Bust The Budget: Rallying Australia-wide

Australians are mobilising all around Australia to oppose the most unjust Budget delivered in Australian history. The MUA wants you to join us in our fight to Bust The Budget. Click here and RSVP for the event in your state.

Let’s make 6 July (Tasmania June 28)our biggest demonstration yet.

For Adelaide details click here.

For Brisbane details click here.

For Melbourne details click here.

For Newcastle details click here.

For Darwin details click here.

For Perth details click here.

For South NSW details click here.

For Sydney details click here.

For Tasmania details click here.

NB A rally has also been called for Canberra, outside parliament house at midday on July 6.

Although Abbott has gone in hard with his attacks on Medicare, education, young people, pensioners, students, the unemployed, and families with children, it is unlikely he will be able to get many of his proposals through the Senate. The more that we can mobilise to demonstrate the widespread community opposition to the budget, the more likely it is that senators will feel the pressure to vote against all or some of the budget measures.

The government is struggling with record unpopularity. Polling shows that almost two-thirds of Australians think the budget is ‘unfair’. So far the government has only been able to pass one bill relating to the budget through the senate: the 2% tax on people earning more than $180,000. Even cuts that the government planned would come into effect on July 1 (for example, to the Family Tax Benefit)  have been delayed and will not even be voted on until later in July.

The demonstrations called by many trades and labour councils on Sunday 6 July (Saturday June 28 for Tasmania) will be crucial – they take place the day before the new senate begins sitting on 7 July. We need to go all-out to build these demonstrations, and to use them to continue to build and strengthen the movement against Abbott and for our rights to decent public services and jobs.

Many branches have had good mobilisations for the March in May, Save Medicare, Bust the Budget and Fair Go for Pensioners demonstrations that have been called so far. In Melbourne 30,000 people marched against the budget on Thursday 12 June, many walking off the job with their workmates. One MUA member in Geelong took the initiative to hire a bus and then filled it with his workmates and family. In Sydney, 500 people attended a all-union delegates meeting that day, and the MUA had one of the biggest delegations.