Latest news with #federal election
ABC News
a day ago
- Business
- ABC News
As federal parliament returns, here's what was promised to ACT residents in the election
Much of the federal election campaign in the ACT was focused on the Coalition's plan for cuts to the public service. Now that Labor has been re-elected, what exactly is the party promising for Canberra over the next three years? Parliament will resume next week, but the government's commitments will not require much in the way of legislation. For the most part, it is money on the table, from new civic infrastructure to improved health services. This is not necessarily an exhaustive list, but covers the main items announced in the lead-up to the election in May. The big ticket promise — unveiled at Labor's campaign launch — was the money to build a new aquatic centre in Commonwealth Park, making way for a new national convention centre on the current Civic pool site. Federal Labor has put up $100 million, about two thirds of which will go to the pool, with the remainder set aside for feasibility and design works on the convention centre. That commitment has been matched by the territory government, after ACT Labor made it the centrepiece of its own campaign launch in September last year. At the time, Chief Minister Andrew Barr said he hoped the design work on the pool would be done by the end of 2026, with construction to commence shortly after. Since the new pool has to be finished before the existing site can be freed up, a new convention centre could still be a while away. The ACT's low bulk billing rate for GP visits was a key campaign issue, particularly when the Interchange Health Co-op went into administration. Labor pledged $3.8 million to keep it afloat, alongside $10.5 million to attract new GPs to three new bulk billing practices. The money for the ACT is on top of Labor's national commitments on Medicare, which it hopes will triple the number of fully bulk billing practices in Canberra. But while the government's national target is for 90 per cent of GP visits to be bulk billed by 2030, the ACT is unlikely to hit that figure. The party also responded to the potential closure of the Burrangiri Aged Care Respite Centre, by promising $10 million for more respite beds. Yet that commitment has become slightly less urgent since the election, with confirmation Burrangiri will stay open for another two years. Labor had also promised one of its 50 new Medicare urgent care clinics would be in Woden. Before the campaign proper kicked off, the government announced it would "finish the NBN." It pledged fibre-to-the-node connections for more than 600,000 premises by 2030, including about 97,000 in Canberra. Labor also put $3.5 million on the table for seven new crisis accommodation dwellings in the ACT, for people fleeing domestic and family violence. Later on, it offered localised commitments either side of the city: $1.5 million to upgrade Margaret Timpson Park at Belconnen; and just shy of $1 million to revitalise the Chisholm Cricket Oval.
National Post
6 days ago
- Politics
- National Post
The Conservative party raised a record amount in 2024 — and spent even more
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre arrives on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Friday, May 30, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick The Conservative party's spending outstripped its record fundraising total in 2024 as it ramped up advertising and internal polling ahead of the federal election. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS Enjoy the latest local, national and international news. Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events. Unlimited online access to National Post. National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. SUBSCRIBE FOR MORE ARTICLES Enjoy the latest local, national and international news. Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events. Unlimited online access to National Post. National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors According to records filed with Elections Canada, the Tories brought in $42 million in donations and another $5 million in membership fees last year, with total revenues of just over $48.5 million. The party spent just shy of $50 million over the same period — an increase of nearly $13 million over 2023. Your guide to the world of Canadian politics. (Subscriber exclusive on Saturdays) By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again A large amount of that money went to advertising, with $7.8 million spent on TV, $1.5 million on radio and another $7.1 million on digital ads. More than $2.5 million went to research and polling. The $16.5 million the Conservatives spent on advertising was nearly double the sum the party spent on ads in 2023. In September, the Conservatives launched an ad spot featuring most of the messages they'd take into the election campaign in the spring, including the 'let's bring it home' tag line. In the ad's voiceover, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre pledged to 'cap spending, axe taxes, reward work, build homes, uphold family, stop crime, secure borders, rearm our forces, restore our freedom.' Poilievre told right-wing influencer Jordan Peterson in a December podcast interview that he had done 600 public events over the previous year, including tours of businesses and factories and the rallies that became a signature aspect of his leadership. The Conservatives logged $1.5 million in spending on travel and hospitality and spent just over $8 million on fundraising in 2024. Sarah Fischer, the party's director of communications, said in an email that the party ended the year with just shy of $16 million in cash in the bank and net assets of just over $9 million. 'As is typical in the pre-writ period, in 2024 the party spent slightly more than it raised,' said Fischer. The Conservatives were the only party to file annual financial statements with Elections Canada by the deadline; all the other parties were granted an extension. Conservative strategist Fred DeLorey said he's 'never seen anything like' the Conservative party's fundraising totals and he's not concerned by the level of spending in 2024. 'That's what political parties are supposed to do, especially when you are the best fundraising machine in the country,' said DeLorey, chair of North Star Public Affairs and the Conservatives' 2021 campaign manager.
