By Mungo MacCallum Tuesday 8 September 2015

Photo: The only certainty with this Government is that Tony Abbott will keep on punching to the end. (AAP: Lukas Coch)

After two years in Government, Tony Abbott is still more defined by what he has gotten rid of and how he has fought Labor than anything he has created or achieved. And we can expect this trend to continue, writes Mungo MacCallum.

So here we are at another Abbott anniversary - two years gone, one to go. And as we start the run up to the final 12 months, it is time to take stock: just what have we got for it and what can we expect? Or, more brutally, just what is the point of the Abbott Government?

This is a question I asked many years ago while interviewing the long-serving and successful NSW premier, Neville Wran. Wran, a wealthy and celebrated QC, had taken over the Labor leadership of the lacklustre Pat Hills and had become a political star: Wran was The Man.

But once elected, he didn't actually seem to do very much. When I asked him to enumerate the highlights, he mentioned one of the big ones was the encouragement of outdoor dining in cafes.

It didn't seem a lot: so what was it that made him go through the sacrifices - financial and personal, the awful hours, the constant frustrations, of climbing the greasy totem pole of state politics? What was his driving force? Wran replied in measured and, in those days, still mellifluous tones: "To keep the other bastards out."

And so it is with Tony Abbott: he is defined not by his vision, but by his opponents. When he says, as he often does these days, it is not about him, he is quite correct; but he is dead wrong when he adds that it is really about jobs, growth and national security. These are not an end in themselves, but a means to wedge, denigrate and ultimately (he hopes) destroy Bill Shorten and the ALP.

Abbott says he is good at fighting Labor, and he is: his time as opposition leader was Olympic standard as a model on how to bring down a vulnerable government. But fighting Labor is, it has now appeared, the only thing he is good at; when it came to the more complex task of building a replacement, there has been nothing to offer.

Last weekend even his friend Greg Sheridan admitted in The Australian that the Government was going around in circles.

Sheridan, as with the other News Corp barrackers for Abbott and the Libs, were notably reticent about boosting the achievements of the last two years. Instead, those who've tried have had to fall back almost entirely on negatives. Abbott ended the carbon tax and the mining tax, he stopped the boats. They did not have much to say about the other magic slogan: fixing the debt and deficit.

There are, of course, some positives - mainly the free trade agreements, although in the case of China that too has been deployed more as a weapon against Shorten than as a benefit in its own right. And not content with getting rid of some of things Labor has done, Abbott has now resorted to claiming credit for those that it didn't.

Last week he boasted proudly that he had scrapped the bank deposit tax - the insurance guarantee that the previous government had proposed to ensure the safety of assets in the event of a collapse among one or more of the big institutions. This remained on the books for the most recent budget, propping up the bottom line to the extent of $500 million, but had never been legislated. Now it is gone - another swingeing blow against Labor's financial waste and extravagance. Another straw man demolished instead of actually of doing anything.

This has, of course, been the pattern: Labor's suggestion of looking at any budget measures - superannuation, capital gains tax, negative gearing - have been dismissed, not because they are not worth considering, but simply because they are Labor ideas, and therefore to be summarily rejected. In their place we are repeatedly promised "conversations" - about tax, federation, the cost of living, online gambling - you name it, it is in on the table. Just how, or with whom, these cosy chats are to be convened is unclear - in fact, they are no more than distractions from the principal agenda. Only when and if Labor raises an objection will they come into force - implacable, irresistible force.

As for action - well, Abbott says he will take any proposals for the next election - or perhaps the one after that. But there will of course be income tax cuts - that's a firm promise. Well, as firm as the circumstances allow. And this is the big problem; after two years of drift and dithering Abbott and his mates have left the Australian economy in a far worse position than when they found it.

It is not all their fault; the Senate has resisted what were generally seen to be unfair and precipitate ambushes, and the international situation has obviously deteriorated. But the same could apply to Kevin Rudd and Wayne Swan and they managed triumphantly. Now we are faced with almost unrelieved gloom, economic indicators dropping towards still uncharted depths.

The June quarter growth figure of a derisory 0.2 per cent was, Hockey noted, a bit below expectations (it was just half what was predicted) but look on the bright side - it was better than Canada, and, er, Brazil. But not as good as Greece, long held up as the basket case of bad management. And, it turned out, only remaining in the black at all because of a surge of government spending, which Hockey promptly disavowed: "I can promise you it wasn't planned this way," insisted our accidental Treasurer.

Hockey continues to be determinedly optimistic, as does his indefatigable Finance Minister Mathias Cormann - it is their job. But it is hard to see much, if anything, to enthuse about. The 2015 budget has disappeared without a trace; the much vaunted stimulus to small business has now been buried like a belch in the barrage of bad news. And that appears to be that; there is nothing to look forward to until the next election, when all will be revealed - or at least promised, and we all know how much we can rely on that.

The best that can be said is that there is only about 12 months, or probably less, to go; but that does not provide much comfort either. The only certainty is that Abbott will keep on punching to the end. We can only hope that he knocks himself out in the process.

Mungo MacCallum is a political journalist and commentator.

Two years in, what's the point of the Abbott Government? - The Drum (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

By political reporter Anna Henderson and political editor Chris Uhlmann Tuesday 8 September 2015

Photo: Millions of Syrian refugees have fled areas controlled by Islamic State militants, fearing the group's reign of terror. (Reuters: Murad Sezer, file photo)

Related Story: Europe 'rediscovers its humanity' through migrant crisis, UNHCR says

Related Story: Australia should increase assistance to Syrian refugees: UN

Related Story: Australia could accept more than 10,000 Syrian refugees: Baird

Related Story: Liberal MP calls on Government to accept up to 50,000 Syrians

Map: Australia

The Abbott Government wants to restrict any intake of Syrian refugees to minorities which are largely Christian, as passions run high in the Coalition over the way Australia should handle the crisis in Syria.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott is under increasing pressure to increase this year's humanitarian intake of 13,750 people, but has put off a decision while Australia consults with the United Nations about the best approach.

Labor is pushing for an additional intake of 10,000 people, while the Greens want double that number.

Beyond the debate over numbers there is an argument over what kind of refugees should be accepted.

Media player: "Space" to play, "M" to mute, "left" and "right" to seek.

Government ministers, like Malcolm Turnbull, have argued for accepting more Syrian Christians, and Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has nominated minorities like the Yazidis.

One backbencher told the ABC the message being sent to the Prime Minister by some in the Coalition was clear: "No more Muslim men".

Mr Turnbull said yesterday he was very concerned about the plight of Christian communities in Syria.

"They are a minority, they survived in Syria, they've been there for thousands of years, literally since the time of Christ," he said.

"But in an increasingly sectarian Middle East, you have to ask whether the, the gaps, the spaces that they were able to live and survive in will any longer be available."

Media player: "Space" to play, "M" to mute, "left" and "right" to seek.

Video: Julie Bishop discusses Syria asylum seeker crisis (ABC News)

Senate Leader Eric Abetz has also highlighted the case for Christians to be prioritised.

"It should be on the basis of need and given the Christians are the most persecuted group in the world, and especially in the Middle East, I think it stands to reason that they would be pretty high up on the priority list for resettlement."

Ms Bishop told AM the Government was looking at the best way to offer both temporary and permanent protection options for those fleeing the crisis.

"I think that Christian minorities are being persecuted in Syria and even if the conflict were over they would still be persecuted," she said.

"So I believe there will be a focus on ensuring we can get access to those persecuted ethnic and religious minorities who will have no home to return to even when the conflict is over.

"That includes Maronites, it includes Yazidis, there are Druze, there are a whole range of ethnic and religious minorities that make up the populations in both Syria and Iraq."

Fears focus on religion will increase persecution

Labor has joined refugee groups in warning the Government's emphasis on helping Christian refugees is "dangerous".

"Being a victim of war doesn't know a particular religion," Opposition Leader Bill Shorten said.

"If you're a woman facing terrible crimes to be committed against you, if you're a child, a little child, potentially drowning at sea, I'm not interested in their religion, I'm interested in their safety."

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Drum: This is about humanity, not religion

The fact the Government would pause in light of such a visceral tragedy to suggest Australia should prioritise Christian refugees from Syria speaks volumes, writes Sarah Malik.

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Refugee Council chief executive Paul Power said it is "natural" to expect a large number of refugees will be Christian, but he said the focus on the group is likely to do damage.

"I'm sure one of the consequences is that extremists within Syria and other parts of the Middle East will use this as a weapon against Syrian Christians," Mr Power said.

"They would use it as an argument to push the view that the west cares about Christians and does not care about Muslims and other religious minorities."

In this morning's party room meeting, Coalition MPs suggested the Government fast-track a planned increase in the number of refugees it accepts.

MPs, including Tasmanian Brett Whiteley, told the party room community sentiment around the Syrian crisis had "changed" and the public wanted the Abbott Government to act.

The ABC understands some MPs raised the prospect of the Government bringing forward its plan to increase the refugee intake to 18,750, which according to current policy is not due until 2018.

It is understood Immigration Minister Peter Dutton will brief the national security committee tonight about his meetings in Europe on the issue.

Cabinet will discuss the issue tomorrow morning and there is a suggestion the party room may meet again before an announcement is made.

Speaking from Europe, Mr Dutton said he would hold talks with the United Nations refugee agency and other organisations on how Australia could help.

"There's more to be done and the Australian Government's very keen to have discussions with the UNHCR, with our partners otherwise, to look at what more we can do," he said.

"We'll be focusing our attention particularly on the families who are in the refugee camps along the border of Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey."

'Persecuted minorities' must be the focus: Bernardi

Yesterday in the Senate, Liberal backbencher Cory Bernardi said persecuted minorities must be the focus on Australia's efforts.

"The Christians in the Middle East are among the most persecuted people on Earth," he told the Senate.

"If we can provide safe haven to them, then I say we should do it. And that is what the Prime Minister has said."

Media player: "Space" to play, "M" to mute, "left" and "right" to seek.

Video: Bernardi questions motivations of those trying to enter Europe (ABC News)

Senator Bernardi also questioned the motivation of thousands of those who are trying to enter Europe.

"This seems to me to be becoming an opportunistic cycle which is masking the true humanitarian need that is the responsibility of all Western nations," he said.

"That is the challenge for us — to distinguish between those who are being opportunistic and those are truly in need."

Government backbencher Ewen Jones said Australia had the capacity to take up to 50,000 refugees.

But the calls for ever larger intakes were rebuffed by another Coalition backbencher, Andrew Nikolic.

"We will do this is an evidence-based way," he said.

"We're not going to do it in a way with this rhetoric of trying to out-compassion each other.""

Richard Marles has described Cory Bernardi as an "embarrassment" to the Government and said the comments were "reprehensible" and out of kilter with community sentiment.

From other news sites:

• The Sydney Morning Herald: Explainer: Difference between migrants, refugees and asylum seekers
• BBC: Migrant crisis: What next for Germany's asylum seekers?
• News.com.au: Refugee plan welcomed by asylum seeker supporters
• Daily Mail: How hundreds of Muslim migrants are converting to Christianity to boost their chances of winning asylum in Germany
• The Daily Telegraph: Germany to spend $US6.7bn more on asylum seekers

Syrian migrant crisis: Christians to get priority as Abbott faces pressure to take in more refugees - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Lenore Taylor Friday 4 September 2015

The PM’s line from February – ‘good government starts today’ – is a gallows-humour joke inside his administration. Even Coalition MPs are no longer sure what they are trying to achieve

John Howard and Tony Abbott stand next to a portrait of Robert Menzies. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP

Two years in and the Abbott government remains a clamour of battle slogans in search of a policy purpose. The prime minister keeps shaping up for confected daily fights without comprehending that is exactly why he is losing the political “war”.

This is the point in the three-year cycle when a functional government would be finishing the hard grind of doing what it promised at the last election and beginning the task of selling those achievements, and a few new ambitions, at the next one.

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Tony Abbott one year on: how the trust was won and lost

Lenore Taylor, political editor

Even when he knew he would win the election, Tony Abbott refused to risk telling voters the truth. Then came the overreach, the backtracking and the deferred decisions. The question now is whether voters will accept untrustworthiness as a given

Read more

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Not this administration. The prime minister’s line – after the unsuccessful February leadership spill – that “good government starts today” has become a running gallows-humour joke inside his own administration. Even Coalition MPs are not quite sure what their “good government” is trying to achieve.

Its first two years have been a switchback ride of policy reversals, broken promises, foot-stomping frustrations and ideological overreach, leaving Coalition supporters despairing and voters – according to every published poll – deeply unimpressed. Instead of soothing, negotiating, persuading or explaining, the Abbott government responds to new setbacks with another whiplash of hyperbolic aggression or distraction.

When ministers dutifully recite the talking point that the leak/leadership story/scandal/side issue of the day is a “distraction”, no one knows what we are supposedly being distracted from.

Coalition MPs cling to the John Howard comparison. He had persistently bad polls in his first term and he still won a second, right? But Howard was unpopular in his first term mostly because he actually did the unpopular things he believed in – he cut government spending, he changed industrial relation laws, he forced through the gun buyback and he asked voters to give him a second term so he could introduce a goods and services tax. So when he framed the 1998 election around “economic competence” and growth and jobs (sound familiar?), he could point to actual achievements to demonstrate the “courageous decisions” necessary to achieve it, from his political perspective.

By contrast this government has kept switching its slogans and policy objectives for the economy every time the last script didn’t work out.

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Malcolm Turnbull says 2014 budget was Abbott government's 'biggest misstep'

Communications minister and man seen as Tony Abbott’s strongest leadership rival says time is over for ‘spin and slogans’

Read more

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It began with the call to arms at the last election – the “debt ‘n deficit disaster” that was all Labor’s fault and only a new Coalition government could avoid. But the first Abbott budget didn’t even try to do all that much about it, and ambushed voters with previously unmentioned health, education and welfare changes which the public and the Senate (backed by at least three sets of modelling) rejected as inequitable and unfair.

By the Coalition’s pre-election reasoning (which ignored international forces like global financial crises or changes in commodity prices) the bigger and longer-lasting deficits and higher debt now forecast should be an even bigger emergency than the one it inherited.

So the slogan switched to “have a go” and the shiny, optimistic 2015 budget was all about getting good, honest folk back to work, primarily women – by way of a new childcare package. That was paid for by cuts to family tax benefit and a massive paring back of what had previously been the prime minister’s “signature” policy on paid parental leave. But neither have passed the Senate, so the productivity- boosting childcare plan (which isn’t supposed to start until July 2017 anyway) remains somewhat hypothetical and complicated to talk about.

So now the slogan has switched again, to “jobs and growth”. The government likes to refer to 300,000 jobs “created” during its term, but that hasn’t been enough to stop unemployment rising. Growth has slowed to a crawl.

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Budget 2015: Tony Abbott says 'let's talk' about how to pay for childcare policy

The prime minister ‘prepared to talk to Labor and the crossbench’ to find savings not necessarily attached to last budget’s failed family tax benefit cuts

Read more

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Which brings us to “lower, simpler, fairer taxes”. Let’s put aside for one second the inconvenient facts that the government introduced a deficit levy and re-indexed petrol excise, both moves I agree with, but not exactly lower taxes.

The “lower, simpler, fairer” tax policy it will present at the next election may or may not include personal income tax cuts funded by an expansion of the GST, depending on which day it is and which member of the government is talking. But even if voters were to forget that the prime minister promised “the GST will not change. Full stop. End of story” when asked if he would propose changes in a second term, any GST expansion would require the agreement of the states and they want the money to pay for the looming (and real) “black hole” in hospitals funding. And any parent who has spent time comforting a sick and distressed child in a seething accident and emergency department is likely to be on the premiers’ side in that argument.

Meanwhile, the government’s plans for higher education policy remain in limbo. It abandoned a promise to match Labor on schools funding so we have no idea what will happen there, and the Medicare co-payment has ostensibly been shelved but the Australian Medical Association says a freeze on rebates achieves exactly the same thing over time, by stealth.

Barack Obama turned up and had the nerve to point out that climate change might have an impact on the Great Barrier Reef

For a while the government was going to “end the age of entitlement” for Australian industry. But then (who’d have guessed) the polls in manufacturing states headed south and it suddenly found another $500m for the car industry as a kind of farewell present, and said the Australian Submarine Corporation was actually good for something other than canoe-building and might just get a look in on the $20bn future submarine contract after all.

Briefly, the G20 was pencilled in as a headline achievement, but Barack Obama turned up and had the nerve to point out that climate change might have an impact on the Great Barrier Reef – who knew? – and most of Australia’s solemn economic pledges in the supposedly growth-turbocharging “Brisbane Action Plan” were subsequently ditched.

The free trade agreements might be chalked up as one actual Abbott government achievement, although the China FTA could still fall foul of the current toxic political environment if Labor overreaches and pushes too far with the union movement’s demands or Abbott finds it impossible to make even small legislative concessions.

And having abolished the carbon price, slashed the renewable energy target, abolished the climate council, tried to abolish – or nobble – the clean energy finance corporation and insisted that wind turbines are “utterly offensive” while “coal is good for humanity”, the government said it would sign up to tougher-than-expected 2030 greenhouse gas reduction targets, but without any credible policy to achieve to them. (It then dusted off unrelated and dated economic modelling to manufacture a case that its mostly unannounced policy would be a cheaper way to reach these targets than Labor’s unannounced policy to reach its unannounced targets. Former Reserve Bank governor Bernie Fraser, now chair of the independent climate change authority, described that particular diversionary exercise as “weird” and “misleading”).

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Minimal sound and almost no fury: life in the shadow of Australia's wind farm 'hell'

As the political cacophony about ‘noisy, visually awful’ wind turbines reaches fever pitch, Calla Wahlquist visits the Western Australian farmers who host one of the southern hemisphere’s largest wind farms and finds them stubbornly unperturbed

Read more

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On national security – a policy area where Labor has offered determined bipartisanship – the government has worked particularly hard to confect disagreement, and has sometimes managed to achieve it most successfully within its own cabinet – for example with the ill-considered and almost certainly unconstitutional surprise first draft of the citizenship laws and the equally ill-thought-through first shot at metadata retention.

On asylum the government has achieved what both major parties promised in 2013 – it has “stopped the boats”. But the human collateral damage is ongoing and has no obvious end – given the lack of resettlement options for those refugees left stranded and suffering on Nauru and Manus Island.

And while the government has been swerving and sliding and prevaricating on the most important areas of policy for the everyday lives of ordinary Australians it has confected “wars” on everything and everyone from Q&A, to conservation organisations to Gillian Triggs, which to anyone outside News Ltd editorial meetings appear to border on the unhinged.

The prime minister used internal processes to shut down any chance that this parliament will achieve marriage equality, was reluctantly forced to retreat on the “right to be a bigot” racial discrimination laws, and shocked his own party with his personal ideological frolic of reintroducing knighthoods and then giving one to Prince Philip.

All these “wars”, of course, have a political purpose – to silence dissent, sideline unwanted advice and distract from critical scrutiny – the same motivations for systematically removing Labor appointments from boards and advisory groups and defunding or sidelining groups that advocate for the poor, the sick, the disabled, the disadvantaged, refugees or the environment.

The government finishes its second year flailing around for a new enemy (it’s Fairfax, no – it’s still the ABC, maybe it’s those sabotaging greenie environmental vandals with the temerity to suggest the environment minister should follow environmental law) and still apparently unaware that its gladiatorial winner-takes-all style is actually adding to its dysfunction and voters’ mistrust.

Well, actually some inside the party understand this all too well but they are not heard – the February leadership spill opened the prime minister’s closed circle of advice a little bit, but not that much. Cabinet is as circumvented as ever – it recently met without a single formal submission and was not consulted before the party room debate on same sex marriage. And it’s leaking more.

This time last year voters had already lost trust in the prime minister, dating back to his first ill-considered budget. Now they are losing respect and the party is once again descending into a self-defeating cycle of instability, suspicions and second guessing of the leadership intentions of Malcolm Turnbull or Scott Morrison or Julie Bishop.

The only glimmer of hope for the Coalition is that voters also appear deeply underwhelmed by Bill Shorten’s Labor.

That’s what Howard was clinging to when interviewed on the ABC’s Insiders program earlier this year about his successor’s troubles, comparing them to his own difficult first term.

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Tony Abbott's national security one-upmanship is about winning – at any cost

Lenore Taylor Political editor

The national security ‘debate’ is a response to Isis but it’s also a way for the prime minister to back Bill Shorten into the untenable position of being ‘weak on terror’

Read more

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“One of the reasons we came back was that deep down, people didn’t think Kim Beazley – terrific bloke – stood for anything.

“[There] is a lot of parallels now; I don’t think Bill Shorten stands for anything. One thing that will increasingly being put in the spotlight is the policy acuity of the Labor party.”

But that logic fails if the Coalition incumbent doesn’t stand for anything either.

As the newly reinstated Kevin Rudd discovered in 2013, a government that goes to an election with nothing much to offer except a reminder of how much people dislike the other guy might find that the electorate decides the other guy is a risk worth taking.

Tony Abbott's first two years: broken promises and confected 'wars' leave voters deeply unimpressed | Lenore Taylor | Australia news | The Guardian

By ABC's Barrie Cassidy Friday 4 September 2015

Photo: Never before has a single electorate held the fate of a serving prime minister in its hands. (ABC News: Andrew O'Connor)

Never has a by-election been framed so unambiguously around a prime minister - lose Canning and you're gone. It will be a nervous time and there is no precedent for this, writes Barrie Cassidy.

Forget all this talk of precedents around the critical Canning by-election in Western Australia. There are none.

Never before has a single electorate held the fate of a serving prime minister in its hands.

By-elections like Bass in Tasmania have spelled the beginning of the end of governments; and Aston in Victoria marked the turning point for a government previously in trouble.

But neither, and none before or since, have been framed so unambiguously around the prime minister. Lose and you're gone. And that is not just accepted wisdom among most commentators; it's agreed unofficially and spoken of privately by some senior Liberals who supported Tony Abbott in the February leadership spill.

And those same people are laying down markers along the way. A swing limited to about 8 per cent would be seen as a relief. Double figures would indicate a very tough federal election and might even lead to a December party room showdown. And a loss (11.8 per cent) or worse, would be disastrous. Some of those who stuck with Abbott in February on the basis that he deserved more time had this period in mind for a review.

They argued privately at the time that the Prime Minister and the Treasurer should be allowed to bring down another budget, and then a few months would need to go by before its impact, both politically and economically, could be judged.

Abbott though has hit two major hurdles in the polls this year - Prince Phillip and Bronwyn Bishop. The controversy around those two individuals caused the Government to slide beyond the typical four-point deficit. Abbott eventually recovered from the knighthood debacle to settle back around 48 per cent two-party preferred.

But he hasn't yet been able to do that since "chopper gate". And that's because the troubles keep on coming. First the Dyson Heydon issue, then the bungled Border Force operation, and all the while constant and ill-disciplined chatter. Comments by Immigration Minister Peter Dutton this week served to underline the depth of the internal problems. If Abbott cannot regain some of that lost ground in national polls before Canning, and that seat falls to Labor, judgments will be harsh and swift.

It will be a nervous time. The Coalition has a good candidate going for it, but not much else.

At the last election, Labor, after a tumultuous time in office, was on the nose, and nowhere more so than in Western Australia.

The mood was dark, even though the economy was still booming and the steam hadn't yet gone out of state projects.

Now the economy has stalled and governments - not political parties - are feeling the pressure. The previously popular state government led by Colin Barnett, for example, is now - according to Newspoll - trailing Labor after having won the last election with 57 per cent of the two party vote.

The late Don Randall with his anti-Canberra pitch was a popular local member, so popular that Labor virtually ran dead at the last election.

Add all that to the average federal by-election swing of 5-6 per cent and you can see why the polls suggest it will be close.

Of course it's a test for Bill Shorten as well. He will need to do much better than the average to avoid criticism.

But it's not his job on the line. And it's not Joe Hockey's either. Not on his own. The spin out of Coalition ranks this week suggested that in the event of a loss, it might save Abbott if he throws Hockey overboard. The stronger view seems to be that the fate of the two is tied together.

Depending on the result, the Canning by-election might signal the beginning of a comeback for Abbott and his Government - just as Aston did for John Howard. It might mean the end of his leadership. Or it might mean nothing at all. The figures on the night will determine that. And this time if a leader falls it won't be in the dead of night leaving an electorate stunned. It will have a basis in fact, the result of a real poll.

And no precedent.

Barrie Cassidy is the presenter of the ABC program Insiders. He writes a weekly column for The Drum.

Abbott's future to be decided in Canning - The Drum (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Ben Doherty and agencies Monday 31 August 2015

Labor calls Australia’s $55m resettlement deal an ‘expensive joke’ after Cambodia says it has ‘no plans’ to take more Nauru refugees

Three of the refugees from Nauru are escorted by Cambodian police officers after they arrived in Phnom Penh on 4 June. Photograph: Mak Remissa/EPA

Australia’s $55m plan to resettle refugees from Nauru to Cambodia appears finished, with just four refugees moved to the south-east Asian country at a cost of more than $13m per refugee.

Four refugees – an Iranian couple, Iranian man and a Rohingyan man from Burma – were transferred from Nauru to the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh in June.

Since then, they’ve lived in relative luxury in an Australian-funded villa, and will remain there indefinitely.

However, Cambodia expects it will take no more from Australia’s resettlement plan.

“We don’t have any plans to import more refugees from Nauru to Cambodia,” interior ministry spokesman Khieu Sopheak told the Cambodia Daily. “I think the less we receive the better.”

Under the deal, signed by previous immigration minister Scott Morrison and Cambodia’s interior minister Sar Kheng last September, Australia promised an additional $40m in aid to the impoverished south-east Asian country as well as $15.5m in resettlement, housing, education and integration costs for the refugees.

The deal was not contingent on Cambodia taking a certain number of refugees.

Throughout last year, the Cambodian government sent delegations to Nauru to promote the resettlement plan, but very few refugees even met with the government officials. Those visits have ceased.

Joe Lowry, a spokesman for the International Organisation for Migration, which has managed the four refugees’ resettlement in Cambodia, told the Cambodia Daily the group was doing “fine”.

“They have asked for privacy so we are respecting that,” he said. The group is living in a villa in Phnom Penh, originally intended as temporary housing.

“When they are ready to leave [the villa] they can,” he said. “I don’t think any of them have expressed any desire to go.”

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, a former battalion commander in the Khmer Rouge, and who has ruled his country for 30 years, will visit Australia in December.

His regime is regarded as one of the most corrupt on earth. Transparency International ranks Cambodia 156th of 175 countries on its index of corruption perception.

Hun Sen, his family, and associates are alleged to have amassed billions of dollars in personal wealth, siphoning off aid money, and through corrupt sales of natural resources and land.

Rights groups, such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, say Hun Sen’s regime crushes dissent in the country through extrajudicial killings, torture, arbitrary arrests, summary trials, censorship and widespread bans on assembly and association.

A spokesman for immigration minister, Peter Dutton, told Fairfax the government was committed to its policy that no boat arrivals would be settled in Australia.

“The government continues to work with Cambodia and other partners, including source countries, to facilitate the return or placement of people on Nauru and Manus Island,” he said.
Labor’s immigration spokesman, Richard Marles, called on Dutton to explain the situation.

“This is an expensive joke and once again we are learning about this through comments from ministers in the Cambodian government rather than ministers in our own government,” he told Sky News.

When the Cambodia deal was signed it was condemned by the United Nations, who described it as “a worrying departure from international norms” and said Australia was shirking its responsibility of people fleeing persecution.

“We are seeing record forced displacement globally, with 87% of refugees now being hosted in developing countries. It’s crucial that countries do not shift their refugee responsibilities elsewhere,” the UN’s high commissioner for refugees, António Guterres, said.

“International responsibility sharing is the basis on which the whole global refugee system works. I hope that the Australian government will reconsider its approach.”

Cambodia deal in tatters after only four Nauru refugees resettled at cost of $13m each | World news | The Guardian

Katharine Murphy Deputy political editor Tuesday 25 August 2015

Labor leads the two-party preferred vote 54% to the Coalition’s 46%, while Tony Abbott’s popularity falls three points to 30% after horror parliamentary fortnight

Bill Shorten and Tony Abbott at a reception for the Australian netball team after their World Cup victory. Shorten’s net satisfaction rating is ahead of the prime minister’s for the first time since May. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP

The Labor leader, Bill Shorten, has improved his personal standing with voters in the latest Newspoll survey, which continues to point to an emphatic ALP victory if a federal election was held immediately.

The latest poll of 1,700 voters published in the Australian has Labor ahead of the Coalition on the two-party preferred measure 54% to the Coalition’s 46% – and the Coalition’s primary vote also slipped below Labor’s.

Coalition at risk of losing Canning by-election, poll shows

Latest Newspoll puts Coalition’s margin in the formerly safe seat held by Don Randall at just 51%-49% in two-party-preferred terms

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After a horror parliamentary fortnight for Tony Abbott, Shorten’s personal approval ratings lifted by five points, and his dissatisfaction rating fell by the same amount. Shorten’s net satisfaction rating is ahead of the prime minister’s for the first time since May.

The prime minister’s satisfaction rating was also down three points in the survey to 30%, and dissatisfaction with his performance went up two points. Shorten is ahead of Abbott on the preferred prime minister measure.

Labor has now been ahead of the Coalition in two-party preferred terms in more than 150 consecutive published opinion polls. This latest Newspoll is the 29th consecutive survey that has put Labor in front of the Abbott government.

On Tuesday the treasurer, Joe Hockey, brushed off the poll findings, saying the government could bounce back.

“I saw this in 2004, I saw it in 1998,” he told the Nine Network.

“I have seen it previously, where we have gone on to win an election, even weeks and months just after those sort of polls.

The government faces a by-election in the West Australian seat of Canning next month following the death of long serving MP Don Randall. That contest looms as a test of Abbott’s leadership.

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A number of government MPs are deeply concerned about the negative poll trend, about erratic decision-making, and about rolling divisions within senior ranks of the government.

The last fortnight saw various cabinet ministers engage in open warfare about same sex marriage, and a significant split emerge between the prime minister and his chief parliamentary tactician, Christopher Pyne.

The government’s trade union royal commission – a process which was applying political pressure to Shorten over his trade union history – also ran into significant strife, with commissioner Dyson Heydon having to hear submissions over whether he should excuse himself from proceedings after it was revealed he had intended to address a Liberal party fundraiser.

Heydon’s decision is pending.

The prime minister is attempting to get the government’s central political messaging back to jobs and growth, but he will spend the next week in remote Indigenous communities.

The treasurer Joe Hockey on Monday flagged the prospect of future income tax cuts – but refused to answer questions about how the government would fund such a move.

Bill Shorten's approval rating improves as Coalition slides further in Newspoll | Australia news | The Guardian

By political editor Chris Uhlmann, James Glenday, and Anna Henderson Tuesday 18 August 2015

Photo: Tony Abbott said ministers had been warned there "would be consequences" for any who did not maintain discipline in future. (Andrew Meares/Fairfax Media)

Related Story: Dastyari slams anti-gay marriage blogger over 'evangelical claptrap'

Related Story: Poll shows potential 10 per cent swing against Liberals in Canning

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has told his joint party room that ministers have been "read the riot act" for having public spats in the wake of last week's messy gay marriage debate.

On Monday night Cabinet agreed to hold a popular vote on the issue after the next election, but members of the frontbench are publicly divided over whether the mechanism should be a constitutional referendum or plebiscite.

Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull argued the vote should take place in this term of parliament so it is off the agenda before the next election.

The Leader of the House, Christopher Pyne, has also accused the Prime Minister of "branch stacking" by including the mostly conservative Nationals in last week's marathon debate that endorsed a binding vote against same sex marriage in this term.

Admitting it had been a scrappy fortnight for the Government, Mr Abbott told the joint-party room meeting this morning that ministers had been warned there "would be consequences" for any who did not maintain discipline in future.

His warning came as one backbencher castigated her Cabinet colleagues for their behaviour.

The Member for Gilmore, Ann Sudmalis, spent five minutes berating ministers for what she saw as the debacle after the same-sex marriage debate last week.

Photo: Gilmore MP Ann Sudmalis was cheered by other backbenchers after she berated ministers over the same-sex marriage "debacle". (photo: Justin Huntsdale)

She said Cabinet ministers were sacrificing people in marginal seats for the luxury of expressing their own views in public, and called for "unity".

When she sat down she was cheered by other backbenchers.

The comments were seen as being out of character for Ms Sudmalis, who does not often speak at the party room meetings.

"I didn't take on this position to see my country's future frittered away," Ms Sudmalis told ABC local radio after the meeting.

"I just added some perspective on it from a marginal seat holder, saying that we've got a great message to take forward.

"We are actually doing the country good and that message has been lost and we need to work together."

Julie Bishop warns public divisions could play into by-election

Several Liberals say during the meeting Foreign Minister Julie Bishop urged her colleagues to think about how their actions could impact on the upcoming by-election in the Western Australian seat of Canning.

One told the ABC "the message was clear, before you open your mouth think how this might play in a campaign".

A plebiscite or a referendum?

ABC election analyst Antony Green explains the difference between a plebiscite and a referendum.

 

Another said the deputy Liberal leader was "making the point [that] how we fare in Canning will have implications for how the government is judged by the media and the community".

Agriculture Minister and Deputy Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce said the Government had found a resolution.

"The party room guided by the Prime Minister has drawn a line under this issue," he told ABC's Capital Hill program.

"So the issue, therefore, is dealt with, we will not be changing policy during this term of government.

"Whether it's a plebiscite or a referendum, that will be discussed in the future."

Mr Abbott has said he will provide more details of the mechanism for a popular vote within weeks.

From other news sites:

• The Sydney Morning Herald: Tony Abbott and backbench warn Liberal Party cabinet to stay on script 'or else'
• The Guardian: Tony Abbott fronts party room amid pressure over Dyson Heydon, same-sex marriage and Canning – politics live
• Sky News: PM reads Cabinet the 'riot act' on unity

Tony Abbott reads 'riot act' to ministers over same-sex marriage - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Staff and agencies Monday 17 August 2015

Fairfax-Ipsos poll puts Labor lead at 54%-46% on two-party-preferred basis, implying the loss of between 36 and 44 Coalition seats

New poll figures put Tony Abbott’s leadership under further pressure Photograph: Glenn Hunt/AAP

The Coalition faces a thumping election defeat with a swing of 7.5% against it, according to the latest Fairfax-Ipsos poll.

That would mean the loss of up to 36 Coalition seats – Labor needs just 21 to form a majority government.

The government trailed Labor 54% to 46% on a two-party-preferred basis, the poll taken from 13-15 August showed. And using the stated second preferences of respondents, rather than the allocation of preferences as they flowed in September 2013, the Coalition’s position worsened to 56%-44%, implying the loss of up to 44 seats.

Warren Entsch 'lives in hope' his marriage equality bill will succeed eventually – as it happened

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The government’s primary support has dipped to 38% – just two points above Labor’s 36%, with the Greens on 16%, according to the poll published by Fairfax Media. The Coalition won 46% of the primary vote at the last election.

The government has endured several nightmare weeks, embroiled in the expenses row that led to the resignation of Bronwyn Bishop as Speaker, engaging in open internal conflict over same-sex marriage and fending off claims of partisanship against the trade union royal commissioner, Dyson Heydon.

Tony Abbott’s disapproval rating slipped one point to 59% in the poll. With his approval rating at 35% that left him on a net rating of minus 24%.

The Labor leader, Bill Shorten, gained four points on his approval rating, taking it to 39%, but with 49% disapproving was still on a net rating of minus 10.

The poll found Malcolm Turnbull led as preferred Liberal leader and prime minister among all voters on 41%, ahead of Julie Bishop on 23% and Abbott on 15%. But among Coalition voters Abbott still led with 33%, with Turnbull on 25% and Bishop on 23%. Just 6% of Coalition voters wanted the treasurer, Joe Hockey, as leader.

The poll of 1,402 respondents also showed public support for marriage equality remained high at 69%.

Coalition facing huge election defeat after horror weeks, latest poll shows | Australia news | The Guardian

Lenore Taylor Political editor Friday 14 August 2015

As the divisions deepen and the polls get worse, the government is again descending into a self-defeating cycle of instability and suspicion

Tony Abbott at question time on Thursday. Photograph: Mike Bowers for the Guardian

Behind the Abbott government’s very bad week – a careening series of disasters that looked like the political version of an AAMI ad – is a common thread that could wreck it permanently. Tricky politics has driven Tony Abbott into yet another crisis.

So many of the prime minister’s problems begin in the strange netherworld of decision making, where policy is crafted to fit a slogan rather than the other way around, based on the insulting assumption that voters are too dumb to notice.

All politicians, from all sides, weigh policy ideas against how they might play in the electorate but this government is coming up with the slogan and calculating the political “play” before it even has a policy. It’s a reckless way to run the country. Now the trickiness is sometimes aimed at internal opponents as well as Labor.

Same-sex marriage, for example, was going to be a difficult issue for any Coalition leader. In the end the party backed Abbott’s view that it should continue to oppose any change to the definition of marriage during this parliament but that this position wouldn’t be tenable any longer and that maybe there should be a popular vote on the issue.

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But now supporters of same-sex marriage see Abbott and other opponents of the idea taking the confused party-room non-decision about what should happen after the next election and crab walking it towards a process that will ensure nothing ever happens.

Abbott has the slogan all ready – he’s for a “people’s vote” and the Labor party is for a “politicians’ vote”. He just didn’t have a policy.

Malcolm Turnbull and others say the party room did not in fact make a definite decision in favour of a “people’s vote” at all and there is obviously no decision on what kind of people’s vote. Some are opposed to a change, like Scott Morrison (who is apparently positioning as the conservative’s preferred alternative leadership candidate), are talking up the idea of a constitutional referendum which would ensure change never happened, and isn’t even necessary because we already know the federal government has the power to make laws about marriage, as the attorney general very pointedly pointed out to his cabinet colleague on national television.

The ministerial slugfest via TV grabs continued through Friday in a kind of real-time display of government divisions. Perhaps if the cabinet had been consulted before the surprise party-room meeting and had come up with a strategy things would have turned out differently. But there are a lot of same-sex marriage supporters in cabinet, so that might have got in the way of the tricky.

The “people’s vote versus politician’s vote” slogan strategy was designed to “neutralise” the issue, but in fact has ensured it will continue to be an issue right through the next poll. Tricky has quickly turned into a political car crash.

The Coalition’s new climate change targets may yet turn into another example. They aren’t enough to meet Australia’s share of limiting global warming to 2C and they are behind many developed nations but they aren’t as low as some of the government’s previous decisions on climate policy might have led us to anticipate.

Live Tony Abbott faces worsening polls and same-sex marriage bill – parliament live

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This, we are informed by numerous commentators, is so the government can run the slogan that it will protect the environment without wrecking the economy (like Labor will). But there is, as yet, almost no detail about how the government intends to meet the target and therefore no way to measure the economic cost of either plan. The government got around this by the Daily Telegraph suddenly unearthing three-year old modelling of targets it asserted were Labor’s. When there are actual costing of alternative policies the cost may not be all that different. And, in any event, polls show voters are willing to wear some cost increases, and don’t trust the Coalition’s bona fides.

More tricky-gone-wrong came with the revelations about the royal commission into trade union corruption.

It was designed with two main objectives in mind – to examine deeply concerning allegations concerning some trade unions and to mortally wound the one-time union leader Bill Shorten. The former could have been achieved with the judicial inquiry the Coalition promised during the election campaign, or by using existing processes, such as the courts. But the latter was obviously much better served by the gravitas of a royal commission. It was reported at the time that the Coalition was so enthusiastic in pursuing its political goals that the terms of reference had to be corrected in cabinet because as originally drafted they would have actually set up a royal commission into the Labor party rather than the labour movement.

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It was this real suspicion of political motivation that lent lethal credibility to the revelation that the royal commissioner Dyson Heydon had agreed to speak at a Liberal party fundraiser – a fact that will be used to try to shut down the hearings, sully the commission’s findings and certainly blunt its usefulness as a tricky political manoeuvre.

And this week came after many other examples of backfiring trickery – like the attempt to head off cabinet discontent over unconstitutional and unworkable citizenship laws (that had been flagged for a year in the media but never presented in detail to the cabinet) by getting backbenchers to write a letter asking that they go further. Almost every constitutional lawyer in the country has now lined up to say the bill is, indeed, likely to be unconstitutional and may even lead to the stripping of the citizenship of scores of folk convicted in the past of damaging commonwealth property. It is unclear how the government intends to handle this.

At the same time the government’s policy agenda is thin and confused, its days filled with ad hoc announcements, and protestations about jobs and growth and ill-defined stories about intentions to get even tougher on national security than its already extremely tough stance.

Voters had already lost trust in the prime minister, dating back to his first ill-considered budget. His colleagues’ faith got pretty shaky earlier this year as well. They are now once again expressing despair. As the divisions deepen and the polls get worse, the Coalition is again descending into a self-defeating cycle of instability, suspicions and second guessing of the leadership intentions of Turnbull or Morrison or Julie Bishop.

Some argue the government just needs a clear narrative to sell its policies. But that would require the trickiness to be set aside long enough to figure out what they are.

Coalition a victim of its own trickiness as colleagues lose faith in Tony Abbott | Lenore Taylor | Australia news | The Guardian

Daniel Hurst Political correspondent Monday 10 August 2015

Former incumbent Bronwyn Bishop resigned a week ago after becoming embroiled in an expenses scandal

Tony Smith has been nominated by the Liberal party to be the new Speaker. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP

Victorian Liberal MP Tony Smith has been elected as the new Speaker of the House of Representatives after the resignation of Bronwyn Bishop from the key parliamentary post over a travel expenses scandal.

Smith, a former staffer to Peter Costello and until now the chair of the joint standing committee an electoral matters, pledged to give all MPs a fair go but also called for an improved level of discourse.

Smith, the MP for Casey since 2001, also promised to stop attending regular party room meetings – a gesture of independence that the Labor party and some within the government had suggested as a way to draw a line under Bishop’s partisanship.

“It’s my view that the Speaker should not only be but also should be seen to be independent of the partisan day-to-day foray,” Smith told parliament after his elevation to the role.

“I think the decision is symbolic but it’s also practical.”

Smith was one of four MPs to seek the position at a Liberal party room meeting in Canberra on Monday morning, prior to the resumption of parliament.

The house met at 10am to elect the new Speaker as its first item of business after the winter parliamentary recess.

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Smith was nominated by the MP for the neighbouring seat of Deakin, Michael Sukkar, and the motion was seconded by the MP for Robertson, Lucy Wicks.

Sukkar said Smith had the experience, temperament and strength necessary to instil respect and trust in the institutions of parliament.

“He is a Holden man through and through,” Sukkar added.

There were no other nominations from the floor of the parliament, leading to the declaration that Smith was elected as Speaker.

Tony Abbott, who had vowed to avoid another “captain’s pick” in the Speaker selection, congratulated Smith on assuming “this high and important office”.

The prime minister said he was confident Smith would maintain order in the house by commanding the respect of both sides of the chamber.

Abbott, who moved the motion to nominate Bishop after the 2013 election, also praised the former Speaker for being “a warrior for the causes that she believed in”.

“Despite some admitted errors of judgment, she has served this parliament, our country and her party with dedication and distinction for over 30 years,” he said.

The Labor leader, Bill Shorten, called on the new Speaker to apply standing orders fairly to both sides of the house and to ensure straightforward questions led to straightforward answers from ministers.

Shorten welcomed Smith’s pledge not to attend party room meetings and said he brought to the role “a proud tradition of advocating for a more accountable, more representative Australian democracy”.

“For all our clashes with the former Speaker, we wish her well,” Shorten said.

The leader of the house, Christopher Pyne, added his voice to the tributes to Bishop, but said Labor parliamentarians’ comments were inconsistent with their “not-so-generous remarks not long ago”.

“I seconded her nomination two years ago to be Speaker,” Pyne said. “She has been felled in most unfair circumstances by politics today.”

Smith recognised Bishop for being “a wonderful servant of our party”.

“Can I thank the house for the confidence you have placed in me. There is no greater honour in the parliament than to be elected by one’s peers. I’m a servant of this house and all of its members.”

Smith said he would give a fair go to all MPs in the chamber, but in return he expected a level of discourse that reflected that.

He said while parliament should be a robust place because it was the arena for the battle of ideas and ideals; “it needn’t be rude and it needn’t be loud”.

“That is something I’d like to see improved,” he said.

Smith said he had friends on both sides of the chamber and he would seek to meet periodically with the leader of the house, the manager of opposition business and independent MPs to discuss the operation of parliament.

Earlier, Smith said he had been humbled by the support he received from the party room.

He also thanked the three other Liberal candidates for the speakership – Russell Broadbent from Victoria, Andrew Southcott from South Australia, and Ross Vasta from Queensland – saying they were his friends.

“I think that friendship amongst the four of us was reflected in the civility of this contest,” he said after the party room meeting. “That’s all I’m going to say. The house begins in about 15 minutes so I’m just going to go off and prepare for that.”

The final vote in the Liberal party room was between Broadbent and Smith. Smith won that contest by 51 votes to 22.

Abbott left the party room meeting together with Bishop, whom he kissed on the cheek in front of the cameras.

The Greens MP Adam Bandt urged Smith not to forget independent and minor party MPs, saying over 20% of Australians did not vote for either Labor or the Coalition.

Tony Smith chosen as new Speaker of the House of Representatives | Australia news | The Guardian

Gabrielle Chan Tuesday 4 August 2015

Prime minister reveals he won’t make a ‘captain’s pick’ to choose new Speaker, adding that it’s likely his friend’s career in parliament ‘is substantially at an end’

Bronwyn Bishop and Tony Abbott in Parliament House in June. Photograph: Mike Bowers for the Guardian

Tony Abbott has admitted he will pay a personal price for failing to act sooner to remove his friend and ally Bronwyn Bishop amid the scandal over her expenses and said he would not make a “captain’s pick” to replace her.

“The government has inevitably paid a price and I dare say there will be a little personal price for me but let’s not forget that, while Bronwyn has made some very serious mistakes, ultimately she was the one who paid the highest price,” Abbott said.

“She lost the position that she loved and it’s likely her career in parliament is substantially at an end. That’s a high price for someone who has dedicated 30-odd years to public service.”

Abbott’s admission comes after February’s failed leadership spill motion when he pleaded with his colleagues for six months to turn around the government’s fortunes. The return to parliamentary sitting on Monday will be the six-month anniversary of his “near-death experience”.

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The first order of the day will be a Liberal party room meeting to choose the next Speaker before parliament sits at 10am. That meeting will decide the Coalition’s nomination for the role.

Jockeying has begun among Liberal MPs for one of the most prestigious jobs in the parliament. It offers a pay rise of 75% on a backbencher salary along with extra staff and office facilities.

While a clear favourite has yet to emerge, Liberal members are agreed on the fact that Abbott should not make another “captain’s pick”.

“My instinct is not to make a captain’s pick,” he said on Tuesday.

Bishop was Abbott’s personal choice for Speaker after the 2013 election and he said she had done a “good job” in recent times.

“I think Bronny has done a good job in the chair, particularly in the last six to 12 months. Inevitably all of us take a bit of time to settle into these positions but I think Bronwyn has deftly handled the parliament in recent times.”

A number of Liberal backbenchers have expressed interest or been raised as potential speakers. They include the South Australian MP Andrew Southcott, the Victorian MP Tony Smith, the father of the house, Philip Ruddock, and the Victorian MPs Sharman Stone and Russell Broadbent.

Abbott said he had spoken to Southcott, whom he declared was an “excellent bloke”.

“I’m going to try to avoid so-called captain’s picks here, in the end, this is a matter for the Liberal party room to choose a nominee for the speakership,” he said.

“This will be a party room process, as it should be. I’m confident there will be a number of candidates … may the best one of them first of all win the nomination and then hopefully become the Speaker.

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Abbott’s prediction about the end of Bishop’s parliamentary career will also ignite interest in her seat of Mackellar, which takes in Sydney’s northern beaches next to the prime minister’s seat of Warringah.

Bishop’s preference was her staffer Damien Jones, though his role in the entitlements scandal is considered to have lessened his chances among local Liberal members.

Bishop resigned as Speaker on Sunday, three weeks after revelations that she took a $5,000 helicopter trip from Melbourne to Geelong for a Liberal party fundraiser. It was followed by a series of revelations about her entitlements spending.

Abbott announced a whole-scale review of the entitlements system – to be led by former head of the Department of Finance, David Tune, and the head of the remuneration tribunal, John Conde – which will aim to give “the public confidence”.

Tony Abbott says he will pay a personal price for backing Bronwyn Bishop | Australia news | The Guardian

Shalailah Medhora and Lenore Taylor Sunday 2 August 2015

Party room ballot could decide successor to Bishop as Tony Abbott tries to draw a line under the damaging affair by launching a ‘root and branch’ review of expenses

Bronwyn Bishop: ‘It is because of my love and respect for the institution of the parliament and the Australian people that I have resigned.’ Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP

Coalition MPs are demanding a real say in the selection of a new Speaker after the embattled Bronwyn Bishop finally resigned to end the expenses scandal paralysing the Abbott government.

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Bishop was Tony Abbott’s “captain’s pick” for the job after the 2013 election victory, but MPs say a return to a Coalition party room ballot for the position, and the selection of a new Speaker seen as truly independent, would help repair the damage the government has sustained over the affair.

Tony Abbott announces an inquiry into politicians’ entitlements. Link to video

Contenders include the “father of the house” and former Howard government minister Philip Ruddock, veteran Victorian MP Russell Broadbent and Nationals MP and former minister Bruce Scott.

Despite insisting on Thursday she would not be resigning, the scandal continued and Bishop finally tendered her resignation as Speaker of the House on Sunday. The prime minister made the announcement on Sunday afternoon.

“Regrettably, not withstanding rules that this government put in place ... there are still too many situations where members of parliament can do things that are inside entitlement, but outside public expectations,” Abbott told reporters.

Abbott was keen to take the focus off Bishop, saying the system was broken.

“This has obviously been a very difficult day for Bronwyn Bishop,” he said.

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“I believe that in the vast majority of cases, for the vast majority of the time, that is exactly what the public has got. They have got people in the parliament who are serving them to the best of their ability,” the prime minister said.

“Nevertheless, it has become apparent over the last few weeks, particularly in recent days, that the system does need fundamental reform. That’s exactly what there will be under this government because the public deserves it.”

He announced a whole-scale review of the entitlements system – to be led by the former head of the Department of Finance, David Tune, and the head of the Remuneration Tribunal, John Conde – which will aim to give “the public confidence”.

Abbott said it will not be a “quickie” review, but rather a “root and branch” audit of the system.

The review will report back to the government in the first half of 2016.

Technically the Speaker is elected by the House of Representatives, but the government’s numbers mean its nomination will get the job. During the Howard years the Coalition nomination was on occasions decided by a Coalition party room ballot.

Some commentators had suggested independent Cathy McGowan for the job, but she said she wasn’t interested.

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“I’m absolutely focussing on being the member for Indi,” she said. “It’s got to be someone from the government.”

The scandal began on 15 July when it was revealed the Speaker spent over $5,200 to charter a luxury helicopter for an 80km trip from Melbourne to a golf club in Geelong in November 2014 where she spoke at a Liberal party fundraiser.

Abbott put Bishop on “probation” but news of questionable uses of public money kept on coming, including stories that she used taxpayer dollars to attend the weddings of two colleagues, Sophie Mirabella in June 2006, and Teresa Gambaro in 2007.

She said the use of the money was “within the guidelines” but revelations on Sunday that she spent more than $1,000 on limousines in one day when she was an opposition minister in 2012 proved the last straw.

Ministers were reduced to daily fire fighting duties as each new story forced some kind of government response.

But the furore ended when Bishop issued a statement on Sunday explaining her decision.

“I have not taken this decision lightly, however it is because of my love and respect for the institution of the parliament and the Australian people that I have resigned as Speaker,” she said.

The opposition leader, Bill Shorten, said Bishop’s resignation was overdue.

“Mr Abbott has blamed the system, but it was Mrs Bishop’s addiction to privilege that was the real culprit,” Shorten said in a statement.

He said the announcement of the review should not absolve Abbott of publicly releasing the finance department’s investigation into Bishop’s alleged misuse of entitlements.

Independent MP Andrew Wilkie, who had vowed to bring about a no confidence motion in the Speaker along with Clive Palmer, said the federal police should investigate whether Bishop has committed any criminal fraud. He said he was relieved by her resignation.

“Thank God for that. Watching this saga unfold was worse than getting your wisdom teeth out,” Wilkie said in a statement.

He wanted the review to stamp out the practice of MPs “tripping around Australia for all sorts of private reasons”.

Coalition MPs demand proper say on next Speaker as Bronwyn Bishop quits | Australia news | The Guardian