The day of reckoning for all political parties and individuals who put their hands up asking for our vote in this election contest is fast approaching. Next Saturday, voters will grant their verdict, marking the end of one of the longest pre-election periods in Australia’s political history, sending one of the two major parties straight into the “loser’s locker room”. As Muhammad Ali once said “No one when there knows what to say”.

The right to choose the next government of this country through our vote goes hand-in-hand with the responsibility to be as best as possible informed.

Neos Kosmos has posed the two major contenders a number of questions on the topics of importance to the Greek Australian community.

We hope their answers will enhance our understanding of their position on said issues and most importantly, provide the community the right to hold the next government of Australia accountable.

Read the Prime Minister’s responses below:

Does a future Coalition government commit that its policies on the Cyprus and FYROM issues – issues of great concern to our community – will not change?
The Australian Government remains mindful of the sensitivity and the depth of feeling, including in various communities in Australia, regarding Australia’s use of the name ‘Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia’. Australia will continue to follow United Nations practice. The Australian Government remains committed to supporting a process by which governments in Athens and Skopje negotiate a mutually acceptable position. On the Cyprus issue, Australia’s position is a long-standing bipartisan position. The Australian Government supports the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Cyprus and recognises the Republic as the only legitimate authority on the island.

Australia has contributed Australian Federal Police personnel to the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) since 1964, making Australia the longest continuous serving contributor to UNFICYP. Do you commit that nothing will change on the level of commitment of the Australian government if the Coalition is re-elected?
The Australian Government has been steadfast in its commitment to supporting the maintenance of peace and order in Cyprus. The Government’s commitment to Australia’s contribution to the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus is set out in the 2015-16 Budget Papers. (NK note: The funding of the commitment of Australian Federal Police personnel in Cyprus is renewed on a yearly basis and in line with this the 2016-2017 which has not been approved as yet includes specific funding for maintaining the force in Cyprus).

Are there any plans to change in any shape or form the current social services agreement between Australia and Greece?
The Government regularly monitors our social security agreements with our partner nations including Greece to ensure they are up-to-date and reflect our current social security policy and legislation.

Greek language programs are disappearing from the public education system despite Modern Greek being one of the 13 languages included in the National Curriculum. You, Prime Minister, time and again, have spoken about the “special” relationship you have with the Greek language, as well as Greek philosophic thought. Is a future Coalition government going to take any measures to stop the trend of extinction of Greek language programs from the public school sector?
The Australian Government values the learning of language and continues to place a high priority on improving the take-up of foreign languages, including Greek. We have provided the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority with $1.8 million over two years (2014/15 – 2015/16) to develop additional languages curricula. Thirteen languages, including Modern Greek, were included in the Foundation to Year 10 Australian Curriculum, which was endorsed by all Education Ministers in December 2015. Development of the Framework for Classical Languages (Greek and Latin) will be completed by the end of 2016.

We have funded an Early Learning Languages Australia (ELLA) trial using an app-based program to teach languages to children in preschool. Following the success of the trial, my government’s 2016-17 Budget committed an extra $5.9 million to deliver the program to all preschool services nationally.
This includes funding to assist up to 1,000 preschools in disadvantaged areas to purchase devices so they can participate. Through that national rollout of the program, the Department of Education and Training will consider adding more languages, including Greek.

Although full responsibility for the content of school curriculums lies with the states and territories, the Commonwealth Government continues to work with the states and territories and key stakeholders to further encourage the take-up of languages in our schools. Over the next four years the Turnbull Government’s investment in all schools across Australia will continue to grow from its current record levels, and will total $73.6 billion. Commonwealth funding will be directed according to need and tied to evidence-based initiatives to support student achievement, including expanding the ELLA program into the early years of schooling and encouraging states to free up their Permission to Teach requirements to allow fluent languages speakers to be employed in schools without the requirement of a four-year degree. The government will work with states and territories, the non-government sector and higher education providers to develop innovative ways to improve the supply of competent language teachers.

Does a future Coalition government commit that SBS will remain a sole broadcaster and that it will not merge with the ABC?
My government fully understands and appreciates the important role SBS plays as Australia’s national multicultural broadcaster which was established by the Coalition Government of Malcolm Fraser. SBS plays a vital role ensuring that all Australians remain connected to their cultural and linguistic heritage. SBS also ensures that the around three million Australians who speak a language other than English at home have a resource to enable them to stay connected to their communities and participate in public life. My Government has no plans to merge SBS and the ABC.

In 2011 the then Australian government organised a Skills expo in Athens to inform people with certain skill sets about coming to work in Australia. This skills expo was a one off event; a lot of people showed interest and as a result, a number of skilled Greek nationals who were battling unemployment due to the economic crisis in Greece, managed to come and work in Australia, contributing with their skills to our economy. While these skills expos are still organised in other countries for example in Ireland and almost on a yearly basis, since 2011 not even one has been organised in Greece. Will you be looking into organising a similar event in Greece?
The use of social networking and media websites has been identified as a more cost-effective way of promoting skilled migration to a much wider audience than more traditional promotional activities such as skilled migration events and expos.

Will a future Coalition government be willing to enshrine multiculturalism in the Constitution so as to include and reflect the real makeup of the peoples’ of Australia including our Indigenous and polyethnic character?
The Coalition acknowledges and supports the immeasurable contributions that migrants, including migrants from Greece, have made and continue to make to Australia. Australia is the most successful multicultural nation in the world. This is something of which every Australian can be greatly proud.

We are focused on ensuring that our extraordinarily successful multicultural society continues to be successful. We make considerable investments in settlement services – teaching English and helping bridge what, for many, is a very difficult transition. If re-elected, we will continue to do so.
We will continue to support migrants who have chosen Australia to raise their families and live peaceful, engaging lives.

I rejoice in the vibrant diversity of our migrant nation. And barely a day goes past when I don’t celebrate that we are the most successful and harmonious multicultural nation in the world.
But we cannot be under any illusions about what our multicultural success is built upon. The reason Australians welcome high levels of immigration – the highest since the early post-war period – is that we have confidence that our Government is in control of our immigration program, deciding who can come here and ensuring that when they do they receive the support needed to integrate into Australian societies. We can welcome 13,750 refugees a year – the world’s third largest permanent refugee resettlement program in proportionate terms – because our borders are secure. Strong borders are the foundation of our high immigration multicultural success.

Any proposed changes to our nation’s constitution will ultimately need to be put to the Australian people at a referendum.