Online Press review 17 March 2015
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FRONT PAGE
University reforms: U-turn fails to win over Senate (AUS) Martin, Lewis A LAST-DITCH compromise aimed at winning support for university fee deregulation will be voted down by the Senate tomorrow, leaving the future of tertiary funding in doubt. Malcolm Turnbull wears media backlash (AUS) Crowe A FIGHT over media reform is threatening to spark a new round of leadership talk within the federal government as Malcolm Turnbull battles criticism of policy ideas that were leaked against him before they were hammered out by cabinet. Metadata shift to protect sources (AUS) Crowe SECURITY agencies will have to seek court approval before checking on a journalist’s phone and internet records under a major government concession to secure the passage of new data retention laws by the end of this week. Silence from the Islands: grave concern for outlying villages smashed by Pam (AUS) McKenna The fate of thousands of people in Vanuatu - including scores of Australians - was last night still unknown, with communications down and rescuers struggling to get to many of the archipelago's islands in the wake of cyclone Pam. Abbott government's uni fee law headed for defeat despite major backdown (CAN+SMH) Knott The Abbott government's last-ditch bid to win support for its higher education reforms by abandoning a threat to sack 1700 scientists has failed to convince the Senate crossbench to support the deregulation of university fees.
DOMESTIC AFFAIRS
POLITICS Peta Credlin ‘conflict’ brawl escalates as texts leaked (AUS) Crowe THE key figure in the Liberal Party dispute over financial secrecy has escalated his calls for - action on a “conflict of interest” at the top of the party amid damaging leaks of his private criticism of Tony Abbott’s chief of staff, Peta Credlin. PM must ignore critics and continue reforms (AUS/Opinion) Newman FOR the Left there is no greater hate figure than Tony Abbott. After all, the Prime Minister is a liberal of the European school and embraces all the policy instincts and beliefs the Left despises. What’s more, Abbott effectively toppled Australia’s first female prime minister, the Left’s beloved Julia Gillard, and it is determined to get even. The budget is more than a political failure, it is a fiscal disaster (AFR/Comment) Tingle At some point pretty soon, the 2014 budget is going to have to be called for what it is: not just a political disaster, but a budget disaster.
Ambassade de France en Australie – Service de Presse et Information Site : http://www.ambafrance-au.org/ Tél. : 61 (02) 6216 0150 Email : [email protected]
Prime Minister Tony Abbott still on notice from Liberal colleagues (AFR) Coorey An instigator of the last month's spill motion against Tony Abbott believes the Prime Minister will stand aside for the good of the party and the country if he is unable to revive his fortunes. Australia, the confused country (AFR/Opinion) Emerson Policy The Abbott government charges on policy, followed by rapid retreats, have left Australia feeling not the clever country or even the lucky country – just uncertain about how it should face undoubted challenges. Survival instinct could see Tony Abbott axed, claims Amanda Vanstone (CAN+SMH) Kenny Former Howard government minister Amanda Vanstone has warned worried marginal seat Liberals will move against Prime Minister Tony Abbott in an attempt to keep their jobs unless his polling improves substantially. Christopher Pyne splits the bill but merely doubles the defeat (CAN+SMH/Analysis) Kenny The indefatigable Christopher Pyne has done it again - proclaiming a shrewd tactical advance from what looms as another sickening defeat for a government growing fat on a diet of its words. Can Glenn Lazarus raise his political career from the mire? (SMH/Opinion) Reith Glenn Lazarus is the senator who said of the government's education reforms: "You can polish a turd for as long as you want, but it will always be a turd." No wonder the standing of the Senate is at a low point. Just when the country needs a Senate that can fairly judge the big issues facing Australia, the Senate voting system delivers people such as Lazarus.
SA NUCLEAR ROYAL COMMISSION Labor MP Leesa Vlahos says pro-nuclear debate 'getting easier' (AFR) Evans South Australian Labor MP Leesa Vlahos says pro-nuclear advocates have started to win the debate in the five weeks since Premier Jay Weatherill announced a royal commission into the nuclear industry.
ECONOMY An alternative path to interest rate cuts to boost the economy (AFR/Opinion) Toohey Interest rate policy used to be pretty simple. Put rates up high enough and growth and inflation go down. Put rates down far enough and growth and inflation go up. Paul Keating followed the rules zealously while Labor treasurer in 1989-90. He put the cash rate up to a thumping 17 per cent and cut overheated growth so much he produced a savage recession.
SECURITY/TERRORISM PM caves on access to journalists' metadata (AFR) Kerin Prime Minister Tony Abbott has made it harder for spy agencies to access journalists' metadata in proposed new data retention legislation, in response to fierce parliamentary and media opposition. Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull's metadata move will aid regulators, not security (AFR/Opinion) Berg Security The government claims that the new metadata requirements will help in fighting terrorism, but the real beneficiaries will be the regulators fighting economic crimes such as copyright violations, writes Chris Berg.
RET Labor talks fail on renewable energy deal (AUS) Maher THE stalemate between the government and Labor on the Renewable Energy Target remains after a meeting between Bill Shorten and interest groups yesterday.
EDUCATION/SCIENCE ‘Door-knocking’ diplomas (AUS/Feature) Bita STRUGGLING single mum Rebecca Warfield saved money on cheap haircuts at a hairdressing college in Sydney.
Ambassade de France en Australie – Service de Presse et Information Site : http://www.ambafrance-au.org/ Tél. : 61 (02) 6216 0150 Email : [email protected]
Craig Emerson backs higher education compromise deal (AFR) Dodd, Potter Former Labor higher education minister Craig Emerson backed a compromise deal on university fee deregulation on Monday which would allow student fees to rise but penalise universities which pushed their course prices too high. Higher education deregulation doomed (AFR) Coorey Government plans to deregulate universities appear doomed despite a last-ditch compromise that includes shelving legislation to slash university funding by 20 per cent, and dumping plans to sack 1700 scientists by denying the research sector ongoing funding. Garnaut: Botched education reform caps 15-year slide in political culture (AFR) Potter Two of Australia's top economists slammed education minister Christopher Pyne's scorched earth approach to university reform as the end result of a long term slide in national political culture.
ENVIRONMENT Greg Hunt bans dumping in Great Barrier Reef marine park (AFR) Ludlow Federal Environment Minister Greg Hunt said he was confident he could convince the World Heritage Committee not to place the Great Barrier Reef on an endangered list after placing a permanent ban on dredge spoil – which is mostly sand – being dumped in the marine park.
INDIGENOUS AFFAIRS Indigenous employers in line for $1bn in public contracts (AUS) Martin INDIGENOUS businesses will receive more than $1 billion over the next five years under new rules aimed at boosting employment of first Australians.
MEDIA Malcolm Turnbull stirs up Rupert Murdoch, media barons (AFR/Feature) White Rupert Murdoch is not a happy mogul. When news leaked on Friday afternoon that Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull had proposed a media reform package to the Prime Minister Tony Abbott, Murdoch's lieutenants were taken aback.
FOREIGN AFFAIRS
FOREIGN POLICY Tanya Plibersek denies turnback link to Bali mercy efforts (AUS) Owens TANYA Plibersek’s office has denied she linked the Coalition’s boat turnback policy to Tony Abbott’s frustrated efforts to save Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran during a TV interview on Sunday. China irresistible for Washington's old friends (AFR/Opinion) Kehoe Washington observed Britain's decision to join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank gives cover for Australia to follow suit – especially when the United States' own stance on the issue is confusing.
IRQ/SYR How the ADF is mentoring Iraqi forces can't be shown in a cute snapshot (CAN/Opinion) Stuart At first glance it's difficult to work out exactly what's wrong in the photo. Then it's suddenly obvious – the head on the vehicle's radiator has been severed from its body and carefully placed on the front of the Humvee. It's propped there like a gristly car badge, a symbol of the Iraqi military's determination to eliminate the Shia insurgents.
VANUATU Vanuatu cyclone: Politics of climate change in the wind (AUS) Lloyd THE destruction wrought by Cyclone Pam’s 250km-plus winds in Vanuatu has whipped the - climate change politics of Pacific leaders and sceptics into a frenzy.
Ambassade de France en Australie – Service de Presse et Information Site : http://www.ambafrance-au.org/ Tél. : 61 (02) 6216 0150 Email : [email protected]
Vanuatu cyclone: Small islands hard hit by swath of destruction (AUS) Callick CYCLONE Pam has cut a swath of devastation through the central Pacific, with the trauma of smaller island states emerging only gradually after the more readily documented impact on one of the region’s modern centres, Port Vila. Vanuata cyclone: relief effort swings into action (AUS) Nicholson AUSTRALIA has taken on a key role co-ordinating Vanuatu relief efforts from major nations as far away as Britain and France. Recovery starts after Cyclone Pam flattens Vanuatu (AFR) Kerin The death toll from Cyclone Pam, which devastated the tiny Pacific archipelago of Vanuatu, is expected to rise as a massive international aid and recovery effort gets under way. Aid arrives on cyclone-devastated Vanuatu as death toll remains unclear (CAN+SMH) Wroe The Abbott government has flagged a possible further expansion of Australia's relief to cyclone- battered Vanuatu as aid groups warned the Pacific island nation would likely need years of reconstruction.
BALI 9 Bali nine executions: Phone-tapping rumours surround delay (CAN+SMH) Topsfield Indonesian parliamentarians are publicly questioning the fact that 10 prisoners on death row, including Bali nine organisers Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, have not yet been killed.
ECONOMY Julie Bishop softens stance on China-led bank (AUS) Maher JULIE Bishop has reversed her opposition to Australia joining the $50 billion China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, saying the government has “considerable interest’’ in being involved. Chinese bank an asset on balance (AUS/Opinion) Jakobson Australia has a clear-cut choice — to be in or out as a founding member of the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. The arguments for and against are complex, but Australian interests clearly favour membership now. Hot air can be even more expensive than renewable energy (AFR/Comment) Hewett Spain's Acciona has been doing business – big business – in Australia for more than a decade. Business welcomes Australian shift on Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AFR) Earl, Murray The Australian Industry Group has urged the federal government to push ahead with joining China's specialist infrastructure bank declaring this would make the country an active participant in the changing economic landscape of the region rather than just a bystander.
CLIMATE CHANGE Antarctica to get more snow as the world warms (AUS) Ross GLOBAL warming will increase snowfall in Antarctica, helping to restrict sea-level rise, scientists have found. Climate change brings disasters on steroids (SMH/Opinion) McAdam Bandaid solutions to natural disasters are simply not enough. It's time to be proactive, because the cost of inaction will be much higher.
WORLD
Is the Chinese dragon losing its puff? (CAN+SMH/Opinion) Hartcher While Australia's government argues over whether to join a China-sponsored infrastructure fund, a larger debate has started on a much grander question – can China's ruling regime survive?
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EDITORIALS
The Australian Our seat at the table of an Asian infrastructure bank TONY Abbott’s rethink of the government’s decision late last year not to join negotiations to set up the Chinese-led Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank is a good call. As the Prime Minister told The Australian in an exclusive Sky News interview on Saturday, the $50 billion institution could be an important vehicle for bringing China fully into the international community. The bank will be a multinational institution, with almost 30 nations, including India, Britain, New Zealand, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Kuwait and Qatar looking to be among its founding members, providing a broad base. Reform on the ballot in NSW WHEN NSW voters go to the polls on March 28, there will be more at stake than the return of a first-term government or the election of an opposition just four years out of power. At stake is the future of economic reform in Australia. The centrepiece of the campaign is the Coalition’s proposal to lease 49 per cent of the electricity distribution network — “poles and wires” — to a private entity for 99 years and invest the expected $20 billion proceeds in infrastructure. This is a reform in the state’s interest. It will benefit consumers as it will reduce price rises despite a dishonest advertising campaign to the contrary. It will make the industry more efficient and competitive. The infrastructure spend will boost productivity. But it faces fierce resistance from an opportunistic Labor Party, supported by a brazen union campaign, eager to ride a wave of populist opposition into government. Labor was once the party of economic reform. Today, it is captive to a union movement that also eschews the need for reform. If Mike Baird fails, it will be a long time before any party champions a bold reform agenda.
The Australian Financial Review Free universities to better serve At the 11th hour, education minister Christopher Pyne has stripped this week's Senate vote on higher education reform down to a core proposal to deregulate university fees. Unis would be allowed to price and market their offerings to prospective students as they wish and as the market will bear, rather than all being forced to sell their courses for the same price.
The Sydney Morning Herald Christopher Pyne's last chance for fair university fee reforms Without limits on fee increases, the government is proposing a potentially unreasonable and unfair use of policy power.
The Canberra Times The highs and lows of the PUP The reduction of the Palmer United Party to rump status in federal Parliament – affirmed by the resignation of Senator Glenn Lazarus last week – marks one of the swifter declines in the fortunes of a minor party in Australian political history. In July last year, after the arrival in Canberra for the swearing-in of the PUP's three new senators, party founder Clive Palmer was being acclaimed in the media and elsewhere as the man with the power to either wave the Abbott government's legislative program through the Senate or hold it up according to PUP whim. That no-one really knew how Mr Palmer or his novice senators might vote – despite the former's background in conservative Queensland politics – only added to the PUP's novelty and mystique. For a time, the Queenslander was at the front and centre of the political stage, doing deals to win the Senate support of the Motoring Enthusiasts' Ricky Muir, dining with Malcolm Turnbull, and discussing emissions trading models with former US vice-president Al Gore.
Ambassade de France en Australie – Service de Presse et Information Site : http://www.ambafrance-au.org/ Tél. : 61 (02) 6216 0150 Email : [email protected]
CAPTIONS & CIRCULATION
AUS = The Australian (News Limited); Circulation WK: 126,901, Sat.: 277,386; Digital WK: 31,240, Digital SAT: 31,381. AFR = The Australian Financial Review (Fairfax Media Ltd); Circulation WK: 68,425, Sat.: 69,012. SMH = The Sydney morning Herald (Fairfax Media Ltd); Circulation WK: 161,169, Sat.: 265,457; Digital WK: 56,559, Digital SAT: 56,113. CAN = The Canberra Times (Fairfax Media Ltd); Circulation WK: 30,420, Sat.: 49,965, Sun.: 31,308.
Ambassade de France en Australie – Service de Presse et Information Site : http://www.ambafrance-au.org/ Tél. : 61 (02) 6216 0150 Email : [email protected]