2 posts tagged “australia”
Lost in translation … Mr Howard and Mr Putin listen to interpreters at their news conference yesterday.
Photo: Peter Morris
September 8, 2007
THE Prime Minister's hopes of using a historic first visit from a Russian leader to boost his political fortunes has ended in embarrassment with his leadership under question and his APEC agenda derailed.
The embattled John Howard was forced to field questions about his leadership in front of a bemused Vladimir Putin and late yesterday brought forward APEC's climate change declaration to divert attention from his own government's political problems.
Mr Howard was forced to take a confused Mr Putin aside afterwards to explain after the pair had just announced a deal in which Australia would export to Russia uranium worth $1 billion a year.
Mr Howard had made climate change the signature theme of APEC, and the Herald understands that under today's Sydney Declaration, the nations will commit in 2012 - after the Kyoto agreement expires - to setting an aspirational global target to reduce greenhouse gases.
For the rest of the article go here http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/09/07/1188783496589.html
another article Leadership, weather to rain on APEC at http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=71994
and for more APEC updates go here http://www.smh.com.au/specials/apec/index.html
PM knew workers would be worse off: book
The federal government knew some workers would be worse off when it introduced the Work Choices legislation, a new biography of John Howard reveals.
Mr Howard wanted the laws bedded down politically well before this year's election and he dismissed making further changes because he was keen to have the legislation introduced and passed.
Two cabinet ministers who witnessed deliberations on Work Choices were present and the recent revelations are based on interviews with those ministers.
The revelations explain why Mr Howard would never pledge that no worker would be worse off under the changes, Fairfax newspapers report.
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The then workplace relations minister, Kevin Andrews, was charged with drafting the legislation, the book reveals.
The model for reform was brought before cabinet on at least three occasions and Mr Andrews was sent away each time to improve the drafting.
"Even the final product raised concerns around the table that too many workers would be worse off, despite ministers ideologically supporting the legislation," the book says.
At this point Mr Howard pushed forward anyway, putting those concerns aside.
