Category: Australian News

Following the final count of the SA Senate vote by the AEC today, Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young has been returned to the Senate with the largest swing to the Greens across the country.

“I want to thank South Australian voters for their overwhelming support this election. South Australians have put their faith in me to stand up and protect our state’s jobs and environment. I will work bloody hard to make sure our state is not undermined by the anti-renewables, water-greedy agenda of the eastern states,” Senator Hanson-Young said.

“Protecting the environment and making sure there is a safe and healthy planet for our children and grandchildren is my priority.  South Australians love our beaches and ocean and together we will protect the Great Australian Bight from the exploitation of big oil.

“I will stand up to the Government to ensure they don’t drag our progressive state backward. I will fight to protect our renewable energy industry and the thousands of jobs in tourism and fishing at risk if drilling in the Bight goes ahead.

“South Australians voted for me to represent them and I will not take my foot off the pedal. In the first week back, I will be introducing a Bill to ban drilling in the Great Australian Bight. I invite my fellow South Australians MPs work together to protect the Bight by adding their names to the Bill.

“I will not let this Government wind back the progress our state has made. In the Senate, I’ll work my hardest to keep our state on-track and stand up for all South Australians.”

Indonesian-speaking Darwin MP Luke Gosling will lead a special Regional Trade Taskforce of the Caucus to assist in the development of trade policies that will boost economic growth and create jobs for Australians.

The Taskforce will focus on trade links with the Asia-Pacific Region. It will consult with businesses, hold industry forums and report to me and Shadow Trade Minister Madeleine King on what our nation needs to do to increase our trade engagement right across the region.

My appointment of Mr Gosling to lead this Taskforce recognises the particular importance of boosting trade between businesses in Northern Australia and the nations to our immediate north, including Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and Timor-Leste.

Despite their proximity to Australia, Indonesia and Malaysia sit outside the list of our top ten trading partners at numbers 13 and 11 respectively.

There is great scope to build our trade engagement across the region, and Mr Gosling’s capacity for hard work makes him the perfect choice to advise Labor on how our nation can capitalise on these opportunities.

This is about jobs for Australians.

Mr Gosling, the Member for Solomon, had a distinguished military career and has worked in Timor-Leste as a Presidential adviser and also established a not-for-profit charity to benefit the fledgling nation.

Since becoming Leader of the Australian Labor Party I have emphasised my intention to consult widely so our Party can develop a set of policies worthy of support at the 2022 election.

I have today appointed a Labor frontbench with the talent and experience to hold the Morrison Government to account and develop a policy platform worthy of the support of Australians at the next election.

My team includes a blend of experienced former Government Ministers, as well as talented newcomers whose enthusiasm and fresh ideas will reinvigorate Labor over the next three years.

My Shadow Ministry includes members from all parts of the nation. It reflects society, with half men and half women including the Shadow Cabinet Secretary.

As I made clear in the days after the May 18 election, I made no deals with colleagues to secure the unanimous support of the Labor Party to become Leader.

I am confident my team will be more than a match for the Morrison Government’s frontbench.

The Shadow Ministry will meet for the first time on Tuesday in Brisbane.

In the days and weeks that follow that meeting, Shadow Ministers will disperse into communities across the nation to listen to Australians about why only one in three voters gave Labor their first preference at the election on May 18.

Labor’s May 18 election result was a wake-up call. The first step to success next time is honest discussion with the Australian people.

Shadow Cabinet

Outer Shadow Ministry

Assistant Ministers

The decision by Queensland’s Labor Government to grant approval for the Adani Carmichael coal mine’s groundwater management plan is deeply disappointing to anyone who understands the danger posed by climate change, but the fight to stop this mine being built is far from over, the Australian Greens said.

“This fight is far from over. The Adani mine cannot go ahead if we are going to have any chance of slowing rising global greenhouse gas emissions and preventing the worst impacts of dangerous climate change,” said Leader of the Australian greens Dr Richard Di Natale.

“The Greens stand with communities right across the country against this reckless decision by the Queensland Labor Government, which will contribute to the destruction of thousands more jobs in Queensland and across the country than it will ever create for the people of Central Queensland.”

“It’s time for politicians like Annastacia Palaszczuk to come clean with coal communities, admit that there are no long term jobs in digging up and burning coal and work with the Greens on a plan to support these communities transition away from coal and towards sustainable, long-term jobs in the renewable energy sector,” he said.

Senator for Queensland and Greens spokesperson for mining and resources, Larissa Waters, who looks to have been re-elected to represent Queensland with more than 3% swing, said “Adani still doesn’t have all its legal licences, and it’s never had a social licence.”

“Queenslanders want a safe climate, cheap clean power and real, lasting jobs for coal communities as we transition to a clean economy. People will rally in force to stop Adani – and the Greens will be right there with them,” Senator Waters said.

“The big parties might have caved in to their coal donors, but the Greens stand with the people, demanding a safe future and a clean jobs plan for central Queensland communities.

“Community campaigns have won against big polluters and big corporate interests before, and we will again.

“The Greens will use every lever we have available in our parliament, our courts and on the streets. Our movement for a safe climate and jobs justice for workers will triumph.”
Greens environment spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said: “From fudging jobs figures and rushing final approvals, and ignoring scientific advice from the CSIRO and Geoscience Australia, this mega coal mine has been given every liberty by Adani’s mates in the Parliament”.

“The Adani cheer squad are trying to revive a dying industry, risking thousands of jobs and our environment in the process by politicising the debate,” Senator Hanson-Young said.

“If we had stronger environmental laws that required climate change to be considered, projects like Adani would never get off the ground. That’s why the Greens will continue to push in parliament for a climate trigger in our environmental laws. We have no more time to lose to arrest climate change.”

The competition presents an opportunity for online narrative creators to apply for the chance to pitch their project live on stage to a panel of industry experts at VidCon Australia (19-22 September 2019). The team with the best pitch will be awarded $30,000 in funding for script development and to make a proof of concept.

Applications open today and up to five teams will be selected to pitch their project at VidCon Australia. Teams will need to be able to present an engaging pitch that gets the panel excited about their narrative concept, summarises who the project is for, how an audience will access it, and why that audience will want to watch it.

Successful finalists will participate in a closed workshop on 19 September in Melbourne to help them prepare for the live pitch the next day. Each finalist team will also receive two complimentary Creator Track passes to VidCon Australia.

Online Investment Manager at Screen Australia, Lee Naimo said: “We know that Australia has a huge amount of talent making really engaging and exciting content for online audiences. Pitcher Perfect is an incredible opportunity for those emerging creatives with strong ideas to build their pitching skills, and access funding to start a career in the industry. For the winning team $30,000 is a significant amount of money to develop a proof of concept in the form of a trailer, pilot or episode to bring their idea to life, and I can’t wait to see the range of teams that apply.”

VidCon’s General Manager, Jim Louderback said: “Australia is seeing one of the fastest growth spurts in online video on a global scale – it is one of the many reasons we brought VidCon to Melbourne, and this year’s event is set to become our best yet. It’s crucial we support the incredibly talented emerging creators from Australia, who will undoubtedly play a key role in shaping the future of the market as it continues to grow. We’re really excited to see what the entrants have to offer!”

Applicant teams need to have a minimum of two people covering the roles of producer, writer and director. Larger teams can apply, but only two people from each team will take part in the live pitch at VidCon Australia.

To apply, teams need to submit a video pitch up to three minutes in length. Finalists who are not based in Melbourne will receive flights and accommodation for two team members. For more information on eligibility and application guidelines click here 

Applications close Friday 19 July.

Statement from Australian Greens Whip Sen. Rachel Siewert:

Today the Australian Greens Party Room met and re-affirmed the positions of our leadership team.

Following a customary spill of the leadership positions, the roles of Leader, Co-Deputy Leader and Whip have all been returned without challenge. The rotating position of Party Room Chair has moved from Adam Bandt MP to Sen. Janet Rice.

The leadership roles for the 46th Parliament are as follows:

Parliamentary Leader: Dr Richard Di Natale
Deputy Leader: Sen. Larissa Waters
Deputy Leader: Adam Bandt MP
Party Whip: Sen. Rachel Siewert
Party Room Chair: Sen. Janet Rice

Statement from Leader of the Australian Greens Dr Richard Di Natale:

I am excited to have been re-elected parliamentary leader by my Party Room colleagues and want to thank them for putting their trust in me again. I am so proud of our achievements and the strong role the Greens have played in shaping the debate of the 45th Parliament, and I am confident that we will once again be a driving force in responding to the major challenges that confront our nation.

First and foremost on the Greens’ agenda in the 46th Parliament will be tackling the existential threat of dangerous climate change and ensuring that no one is left behind as we undertake the transformation of our economy away from dirty, polluting fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas to a clean, green, jobs-rich economy powered by renewable energy.

I also know that many Australians are struggling with the rising cost of living, job insecurity and growing inequality. Our determination to secure a safe climate future for our kids and grandkids, and to create a fairer and more equal society, go hand in hand.

In 2016 I began a conversation with our membership over how the leader of our Parliamentary team is elected in future, so that it better reflects the rapid growth our party has experienced over the last 20 years. I am very pleased with the level of positive engagement this conversation has generated within the Party and I look forward to it continuing.

Statement from Willisa Hogarth and Catherine Garner, Co-Conveners of the Australian Greens

The Australian Greens welcome the reappointment of Richard, Larissa, Adam and Rachel to their parliamentary roles, and congratulate Janet on being appointed Party Room Chair. We are thrilled to see our entire federal team returned following the election.

Our party is in the midst of important discussions about how we support and grow our movement, engage with our members and address the social, economic and environmental challenges our country and our planet is facing. We, Richard and our whole party room, remain committed to this process.

Again, we extend our congratulations and gratitude to the whole Parliamentary Team, all of our candidates who put themselves forward this election and our incredible movement of Greens volunteers and members who continue to work so hard for a future for all of us.

The Iraqi Army School of Infantry Non-Commissioned Officer II (SINCO II) marked a significant milestone last week by achieving Initial Operating Capability ahead of schedule.

The School, based at the Taji Military Complex, 20 kilometres north of Baghdad, can now conduct 75 per cent of its training activities without coalition assistance.

SINCO II has been supported by the Australian and New Zealand-led Task Group Taji, part of the broader coalition’s Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve.

Commanding Officer of the Taji Training Task Unit, Lieutenant Colonel Matthew Smith, said the declaration of Initial Operating Capability was the result of significant hard work by the school over a long period.

“This represents a milestone for the Taji campaign plan; a transition towards training that is solely led by the Iraqi Security Forces,” Lieutenant Colonel Smith said.

SINCO II is responsible for training personnel from Iraqi Army Brigades who in turn work to secure and stabilise areas in Iraq, which have recently been liberated from Daesh.

The training is focused on enhancing core infantry skills including weapons handling, marksmanship, explosive hazard awareness, combat first aid, urban operations and combined arms operations. Students are also provided lessons on the Law of Armed Conflict.

In line with this achievement, Australian support to SINCO II has transitioned from direct training of Iraqi soldiers to train-the-trainer and mentoring activities.

Australia’s efforts are now focused on supporting the Iraqi Army to reach full operating capacity at SINCO II.

In April 2018, Screen Australia introduced a mandatory Code of Conduct to Prevent Sexual Harassment for all recipients of Screen Australia production funding.

Since that time, Screen Producers Australia (SPA) and the Media Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA) have jointly developed and released the Australian Screen Industry Code of Practice: Discrimination, Harassment, Sexual Harassment and Bullying.

A goal of the Screen Industry Code of Practice is to enable employers to have a consistent approach to these important issues across the entire Australian screen industry. As such, Screen Australia will require projects approved for production funding from 1 July 2019 onwards to implement the Screen Industry Code of Practice rather than the Screen Australia Code of Conduct.

Production companies must, so far as is reasonably practical, implement the Code of Practice as part of its obligations in the Screen Australia funding contract.