05-November-2008
Portfolio Media Releases, Infrastructure, The Economy, Emissions Trading Scheme
Labor has spent the last 18 months raising expectations on so many fronts without ever looking at the sensitivity of those promises to any sort of economic downturn.
Today’s Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook figures show that the plans the Rudd Government had for their three major areas of reform have been scuttled.
Labor is now back to the drawing board on so many fronts. They had no plan B.
COAG –Commonwealth – State Financial Reform
This was the centrepiece of Mr Rudd’s ‘co-operative federalism’. Labor is now back to the drawing board on this issue.
Infrastructure
Much of Labor’s productivity announcements are based on a projected $76 billion of infrastructure spending. Labor is now back to the drawing board on all of this.
Emissions Trading
Climate change is best tackled from a position of economic strength. The capacity of industry to work with the Government on an early introduction of an Emissions Trading Scheme depends critically on the economic strength of those industries.
The Government is now back to the drawing board on the design and the timetable for its Emissions Trading Scheme and the promises they have made for many vital direct action climate change projects (such as Carbon Capture and Storage).
Media Contact: Stuart Eaton, 0433 298 620