Turnbull Announces New Ministry

Jul 18, 2016

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has announced his new ministry, following the 2016 federal election.

The Second Turnbull Government will be sworn in at Government House tomorrow morning at 9.00am.

There are 42 members of the executive. The Cabinet has been increased to 23 members, the largest number since the Whitlam governments (1972-75), when all ministers were in the Cabinet and there was no outer ministry. The Outer Ministry has shrunk to 7 members and there are 12 Assistant Ministers, previously known as Parliamentary Secretaries.

Most major portfolios in the Cabinet are unchanged. Scott Morrisonremains Treasurer, whilst Julie Bishop continues in Foreign Affairs and Peter Dutton stays in Immigration and Border Protection.

Christopher Pyne has been moved from Education into a newly-created portfolio of Defence Industry, in which he will oversee the South Australian submarine building program. Senator Simon Birmingham becomes Minister for Education and Training.

Kelly O’Dwyer’s position as Assistant Treasurer has been re-named Revenue and Financial Services. Her previous responsibility for Small Business has gone to Michael McCormack.

Greg Hunt becomes Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science, whilst Josh Frydenberg takes over Environment and Energy. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Audio, Liberal National Party, Liberal Party, Ministries, The Nationals, Turnbull, Video Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Turnbull Likely To Win Narrowly As Voters Punish Coalition; ALP Secures Nationwide Swing Of 3.18% But Falls Short

Jul 03, 2016

Hung Parliament Still Possible; Many Close Seats; Nationwide Swing Delivers ALP Gains; Xenophon Wins Lower House Seat; Pauline Hanson, Derryn Hinch And Jacqui Lambie Elected To Senate

TurnbullPrime Minister Malcolm Turnbull addressed Liberal supporters in Sydney last night

The Turnbull coalition government is clinging to office, following yesterday’s federal election, and may yet face a hung parliament controlled by crossbenchers not necessarily sympathetic to it. In a post-midnight speech, the Prime Minister insisted the coalition would be able to form a majority government.

A nationwide 3.18% swing towards the ALP sees the coalition leading the two-party-preferred vote with 50.01%. Every state and territory swung to the ALP, the Northern Territory leading the field with 7.37% and delivering Solomon to the ALP. The smallest swing was 0.68% in the Australian Capital Territory, where the ALP already held both seats and polled 61.73% of the two-party vote.

There was a 3.64% swing to the ALP in New South Wales. The ALP has won Banks, Barton, Dobell, Eden-Monaro, Lindsay, Macarthur, Macquarie and Paterson.

In Victoria, the swing was 2.13% but it appears that only one seat has changed hands. The ALP lost Chisholm, the eastern suburban Melbourne electorate held since 1998 by the former Speaker, Anna Burke. The Greens came close to winning Batman and counting may yet throw Melbourne Ports into doubt for the ALP.

In Queensland, a swing of 2.75% delivered Longman to the ALP and ended the two-term career of 26-year-old Wyatt Roy. The LNP electorates of Capricornia, Forde and Petrie are too close to call. Hinkler may also be in play.

In Western Australia, a 3.82% swing has delivered the new electorate of Burt to the ALP, giving it 4 of the 16 seats.

Tasmania swung decisively by 6.33% to the ALP and it picked up 3 seats lost in 2013: Bass, Braddon and Lyons.

In South Australia, a swing of 4.44% saw two seats change hands. The ALP’s Steve Georganas regained Hindmarsh, which he lost in 2013. The Liberal Party lost the seat of Mayo to the Nick Xenophon Team. NXT may yet have a chance of taking the large country electorate of Grey.

A range of commentators last night agreed that the coalition would likely be able to form a government with 76-78 seats. The large number of close results means that it will be up to ten days before the results are clear.

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Triumphant Shorten Says The ALP Is Back; Turnbull Delivers Late-Night Off-Key Speech To Supporters

The closeness of the count delayed the appearance of the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader. Shorten appeared first, after 11pm. He told supporters in Melbourne that the ALP was “back”. He reiterated his campaign themes and said that the ALP would save Medicare “in government or opposition”.

Malcolm Turnbull spoke to Liberal supporters at 12.30am, delivering a speech widely panned as off-key and inappropriate. Turnbull spoke at length about thuggery in the construction industry and defended his decision to call the double dissolution. He insisted that the coalition would be able to form a majority government.

  • Watch Shorten’s speech (11m)
  • Listen to Shorten (11m)
  • Watch Turnbull’s speech (16m)
  • Listen to Turnbull (16m)

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Windsor and Oakeshott Defeated; Existing Crossbenchers Re-Elected

Tony Windsor, the former member for New England, failed to defeat Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce. Windsor polled 29.73% but Joyce won the seat outright with a primary vote of 52.09%. [Read more…]

Filed Under: 2016 Federal Election, A.L.P., Audio, Greens, Liberal National Party, Liberal Party, One Nation, The Nationals, Turnbull, Video Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Giving Substance To The Words

Nov 04, 2010

There are thirty-two new members of the 43rd Parliament, elected on August 21st. Three of them are returning after a voluntary or enforced absence. As a group, they constitute one-fifth of the House of Representatives, a significant turnover and renewal of the lower house. Many of them will be there for years to come.

Maiden SpeechesOver the past month, I have made a point of watching the maiden, or first, speeches of these members. On the whole, it is difficult not to be impressed by these fledgling parliamentarians.

There has been much comment on the moving speech from the Western Australian Liberal, Ken Wyatt, the first indigenous member of the House, but others also delivered considered and thoughtful speeches.

Take Andrew Leigh, the member for Fraser in the ACT. His reputation as an economist and thinker preceded his election. In his speech, he spoke of the importance of education for the nation’s future, of “optimistic experimentation” and of rebuilding “a sense of trust between citizens and politicians”. Leigh’s book, “Disconnected”, has just been published. [Read more…]

Filed Under: 2010 Federal Election, A.L.P., Backbenchers, Democracy, Greens, Liberal Party, Maiden Speeches, Opinion, Political Words, The Nationals Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Wyatt Roy (LNP-Longman) – Maiden Speech

Oct 26, 2010

This is Wyatt Roy’s maiden speech to the House of Representatives as the Liberal National member for Longman.

Longman, a provincial electorate in the Moreton Bay area, was created in 1996 and held by Mal Brough until he was defeated by the ALP’s Jon Sullivan in 2007. Roy defeated Sullivan with a swing of 3.79%, securing 51.92% of the two-party-preferred vote.

Roy, 20, is the youngest person ever elected to an Australian Parliament. He broke the record set by Edwin Corboy in 1918. Corboy was 22 when he won the 1918 by-election for Swan. It was the last federal election to be held using first-past-the-post voting and Corboy was defeated on preferences at the 1919 federal election.

Prior to winning Longman, Roy worked as an electorate officer to a state member of parliament. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Audio, Liberal National Party, Liberal Party, Maiden Speeches, Video Tagged With: , , ,