‘This is insane’: Canberra-based Labor MPs say Coalition’s public service plan could lead to departments closing
Henry Belot
Andrew Leigh, a Canberra based Labor MP, says the Coalition’s plan to trim the size of the public service by 41,000 positions in the ACT only is “insane”.
Earlier today, Dutton clarified the Coalition’s target of removing 41,000 positions by the end of the decade does not apply to states and territories beyond Canberra.
According to the Australian Public Service Commission, there are 68,435 public servants based in the nation’s capital. That’s roughly one-third of the overall APS workforce. Based on those figures, removing 41,000 positions from the Canberra based workforce – through a mixture of voluntary redundancies or natural attrition – would reduce its size by 59% by the end of the decade.
Leigh said “this is insane”:
Even if Dutton closed the head offices in Canberra of 12 departments — Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry; Attorney General’s; Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water; Defence; Education; Finance; Foreign Affairs and Trade; Health and Aged Care; Home Affairs; Prime Minister and Cabinet; Treasury; Veterans’ Affairs – he’d still have less than 41,000 job cuts. Dutton makes Doge look restrained.
Key events
In pictures: from suits to hi-vis
The Albanese camp attended the West Australian’s breakfast event in the morning, before heading out to the seat of Bullwinkel on the outskirts of Perth.
At the end of his press conference, Albanese backed his candidate for Dickson, Ali France, following reporting by News.com.au that France previously shared social media posts depicting Peter Dutton (who she’s running against) as a Nazi and backed claims Israel is an “openly racist apartheid regime”.
Albanese says he has no idea how old the tweets are that have resurfaced, but calls France an “extraordinary Australian”.
People will go after people’s history going back to more than a decade during the last campaign, Ali France was attacked for using her disability as an excuse for why she lived in the home that she lived in. Ali France is someone who lost her leg saving her child’s life when she pushed a pram forward and was hit by a motor vehicle. Ailey France is an extraordinary Australian.
‘This is insane’: Canberra-based Labor MPs say Coalition’s public service plan could lead to departments closing
Henry Belot
Andrew Leigh, a Canberra based Labor MP, says the Coalition’s plan to trim the size of the public service by 41,000 positions in the ACT only is “insane”.
Earlier today, Dutton clarified the Coalition’s target of removing 41,000 positions by the end of the decade does not apply to states and territories beyond Canberra.
According to the Australian Public Service Commission, there are 68,435 public servants based in the nation’s capital. That’s roughly one-third of the overall APS workforce. Based on those figures, removing 41,000 positions from the Canberra based workforce – through a mixture of voluntary redundancies or natural attrition – would reduce its size by 59% by the end of the decade.
Leigh said “this is insane”:
Even if Dutton closed the head offices in Canberra of 12 departments — Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry; Attorney General’s; Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water; Defence; Education; Finance; Foreign Affairs and Trade; Health and Aged Care; Home Affairs; Prime Minister and Cabinet; Treasury; Veterans’ Affairs – he’d still have less than 41,000 job cuts. Dutton makes Doge look restrained.
David Littleproud says he believe in climate change
Back to the press club, Anna Henderson asks Littleproud whether, following the recent devastating floods in Queensland, he believes in climate change.
Littleproud replies: “Yes, I do”:
Thargomindah is a perfect example. We had a flood event through there [in] 1974, [this time it was] 7.65 metres… beat it by nearly a metre.
So obviously, I respect the science, and we’ll do whatever we can to make sure that we have an energy grid that’s zero emissions …
In pictures: Peter Dutton at petrol stop number 14
Dutton is in the seat of Lyons, which is held by retiring MP Brian Mitchell for Labor on a very tight 0.9% margin.
The seat is being contested by former Tasmanian Labor leader Rebecca White and Liberal candidate Susie Bowers (who you can see in the background).
Social license for nuclear ‘already won’ says Nationals leader
While Peter Dutton has been fronting questions about why he hasn’t visited a nuclear site during this election campaign, Littleproud says “there’s no need” because the Coalition has already won the social license.
It’s an interesting point he makes, and it goes against some of the other reporting that shows communities aren’t happy with the prospect of nuclear in their backyard.
He tells the press club:
There’s no need to go in an election campaign where you have already won the votes. We have already won the social licence in those seven communities. Our polling clearly shows that.
Sarah Basford Canales
Dutton hits the pumps, again
In an entirely unprecedented move (a bit of sarcasm, here), Peter Dutton is about to arrive at his 14th petrol station of the election campaign.
Fresh off polishing off a glass of Pinot noir, the opposition leader arrived at the Ampol in Sorrell to sell his fuel excise policy in case you’ve somehow missed it.
Exiting a Susie Bower-branded Mazda, Dutton emerged with a smile, telling the camera crews it was the “most exciting part of the day”.
A few cars drive past tooting their horns.
Littleproud says one of his proudest moments of leadership was in opposing the voice to Parliament
Nationals leader David Littleproud says one of his “proudest” moments of his leadership has been to oppose the Voice to parliament.
Speaking to the National Press Club, Littleproud says it wasn’t a decision that was made quickly by his party room.
Within our party room, in a respectful way we undertook a committee within our party room to listen [to the] yes and no case, to understand what the machinery would look like, what it would mean for us who represent some of the most disadvantaged Indigenous Australians in remote areas.
Littleproud says the voice would have repeated “mistakes of the past” and was not the way to empower local communities.
I’m proud to say, that after the Voice result, there was no victory lap by the Nationals or the Liberals. We came back to this place up the road, walked in that parliament and Peter Dutton and I moved a motion to undertake a royal commission into child sexual abuse in central Australia.
Sarah Basford Canales
Dutton has a glass in Tasmania’s Campania
Peter Dutton stopped in at a vineyard in Tasmania’s Campania in the seats of Lyons.
Joined by Sussan Ley, the opposition leader met with the owner, James Bremley, and shared a glass of pinot noir.
Dutton said his favourite type of wine was Shiraz, before listing off a number of other varieties of red and white wines.
“I don’t discriminate,” he joked.
As the media gathered around the wine barrel where Bremley and the politicians stood, Dutton said he would get out some more glasses to share some wine with his favourite journalists but lamented “there are none”.
PM rules out dealing with Greens to lower super tax threshold
A little earlier in the press conference, Albanese ruled out doing a deal with the Greens to lower the superannuation tax threshold.
Labor was forced to abandon its legislation earlier this year, to tax the unrealised capital gains on super balances above $3m.
Asked if he’d rule out working with the Greens to bring back that legislation, he said, “yes”.
Albanese says fall or stumble in Newcastle ‘no big deal’
The PM might regret bringing up that fall this morning at the West Australian breakfast, because he gets another question on it from Clare Armstrong of News Corp.
She asks why it matters whether the PM fell off or stepped off (as he said after it happened). Albanese then says again that he didn’t “fall” but stepped off the stage.
It’s kind of become this huge thing that the Liberals are saying is emblematic of the way that, you know, it says something about their character. Frankly, it says something about their character…
I stepped off the stage. I didn’t fall over on my backside. I stumbled. That’s what happened. I laughed about it at the time. I laughed about it, since it’s no big deal.
The fall/step off incident has also been used by the Liberal party in their advertising to damage Albanese.
Albanese says he will visit Indonesia and US if elected ‘but we’re not getting ahead of ourselves’
Albanese is asked where he’ll go first as prime minister if he wins another term of government. Dutton has said recently that he would make the US his first trip if the Coalition won power.
Albanese says:
Indonesia was my first bilateral visit in the last term to see President Widodo. It was a wonderful visit. I visited Indonesia three times in this term of office, I will, of course visit Indonesia. At some stage, I’ll of course visit the United States. I’ve had invitations from both of those leaders, but we’re not getting ahead of ourselves.
A little earlier, Albanese was also asked whether he would use the critical minerals reserve as an “ultimatum”. He said the government would:
Engage diplomatically in our national interest, and it is in our national interest to use the full suite of leverages available to us. This is an element in that.
Albanese says ‘we have made our policies clear’
Albanese gets a bit antsy with a reporter who asks him about that fall in Cessnock, NSW, and his admission at the breakfast that it was a fall.
It was a joke. Chill out. Next.
The reporter pivots the question, asking whether there’s anything else the PM wants to clarify. Albanese looks a bit perplexed at first, then says: “Not at all, we have made our policies clear.”
41,000 public servants being cut from Canberra ‘outrageous’ says PM
Earlier during that breakfast, the West Australian’s Chris Dore took a stab at Albanese, calling his campaign “shameless” and “outrageous” at times. Albanese is asked whether he’s been stretching the truth.
He says people can make their own judgements, but uses the question to rip into Peter Dutton’s commitment that all 41,000 public servants will be taken out of Canberra.
Albanese says that decision would see two-thirds of public servants in the nation’s capital sacked:
I tell you what’s outrageous. It’s that, because that means Services Australia – that have their headquarters there, that deliver payments to pensioners, that deliver payments to people who are out of work, that deliver emergency payments for people who’ve been through natural disasters… the Australian Signals Directorate, all of our security and intelligence agencies. Where does Peter Dutton think they are based? They are based in Canberra, in our national capital.
PM urges people to engage ‘in a respectful way’ at polling booths
Albanese, asked about incidents at pre-polling booths, and says it’s important all voters engage in a “respectful way”.
It’s important that people engage in a respectful way that includes people who are candidates, but it includes everyone on polling booths as well. The police have to be allowed to do their work for particular incidents.
But can I say that for the person who was hurt in my electorate, my thoughts go out to him, and I hope that there is a very swift recovery.
Albanese reiterates Australia will not negotiate with US over PBS, media or biosecurity but critical minerals are ‘in demand’
Albanese says critical minerals are an “element in demand”, when asked whether this was a bargaining chip to use in negotiations with the US.
King said earlier this morning that there was “no doubt” that the reserve would be helpful in dealing with the US.
Albanese repeats his line that the government won’t negotiate with the US on the pharmaceutical benefits scheme, media bargaining code or bio-security.
We see it as just an element that is in demand. We know that our critical minerals are in demand … What we do as friends is be prepared to engage in a constructive way.
He then makes a stab at Dutton over his stance to put defence on the negotiating table with the US.