Jim Chalmers invites Ted O'Brien to economic reform roundtable to achieve mutual consensus
Treasurer Jim Chalmers is striving for a new era of collaboration and compromise from politicians, unions, and business leaders for generational fiscal reform.
His comments come as Mr Chalmers unveiled the first group of people taking part in the economic reform roundtable in August.
The treasurer invited Shadow Treasurer Ted O'Brien to the roundtable in a move to achieve cross-party consensus.

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News.com.au
18 minutes ago
- News.com.au
Sting in the tail for some workers in super boost
Workers are being urged to check with their pay packets to ensure an increase to the super guarantee doesn't result in their pay being docked. As the final increase to Australia's super guarantee comes into effect, employers will be required to devote a record 12 per cent of workers' salaries into their super for the first time. For most workers on an award agreement, it's happy days, with employers forced to tip in extra super without any reduction in their take-home pay. But there's a sting in the tail for a minority of workers who are on a total remuneration package including super, because it could mean less take-home pay. In fact, for up to 40 per cent of Australians who have an individual pay arrangement with their employer that pays superannuation as part of their salary package, the 0.5 per cent could result in a reduction in take-home pay. CPA Australia's Superannuation Lead, Richard Webb said while the super guarantee was positive for a majority of workers, some would cop a pay cut from July 1. 'If your employment contract includes a total remuneration package including super, this could mean less take-home pay at the end of the month,' he said. 'However, for those on award or enterprise agreements, your pay agreement is more likely to be a salary, which means the change will not affect your take-home pay. 'It's a good idea to check with your employer to see how they view the changes and what it means for you. Otherwise, you might get a shock if your take-home pay is a little less than expected.' Nearly 30 years after the Hawke-Keating Government introduced superannuation starting at just 1 per cent, around 14 million workers are set to secure the new boost. New Treasury analysis shows that millions of Australians will be better off at retirement as a direct result as the super guarantee lifts from 11.5 to 12 per cent. 'These reforms will make a meaningful difference for millions of Australians who work hard on low and award wages, and Australians working towards a well-deserved, dignified retirement,'' Treasurer Jim Chalmers said. 'Under Labor, inflation is down substantially, real wages are up, unemployment is low, our economy is growing, debt is down and interest rates are falling, but we know people are still under pressure. 'All the progress we have made together means we are well placed and well prepared at a time of global economic uncertainty and volatility. 'Since we've come to government, we've increased the superannuation guarantee four times, and this means an extra $98,000 at retirement for a 30 year old earning the average full-time income.' For example, a worker at age 30 earning the average full-time income (around $103,000) will have an extra $21,000 at retirement as a result of this 0.5 percentage point increase alone. However, Treasurer Jim Chalmers said taking into account all of the Albanese Government's increases to the Superannuation guarantee (from 10 per cent to 12 per cent), this worker will have an extra $98,000 at retirement.


Canberra Times
20 minutes ago
- Canberra Times
Israel's Netanyahu slams Gaza aid shooting report
"GHF is not aware of any of these incidents but these allegations are too grave to ignore and we therefore call on Israel to investigate them and transparently publish the results in a timely manner," the group said in a social media post.


Perth Now
31 minutes ago
- Perth Now
Israel's Netanyahu slams Gaza aid shooting report
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz emphatically reject a report that claimed Israeli soldiers were ordered to shoot at Palestinians approaching aid sites inside Gaza. They called the left-leaning Israeli daily Haaretz's findings "malicious falsehoods designed to defame" the military. More than 500 Palestinians have been killed and hundreds more wounded while seeking food since the newly formed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation began distributing aid in the territory about a month ago, according to Gaza's health ministry. Palestinian witnesses say Israeli troops have opened fire at crowds on the roads heading toward the sites. Reacting to the Haaretz piece, Israel's military confirmed it was investigating incidents in which civilians had been harmed while approaching the sites. It rejected the article's allegations "of deliberate fire toward civilians". The foundation, which is backed by an American private contractor, has been distributing food boxes at four locations, mainly in the far south of Gaza, for the past month. "GHF is not aware of any of these incidents but these allegations are too grave to ignore and we therefore call on Israel to investigate them and transparently publish the results in a timely manner," the group said in a social media post. Palestinians trying to find food have frequently encountered chaos and violence on their way to and on arrival at the aid sites. Tens of thousands are desperate for food after Israel imposed a two-and-a-half month siege on Gaza, blocking all food, water and medicine from entering the territory pending the set-up of the GHF sites. The bodies of eight people who died on Friday had come to Shifa Hospital from a GHF site in Netzarim, although it was not immediately clear how they died, Dr Mohamed Abu Selmyiha, the hospital's director, told The Associated Press. A GHF spokesperson challenged the report, saying they did not know of any incidents at or near their sites on Friday. Twenty other bodies his hospital received on Friday came from air strikes across north Gaza, he said. Thousands of Palestinians walk for hours to reach the hubs, moving through Israeli military zones where witnesses say Israeli troops regularly open fire with heavy barrages to control the crowds. The Israeli military says it has only fired warning shots. The group Doctors Without Borders on Friday condemned the distribution system as "a slaughter masquerading as humanitarian aid" and called for it to be immediately shut down. More than 6000 people have been killed and more than 20,000 injured in Gaza since the ceasefire collapsed on March 18. Since the war began, more than 56,000 people have been killed and 132,000 injured, according to the health ministry. The Israel-Hamas war started following the Hamas-led attack in southern Israel on October 7, 2023, when some 1200 people were killed and around 250 taken hostage. About 50 of them still remain in captivity in Gaza. The latest deaths include six people killed and 10 wounded in Israeli strikes on a group of citizens near the Martyrs Roundabout in the Bureij Camp in central Gaza Strip, officials at Awda Hospital in Nuseirat said on Friday. The United Nations chief, meanwhile, urged leaders to show "political courage" and agree to a ceasefire like the one forged between Israel and Iran. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also urged a return to the UN's long-tested distribution system for aid in Gaza, where he said Israeli military operations have created "a humanitarian crisis of horrific proportions". "The search for food must never be a death sentence," Guterres told reporters.