"Liberals commit a $285 million error in costings"

- The Age 24/11/2006

"THE Liberal Party has shot itself in the foot in
its final pitch before tomorrow's state election,
making a $285 million error in costing its campaign promises.

In an election-eve blunder seized on by Treasurer
John Brumby, the costings released by shadow treasurer
Robert Clark yesterday double-counted a key Liberal
campaign promise: $285 million to make public transport
free for all students."

Liberal leader Ted Baillieu must have got some water on the
brain from all that swimming and posing in in his budgie-smugglers!

Such mental Arithmetic problems are far more serious in a leader
than Kim confusing two celebrity Roves, Ted the Toff's inability
to produce a budget that ADDS UP reveals a propensity to make
fiscal mistakes which could cost us taxpayers dearly! B^p

Perhaps Ted should get a check up in case it's more than just
an inability to add up.. he might have a tumour, or the early
onset of Alzheimer's! B^p

"The promise was counted twice: once in education,
and again in public transport. But the error was
not picked up by accountants KPMG, who signed off
on the costings they were paid to check."

They must be graduates of Howard's Rich Dummies, Full-
Fee Paying Universities, where Daddy can BUY a place that
their mediocre offspring could not win on merit! B^p

"It is a massive error that highlights that the Liberal Party is not
ready to govern," Mr Brumby said. "They have no financial credibility,
and you can't believe what they say."

IF they can't even add a couple of numbers up accurately,
how could you trust them with complex accounting, or
sophisticated economic models?

And as for KPMG.. they should stop hiring Rich dummies
from silver spoon private schools who have their qualifications
bought for them, and get some state school graduates who have
come up the hard way, succeeded on their own merit, and can
COUNT! B^D

"Earlier he had blasted the costing exercise as a sham
after KPMG made it clear that its brief was just to
check that the numbers added up and were within the
budget's bottom line. It did not check that each
item was accurately costed."

"The Liberal Party could have promised free beer to
all Victorians and costed it at just $1," Mr Brumby said.

"Under this sham costing arrangement, the Liberals
would describe this as 'fully costed and fully budgeted'."

Mr Brumby said the Liberals should call policies
"fully costed" only if the assumptions on which the
costing is based are checked by a third party.

Over five years to 2011, the costing reveals,
the Liberals have pledged to spend:

■ $3.6 billion on services, mostly on hospitals,
kindergartens, schools, law and order and public transport;

■ $1.9 billion on new investment, mostly on roads
and hospitals; and

■ $1.85 billion on tax cuts, mostly on stamp duty,
motoring taxes, and land tax.

The spending and tax cuts would be paid for largely
by $3.1 billion of spending cuts, partly by raiding
the contingency funds squirrelled away in the budget,
and partly by trimming the budget surplus.

Mr Clark did not return calls last night."

Apparently he tried to call the reporters back,
but had trouble reading the phone number! B^D

"Is this a six or a nine standing on it's head? "

B^D

--




The Official [Est. June 2000] aus.culture.true-blue FAQ ;

http://geocities.com/fairdinkum_trueblue/faq.html


The true-blue Homestead;

http://geocities.com/fairdinkum_trueblue/


The true-blue Hall Of Fame;

http://www.geocities.com/trueblue_hall_of_fame/index.html


The Tuckerbox;

http://www.geocities.com/true_blue_tucker_box/index.html


-----------

Archived from group: aus>politics