Elections > Federal Election 2004 > Candidates

Felicity Martin

The Australian Greens candidate for Grey

Why I am standing

I stood in Grey as it presents a great opportunity to focus on issues that are
having such a devastating impact on our regional and remote communities. Being
a safe Liberal seat it is my hope to see it become more marginal thus putting more pressure on both political parties to address the many problems that are made even worse by enormous distances to the most basic services.

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Important issues in my electorate

This electorate has wonderful country and people yet we have critical problems with poverty, mental health services, lack of educational services, carer, health services made worse by the enormity of distance. In Pt Pirie we have problems with lead contamination- particularly in young children- yet people are too frightened to speak out for fear of recrimination. We have the shame of the Woomera and Baxter detention centres. We have in Port Lincoln worrying racial tensions. We have the issue of uranium mining plus the residual impacts of atomic testing.The issue of GM crops is a major concern to me as a Spokesperson for The Network of Concerned Farmers with the failure of the Australian Government to address concerns of lack of legislative protection
for our conventional grain sector and organic sectors. The present legislations is heavily biased towards the proponents of GM crops by placing the costs of retaining GM Free Status squarely at the feet of those wishing to maintain our overseas market for non GM grains - not where it should appropriately be placed - with those introducing the GM products.

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Important policy documents

Greens are committed to protecting our GM Free AQIS standard until suitable legislation is in place to protect the conventional farming sector.

We are committed to oppose the Free
Trade Agreement until serious anomolies regarding our sovereign right to debate in parliament issues of public ownership of essential services, bio security, and other areas are rectified.

We are committed to a national strategy to address issues in service delivery and funding in health, particularly in regional areas, with devolvement of funding allocation to community centres.

We are committed to address the issues of waste and resource inefficiencies through a taxing review which will place the emphasis on efficiencies in minimising waste production/emmissions and maximising resource use efficiency through resource taxes and a Carbon levy. We would then work work towards phasing out Payroll Tax.

We will phase out GST, and allow the first $1000 collected to be retained by business.
We will work to immediately remove GST on public transport.

We will commit to an immediate injection of funds into mental health and education. We will have targetted funding and incentives for regional and rural universities, which will be free- remove HECS and cancel HECS debt

We are committed to ending mandatory detention and will bring troups home from Iraq.

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Contact Details

Other Candidates

FITZPATRICK, Peter - HAN
HACKETT, John - ALP
KLEINIG, Roger - FFP
ROBERTSON, Gil - DEM
SIEBERT, Paul - CEC
* WAKELIN, Barry - LP

* incumbent