Diorama

Another glorious Autumn day today.We've had lovely days this week with loads of warm sunshine. The kids have been playing outside whether they like it or not. When winter hits it gets a bit grim out here so it is important to make the most of any available vitamin D!

The sky this morning ( below) and a beautiful blue and red bird I snapped before it flew off this morning.

More information has been filtering in about the budget implications for higher education. Universities will be down 20 % of their funding as a result of the budget and that lost funding will be passed on to students. On top of deregulation of fees which will enable universities to charge whatever they like! There is a real possibility that we will end up with a 2 tiered university sector with the 'presigeous' universities like Melbourne deliberately or otherwise devaluing qualifications gained from so called 'lesser' universities like Federation University in Ballarat. Rural universities will be badly hit with pressure on rural students to study online.The cost of attending university will skyrocket and will become affordable for only the rich.

Mike Carlton lets fly in this excellent Canberra Times story: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/comment/tony-abbotts-name-is-mud-20140515-zrd9w.html

The grade four children finished their dioramas for Student Little and did a fantastic job.(photos below)

Tonight Bill Shorten gave his budget response. In his speech he pledged to vote against the government's massive cutbacks:

"These are purely ideological changes that go to the very core of the Prime Minister's character."

Shorten hit out at the $80 billion in cuts to funding for the states to pay for schools and hospitals.The Government announced in the budget that it will dump the Gonski school funding plan in 2017-18, saving around $30 billion.Hospital funding agreements, agreed with the states and territories under former Labor prime minister Kevin Rudd, will also be wound back from 2017 saving a massive $50 billion over eight years.

The cuts sparked fury from most of the states today who believe the commonwealth is trying to "wedge" them into pushing for an increase to the GST. These are of course the same Liberal Premiers who have made their own savage cuts to health and education.

Shorten said: "The Prime Minister and the Treasurer are blackmailing the states into becoming the Commonwealth's cat's paw - a Trojan horse to a bigger GST but absolving the Abbott Government of fingerprints or blame,"

It was a robust speech ( It's about time we heard one from him! Shorten spends too much time trying to sound 'prime ministerial' If Abbott taught him anything while he was opposition leader, it's that you have to use very different tactics in opposition to get your message across ) Shorten seems paused to become as negative in opposition as Abbott was. It remains to be seen how effective he will be.