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.
Liberals snub Tony Abbott by wheeling out Malcolm Turnbull for assault on marginal state seats
The NSW Liberal Party has risked reigniting leadership tensions within the federal party by using Malcolm Turnbull in a last-minute push to shore up votes in marginal seats.
Fairfax Media has learned that voters in the state electorates of Coogee and Blue Mountains received recorded telephone messages – known as a "robocall" - from Mr Turnbull on Tuesday night.
A Facebook user in the Blue Mountains complained: "As I was just typing that I just got a recorded message from Malcolm Turnbull telling me to vote for my local Liberal. I got one from Mike Baird last week. Don't appreciate that tactic."
The calculated use of Mr Turnbull by the state party is a potential embarrassment for Prime Minister Tony Abbott, who has been kept largely off the campaign trail except for a non-speaking role at the Liberal campaign launch over the weekend.
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A Liberal Party operative warned before the campaign proper that Mr Abbott was "toxic" in cosmopolitan Liberal seats such as Coogee
sounds like Turnbull is a busy man 
Treasurer Hockey pledges budget surplus 'as soon as possible'
The government has further downgraded its pledge to fix the budget with Treasurer Joe Hockey now promising a surplus "as soon and possible".
Mr Hockey unveiled the new target during a PowerPoint presentation to a meeting of Coalition MPs in Canberra on Tuesday.
"We will get the budget back to surplus as soon as possible," the document says.
"All new spending will be offset by savings that are responsible and fair"
John Roskam, from the free market think tank Institute of Public Affairs, criticised the government's new fiscal approach.
"I fear [as soon as possible] sounds like 'not in our lifetime'," he told Fairfax Media.
"What this does is it saps the initiative for reform and I fear we are missing the opportunity to communicate to the public that difficult decisions and choices are going to have be made."
Former Howard government minister Peter Reith has expressed fear the government's claims of a "budget emergency" before the election and subsequent fiscal response "do not add up".
Writing in Fairfax Media, Mr Reith said the promise of a surplus in 2020 is a meaningless promise that can't be believed.
"Anything could happen in the meantime," Mr Reith wrote.
"Most of those who voted for the Coalition expected the Coalition to fix the mess left by Labor, not to sit back and see the fiscal situation become significantly worse.
Canberra Times
"ACCC to investigate iron ore capping comments by Andrew 'Twiggy' Forrest"
"Attempting to cap pricing, or fix pricing, even making the attempt is illegal," Mr Sims told the ABC's Business Editor Peter Ryan.
"The law says that not only can't you do things that are a breach of the competition provisions of the Act, but you can't attempt to do them.
The above is true, however, having heard the ABC interview I would point out that "Twiggy" was NOT talking about "price fixing at all, but a somewhat nonsensical thought apropos limiting production of iron ore, which is completely different and certainly not illegal.
Must be a slow news day, or perhaps the ABC/Sims are digging up some old news for some reason, because here are some snippets from up to a month ago in "Mining":
BHP Billiton chief Andrew Mackenzie said calls to reduce iron ore production in the light of falling prices would only work to harm the Australian economy.
Even so, Mackenzie said halting production would not lead to an increase in the price of iron ore, but would just let other competitors plug the supply gap.
Rio’s iron ore boss Andrew Harding slammed recent suggestions that it should curtail its iron ore output in an attempt to usher in a price increase.
Describing the strategy as “economically nonsensical”, Harding said if Rio stopped producing tonnages, an operation somewhere in the world would be quick to fill the gap.
“If we don’t supply it, somebody else will,” Harding said.
BHP’s iron ore boss Jimmy Wilson also defended the company’s expansion plans.
Wilson said holding back production in the hope the iron ore price would pick up was not the answer.
In a nutshell: Twiggy's iron ore is expensive/uneconomic to mine now, of course he would like a cap on production as IT MIGHT boost prices, but it will never happen, and his expressed thoughts/hopes are not illegal.
Have to feel sorry for his shareholders though.
Treasurer Hockey pledges budget surplus 'as soon as possible'
Courier Mail May 2012
Treasurer Wayne Swan to pledge to deliver $1.5 billion Budget surplus this year
SMH Dec 2012
Swan dumps his surplus pledge
History, the bitter aftertaste of a perceived cure.
Jan 2013
SHADOW treasurer Joe Hockey insists a coalition government will deliver a surplus in its first year, even though the pledge is not mentioned in a new policy document.
"Our commitment is emphatic," he told ABC radio this morning.
"Based on the numbers published today we will deliver a surplus in our first year and every year after that."
news.com.au
25 March 2015
Mr Hockey said he hoped to have the Budget back in surplus “as soon as possible”.
