Australian Politics

What happens when a commodity-poor nation that consumes huge qualities of commodities blocks external supply.

Kiss the ring of Virgin Premier Gladys, at Domain: The Premier’s popularity is high on the back of her competent handling of the pandemic.

A terrific piece at Domain on the weekend describes the state of China ties within the ALP: In mid-May, a small sticker appeared on a Labor senator’s office door in Parliament House.

Via The Australian comes the brawling of Neo-Nazis: In a submission to the senate inquiry into Scott Morrison’s Foreign Relations Bill — which aims to give Canberra a veto over state government and university deals with overseas powers — ambassdor Cheng Jingye also accused other Beijing critics of having “minds of malice”.

Sir Fomo McSpruikerson is an expatriate billionaire and proud proprietor of The Strayan, a vanity media project designed to boost his assets.

During his daily press conferences on Victoria’s COVID-19 infections, Premier Daniel Andrews regularly tells us that he is just “following the science” and the “super computer” with regards to the state’s draconian lockdowns.

Sky News’ Peta Credlin has again forensically unpicked inconsistencies, lies and obfuscation from the Victorian Government during the Hotel Quarantine Inquiry.

Labor leader Anthony Albanese has urged the federal government to press ahead with its proposed national integrity commission in the wake of revelations about a controversial land deal at Badgerys Creek in New South Wales.

News has a nice Swedish panic feature today: Coronavirus cases have exploded in Sweden as authorities try to keep hold of twin battles – containing the virus and controlling the narrative.

Lawyers say that Victoria’s Chief Health Officer (CHO) Brett Sutton is among several government officials who could potentially face criminal charges over their evidence to the inquiry into the state’s hotel quarantine program.

Via CNBC: AstraZeneca shares turned negative Wednesday after a Brazilian health authority said a volunteer in its coronavirus vaccine study died.

A few more charts today on the waning hope of the great vaccine cure for COVID-19.

Yesterday, the Hotel Quarantine Inquiry held an extraordinary meeting to discuss contradictory and omitted evidence that has come to light after witness testimony finished earlier this month.

Via Crikey’s Janine Perret yesterday: Any lingering doubts about Gladys Berejiklian’s judgment were put to rest yesterday after a sleazy interview with shock jock Kyle Sandilands.

Via the AFR: If Mathias Cormann is elected the next secretary-general of the OECD, he will have to get his head around one of the most complicated and important policy issues facing the global economy – the taxation of global technology giants.

What to do if suddenly some amateur is doing your job much better than you are?

The Coate inquiry into Melbourne’s failed hotel quarantine, which seeded the deadly COVID-19 second wave, has called an “extraordinary sitting” at 2pm today to examine contradictory evidence, changed witness testimony, and other chicanery that has arisen since submissions drew to a close early this month.

As they should.

I’m not sure how we’re supposed to discuss our future when this happens.

Lordy, I’m getting whiplash.

Victoria’s Chief Health Officer (CHO) Professor Brett Sutton told the Hotel Quarantine Inquiry that he did not know that private security firms were guarding the hotels until he became aware of the COVID-19 outbreak at the Rydges on Swanston in May.

I noticed something quite interesting on Friday when I was looking into the latest declaration of war on Australia by China, in cotton.