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“As an ABC journalist in the 80s and 90s, I watched the issue of climate change being sidelined and misreported by small and major parties – and by some commentators – at a time when early action could have been taken. And the economic and scientific lies are still happening,”
I’m a former ABC journalist, university academic and playwright. I’m standing in Calare because the Greens are the only major party committed to the environment, to real climate action and to social justice.
I’ve lived in Bathurst and Peel in the Calare electorate for more than twenty years. In the last two, we’ve fended off drought, fire, floods and pandemic. Back in 2020, Lithgow, Rylstone, Kandos and Mudgee areas faced fire terror from the Blue Mountains and Wollemi National Park fire fronts. In just the last few weeks Calare’s towns and cities have been cut off by storm damage on the Great Western Highway. During the height of the drought and fire season (just before Covid hit) our dams were empty and visibility from Lithgow to Wellington was obscured for days on end by dust-storms and fire smoke. Let’s not forget the sense of apocalyptic doom we all felt that summer two years ago…
Now it’s unprecedented rainfall, storms and floods across NSW. Northern Rivers friends have told me that media could not cover all the stories of terror and tragedy driving residents there to despair. The pain is just beginning…
What will it take before our government – Coalition or Labor – commits to cutting greenhouse emissions at the level and speed the rest of the world (including UN Secretary General Antonio Gueterres) is begging of Australia?
Let’s show that we want to take responsibility by voting to give the Greens the balance of power to pressure for real climate change action.
I’m also standing for the Greens because we are the only party advocating a humane approach to asylum seekers fleeing their home countries. The Greens want to end Labor and the Coalition’s cruel offshore and mandatory detention for asylum seekers arriving by boat.
The Greens have strong, practical policies to deal with social and justice issues: First Nations truth, treaty and justice, secure housing as a human right, a fully funded Medicare, a fully funded NDIS, community-led healthcare for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, universal free public education and funded, accessible, high quality, not-for-profit aged care.
If you want the major parties to know that we rural folk want urgent climate action and policy with a social conscience you need to vote 1 for the Greens in both the House of Reps and in the Senate.
And let me work for you in Calare!