Good morning. What a warm welcome. Thank you for your support.

Well, we've got a tough fight ahead, but judging from your welcome today, it's clearly a fight we're all ready for.

This is a fight the people of NSW need us to win. In fact, people stop Deborah and me in the street each day and say “You Have to win”

And it's a fight we can win!

I want to especially thank my wife Deborah and my step-daughter Angela, for being here today. Deborah is a tower of strength and I thank her very much for all of her love and support to join me every day - on and off the campaign trail.

Thank you also to our Prime Minister John Howard as well as Janette for joining us today, and for his warm introduction to me and my leadership team.

And a special welcome to former Premier Nick Greiner, it’s great to see you here today Nick.

Like John Howard and Nick Greiner, I am very proud to be a Liberal and a Leader of our Party.

The Liberal Party has given us a rare opportunity to serve the public of our great country and our great state.

And we are proud to be part of a strong Liberal/Nationals Coalition team.

I’m proud of my Party and I’m proud of my team.

It takes more than one person to run NSW, and it will certainly take more than one person to fix NSW.

That is why Barry, Andrew and I are extremely proud of our Shadow Ministry team, who join us on stage, and all of our MPs and candidates.

Unlike Labor, our team is not filled with union officials and political operatives. Our team is drawn from the community - small business owners, farmers, nurses, teachers, police – and don't forget the Navy. And yes, we've even got some lawyers and ex-journalists.

Friends, 12 years in Opposition is a long time. And unlike Morris Iemma, I remember the last twelve years, not just the last eighteen months.

Morris Iemma has been an integral part of the Labor Government for 12 years, as a Parliamentary Secretary for Bob Carr, as a Minister for Bob Carr and as a Labor Premier.

Morris Iemma was there when Bob Carr broke his promise to resign if he did not halve waiting lists.

He was there when nurses were bullied by Labor for blowing the whistle on under funding at Camden and Campbelltown Hospitals.

He was there when the Camden maternity unit was rushed into service by Labor prior to the last election, putting mothers and their children at risk.

Morris Iemma was there as Health Minister when hospital waiting lists climbed to more than 59,000 - to set a new shameful record.

He was there during the Rail disasters in Glenbrook and Waterfall and when Labor botched the Millennium Trains.

He was there when Labor signed the contract for the Cross City Tunnel and the Lane Cove Tunnel.

He was there when Labor introduced the Vendor Tax and abolished the Land Tax threshold to hit another 400,000 families and small businesses.

And Morris Iemma was there when riots broke out in Redfern, Macquarie Fields, Dubbo and Cronulla.

And Morris Iemma's still there defending Labor's softly softly approach to policing.

At each election the list of things we need to fix in NSW gets longer and more expensive.

In Opposition, our team has developed experience across all portfolios, working closely with the community and the front line of service delivery.

After twelve years, we know the scale of the problem. And after twelve years our team is ready and we now want to go to work and fix this state.

Ladies and Gentlemen, today is the first of a series of campaign events we will hold between now and the election.

At each of these events we will be focusing, as a team, on key policy issues.

In the weeks ahead, we will address issues such as health, education, the environment, crime, public transport and infrastructure.

Today I want to talk to you about rescuing our economy, tackling our water crisis and restoring trust in Government in NSW.

Most of us grew up in NSW when it was the Premier state, but after twelve years of Labor in NSW we can't say this any longer.

We're in the midst of an economic crisis, a budget crisis, a housing crisis and a water crisis.

The state budget is in deficit to the tune of $500 million. New housing has flat-lined. And there is an acute shortage of rental accommodation in Sydney.

In two of the last three quarters, the NSW economy has gone backwards. And on March 7 we will find out whether NSW is in recession.

But Labor still says we're heading in the right direction?

If that's true, where exactly is Labor taking NSW?

As always, Labor will try and shift the blame to Canberra, blaming interest rates and the GST. They'll say they're not responsible. But that's the problem, they're in denial.

In Victoria they pay GST and interest rates as well. Yet in Victoria they have lower unemployment, a positive rate of growth and their budget is in surplus - a $500 million surplus.

But there is one economic statistic where NSW does lead the way, but you won't like it. We pay more tax per person than in any other state.

After twelve years of a booming national economy, people and families in NSW have every right to ask Morris Iemma and his Labor Party – where has all the money gone?

You cannot invest in public services and run a strong budget without a strong economy.

After last years' budget, I announced an economic rescue plan for NSW.

I announced that we will cut payroll tax by raising the threshold.

I said we will make new housing more affordable by increasing the first home owners grant and providing stamp duty concessions.

Today we need to go further.

Under a Liberal/Nationals Government, NSW taxpayers will get a better deal.

They’ll get a better deal , because unlike Labor, we’ll listen to the community.

Treasury officials should not be the only voice that the Government listens to when it comes to how much tax people and families in NSW should be paying.

That’s how idea’s like a Vendor Tax and abolishing the Land tax threshold become a reality, as they have under Labor.

We need to give the community a voice in how tax policy is run in this state.

We’ll do this by appointing a Special Premier’s Community Advisory Panel on State Taxes. The Panel will advise me directly on how we can reduce the tax burden on families and small business in NSW and make our state tax system fairer.

But to get us started, today I announce that a Liberal/Nationals Government will cut the NSW land tax burden for families and small business by $400 million over four years:

• to kick start property investment,
• to assist hard working people, families and small business who have invested for their future and
• to help improve the affordability and supply of rental accommodation.

We will raise the land tax threshold to $415,000 - and thereby exempt around 39,000 families, small businesses and other property owners from paying land tax in NSW.

This means almost one in three current land tax payers will be exempt from paying land tax in NSW under the Liberal/Nationals plan.

And by raising the threshold we will reduce the land tax bills for another 90,000 families and small businesses.

This policy is fully funded and fully costed, because unlike Labor we are prepared to take the hard decisions to repair the State’s economy and budget.

Since the last election, State Government revenue has increased by almost 20% - almost twice as fast as inflation. Yet Government spending has grown by an even faster rate – almost 27%.

I have said clearly that I will change how Government is run in NSW.

Not since the Greiner/Fahey Coalition Governments, 12 years ago, have we seen innovation in how the public sector is run in NSW.

Under Labor, the public sector unions in NSW have taken over and reform has been off the agenda.

I will reduce the number of Government departments and agencies from around thirty three to nine.

And I will place a freeze on the recruitment of Sydney backroom bureaucrats to transfer more than $4 billion in funding through to lower taxes and more frontline services, including 1100 new police, 500 new nurses and 200 new teachers.

Labor says it can't be done. And they come up with all types of excuses and scare campaigns as to why. But they’re wrong.

I won't be intimidated. I'll just fix it.

On day one, I will put in place a recruitment freeze on Sydney backroom bureaucrats. As these bureaucrats retire or resign, we will not replace them.

As any frontline staff resign or retire, they WILL be replaced.

We will transfer the bureaucratic savings through to frontline services and tax cuts. And I will say to the Departmental Director-Generals - ‘make it happen’ and then I will hold them accountable.

It's that simple. In the Navy they call it leadership.

The other major policy issue I want to talk about today is water.

For 12 years Labor have failed to plan and act on water.

As I've said on so many occasions - there is no silver bullet solution to the water crisis. We have to tackle the water crisis, region by region, town by town and house by house.

You need to know what your options are and set clear priorities.

Under Labor ninety seven per cent of water falling on Sydney - just like today - flows out to sea. This must change.

That’s why our priorities have always been for recycling and storm water harvesting. 

• We announced our commitment to recycle one Ocean Outfall within our first term.
• We announced we would establish a $1 billion drought proofing fund for NSW, to be funded in part from the sale of State Lotteries.
• We have also announced comprehensive regional water plans for the Central Coast, for Goulburn/Southern Highlands and for the North West.
• And we will significantly increase rebates for rainwater tanks to $1500, right across NSW - not just Sydney, where they are connected to the toilet or washing machine.
• And we will add a $400 rebate for existing owners of rainwater tanks to have them connected to the toilet or washing machine.

Labor has failed to do the hard yards on recycling and stormwater harvesting for 12 years.

And now, just weeks from the election, they can't find recycling projects fast enough. The projects recently announced by Labor have sat on the table for at least two years. It's too little, too late.

I'm happy to examine all of Labor's new proposals. If they stack up, we'll do them as well. All options should be considered to solve the water crisis.

However, not one drop of water from Labor's proposed recycling projects will be used to boost our drinking supply. And that is what this debate is all about, finding the best way to boost our drinking water supply, in drought conditions.

That's why 10 days ago I announced our decision to use recycled water to boost our drinking water supply, if necessary.

I was appalled at Labor's arrogance to try and lock the people of this city and this state into an expensive and environmentally damaging $1.9 billion desalination plant at Kurnell, and just a few weeks before an election.

And to dump it here in the Shire, just a few kilometers down the road, when all the water produced by the plant will be pumped back across Botany Bay to be used in the eastern and inner western suburbs, only adds insult to injury.

I believe that NSW deserves a better choice than desalination.

Our plan to use purified recycled water from the South West and North West Sydney to boost drinking water supplies for all of Sydney, will be able to deliver almost twice the water at half the cost of Labor's desalination.

Our plan is a clear choice and a better choice.

Labor will continue their irresponsible and hypocritical scare campaign against recycled water.

However, I believe that the people of NSW will see through this and back our plan for recycling rather than go down Labor's environmentally damaging and costly path of desalination at Kurnell.

One of the key advantages of our plan is that we can do it for less.

This means resources from the desalination plant can be used for other worthy projects.

So I am pleased to announce today that we will create a new $120 million Storm Water Harvesting Community Trust to fund local storm-water harvesting across the state.

Projects to be funded from the Community Trust will include industrial water tanks, subterranean tanks, irrigation of public spaces and recreation reserves, recharging of wetlands, use of public structures such as bridges and roadways for stormwater harvesting and a host of other great ideas that will come from our community.

The Trust will be overseen by a Community Board and will be created under its own legislation.

I said in my internet blog this week that there's a lot of talk about broken infrastructure in NSW - and it's all true.

But the key piece of public infrastructure that is broken in NSW is the Government itself.

As I move around the State, people keep saying to me and Deborah how they have lost faith in Government in NSW and have lost faith in public services.

A Government can only operate when it enjoys the trust of the community.

After 12 years of Labor, the relationship of trust in NSW has been completely broken down.

We need to re-establish trust in NSW between the community and the Government that seeks to serve the community.

NSW needs change.

You don't have to imagine what life will be like if Labor is re-elected, you've been living with it for 12 long years.

The biggest risk facing NSW at this election is that nothing changes.

Morris Iemma has been an integral part of the Labor Government for 12 years.

And if re-elected he'll re-appoint Michael Costa, Joe Tripodi and Frank Sartor to continue making the decisions that will affect your future for another four years.

My Liberal/Nationals team have a straightforward plan to fix NSW

• to rescue our economy from recession

• to tackle our water crisis, and

• and restore trust in public services.

We're ready to get on with the job from day one , no ifs, no buts.

So, together let's fix NSW.