Wentworth 2018: Your guide to Dave Sharma’s policies

THE Wentworth by-election is on this Saturday with a large field of candidates. Our complete guide is the only place to get in depth coverage of local and national policies of all 16 candidates. Here is everything you need to know about the Liberal Party’s Dave Sharma and how he compares to other candidates.

Liberal Party candidate Dave Sharma believes that with reagrd to immigration, Australia needs to do a better job of distributing its growing population to areas where it is most neede.

THE Wentworth by-election is on this Saturday with a large field of candidates. Our complete guide is the only place to get in depth coverage of local and national policies of all 16 candidates. Here is everything you need to know about the Liberal Party’s Dave Sharma and how he compares to other candidates.

SEE OUR INTERACTIVE DOWN BELOW

BIOGRAPHY

DAVE Sharma was born to a father of Indian heritage and an Australian mum, and Dave’s family settled in Sydney in the 1970s.

At age 12 he lost his mother to breast cancer and says: “the beliefs I hold dear today - the importance of family, a belief in self-reliance, and a desire to help - stem from this time.”

Dave said his father instilled in him the value of education and he said went to his local public school and topped the state in the HSC with a TER of 100, before getting First Class Honours in Law from Cambridge.

He says, that driven by a sense of service, he became an Australian diplomat, working to achieve peace in PNG and respond to the threat of terrorism in the USA.

At age 37, he was appointed Australia’s Ambassador to Israel.

Dave is married to Rachel and has three young daughters.

Q&A

1. Do you think we need a new public secondary school in the Wentworth electorate?

There is a good case to examine the need for second public high school in Wentworth, to meet local demand and provide families choice about where to educate their children.

2. What are your thoughts on the current rate of development?

Wentworth’s natural environment, open spaces and heritage sites are important assets to the community and the nation. We should be protecting these assets, and our quality of life, against inappropriate development.

3. Do you support the proposed development in the national park at South Head?

I oppose the proposed development at South Head.

4. Do you believe that a hung Parliament would be a positive for Australia?

No. A hung Parliament would lead to political instability and create greater uncertainty.

5. Do you support the removal of franking dividends?

No. Labor’s policy would punish those who work hard to be self-reliant in their retirement, including around 8,400 people in Wentworth. The only way to avoid it is to vote Liberal.

6. Should we make changes to negative gearing?

With Sydney house prices now coming down, changes to negative gearing risk crashing the housing market, with dire consequences. Now is a bad time to damage property values and risk rent hikes with higher taxes on those who invest in a rental home or apartment.

7. What are the key elements of your tax policy?

The Liberals’ small business tax relief is already benefiting 29,000 small businesses in Wentworth, while legislated income tax relief will benefit 66,000 local workers and encourage those who work hard to get ahead.

8. Do you have a stance on corporate political donations?

Transparency is the key. Our political system requires full disclosure of all donations above a threshold, and we should continue to insist on such transparency from all donors.

9. What is the most important health related issue?

Ensuring excellent health care is accessible and affordable for all Australians, which can only happen with a strong economy. With the Liberals’ new five-year hospital agreements, NSW hospitals are getting a 29 per cent funding increase, while bulk-billing rates are at an all-time high.

10. What support should be given to businesses?

Small businesses (of which there are 29,000 in Wentworth) are the backbone of our economy and we should back them, with tax relief, less red tape and by ensuring a strong economic environment.

11. What emphasis should be placed on funding to the arts?

The arts serve an important role in enriching the life of society and fostering culture. Continued government support to the arts is important; a strong economy allows us to do this.

12. What priority should be placed on managing federal debt and deficit?

We need to return the Budget to surplus and begin paying down government debt. The Budget deficit is now at its lowest level in ten years and projected to finally return to surplus next year.

13. How should Australia proceed with regards to immigration?

We need to do a better job of distributing Australia’s growing population to areas where it is most needed, and ensure that infrastructure spending keeps up and addresses issues such as congestion and housing affordability.

14. Should we change how we process asylum seekers?

A secure border and an end to the people smuggling trade have restored Australian’s confidence in our border security and allowed us to be more generous in resettling refugees from offshore, in parts of the world where the need is greatest.

15. What action should be taken with regard to climate change?

Addressing climate change is important, as is keeping our international commitments. Better technology should both helps us to meet our emissions targets and improve energy affordability and security.

16. Do you support live animal export?

For the trade to have a future, animal welfare concerns must be addressed and rigorously monitored. I will keep a close eye on this issue if elected to Parliament.

17. Do you think we need to tackle law and order differently?

While general law enforcement is the responsibility of state governments, the Federal Government has a critical role in ensuring our security agencies have the legislation and resources to keep us safe from national security threats, including the threats of terrorism, cyber-attacks and foreign interference.

18. How should we continue to move towards reconciliation with indigenous people?

We must strive to close the gap in health, education, employment and wellbeing, while also looking for ways to better recognise and celebrate Australia’s indigenous history, culture and people.

■ Simply click on your chosen candidate’s name below or on their photograph in our interactive and all will be revealed.

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