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 | Sought to ignore the Industrial Relations Commission and has moved to extend and entrench junior rates of pay in industries and awards that do not currently have them; |
| Introduced a Common Youth Allowance which is available to fewer young Australians than previously and which leaves large numbers of 16 and 17 year olds, who are both unemployed and not participating in continued education, without any form of social security; |
| Established work-for-the-dole programs, a policy initiative directed at making social security payments to young people conditional on their providing unpaid labour; |
| Reduced the effectiveness of our education system through funding cuts, and the imposition of the GST. This is a tax on learning , and will see books taxed for the first time; |
| Continued attacks on collectivism through Voluntary Student Unionism, a policy which reduces the funding available to student welfare sporting and recreation services on campus; and |
| Defunded AYPAC, the peak youth representative body, and subsequently replaced this peak advisory body with a Youth Roundtable that is under resourced and which is ignored in the Government's policy development process. |
"On the generational issues of concern to young Australians - such as the environment, drug reform, the Republic and reconciliation - the Howard Government has repeatedly demonstrated it is out of touch with the views of youth.
"Labor is all about addressing this neglect and assisting young people to participate in social and political processes in a meaningful way", Senator Lundy said
62/99 Contact: Simon Tatz on 0418 488295 or 62773334
On behalf of the ALP and Opposition leader Kim Beazley, the Shadow Minister for Sport, Senator Kate Lundy, today congratulated the Australian Women’s Hockey Team for winning the Champion’s Trophy
"It’s about time that the level of recognition and status bestowed on men’s sport is extended to female athletes and on this basis I warmly welcomed the Hockeyroos to Parliament House today as it provided an opportunity to publicly honour their achievements, Senator Lundy said.
"As the 1997 report An Illusory Image highlighted, coverage of women’s sport remains well below that of men’s sport and it is an essential responsibility of government to ensure equitable recognition of sporting achievements, regardless of gender, Senator Lundy said.
61/99 Contact: Simon Tatz on 0418 488295 or 62773334
Senator Kate Lundy has criticised the Government’s time frame for sporting organisations to make submissions to the Coalition’s White Paper on the future of Australian sport, saying it does not allow sufficient time for detailed and substantive submissions to be formulated.
"National sporting organisations have been given a deadline of 30 July for submissions to an inquiry which the Sports Minister says will result in the biggest shake-up in Australian sport in 25 years, Senator Lundy said.
"Given the importance of this White Paper, more time must be allocated for submissions to ensure that all sporting organisations are given adequate time to consult their members and formulate their proposals.
"There are a number of very important reviews into Australian sport already under way and the results of these may affect national sporting organisations’ submissions. The Australian Sports Commission will next week release the finding of their very extensive review into the future of Australian sport and the National Elite Sports Council will release their review findings shortly.
"The Government wants to wind back their commitment to sport and the extremely short time for submissions to the White Paper on sport indicates that they are not genuinely interested in the considered views of Australian sporting organisations", Senator Lundy said.
60/99 Contact: Simon Tatz on 0418 488295 or 62773334
Senator Kate Lundy today congratulated retiring NSW captain Laurie Daley for his wonderful contribution to Rugby League and Australian sport.
"Laurie is one of the truly great Rugby League players and he will be sorely missed from future NSW and Australian teams, Senator Lundy said.
"His performance in last night’s drawn State of Origin decider shows just what a champion he is. His form this series has been outstanding and although NSW did not win the series, they didn’t lose it either.
"Laurie might be retiring from representative football, but thankfully he is still playing for the Raiders and will hopefully lead them to another Premiership this year.
Laurie Daley’s career statistics mark him as one of the true legends of League.
Daley has played in:
| 3 Canberra Raiders Premiership’s (1989, 1990 and 1994) |
| 20 State of Origin Matches |
| 3 Tri-Series Matches |
| 20 Test Matches for Australia |
| 5 Super League Tests |
| 198 First Grade Games |
59/99. Contact Simon Tatz on 0418 488295
Senator Kate Lundy said today that the Assistant Treasurer, Senator Rod Kemp, refused to answer Opposition questions in the Senate about the likely impact of the GST on retail book sales.
"The Government has been unable to provide detail about the supposed deal with the Democrats on additional compensation with respect to books," Senator Lundy said.
"The deal could mean that the Government will receive more money from collecting the GST on books than the vast majority of authors will receive in royalties.
"Under the current taxation regime, books are not taxed. In fact, books are specifically excluded from the wholesale sales tax regime.
"When a GST of 7 per cent was introduced in Canada, there was a 12 per cent drop in retail book sales. There will be a severe negative impact on national literacy and education if a GST is levied on books. This is the main reason why in 18 of the 24 countries which have consumption taxes, books are either zero rated or else taxed at a lower rate than other commodities.
"The existing impact of international online book wholesalers on the Australian book retailing industry will be exacerbated as the relative cost advantage of companies like Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble increases.
"The Government should come clean and admit that the GST is a tax on learning," Senator Lundy said.
58/99. Contact Simon Tatz on 0418 488295
There are no specific budget programs in place to increase female involvement in sport and recreation, even though this was a specific Coalition election commitment, Senator Kate Lundy, Shadow Minister for Sport, was told in Senate estimates hearings this week.
On Budget night, the Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for the Status of Women, Senator Newman, asserted that the "Government is supporting measures to improve the involvement of women and girls in sport, including at leadership and administrative levels".
But nobody seems to be taking responsibility for fulfilling this commitment.
In a classic case of buck passing, the Office of Status of Women (OSW) said in estimates that it was up to the Australian Sports Commission (ASC) to develop, implement and monitor the female participation programs that are part of the Coalition’s election promise to women.
However, the Sports Commission passed the buck to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, saying the cost is to high of collecting the appropriate data to ensure increased female participation, and that the Bureau "is doing more work in terms of community participation in sport" anyway.
The Sports Commission has also marginalised the role of its Women in Sport unit by incorporating it into general participation programs. This means that no-one at the ASC is able to implement the commitments made to Australian women by Senator Newman and Minister Kelly on budget night.
In another piece of grandstanding, the Government announced in the Budget that a series of activities have been planned to commemorate the Centenary of Women’s Participation in the Olympic Games. Yet Senator Lundy was again told that no specific activities have been initiated, even though the Olympics are just over a year away.
"The Coalition’s commitment to women’s sport has now been revealed as nothing more than shallow rhetoric as there is no-one responsible for ensuring their policies are fulfilled, Senator Lundy said.
57/99 Contact: Simon Tatz on 0418 488295.
The Department of Education Training and Youth Affairs admitted at last night's Senate estimates that the National Youth Roundtable was established with great haste and with limited direction from the Minister.
"It seems that the Minister stripped the department of any authority with respect to the Roundtable, and handed these responsibilities to an ill qualified but well-meaning consultant, Senator Lundy, Shadow Minister for Youth Affairs, said.
The Department also confessed that the selection process was far from scientific and that token targets for the representation of "those who have experience of, or have been associated with, the following:
disability
range of ethnic backgrounds
labour force status
various education backgrounds
participation in Commonwealth youth programs and
range of religious beliefs"
In addition, the Department admitted that their chosen Roundtable members under represented unemployed youth by 50%, compared to the national percentage of unemployed youth in the community.
"Worse still, after defunding AYPAC and leaving the National Youth Roundtable as the only voice of youth direct to Government, the Government would not comment on the viability of the Roundtable.
"In fact the Minister has refused to guarantee that the Roundtable will even exist after the completion of the second Roundtable meeting in September.
"The Minister must immediately provide a guarantee that he will abandon his 'take it or leave it' approach to the involvement of young Australians in the policy development process.
"In addition he must commit either to the continuation of the Roundtable, or to its replacement with a national peak youth representative body", Senator Lundy said.
57/99 Media contact: Melanie Stutsel 0417 002 317, 6277 3334
In a bald-faced re-writing of the Government’s savings expectations, Minister Fahey is now claiming that the Department of Finance’s realisation of a mere 17% of the original estimated savings of its IT Outsourcing Program constitutes a success, Senator Kate Lundy said today.
The Government claimed that the IT Outsourcing Program would deliver $1 billion in savings. However, in a speech delivered in Parliament House yesterday, the Minister announced savings of a mere $170 million over 5 years.
In a further undermining of the Government’s claims that their IT outsourcing program would produce massive savings, it was revealed in Senate estimates hearings that Government agencies must shoulder any increases that would counter savings in IT costs from within their respective recurrent budgets.
"This means that the ‘claimed savings’ will be reduced by any changes or contract variations," Senator Lundy said.
"Therefore, the Department of Finance has no control over this process and they are unable to guarantee any savings outcomes.
Senator Lundy heard evidence from DOCITA (Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts) - which is part of the Cluster 5 IT outsourcing contract awarded to the IBM/Telstra/Lend-Lease consortium - that indicates any variations in IT costs will not be notified in budget papers.
"This means that there is no mechanism to ascertain whether or not savings have been achieved. There is no process to ensure public accountability is maintained.
"It is also clear that the IT Outsourcing Program will not deliver anywhere near the savings that Minister Fahey originally claimed.
"It is disingenuous of the Minister to assert that savings are being delivered when Government agencies have to wear the costs of any increases in IT," Senator Lundy said.
56/99 Contact: Simon Tatz on 0418 488295.
Despite Minister Fahey persistently claiming that savings were delivered to the Government as a result of their IT outsourcing program, the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs (DIMA) have admitted that their costs have grown since their IT was outsourced to CSC in July last year.
Senator Kate Lundy was told in senate estimates hearings extraordinary evidence that exposes an elaborate hoodwink that has been perpetrated on the government agencies dragooned into IT outsourcing program through the cluster arrangement.
"The hoodwink involves the Minister claiming savings at the point of signing contracts, Senator Lundy said.
Savings identified are previous costs, the figure used as a benchmark, less the winning tender price. The agencies involved in each cluster are required to deliver these savings up-front to the Department of Finance, providing Minister Fahey with his 'headline' savings claim.
"Unfortunately, the Government refuses to allow benchmark costs or the tender price to become public so there is no accountability as to the accuracy of the savings claimed.
"Regardless of these savings, any post-signing variations in costs are the responsibility of the agency and must be found within operating revenues.
"Savings would only be realised within the agency if there is no upgrading in software, no hardware replacement, no improvement in service delivery and no technological change to keep up with. In other words: only technological stagnation would allow savings to be realised.
"This is the ultimate insult. The agencies themselves are marginalised in the contract preparation stage, with negotiations occurring primarily between US Legal firm Shaw Pittman Potts & Trowbridge and the IT outsourcing vendor, under the control of OASITO.
"Once the bottom line is identified and the Minister gets his limelight with a savings claim, the agencies are left to clean up the mess left by bodgy contracts, including trying to retain staff as well as find the resources to maintain and progress IT infrastructure and services. The trap for them is that every step requires a contract variation. This means money, or in the case of a disagreement, potential litigation.
"The Government's IT outsourcing program has been plagued with controversy since it's inception, yet Minister Fahey continually uses savings as an argument to persist with a flawed process that has denied Australian companies opportunities and deprived the public sector of strategic control of their core business: information management.
"These ‘claimed savings’ are a figment of Fahey's fiscal imagination.
"It is the agencies that are paying for his indulgence, and in the process lining the pockets of the multinational corporations who have benefited from the outsourcing program to date: CSC, IBM and EDS.
In the case of DIMA, the situation is dire. Out of the 350 or so established Service Level Agreements (SLAs), about 35 have allegedly been breached. Sanctions have apparently been applied under the terms of the contract with CSC, but the Government is refusing to confirm or release details of the penalties applied.
DIMA is also having trouble holding onto staff because of low morale. DIMA stands to lose strategic control of information managed and held by them of behalf of the citizens of Australia.
DIMA are also in the insidious position of having outsourced their application development work to CSC in an 'unusual' way. CSC has 'first call' on any work on offer from DIMA. DIMA is claiming this falls within the procurement guidelines, but it seems obvious that other tenders are only considered if the CSC bid is rejected.
This is hardly the 'open and fair competitive process' that is required by the Department of Finance's procurement guidelines.
55/99. Contact Simon Tatz on (02) 62773334 or 0418 488295
Elite sport in Australia faces a $15 million funding cut after the Sydney Olympics, Shadow Sport Minister, Senator Kate Lundy, said today.
Confirmation that funding for Australia’s Olympic Athlete Program (OAP) will cease as planned in September 2000 - reducing federal government spending on sport by $25 million after the Olympics - came during Senator Lundy’s questioning at Senate estimates hearings last night.
Senator Lundy said that, under the Coalition’s accrual budget system, it initially looked like sports funding had actually increased by $10 million. However, once the $25 million OAP program ceases after the Olympics, elite sport will be $15 million worse off.
"The $25 million program cut leaves a huge hole in the sport budget for the financial year 2000/2001. A hole which is inadequately offset by a measly $5 million to allow the OAP to continue right up to the Olympics, Senator Lundy said.
"The cessation of the OAP is no surprise, yet the Minister has made no plans to replace the funding for a wide range of elite sports programs.
"The $25 million per annum OAP funding has provided far more to the Australian sporting community than simply Olympic opportunity.
"After the Sydney 2000 Games, Australia’s elite athletes will have to look elsewhere for support and elite coaches may find themselves out of a job.
"Sporting organisations may also find it difficult and expensive to access sports science and medicine expertise. Athletes may find it harder to participate in international events both here and overseas. All of these programs are currently supported by the OAP.
"The Government has nothing to offer the sporting community to replace this elite sporting program except a White Paper and a task force to find where they will distribute these cuts across the sporting community.
"Last night’s estimates revealed that nothing is sacred when it comes to funding cuts.
"There is no doubt that the Australian Sports Commission will be placed under enormous pressure to cut funding to national sporting organisations' elite sport programs after the Sydney Olympic Games.
"The Minister should come clean about the motivation behind the White Paper Taskforce and confront the sporting community with her intentions to cut elite sports funding.
"Elite sport is an essential element in the fabric of Australian sporting culture. This shabby treatment of elite sport defies common sense, given that Government should strive to achieve a balance between elite and community based sport.
"The Minister's record of failure with funding cuts to the community-based sports sector is already legend. Now, the national sporting organisations will suffer as further cuts threaten continuity for elite sporting programs beyond the year 2000.
"The Olympics provide an opportunity to invest in our sporting future and establish an even stronger sporting legacy for Australia. Jackie Kelly wants to throw it all away," Senator Lundy said.
54/99. Contact: Simon Tatz on 0418 488295
Australian school children will still face a GST on most sporting activities, despite claims by Democrat Senator Lyn Allison that the Coalition-Democrat GST deal will make school sport GST free, Shadow Minister for Sport, Senator Kate Lundy said today.
"The GST is effectively a gigantic sports tax - and it will slug every Australian child who wants to participate in some form of organised sporting activity, Senator Lundy said.
Under the Coalition-Democrat deal, the GST will apply to
every uniform, tracksuit, pair of shorts, runner and football boot sporting equipment the cost of registering to play sport the cost of entering into competitions coaching clinics, aerobics classes and swimming lessons admittance charges to attend sporting events - the AFL have already estimated that a day at the footy for a family of four will cost at least $15 more.
"Senator Allison doesn’t understand that this Gigantic Sports Tax will prevent many families from participating in and attending sporting events.
"Her claim that sporting activities for school students are GST-free is simply not true.
"The GST will slug every parent every time they buy their children any sports-related clothing or footwear.
"The GST will also be applied to such essential after school activities like learn-to-swim classes.
"The Democrats are not giving Australian children a sporting chance.
53/99. Contact: Simon Tatz on 0418 488295
Any pretence of public accountability with respect to IT outsourcing has been dispelled in light of evidence heard in Estimates hearings, Senator Kate Lundy said today.
"The Government has claimed ‘commercial confidentiality’ and refused to answer questions relating to the specific nature of contractual sanctions that would be applied if the terms of a contract were breached by the IT outsourcing vendors.
"How are taxpayers expected to have confidence in the Government when they hide behind contracts to shield expenditure and service level details?
"The Senate Finance and Public Administration estimates committee heard that sanctions will be applied when contracts are breached. For example, when defined Service Levels Agreements (SLA's) or industry development commitments are not met by the vendor.
"However, the Minister made it clear that the Government has no intention of making public whether any breaches occur, let alone the sanction that is actually applied.
"To make matters worse, the sanctions that may be applied are negotiable between the Department and the outsourcing vendor. This ability to negotiate means that the public will never know whether the sanctions actually constitute a disincentive for vendors in breaching their service Level Agreements.
"The committee also was advised that sanctions had already been applied to an IT outsourcing vendor engaged by the Department of Finance and Administration, but the Government refused to disclose any details, Senator Lundy concluded.
"These circumstances serve to highlight one of the more insidious features of outsourcing - a diminution of Government accountability with respect to expenditure of taxpayers money.
52/99. Contact: Simon Tatz on 0418 488295
Only four months have been allocated for Minister Kelly’s ‘biggest shake-up into Australian sport’ inquiry, although it has taken seven months for the Minister to appoint Taskforce members and release the inquiries terms of reference, Senator Kate Lundy, Shadow Minister for Sport, said today.
"Allowing just over four months for this inquiry to report back to the Minister is an insult to Australian sport, considering it took Ms Kelly seven months to find four White paper taskforce members, Senator Lundy said.
"While I support an exploration of how to enhance sport in Australia, I am concerned that this particular inquiry has been constructed to undermine the achievements Australian sport has made over the past 15 years.
"Australia is the envy of the world in terms of sport and Labor is very proud to have established the platform for this success.
"This White paper is all about reducing government involvement in sport and recreation and making sport into an ‘industry’.
"Organised sport and other forms of physical activity are crucial to individual and community well being, and the Government has so far failed to maintain the right balance between elite and community sport.
"There are a number of inquiries into sport currently under way, including an Australian Sports Commission internal review and a National Elite Sports Council blue print into the organisation and delivery of funding for elite sport after the 2000 Olympics.
"Surely the Minister’s role is to coordinate national sport, not fragment it with competing inquiries", Senator Lundy said.
51/99. Contact: Simon Tatz on 0418 488295
Senator Kate Lundy, Shadow Minister Assisting on Information Technology, has called on government and business to work together to actively break down the barriers preventing more women from choosing information technology-based careers.
According to a University of Technology study, Women in(to) Computing, women comprise only between 12 and 20% of new enrolments in computing degrees. Another report, Windows of Opportunity for Women by Vivienne Price, confirms that few women enrol in IT courses because they are viewed as ‘masculine’ careers.
In a recent address to 120 participants at the launch of Women in Technology/Females in IT & T, Canberra Chapter, Senator Lundy said that the current information and communications technologies (ICT) skills shortage demands a comprehensive Government response in terms of education and industry policy.
"Unfortunately, the Coalition’s record in both education and industry development is dismal. The Government has reduced funding to higher education as well as R & D support to industry, Senator Lundy said.
"However, this appalling record is not an excuse to ignore the challenge of ensuring more women take up information technology and knowledge-related careers.
"Knowledge management careers span a veritable world of employment options in this multi-dimensional and rapidly growing sector.
"Women in particular bring non-linear and innovative, lateral approaches to the evolving dynamics of information and communications technology.
"Aspirations and skills must be fostered and developed at an early age so that the stereotypes surrounding men and computer-based careers are broken down.
"ICT careers are amongst the highest paying in the country and the challenge for government and business is to take advantage of this incredible but as yet under-utilised resource that women in this sector represent", Senator Lundy said.
50/99. Contact: Simon Tatz on 0418 488295 or 62773334
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