ALLAN ON RISE IN VICTORIA; PRICES JUMP
New Premier takes charge in Victoria
Victoria’s Labor Government has a new leader, after Jacinta Allan was elected by her party as Premier to replace the long-serving Daniel Andrews. Premier of Victoria since November 2014, Mr Andrews announced his resignation on September 26 and was succeeded by his Deputy Premier the following day. Ms Allan, 50, has most recently served as Transport Infrastructure Minister and entered the Victorian Parliament as the Member for Bendigo East in 1999. Her deputy is Ben Carroll, who becomes Education Minister in a revamped Cabinet. Daniel Andrews won three successive state elections and is Victoria’s longest-serving Labor Premier.
Inflation indicator rises again
Australia’s annual inflation rate has crept back over five per cent, with rising housing, energy and insurance costs the major contributors. In the 12 months to August, the consumer price index indicator rose by 5.2 per cent, up from the 4.9 per cent annual rate recorded to July. Higher energy costs have driven elevated inflation over the past 12 months, with automotive fuel rising by 13.9 per cent, gas 12.9 per cent and electricity 12.7 per cent. The Australian Bureau of Statistics also recorded significant 12-month price rises for housing, transport, and insurance and financial services, ranging from 6.6 per cent to 8.8 per cent.
Army forces on move to northern bases
Defence Minister Richard Marles has announced major changes in the siting of army operations, with a strategic shift to locations in northern Australia. Under the changes, operations in Townsville will assume greater significance, with the northern Queensland city becoming the home of armoured vehicles, and of army attack and medium-lift aviation. Brisbane will be home to a motorised combat brigade, and Darwin will focus on light forces that are agile and quick to move. Mr Marles said that Adelaide would become “future focused”, as the base for long-range strike and integrated air and missile defence capabilities, while sustaining an initial decrease in full-time army personnel numbers. The Defence Minister said the changes responded to the recommendations of the Defence Strategic Review.
Small business faces new controls on privacy
Exemptions for small business from national privacy legislation may be removed under a Federal Government proposal. Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus said the Albanese Government had committed to strengthening privacy protections for Australians in its response to the review of the Privacy Act. In its response, the Government has agreed in-principle to remove the current exemptions available to small businesses with an annual turnover of $3 million or less, subject to further consultation with the business sector. Another recommendation of the review was to make entities accountable for handling individuals’ information and enhancing requirements to keep information secure, including destroying data when it was no longer needed.
Tougher monitoring on way for international education sector
Agents operating in the international education sector face stricter controls and monitoring under changes announced by the Federal Government. Education Minister Jason Clare said new risk indicators would inform a monitoring framework that would drive targeted compliance by education regulators. Student attendance would face increased monitoring, while the existing ‘fit and proper provider test’ under the relevant legislation would be strengthened. Mr Clare said agent commissions on student transfers between providers in Australia would be prohibited, in a bid to remove incentives for unscrupulous agents and providers to “poach” students. Providers would also be given greater access to agent performance data, such as student completion rates and visa rejection rates.
Job vacancy levels edging down
Demand for workers in Australia is showing signs of easing, with total job vacancies estimated to be down by almost nine per cent, seasonally adjusted, in the three months to August. Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics reveal that job vacancies in the private sector fell 9.2 per cent, and in the public sector by 6.3 per cent, from May. But the ABS said overall job vacancies were still 71 per cent higher than pre-Covid 19 levels in early 2020, reflecting continuing worker shortages in many industries.