Fraser’s bleak measures under attack

Press, 26 May 1979, Page 8

Fraser’s bleak measures under attack

NZPA Canberra' There has been widespread' condemnation of the bleak [ mini-Budget handed down in; the Federal Parliament on Thursday evening by the; Treasurer (Mr John How-; ard).

. In the tax package the Government cut back heavily on health and education spending,. then broke elec-. tion promises on tax indexation and the temporary tax levy. Full tax indexation, instead of being restored on July 1, will now not come in until the August Budget — and possibly not even then. The tax surcharge of 1.5 per cent imposed in the last Budget, which was to apply for only seven months, will now continue_ to apply at the rate of 2.57 per cent. It will continue at this rate until November, with any change to be determined by the August Budget.

Under the Government’s new medical scheme, the.4o. per cent rebate on medical ’ fees will be abolished and i patients have to pay the full I amount of medical bills up to SAust2o. For medical bills over; sAust2o the Government, will now pay only the. dif-; ference between this and the! scheduled medical fee. As well, hospital fees go up by 25 per cent. Mr Howard also announced that in the August Budget spending on education would be drastically cut back. The business sector also came in for some treatment., A large' part of the oil pro-. fits from the Government’s decision to take Australian, petrol prices up to work, levels, will now go into the Government coffers. The Government also announced it would continue. the coal-export levy and. crack down even further on businessmen’s tax-avoidance schemes. Farmers were also hu by increased taxation and the slashing of some rural benefit schemes. The mini-Budget cuts about sAustsooM off the Government’s spending, and is expected to bring it tn SAustl6ooM in extra revenue. The mini-Budget came m for immediate and strong criticism from the Labour Party, the Opposition Leader (Mr Bill Hayden) branding it as “another milestone along a path paved with broken promises.” . . Later, the Prime Minister (Mr Malcolm Fraser), conceded that Australia's inflation rate was not likely to improve during the next 12 months, despite the miniBudget. He told a press conference in Canberra that he could not predict the possible effects on the country’s unemployment. rate. But he defended the Government’s decisions in the-mini-Budget as one of “total economic responsibility’.” “Our first responsibility, our first obligation, is to continue to get the Australian economy right,” he said.