Labor's Plan for Early Childhood
Source: Australian Labor Party. Media Release
"Federal Labor has set out an ambitious and comprehensive plan to address this deficit and provide a stronger platform for our children. Federal Labor will provide national leadership to improve the quality of early childhood services in Australia. "

Labor Support For Allied Health In Rural Areas
Source: Australian Labor Party. Media Release
" Rudd Labor Government will provide $2.5 million over three years for the establishment of an Australian Allied Health Rural and Remote Clinical Placement Scholarship Plan. This plan will provide a much-needed boost to the allied health care workforce in rural Australia."

Prevention And Protection: Federal Labor's National Plan To Reduce Violence Against Women And Children
Source: Australian Labor Party. Media Release
"A Rudd Labor Government will implement a National Plan to Reduce Violence Against Women and Children to better protect women and children from domestic violence and sexual assault.
This plan builds on Federal Labor’s recent commitment to invest $150 million over five years to build 600 additional houses to accommodate people who are homeless, particularly women and children – many of them escaping domestic violence."

Federal Labor's Commitment To Lift School Standards
Source: Australian Labor Party. Media Release
"A Rudd Labor Government will focus on achieving higher standards, greater accountability and better results from our school system. Federal Labor is determined to lift the standard of every one of our 9,217 schools. Federal Labor will pursue improvements to our school performance that benefit the more than 1.4 million secondary students and almost 2 million primary school students. These reforms are aimed at lifting school retention rates from 75 to 90 per cent by 2020."

Extra Nurses And Specialists For Rural And Regional Areas
Source: Australian Labor Party. Media Release
"Federal Labor announced a plan to boost the number of registered nurses and specialists providing outreach services in rural and regional Australia. Under the Rural and Regional Nurses and Specialists Plan:
at least 400 of the additional 1,000 nursing places Labor will offer each year under our $81 million nursing plan will be dedicated to universities offering clinical experience in regional and rural hospitals
an additional $9 million over three years will be provided to support medical specialists delivering outreach services to rural and remote communities."

New research to tackle diabesity
Source: Western Australia. Minister for Industry and Enterprise. Media Release
"Revolutionary research into the early diagnosis and treatment of diabesity is taking place at a new Centre for Food and Genomic Medicine, which was officially launched by Industry and Enterprise Minister Francis Logan. The centre is part of the Western Australian Institute for Medical Research (WAIMR) and was established through a three-year State Government investment of $4.5million. "

WA’s ‘throwaway society’ urged to clean up its act
Source: Western Australia. Minister for Environment and Climate Change. Media Release
"Western Australians are being urged to combat climate change by recycling, and thinking twice before buying throwaway items to reduce the amount of waste going into landfill. Environment and Climate Change Minister David Templeman said that the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery (WARR) Bill would provide a number of important new measures to help improve recycling in WA and promote the shift towards a waste-free society."

New strategy to help retain key public sector workers
Source: Western Australia. Premier. Media Release
"Premier Alan Carpenter announced a new scheme aimed at retaining experienced public sector employees. The transition to retirement initiative will encourage individuals aged 55 years and over to remain in the public sector workforce by providing access to superannuation entitlements, while continuing to work full time or changing to more flexible working hours."

State acts to retain experienced teachers close to retirement
Source: Western Australia. Minister for Education and Training. Media Release
"Innovative changes to public sector superannuation have the potential to benefit up to 6,000 teachers over the next five years, Education and Training Minister Mark McGowan said. Mr McGowan said the changes, which would kick in from January 2008, would allow teachers aged over 55 to access their superannuation while still working. Under the changes, teachers aged over 55 will be able to:
continue working full-time while accessing their superannuation;
opt for part-time or casual work while supplementing their income with superannuation; and
salary package their entire salary and draw on as much superannuation as desired."

New Family Emergency Medical Centres
Source: Liberal Party of Australia. Media Release
"I am pleased to announce that a re-elected Coalition Government will establish 50 Family Emergency Medical Centres run by local General Practitioners and nurses to provide more family-friendly medical care after-hours. Family Emergency Medical Centres will provide a comprehensive after-hours service offering a more family-friendly alternative to public hospital emergency departments. This is especially important on weekends when sporting injuries occur and at nights when children tend to fall ill. "

A Place To Call Home - Federal Labor's Plan To Build More Homes For Homeless Australians
Source: Australian Labor Party. Media Release

Making Ends Meet - Federal Labor's Plan For Older Australians, People With Disabilities And Carers
Source: Australian Labor Party. Media Release
"A Rudd Labor Government will offer increased financial support to older Australians, people with disabilities and carers to help make ends meet. Federal Labor’s plan - Making Ends Meet - will help around three million eligible Australians, including pensioners and self-funded retirees."

Federal Labor's Low Tax First Home Saver Accounts - Larger Deposits And Higher National Savings
Source: Australian Labor Party. Media Release
" Rudd Labor Government will help aspiring first home buyers save a larger deposit by establishing new, low tax, First Home Saver Accounts. Over the first three years Federal Labor’s First Home Saver Accounts will help around half a million first home buyers save a bigger deposit by establishing superannuation-style low tax savings accounts.Federal Labor’s First Home Saver Accounts will help boost national savings, with the accounts anticipated to hold around $3.5 billion in savings after three years. "

Training To Help Reduce Smoking in Communities
Source: Northern Territory. Minister for Families and Community Services. Media Release
"The first of three targeted courses aimed at reducing smoking in Indigenous communities starts in Darwin, Family and Community Services Minister Marion Scrymgour announced.
“More than 27% of all adults in the Northern Territory smoke, which is over 10% higher than the national average,” Ms Scrymgour said.
“However in our Indigenous communities the rate of smoking is on average 55% - this is simply not good enough and the NT Government is committed to investing in strategies to help address this unacceptable rate."

Legislation Introduced for Drug and Alcohol Testing of Police
Source: Victoria. Minister for the Police and Emergency Services. Media Release
"The Minister for Police, Bob Cameron introduced legislation paving the way for a drug and alcohol-testing regime for police. The Police Regulation Amendment Bill 2007 provides legislative power for the Chief Commissioner of Police to direct Victoria Police members to undergo drug and alcohol testing. Mr Cameron said the vast majority of police carried out their job with expertise and integrity but some police members, as in the broader community, suffer from drug or alcohol dependencies."

Public Housing to Lead the Way in Cutting-edge Design
Source: Victoria. Minister for Housing. Media Release
"Public housing tenants in Footscray and Dandenong will benefit from the work of Victoria’s finest architects through a new competition, Housing Minister Richard Wynne announced. Mr Wynne joined local tenants and representatives of the Office of the Victorian Government Architect (OVGA) to announce two new exciting competitions for architects across Victoria. The Brumby Government is leading the rest of Australia when it comes to providing innovative approaches to affordable housing and these competitions are an important part of this process.”

Victorian Government Getting Greener
Source: Victoria. Minister for Environment and Climate Change. Media Release
"The Victorian Government is leading by example with government departments reducing water consumption by 17 per cent, greenhouse gas emissions by 13 per cent and waste production by 13 per cent over the past 12 months. Mr Jennings said the government’s overall environmental performance had been assessed based on data published in departmental annual reports, tabled on October 31 2007."

World's First 360 Degree Feedback Progam for Judicial Officers
Source: Victoria. Attorney General. Media Release
"Victoria’s judges are taking part in the world’s first 360-degree feedback program for judicial officers, Deputy Premier and Attorney General Rob Hulls said after the tabling of the Judicial College’s annual report in Parliament this week. The Judicial College of Victoria’s 360-degree feedback program has proved so popular that other jurisdictions, from neighbouring states to the Commonwealth and the UK, are now considering developing similar programs,” Mr Hulls said."

Franchising industry inquiry
Source: Western Australia. Minister for Small Business. Media Release
"Small Business Minister Margaret Quirk announced the start of an inquiry into the operation of franchise businesses in Western Australia, one of the fastest growing sectors in the economy. The inquiry would invite written public submissions, with public hearings scheduled for metropolitan and regional areas over the coming months."

Teacher pay deal biggest in State’s history
Source: Western Australia. Minister for Education and Training. Media Release
"Western Australia’s Government school teachers are set to become the highest paid in the nation after the Carpenter Government offered a multi-million dollar pay deal to its 22,000 strong teaching workforce. Education Minister Mark McGowan said a special deal - the biggest in the State’s history - was necessary because of the teacher shortage and the ageing of the workforce."

Major changes to Western Australia’s homicide laws
Source: Western Australia. Attorney General. Media Release
"The charges of wilful murder and murder would be consolidated into one charge and sentencing options expanded as part of a major overhaul of the State’s homicide laws proposed by the Law Reform Commission of Western Australia. Attorney General Jim McGinty said the plan to consolidate wilful murder and murder into one offence was part of 45 recommendations made by the commission after a two-and-a-half year review of homicide laws."

Australian Democrats Election Platform
Source: Australian Democrat. Policy Statements
"2007 Election platform for the Democrats"

Greens Policies
Source: The Greens. Policy Documents
"Attached are the policies the Greens have released for the 2007 Election."

More Australian trained Doctors and Nurses
Source: Liberal Party. Media Release
"I am pleased to announce two new plans, the first to provide more Australian trained doctors, nurses and medical specialists and the second to provide, for the first time new home visits to older Australians and Veterans by nurses working in GP surgeries.
Under the Coalition’s comprehensive plan to strengthen Australia’s health workforce the number of university medical graduates will more than double from 1,300 in 2004 to almost 3,000 graduates by 2012. "

Federal Labor To Tackle Waiting Lists For Patients And Demand Tougher Accountability On Elective Surgery
Source: Australian Labor Party. Media Release
"A Rudd Labor Government will introduce a new national public hospital report card system – covering elective surgery waiting times – as part of its $600 million investment to tackle elective surgery waiting lists. Federal Labor will invest an additional $600 million – over four years – to dramatically reduce waiting times for elective surgery such as hip and knee replacements in Australia’s public hospitals. "