SUDDEN DEATHS SKYROCKET IN AUSTRALIA

[Wunder-Zeichen]

What is Labor's $10bn social housing fund and will it be torn down by parliament?

Anthony Albanese has listed the housing Australia future fund bill as one of four key pieces of legislation Labor wants passed this sitting fortnight. But what is the future fund, how much will it invest in housing and why are other parties sceptical of its benefits? In his budget reply in May 2021, Anthony Albanese promised a $10bn housing fund to build 30,000 affordable homes. The Coalition objects to the bill, labelling it an “accounting trick” to borrow $10bn and spend the proceeds to maintain the program is budget neutral. They have also argued Labor’s off-budget funds are inflationary. The Greens, particularly housing spokesperson Max Chandler-Mather, have warned the fund is not $10bn spent on housing but rather “a $10bn gamble on the stock market where the volatile returns are invested in housing”.

Aussie bank funding costs tipped to rise on global turmoil

Investors and analysts predict Australian banks could face higher funding costs as a result of the turmoil in global banking, as credit markets grow jittery and lenders compete more fiercely for deposits. Amid a tumultuous period in global banking, including the emergency takeover of Credit Suisse by UBS on Monday, local experts say the most direct impact for Australian lenders could be more expensive funding. This trend could dampen profit margins, some said, while others predicted smaller lenders would be hit hardest because they may need to pay more to attract deposits.

[Wunder-Zeichen]

I know sh*t is gonna go from bad to worse. Yes, from bad to worse . . .

Dominic "Demography is Destiny" Perrottet urges NSW to 'get behind' Chris Minns as he stands down as state Liberal leader after election loss | Sky News Australia

I'll go back to what I know best - which is making babies.

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[VIK LEWA]

Scott Morrison and his Chamcha Josh Frydenberg

https://imgflip.com/i/7kbqz0, https://imgflip.com/i/7kbrxl

Lies and Falsehoods: The Morrison Government and the New Culture of Deceit

Lies and Falsehoods: The Morrison Government and The New Culture of Deceit by well-known political journalist Bernard Keane combines Crikey's eye-opening dossier of Scott Morrison's documented lies with Keane's insightful take on why deceivers dominate in the new era of politics. This book is the first in The Crikey Read series by Crikey and Hardie Grant Books.

All politicians lie. They twist the truth, exaggerate and spin. But blatant lying has now become a standard part of political discourse. Combine this with an all-out assault on the truth in public debate along with the biggest communications revolution since the printing press, and you have a disaster in real time: a sea of fake news, hyper-partisanship and polarisation.

No society or democracy can function without trust, and the consequences of this profound shift are clear. The first step to a remedy is in understanding both the liars and the environments in which they lie. Lies and Falsehoods does exactly that, in this highly readable and incisive account of how we found ourselves in this fractured post-truth world, and how we might get out.

From Crikey and Hardie Grant Books, The Crikey Read is a series that brings an unflinching and truly independent eye to the issues of the day in Australia and the world.

[VIK LEWA]

New Zealand: Economy slips into recession after interest rate hikes

New Zealand was one of the first countries to start raising rates in the wake of the pandemic and has outpaced the US Federal Reserve. Last month, the RBNZ increased its main interest rate to 5.5%. People in New Zealand, who were already facing rising prices, are now feeling the impact of higher rates as mortgage repayments and the cost of other loans jump. "Interest rates are crippling," David Jordan, an Auckland-based web engineer told the BBC.

These charts show how Australia compares: https://archive.is/VV0Kn

Reserve Bank's recession decimates jobs market

Last week, Statistics New Zealand reported that the economy had entered a ‘technical recession’, with two consecutive quarters negative GDP growth recorded over the December and March quarters.

The result was even worse when accounting for population growth, with New Zealand’s per capita GDP plunging 1.1% in the December quarter and a further 0.7% over the March quarter.

Recession politics the latest NZ Labour blow

In an election campaign expected to be hyper-tight, a hammer blow arrived for the government in the form of a wafer thin margin.

The Kiwi economy's contraction of just 0.1 per cent, confirmed in GDP data last week, put New Zealand in recession.

The fresh figures will have little consequence for the New Zealand economy, given the pandemic-induced economic slump was already known.

However, it is a political game-changer ahead of the October 14 election, giving the opposition National party a mighty stick with which to beat the Labour government.