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Philip Lowe to replace Glenn Stevens as governor of the Reserve Bank – politics live
Budget 2016: Bill Shorten unveils $71bn in savings over 10 years – politics live
(35 minutes later)
10.39am BST
10:39
"Goldman Sachs is not a small business"
Bill Shorten:
Labor will support a tax cut for small businesses with a turnover of less than $2m dollars per year. Because that’s what a small business is. We will deliver tax relief for the small businesses representing 83% of Australian companies.
But billion-dollar operations are not small businesses. Never have been – never will be.
Coles is not a small business.
The Commonwealth Bank is not a small business.
Goldman Sachs is not a small business.
10.38am BST
10:38
"The more you have, the more you get"
Bill Shorten:
On Tuesday night the treasurer said he didn’t want to talk about ‘winners’ and ‘losers’.
Now we know why. The more you have, the more you get. The less you earn, the more you lose. This prime minister has the audacity to accuse us of waging ‘class war’.
It is not ‘class war’ to disagree with cutting money from families on fifty and sixty thousand dollars in order to give millionaires a tax break.
It is not class war to ask why he is cutting $80bn from schools and hospitals – but spending billions on big business.
It is not ‘class war’ for Labor to speak up on behalf of everyone this government has forgotten and betrayed – women, young people, pensioners, carers and veterans.
Labor will never apologise for standing up for Australians who go to work every day and want to come home safe, who rely on penalty rates to make ends meet.
Who don’t want to be forced to work until they’re 70.
This prime minister talks a lot about aspiration – but there’s a part of it he always leaves out.
That the aspiration to equal opportunity, to a fair start for everyone, to a fair go.
That’s what Labor will always fight for.
10.35am BST
10:35
Bill Shorten:
More than ever, we must be honest about what our budget can truly afford. We must maintain the triple-A credit rating from all three agencies Labor worked so hard to secure.
This is why my team and I are treating the Australian people with respect. Being frank and upfront about our plans. We are making the hard choices to fully-fund our investments in Australia’s future.
To turn around these Liberal deficits and deliver budget repair that is fair. Restoring the national budget – without smashing family budgets. Building a stronger economy – without hurting the things that help it grow. You don’t plan for the jobs of the future by cutting education, cutting infrastructure and making broadband slower.
10.33am BST
10:33
Bill Shorten:
From Tony’s tradies to Malcolm’s millionaires - this is a budget for big business over battlers. This budget fails the test of fiscal responsibility too. Having banged the drum of ‘budget emergencies’ for so long. Despite all their cuts and broken promises – in the past three years, the Liberals have tripled the deficit.
10.31am BST
10:31
Bill Shorten's budget-in-reply at a glance
Welcome to tonight’s live coverage of the budget-in-reply speech.
Bill Shorten is on his feet now in the House of Representatives, practising his alternative prime minister pitch.
Here’s what you need to know quickly.
10.06am BST
10:06
I’m going to go quiet now until the budget-in-reply gets underway at 7.30pm so I can bring you Shorten at a glance first up when he begins speaking.
Down in the House, the long serving Labor MP Alan Griffin has said farewell to politics after a two decade stint.
This parliament is now in its final hours. Big night.
9.48am BST
9.48am BST
09:48
09:48
It really is very early days for me to give you a view on the Middle East coverage I’m afraid.
It really is very early days for me to give you a view on the Middle East coverage I’m afraid.
Michelle Guthrie, still facing questions, three days into the job. Liberal Senator James Paterson asks Guthire whether she’s comfortable with having a political activist as the ABC’s correspondent in Jerusalem. Paterson means Sophie McNeill.
Michelle Guthrie, still facing questions, three days into the job. Liberal Senator James Paterson asks Guthire whether she’s comfortable with having a political activist as the ABC’s correspondent in Jerusalem. Paterson means Sophie McNeill.
Guthrie isn’t going to cop that one.
Guthrie isn’t going to cop that one.
She isn’t a political activist, she’s a journalist.
She isn’t a political activist, she’s a journalist.
Updated
Updated
at 9.49am BST
at 9.49am BST
9.38am BST
9.38am BST
09:38
09:38
I’m just having a bite of food to ensure I don’t fall over between now and the budget-in-reply speech, which is now less than an hour away. Michelle Guthrie is still in estimates, Malcolm Turnbull wound up the ABC interview by refusing to confirm he will call the election on Sunday. Current smoke signals suggest the election will be called Sunday, by the by. All things liable to change without notice.
I’m just having a bite of food to ensure I don’t fall over between now and the budget-in-reply speech, which is now less than an hour away. Michelle Guthrie is still in estimates, Malcolm Turnbull wound up the ABC interview by refusing to confirm he will call the election on Sunday. Current smoke signals suggest the election will be called Sunday, by the by. All things liable to change without notice.
9.20am BST
9.20am BST
09:20
09:20
Karvelas tells the prime minister the Seven Network has just reported internal Liberal party polling showing the government losing the marginal seat of Eden Monaro and going backwards in NSW. Is he worried about this? Malcolm Turnbull says he doubts the accuracy of the story, and he doesn’t intend to comment.
Karvelas tells the prime minister the Seven Network has just reported internal Liberal party polling showing the government losing the marginal seat of Eden Monaro and going backwards in NSW. Is he worried about this? Malcolm Turnbull says he doubts the accuracy of the story, and he doesn’t intend to comment.
9.14am BST
9.14am BST
09:14
09:14
Michelle Guthrie is still being peppered with questions in estimates. Things have been mildly testy down there.
Michelle Guthrie is still being peppered with questions in estimates. Things have been mildly testy down there.
The prime minister, meanwhile, is on my wireless. He’s being interviewed by ABC RN host Patricia Karvelas. Like everyone else today, she wants the ten year costings for the company tax cuts.
The prime minister, meanwhile, is on my wireless. He’s being interviewed by ABC RN host Patricia Karvelas. Like everyone else today, she wants the ten year costings for the company tax cuts.
Malcolm Turnbull:
Malcolm Turnbull:
The important point Patricia is not the number.
The important point Patricia is not the number.
9.11am BST
9.11am BST
09:11
09:11
8.52am BST
08:52
Paul Karp
In another Senate estimates hearing, Labor senator Jenny McAllister quizzed Australian Electoral Commission officials about whether they were concerned about donations from the Fadden Forum, a fund which according to reports sacked Turnbull government minister Stuart Robert used to donate to independent council candidates before the 2013 election.
McAllister asked whether the donations might breach laws about associated entities declaring donations, and whether they might have been made to disguise the source of the funds.
AEC chief legal officer, Paul Pirani, said it appeared the Fadden Forum was not an associated entity because it was not an incorporate or unincorporated entity, but rather a bank account of the Liberal National Party.
Electoral Commissioner Tom Rogers said if the Fadden Forum is part of the party’s structure, “which it appears to be”, then it had met their obligations in the way donations were declared.
8.34am BST
08:34
The new head of the ABC, Michelle Guthrie is before a Senate estimates hearing this evening. Right now she’s being asked about ABC Fact Check, will that continue post election? Guthrie says a decision will be made on that soon, within the next ten days.
Nick Xenophon asks if the new managing director is aware that Fact Check has been the subject of a lot of complaints by politicians?
Mick Millett, head of ABC communications, steps in to answer.
You can rest assured the decision won’t be made on the basis of complaints.
Xenophon wants the ABC to provide records of how many complaints there’s been about Fact Check by politicians.
8.19am BST
08:19
Sean Kelly was a press secretary to a couple of Labor prime ministers. These days, he writes about politics at The Monthly. Sean’s column today says the prime minister has a habit of turning up to media interviews unprepared, and that needs to change if he wants to get through the election season in one piece.
I’m inclined to agree with that assessment. The good thing about Turnbull’s approach with the media is he refuses to behave like a scripted robot, a blessing, given there are entirely too many scripted robots in politics. The weakness of his interviews is the problem Sean identifies, being unprepared for obvious questions, and allowing himself to be lulled into traps, which are the speciality of broadcast interviewers.
Here’s Sean, who isn’t being the least bit gratuitous, and is in a position to know about this:
Telling a prime minister the awful truth about poor performances is hard. There are usually very few people close to a PM who are willing to do it. The cast will vary from leader to leader: it could include a chief of staff, or the Liberal party director, or a pollster, or a press secretary, or an MP.
Telling a leader that habits to which they have become accustomed – like preparing for public appearances in a certain way – are just not working now they’re leading the country is even harder.
But it must be done. If the PM cannot or will not make changes, someone must tell him to. What works as a minister often does not work as a prime minister.
8.06am BST
08:06
Prime minister offers a glimmer of hope on electoral reform
The prime minister has done a podcast this afternoon with Michelle Grattan from The Conversation, and he’s flagged changes to the donations and disclosure regime after the next election.
Turnbull says in an ideal world you’d have limitations on campaign expenditure, and you’d restrict donations to people on the electoral roll, but he says there are also constitutional issues when you try and restrict various people and groups from spending. (That is, of course, true).
He says he’s very interested in change, but it’s a very challenging area.
I am very interested in the issue I assure you.
His comments are towards the end of the podcast if you want to listen.
7.36am BST
07:36
Here is Labor’s formal response to the RBA appointments. Shadow treasurer Chris Bowen. Check out the last line. Labor not delighted with Ian Harper’s appointment.
Labor extends its appreciation to Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Glenn Stevens for his service over two five-year terms.
Governor Stevens has guided the reserve with a steady hand since 2006, through the highs of the mining boom and the lows of the Global Financial Crisis. The RBA is a vitally important national institution, and Governor Stevens has led it well.
I welcome the elevation of Deputy Governor Philip Lowe to the position of Governor.
Dr Lowe is one of the finest Australian economists of his generation. He joined the Reserve bank as a student in 1980, and has served with distinction, with breaks to complete doctoral studies at MIT, and a secondment to the Bank of International Settlements in Switzerland.
I also congratulate RBA board member Dr John Edwards on his service. Dr Edwards term comes to an end in July after an illustrious career in both public service and in government. He has made a considerable personal contribution to the Australian economy, and I am sure he will continue to do so in the future.
Dr Edwards would have been very worthy of reappointment to the board for a second term.
I note the appointment of Ian Harper to the RBA board.
7.27am BST
07:27
In last 24 hours, Govt has appointed RBA Gov, Dep President FWC, 5 Ambassadors, Human Rights Commissioner... Goes into caretaker on Monday
7.16am BST
07:16
Here’s the statement on the RBA appointments from Scott Morrison.
Dr Lowe brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the role of governor, having served as the RBA deputy governor since early 2012, heading up many of the RBA’s analytical departments, and publishing on a wide range of issues relevant to the operation of monetary policy over his three decade career with the RBA. Dr Lowe also served as Head of the Financial Institutions and Infrastructure Division at the Bank for International Settlements (2000 – 2002), where he authored important research on the financial stability role of central banks in low-inflation environments.
Dr Lowe earned a PhD in Economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology after being awarded the University Medal for his undergraduate studies in economics at the University of New South Wales. Dr Lowe is well regarded in the central banking community, financial markets, and the Australian business community, and will reinforce existing confidence in the institution.
I congratulate Dr Lowe on his appointment and also thank Mr Glenn Stevens for his valuable leadership of the RBA over the past ten years. International developments required Mr Stevens to steward the RBA through a challenging decade for the Australian economy, which included the global financial crisis, the passing of a once in a generation terms of trade boom, and the rise and fall of an unprecedented mining investment boom. The government thanks Mr Stevens and his staff for the role they played in helping the Australian economy navigate these significant challenges over the decade.
I am also pleased to announce the appointment of Professor Ian Harper as a part-time member of the Reserve Bank Board for a five-year term from 31 July 2016.
Professor Harper’s combined experience in public policy development and academia will enable him to make a strong contribution to Reserve Bank Board deliberations. Professor Harper recently chaired the Competition Policy Review (Harper Review), served as a member of the Financial System Inquiry (the Wallis Inquiry), and was the inaugural Chairman of the Australian Fair Pay Commission.
Professor Harper also brings strong academic credentials to the Reserve Bank Board, having spent two decades as a Professor at the University of Melbourne – first as the NAB Professor of Monetary and Financial Economics (1988–1992), then as the Ian Potter Professor of International Finance (1992–2002), and the Sidney Myer Professor of Commerce & Business Administration (2002–2008) at Melbourne Business School.
Professor Harper’s term on the Reserve Bank Board coincides with the conclusion of Dr John Edward’s term on 30 July 2016. Dr Edwards has made an important contribution to Reserve Bank board deliberations through a challenging period for the Australian economy and I thank him for his service. I wish him every success for the future.
The appointment of Dr Lowe will create a vacancy at the deputy governor level in the RBA, the filling of which will be considered in the second half of the year.
These appointments were made in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Reserve Bank Act 1959 (the Act). Under sections 14 and 24 of the Act respectively, the Treasurer appoints Reserve Bank board members and the RBA Governor.
7.07am BST
07:07
New governor for the Reserve Bank
Down in the House, Scott Morrison is announcing Phillip Lowe will replace Glenn Stevens as the governor of the Reserve Bank – Lowe is a deputy governor of the RBA – and Ian Harper, architect of the competition review, will go onto the Reserve Bank board.
That’s a pretty big appointment to make five seconds away from the caretaker period. The shadow treasurer Chris Bowen makes it clear Labor hasn’t been consulted on this appointment, but he supports it nonetheless.
7.03am BST
07:03
As flagged before, in the event you want some colour and movement from the suspension debate, Tony Burke had a very jolly time of it. Here’s a clip of his speech.
6.48am BST
06:48
Morrison says everytime people hear Bill Shorten announce something tonight in the budget in reply, they will be paying for it.
And that’s the debate.
Give me a minute and I’ll be back with the afternoon, evening and night.
