The Beagle Editor, What we can take away from the Federal Election result is that the Liberals didn't necessarily win with many very well informed commentators and political analysts saying that Labor actually lost. There was only one seat that Labor did win from the Liberals and that was Gilmore while Mike Kelly retained his seat of Eden Monaro. Some believe the Liberals won because ScoMo appeared smiling, relaxed, positive and effusive while Shorton was more intense, more long winded and appeared less than confident. Now with a Liberal Government in majority most of the country, like it or not, will expect that nothing will change and that the great discussion points of the election around climate change, wages equity, penalty rates, health, education and immigration will just continue along the party lines already in place. With the next round of local government elections coming up in September 2020 there is concern that unless some good people come forward as candidates we will complacently re-elect the councillors we have now. The effusive mayor with her moving forward, wonderful, exciting rhetoric will most likely win over ex-mayor Lindsay Brown and perpetual bridesmaid Rob Pollock unless Anthony Mayne, Pat McGinlay or Phil Constable do something to turn the tide and take control of the debate and the chamber. While the head-nodding trio of Tait, Nathan and Thomson sit there at the ready to thrust their hands in the air in support of anything the Mayor and General Manager suggest with Brown and Pollock toeing the line so as not to be tarnished by the brush of the dissidents we remain doomed for the next 16 months to have a council that is little more than token and kowtows to the general manager and her directors, rubber stamping with little if any question whatever is put in front of them. The primary concern in the shire in regards to any opportunity to oust the current incumbents is that there do not appear to be any takers in the wings ready to step up and challenge. In the Federal Election Fiona Phillips has been there for the past three years solidly challenging the Liberal Member for Gilmore. She has learnt firsthand what politics is and what can be achieved and how to go about it within policy, legislation and lobbying. Her win was well deserved as she campaigned the length and breadth of the electorate. Irrespective as to whether you agree with Labor there is no question of the effort that Ms Phillips made to secure Gilmore. At a local level though we do not see that at all. There are the "usual suspects" who are the bane of Council and the thorn in their arse however none of those have indicated their intention to stand at the next election, realising most likely that they are more effective from the outside rather than being constrained from within by bureaucratic restrictions on what they can say and how they can act. So unless there are new champions ready to take up the sword we are destined, as with the new Federal Government, to see it all continue as it is with our next councillors doing the beck and call of staff, rubber stamping whatever is put in front of them and basically sitting around like mushrooms being fed just enough for them to believe they actually have a purpose in the democratic process. Name and address supplied
