Trump tariffs upend Australian election campaign

US president Donald Trump has upended the Australian election campaign announcing 10 percent tariff on all Australian goods entering the US. The decision follows a 25 per cent tariff on steel and aluminium in March. The effect of higher tariffs on China and India and most of Asia are expected to trigger a wider global economic slowdown. The tariff move was flagged for weeks in advance, but Prime Minister Anthony Albanese immediately denounced it as “unwarranted’’ and not the act of a friend. He announced a series of measures to cushion the blow. This included emergency funding support of $50 million for affected industries, a strengthening of anti-dumping rules to safeguard products like steel, a new “economic resilience program” offering $1 billion in zero-interest loans to help develop new export opportunities and a new focus on ensuring the government prioritises Australian businesses in its procurement. Opposition Leader Peter Dutton stepped up his campaign against Prime Minister Albanese accusing him of being missing action in not dealing in-person on tariffs with the US President. Mr Dutton said he was prepared to “pick a fight’’ with President Trump to ensure Australia’s national interests were protected. Opinion polls released earlier in the week showed Labor had recovered to be within striking distance of majority government though there is a long way to go to May 3. There were carveouts but Australian businesses also face the threat of increased supply chain, freight and border duties as part of the fallout from a broader global trade war.

Back to the Future with France on submarines

A one-day AUKUS seminar at the National Press Club this week demonstrated how divided Australia’s national security establishment is over the future of AUKUS and purchasing Virginia class submarines from the US. Former Senior Defence official Dennis Richardson warned that if the public divisions over AUKUS in Australia persisted it could well prove a self-fulfilling prophecy. However, Mr Richardson who conducted a review of the Australian Submarine Agency said he was confident the deal would proceed if Australia remained committed. However former Liberal Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull warned the US President had more in common with Russian President Vladimir Putin than he did with the leaders of America’s traditional allies and there was little chance of the Virginia class deal being honoured given the needs of the US Navy. Retired Rear Admiral Peter Briggs urged government to abandon the AUKUS submarine deal and instead go back to France for the capability. France via Naval Group was to build 12 conventional submarines in Adelaide before the deal was axed in 2021, in favour of the AUKUS plan. Retd Rear Admiral Briggs said the French submarine was smaller, required fewer crew and would preserve Australian sovereignty. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese reaffirmed Australia was sticking with the AUKUS submarine plan.

Chinese spy ship causes stir

A Chinese “spy’’ ship off Australia’s southern coast caused a stir in the election campaign. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the activities of the research ship were being monitored by Defence. However, it was later revealed Australian Border Force was the lead agency monitoring the ship with Opposition Leader Peter Dutton lashing out at the PM suggesting he was not on top of security incidents. Mr Dutton said he feared the spy ship was mapping vital undersea cables. But Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles urged everyone to take a deep breath insisting the vessel was not a warship but a research vessel. He said it had been conducting research in New Zealand waters and actually did a port visit in New Zealand. Australia’s vulnerabilities were exposed in March after a taskforce of Chinese warships conducted live fire exercises in the Tasman Sea. The task group later circumnavigated the country. The warships’ presence raised concerns over Australia’s ability to monitor such vessels given authorities were first tipped off by a Virgin Airlines pilot.

Coalition backs investment watchdog

Shadow Treasurer Angus Taylor announced a new body to fast-track and reduce bottlenecks for major projects if the Coalition wins the election. Investment Australia would be created as a new statutory office to streamline investment across government and be able to hold agencies to account for bureaucratic delays. Investment Australia would be established within 100 days of a Coalition government taking office and involve a chair and deputy chair with strong private and public administration experience. The legislated body would be able to escalate issues to Cabinet. Investment Australia would bring in non-sensitive functions of the FIRB, Takeovers Panel and Major Project Facilitation Agency. The move was welcomed by AIDN CEO Mike Johnson who said the fast-tracking of major projects would benefit the SME sector at a time businesses were facing higher costs in a tough operating environment.

Albanese government backs wage rise for award workers

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has backed an above-inflation wage increase for low paid workers as a cost-of-living measure. The Albanese government made a submission to the Fair Work Commission arguing for an economically sustainable real wage increase for Australia’s award workers including three million or so low paid workers. Labor in the budget said it expects inflation to be around three per cent for the 2026 financial year, while wages are expected to increase 3.25 per cent. But Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry CEO Andrew McKellar said any increase should be no more than 2.5 per cent as any rise above this would be at the expense of small to medium sized businesses. He said to be sustainable any wage increases must be linked to productivity which was flagging in recent years. The Fair Work Commission normally hands down its wage decision in early June with any increase likely to be introduced from as early as July 1.