Diary of our stinking Govt.

[boris1gary]

As it's more than 100 days now, it has been suggested that a new thread was needed.  The current govt has been breaking promises and telling lies at a rate so fast it's hard to keep up.

This below is worrying, "independent" pffft, as if your own doctor is somehow what? biased, it's ridiculous. So far there is talk of only including people under a certain age 30-35, for now. Remember that if your injured in a car, injured at work or get ill, you too might need to go on the DSP. They have done a similar think in the UK with devastating consequences.

and this is the 2nd time recently where the Govt has referred to work as welfare???? So when you go to work tomorrow (or tuesday), just remember that's welfare.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-04-20/disability-pensioners-may-be-reassessed-kevin-andrews/5400598

Independent doctors could be called in to reassess disability pensioners, Federal Government says

The Federal Government is considering using independent doctors to examine disability pensioners and assess whether they should continue to receive payments.

Currently family doctors provide reports supporting claims for the Disability Support Pension (DSP).

But Social Services Minister Kevin Andrews is considering a measure that would see independent doctors reassess eligibility.

"We are concerned that where people can work, the best form of welfare is work," Mr Andrews said at a press conference.

[debra9275]

yes I do follow the ASX and it's been in recovery mode from the GFC for the past couple of years.

and I do wish I hadn't sold mY CBA shares

 The Aust banks have made a good recovery, they've always been a safe bet

[nero_bolt]

[cherry*135]

"As almost every economist will tell you, there is no "budget emergency"

[debra9275]

of course there isn't. Consumer confidence has slumped because this govt. has been so negative about the economy

[cherry*135]

[monman12]

"Abbott shows his true colours" Interesting the selective excerpts from your link A3. Here are some from the same article:

"This budget scores high marks for its efforts to get the budget back on track. As almost every economist will tell you, there is no "budget emergency". But there would be problems if we allowed the budget to stay in deficit for another 10 years, which was a prospect had Abbott failed to take tough measures"

"The budget's great strength is its approach of announcing savings while delaying their major effect until 2017-18, by which time it's hoped the economy will be strong enough to cope with the reduced spending. That, plus Treasurer Joe Hockey's efforts to increase spending on infrastructure in the interim."

"The public's wholehearted disapproval of the budget"........"No doubt much of this disapproval arises from simple, short-sighted self-interest"

" People got it into their heads that their cost of living was rising rapidly, causing their standard of living to slip. It wasn't true, but Abbott reinforced rather than corrected the misperception. (To be fair, the Labor government was no better.)"

Leaving aside the increasing tendency to just C&P others thoughts,  how would you suggest we slow down, and then reverse, the increasing annual deficit. Perhaps even a thought regarding lowering our debt (it is low but why carry any?). The number of those accessing social welfare, to those contributing towards it (taxes) is increasing with longevity, any original suggestions?.

If we wish to eat cake we should be prepared to grow the corn and then grind it, not sit around and complain (using others words)  that we do not like bread.

nɥºɾ

[boris1gary]

http://www.independentaustralia.net/environment/environment-display/rapid-chinese-demand-decline-cou...

Rapid Chinese coal demand decline may strand Australian assets

As PM Abbott isolates Australia from climate change action and plugs fossil fuels, news emerges that Chinese coal consumption is falling much faster than forecast, potentially leaving Australia's coal assets stranded in as little as five years.Alex Kirby from the Climate News Networkreports.

ANALYSTS BELIEVE that China − the world’s largest producer and consumer of coal, accounting for almost half of global consumption − could be close to making an abrupt and drastic change of track.

A report by the Carbon Tracker Initiative and the Association for Sustainable and Responsible Investment in Asia (ASrIA) says that when China’s demand for thermal coal (cheap coal burned in power stations to generate electricity) peaks, this will leave up to 40% of its coal-fired power generation capacity potentially useless — and that could be in barely five years’ time.

Thermal coal currently provides just under 80% of China’s power, the report says, with up to US$21 billion spent annually on the sector’s assets.

But some forecasts suggest China’s thermal coal demand will peak between 2015 and 2030. The report says that that peak could be reached sooner rather than later — perhaps by 2020.

It suggests four possible reasons:

• Slowing GDP growth and decreasing energy intensity reducing growth in China’s demand for power.
• Policy responses to the air pollution and water scarcity crises reducing the attractiveness of coal as a fuel.
• Pilot emissions trading schemes and discussions about a carbon tax increasing the perceived risk to the future cost competitiveness of coal power.
• Strong predicted growth for China’s renewable energy technologies and other non-coal power sources.

By 2020, the difference between a business-as-usual path and a trajectory towards such an early peak from a combination of these factors equals 56% of China’s thermal coal supply in 2012.

Put another way, it represents 437 GW of coal-fired power capacity — 40% of total capacity in 2020. This shows, the authors say, that there is significant potential “asset stranding” – this happens when an asset has become obsolete and is depreciating – as a result of lower-than-expected demand within China’s thermal coal sector.

The report’s warning is aimed not only at investors in China’s coal industry. It says the changing dynamics of the country’s power sector also pose a risk to international coal exporters who are prepared to bet that China’s apparently insatiable demand for coal will continue.

The authors say that if China’s import demand decreases rapidly, that would require exporters to find another market or be left with stranded assets. They say this risk applies especially to Australian and Indonesia exporters.

The report contains recommendations for investors and policy-makers, and says there is an opportunity for China and other countries to ease the potential disruption and risks associated with stranding assets.

It wants investors and financial institutions with significant assets at risk to be supported in developing a plan of action for managing the stranding process.

Jessica Robinson, ASrIA’s chief executive officer, said:

“Investors need to dispel any belief that Chinese coal demand is insatiable and integrate this transition into their decision-making by stress-testing the relative risks of different future demand scenarios.”

[cherry*135]

Poll figures not a bad mark, says PM

TONY Abbott has played down his frontbenchers’ failure to sell his budget amid further poor polling with voters

PM pinned down by budget:   A TWO-WEEK campaign to sell what Tony Abbott insists is “the right budget for this time” has failed to deliver any boost for the government.

The Australian (behind paywall)

[cherry*135]

Harper and Abbott: Two fossils fooling no one

What unites them is a concern to protect one of their biggest export industries – fossil fuels.

The one country clearly going backwards on carbon pricing is Australia.

Neither Abbott nor Harper have the guts to face up to their electorates and be honest that they think maximising their countries’ fossil fuel export income is more important than addressing global warming.

http://www.businessspectator.com.au/article/2014/6/10/policy-politics/harper-and-abbott-two-fossils-...

[monman12]

Rapid Chinese coal demand decline may strand Australian assets  

"may"

Independentaustralia: (??)
“If China becomes a zero imports market, which is possible, there is a noticeable lack of any viable alternative growth market for seaborne traded coal. Where will Australia’s US$50bn of thermal coal go instead?”
"news emerges that Chinese coal consumption is falling much faster than forecast, potentially leaving Australia's coal assets stranded in as little as five years."

"zero imports", "lack of any viable alternative growth market for seaborne traded coal", "coal assets stranded", what nonsense, because whilst China will reduce its requirement for seaborne coal, many other countries will be requiring more.

Asian thermal coal supply seen tight by 2018 despite China demand slump

"China's thermal coal imports are expected to decline to 75 million mt in 2018 from a forecast 146 million mt in 2014, Goldman Sachs data released May 23 showed."

"Asian demand for thermal coal is projected to rise 103.46 million mt to 845.05 million in 2018 from an estimated 741.59 million mt in 2014, data from Goldman Sachs and other industry sources showed."

I would suggest this would be applicable:  from 2014 Platts, McGraw Hill Financial
"The combined increase in imports by India, Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia, Taiwan, Japan, Vietnam, Philippines, Thailand and Burma between 2014 and 2018 is forecast at 174.46 million mt, outpacing the estimated 71 million mt decline in imports to China over the same period, resulting in the net increase in Asian demand of 103.46 million mt, according to Platts' analysis of the data."

Perhaps a realistic view of forecast electrical energy sources in China might be of interest, because whilst some will be trumpeting the forecast (relatively small)  renewable energy production by the Chinese,  it never seems to be viewed in conjunction with the accompanying increase in fossil fuel electricity generation, and of course the resulting GHG production. 

nɥºɾ