Irelands debt = $2.3 trillion which will take a generation to pay down.

Australia's debt = $247 billion which will be paid off in the next ten years.

There is no comparison. A more active story would be to call for a intergenerational future fund for people being born now.

Julie you should be advocating Constitutional changes that prevents Govt's from creating Debt burden on future generations.

Debt's a Mad Cow Disease afflicting ALP Politicians .

Very few politicians are willing to consider the effect of the
increasing cost of energy and its direct effect on growth.
Please get a grip on the mirage that is being projected by the shale
oil and gas promoters in the US.
It has very little future and will not hold down oil prices.
Our growth is expected to repay our debt, but the cost of energy will
increasingly eat into our GDP, leaving nothing for debt repayment and
interest payments.

It must be understood by politicians that this is not a temporary
condition but is permanent.
For goodness sake read some of the easily available information on
what really amounts to a Ponzi scheme with shale oil & gas.
It is already showing signs of failing.

http://www.resilience.org/stories/2012-12-20/don-t-fall-for-the-shale-boom-hype-chris-martenson-interview

Cheryl, over the next year our debt will increase, as the incompetents remain in charge.

During the ten years thereafter, when the current vandals are gone, and we have competent government, the debt will be paid off.

It is only through Gillard’s corrupt manipulation of the democratic process, that we have had this depredation of our economic security inflicted on us.

It would be enlightening to know precisely how she corrupted Oakeshott and Windsor to turn on their own electorates, and support her unelected incompetent disaster of a government, headed by our first communist PM..

OLO continues to provide Julie Bishop with a forum for Coalition propaganda. It cannot be pretended that she is offering an "opinion" because her opinions operate in a largely fact free environment. I suppose that we should be grateful that it is not another bland set of generalities on foreign policy, but her grasp of economics is if anything even worse.

There are some very good commentaries available on issues such as debt, the proper response of government to recession, reform of the tax system, etc but one looks in vain on OLO for such analysis. It really is an insult to our intelligence to respond to the many critical economic issues facing Australia with ill-informed assaults on current economic policy and wholly unbelievable claims that the Coalition will miraculously make it all right again.

Leo Lane: you really need to take something for your condition.

James, what is needed are weekly columns from people like Lowenstein and Carr to offset the overwhelming, suspect propaganda offered by Bishop and Singer.

What is missing is balance and this problem could be so easily overcome.

More balance would really put OLO on the top of Australian forums!