What we learned, Monday 12 October
Krishani Dhanji
That’s all for the politics live blog today, thanks so much for joining us. Here are the headlines:
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The Australian government should block the “barbaric” broadcast or live stream of a US military execution, Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young says. She found a somewhat unlikely ally in Barnaby Joyce who said the execution was like “Roman amphitheatre” and should not be watched. The government was a lot less forthcoming on whether the stream should be banned.
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Small business minister Anne Aly was in the question time spotlight today, pressed by the opposition on how and when she found out the ATO would ban credit card payments (she says she found out with the rest of the public).
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Australian engineer Robert Pether has been allowed to leave Iraq after being detained for more than four years in a Baghdad jail cell that his family feared would kill him.
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David Chau will replace the retiring Alan Kohler as the ABC’s finance presenter on its 7pm news bulletins, the national broadcaster has announced.
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The NSW government will seek to amend legislation to give One Nation access to the independent Parliamentary Budget Office in a bid to challenge the populist party to cost their promises.
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The peak body for the oil and gas industry was the only stakeholder the New South Wales government met with before a decision to reopen gas exploration approvals for the first time in more than a decade, documents released under freedom of information laws suggest.
I’ll see you back here bright and early tomorrow.
Key events
NSW One Nation rejects attempt to force it to cost state policies
NSW One Nation has pushed back against an attempt to have the party cost its state election promises, saying it would instead use access to the NSW parliamentary budget office (PBO) to cost the government’s net zero objectives.
As we reported this morning, the Minns government will seek to amend legislation to give One Nation access to the PBO, in a bid to challenge the populist party to cost its election promises. Labor says it’s clear March’s 2027 election will see three parties competing to form government.
Current legislation only contemplates a Labor v Coalition contest. Minor parties like the Greens and independents can use the PBO to cost up to two policies a year.
In a statement this afternoon, NSW One Nation leader and candidate for Cessnock, Mike Newman, said:
Our only request will be what is the total cost of Net Zero to the NSW Budget? Unless the PBO can provide a comprehensive response then One Nation will not be lectured.
The legislation is expected to pass this week with Coalition support. The act obliges major parties to cost their policies, but there is no actual penalty if they refuse to do so. The Greens have indicated they will not support the amendment.
What we learned, Monday 12 October
Krishani Dhanji
That’s all for the politics live blog today, thanks so much for joining us. Here are the headlines:
-
The Australian government should block the “barbaric” broadcast or live stream of a US military execution, Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young says. She found a somewhat unlikely ally in Barnaby Joyce who said the execution was like “Roman amphitheatre” and should not be watched. The government was a lot less forthcoming on whether the stream should be banned.
-
Small business minister Anne Aly was in the question time spotlight today, pressed by the opposition on how and when she found out the ATO would ban credit card payments (she says she found out with the rest of the public).
-
Australian engineer Robert Pether has been allowed to leave Iraq after being detained for more than four years in a Baghdad jail cell that his family feared would kill him.
-
David Chau will replace the retiring Alan Kohler as the ABC’s finance presenter on its 7pm news bulletins, the national broadcaster has announced.
-
The NSW government will seek to amend legislation to give One Nation access to the independent Parliamentary Budget Office in a bid to challenge the populist party to cost their promises.
-
The peak body for the oil and gas industry was the only stakeholder the New South Wales government met with before a decision to reopen gas exploration approvals for the first time in more than a decade, documents released under freedom of information laws suggest.
I’ll see you back here bright and early tomorrow.
Question time ends
After a final dixer to resources minister, Madeleine King, the PM calls time on QT for the day.
On indulgence he gives Milton Dick a shout out for his election to become the “global speaker”, the leader of the International Parliamentary Union.
Aly says she found out about ATO move when the rest of the public did
Nationals MP Kevin Hogan again probes small business minister Anne Aly to declare when she found out about the ATO’s decision to ban credit card payments.
Hogan says the treasurer said that he’d heard from the ATO not the Reserve Bank about the ban “in the lead up to the decision”, so why didn’t Aly also know in advance?
Anne Aly says again that she found out with the rest of the public:
I’ll repeat my answer from last time, but I’ll add a bit of clarity to it. The RBA announced their plan to ban surcharges on March 31 this year, stating that surcharges will be banned from October 1. On October 1, the ATO announced their decision that they would not be accepting credit cards. That’s when I found out.
Antisemitism royal commission announces extra hearing to be closed to public
Josh Butler
Breaking into question time with a little breaking news. The royal commission into antisemitism has announced it will hold an additional hearing this month, which will be closed to the public, to focus on security and intelligence issues.
The royal commission in August said it was holding its final hearings that month, ahead of handing down its final report in December.
But on Monday, the royal commission said in a statement that it would hold “additional hearing” in October – with no date announced – “to take additional evidence related to Hearing Block 2.”
That part of the investigation was specifically around “the circumstances surrounding the attack at Bondi on 14 December 2025”, including the terrorism threat level; the conduct of security, intelligence and law enforcement agencies; what was known about the shooters and what was done with that information; and the security arrangements for the Chanukah by the Sea event.
The royal commission said in its statement:
Due to the sensitivity of the evidence, this hearing will be classified and therefore closed to the public to avoid prejudice to national security and the ongoing criminal proceedings relating to the attack.
‘Not on my bingo card’, PM says as Katter ponders North Queensland state
Like the prime minister, this one wasn’t on my bingo card for today (or ever), Bob Katter asks the government for a report on the viability of a North Queensland state.
He says the north’s resources are being held by a government 3,000km away and the money squandered by “on a two–week athletic meet called the Olympics”.
It’s a much more tame description of the events. Katter back in 2024 described the Paris Olympics opening ceremony as “an ‘orgiastic pagan ritual’ denigrating Christianity”.
Anthony Albanese jokes:
A question that, I’ve got to say, was not on my bingo card. The idea of a breakup of the states – including the great state of Queensland – would perhaps see a Premier Katter in Far North Queensland, which might or might not be a good thing. It would weaken the Queensland State of Origin team somewhat, given the magnificent players who’ve come from places like Cloncurry and Mount Isa.
Slightly more seriously he says it’s important for the north of the state to get its “fair share”, but defends the Olympics and says it’ll be good economically for the whole state.
Aly in the spotlight and Liberal MP booted
The opposition isn’t relenting on its attack on small business minister Anne Aly, with shadow treasurer Tim Wilson now asking her to confirm whether the Reserve Bank made the decision to ban credit card payments to the Australian Taxation Office.
It’s a quick question and a quick answer.
I think it’s pretty clear, from the statements that were made by the RBA – the RBA made the decision to ban surcharges, and the ATO responded.
From the Coalition backbench, Ben Small shouts “You don’t even understand …”
Milton Dick says he’s “had a good go” at interrupting today and he gets booted before he can finish.
Coalition pushes for who knew what and when on ATO credit card ban
Angie Bell is back, ditches the preamble and tries the more direct approach, asking the small business minister, Anne Aly: “When was the minister first informed of the credit–card ban, and by whom?”
Aly seems to avoid the question at first, saying that Labor understands what small businesses are going through with rising pries, but then gets to the point.
On the matter of the credit card surcharge or the ban to the credit card surcharge, it was a decision that was made by the RBA. I became aware of it – as did everyone else – when the RBA made that decision and made it public.
Coalition gets personal against small business minister
Liberal frontbencher Angie Bell asks the small business minister when and how she was first informed of the credit card ban for small businesses by the Australian Tax Office. She quotes a Labor MP from a story in Nine newspapers last week that the minister “knows nothing about small business”.
Small business minister, Anne Aly, spends the first half of her answer talking about her travels around Australia to talk to small businesses.
The Coalition isn’t happy with the answer – she’s not saying when she found out about the ban and who told her. Leader of the House, Tony Burke, says the quote from an unnamed MP is a “political sledge – effectively allows a much broader answer”. Milton Dick tells the opposition that they asked a political question so they’ll get a political answer but directs Aly to be relevant.
There’s some more back and forth, with some sledging across the despatch box, and Dick warns the House to show some respect and decorum.
Aly continues:
Anyone with even a cursory understanding of numbers will understand that the number of businesses opening, compared to the number of businesses that are closing, demonstrates …
She’s trying to say that the total number of small businesses has gone up but she runs out of time on the answer.
Coalition getting lessons from Liz Truss ‘of all people’, Albanese says
Shadow treasurer Tim Wilson is up next and puts forward a quote from an unnamed “aspiring backbencher” that no one in cabinet has any small business experience, asking the prime minister when he will scrap Labor’s credit card surcharge ban.
(The government was keen on the change, but it’s worth noting the decision itself came from the Reserve Bank).
Anthony Albanese says he gives Wilson some “points for courage” given Josh Frydenberg is out there openly campaigning for an increase to the GST.
[Frydenberg] most remarkably, actually saying that they spent too much and wasted money during the Covid crisis. If only Mr Frydenberg was in a position to have some influence during that time …! But perhaps the spending was the result of the other bloke who was also the treasurer, Scott Morrison.
The opposition tries to raise a point of order on relevance, but Milton Dick says the question was pretty “political”, ie you ask a broad question you get a broad answer.
Albanese then takes a dig at the Coalition and the members who attended the CPAC conference over the weekend:
At CPAC, they weren’t talking there about policies of small business, Mr Speaker … They weren’t talking about policies of big business. They were getting lessons, of all people, from the only person in the western world who makes Tony Abbott’s period as PM look long, which is Liz Truss, who lasted 45 days.
Question time starts on small business
The opposition has small business in its sights today, with Angus Taylor accusing Labor of “waging war” against the sector. He says they’ve been slugged with rising power bills, increased tax and the ban on credit card surcharging.
Anthony Albanese takes the question and runs through a list of pro-small business measures the government has taken.
He says there are 265,000 more small businesses than there were in 2022 when Labor came to office.
People talk about insolvencies – according to Asic data, insolvencies under this government, as a proportion of all companies, has averaged 0.32%. The rate under the Howard government was 0.5%. Average monthly new company registrations are higher under this government than any government on record.
Taylor shakes his head as Albanese says that.
Albanese and Taylor mark anniversary of 7 October attack
Before questions begin, Albanese and Taylor also mark the third anniversary of the 7 October attack in Israel.
Albanese says:
For so many, no day since has been easy. But anniversaries fall with their own terrible weight. And for many others, what compounds the pain is the approach of the first anniversary of the antisemitic terrorist attack at Bondi beach. These few years have been hard beyond measure, but Australia stands with the Jewish community here and across the world. We stand against antisemitism and racism in all its forms because it goes against who we are.
Taylor says:
The fight against antisemitism is a fight for the truth – a fight that continues on our soil too. And the fight for the truth is about acknowledging and combating all forms of antisemitism – especially Islamist extremism.
Albanese marks 25 years since start of Australia’s mission in Afghanistan
Anthony Albanese and Angus Taylor have marked the 25th anniversary of the beginning of Operation Slipper, when Australia joined the US’s war in Afghanistan.
There were more than 35,000 Australian men and women who served in Afghanistan.
Albanese and Taylor attended a commemoration of the anniversary at the Australian War Memorial on Sunday.
He tells the House:
We honour the families – those who have felt both the pride and weight that comes when a loved one puts on the uniform, and those who have lived with the grief that is the pain of love wrapped around an absence that can never be filled. As we look to Afghanistan, we are reminded again of what Australians in war have faced, and the difference they have made in humanity’s truest spirit. What Australians in Afghanistan embodied is something we must never lose.
Taylor pays tribute to the men and women who served and the families of the 47 Australians who died.
Many still bear the wounds of their service, seen and unseen. We owe them a debt that can never be repaid. That our nation will never forget, and we will always honour what they achieved.