Opposition leader Peter Dutton criticises the federal government's Made in Australia Act; The Greens say emergency migration laws will undermine multicultural Australia; And in golf, Rickie Fowler returns to the Masters after a three-year absence.
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TRANSCRIPT
In this bulletin;
- Opposition leader Peter Dutton criticises the federal government's Made in Australia Act;
- The Greens say emergency migration laws will undermine multicultural Australia;
- And in golf, Rickie Fowler returns to the Masters after a three-year absence.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says the future of Australia's economic security relies upon fostering manufacturing at home and boosting control over the nation's resources and critical minerals.
Mr Albanese has unveiled plans for a Future Made in Australia Act, proposing taxpayer-funded incentives to advance the manufacturing and clean energy industries.
He has compared the initiative to the Inflation Reduction Act in the United States and similar programs in other countries, saying the Australian version would build local industries focusing on the energy transition.
"The role of government needs to evolve, government needs to be more strategic, more sophisticated, and a more constructive contributor. We need this change in thinking and approach because the global economic circumstances are changing in ways far more profound than the consequences of the pandemic or conflict alone. This decade marks a fundamental shift in the way nations are structuring their economies."
While Opposition leader Peter Dutton has criticised the proposed act.
"When I hear about him talking on Made in Australia, I hear the same message that he gave to the Australian people on delivering a $275 cut to your power bill. It's just not going to happen. He's promising Australia made solar panels. It's not going to happen because this Prime Minister is driving up every input cost and Australian manufacturing is going broke. Australian manufacturing is failing 300 per cent greater under the Albanese government than it did under the Morrison government."
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The federal government's emergency migration laws, which will give the immigration minister powers to force non-citizens to leave the country, have been criticised.
Labor for Refugees has warned the legislation is flawed and has called on MPs to oppose the bill.
Meanwhile, the Greens have spoken to multicultural communities about the bill - saying it will undermine multicultural Australia and separate families.
Greens spokesman for immigration David Shoebridge says it's anti-refugee.
"There is a ripple of fear across multicultural Australia for the reach of these laws, a ripple of fear that their friends and community members may be issued with a direction and put in jail by a grossly unfair immigration and refugee system. A ripple of fear from communities who fear that they may be literally cut off from their homelands. And the government has already listed four countries, which they're proposing these powers against Russia, Iran, Iraq, and South Sudan."
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Smaller supermarket companies have faced questioning around how they set prices and use their market power when dealing with suppliers.
Aldi, Metcash and Endeavour have fronted a senate inquiry into the price-setting and competition practicies of Australia's two major supermarkets, Woolworths and Coles.
It's a Greens-led inquiry which comes amid allegations of corporate profiteering and price gouging of both consumers and suppliers.
Chief Executive of Aldi, Anna McGrath, says they have noticed prices come down in Coles and Woolworths stores in areas where Aldi has entered the market.
"I can state that we have had situations where we've entered markets and where our competitors have, from our observations, where our competitors have reduced their prices and response to us entering."
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And in golf,
Rickie Fowler has returned to the Masters after a three-year absence and has already made a win at the Augusta National.
Fowler won the traditional Par 3 Contest at the tournament in five-under par.
That allowed a two-stroke victory over Sepp Straka, JT Poston and Santiago de la Feunte.
Nobody has won the Par 3 contest, first played in 1960 and won by Sam Snead, and the green jacket in the same year.
Fowler is scheduled to set out on Friday 12:06am Australian Eastern Standard Time in a group with fellow American Patrick Cantlay and Australia's Min Woo Lee.
