Tasboy,
You need to extend your knowledge of Victorian history a few extra years.
John Cain, as Premier of Victoria, destroyed the State's finances, including the loss of our State bank.
When an entity loses control of it's finances, the banks take control. This is what occurred in the early 1990's.
Cain saw the writing on the wall and took the walk of shame and resigned as Premier. He handed a hospital pass to Joan Kirner, but by then it was too late.
Kennett was elected, but had no options, due to the parlous level of State debt, financiers had taken control, thanks to the Cain's Labor Government profligate spending.
So your idiotic comment that Kennett is the cause of Victoria's downhill trajectory is totally wrong. What gives us the shites is the fact we bailed out Labor's stuff up 30 years ago and now we are looking down the barrel of having to perform another rescue mission 30 years later. Only this time it is much worse.
The Victorian excuse for a Treasurer, Pallas, is in the USA at present, in the vain hope of retaining Victoria's current credit rating. If Moody's and or Standard and Poor's downgrade Victorian debt further, the interest rates for Victorian Government debt increases. They have already previously down graded Victoria's credit rating. So if we get downgraded further, we pay an even higher rate of interest on our $188 Billion and growing, debt.
Interest on debt as of today runs to $26 million dollars a day, 7 days a week. Imagine what services that would provide to Victorians. Nurses, Ambo's, cops, fix our roads, schools, the list is never ending.
So, instead of blaming Kennett for Victoria's financial demise, you need to lay the blame directly at the feet of Labor's John Cain.
Jeff Kennett merely put the State back on a moderate financial gearing, and not without cost to the State.
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