Abbot govmint Gaffe Watch

[Bibbs]

Mr Hockey said renewable energy was "hugely important" but believed wind turbines were ruining beautiful bits of the Australian landscape.

 

Just for all the 'greenies' in the audience, if they built a huge coal fired power station there, I would be equally appalled. So, it's just an aesthetic view.

 

 

But he's right?

 

They (large man made structures) do look awful and spoil the natural beauty.

 

But they are important.

 

It's also an 'opinion' not a 'policy'. So how is this a 'gaff'?

[Harpodom]

Another day, another chance for one of Abott's 'ministers' to prove how out of touch they are with 'real Aussies' (© Dave)

 

http://m.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/christopher-pyne-denies-12-per-cent-youth-unemployment-is-a-crisis-20140930-10nsm2.html#ixzz3EjjFb3gh

[h=1]Christopher Pyne denies 12 per cent youth unemployment is a 'crisis'[/h] Jane Lee September 30, 2014

Q&A: 'I'm not going to get into an argument with the audience.'"> Christopher Pyne told Q&A: 'I'm not going to get into an argument with the audience.' Photo: Andrew Meares

 

Education Minister Christopher Pyne denies that youth unemployment - about 12 per cent on average - has reached a "crisis" point.

Mr Pyne, who appeared on ABC's Q&A program on Monday night, was asked repeatedly by panel and audience members about youth unemployment rates and how they were linked to problems in the public education system.

A Brotherhood of St Laurence analysis of Australian Bureau of Statistics data earlier this year showed about 12.4 per cent of people aged between 15 and 24 were out of work in the year to January. Fairfax Media has reported the average Victorian youth unemployment rate hit a 15-year high for the year to July 2014.

Q&A host Tony Jones asked whether the Coalition should place youth unemployment on a "crisis agenda to try and fix this?"

"There isn't a crisis. There certainly is an emphasis from the Coalition on young people either learning or earning so when they leave school – and happily more people are finishing year 12 which gives them a better chance of getting a job – more people are going on to higher education than ever before," Mr Pyne replied.

Actor Tony Barry noted that many of the audience members were young: "I wonder whether they consider this a crisis in the education system?"

A number shouted out "Yes."

"I'm not going to get into an argument with the audience," Mr Pyne joked.

The Coalition plans to remove government caps on university fees from 2016, which critics have said could see the cost of degrees rise, discouraging lower-income students from entering university.

Mr Pyne defended university fee systems, saying Australia had one of the most "generous" student loan systems in the world. The number of students going to university had "exponentially increased" since fees were re-introduced by the Hawke-Keating Labor government, he said.

He called the Whitlam government's free education model a "disaster", saying more people of a low socio-economic status were attending university now than ever before.

"The Whitlam free education model meant that the poorest people in Australia paid for middle-class and high income Australians to go to university who would've gone otherwise. And the rate of low (socio-economic status) people going to university did not change at all because of free education."

A public high school teacher in the audience challenged Mr Pyne's comments, saying that she had students who were choosing different electives because they could not afford the course fees.

"My Year 12 students this year, because of the huge rise in tertiary education fees, are making different choices now. They come from families where to take on a HECS debt of that size is something the family and the student do not feel comfortable about."

[Harpodom]

Tony Abott, Prime Minister, Minister for Women and Captain of Team America...........2 points

 

Joe Hockey, Treasurer and Minister of Aesthetic Beauty.........1 point

 

Christopher Pyne, Education Minister and Vice Chancellor of the University of Hard Knocks.........1 point

[Harpodom]

And I thought Q&A only had loony lefty guests?

 

Well, maybe they should in future, to avoid embarrassment for Abott :biglaugh:

 

Another day, another chance for one of Abott's 'ministers' to prove how out of touch they are with 'real Aussies' (© Dave)

 

http://m.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/christopher-pyne-denies-12-per-cent-youth-unemployment-is-a-crisis-20140930-10nsm2.html#ixzz3EjjFb3gh

Christopher Pyne denies 12 per cent youth unemployment is a 'crisis'

 

Jane Lee September 30, 2014

Q&A: 'I'm not going to get into an argument with the audience.'"> Christopher Pyne told Q&A: 'I'm not going to get into an argument with the audience.' Photo: Andrew Meares

 

Education Minister Christopher Pyne denies that youth unemployment - about 12 per cent on average - has reached a "crisis" point.

Mr Pyne, who appeared on ABC's Q&A program on Monday night, was asked repeatedly by panel and audience members about youth unemployment rates and how they were linked to problems in the public education system.

A Brotherhood of St Laurence analysis of Australian Bureau of Statistics data earlier this year showed about 12.4 per cent of people aged between 15 and 24 were out of work in the year to January. Fairfax Media has reported the average Victorian youth unemployment rate hit a 15-year high for the year to July 2014.

Q&A host Tony Jones asked whether the Coalition should place youth unemployment on a "crisis agenda to try and fix this?"

"There isn't a crisis. There certainly is an emphasis from the Coalition on young people either learning or earning so when they leave school – and happily more people are finishing year 12 which gives them a better chance of getting a job – more people are going on to higher education than ever before," Mr Pyne replied.

Actor Tony Barry noted that many of the audience members were young: "I wonder whether they consider this a crisis in the education system?"

A number shouted out "Yes."

"I'm not going to get into an argument with the audience," Mr Pyne joked.

The Coalition plans to remove government caps on university fees from 2016, which critics have said could see the cost of degrees rise, discouraging lower-income students from entering university.

Mr Pyne defended university fee systems, saying Australia had one of the most "generous" student loan systems in the world. The number of students going to university had "exponentially increased" since fees were re-introduced by the Hawke-Keating Labor government, he said.

He called the Whitlam government's free education model a "disaster", saying more people of a low socio-economic status were attending university now than ever before.

"The Whitlam free education model meant that the poorest people in Australia paid for middle-class and high income Australians to go to university who would've gone otherwise. And the rate of low (socio-economic status) people going to university did not change at all because of free education."

A public high school teacher in the audience challenged Mr Pyne's comments, saying that she had students who were choosing different electives because they could not afford the course fees.

"My Year 12 students this year, because of the huge rise in tertiary education fees, are making different choices now. They come from families where to take on a HECS debt of that size is something the family and the student do not feel comfortable about."

[Guest51810]

Makes me feel a little bit better than your politicians are as daft as ours.

[Harpodom]

I'd almost let this one fly through to the keeper, but really it belongs on this thread....

 

Way to go mate!

 

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/10/science-lobby-precious-petals-whinge-policy-macfarlane

Science lobby are 'precious petals' for whingeing, says Ian Macfarlane

 

 

Industry minister won’t accept ‘crap’ criticism over the Coalition’s decision not to have a science minister

 

 

Industry minister Ian Macfarlane said ‘no one more passionate about science than me’. Photograph: AAP

 

Ian Macfarlane, the industry minister, has hit out at the “precious petals in the science industry” who criticise the government over Australia’s lack of a science minister.

 

Macfarlane, who oversees a large portfolio that includes energy, skills and science, said he is irked by criticism of Tony Abbott’s decision to not appoint a dedicated science minister.

 

“I’m just not going to accept that crap,” he said. “It really does annoy me, because there is no one, no one, more passionate about science than I am. I am the grandson and son of a scientist, and I give science more than their share of my time, and just because I’m not the minister for energy, do I hear the whinge from [the energy sector]? No.

“But I hear it constantly from some of the precious petals, can I say, some of the precious petals in the science fraternity, and if you can’t guess, I won’t accept it.”

Australia had a dedicated science portfolio in cabinet since the 1930s until Abbott’s decision to fold the role into Macfarlane’s purview.

 

Last year, Abbott told a gathering of scientists that the government should be judged “by our actions, not by our titles”. In the budget, the funding of the CSIRO, the government’s science agency, was cut by $111m over the next four years.

 

Macfarlane, speaking at a Committee for Economic Development of Australia event in Sydney, also stressed the government’s support for renewable energy.

 

The sector is currently in a state of limbo following a review of the renewable energy target led by businessman Dick Warburton. The review found that the RET, which stipulates that 41,000 gigawatt hours of Australia’s energy must come from renewable sources by 2020, was successfully driving jobs and investment but should either be closed to new entrants or suspended until energy demand rises.

 

The Coalition promised not change to the RET prior to the last election. Labor and the Greens oppose any change to the target, while the clean energy sector has warned that $15bn in new investment and around 20,000 jobs will be put at risk if the scheme is wound back or closed.

 

Macfarlane did not say what the government’s official response to the review would be, but said he was “alarmed” that Labor would not negotiate over the RET.

 

“If Bill Shorten and Mark Butler don’t reach a bipartisan position with us on the RET, it’s the renewable energy industry that will suffer the consequences, not the Coalition,” he said. “It won’t be us who suffer, but it will destroy the renewable energy sector.”

 

“So I’ll wait to hear from Labor. But neither option from Dick’s report is closing down the RET, to be clear.”

 

Macfarlane said that while Australia has around 9,000MW of excess energy capacity, challenges remain if the country is to become an “energy superpower”. He said gas production in NSW needs to be stepped up, otherwise the state will become “very, very short” of gas within the next five years.

 

On Wednesday, Bernie Fraser, head of the Climate Change Authority, an agency the government is attempting to abolish, said the old, carbon-intensive coal generators could be paid to shut down, reducing Australia’s excess capacity while bringing down emissions.

 

Fraser said this could be done by using funds from the Coalition’s proposed $2.55 billion Emissions Reduction Fund, which will, if legislated, provide voluntary grants to businesses that wish to reduce emissions.

 

However, a spokesman for Greg Hunt, the federal environment minister, told Guardian Australia that the government’s focus is on “cleaning up, not shutting down power stations.”

Edited September 29, 2014 by Harpodom

[Harpodom]

Tony Abott, Prime Minister, Minister for Women and Captain of Team America...........2 points

 

Joe Hockey, Treasurer and Minister of Aesthetic Beauty.........1 point

 

Christopher Pyne, Education Minister and Vice Chancellor of the University of Hard Knocks.........1 point

 

Ian Macfarlane, Industry Minister and amateur horticulturalist..........1 point

[Harpodom]

So, so far, collectively the Abott govt have managed to insult Scotland, Aborigines, scientists and anyone under 30!

 

Who's next??!

[Xenon4017]

Makes me feel a little bit better than your politicians are as daft as ours.

 

No, I think you're still in the lead. Unless some candid photos turn up in Joe's sent mail folder.

 

Or when you said "ours" (and considering your moniker) are you referring to Uncle Alex?

[Harpodom]

So, so far, collectively the Abott govt have managed to insult Scotland, Aborigines, scientists and anyone under 30!

 

Who's next??!

 

I forgot....anyone working in the renewable energy sector! Thanks Joe :notworthy:

[Guest51810]

No, I think you're still in the lead. Unless some candid photos turn up in Joe's sent mail folder.

 

Or when you said "ours" (and considering your moniker) are you referring to Uncle Alex?

 

Alex is the best of a bad bunch IMO but yep he's included. I was specifically thinking David Cameron (sorry parleycross) and that idiot from UKIP. I don't know why but he just drives me mad, makes Cameron likeable!

[MARYROSE02]

So, so far, collectively the Abott govt have managed to insult Scotland, Aborigines, scientists and anyone under 30!

 

Who's next??!

 

Tony Abbott's ratings went up in the last survey though? Who cares who he offends, so long as he does not offend the electorate?

[MARYROSE02]

I forgot....anyone working in the renewable energy sector! Thanks Joe :notworthy:

 

Tree huggers, ferals, etc. Renewables will never solve Australia's energy needs. We could go nuclear and do it though.

[Skani]

So, so far, collectively the Abott govt have managed to insult Scotland, Aborigines, scientists and anyone under 30!

 

 

 

You've forgotten pensioners (Hockey), unemployed (Hockey, Abetz), female uni students (Pyne), women (Abbott), women with breast cancer (Abetz), China and Palestine (Bishop, Brandis), single parents, step families, non heterosexuals (Bernardi)..and I'm sure there are others. Details of the above can be supplied upon request....but I may require some medication first. :mad:

[Xenon4017]

Tree huggers, ferals, etc. Renewables will never solve Australia's energy needs. We could go nuclear and do it though.

 

It's a mistake to think that any one source will "solve our needs". The real solution would involve a mix. Renewables to provide a background level and on-demand fuel driven production to top it up.

 

I can't really understand Joe's objection to the wind farms though. He doesn't like to see them from 10km away, but is happy to drive past then put his car in a concrete box car park. Which structure is uglier?

[Harpodom]

You've forgotten pensioners (Hockey), unemployed (Hockey, Abetz), female uni students (Pyne), women (Abbott), women with breast cancer (Abetz), China and Palestine (Bishop, Brandis), single parents, step families, non heterosexuals (Bernardi)..and I'm sure there are others. Details of the above can be supplied upon request....but I may require some medication first. :mad:

Thank you Skani, I was aware of all of those, but I was restricting my list ONLY to the gaffes on this thread!

[Harpodom]

Tree huggers, ferals, etc. Renewables will never solve Australia's energy needs. We could go nuclear and do it though.

That worked well for Japan didn't it?

 

Seriously, what IS your problem with renewables, save for the fact that Uncle 'we don't need windmills and all that rubbish' Rupe isn't a fan?

 

'Ferals'? What, like these environmental vandals, who want to de-list UNESCO world heritage forest?

[Skani]

Thank you Skani, I was aware of all of those, but I was restricting my list ONLY to the gaffes on this thread!

 

Oh...wasn't aware of that. I've been restricting my viewing of Rabbott govmint threads in order to retain a modicum of sanity. :rolleyes:

[Harpodom]

Oh...wasn't aware of that. I've been restricting my viewing of Rabbott govmint threads in order to retain a modicum of sanity. :rolleyes:

This is meant to be a light hearted pi$$ take of Abottt and his minsters' gaffes, in 'real time', so to speak. Feel free to add!

[MARYROSE02]

That worked well for Japan didn't it?

 

Seriously, what IS your problem with renewables, save for the fact that Uncle 'we don't need windmills and all that rubbish' Rupe isn't a fan?

 

'Ferals'? What, like these environmental vandals, who want to de-list UNESCO world heritage forest?

 

That was the Japs own fault for not maintaining them properly. Besides, you can't have it both ways. If climate change is THE major threat to humankind then going nuclear is the lesser of two evils.

[Xenon4017]

That was the Japs own fault for not maintaining them properly. Besides, you can't have it both ways. If climate change is THE major threat to humankind then going nuclear is the lesser of two evils.

 

And they ordered the "wrong kind" of tsunami?!?

 

Anyway, nuclear is all very well (seriously, I don't have a problem with it) but you need large quantities of clean water for it to work. The nuclear fuel just produces heat, like coal or gas. The heat is used to produce steam, and this is fed into a turbine just as Charlie Parsons always intended. Australia is not short of under-populated out-of-the-way places. But these places tend no to have clean water. Or even dirty water. So going nuclear isn't so easy as you might think.

[Harpodom]

Not a member of the cabinet but worthy of a mention for the sheer hypocrisy and lack of empathy displayed 'fat cat' backbencher Ewan Jones.

 

Also news to me that the planned lock out of under 30's may fail because it goes against human rights obligations

 

http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2014/09/30/fat-mp-claims-people-welfare-eat-junk-food-and-play-video-games

 

Young people chomping Cheezels in front of the Xbox while pocketing the dole need a wake up call.

That's the message from Liberal backbencher Ewan Jones, who's defending the government's controversial welfare changes that could lock out under-30s from receiving unemployment benefits for six months.

A joint parliamentary committee chaired by a Liberal senator has dealt a blow to the policy ruling that it's not compatible with human rights obligations.

But Mr Jones is adamant a tough love approach is necessary because the status quo is not putting a dent in the youth unemployment rate of 13.4 per cent in his Townsville electorate.

"Is it better to have someone earning and learning?" he asked reporters in Canberra.

"(Or) is it better to say to them, there's your dole, go home eat Cheezels, get on the Xbox?"

The outspoken MP from north Queensland is no stranger to snacks, having famously reacted with outrage to a government run heathly food rating system, claiming the government had no right warning people they were eating unhealthy food.

“I am obese and I carry a lot of weight and I always have and my thing is I’m not fat because I’m stupid, I’m fat because I eat too much,” he said at the time.

He played down the risk youth could go hungry or be forced into homelessness as a result of the policy.

"If you're not in the game we got to make it easy as possible to get you in the game by turning up for work for the dole programs," he said.

"Not sitting at home being awake from 10 o'clock at night to 6 O'clock in the morning playing bloody Nintendo."

Shadow treasurer Chris Bowen condemned Mr Jones' comments saying it was unhelpful to insult young job seekers.

"Demonising people and making cheap pot shots is not good public policy," he told reporters in Canberra.

He said it was an embarrassment a Liberal committee chair was saying government legislation did not comply with human rights.

"It's designed deliberately to create an underclass in Australia," he said.

Mr Bowen said the government needed to reflect on its arrogance and lack of empathy.

Greens deputy leader Adam Bandt said parliamentarians who think that life on the dole was "Easy Street" should give it a go.

"I tried it for a week and you can not do it without sacrificing some of the basic necessities of life," he said.

He said it was difficult to make ends meet on $250 a week and the low payment was a barrier to employment because people could not afford to buy good clothes for job interviews or get a hair cut.

Small Business Minister Bruce Billson said young people needed to get out there and have a go.

"The message is your postcode doesn't determine your potential," he said.

"The ambition of young people goes well beyond playing console games."

[Harpodom]

Tony Abott, Prime Minister, Scotland's Quasi First Minister, Minister for Women and Captain of Team America...........2 points

 

Joe Hockey, Treasurer and Minister of Aesthetic Beauty.........1 point

 

Christopher Pyne, Education Minister and Vice Chancellor of the University of Hard Knocks.........1 point

 

Ian Macfarlane, Industry Minister and amateur horticulturalist..........1 point

 

Ewan Jones, Fat Cat and Minister of Tough Love......nul points

Edited September 30, 2014 by Harpodom

[VERYSTORMY]

I will just comment on the nuclear debate going on. If there was one country in the world that should have a large nuclear power industry it is Australia. That is simply good science.

 

As for renewables, Australia can and should do a lot more. The one that springs to mind is to amend the building codes to ensure all new builds have solar and double glazing. But, harnessing maximum renewables (in an environmentally sound way. THIS IS KEY AS A LOT ARE NOT) would still not be sufficient and extra energy would be required. This should come from nuclear. At the same time, it could be a major plus for the economy by exporting energy to near neighbours.

[Xenon4017]

I will just comment on the nuclear debate going on. If there was one country in the world that should have a large nuclear power industry it is Australia. That is simply good science.

 

As for renewables, Australia can and should do a lot more. The one that springs to mind is to amend the building codes to ensure all new builds have solar and double glazing. But, harnessing maximum renewables (in an environmentally sound way. THIS IS KEY AS A LOT ARE NOT) would still not be sufficient and extra energy would be required. This should come from nuclear. At the same time, it could be a major plus for the economy by exporting energy to near neighbours.

 

Why is it good science? Because we have the fuel? And yet it isn't good science to burn the coal, which we also have.

 

As for exporting energy to "near neighbours". Are you talking about exporting electrical energy? And how far away are your likely recipients?