The federal government is encouraging states and territories to consider reopening their borders due to the economic impact, particularly on the country's struggling tourism sector.
The federal government is encouraging states and territories to consider reopening their borders due to the economic impact, particularly on the country's struggling tourism sector.
Speaking to Sky News on Friday, Finance Minister Matthias Cormann said “there is no medical case” for state and territory borders to remain closed and should promptly reopen. Western Australia, Queensland, South Australia and Tasmania are remaining firm on their decision to keep their borders closed despite increasingly low virus cases being reported each day.
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Beijing is 'driving a wedge through Australia' | Sky News AustraliaEditor-at-large at The Australian Paul Kelly says China has been 'successful in driving a wedge between governments in this country' as Victoria takes its own 'de facto foreign policy' towards the communist state. \n\nIt comes as Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas recently defended the Belt and Road deal with China, claiming it would help Victoria out of the economic problems from the pandemic.\n\n'China’s well established technique is this country is to try to drive a wedge between business and governments,' Mr Kelly told Sky News host Peta Credlin. \n\n'And what they seem to have been successful in doing is driving a wedge between governments in this country ... because we've got the Victorian government (which) has signed up to the belt and road initiative'. \n\n'Now that is not the policy of the Morrison government'. \n\nHe said, 'we seem to have a situation in which Victoria seems to have some form of de facto foreign policy of its own towards China' and that 'given the situation' Victoria's 'attitude towards China needs to be examined'. \n\nImage: Getty
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Vic Treasurer targets federal govt for 'vilifying' China | Sky News AustraliaVictorian Treasurer Tim Pallas has savaged the Morrison government's 'vilification' of China over trade and the COVID-19 pandemic. \n\nMr Pallas's pro-China intervention comes as the deadline looms for Victoria to sign an investment road map for China's belt and road initiative.\n\nImage: News Corp Australia
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Govt rejects another bailout push for Virgin Australia | Sky News AustraliaThe Morrison Government has rejected another push by Queensland to bail out embattled airline Virgin Australia.\n\nAdministrators admitted the airline did not have enough funding to remain operational beyond June.\n\nWhile all requests for financial support were rejected, the government insisted it believed Virgin had the ability to push through the financial turmoil inflicted by the pandemic. \n\nImage: News Corp Australia\n\n
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Scott Morrison’s secret plan to save Australia from economic ruin | Sky News AustraliaA leaked draft of the National COVID-19 Commission manufacturing report has detailed the key industries Prime Minister Scott Morrison has been advised to target “immediately” to unlock billions of dollars save Australia from economic ruin.\n\nThe interim taskforce report – obtained by Sky News Political Editor Andrew Clennell - reveals the gas and manufacturing industries will be the Coalition’s major focus.\n\n“We need to be decisive and begin immediately to create an Australian gas market that delivers globally competitive results,” the report said.\n\nThe report also calls for the creation of a “competitive domestic gas market”, including \nremoving barriers to supply, building the bridge of supply in the near term, lowering the cost of pipelines, completing then network of pipelines to markets.\n\nFocusing on the energy industry is predicted to create up to 170,000 well paid direct jobs and up to 800,000 indirect jobs which the report predicts could generate between $10-20 billion in direct GDP.\n\nIt would also help “support the reskilling of many of those affected by current pandemic” and diversify the economy.\n\nBy 2030, up to 412,000 new jobs could be created by boosting gas alone.\n\nThe report also mentions the need for a new Manufacturing Board to be set up under the Industry Minister to develop a 10-year policy plan on manufacturing for annual review.\n\nIndustry Minister Karen Andrews’s office told Sky News the new taskforce could “stimulate the sector” and grow domestic manufacturing.\n\n“The National Covid Coordination Commission established a manufacturing taskforce to develop ideas that could stimulate the sector,” she said.\n\n“Any suggestions made by this Taskforce are to the NCCC for consideration and not from the government. Any final suggestions from the Taskforce may feed into the work being done across a range of portfolios, led by the Industry Minister, to grow Australian manufacturing.”
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Sydney private school infection underlines Australia 'not out of the woods' | Sky News AustraliaNSW Teachers Federation President Angelo Gavrielatos has urged Australians not to become complacent about coronavirus outbreaks, warning “we are not out of the woods yet”. \n\nA Sydney private school will close its doors for 48 hours to undergo deep cleaning after a Year 7 student tested positive to the virus, just as NSW students begin to return to full-time face-to-face learning. \n\nMr Gavrielatos told Sky News the recent infection as St Ignatius College Riverview “illustrates that we are still in the middle of a pandemic”. \n\nHe said the move to allocate extra cleaning supplies to schools was “absolutely necessary” because “they contribute to a very important ingredient in this pandemic and that is the need to increase and grow confidence for all”. \n\n“We need to make sure that everything we do, in all of our utterances, and this goes to the government, that we are contributing to growing the confidence of our teachers and the whole community which is still trying to come to terms with this pandemic.”\n\nImage: AP
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Beijing is ‘using our federal system to create dissent' | Sky News AustraliaSky News host Chris Kenny says China has “found a way around” our federal system and has utilised a state government that is “prepared to do its bidding”. \n\nOn Thursday the Victorian government’s links to Beijing were questioned by the federal government amid Australia’s trade tensions with China.\n\nHome Affairs Minister Peter Dutton raised concerns over the state’s involvement in China’s Belt and Road initiative.\n\n'Victoria needs to explain why it is the only state in the country that has entered into this agreement,' he said. \n\nWhile Victoria’s Treasurer Tim Pallas recently criticised the Morrison government over its push for an international coronavirus inquiry saying it ‘vilified’ Beijing.\n\nMr Kenny said for the past two years he has been calling out the Andrews government’s involvement in with the initiative, saying it “undermined Australia’s foreign policy”. \n\nHe said Premier Andrews “took Victoria where Canberra was not prepared to take the country” with the deal. \n\n“China has used our federal system to create dissent in our nation.\n\n“China has found a way around our federal government and found a state government prepared to do its bidding.\n\n“China knows precisely what it is doing, Daniel Andrews does not.”\n\nImage: News Corp Australia
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