MEMBER for Mallee Anne Webster says more health care staff, affordable energy and strengthening the horticultural workforce are the key priority issues she will take to the next election after she was preselected to run again for the National Party.
Dr Webster was given the tick by her party to campaign to hold her seat after she nominated for the role uncontested.
“It has been a huge privilege and an honour (to represent Mallee),” she said.
“It’s been a really challenging first term in Parliament, there’s no question about that.
“But I would really be honoured to stand again, and to represent the people of Mallee.”
The next federal election is due to be held before July 1 next year.
Asked whether she thought Barnaby Joyce’s leadership of the party would reduce her popularity with female voters, she said she wanted voters to focus on her track record, rather than Mr Joyce’s.
“I’ve been working hard for Mallee over the last two and a half years (and) people have got to know me.
“They know my work ethic. They know that I’m committed to Mallee and the interests of Mallee. And I think they’re more concerned about that.
“I’m representing them and my work is to ensure that whoever is leading The Nationals, that they understand the priorities for Mallee.”
If re-elected, she aimed to work “to ensure that we increase the number of both allied and primary health care people working in Mallee”, and to introduce an undergraduate biomedicine course at La Trobe University.
She highlighted the Victoria to NSW electricity interconnector project and battery-stored energy options, including hydrogen and biofuels, as examples of technology she hoped to implement to “improve … access to affordable and reliable energy across Mallee”.
A dedicated agriculture visa was another key policy she hoped to implement to “address … the issues and the challenges that our horticulture and agriculture industries face”.
Dr Webster polled 28.1 per cent of primary votes at the last election in 2019 – a drop of 27 per cent from Andrew Broad’s result in 2016.
The strongest contender was Liberal candidate and Melbourne-based barrister Serge Petrovich, who pulled in 18.8 per cent of votes.
Another 23 per cent went to three independent candidates, including then Mildura deputy mayor Jason Modica (9.4 per cent) and farmer Ray Kingston (9.2 per cent) – both of whom ran on policy platforms calling for action on climate change, among other things.
