Its impact will be felt by the most vulnerable people in the world (but it's OK, Mr Abbott, they have no voice or votes). But it will hurt Australia's reputation as a global citizen and will be a black mark on our proud history of support for international development. But the biggest problem will be how slashing the foreign aid budget will affect the progress we have already made in helping millions of people. Programs already established and achieving huge success will be abandoned and the resources used to set these up will be lost forever.

Thousands of children will have no opportunity to attend school, thousands of mothers will miss out on vital health and child birth programs and children will die every day from easily preventable diseases and malnutrition. These programs cannot be turned on and off at the flick of a switch (or the whim of a politician).

Our foreign aid is supported by Australians because it is part of who we are – we believe in a fair go for everyone.

It's a thumb's down from me.

Bruce Boyd, Bruce

While the cynics might decry the latest federal budget as riddled with middle-class concessions, particularly to small businesses, I, for one, embrace it in its entirety. As a research consultant, I can now expand my horizon. The new budget is like a Pandora's box, brimming with new research ideas and opportunities for me, particularly the 100per cent tax write-off for business expenditures less than $20,000.

Five thousand dollar Italian shoes: I need them for a feminist critique of fashion and women's subordination. For the purpose of experiencing this subordination, I need a matching handbag.

Our cat will be tax-deductible, because she is now employed as pest controller in my office (aka living room at home). Champagnes and imported chocolates will be critical for my new catering business. And of course, as a dedicated businesswoman, I need to sample all the range. So, thanks Tony and Joe, for enabling me to achieve what was once a distant dream!

Joyce Wu, Lyneham

Some years ago I wrote to the editor criticising Wayne Swan's inaugural budget because it ignored climate change. Our present Treasurer, Joe Hockey, wilfully ignores many things. The most important is climate change.

The least Hockey should do, in his search for budget savings, is to erase the multi-billion-dollar subsidies and other forms of support still being enjoyed by fossil fuel industries. These subsidies encourage the wasteful use of fossil fuels, increase greenhouse gas emissions and prolong the life of obsolescent industries. They also impede the development of the low-carbon economy.

David Teather, Reid

I can hear the sound of pigs flapping their way over my house as I write to agree, not once, but twice, with H.Ronald. Firstly with his suggestion (Letters, May 11) that Australian Aborigines should move on to a better future rather than sweating on their rights and the hurt of the past.

For the second I have to agree with a literal interpretation of his ironic if not sarcastic concern (Letters, May 13) that Christine Milne has not been sufficiently heard in her warning about the risks of climate change.

We simply must do more to avert, not tolerate, climate change, simply because there is a risk of things going seriously and unfixably wrong. It is this risk we have to take on, not any proven certainty.

You don't stay standing in the middle of the road because there is only a chance that the car heading towards you will run you down, you get off the road, in case.

Julian Robinson, Narrabundah

When Scott Morrison and Tony Abbott ran the "stop the boats" campaign of 2010-13 it was generally couched in terms that "illegal maritime arrivals" were a threat to Australia – or, as Mr Abbott termed it in November 2012, a "peaceful invasion".

The tone with which Operation Sovereign Borders was conducted suggested that refugees were a threat to Australia that required a military, not humanitarian response. When reports of deaths and rapes on Manus Island filtered through the government needed to appear less cruel. So the message has changed.

Now the government emphasises that stopping the boats was a compassionate act because it ended the tragedy of drowning boat people. To be consistent with this new line, one would expect the government to pump aid into the countries from which refugees are fleeing, thus discouraging them from taking perilous maritime journeys to Indonesia, Malaysia, or Australia. Instead the 2015-16 budget slashes aid from refugee source countries such as Afghanistan. Go figure.

Mike Reddy, Lyons

I'd like to refute claims the Department of Human Services has been "trying to offload large expanses of empty offices it rents in Canberra, and finding no takers" ("Taxpayers fund public service's empty office black holes", May 12, p1).

The department has not been trying to "offload large expanses" of vacant office space – this claim is completely false.

Had the journalist approached our department for comment on his story he would have been told our department currently occupies six buildings in Canberra which are operating at 95per cent capacity. The department continually reviews its property requirements to ensure that taxpayer money is spent appropriately.

Hank Jongen, general manager, Department of Human Services

Federal Opposition Leader Bill Shorten falls in behind the Abbott government yet again, this time over Tim Fischer's loopy plan to "promote" General Sir John Monash to Field Marshal, 84 years after his death. Don't honour the common people, the ones who served and suffered; the Digger, the nurse, the corporals and lieutenants who died more than any. No, honour the red-tabbed general with a field marshal's baton.

Who is the only other holder of this rank in the Australian Army? Prince Philip, the man whom Abbott honoured as an Australian knight in January. What does that tell you? So much for the egalitarian Anzac spirit.

Will no public figure in this country stand up against Fischer's sycophantic crusade? Monash is already on the $100 note, and has a university named after him and now a $100-million "interpretative centre". What further recognition does he merit? Since when have Australians valued commanders over those they commanded? Is this the Australian way? Is it the ALP's way? Come on, Bill, show some backbone!

Peter Stanley, Dickson

As an Australian resident who visited Norfolk Island in 2012 and made a submission to the Australian parliament joint committee on the national capital and external territories report Same Country, Different World, I feel obliged to respond to Jon Stanhope (Letters, May 13).

The changes proposed by the Australia government for Norfolk Island are much needed and long overdue, especially the integration into the Australian tax system and its associated changes. One has to seriously ask the question, can you afford to have a system of government, which oversees an economy where 24percent of the male population have left Norfolk Island to go elsewhere and 40 per cent of Norfolk Island small business foreclosing?

Furthermore, the infrastructure on Norfolk Island is seriously run down and Norfolk Island needs at the very minimum upgraded facilities including the upgrading of Kingston and Cascade piers, the latter damaged by tropical Cyclone Pam. Most importantly, Norfolk Island needs to reinvent itself as a tourist destination and broaden its targeted audience.

The people of Norfolk Island need to understand that as an Australian External Territory, the Australian government has every right to oversee what happens on Norfolk Island as they see fit to do so. After all, who provides Norfolk Island with the Australian Federal Police and who is going to provide Norfolk Island with the necessary upgrades to its infrastructure?

Angus Moody, Turramurra, NSW

Jon Stanhope (Letters, May 13) makes a fool of himself. The federal government and Labor are in agreement on something (for once) and that is the mess that is Norfolk Island needs to be fixed. The island's population, broadly similar to that of Bungendore, has been consistently failed by its administrators.

I can't imagine Mr Stanhope wanting the Commonwealth to give what is effectively statehood (plus some powers that even states don't have like powers over immigration) to the Christmas or Cocos (Keeling) Islands. Yet the capacity of these places to provide adequate and effective administration for residents differs little from that of Norfolk Island.

Stan Marks, Hawker

What Ned Ovolny and Rex Williams (Letters, May 13) fail to realise is that "Soviet" does not equal "Russian". And that more Ukrainians than any other nationality died in World War II, including many, many Soviet-Ukrainian soldiers.

Boycotting war commemorations in Moscow does not disrespect Soviet soldiers. In fact, it shows respect for the millions who were Soviet, and yet not Russian. And at any rate, protesting the slaughter of tens of thousands of people and the displacement of 1.5million Ukrainians is more important than a war ceremony and photo ops with Putin.

Basia Jones, Phillip

NOT ALL THAT IT SEEMS

The small business plant and equipment tax win is for those who like to "have a go".

But I would imagine that disgraced financial advisers and others of that ilk will soon be travelling in shiny new $20,000 tax cut cars.

Be aware, Tony's lifters will be leaning on you in the very near future.

J.H. Styles, Kingston

IDEAS NOTHING NEW

Spend, spend, spend! It is amusing to see desperate Liberal Treasurer Hockey invoking a simplistic version of Keynes' stimulatory economic ideas.

Richard Keys, Ainslie

DIFFERENT IN OUR DAY

I wonder how many young mothers eligible for paid parental leave and child care rebates recall that all the older generations got was child endowment: a few shillings per child.

Norman Lee, Weston

SHAME ON ABBOTT

Of all the issues in Wednesday's edition of The Canberra Times, including the Budget Supplement, the one that struck us was Josh Bornstein's article about the actions of the Abbott Government and the Endeavour Foundation in relation to disabled workers' pay ("Abbott targets the disabled", Times2, May 13, p1). Despicable!

J.F. and P.M. Simmons, Kambah

KNOWLEDGE LACKING

My concern about the shallow understanding of history by people in the media, and the population generally has been rising for some time. My deepest fears were confirmed on Wednesday when Leigh Sales, compere of ABC TV's 7.30 current affairs program admitted that she had never heard of 1980s British band Spandau Ballet!

They're only the greatest name in the New Romantic movement! Oh, dear.

Matthew Higgins, Ainslie

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