Michelle Grattan

The government estimates its proposed A$3.

  The overwhelming Irish vote for gay marriage just highlights how far behind the times Australia is.

Last Friday, Attorney-General George Brandis and Immigration Minister Peter Dutton issued an extraordinary statement declaring that the president of the Human Rights Commission, Gillian Triggs, needed to “explain her comments” linking Australia’s turn-back policy and negotiations with Indonesia about the death penalty.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has moved to make the gender gap an issue for the ALP’s July national conference and for Labor more widely.

What a paradox! This is an election-eve budget without big sweeteners to woo the voters.

The Turnbull government wants to engage with Donald Trump’s administration quickly and constructively, to talk about the United States’ strategic interests and role in the Asia Pacific region.