Hello and welcome to another day of parliament.

We’ll let Bob Katter sum up the feelings for all of us:

(Photo by Mike Bowers)

After yesterday, which was a bit of a mess if we are honest, there seems to be some actual domestic issues taking precedent over the international stories which have dominated for the last few months (years if you also take into account the Gaza genocide, which is continuing as you read this).

The calls for some sort of population plan, or at least more information on what the government expects to happen with the population and what is being planned, are getting louder. In an interview with the ABC on Monday afternoon, Anthony Albanese said:

Well, we are getting the numbers down. But migration also is important and multiculturalism is a part of who we are as a modern nation. And I just say to people of – and I have no doubt that there would have been good people who went along, heard about a rally, are concerned, have views –

… But you should have a look at who you were with on Sunday, I think, and the motivation that they have. Which isn’t actually about housing or our economy or anything else, it’s about sowing division. And neo-Nazis have no role.
 

Australia’s migration intake is not out of control and anyone describing it as ‘mass’ is either deliberately misleading people to inflame tensions, or is repeating terms unthinkingly. Population growth is actually slightly under when it was predicted by the Morrison government before the pandemic. The intake numbers have slowed following the re-opening of the borders after the pandemic closures. The issue is not one of migration, but if a lack of planning on behalf of successive governments, and an out of control housing market, where prices, artificially inflated by tax subsidies such as negative gearing and the capital gains discount have been turbo charged beyond affordability. And with enough vested interests trying to deflect attention from their culpability to migrants, combined with a few doses of racism and boom. Tinder box set.

(Photo by Mike Bowers)

Meanwhile, the government is still dancing around its 2035 climate target, setting up the circumstances to do the least amount possible. It has delayed releasing the national climate risk assessment report, which was described to me as “really, really confronting” by someone who has knowledge of it, with speculation it doesn’t want to release the report until after it has set the target. Meanwhile the Coalition continue to tear themselves apart over what they want to do with the literal bare minimum – net zero, with the fallout continuing from Barnaby Joyce’s warning to Liberal shadow frontbencher Andrew Hastie not to speak in support of his private members’ bill to end net zero. Hastie would have to resign from the shadow bench to do so, and that would set off the fight over Ley’s leadership (already without much authority) and potentially lead to out and out in-fighting among the Liberals. The story was one of Labor’s favourite’s yesterday, but Labor is facing its own pressure to put a number on it.

Meanwhile Tony Burke and other senior government ministers are being asked more about the Nauru resettlement deal (which may be up to $400m to resettle no one if the courts strike out the new legislation Burke has introduced to the parliament – but the details are secret, so no one knows, let alone the human cost of sending people to a third party nation they have no connection to, limited prospects of building a life, and also face the threat of potential deportation to a country of origin which could result in their torture or death.)

And Sam Rae, the aged care minister, is getting a first hand experience as to what it was like being Andrew Giles last year, as the aged care home care wait list unites the Greens, the Coalition and the independents in demanding answers. The Coalition actually seem to have stumbled on to a social policy issue that matters and needs answers, and the rest of the parliament are doing their job in ensuring the issue stays on track (which the Coalition need help with)

So we enter this Tuesday with the party room meetings about to happen, on-going tension in the Coalition, Labor facing some of their first actual tests, and the independents and Greens really starting to find their own on how to get issues that need it, airtime.

So grab your coffee – it is a three coffee morning over here. Ready? Let’s get into it.