Tuesday, April 16, 2019

The first cut is the deepest


This Labor Party flyer appeared in my letterbox today, featuring sinister looking pictures of former Prime Ministers Tony Abbott and Malcolm Turnbull, and current Prime Minister, Scott Morrison. These images are meant to remind voters of the leadership instability and division that has beset the Liberal Party since it won government in 2013. Fair comment, but I hope that these days are behind us, whoever wins the election in May.

What about the claims of Liberal funding cuts to schools and healthcare services? Are they accurate? It's not that simple. The ABC's fact check unit concludes that these claims are misleading, as are claims of record spending levels, since funding has to increase every year to keep up with population increases.

This campaign tactic relies on the average voter being too time poor to investigate these claims for themselves, or being an apathetic voter who only pays attention to politics during elections, so that they believe anything political parties tell them without questioning it.

As for energy policy, successive governments have mismanaged it. I see little reason to believe that a future government will buck the trend.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-24/when-a-cut-is-not-a-cut-and-a-record-is-nothing-to-brag-about/10419876

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