The Rudd government’s stimulus is working better than forecast, says George Megalogenis — but they can do even better by tweaking what remains of the stimulus.
Rudd government
Why Rudd’s CPRS should be voted down
Passage of the CPRS bill will protect and entrench the very carbon pollution the scheme purports to address. The only sensible vote from any perspective is “No”, writes Bernard Keane.
ALP conference turtles pull their heads in
When a federal MP likens the ALP front bench to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, you know the ALP National Conference has turned terminal.
Labor on child care: promises but no answers
The hot topic of child care remains a mess in Australian, with the government refusing to reveal key data about the status of the industry, writes Sophie Mirabella.
Targeting the terrorist teachers
As part of its terrorism law review, the Rudd government wants to include the offence of inciting violence on the basis of race, religion or nationality, focusing in particular on those who encourage others.
The elephant in the child care reform strategy
Despite the Government already spending over $56M to fund child care and save centres, it refuses to look at how the current funding model made such collapses inevitable.
News Ltd v the Rudd government … V for vendetta
The Rudd Government is exploiting a News Ltd vendetta to the hilt to avoid scrutiny and reinforce the Prime Minister’s popularity.
Why won’t Wong look at bigger emissions cuts?
Why does the Government consistently refuse to even model what 40% emissions cuts would mean, something the Greens have asked for repeatedly over many months? asks Tim Hollo.
How Rudd’s ETS targets will crush climate justice
When at some point poor countries take on emission reduction obligations their low-hanging fruit will have been harvested by our big polluters, leaving poor countries with more expensive options.
Unions, thugs and Labor
The union movement remains deeply angered at the Government’s insistence on retaining a separate enforcement mechanism for the construction industry. The next week should be exciting.
There’s plenty Rudd could do about CBA’s gouging
The CBA home rate rise last week is typical of Australian banks’ cartel behavior, but don’t expect Rudd, Gillard and Swan to do anything about it, writes Adam Schwab.
Dishonesty, hypocrisy, stimulus and The Australian
The Australian newspaper’s current campaign against the Government’s stimulus package has to be one of the more dishonest and hypocritical of recent years.
Crikey Conversations: The future of the Australian public service
Andrew Podger is one of the most respected leaders in public administration in Australia. He chats with Crikey’s Canberra correspondent Bernard Keane about the challenges facing the public service, under Rudd and beyond.
Rudd reshuffle: a win for talent… and factional allegiances
You have to hand it to the Prime Minister — he sure likes making things complicated. Bernard Keane wraps the weekend reshuffle action after Joel Fistgibbon’s resignation.
Hold the champagne on Australia’s growth figures
The collective fawning over the March quarter growth figures by the press gallery shows a thorough misunderstanding of Australia’s economic predicament.
politicians behaving badly Defence Minister Fitzgibbon’s gone
The beleaguered Defence minister is gone (read the back story here). Who will replace him?
Australia avoids recession: what the pundits say
Yesterday’s confirmation that the Australian economy had avoided a technical recession sent the Rudd government into a fit of giggles, but the commentariat was less enamoured.
The little recession that couldn’t
For the Government and Treasury, this is as close to vindication of its stimulus approach as it will get. And all thanks to 0.4%, in black, rather than red.
graph pr0n Six weeks of ALP decline
The government has taken a chunky hit over the last six weeks, while the Coalition is currently equalling their best period of performance this term — last September when Turnbull took over the leadership.
Government tests the power of positive thought
Can the government’s efforts to keep public discourse on the economy positive minimise the impact of the recession? asks Ross Gittins.
Rudd turns his back on closing the gap
Labor’s rhetoric on Indigenous health is better than in the Howard years, but the reality from Rudd and Macklin is no different from Howard and Vanstone, writes Gavin Mooney.
Crikey Says: Things are brighter than the Government would have us believe
Rudd feels it necessary to ramp up the rhetoric of grim times and tough policy responses — but the reality is far brighter.
Budget causes Rudd honeymoon to end… according to Fairfax
Nielsen never actually demonstrated the political change that Fairfax had projected onto it — it was just poor analysis.
Nielsen Poll signals return to healthy Oz democracy
The Coalition should allow themselves just a little celebration over today’s Nielsen poll.
