Category: Australian News

The Morrison Government will lift mutual obligation requirements for job seekers in Victoria from today 12 February 2021 to Monday 22 February 2021inclusive.
This follows an announcement by the Victorian Government that the state of Victoria is under a five-day lockdown as a short, sharp circuit breaker to curb a COVID-19 outbreak in the state.
No job seeker in the affected areas will face payment suspension or financial penalties for failing to meet their mutual obligation requirements such as not being able to attend appointments or activities.
Job seekers are still being encouraged to remain connected to employment services to ensure they are supported to access the full range of assistance including mental health services, if required.
These arrangements will apply to job seekers in jobactive, Online Employment Services, Disability Employment Services and participants in ParentsNext.
The Morrison Government will continue to closely monitor the situation in Victoria.
More information about mutual obligations requirements can be found at www.dese.gov.au/covid-19/job-seekers

The Prime Minister must take the water portfolio out of the hands of the climate-denying National Party, the Greens say, after a Productivity Commission report released today calls on governments to recognise the impact of the climate crisis on water security.
Greens Water Spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said:
“We’ve now got economists saying what scientists have been warning for years. The Federal Government needs to start preparing a water security plan that takes climate change seriously.
“The PM needs to start by getting the National Party out of the water portfolio.
“Australia’s water security will never be managed properly while the climate change deniers in the National Party hold the country’s water portfolio and are in charge of Australia’s water policy.
“The Nationals and Barnaby Joyce do not accept the science of climate change let alone the economics. They’re putting drinking water in our cities and our regional towns at risk, killing our river systems and putting the interests of miners ahead of small family farmers.
“Even the Productivity Commission can see miners are getting special treatment over farmers which is putting everyone’s water supply at risk.
“The PM cannot allow this PC report to be ignored. How many warnings does he need before he acts to protect all Australians not just the National Party’s mates.”

The Morrison Government’s leaked environmental standards make a mockery of the yearlong review into environment laws by Professor Graeme Samuel and condemn Australia’s environment to more destruction, the Greens say.
Greens Environment Spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said:
“This leaked document shows the Morrison Government’s plan is for more pollution and destruction of our environment and a death sentence for Australia’s koalas and wildlife.
“The Morrison Government has shown nothing but contempt for the Samuel Review since the beginning. They drafted legislation to weaken laws before the interim report was complete, have failed to respond to the final report after more than 100 days, and now are going to put forward standards that maintain the status quo of the EPBC Act which is failing our environment and wildlife.
“Suggesting these standards will lift environmental protections is deceitful. The claims by the PM that the states and territories supported this government’s reforms is also clearly rubbish with the NSW Liberal Environment Minister reportedly calling for improved standards and an independent regulator again today.
“The Greens will be doing everything we can to ensure the Morrison Government does not further entrench the unsustainable environmental trajectory Professor Samuel has warned about.
“We need strong environmental standards that protect our iconic natural places and precious wildlife and an independent watchdog to hold governments and corporate interests to account.”

The Greens say that as Crown Resorts has been found to be unfit to operate in Sydney then there are questions around their operations in other states too.
“The culture and operation of Crown Resorts in Western Australia and Victoria were part of the NSW assessment process and need to be assessed, ” Greens spokesperson on Gambling Senator Rachel Siewert said.
“If there are sweeping cultural changes required in Sydney then there are questions around what is going on in this company across the country. Victorian and Western Australian regulators need to take this very seriously.
“This also goes to the heart of why we need a national independent regulator as so many states rely heavily on the income gambling generates.
“We need to know what’s going on in Perth and Melbourne.”

The Greens say that proper regulation of the gambling industry requires a ban on the industry donating to political parties.
“The gambling industry is just rife with conflicts of interest,” Australian Greens spokesperson on Gambling Senator Rachel Siewert said.
“We urgently need a national independent regulator, with gambling companies operating across the country we need a national body regulating them.
“States which rely heavily on the income gambling generates cannot be in charge of regulating the industry as there is a clear conflict of interest.
“A person owes Centrelink a few hundred dollars and the Government spends billions pursuing them and we are seeing next to zip from the Federal Government when it comes to the very serious findings of what is happening at Crown.
“There are some very serious findings in the NSW report on the conduct and operations of Crown relating to its Melbourne and Perth operations and we need to see action from the Federal Government and an independent investigation into what’s going on in all of Crown’s operations.
Western Australian Greens spokesperson on Gambling Alison Xamon said:
“Since 2012-13, more than half of all money donated by Crown to political parties in Australia has come to parties in WA.
“Crown has spent nearly $800,000 in WA alone, with WA Labor raking in $312,430 and the WA Liberals taking $437,509.
“And that’s just the money we can see. The weak political donations laws we have in Western Australia provide no real transparency or accountability around who is lining the pockets of those in power. We know that there is a lot of dark money donated to political parties that goes unaccounted for.
“The activities of Crown in Western Australia are a major part of the reason why Crown has been found unsuitable to operate in New South Wales.
“We need our politicians to be representing the interests of our communities, not their billionaire corporate donors. The WA Labor and WA Liberal parties must immediately commit to stop taking donations from gambling businesses including Crown.
“Gambling organisations should not be allowed to buy political influence.”

School children across six hundred of Australia’s rural and regional primary schools will have access to expanded mental health supports through the Morrison Government’s $2.5 million funding for the Smiling Mind evidence-based mindfulness social and emotional learning program.
Half of all mental health issues emerge before the age of 14 years and poor mental health affects learning. Our Government knows that prevention and early intervention – both early in life and in the development of a condition – will minimise the impact of mental illness across a lifetime.
Smiling Mind Regional and Rural Schools Program will benefit thousands of children a year. The online program runs over three school terms each year, involving both school staff training in mindfulness and resources to sustain the program and its benefits for the school.
It will also include assistance for schools to gauge the positive impact the program is having on each school community, as well as ongoing support from psychologists and mindfulness experts.
Australian school students and their families have faced many challenges over the past year as the nation responded to the COVID-19 pandemic. Smiling Minds will ensure more children can access mental health supports, which will help keep their education on track.
Smiling Mind is a world leading program, building healthy minds, engaged classrooms and equipping a generation of children with skills they need to thrive in life.
The program will be available in government, Catholic and independent primary schools in rural or regional communities experiencing disadvantage.
Rural and regional schools in South Australia and Queensland joined the program in November 2020, which is now open across the entire country.
Further information on the program is available online at: www.smilingmind.com.au/regional-and-rural-schools-program
Mental health and suicide prevention remains one of our Government’s highest priorities. We have prioritised mental health and suicide prevention services, with record investment in mental health estimated to be $5.9 billion in 2020–21 alone.
Anyone worried about their mental health, loneliness, finances, family, or other circumstances can contact the Beyond Blue Coronavirus Mental Wellbeing Support Service for free advice and counselling on 1800 512 348 or online at beyondblue.org.au. Immediate advice and support is also available through Lifeline (13 11 14) or Kids Helpline (1800 55 1800).

The Morrison Government is investing $8 million to support the Children’s Tumour Foundation and research into neurofibromatosis, a devastating condition which can cause cancer, blindness, deafness and chronic pain.
The $7 million Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) Neurofibromatosis Research Grant Opportunity will support ground breaking research projects to develop new interventions and improve healthcare and outcomes for people living with neurofibromatosis.
Neurofibromatosis is a genetic condition that can causes tumours to form around nerves, including in the brain and spinal cord. It is more common in children and young adults and while there currently is no cure, treatments can help manage this condition.
There are three types of neurofibromatosis and the most prevalent, neurofibromatosis type 1, affects up to one in every 2,500 Australians.
The 2021 Neurofibromatosis Research Grant Opportunity funding is part of the Emerging Priorities and Consumer Driven Research (EPCDR) Initiative.
The initiative helps to support high quality biomedical, clinical, health services and population health research that improves patient care, find new diagnoses, treatments and cures for those suffering from rare and debilitating conditions and translate new discoveries into clinical practice.
In addition to the MRFF funding, we are providing $1 million over four years to the Children’s Tumour Foundation. This will help the foundation continue its important work in advocacy, research and support for families with children who live with neurofibromatosis.
The MRFF is a long-term, sustainable investment in Australian health and medical research helping to improve lives, build the economy and contribute to the sustainability of the health system. It is also a capital preserved fund, which matured at $20 billion in July 2020.
Further information on the MRFF is available at www.health.gov.au/mrff and on the grant opportunities is at www.grants.gov.au.

The Government has launched the first phase of Australia’s $89.5 million Intergenerational Health and Mental Health Study – the National Study of Mental Health and Wellbeing. This comprehensive survey aims to provide an in-depth understanding of the mental health challenges that Australians are facing.
Almost half of Australians experience some form of mental illness at some point in their lifetime. In addition, the 2019 bushfires and the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have significantly affected the mental health and wellbeing of many people across the country.
The National Study of Mental Health and Wellbeing will provide unrivalled depth to our understanding of these mental health challenges and conditions.
It will capture, among other aspects, new information on self-harm, eating disorders and services used by people at risk of suicide. It will help us better understand how Australians manage their mental health and how they access support, playing a vital role in the planning and delivery of better local services now and in the future.
Up to 17,000 Australians, aged 16 to 85 will take part in the study, with the first results expected by the end of 2021.
The work is the first part of the Intergenerational Health and Mental Health Study, a multi-year study of approximately 60,000 Australians which will run until 2023 and provide the most complete picture ever of our health. It includes four national studies covering mental health, general health, nutrition and physical activity and biomedical health status.
The remaining national studies will begin from 2022 after the next Australian Census.
Mental health and suicide prevention remains one of our Government’s highest priorities. We have prioritised mental health and suicide prevention services, with record investment in mental health estimated to be $5.9 billion in 2020–21 alone.
Anyone worried about their mental health, loneliness, finances, family, or other circumstances can contact the Beyond Blue Coronavirus Mental Wellbeing Support Service for free advice and counselling on 1800 512 348 or online at beyondblue.org.au. Immediate advice and support is also available through Lifeline (13 11 14) or Kids Helpline (1800 55 1800).

Labor demands that Scott Morrison intervene to save thousands of jobs in Victoria following the announcement of the closure of ExxonMobil oil refinery at Altona.
This is devastating news for hundreds of local workers and for the future of Australia’s fuel security.
This decision will cost hundreds of direct jobs and impact thousands of workers in downstream industry. This is further proof that the Government has no plan for workers affected by these decisions.
Australia’s petrochemical manufacturers all rely on by-products produced from the ExxonMobil refinery. These manufacturers will likely need assistance, given the year they’ve had through COVID, to ensure they don’t close.
Following just months after the closure of the refinery at Kwinana in Western Australia, the Morrison Government has overseen the closure of half of our domestic refineries in the last six months.
The Government announced a $211 million so-called fuel security package in September last year to keep refineries on line.
Six months later another refinery will close its doors.
Morrison and Angus Taylor said their fuel security plan would ‘create 1,000 new jobs and protect workers in the fuel sector and in fuel-dependent industries’.
Instead, their ‘stewardship’ has seen the loss of 600 jobs at Kwinana, and the imminent loss of 350 direct jobs at Altona, and many thousands more if they continue to sit on their hands.
Another hollow headline and empty promise never delivered by Scott Morrison.
Labor warned then that the package was inadequate and failed to address Australia’s fuel security needs. Today’s announcement clearly shows this Government has no real plan.
Scott Morrison’s policy vacuum has left hundreds of workers without jobs and the nation without a sovereign supply of domestic fuel.

The Senate will next week debate legislation introduced by the Australian Greens last year aimed at fixing the lack of confidentiality protections for witnesses giving evidence to the Disability Royal Commission, ensuring that disabled people are able to tell their stories safely.
Senator Steele-John promised last year that if the Attorney General did not take action urgently to protect witnesses and give the Royal Commission the safeguards it needs, then the Greens would introduce the necessary legislation and bring it on for debate.
“The Attorney General has known about the need for these confidentiality protections for more than a year, yet he’s done almost nothing about it. We’re still yet to see a government bill put beofre either house of Parliament,” Steele-John said.
“I’m hopeful that we’ll garner enough support during the debate to bring this incredibly important issue to a vote in the Senate, putting further pressure on the Attorney General to ensure that that people’s privacy is protected beyond the life of our Royal Commission.
“The disability Royal Commission Chair Ronald Sackville AO QC wrote to the Attorney General in February of last year formally asking him to change the law, and in the Royal Commission’s second progress report, released in August last year, the Chair dedicated an entire section (page 37) to the limitations this issue was placing on the scope of the Royal Commission.
“So many people in our community have lost all faith in the system because of the violence, abuse, exploitation or neglect they, or their family, have suffered; they want to know that it is safe to tell their stories.
“Now, as public hearings start again next week, it’s more important than ever that our Royal Commission can hear evidence from as many people as possible.
“We need to urgently change the law and give people the peace of mind that telling their stories won’t cause them more harm. If this government won’t do it, then the Australian Greens will.”
The Royal Commissions Amendment (Confidentiality Protections) Bill 2020 will be debated during Private Member’s time between 10am and 12:20pm on Monday 15th February.