An election budget in Queensland

An election budget in Queensland

BRISBANE — “Queensland treasurer Joan Sheldon's budget is a confidence
trick aimed at winning votes, while doing nothing for working people”,
Democratic Socialist candidates in the state election said on May 15.

Graham Matthews, candidate for Brisbane Central, and Coral Wynter, standing
in South Brisbane, slammed the Coalition government for giving more handouts
to big business, while continuing funding cuts to education, health, child-care
and other basic services.

They said: “The increase in the land tax rebate and cuts in stamp duty
will mainly assist the wealthy, while capital works spending on schools
will be slashed by $66 million.”

Cuts of about $7 million to state-funded child-care centres will worsen
a growing crisis caused by federal funding cutbacks. Yet “the $1.4 billion
windfall from selling public assets such as Suncorp-Metway, the TAB, government
buildings and cars, has been eaten up by concessions to big business”,
the Democratic Socialists said.

For more information about the Democratic Socialist campaign, telephone
3254 0565. 

From GLW issue 318