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New polling released today shows 87% of Australians are supportive of The Greens’ calls to change how Australia goes to war.

The poll of 1500 people, commissioned by Mike Smith, a journalist, former Howard Government adviser, and supporter of Australians For War Powers Reform, found that support for war powers reform has jumped 4% in less than a year.

Greens Senator Jordon Steele-John, Peace Spokesperson said:

“Right now the Prime Minister and Cabinet can unilaterally decide to follow the United States into conflicts like Afghanistan and Iraq with disastrous outcomes. Our community is overwhelmingly supportive of our Greens bill that would change the law so that a vote of both houses of parliament is needed to deploy the Australian Defence Force overseas.

“So many in our community have watched the humanitarian disaster unfolding in Afghanistan with deep sadness. At the end of the 20-year war in Afghanistan, we must immediately begin to assess and evaluate how it came to this. The proposed reform will ensure that a peace-focused approach is brought to our defence force and that members of parliament will be held to account for the consequences of sending Australians to war.

“We must never again participate in a colonial war of aggression. Our goal must always be peace.”

Additional Information:

• • Senator Steele-John’s War Powers Reform Bill is currently being reviewed by a committee, with submissions welcome from the public. More information. 
• • Today’s national poll results can be found here: www.mikesmithcanberra.com
• • The 2020 Roy Morgan national poll can be found here

With the confirmation of new Senator for Western Australia Dorinda Cox today, Greens Leader, Adam Bandt, has put the Greens on election footing with a reshuffle of the Greens’ ‘shadow Ministerial’ portfolios that prioritises the party’s key campaign areas and sets the party up for ‘balance of power’ negotiations in the likely event of a minority Parliament.

Mr Bandt says the new line-up will give the Greens the best chance of kicking the government out and getting the Greens into balance of power, as well as shifting public attention to the Greens’ election priority areas of levying ‘tycoon taxes’ on billionaires and big corporations to get dental and mental health into Medicare and build more affordable housing while phasing out coal and gas.

The Greens will also campaign heavily to younger people, focusing on climate, mental health and affordable housing.

A full list of portfolios is attached below.

“This is the most important election in a generation. It will decide whether we can turn the climate crisis around, make billionaire corporations pay their fair share of tax and fix the housing market, or whether the Liberals will get away with robbing millions of people of their future,” Mr Bandt said.

“The next election will be much closer than people think. We are only a few hundred votes away from kicking Scott Morrison out and putting the Greens in balance of power, where our new Greens line-up will push the next government to go further and faster on climate action, stop skyrocketing economic inequality and tax the billionaires and big corporations.

“The new Greens line-up will focus on phasing out coal and gas, making billionaire corporations pay their fair share of tax, getting dental and mental health into Medicare and building more affordable housing.

“I’m proud to be part of a team that reflects the community we’re fighting for. The future of our country should not be just dictated by yet more old, white men. It’s vital that our political representatives reflect the incredible makeup of our country.

“The public sector has helped get us through the pandemic, and growing publicly-owned renewable energy will be a part of Larissa Waters’ push to kick Pauline Hanson out of the Senate in Queensland and elect Penny Allman-Payne.

“Scott Morrison has completely failed young people, leaving them locked down, locked into low wages, and locked out of housing. As the youngest person in Parliament, Senator Jordon Steele-John will take on both the Health and Youth portfolios as part of the Greens’ fight to get mental health and dental health fully into Medicare, whilst also ensuring that at-risk communities are not left exposed by the government’s flawed vaccination strategy.

“I’m looking forward to seeing Senator Dorinda Cox tear into West Australia’s mining billionaires, making them pay their fair share of tax and think twice about destroying First Nations culture for profit. Dorinda will join Lidia Thorpe in continuing to put justice for First Nations people and Treaty at the heart of our work in the coming months.

“With the Community Services portfolio, Senator Janet Rice understands best how 227 days of lockdown have pushed many Victorians to breaking point. She’ll be a fierce advocate to make sure there is no poverty in a rich country, building on Senator Rachel Siewert’s incredible legacy.

“The urgency of rebuilding Australia’s car manufacturing sector has only grown, and Senator Sarah Hanson-Young will drive the Greens’ push to make electric vehicles in South Australia, capitalising on the state’s rich renewable energy opportunities and providing sorely needed jobs. Electrifying our transport options will be essential in the fight to reduce climate pollution and stopping dangerous global warming.

“In the crucial state of NSW, where the fight will be between the Greens and One Nation in the Senate, Mehreen Faruqi will lead the campaign to build 1 million new homes for people locked out of housing.

“Nick McKim will continue to lead the charge on getting billionaires and big corporations  to pay their fair share of tax, and Senator Whish-Wilson will continue to lead the fight to protect Tasmania’s forests, rivers and oceans.

“This team builds on the expertise the Greens have brought to Parliament over my time as Leader. The Australian Greens parliamentary team is set to be bigger than we’ve ever been after the next election, and this is the team to get us there.”

MP	PORTFOLIOS
Australian Greens Leader Adam Bandt Member for Melbourne	• Climate Emergency • Energy • Employment & Workplace Relations
Co-Deputy Leader & Australian Greens Leader in the Senate Larissa Waters Senator for Queensland	• Women • Democracy (covers Local Government) • Lead on Climate Emergency & Energy (Senate) • Public Sector
Co-Deputy Leader, Party Whip & Australian Greens Deputy Leader in the Senate Nick McKim Senator for Tasmania	• Treasury, Finance & Economic Justice • Immigration & Citizenship  • Digital Rights, I.T. & NBN
Sarah Hanson-Young Senator for South Australia	• Arts, Media & Communications • Environment & Water • Tourism • Gambling • Transport & Infrastructure
Peter Whish-Wilson Senator for Tasmania	• Agriculture & Rural Affairs  • Healthy Oceans • Waste & Recycling • Consumer Affairs • Small Business
Party Room Chair Janet Rice Senator for Victoria	• Foreign Affairs • Multiculturalism • Forests • LGBTIQ • Family, Ageing & Community Services
Jordon Steele-John Senator for Western Australia	• Disability Rights & Services • Youth • Peace & Disarmament (covers Defence) • Nuclear • Veterans’ Affairs • Health (including Dental & Mental Health)
Temporary Senate Chair Mehreen Faruqi Senator for New South Wales	• Housing • Education • Animal Welfare • Industry • International Aid & Development • Anti-Racism • Lead on Employment & Workplace Relations (Senate)
Lidia Thorpe Senator for Victoria	• First Nations • Justice • Sport
Dorinda Cox Senator for Western Australia	• Mining & Resources • Trade • Science, Research & Innovation

Greens Senator for South Australia Sarah Hanson-Young will drive a plan to manufacture electric vehicles in her home state and encourage a national incentive scheme to accelerate the uptake of EVs, as the party’s new portfolio holder.
Senator Hanson-Young said:
“I’m committed to taking up the fight for EVs in Australia. Today’s electric cars are smart, comfortable and better for the environment – and I can’t lie, the acceleration is awesome.
“Australia is lagging behind the rest of world on both climate action and the take up of electric vehicles, held back by the obstructionist policies of the Morrison Government.  It’s time for us to pick up the pace. Australia needs a nation-wide electric car plan to drive us forward.
“Rather than taxes on EVs we need incentives for drivers to switch form polluting vehicles to green transport options.
“With a national plan for EVs we can not only incentivise their uptake, reduce emissions and help our planet, we can create jobs by making the cars of the future right here.
“What better place to revitalise our car manufacturing than in South Australia which continues to feel the impacts of the closure of Holden on the Coalition Government’s watch.
“Investing in local manufacturing would create thousands of jobs and not just any jobs but clean, green sustainable jobs.
“If we are going to reach net zero emissions by 2035 – which we must if we are to have any chance of staying below 1.5 degrees of warming, then we urgently need to increase the uptake of EVs. With national incentives we can drive down the cost of EVs and in turn, drive down emissions.
“We just need the political will, not naysayer, climate deniers like those in the Morrison Government. Prime Minister Morrison was wrong when he declared electric cars would ‘end the weekend’ – he was wrong, out-of-touch and globally embarrassing. I challenge the Prime Minister to come for a spin in an EV.  He might just find the right gear and steer Australia in the right direction when it comes electrifying our transport systems.”

The Morrison Government welcomes the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Economic Survey of Australia, which commends the Government’s “strong economic response to the pandemic”.
In its first Survey since December 2018, the OECD’s latest survey focuses on the Government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the role of the financial sector both during the pandemic and into the future in supporting the recovery.
Policy response to COVID-19
The OECD survey highlights the Government’s “well-coordinated” response since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, acknowledging that “macroeconomic policy support was delivered swiftly and with appropriate force at the onset of the pandemic” and “played a particularly important role in stabilising the economy and the living standards of the population”. The “core component” of the fiscal response was JobKeeper, which the OECD acknowledges “saved at least 700,000 jobs”.
The Government’s fiscal response was enabled by Australia having “entered the pandemic in a strong fiscal position” as “the federal Budget had returned to balance in Financial Year 2018/19”.
The Survey also acknowledges the large number of temporary regulatory measures put in place by the Government, including insolvency protections and supporting loan deferrals, to effectively “buffer against the economic shock”.
The strong economic management of the pandemic has meant that Australia’s “downturn in 2020 was less significant than in the majority of other OECD countries” and ensured “the economy bounced back rapidly”.
Encouragingly, the Survey notes a “substantial quickening in the pace of the vaccine rollout” and that “once the economy reopens, household consumption could also pick up surprisingly rapidly given a high stock of excess savings”.
The OECD anticipates that the economy will see solid growth of 4 per cent in 2021 and 3.3 per cent in 2022, highlighting the resilience of the Australian economy despite the current headwinds posed by the delta variant and ongoing lockdowns.
With more than 43 per cent of Australians fully vaccinated, progress towards our nationally agreed targets of 70 to 80 per cent is accelerating. As the Survey notes, once we reach these targets, “the reopening of international borders will support the economic recovery through enabling foreign student arrivals, bilateral tourism and population growth stemming from net immigration”.
Progress on Survey recommendations
The Morrison Government has made strong progress on the OECD’s key Survey recommendations.
Specifically, fiscal policy continues to be responsive to developments in economic conditions. More than $6.6 billion in COVID-19 Disaster Payments has been provided to 2 million Australians and significant business support continues to be provided in partnership with the States and Territories.
The Survey also recognises the significant tax relief provided to low and middle income earners through the Morrison Government’s Personal Income Tax Plan.
The report also notes that bracket creep, if unaddressed, will result in increasing average taxes over time. This further underlines the importance of the structural reform implemented through the Government’s Stage 3 tax cuts which will remove an entire tax bracket and ensure that 95 per cent of taxpayers face a marginal tax rate of no more than 30 cents in the dollar.
The OECD commends the Government for its significant progress on previous OECD recommendations such as better targeting of the Research and Development Tax Incentive and introducing a ‘Patent Box’ to drive innovation and productivity.
The OECD also recognises the importance of the Government’s legislated automatic mutual recognition reforms and encourages remaining jurisdictions to follow the Commonwealth’s lead to support Australian workers and boost productivity growth.
With respect to climate change, the Government remains committed to its approach of technology, not taxes, in reaching net zero emissions as soon as we possibly can, preferably by 2050. The Survey acknowledges that “strong institutions are already in place to support these aims”.
Role of the financial sector
The Survey also noted that as a result of key reforms introduced by the Government over several years, “the strength of the Australian financial system allowed it to support the economy during the crisis”.
Importantly, as highlighted by the OECD, to further support the recovery the Government will continue to pursue reforms to ensure small and emerging businesses have access to a range of funding sources, including streamlining lending laws, expanding ‘Open Banking’ and via the Australian Business Growth Fund.
The latest OECD Economic Survey confirms the Government’s economic plan is working and that the fundamentals of the Australian economy remain strong.
The Morrison Government will continue to support the recovery so that the Australian economy can bounce back once COVID-19 related restrictions are eased.

The Australian Government is further boosting the vaccination program for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people across 30 priority areas to ensure all Australians can access a COVID-19 vaccine.
Since the start of the vaccination program the Government has been working closely with the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO), states and territories and other Indigenous organisations to ensure every Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander person has the opportunity to get vaccinated. Now with increased supplies and in response to current outbreak situations the Government is significantly boosting efforts to expedite vaccination uptake.
In partnership with NACCHO, states and territories, Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services (ACCHS) and other Indigenous stakeholders, the Australian Government will immediately accelerate the vaccination program in 30 priority areas including:

• Western Australia– Greater Geraldton, Swan, Gosnells, Derby – West Kimberley, Port Hedland – South Hedland, Kalgoorlie – Boulder, Goldfields Esperance Region.
• Queensland – Brisbane, Bundaberg, Cairns, Fraser Coast, Gold Coast, Ipswich, Logan, Mackay, Mareeba, Mission River, Moreton Bay, Normanton, Palm Island, Rockhampton, Sunshine Coast, Toowoomba and Townsville
• New South Wales– Central Coast and Wollongong areas
• Northern Territory – Greater Darwin, North-East Arnhem Land and Barkly
• South Australia– Port Lincoln

Minister for Health and Aged Care, Greg Hunt, said this builds on work done to date in partnership with NACCHO, the ACCHS, and the Royal Flying Doctors Service to deliver COVID-19 vaccinations to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in a culturally safe and appropriate way.
“Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have been a priority for vaccination since the beginning stages of the national vaccination program, considerable effort has been taken to ensure COVID-19 vaccines are readily and widely available for communities,” Minister Hunt said.
“We are absolutely committed to seeing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander vaccination rates meet, if not exceed, the national target.”
Minister Wyatt said there has been significant work done to date to work with communities to tackle their individual needs and concerns, including countering vaccine hesitancy, in order to boost vaccination uptake.
“It’s my hope that every Indigenous Australian gets vaccinated – local Indigenous leaders across the country are playing a pivotal role in helping us achieve high vaccination rates, combat misinformation, and dispel vaccine myths,” Minister Wyatt said.
The boost to the rollout for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people will build on the work already underway in Western New South Wales regions where Indigenous vaccination rates for first doses increased from 44.2 per cent to 67.8 per cent and for second doses from 26.1 per cent to 39.7 per cent over the past four weeks.
The Government will immediately provide an additional $7.7 million to NACCHO to amplify efforts to reduce the vaccination gap by working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ACCHS and other organisations supporting the vaccination of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. This will include:

• Additional vaccine liaison officers employed to work directly with remote and very remote communities, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living in discrete communities in other areas.
• Boosting work alongside vaccine providers to support community engagement activities and providing culturally safe messaging, address vaccine hesitancy, facilitate informed consent and conduct health promotion activities.

This is in addition to $19 million provided to NACCHO to date, to support the crucial role of ACCHS in the pandemic response.
Chief Executive of NACCHO, Pat Turner AM, said working with communities was critical to ensuring a successful vaccine rollout for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and welcomes the Australian Government’s ongoing partnership with NACCHO and our sector.
“The recent outbreaks have demonstrated the need to accelerate the vaccine rollout for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. NACCHO continues to play a critical role in addressing hesitancy and ensuring timely and culturally appropriate information is provided to communities to encourage vaccinations,” Ms Turner said.
“This additional funding will further bolster our work in supporting all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to access a vaccine by the end of this year.”
Throughout the pandemic, the Government has worked in partnership with First Nations communication companies to develop editorial, social and advertising to reach the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander audience.
To further boost these efforts, the Government will also fund First Nations Media Australia, the national peak body for the First Nations media and communications industry, to produce and distribute a package of culturally appropriate public relations content to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples about the vaccine rollout.

The partnership includes a range of activities that are planned to support the vaccine rollout, aiming to broaden the conversation around vaccinations, address misinformation and build positive sentiment and intention toward vaccination by using local and trusted voices and sharing positive stories.
The work will be undertaken by a number of local Indigenous media organisations across the country, with a particular emphasis on the areas that are included in the acceleration plan.
This builds on the Australian Government’s National Vaccination Communications Campaign, which continues to deliver tailored communication to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander audiences as a priority.
The Australian Government will continue to work with state and territory governments, NACCHO, ACCHS, the National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA), the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) and other Indigenous stakeholders to ensure Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have the opportunity to be vaccinated.
Data on the 30 priority areas will be updated weekly and will be available at Health.gov.au.