Exclusive: Why Lylea McMahon really walked

By Michelle Hoctor
Updated November 6 2012 - 1:24am, first published December 12 2010 - 10:00am
Angus, Lylea, Oliver, Andrew and Lachlan McMahon take a walk in the park on Friday. Ms McMahon stepped down as Member for Shellharbour at the weekend. Picture: KIRK GILMOUR
Angus, Lylea, Oliver, Andrew and Lachlan McMahon take a walk in the park on Friday. Ms McMahon stepped down as Member for Shellharbour at the weekend. Picture: KIRK GILMOUR

The trade union movement is claiming a major political scalp following the decision by Lylea McMahon not to contest the 2011 state election.Ms McMahon is said to have been pushed before she bailed out after being told by NSW ALP head office she would not have the party's support if she recontested the seat of Shellharbour.Australian Workers' Union branch secretary Andy Gillespie, a long-time opponent of Ms McMahon, said the ultimatum was delivered following a 12-month union campaign against her in Sussex St.

  • Why Lylea said she quit"(The ALP) listened to what we had to say. They weighed it with their own assessment and, at the end of the day, they agreed with our evaluation," he said."Lylea was very ineffective. The major issues that needed to be addressed, Lylea wasn't capable of grasping those issues."I'm happy that she's gone. The union movement is happy she's gone."Ms McMahon told the Mercury in an exclusive interview on Saturday that she would not stand for the weekend's rank-and-file preselection ballot for family reasons.She said she had an epiphany earlier in the week after watching her youngest son Oliver, 5, graduate from pre-school."He was only a baby when I started ... to see him there I realised I had missed all that time ... It was very difficult," she said.A high-ranking ALP insider said Ms McMahon had been struggling with the strain of politics taking her away from her husband and three children, but the NSW ALP ultimatum had forced her hand.He said pressure had come from many ALP party members within Ms McMahon's electorate who were dissatisfied with the way she dealt with their concerns."When it came to working within the party rules, with branch members, she had a very lackadaisical attitude," he said."When she was asked the hard questions, her answer was a little shrug of the shoulders and 'whatever'. Nothing rubs members up the wrong way more."Regardless, it is believed Ms McMahon had the numbers to win Saturday's preselection, but head office contacted her mid-week, telling her it wanted Ms Watson."Lylea was told by the powers that be, by head office and some of her political colleagues, that it was time she moved on," the insider said.The union movement has opposed Ms McMahon from the moment she was parachuted into the newly created seat to contest the 2007 election, over-riding a rank and file vote.In September this year, the AWU threatened to withdraw its support for Labor in Shellharbour if the party again installed Ms McMahon without a ballot.Ultimately, United Services Union organiser Anna Watson put her hand up to oppose Ms McMahon, but the challenge wasn't necessary.Mr Gillespie said yesterday the union movement had been "very unhappy" with Ms McMahon."She was a very ineffective member and did not deserve to be preselected as an elected member for another four years in Shellharbour," he said."So yes, we did express our disappointment to Sussex St on a number of occasions, and we lobbied Sussex St to have a candidate that the trade union movement could work with."He believed Ms Watson would more effectively serve the electorate.Albion Park-Oak Flats ALP sub-branch president and former unionist David Hamilton was also happy with the outcome."I don't want to take anything away from Lylea. She put in four years ... now she's headed for new pastures so I wish her well in the future," he said.Ms McMahon and the NSW ALP did not return the Mercury's request for an interview.
  • Subscribe now for unlimited access.

    $0/

    (min cost $0)

    or signup to continue reading

    See subscription options

    Get the latest Wollongong news in your inbox

    Sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date.

    We care about the protection of your data. Read our Privacy Policy.