Rudd chews his pen

Opposition Leader Kevin Rudd has been busy at the drawing board drafting a 4-page policy platform document for the 400 delegates that will be attending the ALP conference next month. The platform centres on Labor's model for economic growth and free trade.

Labor has to embrace the challenges of the new century, Rudd said when asked about his blueprint. He made references to things like the rise of China, climate change, the skills shortage, and the need for a national broadband.

Many from within the ranks of the party Left, however, may not be happy with Rudd's plans.

According to some commentators, he encourages support for the casualisation of the workforce, takes a hard line on indigenous welfare and the welfare system generally, and has softened Labor’s position on private health policy.

In other policy moves Rudd has scrapped the former Labor Leader's controversial forestry policy. And will overturn policies on federal funding for schools and uranium mines.

Although Rudd intends to scrap WorkChoices he has not yet pledged a return to unfair dissmissal laws.

Despite potential criticism from within his own party Rudd remains confident that his party will endorse the platform.

“When it comes to our party and our movement putting forward the best plan possible for the economy of the 21st century, some may oppose that, but I intend to prevail,” he said.

The Government is sceptical of Rudd's conviction, saying that he is all words and will eventually kowtow to the unions.

Rudd has accused the Government of riding on the economic boom of the mining industry and lacking any real economic vision.

Kevin Rudd Labor economy

Guilty by association?

The US military commissions have come under further scrutiny as US military lawyer Major Michael Mori entered a guilty plea on behalf of Guantanamo Bay detainee David Hicks.

Hicks pleaded not guilty to a charge made by the military commissions that he entered Afghanistan in December 2000 to provide material support for terrorism.

He pleaded guilty to another charge of material support for terrorism, however, that consists of a number of detailed allegations. It alleges, for example, that Hicks had links to terrorist organisations, trained under al-Qaeda, and met Osama bin Laden.

Prime Minister John Howard told Parliament today that the Government welcomes the latest development and progress towards a resolution.

The Government has had to fend off growing public criticism over its handling of Hicks’s case. They weren’t seen to be doing enough over the 5 year period to pressure the Bush administration into finding a resolution.

“It has always been our view that Hicks should face justice but we have been very concerned about the time that it has taken,” the Prime Minister said.

The legailty of the military commissions remains a contentious issue however. The Government's position is summed up by Foreign Minister Alexander Downer:

“Different courts and different jurisdictions have different practices and when you go overseas and you get seized overseas and taken before a court, you have to live within the jurisdiction within which you've found yourself.”

Labor leader Kevin Rudd has so far refused to comment, preferring to wait until the final outcome. Rudd said, with reference to Hicks's guilty plea, “we are, therefore, now in the midst of this quite complex legal process and for those sorts of reasons we ourselves are reluctant to comment.”

Rudd has been highly critical of the military commissions in the past. In his opinion Hicks was not going to get a fair trial and should have been tried in a civilian court.

For a detailed list of the charges see:

http://beforeithappens.wordpress.com/2007/02/06/the-charges-and-allegations-against-hicksdawood/

David Hicks guilty plea Guantanamo

Howard says IR laws are not driven by ideology

The Prime Minister will not budge on WorkChoices despite the latest opinion poll which said that 60 per cent oppose the industrial relations laws. “The policy in its substance and its intent and its principal components is not going to change,” he said.

His firm stance on the workplace reforms Howard asserted was not an ideological or personal thing. The reforms were put into place to sustain a flexible labour market economy, he said.

According to Howard, Workchoices has created over 260,000 jobs since it was introduced. People will come around to accepting the reforms as a part of our future economy as they did with the GST, he said.

Howard has likened suggestions that he roll back the Workplace laws to Labor's ditched proposal to rollback the GST some years ago. People would be "aghast" if you did something like that that now, he said.


John Howard WorkChoices

The Quick & the Dead

Opposition Leader Kevin Rudd has seized upon the government’s inertia over broadband infrastructure with his announcement that he will use Treasure Peter Costello’s so-called Future Fund to finance a comprehensive national broadband network. No sooner does he announce this, when we now have news of a new star recruit in Greg Combet joining the Labor party - after having previously doused suggestions that he would be joining Labor.

One wonders if this constant shifting of ground in the news media opens Rudd to the accusation that he is unable to sustain debate on policy. Is it too much for ordinary Australians to keep up with; is Rudd surfing the electorate like he does the net?

Greg Combet Kevin Rudd Peter Costello Future Fund

Hockey on Thin Ice

In a poll conducted on the eve of the NSW state election, industrial relations legislation was the main issue on voter’s minds, subsequently returning Labor to government with a minor swing against it. It was the first time that the Howard government’s contentious WorkChoices legislation featured strongly in an election campaign.

The Prime Minister yesterday deemed the industrial relation laws irrelevant to the outcome of the NSW’s election, but conceded that federal Labor will try to exploit it nonetheless.

Federal Workplace Relations Minister Joe Hockey was not so certain that the workplace laws were irrelevant to the election’s outcome. According to Hockey, opinion poll ratings actually dropped for Labor when they started the negative campaigning on industrial relations. Yet, the ads were effective, he said, “we've just seen that in NSW with the union bosses funding an outrageous campaign.”

Meanwhile Hockey has had to defend his own freely dispensed advice on the intricacies of the new industrial relations legislation.

The NSW Industrial Relations Commission is in the process of investigating workers’ entitlements at the manufacturing company Tristar.

Head of Tristar Cheng Hong claimed that Hockey told him in January to sack his workers and then re-employ on workplace agreements. Hockey refuted the claim, calling it a load of rubbish.

“I went into bat for the workers,” Hockey said.

“I explicitly said to the company that they should honour their obligations to the workers and the company said we still have work.”

“If the company was going to rebirth at a later time, then that was up to the company who they employed and how they employed them.”

Hockey is also facing questions over not declaring a family trust fund on his financial interest statement to the Parliament.

Hockey and his children are the sole beneficiaries of The Babbage Hockey Family Trust, which was set up one year ago. Hockey claims he had no knowledge of the investments the trust made.

His wife, Melissa Babbage, runs the company that manages the trust fund.

Joe Hockey WorkChoices NSW election Tristar

Is Labor practicing what it preaches?

Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer is critical of the Opposition for their continuing attack on Senator Santoro. “What more can he do?” Downer said. “Leave him alone now; he’s resigned, think about him as a human being.”

“I would have thought the Labor Party, which pretends it wants talk about policies should practice what it preaches, but of course it seldom does.”

Both Labor and the Greens are questioning the Prime Minister over the knowledge he had of Santoro’s share activity, suggesting that he is implicated in a cover-up. John Howard’s chief of staff, Tony Nutt, changed the wording of the declaration Santoro made to the Senate in December yet failed to detect the multitude of other share transactions.

The Prime Minister maintains he who knew nothing about Santoro’s other share activities until just a few days ago.

Alexander Downer Santoro John Howard Labor

Yes I’m done, you can take it away now nurse

Prime Minister John Howard needed Senator Santoro’s mess like he needed, “a hole in the head.” Fresh-faced Christopher Pyne has been given the task of inspecting the bedpans of the former Minister for Ageing. Allegations are rife that Santoro advanced the business interests of his nursing bed provider friend, Russell Egan Jr.

Meanwhile Labor is gathered around the piano in the recreation room singing the praise of the latest Newspoll results. Labor currently leads the Liberal party 61 points to 39 points on a two-party preferred basis.

Santoro might have taken a bath on his stocks with his enforced retirement, but at least he's guaranteed himself a bed?

Newspoll Santoro John Howard Christopher Pyne