There are various funding models in force at the moment which differ across states. It's such a complex way in which to be funded and it needs to be simplified.

The crux of this issue is that the Marine force really isn't very well designed for the type of fight it's facing in Iraq.

The entire Marine force was designed around the concept of amphibious warfare, which is a good deal different from the kind of conflict they're fighting in Iraq today, hundreds of miles from the sea. The Marines are a light force; they kick in the door but they are not supposed to occupy all the rooms.

The people in the bush feel they own the RFDS and it's their service and that ownership comes from local management. Most people get very few services and the one constant that's been in their life has been the RFDS. Any attempt to change the way it's managed is quite confronting to them and they would resist considerable change.

At the moment there is no clear definition about which services they are funding.

Rural Australia is now remote in terms of health services but our funding has not reflected that.