By Andrew Greene Sunday 14 December 2014
Video: Hockey describes budget as 'shock absorber' for falling commodity prices (ABC News)
Photo: Treasurer Joe Hockey will reveal the increase in the budget's deficit on Monday. (AAP: Gary Schafer, file)
Related Story: Government agencies face the axe as budget deficit worsens
A veterans group says the Federal Government's decision to axe a number of agencies and groups that help returned service men and women is "crass stupidity".
The Government will tomorrow formally announce it is abolishing almost 200 agencies in a bid to save $500 million over four years when it hands down the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO) tomorrow.
Groups to be axed include the Vietnam Veterans' Education Centre Advisory Panel and a medicines and therapeutic advice group for veterans.
Vietnam Veterans' Association vice-president Peter Ryan said he could not believe the move.
"[It's] crass stupidity. Whoever is advising the Government on this has no concept of reality," Mr Ryan said.
"These programs are designed to help our people with their health and wellbeing and the Government is cutting these programs. Why does the Government want to hurt veterans?
"Why is the Government cutting a program that in the long term saves money and what on earth do they think they're going to replace it with?"
The budget agenda explained
As the Government prepares its mid-year economic update, take a look at the progress of some of its major initiatives.
Thousands of Canberra public servants face a nervous wait to learn if their jobs will be axed as part of the proposed cuts.
Nadine Flood from the CPSU, the union representing public servants, said the latest cuts were bad news for workers before Christmas.
Finance Minister Mathias Cormann signalled the cut to agencies on Saturday saying the Government wants to streamline agencies and avoid duplication.
Other groups set to be abolished are the Diabetes Advisory Group, Anzac Centenary Public Fund Board and the Local Government Ministers Forum.
"Part of our effort to repair the budget is to ensure that the administration and the operations of government are as efficient and as effective as possible so that they deliver the best possible services to people across Australia, at the lowest possible cost," he told Sky News.
"A lot of these bodies are responsible for similar areas of responsibility. There's a lot of overlap, a lot of duplication... what we've set out to do is, wherever possible, ensure these functions are streamlined."
The proposed scrapping of agencies comes after Treasurer Joe Hockey revealed last week budget deficit would be worse than the Government had previously forecast.
Mr Hockey said the drop in iron ore prices and others factors such as Labor blocking spending cuts would ensure the budget did not return to surplus in 2018 as previously forecasted.
He flagged more cuts would need to be made in the mid-year budget update released tomorrow.
