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In world news, police in Indonesia are asking Australian authorities to reveal how the asylum seekers who recently arrived in WA were able to avoid detection.

Zach Hope, Amilia Rosa and Karuni Rompies report from Jakarta:

The call came as a local fishers’ association warned people smugglers may be using risky monsoon conditions off West Java to sneak past the watch of patrols.

“Is it a new modus operandi?” asked crime division boss of West Timor police, Patar Silalahi, whose patch takes in Rote Island, about 500 kilometres off the Western Australian coast.

“How did the smugglers manage to evade the Australian Border Force? Are they using more sophisticated equipment to detect the Australians and thus evade them? If [Australia] can share, we can use it.”

Patar said he had no intelligence about any boats leaving Rote since 2022, when a voyage was intercepted and turned back by Australia.

Read the full story here.

Chalmers says the government is focusing significantly on renters and supporting them through the housing crisis as he recognises they are “under the pump”.

“We are doing 17 different things to improve the housing market in this country with a big focus on people who rent,” he said.

“Whether it’s the increase in the rent assistance in my most recent budget … [and] the efforts we’re putting into building more homes. This is all about recognising that renters are under the pump.

“We don’t have enough rental properties. That’s why I changed the tax arrangements in the budget, that’s why I gave an increase in rent assistance in the budget, that’s why the Housing Australia Future Fund and a whole bunch of other ways we’re trying to build more supply.”

Staying with the treasurer’s address, Chalmers says he is confident there will not be a wage price spiral in the economy, as signs continue to show that inflation is moderating.

“The Reserve Bank governor, the treasury secretary and others have made it very clear that they don’t see signs of a wage price spiral in our economy. We’re seeing inflation moderating at the same time now as wages are growing,” he said.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers last week.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

“When the tax cuts flow from the 1st of July, that will be important cost of living relief as well.”

Asked if wages growth means the government’s stage 3 tax cut package is now unnecessary, Chalmers disagreed.

“Of course not, what we’re seeing here is real wages growth returning ahead of schedule. The Treasury was expecting real wages growth in 2024, what these numbers show is we got real wages growth in 2023.” he said.

“That’s a very, very good thing to see wages growth earlier than anticipated, but we know that people are still under pressure … people are still confronting these cost-of-living pressures in these suburbs and right around Australia, and we want to help people with that.”

Treasurer Jim Chalmers says wage growth of 4.2 per cent is “really encouraging numbers” but acknowledged people were still under cost of living pressures.

Speaking from Brisbane this afternoon, Chalmers also spruiked the government’s reformed stage 3 tax package to further help people with the cost of living.

“If you look at these numbers today, wages growth at 4.2 per cent, the fastest annual growth since 2009. This is the first time we’ve had three consecutive quarters of real wages growth since 2018,” he said.

“It means that wages growth under the Albanese Labor government is more than four per cent. Under our predecessors, it was closer to two per cent.

“These are really welcome, really encouraging numbers. We are not getting carried away because we know that people are still under pressure and that’s why we want to get every taxpayer a tax cut from the 1st of July.”

Outgoing tax commissioner Chris Jordan was also questioned about the scandal involving consulting firm PwC, and whether the firms should have an independent monitor, as well as their relationship with the ATO.

PwC, one of the big four accounting firms along with EY, Deloitte and KPMG, was forced to spin off its lucrative government business for just $1 after partners at the firm allegedly used confidential government tax plans to help multinational companies avoid the new scheme.

Jordan was asked at the National Press Club whether the firms needed to have their own monitor.

Outgoing tax boss Chris Jordan has been probed about the big-four and the PwC tax scandal.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

“I think the PwC issue has really shone a light on … what should be the governance arrangements, what should be the regulatory function,” he said this afternoon.

However, he said he wasn’t sure if a standalone regulator was the answer, but it was worth investing the time and effort to see what was possible.

“Other countries have clearly looked at this, and they’ve got rotation of auditors, very clear around what auditors … what sort of work they can and can’t do for their clients.

“But it’s a matter for government, it’s a matter for the states. And I think that it is worth investing to see what should be a fit and proper governance situation going forward.”

He was also questioned about the relationship between the ATO and the big four firms, with former workers on the Tax Practitioners Board.

“The big four firms don’t think they have a cosy relationship with us,” he said.

Here’s what else he said:

They have their arguments. We work with them. We need them in the system. They’re systemic with advisers and necessary …

I think it’s a shame that you might see less willingness of senior private sector people wanting, for all the right reasons, to come back and do good thing for the public service.”

He said the Tax Office couldn’t be a closed shop.

“You do need an interchange to have a thriving, stimulating environment. It’s good for people in the ATO to go to the private sector and maybe come back.”

Outgoing tax boss Chris Jordan is being questioned at the National Press Club about the ATO revealing at least 150 of its staff had their identities stolen, or were suspected of taking part in a social media scam that fleeced the nation out of $2 billion in GST refunds.

Last week, an auditor-general’s report was published into how the ATO protects the $90 billion goods and services tax from fraud. The Tax Office revealed it had axed some people and launched criminal investigations into staff who might have been involved.

Jordan said, “Of that 150, 12 were current contractors or employees at the time they did the fraud, of which three were current ATO employees and nine were contractors.

“It is totally unacceptable to have even three. Clearly, they’re terminated and … compliance has been taken.

“It was terrible, it was appalling when I found out there were any ATO employees, let alone three current ones.”

Outgoing Tax Office boss Chris Jordan says the ATO’s commitment to taxing multinational companies has been a landmark victory.

“What hasn’t changed over the years is our commitment to build community confidence by improving tax performance; making sure that the largest taxpayers in Australia pay their fair share is a great place to start,” he said.

Here’s what else he told the National Press Club in Canberra:

When I said, ‘enough is enough’ in my Senate estimates opening statement in 2016, I meant it. I said we cannot be stooged by multinationals and we now have the capacity, the capability, to go toe-to-toe with the best advisers in the world.

We established our Tax Avoidance Taskforce, which has secured around $30 billion in additional tax revenue from multinational, large public and large private businesses.

Apple, BHP, Chevron, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, ResMed and Rio Tinto have all publicly acknowledged finalising disputes with the ATO. These are landmark victories.”