Tony Abbott makes anniversary pledge to ‘protect the vulnerable’
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Version 0 of 1. Tony Abbott has pledged to use the remainder of his term to “protect the vulnerable” and also to build roads and repair the budget, as the government marks the first anniversary of its election. Just back from a trip to India and Malaysia, Abbott attended a Father’s Day event on Sunday with his own dad, Dick, suggesting voters should reserve judgment on his government – which trails Labor in the polls – and conceding he could have done some things better. “Look, with the wisdom of 20:20 hindsight there are always some things (that could have been done differently) but we’ve faced some difficult challenges and I think we’ve handled them pretty well. In the end, that’s going to be a matter for the people to judge in two years’ time but we have faced some tough challenges. We’ve faced them squarely and honestly and we’ve done the best we can, sometimes under difficult circumstances,” he said. His government has come under heaviest criticism for a budget found by several sets of modelling to hit the poorest the hardest and for breaking election commitments to deliver no cuts to health or education and no changes to the pension. But in a pre-recorded anniversary message, Abbott lists “protecting the vulnerable” among the things he intends to continue to do to build a stronger economy over the remaining two years of his parliamentary term. “Over the next two years the government will continue its work building a stronger economy because that means more jobs and more prosperity. “Building roads, ending rip-offs, protecting the vulnerable, repairing the budget and ensuring that our country is strong and safe: that’s the mission of this government,” he says. And in a glossy brochure produced by the Liberal Party to mark the occasion of the government’s first birthday, the government does not concede that it has broken election pledges. “We’re investing more in schools and hospitals. Schools funding is increasing by $4.9 billion (37%) and hospitals funding is increasing by $5.3 billion (40%), over the next four years,” the brochure says. The government has insisted the $80bn it unexpectedly cut from health and education grants to the states over the next decade in the budget does not represent a cut because spending continues to increase, just more slowly than it was expected to. State premiers have accused the federal government of shifting its revenue problem to them. In the brochure, the government also claims “We’re providing jobseekers with more support and assistance – with Restart (payments up to $10,000 for businesses to employ mature long-term unemployed workers), Job Commitment Bonuses and Relocation Assistance”. The budget also proposed to pay unemployment benefits for only six months of the year to many job seekers under 30 years of age, although this measure faces strong opposition in the parliament. Former Howard government minister Peter Reith told Sky News he believed the government should have “been more upfront”. “Oppositions going into an election are terribly worried that if they tell the Australian public there (are) going to be cuts …they’re not going to get in,” he said. Other key achievements listed in the brochure are the abolition of the carbon and mining taxes and stopping the boats. “Stopping the boats” is also listed under the heading “a safer Australia”, alongside increasing defence spending and “tackling home grown terrorism”. Abbott said the “difficult decisions” on the budget had been necessary because of the budgetary situation he had inherited from the Labor party. “It would be nice if there was an easy way to fix Labor’s debt and deficit disaster. Unfortunately it is a difficult job ... but if you don’t take the tough decisions today they’re going to be even tougher decisions tomorrow, that’s the last thing any responsible government would do.” Opposition leader Bill Shorten said: “I think we’ll all remember on election night Tony Abbott said he’d be a government of no surprises and no excuses. Ever since then we’ve seen nasty surprises and pathetic excuses.” “Tony Abbott lied his way into office. Australians didn’t vote for increased taxes. Australians didn’t vote for cuts to the pensions and cuts to family payments. Australians didn’t vote for cuts to the funding to schools and hospitals. Australians certainly didn’t vote to create $100,000 university degrees for their children. They didn’t vote for the broken promises, the dirty deals and indeed the incompetence.” Independent senator Nick Xenophon said voters were feeling betrayed. “The government promised no surprises,” he told the ABC’s Insiders program. “I think some Australians feel more tasered than surprised by some of the changes.” The government has secured the passage of the carbon and mining taxes through the Senate, but many of its budget measures remain blocked in the upper house four months after the budget was brought down. |