New WA Labor Leader Mark McGowan addresses the media
Watch new WA Labor Leader Mark McGowan address the media here...
No place for tourists to stay in WA
The Barnett Government has failed to ensure there is enough accommodation in Perth for tourists visiting Western Australia, Shadow Tourism Minister Michelle Roberts said today.
Mrs Roberts said the latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics Survey of Tourist Accommodation revealed a big decline in Perth accommodation from 2008 to 2011, with 118 less rooms, five less hotels and 822 less beds.
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Linda Savage - We must invest more in early childhood years
Looking for the best return for your money in 2012, not just for yourself, but one that benefits all creatures both great and small? No idea?
Here is a suggestion. James Heckman, a Nobel Prize- winning economist who is considered to be among the 10 most influential economists in the world, has shown that investing in the early years of a child’s life to ensure they have a sturdy physical and emotional foundation to build upon pays off handsomely, saving many times more than the initial investment.
In fact, as Professor Heckman said at a lecture at the London School of Economics in May, the rate of return from investing in the early childhood Perry Program for example, was higher than if you had invested in the equity market, even before the 2008 meltdown.
This is the sort of investment strategy we desperately need. The combination of low birth rates and an ageing population has led, for example, to the startling prediction that within the next 10 to 15 years Federal and State budgets will be totally consumed by the expanding cost of health care alone.
Even those who question this outcome know that the health budget, along with corrective services and education budgets, are ballooning, a combination of both greater expectations and greater demand.
The answer to these ever increasing costs lies in a range of responses, but certainly one of the most important is to stem the demand for services. Fortunately now we have good evidence about how to begin to do that.
Article continues here at thewest.com.
Labor's container legislation now before WA Parliament
Labor Leader Eric Ripper this week introduced the Container Deposit and Recovery Scheme Bill 2011 which will see the establishment of the Container Deposit Scheme (CDS). The CDS would provide a 10 cent refund for returned cans and bottles saving familes between $8 and $11 a year.
The full text of the bill is available HERE.
Download a Petition form here. Sign and return to the address on the form to add your voice to those calling for a deposit scheme.
WA Labor's paper offers real solutions to elder abuse
Around 12,500 elderly Western Australians could be abused this year. This figure could be even higher as many cases of elder abuse go unreported and research shows the number of older people abused in the State will double in the next 20 years if nothing is done.
WA Labor has launched Behind Closed Doors, a discussion paper into elder abuse in Western Australia. Read a copy of the paper here
WA Labor announces commitment to children's futures
WA Labor has announced its commitment to investing in the early years of Western Australian children's lives.
When Labor is elected to State Government it will:
- appoint a Minister for Early Childhood;
- establish children's centres;
- ensure funding is available to employ additional child health nurses; and
- trial a program to provide intensive support for vulnerable first-time mothers until their child reaches at least two years of age.
WA Labor is committed to ensuring as many children as possible have a fair chance to grow up and become the responsible and contributing members of society they are expected to be.
Read a copy of the direction statement here...
transport For our future
A fully funded light rail line from East Perth to West Perth
WA Labor has launched a policy discussion paper to build a light rail line from East Perth to West Perth using the surplus funding from the Perth Parking Levy.
Labor’s proposal would see an initial 5.7km of light rail constructed from the Causeway in East Perth to Thomas Street in West Perth, with an additional short line to a depot near Royal Street in East Perth.
Click here for a copy of the discussion paper.
A long term vision required for Public Transport Network Plan
The Barnett Government’s Public Transport Network Plan, due to be released tomorrow, must include an expansion of the suburban rail network, a new inner urban light rail network and more feeder bus services, WA Labor Leader Eric Ripper and Shadow Transport Minister Ken Travers today.
Mr Ripper should be based on a 50 to 100 year vision with a detailed implementation timeline for the next 20 years.
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