As ministers struggle to explain policy reforms, cabinet secretary Arthur Sinodinos says the government will take the issue back to the party room if it wins the election. Follow all the day’s developments, live
6.42am BST
And with that, I’m going to bid you a fond farewell for this evening because I need to return to podcast duties. Again, you will be in the marvellous hands of Gabrielle Chan. Thanks for your company. I’ll see you again in the morning.
6.40am BST
Back to the Labor policy of the day, Bill Shorten was asked for a costing. Don’t you worry about that chaps, was the response.
Q: How can you say there’ll be no net cost on the policy today, we don’t know what renewables is going to cost in 10 years?
Well, I would just submit to you history and evidence. Back in 2000 barely 100 suburban rooftops had solar panels now there’s 1.5 million. If you look at every examination at the startling and significant improvements in the scale and the cost of renewable energy, again I’m giving a shout out to the professors and researchers here, they are now getting 35% efficiency in terms of conversion of sunlight to energy. They’re not stopping at 35% or 34.7%. These guys and girls are going to deliver remarkable outcomes. I’m very confident when you watch the impact, the combination of our natural resources, sunlight, great researchers, and a Labor government, all the trendline is down in terms of the cost.
In terms of what I said, everything. Warburton did a review which showed that renewable energy has a downward pressure in terms of household prices –
I just want to keep unpacking this, Tommy, I’m going to keep unpacking it and then you can sort of give me your opinion. Yesterday, we were up in Brisbane. You saw those lithium batteries, the technology is practically changing in front of our eyes and we saw the range of new technologies. I have no doubt if you look at the tipping point about investment and renewable energy I could submit to you another number which shouldn’t be ignored in this debate about real action on climate change. Two million jobs have been added around the world in renewable energy jobs. One country has managed to lose nearly 3000 jobs. That’s Australia. Now Australians, we’ve got the best in the world research here and yet we’re coming towards the bottom of the world in terms of jobs, the missing link between converting our natural advantages, our scientific genius, the hard work of a lot of people, the desire by Australian families to have lower household electricity prices is a government who is going to take real action on climate change.
6.23am BST
Today there has been a solemn repatriation ceremony where 21 Vietnam veterans, three killed in Malaysian conflicts, two spouses and six children, have been returned to Australia. The bodies had been buried at the Terendak cemetery in Malaysia, on what is still an operating military base. While prime minister, Tony Abbott pledged to allow the repatriation to occur, and it was carried out this morning.
The shadow treasurer Chris Bowen referred to that event in a media conference a little while ago, indicating that if the prime minister and the treasurer wanted to get into the war metaphors for a bit of intra-day campaigning, they might chose another day.
The prime minister and treasurer might want to reflect on the use of that language today. Especially today. They might want to reflect on that. The Australian people have a right to be disappointed in the prime minister’s language. I don’t intend to add anything further to that. They might want to reflect about the use of that language on a day when we are considering war in another context.
It’s a very solemn moment. It’s the largest - as you know, a very large repatriation of remains of former servicemen and their families. The governor-general is representing the Commonwealth as our head of state and the defence minister and minister for veterans’ affairs and their shadow counterparts are there as well.
That is an appropriate and very dignified and respectful representation of the nation, as we bring the remains of those who served our nation bravely, home.
We offer our nation’s thanks to their families & we honour their sacrifice, alongside all who served in Australia’s name. Lest we forget.
5.57am BST
Perhaps Labor could tax hyperbole next? Just a thought.
Labor already have a plan for $100 billion of higher taxes on the Aus economy. What will Labor tax next? #ausvotes pic.twitter.com/GRTtY3LUuv
5.55am BST
Some folks in the thread believe Labor’s policy announcement got short shrift today. It was flagged early and the Shorten press conference was covered in real time, but in the event you feel short changed, Labor today promised to enter into power purchase agreements (PPA) equal to bringing commonwealth energy use up to 50% renewable energy by 2030. The contracts would be entered into for 10 to 15 years.
5.48am BST
The afternoon is orderly enough to allow me a brief dive into the thread. Happy times.
5.16am BST
Having heard about Neville’s concerted advocacy to Chinese consumers on behalf of Australian mattresses from the prime minister this morning , I thought you might like to see a picture.
Let’s wave to Neville and move on with a stocktake of Thursday.
4.48am BST
Just before I draw the morning together it’s worth sharing this section of conversation between the immigration minister, Peter Dutton, and Ray Hadley on Sydney radio from earlier today. We join the conversation just as our protagonists have concluded that you couldn’t expect the Green senator Sarah Hanson-Young to understand superannuation.
Ray Hadley:
To be fair to her, Julie Bishop couldn’t explain to my colleague Neil Mitchell your policies either, when she was interviewed earlier this week, but that comes as no surprise because it’s revealed today that scant detail of the super changes were revealed to the parliamentary party and some of them aren’t too happy about it and all of a sudden cabinet secretary Arthur Sinodinos comes out on Sky News last night. For the first time someone is blinking and I hope they do blink, because I think it will harm your party unless they do blink before the election. He’s saying: look, after the election it’s going to go back to the party room and then it will be tweaked probably, minor changes, then it’s got to go to the lower house and then it’s got to go to the Senate. I can’t get through to the treasurer that it’s hurting your party, but I think it must be a realisation now that Arthur Sinodinos is starting to blink a little bit at the policy.
But Ray if you have a look at the way in which budgets are put together. These sort of announcements are held tightly obviously by the treasurer, by the finance minister, by ERC that put the budget together.
I was assistant treasurer to Peter Costello back in the Howard days and there were announcements that we made that were held until budget night because you’ve got market sensitive information that’s released. So there’s nothing out of the ordinary in the process here.
4.30am BST
I’ll draw all these threads together when I summarise the events of the morning shortly. In the interim, a bit of news, Sky News political editor David Speers is reporting the former ABC managing director Mark Scott will run the education department in NSW.
4.27am BST
Holding the line on superannuation.
PM @TurnbullMalcolm: No changes to superannuation tax policy #ausvotes #auspol https://t.co/JuHzPNJnKd
4.23am BST
The prime minister is pressed on superannuation, and holds the line.
Malcolm Turnbull:
What we have set out is what we are going to do, and then obviously in terms of the drafting, there is consultation with the industry.
But the substance, the import, the object of the reforms that we have set out in the budget are there and they are not going to be changed. They are fair.
4.19am BST
A brief digression on one of the mattress artisans, Neville.
Malcolm Turnbull:
In fact Neville is one of the – Neville is – Neville, was stitching one of the beautiful mattresses there, Neville with his handsome white beard has become a household figure in China.
He’s become so well known through the publicity for the AH Beard products. Next time I go to Beijing, I will be able to say people I know Neville from AH Beard, with his own magnificent beard.
4.18am BST
Q: PM, briefly, this morning your treasurer said that Labor was using taxes as bullets. You have called for moderation in language from MPs before. Is it possible that people who have faced real bullets might find the treasurer’s language inappropriate?
The prime minister also ponies up Bill Shorten’s war on business.
Bill Shorten has declared war on business. He’s declared war on the family businesses of Australia. He is denying them the tax relief that in the past he himself has said they deserve, and in the past Labor governments have delivered. This is a change, this is a dramatic move to the left.
This is the most anti-business Labor leader we have seen in a very long time. He’s more anti-business than even he used to be in the past. Now the reality is that Bill Shorten has declared war on business and the first casualties are jobs.
4.13am BST
The prime minister says he needs to be very clear about superannuation and the impact of the changes.
Malcolm Turnbull:
Now, it is true that some people, around 4%, on high incomes and with high superannuation balances will have to pay some more tax on their superannuation account in the sense they will pay the 15% tax whereas previously they were paying nothing. So if you have someone who has $10m in their superannuation account in retirement, currently they are not paying any tax at all on the earnings from that. No tax at all.
Under our changes, they will have no tax on the earnings of $1.6m and on the balance they will pay 15%, right? 15% remains avery concessional tax rate. That is less tax than a kid pays on his marginal income stacking shelves at Woolies.
4.10am BST
Q: Can I just ask, on this business, has this business benefited from the China Free Trade Agreement and was there a tariff on mattresses that has been removed?
Malcolm Turnbull:
There is, it’s coming down. It’s coming down to zero by 2019. So it is – the mattress tariff is reducing and it’s reducing from the outset, it started off at 19% and is coming down to zero.
As I’ve made it clear, there will be no changes to the policy.
It’s set out in the budget and that is the government’s policy. What Arthur was referring to was that there is always consultation about the details of the drafting and what I think Mathias Cormann called the administrative implementation.
4.07am BST
The prime minister is speaking to reporters in Sydney. Malcolm Turnbull just invoked the word “artisans” in relation to mattress makers at this factory.
Malcolm Turnbull:
Australian artisans, Australian technology and selling them into China into the biggest market in the world. A little while ago, a container every three months. Now there is a container every three days.
This company didn’t export before. Now, thanks to the big open markets that we have made available to Australian manufacturers, to Australian exporters of every kind, they have 3% of their sales going to China and it’s growing.
3.49am BST
Looking north, the head of the Northern Land Council has called for Malcolm Turnbull to find a new Indigenous affairs minister if it wins government because Nigel Scullion is “not up to the job”.
Chief executive of the NLC Joe Morrison, was addressing the Native Title Conference in Darwin this morning and launched a blistering tirade against Scullion – with whom he has historically had a fractious working relationship. “This minister is not up to the job, and I would implore Malcolm Turnbull, if his Coalition government is returned on July the second, to look among his caucus and find a new minister who has the interests of Indigenous people at heart and a commitment to work with the institutional architecture, not against it,” Morrison said.
Senator Scullion and his army of bureaucrats failed Indigenous Australians dismally, yet in the face of a damning Senate inquiry he stands up before the NLC Full Council and claims that, in his words, he’s untangled a mess of programs that had barely made an impact on Indigenous intergenerational disadvantage.
Well, that disadvantage is not diminishing. The evidence is there every year as pious Prime Ministers, year after year, stand in Parliament to deliver the Closing the Gap Report.
3.32am BST
Right now, Malcolm Turnbull is looking at ... mattresses.
PM is inspecting the wares #ausvotes pic.twitter.com/S0PdaRnxjE
3.31am BST
Toxins, in a chart. Yes I did forget to share the picture before. This says it all, really.
A press conference with the prime minister is coming up very shortly.
3.19am BST
Hello everyone, thanks to Gabi and to Paul and to the readers for managing that short period of turbulence, I’m back.
3.09am BST
Back to superannuation, Shorten was asked about Labor’s policies. Both Labor and the Coalition are moving to rein in generous superannuation concessions, set up by Peter Costello in the last year of the Howard government.
In terms of our policies we outlined last year, we led. We said if you earn more than $250,000 that the money you have paid into your superannuation would be taxed at 30 cents rather than 15. Currently you don’t get to that 30 rents tax rate until you are at $300 ,00. So we brought that down by $50,000.
We also said in a retirement phase if you had earnings, interest, from your superannuation lump sum which was delivering you more than $75,000 dollars a year, that you would pay a 15% rate on the earnings above $75,000.
2.42am BST
Bill Shorten has given a doorstop at the University of New South Wales in Sydney. He criticised Arthur Sinodinos’s comments the government might review superannuation changes after the election.
Shorten:
People don’t want surprises in superannuation. Furthermore, if they make changes to superannuation under pressure from their backbench after the election, which we’re not guaranteed of, what other cuts will they have to implement to make up for the hole in their expenditure which they do by reversing superannuation changes.”
Now Mr Turnbull wasn’t straight on Sunday night when he said the changes aren’t retrospective. Now everyone right from the conservative thinktank, the IPA, right through to the CPA, the peak body representing accountants say these changes are retrospective.
Australians aren’t required to keep their tax records for longer than five years, nor are superannuation funds as a general rule, but Mr Turnbull’s changes mean people have to go back and calculate what they’ve done over nine years. The tax office is getting flooded. These people don’t know the superannuation system.
And clearly senator Sinodinos is picking up the jungle drums of angry conservatives and now’s saying they may change the policy. The truth of the matter is this government is saying one thing before an election, but they’re already flagging they’ll do something else after the election. If you can’t trust them on superannuation, what can we trust them on any aspect of their economic plan when it comes to keeping their promises?
2.39am BST
I will have more from the Bill Shorten campaign in the minute. Let me return to a personal obsession.
The John Cain Foundation has released a report into political donations. The former Labor frontbencher Maxine McKew is the chairwoman of the foundation. She spoke to Fran Kelly this morning and you can hear the full interview here.
2.23am BST
Bringing some mussel to the Labor campaign.
2.15am BST
Bill Shorten is doing a doorstop in Sydney. He goes to the superannuation changes as well. He pointed out that the tax office requires people to keep receipts for five years and the Coalition’s super changes require people to revisit contributions going back nine years.
2.12am BST
Good morning all. I have had my head buried on superannuation and pension changes so excuse my slight discombobulation.
1.46am BST
Now apologies but we need to execute a shift change here for an hour or so, Lenore Taylor and I need to begin the task of recording this week’s podcast.
This week, we’ll be trying to have a serious conversation about the issues at hand, and we’ll also be decanting the contents of Liberal party pollster Mark Textor’s brain about polling – is it all rubbish? I’ll be back in a hour or so, until then I’m going to leave you in the elegant and capable hands of Ms Gabrielle Chan.
1.40am BST
I’m sorry that was completely and utterly ludicrous. I started out this morning lamenting the inability of seriousness to stick. Perhaps that’s because people like Scott Morrison are just not taking politics seriously.
There is a big and important debate in this campaign about two models of growth, one that stimulates business and lets the benefits trickle down, and another than prioritises social capital and infrastructure. It’s an important conversation the country should have. Another perfectly legitimate line of attack about Labor in this contest involves fiscal management – is Labor sufficiently serious about budgetary management? Is it getting the balance right between investing and saving? It’s hard to get a fix on that before the opposition releases both its four year costings and ten year costings, because policy commitments are fragments of a whole – but it’s a legitimate question to ask.
1.29am BST
Scott Morrison doesn’t answer a question about whether he will negotiate in order to get his tax changes through the Senate.
Q: Have you done any modelling on what you think will be the difference in growth rates under a Coalition government or a Labor government?
Labor’s approach is to take a sledgehammer and to do it out of the politics and ideology of envy as part of their war on growth, it’s a war on capital, it’s a war on mums and dads who just want to invest in a property to ensure their betterment over into their retirement or whatever their purpose is.
1.24am BST
I didn’t time that but it must have been five minutes. First question is not tax toxins but superannuation. Will you change your super package?
Scott Morrison says the changes will benefit three million people, they are changes the government had the “strength” to put to voters at an election.
They’re positive changes and of course we stand by them 100%.
That’s about an implementation of legislation but the policies that we have announced in the budget are our policies and we are pressing ahead with those policies.
1.20am BST
Scott Morrison’s opening gambit is slightly Castro-esque but I can summarise it for you: don’t vote Labor because they have toxic taxes on mum and dad investors and other innocents.
And then of course, there is Labor’s tax on electricity …
… they are growth blockers, they’re toxins for growth … what’s he going to tax next?
1.14am BST
The treasurer, Scott Morrison, is addressing reporters in Sydney now, wondering why Labor hates exports.
Scott Morrison:
I note that the opposition has taken us to task yesterday and sought to downplay that [positive economic growth] outcome because apparently the national accounts includes net exports. Well that may be news to the opposition that net exports are actually a contributor to growth and an important part of our economy. I’m not surprised that they don’t wish to acknowledge the export performance because frankly they opposed things like the China free-trade agreement when we first sought to introduce it and they of course did nothing on these agreements when they were in government for six years and nor have I heard anything from the opposition in the course of this election campaign or before about what they would do to continue to grow exports.
Bill Shorten has declared war on business and as a result he’s declared war on growth. This is a leader of the opposition who has no plan for jobs and growth and what he’s done with his agenda for $100bn of higher taxes over the next 10 years is to declare war on growth in our economy. Yesterday he didn’t want to acknowledge the growth and today and going forward he will continue to seek to attack growth with these toxic taxes that will be a toxin for our growth going forward.
12.57am BST
Perhaps we could combine the substantive and the ridiculous in this campaign with a single slogan: no creature left behind.
He's safe at home now with some nuts, zucchini, and banana to snack on. @ursulaheger
12.48am BST
As I’ve been posting the questions the Acoss chief Cassandra Goldie has been on the ABC.
We’ve written to each of the leaders of the political parties, the Coalition, Labor and the Greens, where we are asking for the parties to lay out very clearly what are their specific policy, election commitments that will be about reducing the level of poverty and the level of inequality in Australia.
We think that this really needs to be the core debate that is happening in this election and at the moment. Obviously, we’ve got a lot of policies being talked about but we’re saying let us get specific here.
12.39am BST
Fairness is a key theme in this election contest, and picking up on that, the Australian Council of Social Service (Acoss) has written to our political leaders seeking answers to a bunch of policy questions. I thought I would share them with you.
Measuring social and economic progress
12.27am BST
So many bridges too far, I cannot tell you.
12.25am BST
Back in Canberra, Labor’s designated campaign spokesman this week, Tony Burke, is speaking to journalists in the parliament.
The government’s economic plan is in tatters, absolute tatters. Let’s go through the measures that on budget night were meant to be locked in and how they’ve been changing.
The first to hit the fence was the backpacker tax, on the government’s own admission it won’t be implemented in the form it was presented in the budget but they don’t know other than a 6-month delay exactly what their proposal is. Yet they’ve still banked the full revenue after that.
12.20am BST
Election 2016 has immortalised the question: “How old is your rat?” – which was the question the prime minister put to a voter in a Penrith shopping centre the other day, when a pet rodent was presented for inspection.
Now I gather The Chaser has presented another rat to Labor’s deputy leader Tanya Plibersek. God help me. This campaign will kill an honest woman plagued by rodent phobias. That’s me. Plibersek looks quite chill.
Another campaign rat...at the Sydney Fish Market @billshortenmp @tanya_plibersek #ausvotes pic.twitter.com/fooxeooyrN
12.14am BST
I centred us back in the hustings this morning. It looks like there’s been an outbreak of the blame game in Adelaide.
@cpyne we estimate about 200 gone in Mayo also
11.56pm BST
Tony Abbott always loved the Sydney fish market.
clear message for @billshortenmp at Syd fish markets this AM although he is no fan of @TurnbullMalcolm #ausvotes pic.twitter.com/2WIEMTKGGK
11.52pm BST
ACT Liberal Senator Zed Seselja is on Sky News this morning and of course he’s asked about superannuation. Seselja says there is concern in the community about the changes, but the concern can be countered successfully with information.
Zed Seselja:
Yes there will always be some concerns ... but we think [the reforms] are fair and balanced, so we will take them to the people.
The real question is whether Malcolm Turnbull walks it back before or after the election.
11.39pm BST
Thanks Mel, good morning everyone and welcome to Thursday, it’s delightful to be with you. If superannuation pain persists, see your doctor. This time yesterday various Coalition folks were water-bombing a brushfire on super set by the foreign minister Julie Bishop. 24 hours, nothing much has changed, except another spot fire has been set by the Cabinet secretary Arthur Sinodinos who yesterday told Sky News the budget package might be adjusted post election after a period of consultation, then, in the same interview, suggested it wouldn’t.
Confused? Don’t be. This campaign has been characterised by these sorts of events. There is this strange dynamic in this contest where the big issues up for discussion in this campaign don’t seem to adhere very much, even though they are being ventilated and written about, but the stumbles and missteps do grip in the news cycle, albeit transiently. Will we all write, in our 2016 wash-ups, in deeply authoritative tones, “the campaign of 2016 was a Marx Brothers film”? That remains to be seen. For now we’ll keep it simple, keep morale high, and stick with Thursday, which looms before us like a ten-minute-update highway to sunset, mainly flat fast and straight, but with the occasional hairpin bend.
11.30pm BST
Thanks for joining me for all the superannuation and backbench revolt talk this morning. Melissa Davey here handing over to deputy political editor Katharine Murphy in Canberra now, who I’m sure will make sense of the morning’s events and commentary for us.
See you tomorrow.
11.26pm BST
Liberal Democrat Senator David Leyonhjelm says the government is punishing those with “aspirations to be comfortable in life” through its superannuation reforms that target the wealthy.
He says political donations and support from the conservative base of the Liberal party are rolling in as a result of the superannuation policy, which includes lowering the annual limit on contributions that are taxed at the concessional rates, and tightening of transition to retirement provisions. Leyonhjelm told ABC radio:
I’m not sure that they’re tearing up their membership cards in droves or leaving the party in droves but they’re certainly disenchanted. They’re saying, ‘What can we do to launch a protest vote’. We have some new members as a result, they’ve left the Liberal party and joined us, but more commonly they say, ‘I’ll stay with the Liberals but donate money to the Liberal Democrats’.
Ahh.. well.. it’s dozens to hundreds. I have to confess my staff don’t think the Senator needs to know that information but certainly there’s a lot of them. I can’t put a figure on it.
This government is not serious about aspiration. They’re addicted to spending. They won’t tackle middle class welfare. There are lots of people receiving... support and the government won’t tackle them for political reasons. As long as that’s the case the people are saying; ‘Why should you be clipping my wings and my aspirations to be comfortable in retirement?’
11.06pm BST
Good morning to photographer Mike Bowers, who has just texted to say he’s off on a walk through Sydney’s fish markets this morning with deputy Labor leader Tanya Plibersek.
Both the party leaders are campaigning in Sydney today.
10.59pm BST
Former Labor frontbencher Maxine McKew is launching a report today called ‘Come Clean: Stopping the arms race in political donations’. She’s speaking to the ABC’s Radio National at the moment and said voters have a right to know who is funding the party they vote for.
McKew weighed into reports this morning that Liberal political donors are withholding donations in protest over the Coalition’s proposed changes to superannuation. It was an example of why donation laws needed to be cleaned up, she said.
This issue of Liberal donors potentially sitting on their hands because they don’t like the Liberal party’s changes to super, that could be called a term of vote buying. That’s why we’re saying we have to have a comprehensive clean-up of the political donation laws.
In Canada they have federally some of the strictest rules around political donations. They do not allow any corporate or union donations whatsoever once the campaign starts.
I think a better way to go is to have a set of tight caps and you can perhaps have a cap on individual donations of about $1000 and you could have other donations set at about $3000 to $5000.
10.28pm BST
Minister for trade and investment Steven Ciobo is the latest MP to play down discontent over the superannuation policy this morning. The changes “affect only 4% of Australia’s superannuation account holders,” he told AM.
The government will obviously, as we do on every policy, undertake consultation on the changes we have put forward. We will of course consult on how that will be implemented. That is good governance in practice. That is all that they’ve [Sinodinos and Cormann] have outlined.
10.22pm BST
National Seniors Australia chief executive Michael O’Neill says the superannuation changes are confusing seniors. He told ABC radio:
We accept that there is a need for some reform ... but I don’t think it has been well sold and that’s really fed into this whole area of people now resisting, I suspect, the importance of reform.
10.17pm BST
Former Liberal party leader, John Hewson, has urged the government not to buckle under pressure and to stand firm on its superannuation policy.
Wealthy older Australians will be most effected by the changes, the same people who also tend to donate to the Liberal party.
I suggest that they [the government] just tell them to keep their money and don’t expect to buy their influence with the Liberal party.
10.01pm BST
More on the backbench dissent over the Coalition’s superannuation policy. I linked to this report from the Financial Review earlier on, but it’s worth visiting again in more detail:
Simmering discontent among the Liberal Party’s conservative base has started to boil over and several MPs told The Australian Financial Review on Wednesday that should the Coalition win the July 2 election, there would be a push to amend some of the measures before they were legislated.
The issues causing the most concern include the $500,000 lifetime cap on non-concessional contributions that was backdated to 2007 and came into effect on budget night. Others that will be legislated to start on July 1, 2017, include lowering from $30,000 to $25,000 the annual limit on contributions that are taxed at the concessional rates, and the tightening of transition to retirement provisions.
9.51pm BST
There are reports this morning that the government’s superannuation policy is causing unrest among Coalition backbenchers and also among some donors. The changes to super and in particular, the super-cap, may disadvantage the wealthy and therefore, some of the Coalition’s strongest supporters.
The ABC reports that as a result, some of those people who are also donors are withholding money from the Liberal Party.
I have had various conversations of course with supporters and I’ve explained the changes that we’re making and the reasons we’re making those changes and I’m finding that as I walk people through it, there’s a very high level of acceptance of what the government is setting out to do.
9.45pm BST
The latest gross domestic product figures reinforce just how dependent we are upon our exports – especially to China – rather than through any great strength within the domestic economy, Greg Jericho writes.
In the March quarter Australia’s GDP grew by 1.1% in seasonally adjusted terms and a slightly more muted 0.9% in trend terms.
The result was rather better than the expected result of 0.8% growth and it led to an annual growth of 3.1% (seasonally adjusted) and 3.2% (trend) – the best result since September 2012.
9.39pm BST
AAP reports that Turnbull is expected to come under pressure again today over his government’s superannuation changes:
There are questions over the fairness and retrospective nature of some parts of the changes outlined in the May budget.
Some coalition MPs say they are receiving concerns from voters and have not been properly consulted.
9.05pm BST
Good morning and welcome to politics live, where we have almost made it through week four of the political campaign.
The government may have seized on the latest growth figures released yesterday as proof of its strong economic management - the release of the national accounts data revealed some of the strongest growth figures in four years.
The superannuation changes were part of the budget so they were presented to the party room before the budget was handed down to the parliament,” he said.
“The next process will be if we win the election there will be consultations on various changes and then legislation presented to the party room.”
The Greens confirmed their opposition to the entirety of the tax cuts with the release of costings by the Parliamentary Budget Office which estimated the cost of the cuts over a decade would be $51 billion.
While just $3 billion different from the $48.2 billion Treasury estimated for the government, Greens treasury spokesman Adam Bandt, who commissioned the PBO modelling, called it “a death blow to the argument that company tax cuts are affordable”.
A surge in mining exports has delivered the fastest economic growth in the life of the Coalition government, but has left much of Australia going backwards.
In parts of Queensland and Western Australia, the economy is shrinking by as much as 2 per cent per year. At the other end of the scale, in parts of Sydney and remote Western Australia, the economy is growing by 5 per cent or more per year.
Earlier this week federal Labor announced a funding boost of more than $6m that would go towards planning roads in the electorate of Eden-Monaro, but the Barton Highway was left off the list.
Sophie Wade, from the Barton Highway Community Action Group, said the road was a key issue for voters.
Bernardi shared the article with his 17,000 Twitter followers on Wednesday, saying it was “particularly relevant to many Twitter users”.
The article was a lengthy missive against “social justice warriors” and warned the readers, assumed to be white heterosexual men, against attacks from those who find their statements offensive.
Dear outraged, the article I linked to is interesting in light of events of last week. It doesn't mean I endorse author's other views.
i estimate it'll be 1 week before cory bernardi links to a deeply racist reddit comment by a guy with the username NeonGenesisEvangelion69
Senator Cory Bernardi tweeting Roosh Valizadeh link is worse than irresponsible, it’s dangerous #RooshIsaRapist https://t.co/XthmrMNCZT
Hmm, why are Cory Bernardi" and Roosh V trending local right now?
OMFGhttps://t.co/bEwfDDh9zN
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