Victoria furious over GST transfer to WA

 Victoria has lashed out at new rules for carving up the GST, accusing the Morrison government of siphoning billions of dollars from the east to the benefit of Western Australia in a bid to woo Australia’s richest state.

Eastern states including Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania are furious about a new system for distributing more than $70 billion worth of GST revenue, claiming it unfairly favours the mining-rich state of WA.

In a submission to a Victorian Parliamentary inquiry, State Treasury warns Victoria alone stands to lose up to $1.2 billion a year by 2027-28 once a transitional “no-worse-off” guarantee by the federal government ends.

“The no-worse-off guarantee is currently legislated only until 2026-27, after which many states, including Victoria, face the risk of an entrenched and ongoing loss of GST revenue,” the submissions says.

After repeated complaints from WA, the Coalition announced new rules for dividing up the GST pool in 2018.

Previously the Grants Commission handed out the GST with the aim of giving each state the same ability to deliver basic services and infrastructure as the “financially strongest state”.

The GST is distributed to the states on a per capita basis to help equalise access to services and infrastructure. Under the old system, states that couldn’t raise as much state revenue received more GST per person.

Western Australia typically got a much smaller share of the GST carve up because it receives billions of dollars in mining royalties. This financial year, for example, Western Australia is getting about 42 cents back for every $1 of GST revenue it contributes, compared to 96 cents in NSW, 92 cents in Victoria, $1.35 in South Australia and $1.06 in Queensland.

Under the overhaul, agreed to in the run-up to the 2019 federal election, WA will be paid the same per person as either Victoria or NSW, which is financially stronger.

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Afl
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #Ukraine

Create your collection

 Create your collection

If inspiration doesn't strike, don't worry – none of this is permanent at this stage and you can change it all later.

Note that you're given a choice of blockchains to use -  you can use Ethereum.

Once your collection has been created, it's now time to upload the files you'll actually be using to create your NFT. Once your file has been uploaded, that's it – you have created your first NFT!

Your new NFT will have a unique address and its total supply embedded in its identifying data.

This means that you're the only person who can mint more, even if you sell it to someone else. If you do mint more NFTs of the same file, each new buyer will be able to see what "number" version they have – kind of like a serial number.

Everyone has been created It's now time to get your collection looking slick for any potential buyers, so we recommend updating your banner image.

This will help set your collection apart from the crowd and give it a unique identity all of its own.

We strongly recommend you tag your collection with as many social links as possible to help spread the word about your project. First, choose a category to tag your collection to help people find it. Then, you can link to the various relevant social platforms, as you can see:

You can also set which tokens other people can use to buy or sell your NFT. Readers with more technical experience may prefer to create their own bespoke ERC-20 token, but most users will be happy with the pre-set options of ETH, WETH, DAI and USDC.

Step 4. Sell your NFT

This is where the fun really begins – there are many NFT marketplaces online, but since it has been designed to be accessible for newcomers, we will stick with OpenSea for our example.

To sell an NFT on OpenSea, previously you had to create your own storefront and pay minting fees but with the recent explosion of interest in NFTs, they have now streamlined the process – although there is still a gas fee for first-time sellers.

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Feb5Debacleconsequences
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #4thdoseNow!

GST brawl ignores federation big picture

The zero-sum battle over Western Australia’s share of the GST underlines the bigger problem with Australia’s federal-state financial relations.

Premier Mark McGowan unsurprisingly claims that Western Australia’s record $5.6 billion budget surplus vindicates his “COVID-crushing” hard border policy. Keeping the virus mostly out and most of the economy operating, especially the mining industry, has been no small achievement.

The Premier seems to enjoy pushing the secession tease button, boasting that if WA was its own country, its economic growth would be second only to China amid the nations of the world. Indeed, China’s demand for Pilbara iron ore mostly explains the size of the surplus engorged by a 44 per cent jump in mining royalties to a massive $12.1 billion in 2020-21.

The other big $2.1 billion fillip has come from the $70 billion GST carve-up deal struck between Mr McGowan and then federal treasurer, Scott Morrison, in 2018 to politically interfere with the “horizontal fiscal balance” principle that is supposed to equalise the capacity of state governments to provide services throughout the Federation. 

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Feb5Debacleconsequences
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #4thdoseNow!

Why Do People Comment 'FYP' On TikTok & What Does It Mean?

You're on TikTok wondering just WTH is going on in this strange virtual land, and just when you think you've got it all figured out, someone comments 'FYP' on a video and you're back to square one.

TikTok is here to stay, with not a day going by without a new celeb popping up on the video sharing app or another teenager becoming an overnight sensation.

So, let's help you crack one of the most popular hashtags you'll come across, to stop you feeling so out of the loop!

What Does 'The CEO Of' Mean On TikTok?With over 1229.9B views under the hashtag alone, 'FYP' is probably the most common tag you'll come across.

It's safe to say it's a pretty important phrase to get on board with, even if it's purpose has, until very recently, remained mystery to the public... 

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Feb5Debacleconsequences
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #4thdoseNow!

Justin Langer Resigns

 Justin Langer’s reign as Australia men’s cricket coach is over after he resigned on Saturday ending a messy protracted saga lasting six months.

But the bloodletting, which has engulfed Australian cricket and seemingly paralzyed its governing body, is set to continue for some time after the bitter fall of Langer, who rejected a token short-term six-month extension to stay on as coach after a marathon Cricket Australia (CA) board meeting on Friday.

Langer, who helped rebuild Australia after taking the reins post the humiliating sandpaper scandal, wanted a longer-term deal on all three formats having just completed a fruitful period yielding a surprise T20 World Cup triumph and an Ashes trashing.

He didn’t get that as CA attempted a strange compromise but the messy divorce was further underlined when Langer publicly revealed his resignation on social media via his management before the news officially broke.

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Feb5Debacleconsequences
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #4thdoseNow!

Pandemic border wars

If this week’s jailing of two well-heeled Demons fans for finagling their way into Western Australia to attend the AFL grand final says something about the lunacy that footy engenders, what might it say to future historians about the nature of Australia’s federation?

It is 120 years since the colonies allegedly put aside their petty differences and agreed to join a single nation.

The Tom Roberts painting of the Duke of Cornwall and York (later King George V) opening the first Federal Parliament.

The Tom Roberts painting of the Duke of Cornwall and York (later King George V) opening the first Federal Parliament.

Yet try to cross some of your own

Yet try to cross some of your own nation’s state borders right now and you risk a stretch in the slammer – as the two Melbourne-mad boofheads discovered after their elaborate cheating – or exposure to ritual shaming, as innocent furniture removalists, among others, have learnt.

Trying to keep up with the different rules and attitudes in different states is, of course, dizzying.

Canberrans, heading towards 99 per cent vaccination, remain locked away from the state of NSW, which surrounds the

ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr declared this week he had no idea when Canberrans might be able to travel to Sydney or the coast. He added the acid sting that “it may be that NSW decides to drop that to one of their newsletters, The Australian or the Financial Review, overnight, and we’ll read about it in the morning”.m.

Queensland and Western Australia remain haughtily aloof, their leaders declaring their people are perfectly content to keep out interlopers, thank you, and any outsiders thinking of running the border should expect huge fines or imprisonment.

Both seem strangely content that their constituents, lulled into a sense of security, remain among the least vaccinated in the nation. Those in Queensland, of course, were scared witless about AstraZeneca by their state’s own chief health officer.

Both states, it happens, are accustomed to pursuing with full prejudice those considered to be outsiders, even if they live within state borders.

Some years ago Queensland declared war on motorcycle clubs with its modestly named Vicious Lawless Association Disestablishment Act (VLAD).

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Feb5Debacleconsequences
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #4thdoseNow!

 

Community spirit thrives as town rebuilds and triumphs over floods

 Half an hour's drive north-west of the Gympie CBD lies a town that won't be kept down.

Woolooga, population 250, has endured more than its fair share of hardships and heartbreaks.

Natural disasters have ravaged the region, including floods in 2011, 2013, and two this year.

In 2018, a ferocious fire tore through 12,000 hectares of pasture, destroying thousands of dollars of fencing, sheds and livestock.

In 2019, the area was drought-declared and the town's pub also ran dry.

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Feb5Debacleconsequences
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #4thdoseNow!

Mark McGowan announces delay to WA border opening

The planned reopening of Western Australia's border to the rest of the world on February 5 will be delayed indefinitely, Premier Mark McGowan has announced.

Mr McGowan called a press conference last night to announce the delay, which he said was due to the escalating health risks posed by the Omicron COVID-19 variant.

The Premier said the state disaster council met on Wednesday and he received advice from the chief health officer on Thursday morning about delaying the reopening.

He said a new date would be considered during the next month.

Some travel conditions were still set to change on February 5, including expanding the list of people exempt from the hard border, with a focus on those travelling into WA for compassionate reasons.

Mr McGowan said the former opening plan had been based on the less transmissible Delta variant.

"Unfortunately, the world changed in December; Omicron arrived," he said.

"Omicron is a whole new ball game.

 

"We can't just shut our eyes and hope that it is different."

It was during a press conference on December 13 that February 5 was set as the date for the hard border to finally come down.

During that announcement, Mr McGowan said he was very confident Omicron would not delay the reopening.

Now, the Premier has said there is insufficient information available on what the full impact of Omicron could be as the reason for backtracking on WA's reopening date.

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Feb5Debacleconsequences
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #4thdoseNow!

Waleed Aly

 Waleed is one of Australia’s most respected and versatile media talents. He is a broadcaster, author, academic, musician and co-host of The Project.

In 2016 Waleed won the TV Week Gold Logie Award for Most Popular Personality on television, the Silver Logie Award for Best Presenter and delivered the 2016 Andrew Olle Media Lecture. Waleed picked up another Silver Logie for Best Presenter in 2017.

Before joining The Project full time in 2015, Waleed tackled comedy as both a writer and presenter for SBS’s Salam Café, along with hard-hitting news as a host of ABC radio’s Mornings program in Melbourne. He has presented sporting analysis on ABC News 24’s The Drum and political analysis on Q&A and BBC World. Through this, as well as regular appearances on Offsiders, Meet The Press, The 7.30 Report, and Enough Rope with Andrew Denton, Waleed has become widely recognised and trusted by audiences across Australia.

In 2005, Waleed was made a White Ribbon Day Ambassador for the United Nations’ International Day for the elimination of violence against women and was named one of The Bulletin magazine’s Smart 100 in 2007. He was invited to the Prime Minister’s 2020 Summit in 2008 and in 2011 was named Victoria’s Local Hero in the Australian of the Year Awards for his work in fostering cross-cultural understanding in the community.

In 2014, he was awarded the prestigious Walkley Award for Commentary, Analysis, Opinion and Critique.

When he is not broadcasting or writing, Waleed is probably doing something musical. He is the guitarist and main songwriter for Melbourne originals band Robot Child. He played the lead guitar in the world’s first-ever theatrical production of Pink Floyd’s classic album, The Wall, with Nuworks Theatre in Melbourne, in the process helping raise $60,000 to rebuild a girls’ school in Afghanistan that the Taliban had previously destroyed.

Waleed is almost certainly the only terrorism expert in the world to have written a formal harmonic and structural analysis of Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody. He made his Melbourne International Comedy Festival debut in 2013 alongside Charlie Pickering in The World’s Problems Solved With Charlie Pickering And Waleed Aly.

Waleed is a lecturer in politics at Monash University, working in its Global Terrorism Research Centre, and currently presents The Minefield on Radio National with ethicist Scott Stephens every Wednesday morning.

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Feb5Debacleconsequences
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #4thdoseNow!

More than 42,000

Artist Callum Hotham poses in front of his mural of the Australian cricket great Shane Warne in Sydney. 

More than 42,000 people will pay their in-person respects to cricket legend Shane Warne at his state memorial service.

Victorian premier Daniel Andrews said 42,300 people have already snapped up a free ticket.

Why did we endlessly forgive Shane Warne? He was boorish and cringey … but we loved him

“That’s a really strong start, I’m sure there will be many more,” he told reporters on Wednesday morning.

“There are obviously seats still available. I’m sure Victorians will be there in massive numbers to pay tribute to a fantastic Victorian.”

It will be the wider public’s first chance to say goodbye to Warne following his death from a suspected heart attack at the Thai resort island of Koh Samui on 4 March.

Patrons will need to be fully vaccinated to attend the service, which is expected to run for two hours.

Gatesopened at 5.30pm and guests must be seated by 6.45pm for a 7pm start.

Rather than flowers, Warne’s family has asked people to donate to The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health.

Warne’s state memorial followed a private funeral held on Sunday.

The ground’s Great Southern Stand will be renamed in Warne’s honour.

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Feb5Debacleconsequences
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #4thdoseNow!

Rock stars Frank Zappa

Frank Zappa

The man who named his children such peculiar names like Dweezil and Moon Unit was actually a straight-laced cat who didn’t embrace the drug culture of rock, leaning more towards a jazzy-innovative rock sound in the ‘70s.

Zappa released a mind-bending 60 albums in his 30-year career, including the conceptual double album Freak Out! — only the second double rock album ever released at the time (June 1966). Zappa’s in-studio skills were matched by his ability to get behind a camera, directing music videos, short films and features.

In the mid-’80s Zappa rediscovered politics and memorably testified against music censorship at the infamous Parents’ Music Resource Centre hearings in 1985 in Washington, D.C.    Jason Stahl

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Feb5Debacleconsequences
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #4thdoseNow!

Rock Stars include:

Paul McCartney

 

“Our Paul” as a whole generation of British people, mainly old women, curiously, called him, is one the greatest songwriters ever, and a singer gifted with an Angel’s voice, and the star of the greatest band of all time, Wings — no, I’m kidding! T

he Beatles, of course! But he only gets on our list for Wings, which had some superlative rock songs, and one of the great rock albums, Band on the Run. The Beatles liked to think of themselves as a rock band, and probably were when they were playing covers in Hamburg, but really, as the immortal group we know, they were a pop group. The best ever, without a doubt. And Paul, unlike John Lennon, was awkward, and in fact highly unsuccessful as a rocker. But on Band on the Run he propels chest cleaving songs like “Let Me Roll It” and “Jet,” and the title song, which is almost exactly like a good Beatles song, only rockier. I also loved “Picasso’s Last Words (Drink to Me).” Venus and Mars was great too.

After that came… “Mary Had a Little Lamb”? Did it come before? Whatever.   BGJ

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Feb5Debacleconsequences
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #4thdoseNow!

Rock stars - David Lee Roth

When your nickname is “Diamond Dave,” that should say it all. But it doesn’t come close.

Easily the fastest tongue in the West (for his amazing one-liners), Roth brought the attitude to Van Halen. His high-energy routine was the perfect counterbalance (and foil) to Eddie Van Halen’s eruptions that see the band hit heights never expected for a Pasadena party band (and ultimately be their downfall). 

Roth took decadence and dalliances to another level…and if not for him, we’d never have such reverence for Brown M&Ms as we do now.    Daniel Kohn

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Feb5Debacleconsequences
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #4thdoseNow!

Albanese rules out GST changes

Federal Labor leader Anthony Albanese has declared he will not touch the GST system in a letter to Premier Mark McGowan.

The letter was provided to The West Australian despite this masthead questioning Mr Albanese’s stance on the distribution of the tax as far back at September 16.

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Feb5Debacleconsequences
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #4thdoseNow!

WHAT IS AN NFT? WHAT DOES NFT STAND FOR?

 Non-fungible token.

That doesn’t make it any clearer.

Right, sorry. “Non-fungible” more or less means that it’s unique and can’t be replaced with something else. For example, a bitcoin is fungible — trade one for another bitcoin, and you’ll have exactly the same thing. A one-of-a-kind trading card, however, is non-fungible. If you traded it for a different card, you’d have something completely different. You gave up a Squirtle, and got a 1909 T206 Honus Wagner, which Stadium Talk calls “the Mona Lisa of baseball cards.”

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Feb5Debacleconsequences
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #4thdoseNow!

Vaccination for Covid in the UK

 Everyone aged 5 and over can get a 1st and 2nd dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

People aged 16 and over, and some children aged 12 to 15, can also get a booster dose.

People aged 12 and over who had a severely weakened immune system when they had their first 2 doses, will be offered a 3rd dose and a booster (4th dose).

People aged 75 and over, people who live in care homes for older people, and people aged 12 and over who have a weakened immune system, will be offered a spring booster.

Todays #Hashtags.

                1.        #NFT
                2.        #GST
                3.        #FYP
                4.        #JL
                5.        #BorderWars
                6.        #Floods
                7.        #Feb5Debacleconsequences
                8.        #WOY
                9.        #Floods
                10.      #4thdoseNow!