As a Federal Election approaches, the battle for Macquarie – which now takes in western parts of the Penrith LGA – will be one of the most intriguing.
Last year, a re-distribution of federal electorate boundary lines saw the communities in Emu Plains, Emu Heights and Leonay now included in the electorate of Macquarie, which is currently held by Labor’s Susan Templeman.
Templeman has held the seat for two terms and is hoping to retain the seat for a third time.
“For me this is about a work ethic where you are constantly working hard for your community, not just turning up before an election…” Templeman said.
“The privilege of being elected to parliament is so fleeting and there is so few people who ever get to say they were chosen by their community once let alone twice and let alone three times.
“This is not an area that stays the same, it’s an area that swings so I am not going to walk away no matter what happens in life at any time saying I should have worked harder.”
Going up against Templeman is Mike Creed from the Liberal Party who is currently serving his second term as a Hawkesbury City Councillor.
“I’ve always a big interest in giving back to the community and supporting those that have always supported me. We live in a really unique community; I think it’s the best place to live but I might be biased!” Creed said.
“We are a large electorate, but we are community orientated, and we are all very close to each other and step in when we need help and that’s what inspires me to stick my hand up and get involved in politics. I just want to help people.”
Creed has been out in the new communities he hopes to represent to hear what they are asking for.
“They are just tired of being told a lot of words but [seeing] no action,” Creed said.
“One of the biggest things they are talking about is the cost of living, the fact that electricity bills have gone up so much even thought they were promised that they were going to go down $275 before the last election by Anthony Albanese over 90 times and instead they’ve gone up over $1,000, food prices are through the roof, it is all a flow on effect from mismanaging the economy and it’s hurting our local community.
“Whether it is small business or your family budget, it’s those sorts of things the government needs to be working on to make sure they are running the economy properly so people can live better lives.”
Templeman said the rising cost of living is a concern that remains on top of the government’s list of priorities.
“We are all very conscious of the general rise in the cost of living that is really squeezing people. When individual household budgets are squeezed then the small businesses feel that flow on effect,” Templeman said.
“So, the rising interest rates from that level is absolutely a major issue which is why our priority as a government has been on keeping inflation down. Interest rates haven’t gone up since November last year, but they haven’t come down yet and that is what we are all hoping our efforts will bring about.
“In the meantime, I’ve had people say that the energy relief has been practical. It doesn’t necessarily change their balance sheet, but it helps. Pension rises have helped, the rent assistance increases have helped, and the cutting of university debt has helped and the cheaper childcare.
“Its all helped a bit, but we recognise that this is one of the toughest times… So, I’m really conscious of what businesses locally are experiencing.”
Ahead of the Federal Election Creed said he is looking forward to showing the community how he will represent them.
“An election is a great time to be able to debate policy and ideas which we seem to have not been doing more recently in this country,” Creed said.
“We seem to go down a nasty, personal type of election campaign and that’s just not how I operate. It’s all about the policies you bring to the table, it’s about how you treat people with respect regardless of their views and putting their best foot forward in regards of what you can actually do for the community.
“That’s what I am putting my hand up for, I want to fight for our community, so they have a strong voice in Canberra.”
Templeman said there were a range of things she will work towards if re-elected.
“…Relieving cost of living impacts as best we can without driving further inflation and sending interest rates higher is a top priority.
“At the same time, I want to see investment in flood mitigation measures [as well as] bushfire mitigation.”
Emily Chate
Emily Chate joined The Western Weekender in 2024, and covers local news - primarily courts and politics. A graduate of the University of Wollongong, Emily has contributed to The Daily Telegraph and worked as a freelance journalist.