NSW election 2023: Clarence election candidates Q&A
They want to represent your area – but what drives the people standing for the seat of Clarence in the 2023 state election? Find out in our Q&A.
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Seven candidates in the seat of Clarence will be vying for your vote at the state election as sitting MP Chris Gulaptis prepares to stand down after a dozen years in the position.
We put a series of questions to the candidates so you know more about them and what they stand for ahead of the March 25 vote.
The ballot draw result is: (1) Mark Rayner – Legalise Cannabis Party, (2) Greg Clancy – The Greens, (3) Debrah Novak – Independent, (4) Richie Williamson – The Nationals, (5) Leon Ankersmit – Labor, (5) Brett Duroux – Indigenous Aboriginal Party, (6) Nicki Levi – Independent, (7) George Keller – Sustainable Australia Party – Stop overdevelopment / corruption.
Greg Clancy – Greens
How long have you lived in the electorate?
41 years.
Why have you decided to put your hand up for election?
I am a Greens councillor and I would like to see a Greens local state member and even if I don’t get elected I want to build up the Greens base in the electorate and also support our upper house candidates.
What are your plans for the electorate?
My plan for the electorate is to make it an environmentally friendly community supporting all residents.
What‘s the most significant issue in the electorate and how will you address it?
The most significant issue in the electorate is the effect of climate change increasing the frequency and severity of bushfires, floods and severe storms.
I will continue to campaign for realistic and effective emissions reductions and to assist with resilience projects to address the disasters when they do occur.
Your final pitch to voters
I would like you to consider voting for me as I am committed to the local area, its environment and its people and I believe that I have the qualifications, skills and experience to be a very effective local member.
My two terms on Clarence Valley Council have shown what I can achieve if supported.
Debrah Novak – Independent
How long have you lived in the electorate?
I have lived, worked and played in the Clarence Valley and North Coast for 40 years.
Why have you decided to put your hand up for election?
I am standing so I can continue to amplify our community‘s voice so we can protect our farming future, community, young people, small businesses, environment and future generations.
Issues that matter to the seat of Clarence are many and diverse and on the back of drought, bushfires, pandemic and floods.
The seat of Clarence needs a local member who is already on their feet working hard for them and who cares deeply for everyone, not just the needs of a political party.
What’s your plan for the electorate?
To unite the electorate with one voice (community) so the political parties can regather for the next generation to become fit for our future.
What’s the most significant issue in the electorate and how will you address it?
Unfortunately, there are a huge number of extreme matters that need to be addressed immediately. From inflation to cost of living, water and food security, housing and homelessness, teacher, nurse and doctor shortages and red tape around small business and farming. I will address it by lobbying whichever party wins power on the day.
Your final pitch to voters
I have been on the front foot advocating for the Clarence Valley community for over 25 years.
Some of these matters include our farmers right to farm, food and water security, bushfires and floods, grassroots rugby league, murder investigations, domestic violence, mental health and wellbeing, small business, and the performing arts to name just a few.
I am highly motivated to create positive change and lead by example with lasting results everyone in our community can benefit from and be proud of.
Leon Ankersmit – Labor
How long have you lived in the electorate?
I have lived in Maclean for 15 years.
Why have you decided to put your hand up for election?
As a community services worker and executive of 30 years experience, I have much to offer our district in ensuring that we get the attention and resources we need in our electorate so that we can live our best lives.
The Clarence electorate is somewhat disadvantaged compared to other Northern Rivers electorates and I want to see us thriving socially and economically.
What’s your plans for the electorate?
I will work across the three levels of government and with the business and agricultural sectors to implement a sustainable plan for growing our electorate’s economy and prosperity, and to achieve effective adaptation to climate change to protect assets, environment and the viability of core industries.
I will work to deliver improved services and infrastructure as the needs of our population require, and I will focus on delivering increased affordable housing and services for low-income households.
What’s the most significant issue in the electorate and how will you address it?
The biggest issue for our region is housing. Housing cost is the main driver of cost of living pressure, and housing supply is under great pressure especially now that so many dwellings are uninhabitable following the floods.
A related factor is the availability of tradespeople to build and repair homes.
We have lost 60,000 trade apprenticeships during the past 10 years in NSW and we are now seeing the effect of having ignored the warning signs for a decade because we simply do not have enough workers to address the housing crisis.
NSW Labor has a strong plan to support renters, increase housing supply and return funding to TAFE so that we can train the workforce of the future.
I will work locally and within an NSW Labor Government to ensure that Clarence is not left behind any more in addressing the statewide housing crisis.
Your final pitch to voters
I am a highly qualified executive manager with strong regional ties, most recently as CEO of Anglicare North Coast.
We need a representative who has skills and energy, a vision for the district and the right motivations and affiliations to deliver outcomes during the next term of government.
My ability to collaborate and forge partnership in any situation including conflicting interests is the most powerful skill I bring to the role.
With a likely change in NSW to a Labor term of government, Clarence needs a local member who is part of that government to ensure that we get our fair share.
I love meeting people and making sure that we attend to the needs of those who are struggling.
Whether essential workers, cleaning staff or elderly people who are facing high cost of living on limited income, I will be a strong representative for Clarence in a NSW Labor government.
George Keller – Sustainable Australia Party
How long have you lived in the electorate?
I‘ve lived in Yamba (Clarence Valley) for six years before moving overseas to travel and build upon my life experiences.
Why have you decided to put your hand up for election?
I‘ve been following local and national politics for quite sometime and I felt as though the usual parties in government weren’t doing enough for the country and for my generation.
I realised that the best way to have a say and try to make positive changes beyond voting was to get involved and run for government.
I want to protect our environment, stop overdevelopment and stop corruption.
What’s your plan for the electorate?
I plan to address several issues that affect my electorate in line with our party’s policies.
That includes taking action on climate change and protecting our environment, strengthening our health services, working to receive a fairer share of government resources and services.
I also plan to properly invest in our infrastructure such as the road network between Grafton and Armidale (Armidale Rd) which is in dire need of repair and connects the Clarence to inland townships, which can help to drive tourism.
(I want to) significantly reduce the areas waste and increase its recycling and energy recovery capacity through the circular economy.
What’s the most significant issue in the electorate and how will you address it?
The most significant issue in the electorate is the protection of the environment.
We will protect endangered species habitats, native forests and local tree canopies, reduce Australia’s waste production, (take) action on climate change, stop inappropriate high-rise and sprawl, stabilise Australia’s population size and deliver new community infrastructure before more housing.
Your final pitch to voters
I’m running for the NSW parliament to de-corrupt politics in NSW and implement sustainable solutions for our future.
Sustainable Australia Party will address the root causes of our problems rather than simply deal with symptoms.
Mark Rayner – Legalise Cannabis Party
How long have you lived in the electorate?
I am new to the area, and I don‘t know a lot about local issues but what I can tell you is that cannabis is used by Australians from all walks of life, with many gagged from speaking out.
Why have you decided to put your hand up for election?
I don‘t expect to win this election. I nominated to give the good people of Clarence Valley the opportunity to express their support for legalising cannabis from the privacy of the ballot box
.
What‘s your plan for the electorate?
LCNSW Party believe that people should have the freedom to choose cannabis for recreational or medicinal use including self-grow options.
What‘s the most significant issue in the electorate and how will you address it?
We believe our children should not be criminalised and denied future opportunities because they have a criminal record for cannabis “crimes”.
We believe that testing for presence only without impairment is a bad public policy responsible for ruining lives, especially in regional areas.
We desire police resources to be directed at real crime on the streets.
We wish to work toward a cleaner greener future by encouraging agriculture and remediation of land over mining and pollutant industrial pursuits.
Your final pitch to voters.
What I can tell you is this one policy reaches into many areas of life for all Australians. We are here to be their voice.
We expect jobs to be created from the manufacturing of textiles, building materials, plastics that are all plant based.
We feel that the revenue from state based tax from public sales of cannabis products should be directed towards housing, health and rehabilitation services and other important services demands as they arise.
Our members and supporters care about the environment and a cleaner future for our children and generations beyond, clean land, air and water is a must.
We want a safe, standardised and regulated supply for people who choose to use it.
I can assure you that our members and candidates are everyday people like you who want fairness and justice in our society and a future for our kids, free from governmental corruption. Community connection and trust are our priority.
Brett Duroux – Indigenous Aboriginal Party
How long have you lived in the electorate of Clarence?
My Aboriginal ancestors belong to the Gumbayggirr, Bundjalung, and Yaegal people of the area so my emotional and spiritual connection to this place has existed for time immemorial and will continue for as long as my people and our descendants take breath.
Personally, I was born in Sydney and went to school in Grafton. I have lived back up here on my country for over 40 of my 50 years.
Why have you decided to put your hand up for election?
I am running in this election as an independent candidate endorsed by the indigenous – Aboriginal Party of Australia (IAPA) because the locals of Clarence, especially Aboriginal people, are not being heard.
I believe an Aboriginal candidate who really cares about Aboriginal people and others who are doing it tough is the best chance for real change.
Many issues affecting Aboriginal people also affect anyone struggling in Clarence, but non-Indigenous people will only be able to walk around with their held high when justice is done for the first custodians of this land. Justice for indigenous people will set all Australians free.
For tens of thousands of years, Aboriginal Australians managed the land. We hunted, gathered food, lit fires and fished in the ocean and rivers.
Coming off the land after European settlement caused not only huge cultural and social dislocation and difficulty for Aboriginal Australians, it also proved a disaster for conservation. We propose a return to traditional ways of caring for country.
Before standing for Page at the last Federal Election with the then newly formed indigenous – Aboriginal Party of Australia, I’d had no political experience and had never been affiliated with another party.
But I have always been the type of person that wants to stand up and be counted.
I don‘t believe in sitting back and whinging. If you can do something yourself, then you should get up and give it a go.
I want to promote respect for the land and to encourage unity and equality. I’m battling for everyone – black, white and brindle.
The IAPA and I want to unite all Australians regardless of how you identify. I want to bring back connection to the land and each other.
What‘s your plan for the electorate?
I will be fighting for: Prompt flood buybacks. Any homeowner in a dangerously flood prone area who wants a buyback or immediate assistance to floodproof their home should get it without further delay.
The Northern Rivers Reconstruction Corporation has only offered buybacks to 10 homeowners in the year since the 2022 floods.
This slow response is unacceptable and is adding to the trauma felt by survivors.
Secure housing for all. No-one in Australia should be homeless. We are not a poor country; there is no excuse for not looking after our vulnerable and homeless people. Everyone should have decent safe shelter.
Better mental health services in Clarence. Currently they are virtually non-existent. Clarence desperately needs help in this area.
We need indigenous Headspaces, or even better equivalents, to address the suicide and incarceration rate for indigenous people, which are a shame on our country.
Without healthy young people we have no future.
A ban on coal seam gas exploration or mining in the Clarence Valley. We need to protect our water, farmland and towns. Mining that puts our waterways and farmlands at risk needs to stop.
Stricter control on native forest extraction. For Aboriginal people these forests are like our mother; they should be treated with respect.
Prompt repair of the Grafton Olympic Pool. I will advocate for state funding to speed up the repair of the pool on the condition that entry is free for children. This is essential social infrastructure which previous generations provided. It is shameful that we cannot provide this healthy wholesome fun for our youth.
What‘s the most significant issue in the electorate and how will you address it?
The 2022 floods were a natural disaster of national significance. The immediate disaster response was inadequate, but possibly more forgivable than the state government’s slow, bureaucratic, mean-spirited, and consequently cruel, response to recovery.
I’m worried that if the electors of Clarence return a member of a large established party after this appalling performance, and coming after years of general neglect, they will be, in effect, sending a message to the parties of government that Clarence and the Northern Rivers in general can be treated with contempt without any electoral consequences whatsoever.
Your final pitch to voters
I have always been an outspoken leader in my community and I am a proud father of 10 children. I’m always happy to lend a hand to anyone who needs it.
I‘ve worked at the Grafton Ngerrie Local Aboriginal Land Council and as the chairperson of Gugiyn Balun Aboriginal Corporation.
I teach cultural ways to students at Nymboida. I want to bring back connection to the land and each other.
I’ve also been a stable hand in Grafton, a civil engineering carpenter with the Road and Traffic Authority and worked in bush regeneration.
I’m a practical person who likes to know how things work and how to fix them – be that a motor, a bridge or government policy.
If elected, and especially if I find myself in a balance of power situation, I will bargain hard to extract everything for Clarence that it deserves.
Unlike some other candidates, I will not be constrained by having to toe the line of an established party.
Nicki Levi – Independent
How long have you lived in the electorate?
25 years
Why have you decided to put your hand up for election?
Sheer frustration at mindless bureaucracy and system failure in every area from Education, Health, Farming, Business Support, Criminal Justice … and so on. It doesn’t have to be like this!
What‘s your plan for the electorate?
The basis of my plan is Collaborative Consultation so that policy and practice are developed, and implementation plans are actioned through consultation with the community. (i.e. actually listen to the educators; Health Workers; People who are employed; People who are not employed; Incarcerated People; Community Elders; People with Disability; Young People; Single Parents; all parents)
People have so much knowledge and so many great ideas, and no one listens to them!
Listening to our constituents and acting on their advice is the key to success in Clarence.
Parties listen to lobby groups because that is quick and easy. I don’t deal with lobby groups. I deal with individuals, real people. “Your issues are my issues.”
Our politicians have forgotten how to listen respectfully and respond effectively. They are completely caught up in party politics.
There are in many cases no actual published policies driving decision-making.
Party politicians are constrained by the parameters put in place to protect their parties and advance their own agendas, regardless of what the community really needs.
The needs, observations and concerns of individuals in the electorate are generally deemed to be “one off” and “irrelevant.”
In some cases, the party decides that it’s “too dangerous” for them to address the issues being raised, because it may reflect poorly on them! So nothing happens.
What‘s the most significant issue in the electorate and how will you address it?
The most significant issue in the electorate is that, the most significant issues is different for each and every person.
Mothers, fathers, grandmothers, grandfathers, boys, girls, young women and young men, homeless people, farmers etc. They all have different, significant issues.
We need to listen to what it is that they need and respond efficiently and effectively.
Forget having lunch at The Mantra! There is actually no time or money for that.
There is time to talk and time to walk the talk. Let’s do that!
Your final pitch to voters
Political parties no longer serve the needs of individuals in our communities. Hence, there is dissent and rioting all over the world. Political parties have been hijacked by lobby groups such as the fossil fuel industry, including the coal lobby. It is nonsensical for the National Party to say that they support farmers when at the same time they support coal and the burning of the planet.
My bee-hives melt at 42 degrees. Burning of fossil fuels on this planet has to stop now!
Drugs are a problem, but no-one addresses this because there is no (legal) industry attached from which political parties can get rich.
Drugs are trafficked into Clarence Correctional Centre, the very place which MUST be drug free for lives to improve. Does anybody care?
Vote Indepdendent so that your politicians represent you and we can rebuild a more socially responsible, environmentally sustainable, safer, more caring world.
Richie Williamson – Nationals
How long have you lived in the electorate?
I’ve lived in the electorate all of my life, I was born here and worked here all my life. We are
privileged to live in a beautiful part of the world.
– Why have you decided to put your hand up for election?
This election is important for the Richmond and Clarence Valleys, we need a strong person to ensure
we get our fair share, someone to take what we need to Sydney. It’s about getting what we need for us to be the best we can be.
What‘s your plan for the electorate?
I want to continue the work of Chris Gulpatis and the Nationals. I want to see the government continue to invest in health, education, roads and services. I want to bring the cost
of living down, programs like the regional seniors travel card, the regional university and apprenticeship travel card, $250 power bill rebate, back to school voucher and more all help but there is much more to do.
What‘s the most significant issue in the electorate and how will you address it?
The issues in the electorate are, housing affordability and availability, cost of living pressures, flood recovery.
All these issues and more have my full attention.
The NSW Nationals get this and are working on developing policies and programs for the people of regional NSW.
Your final pitch to voters
In this election we have a choice between a Nationals candidate who, if elected, will stand up and fight for the people of the Richmond and
Clarence Valleys or a Labor candidate who seems to support the idea of the growth areas of Western Sydney getting all the funding for education and health.
The Nationals are the only party committed to Grafton Base Hospital and its redevelopment. I have secured $10 million dollars for the upgrade of Casino and Grafton pools.
Millions for the upgrade of Yamba Road to improve flood access, millions for Naughton’s Gap road betterment.
I am 100 per cent ready to flight for us and what we need in Sydney should I be elected on March 25.
Just vote 1 Richie Williamson, the Nationals.
* Answers may have been edited for clarity or due to length.
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