AUSTRALIA 
Labor MPs to visit schools
Tuesday, 27 November, 2007
Labor MPs will begin visiting schools across the country today as Kevin Rudd tackles education. (Getty Images)
Labor MPs will begin visiting schools across the country today as Kevin Rudd looks to make education the early centrepiece of his prime ministership.
Fresh from his thumping election win on Saturday, Mr Rudd has ordered all his Labor colleagues to visit one public and one private school in their electorate.
They will then report back on the schools' computer needs when the Labor caucus meets in Canberra on Thursday.
Mr Rudd has promised to link every school to his proposed national high-speed broadband network and to give every student in Years Nine to 12 access to their own computer.
He will offer tax rebates worth $2.3 billion to low- and middle-income parents to cover the cost of education-related items, including computers, software, printers, books and broadband connections.
Cabinet to be announced
The Labor ministry will be announced on Thursday or Friday and sworn in by the end of the week. Cabinet is expected to meet for the first time next week.
Current frontbenchers are staying tight-lipped on whether they expect to be retained, although star recruit Maxine McKew says Mr Rudd has spoken to her about her role but won't say if she has been offered a portfolio.
Meanwhile, Mr Rudd says Labor has a mandate to abolish the Howard government's Work Choices laws, and has warned coalition senators against voting down his changes in the upper house.
The coalition holds a majority in the Senate until July next year.
Mr Rudd says voters sent a clear message about industrial relations by tossing out the Howard government last weekend, and he's called on the Liberals to rethink their determination to see the unpopular laws remain.
Source: AAP
Fresh from his thumping election win on Saturday, Mr Rudd has ordered all his Labor colleagues to visit one public and one private school in their electorate.
They will then report back on the schools' computer needs when the Labor caucus meets in Canberra on Thursday.
Mr Rudd has promised to link every school to his proposed national high-speed broadband network and to give every student in Years Nine to 12 access to their own computer.
He will offer tax rebates worth $2.3 billion to low- and middle-income parents to cover the cost of education-related items, including computers, software, printers, books and broadband connections.
Cabinet to be announced
The Labor ministry will be announced on Thursday or Friday and sworn in by the end of the week. Cabinet is expected to meet for the first time next week.
Current frontbenchers are staying tight-lipped on whether they expect to be retained, although star recruit Maxine McKew says Mr Rudd has spoken to her about her role but won't say if she has been offered a portfolio.
Meanwhile, Mr Rudd says Labor has a mandate to abolish the Howard government's Work Choices laws, and has warned coalition senators against voting down his changes in the upper house.
The coalition holds a majority in the Senate until July next year.
Mr Rudd says voters sent a clear message about industrial relations by tossing out the Howard government last weekend, and he's called on the Liberals to rethink their determination to see the unpopular laws remain.
Source: AAP
