Scott Phillips

Tweeting about a range of stuff - and not following an arbitrary 'party line' on anything - means I end up with followers who might be disappointed that I'm not a cheerleader for 'their team' (regardless of the topic). So, thanks for following, but consider yourselves warned :)

@DanielleOc69314 Absolutely. I mean, I wouldn't do the bailout at all, but equity is the least we should demand.

@TMFScottP We should be taking a stake

More taxpayers' money funneled to private businesses. At least this is a loan (assuming it's repaid, and not forgiven!), but it stinks. Tomago gets a free ride on the taxpayers' dime.

@ouzo_zip Equity would be far, far better for the taxpayer, but a potential headache for the pollies. When it's not their money, why bother having a hard conversation when you can have an easy one.

@ouzo_zip If you're a pollie, in the business of showing people how wonderful you are, and 'saving jobs', perhaps you don't really care about the value for money, or driving the best bargain possible for the taxpayer.

Qantas (under the last lot). Poorly designed JobKeeper (ditto) Whyalla. Mt. Isa. Rex. Port Pirie and Hobart smelters Tomago (on the way). *Billions* of *your* dollars given to private companies for zero equity. And they wonder why we have a productivity problem.

And frankly, questions must be asked about whether the CEFC is now just being used as a slush fund to buy votes. Maybe it's not. If not, that's great. But bloody convenient that the CEFC has decided to loan Snowy Hydro the money when the Government is also working on a bailout.

Source: theaustralian.com.au/business/cefc-…

@BGrapefrui98930 @AvidCommentator Absolutely.

@TMFScottP @AvidCommentator Yep probably would have been repealed by Abbott. But the whole episode revealed the truth that politics is more about performance theatre and appearances rather than getting incremental improvement.

Several followers have suggested Albo has taken a softly softly approach to fuel conservation because of Saturday's S.A State Election. I'm not sure what is more concerning, playing politics with a crisis or just not acting because of other reasons.

@RecoEco @DonWeatherburn Then I think the policy objectives are pretty close, with just a different view on what the number of 'full employment' is? Not trying to put words in your mouth - so let me know if I'm reading you wrong.

@TMFScottP @DonWeatherburn Zero unemployment is obviously impossible but I do think we can almost reduce unemployment to frictional plus structural and structural can be actively worked on. Frictional unemployment is almost certainly higher than it was in the 50s and 60s so we probably can't get back to 2%

The RBA Governor has said multiple times in her press conference "We only have one tool". She's dead right. Whether or not it was a subtle message to the government, the rest of us should say it loudly: The RBA's actions are a direct result of inaction by the government.

@cjk365 @RouleurCapital @RizviAbul I mean... we all have egos, and I like to be right! But I do my best to try to put policy first. Imperfectly, I'm sure, but I'm all for the best option, even if it's someone else's suggestion.

@cjk365 @RouleurCapital @RizviAbul 100%. If I'm wrong, I'll happily concede.

I dont understand this argument @TMFScottP - what choice do we have, have 0% production onshore putting us at the full mercy of international operators? The issue of solvency of these infrastructure assets comes back to Inflation and productivity. The government has made one worse (inflation) and avoided reforms on productivity.

@Neal_Bunkum Correct. The government is literally these companies' last option before insolvency. And we're acting like we're trying to outbid a dozen others for a Picasso.

@TMFScottP If needs be bailed out, ie, it is in the national interest - it should be nationalised at liquidation prices. Can be privatised later or leased to private sector if needs be. And agree Jobkeeper 1.0.

@CFC_Vlad Am I silent on that? Or did you assume?

@TMFScottP Yet all these bailouts combined don't come close to the NDIS budget So you upset we give companies bailouts that give Aussies jobs but silent on a 50b fraud scheme which does nothing but defrauds Aussie tax payers

@cjk365 @RouleurCapital @RizviAbul It is, absolutely. Gotta say, my interest in our IEA obligations is a little less than making sure we have a resilient fuel supply chain though :)

@TMFScottP @RouleurCapital @RizviAbul That's a cost too - additional silage for fuel that still goes off, and still doesn't meet our 90 day obligations as an IEA partner.

@SnapBackAU Sure, but the most likely causes are the textbook ones. That's where the attention needs to be, given they're not even getting *that* right.

@TMFScottP There's just much more nuance and moving pieces than textbook examples provide.

A bit of straight talk: If the government had a Budget surplus today (and it should), people would scream blue murder that it wasn't being used to 'provide cost of living relief', given 'how tough people are doing it'. Thing is, a surplus would be the best way for them to help.

@nortssss You know, you might have mentioned them :) (But also, so have I, as you know)

@TMFScottP The government are happy to give our money away. Have you heard about the NDIS rorts?

@SaxonSaint @BernardKeane It's really dire, mate. Local independents are most likely to get my primary vote when it comes to polling day. As to how to arrange subsequent preferences? It'll be a question of 'least worst' based on policy announcements between now and then.

@TMFScottP @BernardKeane Where do we go? The liberals are lead by a village idiot, anyone with a functioning brain cannot vote One Nation, and there seems to be 200 IQ amongst the whole Labor Party…its dire

here we go @TMFScottP sigh "sovereignty" -- drink!

@gregsouthby @BernardKeane *sovereignity citizens

@TMFScottP @BernardKeane They risk making the sovereign citizens look smart.

@SaxonSaint @BernardKeane Mate, it's amateur hour. Like the ratings agencies before the GFC, our pollies are having *rings* run around them. I would be funny if it wasn't costing us billions.

@TMFScottP @BernardKeane Too easy…couldn’t do that… Couldn’t take shares in QANTAS after giving them 800 million and them then sacking staff illegally…oh no… I swear to god…

@gregsouthby @BernardKeane They should be forced to pronounce it that way from now on, though - just so we know when they're making stuff up :)

@gregsouthby @BernardKeane I think they're just *really* trying to make sure we know how important it is by adding letters.