National Families Week – AUSTRALIAN FAMILIES UNDER PRESSURE

“National Families Week is a great opportunity to reflect on the importance of all families in Bonner,” said Ross Vasta, Federal Member for Bonner today.

 

National Families Week will be held from Tuesday, 15 May to Monday, 21 May 2012 and will coincide with International Families Day on Tuesday, 15 May 2012.

 

“Wayne Swan, in last week’s Budget did little to help Australian families who are doing it tough under the Labor government”.

 

“Families right across Bonner are footing the bill for Labor’s reckless spending and financial mismanagement as Labor freezes family payments to generate savings.”

 

“Families in Bonner are struggling with cost of living pressures and are about to be hit hard by the world’s biggest carbon tax,” Ross Vasta said.

 

Since 2007, on average, the price of power has increased by 51%, water is up 46%, gas has increased 30%, health costs are up 20% and grocery prices have increased by 14%.

 

“With these additional costs, it is no surprise Australian families are finding it hard to survive under Labor.”

 

“Families in Bonner deserve better,” Ross Vasta said today.

 

“Instead local households will get hit by the world’s biggest carbon tax.”

 

The Coalition is committed to a stronger Australia where families can build a better life for themselves through reducing cost of living pressures while ensuring better access to child care, education, and health services.

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BUDGET PROVES LABOR IS NO FRIEND OF SMALL BUSINESS


Federal Member for Bonner, Ross Vasta said the Federal Budget offered little or nothing for small businesses in Bonner about to be whacked by the world’s biggest carbon tax.

“The Gillard Government has shown that its got no feel for small business, offering nothing new in the budget  to provide immediate relief to struggling businesses with the sector seeing a 48 per cent increase in insolvencies,” Ross Vasta said.

“First the Gillard Government broke its promise not to introduce a carbon tax, now it’s broken its promise to cut the company tax rate.

“Carbon tax-related ‘sweeteners’ in the form of accelerated depreciation allowances rely on small businesses having the ready cash to spend on new capital items.

“The Gillard Government’s abolition of the Entrepreneurs Tax Offset has increased tax for nearly 370,000 of our smallest businesses, including micro, home-based, independent contractor and start-up businesses, with incomes of less than $75,000.

Ross Vasta said the Institute of Chartered Accountants rightly identifies that 80 per cent of all small businesses have no prospect of gaining any benefit from ‘loss carry back’ as they are not structured as corporations and fewer still could satisfy the complicated eligibility criteria under current trading conditions.

“The local corner shop in Bonner  is not only going to have to deal with an increase in costs for supplies and electricity, it’s also going to have pressure from consumers looking for a bargain as cost of living pressures increase and unemployment rises as forecasted in the Budget,” Ross Vasta said.

“The greatest insult from the Gillard Government is the toxic carbon tax. Small business will be hit the hardest because their costs will go up and up and up as the carbon price goes up and up and up, and they won’t receive a single cent in compensation.”

Ross Vasta said the Coalition had a clear road map to restore hope, reward and opportunity for small business by scrapping the carbon tax and getting out of the way of business by slashing $1 billion worth of red tape.

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THE COALITION’S PLAN TO REVIVE FOREIGN LANGUAGE STUDY

The Federal Member for Bonner, Ross Vasta was joined today at Citipointe Christian College by the Leader of the Opposition, the Hon. Tony Abbott to welcome the announcement by the Coalition to revive Foreign Languages in Schools throughout Australia.

 

“With such a multicultural community it is heartening to see the Coalition commit to reviving teaching of foreign languages in Australian schools”, said Ross Vasta.

 

 “Knowing the languages of our key regional partners is vital to unlocking the potential of the Asian century for Australia.”

 

“A Coalition Government will work urgently with the states to ensure that at least 40 per cent of Year 12 students are once more taking a language other than English within a decade,” said Ross Vasta.

 

The teaching of foreign languages in Australian schools has long been in decline. 

 

The Coalition believes that starting in pre-school every student should have an exposure to foreign languages.

 

Because foreign language speakers will have to be mobilised and because teachers take time to be trained, this will be a generational shift. 

 

“We will urgently work with the states to ensure that the Australian workforce of the future can grasp the full opportunity of the Asian century” Ross Vasta said today.

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