DEFENCE BOOST IN THE CLOUD; TAX BASE LIFT
Australia commits $2 billion to sovereign Cloud service
Australia will commit more than $2 billion over the next decade in partnering with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to deliver a purpose-built Top Secret Cloud for defence and national intelligence agencies. Under the partnership, AWS will establish a sovereign Cloud with the Australian Signals Directorate to deliver resilient information, communication and technology services. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Defence Minister Richard Marles said AWS was the world’s most widely adopted cloud computing service. They said the TS Cloud would bolster national cyber capabilities and the resilience of Defence’s communications networks, and support greater interoperability and deeper collaboration with the United States.
Future Made in Australia legislation unveiled in Parliament
Legislation to enact the Albanese Government’s Future Made in Australia initiative has been formally introduced into Federal Parliament. Introducing the Bill, Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the legislation would more closely align Australia’s national security and economic interests. Dr Chalmers said the national interest framework would help the government identify sectors where the nation had a sustained comparative advantage in the new net zero economy. He said the legislation would embed strict criteria and robust processes to assess potential private investment in the $22.7 billion scheme, guided by Department of Treasury analysis.
Government moves on minimum 15 per cent tax for multinationals
Large multinational companies operating in Australia will pay a minimum 15 per cent global and domestic tax under legislation introduced last week into Federal Parliament. The new laws will apply to all multinational enterprise groups with an annual global revenue of at least €750 million (about A$1.2 billion), effective from January 1, 2024. Assistant Treasury Minister Dr Andrew Leigh said the minimum tax regime was being implemented in line with the OECD/G20 Two-Pillar Solution, a multilateral agreement supported by more than 140 nations. Dr Leigh said the biggest economies in the world were cracking down on multinationals to ensure they paid a fairer share of tax.
Burke vows to reform employment services
Employment and Workplace Relations Minister Tony Burke has pledged to make major reforms to Australia’s employment services framework to ensure it better meets the needs of job seekers. Responding to a parliamentary committee report on Workforce Australia Employment Services, Mr Burke said the system should not be based on a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach. He said the employment services needed to better understand people’s circumstances and connect them with the right support. In its response to the committee report, the government said there was a role for well-designed mutual obligations that supported people into work. But mutual obligations should better reflect individual circumstances and local labour market conditions, the report said.
Trade surpluses trending down
Australia’s post-Covid export boom is coming to an end, if latest figures on international trade in goods is any indication. The seasonally adjusted trade balance in goods fell to a surplus of $5.7 billion in May, with a rise in imports outstripping an increase in exports. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the nation registered a peak trade surplus of almost $20 billion in July 2022. Metal ores and minerals continue to drive export sales figures, offset by a rise in the import of fuels and lubricants.
Iron ore, LNG exports forecast to fall
Meanwhile, Resources Minister Madeleine King expects that Australia’s resources and energy export earnings to decline by more than $60 billion as commodity prices return to long-term levels. Ms King said the Department of Industry, Science and Resources forecast export earnings to fall from an estimated $417 billion in 2023-24 to $356 billion in 2025-26. She said global supply was steadily improving after the invasion of Ukraine. Iron ore exports were predicted to fall from $138 billion in 2023-24 to $102 billion in 2024-25, while LNG exports were forecast to drop from $69 billion to $59 billion over the same period.