The five one-off cash bonuses in yesterday’s stimulus plan include:
- Tax Bonus for Working Australians of up to $950 paid to every eligible Australian worker (taxpayer) earning $100,000 or less. This will support up to 8.7 million individuals;
- $950 Single Income Family Bonus to support 1.5 million families with one main income earner.
These sexist, moralistic, mean payments will send all the wrong messages, for instance:
- It will fund “Family A” an extra $950 because the mother earns $380pw but not “Family B” because the mother earns $450 per week. This is discrimination worthy of Howard’s white picket fence.
- It will not give any money to people without children on Newstart who live on $230 per week, way less than the Age pension but will give money to workers who earned up to $100,000 last year!
- It will not give any money to workers who pay no tax because they are below the tax threshold, or have deductions and other offsets that mean they pay no tax. So those people with no children who earn $110 per week get nothing.
There is also no imagination in the package. Apart from Insulation, there is nothing about green jobs nor recognition that we could use the package to change the way we see the unemployed. This is a bit odd because there were leaks that indicated there were some more interesting options on the table. Who killed these off?
All right, it was always on the cards that any stimulus would make the assumptions that most workers are still male, and as breadwinners they need attention. All the hard infrastructure stuff has been very much about male jobs in most cases and that is traditional.
One could hope that maybe a new and enlightened government would think about some funding for soft infrastructure such as funding for care services and those other areas where more labour is always welcome … but nothing there.
I know that there will be women in the offices and sales areas that will benefit but…
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Who would know if the detail is in the Bills for some greater creativity in there. Like training benefits as per assistant treasurer Chris Bowen on abc sydney radio earlier today. He said too and I quote words to the effect of “the prime minister will have more to say about that in the future” at about 8.40 am with Deborah Cameron as interviewer.
It’s such a massive ram through, and railroad, it’s not parliamentary democracy by any measure. Even Howard did a long wind up on the GST debate. This so called urgency that won’t wait a week is a joke if not an outright fraud.
This government and the big media are impertinent to think the public should just swallow all this without a good sniff. Tonight on Ch9 Laurie Oakes made a pathetic assertion for a veteran – that a $10B splash in stimulus #1 in December 2008 can be justified by a $700M increase in retail sales over the December period. Yeah? Like what about the other $9.3 billion? Oakes has gone down in my estimation on this hopeless analysis.
Even Ramsey back in October 2008 in the SMH was scathing of the Rudd Govt completely side stepping parliamentary process.
People who think this is all great sport in favour of their ALP govt might just like to consider what about if and when Rudd decides on some policy crock that they can’t abide – which will eventually happen with his power grasping tendencies. Say a $1 billion contribution to the Israeli Air Force to help with their white phosphorous bombs perhaps, or commiting Australian troops to invade Iran? Eh? Or as today he said he was committed to opening up and developing the north west of Australia. No mention of the native title owners or the natural values [like diverting 5 km of river recently to benefit foreign company Xtrata]. Couldn’t happen? It would have to be approved by Parliament first …..
This is thug legislating in my estimation.
You need a roof over your head to take advantage of the insulation bonus.
How about all those homeless folk – no roof= no insulation.
A project to Public housing would generate jobs and provide stability for all those folk on $15.00 an hour part time casual
Work- yes the real world for some.
I am single man aged 35. I am in a secure job and earned less than 80K last year. My morgage repayments have dropped in the last 5 months pretty dramaticly. I stand to receive $950?! Thanks Mr Rudd. Its sad to think I get money I dont want or need and someone on newstart allowance has to try to make ends meet on $200 a week. Its also sad to realise how appaling our infrastructure is in too many areas. I cant help but thinking that opting for handouts to relatively well off taxpayers over further investment in infrastructure is one huge missed opportunity.
Joe, I am also in the fortunate position of not needing my cash injection – $1900 in my case as I have a child. I hereby pledge to give half to the Smith Family – anyone care to join me?
Ah, all of this anti Whitlamite sentiment is explained – Eva Cox is still alive. Bring back Moss Cass, Race Matthews and shag pile carpets. It’s a 70’s thing.