Poll shows proposed cuts for medium and large business are not winning voters. Malcolm Turnbull says he will not attend a forum hosted by Sky News tomorrow, leaving the field clear for Bill Shorten. Follow all developments with Katharine Murphy, live
6.29am BST
Attitudes to the leaders. Interesting, this. Malcolm Turnbull going backwards, Bill Shorten polarising voters.
6.25am BST
Let’s look at the new Essential poll which has landed this afternoon. We can start with the company tax cuts.
6.11am BST
Suspect being crashed by BuzzFeed was not part of the campaign plan.
6.06am BST
It looks like the prime minister is now back in Sydney, at Watson’s Bay.
The PM has gatecrashed my Watson's Bay walk. He's taking photos at The Gap ahead of a suicide prevent announcement. pic.twitter.com/e3XXn5sKa4
6.02am BST
5.38am BST
Anyone want to use 3GB of data to watch the future, starring Malcolm Turnbull and Bill Shorten?
@MarkDiStef Hard to be certain, but as an example, streaming High Definition Netflix will use around 3GB of data per hour - Oliver
5.33am BST
Labor CHQ has issued a statement about the Facebook/news.com debate.
Bill Shorten is having his cake and eating it too: stage all to himself in Brisbane, another debate opportunity with Turnbull, and a slap to the prime minister on the way through.
I’m happy to debate Mr Turnbull anytime, anywhere. But if he doesn’t front up at the people’s forum tomorrow, he is turning his back on Queenslanders – plain and simple. He’s been in hiding from voters this election, refusing to justify his plans for a tax handout for big business and cuts to schools and Medicare. If he doesn’t turn up tomorrow, it’s an insult to Queenslanders.
5.31am BST
We need to take stock before moving forward, to quote another prime minister in another campaign, long long ago.
4.53am BST
Messy business, flood touring. I’ll post a summary next.
PM flood tour press conference, Picton pic.twitter.com/gWJbSJ3HwQ
4.46am BST
Bronwyn Bishop is on Sky just at the moment trying to say as little as she can possibly get away with about past events. (Sky must be thrilled about the value of this tie up. Not. So. Much.) The hosts are trying valiantly to get something newsworthy on Tony Abbott, about the inference Bishop dropped during her final speech to parliament about the former prime minister – that she was asked to resign to protect him.
Not. A. Cracker.
Later rather than sooner.
4.27am BST
The Sky News journalist wants more information about this new debate proposal. Malcolm Turnbull smiles broadly but unleashes the shade on Sky.
Malcolm Turnbull:
What we’ve said normally – you would have approached us and sought to come to some arrangement. You chose not to do that and to issue in effect is a decree and we’ve said ‘no’.
We’ve had a Sky people’s forum debate, the traditional press club debate, it is traditional to have three debates, so let’s have the third one in an innovative way and that every Australian can participate in, that allows the interactivity that the old formats that really come from the pre-smartphone, pre-social media era – the old formats, don’t allow for that interactivity.
4.22am BST
The prime minister is then asked about the debate. Will he be turning up tomorrow night in Brisbane for the Sky News people’s forum with Bill Shorten? No, is the Turnbull answer. He’s got another idea. He says there will be virtual debate, hosted by news.com and Facebook.
Malcolm Turnbull:
The aim is to hold it early next week ... The aim would be for this debate, this discussion, to be streamed across any platform that sought to do so. So over Facebook, news.com.au sites, broadcasters who wanted to take it, to get it as widely available as possible. So my aim is to have as big an audience as possible and to reach everyone, you have to use the devices which I noticed you are all holding in your hands.
That’s the modern world. That’s the smart phone era.
4.18am BST
Malcolm Turnbull is then asked about amendments to the fair work laws to protect volunteers. He says he’s satisfied the government can fix this after the election. He’s then asked about the spend in marginal seats, the $1.7bn. Malcolm Turnbull says everything is accounted for in the budget.
4.15am BST
Turnbull is asked for an update on the situation in Tasmania, which he proceeds to provide. He says floodwaters are still rising in Launceston. One death confirmed. The Spirit of Tasmania is not sailing because of debris in the Devonport harbour. Three people remain missing “and I’ve not had further information on that. But the situation is the storm damage and the rising waters in northern Tasmania remain a very serious threat.”
Q: Is there anything you can say to people living in Tasmania with families who might be watching this news about their situation?
4.10am BST
Earlier today the Labor leader Bill Shorten fired a warning shot in the direction of the insurance industry. Don’t quibble, just support people in difficult circumstances.
Malcolm Turnbull gets the question. No warning shots here.
I’m sure the insurers will support these communities. This is very substantial storm damage. This was a storm, a cloud that dropped 200mm of rain in a very short time on Picton. That’s what’s happened. So this is storm damage. These waters have caused by that extraordinary down pour, concentrated on this location, which is why this community was so hard hit with this storm damage.
4.07am BST
The prime minister is asked who is covered by the disaster relief.
Malcolm Turnbull:
There are 37 LGAs covered. There is no cap to the total funding but there are limits on the particular grants given and loans as the premier said it is up to $130,000 and the interest rate is 1.38%.
I don’t. I think it’s too early to say.
4.05am BST
Malcolm Turnbull:
Can I also just say that Bill Shorten and I were in touch yesterday about the response to the disaster and we are absolutely united in thanking and supporting the communities that have been affected by these shocking storms and while we disagree on more than a few things at the moment in an election campaign, we are very much on the same page in supporting these communities and supporting the proposition that the federal government should do everything to help them get back on their feet.
4.03am BST
The NSW premier Mike Baird is announcing disaster declarations.
We provide as much support as we can as quickly as we can. This will provide grants to low income households or supplies or goods and the chance to get the house back into order. Those grants will be there for them. For small businesses, low interest loans ... to enable them to restock and get on with the business and get in a position to trade again while dealing with challenges, such as insurance claims and other challenges. It helps them. It is also helpful for the local council in terms of grants and local money to help with roads and bridges.
4.00am BST
We’re here to support them, admire them and thank them.
(The people of Picton, that is. This is the prime minister speaking.)
3.59am BST
The prime minister opens his press conference by noting that the weather over the weekend has been powerful, but not as powerful as the community spirit in Picton.
Malcolm Turnbull:
This is the best of Australia. These are tough times when nature flings her worst at us, but it’s when Australians respond the best.
3.46am BST
The prime minister is coming up in Picton shortly, I’ll post a summary on the other side of that press conference.
3.41am BST
Labor’s deputy senate leader Stephen Conroy is on Sky News at the moment and he’s being pursued about Labor’s decision to not means test the childcare package. How on earth did the shadow cabinet think that was a good idea, giving money to wealthy people who don’t need it?
Conroy says the rationale was there is “real pressure” on every single family taking care of kids. But there’s not real pressure on a family comprised of a law partner and a medical specialist, host Peter Van-Onselen points out to his guest, entirely reasonably. Conroy admits the proposal was “kicked around” in the shadow cabinet (read, contested in the shadow cabinet) – but in the end “we came down on the side of leaving the structure as it was”.
3.18am BST
3.03am BST
The prime minister has arrived in Picton with the NSW premier Mike Baird, and he’s been handed a baby. People are asking what they do before insurance comes through. Malcolm Turnbull talks about disaster relief options from the state government.
2.57am BST
Here’s the new Liberal ad on Bill Shorten and corporate tax cuts.
2.53am BST
Back to Scott Morrison, who for some reason, is anti-people mover.
Scott Morrison:
The Shorten alternative, together with the Greens and everyone else who gets into that Tarago they will drive around the country will be $100bn in additional taxes over the next 10 years.
2.50am BST
Meanwhile, on the other coast, the clean up effort in Picton. The prime minister will be there shortly.
2.48am BST
Here’s looking at you, Bill.
A bit meta. Treasurer Morrison switches to TV ad of Bill Shorten on company tax cuts #ausvotes pic.twitter.com/9ogubnOPty
2.47am BST
Over in Perth, treasurer Scott Morrison is releasing a new attack ad on Bill Shorten. The ad uses Bill Shorten’s past support for lowering the corporate tax rate.
Scott Morrison:
Mr Shorten is just playing rank politics on this issue. He understands if he is honest with the Australian people, why this is a good plan for jobs and growth. It is only because he is playing politics that he has chosen to take this line with the Australian people.
It is not a game, Bill. This is the success of our future economy, the jobs of millions of Australians depend on the continued investment and performance of these companies.
2.38am BST
Another couple of questions on the firefighters in Victoria.
Bill Shorten again says Malcolm Turnbull is being political.
First of all, we all know why Mr Turnbull turned up in this dispute, because he wants to distract from the fact he doesn’t have a positive agenda of his own. Mr Turnbull has never taken a great interest in industrial relations, other than being one of Tony Abbott’s rubber stamps when it came to WorkChoices. When it comes to standing up for volunteers, I submit please examine the Fair Work Act. Labor put in protections for volunteers. It was Liberal when the Fair Work Act was presented to the Senate after a series of amendments who voted against the Fair Work Act which contained these protections for volunteers. Mr Turnbull loves to talk a lot but when it comes to doing something, his actions often contradict what he says.
2.36am BST
Shorten is asked whether Labor proposes to change the current employer incentive payment applying to apprentices. The answer is there is “no intention to change the employer incentive payment.”
Q: Will you admit that you are going to be giving $10,000 to millionaires? Will you admit that will happen?
It is not means-tested – the child care rebate. Let’s be clear here, the cost of child care is spiralling. Families are literally making hard choices between whether in most cases, the mother goes to work and then sees the wages eaten up by child care, or she doesn’t work at all. This country cannot afford to be putting disincentives in the path of people working. Childcare is really important. It is important because it is the first time little children leave the house at all. It is important we have quality child care.
2.33am BST
Q: Are you prepared for Labor to preference the Liberal party over the Nick Xenophon team or is that something you can rule out?
Bill Shorten:
The preferences will be dealt with by our party as has always been the case. I am chasing not peoples’ second preference vote, I want their first preference vote for Labor.
I am glad you raised that issue. As I said yesterday and have said previously, I support our volunteers and career firefighters. I do expect the parties to resolve their disagreements and I do expect premier Andrews to be able to reach a settlement. I expect a settlement to occur.
Labor put protections in for volunteers. Mr Turnbull’s party, on the final passage of this Fair Work bill, voted against it in the Senate. Labor has a good record on volunteers.
2.27am BST
A question about why Labor isn’t means testing its childcare policy.
Bill Shorten:
Historically it has never been means tested. For the government to run a Robin Hood argument that they are the Green Left Weekly, the socialists of child care policy, is rubbish.
Nick Xenophon has to get some seats in the parliament. I am committed to Labor forming a government in our own right. I won’t deal with a hypothetical issue.
What I say to South Australians and Australians, if you think your Medicare system is important, vote Labor. If you want to see a Royal Commission into the banks, vote Labor. If you want to see schools properly funded, vote Labor. If you want more apprenticeships available, vote Labor. If you want fair taxation, vote Labor. If you want to see first home buyers able to enter the market, vote Labor, if you want to see Australian jobs created, maintained and be well paid, vote Labor.
2.24am BST
Q: Are you going to Sydney to inspect the storm damage and suspending your campaigning. Would you prefer to do it with the PM given it is bipartisan?
Bill Shorten:
I contacted the prime minister and offered to visit storm and flood-affected regions with him. I’m happy to do it with him. The issue is not Mr Turnbull or I, it is the people experiencing loss, and damage.
I will make this point and I have no reason to be concerned about it, but I worked heavily during the Brisbane floods to make sure insurance companies treated their claimants of policies properly, I want to send a message out to the insurance companies of Australia, I am sure you will do this, but make sure that you treat your customers fairly. Make sure you deal with their claims in a speedy fashion.
2.21am BST
Questions now.
Q: Former prime minister John Howard this morning has drawn a parallel between Independent Senator Nick Xenophon and Pauline Hanson saying both are trying to exploit fears when it comes to trading with Asian nations. What do you make of these comments? And are you concerned about the growing support for Nick Xenophon here in SA?
I heard the Liberal party called John Howard off the bench to come and help beleaguered Jamie Briggs in Mayo. This is the reunion of the work choices warriors. We know that as long as there is a Liberal party, workers’ conditions in this country are never safe. I notice Mr Howard’s attacking Senator Xenophon but bizarrely, Senator Xenophon and Mr Howard are on a unity ticket when it comes to undermining penalty rates in this country. If you want to protect the rights of workers, make sure there are harmonious work places, if you want to make sure apprentices are getting properly trained, you wouldn’t look at the Liberals or Senator Xenophon, you would vote Labor.
There is only two parties who can form a government. The Liberal party or the Labor party. A vote for the minor parties will not help change a government.
2.16am BST
The Labor leader first addresses the flood visit that will happen later today.
Mr Turnbull and I understand that there are things more important when crisis hits than the day to day political rancour. This is a moment where the nation supports people in trouble. It is fair to say that in the worst of times, we see the best of Australia. I look forward to seeing and working with the volunteers and thanking them on behalf of many Australians.
Labor will insist upon a proportion of apprentices being employed on Commonwealth funded work, specifically on the top ten projects which will be funded by the concrete bank, we will want to see one in every ten employees being apprentices. We want to make sure for projects which have a capital expenditure of over $10m, that we sit down with the states and territories and make sure a proportion of the jobs are going to apprentices.
1.56am BST
Lots of questions about Nick Xenophon taking balance of power and a lower house seat.
John Howard:
That’s his aspiration, not my expectation. I don’t believe he’ll get any lower house seats.
I don’t find anger.
1.50am BST
Howard is asked why he’s stumping in a safe Liberal seat.
John Howard:
It’s often in these safe seats that people can sneak up on you.
1.48am BST
Speaking of John Howard he’s bobbed up in the seat of Mayo. That’s the purpose of his visit today, stumping for Liberal MP Jamie Briggs, who worked for him as prime minister. Howard says he hopes the good people of Mayo will vote for Briggs because that’s a vote to return the Turnbull government.
John Howard:
He’s the Turnbull Liberal here in Mayo.
1.45am BST
Nick Xenophon has responded to John Howard earlier this morning likening him to Pauline Hanson on free trade during a radio interview.
Nick Xenophon:
At a personal level, I’ve always liked John Howard, and I’m very grateful that he’s given the Nick Xenophon Team so much oxygen in SA with his attack. Deep down I think he must really like me, as evidenced by his comments on me following the 2013 election.
Free trade agreements are a good thing if they are negotiated with our national economic interest in mind. The fact that the trade deficit with China has increased at 15% a year since the Howard-era FTA says it all.
1.42am BST
It’s running very prominently on our website so I can’t imagine you’d miss it but in the event – our environment reporter Mikey Slezak has produced a deep dive (excuse the pun) on the Great Barrier Reef which is a must read. Climate change is very much in the background this election. Labor isn’t prosecuting it as a frontline issue despite the obvious weakness Malcolm Turnbull has on this subject, which tells you a lot about the toxic politics of the past few years.
1.19am BST
The view from Adelaide this morning, courtesy of Fairfax photographer Alex Ellinghausen.
1.11am BST
Regular reader Tim Senior has some pictures on his Facebook page of the Picton clean up currently underway. Thanks Tim.
1.03am BST
Mike Bowers tells me the prime minister is en route to Picton for the flood inspections.
12.56am BST
Q: Are you going to back off describing Malcolm Turnbull as the rich toff that he is, because he’s come out and told us how he struggled as a young man?
Bill Shorten:
I’m not going to judge his antecedents or his background and I want to make it clear here. Mr Turnbull’s wealth is not a problem for me. I congratulate him on having amassed the money he has. But its his out of touch views. The point of it is he could be a brickie and if he had these views I would say he was out of touch.
I’ll come to that in a minute but I will just finish the question for David first. The issue there is he’s got out of touch views. I don’t know why he’s protecting the banks from a royal commission, I don’t know why he wants to dismantle Medicare. I don’t know why he won’t properly fund schools. I don’t know why he wants to give $7.5bn to the big banks bottom line. I was making the observation, not that there aren’t dads doing work, of course there are, but the burden, disproportionately falls upon women in Australia and we need to have a national conversation, how government policies support working mums ... Labor’s policies about the equal treatment of women in our society from family violence to child care, to paid parental leave, I think we’ve got the goods for working women in this country.
12.50am BST
Bill Shorten is asked whether South Australia will get all the ship building work if Labor wins the election. Yes, is Shorten’s answer. Then some delicate phraseology follows.
Q: So if Victoria and Kim Carr think they’re going to get a share of what’s been allocated to SA forget it?
I’ve got no doubt there will be work for shipyards around Australia but the deal is that SA is to build the submarines
We are committed to seeing SA as the centre for ship building excellence.
12.45am BST
Q: Labor is going to tax superannuation earnings for retirees in the pension phase. They’re currently tax free. The ALP is going to tax annual earnings above $75,000 at 15%. Why are you taking money away from people who are providing for their own retirement?
Bill Shorten:
First of all, Mr Howard and Mr Costello in 2006-7 when there were rivers of gold coming in from the mining boom, got rid of what used to be called the reasonable benefits limit in superannuation and without over complicating the description, what that meant is that when we created superannuation, and Labor created it, there was always a view that above a certain amount of money you wouldn’t give the same preferential tax treatment because what you’re doing is creating for some lucky individuals a tax windfall.
So there was always – there was always up to 2006-7 – some taxation increase in superannuation. Howard and Costello got rid of it. It is not sustainable at the top end ..
We do think that was fair.
That’s not in our policy.
Yes, but what I’d also say, before we start having some big panic about Labor’s policies on superannuation, is that we’re proposing 15% for income above that. This is the interest earned from superannuation. Very few Australians are earning $75,000 in interest but if you earn more than that you will be paying 15% on the amount above that.
That’s not in our policy.
12.38am BST
Bill Shorten is back now on the ABC in Adelaide. He’s asked why people are voting for Nick Xenophon.
Bill Shorten:
I think people are frustrated with the government of the day, the Liberals, and I think that the challenge for Labor is to explain our positive policies, our alternative. And in the meantime people may decide they may want to vote for a third party.
One thing I don’t ever do is blame voters. I accept that there’s things I can control and the things I can’t. What I can control is how Labor presents its views and do our ideas actually make a real difference in people’s lives? I don’t spend a lot of time worrying about the things I can’t control.
I have to say in this election I’ve been focusing on getting as many votes as I can. We’ve indicated that we don’t want to see a hung parliament and what we will do is do absolutely everything we can in the next 24 days to convince South Australians and Australians to vote for us.
12.32am BST
Quick recap of Bill Shorten from Triple M earlier today. Nuclear is a theme. The hosts started with a few tough questions on nuclear storage and comments by Penny Wong about returning to surplus within 10 years.
Shorten made the distinction between the “full-on nuclear cycle” (including generating nuclear power) and low grade waste, the latter of which he said would be “a good thing to look at for jobs”. But Shorten said it will be “hard to catch up on the nuclear industry in terms of the cost of establishing it” and renewable energy would be the focus if Labor were elected.
12.30am BST
John Howard is asked about nuclear energy, which he pursued unsuccessfully as prime minister in his final term in office. Howard’s support for nuclear drew him along the path to supporting emissions trading in 2007. Nuclear was only viable with a carbon price so Howard said, ok then, let’s have the darned carbon price, which was Liberal party policy until the abject future trashing ludicrousness of Tony Abbott and the anti carbon “tax” campaign.
Howard is still firmly stuck in his late 2000’s paradigm about baseload power. At the time of the nuclear review, it was correct to say that baseload power needed the bedrock of either nuclear generation or fossil fuel generation, but that’s no longer the case. Renewables have undergone a revolution over the last ten years, increasing both in effectiveness and in cost-effectiveness. But Howard insists this morning nuclear needs to be part of Australia’s future because if you want baseload power you need fossil fuels. Yeah, nah. Not anymore. Somebody needs to get a new brief to the former prime minister.
Oh no I’m a realist.
I think what the public wants is a bit of stability and if you want that there’s only one bloke to vote for and that’s Malcolm Turnbull.
12.17am BST
John Howard is being interviewed by David Pemberthy on 5AA. He’s asked first about tribalism, are voters less tribal? Yes, Howard thinks. People are less deliberate in their voting habits. They are less tribal. It’s a world wide phenomenon, he says.
Q: So Nick Xenophon is part of this global trend?
That is true, although his original issue, the anti-poker machines stance, caught the public mood.
I campaign for a Liberal government.
12.02am BST
Paul Karp will give us a bit of Shorten on FM radio shortly, and we also have John Howard coming up on Adelaide radio. Has South Australia ever felt so loved in an election cycle?
11.57pm BST
Calla gave you a flavour of this a minute ago but another quick post on Bill Shorten on 5AA. Today’s focus for Labor is jobs. Shorten said Labor would set a target that on its top 10 infrastructure projects 10% of workers should be apprentices.
Asked whether Labor has a hostile relationship with business, Shorten said: “We don’t have a hostile relationship with business, I have a very good relationship with them. If elected I will work with business but I won’t work solely for business.”
11.52pm BST
The Labor leader Bill Shorten is in the process of doing two radio interviews in Adelaide before launching today’s policy, which is on apprenticeships, then relocating to NSW to tour flood damaged areas, most likely in the northern beaches.
Right now, Shorten is taking a call from a Malcolm Turnbull impersonator in Adelaide. “Big Mal.” Bill Shorten is laughing like this is fun while trying to say as little as possible. Then he moves on to his home duties, which Shorten says focus predominantly on cleaning up dog mess in the back yard.
11.43pm BST
Thanks Calla, good morning everyone and welcome to Tuesday. I want to kick off this morning with a few observations about the Q&A program which was broadcast from the north west NSW centre of Tamworth last night. Normally, I find Q&A completely unwatchable, like the worst power ballad drenched stadium rock you’ve every experienced. But last night, the program served its purpose of bringing the public in, and pushing the politicians off their talking points, so it was a terrific hour of current affairs. What it served to highlight was the realignment currently underway in regional Australia. My colleague Gabi Chan has written compellingly on this subject in a campaign essay about the bush. I encourage you to have a read.
I grew up in Tamworth. I know the region very well. The Tamworth of my childhood was a small and deeply conservative place, tribal to the boot straps. Contemporary Tamworth is a much bigger and less conservative place. Tamworth and the surrounding electorate of New England has been at the pointy end of regional Australia choosing to experiment with alternatives to the major parties, looking for opportunities to send Canberra a message that politics as usual just isn’t good enough. Barnaby Joyce (who also grew up in the same part of the world as me) came to Canberra understanding that an anti-establishment mindset and public posture posture was critical to success as a regional politician. He thought coalitionism was killing the Nationals and said as much. When he arrived in Canberra, he was fiercely independent, driving colleagues in the government completely bonkers by refusing to line up obediently on critical votes. Now, as Gabi notes in her essay, Joyce has transitioned successfully from maverick to a coalitionist in a maverick suit.
11.36pm BST
Jay Weatherill says Bill Shorten ran “at a good clip” this morning, so perhaps I should stop worrying about his health.
@TomMcIlroy yes he did & at a good clip
11.28pm BST
Bill Shorten has been asked about the CFA industrial dispute on Adelaide’s FiveAA radio.
He has maintained the dispute was a Victorian state issue, but here he is, on South Australian local radio, being asked whether he would back the United Firefighters Union over 60,000 CFA volunteers.
I will work with representatives of workers but not for them.
I’ve got no objections to Malcolm Turnbull’s wealth, it’s just the views that he holds.
Football teams and school photos seem to be the only proof of my existence from zero to 18.
11.14pm BST
There’s been a late change in Bill Shorten’s diary. He has reportedly suspended his campaign and will head to NSW to tour flood-affected areas.
Opposition leader Shorten also heading to NSW later today to see first hand impact of storm damage and to thank volunteers #ausvotes
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten will suspend his campaign today and will visit storm-hit regions in NSW #ausvotes
11.05pm BST
The media convoys are on the move. Team Shorten has touched down in Adelaide, while Team Turnbull is on the plane in Melbourne bound for the NSW southern highlands.
Morning Adelaide pic.twitter.com/sIUfkvQS1a
PM's media in Melb. bound for electorate of Hume which stretches from Camden to Goulburn NSW @murpharoo @GuardianAus pic.twitter.com/9N9LvhDbSE
10.58pm BST
Let’s touch back on an issue that has perhaps not been getting the traction it deserves in the election campaign: legal funding.
Labor’s Tanya Plibersek and Mark Dreyfus are set to make an announcement about funding for community legal centres in Sydney today. The Coalition has been rather absent from this debate.
10.49pm BST
Here’s a round-up of the morning papers. Storms and flooding, understandably, dominate.
The Australian front page. Tuesday 7 June 2016. @australian #ausvotes #election2016 #auspol pic.twitter.com/zDjfzyQzYF
The Daily Telegraph front page. Tuesday 7 June 2016. @dailytelegraph #ausvotes #election2016 #auspol pic.twitter.com/Vlvi7WiXYH
The Sydney Morning Herald front page. Tuesday 7 June 2016. @smh #ausvotes #election2016 #auspol pic.twitter.com/Z7OkawPrS8
The Herald Sun front page. Tuesday 7 June 2016. @theheraldsun #ausvotes #election2016 #auspol pic.twitter.com/kIYJoYJjP0
The Age front page. Tuesday 7 June 2016. @theage #ausvotes #election2016 #auspol pic.twitter.com/6h9XqkaxWz
The Courier Mail front page. Tuesday 7 June 2016. @couriermail #ausvotes #election2016 #auspol pic.twitter.com/4AeyttRpYG
The Canberra TimesAustralian front page. Tuesday 7 June 2016. @canberratimes #ausvotes #election2016 #auspol pic.twitter.com/nfBAkd2c4L
Financial Review front page. Tuesday 7 June 2016. @FinancialReview #ausvotes #election2016 #auspol pic.twitter.com/tJXGZ9nqL6
10.41pm BST
Malcolm Turnbull’s self-declared feminism is apparently not shared by all the Liberal party rank and file. Shocking, I know.
Mr Kingston made comments about women’s chores, women’s work and how he was surprised a woman could drive a truck.
“Ever since I was little I can remember my Mum and Dad used to put up HIS and HERS towels in the bathroom … from that I realised there were things designed for men and others designed for women,” he wrote.
Donna likes to call me chauvinistic from time to time but I see it differently.
Donna got busy with some women’s work – washing clothes.”
I got a bit of a shock when it was a woman who stepped out of the truck.”
I am getting flashbacks. pic.twitter.com/c524JTe2kZ
10.11pm BST
Set your alarm: John Howard is back on the wireless.
Former PM John Howard in his first radio interview of the campaign, only on @FIVEaaBreakfast at 830 today
10.05pm BST
Malcolm Turnbull has released a second video about his father and his upbringing, in an apparent attempt to position him as a man of the people. Which is very heartwarming but, as Caroline Overington writes in The Australian, it doesn’t make him a battler.
Turnbull’s team is trying to present this background as one of great difficulty. They should ask a family of true battlers what an ugly marriage bust-up really looks like, because divorce is indeed the sink-or-swim moment for people who truly live in poverty.
One party usually ends up in the local caravan park, or else on somebody’s couch. In the turmoil that follows, the kids can very easily drop out of school. If there’s alcohol involved, the driver’s licence will soon be gone, and with it a source of income. Then the new boyfriend moves in with Mum. Then the teenage daughter moves out.
Malcolm Turnbull with his father Bruce Turnbull pic.twitter.com/89MAq5NU7G
9.47pm BST
Early start in Melbourne, PM heading to flood-hit regions of NSW today @abcnews pic.twitter.com/zzIscPM1PR
9.46pm BST
Before we get into politics proper, let’s have a quick public safety warning via NSW emergency services minister David Elliott. He’s in Coogee this morning waiting for the sun to come up so he can see how much damage was caused by a king tide yesterday.
Elliott tells Radio Nation’s Frank Kelly that the three people who died are believed to have been attempting to drive through flood waters.
It’s like walking into a bushfire. You just don’t take the risk.
I don’t know what the government can do to encourage people not to buy coastal homes.
9.33pm BST
Hello and welcome to day 30 of the election campaign. If you’re feeling fatigued, take heart: pre-poll voting opens in exactly one week so very soon you will be able to tune out, democratic duty done.
But, for now, take a bracing swig of tea and let’s press on.
Tas Police have released this image of Latrobe, taken from the Westpac Rescue Helicopter today. pic.twitter.com/HbsyShrpyC
Employment Minister Michaelia Cash told The Australian the government was considering changes to the Fair Work Act to shield the Victorian volunteers from the union’s attempts to extend its power over the firefighting authority.
“We are considering a number of possible amendments to the Fair Work Act that would address this issue,” Senator Cash said. “There is a clear pattern of behaviour when it comes to secret deals between unions and Labor governments which only benefits unions at the expense of all others. Whether it is destroying the livelihoods of truck drivers at the behest of the TWU, locking contractors out of the construction industry at the behest of the CFMEU or destroying the volunteer CFA at the behest of the UFU, Labor’s utter weakness in the face of greedy union bosses comes at an enormous cost to the community.”
The prime minister’s office believes the format of the first debate suited the opposition because few of the audience questions were about the economy, and it thinks the format of the second debate was too boring for the public to engage with it.
Turnbull would like the format of the next debate to be more attractive for voters, particularly disengaged voters in marginal electorates.
You’re changing the world one girl at a time. Think about it
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