Policy: Education

Simplify. Simplify. Simplify.

Education's very important to our society. I support the totally free education of minors in Australia. Like many of my policies, I want to see the power given back to the people.

Simply Education

The solution is incredibily simple. Take the entire education budget and divide it by the number of students (in Years 1 to 12). If my figures are correct this would currently be $7870 per student per year. ( $26 billion + 3.3 mil students 1)

Schools are then paid directly from the education department according to the students enrolled. Simple. The power is then essentially transferred from the government and bureaucracies to the parents. Schools would need to provide good service and keep trust with the parents to keep the students - and hence the funding. Schools would need to adapt to the priorities of parents to stay viable.


What are the benefits of this plan?

• the bureaucratic parts of the Education Departments are avoided
• no jumping from program to program according to new ideas from politicians or interest groups
• the money stays at grass roots level (ie via the parents)
• incredible flexibility - schools can adapt directly according to the priorities of the parents
• competition - good schools are rewarded by more students, bad schools loose students and the money that goes with them
• the parents values, rather than the States, are taught in the schools
• schools can co-operate or network with other schools, as they please, to run joint programs
• schools are directly rewarded for thier own frugality or ingenuity

What about students in remote areas?

Students or schools that require additional help due to special needs will need to be assisted from thier communities, charities or parents, as is the case with all welfare. I believe though, as there is to be a minimal government administration, there will be more money available. A lower tax regime will also mean that more discretionary money is available for citizens to donate. Remember, after the Irish, Australians are the most generous people with regards to charitable donations.

You oppose tax for welfare, then why not education?

I think education for minors should be federally funded for 2 main reasons.

No 1 Education is a great equaliser. It helps break the poverty cycle. No people or minority will perpetually stay oppressed when they have access to education.

No 2 For democracy to work, literacy is required. The people cannot make informed decisions and keep the government accountable if information cannot be accessed by most of the citizenry.

Related: Key 04-EDU: Education for Minors

References:

1. Dept Education Science and Training: Budget Information 2005 at a Glance > Schools

Policy: Environment

We only get one earth. Human habitation and nature need not be opposite sides of the spectrum. A sustainable balance is acheivable. We can respect the environment we live in and still keep civilization.

Six of the 20 keys form my environmental policy.

06-C+R - Choice and Responsibility
People and companies are responsible for their own actions (pollution, waste products, noise etc)

05-LIB - Liberty
People and companies are free to do as they wish, on the condition it does not affect others.

11-SUP - Support
By unifying, citizens can effectively support specific environmental causes. These groups can purchase lands, create sanctuaries for fauna, buy old growth forests, promote education on the environment etc.

16-JUS – Reparative Justice
Companies and people should be accountable for reparation of environmental damages. This could range from responsibility for the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill to adding a tax for petrol relative to proven damage to air quality.

17-PRO – Property Rights
Landholders, both large and small, are able to use their land as they see fit – providing it does not directly affect their neighbours. For example, a land owner could cut down a patch of trees near the edge of his property, but if this causes eroded soil to wash all over his neighbours property the first land owner would be liable to fix the problem.

20-TRN – Transition
I anticipate some measures should start immediately, with all implemented within 5 – 20 years.

Examples of policy

- Growers of Genetically Modified foods would be required to provide barriers (depending on the plant type) to ensure that neighbours crops are not infected.

- A tax on fuels that cause environmental damage. This tax should be kept separate to other revenue and be used only for the reparation of the damage. This will help fuels reflect their true cost, making other cleaner fuels more cost effective. If a company introduces measures so pollution is not created this tax should not apply.

Nature
Nature, by it’s very nature, does not require human help. It only requires us not to impose on it.

Government should not interfere with natural cycles of species.

Human Impact
Humans, just by the fact of their existence, will impact on the surrounding land. What is required is to minimize damage. You can’t have 1 million people living on the Adelaide Plains and not expect more water usage or lands to be used to grow foods. I believe though, there is a right way and a wrong way to live with the earth. The right way becomes obvious, because it is sustainable.

Property rights in agriculture are important because it holds farmers accountable. I believe most people living on the land are aware of this. They want to farm and make a profit, but they also want their grandkids to be able to do the same - on that same piece of ground. It doesn’t do them any good to kill the goose that lays the golden egg.

Waste
Bill Mollison, a co-founder of Permaculture said “You don’t have a snail problem, you have a duck deficiency!” and “waste is an unused resource”.

Businesses are adaptable by their very nature. I envision that if make industries accountable for their own waste they will find ways and partners to whom this waste is a resource. Hence businesses will develop a symbiotic relationship with other businesses.

International Obligations
Australian companies should be accountable for their overseas management in these areas.

Policy: Price Linking

All taxes should be kept within their own sphere.

For example:

• petrol taxes should be used to clean up or prevent damage to the environment (ie air pollution or the development of solar technologies). It might also be used for roads, but should not be used for welfare as this is totally external to it's sphere.
• poker machine taxes, if they must be charged, should be used solely for rehabilitation of gambling addicts
• taxes on cigarettes, if they must be charged, would be used to fund lung cancer research or treatments.
• Red Light Camera fines would be kept for victims of car crashes, or for education in safe driving

The goal of the price linking is to create more closely a user-pays system. This stops governments from profiteering with hidden tax regimes. You can only put so much into Gambling Rehabilitation before extra money will not make extra difference, thus taking away the government's incentive to approve or disapprove extra poker machines - as they are not gaining revenue from it.

The two beauties to price linking are:

1. Flexibility - a 5 % increase in driving with a particular fuel would create 5% extra revenue for roads, or cleaner fuel research etc. It self regulates.
2. Accountability - because funds are drawn from with in it's own sphere, it creates internal accountability. This prevents a "false economy". (ie cheap fuel that causes damage to the environment does not reflect it's true cost compared to another fuel slightly more expensive which is clean)

In brief, price linking means effectively that smokers pay for the possible consequences of smoking, dangerous drivers pay for the damage they cause, and so forth.

Related: Key 06-C+R, Key 16-JUS