ebrief

On Sunday the NSW Government released the Metropolitan Transport Plan. There is an interactive online site called shapeyourstate that provides all the information about the plan, online discussion forums and information about how to make a submission.

Welcome to the first edition of Red Leather for 2010. The NSW political year begins with a new Premier and an opposition at war with itself over preselections while Barry O'Farrell ducks and runs overseas. 

Transport remains a key focus of the government. The new transport plan is still under consideration by cabinet and is expected to be released before the end of February. In the meantime the government will implement the new streamlined new ticketing system called Myzone. It is a system of integrated ticketing between rail, bus and ferry and caps the weekly fares to $57 per week.  

The end of 2009 proved itself to be yet another example of why just when you think you understand what is happening in politics, it changes before your very eyes.

In NSW we have a new Premier.  I would like to record my thanks to Nathan Rees for his hard work and dedication to people in NSW. In his time as Premier, Nathan made an incredible contribution. Nathan Rees;

As we swelter in Sydney I am hoping that our federal parliament will pass the ETS legislation this week. The case for action is so very clear and the need is urgent.

The past fortnight in state news has been dominated by the Premier's changes made at the Labor conference, including the ability to pick his own Ministry, the banning of developer donations and the commitment to build the south west rail link.

Other action you may have missed:

Not sure how we find ourselves in mid November. Every year whizzes by and before I know it I am getting ready for very late night parliamentary sittings as the government seeks to get the rest of our legislation through before the end of the year.

In recent weeks the government has:

The last two weeks have been parliament free and very busy. Key government news includes:

I write this at the end of a busy parliamentary week.

Tuesday was OneWebDay. The theme of OneWebDay was about what action can be taken to close the digital divide. Around 40 people gathered at parliament house to hear about the ABC Pool project and the Glebebytes project. The Upper House passed a motion and I made a speech about the need to close the digital divide.

The last fortnight has seen the return of parliament after the winter recess. There has been extensive coverage of the reshuffle of the Ministers. The final list can be found here.

It has also been the first anniversary since Nathan Rees became Premier of NSW.  A full list of the achievements can be found here.

Spring seems to have arrived early in Sydney. The weather is fantastic but it makes me nervous about climate change. I am angry at the lack of progress in federal parliament. Labor was elected on a promise to tackle climate change yet has been stymied by both the left and right of politics. Australia is in a position to lead world change, but without taking our own action it makes the task so much harder. I note also that both the Coalition and the Greens are now changing their position on the renewable energy bill...

Time is ticking down the Labor Party's national conference that will be held at the end of July in Sydney. The Labor Party Conference has 400 delegates from across Australia. It will debate and adopt the ideas, values and practical policies that will form the basis of what Kevin Rudd and Labor will take to the Australian people at the next federal election.

The final platform will be the culmination of an 18 month process that received hundreds of submission from party members, union affiliates and local community branches.