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Westpac has its Annual General Meeting on December 12. “No doubt, there’ll be some very hard discussions between now and then,” Joshn Frydenberg said. JENNY EVANS/AAP

Josh Frydenberg turns up heat on Westpac chiefs as bank issues a ‘response plan’

The government at the weekend piled on more pressure for Westpac heads to roll over the bank’s money laundering scandal, with Treasurer Josh Frydenberg saying the affair had a long way to play out. “These…
“[The Westpac scandal] comes at a bad time for the government which has legislation before parliament to crack down on union behaviour that goes off the rails, and here you have business behaviour being even worse,” says Michelle Grattan. Joel Carrett/AAP

VIDEO: Michelle Grattan on the Westpac scandal - and changes to robo-debt

University of Canberra VC Deep Saini and Michelle Grattan discuss this week in politics, and talk about what to expect in the last parliamentary sitting fortnight, which starts this Monday.
An analysis of some of the most serious cases of financial fraud in New Zealand shows white-collar offenders received discounted sentences despite a range of aggravating factors. from www.shutterstock.com

Why New Zealand courts should take poverty into account in sentencing decisions

A New Zealand Court of Appeal decision set a precedent last month. Offenders who can prove their personal addiction played a role in their crime are now eligible for a shorter sentence.
While tariffs have a direct impact on exporters in the US and China, third-party countries like New Zealand are more affected by non-tariff barriers. EPA/Aleksandar Plavevski

NZ remains unscathed by US-China trade war, but that’s no reason for complacency

So far, New Zealand exporters have not been affected by the trade war between the US and China, but the Hong Kong crisis could easily embroil any foreign company.
Will Pucovski recently opened up about dealing with mental health issues, a message the media and the sporting community welcomed with warmth and understanding. AAP Image/Dave Hunt

Big men do cry: cricketers are leading the charge for inclusive masculinity

Rising Australian cricket star Will Pucovski is one of a recent trio of professional cricketers to take a break from playing to boost their mental well-being.
Bowen will also highlight the rising gender gap in the study of economics. Mick Tsikas/AAP

Make the study of economics “more sexy”: Chris Bowen

In a lecture to be delivered on Wednesday, Chris Bowen says he is concerned that “the nation will lose out…if fewer young people are trained in the fundamentals of good economic decision making”.
In a speech on Wednesday night, Morrison will insist this bring-forward does not mean the government is panicking about Australia’s economic conditions. Lukas Coch/AAP

Government to inject economic stimulus by accelerating infrastructure spend

Following increasing calls for stimulus to be injected into the economy, the government will outline an infrastructure bring-forward of A$3.8 billion over the next four years.
The present income averaging system will continue to be used in assessing debt. The key “refinement” will be the addition of “proof points”. Mick Tsikas/AAP

Government makes changes to error-prone robo-debt collection

The Department of Human Service’s customer compliance staff will now be required to seek “additional proof” rather than solely relying on income averaging when determining if there is a debt.
Omer Bekali, a former detainee in China’s vast camps for Uighurs, Kazakhs and other Muslim minorities, speaking to a news conference in Germany about his experiences. Felipe Trueba/EPA

Leaked documents on Uighur detention camps in China – an expert explains the key revelations

The New York Times has published 400 pages of Chinese government documents on the ‘re-education’ camps for Muslim detainees in Xinjiang. Here’s what you need to know.
Keating attacked The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age in particular for their China coverage. Darren England/AAP

Paul Keating attacks media for ‘pious belchings’ over China

Amid debate about China’s refusal of visa to two federal MPs, former PM Paul Keating denounced the media for ‘failing to present a balanced picture of the rise, legitimacy and importance of China’.
‘You have to think that with people like these very experienced, respected voices that the government would have to take the [climate change] debate seriously’, says Michelle Grattan about the calls from ex-fire chiefs for the government to act on climate change. DARREN PATEMAN/AAP

VIDEO: Michelle Grattan on the government’s response to the bushfires

Michelle Grattan and Professor Geoff Crisp discuss this week in politics.
Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the frontrunner in Sri Lanka’s presidential election, faces a lawsuit in the US for alleged extrajudicial killing and torture. M.A. Pushpa Kumara/EPA

Sri Lanka election: will the country see a return to strongman politics?

Gotabaya Rajapaksa is the frontrunner in the presidential election. He was defence secretary during his brother Mahinda’s presidency when the government is accused of numerous wartime atrocities.