Five of the seven candidates running in next Saturday's election were in Guyra on Saturday night.
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A Northern Tablelands candidates forum was organised, at reasonably short notice, by the Save and Grow Guyra group, which was held at Guyra Bowling and Recreation Club.
When the ballot draw was held in Armidale 11 days ago, Greens candidate Elizabeth O'Hara informed me she was unhappy there had been no meet the candidate nights organised anywhere in the electorate this year, so it was good to see at least one go ahead.
She was there, along with Labor's Yvonne Langenberg, Liberal Democrat Margaret Hammond and independents Natasha Ledger and Billy Wood.
Unfortunately due to the short notice the crowd was small. I counted 10 at one point, which included some party supporters, so there number of genuine undecided voters was minimal. But they often are at these nights.
Incumbent MP Adam Marshall already had a commitment and could not be there. Shooters, Fishers and Farmers candidate Michael Hay was also absent.
When it came to the issues discussed, each had candidate their own priorities - from health to rail services, the environment or the influence of lobbyists.
Billy Wood said the region needed a rail service, Yvonne Langenberg highlighted problems in the health service and said people were not being heard, while Natasha Ledger, who also spoke about bringing trains back, said the most important issue was government making decisions because of lobbying.
Elizabeth O'Hara highlighted a string of environmental concerns around the region, while Margaret Hammond said major parties pandered to corporate interests and government needed to cut spending until it was debt free.
Questions from the small audience quizzed the candidates on vaccine mandates, Armidale Secondary College and the council amalgamation.
The issue of integrity in government came up several times in both the questions and the earlier speeches.
Recently ACM conducted a statewide survey asking readers to identify the issues most important to them, and I was surprised when integrity in government easily topped the list, ahead of things like health and the cost of living.
Several of the questions from the small crowd honed in on the topic, especially with concerns about corruption.
Regardless of which party wins government next Saturday, it's clear that there is a lot of trust to rebuild with the state's population.
Thanks for reading, and remember you can get in touch with us at armidaleexpress@austcommunitymedia.com.au.
Laurie Bullock
Group Editor
