Thanks for that Musi :)

Never liked the man but if he did all that I just may have to reconsider

I thought you were Anti - Abbott..

The Howard Government's policy success was based on its firm commitment to Liberal values, and a commonsense approach to dealing with problems. John Howard described his philosophy as a combination of economic liberalism and social conservatism.

Some of the features of the Howard era include:

a focus on strong economic management with a commitment to surplus budgets and zero government debt;

the strengthening of Australia’s national security through an increase in defence spending and a substantial boost to defence-ready troop numbers;

record low levels of unemployment achieved by a freeing up of labour markets, a massive expansion in opportunities to acquire skills, and greatly improved job placement assistance for the unemployed – allowing workers to become less reliant on unions;

record federal government funding into the education and health sectors;

a major effort to overcome educational disadvantage (illiteracy and innumeracy), to increase school accountability and strengthen the ability of parents to choose the best school for their child;

encouraging one of the highest levels of private investment in education and training in the world;

low interest rates, strong economic growth and lower taxation;

unprecedented commitment to restoring and protecting Australian land, waters, vegetation and biodiversity;

major improvements in protection of Australia's national heritage;

fostering pride in Australia's achievements and resistance to the 'black armband' view of Australian history;

The economic prosperity achieved by the Howard Government meant that people had more money to invest in savings for the future. Australia’s strong position also allowed the government to invest in new roads and rail, as well as in environmental projects throughout the country.

The most significant achievements of the Howard Government include:

eliminating Labor’s $96 billon government debt - by 2007 Australia was saving $8.8 billion a year in interest payments;

a GDP growth rate of 3.6 per cent on average per year;increase in average household income between 1994-95 and 2007-08 of 50 per cent;

decline in number of households dependent on government pensions and allowances from 28.5 per cent in 1994-95 to 23.2 per cent in 2007-08;

creation by small and large businesses of over 2 million jobs;

restoring Australia’s AAA credit rating;establishing the Charter of Budget Honesty and the independence of the Reserve Bank to manage monetary policy;

New prudential supervision of financial institutions through the Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority (APRA;)an increase in real wages by 21.5 per cent between 1996 and 2007;

providing the largest tax relief in Australia’s history, and a much fairer tax system from 2000 with the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) – followed by further tax relief in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007;

lifting productivity on Australia's waterfront to world standards;

the improvement of telecommunications through the privatisation of Telstra and enhanced competition in the industry;

an increase in the number of apprentices in training by more than two-and-a-half times – from 154,800 in March 1996 to 397,400 by December 2006;

ending the discrimination against Australian domestic students by allowing them to invest in their own education, as overseas students were able to do;

increase in total revenue for higher education institutions from $8.6 billion in 1997 to $16.8 billion in 2007;

an increase in the number of higher education students from 659,000 in 1997 to 1,029 846 in 2007;

extension of income-contingent loan schemes to graduate and fee-paying students, including at private higher education providers;

the establishment of a specific Future Fund, providing for the future superannuation liabilities of Australian public servants;

Australia's first national literacy and numeracy standards to identify and overcome disadvantage;

The Socio-Economic Status funding system for independent and systemic schools;

Priority for school-to-work programs such as Jobs Pathway and enterprise education;

development of the civics education program Discovering Democracy to help young people understand our democratic system of government;

an increase in funding for government schools from $1.4 billion to $3.5 billion in 2007/08;

record growth in the manufacturing industry and a record increase of manufacturing exports to $81.3 billion in 2006;

the introduction of the Work for the Dole program, helping to get long-term unemployed back into the workforce;

replacement of the ineffective and bureaucratic CES with the world-leading Job Network comprising not-for-profit and private providers;

increased funding for the Australian Federal Police and an increase in staff numbers from around 2,000 to more than 6,000;

an 88 per cent increase in health spending, with more than $51 billion allocated for 2007;

large increase in the proportion of children receiving immunisation against poreventable diseases;

a nationwide strategy to involve communities in the protection of the environment through the establishment with the States of catchment management authorities across the continent under the Natural Heritage Trust and the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality;

a Water Quality Action Plan with the Queensland government to protect the Great Barrier Reef lagoon;

setting new international standards in the protection of marine areas by expanding from 5 per cent to 33 percent the proportion of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park protected from exploitation;

establishing the National Oceans Office and the commencement of marine protected areas around the entire continental shelf;

establishment of the National Heritage Council and the National Heritage list for the effective protection of Australia's national heritage;

building of the National Portrait Gallery and planning the new Museum of Democracy;the Alice Springs - Darwin railway;

Instituting nation-wide gun controls following the Port Arthur massacre;

Strengthening Australia's defence forces and defence co-operation with the United States and Britain;

Declaration of the operation of the ANZUS Treaty following the 9/11 terrorist attack on the United States;

co-operation with other nations and the upgrading of internal security leading to the successful prevention of any terrorist attack on Australian territory;

Effective humanitarian response to the Bali bombingLeadership of the United Nations mission to restore independence and democracy to East Timor;

Mission to the Solomon Islands to restore democracy;

Support for the successful mission with the United States, Britain and many other nations to restore democracy to Iraq;

Participation with the United States, Britain and other nations to defeat the Taliban in Afghanistan and destroy the terrorist infrastructure in that country;

Maintenance of one of the world's largest programs to assist refugees, while preventing illegal immigration and people smuggling

Abbott became an Australian citizen to be eligible for the Rhodes scholarship in Australia. Under the rules he had to be an Australian citizen. Hardly an endorsement for love of country but pragmatic in the sense of getting further education. Abbott has a keen sense of money and how to avoid spending his own. Weddings parties anything used to be his favourite band or at least should be. Weddings , party trips and fun runs , too long for a new band name but apt.

Solomon

I will deal with small chunks at a time:

the strengthening of Australia’s national security through an increase in defence spending and a substantial boost to defence-ready troop numbers; This actually means, that HOWARD joined the USA in an ILLEGAL INVASION of Iraq (under known FALSE pretences) which was against the wishes of ordinary Australians AND then we the ordinary Australians had to wear the COSTS of this disgusting endeavour which resulted in the MURDER of over 600,000 innocent civilians.  Australia was made a TERRORIST target.  HOWARD, then CREATED racial hatred with such things as 'babies over board' which he knew to be an untruth and pushing Australia on to having its first racial riot... how shameful.  Then had the audacity to REMOVE Australian's civil and private rights with new draconian so called 'security laws'.

NOW ABBOTT being soooooooo (not) intelligent is borrowing these tactics to do the whole thing ALL OVER AGAIN!!!

record low levels of unemployment achieved by a freeing up of labour markets, a massive expansion in opportunities to acquire skills, and greatly improved job placement assistance for the unemployed – allowing workers to become less reliant on unions;  Apprenticeships were dropped and whilst HOWARD was in, the skills level of our young Australians was being ignored and when things were booming, HOWARD decided to import skills when Australia found it could NOT find sufficient skills in the employment of staff..... causing the rise in wages.  HOWARD then decided to LOCK OUT unions and subject the smaller waged Australians to being forced to negotiate with their bosses on a one small person to a large firm, that simply said SIGN the contract of employment we have drafted or GET OUT, we have plenty more to take your place (overseas labourers).

record federal government funding into the education and health sectors; YES..... BUT IT WAS ONLY to the PRIVATE EDUCATION and PRIVATE HEALTH SECTORS..... handing our OUR taxpayers money to PRIVATE ENTERPRISES, so that the WEALTHY could afford the best for their children and the best health services for themselves..... paid for by ORDINARY taxpayers who could NOT afford to send their kids to those education institutes or attend the health facilities!!!!!!! SHAME SHAME SHAME  

HOWARD..... REDUCED the amount paid into PUBLIC schools and PUBLIC health and even cancelled certain public health facilities (ie. dental).

a major effort to overcome educational disadvantage (illiteracy and innumeracy), to increase school accountability and strengthen the ability of parents to choose the best school for their child; AGAIN, designed to facilitate the best for the wealthy who could afford the BEST school for the children.  The PUBLIC SCHOOL system was allowed to be RUN DOWN both physically AND educationally.

encouraging one of the highest levels of private investment in education and training in the world; EVEN, more disgusting because it was ONLY the PRIVATE SECTOR the PUBLIC sector was the worst it had ever been!!!!! 

EXAMPLES of how statistics can be used to LIE and I add to this the old adage..... FIGURES don't LIE but LIARS can figure. 

I am not calling YOU a liar Solomon BUT those that supplied these figures and details to you!

 

I will comment on the rest of it when I get back.  Cheers.