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Federal budget 2018: Malcolm Turnbull begins the hard sell – politics live
Federal budget and dual citizenship: Katy Gallagher ruled ineligible – politics live
(35 minutes later)
Chris Bowen was on Radio National this morning, talking about the tax package Scott Morrison just introduced in parliament:
Given Malcolm Roberts held on to the very, very last second, even insisting that he was ‘choosing to believe’ that he was never British, and was basically forced into being referred to the high court, I am not sure Pauline Hanson should be the arbiter of what other parties in the same position should do.
“We think that is worthy of some examination. We don’t make 10-year tax plans in ten minutes. The Government might just be happy not to have the figures in the Budget, not to have the analysis of who wins who loses etcetera. We take a different approach. 2024, I’m not sure what you’ll be doing in 2024, I’m not sure what I’ll be doing in 2024, I’m not sure what the economy will be doing in 2024. Normally you would vote on 2024 tax cuts in 2024 or 2023. The Government is saying that you can’t have the tax cuts in 2018 unless you get the tax cuts in 2024. He’s holding a gun to the head of the 2018 tax cuts and now that’s just silly.”
Now that Katy Gallagher has been thrown out it is time for Susan Lamb to stop stalling and resign. -PH #auspol
Malcolm Turnbull was on Sunrise this morning, as part of his media blitz. He says the government knows what it is doing in terms of turning around the debt:
Katy Gallagher has issued her own statement:
Well, the net debt is going to actually peak this year as a percentage of our economy, of GDP and then it will starts to decline. So we have actually turned the corner on debt. Then after a decade, it will be down to about 3.8 per cent of GDP. So we’re both paying down debt and once we get back into balance, which is in 2019/20 of course, we’re not adding to the debt. So the debt declines in dollar terms and absolute terms and it also declines of course, because it’s not growing and the economy is growing.
Today the High Court sitting as the Court of Disputed Returns has ruled that I am ineligible to sit as a Senator in the Australian Parliament.
So we are bringing down the debt, we’ve turned the corner on debt.”
I am very disappointed by this outcome but I respect the decision of the Court.
Presented without comment:
I have spent the last 17 years of my life representing the people of the Australian Capital Territory, firstly in the ACT Legislative Assembly and more recently in the Senate
pic.twitter.com/oEoOoQyn89
It has been an absolute honour to hold elected office.
The government wants to extend the budget tax bill debate, which is outside of convention, and Labor has given a ‘yeah, nah’, first with attitude, and now with an official no.
I have always performed my duties to the ACT community with honesty, integrity and a desire to make Canberra and Australia a better place for all of us.
Chris Bowen - “seriously guys, this is pathetic. What a joke. What a joke”.
I have always acted on the best available legal advice, which at all times, indicated that I satisfied the eligibility requirements under the Constitution. However, today the High Court has made its decision, and I respect the outcome.
The government did not call for a division, so it seems they weren’t overly into it either. Just wanted to stir the pot.
To the people of the ACT I’m very sorry that this disruption has occurred to one of your federal representatives.
The parliamentary Twitter accounts are having fun celebrating the building’s birthday.
To have my place in the Senate end like this today is very deeply disappointing but I believe that I have more to contribute to public life and I will take the time to talk with Labor Party members on how I can do this over the months ahead.
It has officially entered its dirty 30s.
It has been a privilege to serve the Canberra community and the Australian Labor Party in both the ACT and federal parliaments for almost two decades.
Parliament first sat on 9 May 1901, following Federation and elections. Tom Roberts captured the Opening of the First Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia in this piece, otherwise known as The Big Picture. pic.twitter.com/w4tlyoRC4R
Here is the bit from the ruling which looks like the others will be forced to resign:
Looking forward to it!! https://t.co/mz4jdY2Opn
High court confirms in this par that Labor has been quoting only one half of the reasonable steps test. The foreign law must IRREMEDIABLY PREVENT renunciation. #auspol #auslaw
A bit of Mike Bowers from this morning:
This isn’t the last we’ll see of Katy Gallagher - you may remember that the ACT had a new seat drawn up in the boundary redistributions? She is expected to run for the lower house seat.
Scott Morrison is entering his bill into the house. His speech includes the line “the snake eating itself from the tail”.
Rebehka Sharkie, the Centre Alliance MP for Mayo in South Australia said she is investigating her options, and is seeking “urgent legal advice”
For something new.
I acknowledge today’s ruling of the High Court regarding the citizenship status of Labor Senator Katy Gallagher.
Our plan will deliver a personal income tax system that is lower, that is simpler, that is fairer, consistent with Liberal party beliefs.
Based on the recent High Court judgement, I will now take urgent legal advice.
He is racing through this. He is going so fast that the Coalition MPs can barely get in a “hear hear”.
It is my belief that the particulars of my circumstances are materially different to Senator Gallagher’s case.
Julia Banks and Ann Sudamalis, who sit behind the dispatch box, are nodding for their lives. Luke Howarth is doing his absolute best to look extremely interested, while simultaneously concerned. It’s their art. They don’t have to explain their art to you.
My paperwork was lodged and received by the UK Home Office before the election was called.
Actually, we can tell you exactly when the treasurer will be entering his bill – 9.40.
My paperwork was returned before the election was held.
And we know that because the chief whip, Nola Marino, has just sent an email to all Coalition MPs asking them to be in the chamber to “please support the treasurer in the house”.
Once I have received legal advice I will be in a position to comment further.”
Thank you to the secret squirrel who passed that on. Your work is appreciated.
***End statement***
Coalition MPs reading this, you are needed in the chamber. Please, and thank you.
The Senate President Scott Ryan has made a statement to the chamber:
Speaking of the treasurer, he is getting ready to enter his tax bill into parliament.
He has announced the Katy Gallagher ruling and said he will table the ruling.
That should happen in the next few minutes.
Penny Wong says the Australian Labor Party will respect the decision of the court (meaning that Gallagher will resign)
The budget fight over the surplus is also continuing. Scott Morrison says he is on track to return the budget to balance –and then a surplus the next year.
“First thing she is a woman of great integrity who always acted in accordance with the advice given to her...she has always acted in good faith.
Not surprisingly, Bill Shorten isn’t as sure:
“..She is an outstanding senator, an outstanding representative of the people of the ACT and she is an outstanding member of the Labor team and she is too good to lose.”
But the point about it is, and you understand that you’re a student of economics, if China decided not to buy all of our minerals tomorrow, there goes the surplus. The reality is this government has no plan to pay down debt.
The high court website appears to have crashed.
Debt is north of half a trillion dollars. Put in plain English, this government has run up a debt bill for every man, woman and child in Australia of $20,000.
Probably because everyone in this building is currently trying to access it.
These people aren’t economic managers, they just lurch from crisis to crisis, and, in the meantime, the only thing they do is their DNA hardwired reaction, look after the top end of town and just feed crumbs to other people.
Antony Green is speaking on the ABC about dates – if it turns out that the others all have to resign as well.
The Senate will open at 9.30 with a message from the Queen.
The first date for the byelections would be the 16 June and that would mean potentially the new members could be sworn in before the parliament rises at the end of the budget session at the end of June. If they do not, that is if the byelection is called by next Monday, if it was the following Monday, it is the 23rd. Other than that, it could be held in July and they could not be sworn in until the next session starts in mid August, which is getting quite close to the next election.
She’s acknowledging the 30th anniversary of the opening of Parliament House.
If we do go to a by-election bonanza, you might find this handy to bookmark
Scott Morrison will address the National Press Club just after lunch.
For those interested, here are my guides to the seats of Braddon, Longman and Fremantle (will require some small tweaks to turn them into by-election guides if needed):https://t.co/YblAiUW4UIhttps://t.co/I6ToyPPgGWhttps://t.co/Dh00MapdZL
That’s being held in parliament, because parliament is still being held. Despite us talking about everything other than parliament.
We are waiting on the decision details - Paul Karp is running out of the court - but if it is basically ‘reasonable steps’ include that candidates need to have the divestment of dual citizenship confirmed before they nominate for parliament, then we are off to Super Saturday.
We have a BUSY morning.
That potentially means we will see by-elections in Fremantle, Longman and Braddon (as well as Perth) for Labor and in Mayo for Rebekha Sharkie for Centre Alliance.
We are all waiting on the high court. And while, publicly, Labor has been keeping its chin up, privately the party is preparing for the worst-case scenario – Katy Gallagher’s case fails – and sending people to the electorates “just in case”.
Gallagher will have to resign from the Senate though. She will be replaced and will most likely be back following the next election.
My sources tell me key campaigners are being placed around the states – Queensland, Tasmania and WA, so the party can hit the ground running if it turns out that Susan Lamb, Justine Keay and Josh Wilson also have to resign.
But no one really knows which way the high court will fall on this. The prime minister has learnt not to make such proclamations after the whole Barnaby Joyce will be fine “and the high court will so hold” thing.
“This isn’t a change to bracket creep, this is a total rewriting of Australia’s tax system,” Di Natale says.
He also has a problem with the lack of movement for Newstart. Just a reminder that it hasn’t moved in real terms in almost 25 years. Di Natale says it is not just the Greens urging this, and noting that the business and welfare sectors have been calling for the same thing for years.
He wants the Labor party to “draw a line in the sand” and say they won’t support the tax changes.
Richard Di Natale has picked up this morning where he left off last night – criticising the budget.
He says it will “turbo-charge inequality”. He’s talking about the 2024 plan to put those on $41,000 on the same tax rate as someone earning $200,000.
We think someone earning that sort of salary [$200,000] deserves to pay a little bit more than someone earning $41,000.
