Tag Archives: ASIS

The Week That Was – April 22 to April 28

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The Banking Royal Commission is still revealing more and more illegal and unconscionable conduct by banks and financial advisors. This week the ANZ Bank revealed that nearly a quarter of their financial planners had been disciplined for giving inappropriate advice that potentially benefitted them rather than their clients. Not only that, but the regulator, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), has been a toothless tiger. ASIC requires that companies report the fact that they may have broken the law within 10 days of the discovery of such information – and it theoretically has the power to prosecute if companies report later than that, but hasn’t. In fact, during this royal commission bank officials have admitted to knowing of potentially illegal actions and have not reported them to ASIC for years.

The government is also struggling with the Royal Commission issue, initially not wanting to admit they shouldn’t have resisted calls for a commission in the first place – something the backbench was getting irritated with because they can’t claim victory for starting up the commission until the senior MPs and ministers admit the mea culpa. Later in the week Malcolm Turnbull eventually admitted that there should have been less resistance and an earlier start to the commission.

Malcolm Turnbull spend the earlier part of the week finishing off his European trip, visiting Germany and France. In Germany he met with Angela Merkel and discussed the bilateral relationship and the potential for closer trade and security ties with Germany and the European Union post-Brexit. Then in France, Turnbull travelled to the town of Villers-Bretonneux where Australian soldiers fought off the Germans in the First World War. There he opened the Sir John Monash Centre (the brainchild of former PM Tony Abbott) on the centenary of the battle on ANZAC Day.

On ANZAC Day, the country commemorated the day with dawn services across the country, including at the Australian War Memorial, the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney’s Martin Place, as well as at Gallipoli and Villers-Bretonneux. There were other ceremonies and commemorations, with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle attending the New Zealand War Memorial in London, as well as a memorial service at Westminster Abbey (where Prince William was caught trying not to fall asleep).

The Government has also announced that they no longer plan to raise the Medicare Levy in order to pay for the NDIS program, saying they have other ways to pay for it. What those ways may be are unclear at the moment. Those using the NDIS are not so sure of and are now concerned about how their programs will be funded.

Also this week, Professor Clinton Fernandes has taken ASIS (Australia’s international spy agency) to court to get them to release 40-year-old intelligence documents regarding what Australia knew in the lead up to the Indonesian invasion of Timor-Leste. Fernandes, a university professor and historical advisor to the historical movie Balibo is trying to get the documents released in order to tell the whole story.

Finally this week, the Anglican Church has announced it may sell some of their church land in order to pay for the Institutional Abuse redress scheme in states that have signed up; Trump has decided to send the guy who was supposed to be the US Ambassador to Australia to help out with the North Korean peace thing – the government doesn’t see it as a snub but as a useful person being sent to a place where they’ll be useful; and AGL has got at least some of their Liddell coal power plant replacements – with a gas plant to be built outside of Newcastle and another plant to be built between Sydney and Wollongong (pending government and community approval).

Tweet of the Week

Senate Estimates have been taking place at the moment too… (N.B. the BCA is the Business Council of Australia)

https://twitter.com/KKeneally/status/988658604088545281

Things I’ve Been Looking at Online

Who has what information on you on the internet? – ABC Online

Kim Jong-Un is in it for the money – ABC Online

The Week That Was – August 20 to August 26

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The week began with the government revealing their plans to protect people in crowded places, including more bollards and statues. They’re encouraging big businesses and small businesses to help contribute. There wasn’t much more they said publicly, but many feel they’re doing something.

The Australian Medical Association is concerned about certain levels of private health insurance and are pushing for the government to  more strictly regulate the industry. At the moment, there are 20,000 variations in policies and some are so poor that they simply help you avoid the Medicare levy. They’re suggesting a streamlined Gold, Silver & Bronze grading system for every policy so that people know exactly what they are getting.

The government is planning to start trials for drug testing welfare recipients in several areas, including the Western Sydney regions of Canterbury & Bankstown. It’s thought that they will test 1750 people on location at the Centrelink office, and if they test positive, they will not be reported to police. They will however, have their income managed, and may be asked to attend rehab. The legislation still has to get through parliament, and with Labor and the Greens against it, it will be interesting to see if it gets through the Senate.

The citizenship saga continues, with five of the seven cases in the High Court starting this week. Hearings will take place in October, even though people wanted them heard earlier. It was an interesting day, with Tony Windsor, who lost to Barnaby Joyce at the 2016 election, being allowed to join the case against Joyce, and One Nation Senator Malcolm Roberts changing his story again. In an amusing aside, Barnaby Joyce has also been nominated for New Zealander of the year.

Nick Warner, the head of Australia’s CIA equivalent, ASIS (Australian Secret Intelligence Service), has been criticised for appearing in a photo with Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte doing the President’s famous fist-pump gesture. Some saw this as Australia’s acceptance of Duterte and his war on drugs, which has led to the extrajudicial killings of many people. In fact, Warner was meeting with Duterte to show Australia’s support of the Philippines military efforts to quash ISIS fighters in Marawi.

While the country awaits the court ruling on the same-sex marriage postal survey (actual name: “Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey”), the Yes and No sides are gearing up for campaigning. There are somewhat dubious claims coming from the NO campaign regarding the evils of the gays, while the YES campaign has been focusing on making sure that all of their potential voters are enrolled. It’s believed that the push for people to enrol to vote has led to hundreds of thousands of eligible young Aussies being added to the electoral roll, not just for this vote/survey, but for every election thereafter, which could change the direction of the country.

Finally this week, the worst was realised when the 7-year-old Australian boy missing after the Barcelona attack was identified as one of the 14 killed; the government has shut nearly 125 childcare centres in a crackdown; Tony Abbott confessed to being too drunk to show up to some divisions during the passing of Rudd-era financial crisis legislation (Wayne Swan is mad because people made him retract allegations he made at the time); and there are allegations that the big tobacco companies are in cahoots with customs and police to catch tobacco smugglers – which could be in violation of a World Health Organisation treaty.

Tweets of the Week

As an ex-resident of Hong Kong, typhoons are always interesting to follow…

And somewhat related to weather, ABC News Breakfast’s meteorologist Nate Byrne was getting into science week:

Things I’ve Been Looking at Online

Leigh Sales on interviewing – ABC Online

Hillsong’s position on Same-Sex Marriage as covered by the New Matilda (N.B. – While critical of Hillsong, it does break down the church’s position)

Teachers on the joys of teaching – ABC Online