The government has temporarily put on hold its highly controversial dilution of consumer protections in the financial advice laws while it consults with stakeholders. The announcement by Finance Minister…
- Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra
Tony Abbott was desperate to paint his just-completed trip to Papua New Guinea in highly positive terms but as far as asylum seeker policy is concerned, it has just thrown up more problems and questions…
In this edition of The Week in Politics, University of Canberra Vice Chancellor Stephen Parker is in discussion with Michelle Grattan about the Arthur Sinodinos affair.
Interviewed recently about the government’s plan to roll back key consumer protections in Labor’s financial advice legislation, Arthur Sinodinos said his advice to consumers was to “get more informed…
Treasury secretary Martin Parkinson has announced an Australian Treasury Advisory Council, including leading business figures, to “help replicate the discipline provided by a private sector governance…
Listening to Liberal senators, you’d think Labor was accusing Arthur Sinodinos of being an axe murderer and killing the family dog to boot. In fact the opposition wasn’t demanding anything particularly…
Assistant Treasurer Arthur Sinodinos has bowed to political pressure and stood aside from the ministry during the Independent Commission against Corruption’s inquiry into a company he chaired that was…
Tony Abbott is publicly backing Arthur Sinodinos remaining in situ but it would be better for the Assistant Treasurer to stand aside while the ICAC inquiry is on. That would meet the requirements of both…
On any objective measure of experience and policy brainpower Arthur Sinodinos, widely respected chief of staff to former prime minister John Howard, should be in cabinet. Indeed, at one stage Tony Abbott…
Many federal Liberals had the chickens well and truly counted ahead of Saturday’s two elections. Now they’re reliving at one remove their own 2010 nightmare, as last votes are tallied and crossbenchers…
The result of the South Australian election remains in the balance, while Tasmanians have voted overwhelmingly to throw out Lara Giddings’ Labor government and also delivered a hefty slap to the Greens…
Parties keep saying they want to attract better candidates and then continue to throw up some shockers. On the evidence, one such has the top spot on the ALP’s ticket for the West Australian Senate election…
At the end of the election campaign Tony Abbott observed that the big difference between an opposition leader and a prime minister was that the former was inevitably the leader of a tribe while the latter…
The Productivity Commission has slammed the assessment and development processes for Australia’s public infrastructure projects, finding “numerous examples of poor value-for-money” because of bad selection…
The government’s dilemma in pursuing the so-called “Bolt amendment” to the Racial Discrimination Act has been highlighted by the experience of one of its new marginal seat holders in an electorate with…
Just imagine, for a nano second, what would happen if Labor’s Bill Shorten proposed a referendum to change Australia’s flag. He would be carved up by many on the conservative side of politics, denounced…
Malcolm Turnbull’s suggestion that the 75% “reach” rule for TV networks should be changed is not as radical as it sounds. It is certainly much less of an issue than liberalising the cross media provision…
Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull is sending out strong signals that the government is sympathetic to liberalising the cross-media rules, which now say an owner can have only two of TV, radio and…
On the matter of his paid parental leave scheme, Tony Abbott has got religion. He’s been using every occasion in the run up to Saturday’s International Women’s Day to sing hymns to what he’s determined…
The Liberals must already be relishing the thought that later this month the whole country will almost certainly be coloured conservative blue, with the exception of a tiny Labor outpost in the ACT. On…
The stipulation that Qantas must remain majority Australian-owned is, above all, a legacy of 1990s Labor politics. There is little logic in keeping it today. When the ALP government of that time walked…
Qantas has done a backflip over the role of the carbon tax in the problems it faces. After declaring on Monday that “the major issues Qantas faces are not related to carbon pricing”, it now says this cost…
As Liberal MP Ewen Jones walked out of the Coalition parties meeting, Tony Abbott gave him a pat on the back and some praise. “Well said,” the PM told the Queensland backbencher. Jones had just delivered…
It’s passing strange to hear Tony Abbott advancing the gung ho “dry” argument that Qantas must not be treated as a special case. But after he crossed that line in the sand by rejecting aid for SPC Ardmona…
The federal government will introduce legislation this week to allow majority foreign ownership of Qantas. After a two hour cabinet debate, prime minister Tony Abbott announced tonight the government would…
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