Labour for Labor.

Every person who comes across my blog will be well aware which direction my allegience lies as far as politics goes. It's pretty obvious that I am a Labor supporter.

This week I had the opportunity to answer a national phone poll on my Election choices. I decided that because nobody I knew was listening, I would answer completely honestly on every question, without letting my predisposition guide me.

I was waiting, annd waiting, and waiting for them to ask me just one question where I thought Liberal would do a better job. None came up. Economics, perhaps 10 years ago I may well have answered Liberal, but not now. Hospitals, obviously Labor. Education, again, no competition. Small Business, Labor. And so on....... What really suprised me was how sure I was in my answers. I truly do believe that Labor have done a great job these past few years. I know there have been glitches, big glitches if you include the insulation drama. Tens of thousands of people took advantage of the offer though, and have safely installed insulation in their roofs. Unfortunately, dodgy installers and a poor product have caused major problems for many people and this should have been sorted out much earlier in the process. We know that now, hindsight is a marvelous thing.

I do not blindly follow the party. I actually believe it is the best choice. I do not agree with all they stand for.

My personal view is that gay couples should have the right to marry, however I am very proud that Labor changed the law to give same sex couples the same rights as all other couples in de facto relationships. It's a heck of a lot more than the Liberal party have done. It is most definately my responsibility, however, to continue to lobby the party so that eventually, in the not too distant future, marriage is endorsed.

I do not agree with the harder stance taken regarding boat people. I firmly believe that these people (representing a tiny portion of our total immigration) are escaping horrors I could not begin to imagine, and as a parent, if it was me in their shoes, I would be on that leaky boat too. I am very happy that Labor has not taken the stance of the Liberal Party and are not capping immigration. Those captured on a boat are still facing detention centres (which I just don't like) and a probable return to their homeland. As long as they go through the exact same process and it takes the exact same amount of time as every other person throughout the world applying to be a resident of Australia, I am reasonably happy with the way things are. This is not an issue I will ever be really happy about but I am guessing that if 30 percent of the population think like me, 30 percent want a tougher stance and 40 percent don't really care, then this is probably as good as it will get. You can't please all the people........all the time.

What I am very proud of though, is the huge increase in funding for our Hospitals, which need a major boost in beds, Doctors, Nurses and mental health facilities. This is finally being recognised and being delivered immediately. It won't be enough, it never is, but it will make huge improvements in an area we just can't afford to ignore for as long as the previous Government did.

I am proud of the way that Education is under the spotlight. The 'Education Revolution' is giving my children an undercover stage area, adequate parking facilities and several other essentials. Every school in our region has benefitted from the scheme. Some in the community have complained that it's too much money and too many projects. As far as I can see, it equals work for many and the buildings will be used by my kids and those following them so how can you really 'waste' money were children and school facilities are concerned. Our area is the biggest growth area in Queensland right now, we need to build for the future and if we can afford it now, build it now. Lets not get to the point that our Hospitals are at and wish we had planned better.

I would like the focus on Education to include extra-curricular activities for kids. I believe it is truly important to have a balance between physical activity and scholastic achievement in order to have a rounded education. I am very happy with my Education Rebate though. I get the bonus money back from my tax and it's almost enough to pay for an entire terms school fees for my daughter. Before, we had no help to pay for the costs of educating our children. The computer programs, the internet fees, the books, texts, etc.... The cost of these can be astronomical and it's definately nice to get some help.

The company tax rate will be cut by 1 percent under Labor, more by the Opposition. The rate will be 29 percent under Labor, 28.5 under the Opposition. Add the 1 percent payment for the Opposition's Paid Parental Scheme and the real rate under them becomes 29.5 percent. Again, Labor have the better deal.

I could go on forever with this, but I won't bore you with more boring facts. We all know that elections are really won by personalities anyway. Again, I have to say, Labor wins. I just hope that on polling day, my opinion is the most popular one.