VOTERS of New South Wales will head to the polls for the state election on Saturday 25 March, with candidates for Oxley busily engaging in their final days of campaigning.
Contesting the seat of Oxley are Dominic King (Greens), Bianca Drain (Sustainable Australia Party), Megan Mathew (Legalise Cannabis Party), Gregory Vigors (Labor), Joshua Fairhall (Independent), Troy Irwin (Independent) and Michael Kemp (Nationals).

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Oxley is considered a safe Nationals seat, with a margin of 15.4 percent.
In fact, with the recent electorate redistribution giving Oxley an extra 2,000 voters in Telegraph Point and King Creek, the Nationals margin rose by half a percent.

Oxley has been held consistently by the Nationals (and Country Party) since World War Two, apart from a brief window beginning in 1962.
At the time, sitting Country Party MP Les Jordan swapped allegiances to the Liberal Party, and held the seat until his death three years later, at which time Oxley changed back into Country Party hands following a by-election.
The seat has been held in recent times by Nationals MP Melinda Pavey, who moves on from state politics following the election, having served the electorate since 2015.
News Of The Area reached out to each 2023 State Election candidate with questions on a range of key issues.
Here are the responses received – please note candidate answers have been included as received in the interest of transparency and balance.
Spelling and grammar changes have been made when necessary.

1. If elected, how would you address the health care shortages facing Oxley?

Dominic King: The Greens have a comprehensive plan to rescue our health service including:

• Introducing safe nurse-to-patient ratios
• Abolishing the public sector wage cap
• Giving a real pay rise to our healthcare workers with annual pay rises above inflation to keep them from leaving NSW
• Bolstering the public community health sector so you can access a GP, allied health professional, dentist or mental health professional through your local public community health centre – for free.

Gregory Vigors: Our first priority is getting our hospitals functioning fully.
Too many are under utilised through a lack of funding from the  Perrottet government.
Labor will build many new hospitals in the state, reducing the overall burden on the system.
Labor will recruit 1200 new nurses, opening up many beds and reducing wait times.
Labor will also address the number of staff leaving the health sector by more funding, support, training and assistance to ensure as many beds as possible are open and waiting times are reduced.
We’ll also employ 500 extra paramedics in regional and rural NSW to get people to hospital more quickly and efficiently.

Troy Irwin: Recruit doctors from India, and fast track and stream line red tape.
Bond to regional areas conditions to pathways to citizenship, supplying family friendly accommodation and a rewarding salary.
Seek out individuals that want our area’s lifestyle, with rural interests ie agriculture, horticulture, aquaculture, forestry. Health workers should be recruited; local and international nurses, aged care etc.
Provide secure employment and low interest, assistance home loans including build your own, regional tax and HECS break incentives with bonding to regional, including dental.
The same with police, except you have to be an Australian citizen.
Let’s not forget vets, (there is a) shortage of vets too.

Michael Kemp: The rules surrounding the allocation of GP registrars into the regions is predominantly a federal issue.
At state level, we can be advocating for better conditions, incentives, education and quality of life improvements to attract doctors, specialists and health professionals to the area.
Under an elected coalition government, we will be bringing 10,000 new nurses and midwives over the next four years as well as a $1.2 billion spend on critical health infrastructure.

2. If elected, what do you plan to do about the housing availability/homelessness crisis impacting the Oxley electorate?

Dominic King: The Greens have a raft of policies to increase housing right across the state.
The most relevant ones to Oxley are;

• Invest $1 billion to deliver at least 2,500 public and social homes in regional NSW each year for the next ten years.
• Resource local councils and communities to regulate the number and location of Short-term Rental Accommodation non-hosted dwellings.
• Require property developers to include at least 30 percent ongoing affordable housing in all new large private residential developments (100 percent public housing on public land).
• Ban the sale of public housing and public land suitable for housing.
• Increase funding and resourcing for roll out of existing schemes as well as local housing, tenancy services and specialist homelessness services to meet increased demands in regional communities.

Gregory Vigors: NSW Labor will remove or reduce stamp duty for 95 percent of first-home buyers. It will also abolish the NSW Government’s forever land tax on the family home.
For renters it will protect tenants from unfair evictions, ban the practice of secret rent-bidding and implement a Portable Bond Scheme.
Further, NSW Labor will work with the Albanese government on its national plan to spend $10 billion to build 20,000 social housing properties and 10,000 affordable homes for frontline workers such as police, nurses and cleaners over the next five years.

Troy Irwin: In the short term give the homeless access to clean drinking water, 24/7 toilets, safe areas to camp, warmth, shelter, food, showers and clothes washing.
Enlist volunteers to supervise public space sleeping accommodation.
Offer pathways to owning motor homes with permanent work and more mobile cabin parks with pathways to own cabins through rent to buy etc.
Stop international speculation, wealth hiding and money laundering in Australian domestic housing.
Regional incentives like basic kit home owner building combined with jobs bonding security.
Massage negative gearing onto only new strata title apartments.
Offer attractive incentives for mature people to the right size with CBD convenience.
End casualisation and demand secure employment.
Housing to follow the jobs and jobs to follow the housing.
30 jobs at Kara Kar Nambucca, 40 jobs at Wingham Abattoirs, jobs at Fredo Abattoirs.
Dorrigo wants jobs and families.
All new homes energy and water generating/storing, smart built low energy efficiency.
Create boarding houses utilising CBD air space and incorporating mobility lifts etc.

Michael Kemp: This is a state-wide issue, made more difficult by the recent ten rate rises in a row, increasing cost of living pressures and difficulties of service provision due to cost.
A lack of available land and rezoning delays are a barrier to building more homes.
I encourage councils to investigate dual occupancy rules, and higher density housing in towns. The 50/50 state and federal funded project at the Masonic Centre in Bellingen and the state funder project at the old RTA site in Wauchope are wonderful examples of recent attempts to address the difficulties of finding a house.

3. How would you address the challenges currently facing the state’s education system?

Dominic King: Immediately give all NSW public school teachers a minimum fifteen percent pay rise plus an assessment of inflation over the next two years.

Provide an increase of two hours per week of Relief from Face to Face (RFF) teaching for all public-school primary teachers in NSW and two hours less face-to-face teaching for all High School teachers.

Deliver 100 percent of the School Resourcing Standard across NSW.

Develop a workforce plan in consultation with teachers, Universities, and the NSW Teachers Federation to recruit and retain 12,000 new teachers over the next ten years.

Remove any demountable classroom that has been in operation for more than three years and invest $1 Billion to address the school maintenance backlog by 2026.

Provide at least one additional school counsellor for every public school in NSW over the next four years and reach a target of one counsellor per 500 students by 2030.

Provide additional resourcing and funds for free public school breakfasts and lunches and to cover all excursions and other individual student costs.

Gregory Vigors: From preschool through to TAFE and university, education is the cornerstone of every thriving economy – and we want ours to be world-class again, with the best and brightest teachers and first-rate school facilities.
That’s why we’ll boost the availability of preschool places for families by building 100 public preschools and investing in 50 new and expanded preschools at non-government schools.
We’ll recruit and retain more teachers by reducing workloads, making salaries more competitive and converting 10,000 temporary teachers to permanent roles.
We’ll fully fund every public school with our $400 million Education Future Fund and deliver new and upgraded schools in fast-growing areas.
We’ll also ban mobile phones in all public schools to tackle cyberbullying and improve students’ learning and social development.
And after years of neglect from the Liberals and Nationals, we’ll guarantee minimum funding and rebuild TAFE.

Troy Irwin: Shut the state schools and swamp the so called independent and religious schools until funding and all other issues are addressed.
Reversals of 1962 Catholic Schools Strike.
Stop the indoctrination and grooming of our children.
Dramatically change the way we teach children so that children are engaged and learning life skills

Michael Kemp: As a parent with kids in both primary and secondary schools, I acknowledge the importance of ensuring there is a robust and efficient education system.
With 10,000 extra teachers over the next four years, and 15,000 teaching, support, and ancillary staff beginning this year under an elected coalition government, we will be well on our way to making education a brighter place for students and teachers.

4. What is your view on local issues surrounding environment and koala protection and the logging of state forests?

Dominic King: Our forests are some of the most bio-diverse woodlands in the world and they are much more valuable left standing.
The Greens believe we need to stop logging our remaining unburnt native forest and start the transition to sustainable plantations.
A just transition and logging industry adjustment has been independently costed at $30.2 million per year over the next ten years.
This would be leveraged to transition to 100 percent sustainable plantations which would be hugely profitable, create jobs and preserve our native forests to slow down climate change and preserve native biodiversity.

Gregory Vigors: Very simply, we don’t want koalas to become extinct.
This is a clear choice. Under the Liberals and Nationals – they will become extinct. Under Labor they won’t.
The Great Koala National Park will not only be great for koalas and nature in general, it will be great for action on climate change and it will create many, many direct and indirect jobs.
NSW Labor will support the federal Labor government’s action on climate change in a partnership.
Importantly, we can have both environmental protection and a sustainable forestry industry.
We recognise the key role forest industries play in fighting climate change.
Growing more trees locks up more carbon and provides sustainable materials.
As demand for timber increases, we are in a position to meet that demand through our forest industries.

Troy Irwin: National Parks have failed and are not protecting or preserving our native flora and fauna.
In fact National Parks are accelerating extinction, are overrun with noxious weeds and feral animals and locked up for catastrophic bushfires.
State forests are no better.
It’s a failure of management.
True, renewable, sustainable, selective logging in appropriate areas of state forests with transition to biodiverse native plantation forests.
Growth in secure jobs for forestry workers.
Local value adding of timber.
Bushfire mitigation – management, management, management – including a forensic audit and restructuring of Local Land Services, State Forests, National Parks and Land Care.
Koalas close to us have been decimated by Zombie DAs and inappropriate ‘McMansion’ subdivisions not logging.
Investigating with teeth to what’s happened to the Kalang etc.

Michael Kemp: Ten percent of the state’s forested land is designated as state forest.
50 percent of that is put aside for conservation purposes.
Only one percent of the land available from state forest is selectively harvested on a rotational basis.
It’s not a lot.
The NSW Nationals and Liberal government have ensured the protection of koalas by investing $190 million (the single largest expenditure ever on a single species) on koala breeding centres, koala hospitals and koala corridors, with the goal of doubling the koala population by 2050.
All our flora and fauna need protection, I promote a balanced approach to ensure the environment remains diverse for future generations.

5. What specific issues or projects in the Oxley electorate do you see as needing immediate attention?

Dominic King: The re-assessing of all zombie DA’s.
Stop native forest logging and start the transition to sustainable plantations.
Make the Great Koala National Park a reality.
Ensure we are resilient and better prepared to deal with any climate change driven disasters.
Change the planning laws to ensure developers have to provide affordable housing options and listen to the community and pay heed to the changing climate.
Building resilient and accessible local food systems and supporting our farmers to move to regenerative and sustainable farming.

Gregory Vigors: Our immediate focus is on restoring essential services in Oxley.
We will train our essential workers by delivering 2,000 health study subsidies every single year to attract staff and retain talent into the NSW public health system.
We will invest $22 million to turbocharge the early childhood workforce with new scholarships, professional development and research.

Labor will improve conditions for our essential workers by:

• Introducing a minimum and enforceable safe staffing levels in NSW public hospitals, starting with one nurse to every three patients in Emergency Departments.
• Ccreate 10,000 more permanent teaching roles in NSW by shifting temporary positions into permanent roles.
• Instruct the Department of Education to deliver a reduction of five hours of administrative work per week for classroom teachers.

Finally only Labor will scrap the unfair and ineffective wages cap once and for all.
When it comes to negotiations, our essential workers deserve to be treated with the same respect they are shown in Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, and every single other state. We will make the current wages cap a floor – not a ceiling.

Troy Irwin: Immediately address child abuse, crime, homelessness, then the roads that are destroying our vehicles, cost of living, energy, housing and sewerage.
Bushfire and flood mitigation.
Demand the federal government funds local councils so there are no more rate rises.
Re-establish TAFE and state education with secure employment.
Health including aged care etc.

Michael Kemp: The affordable housing availability deficit is a high priority for any successful candidate.
Projects high on my agenda are the Wauchope and Bellingen hospitals needing significant infrastructure upgrades, Valla needs an industrial estate, we need to address the sewage discharge into the Nambucca River system, as well as prioritising riverbank repair and Wauchope requires more sporting capacity.

6. Can you summarise your key policy platforms?

Dominic King: The three key platforms we are taking to this election are to address the housing/cost of living crisis, protect and enhance our natural assets, and empower local communities.

Gregory Vigors: We’ll make NSW’s education system world-class again, rejuvenating our preschools, schools and TAFE.
We’ll repair and rebuild our health system after twelve years of neglect.
We’ll increase access to affordable and reliable transport and cap road tolls to reduce the burden on the family budget.
We’ll make good, sustainable housing attainable for buyers and renters.
We’ll end the privatisation of our energy assets and create a state-owned clean energy corporation to deliver cleaner and more reliable energy.
We’ll build an economy that is resilient and works for people and small businesses – not the other way around.

Troy Irwin: Kill off Zombie DAs.
A jobs bonanza.

Create an equine park generating $60 million annually in Oxley, with state of the art soft floor animal welfare and worker safety with mobility access.
Saleyards with Australian made solar energy and rainwater capture roofs at Kempsey, Dorrigo, Macksville, Wauchope.
Lift the state significance on Oven Mountain Pumped Hydro.
Zero international ownership.
Cost shifting Armidale to Kempsey Road etc back to the state.

Scrap Kempsey skydiving.
Abuse of Bushfire Recovery Grants.
Drinking water security etc.

Michael Kemp: The biggest issues I will be working to address if elected are:

–              Easing cost of living pressures.
There are currently more than 70 measures available through Service NSW to assist with making ends meet. I will continue to seek out and push all available opportunities to help families in the regions.

–              Housing affordability by looking at density, zoning and dual occupancy laws, crown land and aboriginal land council opportunities to improve supply.

–              Accessibility to health services.
Creating new opportunities to encourage health professionals into the regions is imperative.
This can be done through increased quality of life, education, marketing, and incentives.

–              Transport infrastructure.
The NSW Nationals and Liberal government has committed more than $1 Billion to upgrading the state’s road and rail infrastructure.

7. Why do you wish to represent Oxley as state MP?

Dominic King: I want to represent Oxley because my experience is crucial in identifying and solving the numerous issues we are facing, and I act with the utmost integrity at all times.
I would be a very strong voice in parliament to ensure we are given the funding and resources required to make Oxley a better place to live for everyone.

Gregory Vigors: We need a fresh start.
We have had twelve years of this government.
This government is stale.
It has run out of puff.
It’s on the nose.
We all know that.
We need a new approach in NSW and I believe my professional and community service experience can help us get what we need more quickly.
I’ve lived in the area for more than 30 years.
I know every inch of the region and have helped workers get a better deal from their employer, helped people manage their disabilities and been recognised for my contribution to surf lifesaving.
I am someone who is driven by the want to help my fellow citizens and there’s no better way to do that than by representing them in parliament.
I am ready, willing and able.

Troy Irwin: The Nats have failed over too many years and we have seen the Green/Labor failures.
The ICAC Operation Jersey is scathing of the recent, current LNP.
It’s time we made Oxley a swingers seat, and elected a local incorruptible who will fight like a bag of cats for the services, infrastructure and environmental issues we face, all about solutions and delivery.

Michael Kemp: As a person that enjoys helping others, volunteering, and representing those that have difficulty representing themselves, being in parliament would be a fantastic opportunity to do something positive for our community.
My strength of character, passion and commitment to doing the right thing goes a long way to standing up for the silent majority.