INTERNATIONAL FINANCE FORUM (IFF) started its two-day 2021 Spring Meetings yesterday.

Entitled Global Governance and Development in the Post-Pandemic Era, the meeting aims to provide a platform for in-depth discussions on international cooperation and global governance, while promoting development and collaborations in low-carbon initiatives, sustainable finance, climate change, public health issues, as well as Belt and Road Initiatives (BRI).

Global audiences can attend the virtual meetings.

"We have seen progress with our fight against the pandemic, however, we still face a lost decade for development and grave setbacks to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said during his opening remarks.

"Reversing this trajectory requires a more concerted global and multilateral response on several fronts, which includes urgent actions to close the global vaccine gap, more support for developing countries that are on the brink of a debt crisis, and resilient recovery from the pandemic and climate change crisis," Mr Guterres said.

IMF President Kristalina Georgievain said in her speech, "The global recovery is underway-but the paths and pace are diverging dangerously. We face high uncertainty until this pandemic truly ends.

"Policymakers must take the right actions now by giving everyone a fair shot at the vaccine, recovery, and future."

Ms Georgievain said China has played an important role in the G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative and the Common Framework for orderly debt restructuring. The country has also proved the action by supporting the IMF's concessional lending facilities. China is showing efforts on a scale not seen before to accelerate vaccination, while delivering fair vaccine supply to other countries.

"Public health is a global public good," said Jose Manuel Barroso, IFF Co-chairman and Chair of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization in his speech. "We have to face it also at global level and if possible, with the true sincere spirit of cooperation and solidarity."

Nearly 500 leaders from the worlds of governance, finance, business and academia participate in the meeting.

About International Finance Forum (IFF)

Established in 2003, the International Financial Forum is a non-profit and non-governmental unofficial international forum organization. Headquartered in Beijing, it is a high-level dialogue and academic exchange mechanism co-sponsored by business leaders and scholars in the global financial community and academic circles. www.iff.org.cn

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THE National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA) and the Department of Education, Skills and Employment (DESE) will return to give further evidence to the Indigenous Affairs Committee in a joint hearing this Thursday as part of its inquiry into pathways and participation opportunities for First Nations peoples in employment and business.

Committee chair, Julian Leeser MP, noted that both departments play a key role in supporting Indigenous people into work.

"DESE is responsible for managing employment service provision through Jobactive, while NIAA administers the Community Development Program (CDP) and Vocational Training and Employment Centres (VTEC)," Mr Lesser said.

"The Committee looks forward to discussing these programs, in addition to Indigenous procurement and the tendering processes for Indigenous employment services," Mr Leeser said. ​

Public hearing details

Date: Thursday, 27 May 2021
Time: 11.40am to 12.25pm AEDT

A live audio stream of the hearing will be accessible at https://www.aph.gov.au/Watch_Read_Listen.

A full program will be available at the inquiry website.

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SYDNEY'S pop-up cycleways will be in place for up to two years and two popular cycle routes will become permanent under plans approved by the City of Sydney. 

The city is now drawing up designs for permanent separated cycleways on Pitt Street in the CBD and Henderson Road, Railway Parade and Bridge Street in Erskineville. 

The remaining cycleways on city-controlled roads will stay in place further monitoring, consultation and evaluation takes place. 

Concept designs for a cycleway along the missing link on Liverpool Street outside the Downing Centre and the return of the popular College Street cycleway have also been given the green light. 

Lord Mayor Clover Moore said Sydney’s pop-up cycleways were offering people more transport options, while helping to reduce road congestion and over-crowding on public transport.  

“When Covid hit, we worked with the state government to install pop-up cycleways – a key element of its emergency transport response,” the Lord Mayor said. 

“These cycleways have shown us we can make roads safer for riders, calm traffic and create attractive environments that leave room for people, provide space for outdoor dining and support surrounding businesses. 

“Recent Covid outbreaks underscore how important our investment in wider footpaths and separated cycleways will be in helping to prevent the disease from spreading. 

“Across Greater Sydney there has been a 40 percent increase in people riding since the pop-ups were installed, and many who took to cycling through the pandemic will continue to ride. 

“The growth in people using the Pitt Street cycleway is unprecedented, with a 500 percent increase in the number of people riding there.” 

The cycleways are part of the planned bike network in the City’s cycling strategy and action plan 2018-2030.

Justin Hamley has been a bicycle courier for 10 years and has seen the installation of Sydney’s cycleway network firsthand. He said the Pitt Street cycleway has “transformed” the inner-city for people on bikes. 

“Before the pop-up cycleway it was very difficult for bike riders to navigate the area safely. The Pitt Street path is great and is now a favourite route for commuters, couriers and food delivery riders,” Mr Hamley said. 

“Ten years ago there were no bike paths and only very confident riders were on the roads. The Sydney network still needs work to connect, but there a lot more people of all levels enjoying riding.” 

Jo Lees, construction manager at global property firm Hines, regularly cycles to her Hunter Street office from Rockdale. She said Pitt Street provides a “missing link” in her journey and welcomes it becoming permanent. 

“As cycleways become more prevalent, people are more educated about safety. You still get some phone zombies and people turning never seem to look, but I think people are getting better at sharing the roadways and by and large there’s growing tolerance of people on bikes,” Ms Lees said. 

“I started riding to work when I lived in Marrickville to get fit. Since Covid, I’ve chosen to ride to avoid public transport. It’s 50 minutes door to door, which is not much more than public transport, and I really feel it’s the healthiest transport choice.” 

Extensive monitoring, evaluation and rider surveys show a rise in cycling across all the pop-up cycleways: 

Pitt Street

• This two-way separated cycleway sees 6,000 weekly bike trips on average;
• Before the pop-up cycleway was installed, around 89 percent of people riding a bicycle on Pitt Street were using the footpath;
• The road space changes have significantly enhanced the amenity for people walking and provided more outdoor space for businesses to operate;
• A survey of pop-up cycleway users found the perceived safety of people has also improved, with 97 percent of people surveyed feeling safer riding on the separated cycleway.

Henderson Road, Railway Parade and Bridge Street, Erskineville

• This route was selected to address a missing link between Erskineville-Ashmore and the city;
• Since the first week of opening in July 2020, the number of bike trips has increased more than 30 percent to an average of 2,900 trips a week and the number of women riding has increased;
• A survey of pop-up cycleway users found perceived safety has also improved. Over 90 percent of people surveyed felt safer riding on the separated cycleway.

Dunning Avenue, Rosebery

• The pop-up cycleway on Dunning Avenue connects to Green Square town centre and to George and Bourke streets cycleways, which are key connections into the city centre. It also connects to the south with a shared path on Gardeners Road;
• Plans for a permanent cycleway in a different arrangement are being developed following monitoring and feedback from riders. Consultation on the concept plan is planned for later this year.

Fitzroy Street and Moore Park Road

• The City of Sydney is working with the state and federal governments and Woollahra Council to develop a cycleway on Oxford Street between Hyde Park and Centennial Park. The community will be consulted on concept designs;
• Once the Oxford Street cycleway is completed, the City of Sydney plans to remove the pop-up cycleways on Moore Park Road and Fitzroy Street.

A free Sydney cycling map, including all pop-up and permanent cycleways, can be ordered from the City of Sydney’s website or download as a digital copy. The City of Sydney also offers low-cost bike maintenance and cycling skills courses and free guided ride services to support new riders.

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THE CFMEU has come out this week applauding the Victorian Government’s announcement to grant a stamp duty exemption on inner city residential developments amongst other property sector stimulus measures.

The announcement means no stamp duty will be paid on new residential property worth up to $1 million in the Melbourne local government area, and concessions of up to 100 percent on stamp duty if the property has been unsold for more than 12 months, for contracts entered from May 21, 2021 to June 30, 2022.

Melbourne city’s construction sector has been decimated by the pandemic, with only one new development beginning in construction in the last year. Many other developments with council approval to begin have been put on hold, according to the CFMEU

The vast majority of large scale commercial construction projects occurring in the city had all began pre pandemic, without these economic stimulus measures announced by the budget, there would be no work for the thousands of construction workers to move to once these projects conclude.

The CFMEU feared up to 18,000 jobs could have been lost by 2023.

Victorian state secretary of the CFMEU Construction and General Division, John Setka said while borrowing is cheap and investment in the property market around the world is still strong, this policy provided "an incredible opportunity for home buyers, investors, and the Victorian economy".

"We’re encouraged that the Victorian Government continue to recognise the strength of the construction industry and the important role we all play in driving and generating major employment and economic growth for our state," he said.

“With very few developments beginning since the pandemic, the industry was beginning to lay off workers. Stamp duty exemptions are a much needed economic stimulus measure for the entire Victorian economy.

“City based construction workers play a hugely important role in our state’s economy. The stamp duty exemption will play an important role in guaranteeing the jobs of thousands of construction jobs," Mr Setka said.

“Melbourne City’s construction sector took a major hit during COVID, and it’s still yet to recover. Thursday’s announcement is a lifeline for industry, home buyers and construction workers.”

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ANZ BANK and BHP are among the first 10 ‘trail blazer’ companies to sign up for the investor-led 40:40 Vision initiative and commit to achieving gender balance in the ranks of their senior leadership within the decade.

Launched late last year, 40:40 Vision has already had companies with a market capitalisation worth collectively close to $300 billion, or 13 percent of the index, sign up to lead the way in improving gender diversity among Australia’s corporate leadership.

Other companies making up the first 10 signatories include BlueScope, Domino’s, IGO, Ramsay Health Care, SkyCity, South32, Tabcorp and Webjet.

By signing up to the 40:40 Vision companies pledge to achieve gender balance of 40 per cent identifying as women, 40 percent identifying as men and 20 percent any gender in their executive leadership by 2030. Signatory companies have also committed to publicly set gender targets for 2023 and 2027, disclose plans for meeting these targets and report progress annually.

HESTA CEO and 40:40 Vision steering committee chair, Debby Blakey welcomed the signatories and said it was encouraging to see such strong corporate recognition of the urgent need to improve gender diversity.

“Changing our national culture cannot be achieved without courageous leadership. This must involve more women in leadership as well as men who value the perspective they bring,” Ms Blakey said.

“It’s very encouraging to see some of our nation’s largest companies make a strong commitment to increasing the number of women on boards and in executive positions,” she said.

“By creating more equitable and inclusive workplaces, these companies will reap the rewards, because there’s compelling evidence that better gender balance in leadership is not just fairer, but also good for business – resulting in better performance, better profits and better corporate governance.

“This shows the positive outcomes that can be achieved through constructive engagement between investors and companies. As investors, we share a common goal with companies of improving long-term performance and gender diversity is an important part of that.

“Improving the gender balance in major companies benefits HESTA members’ investments and also improves retirement outcomes for women through the availability of more career opportunities,” Ms Blakey said.

ANZ chief executive officer, Shayne Elliott said, “For ANZ to be a thriving, successful company now and into the future we have to recruit and develop the most talented people, which means staying open-minded about how we do that.

“Not only will we continue to attract great talent to our organisation, but our team will better reflect the community we live in, including more women in leadership roles, and committing to the 40:40 Vision helps reinforce that focus,” he said.

BHP CEO Mike Henry said, “Inclusive, diverse teams are safer, more productive, and make better decisions. They improve performance. Since announcing in 2016 our goal to be gender balanced across BHP by 2025, we have increased the proportion of women working at BHP by nearly two thirds, and are now at over 27 percent overall. BHP has a balanced senior executive team and we support the 40:40 Vision and the goal of achieving gender balanced corporate leadership in Australia.”

Global company Ramsay Health Care was the first ASX listed company to join the initiative.

Ramsay’s group chief people officer, Colleen Harris said, “Ramsay Health Care has a strong record of embracing diversity and promoting women into leadership roles. By supporting the 40:40 Vision initiative, we hope to encourage other ASX200 companies to achieve gender equality.

“Globally, we are a significant employer of women, and we have long been committed to having strong female representation at all levels of the organisation. In Australia, 59 percent of our hospital and facility CEOs are women and 60 percent of our regional executives are women.”

Peter Bradford, Managing Director and CEO of IGO said, “IGO has long advocated the benefits of diversity and inclusion in our business and we believe that better gender balance in leadership is not only the right thing to do but is also good for business. We are proud that IGO is showing strong leadership in this area with female representation on both our board of directors and on our executive leadership team currently at 37.5 percent. By joining the 4040 Vision, we are committing to making our path to progress more transparent.”

Graham Kerr, CEO of South32 said, "South32 is committed to improving gender balance at every level of our organisation. Our goal is to have a workforce that represents the countries and communities where we operate and supporting the 40:40 Vision helps us achieve this. Our work to achieve equality is critical. By improving gender balance, we can access a wider talent pool, improving the outcomes for our business.”

Shelley Beasley, Webjet Limited Global COO and CEO of the B2C division said, "Webjet Limited is incredibly proud to be among the first 10 signatories for the 40:40 Vision Initiative. The work of this forward-thinking group has the full support of the Webjet Limited board and company leadership, and we are delighted to make the public pledge to achieving gender balance and diversity in our executive leadership by 2030.  \

"The value that gender diversity – and diversity in all aspects – brings to a company, its shareholders, its culture and its employees has long been recognised by Webjet, and our signing of the 40:40 Vision Initiative is testament of our commitment to continuing the progression of gender diversity in the workplace. We look forward to helping drive this change within the broader corporate landscape.” 

Michael Ahearne, chief executive of SkyCity said, “We’ve taken the 40:40 Vision pledge and we’re calling on Australasia’s biggest companies to do the same, drive real change and reap the benefits of having fairer, more inclusive workplaces and stronger business performance.”

Don Meij, group CEO and managing director of Domino’s said, “At Domino’s, our purpose is to bring people closer. To break down barriers and connect communities through the world’s best bonding food. We believe that to do this, our business must accurately reflect the communities in which we operate – which means having gender equality at all levels, but particularly in our senior leadership team.

"Late last year, we announced our goal to have 40 percent female, 40 percent male and 20 percent either gender representation at our board, global leadership and country leadership levels by 2030. We’ve thrown further support behind this goal by taking the 40:40 Vision Pledge – and are calling on other Australian companies to do the same.

"Because it’s the differences in who we are, and how we think, that makes our business stronger. And more importantly, because it’s the right thing to do. This is the next step, not the final step, and we look forward to sharing more as we progress on this journey.”

David Attenborough, managing director and CEO of Tabcorp said, “We are committed to being a visible inclusion and diversity leader in our industry and an employer of choice. We know the advantages of being a truly diverse and inclusive organisation and are committed to policies and practices to achieve this.”

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THE House Agriculture and Water Resources Committee will discuss ways to harness the development of new technologies and mariculture methods in order to grow the aquaculture sector in Australia.

The Committee will speak to the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) this Thursday in the first public hearing for its inquiry into the Australian aquaculture sector. Witnesses will appear via videoconference.

Committee chair, Rick Wilson MP, said AIMS is the national authority on tropical marine science and has conducted ground-breaking research into coral reef restoration.

This has the potential to stimulate new opportunities for the aquaculture sector and provide meaningful employment in regional areas.

"Research and innovation are vital to ensuring the ongoing viability of aquaculture enterprises," Mr Wilson said. 

For further information, please visit the inquiry website.

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ON THE FIRST DAY of National Reconciliation Week, May 27 2021,the House Select Committee on Mental Health and Suicide Prevention will hear from Tom Brideson, CEO of Gayaa Dhuwi (Proud Spirit) Australia – the national Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social and emotional wellbeing, mental health and suicide prevention leadership body.

The theme for National Reconciliation Week 2021, More than a word. Reconciliation takes action, is fitting as the Committee turns its focus to identifying impactful measures to support mental health reform, suicide prevention, and improved wellbeing.

Chair, Fiona Martin MP, said, "The Committee looks forward to hearing from Gayaa Dhuwi to develop a better understanding of issues around accessibility to culturally-appropriate mental health services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

"The Committee is particularly interested in how the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health workforce can be strengthened to meet urban, rural and regional demand," Dr Martin said.

On June 3, 2021, the Committee will continue its engagement with national peak bodies, holding a public hearing with Mental Health Australia and Suicide Prevention Australia – two organisations representing and promoting the collective interests of the mental health and suicide prevention sectors.

Public hearing details

Gayaa Dhuwi (Proud Spirit) Australia

Date: Thursday 27 May 2021
Time: 10am to 11:30am AEST

Location: Committee Room 1R5, Parliament House, Canberra

Mental Health Australia and Suicide Prevention Australia

Date: Thursday 3 June 2021
Time: 10am to 12am AEST

Location: Committee Room 1R5, Parliament House, Canberra

The hearings will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live and the public hearing programs will be available on the Committee website.

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THE Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security (PJCIS) has commenced a review into the Migration and Citizenship Legislation Amendment (Strengthening Information Provisions) Bill 2020.

The bill review was referred to the Committee by the Alex Hawke MP, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs.

The Migration and Citizenship Legislation Amendment (Strengthening Information Provisions) Bill 2020 amends both the Migration Act 1958 and the Australian Citizenship Act 2007. The Bill amends the Migration Act to protect disclosure of confidential information provided by gazetted intelligence and law enforcement agencies where the information is used for decisions made to refuse or cancel a visa on character grounds, or revoke or set aside such decisions (Protected Information).

The Bill amends the Migration Act to introduce a Protected Information framework, which will:

• provide that the High Court, the Federal Court or the Federal Circuit Court of Australia (the Federal Circuit Court) may order the Minister to produce or give in evidence Protected Information where the Court is satisfied that it is Protected Information and the production of it is for the purposes of substantive proceedings related to a decision to refuse or cancel a visa on character grounds, or revoke or set aside such a decision.

The Bill also amends the Citizenship Act to introduce provisions in order to protect Protected Information where the information is used for decision such as:

• decisions to refuse to approve an application for citizenship;
• to cease a person’s Australian citizenship if the person has engaged in specified conduct;
• to make a determination by the Minister to cease a person’s Australian citizenship if the person has been convicted of a specified offence (and sentenced to at least three years’ imprisonment); renunciations of citizenship by conduct; and,
• cessation of citizenship for service outside Australia in armed forces of an enemy country or a declared terrorist organisation.

Chair of the Committee, Senator James Paterson said, "The Committee will be interested to hear from various government and non-government submitters on the importance of protecting certain information as well as the balance between such protection and transparent government.”

The Committee requests submissions to the inquiry by 4pm, Friday, June 25, 2021.

Prospective submitters are advised that any submission to the Committee’s inquiry must be prepared solely for the inquiry and should not be published prior to being accepted by the Committee.

Further information about making a submission to a committee inquiry can be found at the following link.

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