From The Campaign Trail

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I don't know anyone who likes to go to the dentist, but it is good to know you can go to the dentist when you get a bad enough tooth ache - though that's not the case for some 650,000 Australians. They have been effectively denied basic dental health care since the Howard government abolished the Commonwealth Dental Scheme as one of their first priorities when elected in 1996. That's right – hundreds of thousands of low income Australians have been forced to wait in pain because of a decade of John Howard's callous disregard for their health! The good news is that Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard have already committed a Labor government to the restoration of the Commonwealth's role in dental care. Dental care, like other basic health care, shouldn't be a privilege – it should be a right. Only Labor will protect that right.

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Over the last week I have been very privileged to attend Christmas and end-of-year functions with Kenmore, Indooroopilly, The Gap and the combined Bardon Rainworth and Jubilee Branches. All these occurred just after the election of Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard to the ALP leadership. There is a real bounce about people and a mood for an election fight, such as we have not seen for a long time. I detected that same mood when I attended Kevin’s whistle stop visit to Wynnum on Sunday and listened as he and Julia made it clear that the days of the Howard government are now numbered. Going on what I have seen, I have no doubt that by this time next year we will have an ALP Government that will return Australia to the decent place that we all know it can be. Given the spirit in our local Branches, Ryan will be part of that new government.

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Many thanks to all those who attended my Christmas celebration party last Saturday. It gave me an opportunity to express my appreciation to the hard work from the campaign team who have taken me through the first two months of winning Ryan for Labor. There was a real optimistic mood among people that Ryan is ripe for the taking. The night opened with an insightful address from Milton Dick who is State Party Secretary and member of the National Campaign Team. Milton is confident that Labor polices are in place to get rid of the Howard government. Queensland will be vital for that victory and we will add Ryan to the victory on election night. It was great to catch up with long time supporters including Manfred and Barbara Cross and our youngest woman State Parliamentarian, Kate Jones. The last two months have been quite hectic for all those involved in the campaign and it was great to have a time to celebrate and say thanks.

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I want to acknowledge Kim Beazley's formidable legacy, and his dignified departure. Kim contributed not only to the Labor Party but in many areas of Government and the community, through his Ministerial service. Commentators across the political spectrum have applauded him as a man of honesty and integrity, a view I wholeheartedly share. I'm also really happy about Kevin Rudd's election to the leadership. Kevin and his Deputy Julia Gillard are dynamic, smart and responsive, have delivered necessary generational change for Labor, and they are definitely going to be the team that, both, expose John Howard's failings, and inspire the community with Labor's alternative vision.

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Congratulations to the tens of thousands of people who rallied across Australia to protest Howard's draconian industrial relations legislation. In true deceptive style Howard calls this WorkChoices. Believe me, there is no choice here. What we have is complete lack of choice. Take it or leave it! No penalty rates, no public holiday rates and no overtime pay. Workers in a business with less than 100 employees can be sacked without warning. They can be sacked unfairly with no right of appeal. Women returning to work are clearly at risk. Young people are forced to sign individual Workplace Agreements that increasingly cut wages and conditions. The situation for young people in the retail industry is especially worrying. In fact, so worrying that the Victorian Workplace Rights Advocate has just set up an investigation into the circumstances facing young people. If you want some information about the rights of young people you can go to the Workplace Rights site at: http://www.business.vic.gov.au/BUSVIC.1900864/STANDARD//PC_61994.html. If you are concerned about your own situation then let me know.