9m agoWed 4 Feb 2026 at 12:16am
Libs/Nats drama extends to vote on beer excise
If you’re wondering how things are going in the House of Reps today, MPs are voting on Labor’s election promise to freeze the biannual indexation of the draught beer excise for two years.
But because nothing can apparently happen in this place this week without a little bit of Libs/Nats drama, I found the vote quite interesting.
Nationals MP Pat Conaghan put up an amendment for the freeze to be extended to include on-tap spirits.
The Nationals and independents Kate Chaney, Andrew Gee, Rebekha Sharkie, and Zali Steggall all voted for the amendment.
So did five Liberal MPs: Andrew Hastie, Tony Pasin, Ben Small, Tom Venning and Terry Young.
The remaining Liberals abstained from the vote.Â
Hastie, Pasin, Small and Young also voted with the Nationals on a later amendment that would’ve required Treasury to review Australia’s taxation of alcohol, if it were successful (it wasn’t).
11m agoWed 4 Feb 2026 at 12:14am
Marles says government ‘maintains awareness’ of citizens in Syrian camps
The deputy prime minister has been asked what obligation the Australian government has to Australian citizens in Syrian camps.
Syrian forces have Kurdish-controlled areas of Syria, according to Reuters, as part of a US-backed deal to bring Kurdish-run regions back under central government control.
Some Australians who travelled to, or were taken to, Syria to be a part of the Islamic State are detained in prison camps in formerly Kurdish-controlled parts of Syria.
Richard Marles says Australia remains aware of sites and camps that contain Australian citizens.
“We are not providing assistance to people in those camps, in terms of return to Australia, and we maintain awareness of Australians there as we do maintain awareness of all Australians in the context of the security of this country,” Marles says.
20m agoWed 4 Feb 2026 at 12:06amDeputy PM won’t put timeframe on next defence secretary replacement
Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles says the replacement for defence department secretary will be announced in the “fullness of time”.
Greg Moriarty has been announced as Australia’s next ambassador to the United States, replacing Kevin Rudd who will be departing Washington early.
He says Moriarty has made an “exceptional” contribution to the nation.
“I’m not going to put a timeframe on it,” Marles says.
“Greg has been an incredible servant of the nation as the secretary of defence and I’m deeply indebted to all the work that he has done, hugely grateful,” he says.
24m agoWed 4 Feb 2026 at 12:02am
Deputy PM asked about future east coast nuclear submarine facility
The deputy prime minister has been asked whether the government has identified an east coast nuclear submarine base facility.
Richard Marles says having an east coast base will come about when Australia has a fully developed nuclear submarine fleet.
“We are taking it a step at a time. And that step, is one which is, frankly, is in the 2030s,” Marles says.
29m agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 11:56pm
Marles says ADF is a defence, not a heritage organisation
Richard Marles has been asked whether he’s concerned about opposition or objections about selling off the sites.
The deputy prime minister says defence has gone through a “significant consultative process”.
He says the purpose of the Australian Defence Force is to defend Australia, and it is not a heritage organisation.
“We’re not a heritage organisation, we’re a defence organisation and people who wear the uniform are fundamentally focused on defending our nation,” Marles says.
Asked if he’s received pushback from the ADF, Marles says he understands the attachment some in the defence community have to some sites.
33m agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 11:52pmDefence sites may have contamination, heritage restrictions: Gallagher
The deputy prime minister has been asked whether the sites will be prioritised for housing projects.
Richard Marles says some of the land is “very strategic” but that not all properties will go towards housing.
“As the minister of defence, you know, I want to say maximum value here so I think that will be, one of the guiding principles,” Marles says.
(ABC News: Callum Flinn)
Finance Minister Katy Gallagher says there hasn’t been a decision about how those sites will be used in future.
She says while she’s hopeful some of the sites will be reserved for housing, they will be used for varied purposes.
“Obviously other sites will have contamination heritage restrictions, other issues that need to be worked through. But as you know, we want to maximise the opportunity here,” Gallagher says.
40m agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 11:46pm
Marles says proceeds from sale of properties will go back into defence
The deputy prime minister has been asked how the government will address environmental, security, and soundness concerns regarding the sale of the sites.
He’s also been asked whether there’s been progress on the Henderson shipyard in Western Australia.
Richard Marles answers the second question first, saying the Commonwealth is working “hand in glove” with the WA government.
Regarding the second question, the deputy PM says some properties will be easier to sell than others.
“Of course, what it then does is also enable every cent that is recovered through the sale of these properties to be reinvested in defence,” Marles says.
45m agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 11:41pm
Finance minister says team being assembled to handle divestiture
Finance Minister Katy Gallagher says her department will be responsible for 58 Defence sites as part of the divestiture process.
The finance minister expects strong interest in the divestiture process.
“A team is being put together in the department. This is obviously a priority for the government,” Gallagher says.
47m agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 11:38pmAssistant minister ‘absolutely shocked’ by state of some defence facilities
(ABC News: Callum Flinn)
Assistant Defence Minister Peter Khalil says he has visited dozens of sites since becoming assistant defence minister.
He says he was “absolutely shocked” to witness the state of the Penrith facility, where most buildings appeared derelict.
“Every window broken glass strewn everywhere, vandalism and graffiti and it got worse when I walked in,” Khalil says.
He says defence sites must meet the operational and capability requirements of defence.
“We promised to ensure taxpayer dollars, along with defence spending, is actually aligned with the public’s expectation of efficiency and that’s exactly what we’re doing with this very important reform,” he says.
51m agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 11:35pm
Divestiture of facilities will return heritage value to the community: Marles
Richard Marles says some of the Defence estates in Sydney, Brisbane, and Melbourne have heritage value and are protected.
The deputy prime minister has pointed to the War Cabinet Room at the Victoria Barracks in Melbourne as one of them.
Marles says opening some of those facilities to the public, including the War Cabinet Room, will enhance their heritage value.
“I’ve seen that room, but the public has not,” Marles says.
“But being opened up and being allowed to be seen by the Australian people is a tremendous heritage outcome because it returns the heritage value of these properties to the nation, and that is a very important point to understand about them.”
53m agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 11:32pmGovernment to fully divest 64 defence sites, Marles says
Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles says the Defence Estate Audit recommended divesting 64 defence sites, and partially divesting three sites.
Only one facility, at Pittwater in NSW, will be retained.
Marles says the government has spent $4 million over the past four years maintaining the Spectacle Island in Sydney Harbour.
“We’ve spent $1 million dealing with vandalism and theft in respect of the Penrith training depot, a property that was vacated in 2016,” Marles says.
The deputy prime minister says the government will be pursuing divestiture over the next couple of years.
He says the defence department will be transferring the sites to the finance department.
57m agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 11:29pm
Marles announces ‘significant reform’ of Australia’s Defence estate
(ABC News: Callum Flinn)
Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles has just stepped up for a press conference with Finance Minister Katy Gallagher and Assistant Defence Minister Peter Khalil.
The defence minister says the government is announcing a “significant reform” to Australia’s Defence estate.
Marles says the government agrees with all recommendations of the Defence Estate Audit.
He says an audit has found that much of the property wasn’t being used.
“What became clear was that Defence, as one of the largest owners of property in the country, had a very significant estate, much of which was not being used,” Marles says.
1h agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 11:03pm
Hume dismisses likelihood of leadership challenge next week
(ABC News: Matt Roberts)
Liberal senator Jane Hume has played down the likelihood of a leadership challenge next week as she sidestepped questions about whether Angus Taylor was plotting against Sussan Ley.Â
Hume told Sky News that Senate estimates were the focus for her and her colleagues next week.
Asked if Taylor needed to come out and rule out a challenge, the Liberal senator said there had “been no challenge laid down”.
“I can understand how frustrating this must be for Liberal supporters, but what I will tell you is that our job up here right now is to hold the Labor government to account,” she said.
As negotiations continue between Ley and Nationals leader David Littleproud about the future of the dissolved Coalition, Hume said there was “no doubt” that things were “in a state of flux”.
1h agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 10:52pm
Joyce asked about One Nation official’s ‘spot the Westerner’ video
One Nation recruit Barnaby Joyce says he doesn’t agree with a video posted by a senior party official which claimed Melbourne no longer looks like a “Western nation”.
The video posted online last month by the Victorian state secretary for One Nation, Bianca Colecchia, has been widely criticised, and has led to accusations the minor party is seeking to divide Australia.
Joyce, a former deputy prime minister, has told ABC News Breakfast that while he does not associate with the views presented by Colecchia in the video, Australia’s migration policy needs to be strengthened.
“I do believe 100 per cent that we should be more vigilant on who we bring into our nation before we have discussions about the possible changes to laws of how we kick them out,” he says.
“I think it’s important as a contractual relationship and coming to Australia.”
Joyce, who defected from the Nationals to One Nation last year, has also been asked whether he expects more of his former colleagues to follow suit.
“No, I don’t,” he says.
1h agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 10:35pm
Thorpe ‘disappointed’ PM didn’t speak out on alleged Perth bomb threat in parliament
Independent senator Lidia Thorpe has slammed the prime minister for not using parliament to speak out against the alleged attempted bombing at an Invasion Day rally in Perth.
Thorpe’s motion to condemn the attack and recognise the impact it had on First Nations communities received support of the federal parliament yesterday.
But Curtin MPÂ Kate Chaney introduced the motion in the House of Representatives.
Thorpe said Anthony Albanese missed an opportunity to make his stance against violence clear.
“I’m really disappointed, I thought he was better than that,” she said.
“Shame on the prime minister for not standing with First Peoples in this country, after being subjected to a racist, violent attack.”
Albanese was asked about the attempted bombing during Question Time, and described the incident as “very serious”, and “extraordinary there wasn’t a much more serious consequence”.
But Thorpe says he should have taken more initiative to address it himself.
“He should have been proactive and taken the lead and condemned it outright without being asked,” she said.
2h agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 10:10pmChalmers downplays reports he’s considering changes to the capital gains tax discount
Circling back to reports the government is taking another look at the capital gains tax (CGT) for a moment.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers helpfully stopped by to have a chat to reporters waiting at the doors of Parliament House this morning.
He dismissed it and said it was only in the papers because of a Greens-led Senate committee into the CGT.
Chalmers said the government understood there was “intergenerational issues” in housing but it had “other priorities when it came to tax reform”.
“Cutting income taxes, standard deduction, a fairer superannuation system from top to bottom, making sure we’re getting the multinational tax regime right. Those are our priorities,” he said.
Earlier, Shadow Treasurer Ted O’Brien told Sky News he wouldn’t support any changes to the CGT discount.
2h agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 9:49pm
Littleproud says Nats will ‘be adults’ as negotiations with Libs continue
Nationals leader David Littleproud wasn’t giving anything away this morning when asked if he was open to rejoining the Coalition.
But he’s not pleased with the fact that Sussan Ley’s offer to reunite, which included a condition to keep three Nats who defied shadow cabinet rules on the bench for six months, was leaked to the media.
“I’m not going to rule anything in or out. What I’m saying is that we’ll do that behind closed doors. We’ll do that in a constructive way within our room, and I don’t intend to give a running commentary,” he told Sky News.
“The fact is, we didn’t really want any of these out in the media at all, to be candid.”
Asked if he’d lost trust in Ley as a result, Littleproud said the Nats we’re “going to be adults”.
Littleproud has repeatedly said he wants the three senators, Bridget McKenzie, Ross Cadell and Susan McDonald reinstated should the Coalition reform.
2h agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 9:26pmGallagher brushes off reports Labor is looking at the capital gains tax discount
(ABC News: Callum Flinn)
Circling back to Finance Minister Katy Gallagher who also stopped by ABC’s News Breakfast on her morning media tour.
She is asked directly if there are plans to take another look at the capital gains tax discount ahead of the budget.
It comes after a report in the Australian Finance Review the government was considering scaling back the generous 50 per cent break.
Gallagher insists the government’s housing policies haven’t changed.
But could they change?
“We’ve got three areas we’re focusing on. I can’t give you any more information than that,” she says.
3h agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 9:11pm
O’Brien blames government spending for inflation rise
It’s a bit of a game of musical chairs in the ABC Radio National Breakfast studio this morning.
Shadow Treasurer Ted O’Brien is the next cab off the rank, and he is not buying the government’s argument that public spending is not the driver of the rise in inflation.
(ABC News: Callum Flinn)
“I accept what the RBA governor said in the press conference yesterday …Â which is, you see both private and public spending increasing and hitting up against basically the speed limit of the economy. Both are having an enormous impact,” he said.
He says at a time when there are supply constraints the last thing you need is the government spending so much”.
Asked what areas the government could make cuts, he named the net zero authority and tax breaks for electric vehicles.
3h agoTue 3 Feb 2026 at 9:06pm
Will the budget include big, meaty tax reform?
Finance Minister Katy Gallagher is asked if there is any appetite within Labor to spend its political capital and enact some serious economic reform.
She says the treasurer and prime minister have made it clear that some of the ideas from the economic roundtable last year were part of their thinking as the budget process kicks off.
Pushed if that would include big meaty tax reform, Gallagher laughs it off.
“We’re not thick in it, we’re at the kind of, before we get to the really intense period of budget formation,” she says.
“But you know, looking at productivity, managing the inflation challenge, and looking at reform features as part of our thinking.”
Gallagher notes they already have tax cuts, which were legislated last year, but there was “more to do”.
This blogger can’t help but wonder whether she had a certain report in the Australian Financial Review in mind when she answered this (the report suggested the government was considering winding back the generous 50 per cent capital gains tax deduction for property investors).