Opposition Leader woos South Asian media

industry and services will be the focus of the Victorian Labor Party, Opposition Leader Daniel Andrews said at a South Asian media conference held at the Victorian Parliament recently. Currently the Member for Mulgrave, Mr Andrews is also the Shadow Minister for Veterans’ Affairs and Shadow Minister for Multicultural Affairs. The conference provided an opportunity for representatives from various South Asian media to ask him questions on various matters including the recent budget, health, education, jobs and Victoria’s future. Jude Perera, state member for Cranbourne and Parliamentary Secretary to the to join politics and represent the community in Parliament.

The Opposition Leader briefly outlined his priorities to ease the pressures on communities if Labor wins the next election.

Mr Andrews stressed the need for the existing Government to acknowledge that there are issues, especially in relation to the difficulties being faced by various industries, and the loss of jobs. “Whether they caused the problem or not, it does not excuse the Government for its responsibility and duty to act and do something to resolve these problems,” said Mr Andrews.

“That does not mean that the State Government and Dennis not been the outcome,” said Mr Andrews before he opened the floor for questions.

In reply to whether the ALP has plans in place to insulate Victorians against the predicted economic depression he said, “I do not wish to talk the economy down, however it is a fact that spending is soft and overall confidence is low at the moment. There are issues on how finance is working and every sector is facing challenges”. He added, “At difficult times like this the Government needs to recognise that there are issues and have a plan. If there are strategies in place they will help save many jobs, if not every one of them. We need to ensure that the taxpayers’ dollars are supporting local jobs, local produce and industries. A Victorian Labor Government will implement a plan to secure local jobs for local workers, to support these industries and preserve the livelihoods of many Victorians”.

A few reporters from the Indian media raised the issue of the shoddy treatment by the current Government, towards the Little India Precinct in Dandenong. According to them, the traders were provided rent relief recently; however, that still did not resolve the issue. They asked Mr Andrews how the ALP could offer better support to the affected traders. The Minister said he was willing to arrange another round of talks to get an update on the issue and try to be an effective ally.

With relation to the turbulence being experienced in the print media industry, he agreed that the industry is in transition with changes that are not necessarily positive. Representatives from media organisations then brought to his attention the issue that the budget allocated to them was a nominal 5% which has been the same for the last 15 years. “For the ethnic media to thrive in proportion to the growth in the population there is a need for better funding and resources; however the future of ethnic media is not looking healthy and we live in fear that the lifecycle will collapse any day,” claimed Virosh Perera CEO of Serendib News Network. Mr Andrews acknowledged the importance of cultural media and said that while he cannot make any promises, he will certainly consider this issue and review the percentage of budget under his Government.

Manoj Kumar FEA Executive from ASTON was instrumental in getting the South Asian media together to meet the opposition leader. “We hope to hold more sessions like these in future that will offer forums and opportunities for South Asian media to discuss matters and issues that are relevant to our community,” said Mr Kumar. “I thank everyone who braved Melbourne’s cold and wet winter to come and support this event,” he said in conclusion.