Sydney  - Prime Minister Kevin Rudd Tuesday announced a 42-billion-Australian-dollar (27-billion-US-dollar) spending programme that he hoped would stop the faltering Australian economy from lurching into recession.

Rudd last raided the piggy bank in October for a 10.4-billion-Australian-dollar package of one-off payments to low-income families, first-time house buyers and pensioners.

The latest stimulus package is more of the same: one-off payments to families, to farmers and the unemployed. But as well as hand-outs to households, there will be a
14-billion-Australian-dollar programme to renovate schools, free roof insulation for 2.7 million homes and 2.7 billion Australian dollars in tax breaks for small businesses.

The second stimulus packages would help tip the budget into a 22-billion-Australian-dollar deficit this year from a 21-billion-Australian-dollar surplus when the Rudd government took office 14 months ago.

"We're going to move heaven and earth to try and support growth," Rudd said. "The truth is that the global recession in general and the collapse in China's growth in particular has produced a 115-billion-Australian-dollar fall (over four years) in Australia's tax receipts to the government." (dpa)