The Turnbull government has announced a deal that will see the remaining refugees held in offshore processing centres offered resettlement in the United States.
Speaking at a press conference this morning with Immigration and Border Protection minister Peter Dutton, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said the deal is a “one-off agreement” that will only be available to people currently in the off-shore centres. [Read more…]
The absence of nine members of the Coalition caused the Turnbull government to lose control of the House of Representatives for nearly two hours last night.
When a procedural motion to adjourn the House was put at 5.00pm, the ALP surprisingly voted No and called for a division, which it won by 69 votes to 67. The ALP then took control of the proceedings of the House and initiated a debate on a Senate resolution calling for a royal commission into the banking system.
Over the next 45 minutes, the government lost two more divisions and did not regain control of the House until 6.50pm, after coalition MPs were brought back into the chamber.
It was the first time since 1962 that a majority government has lost votes in the House of Representatives. Like the Turnbull government, the then Menzies government also governed with a one-seat majority. [Read more…]
The Minister for Health, Peter Dutton, has refused to comment on speculation that the Commission of Audit will recommend a Medicare co-payment for bulk-billed patients.
“We won’t be commenting on speculation around what the Commission of Audit may or may not recommend,” Dutton said.
Media speculation this week has suggested consideration of a $5 upfront co-payment for bulk-billed GP patients. The speculation suggests savings of around $700 million a year can be made by introducing the co-payment.
The idea is said to apply to families after they have made 12 visits to a GP in any year. Pensioners and health card holders would be exempt.
The Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, Penny Wong, described the proposal as a tax on health care and said the Abbott government is not the government voters thought they were getting. [Read more…]