CANBERRA(Dr.Majid Khan/AAP) Dr.Majid Khan-Anthony Albanese’s ‘overwhelming presence’ in the NSW Labor Party election campaign speaks to how the party would handle state records if elected, John Howard says Liberal Party He spoke to believers.
The former prime minister also said federal treasurer Jim Chalmers had no economic plan in the first budget as both major parties rallied on key positions in western Sydney six days before Saturday’s election. I gave priority to Chalmers.
Opposition leader Chris Mings, speaking in Parramatta, promised constitutional changes to protect Sydney Water and Hunter Water and said the coalition would be privatized.
Further west in Penrith, Prime Minister Dominic Perrotet has pledged to cut Opal’s weekly public transport cap by 20%, at a cost of about $1.1 million a week.
His announcement came minutes after Howard warmed the enthusiastic crowd with talk of his victory in the 1996 general election and warnings about the Labor government.
After claiming federal Labor’s only economic plan was raising taxes, Mr Howard said Mr Albanese’s “overwhelming presence” in the rival party’s state campaign launch made it appear like a mini-launch for the prime minister’s re-election.
“You have to ask yourself is that because under Minns, Labor’s economic approach would be very similar to that of Albanese in Canberra? The answer to that has to be a resounding yes,” he said.
“The Labor Party’s election plans for NSW have an unambiguous, undeniable hole of $11 billion.”
Last weekend, Mr Howard was one of the few Liberal icons to show his face at the NSW Liberals’ campaign launch, which did not feature federal leader Peter Dutton, former prime minister Scott Morrison or other federal MPs.
A week after revealing his Kids Future Fund, Mr Perrottet tweaked a 2019 election policy to cut public transport costs, taking the weekly Opal cap to $40 for adults and $20 for concession card holders from May 1.
“That means more money in the hip pockets of western Sydney families when they need it most,” he said. Speaking in Parramatta, Mr Mings said legislation to incorporate into the NSW Constitution to prohibit the sale of Sydney Water and Hunter Water without an Act of Parliament, despite Mr Perrotet’s insistence that no more assets would be privatized.
“In the last state election, the government misled voters about selling toll roads,” said the Labor leader.
“Mr Perrotet was able to sell his remaining shares to Congress without legislation. Congress has no say whatsoever, but this was a clearly broken promise by the coalition government.”
Labor also committed her $75 million to 250 full-time equivalent school counselors to expand coverage at more schools.
The Greens took note of Sunday’s heat wave in Sydney’s suburbs and called for a “climate-friendly” west of Sydney, including a Greenbelt city limit and a home buyback program for the lowest part of the Hawkesbury-Nepean floodplain. She also called for free public transport, following the example of several European cities.
Independent Candidates Helen Conway, Larissa Penn and Victoria Davidson help drive buses on Sydney’s North Shore by running her one-off crowdfunded bus route created by frustrated commuters.
“Bus timetables have become a farce. How should we plan our daily commute if we can’t rely on published timetables,” she said.
New South Wales and private operator transport are facing a widespread driver shortage despite promises of over $70,000 in salaries, sign-up bonuses and other incentives.
