Faced with the prospect of a massive government deficit — despite promising to bring the federal Budget back into surplus this year — the Gillard government clearly intends to take an axe to the defence forces despite rising global tensions. Basking in a surprising rise in her popularity — undoubtedly fuelled by the massive…
The decision by the federal Treasurer, Wayne Swan, to approve the sale of Australia’s largest rural property, Queensland’s Cubbie Station, with the largest water entitlement, to a consortium led by a Chinese government-owned corporation, has highlighted the weakness of Australia’s foreign investment rules. Cubbie Station went into receivership some years ago, and the receivers are…
A bitter construction dispute at the massive redevelopment site of Myers Emporium in central Melbourne marks the re-emergence of the industrial thuggery which was associated with the Maoist Builders Laborers Federation (BLF) in Australia from the 1960s to the 1980s. During the Hawke era, the Builders Laborers Federation was deregistered as a union, and…
With the strong support of the Greens, Labor governments in Tasmania, South Australia and now the Australian Capital Teritory are pushing to get legislation through at state and territory level, as a means of bypassing the federal parliament where it seems that a majority of MPs and senators will reject same-sex “marriage”. The unpopular Labor…