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]

Lol @ abbott trying to change his image to being a decent guy 😄

[vicr3000]

No, probably because of the agreement.

[debra9275]

Bishop said no and then abbott said he would allow it

[gleee58]

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@debra9275 wrote:
Bishop said no and then abbott said he would allow it

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Bishop needs retiring off. She has lost the plot and is an abuse of parliament.

I find it hard to believe I actually liked her at some time in the distant past.

[debra9275]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-03-03/dissident-liberal-mps-celebrate-medicare-co-payment-dumping/62...

Medicare co-payment 'death' should dampen leadership chatter, dissident Liberal MPs say

Outspoken Abbott Government backbenchers are celebrating the "death" of the controversial Medicare co-payment and say it should further dampen leadership chatter.

Liberal MPs Andrew Laming and Mal Brough previously publicly criticised the proposal.

But both men have now said Mr Abbott's decision to declare the policy "dead, buried and cremated" is "hard evidence" the Prime Minister is listening.

"I think you'll see a renewed Coalition now", Mr Laming said.

"This [policy] has done enormous damage to the Coalition brand. This was the big one.

"I've got no doubt Tony Abbott is a new man since the [failed leadership spill motion] of a couple of weeks ago.

[vicr3000]

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@gleee58 wrote:

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Bishop needs retiring off. She has lost the plot and is an abuse of parliament.

I find it hard to believe I actually liked her at some time in the distant past.

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Bishop performs well and is a good pollie.

Why wouldn't you like her ?

[debra9275]

http://www.afr.com/p/national/politics/voters_views_of_pm_attributes_are_vE0pCC2UKXjUaupp3CCceO?eid=...

Voter views of Tony Abbott are devastating

For the Coalition, the closing of what appeared to be a catastrophic loss of support will be a relief, if only because a 52/48 or even 51/49 two-party preferred vote in favour of Labor, put it back in striking distance of Labor.

The result will also be grabbed by Abbott supporters in the party room as a sign that everything will be okay, despite the fact that the government has bungled almost everything it has touched in the past couple of weeks.

They will be able to argue that the baseline messages the government has been trying to deliver have been getting through the static, whether that be on national security, a clamp-down on foreign investment or on generally looking like the government is in charge of dealing with the electorate's apparent fears of "baddies" and "berries".

But the obviously notable feature of the poll is that, while the party vote has recovered to its late 2014 levels, the Prime Minister's relationship with voters is not following quite the same path. While the party vote is effectively back to where it had become entrenched, Tony Abbott's net approval rating now is minus 30 compared with minus 19 in December, and minus 7 in November.

He is doing better on the preferred prime minister ratings than he was in December, lagging Bill Shorten by just 5 points compared with 8 points in December.

But his approval ratings remain abysmal, and in comparison with Malcolm Turnbull, voters' views of his attributes are devastating.

The question is: what is driving voters' views of the leaders? One view prevalent in Parliament House last week was that voters may have already been taking a leadership change into account – resulting in better party figures. Another argument is that, while they don't like Tony Abbott, the prospect of a change of government or a change of leader still alarms them

[debra9275]

http://www.smh.com.au/comment/fear--the-abbott-governments-weapon-of-choice-20150302-13rsb2.html

The intergenerational report ought to be an information report but instead has become another means by which to frighten us.

What does a government do when it's lost all authority? It tries to scare people, big time. Last week it was national security. Prime Minister Tony Abbott used the word "threat" 16 times in 24 minutes. He used "death cult" nine  times.

He promised to cancel welfare payments and revoke citizenships (as if those things would make a difference) and said the courts had been too quick to grant bail (as if the Commonwealth could do anything about it).

[vicr3000]

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@debra9275 wrote:

http://www.smh.com.au/comment/fear--the-abbott-governments-weapon-of-choice-20150302-13rsb2.html

The intergenerational report ought to be an information report but instead has become another means by which to frighten us.

What does a government do when it's lost all authority? It tries to scare people, big time. Last week it was national security. Prime Minister Tony Abbott used the word "threat" 16 times in 24 minutes. He used "death cult" nine  times.

He promised to cancel welfare payments and revoke citizenships (as if those things would make a difference) and said the courts had been too quick to grant bail (as if the Commonwealth could do anything about it).

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"and said the courts had been too quick to grant bail (as if the Commonwealth could do anything about it)."

Can't affect NSW but they can bring someone up on Federal charges. It's been done before.

Means to an end !

[debra9275]

http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/corralled-and-controlled-journalists-the-colla...

Corralled and controlled: Journalists the collateral in Parliament clampdown

So it was at Parliament House on Tuesday when Turnbull emerged from an International Women's Day breakfast. While Prime Minister Tony Abbott evaded media questioning, Turnbull entertained the press pack with tales about his use of the self-destructing messaging service Wickr. It was a cordial affair until one security guard placed a rope bollard behind the mass of reporters, photographers and camera operators

We have asked the sergeant-at-arms for an explanation of what happened this morning and to clarify whether this was a deliberate attempt to trip up media crews," Sky News' David Speers, the president of the committee, said.

Press gallery veterans insist that, under the guise of improved security, journalists are increasingly being corralled, controlled and restricted in their efforts to inform the public about what is happening in Parliament House.

"I fear the terrorist threat is being used as an opportunity to manage the media," Fairfax Media's chief press gallery photographer Andrew Meares said