So, you always vote Nats or Libs and always will.
But are they really looking after the bush? With the exception of a pork barrell that may or may not be rolled-out in your electorate just before the election, do they just take us for granted?
Before you jump-in with the old knee-jerk chestnuts, here's a few points off the top of my head to start some thinking:
1. John Anderson implemented MLA and Vaille and McGauran followed him up. This has resulted in a huge increase in livestock levies, NLIS and LPA QA. Perhaps this is OK by you.
2. Howard, Costello and Co. have increased tertiary HECs fees. Does that make it easier or more difficult for your children to attend university?
3. Vaille, McGauran and Co. have welcomed USA meat at risk from foot and mouth sourced by US companies in Brazil. What's their reason for NLIS and LPA then?
4. Vaille, McGauran and co. have agreed that Japan and the US buy meat other than Australian that isn't controlled by NLIS or LPA .
5. American producers are receiving much more for their meat than Australian producers.
6. Australia's debt is the highest that it's ever been by far, which affects us all.
7. Helen Coonan has blustered about pulling Telstra into line but coming up to the election has now passed this off to Ruddock as too hard.
8. Helen Coonan has given Elders and Optus nearly a Billion dollars of our money and apparently the word is that they're still not going to connect the Bush!
9. The Libs & Nats have removed the right of all Australian children to receive an education. They have given Private schools multiples more in funding than tertiary education. (Don't even think about our local state/public schools).
10. Malcolm Turnbull backed by Howard and Truss, are enabling non-farmers to trade in water to turn a profit while our farms dry-up!
That should do for now. Let's not get into the debate on biodiesel subsidies, decimation of rail and health services, whether our money spent on Iraq would have been better spent on better water management than simply putting in more dams, etc etc.
Are these the sorts of issues to make you *really* consider voting the 'other' way this time or have you faced-up to what the pollies seem to take for granted, that you'll vote for them come what may?!
What do you think? (Please leave a comment below)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
Steve Truman posted this response on http://ruralaustralia.wordpress.comSeptember 17th, 2007 at 3:31 pm
G’day,
Your comments are sooo spot on. The coalition government boldly announces that the Australian Economy has never been stronger, rural Australia has largely missed out on the boom times.
Add to your list above:
1. Massive Rural Labour Shortages.
2. Fed Gov’t was instrumental in having the State Labour Gov’t’s of NSW & QLD introducing Native Vegetation Legislation that banned land clearing. These tree clearing bans have allowed the government to claim they have met their Kyoto targets. This ban has cost farmers $600m per year for the last 10 years in lost productivity and opportunity. That’s 6billion dollars that farmers have sacrificed to allow the fossil fuel and energy industries to boom unchecked thus driving the economy.
3. The Fed Gov’t has “used” the 76million tonnes of farmers carbon sequestered from the trees not cleared to offset emissions from the coal and power industries. That 76million tonnes valued at $20 / per tonne is an amount of $1.52billion dollars owed to Australian farmers. This is subject to a pending high court case at the minute.
4. The Fed Gov’t when it signed the Free Trade Agreement with the USA, did so with a binding “side letter” agreement that committed Australia to dismantling it’s “house of bricks” Quaranteen standards to the “house of straw” standards we now have. The “side letter” commits Australia to “address” it’s “quarantine barriers” to trade.
5. As a result Australia now “enjoys” the same world health BSE rating as the US - BSE Controlled. That’s why you have US beef back into Korea and Japan.
Australia’s clean & green beef image (BSE Free) as far as the OIE (World Organization for Animal Health) is concerned no longer exists. The US status is now BSE- Controlled, Australia’s is now BSE - Negligible. But under the OIE trade rules - “no country can refuse imports from “controlled risk” countries as long as they have adequate testing and tracking measures in place”.
6. Pork farmers in particular are unhappy with this. Massive imports of pork as a result of that FTA agreement have ruined the industry. The government’s own scientists at the CSIRO have said
with the current imports there is a 95-98% chance that one of the worlds most devastating pig diseases - Post Weaning Multi-Systemic Wasting Disease (PMWS) will get into Australia.
7. Let’s just ask Australian Fruit and Vegetable growers how their businesses are going. First they must compete with Asian Fruit and vegy growers for a place on the Wollies & Coles supermarket shelves. These Asian competitors pay their workers $10 a day compared to our $15 per hour. They also do not have anywhere the regulatory pressure or costs on water use and chemical residue.
8. Lets ask Australian Apple growers about the danger to their industry from the disease “Apple Blight” caused by imports.
9. Let’s ask the Horse industry how they are faring with Equine Flu. The only reason it is here (we are an Island nation) is because of the lowering of quaranteen standards. Whats that costing the Racing, Equestrian, Campdraft, eventing, endurance and pleasure horse industry. We are talking about $100’s of millions of dollars in taxpayers money being used to just part compensate these people.
There are just a few more things to add to your list of things that loyal Liberal and National Party voters can consider before just attempting to vote our beloved conservative government back in.
P.S I have been a conservative voter all of my life. But in all great democracy’s you get to vote. Enough is enough, this rural person has had a stomach full of being taken for granted by a liberal government that has moved to ultra right economic policies (at the enhancement of it’s bigbusiness mates and at the detriment of it’s rural heartland). The National Party at best has just gone along for the ride, at worst it has been complicit.
There is a threshold of pain for all thinking voters, I’ve reached mine and this time I’ll be exercising my democratic right to do what was unthinkable for me a few years ago - vote Labour at this election.
Steve Truman
Agmates
Judith M. Melville Says:
September 19th, 2007 at 1:59 am
Time for the bush to go look at the new C’wealth Water Act 2007, parts of which cover every creek, stream, river, lake or other waterway in Australia.
Howard and Turnbull are about to take us all for a ride in this incremental step to full privatisation of water resources in favour of international water traders.
Have a thought for the NSW Clarence River in all this, which if the Coalition has its way will have its freshwater stolen to initially hide the problems associated with Howard’s grand ‘free market’ plan.
Blue at Ruralaustralia Says:
Thankyou for your comment, Judith.
This issue is an absolute disgrace!
Everyone including producers needs to manage water better. However, the way the Federal Government led by Mr. Turnbull, is handing-over water management from the Government to the money men is tantamount to treason. ie. It is against the national interest. (And what about Mr. Brumby down in Victoria?! He’s piping the already rare water from the Goulburn to the City and building an inefficient Billion dollar desalination plant (in an electoriate that doesn't want it)instead of managing industry’s water wastage, assisting with farming efficiency practises and ‘tanking-up’ residential areas. Not difficult, but not a lot of dough in it for multi-national lobbyists.
Please have your colleagues add their comments to this post (or on http://ruralaustralia.blogspot.com that might be better as it’s easier to read perhaps). The more we are able to network rural Australia through these mechanisms, the more power we will wrest back!
Blue :)
Post a Comment