http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/st ... 02,00.html
And then, it seems that the only thing Fuelwatch will watch is the prices go up.Cate Blanchett calls on Kevin Rudd to soften Bill Henson art remarks
Corrie Perkin and Lauren Wilson | May 28, 2008
KEVIN Rudd's handpicked arts mentor Cate Blanchett yesterday co-signed an open letter urging the Prime Minister to rethink his public comments about artist Bill Henson's work.
Blanchett, co-chair of the Creative Australia group at last month's 2020 Summit, was joined by other summiteers including Nobel Prize-winning writer John Coetzee, Museum of Contemporary Art director Elizabeth Ann Macgregor and economist Saul Eslake in expressing dismay at last Friday's raid on Henson's exhibition at the Roslyn Oxley9 Sydney gallery.
"The potential prosecution of one of our most respected artists is no way to build a Creative Australia, and does untold damage to our cultural reputation," said the letter, which was also addressed to NSW Premier Morris Iemma and federal Arts Minister Peter Garrett.
"We should remember that an important index of social freedom, in earlier times or in repressive regimes elsewhere in the world, is how artists and art are treated by the state.
...
Members of the arts community yesterday continued to condemn the police action as censorship. One collector likened the confiscation of art works to book-burning in Nazi Germany.
Sue Curtis, an art and design consultant who has been collecting Henson's works for 20 years, told The Australian she was deeply upset for Henson.
Ms Curtis said she hoped no further Henson images would be removed from galleries. "I don't think it could possibly get to the stage where galleries or collectors who own Bill Henson's work would have to give them up," she said. "If it did, it would be like Nazi Germany's burning of the books."
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=570866Rudd ignored FuelWatch price warnings
The federal government is reeling tonight following the revelation that it ignored warnings from its own public service experts in four key departments that a National FuelWatch Scheme could increase petrol prices rather than reduce them.
In a massive embarrassment for Kevin Rudd, a Cabinet document has been leaked to the Nine Network showing concerns about the scheme expressed by the prime minister's own department, as well as the Finance Department, the Department of Resources and Energy, and the Industry Department.
FuelWatch, due to start in December and modelled on a scheme operating in Western Australia, would require service stations to nominate prices 24 hours in advance and stick to them.
The four departments warned Cabinet it was possible that the scheme could result in higher petrol prices. They also expressed concern about the increased financial cost it would impose on service stations, particularly small independent operators.
A spokesman for the prime minister said late this afternoon: "In deciding to support a National FuelWatch scheme the government received conflicting advice, which is normal.
"The government chose to accept the advice of the competition regulator, the ACCC, in adopting a National FuelWatch scheme."
The leak follows the disclosure early this week of a cabinet submission from Resources and Energy Minister Martin Ferguson opposing FuelWatch.
It will provide the opposition — already intending to block a central aspect of the scheme in the senate — with powerful new ammunition.
The leaked document shows the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet did not support a scheme based on the Western Australian model.
It says: "PM&C notes that, while the proposed national FuelWatch scheme will likely succeed in removing intra-day price volatility in the retail petrol market, which is a concern to many consumers, the impact of the proposed scheme on the overall pump price is not clear.
"Econometric modelling undertaken by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is somewhat inconclusive with respect to the overall pump price, but indicates that a small overall price increase cannot be ruled out.
"The proposed scheme will also result in an increase in the compliance burden in the economy, with Treasury estimates indicating that the proposed scheme will result in ongoing increased operating costs of around $4000 per annum to affected small businesses."
The Department of Resources and Energy also says it does not support the scheme, and appears to question the government claim that FuelWatch in Western Australia has reduced the average petrol price by 1.9 cents a litre.
The department, according to the document, "would contend that other factors such as the competitive entry of Woolworths and Coles into the Perth fuel market as well as the alignment of fuel standards between Perth and the east coast market have both acted to improve the competitive nature of the Perth market, thereby exerting downward pressure on prices."
It expresses concern that "the scheme will reduce competition and market flexibility, increase compliance costs and has more potential to increase prices."
According to the document: "Finance does not consider that the proposed FuelWatch scheme is good practice regulation...
"This proposal will increase the regulatory burden, with inconclusive, unquantified and negative results...
"Finance considers that the introduction of a price commitment rule may result in higher average petrol prices over time as the option may lead to the creation of a de facto price floor…
"The proposed FuelWatch scheme would increase the regulatory burden to business in the magnitude of $20.7 million in the first year and $18.7 million per annum thereafter. The impact is likely to fall disproportionately on independent retailers."
The Industry Department is "concerned about the anti-competitive effects of the proposed FuelWatch scheme, which prevents businesses from reacting to market forces to adjust their prices for a 24-hour period.
It says the scheme "also has the capacity to increase petrol price co-ordination amongst retailers".
The Prime Minister's Department suggested that another option — simply providing increased price information to consumers, possibly on an hourly basis — would be preferable to the scheme adopted by Cabinet.
It would be "more likely to enhance competition and lower the overall pump price without a significant increase in the compliance burden".
The Resources and Energy Department also favours an option "to increase petrol price information to consumers via a comprehensive internet service hosted either by the ACCC or automobile association/ motoring club websites and focusing on real-time pricing information".
This, the department said, "would not have the potential to lower competition or alter existing price cycles as it maintains the scope for retailers to reduce prices and respond to intra-day price changes".
This Fuelwatch business needs to be thought out in more depth.
