NSW LABOR POLITICAL BRIEFING

Report from the Administrative Committee August 2016

1. VALE CYRIL JOSEPH NETHERY AM

Cyril Nethery joined NSW Labor in March 1941 at the age of 21. He was a Lancaster pilot during World War II and was described as compassionate, selfless man.

Cyril was heavily involved in his local community through rugby union clubs, as a volunteer firefighter and was passionate about assisting indigenous and underprivileged families through his work at St. Vincent de Paul. Cyril was recognised for his service to the community by being awarded a Member of the Order of medal.

Cyril was a long time active member of the Woolooware Branch of the ALP. He was a great supporter of Gough Whitlam’s reforms as he believed in making Australia a better place, taking his children to see Gough at an event in Cronulla. Cyril’s commitment to Labor values was second to none, and he was awarded life membership at State Conference.

Cryril died peacefully with his family by his side at the age of 96. He is survived by his wife, Valmarie, and his children who are also strong, Labor supporters.

2. VALE MARGOT LONGWORTH

Margot Longworth was a deeply committed and passionate member of NSW Labor for almost 37 years.

She was a member of the Newcastle Branch for 19 years from 1979 to 1998, before transferring to the Newcastle City Day Branch where she remained actively involved until her health declined in recent years.

Margot held almost every executive position at Newcastle City Day Branch and served with great enthusiasm as a long-time delegate to the Newcastle SEC and FEC.

She was a trailblazer in the art of media monitoring for Newcastle Labor MPs and Councillors, long before digital media and media analysts existed, maintaining meticulous records and archives.

Until her health declined, Margot was actively involved in Newcastle election campaigns and was a very familiar face on local polling booths. While she was unable to physically campaign in her later years, she always took part in Labor fundraisers and displayed Labor candidate posters at her home. Margot was also a dedicated community campaigner – having been very involved in the formative years of the Cooks Hill Community Group and the University of the Third Age.

She was passionate about her work with the Auchmuty Library at the University of Newcastle and remained a strong advocate for lifelong learning, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree late in life herself.

To know Margot Longworth was indeed an honour. Her capacity for empathy and compassion while overcoming extreme personal adversity makes her a truly remarkable woman.

Margot will be sadly missed by the Newcastle Labor community.

3. NSW LABOR ORGANISING CENTRE

During July the NSW Labor Organising Centre was utilised as a centre to contact voters for the by-election in Canterbury, and the Council elections.

The Organising Centre also acted as a hub for training and up-skilling volunteers and party members.

The Organising Centre will become increasingly central to Local Government Campaigns, where funds are tight and donation laws are strict.

The Organising Centre remains an essential part of the grassroots based campaign effort. Working jointly with the on the ground efforts of the campaigns, the Organising Centre will dramatically increase the ability of campaigns to contact voters for the Local Government elections.

4. ASSISTANT GENERAL SECRETARY

Following the foreshadowed election of John Graham to the Legislative Council, nominations were called for the position of Assistant General Secretary in accordance with Rule D.11(b).

At the close of nominations, Rose Jackson was elected unopposed.

5. BLACKTOWN CITY COUNCIL PRESELECTION

At the close of nominations, the following nominations were received:

Ward Councillors Nominations Christopher Quikley 1 3 Moninderjit Singh Mohammad Haroon

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Leo Kelly Julie Griffiths 2 3 Judith Thomas Nicole Scott Susai Benjamin In Agreed Order 3 3 Kathleen Collins Satish Kumar In Agreed Order 4 3 Carol Israel David Villegas Anthony Bleasdale In Agreed Order 5 3 Bradley Bunting Peter Clapham

A ballot was held to select the Labor candidates in Ward 1 & Ward 2 on Saturday 16th July 2016.

In Ward 1, the Returning Officer declared the candidates elected in the following order:

1. Chris Quilkey 2. Moninder Singh

Mohammad Harron later submitted a nomination form to fill the 3rd position.

Following the counting of preferences the Returning Officer declared the candidates elected in Ward 2 in the following order:

1. Leo Kelly 2. Julie Griffiths 3. Judith Thomas

The above candidates were endorsed.

6. LOCAL GOVERNMENT PRESELECTION – ROUND 4

At the close of nominations of Round 4 Local Government Preselections, the following nominations were received:

Council Ward Councilors Popular Mayor The Council of The Darriea Turley Darriea Turley City of Broken Hill Marion Browne Jim Nolan Branko Licul Maureen Clark Larry Angell John Harris Callan Rogers

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Byron Shire Council Paul Spooner Paul Spooner Jan Hackett Will Constable Joe Dawson Monika Wheeler Peter Doherty

Camden Council South Paul Farrow Sally Quinnell Harry Strait-Gardner North Cindy Cagney Wendy Underwood Tom Gersbach Central Ashleigh Cagney Aoife Champion Craig Strokey

Campbelltown City George Brticevic Council Meg Oates Darcy Lound Rey Manoto Masood Chowdhury Karen Hunt Ben Gilholme Jessica Malnersic Greg McCauley

Lismore City Council Isaac Smith Isaac Smith Darlene Cook Edwina Lloyd Maura Chambers Kevin Bell Mardi Ramsey

Liverpool City Council North Ali Karnib Wendy Waller Nathan Hagarty Sam Kayal Patricia Glossip Betty Green South Geoffrey Shelton Charishma Kaliyanda Brad Parker Raf Catansariti Ethan Monaghan

Nambucca Shire Susan Jenvey Council Jennifer Andren Stuart Holmes

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Penrith City Council North John Thain Aaron Duke Robin Cook Peter Gray Celine Smullen East Greg Davies Todd Carney Ben Price Samara Phillips Ed Mifsud South Karen McKeown Kathryn Presdee Stephen Heart Lorraine Fordham Phil Kessey

Port Macquarie- Peter Alley Peter Alley Hastings Council Mark Hughes Andrew Blundell Karen Wiles

The Council of The Daniel Hayes City of Wagga Wagga Vanessa Keenan Leah Ellis Bethany Saab James Halliburton

Wingecarribee Shire Graham McLaughlin Council Paul Williams David Kent Mike Bowern Margaret Higgins

The above candidates were endorsed

7. LOCAL GOVERNMENT PRESELECTIONS – ROUND 5

At the close of nominations of Round 5 Local Government Preselections, the following nominations were received:

Council Ward Councillors Albury City Council Darren Cameron Christian Kunde Rob Marion Carolyn Hasaraatti Leanne Cameron

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Bega Valley Shire Council Tasman Fitzer

Coffs Harbour City Council Damien Wood David Quinn Parkes Shire Council Barney Thompson Daniel Blakemore Shoalhaven City Council Ward 1 Annette Aldrich Jennifer Clapham Fran Smith Rhiannon Talbot Ward 2 No nominations received

Ward 3 Gillian Boyd Leonard Baxter Deborah Shapira John Glyde Singleton Council Anthony Jarrett

The above candidates were endorsed

8. LOCAL GOVERNMENT PRESELECTIONS – ROUND 6

At the close of nominations of Round 6 Local Government Preselections, the following nominations were received:

Council Wards Councillors Popular Mayor Hawkesbury City Barry Calvert Council Amanda Kotlash Leonie Wilbow Kyle-Raymond Jonker Graeme Phipps Gabrielle Wilkins Vickie Shackley

Wollondilly Shire North No nominations Council Central received East Elizabeth Sloane Steve Valentine Linda Valentine

The above candidates were endorsed.

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9. CESSNOCK LGC PRESELECTIONS

a) Following the death of Damien Wallace, nominations were called for Cessnock City Council B Ward. The following nominations were received:

Dianne Fitzgibbon

b) Nominations were also called for Cessnock City Council A Ward. The following nominations were received:

Graham Donaldson

The above candidates were endorsed.

10. CITY OF PRESELECTION

At the close of nominations the following nominations were received:

For Mayor & Council For Council only Linda Scott Ian Roberts Darren Jenkins Norma Ingram Holly Rebeiro Jonathan Yee Graham Brecht

A ballot was held to select the Labor candidate on Saturday 30th April 2016.

The General Returning Officer declared the Linda Scott elected as the Labor candidate for Lord Mayor.

Following the counting of preferences the General Returning officer declared candidates elected in the following order:

1. Linda Scott 2. Jonathan Yee 3. Norma Ingram 4. Holly Rebeiro 5. Ian Roberts 6. Graham Brecht 7. Darren Jenkins

The following nominations for the final positions on the ticket were received:

8th Damien Minton 9th Ariane Psomotragos

Linda Scott was endorsed as the Lord Mayor candidate and the above candidates were endorsed.

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11. ORANGE BY-ELECTION PRESELECTION

Nominations are called for rank-and-file preselections in the State seat of Orange for the upcoming by-election.

The timetable is as follows:

Nominations open: 5pm Friday, 5 August 2016 Nominations close: 5pm Friday, 19 August 2016 Local Credentialing: Saturday, 20 August 2016 Challenges Close: Wednesday, 24 August 2016 Ballot (if necessary): Saturday, 27 August 2016 Nomination Fee: $750

All nominations must be on the official form, which can be obtained from the NSW Party Office.

Nominations will be accepted by the General Returning Officer (or delegate) at the NSW Party Office, Level 9, 377–383 Sussex St, Sydney.

All financial members of the Labor Party as at Friday 5 August 2016 will be eligible to vote.

If you require dispensation for the nomination fee, please contact Ellyse Harding on (02) 9207 2000.

Please Note: There is no pre-poll or postal voting.

12. LOCAL GOVERNMENT TRAINING SEMINAR

With NSW Local Government elections taking place on September 10, it is important that as many candidates and their teams are appropriately trained and ready to campaign as possible. NSW Labor will host a Training Seminar to make sure Candidates and teams are prepared for the Local Government Elections.

Event: Local Government Candidate Training Seminar When: 8:30AM to 12:30PM 13 August 2016 Where: Trades Hall Auditorium, 377 Sussex Street Sydney

This event is open to all Candidates and teams running this election, as well as party members interested in learning about campaigning for Local Government.

13. YOUNG LABOR PRESIDENT

Todd Pinkerton has resigned as Young Labor President. Nominations for Young Labor President closed 10am, 5 August 2016.

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14. BY-ELECTION REPORT

Due to vacancies caused by the Federal Election, there are two upcoming by-elections for the NSW Legislative Assembly. The date for the by-election has been set for 12 November 2016.

The Nationals Member for Orange, , was elected to the Federal seat of Calare. This will force a by-election in Orange. The Seat is held on a margin of 21.7%. Labor has not yet selected a candidate for public office in the seat of Orange.

With moving to the federal , a by-election will take place in Canterbury. Canterbury is currently held by Labor on a margin of 15.7%. Labor’s candidate at the Canterbury by-election is MLC. Sophie has been a member of the NSW Legislative Council since 2010 and is currently Shadow Minister for Women, Shadow Minister for Ageing, Shadow Minister for Multiculturalism, and Shadow Minister for Disability Services.

The campaign in Canterbury is well under way. Sophie and her campaign have been door knocking, and engaging with community continuously both before and since the Federal election.

The campaign has already door knocked more than 1000 residents in Canterbury, with the objective of door-knocking every house in the electorate by polling day.

15. LABOR ACTION COMMITTEES

Following the 2016 Federal Election, Chinese Friends of Labor held a thank you dinner for its volunteers at Emperor’s Garden Restaurant, Chinatown, hosted by Hon Ernest Wong MLC, and featuring the Hon MP and General Secretary Kaila Murnain. The dinner was attended by almost 200 volunteers who assisted handing out how-to-votes on Election Day.

Chinese Friends of Labor have held multiple press conferences since the 2016 Federal Election regarding the impending election of Pauline Hanson and her One Nation representatives to the Senate. The first of these was with State Leader and candidate for Canterbury, The Hon Sophie Cotsis MLC; the second was in Hurstville with Kogarah MP ; the third was on the 1st August with newly appointed Shadow Minister for Multiculturalism MP, Senator Sam Dastyari, Sophie Cotsis, Chris Minns, Cr Linda Scott, City of Sydney Council Candidate Jonathan Yee, former Deputy Mayor of Hurstville Dominic Sin and the Hon Ernest Wong MLC. Each of these press conferences focussed on a different angle but with the overarching theme of denouncing Ms Hanson’s racist comments and firmly planting the Labor Party as protecting multiculturalism.

Labor for Multicultural Policy (LAMP) held a formation meeting on 26 May 2016. A charter was granted to Labor for Multicultural Policy.

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16. McKELL AWARDS AND DINNER 2016

The 2016 McKell Awards will be presented at the McKell Dinner on Friday 4 November 2016 at The Eight Restaurant, Market City, Haymarket.

McKell Awards are presented on a yearly basis to Party Members who have performed meritorious service. Further information is available from Veronica Newman on (02) 9207 2000 or [email protected]

A copy of the nomination form is available from Party Office on (02) 9207 2000.

Nominations are now open for the McKell Awards; applications close 12 noon on Wednesday 31 August.

17. BRANCH MATTERS

Correspondence has been received from Giles Martin, Newcastle SEC secretary stating that the Merewether West branch has failed to affiliate with the SEC and FEC for the fourth consecutive year and is therefore defunct. The Country Organiser, Jay Suvaal, will contact the Branch concerning their branch boundaries and financial accounts.

18. RULE I.7

Correspondence has been received from Mick Quinlivan, Secretary of Punchbowl Branch advising that Arthur Pickering, Colin Morris and Monica Khoury have requested to sign the Branch Attendance Book away from the branch. The requests were noted and if no objections are raised within 21 days everything will be considered to be in order.

19. CENTRAL POLICY BRANCH

The July Central Policy branch was held on Monday 25 July, with guest speakers including our newest Members of Parliament Emma Husar, and . The new MPs discussed their life before politics, their campaigns and what they want to do in their term of office.

The next Central Policy Branch will discuss the rise of Pauline Hanson’s One Nation Party from the Chinese-Australian perspective. Guest speakers include Hon Ernest Wong MLC, Kenrick Cheah, President of the Chinese Australian Forum, Jonathan Yee, City of Sydney candidate and Chinatown Business Owner, with more to be announced.

The details are as follows:

When: 6.30pm, Monday, 22 August 2016 Where: Trades Hall Auditorium, 377 Sussex St, Haymarket

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20. PARTY UNIT ANNUAL FINANCIAL RETURNS

Secretaries and Treasurers of all Party Units were sent an Annual Financial Return form to complete on 1 June 2016. The returns must be submitted to Party Office by 31 July 2016 in accordance with Party Rule K.14(c).

Party Office have received many responses, however some branches are outstanding. A reminder email has been sent to all Secretaries, with an updated deadline of 8 August 2016. Party Office has also contacted the branch Secretaries individually as a reminder, and will continue to do so until all returns are received.

Branches have been reminded that under Party Rule K.14(c), there are serious consequences for failure to provide a financial return.

Each party unit will need to return the following documents to Party Office: i. A completed Annual Financial Return [please complete even for a $NIL return] (N.B: Document MUST BE signed by a Party Unit auditor); ii. Completed Income and Expenditure Statement; iii. A copy of your Unit’s bank account statements from 01/07/2015 to 30/06/2016; iv. A scanned copy of all receipts issued; v. A scanned copy of all invoices paid; vi. A copy of any artwork for material that you produced; and, vii. A schedule of all donations-in-kind received.

If you would like a copy of your unit’s bank account statements from 1 July 2015 to date, please email the disclosures unit: [email protected] with your Party Unit’s name. Please note, we can only provide this service if your Party Unit is operating from a Head Office approved bank account.

Please submit your completed returns to [email protected] as soon as possible.

21. STATE POLICY FORUM

The following nominations for the union representatives for State Policy Forum have been received:

Alex Claassens (RTBU) Steve Butler (ETU) Barbara Nebart (SDA Nth) Natalie Laing (ASU) Geoff Derrick (FSU) Nadine Flood (CPSU) Bernie Smith (SDA NSW) Rita Mallia (CFMEU) Graeme Kelly (USU) Russ Collison (AWU) Dermot Ryan (TWU) Tara Moriarty (UV Hosp) Mel Gatfield (United Voice) Lucy Sanders (AMWU) Mark Morey (Unions NSW) Vacancy

The HSU indicated that they will fill their vacancy at a later date.

The above nominees were appointed to the State Policy Forum. August Political Briefing Friday 5th August 2016 11

22. FAIRFIELD LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA

At a meeting of the Party Officers on 25 August 2016, it was resolved that under rule H.15, the selection of candidates for Fairfield LGA be referred to the Administrative Committee.

All nominations were referred to the Candidate Review Committee, which formed the belief that no candidate could be precluded from standing as a Labor Candidate at the 2016 Fairfield Local Government Elections.

The following ticket was proposed:

FAIRFIELD WARD

1. Bassam Frety 2. Anita Kazi 3. Huy Tran 4. Antonio Campolongo

PARKS WARD

1. To be determined by the Party Officers 2. Ninos Khoshaba 3. Sera Yilmaz 4. To be determined by the Party Officers

CABRAVALE WARD

1. Tan Kien Ly 2. Adrian Wong 3. Tania Huynh 4. Peter Hansen

The above candidates were endorsed.

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