Local Government News
 Larry Anthony
National News
Child Care boost
Northern Rivers families will receive an increase in their Child Care Benefit payments from July 5, 2004.
Families using approved full-time or part-time child care during the course of the year will benefit from an increase of 2.4 per cent to ensure payments are kept in line with increases in the cost of living and the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
Low income families will now be able to earn up to $32,485 a year and still receive the maximum rate of Child Care Benefit. Families with one child in full-time child care will receive an extra $3.50 a week and $7.30 a week for two children in full-time child care.
This is an important boost for local families and is in addition to $251 million announced in the Federal Budget for some important child care initiatives. These include, 40,000 Outside School Hours places, 4,000 Family Day Care places and additional funding for programs including help for children with high needs to access mainstream child care and incentives for child care services to set up in areas of unmet demand.
Plenty of steam left in train fight
Even though the last CountryLink XPT has run along the Casino to Murwillumbah railway line the fight to save North Coast rail is certainly not over.
I was on hand with hundreds of other angry residents on Sunday night to witness the train depart for the last time and I am determined to continue the fight against NSW Labor's closure of this vital community transport link.
Northern Rivers residents should not give up hope and I urge people to maintain the rage against Labor's mindless decision to scrap the line. We still have means to continue the fight, particularly since the announcement of the Federal Government funded feasibility study and a State Parliamentary Inquiry.
Tenders have opened for the Australian Government funded feasibility study for a passenger/commuter service on the Casino to Murwillumbah line. I envisage that work on this feasibility study will begin shortly after tenders close on Friday, May 28, 2004.
This study will be independent, non-political and will cut through NSW Labor's political fabrication of rubbery passenger numbers and line maintenance costs.
This feasibility study, along with the ongoing Parliamentary Inquiry, offers plenty of hope for local Northern Rivers communities.
Business benefits
Substantial business reporting changes that were outlined in the recent Federal Budget will slash the red tape burden for many Northern Rivers not-for-profit organisations and small businesses.
The most significant change is new flexibility to allow companies with a turnover of less than $50,000 to report and pay their GST annually. Compliance red tape has been significantly pared back and will basically allow them to complete all their GST requirements in one end-of-financial year visit to the accountant.
Other major changes include allowances to calculate business versus private use for GST purposes on an annual basis, extension of FBT exemptions to personal digital assistants and hiring relocation consultants and commonsense flexibility to make family trust elections and provide franked distributions in a company's first profitable year.
Larry Anthony MP
Federal Member for Richmond
Minister for Children & Youth Affairs
PO Box 6996 Tweed Heads South 2486 ph: 07 5524 2466 fax: 07 5524 9366
www.larry.com.au Toll Free: 1800 812 125 larry.anthony.mp@aph.gov.au
 Ian Causley
Canberra Connection
Weekly income up by $66 thanks to Budget
The nonsense the Labor Party is putting about that people earning under $52,000 will get nothing from the Budget is scaremongering at its worst.
A combination of just two Budget initiatives could boost the weekly incomes of many Northern Rivers families by as much as $66.
Single-income families with three children earning between $10,000 and $20,000 will benefit the most from increased family assistance and the Government's superannuation co-contribution scheme.
These families could be looking at a boost of between $60 and $66 a week in their incomes. Families earning between $25,000 and $35,000 could get up to an extra $55, and those on $40,000 almost $68.
Most families in the region have an annual income of around $34,000 and these Budget measures alone will boost their earnings by about $50 a week.
When the Coalition came to office, families on average earnings faced high marginal tax rates, however, these were adjusted in 2000 following the introduction of the new tax system, and again last year.
Changes announced in last Tuesday's Budget to the Family Tax Benefit further reduced these tax rates.
Tapering between the maximum and base rates of Family Tax Benefit (A) will be reduced by 10 per cent, and a fall in Family Tax Benefit (B) rates, as well as an increase in the income-test threshold, will significantly improve rewards for families where the second earner is in part-time work.
For more information on how you will benefit from the Budget, please contact me on 1300 301 735.
Kyogle Work-for-the-Dole team super efficient
The Kyogle Work for the Dole team is looking for old computers to repair and rebuild to give to community groups.
In spite of receiving a good supply of old computers to work on, the participants have done such a great job they have repaired or rebuilt everything they had and the program has now run out of computers to work on.
If you can help, please contact CTC Kyogle on 6632 1833. CTC will arrange collection from anywhere in the Northern Rivers.
Cash grants available for tourism
Cash grants are now available for the development of new products and services through the Australian Government's new $24 million Australian Tourism Development Program (ATDP).
These new grants are intended for projects that will encourage visitors to more regional areas, as well as contributing to the long-term economic growth of many regions.
Grants are available under two categories and range from $50,000 to $500,000.
The $24 million ATDP is an initiative of the $235 million Tourism White Paper, and will provide the incentive for Australia's tourism regions to cooperate and take a more strategic approach to developing our tourism markets.
The Program is administered by AusIndustry, and applications close on Tuesday, June 1. Funding guidelines and applications can be found at www.ausindustry.gov.au or by calling 132 846.
Labor all over the shop on Iraq
It is in Australia's national interest for our troops to stay in Iraq until their job is done. Labor has no real idea where it stands on this issue and Mark Latham has shown his immaturity by putting a time limit on our troops' mission in that country.
Flip: Mark Latham declared in an interview that Australian troops should be home by Christmas. Flop: Later that same week, Mr Latham said our troops should be diverted to Afghanistan.
Flip: The very next day, Mark Latham said our troops should be home defending Australia. This is despite the fact Australia has 52,000 ADF personnel already defending our country. Flop: This, however, was in conflict with Labor's Foreign Affairs spokesman, Kevin Rudd, who said that far from an unconditional withdrawal from Iraq, the ALP would support our troops doing more in Iraq if the UN was more involved.
For further information please contact my electorate office on 1300 301 735, or send me an email: ian.causley.mp@aph.gov.au.
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