Two Australian Prime Ministers and two attitudes to child abuse within religious organizations

This is Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard's last letter before leaving office on 26 June 2013:

This is an excerpt from the 1997 evidence given by Australian Prime Minister-elect Tony Abbott, when he was Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Employment, Education, Training and Youth Affairs, in support of an alleged paedophile priest later forcefully laicized by the Vatican:

Q. You kept up your friendship with the defendant?

A. From time to time, yes.
Q. And you saw him?
A. From time to time, perhaps once or twice every twelve months.
Q. And you've kept up that friendship until this day?
A. That's correct....
Q. First of all, how would you describe him as a man?
A. An extremely upright and virtuous man. I guess one of things that I liked very much about John when I first him, was his maturity, intellectual, social, emotional he was, to that extent I guess, a beacon of humanity at the Seminary
Q. How did he appear to get on with his peers at the at Manly?
A. Obviously we have different relations with different people. John got on extremely well with some, less well with others. I guess one of the things that marked John out from his peers at the seminary was he was a man with high expectations of himself and others and I can recall on occasions being more than a little annoyed with him, because, you know, he would want to bring me up to the mark, bring me back to the path of virtue from time to time and this didn't always go over too well with me. And I guess it could annoy others as well.
Q. But as far as his own conduct was concerned, did you ever become aware of anything which would in any way question his beliefs and his dedication as a priest?
A. Never.
Q. And you've come all the way from Sydney today to give this evidence?
A. I have indeed.
Q. You do have other duties to perform? A. I have an electorate to represent and a ministry to assist.

<NO CROSS-EXAMINATION

http://tl.gd/n_1rjd2n5 

Taxpayers were handed the bill when Shadow Attorney-General Brandis 'conspired' against the Gillard Government at a private wedding

Apparently Australian Attorney-General George Brandis thought it appropriate when on the Opposition benches to expect taxpayers to foot some of his costs when attending a wedding at Bells Hotel, Killcare NSW, on 4 December 2011 and staying at The Mantra in Ettalong.

The Sydney Morning Herald 29 September 2013:

Senator Brandis claimed $1700, including more than $1000 on return flights, $143 on a hire car and the overnight ''official business'' allowance designed to cover accommodation and incidentals.

He told Fairfax Media on Saturday that he regarded the wedding as a chance to ''foster collaboration'' over Mr Smith's work covering the then prime minister and the Craig Thomson scandal and it was therefore ''primarily a professional rather than a social engagement''.

''These were both matters of significant national interest on which I spoke frequently in Parliament and the media,'' he wrote in a statement.

The federal Department of Finance's guidelines state MPs are allowed to claim travel and accommodation expenses for official business including ''meetings of a government advisory committee or taskforce'' or ''functions representing a minister or presiding officer''. Meeting with journalists is not a purpose sanctioned by the guidelines.....

Mr Joyce claimed a flight to Moree the next day and about $500 worth of charges for the use of a Commonwealth car on the day of the wedding. He said he could not recall whether he had other meetings that day but defended the use of public resources to attend the wedding.....

Interestingly this article reveals George Brandis was in close collaboration with the suspended Sydney radio shock jock in the very public hounding of then Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

Although at the time he was rather reticent about the general public being aware of this particular ‘friendship’:

He wouldn't get out in front of anyone in case they took a photo of him," Smith told The Sunday Telegraph. 

Once at the wedding Mr. Brandis apparently gave an impassioned speech in defence of Michael Smith’s pursuit of the Prime Minister and, it would appear that the bridal couple also paid some of his transportation costs as well:

For those interested in the financial details for dates associated with this wedding:

George Brandis July-December 2011 Parliamentarian’s Expenditure Record

                                

Domestic Travel 4 Dec 11 Brisbane Sydney 5 Dec 11 Sydney Brisbane $1,191.06

Com Car Brisbane 4 Dec 11 $82.83 Brisbane 5 Dec 11 $44.23

Hire Car Sydney 4 Dec to 5 Dec 11 $143.40

UPDATE

Subsequent to this story breaking in the mainstream media it has been reported that; 
Attorney-General George Brandis will repay almost $1700 in expenses he claimed to attend the wedding of a Sydney radio shock jock two years ago.

Although still asserting that his being a guest at the wedding was work-related, it does not appear that Senator Brandis declared the complimentary limosine supplied on 4 December 2011 in his Statement of Registerable Interests - something he might have done if that day was in fact part of his duties as a senator.

So how is Federal Coalition Treasurer Joe Hockey managing Australia's national budget?

Joe Hockey as Opposition Shadow Treasurer in The Sydney Morning Herald, 17 May 2012:

''Labor has now sought increases in the debt limit of the Commonwealth from $75 billion to $200 billion, to $250 billion and now $300 billion. On each occasion they promise not to exceed the limit. Well, enough is enough - we are going to keep them to their promises''

Joe Hockey as Federal Coalition Treasurer in The Herald Sun, 28 September 2013:

Mr Hockey also said the Coalition would raise the $300 billion debt ceiling before Christmas ...

The Australian Government currently issues debt securities to the public in the form of Treasury Bonds, Treasury Indexed Bonds and Treasury Notes.

Here are the Abbott Government’s officially announced intentions to raise money from domestic/international sources: [updated 17.12.13]

18 September intends to borrow $800 million

20 September intends to borrow $800 million

25 September intends to borrow $800 million

26 September intends to borrow $1 billion

27 September intends to borrow $500 million

2 October 2013 intends to borrow $800 million

3 October 2013 intends to borrow $800 million

4 October 2013 intends to borrow $800 million

9 October 2013 intends to borrow $800 million

10 October 2013 intends to borrow $500 million

11 October 2013 intends to borrow $800 million
16 October 2013 intends to borrow $800 million
17 October 2013 intends to borrow $1 billion
18 October 2013 intends to borrow $800 million
24 October 2013 intends to borrow $1.5 billion
25 October 2013 intends to borrow $800 million

29 October 2013 intends to borrow $200 million
30 October 2013 intends to borrow $800 million
31 October 2013 intends to borrow $1 billion
1 November 2013 intends to borrow $800 million
6 November 2013 intends to borrow $600 million
7 November 2013 intends to borrow $1.5 billion
8 November 2013 intends to borrow $1 billion
8 November 2013 intends to borrow an additional unspecified amount
12 November 2013 intends to borrow $150 million
13 November 2013 intends to borrow $800 million
14 November 2013 intends to borrow $1 billion
15 November 2013 intends to borrow $800 million
21 November 2013 intends to borrow $500 million
22 November 2013 intends to borrow $800 million
26 November 2013 intends to borrow an additional unspecified amount

4 December 2013 intends to borrow $800 million

6 December 2013 intends to borrow $1.5 billion
10 December 2013 intends to borrow $100 million
11 December 2013  intends to borrow $800 million
13 December 2013 intends to borrow $700 million
15 January 2014 intends to borrow an additional unspecified amount

24 January 2014 intends to borrow $500 million
11 February 2014 intends to borrow an additional unspecified amount

In the first 128 days of the Abbott Government total borrowings from these sources will exceed $27.7 billion or over $216.4 million a day.

It would appear that the current Federal Coalition Government is borrowing at the same a higher rate as than the former Federal Labor Government. However, It has committed to raising the debt ceiling to $500 billion before 12 December 2013.

So there is no slowing down of the increase in the much dog whistled national debt since Joe Hockey became Treasurer - just as there is apparently the same downward trend in the rate of asylum seeker boat arrivals between the second Rudd Government and the current Abbott Government.

Laughing At The One-Trick Tony: the best of #missingbudget

Crikey 22 September 2013:

The message from the Coalition has been loud, shrill and as sophisticated as a slap in the face with a cold fish. Since Tony Abbott's budget reply speech in May, he, Joe Hockey and Andrew Robb have been emphatically claiming Australia is in a state of "budget emergency." The perpetrators? Those gol-darned Reds in the Labor party.

Despite the country's AAA credit rating and that whole "one of the strongest economies in the world" thing, the former opposition have been pounding the panic button and attempting to convince as many people as possible that Australia is going to hell in a fiscally irresponsible hand basket.

For pure sensationalism and hyperbole the Coalition's so-called "budget emergency" is reminiscent of the Labor's government's tendency to declare war on everything: the war on waste, the war on binge drinking, the war on soft meat pies at the servo, etcetera.

But since the election we have heard nothing of the disastrous "budget emergency." Abbott and co have kept mum on the subject. How could such a horrible spectre disappear so quickly? Where did it sneak off to?

On the weekend an army of intrepid Twitter truth-seekers decided to go looking......

https://twitter.com/search?q=%23missingbudget&src=typd&f=realtime

Tara-Leigh Davison ‏@questionabubble19h

And my personal fav - #BundyBear was willing to have his pic taken in support of finding the #missingbudget Bless him pic.twitter.com/IFehlcnFpj

Carlie Bonavia ‏@carliebonavia6h

#missingbudget in a windy Denmark pic.twitter.com/adpkfagSNF

 

Denise Hilton ‏@denihil5h

Sorry, no printer on North Hero, Vermont, USA, or budget either. #missingbudget  pic.twitter.com/3lvbtnnrlu

Maybe ‏@Maybeee201114h

OMG !! MT "@lukebuckmaster: Budget Emergency may have caught plane. Signs up in NY (not Photoshop) #missingbudget pic.twitter.com/PgltJGpF8v"

Jo Evans ‏@4jevans17h

My only regret with #missingbudget hunt was medical centre & chemist were closed. I couldn't search in the cabinet of suppositories #auspol

Emma ‏@emmsyish12h

Thought I'd found the #missingbudget, but it was just an empty Mars Bar wrapper.

Mel Watson ‏@melwhatson51m

#missingbudget has probably eloped with #stopthegoats! Probably enjoying a well deserved honeymoon in sunny Christmas Island...