David found a foosball table on the street and brought it into the break room. He created a tournament out of the miniature soccer-like game and got everyone involved. A tournament would last two months and people started coming in early to practise and hang out with their work friends. Instead of looking miserable and eating their lunches in silence, the factory employees spent their lunch and break times laughing and having fun.
Over 400,000 Australians live with a significant and permanent disability. Some of whom I met this morning at morning tea organised by Jenny Macklin and Bruce Bonyhady. Despite the limitations that have been imposed on them, they can put many of us to shame with their positive outlook and determination to live a full life. All up – this Budget delivers over $5 billion in assistance to households who need it most. And $5 billion that will boost confidence and spending in struggling Australian businesses, including small businesses, which in turn supports jobs across the community. From next year, over 340,000 vulnerable Victorians will start receiving the new allowance of $210 for singles and $350 for couples.
More than 380,000 Victorian families will benefit from this, with over 160,000 of these receiving an extra $600 a year. Every year after the Budget is delivered in May, I tour the country to talk with Australians about what we’re doing with their money, and why. For more than a decade I’ve admired ACOSS as an important contributor to the national debate.
And since 2008, the Australian Government on this day has also sought to highlight “Closing the Gap”, a strategy for reducing Indigenous disadvantage. March 21 should be a day for personal, national and international reflection. The focus of this day is dedicated to fundamental aspirations of the human heart and our relationships across the human family.
Project for 2015 are Buckley Park College, Manor Lakes College and Overnewton Anglican Community College. The argument goes that free speech allows one to say anything about anyone, without reference to its truth. Free speech based on this premise is fallacious and indeed destructive of the social fabric of a community.
With adequate resources, welfare standards can be improved, Fair Go agencies can better enforce the standards, resulting in better welfare outcomes for horses and other animals. With this budget, we have shown that you can balance the books, invest to keep economy strong, and build big social reforms all at the same time. We understand that a strong economy and disciplined fiscal policy is vital if you are going to build a fair community and support the most vulnerable.
There has been the demonising of asylum seekers for merely political capital after a criminal charge was laid against one asylum seeker in the community. This was particularly the case for people who spoke Arabic, Turkish and Vietnamese. While it was stated that, once enrolled in a course, trainees would persevere to achieve a qualification, the general view was that, if cultural issues were not addressed, the quality of the training experience suffered. Culture was therefore seen as a second-order factor by some respondents.
This is a point that Tony Abbott just does not get – it’s almost as if he didn’t actually read the budget papers showing growth at 3.25 per cent before he delivered his risible non-budget reply. In my view, we simply cannot claim to be a prosperous nation until all Australians can access the opportunities ahead of us – that’s what this budget was really about. Now, of course the usual suspects will call this class warfare – whether that is a misunderstanding or simply a distortion is another issue – that’s fine, I’m delighted that we’re having this debate.
And by taking this support into the transfer system, we’re making sure that nobody misses out on support. You shouldn’t need a good accountant to get support with the costs of schooling. Over half a million Victorian children will benefit from these payments in a matter of weeks. When he accuses us of class warfare for providing people with an opportunity to participate in the boom and for helping our most vulnerable, he is really saying that his only vision for growth is increased inequality. Indeed, he has proven by his actions in the Parliament just last week that he will actively oppose efforts to Spread the Benefits of the Boom to low- and middle-income families, and small businesses. On the other hand, they enter into the vile and destructive reality of racial discrimination when it seems to meet their personal political ambitions.