Author: admin

“Today’s Mid-year Economic Financial Outlook shows that the Coalition is totally out of touch with everyone in our community who is feeling under pressure. The Prime Minister hopes to buy the next election with a surplus built upon cuts to essential services and heroic assumptions about wages growth,” Greens Co-Deputy Leader Senator Larissa Waters said.
“The Treasurer may have claimed that the country is doing better than ever, but people aren’t feeling it. Wages have flatlined, household debt is sky-high, homelessness is on the rise and essential services funding has been eroded – it’s only the Coalition’s mates in big business that are feeling better off.
“Crowing about the lowest government spending in 50 years is just bragging about its vicious cuts to essential services. Morrison’s surplus is your children’s overcrowded schoolroom, your delays in getting a hip replacement at a public hospital, your year stuck in poverty without a raise to Newstart.
“Only a Government in bed with the mining industry would slash climate funding after the extreme weather events we’ve seen batter our nation. Cutting a third of climate funds by 2020, while pouring money into drought funding, adds insult to injury for farmers who want a national climate policy to address what’s driving the drought.
“Today’s outlook confirms we still won’t see a cent from our domestic gas industry over the forwards, yet we’ll spend another $83 million on fossil fuel tax credits, creating record high subsidies of more than $7 billion. The handouts to big business keep coming – perhaps a thank you for the big donations to political parties from the fossil fuel industry.
“The lack of any funding for the Government’s weak Commonwealth Integrity Commission proves the announcement was always just smoke and mirrors – they were never committed to delivering anti-corruption measures, and want the rigged system to continue as usual.
“The lack of any long-term strategic planning shows the Liberal and Nationals have no intent, capacity, or right to be leading Australia into the future and addressing our nation’s challenges.
“If this is the best the Coalition can offer, the election can’t come soon enough.”

Australian Greens Housing Spokesperson, Senator Mehreen Faruqi, has described Labor’s housing announcement as tinkering around the edges.
Senator Faruqi is calling on the Labor Opposition to commit to building more public housing stock which will be affordable in the long-term.
Senator Faruqi said:
“Housing in Australia is monumentally messed up. With so many people in need of affordable housing we need radical solutions.
“Labor’s announcement will incentivise private investors for 10 years, but what happens when the subsidy runs out? What we need is massive investment in public and community housing to build homes where people can afford to live in for the long-term.
“We need rent-controlled social housing where people won’t suddenly face homelessness because a subsidy has run out. The Greens have a plan to build 500,000 new rent-controlled public and community homes.
“With Labor’s plan, we will find ourselves with the same problem we have with National Rental Affordability Scheme where people are left facing homelessness when the scheme ends.
“Guaranteeing a home and a roof over people’s head should not rely on ongoing subsidies to private investors.
“Nobody should be without a home. It doesn’t matter whether you’re renting or buying, the Greens plan will make sure there are enough affordable homes for everyone to have a decent and safe place to live,” she concluded.

Senator Mehreen Faruqi, the Australian Greens spokesperson for Education and a former academic, reacted to this morning’s news that the University of Wollongong has accepted the John Howard-led Ramsay Centre’s funding for a degree in ‘Western Civilisation’.
She said:
“Today’s news is a blow to academic freedom in Australia.
“As a former academic, I can unequivocally say that allowing any organisation to influence curriculum, let alone one as shady as this centre, is a huge mistake.
“The Ramsay Centre wants nothing more than to churn out students with an uncritical view of Western Civilisation, and they’re willing to shower our public universities with money to make that happen.
“We must push back hard against this idea of cultural supremacy and stand strongly for academic freedom and critical thinking.
“The University of Wollongong can still do the right thing and reject the Ramsay Centre’s money and the ideology that comes with it,” she concluded.

The strong environmental protections announced by Labor today will fail without proper investment, and a commitment to no new coal, oil and gas.
“We welcome Labor adopting Greens’ policy on stronger protections for the environment, but without proper investment and committing to no new coal, oil and gas they will fail,” Greens environment spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said.
“We need a Government committed to stopping Adani and protecting the Great Australian Bight. We need a Government that will invest in environmental protections and save our threatened species.
“The Greens in the Senate will ensure Labor is held to their promises on protecting the environment. We will always stand up to the fossil fuels lobby and fight for no new coal, oil and gas.
“Labor continues to ignore the calls to phase out coal and stop the Adani mine. They are still split on drilling for oil in the Great Australian Bight, which not only comes at great risk to the marine environment and local fishing and tourism industries, but locks us to burning fossil fuels into the future.
“Unless we transition out of burning fossil fuels, we will continue to contribute to a warming planet at a time when action to arrest climate change is more urgent than ever.”