To summarise the NSW Coalition state budget announced on June 17: Sell off public electricity assets; build more private roads.
This first budget from new Premier Mike Baird is in line with the drive led by the federal government to privatise all remaining public enterprises in the interests of their big business masters.
NSW Treasurer Andrew Constance told state parliament: "We are now in control of the budget. It's no longer in control of us."
This is code for: We plan to sell off the remains of the people's property in this state, whether you like it or not.
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Hundreds of mourners packed St Mary鈥檚 Cathedral on June 18 for the funeral of Leo Seemanpillai, who died on June 1 from full thickness burns to 90% of his body after setting himself on fire.
Seemanpillai was a Tamil asylum seeker who was living on a bridging visa in the Victorian town of Geelong.
Father Pancras Jordan led the service and welcomed those attending, saying: "We are gathered to say thank you and goodbye to our brother and friend, Leo Seemanpillai, who was killed by the harsh, unjust and cruel policies of our government.鈥
An opinion poll showing that only 24% of Victorians support the government's flagship road project, the East West Link, has sent shockwaves through the Victorian government.
Union activists have written an open letter to Victoria Trades Hall Council calling for a state-wide delegates meeting to organise a strike to bust the budget.
A similar petition has been launched in NSW, calling on Unions NSW to organise a mass delegates meeting to plan for a stop work protest against the budget. Sign the letter at change.org.
Read the letter to the Victorian Trades Hall Council below.
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The revolution might not be televised, but you can see the Royal Commission into Trade Union Governance and Corruption proceedings live-streamed into your lounge room.
Such is the overwhelming public demand for riveting daytime televised reality shows that the commission is competing with Judge Judy in bringing this much-awaited courtroom drama to a computer near you via a mere click on their website.
The proceedings began in earnest on June 10, but much of what was heard in evidence has been well rehearsed in the Murdoch press over the past couple of years.
The released this statement on June 19.
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The US, Australia and other partners-in-crime in the more than a decade-long war on Iraq must not be allowed to use the latest conflicts in that country to increase their military intervention in the region.
The Socialist Alliance adds its voice to others in Australia rejecting Prime Minister Tony Abbott's all-the-way-with-the USA commitment made to US President Barack Obama over Iraq.
Jo di Pietro gave the following speech to a 鈥渂ust the budget鈥 meeting organised by Unions NSW in Sydney on June 12.
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I am a technical officer in the NSW Public Health laboratories at Lidcombe (otherwise called FASS) and a proud member of the Health Services Union.
NSW Health has decided to privatise food safety testing, to tender it to the private sector, so the government can distance itself from food safety work, and ultimately from its responsibility to the public.
Much of the public debate on the Senate 鈥渂locking supply鈥 suggests that it is an all or nothing tactic. However this is not the case. The Senate can carefully cherry-pick the elements in the budget that it demands be amended and force the Abbott government to either accept those amendments or see its budget fail.
This is a short explanation of the Senate鈥檚 powers and its ability to force a budget debate on its terms with the government-dominated House of Representatives.
THE BILLS
The Federal budget contains two main pieces of legislation:
US President Barack Obama announced the deployment of 300 special forces troops to Iraq on June 19. It followed a week of denials that the US would respond militarily to the rapid advance toward Baghdad of anti-government forces led by the Sunni fundamentalist Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
Prime minister Tony Abbott chalked up his first budget win on June 17 when the 2% 鈥渓evy鈥 on high income earners passed both houses of parliament. The next day, the Greens trumpeted the emergence of a double dissolution 鈥渢rigger鈥 when the Senate rejected the bill to abolish the Clean Energy Finance Corporation.
It is no coincidence that Abbott wanted the temporary tax on high-income earners to be the first budget measure passed. He wants people to believe his lie that 鈥渢he burden鈥 of this budget is 鈥渟hared鈥 by all 麻豆传媒 of the community.
The Environment Centre NT released this statement on June 19.
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The Environment Centre NT welcomes news that the Northern Land Council and the federal government have agreed not to act on the nomination to establish a nuclear waste dump on Aboriginal land at Muckaty.
The five seats and 7.9% won by the new Podemos (鈥淲e Can鈥) ticket in the May 25 European election was an earthquake in Spanish politics.
Podemos was inspired by the indignado movement that exploded across the Spanish state in 2011 against austerity and for 鈥渞eal democracy鈥. The movement was driven by mass popular assemblies, which provided a striking counter-point to the frequently corrupt 鈥減olitics as usual鈥.
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