Prime Minister Julia Gillard shares her plan to win back voters
- From: The Sunday Telegraph
- January 13, 2013
Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard pictured at Kirribilli House in Sydney with Rueben her dog. Picture: Sam Ruttyn Source: The Sunday Telegraph
THEY are fighting words from a Prime Minister under siege - Julia Gillard has begun the election year declaring: "I've never felt more ready."
In a letter to the nation written exclusively for The Sunday Telegraph, Ms Gillard named education and family as the battlegrounds upon which she intended to fight for re-election.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard's letter
She said she had been strengthened by her experience as prime minister and was "clear-eyed" about her plan for the future. She conceded last year was a difficult one, but said the "biggest, hardest things" such as the carbon tax were behind her.
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"Getting the big things done to create more opportunity for all is inevitably hard, messy, contested," she said. "But I am determined to get them done."
Ms Gillard said she was inspired to fight on by her late father, who had taught her the importance of equal opportunity.
"He taught me that it is important to have people you look up to but you must never look down on anyone," Ms Gillard said.
Last year's battle between Ms Gillard's minority government and Tony Abbott's opposition was one of the most toxic in Australian political history, and at year's end the Coalition had an election-winning lead in the polls.
That bitterness is expected to continue until the election, which is likely to take place in the second half of the year.
As the battle looms, The Sunday Telegraph asked Ms Gillard to set out her plans - both personal and political - for 2013.
Ms Gillard said she spent her Christmas and New Year break reflecting and preparing.
"Entering 2013, I've never felt more ready," she said.
Ms Gillard listed her top priority as "a giant leap forward in education".
"I can show you schools around the country where we have lifted standards and more children are succeeding at reading, writing and maths," she wrote. "But now we have to make that difference in every school."
"In 2013, I will do everything necessary to make sure we properly fund schools and drive school improvement so every child in every school is getting a great education."
Families were also a key theme of her letter. Ms Gillard said another priority was providing support and services to mums and dads juggling work, children and ageing parents.
She put national security back on the agenda, describing it as a "foundation stone".
Also among her priorities were the National Broadband Network, planning for an ageing society and modernising infrastructure.
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