Spend, spend, spend, and all your economy's woes will ease.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has made it clear he wants his gift of $8.7billion in bonuses for parents and pensioners to be spent on Christmas cheer.
Rather than hoarding the cash in six million bank accounts for even rainier economic times, or being miserly and paying off debt, Mr Rudd told yesterday's community cabinet meeting in the Geelong suburb of Corio, south-west of Melbourne, that he expected it to be spent so the economy could grow and people could keep their jobs.
''My message to these two million families and four million pensioners receiving these payments is to go out and to spend this money,'' Mr Rudd said.
''By spending this money, families and pensioners will help create more jobs across Australia and strengthen the Australian economy.
''These payments arrive tomorrow, just 17 days before Christmas, and I urge families and pensioners who have been doing it tough to spend their payments in a responsible way to make their Christmas all the more special, and also do their bit to support the economy and jobs.''
In the ACT, $58million will arrive in bank accounts from today, with Federal Government figures showing that 19,000 families will benefit from extra payments of $1000 a child under family tax benefit A.
In all, that will be $37million for the ACT's 37,000 eligible children.
More than $20million will benefit about 14,000 ACT pensioners, carers and people with a disability.
Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull said yesterday families would judge responsibly for themselves how best to spend whatever windfall they received from the stimulus package.
''Obviously the Government would like people to spend it but clearly families will take a prudent approach and they will be careful about how they spend their money or indeed whether they save it, or save some and spend some.''
Mr Rudd spoke about the pre-Christmas splurge at the community cabinet meeting in Corio, an electorate located within Victoria's second largest city that ranks as one of the state's most disadvantaged, with high rates of unemployment and illiteracy.
The region was set to suffer another 1000 job losses with Ford's Geelong engine plant scheduled to close, before the Government's $6.2billion rescue package persuaded the company the reverse course.
This decision, combined with news that the Geelong bypass would soon be open, focusing more attention on the region, ensured a warm reception from the 400-strong crowd that gathered for yesterday's forum.
Most of the 12 questions Mr Rudd took from the public were prefaced with statements of support or thanks, apart from those keen to debate the wisdom of adding fluoride to Geelong's drinking water.
The city's supply will soon be integrated with Melbourne's, and fluoridated, a move that has sparked considerable controversy.