Turnbull questioned on sheikh with negative view of homosexuality; PM says he is looking forward to seeing Abbott at Coalition campaign launch; Shorten calls Turnbull ‘Scarlet Pimpernel’ of election debates. All the developments with Katharine Murphy, live
6.31am BST
I’m going to land the Politics Live bird now for a couple of hours to just break up the day shift from the night shift. I will be back at 5.30pm for live coverage of tonight’s Facebook/news.com debate. I hope to see you then. Until then, let’s recap Friday.
5.52am BST
Here’s the bad news. You’ve already missed the first of our Guardian Live election events. The first was this week in Sydney, where we discussed fairness in some depth before allowing ourselves a laugh. Here’s the good news. We treated the event as a live recording of our weekly campaign podcast, so you didn’t actually miss anything, except all the bits we did edit out, like Mike Bowers and a photographic update, and a guess the election jingle competition, and the conversation I anchored about the home stretch of the campaign. You don’t get those, but you get the main panel discussion and the Q&A, and some fun from the Hansard Monologues to finish.
Related: Is Australia a fair country? Australian politics live in Sydney podcast
5.36am BST
Just tracking backwards to the workplace debate at the National Press Club, it really is extraordinary two weeks out from polling day that we don’t have a fleshed out policy from either side on industrial relations, which is a heavily contested area of public policy.
My colleague Paul Karp has had this to say on Twitter and he’s exactly right.
Govt responded to #turc but refused to give policy on min wage, contracts. Very late to announce IR policy #ausvotes #ausunions #NPC
5.00am BST
Given the discussion I’ve been having with readers about the impact of the super changes it’s worth reporting the relevant section from the prime minister’s interview with Neil Mitchell this morning.
Malcolm Turnbull:
Can I say this to you though people on low incomes don’t use TRIS [transition to retirement income stream]. Neil – you’ve got to be realistic here.
Okay, can I just make this point to you – if you are on a low income, a lower income, then you are likely to have a lower balance in your super account – correct?
If you have a low balance in your super account you should be putting money into super – not pulling it out. Those people that rang in that spoke to you, if that is their situation they have not been well advised because we are living for much longer than you know the actuarial tables told us we were 30 years ago. If you were on, if you’ve got a low super balance as long as you are working you should be putting money into it rather than pulling money out. So what the TRIS has been used for overwhelmingly has been by people on the top marginal rate.
Well, Neil, it could but I would say it would only be a small number of cases and people on low incomes who are pulling money out of super in a TRIS while they are still working are not being well advised because what they are doing is they are running down their super while they are still working and then what is going to support them when they retire.
4.50am BST
Back to the discussion on superannuation I’ve been having with readers on and off all day. I have another reader who reports to me that he’s on Newstart, plus a transition to retirement scheme, while trying to retrain as a mental health worker. If there are more of you, sing out.
@murpharoo @theREPORTRS @MikePresland I too am doing so...im 58 studying Mental Health on Newstart + TTR
4.39am BST
There were a couple of skirmishes on penalty rates towards the end. Brendan O’Connor wanted Michaelia Cash to sign a petition about protecting penalty rates, Michaelia Cash wanted O’Connor to adopt all of the findings of the Hayden royal commission, “and we will both be very happy.”
Neither occurred, obviously.
4.25am BST
Q: Would either of you or are either of you considering adopting a form of enterprise contract for small and medium businesses that would make it easier for employers and employees to strike deals? Secondly, are either of you looking at creating a workplace standards commission and, thirdly, the report found that strikes are relatively low in Australia but it recommended the simplification of ballots to decide whether to have a strike. Is that something that either of you are looking at?
These are recommendations from the Productivity Commission. Michaelia Cash doesn’t answer the question. She says there’s still fifteen days to go. She says the Coalition has said it will release a response to the PC in “due course.”
We’re certainly looking at the ballots issue. There shouldn’t be any unfair impediments for any party to these matters in that area.
4.19am BST
A question about what the government intends to do about volunteers. The Coalition has flagged changes to the federal workplace laws flowing from the acrimonious fire dispute in Victoria.
Michaelia Cash gives no specifics at all but says this:
It is basically just making some changes to the list of terms under the Fair Work Act to ensure that volunteers are protected, but in particular, emergency services are able to conduct themselves in – the appropriate manner when they need to. That’s it. The changes are very, very simple. And I would hope we would have your support, Brendan, in relation to those changes.
Whilst it is true there are federal instruments that may well be involved, enterprise agreements, these are employees of state governments. If the minister now is announcing changes about the way in which the commonwealth is going to deal with employees of state governments, then I think that is certainly opens up a whole series of questions about how she will deal with other matters in the future.
4.13am BST
A question about whether the ABCC bill will get through given the uncertainty about the composition of the Senate post-election, the likelihood of more crossbenchers.
Michaelia Cash says we’ll have a mandate, so it should pass. The conversation then veers off into violence against women, with some unedifying finger pointing.
4.08am BST
Brendan O’Connor wants to know how the Coalition intends to get these changes through the next parliament given it had an opportunity to bowl them up pre-election so they could be considered at a joint sitting, but failed to do so.
Moderator Chris Uhlmann follows this up.
Absolutely and business will be subject to the same penalty. Corrupting benefits involve two parties to a transaction - the person providing the benefit and the person receiving the benefit. That is why it’s both the employer and the union who are potentially liable.
Just in relation to Brendan’s point, though, I’m assuming Brendan are you saying you wholeheartedly support the government’s adoption of the Hayden royal commission recommendations, given you said you don’t tolerate this type of behaviour? If you do, that is great. It’s going through the parliament very easily!
4.03am BST
There’s an obvious question on the Heydon recommendations and my colleague Paul Karp asks it.
Q: My question is to Senator Cash. You’ve spoken about banning corrupting benefits. Would this extend to banning payments from unions to employers such as ones from the SDA for pay roll deductions? And are you worried that there are some unintended consequences of this that it might be a recipe for union militancy because you would stop seeing cooperation between more moderate unions like the AWU and encourage more militant ones like the CFMEU on sites?
In relation to the policy that we’ve announced today, it’s all about transparency, transparency in relation to the deals that are being done by the employers and the unions. This is about both parties to any transaction, not one particular side of the transaction. Where legitimate payments are being made, and you referred to unintended consequences, if the payments are legitimate, they’re transparently made, they will not fall foul of the corrupting benefits law.
3.59am BST
The two workplace spokespeople, Michaelia Cash for the Coalition and Brendan O’Connor for the ALP, have made their opening statements in the workplace debate.
O’Connor is flagging that Labor will examine the definition of casual work by setting an objective test for determining when a worker is a casual and when he or she is not. This review is designed to address the phenomenon of “permanent casuals”, which O’Connor says is an oxymoronic concept. The new definition, he says, will be developed in full consultation with industry, “something the Coalition government knows nothing about.”
It is an obvious conflict of interest for money or reward to be changing hands between an employer and a union at the same time that they are negotiating a workplace agreement, and when they both have responsibilities to their workforce. Workers deserve to know that the union rep cannot go into the bosses’ office and do a dodgy deal behind their backs to cut their wages. When money changes hands in this way between a union and a company, there is always a loser and that is the worker. This is unacceptable and it has to change.
3.52am BST
As I stop for the summary a workplace debate is under way at the National Press Club. I’ve got an ear on that but let’s recap.
3.21am BST
I’ll post a summary shortly. I should also say, in the event that it’s not clear, that I will be covering tonight’s Facebook debate live. There will be a Politics Live special edition for that event.
3.14am BST
The Liberal party has issued another statement on Parakeelia following Bill Shorten’s comments at his press conference earlier today about who was running the organisation (given Ron Walker didn’t know he was still involved with the company) and what Malcolm Turnbull knows about it.
A Liberal campaign spokeswoman says Ron Walker is still a shareholder of Parakeelia, but this will be fixed in due course.
The prime minister was never a director or shareholder. Mr Walker is a shareholder. Mr Walker believed that he had ceased to be a shareholder. His shareholding is non beneficial. Appropriate arrangements to transfer this shareholding will be made in due course.
2.59am BST
Back to our little discussion about super policy triggered by Malcolm Turnbull’s comments on the Neil Mitchell program about transition to retirement. More feedback about superannuation in the thread, this time from reader Sue James, picking up from Michael Secomb earlier this morning.
That is not the only problem. As someone trying to run a home business while looking after kids, I was able to put practically nothing into superannuation for many years. Now the kids are grown and the business is earning more, I have been putting in the maximum concessional contribution ($35,000 p.a. since I am over 50) I can for the last couple of years to try to catch up. With the government’s changes, that will decrease to $25,000 p.a. from next year – and the fact that the $25,000 cap can be rolled over for 5 years still means the maximum (concessional) I can contribute decreases from $175,000 to $125,000 over the next five years (if the business manages to keep going well enough to put in the maximum each year). The cap should be related to how much is in the account. This will make things worse for many women in my situation, even though the government claims we will be better off.
Am drawing down 10% /yr to survive being on Newstart. Now 2 be taxed. If it ain’t already tough!
2.50am BST
A Medicare question. The prime minister repeats what he told Neil Mitchell this morning. Medicare won’t be privatised and Bill Shorten and the trade union phone banking operation should stop scaring old people in their homes in the evening by telling them the government will privatise Medicare.
Barnaby Joyce is asked about former Nationals in Indi saying Cathy McGowan should be preferenced ahead of Sophie Mirabella. Joyce says former Nationals can’t be told what to say – it’s just like the Labor party can’t tell Mark Latham what to say.
He certainly has plenty of energy. If he is elected he will be a strong voice in McEwen and he is part of the Coalition team. The issue at this election is a critical one. It’s a very serious and momentous choice. The Labor party is trying to mislead voters, mislead Australians, for example, I just observed with this disgraceful scare campaign about Medicare. And I say again, Medicare will never be privatised.
2.33am BST
Back to the sheikh. Will he be blacklisted from future government events and do you think this shows there are problems in some parts of the Muslim community with homophobia?
Malcolm Turnbull:
Homophobia is to be condemned everywhere, number one. We are a broad, diverse country and we respect the right of gay Australians, we respect the right of the LGBTI community and the right for them to lead their lives and gather together in peace and harmony. The massacre in Orlando, that shocking assault on the people in the gay nightclub is a shocking reminder, frankly, of how much hate and intolerance there is in the world, and how important it is for us to stand up for mutual respect that I spoke about earlier. That is the very foundation of our society. So I condemn, I deplore homophobia wherever it is to be found. It is not acceptable from a legal point of view in Australia, as you know, and I just - I’m sure that - well I know, that the Sheik has been encouraged to reflect very deeply on his remarks which were of some years ago, and it’s up to him how he restates or reconsiders his position.
But it is vitally important, I say this to everybody, it’s vitally important for Australian leaders, whether they’re political leaders or religious leaders, to recognise that at the foundation of our success is mutual respect and as I said last night, at the core of that mutual respect is love, love for our fellow humanity.
2.29am BST
Q: Are you feeling threatened by Janelle Saffin?
(Saffin is the Labor candidate.)
Every seat is critical, can I say to you, including the seat of Page. I just want to remind you of this. Every federal election is close, number one. Number two, this is going to be a very close election. Every seat matters, every vote matters.
2.27am BST
The next question is how can the government claim success with its economic plan when youth unemployment in the northern rivers stands at 17%, up from 11% a year ago?
Barnaby Joyce says today’s announcement will address the current problem.
Can I just add one thing to that, I agree with everything Barnaby said, but there is a very important element that we’ve got to recognise. The best way to support youth employment is to have a strong economy. If businesses are expanding, if they’re growing, if there is confidence, if there is more investment, then businesses will hire more people and they will hire more young people. So an absolutely critical element is a strong economy.
2.23am BST
First question is on the sheikh.
Malcolm Turnbull says officials put the guest list together. It was clearly an oversight, the prime minister says, and he’s asked his departmental head to look into it.
The remarks about homosexuals were drawn to my attention in the course of the evening by the Australian newspaper who got in touch with my team and I issued then, as I said again earlier today, and I say again now, a statement of the strongest condemnation of those remarks.
We live together in remarkable harmony when you look at all the disharmony in the world around us. The reason we do is because Australians follow the golden rule, which is common to all faiths - do unto others as you would have them do unto you. In other words, mutual respect. And so I regard as unacceptable, and I will always condemn, any remarks which disrespect any part of our community, whether it is on the basis of their sexuality, their gender, their race, their religion.
This is a great country, a great success in a world of so much disharmony. Here we are, the most successful multicultural society in the world, and the bedrock of that, the bedrock, the foundation is mutual respect, and that is why I reach out to every community, every community in our country is part of our nation.
2.19am BST
Today’s jobs announcement is a $25m regional jobs package. Malcolm Turnbull is surrounded by Nationals, completely surrounded. It’s all part of a plan, the deputy prime minister, Barnaby Joyce, is telling reporters. The jobs plan, not the surrounding, be clear.
Barnaby Joyce would like to illustrate how the economy is ticking away.
It’s actually real, it’s actually happening. And that’s something that, of course, gives great opportunity to everywhere.
2.12am BST
The prime minister has bobbed up in Alphadale.
Malcolm Turnbull:
It is great to be here and before I announce the jobs and investment package, can I just say how excited I was to hear about the growth here in the export of macadamias ..
2.10am BST
In Sydney, the treasurer Scott Morrison is speaking to reporters and just warned of Liberal chaos before correcting himself. Perish the thought.
2.09am BST
Back here in Canberra the RSPCA is calling for a suspension of the trade of live animals to Vietnam until Australia can be satisfied that the animal welfare standards the government has attempted to impose are actually being enforced.
Gary Humphries, a former Liberal senator, is now the RSPCA chairman, and he’s speaking to reporters.
The footage was taken in unapproved abattoirs, in other words, Australian cattle have been supplied into the market and then have ended up in unapproved abattoirs, so the [Australian] standards that might apply in those approved abattoirs are not being applied in the subsequent supplied abattoirs.
2.04am BST
Back to Corangamite, and Politics Live regular Matt Davey, who prods me about the content tweet from the Liberal MP Sarah Henderson that Calla shared earlier on this morning.
@murpharoo Hi. In her tweet, Ms Henderson claimed an extra rail track was required, but got a road upgrade. #auspol pic.twitter.com/HfSFi89cW5
2.02am BST
Meanwhile, to our north.
PM eats a nut. "A very superior Macadamia," he remarks #ausvotes pic.twitter.com/7UPilif4cD
1.57am BST
Interesting contribution in the thread from reader Michael Secomb, picking up on the prime minister’s comments about the transition to retirement scheme on 3AW this morning. (If you are just tuning in the prime minister this morning agreed that people on low incomes could be worse off as a consequence of the Coalition’s changes to the transition to retirement scheme, but if they were withdrawing money from super they were being “poorly advised”.) Secomb thinks it might be the prime minister who is being poorly advised.
Malcolm Turnbull is just wrong to say low income people don’t use the transition to retirement scheme because the fact is many, including myself, do use it. Although I’m on a modest income, I am following a detailed financial plan prepared by expert financial planners at my superannuation fund which involves both significant salary sacrificing of the maximum allowed by the current rules into my super as well as tax-free income withdrawals. This reduces my tax, maintains my super balance and provides income for living – all perfectly legal. If the government was serious about boosting super so people could be more self-sufficient in retirement it would be increasing the amount that people can contribute without copping extra tax, so they would have more to retire on. I would like to contribute more if I could, but it appears the Turnbull government’s super plans will discourage increased super contributions, which is just dumb. In my case, the government’s proposals would make me more, not less, dependent on the aged pension. Labor’s super plans are much smarter and more in the national interest, since they would only tax withdrawals above $75,000 to live on. Mr Turnbull has apparently been badly advised and his proposals would hurt low income earners trying to increase their superannuation balances. Since when do Australian governments discourage saving for retirement?
1.50am BST
Calla Wahlquist linked you earlier to a picture of the foreign minister Julie Bishop campaigning with Sarah Henderson in the Victorian marginal seat of Corangamite today. The Liberals hold that seat on a margin of 3.94%. Labor has been hopeful about grabbing that seat back. Bishop has announced a $3.75m road upgrade for the seat.
1.37am BST
Just a quick observation about that press conference. I mentioned first up that Labor needed to look for a contest in the final fortnight because torpor is benefitting the incumbent. Bill Shorten doesn’t much like conflict as a political style, but there is a noticeable increase in aggressive counterpoint with his opponent this morning in his public event. This morning in that press conference, Bill Shorten muscled up on tonight’s debate (Turnbull is evasive on head-to-heads), on youth jobs (“I couldn’t pay young people less than the Coalition if I tried”), on Medicare, on Parakeelia, on the same sex marriage plebiscite – there was a distinct difference in tone. Part self-justification (I could have run a different campaign but I chose to respect the intelligence of the voters) and part aggro. This prime minister is having a lend of you on a range of fronts and is arrogantly coasting to victory. That was the pitch.
1.30am BST
A question about Parakeelia and the directorships, given the businessman Ron Walker is still listed as a director of the company when he isn’t a director of the company. Bill Shorten says Malcolm Turnbull is being evasive about the Parakeelia enterprise and he needs to answer questions about it. He makes a reference to the cabinet secretary, Arthur Sinodinos, not remembering things at the Icac.
Live exports then.
We need to have an independent office of animal welfare which oversights the supply chain system, otherwise many Australians may well questioned the viability of the industry. Labor supports having a live export trade, these images are not good enough to simply say business as usual – we need a new system of regulation which will ensure integrity in the system because those images are sick-making.
1.24am BST
A question about public support for the marriage equality plebiscite. Bill Shorten says the plebiscite was not designed by the proponents of marriage equality, it was designed by the opponents of marriage equality.
The Labor leader says he wants to lead the debate, and he has concerns the plebiscite will allow ugly views to be expressed that gain some kind of moral equivalence with the equality and anti-discrimination case. Shorten says he wants to pull the community together, not pit people against each other.
The payment system of the Medicare system is the heart of the Medicare system. Mr Turnbull has set up a $5m task force in the Department of Health to investigate the privatisation of the payment system. If you take the payment system out of the hands of the public purse and give it to a private, profit-making entity, you are compromising the basics of Medicare. Mr Turnbull is a man under pressure. Today he says, there are no plans at all. Why do you have a $5m task force to take one of the most vital elements of the system out of public hands and why did you get up in parliament and say this is all a worthy idea of consideration?
1.18am BST
Bill Shorten faces a few questions about the sheikh with negative views about homosexuality. He says his views are not mainstream views, and if he ever meets this person he will tell him that.
Then some questions on the youth jobs package.
I couldn’t pay these young people less than the Coalition if I tried.
1.12am BST
Bill Shorten outlines Labor’s plan for Tasmania and he also makes a brief remark about the tragedy in the UK overnight. What makes this political crime so dreadful is that in Australia, we take for granted our ability to get out and mix with people, to practise democracy in a safe way, Shorten says.
Bill Shorten:
This dreadful murder in the United Kingdom will not deter me or my Labor team from going about their daily duty.
I would like to see more journalists available. Mr Turnbull would probably like me to boycott this debate. He has been the Scarlet Pimpernel of this election. Just pinning him down is harder than I thought it would be.
I will debate Mr Turnbull in any place, any time. It has been very difficult to get him to commit to debates. I would have thought in an eight-week election he would have been most keen to put his policies up against mine. Even though it is the longest election in half a century, this prime minister has been the most evasive in half a century for debates. Whenever they do a press conference, not that they are inclined to take too many questions or answer to many issues, they are much more comfortable talking about us.
1.03am BST
I mentioned earlier the Labor leader is in Tasmania, Hobart specifically, and he’s now underway with his daily press conference.
Just while he’s doing his preamble, a quick glance at the thread tells me readers are upset that there are not enough photographs of Bill Shorten on the blog. Just a factual note on this in case it’s of interest. Mike Bowers can only travel with one leader at a time. We rely on agencies for photographs for the leader Mike is not travelling with. The agencies are often not as fast as Mike in sending in their pictures from the hustings, so sometimes we lag on Turnbull pictures, sometimes we lag on Shorten’s pictures. It’s just how things are. It doesn’t reflect an editorial judgment. It reflects what I have available to me at any given moment, and, of course, the quality of what I have available to me. Just in case people are interested in facts, and the story behind the live blog story. Thought I’d mention it, into Shorten now.
12.39am BST
Speaking of hotspots, the prime minister is now on 3AW in Melbourne. Lots in this interview. Host Neil Mitchell picks up on Sheikh Shady Alsuleiman, president of the Australian National Imams Council, who was at Turnbull’s dinner last night, and once expressed negative views about homosexuality.
Q: Is Islam a homophobic religion?
I don’t think you can generalise.
I would strongly counsel the sheikh to reflect on what he has said and recant what he has said.
No
That was an expression of confidence.
Those people who rang in, if that’s their situation, they have not been well advised.
12.05am BST
The Labor leader Bill Shorten has been in the ABC in Tasmania. I only caught the back end of the interview, the talkback segment, where Shorten was interviewed by a persistent GP who wanted to understand the precise impact of unfreezing the doctors’ rebates.
Health is a major issue in Tasmania, the GP told Shorten. He said he’d heard somewhere that the impact of unfreezing the rebates would be about 40 cents. We need to know facts. We need to know numbers, the GP said. There are decisions we need to make about whether it is viable to keep our practices open.
If you think $12bn isn’t enough, it’s a choice ..
11.50pm BST
Good morning everyone and welcome to Friday. As Calla has noted, Australian politics is, collectively, shocked by the developments overnight in the UK. The murder of a sitting MP is a deeply shocking event, and will naturally engender a sense of there but for the grace of God go I among the political class around the world.
The domestic campaign is, however, rolling on. Labor wants to talk about youth jobs today. Malcolm Turnbull is also in jobs territory, and he’s heading to the NSW north coast. I suspect the two leaders will do their morning events and then vanish to do some preparation for tonight’s third leader’s debate which will be hosted by news.com and Facebook at the world’s most (in)convenient time of 6pm this evening. Labor will then roll out of tonight into the campaign launch in Penrith on Sunday. Sunday is an important day for Bill Shorten. The Coalition is feeling very confident at the moment, confident enough for a small outbreak of self-indulgence this week, with conservatives doing a bit of limbering up for the post 2 July environment where, in their minds, Malcolm Turnbull is returned as prime minister with a reduced majority.
11.41pm BST
Public transport: it’s catching.
On the train to Melbourne with @JulieBishopMP. We need a duplicated rail track! pic.twitter.com/kqRduL7oaG
11.36pm BST
Fran Kelly then turned to the upcoming election.
Do Christopher Pyne and Penny Wong agree that voters are generally disaffected and disillusioned by the apparent similarity of the two major parties.
Anybody that thinks that both sides are the same I think has not paused for a moment… to consider the fundamental differences.
Nick gets a lot of attention, Nick is a decent person to deal with, I’ve known Nick a long time, he’s going to get elected, the question is who is going to get elected with him.
Some of his candidates have had some odd views, which I don’t want to talk about -
I’ll talk about that.
11.26pm BST
Back on Radio National now, where Christopher Pyne and Penny Wong have been asked whether politicians should tighten their security in the wake of the murder of UK MP Jo Cox.
Both of them said no.
The tragedy in northern England involving the murder of Jo Cox is absolutely shocking, beyond imagination.
…one of the great strengths of Australian and British politics is the approachability of MPs, and candidates for that matter. It would be a great tragedy if we changed that because of this sort of behaviour.
It really is a tragedy, and obviously people will work though why, what motivated this, but it was obviously so sad to wake to this news.
Social media has offered more channels for politicians and anybody to be abused… we have to always I think stand up against that sort of abuse...But I agree with Christopher, the overwhelming majority of Australian people, whether they agree with their views, are able to engage in a friendly way.
I do think social media and the twitterverse has changed people’s behaviour.
I’m sure Penny doesn’t want to mention it herself but I’m sure she cops a lot of abuse on social media over a range of issues, as do I.
I don’t read any of it because if I did I would lose my ebullient self-confidence.
11.19pm BST
That defence ban on political candidates using images of themselves in uniform in campaign material, which saw Liberal Canning MP Andrew Hastie kicked out of the army reserve and Labor candidate for the seat of Brisbane, Pat O’Neill, take down a billboard, will be reviewed after the election.
The West Australian reports that defence minister, Marise Payne, suggested at the press club debate yesterday that the ban was outdated in the age of social media.
It means if you want to represent yourself and your career and give people part of the narrative about your life, then the immediacy with which you can access that sort of material is very different from what it was in times of (RAAF servicemen and later prime ministers) Messrs Gorton and Whitlam
11.01pm BST
More condolences.
Just shocked at the death of British MP Jo Cox. Died doing her dutyConstant abuse of people who serve their countries needs to be tempered.
10.59pm BST
The Nick Xenophon Team has been successful campaigning in South Australia because SA has been “forgotten” by both major parties, says Nick Xenophon.
The SA senator made the comment to Radio National’s Fran Kelly in an alfresco interview at the Adelaide Markets this morning.
Yes, based on polling done last week.
I’m hoping to at least have a significant role in the senate with some of my colleagues, not just from South Australia but from other states as well.
10.46pm BST
Bill Shorten has offered his condolences.
Incredibly powerful words from Brendan Cox at such a dark time. Love to Jo's family, condolences to the British people. Solidarity.
10.45pm BST
Bill Shorten has apparently brought his chequebook to Hobart, promising up to $500m to build a second Basslink cable to connect Tasmania to the mainland, provided a sound business case can be established.
The Mercury reports that Labor also promised $5m for the development of that business case.
10.35pm BST
Labor’s employment spokesman, Brendan O’Connor, has been on ABC’s AM talking up the youth employment package that Bill Shorten will announce in Hobart today.
O’Connor said said Labor’s policies - that’s the ‘working futures’ training package to be announced today and the apprenticeship package announced earlier this week - differed from the Coalition’s PaTH program in the level of training provided, and also in general fairness.
Our emphasis is on real skills and real employment opportunity that will ensure young people remain connected to the labour market.
Why would you provide taxpayer’s money to fill existing vacancies?...There’s no point providing those 4 weeks if you’re not going to ensure over the long term that they are going to have employment opportunities.
10.23pm BST
More condolences flowing in for Jo Cox.
#RIPJoCox The strength of our democracy in Australia and Britain is the approachability of our MPs. That mustn't change #auspol #ausvotes
10.20pm BST
Here are a few more pictures from that iftar dinner at Kirabilli house last night.
Malcolm Turnbull used the gathering to emphasise the multiculturalism of Australia:
Australians are not defined by religion or race; we are defined by a commitment to common political values, democracy, freedom, the rule of law, all underpinned of course by mutual respect.
PM response to Sheik Shady Alsuleiman's comments on homosexuality "views like this are wrong, unacceptable and I condemn them" #ausvotes
10.09pm BST
Bill Shorten has dismissed a suggestion he had been avoiding Victoria since the industrial dispute over the CFA boiled over with the sacking of the emergency services minister, Jane Garrett, and the CFA board last week.
Asked in Adelaide yesterday why he hadn’t spent much time in Melbourne, Shorten replied:
I’ve actually been there for the last 49 years, but anyway.
Opposition Leader @billshortenmp says he'd happily meet firefighters to discuss #CFA dispute #springst #ausvotes pic.twitter.com/WY73eL4CX4
10.02pm BST
On way to @TheTodayShow woke to horrific news of murder of @UKLabour MP Jo Cox while meeting constits -a tragic loss for her family and UK
10.01pm BST
Malcolm Turnbull has expressed his condolences for the death of British MP Jo Cox, who was shot and stabbed on a Yorkshire street.
Deeply shocked by the murder of UK MP Jo Cox. Our condolences, prayers and solidarity are with her family & the people of the UK.
9.53pm BST
Fifteen. That’s how many days are left until the federal election. Count ‘em. Fifteen.
As we emerge from the desert on this, the 40th day of the election campaign, take heart in knowing that tonight you, the average punter, will be able to fire your questions at both Malcolm Turnbull and Bill Shorten on Facebook, the people’s forum, through Joe Hildebrand, who was, by his own admission, shocked to hear he was the people’s moderator.
The aim of extremists, including those committing violence through a warped and nihilist interpretation of religion is to divide us and to turn our citizens against each other - but we will not let them win.
“Acts of terror like Sunday’s massacre in Orlando are perpetrated to divide us along lines of race, religion, sect and sexuality - but that kind of hatred and division must not prevail
Plenty to be unhappy about in politics but tonight the PM hosted a Muslim iftar dinner and the Oppn Leader sang with the LGBT community. ✌️
This looks like a Liberal party washing machine turning taxpayer dollars into Liberal party profits.
...run on a professional basis, independently audited and complies with the law.
That’s impossible. I was assured that I had resigned. I relinquished all other directorships.
Malcolm (Turnbull, who was party treasurer in 2002 and 2003) took over from me. He succeeded me as federal treasurer of the party. He assumed all responsibilities I had on that day.
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