Dear Prime Minister,
Six months into your term you stated: "We have done as much as we physically can to provide additional help to the family budget, recognising that the cost of everything is still going through the roof, the cost of food, cost of petrol, cost of rents, cost of childcare."
I know the pace at which you are running government is physically exhausting, but may I humbly suggest a few more measures which you could take to help the besieged family budget?
1. Remove the GST from all food
As you probably know, this suggestion was made by economist John Quiggin in the June 5 Australian Financial Review. He said: "The regressivity of a tax on food far outweighs any benefits from administrative simplicity or from the revenue it generates ... Removing taxes on food would not stop rising prices. But it would help households."
2. Fully index wages and pensions
I know this goes against your commitments on labour market flexibility to the Business Council of Australia and other corporate umbrella organisations. But they can afford it: have a look at the comments from the Australian Bureau of Statistics in the March 2008 national accounts. "Trend GOS [Gross Operating Surplus] of corporations increased by 2.1% ... GOS of corporations remains at historically high levels."
Think of the popularity you would win from workers who would no longer have to trade off conditions to get a pitiful wage increase. Isn't that tempting when the shine is starting to come off your government because of your incredibly modest FuelWatch plan?
Be a devil. Don't just say one member of the capitalist class (Alan Moss of Macquarie Bank) got an obscene payout ($80 million). Say that the whole gang has now accumulated more than enough and the country is on the brink of an inflationary "profit blowout".
3. Radically increase the supply of rental housing
Housing vacancy rates are at historical lows, rents are sky-rocketing and, in a suburb like Wetherill Park in western Sydney, over 60% of mortgage-holders are suffering from mortgage stress (paying out more than 30% of their income in repayments). Meanwhile your government's first home saver accounts will hardly scratch the surface of the housing shortage and housing affordability crisis.
But help is at hand! According to the 2006 census there were 122,000 unoccupied residential dwellings in Sydney alone, owned by people like Isaac and Susan Wakil, "arts patrons" with a portfolio of 15 inner-Sydney houses worth $75 million.
Why not give owners of these empty houses six months to let them, and take their houses over if they refuse? Results: lower rents; drastic cuts to public housing waiting lists; and a huge boost to Kevin08's popularity as he achieves a housing supply miracle!
4. Stop paying Eddie Groves to provide child care
ABC Learning Centres, Eddie Groves' private childcare supplier, received 44% of its income last year from the federal government. Why not stop subsidising Eddie's profits — most of which got lost in gambles on the stock market — and simply have child care provided by state and local government and community organisations?
The cost of child care would fall, as would the call on the federal budget. The same goes for aged care and health care.
Prime Minister, I know these policies might sound vaguely "socialistic", and that you have said that you "[are] not, never have been, and never will be a socialist".
But don't worry, Labor governments used to stand for all these measures, and no one thought for a moment that revolution was around the corner.
Yours in the struggle for the family budget,
Ruth Ratcliffe, Adelaide Socialist Alliance