A new Galaxy Poll, conducted exclusively for The Courier-Mail, shows Labor’s primary vote has returned to rock-bottom at 23 per cent.

That translates into a two-party preferred vote to the Coalition of 64-36 – the same deathly mark that sentenced Labor to one of the nation’s worst election defeats at the March state election.

….No federal Labor MPs would be left in the Sunshine State if this result were repeated at the next election.

People are angry.

Almost 60 per cent of respondents to the poll said Labor deserved to be reduced to a rump of one or two seats in Queensland.

Under Julia Gillard, Labor’s primary vote has, for the second time, fallen to the lowest level recorded in the history of the Galaxy poll.

But not with the Coalition or their new Premier Newman.

The Liberal National Party primary vote is now at 56 per cent.

According to Greg Combet, of those 1.6 million families 1/3 will not receive enough compensation to cover the increase in costs due to the carbon tax. In 2011 there were 6.4 million families in Australia. So that’s only around 17 per cent of families that will have their costs covered, assuming Treasury models are correct. Given the last minute cash splash handout announced by the government in the Budget, it seems Swan thinks Treasury may be wrong. It is safe to assume therefore that 17 per cent is an upper band figure of families that will not be worse off because of the new tax.

Hardly seems fair. So much for only the big polluters paying.

What the ALP have done

Hockey explained how the government‘s forecasted budget surplus has been delivered by mostly cooking the books, with about $8 billion in expenditure transferred from FY12/13 to FY11/12. Hence, one reason why the FY11/12 budget deficit doubled to $45 billion.

When the NBN is taken into account – taken off the books by Swan – along with the money shuffle, the actual budget balance in FY12/13 is a $12.4 billion deficit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Treasurer says this is normal accounting but the $50 billion NBN and the $10 billion CEFC are not “normal”. Their size and asset quality are not on a par with a Qantas floated for $2 billion, Commonwealth Bank floated for $8 billion, or Medibank Private valued at around $4 billion.”

The real deficit is despite the government – maybe because of – having increased or introduced 26 new taxes in 4 ½ years.

What the Coalition will do.

1. Hockey effectively committed to restoring Australia’s Defence funding levels to something approaching the Howard years.
2. The Coalition will privatise a range of government assets, including Medibank Private.
3. The Coalition will of course balance the budget when it gets into office, and including its first budget.
4. Abolish or lower a bunch of taxes, including cuts to corporate and personal income taxes and not funded from any the carbon tax, et al.
5. Work for the dole will return and be enforced, along with Abbott’s feral street kid round up and serfdom boot camp, otherwise known as Green Corp.
6. Improve financial incentives for building and construction along with ripping the heart out of environmental regulations, while of course caring for the environment at the same time.

In short, take a meat axe to government and stir. Sounds promising.

Hockey also tried to hose down expectations that the Coalition will sign up 100 per cent to the National Disability Insurance Scheme without it being affordable. A scheme which in any case seems like a media release looking for a policy.

Shadow Attorney General George Brandis:

A great deal of nonsense has been talked about the presumption of innocence in the Craig Thomson and Peter Slipper cases.

By invoking this principle, Julia Gillard has tried to stifle public discussion and parliamentary scrutiny of events that are a matter of legitimate public interest.

As respected Brisbane QC Tony Morris pointed out in The Spectator Australia this week, the presumption of innocence is a legal rule about the burden of proof in criminal trials. It exists only within the context of a criminal trial and can be understood only as an aspect of the laws governing criminal evidence and procedure. As the author of the canonical text on the law of evidence, Rupert Cross, says: “When it is said that an accused person is presumed to be innocent, all that is meant is that the prosecution is obliged to prove the case against him beyond reasonable doubt.”…

Of course, Gillard is happy to abandon the presumption of innocence when it suits her. Julian Assange was afforded no presumption of innocence when she declared him—wrongly—to have broken Australian law… The Australian Defence Force Academy’s Bruce Kafer—against whom no allegations were made—enjoyed no presumption of innocence from the Gillard government last year…. Howard and Peter Reith were vouchsafed no presumption of innocence by the Labor Party over the “children overboard” allegations, nor Alexander Downer over the oil-for-food scandal. Of course, those gentlemen didn’t invoke the presumption of innocence, because they were confident that they had done no wrong.

People who know they have nothing to hide rarely, as the Americans would say, “take the fifth”. But in the dystopia that is the Gillard government, the presumption of innocence has become the refuge of the scoundrel.

1. Read the folllowing article on using body language and other cues to detect a liar
2. Watch Thomson’s interviews where he denies accusations he used HSU funds to pay for prositutes, fund his election campaign, and other personal expenses:

Article on detecting a liar:

http://www.blifaloo.com/info/lies.php

Craig Thomson interview:

http://video.au.msn.com/watch/video/craig-thompson-exclusive-interview-part-2/xdbng0j?cpkey=f2a8958b-cdd6-403a-84a3-ba7ca5d88b01||||

I’ve worked on two labour campaigns. I’m not right out there on the conservative side.

Really?

Very funny.

UPDATE

Abbott’s right of reply address was unconventional, powerful and effective. It is just another little bit of ammunition that will hit the ALP. My favourite part was when Abbott called the carbon tax as socialism dressed up as environmentalism, or words to the effect. I’d prefer to call it socialism dressed up as science.

1. Fairfax Press publish accusations that ALP Federal MP Craig Thomson engaged in fraudulent financial activities while head of the Health Services Union, including use of credit cards, mobile phones and services at HSU expense;
2. Thomson withdraws a defamation action against Fairfax Press, but falsely claims on 2UE that he settled out of court.
3. Craig Thomson admitted to Michael Smith on 2UE radio to signing off and paying a prostitution bill using union funds;
4. Thomson claimed that he didn’t know what the bill was for, saying that he later learnt that an unnamed person had incurred the bill and he forced him to pay back the money;
5.  The NSW Police were not told of the fraud (covering up for a person who commits an act of fraud is still a criminal matter), neither was the HSU board;
6. Thomson’s signature, credit card, drivers licence number and mobile phone were used to book and pay for prostitution services;
7. The brothel claims they verify a customer’s face using a drivers licence before processing payment;
8. Fairfax details Thomson’s union card being used to withdraw $101,533 from ATMs for private purposes;
9. News Ltd has details about an association or trust Thomson set-up and ran to fund his election using HSU funds, that in 6 years never filed for taxes;
10. A complaint was lodged in August 2011 by a HSU member to the NSW Police to investigate possible fraudulent use of union funds by Thomson;
11. 2UE Michael Smith sought out the services of a well noted fraud subject matter expert, Paul Westwood OAM. Westwood concludes that, on balance, Thomson’s signature on the prostitution credit card receipt is not fraudulent – contrary to Thomson’s claims;
12. The ALP bankrolled Thomson’s now defunct failed defamation case against Fairfax – for publishing the credit card accusations – totalling a claimed $90,000, to stop Thomson going bankrupt. Under the Constitution bankruptcy would force Thomson to leave Parliament and result in a by-election;
13. The sum of money paid to Thomson by the ALP to cover his legal expenses was initially not noted on the Register of Members’ Interests. Eventually after News Ltd outed Thomson, an unsigned letter was issued from Thomson’s office clarifying the payment;
14. George Brandis refers the accusations of credit card fraud  to the NSW Police;
15. The HSU national executive also refers the matter to the NSW Police;
16. While initially concluding that there was insufficient evidence to charge Thomson, the NSW Police refer the matter to the Victorian Police and then commence an investigation;
17. Fair Work Australia refuses to cooperate with a NSW Police investigation and then later a Victorian Police investigation;
18. Fair Work Australia’s investigation into the Thomson affair has now taken over 3 years;
19. Fair Work Australia issue a 1,100 page report to the Commonwealth DPP and refuse to make it public, effectively ending the investigation;
20. The DPP concludes that it cannot take action because the report does not constitute a brief of evidence from a criminal investigation;
21. An ALP led Senate committee requests the Fair Work report on the HSU;
22. Craig Thomson refuses to cooperate with the NSW Police investigation;
23. Craig Thomson receives a $160k payout from the HSU board while his successor Kathy Jackson is overseas, including $30k to settle a defamation action against the HSU and Kathy Jackson;
24. NSW Police raid the HSU East office in Sydney and apprehend an individual thought to be HSU head, and former ALP President Michael Williamson, trying to remove documents relevant to the investigation;
25. Craig Thomson relies on his legal right to stay silent and not talk to the Police;
26. The DPP finds no cause why the FWA can’t release its report in to the HSU;
27. The Temby report into HSU finances finds severe deficiencies in HSU financial controls;
28. The PM asks Thomson to leave the ALP and sit on the cross-benches, which Thomson agrees to do;
29. Michael Williamson is suspended from the HSU on full pay;
30. FWA agrees to release the report to a Senate committee;
31. FWA general manager, Bernadette O’Neill, states “substantial funds were, in my view, spent inappropriately including on escort services, spousal travel, and excessive travel and hospitality expenditure“. Most of the contraventions relate to one union official, which George Brandis indicates is Craig Thomson.
32. FWA prepare to take civil action against Craig Thomson.
33. Federal Independent Andrew Wilkie effectively votes to kick Craig Thomson out of Parliament for 14 days, although the vote fails to garner a majority, 72-72.
34. The ALP secretly engaged lawyers Holding Redlich to help Thomson manage the FWA allegations, yet Thomson never declared the assistance on the interest register.
35. The Victorian Police fraud squad raid HSU locations.
36. Michael Smith formerly of 2UE  is interviewed by Victorian Police. Charges are likely to be: obtaining a financial advantage through deception.

Throughout those involved have stated their innocence on many occasions.

If I’ve missed anything let me know in comments. I find it interesting that as soon as the Coalition reached 59-41 in the latest Newspoll the FWA finally decided to release the report into the public domain and one day before Budget night. Is FWA trying to keep their jobs past 2013?

In a nut shell Gillard’s FWA finds Thomson guilty!

FORMER Liberal cabinet minister Mal Brough has admitted telling James Ashby to go to the police and take legal action over allegations of sexual harassment and misuse of taxi vouchers by Peter Slipper after a series of secret meetings with the political staffer earlier this year.

A  junior staffer says he has been subject to sexual harassment by his boss – senior colleagues have an obligation to urge the staffer to go to Police. No cover up. It is disgraceful that the ALP are trying to make mileage out Pyne and now presumably Brough for having urged Ashby to refer matters to law enforcement. In the twisted world of the ALP are staffers required to shut-up when they are subject to or witness sexual harassment?