News

The $500 standard tax deduction announced in the Federal Budget tonight is a fraction of the average currently claimed by taxpayers.

Small business is crying out for much needed tax reform that was missing from last night’s Federal Budget, with small business overwhelmed with regulatory burden.

Amongst the Budget announcements last night was the unveiling of the most significant changes to GST since its introduction by former PM John Howard in 2000.

Senator Stephen Conroy has been appointed by the United Nations as a founding member of the Broadband Commission for Digital Development.

Telstra will release a ‘Royal Purple’ version of Research in Motion’s BlackBerry Pearl 3G to Australia exclusively later this month, with BlackBerry seeking to liven up it’s staid corporate image.

Matthew Tukaki, the former head of Drake Australia, has said that employers needed to start acting in January to retain key talent, with the latest survey showing employees leaving in droves.

Telstra on the back of announcing prepaid iPad data plans and revisions to their NextG Consumer Mobile Cap and Ultimate plans have also overhauled their business mobile cap plans.

Optus has used its second mover advantage to trump Telstra’s iPad plans, offering a range of prepaid and postpaid iPad plans that offer up to twice the value as Telstra.

Stephen Conroy has announced changes to the Australian Broadband Guarantee that will see subsidies dumped in areas served by Telstra’s NextG wireless broadband.

I’ve struggled with being open about this because the memory still makes me feel a bit grimy, but I feel it’s time to come out with it.

Telstra have released an agressive range of new NextG Cap plans after making a splash with plans tailored specifically for the iPad in the last week.

Qantas has been displaced as the Australian Government’s sole airline of choice, with Virgin Blue, Jetstar and Regional Express joining Qantas in sharing the Government’s domestic air travel contract.

Almost a fifth of Australia’s workforce is self-employed, the Kelly Index has found, with the economic downturn opening up opportunities for freelancers, contractors and entrepreneurs.

Those looking to change jobs should hold on a little longer, the Advantage Job Index suggests, with the job market taking a small dive last month.

Kevin Rudd’s National Broadband Network (NBN) looks likely to go ahead without Telstra, given the disparity between Telstra’s asking price and the savings using Telstra’s existing infrastructure would bring.

A study by Griffith University into franchise conflict has revealed the need for better communication between franchisors and their franchisees.

And let me start with a personal training session. And wait before you say, “Not a blog about why I should have a personal trainer,” quell your guilty conscience and read on!

Australian employees are on the move, with one in six workers applying for a new job in the past six months, a workplace survey has found.

Telstra’s iPad prepaid data plans are out, but highlight how much the company is prepared to rip off their non-iPad prepaid wireless broadband customers. With iPad prepaid plan prices half what their wireless broadband customers pay.

Auction clearance rates have collapsed in three of Australia’s largest markets, after successive interest rate increases from the Reserve Bank. Listings were also down in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide.