Albanese ‘weak’ and ‘abandoning Australia’s Jews’
ALBANESE ‘BETRAYED’ ISRAEL: NETANYAHU
Every Australian news publication led with the same story overnight after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took to social media to attack Australia’s PM Anthony Albanese.
The Office of the Prime Minister of Israel posted a statement on X on Tuesday evening credited to Netanyahu, which declared: “History will remember Albanese for what he is: A weak politician who betrayed Israel and abandoned Australia’s Jews.”
The statement comes amid escalating tension between the two nations over visa cancellations and Australia’s recent announcement regarding Palestinian recognition, Guardian Australia recalls.
This week, Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar revoked visas for Australia’s representatives to the Palestinian Authority, which the ABC says is “seen as a retaliatory move for Australia’s decision to recognise a Palestinian state”. The broadcaster says Sa’ar “also cited the Australian government’s decision to cancel visas for Israeli figures wanting to travel to Australia, including far-right politician Simcha Rothman, as being ‘shameful’ and fuelling antisemitism”.
The AAP recalls the Australian government this week denied Rothman entry into the country “for a speaking tour after provocative comments, including branding children in Gaza as enemies”.
Albanese and Netanyahu are believed to have last spoken about a fortnight ago, ahead of the Australian prime minister announcing his government’s plan to recognise a Palestinian state at the United Nations next month.
Responding to Netanyahu’s statement last night, Coalition leader Sussan Ley said: “Regardless of which party is in power, the prime minister of Australia deserves respect. But respect is a two-way street. Anthony Albanese has mismanaged international relationships to the point where he now finds himself at the centre of a troubling diplomatic incident.”
At the time of writing, Albanese had yet to respond to Netanyahu’s statement.
Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong earlier called the decision to cancel the visas of Australia’s representatives to the Palestinian Authority by Israel an “unjustified reaction”, and claimed Netanyahu’s government was “isolating” Israel, the ABC points out.
The AAP quotes Wong as saying: “At a time when dialogue and diplomacy are needed more than ever, the Netanyahu government is isolating Israel and undermining international efforts towards peace and a two-state solution. This is an unjustified reaction following Australia’s decision to recognise Palestine.”
She added Australia would continue to contribute to “international momentum to a two-state solution, a ceasefire in Gaza and release of the hostages”, and would always take decisive action against antisemitism.
The Conversation quotes Alex Ryvchin, co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, as saying: “Allies with extensive economic, scientific and cultural ties should not be engaging in a diplomatic tit-for-tat that erodes the goodwill and cooperation built up over decades.”
He added: “Calm heads need to take control of the situation, otherwise there will be a risk to some $2 billion in bilateral trade, extensive investment in Australian start-ups, vital security cooperation and the Israeli-made medicine and medical technology that we all rely on. There are real-life consequences here and we want to see the countries work through any issues before things get out of hand.”
Sky News reported last night that it had obtained a leaked copy of a letter, dated August 17, from Netanyahu to Albanese, which the broadcaster says involves the Israeli PM accusing his Australian counterpart of pouring “fuel on this antisemitic fire” by calling for the recognition of a Palestinian state.
Netanyahu writes in the letter, Sky News reports, that the decision “rewards Hamas terror, hardens Hamas’ refusal to free the hostages” and “emboldens those who menace Australian Jews and encourages the Jew-hatred now stalking your streets”.
“It is not diplomacy, it is appeasement,” he is reported to have said.
The Australian also cites the report, saying the Israeli PM told Albanese: “Prime minister, antisemitism is a cancer. It spreads when leaders stay silent. It retreats when leaders act. I call upon you to replace weakness with action, appeasement with resolve, and to do so by a clear date: the Jewish New Year, September 23, 2025.”
The ABC reports Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid has responded to Netanyahu’s social media post aimed at Albanese by saying: “The thing that strengthens a leader in the democratic world today most is a confrontation with Netanyahu, the most politically toxic leader in the Western world.”
In Gaza, the BBC reports doubt has been cast on whether Israel will accept a new proposal for a 60-day ceasefire agreed to by Hamas after it demanded the release of all remaining hostages.
ROUNDTABLE 2: THIS TIME IT’S PRODUCTIVE
The theme of the government’s Economic Reform Roundtable yesterday was “resilience”, and today it’s “productivity”… which might be a tad confusing for some trying to work out what on earth is being discussed at the forum this week.
Once again, we’re going to get opening remarks from Treasurer Jim Chalmers before a presentation from Productivity Commission chair Danielle Wood on “productivity and reform”.
Today’s three sessions are titled: “Better regulation and approval”, “Competition and dynamism across the federation”, and “AI and innovation”.
Guardian Australia summed up the first day of proceedings yesterday by saying there were five main takeaways. One of these included union leaders calling for a new levy on business to pay for training for workers who want to upskill, which the site said employers hated, and the Business Council of Australia claimed would be a backward step.
However, there was more of a consensus “to better recognise the skills and qualifications of those who have trained overseas”, the report states, while independent MP Allegra Spender claimed there was “a lot of agreement” on the need to help the country improve skills in using AI.
The Australian Financial Review also picked up on industry and employer groups rejecting the ACTU’s suggestion on funding worker training.
The paper writes: “The ACTU used the session on skills and training to prosecute its case for a national skills levy, which was described as a ‘crock of shit’ by Australian Industry Group chief executive Innes Willox.”
The report explains the union’s proposal would involve a levy of 1.5% of payroll for businesses with an annual turnover above $500,000, unless that amount was already being spent on training by a business.
The Australian writes on Chalmers’ remarks last night, with the treasurer declaring day one had been “really promising and productive”.
He went on to say: “I’m delighted at how specific people’s ideas have been and how constructively participants have worked together. We’re really grateful and appreciative that people have really risen to the occasion. Whether it’s skills matching or simplifying trade, capital attraction or technological change, there’s a lot of consensus building in the room already.”
The ABC this morning reckons housing will be the dominant theme of proceedings today, saying Wood’s presentation is “expected to explain to attendees that environmental approvals are one of the biggest handbrakes on housing”.
ON A LIGHTER NOTE…
Quentin Tarantino has revealed which of his films he thinks is the best.
Ranking the director’s movies has long been the subject of intense debate among film fans, and speaking to The Church of Tarantino podcast, the 62-year-old provided his verdict on his work.
Declaring his World War II film Inglourious Basterds to be his best film, Tarantino also admitted it was not his favourite, The Guardian reports.
“But I think Kill Bill is the ultimate Quentin movie, like nobody else could’ve made it,” he added. “Every aspect about it is so particularly ripped, like with tentacles and bloody tissue, from my imagination and my id and my loves and my passion and my obsession.
“So I think Kill Bill is the movie I was born to make, I think Inglourious Basterds is my masterpiece, but Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood is my favourite.”
Tarantino has long said he will retire after directing his 10th film and is currently working on a West End play before turning his attention to his last movie, the newspaper says.
His final film will not be the sequel to Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood, which David Fincher is instead directing with Brad Pitt in The Adventures of Cliff Booth for Netflix.
Say What?
I hope that President Putin will be good, and if he is not, it is going to be a rough situation and I hope President Zelenskyy is going to show flexibility as well.
Donald Trump
The US president spoke to Fox News on Tuesday about the latest on the attempts to end the war in Ukraine and continued to speak of the Russian president as if he were a mate and not the aggressor who launched an invasion that has killed hundreds of thousands of people.
CRIKEY RECAP
Justice Lee looks ‘through a glass darkly’ at Qantas claims of culture change
The figure took the total redress for the life-shattering cuts to $210 million. Compensation of $120 million was ordered by Federal Court Justice Michael Lee last year. That’s on top of the $100 million that Qantas was fined after being caught by the competition regulator for the selling of so-called ghost flights: available to book online but already cancelled by the airline.
As he pondered the airline’s behaviour and whether there was any true “contrition” in its growing number of apologies for its behaviour, Lee was scathing, dismissing Qantas’s pangs of conscience as “the wrong kind of sorry.” He criticised the airline for offering belated — at times insincere — contrition that seemed motivated more by reputational damage than genuine regret.
For Australia’s biggest oligopolists and monopolists, the “Canberra fix” isn’t about a reflexive demand for regulation in response to every crisis and scandal that comes along. It’s about relentlessly working government systems to protect the dominant position they enjoy, and to extract regulatory and financial favours from decision-makers, deploying lobbyists, donations, offers of post-public life positions, modelling and campaigns. That’s where their innovation and productivity enhancement efforts are directed. And those efforts are cheered on by another oligopolistic industry, the media, dominated by foreign-owned News Corp, Nine and Western Australia’s media monopoly controlled by Kerry Stokes, all of whom are themselves expert rentseekers adept at getting what they want in Canberra — and thwarting what they don’t.
So it’s no wonder we end up with a three-day circle jerk in which big business queues up to demand their fix of productivity from the government. The parts of the brains of Australian management dedicated to actual innovation and smarter working have atrophied through non-use. Only the bits that know how to manipulate government still work. That’s all you need when you have market power.
One Nation loses a senator, Rinehart inspires kids (to go down the mines), and Albo <3s Country Road
New One Nation Senator Warwick Stacey has resigned from his position for “personal health reasons” less than a month after he was sworn in, according to a media release sent out by party leader Pauline Hanson this morning.
Stacey is a former soldier, military contractor and “specialist crisis and risk management consultant” who was elected in the last spot in NSW at this year’s federal election.
His time in the British Army included a stint working in Belfast during the Troubles, where he warned a fellow soldier against giving CPR to a dying man because he didn’t think any injuries that occurred during the attempt “would be a good look at any subsequent inquest”.
Hanson says that One Nation will announce its pick for the casual vacancy in the coming weeks, with the party’s other NSW Senate candidate Rebecca Thompson presumably high on the list.
READ ALL ABOUT IT
Plibersek axes Morrison-era deal to ringfence pensioner savings (The Sydney Morning Herald) ($)
Seven in 10 new people joining NDIS for autism (The Age) ($)
Bruce Lehrmann’s defamation case against Network 10 and Lisa Wilkinson is back in court. Here’s what to know (Guardian Australia)
French right try to unpick Macron’s loan of Bayeux Tapestry to UK (The Times) ($)
Entire church begins two-day journey across Swedish city (BBC)
THE COMMENTARIAT
It turns out cynicism is at the economic roundtable — Geoff Chambers (The Australian): In a vacuum of nothingness, the first day of Jim Chalmers’ economic reform roundtable descended into a predictable public spat between business and unions.
The three days of roundtable meetings, which most Australians don’t even know are happening, got off to a whimper despite the treasurer declaring a “really promising and productive” start.
In the absence of substantive outcomes or revolutionary ideas, the fight between industry chiefs and union bosses became a flashpoint. But those in the room confirm everyone was playing nicely when they were sat inside Anthony Albanese’s cabinet room.
By increasing the GST to 15%, we could make the tax system fairer for younger Australians — Kate Chaney (Guardian Australia): This is the test. The Labor government has a 19-seat majority. If a comfortable margin is truly a prerequisite for reform, now is the time to act.
If we see no action now and the major parties decide an electoral mandate is required, they are now on notice. The voters are on to you. You have three years to build community support for a bold and viable plan to fix our tax system.
Any party that wants to be taken seriously as a contender for government in 2028 must come to the election with a tax plan that is fair, future-focused and fit for the demographic changes ahead. The small-target game is over. Australians are ready for courageous action to secure a prosperous future for our children.
