The worst Australian treasurer since Jim Cairns has promised more 'family payments' instead of a reduction in the taxation burden (and the size of the Tax Act) at the next federal budget. According to reports in the Murdoch media, Peter Costello 'has promised families will be the focus of his 11th budget, while also signalling a boost in childcare places'. Costello ominously said, 'We will make sure that if there is any chance to help families through the tax system, we will do it.'

Remarkably, this places the Federal Treasurer in near complete agreement with the Australian Council of Social Services, a left-wing body with nothing but contempt for private enterprise, and at total odds with the Business Council of Australia, among other lobbies. That Costello is the Federal Treasurer representing the 'Liberal Party' is an insult to all supporters of free markets, private enterprise, and limited constitutional government.

Along with 'our strength is our diversity', the term 'family payment' has taken on a unique ability to provoke violent rage within me, and I'm somebody of fairly mild temperament. Why is this so? Because whenever somebody says 'family payment', I am immediately reminded of the ridiculous visage of Peter Costello, his contemptible smirk, and before long, his disastrous failure as federal treasurer to do anything except expand tax legislation exponentially.

What is most infuriating about Costello is his disgraceful 'born to rule' attitude, and his breathtakingly arrogant assumption that he has some kind of 'right' to the Prime Ministership, or that John Howard is somehow illegitimate or obliged to 'hand over' power at a time of Costello's urging. The fact that Costello hasn't the cojones to actually do something about his stubborn leader suggests that he has no idea what he wants to do with the Prime Ministership should we ever experience the displeasure of him achieving his ambition, and that his motivation is so abysmal that anything short of receiving his 'birthright' on a silver platter would be more trouble than it is worth. For the boundless joy of watching Costello crack up in public, I hope and pray that John Howard will remain Prime Minister for at least the next 25 years, my second preference being that Howard goes down to Kim Beazley in 2007, and for Beazley to trounce Costello by several dozen seats at successive elections.

Costello has effectively served notice on all Liberal Party members, the business community, and other long-suffering constituencies that he will determinedly bring down another dismal federal budget, perhaps the equal of the confiscatory disgrace of his 2004 effort. Costello deserves nothing less than to be sacked as Federal Treasurer and replaced by somebody who is less likely to be a hopeless puppet of the Treasury Department.