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INDEPENDENT MEMBER FOR KURRAJONG IN THE ACT LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY

WHAT I STAND FOR:

• Quality housing, healthcare and education for all, regardless of income or background.

• A future for young people to feel excited about.

• Canberra as a world leader in healthy living, community building and sustainability.

• Tackling root causes of the mental health crisis.

• Reducing the level of disadvantage in our city.

• Safety for women and children.

• Supporting locals to build successful businesses.

• Greater vision and funding for our environment.

• Sophisticated active travel infrastructure.

• Increasing the transparency and efficiency of government spending.

MY PRINCIPLES:

1. Every voice is heard: working to ensure nobody gets ignored or left behind.

2. No vested interests: basing my decisions solely on the needs of our community.

3. Empowering locals: supporting local initiatives, businesses and community organisations.

4. Accessibility: remaining an active participant in community life, prioritising direct contact with people in my electorate.

5. Hard work: doing everything possible to deliver for our community.

6. Integrity: following through, being accountable to the people who elected me, and admitting to any mistakes.

7. Long-term thinking: making decisions that reach beyond the election cycle.

8. Evidence-based policy: grounding my views in evidence and updating them when new evidence emerges.

9. Collaboration: working constructively with other MLAs wherever possible.

10. Independence: remaining free of influence from any party interests.

MY STORY

Despite being born into a political family, I was never interested in politics growing up.

I began paying closer attention to politics after starting a family of my own, and was disappointed to see a lack of courageous leadership in the face of simultaneous housing, climate and mental health crises.

I felt we needed more independently-minded, forward-looking politicians who were committed to acting in our community’s long-term best interests.

That’s why I volunteered to support David Pocock's values-based campaign to become the ACT's first independent senator in 2022. I asked for a job when he was elected and spent the next two years working as one of Senator Pocock’s advisers.

In a bid to bring the independent movement to the ACT Legislative Assembly, I launched Independents for Canberra in early 2024. Twenty candidates ended up running under our banner, working together wherever possible while retaining our independence.

On 19 October 2024, I was one of two independent candidates elected to become a Member of the Legislative Assembly, breaking a 23-year drought for independents in ACT politics.

I believe we are at our best when we come together to form communities based on trust and mutual respect. Reflecting this belief, my approach to politics is grounded in honesty, integrity and collaboration.

I live in Dickson with my wife and our two young children. I hold a philosophy degree from the Australian National University and, before entering politics, was the founder and operator of Canberra’s first holistic movement studio, Praksis.