A local member of state parliament has formally started her bid for a third straight term in the job.
Noosa independent Sandy Bolton officially launched her Keep Noosa Independent campaign surrounded by more than 100 volunteers at the Noosa rugby league ground.
The state’s only elected independent MP for the last seven years said she was proud of what she had achieved during that time.
“When I think of the volume of what we have fought for and achieved, I am genuinely puzzled when someone says an independent MP cannot get anything done,” she said.
“The achievements are tangible and of enormous benefit to our whole community.
“Whether the funding and completion of Stage 1 of the Tewantin Bypass, $37 million allocated for the Kin Kin Pomona Road to improve safety, better management of the Noosa River, the completion of Six Mile Creek Bridge … the list goes on.”
Ms Bolton won the seat in 2017 with 31.4 per cent of the vote, to oust the LNP’s Glen Elmes, and garnered further support in 2020 with 43.9 per cent.
She faces considerable opposition this year from Clare Stewart, who stepped down as Noosa mayor to take a shot at state parliament with the LNP. Former paramedic Mark Denham is also set to vie for the position with Labor.
Ms Bolton said more projects and initiatives were “works in progress”, such as community and affordable housing that involves multiple levels of government, changes to planning schemes and the former Tewantin TAFE, which she said was shut down without community consultation or notification by the LNP government, and was subsequently part of a Native Title claim.
“As I have said before, when I have time I will write a book covering the billions of taxpayer dollars wasted by the combative nature of our majors, the lack of capacity in our public sector and how flawed our governance is,” she said.
Do you have an opinion to share? Submit a Letter to the Editor at Sunshine Coast News via news@sunshinecoastnews.com.au. You must include your name and suburb.
“It is demonstrative of how immature our politics is by the use of media grabs or parliament screams to address major concerns,” she said.
“That doesn’t resolve complex issues impacting our communities and across Queensland and Australia, nor provide the long, multi-term, bipartisan agreements needed.
“One of the most disappointing actions to see this year was the Opposition’s disregard for the evidence produced from a seven-month inquiry into creating greater safety in our communities.
“That they have still not made any commitments to the 60 recommendations that emanated from the Youth Justice Reform Inquiry shows how flawed party politics are.”
Ms Bolton said, as an independent, she was in a unique position to work with all in the best interests of Noosa.
“There are no benefits to Noosa in having a party-aligned MP as we have seen from when we had two political party MPs, whose respective parties even held government during their terms,” she said.
“To subscribe to calls that Noosa should be sacrificed to ensure a change of government misses the most important point. Noosa is about people before politics, not a party.”
Pre-polling starts on October 14, with the election to be held on October 26.
Help us deliver more news by registering for our FREE daily news feed. All it requires is your name and email at the bottom of this article.
