Category: Australian News

I am pleased to launch the ASEAN-Australia Centre, delivering a key commitment of the Albanese Government from the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit earlier this year.

The Centre will be launched tonight at Parliament House in Canberra alongside H.E. Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, Secretary-General of ASEAN.

The ASEAN-Australia Centre will build on the Labor Government’s work to deepen engagement with Southeast Asia and will focus on further increasing business, education, cultural and community connections with Southeast Asia. 

Key initiatives of the ASEAN-Australia Centre will include: 

• launching an Emerging Leaders Program to support the brightest minds from the region to build skills and connections; 
• investing in expanding the BRIDGE school partnerships program to connect teachers and students in Australia, Southeast Asia and Timor-Leste; and
• developing a Young Women Entrepreneur Exchange to supercharge the business and creative ventures of Australian and Southeast Asian women.

The Centre is also supporting creative industry exchanges, cultural initiatives and Southeast Asia literacy through a Grants Program. 

The Centre invites applications related to creative industry exchanges, cultural initiatives that drive two-way trade and connect our region, and practical projects that strengthen Southeast Asia literacy in Australia. Information is available on the GrantConnect website and applications are open until 10 January 2025. 

I’m also pleased to announce a partnership between the ASEAN-Australia Centre and National Museum of Australia with a world-first First Nations Art Exhibition to tour Southeast Asia from 2025. This partnership delivers on recommendations from Invested: Australia’s Southeast Asia Economic Strategy to 2040. 

From the day the Albanese Government was elected, we have worked to deepen our ties with Southeast Asia because we know how important these relationships are for Australia’s future.

With the launch of the ASEAN-Australia Centre, we have delivered on another commitment to help make Australia stronger and more influential in our region and the world, and to build a better future for Australians.

The Albanese Labor Government has launched a new International Disability Equity and Rights Strategy, to drive meaningful improvements for people with disability through Australia’s international engagement, including international development and humanitarian programs.

It is the first international disability strategy released by the Australian Government in almost a decade and for the first time, includes the introduction of a performance target for disability equity in Australia’s international development program.

Australia will also provide $12 million to expand access to essential assistive technology across the Indo-Pacific, including wheelchairs, hearing aids, prostheses, and communication devices.

The Strategy focuses on five priorities:

• partnering with people with disability and the disability rights movement;
• eliminating discrimination and exclusion;
• promoting meaningful disability inclusion;
• supporting equity in humanitarian assistance and climate action; and
• strengthening evidence on effective disability equity practices.

This will see improvements for people with disability through Australia’s support for the region, which in turn will contribute to economic growth, sustainable development, and social cohesion.

The Strategy’s release comes ahead of the United Nations International Day of People with Disability (IDPwD) marked on 3 December each year and the Strategy will be officially launched today at an event in Parliament House, Canberra to celebrate IDPwD.

International Day of People with Disability is a day to champion and promote community awareness, understanding and acceptance of people with disability. It celebrates the contributions and achievements of people with disability and is led by people with disability.

The United Nations IDPwD theme this year is Amplifying the leadership of persons with disabilities for an inclusive and sustainable future. Our Government’s approach to implementing the Strategy directly aligns to with this theme as it includes local leadership and decision-making as a priority.

Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator the Hon Penny Wong:

“Advancing equity and rights for people with disability reflects Australia’s values and helps build resilient communities, reduce poverty and foster peace.

“Through this strategy, we will continue Australia’s proud legacy of support for the rights of people with disability across the Indo-Pacific and beyond.

“The Australian Government is ensuring disability equity is an essential part of our international engagement, so no one is left behind.”

Minister for International Development and the Pacific, 
the Hon Pat Conroy MP:

“Globally, people with disability remain among the poorest and most marginalised.

“Australia’s new Strategy goes beyond disability inclusion to focus on equity and rights — addressing structural barriers that impact the dignity of all individuals.

“Importantly, people with disability helped to shape this strategy, through consultations with representative organisations and development partners from across our region.”

Minister for Social Services, the Hon Amanda Rishworth MP:

“Australia is a proud signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disability and we are committed to its implementation.

“Through our Supporting Participation Program, people with disability in Australia are supported to attend international conferences hosted by the United Nations and share their perspective and experiences on the world stage to advance equity and human rights.

“This Strategy will drive progress on our commitments and complements Australia’s Disability Strategy 2021-2031 – our national policy framework to drive action at all levels of government to improve the lives of people with disability.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met with the President of the Czech Republic, His Excellency Mr Petr Pavel, today in Canberra.

This is the first visit by a Czech President to Australia in 29 years.

Australia and the Czech Republic are likeminded partners, our relationship is underpinned by shared values and a mutual understanding of contemporary global challenges.

Prime Minister Albanese and President Pavel reaffirmed their steadfast support for Ukraine against Russian aggression, and reiterated this support would continue from both countries for as long as it takes.

The Prime Minister welcomed the Czech Republic’s increased engagement with the Indo-Pacific, as well as President Pavel’s continued advocacy for European engagement in our region.

Strengthening ties between partners like Australia and the Czech Republic allows us to respond to the shared security challenges of the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific regions.

This was the first meeting between Prime Minister Albanese and President Pavel since he assumed office in March 2023.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese:

“I am pleased to welcome President Pavel to Australia for this historic visit, the first by a Czech President in 29 years.

“Australia is fortunate to be home to a large and thriving Australian-Czech community.

“The relationship between Australia and the Czech Republic is underpinned by strong people-to-people ties and continues to grow to meet shared opportunities and global challenges.”

The Greens say both Labor and Peter Dutton have caved and failed on gambling ads, while their Bill honours the Peta Murphy Inquiry recommendations. 

Greens Communications Spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young:

“Labor has no excuse for failing to ban gambling ads and Peter Dutton’s fake vibes are no substitute for what is needed: a full ban on gambling ads as recommended by the Peta Murphy Inquiry and supported by 70% of Australians.

“Everyone can see that Labor have caved, but no one should fall for Peter Dutton’s trickery: the Coalition was in Government for years and did nothing. Both are captured by the lobby while problem gamblers keep losing.

“Australians lose more per person to gambling than any nation on earth. We could pass laws to ban gambling ads by Christmas with the Greens Bill in line with the Peta Murphy Inquiry recommendations – but both Dutton and Labor have sold out to Sportsbet and refuse to support it.”

Senators Mehreen Faruqi and Lidia Thorpe have today moved a motion in the Senate calling for the Standing Committee on Procedures to conduct an inquiry into racism within Parliament.

See the motion here.

Senator Mehreen Faruqi:

“It’s been three years since the Set the Standard report, two years since the parliamentary behaviour codes were developed and 20 months since they were endorsed by parliament, but it seems to make no difference to how women of colour are treated in here.

“The highest office in this country should lead the way on safe and respectful behaviour but it is far from it. That’s why we are seeking a review of standing orders as recommended by the Jenkins review so we can finally move to eliminate the discrimination, racism and sexism that so many are subjected to and harmed by. 

“The Senate refused to censure Senator Hanson when I was racially vilified, but they are quick to shut me down for calling out racism. Politicians in here really need a good dose of anti-racism training.

“In here, it’s easy to fling around racism and racist commentary without consequence, but if you dare call out racism or white supremacy you are shut down, silenced and gaslighted.

“If there is any workplace that needs unpacking of white privilege and white fragility, it is this parliament. 

“Despite all the revelations of the past few years, parliament still has not reckoned with its whitewashed and exclusionary culture where discrimination against First Nations people, people of colour, people with disability and LGBTQI+ people is common in practice and policy.

“Just last week I was silenced in the Senate for calling out racism and white supremacy while speaking in support of Senator Thorpe. It seems those running this place have not really listened to what the Set the Standard report had to say about systemic inequality, entitlement and exclusion. 

“I hope the Senate will support our motion so we can move forward with consistent enforcement of behaviour standards so this can be a safe workplace for all.”

Senator Lidia Thorpe

“Racism in the Senate chamber is routine. Senators dogwhistle and demonise people of colour in speeches, and racist sledging and comments have been made towards Senators of colour, myself included.

“The President and many senators don’t have a good understanding of what is and isn’t racist, and consistently fail to recognise or call it out.

“It was confronting to see that I was kicked off a parliamentary delegation to Fiji and Tuvalu because I dared to call out the King for the genocide of First Peoples, while a Senator who made appalling racist, homophobic and ableist comments online was dealt a more lenient consequence by the Senate.

“It shows that if you speak up and demand justice for First Peoples, you will be punished, while racism, homophobia and ableism are not treated seriously by the Senate.

“Discussions of racism might make people uncomfortable, but these are real problems that need to be openly discussed. It’s racist in itself to prevent these issues from being raised in the chamber, or forcing senators to withdraw.

“For young people of colour wanting to move into politics, the level of racism we see in this workplace is a major barrier and turn off.

“Racism is still frequently used as a political tool by the major parties. They use it to create fear and distrust for their political benefit, and those attitudes flow through to the rest of society. The Prime Minister and opposition leader frequently partake in racist dog whistling.

“This inquiry is about taking a stronger stance on racism and holding this parliament to a higher standard.

“It aims to ensure that the recommendations of the Jenkins report are being taken into consideration in relation to racism, and that codes of conduct are strengthened.

“Parliament is my workplace. Racism is called out in other workplaces, and it should be called out in parliament too.”

The Greens say Labor has given up on renters and first home buyers by refusing to negotiate on the government’s housing bills, but have decided to wave the legislation through to focus on campaigning for renters and against Peter Dutton at the next election.

The Greens say renters should now vote Green to put them in balance of power in a minority Parliament if they want to end tax handouts for property investors and an end to unlimited rent increases.

Greens Leader Adam Bandt MP:

“There comes a point where you’ve pushed as far as you can. We tried hard to get Labor to shift on soaring rents and negative gearing, but we couldn’t get there this time.   

“We’ll wave the housing bills through and take the fight to the next election, where we’ll keep Peter Dutton out and then push Labor to act on unlimited rent rises and tax handouts to wealthy property investors.”

Greens Housing spokesperson Max Chandler-Mather MP:

“The Greens are waving through Labor’s housing bills after accepting Labor doesn’t care enough about renters to actually do anything meaningful for them, and that is deeply, deeply disappointing. 

“Last year the Greens secured $3 billion for social housing, six times what Labor originally planned to spend, and we hoped we could secure a similar outcome this time, but the tragedy is Labor decided they’d rather have a fight with the Greens than actually help people. 

“We have pushed as hard as possible to get Labor to do more than tinkering around the edges of this devastating housing crisis in this term of parliament, but in the end we just couldn’t get Labor to care enough. 

“We got close. Labor costed changes to negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount. We were inches away from the most significant changes to housing policy in a generation that would have helped hundreds of thousands of renters, but the Prime Minister blinked and that is deeply disappointing.

“It’s now over to the people of Australia at the next election. If you want to keep out Dutton, and push Labor to cap rent increases, phase out negative gearing and establish a public developer to build affordable homes, then vote Greens.”

In a submission to the Fair Work Commission, the Labor Government has argued for a delay in paying wage increases to nurses in the aged care sector. The government has pointed to a lack of allocated funding for the increases and wants to institute a new timeline that would see nurses in aged care waiting until October 2027 to received the full increase.

Lines attributable to Senator Barbara Pocock:

“What we see here is a Labor Government reneging on a promise to lift nurses wages immediately to compensate for historical underpayment and provide relief from cost-of-living pressures.

“I see a treasurer who is suddenly faced with a big deficit looking to kick the can down the road after making promises to bring more equity into a low-paid, highly feminised industry. These nurses have been waiting too long already for recognition of the valuable work they do, and they deserve a pay rise on 1^st January as set out in the Fair Work Commission’s schedule.

“Labor needs to decide whether it’s looking after workers or trying to deliver a surplus on the back of a broken promise to some of our hardest working nurses.

“Labor is now worried about the fiscal impacts of this wage rise and its flow-on effects but lifting wages for low paid workers should be the highest priority for any Labor Government. With a big decline in the corporate tax take looming, the focus should be on getting companies to pay their fair share of tax rather than asking underpaid workers to take a hit.

“The government has cited the risk of creating staff shortages in the hospital sector if the timing of the increases is not delayed but the opposite is also true. Putting off the full increase until late 2027 could lead to aged care nurses leaving the sector in droves.

“This could be a make-or-break issue for a Government heading into an election in a cost-of-living crisis. It’s about delivering fair wages and honouring your promises and workers particularly in low-wage and feminised industries will be watching very closely.

“If Jim Chalmers is prepared to throw nurses under the bus for the sake of reducing the deficit, he’ll be sending a dangerous message to the electorate.”

Senator Mehreen Faruqi, Deputy Leader of the Australian Greens and Spokesperson for Tertiary Education, has responded to NTEU’s report “Ending bad governance for good.” 

Senator Mehreen Faruqi:

“The shocking extent and impacts of the ‘corporate university’ are laid bare by this report. It is obscene that staff have been robbed of hundreds of millions in stolen wages, yet VCs and executives walk away with hefty pay packets.

“The harsh reality is that staff and students have become expendable cogs in the machine of a corporate campus where staff and students are suffering, while the executive class is splurging on consultants and largesse. 

“Decades of neoliberal policies by governments and universities have made a mockery of universities as democratic institutions of public good.

“We need an overhaul of university governance to shift the balance of power away from the managerial class and corporate executives back to staff and students. 

“We need to reimagine better universities that are well-funded, accountable, democratic and transparent. Universities must be places of public good where staff have secure jobs and the best pay and working conditions, and students have fee-free access to quality education. 

“It is high time to fix these systemic problems, and the Greens support NTEUs calls for a parliamentary inquiry.” 

Following a lengthy Senate inquiry, the Greens have today announced their opposition to the Government’s mis and disinformation bill and have called for the bill to be withdrawn. The Greens have heard evidence from experts, lawyers and the community that the Government’s approach doesn’t get to the heart of tackling the harms of mis and disinformation. There are serious concerns that handing responsibility over to tech platforms to self-regulate what is true or false will likely have unintended consequences that undermine the policy intent.

Greens’ opposition means the bill cannot pass the Senate. The Government has failed to address the significant concerns that have been raised by many in the community, and the Greens are today calling on the Government to withdraw the bill.

Greens spokesperson for communications and Senator for South Australia, Sarah Hanson-Young said:

“The Greens understand that mis and disinformation is a growing danger to democracy, public discourse, health and safety both in Australia and around the world and needs to be tackled. 

“However we are concerned this bill doesn’t actually do what it needs to do when it comes to stopping the deliberate mass distribution of false and harmful information.

“It gives media moguls like Murdoch an exemption and hands over responsibility to tech companies and billionaires like Elon Musk to determine what is true or false under ambiguous definitions. It does little to stop non-human actors like bots flooding social media and boosting dangerous algorithms.

“There has been strong community opposition to this bill, and experts have also raised serious concerns. The Government has failed to address these.

“As such, the Greens will be opposing the bill. The Government should listen to community concern and withdraw this legislation.

“Instead, the Government needs to focus on comprehensive reforms that tackle the business models and dangerous algorithms that fuel division and damage democracy, and legislate a duty of care so these platforms prevent harm in the first place.”

The People’s Blockade of the World’s Largest Coal Port has been under sustained attack by the NSW Government. 2020 Newcastle Young Citizen, Alexa Stuart, is today taking the NSW Minns Labor Government to the Supreme Court in a bid to find their 97 hour exclusion order for the Hunter River mouth and beaches unlawful.

Greens MP and spokesperson for Justice and public interest lawyer Sue Higginson said “This is a very important case, at this time. This case is about the rule of law and questioning whether the Government has unlawfully stepped above it. The Court will be asked to determine if this is a lawful use of power and for a proper purpose,”

“The question is, has the notice excluded the public from the water beyond the power that the Marine Safety Act provides. The powers under the law to exclude vessels and people are to facilitate special events such as swim events, regattas and events involving vessels, they are not unfettered powers for the Government to do as they want, when they want, to control people and infringe upon the ordinary rights of people wanting to play in the waters of NSW,”

“We know the NSW Labor Government does not want the people to protest against their current climate change and coal policies that are allowing the continued export of coal through the port of Newcastle,”

“The Government continues to say that its exercise of power against the people is all about safety, but we know if it was about safety – they would be working with the people, to ensure safety, not criminalising ordinary behaviour such as swimming, exercising, paddling, playing and cooling down in the public waters of the state.”

“Keeping people safe means working with people, not trying to squash, hurt and criminalise them. When a Government is at war with the people, it doesn’t go well for anyone, we do see excesses of power and it offends our democracy,” Ms Higginson said