Meirionnydd
Active Member
Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Opposition leader Tony Abbott have signalled the economy, border protection and climate change as the key issues in the lead-up to the August 21 federal election.
Ms Gillard today announced the poll date after flying back to Canberra from her home in Melbourne to meet Governor-General Quentin Bryce.
Both leaders say they expect a tough, hard-fought and close campaign.
They have promised all their election commitments will be fully costed and fully funded.
Both have placed strong emphasis on the economy, climate change and border protection as the key issues of importance as they attempt to convince voters who is best placed to lead the country.
And both are facing an election as leader for the first time, with Ms Gillard just three weeks into her prime ministership when she made the trip to Yarralumla to request a federal election today.
Ms Gillard's key message was hard to miss as she repeatedly stated she wanted to move the country forward.
"We'll move forward together with a sustainable Australia, a stronger economy, budgets in surplus and world-class health and education services and other essential services that hard-working Australians and their families rely on," she said.
But Mr Abbott was quick to attack her pitch as a glib statement to cover up the incompetence of Labor and he said Labor could not be trusted.
"The Prime Minister wants to move forward because the recent past is so littered with her own failures," he said.
His message to voters was simple.
"We'll end the waste, we'll repay the debt, we'll stop the new taxes and we'll stop the boats."
But Mr Abbott seems yet to completely neutralise the industrial relations issue despite saying earlier today that the Coalition's unpopular WorkChoices legislation was not just dead and buried, it was cremated.
In a speech in Brisbane he pledged to leave Labor's Fair Work laws unchanged for three years if the Coalition was elected to government. But Ms Gillard maintained Mr Abbott remained committed to bringing back the "worst aspects" of WorkChoices.
Facing several questions from journalists over his announcement, Mr Abbott said he refused to let the campaign turn into a scare campaign on the topic.
And he predicted that Labor would run a "filthy" campaign in which it would throw the kitchen sink at him.
When asked whether personal attacks would be part of her campaign, Ms Gillard replied: "I expect a robust election campaign. I think that is a good thing."
Both Ms Gillard and Mr Abbott say the campaign will be "tough".
Seeking to distance herself from Kevin Rudd's leadership, Ms Gillard also listed what she saw as her achievements in the few weeks she has been in charge.
She said she had moved on ensuring Australia's population was stable, had resolved the mining tax issue and had begun work on a regional asylum seeker solution.
"I believe in doing those things I've demonstrated to the Australian people the kind of way in which I will lead the nation."
Ms Gillard will be in Brisbane tonight to begin campaigning.
While most of the focus during the campaign will be on the Lower House, the Greens are tipped to take the balance of power in the Senate.
It is also predicted the party has a strong chance of winning the seat of Melbourne in the wake of Lindsay Tanner's retirement.
Leader Bob Brown says he has spoken to both Ms Gillard and Mr Abbott and is ready to work with both.
"We've got a suite of good policies and a good campaign. I think the Greens are offering a fresh and different point of view," he said.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/07/17/2956648.htm
Oh how I love elections. Hoping that the Liberal/National Coalition will not be able to form government...
Ms Gillard today announced the poll date after flying back to Canberra from her home in Melbourne to meet Governor-General Quentin Bryce.
Both leaders say they expect a tough, hard-fought and close campaign.
They have promised all their election commitments will be fully costed and fully funded.
Both have placed strong emphasis on the economy, climate change and border protection as the key issues of importance as they attempt to convince voters who is best placed to lead the country.
And both are facing an election as leader for the first time, with Ms Gillard just three weeks into her prime ministership when she made the trip to Yarralumla to request a federal election today.
Ms Gillard's key message was hard to miss as she repeatedly stated she wanted to move the country forward.
"We'll move forward together with a sustainable Australia, a stronger economy, budgets in surplus and world-class health and education services and other essential services that hard-working Australians and their families rely on," she said.
But Mr Abbott was quick to attack her pitch as a glib statement to cover up the incompetence of Labor and he said Labor could not be trusted.
"The Prime Minister wants to move forward because the recent past is so littered with her own failures," he said.
His message to voters was simple.
"We'll end the waste, we'll repay the debt, we'll stop the new taxes and we'll stop the boats."
But Mr Abbott seems yet to completely neutralise the industrial relations issue despite saying earlier today that the Coalition's unpopular WorkChoices legislation was not just dead and buried, it was cremated.
In a speech in Brisbane he pledged to leave Labor's Fair Work laws unchanged for three years if the Coalition was elected to government. But Ms Gillard maintained Mr Abbott remained committed to bringing back the "worst aspects" of WorkChoices.
Facing several questions from journalists over his announcement, Mr Abbott said he refused to let the campaign turn into a scare campaign on the topic.
And he predicted that Labor would run a "filthy" campaign in which it would throw the kitchen sink at him.
When asked whether personal attacks would be part of her campaign, Ms Gillard replied: "I expect a robust election campaign. I think that is a good thing."
Both Ms Gillard and Mr Abbott say the campaign will be "tough".
Seeking to distance herself from Kevin Rudd's leadership, Ms Gillard also listed what she saw as her achievements in the few weeks she has been in charge.
She said she had moved on ensuring Australia's population was stable, had resolved the mining tax issue and had begun work on a regional asylum seeker solution.
"I believe in doing those things I've demonstrated to the Australian people the kind of way in which I will lead the nation."
Ms Gillard will be in Brisbane tonight to begin campaigning.
While most of the focus during the campaign will be on the Lower House, the Greens are tipped to take the balance of power in the Senate.
It is also predicted the party has a strong chance of winning the seat of Melbourne in the wake of Lindsay Tanner's retirement.
Leader Bob Brown says he has spoken to both Ms Gillard and Mr Abbott and is ready to work with both.
"We've got a suite of good policies and a good campaign. I think the Greens are offering a fresh and different point of view," he said.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/07/17/2956648.htm
Oh how I love elections. Hoping that the Liberal/National Coalition will not be able to form government...
