From 1h agoKey events25m agoNew laws target former ADF members who train foreign militaries51m agoAFL great Michael Long to complete Long Walk for Indigenous voice today54m agoGood morning1h agoGreens want more federal funds for public schools1h agoWelcomeFilters BETAKey events (5)Australia (7)ADF (7)Parliamentary joint committee on intelligence and security (5)Michael Long (5)Matt Keogh (5)3m ago17.57 EDTJonathan Barrett
Full-scale strikes at Chevron’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities in Australia are due to start this morning, putting global energy markets on edge amid a protracted industrial dispute.
The escalation of the industrial action comes after a breakdown in negotiations over pay and conditions in a sector that typically uses individual contracts.
Hundreds of workers at the Gorgon and Wheatstone facilities, which account for about 7% of global LNG supply, are scheduled to start two weeks of 24-hour strikes early on Thursday.
The Australian Workers’ Union and Maritime Union of Australia are trying to lock in industry standard wage rates and conditions. They recently reached an agreement with Woodside.
While most LNG shipped from Australia’s north and west goes to Asian markets, any prolonged supply reduction will mean buyers will look for other sources. This has triggered volatility in European gas prices in recent weeks.
3m ago17.56 EDT
That leads to this back and forth:
Q: [While] we’re talking about misinformation – text messages that are being sent out to voters, asking them to apply for a postal vote and linking through to a Liberal Party-authorised website?
Sussan Ley:
Look, the ‘no’ campaign is not the Liberal Party. Everyone, by the way, is entitled to a postal vote because that helps people…
Q: Linking through to a Liberal Party-authorised website…
Ley:
Well, that helps people…
Q: They can get it from the AEC
Ley:
Yes, that’s right. But we’ve always been involved in distributing postal votes, both sides of politics have. I come back to the main point – we want to help rural and regional Australians vote. We want to give them access to that.
The actual campaign itself and the conduct of them matters for them. So, whenever people say to me, the ‘yes’ campaign said this or the ‘no’ campaign said that, I simply say, “Those are matters for those campaigns to defend. The Liberal Party is not running the ‘no’ campaign.”
But what the Liberal Party very much wants is a respectful tone to this debate. And Australians need explanations. They’re not getting that. And this is running off the rails and the Prime Minister is yet to show the leadership that we need, both in this Parliament and in this community. We leave here – we have four weeks until the referendum. We absolutely need those answers so Australians can make informed decisions.
The detail has been released. The referendum is on whether or not an Indigenous advisory body should be added to the constitution. The legislation would be…
2023-09-13 16:45:03
Original from www.theguardian.com
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