Latest news with #VictorianNationals
The Guardian
22-04-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Nationals MP accused of ‘fobbing off' Gippsland constituents concerned by Dutton's nuclear plan
The Victorian Nationals MP in a region earmarked for a nuclear reactor by Peter Dutton has failed to meet with key constituents and community groups despite calling for 'conversation' on the issue. The Loy Yang coal-fired power station in Victoria's Latrobe Valley, in Darren Chester's Gippsland electorate, is one of seven locations shortlisted for nuclear reactors under the energy policy the Coalition will take to the 3 May election. Chester has not expressed a personal position on nuclear energy but has called for 'a calm and rational conversation' based on 'facts, technology and environmental science' rather than fear, politics and 'media-driven hyperbole'. Speaking on ABC Gippsland radio, he said despite 'small protests' at his office, 'a lot of other people contact me and say, 'This is a policy direction we need to go in.'' But several constituents have told Guardian Australia their attempts to raise concerns have been ignored. Sign up for the Afternoon Update: Election 2025 email newsletter East Gippsland resident Nola Kelly said she emailed Chester twice in early 2024 to request information about the Coalition's nuclear policy but received a generic response. She then made three phone calls between December and March requesting a meeting and was eventually told due to parliamentary commitments and the election a meeting 'may be a while off'. Kelly says she was being 'fobbed off' because she is a member of the Greens, though she said she was seeking answers as a constituent and not as a political activist. 'I'm no radical,' she said. 'I'm 76 – I'm not chaining myself to poles. I just want to have a conversation like he says he wants.' Dan Caffrey, president of the Latrobe Valley Sustainability Group, said he contacted Chester's office in August 2024 but was told the MP was unavailable until after Christmas. In February, he was asked to send his questions by email. Caffrey sent 20 questions to Chester, who replied, but Caffrey claims he did not answer them directly. In his response, seen by Guardian Australia, Chester wrote: 'Given neither of us are nuclear energy experts, I believe it is appropriate to wait for the full site analysis … before making any final decisions. Your opposition to the plan is noted.' 'No one is telling him they don't want nuclear because he won't let them,' Caffrey said. Dave Sweeney, a prominent anti-nuclear campaigner with the Australian Conservation Foundation, said Chester had agreed to meet him during the February sitting week in Canberra after they briefly spoke during the parliamentary inquiry into nuclear in December. But when Sweeney followed up to confirm the meeting, he says he was told the MP's schedule was full. 'He's telling people, 'I want a mature conversation.' But if your position is critical or hostile, he doesn't want to hear it,' Sweeney said. He intended to raise concerns about nuclear power's significant water requirements and the difficulty of rehabilitating the Loy Yang site, which he said could take 20 years. Wendy Farmer, president of Voices of the Valley – a group founded after the 2014 Hazelwood mine fire – and organiser of Nannas Against Nuclear, said Chester and his staff had been largely unresponsive to weekly peaceful protests outside his electorate office. 'We've been told they'll consult with us for two and a half years, but then they will do it anyway with no right to veto,' Farmer said. 'How is that listening to the community?' Sign up to Afternoon Update: Election 2025 Our Australian afternoon update breaks down the key election campaign stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion She said Chester agreed to meet with her and Environment Victoria's Latrobe Valley organiser, Hayley Sestokas. But when Sestokas followed up by email to schedule the meeting, Chester declined and said he was 'well aware' of the organisation's position. 'I don't see any point to meeting again at this stage,' he wrote. Sestokas replied: 'You agreed to meet us early this year. Are you withdrawing your previous offer?' Sestokas, who lives in Orbost and has family in Morwell, said the proposed meeting would have included a range of local teachers, engineers, health workers and First Nations people. 'Yes, I'm with Environment Victoria, but I'm also a local community member, a volunteer and a constituent,' she said. Meanwhile in the central west of New South Wales, the former Nationals MP turned independent member for Calare, Andrew Gee, said the Coalition had not properly explained its plans to the communities that would be most affected. Lithgow, part of the Calare electorate, is about 25km from a proposed nuclear site at Mount Piper power station. 'While there are people for and against on either side of the ledger, the message that has come through loud and clear is that people want the details of this plan, and they haven't been provided,' he said. 'Why haven't Coalition leaders been to Lithgow to properly explain the policy?' Community environment groups in the central west also expressed their frustration about the lack of consultation. 'We just don't like being bulldozed over,' said Chris Jonkers, the vice-president of the Lithgow Environment Group. Jonkers said people in the community held serious concerns about water usage, long project timelines and costs, and warned of legal challenges if the Coalition pushed ahead. Nick King, the president of the Central West Environment Council, said he expected strong community opposition if the Coalition formed government and genuinely pursued the plans. Guardian Australia contacted Chester for comment but did not receive a response before publication.
The Guardian
15-04-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Victorian Nationals open to working with a Dutton government to build nuclear reactor
The Victorian Nationals have left the door open to working with a Dutton government to build a nuclear reactor in the Latrobe Valley, as the Liberal leader, Brad Battin, was urged to 'get a spine' and rule out a repeal of the state's nuclear ban. In an interview with Guardian Australia, Battin distanced the Victorian Coalition from Peter Dutton's nuclear plan, saying the state opposition was instead focused on expanding onshore gas exploration. But Battin refused to say whether he would support overturning the state's legislation banning the construction and operation of nuclear facilities. He said the Victorian Coalition would decide its position only after the federal election on 3 May. The Victorian Nationals leader, Danny O'Brien, similarly said the state Coalition had 'no plans to introduce nuclear power', but he was open to working with a future federal government if it decided to lift its own ban. 'It may be that a future Commonwealth government initiates a discussion about nuclear power, noting there is currently a Commonwealth moratorium on nuclear energy,' he said in a statement on Tuesday. 'I am open to sensible discussions about future energy supplies.' O'Brien added the entire Gippsland community, which takes in the Latrobe Valley, would need to be involved in any conversations about nuclear energy in the area. Sign up for the Afternoon Update: Election 2025 email newsletter The Victorian Nationals have previously showed more openness to nuclear than their Coalition partners. At its state conference in 2024, a motion calling on Victorian National party MPs to support their federal colleagues and 'promote the advantages of nuclear energy' passed with majority support. A week later in parliament, the Nationals MP Emma Kealy said 'any responsible government' should be exploring all energy options. She described nuclear as 'a form of safe and reliable energy'. In 2023, under the previous leader, John Pesutto, the Coalition supported a bill introduced by the Libertarian MP David Limbrick in the upper house that sought to repeal the nuclear prohibition legislation, arguing it limited the state's involvement in the defence, space and minerals industries. However, Guardian Australia understands the issue is more divisive in the Liberal party room. Several MPs said they would push for a vote on its position in the event of a Dutton government. One Liberal MP said there were a 'variety of views' within the party room on nuclear energy, with some supportive and others 'absolutely in opposition'. They pointed to the former leader Matthew Guy, who told parliament in 2023 that members of his own family died from the effects of the Chornobyl disaster. Sign up to Afternoon Update: Election 2025 Our Australian afternoon update breaks down the key election campaign stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion 'While he's the most vocal, he's not the only one who has reservations,' the MP said. Another Liberal MP said it was important the party's position on nuclear was 'not a captain's call'. The deputy premier, Ben Carroll, said there was 'no social licence for nuclear' in Victoria and claimed Battin had refused to take a clear position due to internal divisions within the Coalition. 'He needs to get a spine,' he said. 'Take a leaf out of David Crisafulli in Queensland's book, Brad. At least he had the guts to come forward and say he doesn't support nuclear. 'For Brad to say he's deferring his decision until 4 May after the federal election, just goes to show Brad is more interested in keeping his party room together and the National party and Coalition together and he is letting Victorians know where he stands.' Battin responded by reaffirming the Victorian Coalition's 'focus on gas'. Meanwhile, Dutton batted away questions about Battin's comments during a visit to Melbourne on Tuesday. He said the Coalition does 'not shy away from' nuclear energy, though he refused to say how much it would cost to shut down old coal plants to make way for nuclear reactors.
