I’m scared, Prime Minister. And this is one terror my fridge magnet won’t save me from. I thought that the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was supposed to open up new opportunities for our producers and manufacturers, not create hurdles for them to jump over. This agreement does nothing much at all for us here in Australia. To start with, the parties involved can’t even sell the same spin. In the US, they are spruiking about the doors that have been opened. For example, while our bee...

So John Howard and Peter Costello think that their “family-friendly” budget is the answer to all our prayers. Once again they have missed the point. If they listened to the electorate even occasionally, they would realise that what people want is real maternity leave and child care options. What we didn’t need to see was Peter Costello smirking his way through “popping out babies” jokes. Did he think that one up for himself or did a speech writer come up with that little gem? Anyone wh...