Scorecard rates Labor as top
The first Victorian state election scorecard is in. As far as older Victorians are concerned, Labour has come out on top, while the other parties are trailing much further behind.
Brumby’s Labor government has come out on top as the party of choice for Victorian aged care providers, having received the highest performance rating of all of the candidates on the Council On The Ageing (COTA) Victorian state election scorecard.
With the Victorian state election only two days away, Labor is clearly the sector’s favourite party, rating 80 per cent on the scorecard for its efforts to guarantee money and specific programs for seniors if elected this Saturday.
The Greens came in second by more than 20 percentage points, while the Liberal Party was scored below average.
CEO of COTA Victoria, Sue Hendy, explained that the three major candidates were scored on their policies and how they shaped up on issues that matter to older Victorians.
Their performance was measured according to the main priorities of the COTA Age of Change campaign, which called upon the parties for action to guarantee seniors affordable services; renewable energy subsides and programs to retrofit their homes with renewable energy technology; low-income housing and an end to age discrimination.
“Certainly Labor has come to the party and they have done it early. They’ve been very committed and have followed up with programs and funding.
“The Greens are coming in at 68 per cent and the Liberal Party, although they are doing better now than they were a few days ago, are in at 48 per cent. So they are lagging behind quite a lot.”
“The Liberals haven’t come out very strong at all and there has discussion that they would dismantle the Human Rights Charter in Victoria if elected which would take us backward. And age discrimination is what it is all about really. It’s something we would like to see across the board.
“However, they have come through with some policies about accessible housing and we are still seeing policies come out. Maybe because we are making a bit of noise but they are going to have to come through a lot stronger for us to say that they are meeting the needs of senior Victorians.”
Ms Hendy said she welcomes greater competition between the candidates and encourages the Liberal Party to life its game. I think the figures stand for themselves at this point. The party that comes in with 80 per cent are a long way forward. Mind you we wouldn’t mind seeing the others step up to the line.”
Aged and Community Care Victoria (ACCV) is set to release its state election scorecard tomorrow
CEO of Aged and Community Care Victoria (ACCV), Gerard Mansour, revealed that the evaluation will show that so far, Labor is in the lead although the ratings are bound to change the closer the state gets to the election.
“At the moment it is still a progressive scorecard as [not all] of the policies have been announced,” said Mr Mansour.
“We are still looking forward to further announcements. We are very pleased that aged care and seniors are still on the radar.
“At the moment there is a more comprehensive plan by Labor as they announced a $15 million boost for dementia research and a significant expansion of HACC services by two million hours, to help keep older people in their own home.
“The Liberal Party also announced important relief for pensioners on electricity and utility bills.
“There are further announcements to come from both parties so in the lead up to the election we urge them to remember senior Victorians as a priority.”
