The date is set for the federal election Saturday, September 7 and now its up to the six candidates for our seat of Hunter to hit the hustings and sell us their policies.
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Hunter as its names implies covers a good deal of the Hunter Valley from Maitland in the east to Cassilis in the west, Murrurundi in the north and south to Wollombi.
The main towns include Branxton, Cessnock, Maitland Merriwa, Muswellbrook, Scone, Singleton and Kandos with the major industries being coal mining, agriculture including viticulture, horse stud, beef dairy and wool production plus power generation.
It is currently held by the Labor Party’s Joel Fitzgibbon who was elected in 1996 following in the footsteps of his father who held the seat from 1984-96.
Hunter’s first member was Australia’s inaugural Prime Minister Edmund Barton and has been held by a Labor Party candidate since 1910 and Mr Fitzgibbon is hoping to continue the Labor tradition when he recontests the seat in this year’s election.
The other candidates are Michael Johnsen, The Nationals, Richard Stretton, Christian Democratic Party, Jennifer Stefanac, Palmer United Party, David Atwell, Greens and Ann Lawler Citizens Electoral Council.
Singleton residents should also note they will now be casting their votes on two Saturday's in September once on the 7th for the federal election and then the following Saturday teh 14 for the council by-election.
Candidate profiles.
Richard Stretton: Christian Democratic Party
Hello my fellow members of the Hunter Valley. My name is Richard Stretton and I am standing as your candidate for the Christian Democratic Party. I believe that the biggest issue to face Singleton and Muswellbrook in the short term is traffic control. I applaud the expressway extension which is almost complete but we must move immediately to continue that extension to the north of Aberdeen. The Scone level crossing would then be the next priority. This would alleviate the traffic problems associated with the New England highway for some time.
A much larger and long term issue that faces all of the hunter electorate and indeed all of the nation is that of mining and coal seam gas. It seems that we have forgotten the fact that that this nation cannot survive without food, food does not grow on the supermarket shelves, it grows on agricultural land. Mining can produce a high income over the short term but after it has finished the land is unsuitable for agriculture for many years if ever. Farming on the other hand produces a lower annual income but can do so indefinitely. I am not anti-mining, we should access the mineral wealth of this land but only in areas where it will not affect agriculture or the water systems necessary to support it.
I support encouraging agriculture and manufacturing as the long term future for Australia.
May God bless this nation as he has in the past. Richard Stretton. cdpforhunter.com
Joel Fitzgibbon: Labor Party
I've had the honour and privilege of representing the Singleton shire for the past 17 years. Jobs have always been a key priority for me and while the tapering off of the mining boom has caused job losses in recent months, we still have a record low unemployment rate. That said, we must continue to strive to diversify our local economy to ensure we aren't too dependent on mining.
Health, education and training remain priorities for me and on the latter, I'm proud of our new trades training centres and our re-furbished and expanded community college. Our primary schools have all received much needed upgrades and our Better Schools Plan will put more money into education delivery.
The Hunter Expressway will cut travel times to Newcastle and Sydney and attract investment to the Shire. The next job is to secure a by-pass of the town and I'm working with George Souris to secure one.
My main job is to ensure Singleton remains a great place to live and offers a future for our children. That's also my pledge.
David Atwell: Greens
David Atwell has been a resident of Cessnock for over 10 years. He is currently the Vice-President of the Society of Companion Animal Rescuers (SoCares). Since 2010 David has worked with both Muswellbrook and Singleton pounds in helping these facilities achieve record low kill rates.
David is also a major activist against Coal Seam Gas. With 50,000 local jobs in danger from CSG, along with $5 billion worth of local investments, he will say NO to CSG.
Having a father who died from lung cancer, caused by coal dusting on the lungs, he is only too aware of the health dangers associated with this industry.
David said “More has to be done, not only for the workers exposing their health, to this industry, but the overall burden, which the communities of the Hunter Valley have to endure. It’s an unacceptable danger to the wellbeing of every person within the community”.
BY VOTING FOR DAVID ATWELL IN HUNTER, YOU ARE VOTING TO:
Ensure that the Hunter’s agriculture is protected from mining and CSG
Protect the health of communities and workers in the Hunter coalfields from coal dust
Establish an independent Office of Animal Welfare
Jennifer Stefanac: Palmer United Party
My name is Jennifer Stefanac and I am the endorsed candidate for the Palmer United Party for the Hunter. I have been working in the areas of Child Protection and Education, which has given me insight into the complex issues people face. I believe that Clive Palmer, our Party Leader, has a vision and a plan to see that Australians have opportunities and supports to reach their full potential. Mr Palmer is our very first self-funded Prime Ministerial candidate and has the qualifications to ensure that Australia is the 'Lucky Country' into the future.
I am very enthusiastic about the prospect of change for the Hunter Electorate and am very committed to our region. I have lived here since 2003 and I am very aware of the need for resolution of long standing issues such as; improving our roads, increasing employment and training opportunities and to cease CSG (Coal Seam Gas) until further research is conducted as it has potential negative impacts on people's health, the land and interfere with water tables. As the Hunter electorate has been known as 'safe' Labor seat - nothing gets done whereas 'marginal' seats such as Maitland attract more funding and have better services for the community. I am tired of the major parties ignoring the needs of the people in this area.
For more information about my Vision for the Hunter, please visit
Ann Lawler: Citizens Electoral Council
The most urgent issue facing the people of the Hunter is the next major eruption in the global financial crisis. The CEC, in association with the American physical economist Lyndon LaRouche, has for two decades repeatedly forecast the danger of derivatives speculation and put forward solutions to shock-proof Australia. Unfortunately, until now the banks have been king but it’s time to dethrone them or they will go down and we will all go down with them.
The CEC is fighting to stop legislation to enable deposits to be grabbed to prop up failing banks, called “bail-in”, and is instead calling for:
A separation of commercial banking from investment banking along the lines of America’s 1933-1999 Glass-Steagall Act;
A government bank to direct public credit to revive our productive economy; and
Major infrastructure projects to reindustrialise the economy.
Michael Johnsen: The Nationals
At the next election the Hunter faces an important choice
– three more years of incompetence and lies from Labor or a new Liberal & Nationals government that will grow our economy and put regional communities back at the heart of our decision-making.
For the first time in decades, the choice we make here in the Hunter electorate could determine the future of our country.
The choice to me is clear. Labor have taken Hunter voters for granted for too long.
Never has this been made more clear than the past few weeks, when Labor’s secret plans were revealed to house illegal boat arrivals in Singleton, without any knowledge or consultation with the Hunter community.
For the past three years, our region has shed thousands of jobs under Labor’s Carbon and Mining taxes, while the local Member told us this was a good thing.
The Kurri Kurri aluminium smelter was closed, seeing more than 400 jobs disappear and we received no support from the Federal Government.
I started working life as a dairy farmer and have been a financial planner in Hunter now for more than two decades. In the past six years, I have seen the effects of Labor’s rising taxes and cost of living turn around a thriving economy and push our hard working communities to the wall.
I have travelled our region extensively and I keep hearing the same things – people want a strong, local Member who will put their interests first.
As a Councillor and then Mayor of Upper Hunter Shire Council, I have worked tirelessly for my community and I want to do the same for all of Hunter at the Federal Level.
As The Nationals candidate for Hunter
I will make sure that our local area has a strong voice in a new Liberal & Nationals government.
Follow me around the Hunter at
www.facebook.com/MichaelJohnsenforHunter
Follow me around the Hunter at
www.facebook.com/MichaelJohnsenforHunter
Follow me around the Hunter at
www.facebook.com/MichaelJohnsenforHunter
Follow me around the Hunter at
Follow me around the Hunter at
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