Rudd Government
Encyclopedia
Government of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states...
of the Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
from 2007 to 2010, led by Kevin Rudd
Kevin Rudd
Kevin Michael Rudd is an Australian politician who was the 26th Prime Minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010. He has been Minister for Foreign Affairs since 2010...
as Prime Minister. The Rudd Government commenced on 3 December 2007, when Rudd was sworn in along with his ministry
First Rudd Ministry
The Rudd Ministry was the 65th Australian Commonwealth ministry. It was led by Kevin Rudd of the Australian Labor Party.The Ministry was sworn in by the 24th Governor-General of Australia Major-General Michael Jeffery on 3 December 2007, following the 2007 election, and it ended on 24 June 2010...
. This took place nine days after the defeat at the 2007 federal election of the Howard Government
Howard Government
The Howard Government refers to the federal Executive Government of Australia led by Prime Minister John Howard. It was made up of members of the Liberal–National Coalition, which won a majority of seats in the Australian House of Representatives at four successive elections. The Howard Government...
, which had consisted of John Howard
John Howard
John Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....
and members of the Liberal
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
and National
National Party of Australia
The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Traditionally representing graziers, farmers and rural voters generally, it began as the The Country Party, but adopted the name The National Country Party in 1975, changed to The National Party of Australia in 1982. The party is...
parties. The Rudd Government concluded on 24 June 2010, when Rudd stepped down from the leadership of the Australian Labor Party and was succeeded by his Deputy Prime Minister, Julia Gillard
Julia Gillard
Julia Eileen Gillard is the 27th and current Prime Minister of Australia, in office since June 2010.Gillard was born in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales and migrated with her family to Adelaide, Australia in 1966, attending Mitcham Demonstration School and Unley High School. In 1982 Gillard moved...
.
Economy
Wayne Swan
Wayne Maxwell Swan is the Deputy Prime Minister of Australia and an Australian politician. He has been an Australian Labor Party member of the Australian House of Representatives from 1993 to 1996, and then re elected in 1998 till today , representing the Division of Lilley, QLD...
delivered the Rudd government's first budget
2008 Australian federal budget
The 2008 to 2009 budget was released on 13 May 2008, with a particular emphasis on family welfare and capital investment funds, the Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan selling it to the House of Representatives as "a A$55 billion Working Families Support Package" that "strengthens...
in May 2008, which he said was designed to fight inflation. Total expenditure, as a share of gross domestic product (GDP
Gross domestic product
Gross domestic product refers to the market value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a given period. GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of a country's standard of living....
), was lower than at any time of the previous government, despite including many of the expensive election promises for "working families". The projected surplus of 1.8% of GDP, or $21.7 billion, exceeded the 1.5% target set by the government in January. Labor supported improving the federal-state funding process through a reform of the Council of Australian Governments
Council of Australian Governments
The Council of Australian Governments is an organisation consisting of the federal government, the governments of the six states and two mainland territories and the Australian Local Government Association. It was established in May 1992 after agreement by the then Prime Minister, Premiers and...
. Three nation-building investment funds were established—the infrastructure fund, "Building Australia", was earmarked $20 billion of federal funding. Education received $10 billion as part of Rudd's "education revolution", while health also received $10 billion.
As part of its response to the financial turmoil of the Global Financial Crisis
Late-2000s financial crisis
The late-2000s financial crisis is considered by many economists to be the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s...
, the Rudd government announced in October 2008 that it would guarantee all bank deposits. The government initially ignored RBA
Reserve Bank of Australia
The Reserve Bank of Australia came into being on 14 January 1960 as Australia's central bank and banknote issuing authority, when the Reserve Bank Act 1959 removed the central banking functions from the Commonwealth Bank to it....
advice to cap the guarantee. After serious distortion of the Australian financial system, the government modified the guarantee, requiring a premium to be paid for amounts over $1 million.
A second economic stimulus package worth $42 billion was announced in February 2009. It comprised an infrastructure program worth $26 billion, $2.7 billion in small business tax breaks, and $12.7 billion for cash bonuses, including $950 for every Australian taxpayer who earned less than $80,000 during the 2007-8 financial year. At the same time the Reserve Bank
Reserve Bank of Australia
The Reserve Bank of Australia came into being on 14 January 1960 as Australia's central bank and banknote issuing authority, when the Reserve Bank Act 1959 removed the central banking functions from the Commonwealth Bank to it....
cut official interest rates by 1 percent to 3.25 percent, the lowest since 1964.
The package was welcomed by state governments and many economists, as well as the OECD
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development is an international economic organisation of 34 countries founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and world trade...
. The Malcolm Turnbull
Malcolm Turnbull
Malcolm Bligh Turnbull is an Australian politician. He has been a member of the Australian House of Representatives since 2004, and was Leader of the Opposition and parliamentary leader of the Liberal Party from 16 September 2008 to 1 December 2009.Turnbull has represented the Division...
-led coalition
Coalition (Australia)
The Coalition in Australian politics refers to a group of centre-right parties that has existed in the form of a coalition agreement since 1922...
opposed the package, stating they believed further tax cuts on top of current tax cuts planned for each financial year over the next few years was a better way to prevent a recession. The package was passed in the Senate on 13 February with support from minor parties and independents following amendments that reduced the cash bonuses in the package in order to fund investment in the environment and water.
National accounts released on 4 March 2009 which correspond to the December quarter showed that Australia's non-farm economy was in recession
Recession
In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction, a general slowdown in economic activity. During recessions, many macroeconomic indicators vary in a similar way...
, according to the government's definition of the term.
The 2009 Australian federal budget
2009 Australian federal budget
The 2009 to 2010 Australian federal budget was released on 12 May 2009 by the Treasurer of Australia, Wayne Swan. Swan has commented that the budget will be tougher than in previous years...
was released on the evening of 12 May 2009. Labor decided not to extend the investment allowance, and it was phased out by the end of the year. Other measures to support employment—augmenting a first-home buyer's scheme
First time home buyer grant
A first-time home buyer grant is a grant specifically for/targeted at those buying their first home — perhaps a starter home.Like other grants, the first-time buyer does not hold an obligation to repay the grant....
— were initiated.
The March quarter national accounts showed that the Australian economy grew by 0.4%, a number not foreseen by many until the positive balance of trade statistics released the day before. The main contributors to this result were the large fall in the current account deficit and increasing household consumption. Apart from the manufacturing sector, the Australian economy avoided a technical recession. Reserve Bank economists endorsed the first two phases of stimulus a year later, saying it was "undeniable" that government spending had supported the economy. RBA governor Glenn Stevens
Glenn Stevens
Glenn Robert Stevens is an Australian economist and the current Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia.-Early life and education:...
remained cautious of American-style fiscal policy, casting doubt on the idea that Australia should have a higher inflation target in order to repair its public accounts.
The Rudd Government established a review of the tax system by the head of the Department of the Treasury
Department of the Treasury (Australia)
The Department of the Treasury is an Australian Government department. Its role is to focus and develop economic policy.-History:The Commonwealth Treasury was established in Melbourne in January 1901....
, Ken Henry
Ken Henry (Australian public servant)
Dr. Kenneth Ross "Ken" Henry AC is an Australian economist and public servant. He served as the Secretary of the Department of the Treasury from 2001 to 2011. On 1 June 2011, he was appointed as Special Advisor to the Prime Minister...
. Among other suggested reforms recommended by the Henry review and adopted by the Rudd Government was a Resource Super Profits Tax
Resource Super Profits Tax
The Minerals Resource Rent Tax is a proposed tax on profits generated from the exploitation of non-renewable resources in Australia. It is the replacement for the proposed Resource Super Profit Tax ....
on the extractive industry. The proposal met resistance from mining industry bodies and mining companies, and the proposal was later heavily modified when Julia Gillard
Julia Gillard
Julia Eileen Gillard is the 27th and current Prime Minister of Australia, in office since June 2010.Gillard was born in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales and migrated with her family to Adelaide, Australia in 1966, attending Mitcham Demonstration School and Unley High School. In 1982 Gillard moved...
replaced Rudd as Prime Minister.
Defence
In December 2007 the Minister for DefenceMinister for Defence (Australia)
The Minister for Defence of Australia administers his portfolio through the Australian Defence Organisation, which comprises the Department of Defence and the Australian Defence Force. Stephen Smith is the current Minister.-Ministers for Defence:...
, Joel Fitzgibbon
Joel Fitzgibbon
Joel Andrew Fitzgibbon is an Australian politician and Australian Labor Party member of the Australian House of Representatives since March 1996, representing the Division of Hunter in New South Wales. From December 2007 to June 2009 he was the Minister for Defence in the Rudd Ministry...
, ordered the Department of Defence
Department of Defence (Australia)
The Australian Department of Defence is a Federal Government Department. It forms part of the Australian Defence Organisation along with the Australian Defence Force . The Defence mission is to defend Australia and its national interests...
to develop a new white paper
White paper
A white paper is an authoritative report or guide that helps solve a problem. White papers are used to educate readers and help people make decisions, and are often requested and used in politics, policy, business, and technical fields. In commercial use, the term has also come to refer to...
to guide Australia's defence policy. While the white paper was originally due to be completed in December 2008, it was delayed until 2009 due to the volume of work required. The white paper, entitled Defending Australia in the Asia Pacific Century: Force 2030
Defending Australia in the Asia Pacific Century: Force 2030
Defending Australia in the Asia Pacific Century: Force 2030 is an Australian Government white paper released on 2 May 2009. The publication seeks to provide guidance for Australia's defence policy and the Australian Defence Force during the period 2009–2030.-Background:In 2000, the then Coalition...
, was released on 2 May 2009 and outlines a significant expansion to the Australian Defence Force
Australian Defence Force
The Australian Defence Force is the military organisation responsible for the defence of Australia. It consists of the Royal Australian Navy , Australian Army, Royal Australian Air Force and a number of 'tri-service' units...
, intended to maximise the military's capacity to act independently in Australia's region.
Other defence policies enacted by the Rudd Government include canceling the contract to purchase 11 Seasprite helicopters
SH-2G Super Seasprite
The Kaman SH-2G Super Seasprite is a ship-based helicopter with anti-submarine, anti-surface threat capability, including over-the-horizon targeting. This aircraft extends and increases shipboard sensor and weapon capabilities against several types of enemy threats, including submarines of all...
in March 2008, and beginning the process of planning the replacement
Collins class submarine replacement project
The Collins class submarine replacement project is a Royal Australian Navy effort to replace the Navy's six Collins class submarines with 12 new Australian designed submarines from 2025...
for the Navy's Collins class submarines
Collins class submarine
The Collins class is a class of six Australian-built diesel-electric submarines operated by the Royal Australian Navy . The Collins class takes its name from Australian Vice Admiral John Augustine Collins; all six submarines are named after significant RAN personnel who distinguished themselves in...
.
The Rudd Government altered the number of Australian troops deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq. The 550 combat troops deployed on an overwatch mission
Overwatch Battle Group (West)
Overwatch Battle Group was an Australian Army battlegroup that represented Australia's largest contribution to the Multinational force in Iraq. The Battle Group was established in July 2006 and was based at Tallil Airbase in Dhi Qar Governorate....
in central southern Iraq were withdrawn in mid-June 2008, fulfilling an election promise. This reduced the Australian Defence Force presence in the region to 800-900 support personnel, including 440 either on the ground in Iraq or patrolling the coastline. As of early 2009 around 150 support personnel remained in Iraq. In contrast, the Australian force in Afghanistan was expanded, with Rudd announcing in April 2009 an increase from 1,100 to 1,550 personnel.
Fitzgibbon became the first Rudd Government minister to resign on 4 June 2009. He quit after he admitted that meetings held between his brother, the head of the health fund NIB
Nib health funds
nib health funds is an Australian health insurance company. It is Australia's fifth largest private health insurer providing cover to more than 700,000 people nationwide.-History:...
, and defence officials concerning business opportunities had breached the Ministerial Code of Conduct. John Faulkner
John Faulkner
John Philip Faulkner is an Australian politician. He has been a Labor member of the Australian Senate since 1989, representing the state of New South Wales. Following a period serving on various Senate Committees and as Deputy Whip, he was a Minister in the Keating Labor government 1993-96...
was appointed to succeeded the Defence portfolio.
Education
One of the Rudd Government's key proposals in the 2007 election campaign was the implementation of an "education revolution". This was to include the provision of computers for every school student in years 9-12 and the implementation of a national curriculum.Scholarship for disadvantaged students
In 2010 a planned scholarship for disadvantaged university students was cut by 36% and an estimated 150,000 students were still waiting for the changes to pass parliament two weeks before the start of the academic year in March, as a result of disagreements between the government and the Liberal-National opposition, supported by independent senator Stephen Fielding. The government scrapped the old scholarship system that helped around 21,000 students before the bill was passed for the new. One university in Queensland topped up its foodbank, anticipating that the number of students regularly going without food would increase.In 2009 the Coalition and Senator Fielding had defeated the changes to the Youth Allowance and Austudy system, saying they were unfair to rural and regional students and would leave 26,000 worse off. The bill would have tightened regulations around the work requirements these students needed to fulfill to be considered independent from their parents. Commentators claimed the old system had been rorted by some wealthier families, while others said it was a genuine help to those in need.
In order to win the support of the Greens and Senator Nick Xenephon to pass the bill, Education Minister Julia Gillard loosened some aspects of the changes to rural arrangements, but cut the first year of the scholarships by $820, from $2264 to $1434, in order to pay for these changes. The impasse meant an estimated 150,000 students were still waiting in Mid-February for the bill to pass in time for the start of the Australian academic year.
Environment and energy management
In opposition, Rudd called climate change "the greatest moral, economic and social challenge of our time" and called for a cut to greenhouse gas emissions by 60% before 2050.
John Howard
John Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....
said that Labor's policy on climate change negotiations had no significant differences to the Liberals' policy. At the time, econometric research suggested that providers of carbon credits which had been accredited under the voluntary Australian Greenhouse Office
Australian Greenhouse Office
The Australian Greenhouse Office within the Government of Australia was the world's first government agency dedicated to cutting greenhouse gas emissions. In 1998, following pressure from the Australian Democrats, it was established as a stand alone agency within the environment portfolio to...
trading scheme were capable of stabilising emissions, such was the demand from households for carbon-neutral products.
On 3 December 2007, hours after being sworn in, Rudd signed the Kyoto Protocol
Kyoto Protocol
The Kyoto Protocol is a protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change , aimed at fighting global warming...
. Rudd stated that:
Australia's official declaration today that we will become a member of the Kyoto Protocol is a significant step forward in our country's efforts to fight climate change domestically - and with the international community.
After a year of accounting of "emissions" and "sinks", the government published its climate change policies in a White Paper
White paper
A white paper is an authoritative report or guide that helps solve a problem. White papers are used to educate readers and help people make decisions, and are often requested and used in politics, policy, business, and technical fields. In commercial use, the term has also come to refer to...
released on 15 December 2008. The White Paper mapped out a plan to introduce an emissions trading scheme
Emissions trading
Emissions trading is a market-based approach used to control pollution by providing economic incentives for achieving reductions in the emissions of pollutants....
in 2010 and recommended a target range for Australia's greenhouse gas emissions in 2020 of between 5% and 15% less than 2000 levels. It drew criticism from environmental groups and the Federal Government's climate change advisor, Professor Ross Garnaut
Ross Garnaut
Ross Gregory Garnaut AO is a Distinguished Professor of Economics at the Australian National University and both a Vice-Chancellor's Fellow and Professorial Fellow of Economics at The University of Melbourne....
. Garnaut said the government's conditional 2020 emission targets were too low, and said the planned assistance measures for Australian emissions intensive industries pose "profound" financial risk for the Government. In May 2009, Rudd announced an increase of the scheme target to 25% less than year 2000 levels, but that the introduction of the scheme would be delayed until July 2011.
In June 2010, the environment minister, Peter Garrett
Peter Garrett
Peter Robert Garrett, AM, MP , is an Australian musician, environmentalist, activist and politician.Garrett was lead singer of the Australian rock band Midnight Oil from 1973 until its disbanding in 2002...
, revealed in an interview with Sky News
Sky News Australia
Sky News Australia is an Australian 24 hour cable and satellite news channel available in 2.5 million homes on Foxtel, Austar, Optus Television and Neighbourhood Cable subscription platforms....
that he first learned of the change in Government policy when he read about it, published in a newspaper after being leak
News leak
A news leak is a disclosure of embargoed information in advance of its official release, or the unsanctioned release of confidential information.-Types of news leaks:...
ed by a Government source. This followed damaging comments by Professor Tim Flannery
Tim Flannery
Timothy Fridtjof Flannery is an Australian mammalogist, palaeontologist, environmentalist and global warming activist....
, a strong supporter of Labor's scheme, that he felt "betrayed" by the Prime Minister's decision.
The Government articulated its stance on energy management in general in October 2009. Writing in The Australian Financial Review
The Australian Financial Review
The Australian Financial Review is a leading business and finance newspaper in Australia.Fairfax Media publishes it in a compact format six days a week, Monday to Saturday....
, the resources minister, Martin Ferguson
Martin Ferguson
Martin John Ferguson AM , Australian politician, has been an Australian Labor Party member of the Australian House of Representatives since March 1996, representing the Division of Batman, Victoria. He was born in Sydney, the son of Jack Ferguson, who was Deputy Premier of New South Wales from 1976...
, acknowledged that withholding resources such as coal (either black or brown) is unlikely to do much to assist in reducing emissions or alter demand. Instead the government hopes to become a world-leading investor in carbon capture and storage
Carbon capture and storage
Carbon capture and storage , alternatively referred to as carbon capture and sequestration, is a technology to prevent large quantities of from being released into the atmosphere from the use of fossil fuel in power generation and other industries. It is often regarded as a means of mitigating...
technologies, and is expanding Australia's natural gas production, while continuing to support a raft of new coal mining projects worth about $11 billion. The government also has plans to build up the entire renewable energy industry.
Foreign relations
The Rudd Government attempted to increase Australia's influence internationally. Prime Minister Rudd announced in March 2008 that Australia would seek a non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security CouncilUnited Nations Security Council
The United Nations Security Council is one of the principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security. Its powers, outlined in the United Nations Charter, include the establishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of...
for 2013-14. Australia last held a seat on the body in 1985-86. A year and a half on from the announcement, the Age
The Age
The Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
newspaper reported that $11 million had been spent campaigning for the seat and had added twenty-seven votes for Australia; the majority of the votes came from small island nations in the south Pacific and six African nations.
Asylum seekers
On 8 February 2008, the Rudd government ended the previous government's offshore processing policy called the Pacific SolutionPacific Solution
The Pacific Solution was the name given to the Australian government policy of transporting asylum seekers to detention camps on small island nations in the Pacific Ocean, rather than allowing them to land on the Australian mainland...
.
In May 2008, the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre said the Department of Immigration and Citizenship was rejecting asylum seeker applications at a higher rate than under the previous government, saying 41 of 42 applications had been rejected. The minister responsible, Chris Evans
Chris Evans (Australian politician)
Christopher Vaughan Evans is an Australian politician and a member of the Australian Senate for the state of Western Australia, representing the Australian Labor Party.-Early life:...
, claims a denial rate of 77 percent, based on his acknowledgment that of a caseload of 730 appeals, he has intervened in 170.
In July 2008, the Government announced changes to mandatory detention
Mandatory detention in Australia
Mandatory detention in Australia concerns the Australian federal government's policy and system of mandatory immigration detention active from 1992 to date, pursuant to which all persons entering the country without a valid visa are compulsorily detained and sometimes subject to deportation.In the...
policies, ceasing the detention of children and making legal advice available to unauthorised arrivals. In April 2009, responding to an increase in illegal entry vessels and a fatal explosion due to sabotage on one of these vessels
Siev 36
SIEV-36 was a boat from Indonesia carrying 47 apparently Afghan asylum seekers and two Indonesian crew members. The vessel exploded and sank near Ashmore Reef, Australia in the early morning of 16 April 2009, shortly after being intercepted by an Australian patrol boat...
, the government announced a new strategy of offering financial support to Indonesia to assist in their efforts to reduce people smuggling to Australia.
Unauthorised boat arrivals in Australia increased from 161 people in 2008 to nearly 3000 people in 2009. In response, Rudd had a conversation with the President of Indonesia
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono AC , is an Indonesian politician and retired Army general officer who has been President of Indonesia since 2004....
on 20 October to intercept vessels bound for Australia. The government had made provisions to house refugees in spare demountable housing on Christmas Island
Christmas Island
The Territory of Christmas Island is a territory of Australia in the Indian Ocean. It is located northwest of the Western Australian city of Perth, south of the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, and ENE of the Cocos Islands....
, as the detention centre there was becoming crowded. In 2010, as the Christmas Island facility reached its official capacity, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees noted in its annual report that despite global refugee numbers remaining steady, there was a 29% increase in asylum claims for 2009. This supported claims that the government's policy changes had led to the increase.
In October 2009, the MV Oceanic Viking
MV Oceanic Viking
The MV Oceanic Viking is an armed patrol vessel of the Australian Customs Service. Originally built in 1996 as the offshore supply vessel Viking Lady for Norwegian shipping company Eidesvik Shipping AS, the ship was converted into a cable layer in 2000 and renamed Oceanic Viking...
was involved in an emergency operation rescuing 78 Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
n asylum seekers in international waters within the Indonesian sea rescue zone. Those rescued were due to be landed in Indonesia, for transfer to an Australia-funded immigration detention centre on the Indonesian island of Bintan. However, the asylum seekers refused to disembark until 18 November, following assurances of fast-tracked processing of their cases for resettlement. In the Australian Parliament, Rudd described this assurance as "non-extraordinary". According to Geoff Kitney, a Fairfax
Fairfax Media
Fairfax Media Limited is one of Australia's largest diversified media companies. The group's operations include newspapers, magazines, radios and digital media operating in Australia and New Zealand. Fairfax Media was founded by the Fairfax family as John Fairfax and Sons, later to become John...
journalist who has covered immigration since the 1980s, his explanation of the terms of the agreement left the impression that, at the very least, he knew it would be difficult to show that the deal was not a cave-in. The Sri Lankan government said the deal would encourage more people to risk the ocean journey to Australia. A representative of the United Nations Commission for Refugees told The Australian newspaper that the deal was bad practice and would encourage similar behaviour.
By May 2010 a boatload of refugees were arriving daily causing overcrowding on Christmas Island,
West Australian Premier Colin Barnett
Colin Barnett
Colin James Barnett , Australian politician, is the leader of the Western Australian Liberal Party, the 29th and current Premier of Western Australia since the 2008 election and served as the Treasurer of Western Australia in 2010. He was sworn into office by Governor Ken Michael on 23 September 2008...
has been told by Immigration Minister Chris Evans
Chris Evans (Australian politician)
Christopher Vaughan Evans is an Australian politician and a member of the Australian Senate for the state of Western Australia, representing the Australian Labor Party.-Early life:...
that up to 90 asylum seekers will move to an unused mining camp near Leonora
Leonora
-People:*Leonora , a feminine given name*Leonora of Castile *Leonora of England*John Leonora, research scientist, Loma Linda University-Arts and entertainment:...
, which is more than 800 kilometres north-east of Perth, within days.
Resettlement programs
Despite an election promise to process 90 per cent of claims for protection visas within 90 days, Immigration Department figures in October 2009 showed no improvement in the speed of processing claims since the change of government. As a proportion of the immigration intake, Australia accepted fewer refugees in 2009 than it did at any time under the Howard government.The government has been accepting more refugees from regional conflicts as the number of Africans fleeing to Australia has declined. There has been a notable spike in Chin Burmese
Chin people
The Chin , known as the Kuki in Assam, are one of the ethnic groups in Burma. The Chins are found mainly in western part of Burma and numbered circa 1.5 million. They also live in nearby Indian states of Nagaland, Mizoram and Manipur and Assam. Owing to Mizo influence and Baptist missionaries'...
and Rohingya Burmese
Rohingya people
The Rohingya is a predominantly Muslim ethnic group of disputed origin who live in Arakan State, western Burma. The Rohingya population is mostly concentrated to the cities of Maungdaw, Buthidaung, Akyab, Rathedaung and Kyauktaw.-Etymology:...
refugees being accepted from camps in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
and Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
respectively. Almost 1400 Burmese refugees were accepted in the first six months of 2009. They were quietly resettled in northern Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, in spite of a nationalist backlash against refugees that was developing in Queensland.
Industrial relations
WorkChoicesWorkChoices
The Workplace Relations Act 1996, as amended by the Workplace Relations Amendment Act 2005, popularly known as Work Choices, was a Legislative Act of the Australian Parliament that came into effect in March 2006 which involved many controversial amendments to the Workplace Relations Act 1996, the...
, the industrial relations regime introduced by the Howard government, was overhauled.
Rudd's 2007 policy included the phasing out of Australian Workplace Agreement
Australian Workplace Agreement
Australian workplace agreements were formalized individual agreements negotiated by the boss and employee. Employers could offer "take it or leave it" AWAs as a condition of employment. They were registered by the employment advocate and did not require a dispute resolution procedure. These...
s over a period of up to five years, the establishment of a simpler awards system as a safety net, the restoration of unfair dismissal laws for companies with under 100 employees (probation period of 12 months for companies with less than 15 employees), and the retention of the Australian Building and Construction Commission until 2010. It retains the illegality of secondary boycotts, the right of employers to lock workers out, restriction of union right of entry to workplaces, and restrictions on workers' right to strike. Rudd also outlined the establishment of a single industrial relations bureaucracy called Fair Work Australia, which will play a far more interventionist role than the Howard Government's Fair Pay Commission.
Some unions claimed it to be "WorkChoices Lite", although the most fundamental elements were reversed. Employer groups for the hospitality industry expressed concern over the legislation, suggesting more rigid and expensive wage and other outcomes with employees would be particularly difficult for many businesses to afford during an economic downturn.
Communications
National Broadband Network
The National Broadband Network is a national wholesale-only, open-access data network under development in Australia. Up to one gigabit per second connections are sold to retail service providers , who then sell Internet access and other services to consumers...
(NBN) was a key ALP promise ahead of the 2007 election. The government advertised for requests for proposal to build the network on 11 April 2008 and the tendering period finished on 26 November after being extended from 25 July. The expert panel selected to assess the tenders found that none of them met the Government's requirements. As a result, the Government announced on 7 April 2009 that it was establishing a joint public-private company to build the NBN. Construction of the first stage of the network was planned to begin in July with the project being estimated to take 13 years to complete and cost $A43 Billion.
Indigenous affairs
One year after the apology, Michael Mansell
Michael Mansell
Michael Mansell is an Aboriginal lawyer and activist, who has dedicated his life to social, political and legal reform to improve the lives and social standing of Tasmanian Aborigines....
, Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
and stolen generations victim Marjorie Woodrow called for the government to provide reparations as recommended in the Bringing them home report. In the first of the government's so-called 'indigenous report cards', delivered each year to parliament, Rudd said that new eye and ear health funding had been secured; noted that 80 houses for indigenous Australians had been built; said that the government had continued the NT Intervention; and gave his personal support to an initiative led by mining magnate Andrew Forrest
Andrew Forrest
Andrew Forrest also known by his nickname "Twiggy", is a Western Australian mining entrepreneur, former chief executive officer, non-executive chairman, and the major shareholder of Fortescue Metals Group...
to provide 50,000 indigenous jobs.
In May 2009, the Rudd government handed over financial responsibility for 500 outstations – small communities in the Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
– to the state government. Under a policy called A Working Future, the state set out $160 million to develop 20 "Territory growth towns" into hubs for surrounding communities. The towns would become economic and service centres, delivering all education and health services for the region and forcing people to move to be treated for diabetes, kidney and heart problems. Acting upon the advice of Patrick Dodson
Patrick Dodson
Patrick Dodson is a Yawuru man from Broome, Western Australia, he is a former Chairman of the "Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation", a former Commissioner into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody and former Roman Catholic priest. He was the winner of the 2008 Sydney Peace Prize...
, the state agreed to maintain the $32 million of federal funding already in place for outstations. However, no new settlements would be approved, spelling an end for the Return to Country movement.
After two and a half years, the government's $672 million Strategic Indigenous Housing and Infrastructure Program (SIHIP) has built only 11 of a planned 750 houses, and further funds will be required for the project to retain its 2013 target completion date.
LGBT rights
In April 2008 the government proposed greater recognition of LGBT rights in Australia by announcing reforms to the recognition of same-sex relationships in taxation, health, employment, superannuation, aged care and other areas. However, these changes would not affect marriage, IVF access, and adoption rights. Originally, 58 Commonwealth laws where gay couples faced discrimination were identified in HREOCHuman Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission
The Australian Human Rights Commission is a national human rights institution, a statutory body funded by, but operating independently of, the Australian Government. It has the responsibility for investigating alleged infringements under Australia’s anti-discrimination legislation...
's year-long inquiry, "Same-Sex: Same Entitlements Inquiry", which was tabled in Parliament in June 2007. An audit conducted by the government in early 2008 found around 100 Commonwealth laws where gay couples faced discrimination. The last of the legislation to remove the discrimination that was identified in the reviews passed the Senate in November 2008.
Australia 2020 Summit
In February 2008 Rudd announced the Australia 2020 SummitAustralia 2020 Summit
The Australia 2020 Summit was a convention, referred to in Australian media as a summit, which was held on 19-20 April 2008 in Canberra, Australia, aiming to "help shape a long term strategy for the nation's future"...
, held from 19–20 April 2008, which brought together 1000 leading Australians to discuss ten major areas of policy innovation. The summit voted in favour of a plebiscite on Australia relinquishing "ties" to the United Kingdom followed by a referendum on the model for an Australian republic, a bill of rights
Bill of rights
A bill of rights is a list of the most important rights of the citizens of a country. The purpose of these bills is to protect those rights against infringement. The term "bill of rights" originates from England, where it referred to the Bill of Rights 1689. Bills of rights may be entrenched or...
and the re-formation of an Indigenous peak representative body similar to ATSIC, which was abolished by the Howard Government in 2005.
In April 2009, Rudd announced that of the 962 recommendations of the summit, the following nine would be adopted:
- a civilian regional disaster response organisation
- an indigenous cultural centre
- a national workplace mentoring program
- bionic eye research
- Asian scholarship program
- children's television channel
- business and school's roundtable
- carbon emission skills program
- tertiary education broadband network
See also: Australia 2020 summit final report, Government response to the Australia 2020 Summit
Conclusion
On 23 June 2010, Kevin RuddKevin Rudd
Kevin Michael Rudd is an Australian politician who was the 26th Prime Minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010. He has been Minister for Foreign Affairs since 2010...
called a press conference announcing that a leadership ballot of the Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
would occur on the morning of 24 June 2010, with the candidates being himself and Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard
Julia Gillard
Julia Eileen Gillard is the 27th and current Prime Minister of Australia, in office since June 2010.Gillard was born in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales and migrated with her family to Adelaide, Australia in 1966, attending Mitcham Demonstration School and Unley High School. In 1982 Gillard moved...
. This followed weeks of speculation that senior members of the ALP were beginning to lose confidence in Rudd and would back Gillard in replacing him if necessary. On 24 June 2010, Rudd withdrew his candidacy and resigned as party leader, leaving Gillard to take the leadership unopposed. Gillard was then sworn in as Australia's first female Prime Minister on the same day, with Treasurer Wayne Swan
Wayne Swan
Wayne Maxwell Swan is the Deputy Prime Minister of Australia and an Australian politician. He has been an Australian Labor Party member of the Australian House of Representatives from 1993 to 1996, and then re elected in 1998 till today , representing the Division of Lilley, QLD...
being appointed Deputy Prime Minister.
In her first press conference as Prime Minister, Gillard said a good government had "lost its way" and she had a responsibility to step up and make sure it got "back on track". In the aftermath of the leadership challenge, Bill Shorten
Bill Shorten
William Richard "Bill" Shorten is an Australian politician, the Member for Maribyrnong in the Australian Parliament, Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Superannuation and Financial Services. He was the Parliamentary Secretary for Disability and Children's Services in the Rudd/Gillard Government...
, former trade union leader, and key Parliamentary member of the ALP Right Faction, nominated the government's handling of the insulation program
Energy Efficient Homes Package
The Energy Efficient Homes Package was an Australian government program implemented by the Rudd Government and was administered by the Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts...
; the sudden announcement of change of policy on the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme
Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme
The Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme was a proposed cap-and-trade system of emissions trading for anthropogenic greenhouse gases, due to be introduced in Australia in 2010 by the Rudd government, as part of its climate change policy. It marked a major change in the energy policy of Australia...
; and the way in which they had "introduced the debate" about the Resource Super Profits Tax
Resource Super Profits Tax
The Minerals Resource Rent Tax is a proposed tax on profits generated from the exploitation of non-renewable resources in Australia. It is the replacement for the proposed Resource Super Profit Tax ....
as the key considerations which had led to a shift in support from Kevin Rudd to Julia Gillard as leader of the party.