“If people want to access high-speed fibre, they will have to pay $5000 for the privilege… We believe that people in regions should pay the same price as people in Brisbane CBD or Sydney CBD. Under the…
A man in the second group of asylum seekers transferred to Papua New Guinea’s Manus Island calls out to journalists, 2 August 2013.
“We want to end the tick and flick approach of this [Labor] government that has seen nine out of 10 people found to be refugees when that doesn’t match what we are seeing in other places around the world…
Crisis talks: Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Treasurer Wayne Swan at the G20 Summit in Pittsburgh, September 2009.
“I think people are all excited about the fact that when the G20 is hosted in Australia next year, the G20 Finance [Ministers] will be meeting here in Cairns in far north Queensland… of course, that exists…
The Christian Democratic Party has claimed that Mum & Dad taxpayers are getting a bad deal.
“Same sex couples earn 29% more money than male-female couples. Mum and Dad taxpayers are the most oppressed Australians in our economy. Christian Democrats will change that.” – Fred Nile - Official Christian…
The Coalition claims that infrastructure costs in Australia are spiralling out of control.
“Resource projects are 40% more costly in Australia than the United States, building hospitals cost 62% more, schools 26% more and airports a staggering 90% more.” – The Nationals’ leader Warren Truss…
Are claims about private health costs exaggerated, or right on the money?
Health care cost image from www.shutterstock.com
“The changes to lifetime health cover will increase [private health insurance] premiums by up to a reported 27.5%. This is hitting many local residents very hard, with some struggling to find the money…
Children at the asylum seeker camp on Nauru in 2003.
“The truth about the Pacific Solution is that 70%, thereabouts, of those people sent by Mr Howard to Nauru and elsewhere as part of the Pacific Solution, used it as a [way] station and within a couple…
How does Australia’s economy stack up when compared globally?
“We have among the lowest of budget deficits and debt to GDP of any other major economies in the developed world… If it’s so bad, Mr Abbott, why have we been given by the three ratings agencies a AAA credit…
“With one of the most concentrated food retail sectors in the world dominated by the supermarket duopoly, the barriers to making it easy to buy local food in Australia are significant. It is time for Australia…
Kevin Rudd with a chart showing our net debt per capita.
“Mr Rudd can stand up and show us his chart and demonstrate that by comparison with some other countries, Australia’s debt and deficit position is not so bad. But it’s not what we’ve done, it’s where we’ve…
“This year our debt will be $30 billion. This year what we see is that government expenditure has grown by $30 billion… The entire volume of our deficit for this financial year is explained by government…
We take a closer look at the claim the prime minister has made on the Murdoch press in Australia.
“Mr Murdoch is entitled to his own view… he owns 70% of the newspapers in this country.” – Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, press conference, 6 August. One of the more spirited discussions of the first week…
“They [the Labor government] haven’t just slowed the growth of productivity, they have actually produced a diminution of Australia’s multi-factor productivity by 3% since the end of 2007. This is a very…
Universal paid parental leave is now standard in Australia, but would the Coalition’s scheme affect low-paid workers?
[Under the Coalition’s proposed parental leave scheme] “the woman working in the local chemist in Gippsland in regional Victoria would be subsidising the paid parental leave of the woman working in the…
More students are attending university, but how many drop out?
“Today’s drop-out rates are higher than ever before, 20% across-the-board, and in some cases one-in-two. And that’s just one side effect of the demand driven system.” National affairs correspondent Heather…
This week, our experts examine the two most popular Q&A Twitter requests: can we trust Treasury, and how high is youth unemployment? 1. Peter Shergold: Treasury forecasts are too low in good times…
Asylum seeker children who have tried to get to Australia by boat since the PNG agreement was announced will be sent to Manus Island.
“You cannot send children aged under seven to Manus Island because of the issues of inoculation - you can’t do it.” - Opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison, press conference, 21 July. Scott Morrison…
The increase in medical graduates means there’s not enough internships to allow them to practice. So who is given priority and why?
Doctor image from www.shutterstock.com
“At the moment, we’ve got international graduates who are getting preference over Australian doctors in some states.” - Australian Medical Association president Steve Hambleton, National Press Club Address…
The Australian car manufacturing industry is in trouble – but does the government provide less support than other countries?
“By international standards our support [of the automotive industry] is modest, so we have to work hard to attract the new investment.” – Industry minister Senator Kim Carr, Lateline, 22 July. The idea…
Are you less likely to complete your degree if you have a low entrance score?
“The fact remains there is a very strong correlation between people’s entry score at university and their success rate.” - higher education minister Senator Kim Carr, ABC’s 7.30, 17 July. Correlating entry…