Senator Kim Carr

This afternoon the Government-dominated Senate Economics Legislation Committee took the highly unusual step of making a unanimous recommendation to the Senate that it defer the consideration of the Treasury Laws Amendment (Making Sure Multinationals Pay Their Fair Share of Tax in Australia and Other Measures) Bill 2018 pending further refinement.
 
The committee said that on the weight of evidence presented to it, the committee considers that the bill should not proceed until there is further consideration of the R&D tax incentive measures.

Bernard (Barney) Cornelius Cooney, 11 July 1934 - 9 February 2019

Senator for Victoria 1985-2002

Barney Cooney will be remembered as a great defender of the union movement and advocate of workers’ rights; as a great champion of the role of the Senate and its committee system; and as a prominent member of the generation of Labor politicians who cast off the legacy of the 1950s Split and prepared the way for the party’s return to power in the state and nationally.

Industry Minister Karen Andrews MP must act decisively on building fire safety at tomorrow’s meeting of building industry ministers (the Building Ministers’ Forum) in Hobart.

People have a right to be safe in their homes and workplaces, and Australians rightly expect our buildings to be safe and structurally sound.

Labor welcomes the announcement today that Professor Tanya Munro will be Australia’s next Chief Defence Scientist, the first woman appointed to that role. 

Professor Munro is a highly distinguished physicist, is currently the Deputy Vice Chancellor Research and Innovation at the University of South Australia and is an ARC Georgina Sweet Laureate Fellow.   

A Shorten Labor Government will boost local jobs by ensuring more government contracts and major projects are delivered by local businesses, bringing significant economic benefit to communities in Queensland and around Australia.
 
Under a Labor Government’s Local Projects, Local Jobs plan, more government investment will be spent on local businesses and local jobs – not multinationals that don’t care about locals and don’t pay tax in Australia.

Outstanding Australian research is at serious risk thanks to the Liberals’ $328 million of cuts, revealed today in their mid-year economic update.

Australian researchers have produced some incredible inventions such as the cochlear ear implant, WiFi, and a vaccine for cervical cancer.  

The Liberal government is out of touch with modern Australia — and nothing shows it more than the government's relentless war on science.

The Abbott-Turnbull-Morrison government has slashed funding for research in universities and public agencies such as CSIRO, shedding more than 1300 science jobs since 2013.

Jobs, livelihoods and Australia’s innovation system are being placed at risk by Education Minister, Dan Tehan’s refusal to approve $300 million in grants from the Australian Research Council (ARC).
 
The Minister seems more than capable of holding a crisis meeting with the Prime Minister to discuss the Liberals’ Victorian wipe out, but is incapable of following the advice of the ARC and approving these grants.    

Today’s announcement by the Government to slash university research funding to lift the cap on regional university places is reckless and short sighted.
 
Scott Morrison’s latest act of vandalism will further damage Australia’s world class university research.

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
ABC NEWS RADIO
WEDNESDAY, 31 OCTOBER 2018
 
SUBJECTS: GOVERNMENT REJECTION OF ARC GRANTS.
 
STEVE CHASE: Education Minister Dan Tehan has announced an interest test for the grant application process, will ensure that taxpayers can have confidence in how their money is spent. His call for full transparency comes after his predecessor blocked funding for 11 projects already approved by the independent research council. Kim Carr is the Shadow Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research and he joins us now. Senator Carr thanks for coming on.