Allegra Spender, Teal MPs’ voting records show they are similar
The parliamentary voting records of Allegra Spender and the Teal independents have come under the microscope, as the Wentworth MP said “no one tells me how to vote”.
EXCLUSIVE: Allegra Spender and the teal independents have nearly identical parliamentary voting records and the Wentworth MP has confirmed she will continue to accept political donations from Climate-200.
Ms Spender and fellow teal Zali Steggall, the member for Warringah, have in recent days attempted to distance themselves from the fundraising vehicle and its founder Simon Holmes a Court.
This is despite the seven teal independents having similar or the same policies on key areas including climate and often wearing clothes in different shades of blue and teal.
Ro Knox, the Liberal candidate for Wentworth, said the public were starting to question the independence of the teals given the millions in funding they received from Climate 200, which is not a registered political party.
“Allegra Spender has already received $39,000 this year from Climate 200,” she said.
“I think if the teals are serious about their independence they wouldn’t be trying to influence the AFR’s influential list.”
Ms Spender received $700,000 from Climate 200 at the last election.
Voting record analysis by News Corp found that the teal independents have effectively voted as a bloc over the past three months, including 20 times out of 21 in October.
Ms Spender was absent for one vote on October 9 while on October 8 Kylea Tink was absent for two votes and Ms Steggall was absent for one. Ms Chaney was absent for one vote on October 10.
In September Ms Spender voted the same as the other six teal independents 24 out of 27 times, or 88 per cent. Mackellar MP Dr Sophie Scamps was absent twice and Curtin MP Kate Chaney was absent once.
In August Ms Spender voted the same as the other teal independents 12 out of 15 times. In July, she voted the same as the other teals 16 out of 20 times.
Ms Spender said what distinguished her and the teals voting almost the same from a major political party was that “no one tells me how to vote.”
“As an independent MP, I make up my own mind based on the facts and the views of my community,” she said.
Ms Spender said she had met with Simon Holmes a Court, who wrote a book about the 2022 election called The Big Teal, twice since becoming the member for Wentworth but confirmed she would continue accepting donations from Climate 200.
On Thursday the Wentworth MP said she had attempted to remove Mr Holmes a Court from a covert power list because she found the insinuation that the Climate 200 founder was “pulling all the strings” was insulting to her and other women.
Former Wentworth MP Dave Sharma, who Ms Spender unseated at the last election, said he didn’t understand how Ms Spender could claim independence.
“I don’t see how someone who expressly lobbies and does the bidding of her major financial backer and votes with the Greens over 70 per cent of the time can credibly call herself an independent,” he said.
A senior Liberal strategist, who wished to remain unnamed, said voters had started asking what the teals had actually achieved since being elected.
“It’s having a negative impact on their support,” he said.
“The second factor is that the issue agenda has changed significantly and people are far more concerned with cost of living than integrity or climate change.”
Climate-200 is not a registered political party but provided millions in funding at the last election to candidates who unseated incumbent Coalition MPs in the party’s heartland.
This included Ms Spender in Wentworth, Ms Steggall in Warringah, Dr Sophie Scamps in Mackellar, Ms Tink in North Sydney, Ms Chaney in Curtin, Monique Ryan in Kooyong and Zoe Daniel in Goldstein.
A Climate 200 spokesperson said “Mr Holmes a Court rarely interacts with independent MPs and does not discuss policy.”
Originally published as Allegra Spender, Teal MPs’ voting records show they are similar
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