So my criticism of bleep head gets under your skin. i could start on about barnett mucking up the WA economy if you like.. 'better fiscal managers' 'interest rates will always be lower under a liberal govt' 'we have have an an understanding with indonesia' on and on it goes
try this one.
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The downgrade of Western Australia’s credit rating illustrates how governments can’t merely talk about fiscal discipline, they need to show it. Glenn Dyer and Bernard Keane report.
There was a decided air of delusion in Canberra yesterday. While Tony Abbott was kicking off his Prime Ministership by refighting the climate wars and displaying how extraordinarily petty he can be, reality was mugging his economic agenda.
Standard & Poor’s downgrading of Western Australia’s AAA rating carries one big message for the new federal government — especially Abbott and Treasurer Joe Hockey — and that’s all about political will.
WA was put on a negative outlook in 2012. Yesterday S&P moved to trim the rating to AA-plus (stable) because of fears about the government’s commitment to bring down the state’s $28.4 billion debt, despite previously pledging itself to do just that. Premier Colin Barnett has recently reversed a number of revenue-raising measures contained in the 2013-14 budget.
As we noted a few weeks back, Barnett’s budget problems reflect those of other Australian governments, including the difficulties Labor faced — and which Abbott and Hockey now face. S&P said in a statement:
“The lowering of WA’s long-term issuer credit rating reflects our view that while the fiscal action plan announced in WA’s fiscal 2014 budget improves the State’s path, in our view there is likely to be slippage, reflecting our view of limited political will, as evidenced by the early revision of some budget revenue and expenditure measures. The ratings are constrained by our view of moderate budgetary flexibility and budgetary performance. WA’s debt burden is now at the high end of the domestic peer group, and in our view is likely to continue rising.”
Even the state’s stable outlook is at risk unless the government came up with a more convincing plan to cut debt, the agency said:
“The rating could be pressured if WA’s consolidated cash operating balance looked likely to fall into deficit without a convincing plan to return to surplus.”
Like Campbell Newman’s Queensland government, which was further downgraded last year after the state lost its triple-A rating under Labor, the Barnett government is giving the lie to Abbott’s claim that better fiscal management is somehow in the Liberals’ DNA. And that’s despite both states enjoying resources booms and both governments boosting mining royalties ahead of the introduction of the ALP government’s mining tax, thinking themselves very clever by undermining the federal mining tax for revenue and partisan reasons.
The problem is, while the Labor government in Canberra copped so much criticism for its fiscal management, it was doing the hard yards while Barnett was sitting on his backside.'' http://www.crikey.com.au/2013/09/19/economic-reality-mugs-the-liberal-economic-agenda/
