Teresa. Whilst I am ambivalent regarding the issue of political bias in the MSM, it being a mechanism for 'keeping up with' the thinking and direction of 'the other side', I think you have chosen the wrong publisher in submitting your piece in OLO.

OLO is a forum to espouse ideas and philosophies with a view of using persuasion, evidence and nuanced argument to bring others over to your view. As Rhrosty observes, your arrant, tiresome and obvious bias encorages those 'from the other side' to not read past your opening paragraph, reference Stephenroger for example. Poof... There goes your opportunity.

Now, to the subject matter, your argument falls over immediately when not acknowledging Gary Grey for example, hardly and L plater in his portfolio.

Perhaps, as Ludwig comments, speaking some 'home truths' would be a little more productive vis a vis PNG and the Solomons. After all, we have been 'assisting' these countries for decades, without apparent progress.

In the final analysis I tend to agree, once again, with Hasbeen. Scrap all foreign aid $ and use the Chinese approach, it does appear to work wonders with national development, poverty amelioration and is also quite good for Chinese interests as well, talk about free market pragmatism... From a communist country? Whoda thunk it?

<< Please, do tell us, in detail, what specific changes you would make to Australia's foreign aid program if your party were to form government? >>

A good question, JBSH.

I feel further to my previous comments that Teresa’s criticism is a tad duplicitous unless she can demonstrate that her party would do a much better job when in government.

She writes:

< What Australia's foreign aid program so sorely needs is a revitalised focus on our own region, a clearly articulated focus on medical research targeting disease and a effective plan to engage the business sector in driving economic development as a primary lever to achieve positive aid outcomes >

But she doesn’t give any indication that a Coalition government would do this.

I’d also question her primary motives for giving this aid. It shouldn’t be about continuously striving to increase economic growth, it should be about the achievement of sustainable societies, which fundamentally means growing the economies AND stabilising the populations of aid-recipient countries.

In fact, the terrible omission of anything to do with population stabilisation in our aid programs completely undermines our supposed goals of improving the quality of life of people in these countries and doing ourselves out of the aid ‘business’.

Cambaro: Foreign aid is not effective unless is produces tangible results on the ground.

Foreign Aid never has. Foreign Aid is a feel good for Governments. (Look what we are doing)& a photo or Video News Event. The little people on the ground, the ones it's supposed to help get very little of the end product. (from experience) Most goes to pay off CEO's, Government officials, Local Officials, the local Head Man in the Area. The Local Militia & the Transport owner. Not much left after that but it's good for a photo.

Cambaro: Australian taxpayers have a right to demand something better than L-plate stewardship of our $5.2 billion foreign aid program.

Yes it does, but it doesn't. A better idea would be to cut Foreign Aid to Material Help on the ground. Not Cash. $5.2 billion would be better spent repairing Australia’s neglected Infrastructure. We can’t help others if we can’t help ourselves & we aren’t. Our Schools, Hospital, Water Resources, Roads, Bridges, Rail would be a disgrace in a 3rd. World Country.

Cambaro: Our place as a nation on the world stage.

Now that a look at us attitude & really no one cares. No one overseas knows what Australia does & they don’t care either.

Cambaro: as a good neighbour in our own region demands that we get this right.

Yes it does. So why are we giving Aid to Countries that we know are ripping off the Aid. We should only be giving Aid when it’s needed for Disasters & then only Material Aid which we take back when it’s no longer needed. Eg, Generators, Tarps, etc.

Facts are:
1. A majority of Australia's foreign aid does not leave Australia. Note:
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/phantom-aid-never-leaves-our-shores/2007/05/27/1180205079584.html

2. Aid in cash does not reach the actual people. Island people require fuel to travel by canoe with outboard’s that guzzle fuel nearly double the cost of in Australia.

3. Real aid should include some cash for bottom of economy people to allow trade to develop instead of declining. Pacific Islands people have recently lost their abundant available staple seafood supply and subsistence-type employment that kept many youth and other people busy. Now increasing numbers of people are bored, irritated by hunger, many unknowingly suffer malnutrition. Food shortage leads to argument including domestic violence.

4. Australian ABC media blames overfishing for fish devastation while in reality evidence of substance indicates beyond doubt unprecedented sewage nutrient loads are feeding algae this is killing seagrass food web nurseries. There is malnutrition in marine animals and seafood dependent people, death too. There have been seven dead whales on Fraser Island in a recent 2 year period, more elsewhere. http://www.frasercoastchronicle.com.au/news/beached-whale-calf-one-seven/1458287/

5. Millennium Development Goals are talked about but not achieved, in reality some are going backwards. To achieve several MDG’s, real aid should provide bigger rural village populations with even an old tractor, plough and some fuel. If village small scale farming produced feed for chickens an alternative source of essential daily protein and some employment and trade could result almost immediately. Meanwhile: http://www.spc.int/en/employment/1074-getting-to-the-point-on-pacific-tuna-fisheries.html

6. Truth needs to be told. Aid money is being wasted on consultants about everything including CO2 nonsense involving radical claims of unsubstantiated sea level rise, when in fact a vast area of SW Pacific Ocean seabed has sunk down. Major media has not reported the estimated 800-850mm sinking down of New Georgia Island in 2007 when the earthquake lifted`` Ranogga up 3 metres. Algae is also killing coral. Coral atolls must have coral. Truth and real aid is needed for effective solutions.

7. Aid has not been effective because of relevant BS and gagging especially by ABC bigots or whatever. Politicians and bureaucrats need real information to apply real aid