ONE of the largest electorates in New South Wales, incorporating Wentworth Shire, is about to get even bigger under a planned redistribution of state electoral boundaries.
The seat of Murray, at 107,362.20sq km, is eclipsed only by the northern neighbouring Barwon electorate in size but has been forecast to increase to 110,736.98sq km under the proposed changes.
The NSW Electoral Commission’s Electoral Districts Redistribution Panel recommended increasing the size of Murray by including the former Jerilderie Shire Council area, now within the electoral district of Albury.
Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party MP Helen Dalton, who holds the seat of Murray, said the move would only serve to further disenfranchise neglected country communities even further.
Ms Dalton said the seat was already much larger than Scotland and increasing the size of electorates was not the way to address the issue of population losses in rural areas.
“The NSW Government needs to urgently look at why people are leaving small towns and work on reversing that trend,” Ms Dalton said.
“Simply increasing the size of seats is not the answer — it just disenfranchises neglected country communities even more,” she said.
“It means people will be living further away from their electoral representatives and rural MPs have to cover more land mass.
“Our small towns are already losing jobs and services — they need more muscle in Sydney parliament, not less.”
The redistribution panel said little elector growth was expected in the western half of NSW, with the greatest decreases expected in the Riverina and along the Murray.
It said any elector growth was expected to be focused on the regional centres of Wagga Wagga and Albury, with some gains expected in Moama and Corowa.
Ms Dalton said giving people less access to their elected representative accelerated the decline of rural NSW.
“We really need to address the gigantic size of rural electorates,” she said.
“Young people keep leaving our small towns so the seats just get bigger, but it’s so bad for the towns.”
Members of the public have until December 9 make submissions on the proposed changes, before the NSW Electoral Commission makes its final ruling.
