Australia news live: Hume says Liberals would oppose any increase to capital gains tax; Taylor refuses to be drawn on new frontbench

New deputy leader says ‘energy abundance’ will bring prices down. Follow the latest updates live On immigration, and in a hint to the future direction of the Coalition, Hume says that immigration policy is “out of control”, and there is a mismatch between values. A reset on immigration is profoundly important. We want to see a lower number of people come to our country, but we also want to raise the standards. What that looks like, I won’t get into the details today. But I think all Australians know if you come here, coming to Australia, living in Australia is one of the greatest gifts that could ever be given to anybody. Which is why we want to make sure the people who do come here share our beliefs, share our respect for the rule of law and for democracy. If people were open-minded to the idea of lifting the moratorium on nuclear energy, which is a bill I brought forward as a backbencher so we can have a zero-emissions technology introduced into our country, as every other developed nation has either done or is in the process of doing, that would add to the energy abundance that would bring prices down. David, I’m not announcing policy 48 hours after having been elected deputy leader … before our first shadow cabinet meeting. But it is absolutely crazy to take an ideological approach towards energy because it’s energy that drives our economy. We want to see our economy flourish and thrive so that all Australians can see better days ahead. There is no doubt that caring for our environment, looking after our oceans, looking after our soil, looking after our water is profoundly important. And reducing emissions is a part of that, but it’s not the only thing that’s important to Australians. What’s important to Australians is an opportunity that they can see to get ahead. That they can see to look after themselves, to look after their families, to restore that optimism to what it is that they do every single day. Continue reading...