Friday, May 5, 2006 Australian Prime Minister John Howard and federal industry minister Ian MacDonald today announced that the federal government would be providing Ford Australia with a AU$52.5 million (US$40.4 million) “financial assistance package”. Additional assistance will also be provided by the Victorian state government. According to Mr Howard, the injection will secure Ford’s manufacturing operations in Australia “for the long term”. From the package, AU$40 million will be