VCOSS Victorian Election Platform: Cause Not Consequence
6 October 2010 at 12:24 pm
VCOSS has launched its 2010 State Election Platform, calling on all parties to deliver fairer outcomes for rural and regional Victoria by looking at the ‘cause, not consequence’ in developing policy.
VCOSS says the election must focus on fairer outcomes for people in rural and regional Victoria by dealing with the causes of chronic issues such as poor health, poverty and social disadvantage.
VCOSS Deputy Director, Carolyn Atkins says living in regional Victoria should not be a prescription for disadvantage and poorer outcomes in life.
Atkins says the November election must focus on how to support the vital social infrastructure in rural and regional communities that can reduce inequality and give people the opportunities they need to create better futures for them and their families.
She says it is shocking that rural and regional Victorians are currently more likely to have poorer health outcomes, leave school earlier, earn less, and find it harder to put food on the table for their families than people who live in metropolitan areas.
Atkins says people in rural areas need reliable access to basic services such as health and mental health services, affordable housing, drug and alcohol support, public transport and quality education resources.
Cause, not consequence: A state election platform for rural and regional Victoria details 16 key challenges for the 2010 election:
- Arrest alarming growth rates of chronic disease, particularly in disadvantaged areas;
- Address the terrible gaps in mental health services across Victoria;
- Get the right support at the right time, for as long as necessary, for children and families;
- Guarantee that all children and young people are able to stay at school;
- Fund a youth service system that stops the social isolation experienced by so many young people in regional areas; and
- Work collaboratively with community sector organisations to support the important work they do rural and regional Victoria.
Link: www.vcoss.org.au
