Supply Bills — a reprise On Thursday 28 April 2016, the Finance Minister, Senator Cormann, confirmed that the Government would be introducing Supply Bills in the next meeting of the Parliament. Senator Cormann said: These bills will ensure continuity of the normal business of government in the context of a double-dissolution election. The need for Supply Bills arises because of the Prime Minister’s intention to request that the Governor-General dissolve both Houses of the Parliament on or before 11 May 2016, and the truncated time the Parliament will have to consider the annual Appropriation Bills for 2016‑17. Read more...
Following the Senate’s rejection of the Building and Construction Industry bills on 18 April 2016, the Prime Minister announced on 19 April that he intended to advise the Governor-General to dissolve both houses of Parliament under powers provided by section 57 of the Australian Constitution, thus precipitating the first double dissolution election in 29 years (the last double dissolution election was in July 1987). The Prime Minister said that he expects the election to be held on 2 July 2016. Read more...
The Victorian Government last week announced a significant funding package of $572 million in response to recommendations made in the report by the state’s Royal Commission into Family Violence tabled on 29 March 2016. Read more...
The 15th of April 2016 marks 25 years since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody handed down its final report, which set many directions in current Indigenous policy. The commission was established in 1987 by the Hawke government, and examined 99 Indigenous deaths in custody between 1 January 1980 and 31 May 1989. The key finding of the Royal Commission was that the deaths were due to the combination of police and prisons failing their duty of care, and the high numbers of Indigenous people being arrested and incarcerated. Indigenous and non-Indigenous prisoners did not have different death rates. Read more...
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