Are we as a nation finally realising that there is a place for ethically correct decision making rather than politically expedient decision making? 

Are we now ready to give the battlers the fair go we say we do? Is the idea of a living wage for all now going to get some credence? Are we now ready to admit that we have stopped the boats and we do have a compassionate heart big enough to bring those illegally incarcerated on Manus and Nauru here? 

Are the pollies now ready to say many of their perks are just that and, although allowed by the regulations are actually morally wrong? Will rural Australia now start getting the services and support taken for granted in the capital cities?  Are our pollies now ready to pass laws which are just and not simply a response to their big donors? Unfortunately, I don’t think so. 

For the last four months, I have met with people from all over NSW to talk about the need to put schools and hospitals before Sydney stadiums.

I hear the anger at the Berejiklian-Barilaro government’s Sydney stadium splurge as communities cry out for investment in hospitals, schools, water security and local sport and community facilities. That is why I have announced that Labor will take back $300 million from the $2.7 billion Sydney stadium splurge to air condition more than 60 schools across NSW.

Labor’s Cool Schools policy will provide air conditioning to thousands of classrooms in regional NSW for the first time.

Under the Liberals and Nationals, less than 10 per cent of schools in NSW are entitled to air conditioning. It’s time to do better. Our kids cannot learn properly in hot, sweltering conditions.

I call on the Berejiklian-Barilaro government to do the right thing by regional NSW and adopt Labor’s policy to deliver the school facilities our children deserve.

The proposed tax cuts are about to be passed by the Senate if the government can get the numbers. I would like to ask what reforms are being made to the tax regime for corporations? I may be simple minded, but, at the current headline tax rate of 30 per cent for corporations I am being told by leading economists that this is not a flat tax rate. 

There are further concessions available to corporations under the current tax office arrangements. This brings the headline rate from 30 per cent down to an effective rate of 17.5 per cent. Now this is a very competitive rate of tax on the global stage and Australia is a safe and secure democracy which is also very attractive to foreign companies to set up here (like Amazon). 

If the reduction in the taxation rate for corporations is passed and it is dropped to the touted 25 per cent then are we to assume that the generous tax concessions offered by the tax office, amounting to 12.5 per cent, are still available to corporations? This makes a very lucrative effective tax rate for corporations of only 12.5 per cent by my estimations.

How is the government going to raise enough tax revenue to pay for the essential services such as education, health and pensions? 

This bill should not be passed until there is full disclosure about the hidden benefits offered to corporations so the public can make a real assessment of the proposal.

All I ask is for transparency in this debate.