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The Saturday Briefing … Judging politics by Centrelink’s rules …
The Saturday Briefing
Luckily for them, Julie Bishop and Barnaby Joyce don’t have to explain their love lives to Centrelink. Luckily, because as members of Australia’s political class they get to deal with much more accommodating regulators than do Australia’s welfare recipients, writes Mike Seccombe. Bishop’s “friend” is David Panton. But while he is “family” when it comes to claiming taxpayer-funded travel, he is not when it comes to Parliament’s register of members’ interests.
“It’s still the case that the claims made by politicians rely essentially on the honesty of the politicians, in contrast to recipients of welfare assistance,” Stephen Bartos says.
Plus: Paul Borgiorno on Malcolm Turnbull’s fight against – then attempted ownership of – the banking royal commission, and Karen Middleton on Bob Katter’s “patient zero”.
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The Saturday Paper