You will find the deal struck between the two New England independents here: Agreement between the Australian Labor Party and the Independent Members. The PDF version in the Australian may be easier to read.
I set out my initial reactions in Country independents, regional development and spin. I wasn't being negative in a general sense, simply expressing my concern about the way the regional development numbers were presented. I don't think $10 billion is in fact $10 billion in the way it has been written up.
In an earlier post, I said in part:
Finally, we would like both Mr Windsor and Mr Oakeshott to apply a key test to any specific initiatives that might be considered:
Will the proposal have any real longer term impact on New England development, or is it just a band-aid? We have seen too many of the second, too few of the first.
In asking this question, we would also like both MPs consider broader New England needs.
There are many shared problems across the North that would benefit from being addressed in an integrated way, instead of the fragmented and itsy approach that has applied.
Taking the regional development proposals in the agreement (annex B) and looking at it just from a New England perspective, do you thing it meets these tests? What do you like/dislike about the proposals?
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