Wauchope Chamber's Meet the Candidates for Oxley in the NSW State Election attracted a crowd of more than 40 to Wauchope RSL on Monday March 18.
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Hot topics included policing, the CBD upgrade, Wauchope Public School, forests, the sporting fields, roads and policing. Four of the five candidates attended. Dean Saul from the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party was absent.
Each candidate had five minutes at the beginning to introduce themselves and their policies.
Greens candidate Arthur Bain spoke about his passion for the environment and his concern over accelerated climate change, saying it needs to be front and centre in politics. He accused the government of refusing to act, and said a strong Green vote could well send the right message.
Country Labor candidate Susan Jenvey said she understands small towns like Wauchope, and how difficult it is to get regional sporting and cultural grants. She said people are tired of the Nationals, that they had no plans for improving East-West transport links, or for tourism or agriculture. She said Labor have great plans for schools and hospitals before the Sydney sporting stadiums, and will tackle mental health with an extra $2 billion, as well as roads.
The Nationals' Melinda Pavey said it had been an honour to be Oxley member for four years, and said work on the Pacific Highway and the Oxley Highway would continue, as would the Wauchope main street upgrade. She said if they win, they will help local councils, continue to fix timber bridges, and personally promised to work to get an application for a sports precinct grant for Stoney Creek.
Sustainable Australia's Debbie Smythe said her party's core focus is that the Australia we leave behind is as good if not better than the one we inherited. She said her party is centrist, pragmatic and moderate. She said public finances must be properly managed, and promised secure jobs in a more diverse economy, and affordable housing. She said we need to get immigration down from 'the out-of-control levels we have now'.
Questions from the Chamber:
The political candidates were questioned on a range of topics, including the CBD upgrade, policing and forests.
CBD upgrade
Chamber president Gary Rainbow asked if the CBD upgrade would be extended beyond the section between Hastings Street and Cameron Street and did they support continued improvement in the town centre and on the Oxley Highway.
Arthur Bain said the Greens support improving roads, particularly when they improve public transport. Susan Jenvey supports town beautification, but said there was some tree planting in Wauchope, but also a lot of concrete, adding that it's such a busy road with trucks going up and down that people don't feel like sitting outside cafes.
Melinda Pavey said a local reference group was needed to start identifying whether there should be a bypass of Wauchope. Debbie Smythe supported continuing investment in Wauchope town centre, but said traffic had increased five-fold in the past five years.
24-hour policing
Chamber president Gary Rainbow said many Wauchope people want a 24-hour manned police station in the town.
Debbie Smythe supported it, and pointed to the expanding population, adding that youth unemployment is the root cause of a spike in crime.
Susan Jenvey said if she was elected, she would bring together the police and the local community to find a consensus, but warned that there is no easy answer, and that alcohol and drug addiction play a part.
Melinda Pavey said there are more police officers than ever, that a 24-hour station would require four to five officers, and that police chiefs favour mobile patrols nowadays, that it's about visibility.
Arthur Bain said an alternative way of creating safer communities is the regulation and taxing of cannabis, which would free up resources and relieve pressure on services.
Forests
The Chamber asked the candidates' views on clearing forests in the hinterland.
Susan Jenvey said Labor would repeal the intensive IFOA logging laws which she described as a last grab for a bit of timber. She supports better access to national parks and state forests and said Labor will create new national parks including a great koala park.
Melinda Pavey said Wauchope was built on the back of the timber industry, and that in the 70s and 80s they probably overdid it a bit, but said even the most ardent Greenie would agree that we import timber and she wants to save local timber jobs, and do what needs done, with conservation and respect.
Arthur Bain said a lot more staff were needed for feral animal control, and weed eradication. He was very concerned about current logging, and that wilderness areas could be turned into luxury resorts.
Debbie Smythe said that over the past three years, clearing of native vegetation jumped 300%. She complained of natural habitat destruction, that koala numbers were down, and said timber-growing had to be sustainable.
Sporting precinct
Chamber and Cricketer Mervyn Bourke OAM asked about State government funding for the Hastings Sporting Precinct at Stoney Creek in Wauchope, pointing out that most of the Council money for the project has been diverted to Ocean Drive.
Melinda Pavey said she had good news on that front, and if elected, the NSW government will take back the Ocean Drive project to the tune of $50m, to free up Council funds for the sporting precinct which she believes is really positive.
She said that sadly the council hadn't applied for State government funding yet, and hopes they will. She said she was disappointed, but council pointed out that applications were costly.
Arthur Bain said it was very concerning that Wauchope had lost out, and the Greens encourage sport and physical activity. Debbie Smythe said we need to have real regional development, and more accommodation for teams to stay, as well as services for day trippers.
Susan Jenvey said sporting in regional communities is really important and that an injustice seemed to have happened in Wauchope, and the State government should intervene. She said the scheme made a lot of sense.
Oxley Highway
Chamber asked if candidates supported further road improvements in the area, with consideration for motorcycle-friendly strategies.
Arthur Bain was concerned about motorcyclist fatalities and injuries, and improving the road surface, and having better signage. Debbie Smythe supports Motorcycle Friendly Wauchope and believes there is a lot of room for road improvements.
Susan Jenvey said she also supports a bicycle path from Wauchope to Port Macquarie. Melinda Pavey says the Nationals gave $20,000 to the showground for the Ulysses motorcycle club AGM in 2017. She said that the fatality stats were previously horrific, and they had to do something about the speed limits on the Oxley Highway.
Mrs Pavey said that as Roads Minister, doing East and West links is very complicated, that they care about local roads as well as State roads, and more would be done, if they get elected on Saturday.
Preferences
Donna Lloyd from Long Flat asked candidates to indicate their preferences.
Debbie Smythe said Sustainable Australia in the State election is doing an open ticket. Susan Jenvey said Country Labor in the legislative assembly preference the Greens, then the Shooters and Fishers, then Sustainable Australia, and put the Nationals last.
Melinda Pavey said the Nationals say just vote one in the legislative assembly, and in the legislative council, vote one Liberals and Nationals, two Liberal Democrat and three Christian Democrat Party.
Arthur Bain said in the lower house, Greens say vote them first, second Labor because they have a climate change target, third Sustainable Australia who have some shared values, then Nationals because they have shared values on social justice.
New school
From the floor, Grant Rogers said Wauchope Public School has 750 pupils, they destroyed a heritage building to build new classrooms, and shouldn't there be a new, additional primary school, because the road network can't handle so many students, and children get misplaced in bigger schools.
Susan Jenvey said Labor hasn't planned a new school for Wauchope but there could be conversations about it. Debbie Smythe said Sustainable Australia have a better planning platform with 10-year community infrastructure plans already mapping out what will happen, rather than taking knee-jerk, reactive approaches to urban planning.
Melinda Pavey said the NSW government is building proper classrooms replacing demountables, and keeping a communal area because the P&C wanted it. She said Huntingdon and Beechwood public schools still have capacity.
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