THE House of Representatives Standing Committee on Economics will hear from super funds and fund managers about common ownership and capital concentration at a public hearing on Monday, September 20, 2021.

Committee chair Tim Wilson MP said, "Super funds control vast assets within Australian listed equities and unlisted assets, often across competing entities. The committee wants to discover whether such concentration of capital and common ownership structures causes negative outcomes for smaller retail shareholders and consumers more generally.

"At our previous hearing, the committee was able to hear from the world’s foremost experts on the theoretical underpinnings of this issue. This hearing gives the committee a chance to question the super funds on the real-world impacts of how the sector’s control of $760 billion in Australian citizens’ retirement savings impacts competition within the Australian market.

"Regulators have raised questions about the consequences of common ownership, and academics have raised concerns about the role of hedge funds, index funds, proxy advisers and super funds in supressing competition and the risks of inaction," Mr Wilson said.

The full Terms of Reference for the inquiry into common ownership and capital concentration are available on the committee’s website.

Public hearing details

Date: Monday, 20 September 2021
Time: 9am to 2pm

A program for the hearing is available on the committee’s website.

Due to health and safety concerns relating to the COVID-19 pandemic, this hearing is not currently scheduled to be open for public attendance. Interested members of the public will be able to view proceedings via the live webcast at aph.gov.au/live.

ends

MORE THAN 500 farmers, landholders and Indigenous representatives will gather virtually for day two of the Carbon Market Institute’s 5th annual Carbon Farming Industry Forum today (Friday).

They will discuss how to maximise employment, environment and Indigenous benefits as well as how to maximise impact for farmers and agricultural exporters.

Speakers include Tony Mahar, CEO National Farmers’ Federation, Gillian Mayne, director Land Restoration Fund, Jason Strong, managing director Meat and Livestock Australia, Elizabeth O’Leary, head of agriculture for Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets, and Charlie Prell, chair of Farmers for Climate Action.

John Connor, CEO of the Carbon Market Institute said, “By working with landholders, farmers and Indigenous communities we can get a broad range of benefits into regional communities, including environmental and social impacts. Farmers will be able to access international markets and carbon money for their hard work.

“Together, we can boost supply and engagement in a way that ensures the product is fair dinkum for everyone - investors, consumers and the landholders themselves.

"Carbon farmers are involved in trying to stop emissions of heat-trapping gases into the atmosphere, as well as drawing them down into vegetation and soils. It's something we’re going to need a lot more of to get to net zero emissions. 

“It’s a win for farmers because it’s a stream of carbon revenue that can build resilience to some of the climate shocks, and it’s a win for those farms and the environment because you build up the health of the ecosystem more generally.”

Nadia Campbell is a cattle farmer who has one of Queensland’s biggest carbon farming projects on her property Goondicum, near Monto.

She is taking part in the forum in Friday afternoon’s session, in conversation with other carbon farmers.

Ahead of the forum Ms Campbell said, “Since going into carbon we’re seeing an improved environment in which we’re producing better quality beef and have less wear and tear - less erosion - on our property.

"It’s also given us a diverse income stream. In times of drought when you're running lower numbers of stock it is certainly comforting knowing you’ve got another form of income coming in through carbon. It’s also allowed us to invest and put in improved water infrastructure and fencing on the property.

"I really can’t fault it. It’s dovetailed perfectly into our business, it’s enhancing our ecological health, it’s enabling us to help the environment. It’s improving the quality of land for our cattle as well.

"We provide protein to the world and are paid for that but now we can also be paid for the carbon we sequester. My message for other farmers and especially graziers is to make hay while the sun shines."

A Farmers for Climate Action report released this week has found farmers can earn $34.4 billion to $43 billion by 2040 from carbon related projects. 

Friday’s forum comes at a critical time for the industry as Australia celebrates key carbon market milestones this year: the 1000th registered emission reduction project; 100 million Australian Carbon Credit Units issued by the Clean Energy Regulator; and the 10th anniversary of the Carbon Farming Initiative Act.

The Carbon Market Institute is the independent industry association for business leading the transition to net zero emissions. Its over 100 members include primary producers, carbon project developers, Indigenous corporations, legal and advisory services, insurers, banks and emission intensive industries developing decarbonisation and offset strategies.

ends

ON MONDAY the House Standing Committee on Social Policy and Legal Affairs will hold its first public hearing for its inquiry into constitutional reform and referendums.

The Committee will hear from a range of witnesses, including academics, research institutes and the Attorney-General’s Department.

The inquiry is considering ways to improve public awareness about the Australian Constitution, community consultation when amendments are proposed and current arrangements for the conduct of referendums. The Committee is inquiring into the conduct of referendums, rather than specific proposals for constitutional change.

Chair of the Committee, Andrew Wallace MP said, "The last referendum to change the Australian Constitution was held in 1999. This fresh look at the process of constitutional reform in Australia will ensure that the conduct of referendums remain suitable for contemporary Australia.

‘The Committee looks forward to discussion with expert witnesses to hear their ideas on how the conduct of referendums could be modernised."

Further information about the inquiry, including the terms of reference, is available on the inquiry webpage at www.aph.gov.au/constitutionalreform.

Public hearing details

Date: Monday, 20 September 2021
Time: 9am to 12.45pm (Canberra time)

A full program for the Committee’s hearing is available on the Committee’s website here.

Due to Covid-19 restrictions, Committee proceedings held in Parliament House are not currently open to the public. The hearing will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live.

ENDS

TODAY'S unemployment figures mask the true impact of COVID lockdowns on jobs, and an urgent boost to income support is needed to help people survive the downturn while the economy recovers, the Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) warned.

While the headline national unemployment figure fell to 4.5 percent, total employment fell by 146,300 jobs, vastly more than had been predicted. This means that some people have simply given up looking for work because of the economic conditions, ACOSS said in a statement.

This true impact of COVID  is reflected in the data for NSW and Victoria. Both states have weathered the lion’s share of lockdowns and are where underemployment and withdrawal from the labour market indicate how difficult it is going to be to get everyone back into jobs after the lockdowns.

The rate of underemployment is evident in the hours worked data for both NSW and Victoria where – since the lockdowns first hit back in July – a total of 102 million hours of paid work have been lost since May.

In NSW the underemployment rate increased to 10.2 percent and 9.3 percent in Victoria. But ACOSS CEO, Cassandra Goldie said the underutilisation rate told the whole story because it showed how many people "want more work than they have". In NSW this increased to 15.1 percent and 13.2 percent in Victoria, with Queensland coming in 13.9 percent.

Dr Goldie said more action was needed to prevent long term unemployment and underemployment.

“The increased rate of underemployment should be a flashing siren for decision makers in government,” Dr Goldie said. “It reflects the fact that many businesses are in hibernation and propped up by disaster payments. 

“We need to be clear-eyed about this and begin confronting the likelihood of growing long term unemployment. We desperately need more robust income support.

“There are at least 755,000 people still in lockdown on income support who have missed out on disaster payments. For this group it has been much harder to survive a brutal recession without fear of losing their homes and compromising their health and welfare.

"As our own report Locked out in Lockdown has shown this has caused enormous psychological distress. The government could have avoided so much trauma if it had just extended the disaster payment to everyone who is looking for paid work.

“Australia needs to redesign its employment services and income support to help people overcome by investing in more strategies to create jobs for those who will be left behind as the labour market begins to recover. We need  to increase income support payments so that people looking for paid work can meet their basic costs, look after their health and improve their training and education.

‘’Under-investment in employment assistance such as quality vocational training and wage subsidies, is one of the main reasons that over 800,000 people have been languishing on unemployment payments for a year or more.

‘’Just yesterday, the OECD warned that Australia does not invest enough in training for people who are unemployed. Australian government spending on employment assistance is less than half the average OECD level, as a proportion of GDP. We can and must do better.”

ends