Health, Education and Roads

Mercury Media Release

22 March 2007

My approach to health, eduaction and roads is a matter of public record:  I have suggested many positive proposals like redirecting the 30% Medicare rebate back into the public hospital system and boosting social welfare support so medical professionals can focus on their tasks; improving and extending passenger rail services as part of developing a 30 year sustainable transport plan, and properly planning and funding an education system that improves student retention rates and gives all young people the best possible start.

But empty rhetoric and election "promises" of quick fixes are exactly what we don't need.  Promises are soon forgotten after the votes are counted, and stop gap measures aren't effective, even in the short term.  Our Local and State Governments crow about Maitland being the fastest growing inland city but ignore our position as one of the State's worst areas in terms of social disadvantage.  Some of us get richer, but more of us struggle to make ends meet.  Politicians do deals for vested interests and then try to make economic performance look good by marginalising, disenfranchising, and ultimately not counting people at the bottom.  And time again it is we ordinary people who end up footing the bill for questionable deals, bad decisions and administrative incompetence.

Instead of this we need honesty and transparency in government.  We need first to identify the best way forward for the community as a whole- long term goals identified after an honest, objective analysis of the entire system - and then demand that all of our Governments co-operate to work towards those goals.  The secret lies in proper planning: cost-effective solutions to social problems require prevention rather than after-the-fact intervention, and promoting environmental sustainability and investing in health and education maintains our social fabric and economic well-being.  If private enterprise sees infrastructure investment as profitable why doesn't Government?

Most of us care about these problems and know they won't be solved with existing approaches.  The real values of Maitland people are at odds with current policies and selfish economic outcomes.  We want a playing field for business that really is level; we want job opportunities for young people, with workplace fairness and reasonable job security for all; we want well planned and efficiently delivered government services like roads and hospitals; we want a healthy clean environment, and a viable community and family life.  We have to work hard to provide these things, but Maitland people have a strong sense of fairness and equity and want policies that will achieve these goals.  They are the policies I will promote.