Central Coast Greens announce candidates for Robertson and Dobell

In a cost of living crisis, The Greens’ candidates for Robertson - Cheryl Wallace - and Dobell – Simon Cooper - offer solutions which matter to ordinary people – putting dental and mental health into Medicare, building more genuinely affordable homes and freezing rents for immediate relief, making education free from early childhood through to TAFE and university, and acting on climate change to reduce the costs that will come with extreme weather. 

The Greens’ candidates’ campaigns will be launched by Senator Mehreen Faruqi on Sunday March 23 at the Gosford Funhaus Factory (Kibble Park, Donnison St side), 2-4pm

THE CANDIDATES

Simon Cooper for dobell

Although he now happily owns a home in Dobell, has firsthand experience of the harsh realities of the rental market, including periods of homelessness. That has given him a deep understanding of the devastating effect of housing insecurity. Simon now uses his art practice to teach and support individuals who have encountered barriers to accessing further education. Like many who have witnessed disadvantage and experienced vulnerability firsthand, he is fiercely passionate about justice, affordable housing, free healthcare and free education. He was motivated to join the Greens because of the party’s optimistic vision for positive change – a belief in prioritising people and the planet over profit and self-interest. He takes pride in being part of an organisation which not only protests about systemic inequality but also actively offers solutions.

“We must stop logging native forests. The Forestry Corporation is cutting down habitat trees in Ourimbah State Forest to sell for 20c a log. It’s criminal.”

“In a country famous for sunshine, we should be doing more to expand publicly owned renewable energy generation and batteries, so that we can all have access to clean energy.”

“I’m an educator and I know how important lifelong learning and a good educational foundation are. We know that education costs are a strain on many families, and public schools are having to charge parents money for activities that would be free if public schools received adequate funding. We want everyone to have the benefits of free early childhood, school, TAFE or university education so that they can flourish and benefit society.”

Cheryl Wallace for robertson

After 45 years as a Registered Nurse, has real insight into our healthcare system’s challenges and the urgent need for reform to ensure equitable access for all Australians. Since retiring and moving to the Coast 10 years ago, she now spends her time volunteering for Oz Harvest and is well known in her local area as the Director of Education at the Terrigal Surf Club. Previously, she has been a Rural Fire Service operational firefighter and for six years, a local Landcare coordinator. Cheryl was a founding member of the Riverina Greens in 2002 because the Greens’ Four Pillars – ecological sustainability, grassroots democracy, social justice, peace and non-violence – represented the values which have guided her life and professional career. Both candidates pledge, if elected, to bring ethical decision-making, practical experience and passionate voices for change to Parliament on behalf of the residents of the Central Coast.

“As a former nurse, health care is a subject I’m passionate about. I will campaign to get dental and mental health into Medicare – in a country like ours, people shouldn’t have to choose between rent and their health. They should be able to manage both these basic human rights.”

“The facts are clear – to avoid unmanageable climate change with more frequent extreme weather, putting food supplies, housing and infrastructure at risk – we have to transition to a clean renewable energy base. Pie in the sky nuclear plans are just a delaying tactic to benefit the fossil fuel industry and ignore the issue of managing radioactive waste.”

THE GREENS GENERAL PRIORITIES FOR THE FEDERAL ELECTION 2025 AND BEYOND

The Greens understand that the housing crisis we now have is complex and has been building for years. There’s no one simple solution, but there are a number of obvious immediate actions that can help average Australians manage housing costs. Housing is a human right, and we need to change the systems so that everyone has access to safe, secure and affordable homes. We will push governments to build more affordable housing and to push property developers to include more in any major developments. We call for scrapping negative gearing tax breaks for more than one property and capping rent increases.

Housing costs are only one part of the cost of living stresses that many on the Central Coast face. We aim to help ordinary Australians through reducing education costs, wiping student debit, moving dental and mental health care into Medicare and making all GP visits free. We must secure our future by ending coal and gas mining and use, stopping the logging of native forests, and standing firm to see renewable energy, ideally in public hands, extended to all.

We know that First Nations’ justice, through Truth and Treaty, is essential before justice for all can be achieved.

Our policies are all costed through the independent Parliamentary Budget Office, unlike many other parties and candidates. And we know how we will pay for our initiatives – we will make corporations pay their fair share. With one in three corporations operating in Australia paying no tax, we don’t see why the residents of Wyong or Empire Bay should have to bear the full burden of paying for services.