Anthony Albanese's ‘red army' of MPs in Western Australia told to put WA first amid GST fight
But also in focus will be how the confident Prime Minister and his party handle the cut and thrust of Parliament with a slimmed-down Opposition, led by Sussan Ley.
Pundits and parliamentary watchers will be keeping a close eye on how Labor's frontbench strongmen line up to attack the Opposition, with suggestions since the election the Government may find it more difficult to attack Ms Ley than her predecessor, Peter Dutton.
A record number of WA Labor MPs are heading to Canberra this weekend in preparation for Tuesday's opening of Parliament. Unexpected wins in Moore and Bullwinkel, where Tom French and Trish Cook beat their Liberal opponents, sees Mr Albanese's 94 members in the 150-seat House of Representatives include 11 West Australians.
Four Liberals and Curtin Teal MP Kate Chaney will also be part of the WA contingent in Canberra.
Fresh from a week-long visit to China, Mr Albanese's top Parliamentary priorities are expected to include legislation to cut student debt by 20 per cent and strengthening the regulation of the childcare industry as key post-election priorities.
And it will also be a test for new Opposition Leader Sussan Ley, who will likely use one of her first face-offs in Question Time to quiz the Prime Minister about a leaked Treasury report which casts doubt on a Federal target of 1.2 million new homes over five years, and to drill down on mooted tax hikes.
The report warned the Budget cannot be repaired with raising taxes and slashing spending, and said Mr Albanese's election promise to build 1.2 million homes across Australia would not be met.
Business is also protesting the penalty rate changes, which will have measures to enshrine overtime and other perks to keep them from forming part of overall pay rates.
But WA MPs will be faced with big decisions on issues important to the people who voted them into office.
A recent survey of nearly 1000 West Australians by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA gives a strong hint as to what Sandgropers believe their MPs need to stand up for this term.
With a Productivity Commission review of a 2018 GST deal — which saw WA's GST take raised from 30¢ in the dollar to no less than 75¢ — due in 2026, West Australians are worried billions in GST receipts are at risk.
More than three in five West Australians said they were concerned about a potential reduction in the State's GST share.
'Without that deal in 2018, WA would be getting back just 18¢ for every $1 we pay in GST, or around $6 billion less than with the 75¢ floor in this financial year alone,' CCIWA acting co-chief executive Aaron Morey said.
'That would hamstring WA from developing the infrastructure we need to continue to power the national economy.'
Premier Roger Cook this week backed the Albanese Government not to dud WA on the GST.
'While eastern state whingers won't stop coming for WA's fair share of the GST, I know Anthony Albanese and his Cabinet has WA's back and will ensure our State receives its fair share of the GST,' Mr Cook said.
But concerns remain the Commonwealth's debt-laden budget will put pressure on the Government to re-visit the deal, and in turn put pressure on Labor solidarity — on show last year when WA Senator Fatima Payman publicly spoke out against the party's stance on the Middle East conflict, resulting in her resignation to sit as an independent.
Notre Dame Professor of Politics and International Relations Martin Drum said West Australians would expect that 'the representatives they send to Canberra stick up for their State'.
'I'd expect that every time the Prime Minister comes to WA, local MPs are in his ear about the importance of holding the line on this issue,' Professor Drum said. 'That said, it would be politically disastrous of the government to consider any change to the GST, which saw WA disadvantaged.'
WA has two representatives in the Albanese Cabinet: Resources Minister Madeleine King and Small Business Minister Anne Aly.
Perth MP Patrick Gorman, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister, said he and his colleagues were well aware of the importance for WA of maintaining the 2028 GST deal.
'Our WA team are proud members of the Albanese Government and will continue to work together to ensure WA's fair share of GST and the economic policies that will deliver a more productive WA economy,' he told The Sunday Times.
'Western Australians made it clear at the election: they want a party that backs them.'
But Senator Michaelia Cash — the most senior WA Liberal in Sussan Ley's shadow cabinet — is not so sure WA Labor MPs will break ranks and fight the government on behalf of their State.
She said elected WA Labor members and senators 'should remember who sent them to Canberra'.
'The first test for the Labor WA team will come at the Treasurer's so called reform summit where no doubt WA's fair share of the GST will come under attack,' Senator Cash said. 'They need to make sure WA's hard-fought win on GST under the former Coalition Government is not wound back.'
Senator Cash said proposed new environment laws were also vitally important to WA.
'I'll be watching closely where Labor goes with its so-called nature positive laws,' she said.
Curtin MP Kate Chaney said she needed no reminders of the need to put the local community first.
'As it was in my first term, my absolute priority will be the concerns and values of the Curtin community,' she said.
Ms Chaney said new environmental laws were of vital importance to WA.
'As we transition our economy for future prosperity in a decarbonising world, we urgently need to fix our ineffective, unworkable national environment laws.'
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The Advertiser
an hour ago
- The Advertiser
Student debt to be slashed, less cash deducted from pay
Students and graduates will soon see a reduction in their HECS debts and save hundreds of dollars a year. Federal Education Minister Jason Clare will introduce legislation to slash student debt by 20 per cent and increase the income that graduates need to earn before minimum repayments kick in. It's the first bill that the Albanese government will put before parliament at the start of its second term. People earning between $60,000 and $180,000 will save hundreds of dollars each year under the changes. Someone on $70,000 will save the most, $1300 a year, on minimum repayments due to an increase to the thresholds at which the debts must be paid back. Savings vary between incomes in the bracket, with people pocketing anywhere from $200 to $850. Bruce Chapman said it would make it fairer by giving those on lower salaries more money in their pockets, while their debts remain the same in nominal terms. "It looks bigger, in real terms it's not bigger," the architect of the HECS scheme told AAP. But the top priority should be reviewing the price of each degree because humanities students finish with the highest level of debt and end up being the lowest-paid graduates. "All the prices are wrong," Professor Chapman said. Mr Clare said reforms were being looked at, after the failure of the former Liberal government's job ready program. The program aimed to fill skills shortages by making it cheaper to study courses like teaching, nursing and psychology while doubling the cost of popular degrees including law, communications, business, humanities and the arts. "If the intention there was to reduce the number of people doing arts degrees, it hasn't worked," Mr Clare said. "People study the courses they're interested in, that they want to do, that they love." The universities accord final report branded the program "deeply unfair" because it punished students following their interest, and called for it to be scrapped. It recommended that fees reflect future earning potential, as part of 47 recommendations to reform the sector. Other aspects about how HECS is paid off also needed to be addressed, Prof Chapman said. HECS repayments are taken from a person's pay slip if they're earning above an income threshold. But the money isn't immediately taken off the HECS debt and is instead deducted as a lump sum at the end of the financial year after indexation has been applied on June 1. This means a higher debt is indexed as the repayments haven't been deducted and the university accord recommended it be reformed to make the system fairer. The Australian Tertiary Education Commission has been established in an interim capacity to implement long-term university reform and will review the HECS system over the next 12 months. Mr Clare will introduce further legislation in the coming months to set the commission up as a permanent body. Students and graduates will soon see a reduction in their HECS debts and save hundreds of dollars a year. Federal Education Minister Jason Clare will introduce legislation to slash student debt by 20 per cent and increase the income that graduates need to earn before minimum repayments kick in. It's the first bill that the Albanese government will put before parliament at the start of its second term. People earning between $60,000 and $180,000 will save hundreds of dollars each year under the changes. Someone on $70,000 will save the most, $1300 a year, on minimum repayments due to an increase to the thresholds at which the debts must be paid back. Savings vary between incomes in the bracket, with people pocketing anywhere from $200 to $850. Bruce Chapman said it would make it fairer by giving those on lower salaries more money in their pockets, while their debts remain the same in nominal terms. "It looks bigger, in real terms it's not bigger," the architect of the HECS scheme told AAP. But the top priority should be reviewing the price of each degree because humanities students finish with the highest level of debt and end up being the lowest-paid graduates. "All the prices are wrong," Professor Chapman said. Mr Clare said reforms were being looked at, after the failure of the former Liberal government's job ready program. The program aimed to fill skills shortages by making it cheaper to study courses like teaching, nursing and psychology while doubling the cost of popular degrees including law, communications, business, humanities and the arts. "If the intention there was to reduce the number of people doing arts degrees, it hasn't worked," Mr Clare said. "People study the courses they're interested in, that they want to do, that they love." The universities accord final report branded the program "deeply unfair" because it punished students following their interest, and called for it to be scrapped. It recommended that fees reflect future earning potential, as part of 47 recommendations to reform the sector. Other aspects about how HECS is paid off also needed to be addressed, Prof Chapman said. HECS repayments are taken from a person's pay slip if they're earning above an income threshold. But the money isn't immediately taken off the HECS debt and is instead deducted as a lump sum at the end of the financial year after indexation has been applied on June 1. This means a higher debt is indexed as the repayments haven't been deducted and the university accord recommended it be reformed to make the system fairer. The Australian Tertiary Education Commission has been established in an interim capacity to implement long-term university reform and will review the HECS system over the next 12 months. Mr Clare will introduce further legislation in the coming months to set the commission up as a permanent body. Students and graduates will soon see a reduction in their HECS debts and save hundreds of dollars a year. Federal Education Minister Jason Clare will introduce legislation to slash student debt by 20 per cent and increase the income that graduates need to earn before minimum repayments kick in. It's the first bill that the Albanese government will put before parliament at the start of its second term. People earning between $60,000 and $180,000 will save hundreds of dollars each year under the changes. Someone on $70,000 will save the most, $1300 a year, on minimum repayments due to an increase to the thresholds at which the debts must be paid back. Savings vary between incomes in the bracket, with people pocketing anywhere from $200 to $850. Bruce Chapman said it would make it fairer by giving those on lower salaries more money in their pockets, while their debts remain the same in nominal terms. "It looks bigger, in real terms it's not bigger," the architect of the HECS scheme told AAP. But the top priority should be reviewing the price of each degree because humanities students finish with the highest level of debt and end up being the lowest-paid graduates. "All the prices are wrong," Professor Chapman said. Mr Clare said reforms were being looked at, after the failure of the former Liberal government's job ready program. The program aimed to fill skills shortages by making it cheaper to study courses like teaching, nursing and psychology while doubling the cost of popular degrees including law, communications, business, humanities and the arts. "If the intention there was to reduce the number of people doing arts degrees, it hasn't worked," Mr Clare said. "People study the courses they're interested in, that they want to do, that they love." The universities accord final report branded the program "deeply unfair" because it punished students following their interest, and called for it to be scrapped. It recommended that fees reflect future earning potential, as part of 47 recommendations to reform the sector. Other aspects about how HECS is paid off also needed to be addressed, Prof Chapman said. HECS repayments are taken from a person's pay slip if they're earning above an income threshold. But the money isn't immediately taken off the HECS debt and is instead deducted as a lump sum at the end of the financial year after indexation has been applied on June 1. This means a higher debt is indexed as the repayments haven't been deducted and the university accord recommended it be reformed to make the system fairer. The Australian Tertiary Education Commission has been established in an interim capacity to implement long-term university reform and will review the HECS system over the next 12 months. Mr Clare will introduce further legislation in the coming months to set the commission up as a permanent body. Students and graduates will soon see a reduction in their HECS debts and save hundreds of dollars a year. Federal Education Minister Jason Clare will introduce legislation to slash student debt by 20 per cent and increase the income that graduates need to earn before minimum repayments kick in. It's the first bill that the Albanese government will put before parliament at the start of its second term. People earning between $60,000 and $180,000 will save hundreds of dollars each year under the changes. Someone on $70,000 will save the most, $1300 a year, on minimum repayments due to an increase to the thresholds at which the debts must be paid back. Savings vary between incomes in the bracket, with people pocketing anywhere from $200 to $850. Bruce Chapman said it would make it fairer by giving those on lower salaries more money in their pockets, while their debts remain the same in nominal terms. "It looks bigger, in real terms it's not bigger," the architect of the HECS scheme told AAP. But the top priority should be reviewing the price of each degree because humanities students finish with the highest level of debt and end up being the lowest-paid graduates. "All the prices are wrong," Professor Chapman said. Mr Clare said reforms were being looked at, after the failure of the former Liberal government's job ready program. The program aimed to fill skills shortages by making it cheaper to study courses like teaching, nursing and psychology while doubling the cost of popular degrees including law, communications, business, humanities and the arts. "If the intention there was to reduce the number of people doing arts degrees, it hasn't worked," Mr Clare said. "People study the courses they're interested in, that they want to do, that they love." The universities accord final report branded the program "deeply unfair" because it punished students following their interest, and called for it to be scrapped. It recommended that fees reflect future earning potential, as part of 47 recommendations to reform the sector. Other aspects about how HECS is paid off also needed to be addressed, Prof Chapman said. HECS repayments are taken from a person's pay slip if they're earning above an income threshold. But the money isn't immediately taken off the HECS debt and is instead deducted as a lump sum at the end of the financial year after indexation has been applied on June 1. This means a higher debt is indexed as the repayments haven't been deducted and the university accord recommended it be reformed to make the system fairer. The Australian Tertiary Education Commission has been established in an interim capacity to implement long-term university reform and will review the HECS system over the next 12 months. Mr Clare will introduce further legislation in the coming months to set the commission up as a permanent body.
The Advertiser
an hour ago
- The Advertiser
Political leaders return to parliamentary battlefield
Pomp and ceremony out of the way, federal politicians will get back to work as parliamentary business resumes. The 48th parliament officially opened with a day of pageantry, which included a traditional church service and smoking ceremony before politicians were sworn in. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Opposition Leader Sussan Ley will square off in parliament as rival party leaders for the first time on Wednesday. Education Minister Jason Clare will deliver on Labor's election promise by introducing legislation to the lower house to slash university debt for three million Australians by 20 per cent. The coalition is expected to support the move which will wipe $16 billion off student debt but is waiting to see the fine print. People with an average HELP debt of $27,600 will have $5520 wiped from their loans. The government has also said it will this week introduce childcare reform aimed at improving safety measures. Labor returns to parliament with a lion's share of 94 seats, to the coalition's 43 in the lower house. Melbourne MP Sarah Witty, who defeated former Greens leader Adam Bandt at the election, gave a heartfelt first speech to parliament on Tuesday evening. She tearfully spoke of enduring "heartache after heartache" for more than a decade after experiencing pregnancy loss. "We grieve deeply," she said. "I opened myself to a new path. I stepped into the world of foster care, not out of ease, but out of a deep need to turn my pain into something positive." Ms Witty said her experience taking care of children in need would shape her approach as an elected parliamentarian. Griffith MP Renee Coffey, who wrested back Kevin Rudd's old seat for Labor from the Greens, spoke of the kindness former rival Max Chandler-Mather had shown her following a confronting interaction with a voter. "On election day, I was stunned when a voter told me he couldn't possibly vote for me because I have MS and he couldn't be represented in parliament by someone who could be in a wheelchair," she said. "It knocked the wind out of me. In a strange turn of fate, it was the then-member for Griffith, Max Chandler-Mather, who saw me step away from that interaction. "And the kind words of support he offered me, I will never forget." Pomp and ceremony out of the way, federal politicians will get back to work as parliamentary business resumes. The 48th parliament officially opened with a day of pageantry, which included a traditional church service and smoking ceremony before politicians were sworn in. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Opposition Leader Sussan Ley will square off in parliament as rival party leaders for the first time on Wednesday. Education Minister Jason Clare will deliver on Labor's election promise by introducing legislation to the lower house to slash university debt for three million Australians by 20 per cent. The coalition is expected to support the move which will wipe $16 billion off student debt but is waiting to see the fine print. People with an average HELP debt of $27,600 will have $5520 wiped from their loans. The government has also said it will this week introduce childcare reform aimed at improving safety measures. Labor returns to parliament with a lion's share of 94 seats, to the coalition's 43 in the lower house. Melbourne MP Sarah Witty, who defeated former Greens leader Adam Bandt at the election, gave a heartfelt first speech to parliament on Tuesday evening. She tearfully spoke of enduring "heartache after heartache" for more than a decade after experiencing pregnancy loss. "We grieve deeply," she said. "I opened myself to a new path. I stepped into the world of foster care, not out of ease, but out of a deep need to turn my pain into something positive." Ms Witty said her experience taking care of children in need would shape her approach as an elected parliamentarian. Griffith MP Renee Coffey, who wrested back Kevin Rudd's old seat for Labor from the Greens, spoke of the kindness former rival Max Chandler-Mather had shown her following a confronting interaction with a voter. "On election day, I was stunned when a voter told me he couldn't possibly vote for me because I have MS and he couldn't be represented in parliament by someone who could be in a wheelchair," she said. "It knocked the wind out of me. In a strange turn of fate, it was the then-member for Griffith, Max Chandler-Mather, who saw me step away from that interaction. "And the kind words of support he offered me, I will never forget." Pomp and ceremony out of the way, federal politicians will get back to work as parliamentary business resumes. The 48th parliament officially opened with a day of pageantry, which included a traditional church service and smoking ceremony before politicians were sworn in. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Opposition Leader Sussan Ley will square off in parliament as rival party leaders for the first time on Wednesday. Education Minister Jason Clare will deliver on Labor's election promise by introducing legislation to the lower house to slash university debt for three million Australians by 20 per cent. The coalition is expected to support the move which will wipe $16 billion off student debt but is waiting to see the fine print. People with an average HELP debt of $27,600 will have $5520 wiped from their loans. The government has also said it will this week introduce childcare reform aimed at improving safety measures. Labor returns to parliament with a lion's share of 94 seats, to the coalition's 43 in the lower house. Melbourne MP Sarah Witty, who defeated former Greens leader Adam Bandt at the election, gave a heartfelt first speech to parliament on Tuesday evening. She tearfully spoke of enduring "heartache after heartache" for more than a decade after experiencing pregnancy loss. "We grieve deeply," she said. "I opened myself to a new path. I stepped into the world of foster care, not out of ease, but out of a deep need to turn my pain into something positive." Ms Witty said her experience taking care of children in need would shape her approach as an elected parliamentarian. Griffith MP Renee Coffey, who wrested back Kevin Rudd's old seat for Labor from the Greens, spoke of the kindness former rival Max Chandler-Mather had shown her following a confronting interaction with a voter. "On election day, I was stunned when a voter told me he couldn't possibly vote for me because I have MS and he couldn't be represented in parliament by someone who could be in a wheelchair," she said. "It knocked the wind out of me. In a strange turn of fate, it was the then-member for Griffith, Max Chandler-Mather, who saw me step away from that interaction. "And the kind words of support he offered me, I will never forget." Pomp and ceremony out of the way, federal politicians will get back to work as parliamentary business resumes. The 48th parliament officially opened with a day of pageantry, which included a traditional church service and smoking ceremony before politicians were sworn in. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Opposition Leader Sussan Ley will square off in parliament as rival party leaders for the first time on Wednesday. Education Minister Jason Clare will deliver on Labor's election promise by introducing legislation to the lower house to slash university debt for three million Australians by 20 per cent. The coalition is expected to support the move which will wipe $16 billion off student debt but is waiting to see the fine print. People with an average HELP debt of $27,600 will have $5520 wiped from their loans. The government has also said it will this week introduce childcare reform aimed at improving safety measures. Labor returns to parliament with a lion's share of 94 seats, to the coalition's 43 in the lower house. Melbourne MP Sarah Witty, who defeated former Greens leader Adam Bandt at the election, gave a heartfelt first speech to parliament on Tuesday evening. She tearfully spoke of enduring "heartache after heartache" for more than a decade after experiencing pregnancy loss. "We grieve deeply," she said. "I opened myself to a new path. I stepped into the world of foster care, not out of ease, but out of a deep need to turn my pain into something positive." Ms Witty said her experience taking care of children in need would shape her approach as an elected parliamentarian. Griffith MP Renee Coffey, who wrested back Kevin Rudd's old seat for Labor from the Greens, spoke of the kindness former rival Max Chandler-Mather had shown her following a confronting interaction with a voter. "On election day, I was stunned when a voter told me he couldn't possibly vote for me because I have MS and he couldn't be represented in parliament by someone who could be in a wheelchair," she said. "It knocked the wind out of me. In a strange turn of fate, it was the then-member for Griffith, Max Chandler-Mather, who saw me step away from that interaction. "And the kind words of support he offered me, I will never forget."
Sydney Morning Herald
an hour ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Cutting HECS debt is the least Albanese could do for young Australians. He should do more
You don't pay the tuition fee upfront – the government pays the university on your behalf, and you repay the government. But, unlike any commercial loan you'll ever get, when you to have start repaying, and the size of your repayment, depend on how much you're earning. So, in principle, you should never be paying more than you can afford. Loading You don't pay interest on the loan, but the outstanding balance is indexed to the rate of inflation – which, to an economist's way of thinking, means you're paying a 'real' interest rate of zero. If you never earn enough to be able to repay the loan – say because you become a monk – you never have to pay the loan back. That's by design, not accident. Trouble is, successive governments have not only made the scheme less generous, the post-COVID inflation surge has added greatly to people's HECS debts. Debts have become so big they reduce the size of the home loans banks are willing to give graduates. Worse, in the name of encouraging young people to take supposedly 'job-ready' courses such as teaching, nursing and STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths), in 2021 the Morrison government reduced their annual tuition fees, whereas fees for courses such as business, law and the humanities were greatly increased. Fortunately, this half-brained scheme did little to change students' choices, but did mean abandoning the previous arrangement in which the fees for various courses were geared roughly to the size of the salaries those graduates were likely to earn. The cost of an arts degree is now about $17,000 a year, or a massive $50,000 for the full three years. So it's people who have studied the humanities who now have debts quite out of whack with their earning ability. Smart move, Scomo! Albanese's 20 per cent cut in debt levels will do little to fix this crazy misalignment of fees with future earning potential. The cut will have a cost to the budget of about a huge $16 billion in theory, but more like $11 billion when you allow for all the debts that were never going to be repaid anyway. By making it a percentage cut rather than a flat dollar amount, too much of the benefit will go to highly paid doctors and lawyers. And, in any case, of all the young adults having trouble with the cost of living in recent years, those on graduate salaries are hardly the most deserving. On the other hand, at a time when, justifiably, the young feel the system has been stacked against them, I can't be too disapproving of Albo's flashy measure to help keep the younger generation's faith that, in the end, the democratic process will ensure most age groups get a reasonable shake. Loading The young are right to feel bitter about the way earlier generations have enjoyed the ever-rising value of their homes while allowing the cost of home ownership to become unreachable for an ever-growing proportion of our young. And that's before you get to other features of our tax and benefits system that favour the old. Thankfully, the government is making the rules for HECS repayments much less onerous, making them work the same way as the income tax scale. The minimum threshold for repayments will be raised from income of $56,000 a year to $67,000. Your income between $67,000 and $125,000 will require a repayment of 15 per cent, and 17 per cent on income above that. This will yield significant savings to those with debts. But, of course, the lower your repayments, the longer it will take to clear your debt and the more your outstanding balance will be indexed for inflation.
