It seems as though Mark Latham and the ALP have replaced the batteries in their faulty budget calculator!It was reported today that they have "dramatically downgraded some of its earlier promises in key policy areas as it scrambles to keep its spending under control and free up cash for its promised tax relief."
Hmmm. Who would have thought? Labor, facing Coalition attacks on its financial credibility, has been combing the budget for savings to pay for a growing list of promises. After claiming the Government's $14.7 billion income tax cut ignored people earning less than $52,000 a year, Mr Latham promised tax relief for all. Gotta pay for it though Mark!
The cut backs (so far) include:
1: Medicare "hotspot" teams cut from $60 million a year to a total of $80 million over four years
2: Murray-Darling policy down from $350 million to $150 million
3: National Coast Guard scaled back from $610 million to about $450 million
4: They have also abandoned opposition to a Government plan to raise subsidised drug prices, freeing up about $1.1 billion
But we shouldn't be surprised that they got the sums wrong. Lets look at some facts from Lathams tenure at Liverpool Council:
Fact 1: As Mayor, Mark Latham went on a $36 million spending spree, which he claimed would be funded through unspecified savings.
Fact 2: Liverpool Council’s auditor stated publicly that those ‘savings’ never eventuated, leaving the Council with significant spending obligations and a rapidly deteriorating financial position.
Fact 3: In Mark Latham’s last year as Mayor, Liverpool City Council reported a $2.7 million working capital deficit – a fact borne out by the audited financial statements for that year.
Fact 4: Mark Latham’s mismanagement meant that the working capital deficit was on track to blow out to $15.4 million by 1995/96 – a deficit which the auditor said was amongst the highest he had ever experienced and which led to the Council being placed on a Department of Local Government Watch List. Fact 5: Labor Alderman Wendy Waller and former Liverpool General Manager Brian Carr both clearly attributed the Council’s financial woes to Latham’s policies as Mayor.
Latham has been unable to refute these facts. He has been unable to substantiate his claim that he left Liverpool City Council with a working capital surplus. Nor has he been able to substantiate his claim that he cut staff numbers from 500 to 400. Payroll records from the Council indicate that in 1994 staff numbers were 500.
Unfortunately, the Labor Party appears to have adopted Latham’s approach to financial management; lots of big spending promises, paid for by unspecified savings.
The simple reality- and I am not the first one to identify it- is that Mark Latham could not run a local council, and he cannot be trusted with an $800 billion economy.
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