ROD PRYOR - Independant

I am absolutely opposed to CSG and a supporter of Lock the Gate Alliance. The laws are so biased against the farmers and in support of the extraction industries (pays to keep in mind that mining does in essence not produce anything, it takes what is already there).

Voters should also keep in mind that Labor and the LNP are very much in favour of CSG. Labor approved the licences, Baird is on record as saying "CSG absolutely" Federally, Ian Mcfarlane wants to fast track it and create "one-stop shops" to make approvals easier.

There are too many environmental risks surrounding CSG extraction. There is no transparency by the industry to inform the public what chemicals they use, which can make it into the water table. Methane is known to leak during the extraction process and over time, CSG (methane)is a much worse greenhouse gas than Co2. CSG is touted as a cleaner fuel than coal but unfortunately the facts don't support this assertion.

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Illness takes an additional toll on people in rural and regional areas and their families when they have to travel long distances to access specialised treatments. The Daily Liberal asked candidates for the seat of Dubbo what they would do to try to ease the cost and burden for people who needed to travel out of Dubbo for serious health treatment. We also asked whether they thought the current rates for the Isolated Patients Travel and Accommodation Assistance Scheme were adequate.

PETER SCHERER - Independent

CDP is committed to supporting families, kids and marriages.

Regarding the cost burden of people having to leave Dubbo for serious health treatment, I believe the focus should be in gaining more health specialists for this area.

Why should seriously ill people have to make long trips to see a specialist?

I don't know the answer, but possibly specialists could be used to rotate between larger towns outside the Sydney and Newcastle metropolitan areas.

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The NSW government has a plan called Decade of Decentralisation which would move some government departments to regional areas such as Dubbo. The Daily Liberal asked candidates for the seat of Dubbo what they would do to encourage more people to move to Dubbo.

PETER SCHERER - Independent

The CDP supports decentralisation, and the movement of some government jobs to areas of higher unemployment. Dubbo has a low unemployment rate of around 4.8 per cent compared to the region (6.4 per cent) and the state (5.1 per cent).

Industries like Alkane Resources (ALK) are drawing people into the area, with a diverse range of skills. ALK expects mine life of at least 80 years, once all approvals are given, and finance established.

I see the biggest issue in relocating people to Dubbo as adequate infrastructure like roads, child care, public transport etc.

Council's plan to develop more parks along the Macquarie River, and the concept of a "green web" will enhance the aesthetic qualities and make Dubbo more people friendly.

I would support the decentralisation plan of the state government, support growth industries like ALK, and encourage council with future residential subdivision, infrastructure improvements and the concept of the "green web".

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Candidates for the seat of Dubbo were asked their opinion on the topic of education. The Daily Liberal asked whether they were concerned by the performance of Dubbo schools in MySchools, NAPLAN test and other performance indicators, and if so, what they proposed to do about it. We also asked whether they thought enough resources had been provided for education in regional areas, and whether there were too many demountables being used in schools in the Dubbo electorate.

PETER SCHERER - Independent

Dubbo offers a wide range of educational facilities, from various preschools to TAFE and University.

Having taught in both private and state schools most of my life, I'm only too aware of the commitment of most teachers; their personal sacrifices and the difficulty of their job at times.

Parents and carers have a wide range of schools to choose from, depending on their circumstances.

CDP are committed to scripture classes and chaplains in our public schools. There is much more to schooling than achieving high academic results, important as that is. Helping to teach children how to live is an important aspect of the education process.

Having taught in North Sydney, western suburbs, mid north coast and 14 years in the Dubbo area; country students as a whole are more laid back and not as competitive as their city peers. There are exceptions, but this partially explains the deficit in educational standards to schools in Sydney and Newcastle areas.

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The Daily Liberal asked candidates for the seat of Dubbo about what they would do to help address chronic illness in the community. Dubbo has one of the highest rates of overweight and obese people in Australia, and we asked candidates if enough was being done to address that and other chronic health issues.

PETER SCHERER - Independent

CDP sees the individual as important, and is concerned for the welfare of all people.

Prevention is always better than cure. People need to be aware of healthy life styles, including work, sleep, eating habits, exercise and recreation. Life, be in it!

As with treatment costs for disease, the focus needs to be in gaining more health specialists for this area. Seriously ill people should not have the expense and inconvenience of travel to a major city.

Again, the concept of specialists moving around country towns would help to alleviate some costs and inconvenience that many long term health patients have.

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The Baird government plans to lease 49 per cent of NSW's electricity poles and wires to the private sector.

It is promising to use the money in a $20 billion Rebuilding NSW fund and use some for roads, rails and other infrastructure in rural areas. The Daily Liberal asked candidates for the seat of Dubbo where they stood on privatisation and what effect they thought privatisation would have on jobs for energy workers and prices for consumers.

MATT PARMETER

The NSW Greens do not support the sale of the poles and wires.

You own the electrical network, you paid for the poles and wires. They deliver a service vital to our society. The Greens believe that we should keep them, so that we can make the decisions that are going to affect us, rather than have them made by multi national corporations or large financial institutions. We should be in control of our energy future.

The Coalition is running an argument that they are leasing (not selling) the electricity networks in Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong (Ausgrid and Endeavour Energy).

And that they will lease 49% of these businesses for 99 years.

And lease 100 per cent of Transgrid (the high voltage transmission system) for 99 years.

Not calling it a sale is just mincing words.

And anyone who believes that a first 49 per cent leasing won't be followed a few years later by a second 51 per cent doesn't know much about Australian political history (e.g. the sale of Telstra).

Or that when that is done, the country poles and wires will be thrown into the deal is kidding themselves.

The Greens do not believe in power privatisation, and will be voting against it in Parliament.

See www.johnkaye.org.au /campaigns/no-power-privatisation for more information.

As some candidates were unable to deliver their responses in time for each article we have collated their answers here.