Assistant Treasurer MichaelSukkarMP has not ruled out another government tilt at company tax cuts, according to Sky News Political Editor aclennell.
Assistant Treasurer Michael Sukkar has not ruled out another government tilt at company tax cuts, according to Sky News Political Editor Andrew Clennell.
Speaking about the upcoming budget, Mr Sukkar said there would be a “suite of measures that we put in place and reforms that we put in place to encourage businesses and individuals and households to have that confidence to invest”.
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Fake news in the US as democrats try to 'soften up the military' | Sky News AustraliaSky News host Paul Murray says the biggest example of fake news played out in the United States in the last week and leveled unfounded and wrong attacks at President Donald Trump.\n\nFar left-wing publication, The Atlantic, released an article written by four nameless people who suggested Donald Trump didn’t want to go to a war cemetery in France because those who died in war are “losers” and “suckers”.\n\nThe unsourced story, with no names and big claims, became mainstream after it was talked about by presidential hopeful Joe Biden, Mr Murray said. \n\nPresident Trump said what was written in the second-rate magazine was a ‘disgrace’.\n\nFormer national security advisor to Donald Trump John Bolton, who was with the president when he reportedly insulted war heroes, said he had “not heard either of those comments or anything even resembling them.”\n\nMr Murray said Mr Bolton disliked the president who fired him, and had written a book full of attacks at Trump, and yet he reported the news story released by Alliance included statements he had never heard Trump make. \n\nMr Murray said this piece of fake news was an attempt to “change the subject and soften up the military should they be needed at some point in time during a contested election.”\n\n “I know that sounds crazy but we live in crazy times,” he said. \n
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Epidemiologists ‘sceptical’ of Andrews’ modelling | Sky News AustraliaSky News Political Editor Andrew Clennell says many epidemiologists are sceptical of the University of Melbourne modelling that underpins the Victorian government’s COVID-19 response.\n\nMr Clennell said Victoria could refine its modelling and raise the minimum number of cases required to ease restrictions. \n \n“To base these threshold decisions on a generic model is really troubling to me,” Deakin University Epidemiology Professor Catherine Bennett said.\n \n“I don’t know why we’re not using our own data to get much more precise about what’s going on in our community.”\n \nUniversity of Melbourne Epidemiologist Professor Tony Blakely, who did the modelling, said the model could be beaten.\n \n“If we do our contact tracing better than we did three months ago, the contact tracers may be able to hold the case count without it going up again as badly as our model suggests,” Professor Blakely said. \n \nDoherty Institute Professor Jodie McVernon said five cases per day was a tough threshold to reach. \n \n“Five cases occurring in the family of a healthcare worker who are all at home in quarantine is not the same as five mystery cases in the community, and we have a target for zero of those which NSW is currently not achieving,” Professor McVernon said. \n \nMeanwhile, Peter Collignon, an infectious diseases physician at the Australian National University, said Victoria had raised the bar to re-open too high and contact tracing in the state has yet to get its act together.\n \nImage: Getty\n
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'More signs' income tax cuts will be brought forward | Sky News AustraliaSky News Political Editor Andrew Clennell says there are more signs income tax cuts will be brought forward and business tax breaks will be in the federal budget following Prime Minister Scott Morrison's comments on Monday. \n\nMr Clennell said the prime minister appeared to 'snuff out' the suggestion of an increase in the Medicare levy to fund aged care or any form of higher taxes. \n\n'The one way you build your economy back is you don't hit it with higher taxes, and that's not our plan, it's never been our plan,' Mr Morrison told reporters in Canberra on Monday. \n\n'Our plan to grow our economy has always been about getting off people's backs, not getting on them.'\n\nImage: Getty
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Federal ‘contact tracing regime’ could be ‘required’ in Victoria | Sky News AustraliaThe 'inadequacy' of Victoria’s COVID-19 contact tracing could be the reason behind the state’s “conservative” roadmap out of lockdowns Sky News Political Editor Andrew Clennell says.\n\nHe said Health Department Secretary Brendan Murphy suggested Victorian contact tracing might be leading to the Victorian government’s decisions.\n\n“One federal source suggested to me this afternoon that perhaps a federal contact tracing regime or centre is required, but this is not government policy,” Mr Clennell said. \n\n“The Victorian government did not engage or consult the federal government before coming out with its very conservative steps out of lockdown, which were announced yesterday, and which the prime minister has said today are so conservative Sydney would be under curfew right now.”\n\nHis remarks come after Prime Minister Scott Morrison heavily criticised Victoria and said it should look to NSW for guidance on contact tracing to exit lockdowns.\n\n“Lockdowns and borders are not signs of success in dealing with COVID-19,” Mr Morrison said.\n\n“It’s important we put ourselves in a position where they do not feature in how Australia is dealing with COVID-19 on a sustainable basis.”\n\nImage: News Corp Australia
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