Newspoll: 51-49 to Coalition

The Coalition edges back into the lead in Newspoll, with Labor, the Greens and One Nation all down on the primary vote.

The Australian reports the Coalition has opened a 51-49 lead in the latest Newspoll, after the previous poll three weeks ago recorded a dead heat. The Coalition is up two on the primary vote to 43%, with Labor down one to 35%, the Greens down two to 10% and One Nation down one to 3%. Scott Morrison’s approval rating is down two to 66%, with the disapproval not yet provided; Albanese is down one on approval to 44% and up three on disapproval to 37%. Morrison’s lead as preferred prime minister is all but unchanged at 56-29, compared with 56-28 last time. The poll was conducted Wednesday to Saturday from a sample of 1504. More detail to follow later.

UPDATE: Morrison’s disapproval rating turns out to be up two to 30%. These numbers have been incorporated into the BludgerTrack leadership trends which you can see on the sidebar and in greater detail here. Newspoll has put to respondents the same suite of questions concerning coronavirus in its last three polls, which record soaring confidence in “federal and state governments’ performance” in managing the economic impact (60% satisfied, up 13 points on last time, and 24% dissatisfied, down nine), preparing the health system (up 19 to 78% and down 13 to 15%) and informing Australians about how to protect themselves (up seven to 82% and down seven to 13%).

Author: William Bowe

William Bowe is a Perth-based election analyst and occasional teacher of political science. His blog, The Poll Bludger, has existed in one form or another since 2004, and is one of the most heavily trafficked websites on Australian politics.

828 comments on “Newspoll: 51-49 to Coalition”

Comments Page 2 of 17
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  1. Scott @ #47 Monday, May 18th, 2020 – 5:32 am

    Rex Douglas says:
    Monday, May 18, 2020 at 7:14 am
    Happy anniversary to federal Labor for losing the unloseable election one year ago through wilful ignorance, political ineptitude and stupidity.
    ———————————————————

    You falling for the media propaganda , what the media did expose was how the opinion pollster corrupt , despite the denials from the so called polling experts and analysis

    Nah, Rex has just received his LNP talking points for the day.

  2. There is no need to celebrate “Australia’s push for virus review before key vote.”

    They’re not “backing Australia’s call” they are voting on a resolution drafted by the EU.

  3. While some might think that the leadership selection process issue has cost the Greens around a quarter of their polling support this year, I am inclined to think that the dilettantes among the Greens, confronted with personal existential issues that may conceivably be impacted by which party they support, are bailing out of the game playing.

    There is that as well, but I think the leadership vote sham would’ve led to many Greens voters becoming disillusioned and giving up on the party. Or at least having a fit of pique and telling a pollster as much.

  4. lizzie @ #52 Monday, May 18th, 2020 – 7:49 am

    There is no need to celebrate “Australia’s push for virus review before key vote.”

    They’re not “backing Australia’s call” they are voting on a resolution drafted by the EU.

    And the Australian media just swallow the government’s spin whole and regurgitate it.

    Laziness, incompetence, corruption?

    All of the above.

  5. This was an obvious consequence of letting the virus get such a deep hold on the community, together with the mixed messaging from the federal government. People are going to be wary of leaving their homes and going to places such as clinics where they are likely to be exposed to covid positive folks, and then there are people who are confused about whether to get tested or not.

    Four months into the U.S. coronavirus epidemic, tests for the virus finally are becoming widely available, a crucial step toward lifting stay-at-home orders and safely returning to normal life. But while many states no longer report crippling supply shortages, a new problem has emerged: too few people lining up to get tested.

    A Washington Post survey of governors’ offices and state health departments found at least a dozen states where testing capacity outstrips the supply of patients. Many have scrambled to make testing more convenient, especially for vulnerable communities, by setting up pop-up sites and developing apps that help assess symptoms, find free test sites and deliver quick results.

    But the numbers, while rising, are well short of capacity — and far short of targets set by independent experts. Utah, for example, is conducting about 3,500 tests a day, a little more than a third of its 9,000-test maximum capacity, and health officials have erected highway billboards begging drivers to “GET TESTED FOR COVID-19.”

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/as-coronavirus-testing-expands-a-new-problem-arises-not-enough-people-to-test/2020/05/17/3f3297de-8bcd-11ea-8ac1-bfb250876b7a_story.html

  6. The Andrews government making an effort, again, with practical strategy.

    [The Andrews government will undertake the biggest spend on social housing since the global financial crisis, as part of a $500 million package to build 168 new units and upgrade 23,000 more to bolster Victoria’s struggling economy.

    The state government will pump $58 million into new social housing units in Reservoir, Balaclava, Dandenong and Hampton Park, but the biggest portion of the package will go towards maintenance and upgrade works that can be delivered quickly, such as painting and roofing.]

    https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/victorian-government-undertakes-biggest-social-housing-spend-since-gfc-20200517-p54trk.html

  7. Good morning Dawn Patrollers

    Shaun Carney says that our future beyond the pandemic hangs on how much courage resides inside those who lead our national government. Their task is to reimagine a different Australia, unencumbered by ideological rigidity and their natural policy timidity.
    https://www.smh.com.au/national/a-big-job-ahead-and-a-big-opportunity-too-20200515-p54tec.html
    And Andrew Charlton says that our fragile economy cannot cope with an early end to government support.
    https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/fragile-economy-cannot-cope-with-early-end-to-government-support-20200517-p54tqa.html
    Ross Gittins warns that with the lockdown slowly being unlocked a return to the ‘lifter vs leaners’ approach to politics could be fatal for the Morrison government. Well worth reading.
    https://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/obsession-with-jobless-offers-morrison-s-best-chance-of-survival-20200517-p54tom.html
    Jim Chalmers is “petrified” the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic will result in some workers being lost to long-term unemployment.
    https://thenewdaily.com.au/finance/work/2020/05/16/labor-long-term-unemployment/
    Michael Pascoe observes that If it holds that the last third of our three-year terms is concentrated on getting re-elected, Scott Morrison is halfway through his opportunity to use his secure leadership to make a difference, to chance his arm in pursuit of what needs to be done. He says that a year after winning the power to do so, there’s no sign of Scott Morrison wanting to, wanting to do anything much at all, unless you count chanting the IR/tax cuts/red tape mantra as something.
    https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/national/2020/05/18/scott-morrison-a-year-later/
    The RMIT’s Helen Souness explains how the Coronavirus pandemic gives Australia a chance to fix our skills gaps in technology. She says employers need not think of training as a cost or an employment benefit. They should reframe that thinking of it as a strategic investment that can deliver a competitive edge.
    https://www.smh.com.au/national/coronavirus-pandemic-gives-australia-a-chance-to-fix-our-skills-gaps-in-technology-20200515-p54tee.html
    Andrew Leigh calls for Australians to not be left behind as we climb out of this crisis.
    https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6758035/as-australia-bounces-back-lets-make-sure-were-not-leaving-people-behind/?cs=14258
    It is going to be difficult for Australia to wean itself off the support provided by government in response to COVID-19. A good place to start is by tightening the turnover test for JobKeeper from July, writes Exante Data’s Grant Wilson.
    https://www.afr.com/politics/federal/it-s-time-to-tighten-the-turnover-test-20200517-p54tqo
    Simon Benson writes that popular support for the federal Coalition has climbed to its highest level since last September ahead of a looming by-election in Eden-Monaro, as Scott Morrison cemented record approval ratings for his leadership during the COVID-19 crisis.
    https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/newspoll-coalition-rides-wave-of-support-as-fears-subside/news-story/2fe96f20dd956dd84a5a8df62bd021b4
    Andrew Probyn explains how coronavirus has remade Scott Morrison’s prime ministership, a year on from the election.
    https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-05-18/coronavirus-morrison-first-election-anniversary/12250518
    The editorial in the AFR wishes for bipartisan support for a pro-growth agenda would conclusively consign the quiet Australians meaning of the 2019 election to history’s dustbin, and open a new COVID-19-written chapter in Australia’s economic reform story.
    https://www.afr.com/policy/economy/let-2019-election-now-be-full-stop-on-quiet-complacency-20200517-p54tng
    Paul Karp writes that four-in-five self-employed Australians have reported their profits have taken a hit as a result of the Covid-19 contraction, with almost one third worried their businesses will not be viable in two months without improved conditions.
    https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/may/18/self-employed-australians-fear-business-collapse-after-coronavirus-destroys-income
    A coalition of 62 countries has backed Australia’s call for an independent inquiry into the coronavirus, with the ultimate goal of countering another pandemic. In a carefully worded draft resolution which does not single out China, the countries call for an “impartial, independent and comprehensive evaluation” of “the WHO-coordinated international health response to COVID-19”.
    https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/2020/05/18/world-backs-australia-coronavirus-probe/
    Sally Whyte reveals that potentially hundreds of thousands of current and former Centrelink recipients will receive letters through MyGov this week alerting them that they could be eligible for the class action against the government over robodebt and giving the option to opt out of the case. I’m sure all will end well with Stuart Robert taking the lead.
    https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6759552/government-to-contact-potential-robodebt-recipients-over-class-action/?cs=14350
    Luke Henriques-Gomes also covers this story.
    https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/may/18/robodebt-centrelink-to-issue-hundreds-of-thousands-of-class-action-notices-for-trial
    Calls to diversify Australian exports following a diplomatic blowup with China represent “peak stupidity,” according to one prominent economist.
    https://thenewdaily.com.au/finance/finance-news/2020/05/17/china-barley-exports-diversification/
    Two major European leaders have told their citizens not to wait to be saved by a coronavirus vaccine.
    https://www.smh.com.au/world/europe/italy-uk-send-stark-warnings-the-world-cannot-wait-for-a-vaccine-20200518-p54ttg.html
    According to the AFR Australia’s world-leading response to the COVID-19 crisis may dramatically lower the extent of debt required by the Morrison government to support the economy, providing a boost to global fixed income investors that have rushed to buy the nation’s bonds.
    https://www.afr.com/policy/economy/covid-19-response-may-pare-back-national-debt-expectations-20200515-p54tdh
    Decarbonisation is our future. It must be factored into the coronavirus recovery say Pradeep Philip and Will Rayward-Smith.
    https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/commentisfree/2020/may/18/decarbonisation-is-our-future-it-must-be-factored-into-the-coronavirus-recovery
    Angela Jackson wonders what the “new normal” will look like for women.
    https://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/so-what-does-the-new-normal-look-like-for-women-20200515-p54tdz.html
    The Andrews government will announce a $500m package to build 168 new units and upgrade 23,000 more to help bolster the coronavirus-ravaged economy.
    https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/victorian-government-undertakes-biggest-social-housing-spend-since-gfc-20200517-p54trk.html
    The Coalition won the 2013 federal election beating their chest about Labor’s “debt and deficit”. Thanks to COVID-19, we’re unlikely to see a surplus in our lifetime or our children’s. But, let’s not forget that the current debt blow-out occurred well before the coronavirus impacted the economy. Alan Austin checks how Australia shapes up against other OECD countries.
    https://www.michaelwest.com.au/government-debt-deepening-rapidly-well-before-covid-19/
    The AFR tells us that China has sought to defuse tensions with Australia, insisting it is committed to the free-trade deal despite disagreement over the government’s proposed coronavirus inquiry.
    https://www.afr.com/world/asia/china-dangles-carrot-over-free-trade-deal-20200517-p54tpq
    The Australian Federal Police will need a team of specialist investigators as they prepare for the first prosecutions on home soil of ­alleged atrocities committed by Australian troops at war writes Paul Maley.
    https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/defence/criminal-justice-system-faces-trial-as-diggers-investigated-for-war-crimes/news-story/9291f07e70abea8ad94bd5574b0e41c0
    Steven Marshall has flatly rejected calls to reopen the state’s borders, saying more freedoms could be relaxed in the next wave of opening up if SA holds the line.
    https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/coronavirus/premier-rejects-call-to-reopen-sas-borders-says-more-restrictions-could-be-relaxed-if-we-prevent-a-second-wave-of-covid19/news-story/b0b5501f4601c75c0736817d790ae7db
    Alexandra Smith reports that the state government was on Sunday frantically finalising its pandemic public transport plan as more Syneysiders return to work and students go back to school full-time.
    https://www.smh.com.au/politics/nsw/pop-up-car-parks-planned-as-nervous-premier-fears-public-transport-risk-20200517-p54tr1.html
    Peter Martin reports that economists have backed social distancing 34-9 in new Economic Society-Conversation survey.
    https://theconversation.com/economists-back-social-distancing-34-9-in-new-economic-society-conversation-survey-138721
    Families that have taken elderly relatives out of aged care during COVID-19 will no longer face penalties to hold their spot reports Dana McCauley.
    https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/reprieve-for-hundreds-of-families-keeping-elderly-relatives-out-of-aged-care-during-pandemic-20200515-p54tb5.html
    Jennifer Duke and Fergus Hunter tell us that overhauling the childcare sector to reduce the cost burden on families could help bring more women into the workplace and improve productivity, with leading economists encouraging the government to undertake a wide-ranging review to help boost the post-coronavirus recovery.
    https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/childcare-cost-overhaul-would-be-kicker-for-post-coronavirus-recovery-20200517-p54toc.html
    Matt Wade writes that analysis shows those who received the Coronavirus Supplement and the government’s one-off $750 stimulus payment spent 39% more than normal last week – and those receiving neither spent 18% less than usual.
    https://www.theage.com.au/business/the-economy/spending-would-collapse-without-crisis-payments-to-households-20200516-p54tk8.html
    Michael Brissenden writes that former chief scientists and senior public servants are no longer staying silent about what they believe has been a colossal failure by politicians of all stripes to comprehensively tackle climate change. This story will run on 4 Corners tonight.
    https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-05-18/four-corners-climate-change-public-servants-reveal-anger/12235180
    Distraction-related road deaths have spiked to record levels across South Australia, where inattention has contributed to more than half of the lives lost so far this year.
    https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/truecrimeaustralia/police-courts/distraction-responsible-for-more-than-half-of-sa-road-deaths/news-story/b7b060163380a98bfa25e71403eb023d
    McDonald’s has closed 12 restaurants in Victoria and staff at the affected outlets have been advised to be tested after an external delivery truck driver tested positive to COVID-19. This is an example of how quickly things could get away from us.
    https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/mcdonald-s-closes-12-stores-after-a-delivery-driver-tests-positive-to-covid-19-20200517-p54tte.html
    Colin Kruger reports that NAB will temporarily hire more staff as it starts assessing the status of more than 80,000 mortgage holders who have put payments on hold due to COVID-19.
    https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/nab-to-hire-400-staff-to-help-assess-covid-customer-status-20200517-p54tpi.html
    Adele Ferguson reveals more serious troubles for AMP.
    https://www.theage.com.au/business/banking-and-finance/signature-scandal-puts-more-pressure-on-amp-s-battle-weary-management-20200515-p54te1.html
    Supermarkets claim to have our health at heart. But their marketing tactics push junk foods explains this group of nutritionists.
    https://theconversation.com/supermarkets-claim-to-have-our-health-at-heart-but-their-marketing-tactics-push-junk-foods-138292
    Deloitte has whittled Virgin Australia’s suitors down to just four.
    https://www.afr.com/street-talk/deloitte-whittles-virgin-bidders-down-to-four-20200517-p54tov
    Matthew Peel unpacks the recent history of Australian rugby, arguing that former CEO Raelene Castle did not deserve to be forced out of her position.
    https://independentaustralia.net/life/life-display/raelene-castles-demise-wasnt-good-for-australian-rugby,13903
    British negotiators fear Michel Barnier has been unable to get EU leaders to focus on Brexit trade and security talks as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, as Downing Street prepares to publish a draft treaty this week in an effort to reboot the process.
    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/may/17/uk-to-publish-draft-treaty-in-effort-to-reboot-brexit-process
    Larry Elliott explains how England found itself at the wrong end of the Covid-19 league table.
    https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/may/17/how-england-found-itself-at-the-foot-of-the-covid-19-league-table
    Did a near-death experience change Boris Johnson wonders Catherine Bennett.
    https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/may/17/even-a-near-death-experience-coronavirus-failed-to-elicit-empathy-in-boris-johnson
    Robert Reich says that America’s corporate elite must place the health of their workers before profit. Good luck with that!
    https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/may/17/americas-corporate-elite-must-stop-treating-coronavirus-as-an-obstacle-to-profit
    Donald Trump has hit back at Barack Obama’s criticism of his administration’s handling of the coronavirus crisis, accusing the former US president of being “grossly incompetent” during his time in office. (Unlike himself who we all know is a genius!).
    https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/may/17/donald-trump-barack-obama-coronavirus-criticism
    America isn’t sick just because of Covid-19.
    https://www.smh.com.au/world/north-america/far-right-groups-are-spreading-racist-false-claims-about-shooting-victim-ahmaud-arbery-analysts-say-20200518-p54ttk.html

    Cartoon Corner

    David Rowe

    Jim Pavlidis

    Peter Broelman

    Michael Leunig

    Matt Golding


    John Shakespeare

    Johannes Leak
    https://cdn.newsapi.com.au/image/v1/1d3c16b1d89f7e3bf7710464d9702d09?width=1024

    From the US



  8. Confessions @ #53 Monday, May 18th, 2020 – 5:49 am

    While some might think that the leadership selection process issue has cost the Greens around a quarter of their polling support this year, I am inclined to think that the dilettantes among the Greens, confronted with personal existential issues that may conceivably be impacted by which party they support, are bailing out of the game playing.

    There is that as well, but I think the leadership vote sham would’ve led to many Greens voters becoming disillusioned and giving up on the party. Or at least having a fit of pique and telling a pollster as much.

    Hard to see that.

    If they were just Green voters and not Party members, I doubt they’d even be aware of what happened.

  9. This is going to be a worry for Morrison and the LNP down the track. Self employed people (who tend to favour the LNP) say they are worse off than employees.

    More than 80 per cent of self-employed Australian workers say their profits have plummeted as a result of coronavirus, a new study has shown.

    A survey of more than 3100 people by the Australian National University found self-employed workers had lost more income than employees and had lost more work hours.

    Almost one-third of self-employed workers surveyed said their businesses would not be economically viable in the next two months if the economic trends continue.

    The number of businesses that wouldn’t be feasible increased to 40 per cent if the economy stayed the same for the next six months.

    https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6759537/four-in-five-self-employed-workers-worse-off-due-to-coronavirus/?cs=14231

  10. Cheers BK.

    Depressing start to this AM’s Dawn Patrol.

    To quote briefly;

    “We’re fucked!!!!”

    Shaun Carney says that our future beyond the pandemic hangs on how much courage resides inside those who lead our national government. Their task is to reimagine a different Australia, unencumbered by ideological rigidity and their natural policy timidity.
    https://www.smh.com.au/national/a-big-job-ahead-and-a-big-opportunity-too-20200515-p54tec.html

  12. Summary by BK

    Shaun Carney says that our future beyond the pandemic hangs on how much courage resides inside those who lead our national government. Their task is to reimagine a different Australia, unencumbered by ideological rigidity and their natural policy timidity.

    We can forget any reimagining, in that case. We have a government whose minds are so narrow they can see nothing except holding on to their seats.

  13. This poll shows that the Government’s spending policies have kept people afloat and there’s a general vibe that the worst is over and we’ll all be back to normal within weeks. So Happy Days are back soon, apparently.

    But, as Morrison has admitted the spending will stop sooner than later. All predictions are that the economy will worsen over the next few months. The Feds are also banking on there being no second wave.

    Good comedy is tragedy plus time. I guess we are going to see whether that is true!

  15. I have a close friend who is Self Employed and her business just collapsed overnight and it won’t come back until the AirBnB and Holiday Rental market open up again and I can’t see that happening any time soon. Firstly for the reason that we aren’t looking to open our borders to tourists in the near future, and secondly because people will be afraid they will catch COVID-19 from fomites in the rental accomodation. You can try and deep clean but you can’t guarantee 100% perfection. Or you could but the cleaning bill would be enormous and that would just tack onto the cost of rental for these places, which is already sky high. Plus, people won’t be psychologically willing to go back for a while yet. Maybe until after a vaccine is developed.

  16. In news that will shock no one the ‘miracle’ drug is a dud. (open in Incognito window)

    The results are in. Trump’s miracle drug is useless.

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-results-are-in-trumps-miracle-drug-is-useless/2020/05/15/150f680c-9545-11ea-91d7-cf4423d47683_story.html
    Not forgetting our own wee Ghunt.
    ”
    Health Minister Greg Hunt has announced he has struck a deal to get a “miracle drug” touted by President Trump”
    https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/health/health-problems/coronavirus-australia-to-get-virus-wonder-drug-soon/news-story/e617f96559172b572607794e176bbd30

  17. Might as well re-post the comment I made on the previous thread before I noticed the switch to this one.

    What brain cells there are in the family tree certainly didn’t fall when this cretin came along.

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/05/17/eric-trump-coronavirus/

    What’s the bet that Netanyahu finds some way to sabotage this arrangement because he just can’t stand the idea of power sharing.

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/after-three-elections-and-political-deadlock-israel-finally-swears-in-new-government/2020/05/17/ba25e752-9807-11ea-87a3-22d324235636_story.html

    Might as well add this bit of hilarious “news” from Rupert –

    “A massive shake-up is coming to the way Aussies watch TV and movies with a new streaming service that rivals Netflix and Stan launching.”

    I nearly choked on my friends homemade aniseed bickie when I read that.

    https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/tv/foxtels-new-service-will-be-jampacked-with-local-and-international-drama-and-movies/news-story/bae3a1cdeca2f51826f43227125fa510

  19. The Green PV has declined because they’ve been silenced by the pandemic. They’re effectively entirely irrelevant to the pandemic response and have been unable to use it to campaign against Labor. Their game-plan has been put on hold. But they’ll be back….looking for opportunities to blame Labor and rally their numbers again. They’ve already commenced.

  21. Morning all and thanks BK for the comprehensive roundup. Amidst all the corruption and chest thumping of the Covid response we sometimes lose sight of the callousness and incompetence. This story highlights numerous examples of people who had a legal right to be in Australia who have been denied the right to return. In some cases the decisions seem plain cruel, splitting individual families. After letting anyone off the Ruby Princess, the ABF now won’t let anyone in. They have gone from one extreme to the other, incapable of making a rational judgement in between.
    https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-05-17/coronavirus-skilled-migrants-travel-bans-australia-covid-19/12253434

    As well as being cruel, economically these decisions are stupid. The population growth that has kept Australia out of recession has ground to a halt. Most of these people are young and healthy. The ABF are idiots, led by an idiot.

  22. Revenue in my corner of trade declined from April/May 2019 to April/May 2020 by more than 97%. Gone for all time I reckon. Now scratching for any kind of living.

  23. Dan Rather wins the internet today:

    Dan Rather
    @DanRather

    President Trump does so much projecting, he might as well open up a movie theater.

  25. The Green PV has declined because they’ve been silenced by the pandemic. They’re effectively entirely irrelevant to the pandemic response and have been unable to use it to campaign against Labor.

    Actually this is probably closer to the mark about the decline in the Green vote.

    One of the things I’ve enjoyed about the pandemic is that we haven’t had to waste time hearing from ragtag cross bench nobodies from the Greens, PHON etc on shows like Insiders and Qanda. They are irrelevant to the crisis so it makes no sense to waste time with what they have to say about things.

  26. Fess

    The disadvantage is that we are bombarded with long speeches by Morrison, Tehan, etc. Swings and roundabouts, I suppose.

  30. Confessions @ #75 Monday, May 18th, 2020 – 8:24 am

    The Green PV has declined because they’ve been silenced by the pandemic. They’re effectively entirely irrelevant to the pandemic response and have been unable to use it to campaign against Labor.

    Actually this is probably closer to the mark about the decline in the Green vote.

    One of the things I’ve enjoyed about the pandemic is that we haven’t had to waste time hearing from ragtag cross bench nobodies from the Greens, PHON etc on shows like Insiders and Qanda. They are irrelevant to the crisis so it makes no sense to waste time with what they have to say about things.

    It’s why Peggy has gone for hysterical over reach here on PB.

    Remember her stupid Andrews robbed Victoria of Mothers Day claim. Everybody yawned.

  31. So, Morrison appears to be reneging on free child care during the coronavirus crisis, now looking like it will come to an end on June, 28. And it’s also likely that when the Jobkeeker payment ceases, there won’t be too many jobs to return to. Labor should not be too concerned with the polls at the moment.

  32. lizzie:

    People want to hear from the government of the day during times of crisis. Irrelevant cross bench minor party members, not so much.

  35. Greens urge $300bn more debt as they seek to outflank Labor on Covid-19 recovery spending
    …
    The Invest to Recover plan, released on Monday, sets up the Greens’ economic argument leading into the next election as a battle against Coalition austerity and Labor, which it says is “afraid of sensible borrowing to invest in our future”.

    https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/may/18/greens-300bn-government-debt-outflank-labor-coronavirus-recovery-spending

  36. Greens demand job guarantees and free education for young people in coronavirus recovery plan

    https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-05-18/greens-pushing-for-debt-laden-coronavirus-recovery-jobs-tafe/12257134

    “Young people have been smashed by the corona crisis,” he said.

    “If we don’t offer every young person a job, a study place or a decent income, we risk creating a lost generation.”
    :::
    “We learnt from the global financial crisis that for young people who are starting their working lives at a time of recession, they carry the scars with them for life unless they’re given the opportunity of good, decent work with decent security working on meaningful projects.

    “We owe this to young people because otherwise we’ll be stuck paying for income support for a very long time for what could be a lost generation.”
    :::
    Dubbed Invest To Recovery, the Greens’ plan seeks to create almost 900,000 jobs building renewable energy infrastructure in the public and private sectors. It also seeks to spend $60 billion to revive domestic manufacturing and processing.

    The arts would receive billions, to support a sector that has missed out on the JobKeeper $1,500-a-fortnight payment.

    The Greens want a $2.3 billion entertainment and creative industries fund to put artists into every school and library in Australia. The fund would also pay for festivals, films and live performances.
    :::
    Mr Bandt said it was incumbent upon the Government to act as a “safety-net employer”, in guaranteeing work to people until the private sector rehired the 1 million people who have lost their jobs due to coronavirus.

  38. Remember her stupid Andrews robbed Victoria of Mothers Day claim. Everybody yawned.

    Or laughed. Or sent their eyebrows into their hairline at the abject immaturity of it.

    Besides, she was wrong. There were plenty of people in WA who could not visit their mothers on Mother’s Day because they live in different parts of the state.

  39. Confessions @ #88 Monday, May 18th, 2020 – 8:38 am

    Remember her stupid Andrews robbed Victoria of Mothers Day claim. Everybody yawned.

    Or laughed. Or sent their eyebrows into their hairline at the abject immaturity of it.

    Besides, she was wrong. There were plenty of people in WA who could not visit their mothers on Mother’s Day because they live in different parts of the state.

    and NSW.

  40. Mavis @ #72 Monday, May 18th, 2020 – 8:33 am

    So, Morrison appears to be reneging on free child care during the coronavirus crisis, now looking like it will come to an end on June, 28. And it’s also likely that when the Jobkeeker payment ceases, there won’t be too many jobs to return to. Labor should not be too concerned with the polls at the moment.

    Yep, providing the money was the easy bit, taking it away, not so easy. We were still suffering the hangover from Howard and Costello’s largesse legacy when this virus hit us and Labor were the only ones who were prepared to adult last year before the election and tell people they needed to pull their fiscal heads in. And all they got for their troubles was the bloody ABC interviewing some wanker who wanted to buy his 8th boat with his Franking Credits!

    Well now it’s Morrison and Frydenburg’s turn to go from Santa Claus to Scrooge McDuck. As they’ve already cut most things to the bone that don’t benefit their voters or their mates they’ll have to look elsewhere to pay back their debts. I’ll be sitting over in the corner selling popcorn. 🙂

  41. Continually Insufferable says:
    Monday, May 18, 2020 at 8:19 am

    The Green PV has declined because they’ve been silenced by the pandemic. They’re effectively entirely irrelevant to the pandemic response and have been unable to use it to campaign against Labor. Their game-plan has been put on hold. But they’ll be back….looking for opportunities to blame Labor and rally their numbers again. They’ve already commenced.

    …
    as a battle against Coalition austerity and Labor, which it says is “afraid of sensible borrowing to invest in our future”.
    …
    https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/may/18/greens-300bn-government-debt-outflank-labor-coronavirus-recovery-spending

  42. C@t:

    MSNBC is absolutely preaching to the converted. Same as twitter. I enjoy the MSNBC clips but never mistake them as reaching a wider audience than those who agree with what they’re seeing and hearing.

  43. Greens urge $300bn more debt as they seek to outflank Labor on Covid-19 recovery spending

    https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/may/18/greens-300bn-government-debt-outflank-labor-coronavirus-recovery-spending

    The Greens have proposed increasing government debt by $300bn in a bid to kickstart the economy out of the Covid-19 contraction through investments in industry, infrastructure and renewable energy.

    The Invest to Recover plan, released on Monday, sets up the Greens’ economic argument leading into the next election as a battle against Coalition austerity and Labor, which it says is “afraid of sensible borrowing to invest in our future”.

    The biggest ticket items include a jobs guarantee, free tertiary education for under 30s, $24bn over 10 years for public education, a $12bn manufacturing fund, 500,000 new public and community homes, $25bn on public transport, $6bn to modernise the electricity grid, a $6bn nature fund and $2.3bn for the arts.

    The Greens also propose retaining key features of the coronavirus support packages including free childcare and the doubling of unemployment benefits to $1,100 a fortnight.

    While the minor party holds just one lower house seat and can only govern in partnership with other parties, its policies from a banking royal commission, lifting Newstart and preventing cuts to penalty rates have proved influential, especially over Labor.
    :::
    The Greens policy argued that governments have access to “the cheapest money in history” with interest rates less than 1% on 10-year bonds, and less than 2% for 30 year bonds.

    “There’s never been a better time for governments to borrow to invest given that interest rates are projected to stay at record low levels for many years.”

  44. The Washington Post has a look at NZ. Note the date. Scotty from Marketing would have had the same and probably more information at that time and he was still Scotty For Footy in mid March

    NZ had one advantage, the ‘business community’ looks to have had a different attitude to the one here.(from article)
    Ardern’s government closed the borders. Business leaders urged even more drastic steps.
    .

    Asia & Pacific
    New Zealand edges back to normal after quashing coronavirus in 49 days

    On Feb. 13, a full two weeks before New Zealand’s first confirmed coronavirus case, Ardern and her finance minister, Grant Robertson, were hungry for statistics……………….“She wanted the data and the modeling, and she recognized the patterns. The government saw early on that this was much more serious than SARS,” Jones said,

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/new-zealand-edges-back-to-normal-after-routing-coronavirus-in-49-days/2020/05/15/c8f43f46-950e-11ea-87a3-22d324235636_story.html

  45. I’d agree with Bandt on this. The irony is that Morrison has already been raising our debt levels, but not in pursuit of fairness.

    The Greens leader, Adam Bandt, said: “Depression-era job numbers demand a Depression-era response. That means not shying away from debt, but using it to invest in building a cleaner, fairer Australia.”

    “We can’t cut our way out of this crisis. The government and big corporations are calling for more cuts – to company taxes, to public spending, to workers’ rights – but that is a recipe for disaster. We must invest to recover.”

  46. The only investments the Coalition will want to make are in projects that will shovel money out the door to their mates.

  47. Greens Back Global Call For Debt Forgiveness

    https://greensmps.org.au/articles/greens-back-global-call-debt-forgiveness

    The Australian Greens have joined an international delegation signing onto a letter calling for extensive debt forgiveness from international financial institutions, including the IMF and World Bank, for International Development Association countries. The letter was initiated by U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders and Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, and signatories include Jeremy Corbyn, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Yanis Varoufakis.
    :::
    (Adam Bandt) “The COVID-19 health and economic crisis is entrenching global income inequality. But right now we have the chance to transform our world to be fairer and more equal,” he said.

  48. “Peter Collignon
    @CollignonPeter
    ·
    10m
    This might indicate that heavy breathing likely sends droplets further and maybe produces more droplets as well. Maybe same issue with shouting, singing etc. Also why we need to keep physical distancing as much as possible.”

    No shit, Sherlock..
    It might indicate that we have a serious problem with indoor spaces and that “social distancing” may not be sufficient in places like food courts, trains, cinemas etc.

  49. John Setka in bid to tighten grip on power

    https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/john-setka-in-bid-to-tighten-grip-on-power/news-story/a07fffad90b1c81b07579b9cba9a3731

    Fresh brawling has erupted inside the CFMEU as the construction division moved to tighten its grip over the union and controversial Victorian leader John Setka was accused of a new powerplay to undermine influential national secretary Michael O’Connor.

    The union’s manufacturing division has also accused Mr Setka’s construction branch of “trampling” over the conditions of floor layers by striking enterprise agreements that allegedly leave workers worse off by $21,000 a year.

    Documents obtained by The Australian show the construction and general division intends to move on Thursday to slash the number of officials on the union’s powerful national executive to 16, with the majority to be officials from the construction branch.

  50. The Donald discovers a new Covid-19 cure: Trampolinis J. What you do is buy a trampoline and start jumping up and down on it. The C-19 won’t be able to keep up with you, as you jump up it misses you and when you come down the C-19 is up in the air above you. Take a small step left or right and when you bounce up again it’s on it’s way down and misses you again. Rinse and repeat. The only drawback is that you will have to do this non-stop for at least three weeks. If, however, you are part of the filthy rich elite you could hire a poor person to be a surrogate bouncer.

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