With the US result some friends and I have been discussing who the worst PM was/is.

  • NathA
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    8
    ·
    11 hours ago

    The problem with a “Future Fund” is that our politics isn’t geared up to handle it. Imagine a kitty of $50 Billion sitting just there and a new party gets in. They’ll spend it, of course. So even if you get a fiscally responsible PM who establishes such a fund, the other party would get in three years later, spend that money immediately on [PROJECT] and then claim all the credit for it.

    • I think Norway’s has legislation around the percent that can be used now vs what has to be reserved for future generations. Although I agree with the sentiment that the calibre of politicians we elect couldn’t be trusted to think beyond one election cycle.

      • NathA
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        6
        ·
        9 hours ago

        The thing about legislation is: The new government can make/change/remove it. Unless you enshrine it in the Constitution - and we have a pretty poor track record of changing that.

        • Zagorath
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          1
          ·
          6 hours ago

          I would think that if something were established with legislation capping how much can be spent, it would (a) be very difficult to get past the Senate crossbench and (b) be very expensive in terms of political capital, if you didn’t take it to an election as a core issue.