They can't budget for a HEALTH and HOSPITAL system - yet they can find $400 MILLION DOLLARS to buy votes in the private school industry

They can't budget for a HEALTH and HOSPITAL system - yet they can let 3.6 BILLION DOLLARS in the renewable energy sector ( ... WIND) slip through their fingers to the benefit of South Australia

I am all for giving support to the private schools as well.

At the end of the day Buzz -

Private schools produce people like me.

Public schools produce people like you.

End of.

Andrei.Hicks wrote on Jan 3^rd, 2012 at 10:35pm:

It was TWO medicos

No prizes for guessing who THEY "batted for"

Why don't you ask a few thousand NURSES ?

But if a state election were held now


Just between you and me buz. The election is not due now.

BTW buz what are the percentage points for preferred premier??

Somewhere around 53% Baillieu and 18% for whats his name.

blackadder wrote on Jan 4^th, 2012 at 7:41am:

JUST to keep you up to date - Murdoch Press actually OWN half of Newspoll
NATURALLY, they have exclusivity to polling data

But if THIS is an easier read ?

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/support-drops-for-vic-coalition-ne...

Andrei.Hicks wrote on Jan 4^th, 2012 at 11:03am:

His criticism of the LAST government was over a computer system ( ... built from the ground up) which was half way complete

It was put VERY clearly, from DAY ONE, that it was a FOUR YEAR project

Bracks, Brumby and Andrews WEREN'T

shutting down entire wards of hospitals - and reducing nurse/patient ratios

to cover the bill for PORK-BARRELLING

OOOOOOh that would be the same Dr Hemley you called as on the "Liberal Payroll" when he criticised the shambles that was the Brumby Government Heartsmart roll out??


Your bias and your refusal to admit it is nothing short of pathetic Buzz.

Baillieu hides carbon tax documents


THE Baillieu government has been accused of using ''laughable'' excuses to block the release of economic modelling it used to attack the Gillard government's carbon tax.

The government cited public interest and privacy issues as reasons it will not hand over calculations behind a media release by state Energy Minister Michael O'Brien last July.

The press release, titled Julia Gillard duds Victorians again, lashed the federal Labor government over its carbon tax plans.

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It warned the tax would take ''up to $450 from the pocket of each Victorian''.

The press release predicted, as a result of the tax, annual power price rises for everyone from a metropolitan pizza shop ($550) to a suburban hairdresser ($825) to a country pub ($875).

The figures were given to the Herald Sun newspaper the night before their wider release, and ran on the paper's front page.

Federal government figures say the calculations in the press release overestimate the expected costs and ignore compensation to be offered to some.

Using freedom of information laws, the state opposition asked Mr O'Brien's Department of Primary Industries for all modelling and briefings behind the press release.

Four months later the department wrote back, denying access to all documents because they were ''in the nature of opinion, advice or recommendation'' made during government deliberations. For this reason, the documents were not in the public interest to release, the department's freedom of information officer wrote. He said some documents would unreasonably disclose personal affairs of public servants who worked on them.

A spokeswoman for Mr O'Brien, Kate Walshe, said calculations in the press release were ''based on average energy consumption for a range of business types and households''.

And Ms Walshe defended the decision to release none of the thinking behind the press release. ''The decision was independently made by the department,'' she said.

The opposition's scrutiny of government spokesman, Martin Pakula, said reasons given for rejecting the freedom of information request were laughable.

They showed the government had contempt for freedom of information laws, he said.

''The government can't use a document to justify a hysterical media release and then claim it's an internal working document. They can't have it both ways,'' he said.

The case will cast more doubt on Mr Baillieu's commitment to genuinely reform the state's freedom of information laws - a key election promise.

In 2010, Mr Baillieu attacked the Brumby government for its attitude to freedom of information, which had ''made it extremely difficult to obtain a clear and truthful understanding of the government's activities''.

The Baillieu government this year will put in place a freedom of information watchdog. It will not have powers over ministers or department heads, will be unable to review decisions relating to secret cabinet documents, and could ultimately result in longer delays.

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/baillieu-hides-carbon-tax-documents-20120109-1...