On Saturday July 2 Australia will hold national elections for all 226 members of its Parliament. Supporters of community radio across the country are taking advantage of this attention to demand the restoration of $1.4 million in cuts to the service. Almost 49,000 Australians have added their names to a #keepcommunityradio petition page.
The petition reads in part:
“Community radio serves so many Australians; from radio reading for people with a print disability to programming in the different languages spoken across our country, to Indigenous broadcasters, faith based stations, regional stations and youth stations.
Please don’t leave community radio behind.”
The petition is addressed to leaders Malcolm Turnbull of the Liberal/National Coalition and Bill Shorten of Labor. Both the Labor and Green Parties say they’ll restore the cuts if elected.