The Rudd Labor Government has a comprehensive agenda to build a stronger and fairer Australia. Here we have highlighted some of the key issues on the Government’s agenda.
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A fairer Australia
Abolished Work Choices
The Rudd Government was elected with a commitment to abolish the Liberals’ Work Choices laws, which had ripped away the safety net from workers and taken away their rights at work. The new Fair Work Act gives all Australians the right to a fair go at work with a decent safety net and the right to join together and bargain together with their employer.
Homelessness and Housing Affordability
The Government is taking action to help many of Australia’s most disadvantaged people who have no place to call home. ‘The Road home: A national approach to reducing homelessness’ sets out a plan to halve homelessness by 2020. The plan includes steps to prevent homelessness, improving and expanding available services to help more homeless people in the short term, whilst also providing long-term housing and support to break the cycle of homelessness for good.
The expansion of almost 20,000 extra units of social housing, coupled with repairs and improvements to 45,000 existing social housing units, represents the single biggest expansion of social housing ever undertaken in Australia. This expansion of social housing will help reduce homelessness and improve housing affordability.
Paid Parental Leave
Paid Parental Leave
Making work and family arrangements when starting a family or having more children is tough. To support new parents at this critically important time, the Government is introducing Australia’s first national Paid Parental Leave Scheme in 2011, giving working families 18 weeks of paid leave. The Paid Parental Leave Scheme will help families improve work-life balance and help mums and dads in the transition between work and family responsibilities.
A stronger Australia
Global Financial Crisis
Despite the worst global recession in 75 years, Australia is weathering the storm better than most countries. We are in a stronger position to recover faster than most countries because the Rudd Labor Government acted early and decisively to support jobs and cushion our economy from the full impact of the crisis.
Nearly 70% of our economic stimulus is in infrastructure projects. This includes the biggest school modernisation program in Australia’s history, major investments in roads, rail and ports, as well as a $1 billion investment in local community infrastructure. There is also investment in hospitals, broadband and major solar energy projects. The infrastructure stimulus projects have provided jobs today whilst investing in the infrastructure Australia needs for tomorrow. The Economic Stimulus Plan website will keep you up-to-date with the progress of these infrastructure projects. Click here for more information.
Nation Building for Recovery
The $77 billion Nation Building Recovery Plan was laid out over three stages to ensure a stronger Australia;
Phase One: Short-term stimulus from late 2008 through 2009:
- Cash payments to pensioners, carers, veterans and families to support the 1.5 million Australians working in the retail and wholesale sectors.
- The trebling of the first home-owners bonus to support the housing industry.
Phase Two: Medium-term infrastructure from mid-2009 including:
- The biggest school modernisation program in Australia’s history.
- Building almost 20,000 units and repairing 45,000 units of social housing.
- Local government infrastructure investments through the biggest national partnership with local government ever.
Phase Three: Long term-infrastructure investments starting in late 2009 including:
- Rail, roads and port infrastructure, including the first Commonwealth investments ever in urban rail.
- Large-scale building programs in hospitals, universities and TAFEs.
- Investing up to $43 billion in a high-speed National Broadband Network that will deliver superfast broadband to 90 per cent of homes, schools and workplaces.
Challenges for the Future
Climate Change and Water
Action is required on every level - global, national and local - to tackle the enormous threat of climate change. We know that families have already been doing their bit by recycling, sticking to water restrictions and swapping to energy efficient light globes. After years of climate change denial under the Liberal Party, Australia has now begun the transition to a low pollution economy, creating the low pollution jobs of the future in areas like the renewable energy industries.
As part of the stimulus measure to provide jobs now, the Energy Efficient Homes package provided ceiling insulation for up to 2.9 million homes and help for more than 300,000 additional households to install solar hot water systems. From 2020, these measures will have saved around 50 million tones of carbon pollution.
In September 2009, legislation was passed to establish Renewable Energy Targets requiring that 20 per cent of Australia’s electricity will be obtained by renewable energy sources by 2020. This effectively means that Australia’s entire household power demands will be generated by renewable energy.
Health and Hospital Reform
The Rudd Labor Government is undertaking historic reform of our health and hospital system. Already the Government has invested in hospital emergency departments and established 31 GP Super Clinics to enhance the provision, quality and sustainability of local health services.
The Government is committed to building a 21st Century health and hospital system that can cope with the challenges of an ageing population and increasinf prevalence of chronic diseases like diabetes. Communities around Australia have been conducting health forums to discuss future reform options set out in the National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission’s report ‘A Healthier Future for all Australians’. These forums will shape a plan for the future of our health system.
Investment in Education
With the ‘Building of the Education Revolution’, the biggest school modernisation program in Australian history is underway. Across the country, schools in every local community have been building new halls, libraries and other important teaching facilities. Not only will these projects have long-term educational benefits, they have also created jobs for local business and tradies during the global downturn.
The Rudd Government has set an ambitious agenda for educational outcomes, with the aim of:
- Providing for universal access to preschool for four year olds by 2013;
- Creating a national curriculum for the core school subjects;
- Investing in the skills of Australian workers and halving the number without a minimum certificate 111 level; and
- Recruiting high-skilled, highly motivated people into the classroom and making sure we retain our best teachers in our schools.
New Way of Governing
Australia needs a new way of governing that is more open, accountable and in touch with the Australian community. The Rudd Labor Government has taken major steps to support a new way of governing.
Community Cabinet
Community Cabinets are about Governments staying connected with the Community – making sure that everyone has a chance to participate in Government and have a say. They allow people to meet members of the Governmeent one-on-one and ask any questions they like on any topic.
Kevin Rudd has held more than 16 Community Cabinet meetings across the country from Yirrkala in the Northern Territory, to Geralton in Western Australia and Penrith in New South Wales.
Connecting Online
Through the www.pm.gov.au website, Kevin Rudd has launched a series of major policy blogs and live chats to continue the conversation with the Australian community. Topics have included health reform, youth policy and climate change.
In June 2009, the Government 2.0 Taskforce was launched. Gov 2.0 aims to harness technology to create greater openness and transparency in government, and bring government and the people who work in Government closer to Australians.
Election of the Rudd Labor Government
The Rudd Labor Government was sworn in on 3rd December, 2007 just eight days after the historic election victory on November 24th. The election of the progressive Labor Government ended 13 years of the Howard Government's conservative agenda. Led by Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard, the Labor Party was successful in gaining 23 extra seats to form majority government with 83 seats out of 150.
More about the Rudd Labor Government
Achievements
The Mid-Term Progress Report details the work of the Rudd Government throughout its first 18 months in office. You can read more about the achievements of the Rudd Labor Government on the Achievements section of this website.
Apology to Indigenous Australians
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd led the nation in February 2008 in making a formal apology to the Stolen Generations of Indigenous Australians. The apology was backed up by practical action with a $4.6 billion investment in a national strategy in Closing the Gap in Indigenous disadvantage in life expectancy, health, housing, education and employment.
Kevin Rudd
Sworn in on 3 December 2007, Kevin Rudd is Australia’s 26th Prime Minister. To read the Prime Minister's biography in full and connect with Kevin Rudd’s social networks click here.
Julia Gillard
Whilst being the 14th Deputy Prime Minister of Australia, Julia Gillard is the first female Deputy Prime Minister of Australia. Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s portfolio responsibilities include Minister for Education, Minister for Industrial Relations and Minister for Social Inclusion.
Members of Government
You can find the contact information and biographies of all Government Members and Ministers, including your local MP, by using the People Search function located here on our website.
