It’s time to work together for the future of Barwon

This week I had the honour of delivering my inaugural speech in Parliament. An opportunity to talk about my goals for the next four years. To you the people I represent I restate my election commitments – to work hard and be honest.

Across the electorate I have met many people who are incredibly passionate about the future of their community. They want recognition that at this moment in the history of NSW the government is faced with a choice. They continue to treat the communities of western NSW in the same manner they have been or they change their focus and reinvigorate the bush.

I am committed to working with the community and listening to people. With the aim of building a future where every child in Barwon has the same opportunities as a child in Sydney. To ensure that those living in far west NSW don’t continue to have their life expectancy decreased and to start opening doors for communities to thrive.

The Barwon electorate is fortunate to have a large Aboriginal community – I am thankful for the support they provided to me during the campaign. I will use my time in Parliament to support all Aboriginal people to gain traction on the issues that are important to them.

I will work across political divides to solve problems and make decisions that will improve our collective future and most importantly our children’s future.

I talk a lot about quality of life – we in the Barwon electorate don’t have the things that people who live in the city take for granted. We don’t have comprehensive public transport, we don’t have the level of public amenity, we don’t have 24 hour services.

We are also currently faced with a drought that has moved beyond a meteorological and hydrological drought – a lack of rain and water in our river systems. We are now deep into a socio-economic drought, a drought that is impacting on all aspects of our communities.

The government needs to support people so they can reach their potential, and create an unfair advantage for businesses in regional NSW. We need business incentives, I would love to see a five year wave on stamp duty for commercial property and commercial vehicles. I would also like to see payroll tax removed in regional NSW – a tax on employing people doesn’t make much sense. Two areas I am committed to working on during my time in Parliament.

If we are to reinvigorate communities, we should not have to ask for or lobby for the necessities of life. The communities of Barwon should be able to reach for aspirational goals. They should be aided by the government, and should not be told what we want or need it should be up to communities.

We in Barwon have not lost our sense of community. It is stronger than ever. We have passionate campaigners. We have very strong community groups. People are committing their time to make sure our communities are good places to live.

I look forward to working with local government, community organisations and individuals to realise their aspirational goals. It is my absolute intention to leave a legacy of improved quality of life for people living in communities across the electorate.

To the people of Barwon I will work my hardest to make your voices heard and make sure your priorities are addressed. Thank you for your trust and confidence.