The Point Live: Coalition still to land a blow on Albanese-less Labor, surprise surge in inflation. As it happened.

It is quarterly inflation data day, which has a lot of economists very excited.

The reason for the excitement is because it will point to what the RBA might do next. So far, it has been holding, and using the monthly figures (which are less reliable) as its reasoning. Quarterly always gives the better picture, and its what most economists rely on to see what is actually happening in the economy.

Just for the historical types out there, it is worth reminding people that there was a very big centrist push to ‘understand’ Hitler in the 1930s, with many praising the German leader (who had never been shy about his genocidal desires and hatreds) for his leadership and nationalist zeal.

That included, at one point in time, Robert Menzies, the founder of the modern Liberal party, who was reported to have given a speech to the national woman’s league, while attorney-general where he admired Hitler’s leadership style:

(That’s from the Port Pirie Recorder. You can find the record, here.)

If the Liberal party is still around by the next election, will it have a housing policy?

Bragg says yes:

There will policy on homelessness. There be a policy on affordable housing and social housing. These are important areas. But it is not, ultimately, going to be the main game. Because we need to build more houses in Australia. We have a major housing supply problem. Housing supply has this government. Under the last government, we were getting about 200,000 houses a year on That’s crashed down to houses a year on average despite the government wasting billions of dollars. So you’ve got to build more houses. The government’s failed to do that. Now, the audit office is going to look at how much taxpayer funds have been wasted. As I say, I’m very concerned that taxpayers are paying more than double or sometimes three times the average cost of a house in this scheme. So it’s very worrying.

But he says it won’t be by raising taxes:

As you know, about half the cost of building a new house goes in taxes and regulation. So I just think that raising taxes isn’t going to help.(It would cut down on people snapping up investment properties and then betting on the market increasing to make money) I think we want to have an easier system in which to build a house. We won’t have a plan to raise taxes. Our plan will be about building the houses through supply and development. We’ll be pro-Yes, In My Back Yard, we’ll be against the NIMBYs and supporting home ownership.

…Frankly, we’re going to be Australia’s last chance to get the Australian dream back on track. Because the housing stuff has been a disaster under Labor. The housing fund now is becoming like Pink Batts 2.0

People died in the pink batts installation scheme, which after many inquiries was revealed to be because of businesses cutting training in an attempt to cash in on a government scheme, rather than the scheme itself. To try and link the two is disingenuous at best. Bragg would know that, but the Liberals are at the point where desperation is driving their rhetoric, which is never a good sign.

After trying to defend Sussan Ley’s attack against Anthony Albanese wearing a Joy Division t-shirt (which as the ABC host rightly points out, was an issue not touched by any of Australia’s major Jewish groups yesterday or in the days since he stepped off the plane wearing it) shadow housing minister Andrew Bragg turns to his Coalition colleague Bridget McKenzie saying it was not the job of Nationals MPs to get Liberals elected.

Bragg told the ABC:

The Liberal Party has to look after itself but, clearly, we’re in coalition with the Nats. That’s something that’s held the country in good stead for many decades. And I hope that continues for many years. Because ultimately, we want to see the centre-right be maintained as a serious political force. That’s the best thing for our democracy. And that’s why we’re working through all these issues with the Nats. Look, I know that you probably find interesting to talk about, but we do have a culture of openness in the Liberal Party and the National Party, and we seem to talk about a lot of things. I mean, frankly, I wonder what the nation would talk about if the Liberal Party died. Because I think we’d sort of run out of things to discuss.

Later in the interview Bragg says net zero is a “non-negotiable’ for him.

Anthony Albanese is going to leave ASEAN and head to Korea for the APEC summit. Albanese will also hold some more meetings and lay a wreath for Australian soldiers killed during the Korean war.

Foreign minister Penny Wong will also attend the summit and will represent Australia at the APEC ministerial meeting.

Wong:

APEC meets at a critical time for our region and the world. Rising trade tensions and economic uncertainty mean Australia must continue to champion open markets and fair rules that deliver for Australian businesses and workers.

One in four Australian jobs rely on trade. At APEC, I will continue our work to keep markets open, reduce barriers and create new opportunities for Australian exporters.

Australia’s priorities include making cross-border trade more efficient through paperless trade, promoting policy reforms for trade in services, and advancing the economic empowerment of all peoples.

We are committed to strengthening the World Trade Organization and the transparent, rules-based trading system that underpins our economy. These rules protect smaller economies and ensure Australian producers and exporters have fair access to global markets.

Glenn Connley

More than 2,000 guns are stolen every year in Australia, according to new research by The Australia Institute. 

That’s one every four hours.

Based on data obtained from police in each state and territory, the paper reveals that at least 9,000 guns have been stolen since 2020 and over 44,000 since 2000. 

The new report builds on previous research showing there are now over 4 million guns in Australia, more than before the Port Arthur killings, and the subsequent reforms under the Howard Government.  

“Thousands of guns are flowing into the hands of criminals every year, putting Australians in danger,” said Rod Campbell, Research Director at The Australia Institute. 

“There are record numbers of guns in Australia and this research shows how easily they can fall into the hands of criminals. 

“Theft of legal guns is the main source of illegal guns in Australia, not 3D printing or illegal imports. It’s pretty simple – the more legal guns there are in Australia, the more illegal guns there will be. 

“Australia would be safer with fewer guns in the community overall, and governments need to work to reduce the number of guns in Australia and in each state and territory.  

“State and federal governments have been complacent, perhaps believing that gun control in Australia was sorted by the Howard Government in the 1990s. 

“This research shows that gun control and keeping the community safe requires ongoing efforts from all levels of government. 

“Australians might be shocked to discover that the Howard-era National Firearms Agreement has still not been completed. 

“If we don’t want to go down the path of America, all states and territories can follow Western Australia’s lead of capping the number of guns any one person can own.   

“There’s a clear path forward for governments to act.” 

The Australian Conservation Foundation has announced it will be launching a new legal challenge against environment minister, Murray Watt over his decision to allow the extension of Woodside’s North West Shelf gas project (that will now run until 2070. Watt is yet to reject any proposal for coal or gas).

The ACF will argue Watt failed to “consider the devastating climate impacts” when he made the approval. It’s arguing that Watt was not legally permitted to exclude the climate damage caused by the project when making his decision under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. It’s the second case ACF have filed against Watt this month and if successful could set a very important precedent for how these decisions are made.

ACF’s Legal Counsel Adam Beeson said in a statement:

When Labor came to power, we expected better. Minister Watt had clear scientific evidence and a chance to make a better decision than the previous Coalition government, but he backed in Sussan Ley’s flawed call and ignored the climate consequences of Woodside’s massive gas expansion.” 

…This gas project will generate nearly four billion tonnes of emissions. That’s almost ten times Australia’s annual domestic pollution. Yet our Environment Minister has decided that’s just a drop in the ocean. We vehemently disagree.

Beeson said the court was not the first choice, but the group, who are represented by Environmental Justice Australia, don’t have many other options.

Litigation is not easy. It’s risky and it’s expensive. We wouldn’t do this if we had any other option. And importantly, we wouldn’t have to take this route if Australia had strong nature laws to begin with, which made the government’s responsibility to deal with climate pollution crystal clear. 

But because our current nature laws are shockingly broken and favour polluting industries over the nature they claim to protect, litigation is necessary to argue that the Minister was required to deal with climate pollution.  

This case brings home why it’s so important Labor gets on with the task this week of making our national environment law actually work for nature.  

The test of Labor’s commitment will be the legislation that is tabled in Parliament this week. We need our new nature laws be up to the task of stopping terrible polluting projects from being rubber stamped in the first place.” 

Watt’s preference is to work with the Coalition on passing the legislation, bypassing the Greens who want stronger environmental protections.

As all of these summits do, we eventually got to China, with Albanese asked what he meant when he told the ASEAN summit participants that ‘none of us are spectators’ and Anwar asked if ‘friends fire flares’ in relation to China’s recent response to an Australian plane in the South China Sea.

Can I say in terms of us not being spectators, what that means is that we’re not observers. We help create our own future and create history and that engagement, we’re not passive, we’re participants. And it’s a different perspective that you have. Whereas you know people in the media are observers and your job is to commentate, our job is to think about how we can shape the change that’s occurring.

One of the issues that we have discussed today, for example, is the impact of artificial intelligence, new technology. This is a challenge of leaders globally that we have. This is going to have an impact. It’s having impact in the debate in Australia about, you know, cultural appropriation, including appropriation of media, intellectual property, the work that journalists do. Is that fair game just for someone to grab and not pay a fee for it? We don’t think that is, which is why we have the Media Bargaining Code that we are trying to advance. So it is a matter of our perspective trying to look at what are the challenges and what’s the role of government in shaping the response to those challenges. And somehow sometimes anticipating and helping to create the future, if you like, rather than just responding after the event.

Anwar:

Once we establish the facts, we will raise. Engagement does not mean condoning whatever exercises. And the Chinese know that in my private exchanges with the President of China, and I know we represent a very small country and a relatively small economy. But still we represent a nation and we have the right to express because we need the wisdom not to be seen, to be unnecessarily combative. But we should bring it up once it is established, and we will seriously if it is established. I will do my part. Because I think it’s important for all of us to express whether publicly or privately or whatever form, our concern that these region must remain free. And the policy of centrality does not mean that we don’t see any centrality means we do express, and we have centrality. But we do engage with the issues of Gaza or Russia, Ukraine.

Asked what was next in building the relationship between the two nations, beyond the MOUs signed during the summit, Albanese said:

I’m very confident about the agreements that have been reached because they build on the foundation which is there. This is a relationship of trust and engagement that has been developed over a long period of time, which has been assisted by the people to people relations.

I hope that it’s obvious that we are friends here on a personal level, that we engage regularly. We have had discussions, so I thank the Prime Minister for his very warm congratulations after our election that was held some months ago now as well. So it’s building on that as well. So I’m very confident that we will be able to do so. And the example of the education, or achievements and that engagement that’s occurring this morning, seeing young people, including young Malaysians, who participated in our Young Leaders’ Dialogue that’s occurring is just an example of those relationships.

Following the ASEAN summit, Albanese met with the prime minister of Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim and the pair held a brief joint press conference.

Anwar opened with some glowing praise:

I’ve said this earlier that Prime Minister Albanese has been a good friend. You’ve been very supportive of our ventures and my meetings with him have been very fruitful, very candid, very open and both of us have really committed to enhance bilateral relations in terms of serious trade, investment ventures and this decision of Monash University to operate from TRX City the prestigious area is something very impressive. It signifies a clear commitment on the part of Australia to take Malaysia very seriously and now with the bank and the port facility and I commend him for this commitment and support.

He promised to come again early next year, and both of us will visit the university. And as a good politician, he honours his promise. I have no doubt about that. That’s why he won comfortably in the last elections. Convincingly.

He then went to Australia’s position on Gaza:

I’m also thankful that you’ve taken a strong position on cessation of hostilities in Gaza. Here, people are very passionate and I’ve been to Australia, people also very, very strong. And I have also had discussions with the President Donald Trump on this to make sure that this first phase is effective and then proceed on the more comprehensive solution to the conflict, including two-state solution because that’s to me particular because in this days and age you talk about democratic transition, talk mobilisation, multilateralism and you condone these killings is just totally unacceptable and hypocritical.

So I do express my appreciation to Penny Wong earlier and now to you that you take that position. At least to stop these hostilities and stop the killings and get humanitarian assistance in and work towards a more comprehensive solution.

So thank you again, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for being here and more important as a friend, as a true friend we have committed to come again early next year.