Leaders make their final pitches to voters
After four weeks on the campaign trail, and months — if not years — spent preparing for today’s poll, we gave Gladys Berejiklian and Michael Daley a chance to make their final appeal to voters. Plus read about their final day on the hustings.
GLADYS BEREJIKLIAN
NSW has a clear choice.
Our NSW Liberals and Nationals government has built the strongest economy in Australia, with a record low level of unemployment, and paid off Labor’s debts so we can invest in what matters.
We’re building or upgrading more than 170 schools and 100 hospitals and health facilities — including Bankstown-Lidcombe, Nepean, Goulburn, Tweed and Ballina — five metro rail lines, thousands of kilometres of roads, and putting almost 20,000 more nurses, teachers and police on the front line.
And we’re taking the pressure off you by tackling the cost of living — like lowering Opal fare caps, doubling Active Kids vouchers, and ensuring before-and-after school care in every community.
While we work with you to build the future, Labor just wants to take NSW backwards. Their plan is to cancel vital projects and raise taxes.
I’m proud to lead a government working incredibly hard for all the citizens of NSW.
No matter where you live or what your background, we’re on your side, and we’ll give you the choices and opportunities you need to live your best possible life.
If you want a strong NSW — now and into the future — vote Liberals and Nationals. Together, we’ll get it done.
MICHAEL DALEY
The people of NSW know they just don’t count under this government.
They know they can’t afford another four years of mass privatisations, soaring electricity bills, and vanity projects like the Sydney Light Rail and Sydney stadiums.
They are concerned about the madness of overdevelopment and congestion.
They can’t wait any longer for urgent policies on climate change.
We will work hard to restore our rivers, rivers like the Murray-Darling after eight years of wilful neglect.
And people in the bush know they are ignored while $2.2 billion is splurged on Sydney stadiums. They and their kids want quality services, jobs and training right in their own communities
People are not asking for much — just practical and achievable plans that will rein in reckless spending so we can fund our schools, TAFE and hospitals, and provide policies that, for once in eight years, put people first.
And Labor has those plans for — 5500 more nurses, 1000 fewer demountables and a plan to create local jobs.
Under a government I lead, the people of NSW will once again count.’
LEADERS ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL ON FRIDAY
Gladys Berejiklian and Michael Daley have begun their final pitch to voters ahead of the NSW election, as debate continues over stadiums and party preferences.
Friday is the last day of campaigning for the Premier and the Opposition Leader before NSW heads to the polls on Saturday.
Ms Berejiklian spent time in the marginal seats of East Hills and Penrith, in Sydney’s west, while Mr Daley continued his attack on the state government’s $730 million redevelopment plan for Allianz Stadium — holding his sixth press conference in front of the Moore Park sporting venue in just over a fortnight.
He believes the issues will be a decisive vote-changer.
“If you think people in Sydney are angry about stadiums … go out to the regions — they are white-hot about it out there. They feel they’ve been left behind,” he said on Friday.
Despite hard demolition works starting two weeks ago, Mr Daley insisted it could be salvaged.
“Only superficial damage has been done … (there’s) no dead horse here, the horse is very much alive,” he said.
“We’re going to give it a refurbishment at no cost to the taxpayer and it will shine like a new pin.”
The Labor leader rejected claims he has focused too much on stadiums while the Premier has been visiting schools and hospitals. He insists there’s “plenty of interest” in the issue.
Mr Daley is desperately trying to get Labor’s campaign back on track after a horror week, which began when vision emerged of him telling a pub forum last year that young skilled Asian migrants were taking local jobs.
On Thursday he attempted to downplay his blunders during Wednesday night’s televised leaders’ debate where he failed to recall how much funding his party had pledged for schools and TAFE.
The Premier also made a few missteps in the debate, incorrectly announcing a toll on the M4 and over-egging the return on her government’s stadiums spend.
The pair started Friday with several appearances on breakfast TV and radio, in a last-ditch attempt to woo voters.
But it might be too little too late, with more than one million residents having already made their decision after voting early.
With the latest polls suggesting a 50-50 split between the major parties, Ms Berejiklian admitted the Coalition faced a challenge to win across the state.
But she said she was proud of her government’s record infrastructure spend and economic management.
“There is a lot at stake tomorrow,” she said, before visiting a school in Revesby with her two sisters.
“We’ve already done a lot but our job is far from done and we need to continue to take the state to the next level.”
Some pundits are predicting a hung parliament, given the large number of independent and minor party candidates in seats across the state.
The Premier has ruled out any deal with the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party to form a minority government, fearing they would want to water down gun laws.
The Opposition Leader said he has had no discussions with the Greens nor the Shooters and would not do any conditional deals with the party.
“I will not accept anything that says, ‘I’ll support you for premier if you do this’,” he said.
Regardless of potential deals, Mr Daley said he was “very hopeful” about his chances on Saturday and expecting a “good response” to his policies.
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