Team Titanic already showing budget cracks - PPL "rorters" and "fraudster" label

What a total fuck up this mother of all broken promises is; the Paid Parental Leave Abbott lite style. His signature policy, that he gripped to his heart for years refusing to even compromise on, now lies in tatters at the Lieberals feet. So low have the Lieberals gone with this, that they have resorted to calling young mothers rorters and fraudsters! 

Labor asked the prime minister if he agreed with the comments by Hockey and Morrison regarding mothers who claimed both benefits.

Labor’s Jenny Macklin asked: “Does the prime minister agree with the minister for social services that mums who get more than 18 weeks paid leave at home with their new babies are rorters? Or does he agree with his treasurer, who believes they’re committing fraud?” more

OMG this is bad. Really really bad. SSJoe and cohorts have set themselves on the same destructive path as last years "selling" of the budget. How could they use such contrived and despicable language with young mothers? For doing something completely legal as described in the legislation? This is incredulous, beyond belief. Political suicide of the highest order.

It's so bad in fact that even high ranking Lieberals are publically questioning the strategy. One has to wonder what the fuck must be going through the mind of Lieberal backbenchers right now...... 

Liberal senator Arthur Sinodinos warned it was “not a good look to be having a go at the young mothers” over paid parental leave after a fiery parliamentary debate over whether senior ministers called new mothers “rorters” and “fraudsters”. 

Tony Abbott has defended Joe Hockey and Scott Morrison after they questioned the behaviour of parents who claim both government and employer parental leave payments, a legal practice which government members have described as “double dipping”. 

The debate came after the budget introduced the measure, which is expected to affect almost 80,000 new mothers who will now not receive as much parental leave as a result. It is expected to save the government nearly $1bn. 

It was a clear departure from Abbott’s original signature paid parental leave policy, which he took to the 2013 election and would have paid women 26 weeks at their salaries up to $150,000. 

While Abbott, Hockey and Morrison have said the budget measure was a matter of equity, Sinodinos said: “let’s not beat around the bush, it’s about finding a saving at a time when savings were needed”. 

“I think the problem is it’s not a good look to be having a go at the young mothers or new mothers of Australia and I think some of the language has been a bit unfortunate,” he said. “We should be a bit more empathetic.” more