Fed: Govt not coming clean with economic bad news, says Crean

AAP General News (Australia)
04-27-2001
Fed: Govt not coming clean with economic bad news, says Crean

CANBERRA, April 27 AAP - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) report card on Australia
showed the federal government had failed to come clean with the public, opposition treasury
spokesman Simon Crean said today.

The IMF has downgraded Australia's growth forecast from 3.4 to 1.9 per cent this year
before picking up again next year.

It expressed serious concerns about slowdowns in other parts of the world which would
impinge on Australia's export prospects.

"The bad news in this is that the fund blames the GST for what has happened in Australia,"

Mr Crean told ABC Radio.

"No wonder (Treasurer) Peter Costello didn't mention this in his press release, nor
did he mention that dramatic downward revision by the IMF in growth forecasts.

"These forecasts are developed in consultation with the Australian government. What
is he telling the IMF that he is not prepared to tell the Australian public?"

Mr Crean said Mr Costello had failed to release what unemployment forecasts would be,
which meant they could only be bad.

He said Mr Costello was trying to sanitise bad news.

"He puts out a press release last night not mentioning the downward revision in growth,
not telling us what the unemployment implications are and then he bolts the country, he
heads to Washington," Mr Crean said.

"What is it that the government is hiding from the Australian public? The IMF is obviously
privy to this information.

"The government needs to come clean, not sanitise it and not pretend we haven't got a problem."

AAP fh/jas/de

KEYWORD: IMF CREAN

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