MICHAEL CLARKE, PRESENTER:Well Federal Politics has been a pretty brutal playground recently, but do you sometimes get frustrated and think that elected representatives seem more concerned about power than actually working for you and getting policies sorted out that might attract your vote? An election will be held some time before May next year, but still the local region grapples with high unemployment particularly for young people, business uncertainty and an economy that's been struggling in recent years. Labor's Shadow Treasurer is Chris Bowen, he arrived in Townsville yesterday and has had meetings with a number of local bodies, more to come as the day goes along. Chris Bowen, welcome to the north.

CHRIS BOWEN, SHADOW TREASURER:Good morning Michael and Happy World Cassowary Day.

CLARKE: Indeed

BOWEN: I had no idea.

CLARKE: Indeed it is, it certainly is. How would you cut the unemployment rate in Townsville?

BOWEN: Well look, this is an important visit for me. I spend a lot of time in regional Queensland because regional Queensland economies are troubled. There are issues that need to be dealt with, and you come and you listen to ideas from the community about how to deal with these things. Yesterday for example Cathy O'Toole and I had a series of good meetings with the Mayor of Townsville, the Mayor of Palm Island, and James Cook University. I was particularly impressed at James Cook University, we visited the science centre, the aqua marine science centre, which was funded by the Gillard Government. It's good to see that come to fruition. You come and know about these decisions when you make them but when you actually come back and see just how world-class that facility is for Townsville, that's impressive, and heard further ideas. You take those ideas away and talk to your colleagues and engage in the policy development. So yesterday we heard ideas about the Townsville STEM centre, to encourage young people to study science, technology, engineering and maths. Extremely important and particularly a good driver for local jobs. The Museum of Underwater Art, the world class facilities that can be made even further world-class in terms of the Reef. So there's a lot of good ideas which I'm hearing from Townsville Enterprise, from James Cook University. Got further meetings today with the Chamber of Commerce with Cathy O'Toole. That's what it's about. You come and you hear those ideas, and then you check them out, put them through their paces, do the due diligence. If they stack up, you make further commitments.

CLARKE: Are you able to make guarantees on your visit now? I mean a lot of people will be hoping, perhaps, for promises from you, and what the Labor platform will be.

BOWEN: We've already made a number of commitments for Townsville, of course. $100 million in terms of water supply, $200 million in terms of hydro. The port, which has now been matched by the Government, we welcome, we made that commitment and it took the Government a long time to match it. They have matched it, so that's great, tick. Townsville's the winner. So we already have a number of commitments on the table. They're quite substantial commitments, as the person who has to sign off on Labor's spending commitments, I can tell you these are pretty big commitments for a community. Appropriately so, Cathy's advocated for them, and Townsville does need that investment for obvious reasons. The water supply is a huge issue. If you can fix the water supply and create jobs at the same time, that's obviously an economic winner. And we look for those sorts of ideas. And so to build on those commitments we've already made, we are undertaking further consultations. I'm not making more policy announcements today, that's not what this trip is about. Sometimes you make policy announcements, sometimes you just come and you listen, and me sitting in my office in Canberra or Sydney is not going to come up with solutions for Townsville. There are people who have been working on these ideas and are now putting them forward, and it's important that Townsville speaks with one voice, and Cathy's been very assiduous in ensuring that's the case, saying to people: 'Look, if I'm bringing Bill Shorten in, who's a very regular visitor here, or Chris Bowen, we've got to have a coherent, unified message.' And that's what I'm hearing while I'm here.

CLARKE: But what will be the job generators for Townsville, in your opinion from what you've heard yesterday?

BOWEN: I don't think there's going to be one silver bullet. I don't think... any politician who comes in and says 'I've got the one idea which is going to fix your problems' is having you frankly, but if you get a series going, a pattern going, if you can imagine if the water supply is dealt with, if there's a hydro plan, if there's investment in other infrastructure, if we really work with James Cook University to have more world-class facilities. Of course, when the stadium's finished that's a huge boost. So all these things add up to a coherent plan, if they're done properly and they're brought together. And that's part of what we do. I don't just come here and listen to one idea, we bring them all together, I talk to my colleagues, to Anthony Albanese for example, and Jason Clare the Shadow Minister for Northern Australia, to have a good package for the next election and one we can deliver in government.

CLARKE: We are getting closer to an election, we dont know when that will be, but it will certainly be in the first half of next year. Do you think you can retain the seat of Herbert and increase the margin?

BOWEN: Well I certainly think we can, absolutely. We dont it for granted, Cathy doesnt take it for granted, 37 votes last time was a very narrow margin, so any politician who thinks that they are home and hosed is having themselves on. Cathy is a great local member, she certainly stands up for this area in the Caucus. We want her as a member of our government is we win. Were hereI think Bill has been here something like 17 times, Im coming through regularly, Cathy regularly gets shadow ministers through. Importantly, were committing to as Ministers in Government. You cant be a Sydney-Melbourne focused Treasurer well you can but you wouldnt be a very good one and care about what is happening in the regions, high unemployment, high youth unemployment worries me greatly. The majority of jobs being created out of Sydney and Melbourne, theres a sucking of economic activity towards Sydney and Melbourne and I dont think thats a great thing. It is important that we share economic growth, weve got a good economic growth story in Australia over recent decades, but it is important it is shared fairly across the regions.

CLARKE: If we have a seat which is so marginal, the most marginal across Australia, what does that say to you about the voters of Herbert? To you and to other parties?

BOWEN: Well Herbert has been a swing seat for a long time, has been a marginal seat for a long time. It has been won by the LNP more than Labor but nonetheless it has always been in the mix and has been one that you have always got to watch.

CLARKE: So does that say that if youre not impressing people with your policies, it doesnt matter what party you are, youre going to get kicked out?

BOWEN: Look, good local members can be defeated. I have seen a lot of good local members be swept away as the tide has gone in or out. Being a good local member is an important first step, if youre not then you wont be re-elected. I put to you that Cathy is a good local member, but on top of that were putting forward a plan for Australia. Now the other side is a bit of a circus, lets just call it out. Three Prime Ministers, Im facing my third Treasurer, theres no coherent message, they are focusing on themselves as weve seen with the constant leaking. We on the other hand have had a stable leadership team for five years, weve been developing the policies, developing the plans. Not everybody will agree with our plan or policies

CLARKE: This was after a period of instability

BOWEN: Sure, but we learnt our lesson.

CLARKE: Do you think people see that, Labor and LNP? Or do you think people just see people kicking out Prime Ministers. Is this all being blended into one in the eyes of the public?

BOWEN: Everyone will have their own way of looking at it. Two points: firstly, we went through a period of instability but Bill Shorten is now a long serving leader of the Labor Party. Five years in opposition is a very long period. It shows were not chopping and changing, it shows that we are sticking to the plan. We all have our good days and bad days, of course, but you dont panic and throw your leaders out. Now that is what the Liberals and Nationals have done. Second point is the Liberals and Nationals arent just fighting around personalities, Tony Abbott doesnt like Malcolm Turnbull or Peter Dutton doesnt like Scott Morrison. This is a battle of values, this is a battle for the heart and soul of the Government, what do they stand for? What do they believe in? Human caused climate change? What sort of economic management plan do they believe in? What sort of energy policy do they believe in? The country has no energy policy as we speak, not one. When there isnt an energy policy and energy is arguably the biggest problem facing the economy, a lack of investment in energy generation, and you can argue about or quibble about what the energy policy should be, but I tell you this, we dont have an energy policy and we wont have investment. The country is paying the price for this dysfunction.

CLARKE: And those meetings today to continue in earnest, we thank you for your time, thanks for being with us.

BOWEN: Pleasure Michael, great to be back in Townsville.