The Gillard Government

[Julia]

You are not alone Julia some one on the ABC radio did the same this morning.

Thanks, IFocus. I finally remembered who Harry Evans is, although it's no excuse for my confusing the two Harry's.
Harry Evans is the long term Clerk of the Senate.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Evans_(Australian_Senate_clerk)

Hunt is an excellent performer no doubt destined to be side lined as a result.

I agree that he performed really well. Some of these junior people seem way more competent than the so called 'senior' politicians.
Perhaps, though, he - and Scott Morrison is another very competent young minister - are simply too lacking in years of experience to be promoted just yet.

Another example on the other side imo is Chris Bowen who I'd like to have seen take Lindsay Tanner's place as Finance Minister. He had already accumulated experience in that area and is articulate and capable.
Instead, we have the woeful Penny Wong who so stuffed up the climate change p/f.

Chris Bowen is already achieving obvious competence as Immigration Minister, so perhaps his talents are not being entirely wasted.

Maybe there is some sort of 'rite of passage' that needs to be endured by junior ministers before their natural competence can oust their non-performing so called seniors.

 

[robusta]

Yes Julia, Harry Jenkins is available and appears a bit put out that he is the speaker in waiting.

It would appear the Labor Party are in a bit of a quandary as to what to do without reducing their majority from two to one. The appointment of Harry Jenkins would put the Labor Party at a disadvantage because he can only have a casting vote.

IMHO I believe Julia Gillard should bite the bullet instead of pussy footing around. It is her responsibility. She wanted to govern at all costs, so she must now ware the consequence of having to sacrifice one vote.

Fair enough at least it should stop any polititians leaving Canberra or the house for that matter while parliament is sitting. (best to keep them in 1 place so they can't infect the rest of us)

 

[Logique]

I've seen Harry Jenkins in action, he is a good Speaker, as good as I've seen, and doesn't deserve the current speculation and uncertainty around the position. Well deserving of reappointment.

Julia, I agree with your comments on the present incumbents of the Immigration and Finance portfolios, if perhaps a teeny bit unfair on Ms Wong, who didn't necessarily have the all support she deserved from above. If the Rudd administration had called the Coalition's bluff and gone to a double dissolution on an ETS, Rudd would still be PM, and Penny Wong installed as a hero of the Left.

And who talked Rudd out of it? The NSW Right, and Gillard on the Left.

But I'm no carbon tax booster. Unlike Marius 'now that BHP, Rio and XStrata have our preferred version of the MRRT' Kloppers.

 

[Calliope]

But I'm no carbon tax booster. Unlike Marius 'now that BHP, Rio and XStrata have our preferred version of the MRRT' Kloppers.

Politics makes strange bedfellows. Marius Kloppers is now Bob Brown's new best friend.

 

[derty]

Derty, you have quoted figures back in 2008. If you had done a little bit more research, you will note coal is only 8% of BHP's revenue. Most of it is exported, so why would they worry about a CPRS?

Further more they are saying we should look beyond coal. If you had carried out some more research you would have learned BHP are about to develope the second largest uranium mine in Australlia at Yeelirrie in WA where BHP will produce 5000 tonnes of uranium per year. Urnaium prices are destined to rise in price as world demands increase and coal decreases due to CO2 emmissions. So Kloppers may not be as silly as he looks.

Dety, if you have not got the message by now, I'm afraid I can't help you any more.

http://www.smh.com.au/business/move-on-climate-bhp-billiton-urges-20100915-15cn4.html

Been out bush chasing a rig about, hence the delayed reply. I have got your message noco, but do not agree with your assessment.

The figures for 2008 were in the relative ballpark for production. For 2010 ending in June BHP produced:
2279 tonnes U3O8 or 5.02M lb @ $50/lb = $251M
103.5Mt met + thermal coal @ $90/tonne = $9.27B

If BHP's coal production is 8% of their production then the current uranium production equates to 0.21%. If you use the longer term average uranium production of around 4kt that moves up to about 0.4% and if you add on the proposed 5kt from Yellierie it brings you up to around 1% of BHP production.

While BHP is planning to ramp up their uranium production this is not about uranium, even with an expanded Olympic Dam and Yellierie their U3O8 prduction will be a small fraction of their coal and petrochmical production. It's about Kloppers acceptance that a carbon tax is inevitable and about BHP being a large energy producer and being involved in the process to try and get conditions most favourable to them.

http://www.businessday.com.au/busin...d-by-backing-a-carbon-tax-20100917-15g87.html

 

[Knobby22]

While BHP is planning to ramp up their uranium production this is not about uranium, even with an expanded Olympic Dam and Yellierie their U3O8 prduction will be a small fraction of their coal and petrochmical production. It's about Kloppers acceptance that a carbon tax is inevitable and about BHP being a large energy producer and being involved in the process to try and get conditions most favourable to them.

http://www.businessday.com.au/busin...d-by-backing-a-carbon-tax-20100917-15g87.html

45 countries already have some form of carbon tax.
Australia is a laggard but will eventually follow. Kloppers says he is a strong proponent of the carbon/global warming scenario and also understands that it doesn't want to be caught by surprise. I agree.

 

[drsmith]

Companies such as BHP care much less about a broad based consumption tax such as a carbon tax than they do about direct taxes on their profitability such as a resources rent tax. When faced with governments that want to increase taxation overall, it's better for them that the pain be more thinly spread across a larger proportion of the economy. Most important for business is certainty, regardless of who is in power and how they raise taxes.

Labor's smoke screen over the introduction of a carbon tax during the campaign was thin at best and anyone with half the brain of a mouse should have seen through it. Bob Brown was utterly blunt, stating that a price on carbon would be introduced this term. As I said before, a vote for the ALP was a vote for a carbon tax. No one should be suprised they are now marching in this direction as fast as they can.

Regardless of the environmental merits, the core purpose of a carbon tax (and the RRT for that matter) for the ALP/Greens is to increase the overall tax take. It's this increase in tax by stealth that I object to. They are trying to pluck more from the goose without it squawking until it's too late.

As for Tony Abbott, we now no he's no Bill Gates when it comes to telecommunications. We also know he abandonded any moral high ground he could have claimed on great big new taxes with his tax slug on business to fund his extravagant maternity leave scheme. What could have been had he not done this? This, we will never know.

There are two predictions I make at this point,

1) There will be another election within 12 months.
2) Tony Abbott will never be PM.

 

[Knobby22]

There are two predictions I make at this point,

1) There will be another election within 12 months.
2) Tony Abbott will never be PM.

Big call!

 

[noco]

Julia Gillard yesterday in her press release mentioned at least 10 times Mr.Rabbott broke his promise on parliamentry reform. OMG, she is carrying on like a jilted fiance. There was only one item he reneged on was the pairing arrangement of the speaker because it was uncontitutional.

How many broken promises has she made.

She said she fully supported Kevin Rudd and would not challenge him for the leadership.

She made pre election promises and states after she won government that all those promises would become null and void because of the hung parliament.

She said there would be no CPRS untill 2013. She now looks like succumbing to the Greens demands for a CPRS within her first year.

This woman is an out and out hypocrite.

 

[IFocus]

Peter van Onselen


Leader fails the honour test in Speaker backflip

"HE wants to blow the place up. He'll either be a terrorist or go kamikaze - we'll see."

That is how one of Tony Abbott's frontbenchers summed up his decision to walk away from an agreed parliamentary reform to pair the Speaker's vote.

Abbott will either bring down the government or himself as he presses to destroy the workability of the new parliament. It is an interesting tactical decision.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/new...speaker-backflip/story-e6frg6zo-1225928618868


Abbotts erratic behavior unbelievably continues to move further away from what is acceptable for swinging voters Malcolm's smile just got bigger

 

[noco]

Peter van Onselen


Leader fails the honour test in Speaker backflip



http://www.theaustralian.com.au/new...speaker-backflip/story-e6frg6zo-1225928618868


Abbotts erratic behavior unbelievably continues to move further away from what is acceptable for swinging voters Malcolm's smile just got bigger

Of course Gillard would not have done the same thing had it been the other way round. Even Richo agreed this morning.

 

[Logique]

How many broken promises has she made....
....She said there would be no CPRS untill 2013. She now looks like succumbing to the Greens demands for a CPRS within her first year.
This woman is an out and out hypocrite.

Yes, shamelessly so.

How long did the 150 person climate citizens assembly last. As usual, Labor gets the soft-soap treatment from the bulk of the media commentariat, while the Coalition leader is flayed on suspicion. Well it never seemed to hurt John Howard very much.

 

[Logique]

Words fail me. Just an everyday Australian working family.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/nat...ecome-neighbours/story-fn59niix-1225929722652

Gillard and Rudd become neighbours

KEVIN Rudd has bought a near-new $2.2 million two-storey mansion at Yarralumla, a few minutes away from the Lodge to where Prime Minister Julia Gillard moved yesterday.
.......................
"Yay!!! Kevin and I have found a house with a garden in Canberra and move in mid October," she [Therese Rein] announced. "Looking to having Abby (the Rudds' pet labrador) home," she tweeted.

The former prime minister was still in New York ahead of his address to the UN as foreign minister.

The Rudds had been planning an organic vegetable garden at The Lodge but yesterday afternoon Ms Rein tweeted: "Starting to plan veggies for new garden. Espaliered fruit trees? (Gloriously abundant with blossom in springtime.) And some basil. Mmmm. Yum."
.........................
Yarralumla is one of Canberra's most highly desired neighbourhoods. Its 2909 residents, with an average age of 47 years, include the Governor-General, Quentin Bryce.

The parlous finances of the ACT government will receive a welcome boost from the $130,250 the Rudds will have to pay in stamp duty for their new purchase. A spokeswoman for Mr Rudd declined to confirm when the couple would take up residence in their new home.

 

[basilio]

I think it is clear that this current Gillard Labour government will be lucky to last until the New Year. Tony Abbott will harass and destroy anything Labour puts up and in effect make a very difficult task impossible.

But on the other side of the picture I just can't see Abbott gaining support from the Independents as a minority government. He has totally trashed his credibility so the result would have to be another election.

But is this really in the Liberals interest ? My feel of the situation (certainly with a bias) is that the Liberals aggression and determination to undermine the government will play against it in another election.(It will be interesting to see if there are any polls which are asking this question ) If this happens Labour will be returned unencumbered and whatever possibilities Abbott had of influencing legislation in a hung parliament will be greatly diminished.

What I can see happening (if there is any brains left in the Labour camp) is some imaginative and visionary legislation put up by Labour as quickly as possible to encompass the Indies, Greens, Labour and swinging voters and then dare Abbott to oppose it. This would form a part of the basis of a new election if it is rejected.

 

[wayneL]

What I can see happening (if there is any brains left in the Labour camp) is some imaginative and visionary legislation put up by Labour as quickly as possible to encompass the Indies, Greens, Labour and swinging voters and then dare Abbott to oppose it. This would form a part of the basis of a new election if it is rejected.

Well that's the problem isn't it. Labor are incapable of imaginative and visionary legislation.

 

[explod]

Well that's the problem isn't it. Labor are incapable of imaginative and visionary legislation.

You are such a nice and clever little soul waynel. You should be running the country, no doubt about that.

How about a burst of you imagination and vision instead of flat dry criticism of all that is posted that does not fit with your loveliness, or was that your highness or perhaps holyness.

Comeorn, step out for the good of the country.

 

[Mofra]

I would think NBN meets the definition of imaginitve and visionary legislation.

Abbott on the other hand has shown nothing but unimaginitive opposition. He can campaign very very well - I just don't think he can lead.

 

[wayneL]

You are such a nice and clever little soul waynel. You should be running the country, no doubt about that.

How about a burst of you imagination and vision instead of flat dry criticism of all that is posted that does not fit with your loveliness, or was that your highness or perhaps holyness.

Comeorn, step out for the good of the country.

Isn't that a bit of a non sequitur?

Just because I observe a lack of imagination and vision, in no way did I imply I possessed such virtues... and the rest of your post is nothing more than a straw man argument, which by the way is a logical fallacy.

Fallacious arguments might seem clever, but they're not, they're just fallacious and peurile.

 

[wayneL]

I would think NBN meets the definition of imaginitve and visionary legislation.

A nationwide broadband network? Who'da thunk it? Jeez that's never been done before!

 

[explod]

Isn't that a bit of a non sequitur?

Just because I observe a lack of imagination and vision, in no way did I imply I possessed such virtues... and the rest of your post is nothing more than a straw man argument, which by the way is a logical fallacy.

Fallacious arguments might seem clever, but they're not, they're just fallacious and peurile.

In what way do they lack vision or imagination. If the criticism has some merit, no worries. If it is going to be made then some qualification.

During ww2 they were virtually handed power to help bring the country to arms. They created Medicare, Keating floated the dollar, and no doubt we can find some on the other side of the floor. Though Vietnam and Iraq did not do us much good. But its in the past.

As for the Gillard Government, no one yet knows the answer, her new Government is has not been tested on the floor of the House.

Lets just wait and see. A case founded on what no longer exists is not helpfull, IMO.

I do apologise for the in between gobbledygook.