Older Australians deserve to live with dignity and independence in a home of their choice with access to the full range of support and care services they need. Those choosing to live at home must be given every reasonable assistance, including better funded and indexed payments for their carers, while Government funding of aged care facilities must be increased significantly. In all cases older Australians deserve a better funded and indexed aged pension.
Disability
I would support any initiative which genuinely improves the circumstances of people with disabilities and their carers. Both the Labor and Liberal parties have now released policies on the issue and it is important that the next government move quickly to implement the best ideas contained within them. Moreover I believe the Disability Support Pension and Carer Payment should be increased and better indexed so as to genuinely keep up with the cost of living. And an effective disability care and support scheme should be established, for example a disability insurance scheme.
Economic development
Development is essential for Tasmania’s prosperity and projects which meet sensible social, economic and environmental criteria should be encouraged. Government infrastructure spending is an important driver of economic growth so the inequality in such expenditure between the south and north of the State must be rectified - Federal funds should be allocated to rebuild or replace the Royal Hobart Hospital, help fix the railways and upgrade the Midland Highway, as well as enhance the southern transport network. Moreover governments must help create the environment for private enterprise to prosper. There must be political stability; financial brakes like company tax, payroll tax and land tax rate should be as low as possible; and industries where Tasmania has advantages, like tourism and high technology boat building, should be genuinely fostered.
Tertiary education
Tertiary institutions must be better funded to wind back the increasing reliance on fee paying students and commercial sponsorship of research, and to sustain the vital core disciplines essential for a truly viable tertiary education system. Youth Allowance should be increased to a more realistic level and better indexed to keep pace with inflation, student representative organisations must be revitalised and measures put in place to better deliver affordable student accommodation.
Education
Schools must be adequately funded according to need and not according to whether or not they are publicly or privately operated. Teachers must be trained and employed in such numbers to provide an effective learning environment for all students, as well as reasonable lesson preparation time, rest and professional development for the teachers themselves.
Internet filtering
The proposed internet filtering is inconsistent with the nature of the World Wide Web and probably unachievable technically in an open society like ours. It should not be allowed to proceed. Web users should instead be protected by commercially available filter software, as well as effective law enforcement efforts against those who would seek to misuse the web.
Older Australians deserve to live with dignity and independence in a home of their choice with access to the full range of support and care services they need. Those choosing to live at home must be given every reasonable assistance, including better funded and indexed payments for their carers, while Government funding of aged care facilities must be increased significantly. In all cases older Australians deserve a better funded and indexed aged pension.
I would support any initiative which genuinely improves the circumstances of people with disabilities and their carers. Both the Labor and Liberal parties have now released policies on the issue and it is important that the next government move quickly to implement the best ideas contained within them. Moreover I believe the Disability Support Pension and Carer Payment should be increased and better indexed so as to genuinely keep up with the cost of living. And an effective disability care and support scheme should be established, for example a disability insurance scheme.
Development is essential for Tasmania’s prosperity and projects which meet sensible social, economic and environmental criteria should be encouraged. Government infrastructure spending is an important driver of economic growth so the inequality in such expenditure between the south and north of the State must be rectified - Federal funds should be allocated to rebuild or replace the Royal Hobart Hospital, help fix the railways and upgrade the Midland Highway, as well as enhance the southern transport network. Moreover governments must help create the environment for private enterprise to prosper. There must be political stability; financial brakes like company tax, payroll tax and land tax rate should be as low as possible; and industries where Tasmania has advantages, like tourism and high technology boat building, should be genuinely fostered.
Tertiary institutions must be better funded to wind back the increasing reliance on fee paying students and commercial sponsorship of research, and to sustain the vital core disciplines essential for a truly viable tertiary education system. Youth Allowance should be increased to a more realistic level and better indexed to keep pace with inflation, student representative organisations must be revitalised and measures put in place to better deliver affordable student accommodation.
Schools must be adequately funded according to need and not according to whether or not they are publicly or privately operated. Teachers must be trained and employed in such numbers to provide an effective learning environment for all students, as well as reasonable lesson preparation time, rest and professional development for the teachers themselves.
The proposed internet filtering is inconsistent with the nature of the World Wide Web and probably unachievable technically in an open society like ours. It should not be allowed to proceed. Web users should instead be protected by commercially available filter software, as well as effective law enforcement efforts against those who would seek to misuse the web.
