Queensland plebiscite on water recycling

In March 2007 the Queensland state government will hold a referendum to get support for plans for increased water recycling initiatives. These initatives will be an important step in the process of achieving a more sustainable lifestyle in the increasingly drought-ridden Australian landscape. Democrat's Senator for Queensland, Andrew Bartlett, says in a recent post:

Together with the Queensland Democrats I will be campaigning hard for a yes vote for the March 2007 referendum on water recycling Water recycling is a key alternative to destructive and expensive measures such as dams.

Senator Bartlett has an online petition which you can sign to show your support for more water recycling measures.

Technorati Tags: Australian politics, Australian Democrats

Restricting Democracy

In proposed changes to the Commonwealth Electoral Act the conservative federal government is proposing to restrict the ability of Australian's to exercise their right to vote and at the same time protect those who wish to influence the political process through financial donations to political parties.

Among the changes is a reduction in the time, after the announcement on an election, that the person has to enroll to vote or update their details on the roll. The time reduction to come into effect from 2007 is down from several days to several hours. This has been highlighted by the recent snap election announcement in Queensland where some people thought they may have been caught out by the legislative changes. The change particularly effects young voters who may not have enrolled to vote and those who have shifted house since the last election and may not have updated their electoral roll address details. This potentially disenfranchises hundreds of thousands of voters.

Another significant change in the legislation is the raising of the threshold for anonymous donations to political parties from $1,500 to $10,000. As well, closely related parties (i.e., members of the same family) are treated separately, as are donations to different state and territory party branches. As a result, a rich family could secretly donate hundreds of thousands to a party. A report from the parliamentary library indicates that based on 2004-5 figure as much as $8 million in donations would become anonymous. To add insult to injury, the tax free threshold for political donations has been increased from $100 to $1500 per annum. This effectively moves millions of dollars from the common wealth to political parties.


Technorati Tags: Australian politics, Australian Democrats, Democracy

Water wise

Australia, perhaps more than many nations, has a limited water supply that is under increased pressure from population expansion and drought possibly exasibated by global warming. In Queensland the state government has proposed to build new dams to help ensure a consistent water supply. While it is a good idea to sure up water supplies one of the dam sites, at Mary River near Gympie, seems to be an odd choice and has struck much local opposition. Senator Andrew Bartlet recently toured the area and concludes in his blog that flooding this area is not a sound plan environmentally, socially or financially. While the local governments in South East Queensland have taken significant measures to reduce water consumption there are still many measures that can be used to make more efficient use of water, such as household water tanks and reusing grey water. If the state government is spend money on water infrastructure then it maybe better spent on water recycling and treatment facilities, repairing and improving water pipes and water ways. While some dams are necessary they are expensive undertakings, and it seems that too often governments look for silver bullet solutions, such as dams, without taking the trouble to find creative, efficient and imaginative solutions. There are some exceptions such as the federal governments community water grants scheme and there are other members of the Queensland parliament that have an e-petition to save the Mary River area from being dammed.

Technorati Tags: politics, Australian Democrats