FuelWatch will today be banished to the Federal Government’s trophy cabinet which is groaning under the weight of failed programs.

Senator Barnaby Joyce, Leader of the Nationals in the Senate, said that instead of displaying a capacity to govern, the ALP has shown that it is full of kitsch ideas that have no outcomes.

“The Cabinet Room will soon resemble the poolroom in the mythical Kerrigan family home in The Castle,” Senator Joyce said. “All its achievements will be on display for no one but the Labor Cabinet to see. The Prime Minister Mr Rudd is amassing a collection of ideas that go nowhere. The Government has spent the past year announcing wars and revolutions. There is its war on obesity, a fight against binge drinking and an education revolution but these announcements serve the same purpose as the disclosure of his private conversation with US President George W. Bush. They are purely and simply media moments.

“The Australian people cannot see any outcomes from these announcements and they have been duped into thinking this dog of a program was going to give them cheaper fuel prices. All it would have done is flatten the price cycle.

“We have to watch the Government very closely because it is light on detail. Anybody can have a marvellous idea but your capacity to govern is your capacity to produce outcomes, not just ideas.”

Senator Joyce said FuelWatch joins a list of programs with no discernible outcomes. Grocery Watch was meant to bring cheaper prices but shoppers have a better chance of finding a bargain for themselves by reading catalogues and checking for specials in their local supermarket.

“Another disaster in the making is the $8.7 billion payments to pensioners and eligible families under the Economic Security Strategy. Rather than boosting the economy, this early Christmas present to be delivered from December 8 will spell disaster for the long-term opportunities for hospitals, schools, roads and inland rail systems.

“The Labor Party lacks the acumen to see the social implications of some its policies. It has not done the homework when spending half the nation’s surplus just like there was no homework before the announcement of FuelWatch.”

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