We’ve had the ‘other‘ budget, the ‘dirty‘ budget, and the ‘inflation-fighting‘ budget, but with a budget surplus of $9.3B, where are the subsidies for households, particularly low-income and rentals to electrify with rooftop solar, air, conditioners for heating and cooling and to get rid of our gas stoves?
If The ALP Government is already dragging its feet on Climate Change why is Sky News After Dark complaining? Any wonder there’s been a seemingly corporate shift in attitude. I say seemingly because the ALP isn’t threatening their reality.
This year’s federal budget contained a bunch of new spending measures, but they mostly start with ‘m’ for millions not ‘b’ for billions. The total is well short of $37 billion, let alone $116 billion.
The French Government’s Research Minister, Silvie Retailleau, has announced a plan to shake up the country’s scientific research including investing an extra Euro 26 billion (equivalent to A$42.5 billion.)
Government gross debt recorded last Friday was $894.6 billion, revealing the Albanese Government has added just $6.1 billion in its first 11 months. That compares with an average of $71.5 billion added each year by the previous Coalition Government over its term.
Chalmers is facing significant challenges as he prepares his second budget since gaining office nearly a year ago. They include persistent inflation, the housing shortage, the low share of national income going to workers, stalled productivity and rampant corporate tax evasion. All these were badly mismanaged by the previous conservative administration.
The common good, or empathy for it, should be at the centre of any political philosophy. However, it is more likely to be found on the left than the right. ( John Lord )
Axe fossil fuel subsidies, bring in a Carbon Export Levy, fix tax and royalty loopholes. Michael West reports on a compelling plan to dramatically reduce Australia’s debt and soaring energy bills.
Morrison introduced the “efficiency dividend” a $1Bn cut to the ABC almost a decade ago when “No cuts” to the ABC were a promised LNP policy. That promise isn’t even an Oxymoron its a simple straight-out lie and a 1000 cuts were always planned. The “efficiency dividend” was a funding cut by another name. But it’s an illegal one at that and goes against the intended grain of the ABC as a legally constituted Independent Statutory Body, not one to be interfered with by any government let alone abused, as has been the case by the series of LNP governments this past decade. In effect neutering the constitutionally formulated body and our Democracy one and the same time. Yes the LNP has taxed us by stealth all these years at a greater rate than the ALP.
The government will increase the efficiency dividend, which cuts public sector spending, to 2 per cent The Coalition says the move will raise $2 billion in revenue Labor will release its policy costings on Thursday
Abbott came in like a stormtrooper yelling “the Sky was falling in”. “ditch the bitch”. It wasn’t the ALP saved us from the GFC we were the world’s best economy and Wayne Swan the best Treasurer. All while the Libs cried we couldn’t afford it. Our debt was $200bn and the media and LNP were beside themselves. Today it’s $1tn and their LNP are saying that’s fine, it’s Ok we’ve got good bones. However we need to be worried about China who we not so long ago celebrated the signing of an FTA.
Hit by their 6 year economic down turn exacerbated by the pandemic The LNP did what the ALP did to save the Nation but with a twist. They created JobKeeper which was on reflection a $50bn gift to profitable businesses and not direct gift to people who needed it the most. That coupled with corporate tax cuts saw housing become unaffordable and stock buybacks make the market boom while the majority of ordinary Australians dipped into their savings to survive and take on multiple jobs without benefits. Meanwhile we watched wage and superannuation theft grow along with the wealth and income gaps.
Analysis of his speech showed the word “billion” appeared only once. This mention related to criticising the Liberals for losing billions by ripping up defence contracts. The word “millions” was only mentioned twice — once in relation to permanent cost of living savings for “millions of families” and once criticising the Liberals for their wasted millions on car parks that never got built. The Labor budget reply speech word cloud also showed where the emphasis of the speech was instead of cash. Labor will care about Australians. That’s a simple message that will resonate with Australians who have lived through three years of uncaring Liberal government when we needed care the most — bushfires, pandemic, flood and rising cost of living. The Liberals will paint this “care” as unaffordable, but I think Australians have worked out that it’s not economically irresponsible to “care”. Indeed, it’s reckless for society and the economy not to care.
Let’s be quite clear here: If Scott Morrison was a jockey, the stewards would be questioning him after the election about whether he was running dead. If he was a football coach, he’d be accused of tanking. If he was a Prime Minister, he might actual do something to help the country.
After two weeks, two long weeks of fawning Budget coverage, leak after leak, story after story brown-nosing the Coalition, reciting Treasurer Frydenberg’s talking points; after all that free publicity, what do they do? They miss the story. Michael West reports.
The Scam and fix is in. The budget tanked like a bungee during the pandemic now it’s about to rebound as rapidly as one, but just like a bungee that recovery won’t be the same as it was pre-pandemic, and it wasn’t crash hot back then either as they’d destroyed our relationship with China and the EU.
Nevertheless, you won’t hear that from Morrison or Frydenberg who will tell you our recovery will have been the best in all possible worlds. As a consequence, we will be able to afford the best of all possible bribes, tax cuts. Never mind that the top 10% of the nation has already received their bonus expanding the wealth gap like never before seen (over 25%). Never mind, that in the past 30 years the LNP has been the highest taxing of all governments. Never mind, that the LNP has been the harshest on Social Welfare, Universal Health, Education, wage growth, and the casualization of the workforce. During their tenure have Dropped us down the ladder from best to worst in the OECD and increased the level of corruption. Never mind this government has been the most secretive and least supportive of communications making us 60th globally in broadband speed and the accelerated destruction of the ABC and restriction of Independent Media. Never mind that we have fallen on every comparable social metric and our global reputation has been shredded under this the worst PM and government this country has ever seen. We are nevertheless about to be given tax cuts of 1-2 %. WTF!!
The word out of the federal government is a desperate Scott Morrison will use improved numbers in the budget to attempt a huge tax cut to buy his way back into government.
Given current polling and the vaccination schmozzle, the odds are favouring the government hanging on to the benefits of incumbency as long as possible, hoping the vaccine bungles will fade, the shots work, peace breaks out over our internal borders, and the promises of opening up start to look more credible. That would mean a repeat of the 2019 timetable – an April budget ahead of a May election. Given the government’s denial, dissembling and deflection over blatant and systemic corruption last time, fasten your seat belts for even more rorting of the public purse for political purposes.
If you follow a rule that when a politician cries “look over there!” you make sure you stay looking over here, there’s much to be deduced from Treasurer Josh Frydenberg’s Intergenerational Report, before we put it up on the shelf with its four predecessors.
The Budget cash splash in aged care has rendered the Royal Commission a political stunt as the billions in extra funding are not tied to reform measures or direct care and food for elderly Australians. Dr Sarah Russell reports.
Scott Morrison, Australia’s conservative premier, is selling his 2021 budget as a job-creation package. But in reality, it’s a miserly budget — except when it comes to handouts for business and the wealthy.
Instead of providing sorely needed stimulus, the 2020 budget from Australia’s Coalition government transfers wealth toward millionaires and big business and away from the poor, the unemployed, women, and the government’s ideological enemies.
It should be obvious that it’s only thanks to me that we’re in this position and that she should show a little gratitude to me and ScoMo, but no, it’s all, blame, blame, blame. Why she even suggested that the budget was terrible for women over thirty five because they’d actually find it harder to get work after the youth subsidies. She completely overlooks that the infrastructure spending will mean that they have nicer roads to travel on while they look for work and all the promised mental health support if they can’t cope with not getting it. That’s the trouble with the left. They’re just never grateful.
The Morrison Government’s 2020 Budget message is a trillion in debt and no “baked in” spending or “unfunded” empathy anywhere in sight, writes managing editor Michelle Pini.
As families at public schools scrimp and save to provide the bare necessities, the federal government funnels ever more money into private schools without taking into account parents’ true capacity to pay. Trevor Cobbold reports.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has responded to claims that women were the losers in Tuesday night’s budget, saying it is an unfortunate reality that not all special interest groups can be catered for.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg last night delivered his second budget as Treasurer, beginning his speech by noting that the figures had been checked and were correct, give or take $60 billion.
Mike Seccombe: ‘ It sounds like a marketing slogan, almost a cliché: in times of national crisis, Australians turn to the national broadcaster. But over the past six months or so, it has proved profoundly true.First came the bushfire crisis, when the ABC’s network of regional reporters distinguished themselves not just in reporting the disaster as it unfolded but also warning those in harm’s way. Then came the current coronavirus crisis….Continue Reading
Take the Nielsen Digital Content Ratings, which measure online interaction. In December last year, on the back of its bushfire coverage, the broadcaster surged into second place with a “unique audience” of more than 10 million – passing Nine and just behind news.com.au, which both fell.
By January, the ABC was No. 1 in the country, with an audience of 11.2 million, well ahead of the Murdoch news site. The most recent figures, for March, showed its audience up to 15.2 million, a 53 per cent gain in a single month, and almost three million ahead of its closest rival.
In one sense, this is unsurprising. Innumerable surveys over the decades have shown the ABC to be the most trusted media outlet, and one of the most trusted institutions in the country.
On another level, though, it is remarkable that the ABC has done so well during these particular crises – given that it has been working while grievously wounded. Since the current government came to power in 2014, the broadcaster has lost hundreds of millions of dollars in funding and about 1000 jobs.
Staff members reveal the significant pressure they are under as the public broadcaster continues to face budget cuts of more than $100 million a year.
@0% of Americans a wsimply waste product in Trumps America. Unwanted surplus of a failing Capitalist State where 20% own 96% of the nations wealth and 80% share 4%. Where are the consumers necessary to keep this market going before it fails? So now Trump has turned to cutting Welfare, Increased Military spending, Increased policing Security and surviellance and Immigration scapegoating to save his and 1 % ‘s ass. As for the Budget well he’s doing a little rocket man manoevour ask for a lot get a little and claim a win. (ODT)
“The Trump budget is an immoral document. It is a budget that takes our collective resources and hands them to the wealthiest families and largest corporations in this country and ignores the needs of the most vulnerable among us.” —Sen.Bernie Sanders
If, as the polls predict, the latest budget will be the final one delivered by this LNP government, then it will be a perfectly apt way to go out. It was a document that reflected the full personality of the Abbott-Turnbull-Morrison government – an amalgam of incompetence and greed, where the right thing is done belatedly and poorly, and underlying it all is a desire to deliver the largest benefits to the wealthy.
After the disastrous political reception to its first budget in 2014, the government made no further serious attempt to reduce the budget deficit, instead quietly resolving to wait until the passage of time caused the economy to strengthen and tax collections to recover.
The government’s net public debt has doubled from the $175 billion it inherited in September 2013 to $355 billion this October.
The first politician to show us a projected return to surplus in the next few years was Julia Gillard in 2010. Since then, the Coalition has had to revise down its own projections countless times. We’ve learnt the hard way not to believe any budget number that’s not an “actual”.
With that kind of money, say progressives, “we could be ending homelessness, making universal preschool and higher ed available to all, and repairing roads and bridges.”
by
Jessica Corbett, staff writer
“It’s often been observed that the first casualty of war is the truth. But that’s a lie, too, in its way. The reality is that, for most wars to begin, the truth has to have been sacrificed a long time in advance.” – L. Neil Smith A lie of omission occurs when an important fact…
It’s budget night! Play along at home with The Shovel’s Budget Night Bingo.
Follow us @TheShovel as we live-tweet the budget from just before 7:30pm EST. It’ll be just like the CIA’s live-tweet of bin Laden’s assassination, but less appropriate.
Deep cuts will affect health research, peacekeeping and climate change but record aid for Israel will not be touched.
olddogthoughts 
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