There are 25 candidates vying for your vote in the five Illawarra electorates this state election.
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Before you head to the polling booth and grab your sausage sandwich on Saturday, get to know the Shellharbour candidates.
Anna Watson, Labor
Ms Watson, 56, lives in Lake Illawarra and is the member for Shellharbour.
I was raised in a traditional working class family that shared the values of a fair day's work for a fair day's pay, and the right to equal opportunity for all to make every family's life better. Prior to my election to Parliament, I worked in a variety of jobs, including in customer service, training for the health insurance industry, and as a trade union official with the United Services Union.
I've been incredibly proud to serve as my community's local member since 2011, and I believe we've achieved a lot together over the past eight years. We've fought off the Liberal Government's privatisation attempt at Shellharbour Hospital as well as their plans to build a prison in West Dapto's backyard.
A Daley-Labor Government will ensure that important services like health and education are prioritised over knocking down Sydney stadiums. We will continue the construction of the $630 million Albion Park Rail bypass, and if elected, will examine accessibility to the bypass for Dapto residents. I will deliver a Service NSW Centre in Dapto, giving local residents access to important government services. A vote for me and Labor will ensure that our community gets a fair share.
Top three priorities:
- Health: seeing Shellharbour Hospital's redevelopment delivered with mandated nurse-to-patient ratios and on-site eating disorder treatment services.
- Education: the planning and construction of a new $60 million school in West Dapto area and a feasibility study into a new high school for the Flinders and Shell Cove area.
- Public transport: improving travel times and train services between Sydney and the Illawarra and ensuring every school child in NSW can travel on our public transport network for free.
Shane Bitschkat, Liberal
Mr Bitschkat, 42, lives in Tullimbar and is an operations manager.
I was born and raised in Berkeley but have lived all over the Illawarra district. I am the founder and the president of the Tullimbar Community Group. I have worked across corporate and operational environments, so I understand how important it is to have a strong economy and a government that supports local business.
If elected, I will be a proactive member for Shellharbour and I will fight to ensure the community gets its fair share of the NSW Liberals and Nationals' record-breaking investments in school, hospital and transport infrastructure. The NSW Liberals and Nationals have already delivered for the community and will continue to deliver projects like the Shellharbour Hospital and the Albion Park Rail bypass already underway.
Top three priorities:
- Ensure the government takes pressure off households budgets through subsidisation like our solar panel scheme.
- The NSW Liberals are hiring more teachers, building more schools, clearing the school maintenance backlog, and providing before and after school care for every public primary school student.
- I will pressure the NSW Liberals and Nationals to create more jobs and invest in more skills and training
Jamie Dixon, Greens
Mr Dixon, 46, lives in Koonawarra and is a shearer.
While I was born in Sydney, I've been in the Illawarra for 17 years now, and am happy to call it home. At 46 though, now is the time to change careers, before the straws start breaking the shearer's back. Apart from having an active political career, I'm now studying psychology, and would like to put this to use in front line counselling.
The people of Shellharbour have the chance, right now, to embrace cleaner technology, better civic planning, a locally focused public transport hub, and excellence in free and accessible education. The Greens are prepared to introduce the necessary legislation to make this a reality.
With so much development going on, Shellharbour needs community-based representation, free from political lobbyists, and free from the influence of profit driven corporations. NSW can afford better schools, hospitals, and trains, and cleaner energy. The Greens have fully costed policies to use the current budget surplus to bring about our community's potential.
Locally, we have the conditions to create jobs in renewables and recycling, to successfully transition from fossil fuels, and to find answers to youth underemployment.
Top three priorities:
- Promote a clean energy economy
- Restore TAFE services
- Expand public transport
Ken Davis, Sustainable Australia Party
Mr Davis, 57, lives in Koonawarra and is a mental health counsellor.
I've lived in the Illawarra since 1985 and seen the impact of population pressures on our local environment, housing costs, utility prices and quality of life. In my job, I see the impact of economic neglect on the mental health and well-being of all Australians, particularly the disadvantaged.
As a musician I want to see the arts valued and supported. As a surfer I want my grandchildren to enjoy unspoilt waters and scenic vistas. I have previously been active in the community through Concerned Residents of East Dapto, Community Voice, Illawarra News and currently through Dapto Anglican Church.
The Illawarra region has been neglected for decades by the major parties. The only way to get the attention of government is for us to send a message that we will not be ignored or taken for granted. Sustainable Australia offers a centrist alternative with a suite of sensible policies which address the problems of water and food security, foreign investment and ownership and lazy dependence on population growth as a substitute for sound economic development.
We need to shift investment from financial speculation and property based capital gains to real investment in the productive economy, particularly local businesses. Government and business need to take responsibility for training and developing the skills our workers need for the jobs of the future. We need to urgently address the need for safe, affordable housing and access to meaningful work and a living wage. That's true sustainability.
Top three priorities:
- Better planning to stop over-development
- Secure jobs via a more diverse economy
- Affordable housing for first home buyers and renters