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Government ‘trying to avoid’ Covid-style mandates, Chalmers says
Working from home “makes a lot of sense” right now, the treasurer, Jim Chalmers, says, but he says the government won’t be enforcing Covid-style mandates on households.
Ahead of the national cabinet meeting today, Chalmers tells ABC News Breakfast the states and territories and commonwealth will need to work together to avoid “harsher” measures as the crisis deepens.
He says that Australians shouldn’t cancel their Easter weekend road trips but should use fuel responsibly.
The best way to get through this is to get through it together, to work through these issues, in a coordinated and ideally consistent way around the country. And the best way to avoid the kind of harsher Covid style measures is to do that work. And the better we do at the front end of this challenge that we have in our economy, the more likely we are to avoid some of those kind of harsher measures and restrictions down the track.
We’re trying to avoid those kind of a heavier-handed Covid [style] interventions. But work from home in a number of instances makes a lot of sense. The prime minister has indicated more of a willingness to go down the voluntary path than the compulsory path.
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Patrick Commins
Iran war to last into June, CBA analyst says
CBA’s top geopolitical strategist has warned the Middle East conflict is likely to last “at least into June”, saying Donald Trump will not be able to unilaterally extract himself from his war on Iran.
Madison Cartright said we shouldn’t hope for a repeat of the Taco trade (or “Trump Always Chickens Out”) that had been a feature of his coercive trade policies.
Tariff policy was the prerogative of the president. But he cannot unilaterally decide when to end the war with Iran.
As Cabinet sits down to develop a united strategy to deal with the fuel crisis, Cartwright laid out why federal and state leaders should be planning for a longer conflict that stretches our limited fuel reserves.
Any lasting agreement to end the war must include Israel and Iran.
There is no common ground between Iranian demands and US demands at present. There is also a schism between the US and Israel. If the US were to end its participation in the war before meeting its objectives, Israel will likely continue the war.
There is also no guarantee that Iran will open the strait of Hormuz if the US were to abruptly exit the war without negotiating an agreement favourable to Iran first.
Jonathan Barrett
Selling pressure intensifies on ASX due to Iran war escalation
The Australian share market has opened sharply lower this morning, as fears of a prolonged Middle East conflict ignite oil prices and trigger a bout of global inflation.
Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX 200 dropped 1% in early trading to hover near the 8,430 point mark. The index is down more than 8% from levels reached late last month, shortly before the conflict erupted.
Market strategy consultant Greg Boland, from trading platform Moomoo says selling pressure has intensified as the Iran war outlook worsens.
He says:
The combination of rising volatility, persistent inflation concerns, and ongoing geopolitical uncertainty is keeping investors on the defensive, with markets increasingly pricing a higher-for-longer interest rate environment.
The ASX has been pulled around by sharp moves in the oil price, with rising energy prices fuelling global inflation, which drags down equity markets.
While investors largely ignored the initial strikes against Iran, sentiment has soured due to concerns the US does not have a clean exit strategy that can guarantee a stable resumption of the oil trade, and other freight, through the crucial Strait of Hormuz.
Benita Kolovos
The Victorian attorney general, Sonya Kilkenny, was holding a press conference in Melbourne as the news emerged of the police shooting of Dezi Freeman. She said:
It is a developing situation and of course understand Victoria police has put out a statement a few moments ago. I think the main thing is our thoughts, our concerns and our support are with the Porepunkah community and the families of the two police officers who were killed in that tragic incident nearly six months ago.
Reopening strait of Hormuz will ‘bring down price of fuel at the bowser’, Taylor says
Angus Taylor says he wants the strait of Hormuz opened up, when pressed on whether he supports Donald Trump’s war on Iran.
Taylor is asked twice whether he supports the war in Iran and whether he “100% supports” the tactics of Trump.
Both times the opposition leader skirts around the question and says the idea of bringing down fuel prices by reopening the waterway isn’t unpopular.
We absolutely want to see the strait of Hormuz opened up. We want to see that happen straight away. Because that will bring down the price of fuel at the bowser. So we want America to succeed in those endeavours. We want it to happen as quickly as possible.
I don’t think the idea of bringing down fuel prices by opening up the strait of Hormuz is unpopular at all.
‘Let’s not tax it more’: Taylor rejects tax on gas exports
Appearing to stand in direct contrast to his colleague Andrew Hastie, Angus Taylor says shuts down the idea of implementing a gas export tax.
This perhaps creates a bit of tension between the two, after Hastie said he was open to a 25% export windfall tax last week.
Even Anne Ruston this morning – despite not directly endorsing a gas tax – said there should be a more open and transparent conversation around tax in the Liberal party.
Taylor shut that conversation down.
I don’t think anything has changed about whether we need more houses, whether we need more gas, or whether we need more oil, we need all of those things, and you don’t get more of those things by raising taxes, so it’s pretty straightforward for me.
If we want more of something, let’s not tax it more. And we do want more gas, we want more crude oil.
Four tests for national cabinet, says Angus Taylor
Heading back to Canberra, the opposition leader, Angus Taylor is speaking to reporters and says there are four clear tests for the government out of national cabinet today.
Taylor says the fuel needs to be transported to where it’s needed, the fuel excise should be cut in half, there should be transparency in the fuel supply chain and the national cabinet needs to tell Australians “what comes next”.
The message is similar to what the opposition was pushing last week, pressuring the government during question time to explain why fuel wasn’t getting to areas – particularly regional areas – facing shortages.
Taylor says:
We have heard and seen last week a whole series of plans being bandied around, around rationing, around limits to the amount that families can take at the Bowser, look, we just need transparency.
This government keeps telling us there’s more than enough stocks. They’ve told us that time and time again, the stock levels are up at a higher level than they were before the crisis. And so what we need is the stocks move to the companies.
Police association says Dezi Freeman shot dead by police
Benita Kolovos
Wayne Gatt, secretary of the Police Association Victoria, has just issued a statement saying the man fatally shot was Dezi Freeman.
He said:
Our members said they would find him. They did.
Closure isn’t the right word. This represents a step forward for our members, for the families of our fallen members and for the community. It doesn’t lessen the trauma, give back the futures that were callously stolen or lessen the collective fear and grief that this tragic event has instilled in police and the wider public.
Gatt said police officers “won’t reflect on the loss of a coward”. Instead, he said they will spend the day remembering “the courage and bravery of our fallen members and every officer that has doggedly pursued this outcome for the community”.
Gatt’s statement went on:
They have worked tirelessly. During the emergency, in the operation that followed and the months thereafter, members across the state have devoted themselves to this singular pursuit. Days like today offer a sobering reminder that policing happens while you sleep, when the media spotlight on an investigation dims and when everything seems lost and forgotten. RIP Vadim and Neal. Today, we remember you.
Benita Kolovos
Freeman is accused of shooting dead two officers, Det Sen Const Neal Thompson and Sen Const Vadim de Waart-Hottart, and injuring a third in the town of Porepunkah on 26 August.
Freeman was home with his family when police attended the property to serve a warrant in relation to alleged historical sexual offending.
He fled the scene immediately after the shooting in the direction of Mount Buffalo national park.
Less than two hours later, police said a single gunshot was heard coming from the bushland – a report that was later corroborated by investigators.
In February, police conducted another extensive search of the park and told reporters they were exploring three scenarios in relation to Freeman: he died near Mount Buffalo by self-harm or misadventure; he escaped the area and was being harboured; or that he has escaped the area and has survived without help.
Here’s what we reported at the time:
Victoria police fatally shoot man in search for Dezi Freeman
Benita Kolovos
In some breaking news, police have fatally shot a man in their search for Dezi Freeman, the man accused of killing two officers in Porepunkah last year.
In a statement this morning, police said the fatal shooting occurred at a property in north-east Victoria shortly after 8.30am.
No police officers were injured during the incident.
They said the state coroner will attend the scene and the investigation will be overseen by professional standards command, which is standard process for a police shooting.
A press conference will be held at 11am.
‘Damning indictment’: crossbench and Coalition unite to push Labor on home care support
As we brought you a little earlier, members of the crossbench, Greens and the Coalition have come together to push the government to reform its aged care home care program.
David Pocock said he’d heard stories of older Australians being charged $200 for a shower, and many were going without basic care.
The Coalition’s shadow health and aged care minister, Anne Ruston says “it speaks volumes” that parliamentarians across the political spectrum have come together on the issue.
This is a damning indictment of the government’s failed Support at Home rollout and the real harm it is causing vulnerable older Australians.
It is unacceptable that Labor is allowing a flawed algorithm to determine what care an older Australian can receive … The Government is relying on an automated system that clearly doesn’t work, while ignoring the expertise of doctors and nurses.
The same pollies banded together last year to force the government to bring extra home care places online, as wait lists sky rocketed.
NSW treasurer calls for national framework with ‘triggers’
The New South Wales treasurer, Daniel Mookhey, says he wants to see a national framework put in place with planned interventions and triggers for those interventions.
Ahead of the national cabinet meeting today, Mookhey spoke with ABC RN Breakfast, and said while everyone has been talking about all the states and commonwealth working together that needs to be translated “from a principle into practice”, with the development of a framework.
Those interventions should be staged, they should be escalating, and they should be commensurate to the challenges that we’re facing in the market. I think that’s pretty common sense. People would expect us to have pretty clear, or at least as clear as we can, triggers for actions.
People would expect us to have pretty clear, or at least as clear as we can, triggers for actions. And then people are entitled to know what exactly, the actions are.
A couple of states including Victoria and Tasmania have pledge free public transport to combat the rising fuel cost for consumers.
Mookhey says that’s a decision for individual states, and doesn’t have to be a nationally coordinated approach.
