Category: Australian News

The Morrison Government has today announced 32 recommendations to further protect telco consumers.
The recommendations are contained in Part A of the Consumer Safeguards Review which include strengthening the Australia’s Telecommunications Ombudsman. The findings also look to improve the handling of customer complaints and increase the transparency of complaints data to drive the telco industry toward improved customer service.
The three part review, announced in April 2018 examines how to better protect telco customers in a landscape that has seen massive change over the last two decades. Twenty years ago, approximately 35 per cent of Australian homes had a broadband connection. By 2020, 100 per cent of homes will be able to connect through the NBN.
Minister for Communications Mitch Fifield said the Morrison Government was putting consumers first.
“The consumer safeguards we have in place today are designed around the old telephone network. The ongoing relevance and usefulness of these protections is diminishing as Australia’s telecommunications environment and consumer use evolves” he said.
Today’s Part A Recommendations: Consumer Redress and Complaints Handling will strengthen the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) by improving its governance, operations and relationship with the telco regulator, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).
The consultation paper for Part B: Reliability of Telecommunications Services was also released today and submissions are due by 21 December 2018. Part B of the Review is based on the fundamental principle that all Australians should be able to connect to, and stay connected to, a reliable fixed service.
“Broadband is now considered as essential as electricity or water. Consumers expect to get connected and stay connected, and if something goes wrong, it needs to be fixed and fixed quickly”.
Part C of the consumer safeguards review will look at choice and fairness in the retail relationship between the customer and their provider. The consultation paper will be released in early 2019.
The full report and recommendations from Part A (redress and complaints handling), and the Part B discussion paper (service reliability) are available at: www.communications.gov.au/consumer-safeguards-review

A new collaboration agreement between DST and the University of Queensland has been established to undertake advanced research in flight science and enabling technologies.

The $10 million agreement will see the consolidation of both parties’ test facilities to leverage the expertise of academic and industry researchers and international partners.
Professor Richard Morgan, the University of Queensland’s Director of the Centre for Hypersonics, has been appointed to provide expertise in the development and operation of advanced large-scale test facilities and facilitate closer collaboration under the agreement.
In 2017, Professor Morgan became the only non-US scientist to have received a hypersonic systems and technologies award from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
Australia is a world leader in high speed flight science with over 10 years of joint flight experimentation by DST, the University of Queensland and industry.
High-speed flight science is one of the priority areas to be developed under the Next Generation Technologies Fund, a program focussing on research and development in emerging and future technologies.

In a momentous day for Australia’s national shipbuilding endeavor, construction has commenced on the Navy’s new Offshore Patrol Vessels at Osborne in South Australia.
The Minister for Defence, the Hon Christopher Pyne MP, said the multi-billion dollar project will see 12 OPVs delivered.
The OPVs will have an important role protecting our borders and will provide greater range and endurance than the existing patrol boat fleet.
“The OPV project is expected to create up to 1000 direct and indirect jobs,” said Minister Pyne.
The first two vessels will be built at Osborne before Civmec starts constructing the next 10 at Henderson in Western Australia.
Minister Pyne said ASC Shipbuilding will use its expertise gained through the Air Warfare Destroyer program to build the first two OPVs.
“These new vessels are being built in Australian facilities, with Australian steel, and by Australian workers.”
“Only a year ago we announced Lürssen was the preferred tenderer.”
“It’s a fantastic achievement to start construction on time and on budget and I’d like to thank everyone involved in the project.”
The Government’s $90 billion dollar continuous naval shipbuilding program is the largest and most ambitious capital investment ever undertaken in Australia.
“This investment is about more than building ships, submarines and shipyards because it will establish an Australian sovereign capability.”
“The continuous shipbuilding program will act as a catalyst for industry growth which will secure thousands of Australian jobs for decades.”
“This is truly a national endeavour, with the Federal Government laying the foundations for an Australia-wide sovereign naval shipbuilding enterprise.”
The OPVs will be built using Australian steel, creating Australian jobs. The steel used today in construction is from the same batch cut by the Prime Minister in Henderson just a few weeks ago, demonstrating the Government’s commitment to the naval shipbuilding program and Australian jobs.
“Our commitment ends the boom-bust cycle which has afflicted the Australian naval shipbuilding and sustainment industry in the past.”
The Minister for Finance and the Public Service, Mathias Cormann said that ASC’s shipbuilding capacity has continued to grow from strength to strength since the Government initiated the Air Warfare Destroyer reform program in 2014.
“Over the past few years ASC has demonstrated its capacity to deliver high quality vessels for the Royal Australian Navy.
“ASC’s workforce has already delivered two state-of-the-art Air Warfare Destroyers, with a third due next year. They are also exceeding their performance benchmarks in support of our Collins Class submarine fleet.”
“We look forward to ASC continuing their strong work on the first two Offshore Patrol Vessels that begin construction today.”

The Holiday season is just around the corner. Don’t forget to visit our online store or phone our Contact Center to place your orders on time. You can pick up a range of beautiful coins, collections and stocking fillers.
To ensure delivery for domestic locations prior to Christmas, orders must be placed by Friday 07 December 2018. International orders must be placed by Friday 30 November 2018.

The Liberal National Government will significantly enhance access to funds for small business across the country through the introduction of a $2 billion Australian Business Securitisation Fund and encourage the establishment of an Australian Business Growth Fund to provide longer term equity funding.
Small businesses find it difficult to obtain finance other than on a secured basis – typically, against real estate. Small businesses that have already obtained finance secured against real estate, but wish to continue to grow, also fin d it difficult to access additional funding.
Even when small businesses can access finance, funding costs are higher than they need to be.
To overcome this and ensure that small businesses are able to fulfill their potential and continue to underpin economic growth and employment, the Australian Business Securitisation Fund will invest up to $2 billion in the securitisation market, providing significant additional funding to smaller banks and non-bank lenders to on-lend to small businesses on more competitive terms.
The Australian Business Securitisation Fund will be administered by the Australian Office of Financial Management (AOFM), consistent with their prior involvement in the Residential Mortgage Backed Securities Market in 2008.
The Government is also in consultation with APRA and a number of financial institutions in regard to the establishment of an Australian Business Growth Fund that would provide longer term equity funding to small businesses. Many small businesses find it difficult to attract passive equity investment which enables them to grow without taking on additional debt or giving up control of their business.
The Australian Business Growth Fund is expected to follow similar international precedents. By way of example, since its establishment in 2011, the United Kingdom’s Business Growth Fund has invested some $2.7 billion in a range of sectors across the economy.
A similar fund has not emerged in Australia, in part, as a result of the unfavourable treatment of equity for regulatory capital purposes. APRA has indicated that it is willing to review these arrangements to assist in facilitating the establishment of the Australian Business Growth Fund. To fast track its establishment, the Government will host a meeting of key stakeholders in Canberra during the next sitting period.
With more than three million small businesses employing around seven million Australians, enhancing small business access to funding is part of the Coalition Government’s plan for a stronger economy.

Every state and territory will be better off under new laws passed by Parliament today that will deliver a fairer and more sustainable distribution of the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
Under our reforms to the GST, an additional $9 billion in extra untied funding will be delivered to the states and territories over 10 years and an additional $1 billion in perpetuity once fully implemented.
The former GST distribution system was not working as intended, with Western Australia recently receiving just 30 cents in the dollar, while other states and territories with far smaller populations received more.
This was not only unfair and unsustainable, but it threat ened the integrity of the GST system. That’s why we asked the Productivity Commission to review the GST distribution system.
The Treasury Laws Amendment (Making Sure Every State and Territory Gets Their Fair Share of GST) Bill 2018 that was passed by the Senate today will:

• Establish a more stable and predictable equalisation standard, based on the fiscal capacity of the stronger of New South Wales or Victoria;
• Introduce a GST relativity floor, initially set at 70 cents and ratcheting up to 75 cents in 2024-25;
• Permanently boost the GST pool with direct Commonwealth cash injections; and
• During the transition period between 2021-22 and 2026-27, states and territories will get the better of the old or the new system over the period, and the Productivity Commission will conduct an inquiry at the end of the transition period to assess whether the updated system is working efficiently, effectively and operating a s intended.

Payments will be verified annually by the Commonwealth Grants Commission over the transition period and any adjustments made accordingly. The Government’s additional contribution to the GST pool will not be offset or partially offset by a decrease in other grant funding to the States and Territories.
Delivering a fairer and more sustainable GST distribution system is part of our plan for a stronger economy, helping to deliver the essential services Australians rely on.

Following publication of a report by the Public Transport Users Association, the Greens are calling on Labor and Liberal to get serious about investing in public transport.
“We’ve seen mega freeways and toll roads prioritised over real congestion-busting solutions for decades,” said Sam Hibbins, Victorian Greens transport spokesperson.
“It’s time Labor and Liberal get serious about investing in public transport. While it’s great the Victorian government is finally building much-needed public transport projects like Melbourne Metro, the reality is that projects like this are only catching up with past demand.”
“The Greens have a real congestion-busting plan that includes extending Melbourne Metro, planning for Melbourne Metro 2 and providing 30 new high-capacity trams every year for the next 10 years. This will get Melbourne moving again and free up our roads for those that have to use them.”
“The solution is simple – we need our state and federal governments to be investing in transport solutions of the future, not the past,” said Senator Janet Rice, Australian Greens transport spokesperson.
“How will Melbourne cope once we get to 8 million people, as is currently projected, if Labor and Liberal keep throwing billions of dollars to build expensive and polluting toll roads?”
“A high-capacity train line carries the same amount of people as 10 lanes of traffic and doesn’t clog our street with cars or pollute the air we breathe. This is what we need, not more roads.”

A leaked study by University of Canberra academics for the Forest & Wood Products Australia (FWPA) shows two thirds of Australians, including those in rural and regional areas, want an end to native forest logging.
“It’s clear that a huge majority of Australians know that logging of native forests must end,” said Senator Janet Rice, Australian Greens spokesperson for forests.
“The Labor and Liberal parties are the only thing standing in the way of protecting our native forests.”
“An area the size of 5 MCGs is logged every day in Victoria alone, mainly for woodchips. This is just madness.”
“Logging jeopardises water security for cities like Melbourne and destroys the homes of threatened species like the critically endangered Leadbeater’s Possum, which is on the brink of extinction. Labor and Liberal alike are backing it in completely.”
“We can and must shift from native forest logging into sustainable plantations. Already 88% of Australia’s wood products come from plantations, so it’s time we leave unsustainable native forest logging in the past. This will give timber workers certainty and protect our precious native forests for future generations.

The first anniversary of the ‘Yes’ vote is a cause for celebration, but we must acknowledge the harm that the unnecessary postal survey had on LGBTIQ+ people and communities, say the Greens.
“I’m so delighted to be celebrating the anniversary of the ‘Yes’ vote, the day we knew that Australians voted for love and we would finally have marriage equality in this country,” said Senator Janet Rice, Australian Greens LGBTIQ+ spokesperson.
“But we must also acknowledge and remember the harm the postal survey caused LGBTIQ+ people, our families and our communities.”
“The historic ‘Yes’ vote and the achieving of marriage equality was the result of decades of tireless campaigning by brave community leaders and activists.”
“While Labor and Liberal spent years and years denying LGBTIQ+ people our rights, the Greens were working with LGBTIQ+ leaders and activists, fighting for recognition of our relationships and families.”
“The Greens have always stood by LGBTIQ+ people and we always will.”
“We know the fight for LGBTIQ+ rights is not over. We have a long way to go, with the current battle to remove discrimination against LGBTQ+ people in religious schools, simply because of who they are.”
“The Greens will not rest until we remove every discrimination against LGBTIQ+ people in our laws and in our society.”
Senator Rice and Labor Senator Louise Pratt are co-sponsoring a motion to be introduced to the Senate on Thursday 15 November to celebrate and mark the anniversary of the ‘Yes’ announcement. The motion also calls on parliamentarians to continue to work to end discrimination against LGBTIQ+ Australians and their families in all areas of their lives.
“We should use this anniversary as a reminder of what we can achieve when we work together. Discrimination against LGBTIQ+ people remains in our laws, and I call on all our elected leaders to again work together to end this discrimination.”
 
—
Notice of Motion
 
I give notice that on the next day of sitting I shall move that the Senate –
 

1. Notes that:

a. November 15 marks the one year anniversary of the announcement of the resounding yes vote in the marriage laws postal survey;
b. This resounding yes vote is something to be celebrated, as is the passing of marriage equality in Australia;
c. The postal survey in itself is not to be celebrated, as it was opposed by the majority of LGBTIQ+ Australians and caused a lot of harm to LGBTIQ+ Australians and their families;
d. The historic yes vote and the passing of marriage equality was the result of decades of tireless campaigning by brave community leaders and activists; and
e. Marriage equality is not the end of the fight for equality for LGBTIQ+ Australians and their families, many of whom still face discrimination in their daily lives.
2. Calls on all Parliamentarians to:
a. Continue to work to end discrimination against LGBTIQ+ Australians and their families in all areas of their lives.