We asked Guardian Australia readers about the local issues that matter most to them this election. Broadband speeds, regional public transport, support for children with cleft palates and pollution topped voters’ lists of concerns. We put their questions to candidates.
Better transport in the Riverina
Andrew, a student in his 20s, lives in Wagga Wagga and says that while there is public transport available, the network doesn’t have enough reach to make getting from A to B easy without a car.
“I know many people who can’t drive or don’t have their driver’s licence or vehicle, for various financial and health reasons, and have to rely on either the buses or walking to do their shopping, attend classes, or go to work,” he says.
Andrew also says some buses in his area only function between 8am and 5pm and that the services are limited and disconnected.
“Someone living in Ashmont or Tolland can’t get to work in Kooringal or East Wagga without significant transit times (potentially two hours to get across town, normally a 10-minute drive by car, or about the same amount of time as walking).”
The Nationals incumbent, Michael McCormack, acknowledges that people across the Riverina and central west are experiencing cost of living pressures and “access to public transport may create issues for those who do not have access to a vehicle”.
McCormack says that if elected, he would continue to work with all levels of government to improve services in the region. He says the NSW state government, which is responsible for public transport, is “undertaking upgrades to improve services and accessibility in those locations, including at Parkes and Wagga Wagga”.
The Labor candidate, Mark Jeffreson, recognises that public transport is a “vexed problem” in the Riverina.
“Like a lot of things over the last 10 years, the transport situation hasn’t really been addressed,” Jeffreson says. “We would endeavour to work with local and state government to seek a long-term solution.”
The Greens candidate, Michael Organ, was also contacted for comment.
Support for children with cleft palate
Residents in electorates including Dunkley, Hughes, Goldstein, Casey and Jagajaga want to see children with cleft lip and palate given better support and access to speech therapy services.
Jessica Beckman, a mother of two disabled children, from the electorate of Jagajaga says too many children are suffering from developmental delays from not having access to early intervention services.
“My son Ethan is affected by cleft and palate. Not having palate makes speech, language and communication difficult. This affected me because speech pathology services are not free,” says Beckman, who has worked in early childhood education all her working life.
As part of CleftPals, a not-for-profit group of volunteers, she is lobbying for speech pathology services to be included in the already existing Medicare cleft scheme and for the condition to be recognised as a lifelong disability under the NDIS.
Kate Thwaites, the incumbent Labor member for the seat of Jagajaga in Melbourne’s north-east, says she has met with a local woman who explained how hard it is for her child and other children with cleft palate to get the support they need.
“I am committed to advocating for better services for these families and making sure their voices are heard in Canberra,” she says.
“Across Jagajaga, I hear from too many families who have been let down by Scott Morrison’s failure to invest in health services and to make the NDIS work as it should to support people with disability. An Albanese Labor government will invest in Medicare and fix the NDIS and I know this will benefit families in our local community.”
The Liberal and Greens candidates for Jagajaga were also contacted for comment.
NBN connection in Maleny
Richard Proudfoot from the small town of Maleny in the electorate of Fisher in Queensland, says residents have become “extremely frustrated” with the lack of fast internet connection. Maleny missed out on government initiatives that improve regional national broadband network connectivity. Richard says he has become accustomed to speeds of 10Mbps, and wants to know what the candidates would do to provide better connectivity.
Andrew Wallace, the incumbent Liberal member for Fisher, says he understands how “vital” the NBN and phones are to life. He points out that “over 103,000 premises are ready for service in Fisher, compared to just 489 when the Labor party was last in office”.
Wallace says the government would be investing $480m to improve communication infrastructure as part of a planned system uplift. He says this would help support more than 1 million people in regional areas, but did not specify whether Maleny would benefit directly from this scheme.
Labor’s Judene Andrews made a firm commitment that “almost 1,000 homes and businesses” in Maleny would be plugged into the NBN if Labor won government.
“Many towns like Maleny have missed out on having acceptable internet when it’s crucial we all have access to competitive internet speeds in our homes and small businesses. Most Maleny homes have poor internet service and speeds,” she says.
Smoke stacks in Grayndler
People from the electorate of Grayndler in Sydney’s inner west are worried about the fumes coming from the WestConnex smoke stacks in Rozelle. The stacks’ proximity to nearby schools has parents particularly concerned about the effect that toxic fumes may have on their children. They have been organising to demand the stacks be filtered and did receive some backing from the then premier Gladys Berejiklian, although she later backflipped on her stance.
Nick from Rozelle says residents were treated “appallingly” throughout the planning and consultation stage. He understands it is a state issue but would like to see it raised on the national level since the project received federal backing.
“For a small increase [in] costs our local children’s health could have been better looked after,” he says.
“It is unlikely anything will change with WestConnex as a consequence of this election. But it does demonstrate how a major community issue can be lost in the layers of government. Makes a voter wonder for whom and why to actually vote.”
A spokesperson for Rachael Jacobs, the Greens candidate for Grayndler, says the Greens had always “stood with the community” in opposition to the WestConnex project. The Greens see the entire project as a waste of money that causes “immense” environmental damage for very little improvement in traffic conditions. The Greens MP Jamie Parker recently moved a bill in the NSW parliament to have the smoke stacks filtered, but both the Liberals and Labor voted against it.
The Liberal and Labor candidates in Grayndler were also contacted for comment.
