Compare Party Responses

The Coalition Government does not support the funding of abortion training or services, research trials or activities directly involving abortion. This policy is consistent with the principles agreed at the International Conference on Population and Development held in Cairo in 1994. The Program of Action agreed to in Cairo clearly states that governments should take appropriate steps to help women avoid abortion, which in no case should be promoted as a method of family planning.

Australia's aid program, under the Coalition, gives priority to providing family planning information and services that can prevent unwanted pregnancies. Australian-funded activities can provide treatment, support and counselling to women suffering complications from unsafe abortion. In addition, Australian funds can also be used to provide information on unsafe abortion as an issue relevant to promoting responsible family planning.
 

Family First opposes the diverting of scarce foreign aid funds to abortions because the demands on Australia's foreign aid money are already so great.

It is also important that, as a nation, we question our priorities. Surely we should be doing everything possible to ensure that pregnancy is made safer for women in the Third World. That should be our priority. We should not be focusing on how we can pay for more abortions.

More that half a million women in the Third World die every single year because of complications in pregnancy and childbirth. That is one death every minute. For every woman who dies, a further 20 are seriously injured or disabled due to complications.

Family First fully supports Millennium Development Goal No. 5 on maternal health: to reduce by three-quarters the rate of death during pregnancy or during childbirth in the Third World.

Why should we divert scare dollars in Australia's foreign aid money to abortions when we cannot even offer women in developing countries the opportunity to safely give birth?  

Family First also believes it is important to remember what happened to Australian aid money before these sensible restrictions were imposed on how the money could be spent.

Australian aid dollars went to the United Nations Population Fund, which was involved with China's brutal and abhorrent one-child policy, under which there were forced abortions and forced sterilisations.

The Australian Government should not provide money to such organisations and should not provide aid funds for abortion related activities.

Same as above.

Parties and parliamentarians that support using Australian aid money to fund abortion advice argue that one of the answers to overpopulated countries is through birth control by abortion.

The CDP does not believe abortion can be justified under any circumstances as it necessarily involves the loss of innocent human life.  The answer to overpopulation problems lies in education, business and infrastructure investment, health programs and assistance, not in abortion.

Australia should continue to maintain the ban that prevents Australian aid money being used for abortion advice, services or drugs.

Yes, our party would maintain this ban. Women should not be pressured into having abortions by their families, husbands, boyfrinds or employers or be forced to have abortions because they cannot economically support the child.

Same as above.

No medical abortion is inherently desirable but the alternative may be worse. An attitude that suggests that all abortions should be prevented no matter what the circumstances or consequences is one that may be motivated by well-meaning religious preconceptions, but is it one that lacking in balanced moral judgement. Best moral outcomes are achieved only by
rational consideration of all relevant circumstances. This is a further example of where the Secular Party would seek to provide an alternative view to that provided by faith based doctrines.
 

Same as above.

As part of Labor's commitment to lifting Australia's contribution to the global Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) effort, Labor will increase Australia's support of multilateral aid programs such as those run by UN agencies.

Labor does not have any current intentions to change the rules relating to the funding of these programs.

In the event that any review of rules relating to the funding of aid programs is conducted, this would only be done in consultation with all interested parties and with the overriding objective of improving the health of women in developing countries.

According to the World Health Organisation, 19 million abortions are conducted every year in unsanitary, unsafe conditions worldwide causing the deaths of 68,000 women, usually leaving children orphaned and families destitute. If our aid was used to train overseas health workers in safe abortion techniques many lives would be saved.

Abortion is publicly funded in Australia, and we can see no reason why our aid should not be able to be used for this purpose in those countries where abortion is legal.

People smuggling is a sophisticated, multinational business which cares nothing for those it profits from. The Coalition Government is committed to its elimination, because it both endangers the lives of asylum seekers and discriminates against the thousands of refugees who often spend years in camps following a lawful process to enter Australia. To that end, we will maintain our current policy setting which means that people who try to enter Australia illegally will not be permitted to enter Australia.

Australia cannot rely solely on surveillance to deter people smugglers.  It is important to demonstrate that people smugglers cannot deliver their promised service - access to Australia.

Implementation of this policy is not at the expense of asylum seekers' welfare. All potential immigrants who seek to enter Australian illegally receive medical examinations and medical treatment where appropriate. If appropriate treatment cannot be provided locally (e.g. Christmas Island or Nauru), patients are taken to locations where treatment is available (e.g. Perth or Brisbane). Asylum seekers may also engage lawyers.

Living conditions are made as comfortable as possible and considerable efforts are made to provide a 'normalised' environment. Rooms are air-conditioned; food reflects cultural sensitivities; residents have access to sporting and exercise facilities, television and libraries; are supplied with telephone cards and may attend English language classes. At all times, religious freedom is respected.

Family First supports a strong system of border protection, to determine who comes to Australia and who does not. But it has to be a fair system.  Family First believes migrants and refugees have made a positive and enriching contribution to Australia's development and will continue to have a positive impact on our society's growth and prosperity.

Family First recognises and supports Australia's international and humanitarian commitments in regard to asylum seekers but is also concerned about the need to protect Australia's borders from illegal immigration.

Family First recognises that many asylum seekers wait for many years in refugee camps and believes in strengthening international and Australian agencies and institutions which are responsible for managing and processing the flow of displaced peoples so refugees may be resettled more quickly.

Family First also recognises the importance of ensuring well managed immigration programs that, while supporting Australia's interests, are also compassionate and support families.

Family First believes all unauthorised arrivals and asylum seekers should be detained in secure centres to assess health, identity and security issues. Family First supports providing additional resources to ensure detention time is kept to an absolute minimum. Asylum seekers should then be transferred to low security hostels until their claims can be fully processed.

Family First supports the position that applicants not eligible to remain in Australia should be deported as soon as is practicable. But Family First believes deportation rules should be relaxed for those who have suffered long periods of detention and uncertainty.

The LDP is proposing that the current immigration policy (with a quota on entrants) be replaced by an 'immigration fee'. This approach would be more efficient, simple and equitable as new immigrants would be contributing towards the public goods that have already been paid for by previous taxpayers. With these improvements, the LDP believes the Australian public would be more willing to accept high levels of immigration. This would also undermine the market for people smuggling, as such immigrants could instead use their money for their immigration fee to legally enter the country instead of paying people smugglers.

Regarding refugees, the LDP suggests a 'bond' system where applicants (or, more likely, Australian charity & church groups) post a 'bond' equal to the immigration fee. If the applicant is denied refugee status but refuses to leave the country then the bond will be used as their immigration fee.

The final element of the LDP's immigration policy is the introduction of 'Free Immigration Agreements' based on the same lines as 'Free Trade Agreements'. We already have such an agreement with New Zealand, where citizens of one country can easily move to the other country to live & work. We suggest expanding this approach to include other approach countries such as Singapore, Canada, Ireland etc.

CDP affirms that it is the sovereign right of any nation to determine who may enter its borders for temporary or permanent stay and that the operations of people smugglers should continue to be disrupted and frustrated.

One Nation supports the offshore detention of illegal immigrants and wants more help given to Christians who want to escape persecutiuon in countries like Egypt, Syria, Iran, Pakistan and Iraq.  We also would particularly help people of European stock who want to leave Zimbabwe or South Africa. We would also particulalry assist victims of persecution in
Red China.
 

Same as above.

Seeking to deter the number of unauthorised entrants by punishing refugees with lengthy incarceration has been a disgraceful blight on our international reputation. Australia should accept refugees without discrimination. In order to increase harmony and social cohesion, the Secular Party recognises the importance of secular values, and would seek to promote these generally, including amongst those arriving as refugees.

Same as above.

A Rudd Labor Government's policy on the treatment refugees and asylum seekers policy will be based on the following principles:

• As a matter of fairness, Australia should seek to assist the people who are victims of persecution whether these people are within or beyond our immediate line of sight.
• Asylum claims made in Australia should be assessed in a manner that is fast and that affords procedural fairness. Those found to be refugees under the Refugee Convention should be provided with appropriate settlement services, while those without successful refugee or humanitarian claims should be quickly returned.
• Detention of asylum seekers should only be used for health, identity and security checks.
• Children and family groups should initially be placed under supervision within the community.
• In other circumstances, detention would remain mandatory for the duration of these initial checks.
• Conditions of detention must be humane and appropriate to the needs of asylum seekers, with appropriate alternatives to detention centres made to meet the needs of unaccompanied children and family groups.
• The length and conditions of detention must be subject to review and detention centres managed by the public sector.
• Labor will end the so-called 'Pacific Solution', with its huge cost to Australian taxpayers.
• Under Labor, Australia will work to eradicate people smuggling through effective law enforcement and cooperation with other nations. People smuggling is a form of organised crime that costs lives.

Our long held position has been that no-one should be punished simply for seeking protection from persecution.

The Democrats have actively campaigned for the abolition of mandatory detention, which would prevent an enormous amount of trauma and suffering and also save the Australian community millions of dollars.

The Democrats will continue their opposition to all legislation which would repel asylum seekers on the high seas, and will continue to work to put an end to the unethical 'Pacific Solution' which is in direct contravention of international law. It shifts the burden of managing asylum seekers onto some of our poorest neighbours and is an unnecessary waste of taxpayers’ money. The human cost is also intolerable. Thousands of people have been denied basic legal and human rights, kept separated from the families and suffered severe damage to their mental health as a direct result of this policy.

 

Asylum seekers should remain in reception centres for no more than fourteen weeks, to
establish their bona fides and for health checks. They should then be issued bridging visas
and released into the community with access to support including English classes. This
would standardise the arrangements with those asylum seekers who arrive with visitor
visas and seek asylum whilst onshore.

The Coalition has delivered seven consecutive real increases in Official Development Assistance (ODA), lifting our commitment to economic development and poverty alleviation by 62 per cent in real terms. In 1996/97 Australia' s aid budget was $1.4 billion - this year it is $3.15 billion.  The Coalition will boost aid to $4.3 billion annually by 2010-11.

Australian aid is helping the world achieve the MDGs, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region. Our investment in a number of areas including a multi-year $600m HIV/AIDS commitment, education, health, the environment and climate change closely align with MDG sectors.

The Government supports the UN goal of 0.7 per cent ODA/GNI ratio as an international aspiration but does not agree with time-bound targets to reach this goal.

While aid is important, poverty cannot be reduced without economic activity and growth within affected countries. Relieving debt and removing trade barriers are also keys to greater prosperity and well-being in developing countries.

Family First is conscious that 825 million people suffer from chronic hunger, more than 10 million children died before their fifth birthday in 2004 and more than a billion people do not have access to safe water.  The World Health Organisation estimates that two of the biggest killers, malaria and tuberculosis, account for three million deaths each year. Both diseases are preventable and treatable.

Family First is concerned that more than half a million women in the Third World die every single year because of complications in pregnancy and childbirth. That is one death each minute. For every woman who dies, a further 20 are seriously injured or disabled due to complications. Family First believes it is important that governments make significant commitments to international aid to tackle these basic development issues.

Family First believes it is even more important that we all think carefully about what part we can play to help people in developing countries, for example by sponsoring a child.

Family First believes that law and order and governance programs are important parts of the aid budget. Aid funds cannot be usefully spent in communities where law and order is not established.  But this needs to be balanced with the need for people on the ground to see demonstrable improvements in health, education, water supply and sanitation.

Family First wants the Government to increase its foreign aid spending to 0.7 per cent of gross national income by 2015.

Family First wants the Government to commit funds to a special initiative to give families in developing countries access to clean water, especially in Australia's region.

Family First wants the Government to place a special emphasis on maternal health, to reduce the rate of women dying during pregnancy or childbirth. Family First strongly opposes diverting scarce foreign aid funds to abortion-related activities, which would take money from poverty alleviation and development.

The LDP supports the idea of voluntary overseas aid and many members of the party contribute to foreign charities and/or non-profit organisations.

However, the LDP does not support the idea that Australians should be forced to give charity. There is nothing moral in being forced to donate and nothing moral in giving away other people’s money.

There is evidence that shows a significant amount of government aid is wasted or counter-productive. The best way to help developing countries is to trade with them and encourage economic growth – which leads to more voluntary charity.

The CDP supports an increase in foreign aid. Already in September 2005, CDP NSW Upper House member, Dr Gordon Moyes, issued a media release (Aid Increase a Step in the Right Direction) acknowledging that 'we have a long way to go before we are pulling our weight amongst our developed peers'.

Australia’s overseas aid contribution is expected to reach 0.36 per cent of GNI by 2010, which is well short of the Millennium Development Goals of 0.5 per cent of GNI by 2010 and of 0.7 per cent by 2015.

The CDP particularly supports overseas aid to Christian organisations who cater for displaced Christians who have been fleeing persecution and found refuge in countries such as Jordan, Syria, Turkey and Lebanon and who are in need of food, shelter, education, health care facilities and legal documents.

Australia should not give overseas aid to countries who spend a large amount on military hardware or who have aggressive intentions towards other countries.

Same as above.

Development aid is important but may be ineffective unless proper standards of governance are in place. Freedom of speech, human rights and the rule of law are preconditions for reducing corruption and limiting the squandering of aid resources. A further aspect of this is separation of religion from the institutions of state, for without this, it is unlikely these preconditions will be met. This is particularly the case in countries where Islam is constitutionally entrenched or other wise endemic. Without secularism, many national development efforts will be tragically futile.

Same as above.

Labor believes the extreme poverty is preventable and that this generation has an outstanding opportunity to work together to halve extreme global poverty, in line with the Millennium Development Goals' target of 2015.

Labor has listened to the growing movement within the Australian community and in particularly within churches, to 'make poverty history' and for Australia to step up its role in addressing global poverty. Kevin Rudd has committed to increasing the aid budget beyond 2010 in order to reach the interim Millennium Development Goal funding target of 0.5 per cent of GNI by 2015. This increased aid contribution will save thousands of lives and alleviate suffering for many, many more people. Labor retains the target aid levels of 0.7 per cent GNI as a longer term aspirational goal beyond 2015.

Labor believes that as a nation we are at our best when we are our most generous and we are looking after neighbours who aren't as well off as ourselves. We are committed to increasing the quality as well as the quantity of  the Australian aid program, in particular by focusing on our own region and nations in the south-west Pacific region that risk becoming failed states.

Voters will be offered a real choice at the next election - between a government who has let Australia fall away from the developed-country aid standard, and a Labor government committed to ensuring that Australia once again becomes a development leader by ensuring that an increased aid budget has a genuinely positive impact on those who need it.

This year is the halfway mark for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals and the Australian Democrats have used this occasion to renew our call for the Australian aid budget to be increased to 0.7 per cent of gross national income (GNI). This was level was first agreed to in-principle by wealthy countries, including Australia, in 1970 and reiterated at the 2002 International Conference on Financing for Development in Monterrey.

Given we have experienced a long run of economic prosperity, the Democrats feel it is well time for the Australian Government to honour that commitment and increase aid to 0.7 percent of GNI.
 
We support the Millennium Development Goals not just as a worthy set of goals in themselves but also as a template for future action. Poverty and other global challenges will require international co-operation to be effectively addressed and if we allow the MDGs to become just another empty set of promises, we weaken our capacity for that kind of multinational action.

The Democrats believe that the MDGs should be a guiding principle for aid deployment and priorities.

The Coalition Government takes the issue of homelessness extremely seriously and spent approximately $231.4 million in 2006-07 on programs for homeless persons.

People at risk of homelessness often face a collection of challenges including mental health issues, substance abuse, domestic violence, unemployment and lack of education.

For these reasons, the Coalition focuses on early intervention programs that seek to address people’s personal issues before they end up on the streets, Programs that help address homelessness include:

• National Homelessness Strategy - The Coalition Government provided $10 million over four years to fund this program which provides leadership in developing innovative approaches for the prevention and reduction of homelessness and breaks new ground in integrated service delivery to people who are vulnerable to homelessness.
• Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (SAAP) - The Coalition Government has allocated $932 million for SAAP from 2005 to 2010 to assist people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless to achieve the maximum possible degree of self-reliance and independence by providing transitional supported accommodation and a range of related support services.
• Household Organisational Management Expenses (HOME) Advice Program - HOME is designed to prevent family homelessness by giving tailored assistance to individual families who face difficulty in maintaining tenancies or home ownership due to personal or financial circumstances.

Youth homelessness is of particular concern to the Coalition, which is why one of the first tasks the Prime Minister undertook when elected to office in 1996 was to establish the Prime Minister's Youth Homelessness Taskforce.

Family First will work with social housing organisations to provide appropriate housing, using federal funds directed into these organisations instead of through state government agencies. This would help first home buyers, low rental and emergency housing.

Homelessness is caused by poverty and the high price of property. The LDP has comprehensive policies at addressing both of these issues.

Strict planning laws, burdensome regulations and meddling bureaucracies create a significant block on housing supply and decrease the amount of property development. The LDP supports the relaxation of planning/zoning laws to allow greater development. This will increase the supply of affordable housing.

The major cause of poverty is unemployment and the LDP is the only political party willing to do what is necessary to solve unemployment – abolish the minimum wage. It is a fact of economics that the minimum wage creates unemployment. If a worker has a productivity of $6/hour but the minimum wage is $8/hour then they will never be employed.

If the minimum wage was abolished then people with low productivity (generally the young and unskilled) would be able to sell their labour at the market rate and find a job. It is simply untrue that this would lead to significant wage cuts as most people are already paid more than the minimum wage.

In addition, under the '30/30' tax/welfare reform the LDP would introduce an income supplement for low-income earners to ensure that all Australians can meet a basic minimum standard of living.

The '30/30' tax reform would drastically improve incentives to work, reduce bureaucracy and administration costs, lead to greater efficiency, economic growth and higher average wages. Combined with more jobs and more housing this is the best policy for addressing homelessness in Australia.

A family home is more than a mere asset. It is central to the life of the family and the raising of children.

CDP believes that, in the first instance, the best government housing policy is one which encourages and does not obstruct people providing for their own basic housing needs.

Therefore, as with the provision of basic food, all levels of government are obliged not to burden basic housing with unjust taxes and regulations.

Consequently, CDP asserts that the most efficient way to assist home ownership would be through the abolition of stamp duty and all other taxes on housing.   As these taxes are levied by the states, CDP would support moves by the Commonwealth Government to insist on redistributing GST to the states only if all taxes on land and housing are removed.

CDP supports making home loan interest payments tax deductible up to a determined level of interest payment for means tested threshold household income levels.

CDP supports reducing the demand for residential land in capital cities by encouraging decentralisation of populations to regional centres through taxation and other government incentives to industry, small business and home buyers.

CDP supports direct taxpayer funded housing for people who are genuinely unable, not merely reluctant, to provide for their own housing needs.

Finally, CDP also supports stronger land tenure rights for the owners and tenants of land to prevent arbitrary damage being done to their rights by any level of government and a just compensation scheme for government caused damage.

Our party would fight drugs and alcohol  abuse and the erosion of parents' rights  as these are two factors leading children leaving home and ending up homeless. Drugs and alcohol also contribute to mental illness which is another cause of homelessness.

Same as above.

As above.

Same as above.

Labor is committed to policies which make housing affordable:

• by implementing economic policies designed to maintain low interest rates and a competitive housing finance sector.
• supporting emergency welfare services for homeless people.
• helping those on low and middle incomes to meet the cost of home ownership or public, community or private rental accommodation.

Kevin Rudd has made a commitment that in government, Federal Labor will create a $600 million National Rental Affordability Scheme that will help build 50,000 new affordable rental properties across Australia for low and middle income earners.  

It will also set up a $500 million Housing Affordability Fund to reduce the cost of new homes, by cutting red-tape delays and holding charges, and reducing the infrastructure charges that state and local governments are forced to charge to pay for roads, libraries, parks and other amenities.

A Rudd Government will establish a National Housing Supply Research Council, to analyse the adequacy of land supply across the nation, as well as rates of construction. The Report will coordinate local, state and national supply and demand research and adopt a consistent national standard for measuring and assessing the supply of land and housing, and its relationship with demand.

We will also negotiate a National Affordable Housing Agreement with Australia's eight state and territory governments and the Australian Local Government Association and appoint a cabinet-level Minister responsible for federal policy on housing.

Affordable and accessible housing is an essential component of any policy aiming to address employment, family, community or welfare issues, yet it usually gets little attention from the other political parties.

At a long term strategic level the Democrats have for many years been calling for a National Housing Strategy to set an overall policy direction for Australia and reduce actual levels of homelessness and housing stress over a set period. We also support more recent calls for a senior, Cabinet-level Ministry focused on housing, combined with a nationwide Ministerial Council for Housing through the Council of Australian Governments, rather than the current arrangement which has housing issues spread over six or seven federal departments and across the three spheres of government.

Homeless people or people at risk of homelessness must not be the victims of the ongoing funding stoush between the federal and state governments. People need secure housing before they can participate fully in society. They need homes in order to gain education, to seek employment and to access health services. No matter how much is spent, Governments will fail to deliver on education, health or employment if they don’t get the housing policies right.

The Coalition is committed to the continuing support of people with disabilities, their carers and families.

We have recognised the need to assist carers financially. While maintaining the Carer Payment and Carer Allowance, we were able to provide $394 million this year to fund a lump sum carer bonus for the fourth consecutive year. Over the four years over $1.3 billion has been provided to carers in bonus payments.

A fundamental objective of the Coalition Government has been to provide additional respite services because it is so important to ensure that carers are supported in their role through access to periodic breaks. In the 2007-08 Budget we announced funding to enable a further 1,000 carers of young people with disability to access respite support. This is designed to build on the assistance already helping 5,000 carers around Australia.

Under its Disability Assistance Package, the Coalition Government will provide support of approximately $1.8 billion, above and beyond its Commonwealth State Territory Disability Agreement (CSTDA) offer to the states and territories, and designed to assist in particular with respite and accommodation needs. The Coalition Government offered $3.275 billion to the states and territories under the CSTDA earlier this year. Unfortunately, no jurisdiction has yet accepted this offer.

In Government, the Coalition will continue to take its responsibilities under the CSTDA very seriously, and will continue to help states and territories meet their responsibilities, to ensure that people with disability are receiving the level and quality of services they need and deserve.

Family First believes Australians with an intellectual or physical disability should be respected as full and equal members of society. This respect should be reflected in their full participation in our community, rather than their current marginalisation.

Family First is concerned about the Productivity Commission's findings that people with a disability were less likely to finish school, to have a TAFE or university qualification or be employed. They earn less than half the average income and are more likely to be in public housing.

Family First believes that work is important for self esteem and well being and that one way to improve employment prospects is to improve skills and education.

Family First supports initiatives to make it easier for people with a disability to access education and learning, such as by finishing school or attending TAFE or university.

Family First urges the Government and private sector employers to promote the benefits of employing people with disabilities. Working with people who have disabilities promotes understanding and respect for people who are different and have special needs.

Family First supports initiatives to ensure people with a disability can participate more fully in the paid workforce.

Family First supports improvements to health services to improve health care for people with a disability.

Family First supports fair and adequate income support and care for people with severe disabilities to ensure a fulfilling life with opportunity for social, recreational and creative activities.

The LDP is the only political party in Australia that firmly supports competitive federalism and political decentralisation, where political decisions are made by the most local and decentralised form of government possible. Not only does this allow for diversity and lead to better policies through experimentation and imitation... but it also is consistent with the intent of the Australian Constitution.

The LDP is totally opposed to the bureaucratic duplication in government, where taxpayers support two education bureaucracies (State & Federal), two health bureaucracies (state & federal), two industry bureaucracies (state & federal) etc. Where possible, the Federal Government should give up their role in these areas and allow the states to do their rightful job.

Disability services are one area that would benefit from having a more decentralised approach to policy and the Federal Government should not be involved.

The CDP affirms that disabled people have just as much right to employment and quality of life as ordinary citizens.

Disabled citizens should be encouraged to participate and contribute to society at their level of capacity but should also be supported through a fair and just administration of social security laws.

Funding for disability services has continually fallen in real terms during the last decade. CDP supports a significant increase in government funding of disability services to ensure that wherever possible, families are empowered to look after their own disabled relatives. CDP believes that disabled people want to live with their relatives and that they can often achieve a higher quality of life if they are not institutionalised.  The Federal Government should adequately financially support family members who forego employment to care for their own relatives. This means providing these people with sufficient income to meet their own needs and the needs of the disabled relatives without having to look for outside employment.

A national framework of co-operation with the Sstates need to be instigated by the Commonwealth Government.

CDP believes that disability should never be a ground for not providing refugee or migration status.

We would pay the carers more federal money.

Same as above.

As above.

Same as above.

People with disabilities and their families are justified in feeling frustration at the buck-passing that occurs between Commonwealth and state governments and departments.

Kevin Rudd has made the commitment that if elected as Prime Minister, one of his main priorities will be to end the blame game between the Commonwealth and state governments over their responsibility for key services such as health care, disability services and assistance for the aged. Labor is committed to fixing our federal system and ending the buck-passing, As a first step he has committed to a $2 billion national hospitals and health reform plan as the first stage of this plan.

Disability services are funded through the Commonwealth State/Territory Disability Agreement (CSTDA). This Agreement is normally negotiated between the states and territories. The Howard Government did not finalise the Agreement before calling the election.

Labor is committed to developing a CSTDA that will improve the lives of people with disabilities and their carers and end the blame game. Federal Labor will be releasing its policies for people with disabilities and their carers prior to the federal election in time for people to make a well informed choice between the political parties.

The Democrats support greater involvement of people with disabilities and their carers in decision-making.

Instead of creating more red tape which just makes daily living harder for people with disabilities and their carers the Australian Democrats believe the Government should develop a range of ‘Green Light’ uniform systems between federal/state/territory/local government jurisdictions for services and concessions with reciprocal and transferable
arrangements for people with disabilities and their carers.

The Democrats opposed the harsh Welfare to Work changes and would reform them to make sure that people with disabilities are protected from harsh penalties that will see them lose their income and exempt the most vulnerable recipients from requirements that do not take into account their health needs.

We would develop a National Disability Employment Strategy that invest more in programs that support people who face special barriers when it comes to looking for and staying in work eg more education and individualised training, personal counselling, transport and child care assistance. We would also support employers to take on people with disabilities and encourage flexible working arrangements that better accommodate the needs of people with disabilities.

We would review and significantly increase carer payments and allowances, and simplify and extend the eligibility, and also include increased access to employment, education, tax concessions and training for carers without fear of losing financial assistance, and support a carer health program.

People do not qualify for refugee status if they reside in their own country and the special humanitarian program is not intended for people who reside in their own country.

Consequently the Government's efforts are focussed on those who have been forced to leave their country of origin.

The Government understands how limited Australia's contribution to addressing this human tragedy must be to the millions of refugees looking for a new home and a new life.

Family First recognises that many people around the world are persecuted. Family First supports people being given asylum in Australia on the grounds of genuine persecution.

Family First believes immigration assessment processes should be reformed to ensure fast and fair processing of asylum seekers to promptly determine the substance of their claims for refugee status. 

Same as above.

Australia should continue to be a world leader in being a generous haven for genuine refugees through internationally supervised and orderly refugee resettlement programs. Priority should be given to refugee applicants who are most likely to readily integrate into the Australian way of life, including those who are being persecuted for their Christian faith.

Consequently, CDP supports the creation of Special Assistance Category visas to meet the needs of persecuted Christians. CDP acknowledges that most of these Christians will originate from Middle Eastern countries and the party has no problem with this.

On the other hand, CDP believes that immigration should be denied to those who pose a considerable challenge to the maintenance of Australia as a free society with a Christian heritage.

Yes we sujpport the creation of Special Assistance Category visas to meet the needs of persecuted Christians and other minorities whose lives are at risk unless they flee their homeland. We refer in particular to Christians who want to get out of Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Lebanon, Iran, Pakistan and the Sudan and people of British background who want to get out of Zimbabwe. We should also help victims of persecution in Communist China.

Same as above.

Freedom of religion is widely professed, but imposition of religion is widely practised. Renouncing one's religion is widely regarded as a kind of cultural betrayal, and in Islamic countries, is often a capital offence. If Australia were to create a special assistance visa category for victims of such persecution, this would benefit not only the individuals concerned
but would serve to highlight the plight of such victims. As such, even if only rather symbolic, it would be a valuable service that Australia could provide.

Same as above.

Labor is deeply concerned with violations of human rights such as the persecution of religious minorities, which occurs in many nations. For example, many of the Sudanese who have come as refugees to Australia because of the conflict in Darfur are Christians. Around 25 per cent of Iraqis who have fled into Jordan and Syria come from Christian or 'pre-Christian' backgrounds.

It is important to understand that the basis on which a person can become a refugee is that they have faced persecution or are facing persecution. Therefore the circumstances of persecuted religious minorities are similar to those of all genuine refugees and we do not see the need for a separate visa class for persecuted minorities.

Labor believes that it is important for Australia to operate a generous refugee intake program and to provide on-the-ground services that help those refugees integrate successfully into Australian life.

The intake should be determined on a non-discriminatory basis.

Labor supports the current process by which the composition of the refugee intake is agreed with the United National High Commission on Refugees. However Labor also believes that Australia's settlement services need further support to address the barriers to migrants fully participating in the Australian community. For example, the current Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) is not flexible enough to discern between a migrant who has tertiary qualifications and the special learning needs of refugees, many of whom are not literate in their own language and have no formal
schooling.  A more targeted approach to settlement of newly arrived migrants is needed, with a focus on learning English and the transition to work.
 

The Democrats have for thirty years argued that Australia has a moral responsibility, as well as a duty under international law, to provide haven for people seeking protection from any form of religious persecution.

In September 2006 Democrat Senator Andrew Bartlett introduced a Private Senator’s Bill, the Migration Legislation Amendment (Complementary Protection Visas) Bill 2006. This bill seeks to introduce a formalised system of complementary protection into the Migration Act to provide an alternative system of protection for those who do not meet the Refugee Convention definition of a refugee, but who have compelling humanitarian or safety reasons why they cannot return to their country of origin.  

This gap is due to the fact that the protection of the Refugee Convention does not always cover a range of situations. The Democrats believe that a statutory model of complementary protection will provide a clearer, fairer and more efficient mechanism to deal with many of the applications for protection which currently have nowhere else to go except one-by-one to the desk of the Immigration Minister as a request for the exercise of ministerial discretion.