Member for Hunter Joel Fitzgibbon said that he would make regular visits to the Bylong, Kandos and Rylstone areas when the area officially becomes part of his electorate on August 21.
“If re-elected I look forward to providing the same amount of work into this area as I have done in the electorate as it has been since I was first elected more than 14 years ago,” Mr Fitzgibbon said.
Mr Fitzgibbon met local voters at an informal morning tea on Wednesday when he answered many concerns of local residents.
Among the subjects raised was the fact that the town does not have a taxi service, the shortage of transport since the rail line closed, the future of the Australia Cement works, mining, lack of employment opportunities for young people, education and boat people.
Mr Fitzgibbon said the problem of the boat people was not with the people wanting to seek asylum in Australia.
“What needs to be stamped out is those who are illegally taking money from people to ship them to Australia,” Mr Fitzgibbon said.
“At the current rate it would take 20 years to fill the MCG with asylum seekers, so that is not such a big problem.
“More than 90 per cent of our illegal immigrants come into Australia on regular passenger airline flights.
“Many have a visa but stay on when it runs out.”
He described the unemployment problem in Kandos as a “pocket” of unemployment at a time when unemployment is at one of the lowest levels on Australian records.
“These pockets exist where the industry isn’t there to provide the jobs,” he said.
“People in these areas need the training to enable them to secure the jobs that are available.
“The best role government can play is to provide stimulus to the economy to create jobs as we did during the global financial crisis last year.
“We have to ensure the local people have the skills to take up job opportunities and that the local economy remains viable and can create work.”
Mr Fitzgibbon said he understood that if the cement works closed down the town of Kandos would close down for business and “that is why we can never allow that to happen”, he said.
On domestic violence and crime Mr Fitzgibbon said there was a direct link between these problems and the state of the local economy.
“If families are under financial pressure and people are out of work, pressures build and people turn to alcohol, or even worse drugs, and violence emerges,” he said.
“The best solution is to ensure people have the dignity of working so that the pressures on families do not become too great.”
Locals took a hit at neighbouring towns, Mudgee and Gulgong, saying that if they wanted jobs and prosperity they need to stop whingeing about the trains coming through towns and accept that the mines would provide apprenticeships for school leavers and work in general.
“Who knows, once the trains start running they might even like the sound. We miss it down here now,” one senior citizen commented.
Mr Fitzgibbon agreed with the sentiment, saying the growth of mines in towns like Singleton and Muswellbrook had led to the highest level of local wealth on record.
Commenting on recent calls for a women’s hub in the area to bring women together to share friendship and learn new skills, Mr Fitzgibbon said he was a great fan of the Men’s Shed concept and had visited the one in Kandos earlier that day.
“I’ve only heard here today that there was a women’s ‘Men’s Shed’ emerging - funny term - but maybe we need to start applying the concept of the Men’s Shed to women as well,” he said.
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