The NEXT coming Oz election thread!

Nah.

But thank you SO much for that image!!!!





:wink:

I know, I know, sorry about that - but have a bit of pity - I had to think it up in the first place

I did keep my eyes closed though (not that it did much good of course)

Yes!
Eventually there will be one lie too many, one too many "sorries" that wasn't said, one more more bit of blatant pork-barreling or corruption ...
The penny will finally begin to drop with the voting public, I'm sure. I'd say at about the same time as the penny drops with the mass media! :wink: Like when Howard's lies & deceptions cease to be lauded as cleverness: "My goodness, wasn't he clever to get himself out of that one?" And when the economists cease to bamboozle us all with with mumbo jumbo about what a strong economy we've got & how we've never had it so good!

I feel very sorry for Australia for having signed a free trade agreement with the states. Had anyone asked me, I would have told the powers that be in .au that it was a bad idea.

"Canada's independence is under threat from the widespread push for 'integration' that has followed the U.S. security obsession.
Canada is 'under intense and unbelievable pressure to integrate more and more with the U.S.' said Elliot Feldman, a Washington-based trade man working on behalf of Canada's softwood-lumber interests.
If Ottawa fails to strengthen NAFTA Chapter 19 trade-dispute provisions the U.S. routinely ignores, Canada will be unable to protect its economic strength, and ulimately its independence."
The article goes on to say:
"...on top of the softwood battle, cattle standoff, pork war and a host of other protectionist thuggery from the U.S., one can understand where Jennings was coming from".

"Marlene Jennings, Liberal parlimentary secretary for Canada-US relations, [pleaded] "sorry" yesterday after saying we should "embarrass the hell out of the [US]" for their obstructionism".

Apparently Canada is being bullied into climbing 'aboard any old Bush military misadventure" in the name of "[cutting] the usual bad deal with the US to resolve the softwood nightmare".

I sure hope Australia knew what it was getting itself into when it signed a free trade agreement with the US. Free trade alright...as long as it is the favour of the US.

-Trade Wars: Playing the patsy, cutting bad deals will only strengthen US protectionism by James McNulty
Vancouver Province 11 March 2005 page 20

Be strong, Canada, be strong!

Ay Sontespli, I can't understand the concept of protectionism (is that a word?) within a free trade agreement, either.
I worry about how the agreement with impact on our health benefits scheme & also our film & television industry. And I too, hope that our negotiators knew what they were getting us into, but somehow I don't feel all that confident ..

Msolga...right, I forgot about the movie industry! Where I come from, we are called "Hollywood North". Now that Arnie is Governor in California he is waging a war against productions North of the border.

As for health care, Canada's health care is crumbling. I believe a two tier system is on its way in. Those who depend on public health can and do die on waiting lists. I had to see a spine specialist and I was on a waiting list to get my name on his list! I saw him eight months later! And by that time on I was on a nasty regime of prescription drugs to deal with the pain. Apparently our prescription drugs are a hot commodity; heaps of US citizens order drugs from Canada. I wonder how long before that gets shut down?

I say, be strong Australia, be strong The same as I say to Canada. Why do we all have to be bullied by the US?

Why, indeed, why?

Coz their bulllies, that's why!

And our government representatives behave like grovelling wimps when it comes to anything to do with the US!

Wahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Poor fella my country.

Economy pulls into slow lane
David Uren, Economics correspondent
March 14, 2005/the AUSTRALIAN

ECONOMIC growth has already slowed sharply since December and the threats to the economy are greater than anticipated, according to a frank government assessment.

The Howard Government cites the health of the housing market, a rising Australian dollar, spiralling oil prices and the fragility of the US economy as its biggest worries.

The Government's latest economic assessment is contained in its submission to the national safety net wage review. It says the 5.7 per cent rise in the minimum wage sought by the ACTU could cause inflation, citing warnings from the Reserve Bank governor Ian Macfarlane that there are already inflationary wage pressures in the pipeline. The assessment also says the growth in business profit has not been nearly as strong as the headline results of corporations might suggest.

John Howard said yesterday the economy was still strong, but admitted it was "slowing a bit".

The commonwealth's submission provides the first official update of the economic outlook since December's mid-year budget review.

On the positive side, employment growth has been stronger than expected three months ago. In the seven months to January, employment has risen at a rate of 2.3 per cent, against a mid-year forecast of 2 per cent.

Unemployment has dropped to 5.1per cent, against a forecast for the year of 5.5 per cent.

Other welcome developments have been recent contracts for Australian coal and iron ore exports, which should boost export income.

However, overall weak economic growth in September and December has cast a cloud over the mid-year forecast that the economy would grow by 3 per cent this year and 3.25 per cent next year.

The Prime Minister claimed the strength in the employment numbers might not reflect the current state of the economy.

"Employment is often a measurement of where it may have been a few months ago," Mr Howard said.

"You can't have champagne figures every week, every month, every year, but the underlying strength of the economy is certainly still there."

The government submission said the negative risks to the outlook for both the global and Australian economies had become "more pronounced" since the December budget review. The biggest concern was the housing market. Although a relatively mild decline in housing investment was anticipated, consumer spending would suffer if housing prices fell more sharply.

The Reserve Bank's recent increase in rates and plunging consumer confidence have brought to the fore concerns expressed in the mid-year forecast. The damage that possible appreciation of the Australian dollar could cause to exporters has also become more immediate since the December forecast, with the value of the Australian dollar rising from about US76c to about US79c. Oil prices, identified as a risk in December, have risen from $US42 ($53) a barrel to $US54 since then.

The Government also echoed the concerns of Treasury secretary Ken Henry that the adjustment of the US dollar, caused by budget and current account deficits, might be a destabilising factor.

The submission to the safety net wage case also included an analysis suggesting that neither the profit share of the economy nor profit growth has been as great as generally believed. National accounts have shown that the profit share of national income has been rising sharply for the past 15 years, but the Government argues that if small, unincorporated businesses are counted, it has barely changed over that period.

What growth in profit there has been has matched rises in incomes and the capital base of business, so the Government argues business does not have an increased capacity to pay wage claims. Although business wage costs have been rising at only 3.3 per cent, it quoted Mr Macfarlane saying that these measures were "backward looking".

Mr Howard said yesterday that wages had been remarkably restrained, given that the economy was close to full employment.

Ay - one of my great unsung heroes was the senior Canadian official who had to fall on their sword after calling Bush a F***ing moron in public. Everyone thinks it but precious few say it.

I love honesty in public officials! Wouldn't it be a great bonus in politicians!

Malcolm Turnbull, my hero!! What a guy!
<now I never thought I'd find myself saying THAT, but hey, these are strange times we live in! ):

Govt rejects MP's tax avoidance claims

Assistant Treasurer Mal Brough has hit out at millionaire MP Malcolm Turnbull's suggestion that some rich people use tax avoidance schemes to set their own tax rates.

Mr Turnbull, a Liberal Party backbencher, has called for "across the board" tax cuts and wants a crackdown on tax avoidance schemes used by some rich people to pay less tax.

Mr Turnbull says a crackdown would allow tax rates to be cut across the board.

He says currently the rich can effectively determine their own tax rate by engineering generous deductions in order to substantially reduce their income.

"There's a host of areas and I think the critical thing is to focus on broadening that tax base and then as you broaden it, you are then in a position to lower rates," Mr Turnbull said.

"The rates at the top are very high but equally at the lower end of income there is a big issue with people as they earn more money starting to pay tax, but also losing benefits," he said.

Mr Brough has rejected Mr Turnbull's suggestion.

"Have a look at the marginal tax rates and you have two sides of the argument," he said.

The Federal Opposition says the Government should listen to Mr Turnbull's concerns.

Labor's Wayne Swan says the Budget should address Mr Turnbull's concerns.

"What this country needs is some real reform that puts incentive into the system," he said.

The Government says tax cuts, beyond those already flagged, are unlikely.

Reforms supported

The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) says politicians need to stop focusing on whether there will be tax cuts in the next Budget and agree on a broad set of common principles that need to be addressed.

Chief executive Peter Hendy says he supports Mr Turnbull's calls for reform.

But Mr Hendy says there is also a need for more sweeping structural change.

"The big picture is that there's a number of critical pressure points on the Australian economy in the medium term," he said.

"There's an aging population, there's skills shortages and there's not enough business investment in research and development.

"So you need to look beyond what Malcolm was talking about I think, to the source of our problems, the big challenges in the year ahead."

For those of you who might be wondering just who Malcolm Turnbull might be: He's a very new member of the Liberal Party (the conservatives) & former convener of the Republican movement for Oz. (I've actually forgotten the proper name of the group. ) And is a VERY wealthy man! Possibly the wealthiest MP in Canberra. Anyway, it's starting to look like he's got ideas of his own & is not exactly towing the Liberal line! Liberals do NOT talk of wealthy people avoiding tax! They are more likely to speak of welfare recipients rorting the system! Looks like they might have a wild card in their midst.

Just to back up Olga's line on Liberal lenience on the wealthy. I knew people in the Australian Tax Office who worked on the 'High Wealth Individuals' program which targetted the 100 wealthiest Australians. It was wrapped up very soon after the Libs took power in 1996.

Still trying to figure out why Kerry Packer pays virtually no tax....

hinge


Bastards!

Spooked voters put ALP back in front
By Mark Metherell, Political Correspondent
March 15, 2005/SMH

Less than two months after Kim Beazley returned as Opposition Leader, Labor leads the Coalition on a two-party-preferred basis 52-48 per cent and the Prime Minister's personal approval has dropped sharply, the latest Herald Poll shows.

The Government's 14-point lead over Labor in January, at the height of the controversy over Mark Latham's resignation as Labor leader, has crashed, with an eight-point turnaround in the past month. The Government's primary vote support has also fallen by six points in the past month, to 41 per cent.

The turnaround comes after Labor targeted John Howard over this month's interest rate rise - which coincided with a string of poor economic figures - and his earlier pledge to send 450 more troops to Iraq.

The poll, conducted by ACNielsen and taken at the weekend, found that 55 per cent of respondents opposed the new deployment, 34 per cent strongly so. Only 37 per cent of respondents supported the commitment.

Mr Howard, who fought the last election on low interest rates and played down the prospect of sending more Australians to Iraq, has dropped eight points to 54 per cent in his personal approval rating and six points as preferred prime minister.

The poll will fuel the Government's anxieties over a second interest rise, which has been foreshadowed by the Reserve Bank but opposed by Mr Howard and the Treasurer, Peter Costello.

Despite record jobs growth, the economic picture is uncertain: consumer confidence has plunged, economic growth has slowed and the recent rates rise has put up mortgage repayments, about $50 extra a month on an average Sydney mortgage.

Although Mr Beazley dropped one point to 49 per cent in his approval ratings, he gained five points as preferred prime minister, with 40 per cent backing.

The dramatic lift in Labor's fortunes returns the party to the level of support it attracted between elections when Mr Beazley was leader. After losing the 1996 election, Labor regained its lead in the opinion polls in less than a year and a half and was six points up on two-party preferred terms seven months after losing the 1998 election.

ACNielsen's research director, John Stirton, said: "Mr Beazley's approval rating is more or less steady, indicating that the improvement in Labor's standing is probably less a direct result of his performance than it is a reaction against the Government."

He said the sharp turnaround in the Government's fortunes might have resulted from several factors. "There may have been a reaction to the mixed economic signals over the past few weeks.

"In particular, the interest rate rise may partly explain the decline in the Coalition vote among voters aged over 25." Support for the Coalition fell by 10 points among those aged 25-39 and seven points among the over 40s.

The Herald Poll showed Labor's primary vote increased three points to 39 per cent but a majority of minor party preferences put the ALP ahead two-party preferred. The Greens were up by two points to 11 per cent, One Nation doubled its support to 2 per cent and Family First attracted 2 per cent. The Australian Democrats remained steady on just 1 per cent.

PM admits public don't support Iraq decision
March 15, 2005 - 10:59AM/the AGE

A new opinion poll showing Labor has overtaken the coalition government reflects a lack of support for the doubling of troop numbers in Iraq, Prime Minister John Howard admitted today.

The ACNielsen poll published in Fairfax newspapers shows Labor leading the government on a two-party preferred basis by 52 per cent to 48 per cent.

It is the first time the coalition has fallen behind the opposition in seven months and comes just three weeks after the government announced it would send an extra 450 troops to Iraq's Al Muthanna province.

Mr Howard said he never promised not to send more troops to Iraq, but he realised the decision was not popular with Australians.

"I acknowledged at the time that our decision would not be popular and the polls would indicate that it's not got popular support," he told Brisbane radio 4BC.

"But occasionally governments are required to take decisions that involve unpopularity," he said.

"I never promised there'd be no more troops. I said quite honestly and accurately when asked ... that we didn't have any plans to significantly increase our force."

Opposition Leader Kim Beazley said the government had misled the Australian people by reversing a decision not to increase troop numbers.

But Mr Howard said the decision reflected Australia's desire to cement its relationship with Japan.

"In 2005, it's in Australia's interests to have a close relationship with Japan and providing a secure environment for the Japanese forces in this province of Iraq serves a number of objectives and they are the reasons why we decided to send these people. It does not represent a broken promise."

But the poll was a sobering reminder his party could not be complacent, Mr Howard said.

"These latest polls do ... remind the Liberal Party ... (the idea it) is guaranteed another two terms in office as a result of the last election is completely false," he said.

"The political fortunes can change and all elections in Australia are close and we have, as always, a fight ahead of us."

He admitted recent economic indicators had hurt the coalition.

"We've had a couple of bad economic numbers and polls are going to go up and down."

Mr Howard also defended the prerogative of governments to change their minds, regardless of pledges they make during election campaigns.

"This proposition that you can never change a position without being accused of breaking a promise is absurd.

"It's a new doctrine in Australian politics. Governments often change their positions in the light of changed circumstances. They would be foolish and stubborn if they didn't do so."

- AAP

Malcom Turnbull is such a sleezy creature, he actually did good this time! GO Malcom! Make Johnny RUN!