Multicultural Australia by GDL

Globalisation, culture, values and multiculturalism

By GDL

The advent of Globalisation, economic, cultural and military, has no doubt been instrumental to the world becoming a global village and this is even more exemplified by the instant and rapid digital communication. 

News and other information are now available instantly and most of the time “freely” thanks to global and online media. Radio and Television also receive and diffuse the latest news as soon as they are received and edited.
However the quickest way of obtaining information today is via the 3G mobile phone. The news of Steve Jobs death was first announced on iPhone, then ipad and then the other electronic media before it hit the traditional media.
The social media are another aspects which make people from different part of the planet feel closer and this is a good thing. Today people do not feel lonely although they are” alone” in the computer room. With the help of the computer they feel that they belong to a global communication network and feel closer to the most distant relative or friend. Via Facebook, one can have many virtual friends without having a real one and still not knowing the name of the next door neighbour.  But who cares?
Today there is that notion of a global individual, the global citizen or what Virginia Nightingale calls “network individualism”. However she said that social network is a powerful option available to marginal and individual audiences. (V N, 2007). For his part, Jim McGuigan referred this to the mobile privatisation as “ a new pattern of life associated with unban-industrial society in general as much as with the  specific use of communication technologies.( J M, 2007).
The global communication, the advance of technology, the new media and the rest, reinforce the notion of cultural globalisation and the push towards a mass culture. The new global or mass culture is a strategic agenda setting by global media, media barons using marketing and advertising for more consumption to the liking of business and wealth concentrators.  The consequence of which we have a new  society embedded in consumerism and subject to  aggressive marketing.
The advent of modernism and post modernism bring also the notion of a new set of values: economic independence, career focus, labour mobility, online shopping, online dating, less time for the family, less time for real face to face communication and less time for parent-children interaction, less time to care about the elders. Values and cultures take a new dimensions.
With the advent of a “new” cultural globalisation comes the disintegration of traditional cultures and subsequently community or societal values. Religious philosophy is a thing of the past which is no longer a priority. Religion as an organisation is failing to cope with change towards post modernism.    In western society particularly where globalisation is at its best, people today do not need religion to tell them how to live their life. The notion of marriage as well as divorce for example, has a similar or different meaning. They are not regarded only as a sequence of the life cycle. Child bearing and having a family is today a choice, according to circumstances. Family breakdown has become a current event.
This new culture has turned everyone into an individual, a free person, an independent one. The individual does not longer feel part neither of a family nor of the local community nor member of a village, town or country. He is a global citizen with a free mind and can move and travel easily; the only preoccupation is to be economically independent and free.
The influence of new media and global culture has had a free ride with the collapse of communism. It was a system which placed too many restrictions on the individual to be part of a society or country and abide to rules. It restricted freedom of speech and association and was doomed to fail.  With post- communism came a benign hegemony with the ideology of liberalism, individualism, free-market and consumerism: the modern capitalism dogma.

The Islamists fundamentalist in the wake of the collapse of communism feared a   western cultural culture invasion. They had recourse to terrorism and suicide bombers to stop the decline of Islam. Unfortunately their methods were not acceptable by most of us and particularly by many moderate Muslims. They also antagonised the other nations and religions and bred “Islamophoby” to some extent. This was surely not the way to go. But for them this is a jihad that they will pursue.

Cultural and economic globalisation have definitely led to decline of religion, the anthropological form of culture. This in turn has diminished the concept of values as they are very much part of religion and culture. In the western world today, we see the emergence of a  value-free society. The notion of morality is weak if not inexistent. While the society is still law abiding, it will not take long to have a debate on what is also legal, who are the lawmakers and their mandates.
However the picture is different in multicultural society like Australia. In the wake of western culture propaganda and marketing, it is noted that many ethnic communities approach and accept cultural globalisation from a completely different angle.  The culture at home is strong even if it tends to be loose outside the family circle. E.g. eating McDonald for lunch and pasta at home. wearing jeans outside and watching bollywood movies at home, children are taught moral and religious values at home even if they accept secularism outside.
In Australia, the ethnic communities are becoming more and more visible through the media; they have their own radio programs, their own newspapers, their own magazines and having more and more social and cultural gatherings and parties. These factors demonstrate that they are not moving towards a mono culture in a western society but rather towards a more hybrid and multicultural society. 
Multiculturalism has been beneficial to Australia by enriching the social and  cultural landscape and all the signs are there that it will keep flourishing like a garden with many colourful flowers. This is the new Australia of today and tomorrow.

GDL.

The new Australian Labor Party

The new Labor Party of Australia
by GDL

On the 10th of June (see below), I wrote that there was political instability in Australia.
This period of uncertainty was becoming unhealthy and could not last as it was bad for
the country both socially and economically. The government was in a sort of stalemate
and business was losing confidence and well as consumers. There was a need to break the deadlock.

Then on Wednesday 26th June, some brave members of the Labour took the bull by the horns
and requested a leadership spill. The once deposed leader Kevin Rudd stood as a challenger to
sitting prime minister Julia Gillard and eventually won the contest.
So on Thursday 27th June Australians had a new prime minister, Honourable Kevin Rudd.
Three years later Kevin Rudd had his revenge on Julia Gillard and she was deposed the same way.
She cannot be too angry as she now bears the consequence of her own action. She paid the price
of deposing a first time sitting prime minister to fulfil her ambition of being the first female
prime minister of Australia. In retrospect she must be saying that she went to fast or burned
the red light.

Julia Gillard did not win the  elections in 2010 but managed to stay in power by negotiating with the Greens and the independents. Her alliance with the Greens was a mistake and was toxic; they forced her to introduce a carbon tax and prevented her to contain the asylym seekers, who came en masse during her term of office. This was another of her many failed policies.

During the prime minister ship of Julia Gillard, the opposition led by Tony Abbott was surfing on a wave of popularity. All the polls were favourable to the opposition from every corners. The polls indicated that voters were sick of this government and its prime minister. But whether they really
wanted a change of government and did they really trust the opposition and wanted Tony Abbott to be the next prime minster, was the real debate.
The question was answered by a snap poll which taken the night that Kevin Rudd replaced Julia Gillard as leader of the labor party. It showed that the primary vote of the labor party had increased by seven points, that on the two party preferred the result  was 50-50 and  that Kevin Rudd was the preferred prime minister. The polls also showed that it will not be a landslide victory of the opposition but a rather close election.

Now the opposition has a real battle on their hands. They cannot be complacent and can no longer
practice the politics of negativity, can no longer use slogans and has to put forward their policies
and plans for the country. Tony Abbott which was up to now sleeping quietly, has to wake up and
show his party's credentials. No excuse will be accepted by the voters, it is only three months to the
general elections and the people need to know the social and economic policies of the opposition.
The media which have up to now focused on the government troubles, will now shift their
attention to the opposition by scrutinising their policies. The pressure is now squarely on the opposition.

The real contest starts now, it is not a personality contest but one of ideas and policies. The party
who can convince the voters that they can best govern for the good and welfare of all the citizens
will be the winner.
Kevin Rudd has already taken the lead. It is up to Tony Abbott to follow.

Thursday 20 th June : World refugee day.

World refugee day : reflection par GDL.

Following the first and second world wars, many people in Europe were displaced
i.e. had to flee their own countries because of the remnants of the wars.
The Jews, most particularly, paid the price after the atrocities by the Germans under
Hitler and had to hide or flee from their counties of origin. It was a prelude to the
refugees (or displaced people) as we know them today. The refugees came from
Germany, Poland, Ukraine, Hungary, Checkoslovakia looking for protection. They were
hosted by countries like France, Israel and as far as Australia  and the USA.
The advent of repressive and dictatorial regimes in Latin America also caused refugees
from Chile, El Salvador, Argentina  to flee persecutions.
Civil wars in Lebanon, Vietnam and Korea also added to the phenomenon of refugee.
In the new century, civil wars in Africa have added to the lot of refugees. Today the
war in Syria has caused 1.5 million Syrians to flee their country.

After World War II, in 1951,  leaders of many countries met in Geneva and signed the
Convention on Refugees. The 1967 protocol amended the Convention to include
universal coverage as it only applied to Europe. Among the many countries,
Australia also signed the convention, which means that it will accommodate refugees.
The convention also establishes the role and duties of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees.

The definition of a refugee according to the UNHCR  is :
"Any person who owing to a well founded fear of being persecuted for reason of
race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion,
is outside his/her country, is unable to avail himself/herself of the protection of that country."
The Convention also states that -
-Refugees should not be penalised for their illegal entry and stay in the host country
-The principles of non-refoulement is fundamental
-The refugees should have access to Courts, primary education, to work and even
  given a passport called the "Nansen passport"
- The state has to cooperate with the UNHCR in the function of its duties
- While protection is not permanent, once assessed the host country will grant refugee status.

The influx of boat people seeking asylum has become a political issue in Australia.
 It has become  a topic of fierce debates inside and outside parliament to the extent
 that some are advocating that Australia should walk out of the Geneva Convention.
According to the UNHCR, there are at date 45 million refugees wandering around the
world and Australia is accommodating only 0.3% of the refugees.
The same report writes that  Australia remains the preferred country of refugees.

The refugee issue and the non-stop arrival of boat people is a big problem for the Labor
 government who has tried everything to reduce the influx but seems to have failed lamentably.
The opposition accuses the actual government as responsible for this situation because
they dismantles the Howard solution when Kevin Rudd came to power. The opposition
says they have the solution to the problem i.e. they will reintroduce the pacific solution
and temporary protection visa (TPV) and turn back the boats. The Greens, for their part,
welcome all asylum seekers and keep reminding the government of its obligations under
the Geneva convention.

As all indications pointing to a change of government in the September general elections,
all eyes will be on Tony Abbott to stop the boats and turn them back. Failure to stop the
boats and deter asylum seekers to come to Australia, even during its first term
in office, will be regarded as a failure and lie from Tony Abbott.

GDL.

Political instability in Australia

Australia needs a strong government
by GDL

The advent of a minority government in Australia since 2010, has but brought instability in the country. Julia Gillard and Labor did not win the elections of 2010, but managed to govern with the support of independents Tony Windsor and Rob Oakeshot.
Labor also had the support of the Greens. This support from the Greens were actually toxic as the latter cornered the government into passing the carbon tax legislation. Gillard promised before the elections that there will be no carbon tax under a government she leads but she later explained that she had no choice. Taxing Carbon is taxing our cheapest form of energy.

Since 2010, there has been political instability in the country. Each piece of legislation had to be negotiated with the independents and the Greens. Many times parliament has to resort to division of votes as there was no clear majority. It was rarely they "yes" have it or the "nos' have it.
Labor had to rely for the most part on the vote of disgraced Craig Thompson and made Peter Slipper, the rat, the speaker to be assured of staying in government.
There was also instability within the Labor party itself. Julia Gillard leadership was challenged twice by Kevin Rudd. The latest challenge resulted in major casualties which saw the resignation of ministers and parliamentary secretaries as well as the whips of government.During the past three years we have also seen cabinet reshuffled three times.

The polls have consistently shown that Labor is in decline but was still showing the unpopularity of Tony Abbott. This was some comfort for the Labor voters; but since Tony Abbott became the preferred prime minister, many saw this as the last straw. It became thus clear that voters have turned their backs on Labor and particularly not listening to Julia Gillard.

The demise of  Labor, besides these instabilities, has also been compounded by many bad decisions and policies starting from the days of Kevin Rudd and all through Julia Gillard's prime ministership. The list is long and exhaustive demonstrating thorough incompetence. Analysts rate Julia Gillard and her government as the worst in the political history of Australia.
This week highlighted the panic in the government ranks to the extent that many have already conceded defeat. This sense of despair was, however, the opportunity for Kevin Rudd to come in the forefront to boost the moral of the Labour supporters.
He made a show of force, mingling with the public to demonstrate that he is still the people's Prime Minster. He also urged his labour colleagues to stand up and fight against Tony Abbott.
This "show" of Kevin Rudd  has again cause for concern to the extent that a reputable journalist like Barry Cassidy of Insiders is saying that support for Julia Gillard has withered and it seems certain that there will be another leadership spill.(sic)
The eventuality of a  Kevin Rudd's return could see another cabinet reshuffle and a new date for the general elections which could be in August.The question remains if Kevin Rudd can repair the damages that he started, and amplified by Julia Gillard. While most analysts (like myself) think it is too late, that the game is over for Labor, others think that Kevin could help save some marginal seats.
Kevin or Gillard will not, according to all polls, be prime minister in September. Who will be the leader of the opposition is also not clear.
It is predicted that  Bill Shorten will be the next leader of the Labor party. We will soon find out.
Qui vivra verra comme le dit souvent mon ami Serge Felix.

The Rodriguans in Melbourne, a vibrant community

Opinion of GDL

 

Rodriguans have been migrating to Australia since the 1950s. The first families were the Calamels. For those who have been to Rodrigues, the colonial house of the the Calamels still stands near the Francois Leguat's Place. The house is now occupied by the well-known, Ben Gontran.

The wave of Rodriguan migration to Sydney and Melbourne happened in the late 1960s. Among the families who came by boats, the big ones, Patris, and Galileo, were the Castels, the Roussetys, the Meuniers and the Raffauts. Ademar Roussety and his family were the first to settle down in Melbourne, according to Marie Fidou Templin, Secretary of the Club.

The largest diaspora of Rodriguans is in Melbourne in the state of Victoria, Australia. There could be around 2,000 Rodriguans living in Melbourne. They came from the regions of Port Mathurin, Oyster Bay and La Ferme. 

The community of Rodriguans in Melbourne is not only vocal but  visible through the  Rodriguan Social Club of Victoria which is a model of solidarity and success.

I was very impressed when I walked into the clubhouse of the RSCV for the first time on 19 February 2012. While the interior decoration of the club is very original, the atmosphere is also welcoming.

It is immediately felt that all the members are very connected to the club as a building but more so as a group who shares the same commitments, the same values and the same passion. There is a great feeling of belonging and solidarity among the members. What is more impressive is the cordial, friendly, community and family atmosphere that prevails at the club house where anyone and everyone feels at ease straightaway.
 

The Rodriguan Social Club of Victoria is one of the most successful ethnic clubs of Melbourne where the community is gathered frequently for social and cultural activities. There is so much happening at the club that Emission Kontak has developed a slogan when referring to the club, " Il se passe toujours quelque chose au club Rodriguais."

The RSCV, commonly known as " Le Club Rodriguais" is the only Rodriguan Club in the world. This year it is celebrating its 18th anniversary. The club was founded by some well wishers who had a vision for the community and a hub for the members and non members to meet and celebrate their culture and legacy. It did not take long for the club and the Rodriguan community to position themselves as a unique community and distinguishing themselves from the other communities and clubs all while forming part of the wider Australian society.
The RSCV is also different from the other Mauritian clubs of Victoria. This is not to say that there is animosity between these two groups as it used to be in Rodrigues in the 60s and 70s, but instead there  a cordial and close friendship between Mauritians and Rodriguans in Melbourne. There are many Mauritians born as well as some Seychellois who feel a strong sense of 'appartenance' to the Rodriguan club. This is due to the shared creole culture, the friendly atmosphere and the many social and cultural activities which fill the leisure of the many baby boomers of Melbourne.

The history of the club is a successful one. It can be classified as a model of democracy.

While the club is under the leadership of a Central Committee, it operates with full disclosure and transparency. Power is decentralised, all the members are involved in one way or another in the running of the club. In politics we call this participative democracy a new and modern paradigm which is gaining momentum and more consideration.

This model is working perfectly for the club. It is a strategy which allows the RSCV to reach its aims, goals and achieve its many objectives. It keeps the bond among members while focussing on the bigger picture, "OUR Club OUR Culture ".

The establishment of the club and now having their own clubhouse is a milestone for the members. They feel a sense of pride for what they have achieved. It is a dream comes true, as was put to me by the actual President, Cyril Appadoo. It is also a dream that they are living in the reality. A baby that has being taken care of with much attention and which has  grown and developed. It is now a fully proud grown-up, 18 years old.

The other intangible, but how big, achievement of the RSCV is the way they are keeping the Rodriguan's legacy and culture alive, in a western city of Melbourne which is also very multicultural. The club has  consistently and frequently put forward the values of their  cuisine, music and dances.

The Rodriguan Community of Victoria has made their culture, and their country of origin  known to the wider Australian Community through their frequent participations in festivals and other cultural events. like Globe to Globe, La Faya or Moumba.

There is no doubt that the Rodriguan community of Melbourne and the RSCV have positioned themselves strategically,  strongly and conspicuously on the social and cultural landscape of Victoria .

 Bravo a Fidou, Cyril, Mikel. Leo et les autres and Happy Birthday to the Klib Rodrigue.

Cancer can be prevented

LATEST CANCER INFORMATION
from Johns Hopkins

AFTER YEARS OF TELLING PEOPLE CHEMOTHERAPY IS THE ONLY WAY TO TRY AND ELIMINATE CANCER, JOHNS HOPKINS IS FINALLY S...TARTING TO TELL YOU THERE IS AN ALTERNATIVE WAY …
1. Every person has cancer cells in the body. These cancer cells do not show up in the standard tests until they have multiplied to a few billion. When doctors tell cancer patients that there are no more cancer cells in their bodies after treatment, it just means the tests are unable to detect the cancer cells because they have not reached the detectable size.
2. Cancer cells occur between 6 to more than 10 times in a person's lifetime.
3. When the person's immune system is strong the cancer cells will be destroyed and prevented from multiplying and forming tumors.
4. When a person has cancer it indicates the person has multiple nutritional deficiencies. These could be due to genetic, environmental, food and lifestyle factors.
5. To overcome the multiple nutritional deficiencies, changing diet and including supplements will strengthen the immune system.
6. Chemotherapy involves poisoning the rapidly-growing cancer cells and also destroys rapidly-growing healthy cells in the bone marrow, gastro-intestinal tract etc, and can cause organ damage, like liver, kidneys, heart, lungs etc.
7. Radiation while destroying cancer cells also burns, scars and damages healthy cells, tissues and organs.
8. Initial treatment with chemotherapy and radiation will often reduce tumor size. However prolonged use of chemotherapy and radiation do not result in more tumor destruction.
 9. When the body has too much toxic burden from chemotherapy and radiation the immune system is either compromised or destroyed, hence the person can succumb to various kinds of infections and complications.
10. Chemotherapy and radiation can cause cancer cells to mutate and become resistant and difficult to destroy. Surgery can also cause cancer cells to spread to other sites.
11. An effective way to battle cancer is to STARVE the cancer cells by not feeding it with foods it needs to multiple.
What cancer cells feed on:
a. Sugar is a cancer-feeder. By cutting off sugar it cuts off one important food supply to the cancer cells. Note: Sugar substitutes like NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, etc are made with Aspartame and it is harmful. A better natural substitute would be Manuka honey or molasses but only in very small amounts. Table salt has a chemical added to make it white in colour. Better alternative is Bragg's aminos or sea salt.
b. Milk causes the body to produce mucus, especially in the gastro-intestinal tract. Cancer feeds on mucus. By cutting off milk and substituting with unsweetened soy milk, cancer cells will starved.
c. Cancer cells thrive in an acid environment. A meat-based diet is acidic and it is best to eat fish, and a little chicken rather than beef or pork. Meat also contains livestock antibiotics, growth hormones and parasites, which are all harmful, especially to people with cancer.
d. A diet made of 80% fresh vegetables and juice, whole grains, seeds, nuts and a little fruits help put the body into an alkaline environment. About 20% can be from cooked food including beans. Fresh vegetable juices provide live enzymes that are easily absorbed and reach down to cellular levels within 15 minutes t o nourish and enhance growth of healthy cells.
To obtain live enzymes for building healthy cells try and drink fresh vegetable juice (most vegetables including bean sprouts) and eat some raw vegetables 2 or 3 times a day. Enzymes are destroyed at temperatures of 104 degrees F (40 degrees C).
e. Avoid coffee, tea, and chocolate, which have high caffeine. Green tea is a better alternative and has cancer-fighting properties. Water--best to drink purified water, or filtered, to avoid known toxins and heavy metals in tap water. Distilled water is acidic, avoid it.
12. Meat protein is difficult to digest and requires a lot of digestive enzymes. Undigested meat remaining in the intestines will become putrified and leads to more toxic buildup.
13. Cancer cell walls have a tough protein covering. By refraining from or eating less meat it frees more enzymes to attack the protein walls of cancer cells and allows the body's killer cells to destroy the cancer cells.
14. Some supplements build up the immune system (IP6, Flor-ssence, Essiac, anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals, EFAs etc.) to enable the body's own killer cells to destroy cancer cells. Other supplements like vitamin E are known to cause apoptosis, or programmed cell death, the body's normal method of disposing of damaged, unwanted, or unneeded cells.
15. Cancer is a disease of the mind, body, and spirit. A proactive and positive spirit will help the cancer warrior be a survivor.
Anger, unforgiving and bitterness put the body into a stressful and acidic environment. Learn to have a loving and forgiving spirit. Learn to relax and enjoy life.
16. Cancer cells cannot thrive in an oxygenated environment. Exercising daily, and deep breathing help to get more oxygen down to the cellular level. Oxygen therapy is another means employed to destroy cancer cells.

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A deficit budget, the implications.

The implications of a deficit budget

By GDL

Let’s start with the simple definition:  A deficit budget is the financial shortage  of the federal government's budget.  It represents more money being spent than is coming in via taxes and other income.

When the budget in deficit there is a shortfall;  to pay for this, the government has to borrow to fill the gap  and pay for the interest on top. Government debt is a debt on the nation, on every citizen’s head because the repayments come, and will come, from the direct and indirect taxes coming from citizens and businesses i.e. pay to the government on salaries, earnings and profits.

Economists say that when a budget is in deficit it means that the economy is expanding because more money is put in the economy through government spending.  Government spending is also an element in the calculation of the Gross Domestic Product where economic growth is measured. Government spending also means that money is spent on projects or to pay for social services so more money is distributed directly and indirectly to the people. The latter  will then spend the money which boost retail and consumption another element of the GDP and also an economic indication.  This is often called the multiplying factor of the dollar.
This scenario is seen mainly when there is a financial crisis when government intervenes in the economy to prevent further recession. This was clearly noticed during the 2008 GFC when the USA government injected trillions of dollars in the economy to prevent the collapse of banks, financial institutions and industries. The same thing happened in Australia when Kevin Rudd  spent billions on the School Reconstruction Program and the Insulation Program. He went even further in giving every taxpayer $800 in cash for then to spend. All these were meant to stimulate the economy and prevent a recession in Australia. In fact we escaped the recession by the skin of the tooth.
A deficit therefore, can have some merits in times of economic turmoil but it should not be a way of life for any government, because continuous and increasing deficits can lead a country into big troubles. There are clear cut examples with the Greece government being too generous, spending around like crazy and now the country is in deep recession. The FMI and the European Central Bank had to bail out Greece with stringent conditions of repayments. It can be said that Greece is governed by these international money lenders because the government has to abide to the conditions imposed on it and forced to run an austerity policy.
The situation in Greece is very bad. The salaries of public servants have been cut as well as pensions. Many businesses closed down and the unemployment rate is very high. There is both a social and economic crisis in Greece which is not likely to go away soon.The economic problem of Greece also happened in Ireland, Portugal, Spain and Italy and now in France. The governments of these countries cannot continue to spend as they used to do. They now have to be very careful with spending and their aim is to get back into surplus sooner rather than later.
The bigger the deficit, the more the interest and the less government can spend on policies that will benefit the nation as a whole. At times the interest is so big that the revenues cannot pay for, because when a country is in recessions it collects less tax as the economy has slowed down. This is a vicious circle.
A country running a deficit budget cannot spend on many items that would have been good for the welfare of the people. Direct and indirect taxes very often have to be raised. Infrastructure projects have to be put on hold, cuts made in the public sector and savings made as much as possible. These austerity measures in turn tend to contract the economy some might even say suffocate it i.e. they prevent growth.
Francois Hollande when he came to office saw the problem and pledge for a stop to austerity measures as these are also affecting other economies in terms of trade and commerce. He was quite aware that the collapse of the PIGS will in turn impact on France economy and this did not take long to happen. France is now in recession.
A surplus budget on the contrary means that government has amassed more revenues than it has spent and has some savings. With this excess money, the government can spend on better infrastructure, build more schools and hospitals, increase the pensions, recruit more public servants and improve the welfare of the citizens. Furthermore, these savings can be spent in times of trouble without having to borrow and pay interest. It is a very simple equation and reasoning.

In Australia, when the Liberals left Government in 2007, the treasurer Peter Costello had accumulated $50 billion surplus, and put some money in an infrastructure fund. For his first budget Kevin Rudd was surfing on the surplus of John Howard but the came the GFC and start the spending rounds of the Labor Government.Julia did not do better and the spending cycle continued. For 2012-13 the deficit was $19.4 billion and for 2013-14 it will be $18 billion.
There has been much pressure on the Labor government to stop the spending. According to Wayne Swan, they have identified some $43 billions of savings and expect the budget to be in surplus in 2016-17.While the intention is to be praised, it is not sure whether they will be able to deliver if they remain in office. However Tony Abbott has also pledged to return in surplus sooner and they will do more cuts and savings.

Time will tell and the elections are only three months away.