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Carrie Lam’s banquet for Xi Jinping cancelled due to rampant COVID
By Kari Lindberg and Rebecca Choong Wilkins
Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives in Hong Kong for its 25th anniversary of Chinese rule, in his first trip to the city since overseeing twin crackdowns on political dissent and COVID-19 that risked the territory’s future as an international commercial centre.
Xi will pull into West Kowloon Station on Thursday afternoon with his wife, Peng Liyuan, after taking the high-speed rail link from mainland China, according to the South China Morning Post. China hasn’t released Xi’s itinerary, but he is expected to stay overnight in the neighbouring tech hub of Shenzhen, as Hong Kong experiences its worst COVID surge since April - some 2000 cases were recorded on Wednesday.
Students march with a Chinese national flag during a flag-raising ceremony to mark the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to Chinese rule at Scientia Secondary School in Hong Kong on Thursday.Credit:Bloomberg
A closed-door banquet hosted by outgoing leader Carrie Lam that Xi was expected to attend on Thursday evening was cancelled due to virus concerns, the Sing Tao newspaper reported. The Chinese leader will return to the former British colony on July 1 to swear-in her successor as Hong Kong chief executive, John Lee, a former police official and security minister.
The trip marks Xi’s first outside mainland China in almost 900 days, after his COVID-zero policy restricted his travel to domestic engagements, and led Hong Kong to close its own borders. It’s the first time during the pandemic that Xi has set foot in a city openly operating with thousands of COVID cases – evidence of Xi’s determination to signal China’s firm of control of the once freewheeling territory.
Read more here.
Skills mismatch drives job vacancies to nearly half a million
By Rachel Clun
Australia’s skills crisis is worsening, with a clear mismatch between available work and people’s expertise, experts warn, as data shows, there are nearly half a million vacant jobs across the country amid worker shortages.
There were a record 480,100 job vacancies in May, according to seasonally adjusted data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics – more than double the number at the start of the coronavirus pandemic and up 14 per cent in the three months to May.
Vacancies are high across all sectors, including healthcare, construction and mining.Credit:Rhett Wyman
The rising vacancy rate comes at the same time as Australia’s unemployment rate continues to fall, with the jobless rate at a 48-year low. The ABS said that meant there was nearly the same number of people looking for work as there were jobs: with 1.1 unemployed people for every job vacancy.
Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive Andrew McKellar said businesses in all sectors and across every state and territory were facing huge worker shortages.
“Australian employers are facing a labour and skills crisis that is only getting worse,” he said.
Read more here.
Beer made with recycled sewage a plus for Singapore
By Sing Yee Ong
Singapore: NEWBrew is no ordinary beer. The new Singapore blond ale is made with recycled sewage.
The alcoholic beverage is a collaboration between the country’s national water agency, PUB, and local craft brewery Brewerkz. First unveiled at a water conference in 2018, NEWBrew went on sale in supermarkets and at Brewerkz outlets in April.
“I seriously couldn’t tell this was made of toilet water,” said Chew Wei Lian, 58, who had purchased the beer from a supermarket to try after hearing about it.
“I don’t mind having it if it was in the fridge. I mean, it tastes just like beer, and I like beer.”
Cans of NEWBrew, a Singapore beer made with recycled sewage.Credit:Brewerkz
NEWBrew uses NEWater, Singapore’s brand of drinking water recycled from sewage, which first flowed from treatment plants in 2003 to improve the island’s water security. PUB says the new beer is part of an effort to educate Singaporeans on the importance of sustainable water use and recycling.
The idea of processing sewage into drinking water, once largely resisted, has been gaining support in the past decade as the world’s supply of fresh water is increasingly stressed. The World Wildlife Fund estimates 2.7 billion people find water scarce for at least one month a year.
Read more here.
Position ‘not tenable’: John Barilaro quits role as US trade commissioner
By Alexandra Smith and Lucy Cormack
Former deputy premier John Barilaro has stepped down from his controversial role as newly appointed US trade commissioner, conceding his appointment was a “distraction” and no longer tenable.
His decision follows almost two weeks of intense scrutiny of the NSW government over its handling of his appointment to the $500,000-a-year job.
Former NSW deputy premier John Barilaro has stepped down from the US appointment.Credit:Dominic Lorrimer
In a statement late Thursday Barilaro said he believed his appointment would continue to be a distraction “and not allow this important role to achieve what it was designed to do”.
“It is clear that my taking up this role is now not tenable with the amount of media attention this appointment has gained,” he said.
“I stress that I have always maintained that I followed the process and look forward to the results of the review.”
Barilaro’s decision comes after fierce criticism from his former colleagues, including Transport Minister David Elliott, who on Thursday said Barilaro should do the “honourable” thing and not take up the position.
Read more here.
The Wrap: ASX ends financial year 10.2 per cent lower after dramatic plunge
By Angus Dalton
Welcome to your five-minute recap of the trading day and how the experts saw it.
The numbers: The Australian sharemarket ended the financial year with a plunge, as a last-minute major drop took the day’s losses to 2 per cent, or 132.1 points to 6568.1.
The benchmark index suffered a 10.2 per cent loss over the 2021-22 financial year.
All sectors closed in the red. Utilities lost 2.9 per cent, energy was down 2.5 per cent and materials fell 2.8 per cent.
Financials were dragged down by falls from the big four banks that ranged between 2.2 and 2.8 per cent.
The ASX plunged 2 per cent following a mixed session on Wall Street.Credit:NYSE
The lifters: Pointsbet 10.7%, The Lottery Corporation 2.3%, City Chic 1.1%
The laggards: Coronado Global -7%, Liontown Resources -5.8%, Emil Payments -5.8%
The lowdown: The ASX 200 was down 1.3 per cent only 15 minutes before close but an eleventh-hour plummet took the index to a 2 per cent loss, the worst result in a fortnight.
The index lost 10.2 per cent this financial year and June trading alone wiped 8.9 per cent off the ASX, the worst month since March 2020.
Read more here.
Commuters warned to avoid public transport altogether tomorrow
By Tom Rabe
The NSW rail union will push ahead with planned industrial action on Friday, with commuters facing major disruptions across Sydney’s public transport network.
About three quarters of the state’s trains will not operate tomorrow as rail union members refuse to staff overseas built stock as part of escalating industrial action.
NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet shifted on the new train fleet to break a union deadlock but it has not worked yet.Credit:Brook Mitchell, Janie Barrett
Commuters are being urged to avoid public transport altogether, with warnings of major delays across the network.
Rail unions and the government are yet to reach a formal enterprise bargaining agreement despite Transport Minister David Elliott yesterday announcing the state would agree to calls for $260 million worth of modifications to a new train fleet.
John Barilaro quits role as US trade commissioner
By Alexandra Smith and Lucy Cormack
Former NSW deputy premier John Barilaro has stepped down from his controversial role as US trade commissioner just weeks after being appointed.
His resignation follows almost two weeks of intense scrutiny of the NSW government’s hiring process for the $500,000-a-year job.
Former NSW deputy premier John Barilaro was appointed to the plum role of US trade commissioner.Credit:Dominic Lorrimer
Criticism came from all corners of the political spectrum, including from his former colleagues, such as Transport Minister David Elliott, who said on Thursday that Barilaro should do the “honourable” thing and not take up the position.
More to come.
‘I’m Penny Wong and I was born here’: Australia’s new soft power in Asia
By Chris Barrett
Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia: When a young Penny Wong would fly to Malaysia and her father Francis picked her up at the airport, they would invariably end up eating fishball congee at a café called Kuo Man.
It was one of the few places in Kota Kinabalu, the unspoiled coastal city in the state of Sabah where she was born, that she found the dish just as delicious as her late grandmother used to make it.
Penny Wong with her brother James, eating fishball congee on Thursday in Kota Kinabalu.Credit:Jeremiah Chan
“This is the first time I’ve been here without my father actually,” said Australia’s foreign minister on Thursday as she returned to her favourite eatery during the final leg of a three-day tour of Malaysia. “It’s a bit sad.”
Wong’s father lives in Melbourne now, but she retains long-standing ties to Sabah, where she spent her first eight years and where her younger brother James, his family and other relatives still live.
Welcoming her as one of their own in her first trip back as Australia’s top diplomat, Sabahans gathered for selfies with her at an arrival reception on Wednesday night and crowded around her in the city’s Chinatown district on Thursday as she was greeted with a traditional dragon dance.
Read more here.
Former judge to lead QLD Star casino inquiry with public hearing powers
By Matt Dennien
Former Appeal Court Justice Robert Gotterson AO has been appointed to lead an external review into the operation of The Star’s two Queensland casinos, as a similar NSW inquiry weighs weeks of evidence into whether the company is fit to hold its Sydney licence.
Terms of reference, released this afternoon, state that the inquiry will have the power to directly question Star employees or other relevant people, take submissions and hold public hearings.
The probe will look at – but not be limited to considering – the casinos’ commitment to anti-money laundering responsibilities, management of VIP patrons, efforts to aid gambling by Chinese nationals despite restrictions on their ability to do so, the exclusion of banned patrons and approach to minimising gambling harm.
“Without limiting the scope, the inquiry is not required to inquire into particular matters that have been sufficiently and appropriately dealt with by the Bell review,” the terms of reference state.
“Evidence presented during [NSW] public hearings raises significant concerns regarding the operations of The Star Sydney and given the shared governance and operational arrangements, the conduct of Star Group entities more broadly.”
The inquiry will be assisted by Jonathan Horton QC and is expected to report back to Attorney-General Shannon Fentiman by September 30 – less than a month after the final NSW report is due.
In submissions to a proactive move to tighten casino regulation in the state, Star recently sought to distance itself from NSW operations.
Queensland police and other law enforcement agencies first launched investigations at least eight months ago after reporting by this masthead. Earlier this month, Fentiman suggested there was still a pathway for Star to anchor the $3.6 billion Queen’s Wharf development due to open in Brisbane’s CBD in mid-2023.
Seven moves to terminate Cricket Australia deal over alleged Big Bash League breaches
By Zoe Samios
Seven West Media has attempted to blow up its $450 million media rights deal with Cricket Australia, arguing in fresh court proceedings that the sporting body breached its contract and undermined the success of the Big Bash League.
In proceedings filed in the Federal Court, Seven claims that Cricket Australia breached its contract relating to quality and standards of the BBL, which has struggled to generate high TV ratings.
“Seven’s intention is to terminate the [media rights agreement], conditional on the Federal Court granting a declaration that Seven is entitled to do so,” a statement on the ASX, approved by the board, said.
Seven West Media wants to terminate its broadcast rights deal with Cricket Australia.Credit:Brett Hemmings
In the statement of claim, obtained by this masthead, Seven alleges that Cricket Australia was required to use all “reasonable endeavours” to make sure BBL matches on Seven were of the highest quality and standard in the world.
Seven alleges that Cricket Australia breached its agreement by scheduling One Day International Matches and International Twenty20 Matches (both of which run on Foxtel), which affected the availability of high-profile players for the BBL and hurt its chances of maximising audiences.
Read more here.
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2022-06-30 08:35:29Z
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