be in relation to matters that are being debated, in my case in the House, or whether it’s more broad discussions about policy issues, simply because we aren’t in other people’s offices socialising.
Now, I think that the men in parliament need to make sure that they are including women in those conversations. Now, is it deliberate? That’s a question that I’m not sure that I can answer, but it is quite exclusive.
Updated
Can anyone name a senior adviser to the prime minister? Who isn’t a man?
This is a very good suggestion. The PM could simply require that each level of adviser should be at least 50% women. And above all take responsibility and hold ministers & members responsible for the conduct in their own offices. https://t.co/5FjxvFU1UJ
— Malcolm Turnbull (@TurnbullMalcolm) March 23, 2021
Additional 6,000 people evacuated in NSW, premier says
Gladys Berejiklian has given an update on the floods in NSW:
We do wake up to sunshine today in most parts of New South Wales which is a positive thing.
I want to thank literally the thousands of people who have been on alert overnight in relation to evacuation warnings and since I last updated the community yesterday in the last 24 hours, we have had an additional roughly 6,000 people that have had to be evacuated.
Pleasingly, the Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting no further major rainfall for at least the next week which is very positive.
The two fronts we were concerned about yesterday have moved through which is a very positive outcome.
But what we still have to be aware of is the fact that thousands and thousands of people are still on evacuation warnings, that the rivers will continue to swell, that catchments will continue to experience flows of water not seen in 50 years and in some places 100 years.
And that is what is our primary concern. But the easing of weather conditions does mean that rescue operations will be somewhat easier but it also means today’s as Commissioner Yorke has explained, a day of supplying, making sure that people who are isolated do have the basic products they do get on with life and make sure they’re comfortable and taken care of whilst the situation in their communities subsides.
Updated
That interview continued.
Q: It was disgusting, everybody’s on the same page there, but what does it say to you as a female MP within the Liberal party that what prompted this rage from the prime minister and understandable concern and also from your female ministerial colleagues was not the alleged rape of Brittany Higgins but this disgusting behaviour by a male Liberal staffer?
Katie Allen:
Look, I think there’s been a lot of pretty shocking allegations that have come to light in the last month.
Q: But where was the rage, where was the sentiment from the prime minister when Brittany Higgins made her allegations?
Allen:
I actually have said in the media last night on The Project I was shocked about Brittany but shocked and angered about the most recent event.
Someone pointed out why weren’t you angry about Brittany. I had to think about that overnight. What I think it was is I don’t know who the perpetrator was of that, you know, event that happened two years ago, before I was here. But I know who the perpetrator was of that event that – was walked out the door and he is someone that I have had interactions with, who I thought we had a respectful relationship with, and I view all my interactions with him very differently now.
And I’m shocked and angered that someone like that would be so disrespectful about our workplace and any woman would feel like that about their workplace. I feel sad for Brittany and shocked for Brittany and I do feel angry something like that could have happened but I have nowhere for the anger to go because the perpetrator hasn’t been named.
I do not understand why you would need someone to direct anger at, when hearing a rape allegation. A person has been violated in one of the most heinous and shocking ways we know of. That in itself deserves anger. That someone has been stripped of their power and control over their own body by someone who just decided they wanted to. That is rage-inducing. Or it should be. You shouldn’t need to know who is accused of doing it, or have personal knowledge of a person, to feel anger someone has been abused.
Updated
Liberal MP Katie Allen defended Scott Morrison on ABC News Breakfast this morning, saying action should be the focus of the national conversation, while taking aim at the questions the prime minister was asked yesterday in his press conference:
I prefer to be talking about what are the solutions for women, because the women out there, they want change and they want change right across the community.
They’re sick of being looked over, they’re sick of being mansplained, sick of sexual violence, they’re sick of being worried about walking to their cars, they’re sick of not having enough women who represent them in parliament.
There are a lot of things that they’re sick of and yesterday, actually, I was incredibly moved by the prime minister’s speech. I think it’s very unfortunate that the questions went to that point.
Q: Hang on, hang on, hang on, hang on, unfortunate the questions went to that point, not unfortunate that the prime minister responded in the way he did?
Allen:
You’re quite right. You’re quite right. What was unfortunate was the dialogue is about – not about the solutions for women.
The dialogue is about a misstep in questioning and quite right, he was withdrawn what he said and that is absolutely right.
He shouldn’t have said what he said. But what I’m interested is in a prime minister who’s delivered a safe country through Covid last year and who has delivered a strong economy and I like to see him deliver what we would regard as one of the most difficult problems for women across this country.
I think women want to hear what is it that this parliament is going to deliver for them and that’s what I want to hear about from the prime minister.
So, yep, absolutely a misstep. I completely agree with that. Let’s move on. What I would say is what he said yesterday resonated with me personally.
It resonated with my office, it resonated with women across Higgins and I think it would resonate with many women that any of them could actually associate with the comments that he was saying.
Their comments that we feel that we’re not being heard, we feel that we would like to have change and if there is behaviour anywhere in any workplace like that was described in the last recent days it was disgusting. Absolutely.
Updated
The first 800,000 or so doses of the Australian-made AstraZeneca vaccine have been approved for use by the TGA. Production began on Sunday. CSL plans on producing 50 million doses locally, and each batch is to be tested before it’s rolled out.
That’s good news – but the vaccine rollout has been delayed by the floods which hit most of the east coast of Australia.
Plus, there have been “teething issues” with how the GP clinic rollout has been implemented
Updated
Tasmania legalises voluntary assisted dying
The Tasmanian parliament has legalised voluntary assisted dying – making it the third Australian jurisdiction to do so. Victoria passed similar legislation in 2017, with Western Australia following in 2019. It was the fourth time the legislation had come before the parliament.
Updated
There are blue skies over Sydney but the flood waters out west and along the mid-north coast have not yet receded.
Fifteen thousand people remain on alert to evacuate and 18,000 people have already evacuated.
As of this morning more than 950 people have been rescued from flood waters by the State Emergency Service, which has received more than 11,000 calls for help. Some 280 schools remain closed and 9,500 claims have been lodged with insurance companies.
There are 27 flood warnings current for NSW, including a major flood warning for Wollombi Brook at Bulga, the Upper Macintyre River north of Moree, and the Gwydir River at Morree.
Heavy rainfall in the Gwydir River catchment in the past 36 hours, due to that rainfall system coming over inland Australia from WA, is likely to cause major flooding at Gravesend, Yarraman, and Moree, peaking at 14.9m at Gravesend Road Bridge and 7.1 metres at Yarraman Bridge.
About 400 people have been told to evacuate low-lying areas of Moree due to flooding of the Medhi River which could reach 10.4m this morning.
There is also a moderate to major flood warning in place for the Hawekesbury, Nepean and Colo Rivers northwest of Sydney, with rainfall in the upper catchment causing flood waters to rise further with renewed flood peaks at Wallacia and Penrith today.
The Bureau of Meteorology said major flooding would continue today and tomorrow at North Richmond and Windsor, and flooding “is likely to continue at these locations until the end of the week”.
Hawkesbury River levels at Sackville are rising due to water flowing from the Colo River and are expected to reach 1990 flood levels at Lower Portland and Wisemans Ferry late today.
The Hawkesbury is expected to peak this morning at 13.1m at North Richmond, 13m at Windsor, 10m at Sackville, 7.9m at Lower Portland and 4.4m at Wisemans Ferry.
The Warragamba Dam is still spilling.
Updated
Good morning
Happy Wednesday (I can’t believe it is only Wednesday).
There’s two more days of the House sitting to get through, plus estimates is still going on, even if the hearings yesterday were mostly overshadowed by what was happening in the prime minister’s press conference and its resulting fallout.
After attacking a journalist during his press conference, which had been designed as a mea culpa for his response to the last month of harassment and abuse allegations raised by women, and the spotlight on the toxic nature of parliament, Scott Morrison was forced into another apology overnight:
Earlier today I shared with Australians my profound regret and deep disappointment as I acknowledged the terrible mistreatment of women in this country over a long period, and specifically in relation to the disgraceful events that have occurred in our workplace at Parliament House. I meant what I said about having listened, and being committed to doing everything I can to make the changes we need to make to deal with these issues. I owe it to all women in this country, not least the women in my own life so precious to me. I owe it to them to do better.
In the course of today’s media conference when responding to further questions I deeply regret my insensitive response to a question from a News Ltd journalist by making an anonymous reference to an incident at News Ltd that has been rejected by the company. I accept their account. I was wrong to raise it, the emotion of the moment is no excuse.
I especially wish to apologise to the individual at the centre of the incident and others directly impacted. I had no right to raise this issue and especially without their permission.
What matters now is doing everything in my authority to take the actions that are needed to fix the culture in our Parliament and work to make Australia a safer place for women.
It is also of the utmost importance that I continue to focus on the needs of those facing our flood crisis, and continuing to lead our country out of the COVID-19 pandemic and global recession.
We have achieved a lot together. None of us may be perfect. We all have our faults, but when we come together as Australians we always achieve great things and can confront any challenge.
That’s a huge turnaround, especially considering that Morrison had defended his (erroneous) comment that News Corp was investigating a staff member “who has had a complaint made against them for harassment of a woman in a women’s toilet”.
News Corp immediately sought a correction. The apology was posted at 11pm, if that gives you any indication of the amount of behind the scenes contact that must have been going on.
We’ll bring you more on that, as we also celebrate a bit of sunshine – the Bureau of Meteorology has forecast an easing of the conditions which have led to floods across NSW and south-east Queensland. That’s wonderful news for those in the flood catchments keeping a nervous eye on rising water levels. The flood emergency isn’t over, but it has eased for now. With the week we have had, I’ll take it.
You have Amy Remeikis on the blog, with Mike Bowers making his way back from Taree. Katharine Murphy, Sarah Martin, Paul Karp and Daniel Hurst will keep you up to date with the Canberra detail, while the rest of the Guardian brains trust will fill you in on what’s happening outside the nation’s capital.
Let’s hope it’s better than what has come before.
Ready?
Updated
