Month: June 2020

The foreshadowing of a package for the arts and entertainment industry by the PM is welcome, but the devil will be in the detail, the Greens say.
Greens Spokesperson for the Arts Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said the arts and entertainment industry has been pleading for Government intervention for months.
“The Prime Minister likes his sport, I hope today’s reports are a sign he’s starting to recognise the arts and entertainment sector is important too. But the devil will be in the detail,” Senator Hanson-Young said.
“The arts and entertainment industry was effectively shut down overnight as the first of the social distancing restrictions came in back in March. Finally, some three months later, the PM has now checked his blind spot and started talking about the need for specific industry assistance.
“Backing Australian artists and the entertainment industry is backing Australian jobs and Australian-made products. It’s a no-brainer for the community, jobs and the economy.
“There is a real opportunity here to simulate the economy, put people back into work and create new jobs, not just in arts and entertainment but our hospitality and tourism industries too.
“The Greens have been pushing for a $2.3 billion package to get our artists, musicians, writers, creators, and crews back producing content for our screens, theatres, live music venues, festivals and galleries. Supporting the big players in the industry won’t be enough, there must be help across the board, in our cities and our regions.
“If the government doesn’t come up with the goods, the Greens will move in Parliament next week, to fix the problem.
“Artists, entertainers and creatives have been out in the cold far too long. It’s time the Government gave back to an industry that gives so much to us – our economy, culture and social fabric.”

Chair of the Senate Inquiry into Press Freedoms, Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young, has vowed to look at the treatment of the press covering the protests in America after a shocking attack by police in Washington DC on a 7 News Australia crew.
“Police and riot squads punching and assaulting journalists who are doing their jobs is simply unacceptable. We have seen footage not just of Australian press being treated this way but local media who have been arrested, shot with rubber bullets, tear gassed and bashed by police across America,” Senator Hanson-Young said.
“It’s wrong when it’s happening in Hong Kong and it’s wrong when it’s happening in America.
“Here in Australia we are not immune with police raids on journalists and state and federal governments cracking down on the democratic right to protest, perpetuating a dangerous culture of government shutting down dissent.
“A free press is essential for democracy. This shocking violence towards the media in the USA is an attack on press freedom everywhere.
“A free and open democracy depends on its citizens having access to information and independent reporting of events, activists and behaviour of Government and authorities.”
“As Chair of the Inquiry, I’ll be asking the Committee to look at what has occurred in the US towards the press and what Australia’s response has been.”

Labor today called on the Federal Government to lift the cap on the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme for first home buyers who build new homes.
This will help save the jobs of tradies and help more Australians purchase their first home.
Work in the housing construction industry is about to fall off a cliff and estimates by the Master Builders Association indicate 450,000 tradies jobs could be at risk if the government doesn’t act.
Labor has been calling on the government for 5 weeks for a National Housing Stimulus program to save thousands of jobs.
History shows that stimulating housing has been central to the national recovery from economic shock.
The First Home Loan Deposit Scheme currently assists 10,000 first home buyers each financial year to purchase a home with a deposit of as little as five per cent without the need to purchase mortgage insurance.
According to the Minister for Housing, in the first six months of operation the scheme is likely to be fully subscribed and most of the assistance will be provided to first home buyers to purchase existing homes.
We need to provide more support for the construction of new housing to help keep tradies working and off the dole queue.
Labor is therefore calling for the cap to be lifted on the Scheme  for first home buyers who build new homes (subject to the existing income and price caps).
The existing cap of 10,000 would remain in place for first homeowners purchasing existing homes.
This will encourage the construction of more new homes, keep more tradies in work, and increase the nations’ housing stock.
The Master Builders Association, Housing Industry Association and the Urban Development Institute of Australia have all warned the Federal Government that the housing construction industry is about to go off a cliff and have called for an expansion of the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme.
Almost one million people work in the housing construction industry.
Before COVID-19 hit between 171,000 to 160,000 homes were expected to be built this year.  Now it is predicted to be as low as 100,000.
To help fill this gap Labor has already called on the Government to:

1. work with state governments, the private sector and superannuation funds to invest in more social and affordable housing and the repair and maintenance existing social housing; and
2. build more affordable rental housing for the true heroes of the COVID-19 crisis – nurses, cleaners, aged care workers, supermarket workers, bus drivers, and other front-line workers – closer to where they work.

Lifting the cap of the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme for first home buyers who build new homes is another important measure which should form part of a National Housing Stimulus Plan.
The government needs to stop delaying and help save the jobs of thousands of Aussie tradies.

The Morrison Government’s economic response to the Coronavirus crisis is providing $259 billion or 13.3 per cent of GDP in support for workers, households and business.
The position of strength from which we entered the crisis together with this unprecedented support has seen the Australian economy perform better than almost every developed economy in the world.
In April, the Government indicated that it would provide an update on the economic and fiscal outlook in June.
Since then, Australia’s continued success in flattening the curve means we have been able to begin reopening our economy more quickly than initially expected.
Treasury has also since commenced its review of the JobKeeper program, which is not expected to be concluded until the end of June.
As a result, the Government has taken the decision to defer the economic and fiscal update to 23 July 2020, so that it can incorporate the outcomes of the JobKeeper review.
Delivering the update in July will also enable the economic and fiscal outlook to take account of progress made under the three step plan outlined by National Cabinet in early May which had the objective of seeing a sustainable COVID safe Australia in July 2020.
The Government will continue to provide updates on the fiscal position through the release of the Australian Government General Government Sector Monthly Financial Statements.