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The Forum > Article Comments > Yes, Prime Minister, here are the forecasts you asked for > Comments

Yes, Prime Minister, here are the forecasts you asked for : Comments

By Des Moore, published 20/5/2009

Treasury has not had a good record in recent years in forecasting budget revenues in a more stable economic environment.

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People, including Kerry O'Brien trying to convince Joe Hockey to back down last night, seem to thing that the anything from Treasury is the word of God. Ken Henry is infallible.

Even the Pope doesn't claim to be infallible these days.

Those of us who have such faith in the Treasury and the mortals who run it don't seem to recognise that global expertise (they love the global village and the resulting inteference with Australia normally)has a different idea about recovery.

Treasury has been wrong before, and ALP Governments have always been wrong.
Posted by Leigh, Wednesday, 20 May 2009 10:35:19 AM
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Talk about codswallop.
Your whole premise for the article is "Treasury has not had a good record in recent years in forecasting budget revenues" yet you show absolutely no evidence of such mistakeness.
You reference Yes Minister as if it was real and not a tv show.
On one hand you have treasury handing out good advice to labor in the 70s and 80s that was ignored then have johnny howard ignoring and not even asking them for advice. If they are so crap and useless then why would anyone listen to them and isnt ignoring them the point of your article. So didnt whitlam etc do the right thing by not listening to their advice? After all that is what your saying Ruddy should do.

You really are confused arent you. Treasury is crap then treasury is correct then it may or may not be correct. Then they didnt model the work laws or emissions scheme so they are crap again.
You should make up your mind mate and stick to number fiddling and leave the words alone.
Posted by mikk, Wednesday, 20 May 2009 11:35:30 AM
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The budget forecasting by labor has a couple of extremely worrying factors.

There is a massive debt of $300bn assuming:
The economy recovers, and
Labor severely restricts its spending after this stimulus.

This means a dire situation as a best case scenario. There is absolutely no contingency in the event that:
Treasury have miscalculated, or
There is a need for further spending in the next 6 years.

My view is that it is a case of spend now and hope for the best. the treasury prediction may well be accurate, and I hope to god it is, but I am uneasy about jumping without a reserve parachute.

Prudent planning would at least consider that the rosy scenario might not eventuate, and have a fall back plan.
Posted by Shadow Minister, Wednesday, 20 May 2009 11:42:10 AM
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Like Noah and ark dear old Des is always with us,has he ever got anything right I don think so,just another right wing hack like Leigh,as long as its not Labour,lets get back to right wing crooks who caused this,and Pete the spineless to run Treasury and all will be well.
And maybe if we are lucky Rush Limbaugh will come and pat you all on the head,Joe Hockey is a dunce and a man with an overinflated sense of his own importance
Posted by John Ryan, Wednesday, 20 May 2009 10:52:25 PM
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On the ABC news this morning,

The labor minister admitted that there was a large margin of error in the treasury estimates.

So John, your spew at Leigh appears completely unfounded.

A large plate of crow is in order.
Posted by Shadow Minister, Thursday, 21 May 2009 9:41:30 AM
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Poor Libs must be feeling a tad left out.
Just because Howard ignored Treasury and ramped up spending to consume all of the *temporary* income during a boom does not mean that governments should ignore the independent body that is charged with this function.
Who would you rather we believe? "Independent" think tanks?
The time for voodoo economics is past.
Pandering to the profiteers has got us into the worst financial crisis ever. We are not listening to your marketing messages anymore.
The easy money is gone and now we have to grow up and face facts. We cannot afford middle class welfare nor corporate welfare nor the cronyism and corruption of the Libs.
Yes, governments can and should take the advice of the independent body most suited to give unbiased facts. Of course it is not 100% accurate. Nothing is! Grow up. The Liberals approach to opposition is even more cynical than it was in government.
Lets just call them the "profiteer, fear and BS" party...or for public consumption: "Happy profits, righteous wars, yay for us" party.
We seriously need an opposition to keep Labor in line, but this bunch of wackos is *not* a good opposition.
Posted by Ozandy, Thursday, 21 May 2009 11:07:50 AM
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public servants allways deliver

http://www.prisonplanet.com/media-ignores-real-controversy-behind-torture-photos-they-show-prison-guards-raping-children.html

The real reason behind Obama’s reversal of a decision to release the torture photos has been almost completely ignored by the corporate media - the fact that the photos show both US and Iraqi soldiers raping teenage boys in front of their mothers.

The Obama administration originally intended to release photos depicting torture and abuse of detainees in Afghanistan and Iraq by the end of May, following a court order arising out of a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit first filed by the ACLU in 2004.

However, a reversal of Obama’s decision was announced this week, after he “changed his mind after viewing some of the images and hearing warnings from his generals in Iraq and in Afghanistan that such a move would endanger US troops deployed there,” according to a Washington Post report.
Posted by one under god, Friday, 22 May 2009 8:08:24 AM
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UOG

Your comment has absolutely b*gger all to do with the article on the treasury estimate.

Have you run out of relevant threads to peddle your delusions and conspiracy theories.
Posted by Shadow Minister, Friday, 22 May 2009 9:08:13 AM
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shadow minester,..govt servants lie according as the govt needs it to lie, in the case of treasury we have the fed..[not govt]spruiking up the bankers line..[the fed isnt a yes minester issue]

but the photo's the media refuses to discuss is..[i see it as relivant in exposing the bigger picture..[when howhard let the treasurey make its forcasts labour was mute,..from ignorance or beastly complicity..[who knows]..

but the issue is yes minester..[however much you might like to limit the topic

[but now hockey stiche,..knowing how treasury lied for howhard is exposing the deceptions of treasury..all of a sudden the closet liberals silent for so long..try to keep focus on one single aspect of yes minester-ship..its a big cake

it is my opinion there is enough scope to expand the concept..[people havnt really been flokking to the topic]..i would even expand it..that the yes minester extends even to anon bloggers

by thier deeds will they be revealed..[deeds not deed]

you raise your points..[i raise mine]..we each are reacting to the topic...if you dont see the same public-service..[willing to be photgraphed ..RAPING kiddies for govt leaders..and their murderouse adgenda's..

[equals treasury lying for govt]...mate its the same thing..[except no one is revealing the proof]...

and media focus on one to the exclusion of the other..[but they are the same intrenched autocratic elites..playing their faulse god like powers to decieve..those they are charged to protect

this yes minester thing..extends to every act of govt
to every govt..wether it please you or displease you

this is my opinion
thank you for yours
Posted by one under god, Friday, 22 May 2009 9:49:49 AM
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