Small Business Minister asked about Nationals deputy leadership … Streets boycott kicks off … Cannon-Brookes critical of energy policy

Small business minister and Nationals MP Michael McCormack says he hasn’t given thought to whether he will run for deputy leadership after the Nationals’ party leaders were ruled to be dual citizens on Friday.

The High Court has ruled Nationals leader and deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce and deputy leader Fiona Nash were ineligible to be elected to parliament due to their dual citizen status at the time of the last election, leaving the Nationals party without a leadership team.

Northern Territory Senator Nigel Scullion will take over as parliamentary leader of the party, however, the deputy leader role is yet to be filled.

When asked on Friday whether he would nominate for deputy leadership of the Nationals, McCormack told The Daily Advertiser he had not thought about the possibility yet.

Streets boycott gets underway

The Australian Manufacturing Workers Union has launched a campaign urging the public to boycott Streets ice cream products this summer as negotiations continue over an enterprise bargaining agreement for workers at the company’s Minto factory.

The ABC reports negotiations between Streets’ parent company Unilever have broken down after Unilever applied to have the workers’ current agreement terminated earlier this year, which workers and the unions say will result in their pay being cut 46%.

The public is now being urged not to buy products including Paddle Pops and the Golden Gaytime until the matter is resolved.

Cannon-Brookes hits out at energy plan

Young Rich Lister and Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes has spoken out about what he says is confused decision making from the government on energy policy, labelling its National Energy Guarantee as “unhelpful”.

Cannon-Brookes has told Fairfax the government’s plan to ensure reliable and cost-efficient energy is light on detail and will not solve long-term challenges for energy in Australia.

Meanwhile, Tesla founder Elon Musk, whom Cannon-Brookes called on to help solve South Australia’s energy crisis with a giant battery, has also been speaking out about the country’s approach to energy.

Speaking to 60 Minutes, Musk reflected this week he had no idea there was such a big battle going on in Australia about energy policy, and reflected that the country was ripe for exploiting renewable energy.

“If it’s not renewable, it’s going to run out at some point,” Musk said of the sustainability of fossil fuels.

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