Sweeping changes to alcohol tax and regulation urged on Turnbull government
Simplifying alcohol taxes would make spirits and high-end wine less expensive, but spell the end of cheap "goon".
Simplifying alcohol taxes would make spirits and high-end wine less expensive, but spell the end of cheap "goon".
In a barely noticed respite from last week's hyper-partisan squabbling, Malcolm Turnbull and Bill Shorten actually agreed on a couple of things. It is an enduring curiosity that such moments tend to escape attention.
In the end, the deal to secure Malcolm Turnbull's signature election pledge of enterprise tax cuts, at least for small and medium businesses, was, to use the vernacular, a little "exxy". Big business missed out. A bridge too far. As such the cost to the budget is substantially less - around $20 billion. The X-man of Australian politics, Nick Xenophon has once again proved the master-negotiator, and Turnbull, the great deal-maker and achiever of results. As in all compromises, neither got all they wanted, But both will be happy.
The Prime Minister was in the midst of a counter-attack against Bill Shorten on penalty rates last week when he likened the Labor leader to Sally McManus, the new (and first female) secretary of the ACTU. "I nearly said Sally McAnarchist," he quipped.
The Turnbull government has landed an 11th-hour deal after handing a slew of concessions to the Nick Xenophon Team.
Faith in politics is already at record lows and would have fallen further had taxpayers seen this grisly sausage being made.
The federal government's failure to ratify the China-Australia extradition treaty has sparked a proxy war.
When the Prime Minister rose for the last Question Time before the budget to say Australia has some of the highest corporate tax rates in the world, he was right, as he was the dozens of times before that, but the determined logic has so far failed to convince the Senate crossbench.
Survivors of child sexual abuse and state governments want clarity on a proposed national redress and compensation scheme.
Complaints nearly double, Centrelink says it welcomes them.
The eye of the storm may have passed, but the business community is bracing itself for the economic hit ex-tropical cyclone Debbie will bring in its wake.
The federal government's attempts to deliver massive tax cuts to big business will come to a head on Friday.
Attorney-General George Brandis described the defeat as a "sad day".
Ten former Fair Work Commission members, including outspoken critic Graeme Watson, retired early within months of qualifying for a full pension at the age of 60.
Tony Abbott's review into his former friend was cut short after Bronwyn Bishop stopped participating.
Julie Bishop has delivered a blast to the backbench rebels, questioning their trust in Australia's own legal and political system.
A major review of the mental health services available to serving and former members of the military has produced some alarming findings.
Malcolm Turnbull says the government's submission is no different from those lodged under Julia Gillard.
"We need to avoid the temptation to become constant critics of the new US administration".
The performance of the Senate in the company tax debate has been marked by an overweening self-importance.
ATO and unions prepare to put down their weapons after three years of workplace conflict.
A family that could be split apart by government moves to deport the two parents back to Fiji has been given a flicker of hope after the Human Rights Commission agreed to examine their case.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten have put aside their differences on a joint tour of North Queensland in the wake of Cyclone Debbie.
The federal government was scrambling to land a company tax-cut deal on Thursday, with a marathon late-night Senate sitting threatening to spill over into an extended sitting on Friday.
Wayne Swan insists remaining in Parliament is the best way for him to advance the Labor cause.
It is the term du jour, thrown around by everyone from Donald Trump to Australian politicians, unhappy with how a particular news story paints them.
The Senate has demanded Defence Minister Marise Payne release details of Australian military sales to Saudi Arabia that were approved as that country faced claims of war crimes.
Dressed in orange jumpsuits, the alleged smugglers were hauled in front of cameras in Jakarta on Wednesday.
Former prime minister Paul Keating has launched a surprise critique of the liberal economic philosophy he once championed.
A $5 billion infrastructure fund heralded by the Turnbull government as a jewel of the 2015 budget has so far spent more on salaries for board members than on actual projects.
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