Letter from Liberal candidate Allison Bluck tells Mayo voters she manages KI nature trail – but it’s actually run by a woman named Alison Buck

The Liberals have apologised for a baffling election blunder after a letter from Mayo candidate Allison Bluck claimed credit for the work of environmentalist Alison Buck.

The Liberal candidate for Mayo has apologised for a bizarre election blunder in which she appeared to claim credit for the work of a stranger with a similar name.

The Liberal Party sent a letter from Allison Bluck to thousands of households in Mayo that claimed she was the manager of the “Kangaroo Island Nature Trail”. However, the manager of the KI Wilderness Trail is actually Alison Buck – who said she had never heard of Ms Bluck.

“As the manager of the Kangaroo Island Nature Trail, I am passionate about the environment,” Ms Bluck says in the letter, which spruiks Liberal spending on “improving bushfire resilience on Kangaroo Island”.

The Liberal campaign said “the letter was an early draft that was incorrectly sent to the printer by central headquarters”.

There is no public record of Ms Bluck having any involvement in KI conservation projects, nor of the existence of a “Kangaroo Island Nature Trail”.

Her biography on the Liberal website says she is a finance professional based in the Adelaide Hills, and a former federal public servant.

Allison Bluck is the Liberal candidate for Mayo.

Alison Buck is the manager of the Kangaroo Island Wilderness Trail. Picture: Sarah Reed

Allison Bluck’s letter to the residents of Mayo.

“As soon as the error became evident, Allison corrected the record publicly and has apologised to the individual concerned,” a Liberal Party spokesperson said.

Ms Bluck’s letter to voters also promotes Liberal spending on “Hahndorf Road” when there is no such road – the main street running through Hahndorf is Mount Barker Rd.

She posted on Facebook: “There was a mistake in the production of the letter you may have recently received from me. It incorrectly stated my occupation.

“I’m sorry about the error and I wanted to clear up any confusion straight away.

“I love all parts of Mayo and care about our local environment. However, I’m also passionate about our economy and I work in the financial sector.”

Alison Buck has managed the Kangaroo Island Wilderness Trail since 2016 and said she was unaware of her near-namesake Ms Bluck, nor the “nature trail” referred to in the wannabe MP’s letter.

“I don’t know anything about a ‘Kangaroo Island nature trail’, unless someone is doing something on private property,” Ms Buck said.

Asked how she felt about a political candidate’s campaign material claiming credit for her environmental work, Ms Buck laughed and said “a bit frustrated”.

“If she wants to come and help, I’ll take any help available, but I’m not aware of her.”

Alison Buck says Flinders Chase National Park is recovering well from the devastating 2019-20 bushfires, but parts of the Kangaroo Island Wilderness Trail she manages remain closed to visitors. Picture: Sarah Reed

The wilderness trail was devastated by the 2019-20 bushfires, but the landscape is regenerating and some sections of the trail have now reopened for walkers hosted by licensed tour operators.

Mayo – which extends from the Adelaide Hills across the Fleurieu Peninsula to Kangaroo Island – was once a blue-ribbon Liberal seat held by Alexander Downer for 24 years.

It was won by NXT (now Centre Alliance) MP Rebekha Sharkie in 2016 before she held the seat in both a 2018 by-election and the 2019 federal election.

A poll late last year predicted Ms Sharkie would comfortably hold the seat against her Liberal challenger. She declined to comment on Ms Bluck’s letter to voters.

Originally published as Letter from Liberal candidate Allison Bluck tells Mayo voters she manages KI nature trail – but it’s actually run by a woman named Alison Buck