G’day folks,
Where has the year gone? Halloween this week, less than two months to Christmas, students will soon be finishing the HSC exams, and only a short time before Parliament rises for the year at the end of November.
Parliament has just had two consecutive sitting weeks but for the first of those weeks I was in Bougainville, as part of a Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) Delegation from the NSW Parliament. It was a two-day trip to get there, but it was a rewarding experience and one that will help to bring us closer together.
This week I am mostly in Sydney for committee meetings but I will also be at a meeting (on Tuesday October 28) between the Premier and the mayors of Brewarrina, Bourke, Coonamble and Walgett, to discuss solutions to the problem of youth crime in Barwon.
CPA delegation to Bougainville
The Autonomous Region of Bougainville is a group of Islands near Papua New Guinea, part of the Solomon Islands Archipelago. With a history of human occupation going back thousands of years, it is Bougainville’s history over the last few decades that resulted in the CPA’s delegation.
After World War II Australia took over the administration of Papua New Guinea, which gained independence in 1975, with Bougainville as part of that new nation. However, the people of Bougainvillean objected to being under Papuan administration and worked, unsuccessfully, to secede and to be recognised internationally as a separate nation.
Tensions between Bougainville and Papua became an insurrection in 1988, the catalyst for which was that Bougainville did not receive a fair share of revenues from gold and copper mines on their islands.
After a long period of conflict, in 2001 a peace agreement was reached allowing Bougainville some autonomy and later independence. The deadline for independence moved a few times, but earlier this year a new deadline of 1 September 2027, was set.
Bougainville now needs to develop its parliament, political system and government to be ready for full independence. That is where the CPA comes in, the organisation offers assistance and expertise to other Commonwealth nations developing their democracy.
About half of Bougainville’s 45-member parliament are newly elected. My visit involved taking part in several panel discussions at which I shared a bit about my experiences as an MP, my work on committees and how our government works. I also talked about Barwon, its challenges, successes and complexities. One thing I emphasised was the importance of engagement and communication with a constituency.
Bougainville is 9318 square kilometres, compared to Barwon being over 356,000 square kilometres. But Bougainville’s lack of roads, transport, and the presence of villages in remote, mountainous areas means they have some similar challenges in communication and engagement.
I also learnt a lot from the Bougainvilleans and I am grateful for their hospitality. Bougainville is a stunning place. I intend to go back there one day, and I urge others to think about visiting.
I wish their parliament every success and hope to see them develop into a thriving, independent neighbour.
Central Darling Election Results
After over a decade in administration it is good to finally see the Central Darling Shire has elected three councillors for the first council of its new era.
I want to congratulate Peter Sullivan (A Ward), Max Bradley (B Ward) and Daniel Fusi (C Ward) on being elected as Councillors for Central Darling Shire.
The new councillors will help steer the council on its journey of transition out of administration. The names of the three appointed councillors (not announced at the time of writing) should be announced soon. I would like to encourage all the communities of the shire to really get behind their new councillors, and get involved with the council, to help make it as successful as possible.
Youth Crime Question in Parliament
Although BOCSAR (Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research) figures show that there has been a drop in youth crime in recent years, many people are concerned about a number of incidents in towns around Western NSW.
During the sitting week I posed a Question Without Notice to the Premier asking if he would accept a delegation from councils in Walgett, Bourke, Brewarrina and Coonamble, to discuss how to expedite diversionary programs for troubled youth and talk about community-based solutions to reducing youth crime.
He said he would be ready to accept that delegation (which has not taken place at the time of writing) saying that it is “important to listen to what is happening on the ground” in order to implement that changes necessary to reduce recidivism.
I will keep you posted about what happens with that meeting.
To listen to the Premier’s response to my question go to https://www.roybutler.com.au/video_clips
Get ready for Movember
November is the time when men around the country and around the world allow their facial hair to run wild. I will be leaving part of my face untouched by a razor for a month as part of Movember, to raise awareness of men’s health issues and to raise money for research and programs that work to keep men healthier – physically and mentally.
Once again, I will be growing a mo as a member of team Barwon, but I am looking for other stalwart Barwonians to join me, either by growing a mo, or by raising money and awareness by other means.
I will be providing regular updates of my mo-gress and I hope you will come along for my hairy journey.
To be part of the team or to donate go to https://au.movember.com/team/2457418
National Parks Private Members Statement
In the October sitting weeks I delivered a Private Members Statement about the government’s determination to reserve 30% of the land in NSW as National Parks. In my statement I said that there seems to be no specific reason or rationale for why it has to be nearly a third of the state and there doesn’t seem to be a coherent plan for what will happen with the land acquired to reach that total.
There also seems to be a bit of a disconnect between the decisions made by the management of national parks and what impact their decisions will have or are having on the ground in the communities where the land has been acquired.
Since June 2024 thirty properties have been purchased for National Parks, a total of over 113,000 hectares. These were properties that used to contribute in significant ways financially, and socially, to their local communities – once they are turned into National Parks all of those people who lived or worked on the property are gone and so is the money generated leaving a hole in the local economy and taking away all the people who were part of that community.
Despite promises that there will be infrastructure created in the parks to generate tourism income to replace the lost income from agriculture, this almost never happens. The parks remain underfunded, invasive species proliferate, fences fall into disrepair and it becomes a problem for neighbouring properties.
This is what prompted an iPetition “No More National Parks in NSW” launched by some of my constituents, asking for a more balanced approach in acquisition of land for National Parks.
In my Private Members Statement I indicated that I will be attempting to change the systems and processes that currently exist for acquiring land for National Parks. Watch this space.
To see the full Private Members Statement go to https://www.roybutler.com.au/video_clips
Country Press Awards
Last week Country Press NSW held a joint conference with the Victorian Country Press Association and, on Friday 24 October, held a gala awards night. I want to congratulate all of the Barwon winners and those who were commended or highly commended:
Best Agricultural Photo – Jess Richards, Coonabarabran Times
Best News Photo – Em Jensen, Broken Hill Times
Best Commercial Feature – Narrabri Courier (highly commended); Coonabarabran Times (commended)
Best Locally Produced Print Advertisement – Narrabri Courier (Commended)
Best Local Produced Advertising Campaign – Narromine Star (Commended)
Best Magazine or Special Publication – Coonabarabran Times
Best Agricultural Story – Em Jensen, Broken Hill Times
Best Opinion/Editorial – Kait Britton, Coonabarabran Times
Young Journalist of the Year – Sophia McCaughan
Journalist of the Year – Em Jensen (Highly Commended)
Overall Photographic Excellence – Jess Richards, Coonabarabran Times
Overall Newspaper Excellence PAID Under 700 Circulation – Narromine Star
Overall Newspaper Excellence PAID Over 700 Circulation – Narrabri Courier (winner); Broken Hill Times (highly commended)
I particularly want to congratulate Lucie Peart, who was awarded Life Membership of the Country Press Inc at the awards ceremony. Lucie has done a fantastic job keeping print media going in regional NSW, although it was unfortunate to see that one of her papers, the Narromine Star, which was won several awards, was recently forced to close.
Regional media is vitally important, and we need to be doing all we can to keep media outlets alive and thriving.
Public Interest Debate – Benefits of Independent Representation
During the last sitting week, I contributed to a public interest debate on the topic of the benefits of having an independent as a parliamentary representative. This was not to take away from the job done by members of the major parties, but in an electorate like Barwon, which is so different from any other electorate, there is a greater need for a parliamentary representative who can be a bit more flexible and not have to toe the party line.
While independents act in the best interests of all the people of NSW, they also can act in the best interests of their constituents, without having to worry about any conflicts with party policy.
Independents can also never be in opposition. As an independent I can talk to anyone in government, or in opposition, or on the cross bench, without politics being involved. I can talk to ministers and get a receptive ear and often much more.
In a parliament with a large cross bench, independents play the role of checking government power and holding them to account, which can make for a better democracy.
To listen to my contribution go to https://www.roybutler.com.au/video_clips
Civics – Why do we have governments?
There is a deep cynicism about politicians, governments and even about the effectiveness of democracy. But if there is one thing that I will take away from my visit to Bougainville, it is that we should be thankful for all we have in this country and most of it is due to our system of government.
Without a good system of government, societies are unable to develop, mainly because people are unable to pool together their resources to create larger pieces or systems of infrastructure that benefit the entire society.
In Bougainville they are still developing much of the infrastructure that we take for granted like roads, communication systems, garbage collection, and much of the country has no reliable source of electricity. In some ways it is like remote parts of Australia, or some parts of Barwon, but we are much further along at dealing with some of these basic infrastructure challenges, primarily because we have a long-established democratic system of government.
Our elected governments have been working for well over a century, using what is known as “social overhead capital” – that is the proceeds of taxes and imposts – to build roads, electricity and water supply systems, our local councils make sure that our garbage is collected and other waste including waste water is dealt with.
When communities are deficient in some basic need like roads, schools, hospitals, or sewers, they have been able to request that the local, state or federal government fulfil those needs.
I agree the process has not always been perfect and has at times been subject to some political considerations ahead of real need, but we can also lobby governments to make these processes more equitable and for the good of everyone, rather than just small groups or interests.
While there are certain things that will be paid for by private investment, or through charities and philanthropy, much of what makes society operate and makes daily life possible, comes from government investment in the people. In return the people are given the right to vote for representatives, which gives them a say in the decisions that are made to build and maintain infrastructure and other fundamental necessities.
Got something on your mind? Go on then, engage. Submit your opinion piece, letter to the editor, or Quick Word now.