Labor Candidate for Leichhardt, Jim Turnour, responds to our questionnaire

Dear BKoP Team,

You can view our question list for all candidates here.

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Labor Candidate for Leichhardt, Jim Turnour, responded :

Please find below my responses to the questions raised in your email.

What are your thoughts on asylum seekers?

Federal Labor remains strongly committed to meeting our international
obligations, which is why we have made it clear that the regional
processing centre should be located in a country that is, like
Australia, a party to the Refugees Convention. A regional processing
centre can deliver protection to those who need it, and at the same time
remove both the profitability of the people smuggling trade and the
danger of maritime voyages to Australia.

What are your thoughts on public transport?

The Gillard Labor Government understands that a competitive, safe and
reliable public transport is critical to lifting national productivity,
curbing traffic congestion and tackling climate change.

In the 2009-10 Budget, the Federal Labor Government took the historic
decision to become the first ever Federal Government in Australian
history to significantly invest in public transport, allocating some
$4.5 billion to new urban rail infrastructure projects.

Once built, this public transport infrastructure will provide the
residents of our major cities with a cleaner, greener and faster way of
getting around.

This decision is not about replacing the role of State and Territory
Governments – it’s designed to complement the record investment they’re
already making from their own budgets.

What are your thoughts on renewable energy?

Renewable energy generation will play an important role in meeting
Australia’s future energy needs, and the Gillard Labor Government has
introduced a number of initiatives that will significantly increase
investment in renewable energy and drive down its costs.
Federal Labor has supported the installation of more than 100,000 solar
panels and more than 170,000 solar hot water systems on Australian
roofs. We’ve also helped 2469 schools with more than $100 million to
install solar panels and other energy efficiency measures.
In June, Federal Labor delivered on its commitment to pass the new and
enhanced Renewable Energy Target (RET) which will ensure at least 20 per
cent of Australia’s electricity come from renewable sources by 2020.
That’s an increase of more than four times in the renewable energy
target over the next 10 years. This means that by 2020, the electricity
that comes from clean renewable sources will be about equal to all the
current electricity use of Australian households. This will help drive
nearly $19 billion of investment in renewable energy, and reduce carbon
pollution by about 39 million tonnes in 2020.
To complement the RET, Federal Labor announced a further $652 million in
the May 2010 budget to establish the Renewable Energy Future Fund (REFF)
which forms part of the Government’s expanded $5.1 billion Clean Energy
Initiative (CEI).
A re-elected Gillard Labor Gillard Government will commit $1 billion to
build transmission lines that will help connect our rich renewable
energy resources to the grid and bring cheap renewable energy to where
it’s needed.
Federal Labor will introduce mandatory vehicle fuel efficiency standards
by 2015, and help people retire old polluting cars and replace them with
highly fuel efficient models.
And we’ll create a tax cut worth more than $1 billion for those who are
retrofitting commercial buildings to make them greener and more energy
efficient.

Do you support or oppose the introduction of the R18+ rating
classification for video games?

State and Federal Attorney’s-General decide on the guidelines for
Refused Classification (RC) based on community standards.

Importantly it is the Classification Board – an agency at arm’s length
from the Government and representative of the community, which makes the
decisions about individual cases.

Do you support or oppose the proposed internet filter?

Federal Labor believes that while the internet offers fantastic
opportunities, governments have a responsibility to put in place
measures that ensure Australians, in particular children, have a safe
experience online.

Federal Labor’s $125.8 million Cyber-Safety Plan consists of a
comprehensive range of measures encompassing education, law enforcement,
research and mandatory Internet Service Provider (ISP) filtering of
content that has been rated ‘Refused Classification’ (RC).

RC content includes child sexual abuse imagery, bestiality, sexual
violence, detailed instruction in crime, violence or drug use and/or
material that advocates the doing of a terrorist act. Under Australia’s
existing classification regulations RC material is not available in
newsagencies, it is not on library shelves, you cannot watch it on a DVD
or at the cinema and it is not shown on television. Moreover, RC
material is not available on Australian hosted websites. Federal
Labor’s proposal will bring the treatment of overseas hosted content
into line by requiring ISPs to block overseas content that has been
identified as being RC-rated.

The Gillard Labor Government has introduced a comprehensive suite of
transparency and accountability measures to accompany the introduction
of ISP filtering of RC content. In addition, the Gillard Labor
Government is also seeking a review of the RC category before any
obligation on ISPs is implemented for mandatory blocking of RC content,
to ensure that this classification continues to reflect current
community standards.

Do you support or oppose gay marriage?

The Gillard Labor Government remains committed to maintaining the
definition of marriage as currently set out in the Marriage Act.

While not supporting same-sex marriage, Federal Labor does support a
nationally consistent framework for relationship recognition to be
implemented by the States and Territories.
Victoria, ACT, NSW and Tasmania have established relationship
recognition schemes and relationships registered under these schemes are
also now recognised in a wide range of Commonwealth laws. Federal Labor
will continue to encourage other jurisdictions to develop such schemes.
For example, the Attorney General has written to State and Territory
Attorneys-General and raised the issue at the Standing Committee of
Attorneys-General.

Federal Labor has introduced reforms to remove discrimination from 84
Commonwealth laws. The reforms remove discrimination and equalise
treatment for same-sex couples in areas of taxation, social security,
health, aged care, superannuation, immigration, child support and family
law.

These reforms extend to same sex couples the same entitlements and
obligations that apply to opposite sex couples. Equal treatment means
some same-sex couples will get access to benefits they could not
previously access.

What are your thoughts on abortion?

Federal Labor supports the rights of women to determine their own
reproductive lives.

Do you support or oppose the legalisation of volutary euthanasia?

Decisions on euthanasia are decisions for State and Territory
Governments.
This is a complex issue and will remain a conscience issue for
individual Members and Senators within the ALP under the Gillard Labor
Government.

What are your thoughts on stem cells research?

On 31 May 2010, the Gillard Labor Government announced a new stem cell
research fund that will boost research in this important field. The fund
includes the $21 million Australian Research Council Special Research
Initiative in Stem Cell Science to commence in July 2011.
This initiative will further build Australia’s capacity to conduct stem
cell research, keeping our stem cell researchers at the forefront of
this rapidly developing field.
The new Australian Research Council Special Research Initiative in Stem
Cell Science and the new National Health and Medical Research Council’s
Centre for Research Excellence in Regenerative Medicine will ensure
critical stem cell research is continued.
The existing Australian Stem Cell Centre carries out important stem cell
research, including on adult stem cells and embryonic stem cells so that
life-changing breakthroughs can be made to benefit the Australian
community.

What are your thoughts on education?

The Gillard Labor Government believes that investment in education is
one of the most important policy priorities.
The Gillard Labor Government has a comprehensive plan to make every
school a great school, including:
* Reward payments for great teachers – developing an equitable
national performance management framework for teachers so every teacher
receives the same assessment and the best teachers can be identified and
rewarded with a bonus of up to 10 per cent of their salary.
* Rewards for School Improvement – developing a comprehensive and
transparent National School Improvement Framework which will identify
and reward those schools that demonstrate the greatest improvement,
$75,000 for most improved primary schools and $100,000 for most improved
high schools.
* Empowering local schools – delivering a national roll out of
greater local control for principals and parents over school budgets and
the staffing mix, so they can respond to the local needs of their
students, and drive improved results.
* Trades Training Centres – delivering trade training centres so
every secondary school student can start learning a trade at school
through a nationally recognised qualification. This will ensure young
Australians have the skills they need to get the high skilled jobs of
the future.

* Transparent information about school performance – building on
the nationally comparable and consistent information available to
parents and the Australian community through the MySchool website and
providing new online resources to students, parents and teachers.

* Nationally recognised qualifications for students – developing
an Australian Baccalaureate for senior students and new National Trade
Cadetships for students who want to start a trade at school.

* More Computers for schools – on track to deliver a national 1:1
ratio for students in Years 9 to 12 so they have the vital computer
literacy skills they need for the 21st century. This program is on time
and on budget.
Federal Labor is making major investments to reverse the under-funding
that has held our schools back for too long.
It is clear Mr Abbott doesn’t have the economic judgement to be trusted
on any of the big issues facing Australia. By cutting funding from our
schools he would deny many young Australians an opportunity to get the
skills that they need for the jobs of the future.

What are your thoughts on campaign finance disclosure?

Delivering on our election commitments, the Gillard Labor Government
introduced the Political Donations Bill in 2008 which will lower the
donation disclosure threshold to $1,000, ban overseas donations; and
prevent profiteering from public funding.
This was the first piece of legislation introduced by the Gillard Labor
Government to deliver a more transparent and accountable electoral
system.

What are your thoughts on climate change?

The Gillard Government accepts climate change is real and that human
activity is the primary driver of climate change.

Federal Labor is committed to moving Australia forward towards a
competitive, low pollution economy.

Federal Labor is committed to building the deep and lasting consensus
that is needed for a price on carbon and we have announced an incentive
for business to take early action to reduce pollution, ahead of a market
mechanism to price carbon.

What are your thoughts on water?

Through Federal Labor’s long-term Water for the Future plan, the Gillard
Labor Government is preparing Australia for a future with less water due
to climate change and drought.

Federal Labor is working hard to improve the health of our rivers and
secure our food supplies. We are committed to dealing with the problem
of climate change and developing strategies to adapt to the climate
change we can’t avoid.

The Gillard Labor Government will build on its strong record of making
our rivers sustainable, securing our water supply and providing
certainty for farmers reliant on the Murray Darling Basin.

We want farmers to move forward with confidence knowing they will have
options to sell their entitlements when the Basin Plan comes into force.

The Government will bridge any remaining gap between the water that has
been returned to the basin and what is required to be returned after
2014.

The Government will do this by continuing to buy back water each year
beyond 2014, until we have returned all the water the independent Murray
Darling Authority determines our rivers need in the final Basin plan
next year.

By the time the Murray Darling Basin Plan comes into effect in 2014, a
re-elected Gillard Labor Government will have returned one out of every
seven litres of irrigation water to the rivers, through a combination of
buy backs and more efficient irrigation.

Until the Plan comes into effect, the Government will continue to roll
out $4.4 billion in new, efficient irrigation systems under the
Sustainable Rural Water Use and Infrastructure Program. This is
upgrading leaky, old infrastructure in the Basin – so farmers can keep
growing food with less water.

Do you support or oppose standing order 50?

Under the Gillard Labor Government there will be no change to the
convention of opening Parliament each day with the Lord’s Prayer.

Regards,
Jim

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