Senate passes stimulus plan (Australia)

[depakid]

Source: Sydney Morning Herald

The Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, has called independent Senator Nick Xenophon to thank him for his decision today to vote for the $42 billion economic stimulus package. About $12 billion in one-off cash bonuses to low and middle-income families and workers will be paid from mid-March while the states and Canberra can begin rolling out more than $28 billion worth of spending on school repairs and upgrades, building new homes and providing free ceiling insulation.

The Government's recession-busting package passed the Senate today after Senator Xenophon struck a $900 million deal to bring forward money earmarked for future years for the Murray-Darling Basin and other water projects. His vote, along with the five Green senators and Family First Senator Steve Fielding, gave the Government the numbers after the package had been defeated at an earlier vote in the Senate yesterday.

Today's deal between Senator Xenophon and the Government will bring forward $500 million over the next four years for water buybacks, $200 million in grants to assist local communities save water and to plan for a future with less water and $200 million on stormwater harvesting projects. He said he was still not sure the package would save the country from a recession and there were huge questions over the decision to make cash payments.

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Yesterday, the Greens made a $435 million deal with the Government paid for by reducing the $950 cash-bonus bonus to $900. It included $40 million to be spent to build extra bike paths, $50 million in extra help for the unemployed and $300 million for one-off grants to church, charity and community groups for grass-roots job creation schemes.



Read more: http://business.smh.com.au/business/senate-passes-stimulus-plan-20090213-86mp.html

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Imagine that- the government having to negotiate for more useful spending, while conservatives are roundly derided in the media for their opposition to the stimulus.