Meryl Swanson (Paterson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

At the last election I was humbled and honoured to win my seat of Paterson and get the vote from the majority of people for a third time. It really is an incredible honour, something that I never forget about and something that I think about often. It was a brutal campaign. I was up against a tough opponent who was cashed up. She had been on the ground for 12 months offering up more of the same. There were a lot of promises, a lot of criticisms of Albo and of me, a lot of TV ads and a sea of corflutes—not to mention many visits by the Prime Minister to either my seat or, more broadly, my region of the Hunter. What there wasn't was a commitment to a national integrity commission. There wasn't a commitment to take responsibility or change the ways of the Morrison government. There wasn't a commitment to be a better government. When I look back on that, it was such an incredible hint at what was really going on behind closed doors.

But what excited me about the campaign was that there were many new constituents. My area had become somewhat of a safe place for people who knew that they didn't want to live in close quarters in Sydney and some of our bigger cities any longer. They took the opportunity to be able to work from home to move to the regions. I thought that was a fantastic thing. I love meeting them and talking to them. Many of them were incredibly surprised at how much the regions had to offer them: the space, the air, the environment, the opportunity and the good jobs. It really was such an incredible experience for so many people. There was better housing affordability, a better lifestyle and the natural beauty. I can distinctly remember one lady who I spoke to, and she said: 'I never in a million years thought I would look out of my kitchen window and see cows. I cannot tell you what a difference that has made to my outlook on life.' Isn't it funny that it's the things we often take for granted that can make such a pivotal difference.

What worried me though was long-term residents, who were concerned about many newcomers—not the people themselves but the pressure that they put on things like roads and infrastructure. They were worried about not being able to get into the doctor, the dentist or the vet. Even the local mechanic had a big queue. The roads were more congested, and even parking was becoming an issue in some towns where, truly, it had never been a problem. The world seemed to be changing so rapidly after COVID, and those people felt the former government just wasn't keeping up.

That government at that time, of course, was changed because people had that sense that, whilst they had done a reasonable job during the pandemic, they had slid so far between the pandemic and that election. Everyone noticed that the cost of living was increasing and interest rates were rising. They were waking up to the fact that the trickle-down economy was really only working for the very wealthy. Retirees and young people alike were worried about their futures. They were sick of being told to get a job or get a better job; to stop renting and buy a house; and that climate change wasn't really a thing they should worry about. They were being told that our goals were being met at a canter. They were indirectly being told by their Prime Minister, 'I don't hold a hose, mate.' They were being told that international relations broadly didn't matter unless you were swapping red caps. They were being told 'how good' everything was.

However, people simply weren't buying it. Mr Morrison had exposed himself as not the daggy dad that everyone had wanted to embrace and just a knockabout good fellow but as someone who was of a much different character. That worried people. It was as if the daggy dad, when scratched a little deeper, had a darker side. They were very worried about that, and they were worried about the lack of substance. He was also showing his incompetence, and he was starting to show his true character. Sadly, for him, Australians just didn't like what they saw.

In this business you do have to have a thick skin. You can't take things too personally. It is difficult. I will never get used to people saying to me, 'Oh, you politicians are all alike.' That's actually not the case; we are not all alike. Not everyone is in it for themselves, and we do want to make a difference. I think it upsets me because it is just so wrong. I am privileged to work with some of the most dedicated, hardworking people in this place that I have ever worked with across my working life. Emma McBride, the member for Dobell, is a wonderful example of this. As, indeed, are the member for Fremantle and the member for Bean, who joins me in the—

I'm just getting to that, Member for Fisher. We all come from different places across this country and some of the most dedicated, hardworking people come from all of the parties in this place. We come to this place to make a difference at your place, at home, and we want to represent our homes as best we can.

It is an extraordinary opportunity to get to this place. As the great philosopher himself, John Denver, said, 'Some days are diamonds, and some days are stones.' But when you get something great over the line, like turning your local little airport in Newcastle into a serious international airport, with all the jobs and opportunities it brings, that's pretty amazing.

I do want to reference the member for—I'm struggling with Mr Michael McCormack's seat. Isn't it terrible that I can't think of it!

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