John Forrest, Nationals Member For Mallee, Announces Retirement

Mar 06, 2013 Leave a Comment

John Forrest, The Nationals member for Mallee since 1993, has announced he will retire from the House of Representatives at this year’s federal election.

ForrestMallee, in north-western Victoria, is the safest Coalition electorate in the nation. Forrest won it in 2010 with 74.41% of the two-party-preferred vote. He secured 66.79% of the primary vote. The ALP polled 19.89%.

There has been a redistribution in Victoria. Mallee’s margin is now estimated to be 23.3%.

Mallee includes the towns of Mildura in the north, Warracknabeal, St Arnaud and Horsham in the south, and Swan Hill and Kerang in the east. It has been held by The Nationals, formerly the Country Party, since its creation in 1949. Forrest is only its third member in that time.

Forrest is the thirteenth member of the House of Representatives to opt for retirement at this year’s election.

It is not clear at this stage if the Liberal Party will nominate a candidate in Mallee. Three-cornered contests involving the Coalition usually only occur when a seat is vacant.

Text of statement published on John Forrest’s website:

The Nationals thank John Forrest

The Nationals Federal President, Mrs Christine Ferguson has paid tribute to John Forrest following his announcement today that he will retire from the Federal Parliament after 20 years of outstanding service at the next Federal election. [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2013 Federal Election, Members, The Nationals Tagged With: , ,

Scullion: A Genuine Sense Of Bipartisanship

Feb 26, 2013 Leave a Comment

This is the text of Senator Nigel Scullion’s speech on the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Peoples Recognition Bill.

Scullion is a Northern Territory senator and Deputy Leader of The Nationals.

His speech is an interesting example of bipartisanship on the recognition of Indigenous Australians in the Constitution.

Transcript of Senator Nigel Scullion’s speech on the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples Recognition Bill.

ScullionSenator SCULLION (Northern Territory—Deputy Leader of The Nationals) (13:19): I too support the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples Recognition Bill 2012. I thank the previous speakers and I have to say that this is, without doubt, the first time in my 12-odd years in this place that I have had a genuine sense of bipartisanship. We are excited by the prospects, we are nervous about how we proceed and we are talking genuinely with each other to ensure that our views are not polarised. It gives me a great deal of confidence that we, as representatives of the wider Australian community, can behave in that way. Hopefully that will help engender an appropriate environment for the community discussions to follow on the content of the changes. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Constitutional Reform, Indigenous, Legislation, The Nationals Tagged With: , ,

Current Federal Parliamentary Leaders

Feb 04, 2013 Leave a Comment

Each political party represented in the Federal Parliament elects leaders in each house.

Just as the government is decided in the House of Representatives, so the parties elect their leaders and deputy leaders from amongst their representatives in the House. If the party is not represented in the lower house, its leader will be chosen from amongst its members in the Senate.

These tables are correct as of February 4, 2013. On February 2, Senator Chris Evans announced his retirement from politics. The ALP Caucus elected Senator Stephen Conroy as his replacement on February 4. Senator Penny Wong became the deputy leader.

House of Representatives
Party Leader Deputy Leader
Australian Labor Party Julia Gillard
Member for Lalor (Vic)		 Wayne Swan
Member for Lilley (Qld)
Liberal Party Tony Abbott
Member for Warringah (NSW)		 Julie Bishop
Member for Curtin (WA)
National Party Warren Truss
Member for Wide Bay (Qld)		 Senator Nigel Scullion
Northern Territory
Australian Greens - Adam Bandt
Member for Melbourne (Vic)



The major parties also elect leaders and deputy leaders in the Senate. These people form part of the leadership group and act as the focal point for their parties in the upper house.

For example, the current ALP leader in the Senate, Chris Evans, is referred to as the Government Leader in the Senate. Senator Eric Abetz is referred to as the Opposition Leader in the Senate.

Senate
Party Leader Deputy Leader
Australian Labor Party Senator Stephen Conroy
(Victoria)		 Senator Penny Wong
(South Australia)
Liberal Party Senator Eric Abetz
(Tasmania)		 Senator George Brandis
(Queensland)
National Party Senator Barnaby Joyce
(Queensland)		 Senator Fiona Nash
(New South Wales)
Australian Greens Senator Christine Milne
(Tasmania)
-


Filed Under: A.L.P., General Information, Greens, Liberal Party, The Nationals Tagged With: ,

“Our Plan” – Tony Abbott Releases Coalition Policy Document

Jan 27, 2013 Leave a Comment

The Liberal Party has released a 50-page policy document for this year’s federal election.

The booklet is titled: “Our Plan – Real Solutions for all Australians – The direction, values and policy priorities of the next Coalition government.”

An accompanying YouTube video has also been released:

The booklet repackages announcements made by the Coalition over the past year and does not appear to contain any new policies. It lists 12 general policy priorities, including “a stronger, more productive and diverse economy with lower taxes”. It promises a Coalition government “will get the Budget back under control” and “help families get ahead by freeing them from the burdens of the carbon tax”.

The Coalition says it will generate “one million new jobs over the next five years” and “two million jobs over the next decade”. It promises “more modern infrastructure” and says it will deliver “better services” including heath services and education. The direct action plan – “to reduce carbon emissions inside Australia, not overseas” – remains, as does the commitment to a 15,000-strong Green Army “charged with the clean-up and conservation of our environment”.

The plan promises “stronger border protection” and “stable government that restores accountability”. It says Tony Abbott’s first overseas trip as Prime Minister “will be to Indonesia to renew cooperation against people smugglers”.

The plan talks in general terms of a “5-Pillar economy” in manufacturing, agriculture, services, education and research, and mining. It talks of improving productivity, cutting red tape and assisting small business. [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2013 Federal Election, Audio2013, Liberal Party, The Nationals, Video Tagged With: , , ,

Today’s Electoral Anniversaries: Hughes And Fraser

Dec 13, 2012 Leave a Comment

Today, December 13, is the anniversary of two federal elections, the first in 1919, the second in 1975.

On December 13, 1919, Prime Minister William Morris Hughes was re-elected, defeating the ALP led by Frank Tudor. Hughes had been prime minister since 1915, first for the Labor Party and then as leader of the Nationalist Party that was formed from the Liberals and Labor defectors after the ALP split over conscription.

The election is historic for a couple of reasons. It was the first general election to use preferential voting, instead of first-past-the-post. And it was the first general election contested by the newly-formed Country Party. Not yet a national party, it consisted of different organisations in the states, but it won 11 seats, eating into Hughes’s majority.

On December 13, 1975, Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser led the Liberal-Country party coalition to the biggest ever win in Australian federal history, before or since. The coalition parties won 91 seats in the 127-seat House of Representatives. The ALP won 36 seats, a loss of 30.

Fraser had been prime minister for one month and two days, having been appointed caretaker prime minister on November 11, following Governor-General Sir John Kerr’s dismissal of Gough Whitlam.

Filed Under: 1975 Federal Election, A.L.P., Election Dates, Fraser, Liberal Party, Political History, The Nationals, Whitlam Dismissal Tagged With: , , , ,
«Older Posts