THE gloves well and truly came off in the bitter feud between Victorian Nationals leader Peter Walsh and Member for Mildura Ali Cupper when the pair traded stinging barbs on a range of issues yesterday.
Mr Walsh accused the local independent MP of only driving her own “pet topics down the throats of her constituents” and dropping the ball on key agricultural issues.
“She has to actually stand for the values of the electorate she represents,” Mr Walsh said yesterday, following Ms Cupper’s decision to cut ties with the Reason Party late Thursday.
“The electors of Mildura want to know what Ali really stands for.
“She’s stood as a Labor candidate in the past and she’s flirted with the Greens, before joining with the Reason Party in a coalition and now she’s pulled the pin on that after being caught out playing political games.”
Ms Cupper said she stood “for the best interests of my community”.
“When the Nats ask who I stand for, my answer is very simple: Everyone,” she said.
“Independent politics for a modern regional community is a dynamic field of work.
“It is inherently collaborative, as opposed to being adversarial, which is the old way of doing things and how the Nats operate.
“There is a reason why they only hold six seats in the lower house now.”
Mr Walsh also fired a shot over Ms Cupper’s bow in relation to Mildura Base Public Hospital’s return to public hands in September last year, which the local MP led the push for.
“I don’t believe it’s necessarily delivered any better services for people in Mildura – and the risk will be over time with the strategic health partnerships and alliances that the Andrews Government is talking about,” he said.
“This is code for mergers. Mildura faces the risk of missing out if it falls under the control of Bendigo.”
Ms Cupper questioned where Mr Walsh had received his information on the local base hospital’s recent performance.
“I’m closely connected to the Base Hospital and the overwhelming reaction from staff, specialists and patients of the base to public management has been positive,” she said.
“Recruitment has demonstrably improved – and we’ve got plans to lobby the government for a brand new healthcare facility.
“It’s all systems go at the hospital and I don’t know where Walshy is getting his information from.
“It sounds to me like he’s out of touch with how people are feeling on the ground, and that’s because he’s based in Swan Hill.”
Mr Walsh continued his attack on Ms Cupper, saying that “she should focus on some of the issues that are important to agriculture in her area, particularly the water issues”.
But Ms Cupper said she had met with stakeholders from the dried fruits and wine grape industries just this week.
“It’s not just working with our existing industries, but I’ve done an enormous amount of work in trying to open up new frontiers for 21st century farming communities in the form of hemp,” she said.
“This will help our community evolve and adapt into a new era, where water is more scarce and the climate is becoming more arid and dry.”
Mr Walsh also claimed that locals were finding it difficult to book meetings with Ms Cupper.
“When I was in Mildura the other week, the constant feedback we got from people was that you just can’t get an appointment to see her,” she said.
Ms Cupper angrily responded: “This is game playing and grubby sniping.
“We have sections of the week that are exclusively booked out with constituent and stakeholder meetings.
“It is a core part of my work in engaging with my community, and this is what I’m focused.
“I don’t want to be drawn into party-political, petty game playing. That’s what Walshy is trying to draw me into here – and trying to distract from my successes.”
