Penny Sharpe MLC blogs

Ebrief #48 - now available

2008-11-13T22:30:53-07:00

Yes they did. I am still excited by Obama's victory. I hope that the mess he has inherited does not overwhelm his biggest achievement to date - getting people to care about the issues and then converting that into democratic participation. I look forward to a greener, more conciliatory, more humane US.

This week in parliament has been dominated by the mini-budget. I have included the media releases (below).

Check out KEVINPM. Taking over from Kevin07 this site gives everyone the chance to have ongoing input into the work of our federal government.

Regards

Penny

PS Here are some speeches you make be interested in: the Premier's speech to country conference, the Op-Ed in the SMH based on Justice Michael Kirby's inaugural Wran lecture and my speech to Rainbow Labor.

More....

NSW Mini Budget - difficult but some good news

2008-11-10T19:14:55-07:00

The Treasurer has just delivered his speech for the mini budget. The Government has had to find $3.3 billion in savings and has raised revenues by another $3.6 billion (including congestion tolls, fee rises and potential privatisations). The payroll tax cuts remain. Also announced is $850million of spending. The aim of all of this has been to maintain infrastructure spending, quarantine front line services, introduce an alternative electricity plan and maintain NSW's AAA credit rating.

There will be plenty of media attention given to the significant downsides to the budget. Today I want to draw your attention to some of the positives:

- $56.8 billion will be spent on infrastructure in the next fours years including 19 new school projects and 12 new TAFE projects

- An additional $3000 for first home buyers + stamp duty exemptions for first home buyers

- An additional $150million for school maintenance, $20million for 80 new special needs teachers, an additional 27 schools to get priority assistance funding and additional funding for the scheme that allows Principal's to assit kids with books, uniforms and other expenses.

- $370million for new outer suburban rail carriages, $170 million for 300 new buses, 3000 new commuter car spaces

- Establishment of the Sydney Metro system

- $40million for kids in out of home care

- $85million for the Building the Country fund that will support better broadband, libraries, community halls and local tourism in the bush.

Obama keeping the momentum online, could it be replicated in NSW?

2008-11-06T16:23:16-07:00

75 days until inauguration starts Obama's website. It is the first evidence of Obama's determination to involve all who want to be involved in his administration.

The first blog says "Change.gov provides resources to better understand the transition process and the decisions being made as part of it. It also offers an opportunity to be heard about the challenges our country faces and your ideas for tackling them. The Obama Administration will reflect an essential lesson from the success of the Obama campaign: that people united around a common purpose can achieve great things

The site in encouraging people to apply for jobs, learn about the transition process, have input into his agenda and most importantly continue the momentum of his campaign by asking people to share their concerns, hopes and dreams.

This is in stark contrast to online campaigning and engagement in Australia. While the Kevin07 campaign set a new standard, like most administrations, once elected, the online participation has dramatically decreased.

I recently had an intern who did a project for me about politicians in NSW and their presence online it was not a pretty picture - only 39 out of 136 MP's even have a website.

I am keen to pursue this issue further in NSW. What would you like to see from your MP's online? What is the trigger that would get you to respond to a blog? Would you be interested in group blogs from upper house members? Would you participate if committees have online consultations about their inquiries? We don't have online petitions or reviews of the petitions that are tables in the parliament.

All ideas welcome.

Premier's speech at ALP Country Conference last weekend

2008-11-03T21:53:34-07:00

On the weekend I attended the annual Labor Party Country Conference. Held this year in Port Macquarie, it is one of the largest grassroots political conferences held in NSW.

Premier Nathan Rees made a speech that if you are interested in how Labor understands and works with it's own history and traditions this one is worth a look.You can check it out here.

The Premier also announced funding for infrastructure in the bush, broadband development, country libraries, country halls and local tourism projects.

Ebrief #47 - Now available

2008-11-01T23:25:05-06:00

As the clock ticks down to the US election, I find myself checking out every report, blog and you tube video to find out the latest - yes I have viewed the entire Obama video. This is the first time I have paid so much attention. Why? A combination of being a political tragic, a desire to see political progressives win and the reality that our world is so interlinked that the outcome matters to all of us. Go Obama!

Closer to home, the Government is working hard on the mini budget - it is going to be tough. At the same time there are a number of significant announcements that have received little media attention but are definitely worth celebrating:

in a win for our kids under 2, the government will be mandating a 1:4 ratio of carers to children in long day care down from the 1:5. Congratulations also to the LHMU and other children's advocates who have campaigned for this.
the Premier continues to demonstrate his willingness to open up the NSW government to scrutiny he has mandated that press releases will now be available on the web, introduced a lobbyist code of conduct and will turn our current FOI system on it's head
the Premier also announced changes to tackle the impact of anti social drinking is having on our communities
the government increased the amount of money that people are able to claim if they are victims of discrimination
the government is also seeking submission on community based sentencing that would get rid of periodic detention.
Nathan also announced $63million to provide 220,000 low income households with an energy efficiency overhaul.

Game of the week: Sarah Palin as President

Videos of the week: Sarah Palin fronts Saturday night live, Obama Wassup, Why the wheels are falling off the McCain campaign.

Regards

Penny

PS Congratulations to Jane Sanders from the Shopfront Youth Legal service who won the 2008 Justice Medal. For 15 years Jane has worked with young people in and around Kings Cross to do so much more than just represent them in court. She has also fed, clothed and found housing for some of our most troubled young people. She is a quietly ferocious advocate for young people. The fight for justice is better as a result of Jane's work.

Ebrief #46 - Now available

2008-10-20T21:09:40-06:00

Last week was estimates week for the 2008/2009 budget. Theoretically it should be a time when the Opposition and the Crossbenches spend time questioning the government about budget allocations. This is a patchy exercise. My general view as a result of the estimates that I sat on (Roads, Ports, Finance, the Legislature, Treasury, Premier and Transport) was that the opposition spent too much time regurgitating what was in the media that morning and less time on actually examining the budget.

In the past fortnight:

as Parliamentary Secretary for Transport I was able to meet with the Planning Institute of Australia and the Ethnic Communities Council of NSW.
I sat on the inquiry of GPSC #1 into the need for the mini budget - a bizarre exercise where the Opposition wished they were able to ask questions like John Faulkner but instead needed some fairly basic coaching on the basics of the NSW budget.

For those that want to know about some of the issues in more detail that are impacting on NSW, it is worth checking out the full NSW Budget estimates website where the transcripts of each of the portfolios can be found.

Two significant Labor legislative reforms over the past fortnight included the decriminalisation of abortion in Victoria and the passing of GLBT law reform federally that recognises same-sex couples as parents for the first time.

Video of the week: Yes these people are serious -- Socialist-Marxist-Communist, Say Hello to Michelle Obama. And because John McCain is not getting enough airplay check out the Maverick Rap Song.

Regards

Penny

P.S. As this ebrief is a bit late this fortnight I can include the Premier's announcements on Rail Maintenance and Sydney Ferries.

- MORE -

Ebrief #45 - Now available

2008-10-03T15:03:32-06:00

As the economic turmoil in the US finds it's way to the rest of the world, I share the concerns of those US Senators worried about bailing out investment banks while families lose their homes. While I understand the reason why the bailout has had to happen, I lament what else could be done with $700 billion - urban renewal, climate change action, poverty alleviation, universal health care to name a few. I also rage against the greed that drove this situation....

The past fortnight in NSW has also been very busy as the new Ministers and the government gets serious about the issues facing the state. Some of the highlights:

The Premier announced his Parliamentary Secretaries. I am now the Parliamentary Secretary for Transport.
The latest GLBT law reforms, including legal recognition for lesbian mums were proclaimed and the NSW government has got behind Mardi Gras and added it to the NSW major events program.
NSW made a submission to the Rudd Government's Green paper on Climate Change
NSW will provide $16million to our most disadvantaged public schools
NSW also announced $10.7million for local climate change projects
The government is also working with the Commonwealth to better monitor workers on the 457 Visa program

Video's of the week: Tina Fey does another Sarah Palin special. Best activist campaign goes to inmyname a global call to political leaders to support the UN's Millenium Development goals. A very small reflection on the rise of Malcolm Turnbull. And a register to vote campaign in the US.

Regards

Penny

P.S. Congratulations to Maqsood Alshams and the team at UTS who organised the 4R's conference about social inclusion this week.

4R's conference

2008-10-01T19:21:37-06:00

Yesterday I chaired a session at the 4Rs conference. The 4Rs is being held in Sydney this week and aims to shine light on the issues that Australia needs to take forward to build a more socially inclusive future.

My session was on GLBT rights and I was fortunate to hear from speakers, Mark Orr from ACON, Professor Jenni Millbank from UTS and Labor Senator Louise Pratt from WA. They articulated a very clear to do list of the reforms still needed.

One of the key issues identified was that although governments have taken great leaps forward in relation to law reform - it is cultural change where we need to focus - especially in schools.

One of the highlights of yesterday was a performance given by the Indigenous Hip Hop Project run by Beyondblue.

Happy International Day of Older People!

2008-09-30T21:33:51-06:00

Today the Rudd Government announced that later this year they will amend the Age Discrimination Act 2004 to remove the 'dominant reason' test. The current test means that a person's age must be the dominant reason for something to constitute discrimination under the Act. Removing the test will give older people greater protection in federal laws.

Australians now have the worlds second longest life expectancy at 81.4 years (after the Japanese). About 13 per cent of our population are aged 65 years or older and within 50 years, the proportion of the population over 65 will have tripled.

Last year, the NSW Government held discussions to develop Towards 2030: Planning For Our Changing Population. This report highlights the important contributions that older people make to our community and identifies ways that NSW can adapt to our changing population so that older people can fully engage with the community.

End Poverty - inmyname

2008-09-26T20:22:43-06:00

Join the global citizen call that asks political leaders to keep thier commitment to end poverty by 2015 - there are only 7 years left. Find out more at here.

Volunteers and the Redfern Legal Centre

2008-09-24T17:28:09-06:00

This person with the very large hedge clippers is Margaret Jones AKA warriorwomyn. Margaret Jones has been volunteering at the Redfern Legal Centre for more years than most can remember. Last night she helped to organise a fundraising dinner for the centre at Parliament House. I was lucky to be asked to host the event.

Redfern Legal Centre opened in 1977. It has provided support and services to over 250,000 people. It's volunteers contribute 30,000 hours a year. They are strong advocates for the people they serve. If you can spare some money to support such a great service find out more here.

Ebrief #44 - Now Available

2008-09-18T22:26:00-06:00

New Premier, new Deputy Premier, new state ministry, local government elections, new Federal opposition leader... so much has happened in the past few weeks.

For many people, the last couple of weeks are just a blip on the radar of busy lives. What our government must do is make tangible improvements to health, to schools and to transport. We must rebuild public confidence in the Labor government and we have to do this under difficult economic circumstances.

There is much work to be done. For my part, I look forward to working with Nathan Rees and Carmel Tebbutt to give it a "red hot go".

Video of the week is the Saturday night live Palin and Clinton and website of the week Top 10 Who Are Changing the World of Internet and Politics.

Regards

Penny

P.S. Are any of you political tragics out there intrigued by Sarah Palin? Is she the US's Pauline Hanson? I enjoyed Catherine Deveny's take on it in the Age but am worried that the movie will end badly.

Maternity services review

2008-09-11T19:58:47-06:00

This week, the Federal Government launched the discussion paper ‘Improving Maternity Services in Australia', the first step in a review into maternity services in Australia.

Despite international research showing that access to contiuous midwife care can lead to savings in health dollars as well as better outcomes for women and babies, as midwives cannot currently access Medicare rebates, many women are not able to chose continuous midwife care throughout their pregnancy.

According to the Federal Government:

The Review is the first step in developing a comprehensive plan for maternity services into the future.

The Review will:

canvass a wide range of issues relevant to maternity services, including antenatal services, birthing options, postnatal services up to six weeks after birth, and peer and social support for women in the perinatal period;

ensure that all interested parties have an opportunity to participate; and

inform the development of a National Maternity Services Plan.

The paper also considers bringing midwives under Medicare and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme for easier access for all women.

Submissions in response to the discussion paper are being sought until 31 October 2008.

Review of the FOI Act

2008-09-02T19:46:17-06:00

The NSW Ombudsman has released a discussion paper into the operation and effectiveness of the NSW Freedom of Information Act.

In the almost 20 years since the inception of the FOI Act, there have been changes to the Act, the way governments operate and the technology used to handle government records. These changes have impacted on the effectiveness of this Act in meeting its original objectives.

Because of this the NSW Ombudsman has decided to conduct his own review:

The FOI Act is not operating effectively. It is a complex, confusing and often frustrating piece of legislation. For almost fifteen years, this office has been consistently calling on government to institute an independent and wide-ranging review. There has been no response to these calls, and as a result I have decided to conduct my own investigation.

Members of the public are invited to make submissions which will contribute to their report to Parliament. Sumbissions close 31 October.

More information is available on the Ombos website:
http://www.ombo.nsw.gov.au/foi%20review.htm?id=457

NSW Labor's new Political and Social Justice Portal

2008-08-26T18:58:34-06:00

The NSW Labor Party has relaunched its website as a Political and Social Justice Portal for the 21st century featuring campaigns, a blog, and news. The new site is more interactive and includes enhanced membership services, for new and existing members, info on Labor groups and ways of getting involved.

The campaigns engage people around issues that they care about and can make a difference to. At the moment, NSW Labor is focussing on increasing the numbers of organ donors in Australia. Many people don't realise that ticking a box on their driver's license application does not automatically register your consent as an organ donor. In Australia, we have an "opt-in" system, and you need to register with Medicare. The ‘Save a Life: Be a Donor' campaign aims to change this by advocating for a system of presumed consent through a petition, letters to the editor and encouraging people to register their consent themselves.