Tony Abbott for PM

[FlyingFox]

I'm not chucking mud, just amazed at the lack of perception by the government.
I've being saying it for five years. They are goons, they have played with the economy and it has got out of control.
All their policies have backfired, all their revenue taxes are duds, one has to wonder if someone hasn't been paid off. How could it have ended this bad?IMO

The infighting doesn't help. A stupid treasurer neither.

I remember not too long ago, the consensus was that the Chinese dragon will power the Australian economy to great riches for at least the next 20-30 years....

 

[sptrawler]

The infighting doesn't help. A stupid treasurer neither.

I remember not too long ago, the consensus was that the Chinese dragon will power the Australian economy to great riches for at least the next 20-30 years....

The way it is going the Chinese Dragon will own Australia in the next 30 years, I kid you not.lol

 

[Calliope]

Can you give me an example of a large WA government project that was completed on time, on budget and without stuff ups?

I was talking about the any large projects in Oz not just governments, we have had a lot of cost blowouts due to the "mining boom"

As I said, do your own research, present it, and then we may be able to see what you are on about; what are these cost blowouts due to the mining boom you are talking about? Try to be specific. And maybe you can tell us what all this nonsense has to do with Tony Abbott for PM.:screwy:

 

[FlyingFox]

As I said, do your own research, present it, and then we may be able to see what you are on about; what are these cost blowouts due to the mining boom you are talking about? Try to be specific. And maybe you can tell us what all this nonsense has to do with Tony Abbott for PM.:screwy:

Here are a few from a quick google search. I am happy to present more at a later time.

http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/breaking/13684889/huge-cost-blowout-in-solar-deal/
http://www.markmcgowan.com.au/news/delays-and-cost-blowouts-at-refurbished-muja-power-station-183
http://www.afr.com/p/national/huge_lng_cost_blowout_kaLHigEKnRVunB0go7TRkJ

While I am not defending the current labor government, it pays to see that other projects have had huge cost blowouts in the same time frame due to labor shortages, wage increases, productivity declines etc etc.

While I am not disputing the incompetency of the current government, it prudent not to just attribute every failure to that alone and to see the reasons beyond that. Why? If all failure where the fault of just the government, then the next government needs only to be more slightly more competent. Alternatively, if "our luck has changed", we will need a very strong leadership to get us through.

Are liberals more competent? Arguably yes. Does Abbott have what it takes to get us through GFC type event like in the US? I am not convinced...

 

[FlyingFox]

Just to add, it seems to me anyway that the opinion on Abbott is that he is better than Gillard or liberals are better than Labor.

If we are heading to a hard landing of any description as the alarming revenue shortfalls are suggesting, the more prudent question should be are they good enough?

 

[waza1960]

Just to add, it seems to me anyway that the opinion on Abbott is that he is better than Gillard or liberals are better than Labor.

If we are heading to a hard landing of any description as the alarming revenue shortfalls are suggesting, the more prudent question should be are they good enough?

Wrong question . There's only two parties which form government in Australia so the question is:
Would the Abbott Government be worse than the current government? obvious answer

 

[Calliope]

Wrong question . There's only two parties which form government in Australia so the question is:
Would the Abbott Government be worse than the current government? obvious answer

+1. However, the Coalition will be confronted with the Herculean Task of cleaning up the mess left by Labor. Gillard is determined to trash the joint with economic vandalism before they get kicked out. This is a deliberate Labor strategy.

As Margaret Thatcher said;

"SOCIALIST governments traditionally do make a financial mess. They always run out of other people's money. It's quite a characteristic of them."

 

[Knobby22]

Just to add, it seems to me anyway that the opinion on Abbott is that he is better than Gillard or liberals are better than Labor.

If we are heading to a hard landing of any description as the alarming revenue shortfalls are suggesting, the more prudent question should be are they good enough?

Let's hope so.
I would love them to tackle family trusts so they can't be used as a way to escape tax by the wealthy. Also I would like some limits on negative gearing. There are many ways they could do this without getting rid of it.
They need to spend on infrastructure, desperately. I think Hockey is showing some nous. I am hopeful he will be a good Treasurer. The Oligarch's who try to run our country want GST and levys. These attack the middle class and leave them to do what they like. It is up to us to be educated and not let them get away with it. The fact that Gillard is proposing another levy just shows how clueless she and her treasurer are.

 

[FlyingFox]

Wrong question . There's only two parties which form government in Australia so the question is:
Would the Abbott Government be worse than the current government? obvious answer

Your philosophy vs mine. While there are just two major political parties, there are not just two parties. Looking at the current government, the independents have more weight than most of labour backbenchers (or ministers). Good thing politically? No. But it shows that people can exercise their voting rights.

Your happy to settle for a better government. I want a government that is good enough!

+1. However, the Coalition will be confronted with the Herculean Task of cleaning up the mess left by Labor. Gillard is determined to trash the joint with economic vandalism before they get kicked out. This is a deliberate Labor strategy.

As Margaret Thatcher said;

"SOCIALIST governments traditionally do make a financial mess. They always run out of other people's money. It's quite a characteristic of them."

Why is the current labour party a socialist government? I don't see them giving out handouts willy nilly?

Remember the Howard Plasma or holiday in Bali bonus? The marketing people had a blast!

Funny you should talk about Margaret Thatcher. She had the strength (balls if you will) to follow through with her convictions. If and when any Australian party comes up with a set of policies that is not as near sighted as the next election and not just stuff that is opposite to what the other party is doing,they will have my support.

Until than I reserve my right to question them and their ability to govern.

 

[Logique]

Dear Mr Abbott,
yes I will vote for you. But wake up and smell the coffee on your ridiculous Parental Leave Scheme.
Yours, in exasperation, Logique.

Drop this madly generous parental leave scheme now - 6 May 2013

Drop this madly generous parental leave scheme now - A. Bolt
http://blogs.news.com.au/heraldsun/...this_madly_generous_parental_leae_scheme_now/

It is welfarism gone mad when the Liberals promise - at a time of endless Budget deficits - a parental leave scheme paying high-income working women up to $75,000 to take time off for a baby.

It is very poor economics to pay for this with another big tax on 3300 companies when the economy is so fragile.

It is also poor social policy to reward women so richly if they leave their six-month old child in care rather than raise it themselves, as is best.

And it is also a moral hazard to propose a scheme offering such high incentives to working women to lie about planning to return to work - and leaving employers with the cost and inconvenience of being forced by law to cover for a worker who six months later doesn’t turn up...

 

[noco]

Dear Mr Abbott,
yes I will vote for you. But wake up and smell the coffee on your ridiculous Parental Leave Scheme.
Yours, in exasperation, Logique.

Drop this madly generous parental leave scheme now - 6 May 2013

+1, It is an extravaganza to say the least and I agree it should be scrapped.

 

[Julia]

This issue is becoming a test for Tony Abbott. I haven't seen or heard one positive comment about it.
He has every reason to drop it, or at least postpone it. If he persists, then imo it's a negative sign for his hoped for newfound maturity.

 

[drsmith]

This issue is becoming a test for Tony Abbott. I haven't seen or heard one positive comment about it.
He has every reason to drop it, or at least postpone it. If he persists, then imo it's a negative sign for his hoped for newfound maturity.

It's this comment that could be shifting opinion within the Opposition,

LEIGH SALES: You spoke earlier about your document Our Plan and it includes the statement that, "We have an economic plan for Australia, a plan to lower taxes to stimulate economic growth." Isn't that promise contradicted by your policy to impose a 1.5 per cent levy on big business to fund a maternity leave scheme?

TONY ABBOTT: I hear what you're saying, Leigh, and I know that there are some people who are unhappy about that element of our policy. But let's never forget that we are abolishing the carbon tax, we're abolishing the mining tax and what we want to do is have a modest reduction in company tax that will mean that for big businesses, there is no net increase in tax, despite the paid parental leave levy and of course small business will get a company tax cut and a paid parental leave without having to pay the levy.

LEIGH SALES: So can we clarify: will it be fully offset for big businesses?

TONY ABBOTT: Well, my hope - and we can't finalise the fiscal position, we can't finalise the timings of these initiatives until we've seen the pre-election fiscal outlook and I fear that that will be much worse than the Government is currently letting on. My hope is that we are able to introduce paid parental leave at the same time as we have an offsetting company tax cut.

http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2013/s3744835.htm

As it was, it was a bad idea, but if it results in an overall increase in the corporate tax rate, then it's nothing more than rank socialism.

Of 5399 votes in the following SMH poll, 79% think TA should walk away from it.

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/polit...l-leave-pledge-liberal-mp-20130506-2j24n.html

We can only hope he ultimately sees sense and at least puts it onto the backburner.

 

[drsmith]

We can only hope he ultimately sees sense and at least puts it onto the backburner.

Not today, unfortunately.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/nat...o-revisit-scheme/story-fn59niix-1226635909678

Liberal and Nationals MPs have privately told The Australian they also have concerns about the plan. Some conceded the Coalition policy was not fully considered when it was released, given that Mr Abbott did not seek approval from the Coalition partyroom as required before he released his plan.

Mr Abbott acknowledged that problem in March 2010, but said he had made a “leader's call” and believed it was sometimes better to ask for forgiveness than for permission. He insisted last month that it was a “signature policy” that would be delivered in the first term of government if he won the federal election.

These words about leaders calls and asking for forgiveness are worryingly familiar.

 

[MrBurns]

Problem is he cant be seen to be breaking promises, that's Gillard's special talent, he has to find an honourable way out.

 

[drsmith]

Problem is he cant be seen to be breaking promises, that's Gillard's special talent, he has to find an honourable way out.

The fundamental problem with this particular policy is that he's dug himself into the same hole of fiscal irresponsibility as Julia Gillard and like she's discovered, there's no honourable way out. Hopefully in the end it will be a lesson to him and as the state of the budget increasingly comes to light, he'll see sense.

Interestingly, Alex Hawke is not only critical of the funding method, he's critical of the policy regardless of how it's funded.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-05-06/abbott-facing-revolt-over-paid-parental-leave/4671624

 

[MrBurns]

The fundamental problem with this particular policy is that he has dug himself into the same hole of fiscal irresponsibility as Julia Gillard and like she's discovered, there's no honourable way out. Hopefully in the end it will be a lesson to him.

Interestingly, Alex Hawke is not only critical of the funding method, he's critical of the policy regardless of how it's funded.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-05-06/abbott-facing-revolt-over-paid-parental-leave/4671624

He'll just have to use the well worn "we didn't know how bad the fiscal position was" excuse.

 

[McLovin]

Nice to see Joe Hockey ready to take the axe to bloated welfare payments to those who don't need them.

Shadow treasurer Joe Hockey has raised the prospect of cuts to so-called middle-class welfare and other entitlements by a Coalition government by invoking his speech from last year in which he said the era of entitlement was over.

...

“I believe this will involve some resetting of the national mindset on the role of government.

“Addressing the ongoing fiscal crises will involve the winding back of universal access to payments and entitlements from the state.

“This will require the redefining of the concept of mutual obligation and the re-invigoration of the culture of self-reliance.’’

http://www.afr.com/p/national/hockey_raises_prospect_of_middle_k97QJUdU66Ux04f3Os9XMM

 

[Julia]

Not today, unfortunately.
These words about leaders calls and asking for forgiveness are worryingly familiar.

Sure are.
Imo his credibility would be better served by at least postponing this on the perfectly valid basis that business conditions need to be better for it to be implemented or something like that.
And at some stage he needs to stop being terrified about making any comments about workplace relations.
Something needs to be done to address Gillard's pandering to the unions and if Mr Abbott continues to insist he's going to change nothing he's in trouble before he starts imo.

Nice to see Joe Hockey ready to take the axe to bloated welfare payments to those who don't need them.

Good. However, self interest will always prevail in the electorate, I guess.
The Essential Media report which drsmith posted includes a question about this, and there's some clear rejection of any cutting of middle class welfare. Hope Hockey will still follow through with this.

 

[drsmith]

A second critic of TA's paid parental leave scheme from within the parliamentary party,

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-05-06/more-calls-for-liberal-parental-leave-policy-scrapping/4672744