And on that note, and mostly because I have reached my capacity to deal with this today, we are going to call it a night and put the blog to sleep until October, when parliament resumes.
That sound you hear is the anticipation of the rush to the airport, because everyone is quite done with today.
Parliament will resume on 14 October for the third-last joint sitting week for the year. There are separate House and Senate sitting weeks, but just three joint sitting weeks left.
Huzzah.
Make sure you check back at the Guardian – I’ll be back on regular political news duties, Katharine Murphy is travelling with the prime minister and will have the US trip news and Paul Karp and Sarah Martin will have everything else and more.
A massive thank you to Mike Bowers, who is somehow still standing, and to everyone else at the Guardian’s braintrust for keeping it all going.
And most of all, a massive thank you to you for joining us this sitting. We will be back in just under a month, but please, in the meantime – take care of you.
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How Mike Bowers saw question time:
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Zali Steggall will be joining the climate strike in Sydney, with her office:
The Not Business as Usual campaign has attracted thousands of businesses pledging to close their doors to send a message that governments must take urgent against climate change.
Strikes are planned in 120 countries, including more than 140 protest locations across Australia, three days before the UN Climate Action summit in New York.
Zali and her team will be catching the Manly ferry to the protest that begins at 12pm at the Domain in Sydney’s CBD.
“Global warming is an issue that impacts us all. We all have a responsibility to call for more preventative action by the government,” Ms Steggall said.
“We are on track to burden the next generation with its greatest intergenerational debt ever and I do not find that acceptable.”
“I encourage as many people to join me on the strike to send a strong message to the government that we will not sit idly by as the detrimental effects of climate change such as terrible health impacts are being felt.”
The local Warringah office will remain open for constituents with urgent issues.
Michael McCormack calls time on question time for the “Morrison-McCormack government” and I call time on my ability to stomach any more of this, so everyone is a winner.
Lisa Chesters to Michael McCormack:
Can the acting prime minister confirm that the government has managed the delivery of the inland rail project so badly that it has alienated key support groups, including the New South Wales farmers Association, Agfa force, the Victorian Farmers Federation, Country Women’s Association and the National Farmers Federation?
McCormack:
I just wish the member for Bendigo was perhaps a little more positive around the inland rail. This is going to be a transformational, nation building, 1,700km corridor of commerce. Is going to, for the first time, product from paddock to port within 24 hours. This is absolutely critical for rural and regional Australia.
All the other in rural and regional members of the Labor side, of whom that not many, should get on board. Every single member of the parliament should get on board. I know those on our side are in favour of inland rail which reduces rail freight costs by up to $94 per tonne. It was and it certainly predicated on a saving of $10 per tonne. The CSIRO report indicated there was potential savings of $94 savings. An average saving of $76 per tonne saving as opposed to $10 per tonne on the original case although I can say that in parts of my electorate where parts of the rail are rapidly under way, how many jobs that is created in just that particular area. Yes, I understand that there are concerns. I appreciate there are people further permit the inland rail will have an impact.
He is still talking but I have had way too much Michael McCormack for one day and possibly a lifetime, so check the Hansard if you are that desperate. Or maybe stare at a wall. Same thing, really.
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Nope wait, Michael McCormack lures me back with this:
Mr Speaker, they burnt the Murray-Darling Basin plan, the draft of the plan, they were so aggravated with his water resource ideas, they were so absolutely aggrieved with the position he took, and if those opposite had won on May 18, Mr Speaker, they would have been back in May.
Most of the water of the Murray-Darling, what little water there is, would be out of the mouth of the Murray, because that is their policy. When not going to do that, and we won’t be deterred by the Victorian water minister, Lisa Neville, who said ruling out dams in the southern state – “new dams do not create any more water, they just take it from somewhere else”. I ask if they agree with that, Mr Speaker.”
That is the literal truth of a dam. I could dig one in my backyard and water would not fill it, because dams need water to come from somewhere else, be it an underwater well, a river, lake or the fricking sky. Without that water from somewhere else, it is just a giant hole.
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Look, Michael McCormack is still talking, but I just found a piece of puffed rice from an old rice cracker on my desk and I got distracted by its sudden charisma.
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Michael McCormack tells Joel Fitzgibbon he “does not get bullied by anyone” and I just spat out my tea.
Anthony Albanese to Michael McCormack:
My question is to the person currently leading the McCormick government. He wanted me to say that. The acting prime minister, Mr Speaker. What is the government doing to ensure that journalism is not a crime?
McCormack:
Mr Speaker, as a former journalist with 21 years as a daily newspaper editor, I of course believe in freedom of press. The press. The government is committed to the freedom of the press. It is central to our democracy. It always has been, is now, always will be. It is also the government ‘s first duty to keep Australians safe. That is the first priority Mr Speaker. These considerations need to be carefully balanced. The government has asked the parliamentary joint media on intelligence and security to inquire into the impact of the exercise of law enforcement and intelligence powers on the freedom of the press.
As the attorney general has just said, we thought that was bipartisan. At the committee’s request and as agreed by the attorney general, the reporting date for this inquiry has been extended to 20th November.
The search warrants executed by the Australian federal police to investigate under old laws that a Liberal National government repealed and replaced them with provisions for strong protections for journalists about this matter is now before the court, will not be appropriate to comment further.
Operational decisions are a matter, as they have to be, for the AFP and remain independent of executive government. It is a way it should be.
“Well done”, says one of the ministers behind him, because at this stage, apparently getting through a question with words which approximate understandable sentences is cause for a gold star.
Honestly. Flat lemonade has more pith.
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Angus Taylor looks like he is saying something.
Next
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The government is restrained from removing the family from Australia pending a final hearing.
— Josh Taylor (@joshgnosis) September 19, 2019
Richard Marles to Michael McCormack:
My question is to the acting prime minister. What is the government’s position on extending the so-called “big stick” legislation to supermarkets?
(Insert Admiral Ackbar gif)
Michael McCormack:
I will get the energy minister to add to my remarks but I’ll answer the question from the deputy opposition leader. The big stick legislation is important legislation but it is also very important because what we want to do is make sure that we have the most reliable, affordable, energy for Australians.
That is what we’ve always said that is what we have certainly put in place. That why, at last, energy prices are coming down. Under those opposite, I have to say they couldn’t even explain how much the energy costs were going to be for average businesses and acting families.
Tony Burke:
Does the issue of direct relevance as to whether someone reacts to a trigger word ordeals of the contents of the question. The context of the question is entirely about whether or not that legislation should apply to supermarkets and the deputy prime minister, the acting premise those going nowhere near that issue.
Christian Porter:
Mr Speaker, because there is no plan. The acting prime minister is speaking to the only part of the question that he can intelligibly speak to [in regards to] big stick legislation in relation to energy.
Tony Smith:
I will rule on the point of order first. The question was very specific. It did not contain a preamble. I was about to say to the deputy prime minister, the acting prime minister, of course he is entitled to a preamble on the issue but my ...
The scope of, obviously of a very specific question, is very limited in this respect and the other thing I was going to say. I thought I heard the acting prime minister say, he would at some point, refer to the energy minister stop there is a difficulty with that because unless he can convince me that the energy minister is responsible for supermarkets, that is the problem.
We can refer to a minister who has portfolio responsibility for that area and obviously that could be a number of ministers but I think for the acting prime minister, he’s been entitled to deal with the energy policy point up until now which he has done. I think that either he needs to go to the specific part of the question or refer it or we can move onto the next question.
McCormack:
We’re taking on the energy companies. We make no apology for that.
*insert gif of stormtrooper hitting head*
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And while we are taking moments, let’s all take a moment to remember that Scott Morrison stepped in to save Craig Kelly from being rolled in his preselection, three years after Malcolm Turnbull stepped in and saved him from being rolled in his preselection.
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Jim Chalmers to Josh Frydenberg:
Why won’t the treasurer admit that today’s budget outcome would not be possible without making Australians with a disability wait for the care that they need and deserve and were promised so that he can add $4.6bn to the budget line?
Josh Frydenberg:
The member for Rankin’s claim is not true.
That’s it. That’s the whole answer. Let’s all take a moment to thank Frydenberg’s voice for doing us a solid and deciding to fail in protest to all the unnecessary yelling. Well done, little dude.
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Centre Alliance’s Rex Patrick has asked the Senate president Scott Ryan about reports that China was responsible for the hack of parliament’s computer systems in February, which China dismissed as “baseless”.
Ryan replied that it would not be appropriate to comment but restated Scott Morrison’s formulation that a “sophisticated state actor” was responsible. He said a small amount of data was taken but none was deemed sensitive.
Network security is of the “highest priority” and Ryan promises to give a further update at Senate supplementary estimates.
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The science minister is now taking a lickspittle on why kids should get into science in the same hour as a member of her party just said climate change wasn’t real because it is cold in some places and hot in others.
Richard Di Natale has asked Mathias Cormann about Friday’s climate strike and whether he can guarantee public servants won’t be penalised for attend.
Cormann said the Coalition is “committed to effective action on climate change”.
“All of the public servants know what their duties and responsibilities are and I encourage them to conduct appropriately with rules,” he said.
Hint, hint: don’t skip work.
Cormann said that “what people do in their free time is up to them” but he is not in favour of students going on strike.
“Students should go to school, that will prepare them to be best possible contributors to their communities.”
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“I know how we’ll get through to the yoof! We’ll send out the guy who always looks like he is yelling at you from a ute’s window, to tell them easily googable information is a LIE! That’ll get them. That’s radical dude. So awake.”
– The monkeypodders, presumably.
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Coalition MP to climate strike students: 'Everything you are told is a lie'
No one:
Absolutely no one:
Not a single soul:
Craig Kelly:
I understand how persuasive that peer group pressure can be for teenagers and their desire to conform and fit in with the crowd.
However, I would say to any student considering joining the so-called climate protest, don’t be a sheep and think for yourself because you are being used and manipulated and everything you are told is a lie.
The facts are, there is no link between climate change and drought. Polar bears are increasing in number. Today’s generation is safer from extreme weather at any time in human history.
There is no 97% consensus. Such claims are a fraud. Crop yields have increased remarkably, wildfires have declined 25% over the past two decades, we are seeing less cyclones, not more.
Cold weather kills many times more than hot weather, including here in Australia. The sea ice is not melting away.
In fact, where the ill-fated Franklin expedition sailed in 1845, this year is blocked by thick sea ice.
Renewables ain’t renewable and they certainly don’t make electricity cheaper. And if you are worried about sea level rise, I suggest that you get some old photos of Fort Denison, get the tide gauge data and go and have a look for yourself.
Don’t take my word. I encourage all students in my electorate to study the science and learn for themselves.
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Josh Frydenberg’s throat appears to be on the side of good and has decided the treasurer has done TOO MUCH YELLING given the coughs and voice cracks in this lickspittle.
Sussan Ley made a comment about some people confusing state and federal environmental laws when it came to developments, in response to a question Rebehka Sharkie asked. Sharkie’s eyebrows went so high, you might find them somewhere on Kosciuszko.
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Richard Marles to Josh Frydenberg:
Will the treasurer admit that the government’s decision to underfund the national disability insurance scheme is preventing Australians with a disability from getting the care they need? Why has the government propped up its budget by deliberately under spending $4.6bn on the national disability insurance scheme?
Frydenberg:
I can confirm that there are 11,000 people helping to deliver the NDIS, and in the last year 115,000 Australians came on to the NDIS, Mr Speaker. There are now 300,000 Australians on the NDIS, and as the acting prime minister said, more than 100,000 of them are getting support for the first time.
The reality is, the NDIS has increased tenfold in the three years of transition, Mr Speaker. Everyone who has been approved in the program is getting support under a fully funded NDIS. Mr Speaker, in 2018/19 we doubled the funding and the spending on the NDIS to $8.5bn from the $4bn a year prior.
Mr Speaker, the Labor party knows all too well but only the Coalition can deliver budget surpluses. Only the Coalition can fund services like the NDIS, that Australians need and deserve.
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Josh Frydenberg gets the next lickspittle but I didn’t hit the down volume button in time and my eardrums are blown out and now there is blood on my keyboard.
Now Richard Marles does it:
I refer to the minister’s previous answer about demand in the NDIS. If the government seriously suggesting that Australians with a disability aren’t out there waiting for care packages? And if the government seriously suggesting that the NDIS can adequately meet demand with a $4.6bn dollar underspend?
Michael McCormack:
Funding for the NDIS is guaranteed Mr Speaker. No Australian who is eligible for the NDIS will miss out. No Australian will miss out.
...We are strongly committed to the NDIS. As I said, as the minister said in the first question and Question Time today, it is want of the most important social and economic reforms in our country ‘s history. I’m proud to say that when this reform was suggested by Prime Minister Gillard who is in the house today, I saw her this morning and commended her for the work she doing with Beyond Blue and other organisations in her post political career. She has been a class act, I have to say and this was good reform Mr Speaker. I was proud to say that I was the first New South Wales federal parliamentarian to sign up to the everyone counts campaign which happened at the time the NDIS was first mooted.
The vast majority of the more than 300,000 participants, it is delivering improved levels of support, more choice and control. Over 100,000 people are receiving disability support services for the first time ever. It is good policy reform, Mr Speaker but I have to say, I have to say that when those introduced this legislation, they did not put the amount of money towards the NDIS that was required. We are finding the reform, we are backing the NDIS and again, Mr Speaker, I say funding for the NDIS is guaranteed.
Terri Butler gets kicked out of question time. Lucky her.
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George Christensen is the first one to inflict Michael McCormack on us and I’d love to tell you what it was about but I was groaning under the desk too loudly to hear.
Question time begins
OK. Let’s do this.
Sigh.
Jim Chalmers to Stuart Robert:
What is the value of the underspend on the NDIS in the final budget outcome?
Robert:
...As he knows today in the final budget update, the actual number for the NDIS was a spend of$8.5bn. The great thing to remember about the NDIS, if we look at actual cost per participant, in the 18/19 budget, it was estimated and expenditure $46,400 participant.
The ... actual spend was $46,800. Therefore a $400 increase. Not a single person has seen a decrease. The underspend figure of $4.6bn can be explained as follows.
When the bilateral estimate will put together, they said it would be 3,172 Australians.
The bilateral estimate had 30,200 expected citizens but once the data derived from the states and territories, only want hundred and 99,000 citizens could be found.
They are not able to be found from the state and territories or not able to be double counted frankly, the data is wrong when hundred thousand. However, on top of that, the bilateral estimate said that 69,195 new participants would come through. In actuality, when hundred and 117,000 new participants have sought access.
A 109% increase in new participants have come through. How is it that we have been able to find this demand driven scheme and uncapped, demand driven scheme.
Anywhere we been able to find it, not last year, not this year, but every year going forward. $17.8bn this year growing to $25bn in 22, 23. The only reason we can find going forward is because we, this government, led by this treasurer has actually balanced the budget.
Today’s announcement was about balancing the budget. The first time in a long time, 11 years! Precipitated by those opposite, the budget is balanced this year and next year and the following years going forward. This government will not be lectured by those opposite when it comes to fiscal discipline and how we fund services.
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No, wait, Michael McCormack is sitting in the prime minister’s chair and I am back to looking at that off-planet lifestyle.
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OK. Julie Owens just did a whole statement in Auslan and maybe parts of the planet are OK.
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Oh FFS.
Craig Kelly obviously saw Malcolm Roberts’ contribution on the dolphin debate and decided his crown was under threat, because he just made a CLIMATE CHANGE ISN’T REAL speech in a 90 second statement and I don’t want to live on this planet any more.
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I really don’t know who let the stupid out today, but this was Malcolm Roberts’ contribution to a Greens motion to have dolphins banned from performing in captivity.
This is an actual thing that an actual senator said in our actual parliament.
Malcolm Roberts:
This is yet another example of the arrogance of the Greens to presume that they know what dolphins are thinking and feeling. We have a horse. Our daughter has a wonderful horse named Clancy. Clancy is a horse, so he behaves in accordance with being a herd animal. People who take a horse out of a herd usually have a companion animal. We chose not to. Clancy is now on our acreage at home. He loves being with humans. He does not like being with horses. The point of the matter is that we don’t know what animals think.
Secondly, dolphins like humans. That’s a fact. That’s well known. Dolphins are attracted to humans. These kinds of practices actually fund research into dolphins, and these kinds of businesses support the curing of dolphins recovering from being hit by boats. This is yet another example of the Greens pretending that they know everything.
If there is extraterrestrial intelligent life out there, we know why they are not making contact.
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It is almost question time.
I feel smallpox coming on.
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Pat Dodson has released a statement:
Patrick Dodson, Labor Senator for Western Australia, has expressed concern about the shooting by Western Australian Police of an Aboriginal woman in Geraldton on Tuesday evening.
“I acknowledge that the Police have committed to conducting a thorough inquiry into this tragic death, with oversight apparently by the Corruption and Crime Commission.
“Without wanting to prejudice that inquiry, I can only echo the question being posed by many in the community: why was it necessary to resort to the lethal force of a firearm to resolve whatever trouble the Police were confronting on Tuesday evening?
“I extend my deepest sympathies to the family of the dead woman.
“The Aboriginal community of Geraldton deserve a full account of what happened. Any inquiry, including the Coroner’s inquiry, will take a long time to report and community concerns need to be settled as soon as possible.
“In the meantime, I urge the Aboriginal people of Geraldton to stay calm in these difficult times and not to engage in any provocative or retaliatory behaviour.”
What is Jim Chalmers’ idea of a “responsible surplus”?
There are at least half a dozen things the government should be contemplating.
Well, they can pick up any of these six ideas we’ve proposed, and they can cost them and they can be done responsibly and affordably.
They can bring forward part of their stage two tax cuts. They can fund a responsible increase in Newstart. They can bring some infrastructure spending. They can have a business incentive investment, a wages policy, and energy policy – and in the absence of an energy policy has been a handbrake on growth in the economy for too long.
There are so many things the government should be considering. Instead they give press conferences, patting themselves on the back to shortchanging Australians with a disability, and they pretend everything’s hunky-dory in the economy.
Walk down a main street in Australia, either side. Ask the workers and managers how they are going. I think when you get the answers to that and what the government wants to pretend about the economy, you can see why so many people will conclude that the government, when it comes to the economy, is hopelessly out of touch.
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Bill Shorten had a few choice words about the NDIS underspend in the budget:
The NDIS is constipated. The money’s meant to be there getting out to the people. Mr Morrison struts in parliament and says, listen, it’s a demand-driven program and the reason why we’ve been able to pocket $3.6bn is because the demand isn’t there. That’s just a lie.
The reality is the demand is there. Go to speak with people in the communities and those watching and reading news today, they will be furious. The reality is, in the last 10 weeks I’ve travelled across Australia, it’s been jaw dropping to realise people are waiting 12 months, two years for a wheelchair, but at the same time the government says no problems here, we will pocket the money.
The problem is the NDIS hasn’t had a CEO for 120 days and Minister Roberts had legislation in the House and he was too busy to back in his own legislation.
This government is disinterested. The NDIS is adrift. It’s doing good things but there’s too many people missing out and now we know where the money is.
Josh Frydenberg is giving himself a pat on the back with Mathias Cormann. They have the money and people with the disabilities are asking they have the money, why can’t we get some?
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I’ve asked to be the House Crossbenchers’ rep on the committee.
— 🌏 Zali Steggall MP (@zalisteggall) September 19, 2019
It’s important that this inquiry takes a thorough sensible approach. #auspol https://t.co/RBy6j0jRtM
We are all slowly going through the budget outcome statement, but one thing which has been pointed out to me, is that with spending down, GST is also down. That is not a problem for the feds, because the corporate tax intake has increased. But as we all know, the states don’t get corporate tax.
Which, for budgets like Tasmania, is going to be pretty diabolical.
The Tasmanian Liberal government included a couple of lines about their exposure to GST changes in the 2018-19 budget:
More immediately, the risks to Tasmania’s GST revenue estimates are linked directly to the state’s share of the national population; the size of the GST revenue pool; and Tasmania’s relativity factor which is currently forecast to fall over the forward estimates. GST revenue collections are highly sensitive to changes in national consumer spending patterns, as has been evidenced by a recent increase in the national pool forecasts in the Australian government’s 2018-19 budget.
There is a one-to-one relationship between variations in the size of the national pool of GST available for distribution to the states and variations in GST revenue to Tasmania. For example, a 1% variation in the GST pool would result in a $24.3m variation in Tasmania’s GST revenue in 2018-19, assuming that the state’s population share and assessed relativity remained constant.
With GST down by 3.4%, which is just over $2bn, then Tasmania is looking at losing just over $80m (calculation mistakes are mine).
Given the fight Tasmania just had to have its federal housing debt wiped, with that saved money now tied to new housing projects and nothing else, this is not good news for Tasmania. And it won’t be for the states as a whole.
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The Australian Council of Social Services has also responded to the final budget outcome statement released today. It says there is no excuse now not to increase Newstart:
As Acoss warned, tax cuts don’t seem to be having the promised effect and now is not the time to bring forward tax cuts slated for 2022.
The most effective measure for the economy now is to increase Newstart. With the budget in balance, the government is running out of excuses for not boosting the incomes of people who need the greatest relief. The government should prepare now to announce a major boost for people on the lowest incomes and a substantial social housing infrastructure package in the budget statement at the end of the year, because the tax cuts are not delivering the boost we need,” Acoss CEO Cassandra Goldie sad today.
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The Australian Industry Group has responded to Christian Porter’s proposed IR reforms – calling for the length of enterprise agreements to be uncapped for all pay deals, not just new work sites, and opposing increased penalties for wage theft.
AiG chief executive Innes Willox:
Enterprise agreements that cover work on major projects should be able to continue for the life of the project even if this is longer than the current four-year limit. This reform should not be limited to greenfields agreements. Regular enterprise agreements commonly regulate work on major projects; not just greenfields agreements.
The second discussion paper on Strengthening Penalties for Non-compliance needs very careful consideration. Deliberate underpayment of wages is of course unacceptable, and strong laws are already in place to deter and punish this unlawful conduct. The civil penalties for breaching awards and pay record-keeping requirements were increased by up to 20 times in 2017, and a well-resourced regulator (the fair work ombudsman) is in place to enforce the laws. The current hefty civil penalties are appropriate. Exposing employers to criminal penalties, including imprisonment, for underpayments would risk discouraging investment and employment.
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John Setka referred to Senate privileges committee
As expected, the Senate supported Rex Patrick’s call for a referral of John Setka to the privileges committee (which decides if someone has attempted to intimidate a member, among its many duties) over comments he made about Rex Patrick and Jacqui Lambie. The AFP is also investigating whether there was a threat. Setka denies any attempt at intimidation or threatening behaviour and said it was “campaigning”
The CFMEU have responded with a statement:
We welcome the opportunity to appear before the Senate standing committee of privileges.
Australian construction unions have run targeted political campaigns in support of workers safety and conditions for more than 100 years.
When politicians contemplate supporting draconian industrial relations laws that will threaten workers’ rights our members expect us to stand up and campaign against them.
The suggestion that campaigning against legislation which undermines the human rights of workers and their representatives is in any way in contempt of the Senate is anti-democratic and sets a dangerous precedent.
The use of illegally obtained recordings of a private meeting against CFMEU officials also raises serious ethical questions.
We look forward to attending the privileges committee and will happily answer any questions from senators.
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At least someone is having fun today
Caption this 🤔 pic.twitter.com/URk0uKf71p
— Peter Whish-Wilson (@SenatorSurfer) September 19, 2019
Jim Chalmers and Katy Gallagher have issued their official response to the 2018-19 final budget outcome statement:
The defining feature of the 2018-19 final budget outcome is a $4.6bn underspend in the national disability insurance scheme.
These new numbers show the Morrison government is propping up their budget by denying Australians with a disability the care they need, deserve and were promised.
Even with a $4.6bn underspend on the NDIS, higher iron ore prices and a lower dollar boosting profits and the bottom line, the budget is still in deficit.
This is the sixth consecutive budget deficit from a Liberal government which promised surpluses in the first year and every year after that.
Today’s result confirms that net debt has more than doubled under the Liberals from $175bn in 2013 to $374bn now.
The government shouldn’t be patting themselves on the back about today’s numbers.
Australia has the slowest growth in a decade, stagnant wages, productivity in decline, record household debt, high underemployment, and declining living standards.
Right when the Australian economy needs action to get the economy moving again, the Liberals have a political strategy but not an economic policy.
Shortchanging Australians with a disability is not an economic policy.
It is time Josh Frydenberg and Scott Morrison brought forward a budget update to update their forecasts and properly outline an economic plan that supports the floundering economy and better safeguards it from global risks.”
They’ll be saying the same things in different ways at their presser at 1pm.
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Julia Gillard is delivering her state of the nation address, speaking about the impact mental health can have on the workforce.
Unemployment edges higher
It’s seasonally adjusted, but but worth noting because the consensus was it would stay stable at 5.2% and instead has increased slightly, to 5.3%.
From Australian Associated Press:
The jobless rate edged higher to a seasonally adjusted 5.3% in August, bolstering the case for another Reserve Bank rate cut as soon as October.
A surge in people with part-time work boosted net employment by 34,700 to 12.93 million during the month, but underemployment ticked higher on a 15,500 decrease in people with full-time work.
Most economists had expected the unemployment rate to remain unchanged at 5.2% for a fifth consecutive month, despite dual rate cuts by the Reserve Bank and federal government tax stimulus supposedly initiated to counter jobs market slack, low wages growth and low household consumption levels.
Unemployment was the key metric cited by the RBA in its decision to cut rates in both June and July to a record low 1.0% with a third cut to 0.75% already completely priced in for November.
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Matt Canavan has just put the answers up:
1. As at 31 July 2019, the NAIF Board has committed $1.4bn through 11 investment decisions and two conditional approvals. The NAIF dollar value of the 11 investment decisions is $1.2bn.
2. As at 31 July 2019, a total of $38,522,982.40 had been drawn across three projects. Access to NAIF loan money through drawdowns is dependent on the proponent requirements and timing of construction and project activities. Loan money is not drawn in one large sum.
3. Projects have access to a draw down facility when they reach financial close. As at 31 July 2019, the three projects that had reached financial close were: Onslow Marine Supply Base, Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia and Humpty Doo Barramundi.
4. As at 31 July 2019, the amount drawn down for each of the three projects referred to in question 3 was: Onslow Marine Supply Base - $13,436,538; Voyages Indigenous Tourism Limited - $23,732,693.30; Humpty Doo Barramundi - $1,353,751.10.
5. As at 31 July 2019, there was 87 active activities in the NAIF pipeline, classified as follows: 48 active enquiries (NAIF has received an initial enquiry from the proponent and requested the proponent provide high level project information); one at the strategic assessment stage; 28 at the due diligence stage; seven at the investment decision and execution stage; three having reached financial close.
6. Refer to question 5.
7. Refer to question 5.
8. Refer to question 5.
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The Northern Australia Infrastructure Fund is something I know gets forgotten a bit, but I keep an eye on, because it is really, really important to people in regional Queensland and the Northern Territory. It was meant to turn northern Australia into, in Tony Abbott’s words, “an economic powerhouse”. It has not done that. Mostly because it is taking so long to get major projects off the ground.
Queensland senator Murray Watt had some questions on the fund recently, which were put on notice.
1. What is the total value of the NAIF’s investment decisions to date.
2. In aggregate, how much of that funding has been released via the draw down facility.
3. What projects have access to a draw down facility.
4. How much has each of those projects drawn down.
5. How many projects are currently in the enquiry and preliminary assessment stage.
6. How many projects are currently in the strategic assessment stage.
7. How many projects are currently in the due diligence stage.
8. How many projects are in the investment decision and execution stage.
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In the question and answer session, Christian Porter praised the Shop Distributing and Allied Employees Association (SDA) as an example of a union that is “very constructive” in the enterprise bargaining process and “sensible”.
“I was speaking with McDonald’s the other day – and they were describing how they encourage issues or information about practices a worker thinks can be improved direct to the management and they deal with them swiftly and quickly and they have a great cooperative relationship with the SDA where the SDA also passes that information on.”
The SDA is a controversial example because at major employers including McDonald’s, Coles and Woolworths, the union agreed to enterprise agreements that traded off the penalty rates of casual staff, allowing the employers to lawfully pay millions less than otherwise required by the award.
When Labor wanted to ban the Fair Work Commission from penalty rates, Coalition figures including MP George Christensen and the Council of Small Business Organisations of Australia were extremely critical of the SDA for cutting penalty rates and allowing big employers a big advantage over smaller competitors.
Asked at the doorstop how he could call for upward pressure on wages while praising the SDA, Porter said the SDA “seems generally speaking to work very well with the large employers in that sector” and disputed that they had left workers worse off.
“I’m not sure the SDA would agree with your assessment of the overall result of their engagement with employer associations in that sector.”
Porter said he meant the SDA is more constructive about disputes than the construction union, which he said faked safety concerns.
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Christian Porter has just spoken to the Committee for the Economic Development of Australia state of the nation conference, dropping lots of hints about IR reforms.
The industrial relations minister said that he’s first looking for improvements “of the most importance to strengthening the Australian economy” and secondly they must be “actually possible” in that they “can achieve a significant enough degree of consensus that they can be supported through parliament”.
He repeated the framework articulated by Scott Morrison that reforms need to:
- Create jobs and put upward pressure on wages to benefit workers
- Help business by boosting productivity; and
- Help the economy grow overall
Because the ghost of WorkChoices looms over all IR discussion, Porter argued that it was “mistaken” and a “false view” the system is a perpetual contest between employers and employees.
Porter hopes he can end the “revolving door” of IR reform by finding reforms that are mutually beneficial.
Porter praised Julia Gillard’s Fair Work Act as a “far from terrible” starting point, praising Australia’s system of independent minimum wage setting which has produced the highest minimum wage in the world.
The Australian Council of Trade Union’s Change the Rules campaign – by contrast – was made up of “foreign and radical policy prescriptions” such as taxpayer subsidies of wages in the childcare sector.
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No word on when Jim Chalmers is going to respond to the budget statement as yet, but he is tweeting:
BREAKING: New numbers show the Liberals’ spent $19 billion on interest on their record gross debt of $542 billion last year #auspol #ausecon #fbo
— Jim Chalmers MP (@JEChalmers) September 19, 2019
For some reason Mark Coulton just introduced an NDIS bill into the House – not Stuart Robert, the actual minister.
Which is a bit weird. It’s Robert’s job. Christian Porter who has a pretty insane workload, seems to make it into the chamber to introduce his bills.
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There was no traditional departure shot, but nothing stops Mike Bowers
PM Morrison boards his flight this morning in Canberra, next stop Trump town USA @AmyRemeikis @murpharoo @msmarto @GuardianAus #PoliticsLive pic.twitter.com/KMenDABLRK
— Mikearoo (@mpbowers) September 19, 2019
Let’s be clear here. The same person who believes abortions lead to increased breast cancer rates despite no evidence; who said the assault on Tony Abbott during the marriage equality debate was “[This] is just a bit of a foretaste of what will come should the yes campaigners feel even more empowered in the event that they were successful with the vote ... This is just a bit of a harbinger of what is likely to occur”; that the marriage equality debate wasn’t necessary because a lot of gay people didn’t want to marry – pointing to Italian designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana as proof, and goodness knows what else, is comparing an academic website to Hitler, because it is following its academic duty and refusing to humour climate change deniers.
Climate. Change. Is. Happening. No one can be “climate change agnostic”. The climate is literally changing. Around us. Siberia was on fire. The ice is melting. Oceans are getting warmer and rising. And Australia is in the grips of a drought that in some areas, has been going on for almost 10 years. WITH NO RAIN TO COME. Communities are running out of water. It is literally National party policy to pray for rain.
There is no room and no time to humour climate change deniers. No room. To compare that to Hitler and Stalin is absolute bullshit propaganda and deserves all of the scorn. All of it. Especially since actual Nazis are once again running around in the sunlight. ACTUAL Nazis.
come up with your own jokes abetz this one is @firstdogonmoon's 👇https://t.co/JFYmsFcD0D #auspol @AmyRemeikis pic.twitter.com/IGgVrOMf0P
— Dave Earley (@earleyedition) September 19, 2019
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Eric Abetz continued, because of course he did:
As an agnostic in the climate change debate, I accept that there are scientists of good faith on all sides.
I’m willing to listen, to try to discern and determine where the facts actually lie. To so superciliously and arrogantly deny a voice to an alternative point of view is reminiscent of totalitarian regimes.
The orthodoxy, it seems, shall prevail not through rational debate, scientific endeavour and reasoning, but by crushing, shunning and banning any opposing views.
But it is through challenging, questioning, probing, asking and debating that we learn, discover and innovate. Inquiring minds look beyond orthodoxies, independently assessing issues.
It’s what has got us to where we are today. We can learn more, will learn more and, indeed, need to learn more, but only if we don’t stifle the inquiring mind. For well over half a century we’ve been subjected to environmental prophets of doom who’ve proven to be false.
Prophecies have told us the USA would be on food rations and water rations by 1980.
We’ve been told the Brisbane River wouldn’t flood again. Since that prophecy, it’s happened not once, but twice. We’ve been told the Murray River wouldn’t flow out to sea again. Since that prophecy, it has. And the list goes on, including the death, senator Dean Smith, of the city of Perth.
Well, last time I looked I think it still existed! So please forgive our fellow Australians who are willing to ask the questions.
When the United Nations have, for more than 30 years, predicted we only have 10 years left to fix climate change, we’re entitled to ask why their predictions have been wrong. Given the undisputed legacy of unfulfilled predictions, people are entitled to question and to put an alternative viewpoint.
This ugly, unscientific, totalitarian, arrogant approach taken by the Conversation is the exact opposite to the principles of scientific endeavour. The lesson of history is the truth will out and the inquiring mind will ultimately prevail.
The Conversation can stop the conversation, but it cannot stop the march of inquiring minds that will ultimately determine this issue. The taxpayers, who indirectly fund this publication, deserve so much better.
The Conversation needs to live up to its name.
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You might have seen the Eric Abetz story. A search of “Hitler” in the Senate Hansard shows the whole speech:
Tonight I call on the publication which calls itself the Conversation to live up to its name.
Yesterday, its daily newsletter arrogantly determined to stop conversation. The lack of self-awareness is as cringeworthy as it is acute.
The Conversation stopping conversation on the topic of – you’ve guessed it! – climate change is to deny its banner and its very reason for existence.
Why, you may ask, would the Conversation deny its own name? The answer, colleagues, is in the heading of the newsletter, ‘Climate change deniers are dangerous – they don’t deserve a place on our site’.
Allow me to give you a few quotes: once upon a time, we might have viewed climate sceptics as merely frustrating … it’s 2019, and … we know better. That’s why … a zero-tolerance approach to moderating climate change deniers, and sceptics. Not only will we be removing their comments, we’ll be locking their account ……
As a reader, author or commenter, we need your help. If you see something that is misinformation, please don’t engage, simply report it … Dob them in and help us create a space where they don’t derail the conversation.
Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin and Mao Zedong couldn’t have put it better themselves.
They’d be so proud!
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Question: One of the things you guys like to talk about a lot is how you pay down Labor’s debt. Since 2012/13 it’s gone from 10% of GDP to 20% of GDP and interest payments of $15bn. Why has it increased so much and isn’t it the case you’re not paying it down?
Mathias Cormann:
We introduced a forward trajectory not just in deep deficit but deteriorating. We have turned that around and we are in balance and you only pay down debt when you are in balance.
Having said that, the borrowing requirements in net debt terms have reduced in the 18/19 financial year and the reason why there’s an uptick in net debt is because of the valuation in relation to the government securities, and that’s essentially an adjustment that is not based on borrowing needs, it is based on what’s happening with the valuation of government securities.
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Question: We have a lift in corporate taxation, a strong lift in PAYG, but household spending through GST is $4bn lower than what you projected a year ago. Do you reconcile the fact you have more people in work but they are spending far less?
Josh Frydenberg:
Obviously we want household consumption to be higher, Shane, and as you know household consumption is 60% of GDP.
One of the ways we can drive that is through the tax relief that is being legislated through the parliament.
The last two budgets, more than $300bn. You have heard from the Reserve Bank governor, while some people are paying down the debt without tax relief that is slowing their way, others are spending it in the economy, and it will boost disposable income.
Obviously, we want to see household consumption higher but we are pleased the housing market has stabilised, in terms of the clearance rate, which are now significantly higher than they were this time last year.
Prices in the key markets of Sydney and Melbourne have lifted, and the benefit of the 50 basis point rate cut was not fully seen in the June quarter, and obviously we will be seeing more in the September quarter, so too with the tax cuts, and of course the infrastructure spending.
We are taking action to lift household consumption but there is also uncertainty out there, and I don’t think anyone wants to overlook that fact. There is uncertainty in the global economic outlook and that impact on investment decisions here at home.
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Question: Despite the final budget outcome, you are 1.9% down from 3% forecast. Business investment down, household investment down, and individual tax revenue down. Doesn’t that disprove your assertion that ...
Josh Frydenberg:
What we have announced is that nominal GDP is above what was forecast, and the Australian economy continues to grow.
As the prime minister, the finance minister and I have said, looking internationally, big economies like Germany, the UK, Sweden, Singapore, Hong Kong and others, they experienced negative growth, and unemployment is now at 5.2%.
We will get some labour force numbers today so we will see what happens there, but unemployment was 5.7% when we came to government, it is now 5.2%, and the real strength of the economy has come from that strong labour market, which the RBA governor has actually talked about himself.
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Question: Just on the NDIS underspend – $4.6bn, turning out to consolidated revenue, shouldn’t that go into disability services in some way?
Mathias Cormann:
Ultimately, 100% of the demand in the community will be met. Across the budget, across all of the demand driven programs, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, hospitals, aged care, the NDIS, whether it is a pension – the government will cover the cost of the demand that is there to its fullest extent.
It makes absolutely no sense to put money aside when the money will be there. Essentially, in any budget, at any budget update you have movements up and down.
You have demand that is higher than expected and you have to pay more. Sometimes you have demand lower-than-expected. The situation with the NDIS is unique, because we are going for a massive transition.
We are going through a transition from estate-based funding arrangement, where there was a lot of unmet demand and a lot of inadequate support for Australians with a disability, to a situation where every Australian ultimately who has a demand for visibility services, will receive that support tailored to their needs.
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From Josh Frydenberg’s office:
These outcomes demonstrate that the government’s economic plan is working and confirm that the budget will be back in the black and back on track for the 2019-20 year.
Importantly Australia has completed its 28th consecutive year of economic growth and maintained its AAA credit rating.
With more than 1.4 million jobs having been created since the Coalition Government was first elected in 2013, today’s outcome reflects the record number of people in jobs and an economy which is benefiting from the free trade agreements (FTAs) negotiated by the Coalition over the last six years.
Our FTAs combined with strong prices for our key commodities exports has seen the current account move into surplus for the first time since 1975.
Nominal GDP grew by 5.3% in 2018-19, which was significantly stronger than the 2018-19 Budget forecast of 3 ¾ per cent. This was the result of stronger than-expected employment growth and higher-than-assumed prices for key commodities.
The final budget outcome for 2018-19 further demonstrates that the government’s economic plan is working to create more jobs, and to ensure Australia can continue to afford the essential services Australians rely on.
In the year ahead the economy will continue to be supported by the government’s economic plan as outlined in the 2019-20 budget, including the largest tax cuts in two decades, and our $100 billion pipeline of infrastructure investment.
The final budget outcome 2018-19 can be found at www.budget.gov.au.
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Federal operating budget comes in at $700m deficit for 2018/19
Josh Frydenberg (who is not yelling and for that we are all grateful)
The Australian economy is strong and ready for the challenges ahead.
As a result of the Morrison government’s economic plan and responsible economic management, the underlying cash balance in the final budget outcome for the 19/20 year is $13.8bn better than estimated at the time of the 2018/19 budget.
The deficit of $690m represents 0.7% of gross domestic product.
A growing economy with more jobs and stronger terms of trade than anticipated at the time of the 2018/19 budget has driven total receipts $11.5bn higher, with payments $6.6bn lower than expected at the time of the 2018/19 budget.
Employment growth far exceeded expectations at the time of delivering the 2018/19 budget in May 2018.
With about 300,000 additional jobs created in 2018/19, employment grew by 2.6%, well above the 1.5% growth forecast in the 2018/19 budget.
More than nine out of 10 jobs created in the last year were in full-time employment, with the proportion of those of working age in welfare now at its lowest level in 30 years.
More jobs drives increases in revenue, as well as lower payments with individual tax receipts $5.7bn compared to the 2018/19 budget forecast.
Our strong fiscal management has put the budget on a sustainable trajectory, ensuring that we can guarantee the essential services that Australians need and deserve.
The 2018/19 final budget outcome shows that we’ve kept spending as a share of GDP at 24.6%, below the long-run average of 24.7%, for the second consecutive year, while also providing record levels of investment in essential services, like hospitals, schools and aged.
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It is like economics Christmas today.
Job figures and budget outcomes.
The government will get to point that it is well on track to delivering its operating surplus in the next financial year.
But the markets are still very cautious, with commentators expecting the ongoing slow employment growth (despite jobs being added to the economy, the jobless rate has not shifted and that is not expected to change today) will mean the RBA will once again cut rates – if not in October, than November.
The government has been helped a lot by iron ore prices going through the roof. But that can’t last forever.
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Linda Burney:
This prime minister is obsessed with urine tests, saliva swabs and cashless cards – and young Australians and their families are right to ask themselves:
· Where is the evidence to support these policies?
· How will this help me find a job?
· How will this help me pay the bills?
· How will this make things easier to raise and build a good and healthy life for my family?
· Why isn’t this government doing anything to stimulate a weak economy and that is only getting weaker?
· What is the point of the Morrison government?
This prime minister and this Liberal National government – and their refusal to stimulate the economy – is creating an economic environment that is making it so difficult for young Australians to raise and build a life for their families.
Of course Labor supports the bill, but there is much more that needs to be done.
Which is why Labor has moved a second reading amendment calling for the government to
(a) Guarantee it will not make any cuts to Paid Parental Leave;
(b) Increase paid family violence leave [and Labor wants to see two weeks paid family violence leave]; and
(c) Work with business to close the gender pay gap.
The government has absolutely no reason not to support this amendment – and I commend it to the House.
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Linda Burney is attempting to move an amendment to the paid parental leave amendment bill (yes, I know):
The prime minister is more obsessed with devising new ways to humiliate, harass and prod younger Australians who are simply trying to enter the workforce and build a life for their families.
Last week, this out-of-touch government introduced legislation to pursue its ideologically driven, ineffective, indiscriminate and very expensive cashless card – which will make it more difficult for young people trying to re-enter the workforce to purchase essential items and basics at affordable prices.
Last week, this out-of-touch government introduced legislation to force young people trying to enter the workforce eat more into their savings before they can access income support.
And last week, this out-of-touch government introduced legislation to make it more difficult for single parents to access the Education Entry Supplement to undertake further study.
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Don’t think anyone has forgotten that the government has allowed Pauline Hanson legitimacy to attack domestic violence victims (saying she believes women are making up claims to win custody battles is happening on a large enough scale that the whole court needs a revamp is just outrageous) by making her deputy chair of its family court inquiry.
I just caught the tail end of Linda Burney’s speech to the chamber:
“It is up to the government to explain how it can possibly support an inquiry whose deputy chair doesn’t even acknowledge the prevalence and gendered nature of family violence.”
Yup.
Both Josh Frydenberg and Mathias Cormann will be speaking on the final budget statement press conference.
It is in the Blue Room, so you know it is a two-flag affair. MINIMUM.
Richard Marles had some advice for Scott Morrison:
It is very much in Australia’s interests that America is an outward-looking trading nation and what it’s about is seeking to build an open global trading economy.
Obviously when there are trade tensions between America and China that is not good for the global economy actually, but it’s certainly not good for the Australian economy and it’s really important that Scott Morrison is making that case to president Trump.
And you know, I get that he’ll be enjoying being there with his mate and he’ll like all the happy snaps and that’s all fine. But at the end of the day the prime minister is going to be judged on what outcomes he achieves and what he brings back.
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Christian Porter has released a discussion paper on industrial relations.
Paul Karp wrote about it here:
This is the official line from his office:
Attorney-general and minister for industrial relations, Christian Porter, said the vast majority of employers try to do the right thing by their workers, but a strong deterrent was needed for the minority who deliberately exploit their staff.
As well as criminal sanctions, the discussion paper examines a range of issues associated with underpayments, including civil penalties, sham contracting and the question of liability for employers where entities in their supply network flout employment laws.
A separate discussion paper was released today, examining the issue of Project Life Greenfields Agreements. Under the Fair Work Act, enterprise agreements can only apply for a maximum of four years after approval.
While the majority of new projects are finalised within that timeframe, larger projects can take longer and require cost certainty to enable them to be completed on time and on budget.
The question the government is now seeking feedback on is whether agreements could be extended to cover the full-life of a project, instead of the current four-year maximum term.
The government is also asking what additional safeguards could be built into those agreements to ensure workers are not disadvantaged as the result of any changes.
The papers can be viewed at: https://www.ag.gov.au/Consultations/Pages/industrial-relations-consultation.aspx
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The bells are ringing, and truly, they are the only sign of life in this place today.
It is flat. Very, very flat.
Oh goodie. It’s ‘government seeking increased powers to deal with terrorists’ time.
Peter Dutton wants more powers to strip terrorist suspects of their citizenship. The current laws aren’t exactly getting a thumbs up from our security agencies, but hey. Sure.
Here is what the national security monitor had to say about the current laws and here is what Asio had to say.
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Totally normal
Dutton in the Fed Chamber yesterday questioned why Labor hadn't asked him about the Biloela family since parliament returned last week. pic.twitter.com/aklMJJCpmt
— Josh Taylor (@joshgnosis) September 18, 2019
It is also the Ceda State of the Nation forum today (and tomorrow), where speakers, including Julia Gillard, will deliver addresses on how Australia is going on a global scale.
It’s being held at Parliament House, so if you want to follow along, you can here.
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The ball started quite late last night, because there were a couple of last-minute divisions.
Which means we had shots like this:
One of the reasons was the “strengthening the character test” migration bill amendments (gotta love that 1984 language!) which Labor is opposing. Basically, just being convicted of a low-level crime, even if there is no sentence imposed, is enough to deny you a visa, or have you kicked out. Our New Zealand neighbours are quite upset about it, given the rash of deportations of people who may have been born in NZ but never lived there, which is happening already.
Andrew Giles had a bit to say about it:
At a time when so many electors are so disenchanted with our politics we don’t need unnecessary conflict in this place, which this bill, as presented, is.
The government should have made a compelling case for expanding powers further. They should have set out a rationale, but they have failed to do so.
They have failed to even try. This has been all about the politics and not about the policy, and this has been demonstrated in the summary way in which the minister responded to the concerns and proposals put forward by the Labor party to try to find a way through.
There is no disagreement of principle here when it comes to the important role of the character test and the broad discretionary powers which are necessary to go with it. These are things that we support now, as we did in 2014.
But what we have here is a failure by the government to have regard to the consequences of its actions and a failure of the government to look to the national interest in progressing significant legislation impacting on people’s lives.
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To give credit where it is due, Michael McCormack did hunt me down last night to say he had heard I was coming down with smallpox (my reaction yesterday to remembering he would be acting prime minister on a sitting day, and therefore question time) and he hoped I felt better. Not a lot of politicians would try and have a laugh with the journalist who refers to them by a variety of bland foods, so snaps for that. But still. Question time is going to be excruciating.
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Mike Bowers was there to catch the arrivals:
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The Midwinter Ball was held overnight, and in good news:
Last night raised $340,000 for charity with thanks to sponsors and the leaders including @ScottMorrisonMP @AlboMP @RichardMarlesMP @lindareynoldswa and @JoshFrydenberg who backed the charity auction. Thank you.
— David Crowe (@CroweDM) September 18, 2019
Which is a good outcome. The speeches were officially on the record for the first time (although given you know Malcolm Turnbull once did a Donald Trump impersonation and Paul Keating’s Placido Domingo speech, you could say they were never really off the record).
You didn’t miss much. Sharri Markson and David Speers jointly won press gallery journalist of the year.
Daryl Braithwaite was the entertainment. I assume Horses was performed on repeat (I left after the speeches).
Speaking of the speeches, both Scott Morrison and Anthony Albanese made jokes about the 1997 Engadine McDonalds rumour (google it, if you don’t get the reference).
Morrison:
I note the great collective that runs the gallery has, in its infinite wisdoms, as I said, decided to put tonight’s speech officially on the record. Sure, your call. But now you won’t get here my views on RBA policy, the South China Sea, John Hewson ...
What’s currently in the Coalition agreement.
What I think about the contents of Nikki Savva’s book, I reckon she knows, or, most importantly, what really happened at the Engadine McDonald’s in 1997!
It will remain the mystery of the ages.
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Good morning
Happy Acting Prime Minister Michael McCormack Day!
I was up all night I was so excited.
It’s all because Scott Morrison is on his way to the United States, where he will be the guest of honour at only the second State Dinner Donald Trump has thrown.
As he flies off, Josh Frydenberg will hand down the final budget statement, which is the how-did-those-treasury-predictions-actually-pan-out statement. He is pretty excited by it, so I think those iron ore prices have given a better-than-expected bump at just the right time for the economy.
But that means it is also a big day for Jim Chalmers. And there is also the unemployment figures due today. But all in all, it should be pretty low ebb. It’s parliament Friday, and everyone is a bit sick of each other by this time in the sitting cycle, and keen to get back to their homes.
Katharine Murphy is travelling with the PM, but you have Sarah Martin and Paul Karp and what is left of me at this point of the sitting. It’s not a lot, but it is yours.
Mike Bowers, who didn’t finish work until close to midnight because of the midwinter ball, is also out and about. I’ll bring you some of that very soon.
I really need another coffee. And an egg sandwich. While I look for those, let’s get into it.
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