The Education Minister has denied that the Rudd Government will re-introduce compulsory student unionism but left the door open to an opt-out system to boost campus services. Ms. Gillard said today consultation was underway to ensure campus services including childcare, healthcare and sporting facilities were maintained.

If the banks ignore all the free advice about how easily they can afford to pass on an official interest rate cut, the Rudd Government will find itself under pressure to find some way to make good on its threats.

With the Opposition announcing a conservative climate change position resembling something from Labor’s policy book, except the starting date, the Government went on the attack, accusing the Opposition of denying the certainty that is essential for long-term business planning.

If all you do is read the speeches of Lindsay Tanner and Craig Emerson, you would think we have a federal Government that recognises the limits of government and spends its days cutting a swath through regulations. But, when you read your newspaper every morning, it’s politics as usual, with a hyperactive Government coming up with a new plan to fix a problem that is bedevilling what now has been extended to working families, pensioners and carers.