A few months back we were discussing Bronwyn Bishops helicopter rides and I commented that if politicians make the laws for us then we should make the laws for them.

I pointed out that if we did not do something to fix the system and make politicians accountable then the next time it happened would be our own fault.

I also made a point of saying we need to build a prison just for the politicians to show them we mean business.

Well nobody paid much attention and today I read an article where Scott Morrison just wasted 55 million dollars on 4 refugees, (thats right FOUR) they're not even Australians, and one of them actually just decided to go home to Myanmar instead, because he was remorseful when he couldn't settle in Australia.

http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/first-failure-of-australias-55-million-cambodia-refugee-plan-20151016-gkb42q.html

There's 55 million dollars down the drain, and these foreigners are living in a foreign country in a house better than mine and our government is paying for it.
How much taxpayer money are they wasting just to win a few political points?
55 million dollars could've built quite a nice little private prison for the pollies.
If we had've built it, maybe the idiots would've thought twice before wasting all that money.

The question I ask is the same as I put forward months ago.

- Is this our fault for doing nothing?

It is expensive correcting Rudd's ill-conceived overturning of Howard's 'Pacific Solution', isn't it? Nothing like the cost of continuing the debacle prior to Abbott's gutsy changes to stop the boats.

Just remembering what was,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0MHRSFz6FM

If you really want to be sat back in your seat, check some of the admitted costs of 'saving the world' by taking those so-called Syrian so-called asylum seekers, who are now understood to be Muslims as a result of the Muslim tail swinging the government dog. From a recent comment on The Box, the necessary ratio is ten helping professionals (all paid by the taxpayer) to one 'asylum seeker' when they step onto Oz soil. Work that one out.

How in the hell Australia ends up with the responsibility to conduct economic migrants rescues on the other side of the world, goodness only knows, but put it all down to the moral BS artists in Canberra and in the media. Doubtless the State and local governments that end up being responsible for the infrastructure and so on are not amused. States are never asked either, the feds just presume and go ahead.

Any wonder there are more taxes and the money is never enough to go around?

Onthebeach, Rudds border debacle will go down in history as one of our worst ever stuf up's by a sitting pm in this country.

Meanwhile, he, and Gillard, sit back on their 'SET FOR LIFE ' tax payer funded pensions and I have no doubt that they, unlike ordinary folk, don't get taxed for their personal incomes as if it were a second job.

If you want to make politicians accountable, two things have to happen.

The first is a realistic wage as this will lure the right people. I say this because most MP's come from those who the corporate world pass over.

The second is professional indemnity insurance, much like a lawyer, accountant or a doctor has. Because at least then, the likes of Rudd would have become uninsurable and we the tax payer would have be reimbursed for our taxes he and his understudy willfully wasted.

While I accept the libs have also wasted far to much, much of that has in dealing with Rudds debacle.

Vic super is in the process of planting 50 million tomato plants here. 26 B – double trucks from QLD with the young plants. It’s good to see super money earning good interest 17 % . Tomatoes are expected to come in at 25 %.

Someone made the suggestion that federal govt; should use super money instead of borrowing money elsewhere. I don,t think it would be feasible to pay the gigantic interest rates that super earns.
This is why we have Treasurers of caliber to manage money properly.
We have one of the most worthy politicians as PM right now, I don’t think more money would get him anywhere. It takes a certain type of person that wants to make a life out of politics, I doubt if money would actually do anything, it is to simplistic to think that would achieve a different type of person.

Our previous attempt at a PM was dismal. He may not survive another election.

55 million in Cambodia will go straight into the pockets of corrupt politicians in Cambodia. 15 million per refugee is the going price for more refugees. Hopefully Turnbull will turn that fiasco around.

Why did Abbott agree to take these 15,000 Syrians for. With the debacle we have here now, and he goes and adds more fuel to the fire. It’s not up to Abbott to pick and choose, he must take what the UN says. But you now Abbott was not one to know anything about rules, he just says the first thing that comes into his head. No wonder he got the arce.

All politicians expenses need to be published, that way they will be accountable to the taxpayer. Bishops chopper rides, was the living end. There is lots of ways to bring down a govt. Pure Piggery is one of them, and Abbott’s defense of the offender was just too much.

The tempo has decreased considerably now that Turnbull has taken control, his level headed approach is what we needed badly. Bill will have a fight on his hands to take the prize off Turnbull.

"Make Politicians Accountable"

They already are, Armchair Critic... unfortunately, because of the way things are currently structured, it is to their party limited only to the extent that is in their self interest.

So to begin a process of redressing the balance:

A. when a candidate presents 'their' policies to the people of the electorate whose votes they wish to receive they must announce failure standards by which their individual 'performance' can be assessed, (see the Yes Minister episode 'The Challenge' re this)

B. A candidate must present their quotation for the total costs and conditions of their individual employment for the term of office sought; salary, superannuation contribution, expenses and overheads included as well as the proportion to be withheld against the failure standards assessment at the end of their term.

As a starting point each of these would allow voters to both pre and post-judge all the prospective candidates in their electorate and forcefully remind the politicians to focus on who it is they are supposed to represent.

Onthebeach..
Amusing video, thanks for my first laugh of the day.

As far as the state of the world is concerned theres two issues which bother me.

First is what passes as democracy, I think its a joke.
There needs to be a balance of power between us and them.
If they make the laws that we all must abide by, then we should make the laws that they must abide by.
They can't be allowed to make laws that govern their own conduct.
Its a bad system.

How can any nation propose to 'export' democracy when not one single nation actually has a sound version of it?

Second is the foreign policies of nations who are supposed to hold some moral high ground and act in the name of good.
Covertly destabilising nations and arming extremists in order to bring about regime change is not good policy.
Its in breach of international law and is state sponsored terrorism.

Not to mention a recipe for disaster as we have all now witnessed.

On both issues, I say enough is enough.
Do others not question as I do whether these actions are good policy or just plain stupid?

rehctub,
I think you make a good point that if we pay peanuts we get monkeys.
And how much does employing these fools cost in the long run?

The thing I find mind-boggling is the question of why we need to pay so much just to buy common sense, I see more of it going around for free just with the members of this forum.

WmTrevor,
Yes they are only accountable to the parties they belong to.
They really only care about voters when we're headed to the polling booths and they're grandstanding with all their lies and promises.

I'm probably not the best person to figure out technical aspects of how to make things better, I just stand for the ideal that if they make laws for us, we should do so for them.

People have been trying to make politicians accountable since the dawn of democracy, without much luck. We get one chance each every 3 or 4 years. During those 3 or 4 years, politicians are elected dictators, doing pretty much as they please - including breaking the promises they made to get elected - depending on the make-up of the Senate.

And, all we can do is vote for the other side, who will do much the same thing as those we kick out.

If there is a better way of voting, I would like to hear about it. Preferential voting should go. I used to think the Senate should go, too, but now I'm not so sure. The major parties want to fiddle with the Senate (to protect themselves, no doubt). And we would all like to see the Senate ballot paper simplified I think; and we don't want sheep-poop-throwing larakins becoming Senators with miserable sized votes. Get rid of preference voting there as well?

In my opinion we now have, for the first time ever, two intelligent and useful Senators in the Family First man, and in the Liberal Democrat. Make it easier for voters to put 'people' not party hacks in the Senate? Both major parties view the Senate as a retirement job for their faithful drones.

rehctub - you missed an important part that pension is indexed for life they will always be ahead of everyone.

Kevin Rudd will receive more than $600,000 a year for the rest of his life once he leaves politics.

The silver lining from Mr Rudd's tough week could come from the privileges of being a prime minister for at least a year.

It means he is entitled to superannuation, a gold air pass, a car, at least four personal staff, and his own CBD office space in Brisbane for the rest of his life.
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/desposed-australian-prime-minister-kevin-rudds-600000-a-year-pension/story-e6freuy9-1225885918379

JULIA GILLARD $200,000 pension plus estimated $300,000-a-year office and travel costs

The low lifers even wanted more.
KEVIN Rudd bombarded the incoming Abbott government with demands for taxpayer-funded assistance for two Brisbane offices, staff and other perks, even ringing the Prime Minister to discuss his arrangements.

The Sunday Telegraph can reveal former prime minister Julia Gillard, who is believed to have secured a six-figure cash advance to write her memoirs, also requested an office in Melbourne and Adelaide and also sought an extra staffer, citing John Howard's arrangements as a precedent. Her request for a second office was denied.

You rightards are unbelievable.
Moralscum wastes $50 million on a brainfart and all you lot can talk about is the long gone KRudd.
So its ok for the lieberals to waste money on champagne with Cambodian despots and helicopters to nowhere but its all Labors fault.
Open your rusted on eyes and face the truth.
The lieberals are only out for what they can get for themselves and their mates and they use fear, oppression and lies to get us to go along with them.
Do you like being suckers?

Always the past never the now. And always from the hard right faction of the liberal party. They see money as a mere figure

Lets not worry about railways that don’t go anywhere.

Abbott wanted an abbott friendly senate. He should have thought about senate friendly policies. Not his style, he had an agenda that only he knew. He really bungled it big time with no regard for his party members and captains picks. He even claimed being elected the PM’s seat. What a dill.

Certainly a part of history that is going to be hard to beat, no one could be that much self centered and flush with self importance as he was.

The Liberal party denial of climate change, needs to be softened and get on with the job of cleaning up our air ways, and get away from any reliance on coal. Turnbull is a good start in that department.

How about making Rudd and Gillard responsible for the $9bn wasted on the cash splash, the $10bn on the labor created immigration crisis or the $8bn wasted on the BER?

See what I mean.

Exactly,

The left whingers are massive hypocrites.

The party had the good sense to get rid of Abbott, the voters had to toss Howard out. Abbott said to his motley crew "I've stopped the boat" and the crew said "But captain! The boats sinking, with us in it." so they threw the captain overboard.

Just like the greens tossed out Brown and knifed Milne.

Il bet Allan Joyce won't get a SET FOR LIFE pension, provided for by the tax payer, and he turned a failing company around.

As for labor lovers, they still think Keating was a hero. Need I say more.

Not the case at all Shadow, a bit of wishful thinking on your part, both gave it away on their terms, Unlike Abbott who had to be dragged kicking and scheming to face the firing squad by his own men.
Howard was such a failure the good folk of Bennelong booted him.

Keep telling yourself that Paul.

Both Brown and Milne were gone faster than a short ISIS haircut to "spend time with their families". Bob because he was not a sufficiently rabid Marxist and Crusty because the greens had surfeit of village idiots.

Ar Paul, if memory serves me correctly, Gillard knifed Rudd in the back, after lying to him just the night before and Gillard only left when writhing was more than on the door so as to speak.

As for Howard, try to imagine where we would be today, had Rudd inherited the mess Abbott did. Besides, the unions were then ones who cost Howard, and ultimately led to the Kevin 07 gamble, and boy what a gamble that proved to be.

If Rudd had one inch of moral backbone he would forego his tax payer funded handout because had he been a CEO, chances are we would still be looking after him, but behind bars.

His wife must be embaressed to think she is so successful yet he was such a dud.