Jamie Chaffey promises to serve Parkes electorate in maiden parliamentary speech

Newly-elected Member for Parkes Jamie Chaffey has pledged to serve the electorate in his maiden speech to the House of Representatives.

Mr Chaffey addressed the chamber with family and friends assembled in the gallery for his first official remarks in the house.

It was a speech of initial reflection, as Mr Chaffey recalled growing up in regional NSW and starting his working life with a management traineeship at a supermarket chain.

“To do this, I had to borrow money from one of my sisters to buy new clothes and get set up in the local caravan park. It was the best decision of my life,” Mr Chaffey said.

“This led me to meet my wife, Judy, a young nurse. We began our life’s journey together.”

After starting a family, Mr Chaffey joined his wife’s family business, manufacturing agricultural equipment for grain and cotton industries, as an apprentice boilermaker. Mr Chaffey and his wife would ultimately become second-generation owners of the Gunnedah-based business.

“I have now stepped down from the family business after 28 years, and I’m very proud to say that our children have taken over the reins. It is now a very proud third-generation Australian-owned family business,” Mr Chaffey told the chamber.

“Working in small business and volunteering alongside the great people of some of my community service organisations, including the Gunnedah Rotary Club and the Carroll Rural Fire Service, I became even more focused on helping my community and successfully ran for Gunnedah Shire Council in 2016, where I served for eight years as mayor.

“My time as mayor taught me the greatest respect for all who serve as elected members in their communities.

“This role also gave me the opportunity to take on senior leadership roles, such as the chairman of the New South Wales Country Mayors Association and a place on the board of Local Government New South Wales.

“This has left me with a greater insight into how the three tiers of government can, and should, work together to achieve better results for all Australians.”

Mr Chaffey said his experience in business, as mayor and with local government organisations had also made him aware of the minefield of challenges that come ahead.

“I am committed to working very closely with all 20 councils and the Unincorporated Far West Area of the Parkes electorate,” Mr Chaffey said.

“Regional New South Wales is the best place to live and to do business. But every state and federal win is a fight. Our people just get on with the job, facing bigger health, education and business challenges than most people living in metropolitan areas.”

Mr Chaffey reflected on his own challenges early on in his marriage when he and his wife purchased their first home only for the market to decline.

The local timber industry would be gutted, the abattoir would soon be on its knees, as well as the local mining industry, causing a reduction in Gunnedah’s population.

Mr Chaffey said government decisions had squarely and severely impacted the town’s economy.

“We have unforgettable lived experience of the personal hardship that follows disastrous decision-making by government. This experience was a driving force in my motivation to join the local chamber of commerce and to then turn my focus to local government for solutions,” Mr Chaffey said.

“I was determined to do whatever I could to prevent other people from suffering the setbacks that we did at the hands of government who failed to realise the consequence of their decisions.

“The Parkes electorate needs young families. We need skilled and talented workers, and professionals, to make the confident choice to live in this incredible region. Economic policymaking needs to reflect the holistic approach that makes it easier for people to get a foothold and to establish their family.

“Location is a huge part of this. I want to make sure that the cities, the towns and the villages within the Parkes electorate are the places young Australians choose to put down their roots.”

Mr Chaffey said decision-makers must understand the implications of their choices.

“We must do all we can to prevent shocks to our communities that have the power to destabilise families, and, in some cases, lead to heartache and destruction,” he said.

“Many of the communities in the Parkes electorate have been faced with the challenge of population decline over the past decade. For that very reason, my wife and I struggled financially in our early married life.

“Growing the population throughout the electorate will be my biggest challenge during the time that I serve.”

When not in parliament, Mr Chaffey said he will be clocking up the miles transversing over 400,000 square kilometres of the electorate.

“I know the tyranny of distance will be an ongoing challenge, and I’m committed to turning up to the largest and the smallest of the electorate’s communities to the best of my ability. That is what is needed to serve and represent this important part of our nation,” he said.

“The challenges and issues this electorate faces are as varied as the shires that make them up, and I’ll be there to listen and to act persistently and consistently. Businesses and industries across the Parkes electorate are shouldering more than their fair share of our country’s economic heavy lifting without their fair share of funding.

“Our communities face endless battles, sometimes just to maintain the basic levels of services. Our small businesses are at the heart of our nation’s economy. We must reward small-business owners for their commitment to the communities they serve and acknowledge the risk they take every single day.

“Decisions made far from the bush must include critical needs for investment in regional infrastructure.”

Mr Chaffey told the house the Parkes electorate is where Australia’s food, fibre and minerals are produced and processed and where value is added.

“Transporting our homegrown products for domestic consumption and international trade must be both reliable and affordable. Infrastructure projects such as the nation building Inland Rail project are vital to ensure that we keep goods moving productively from capital ports, from Brisbane to Melbourne and west to Perth, with the ability to stimulate economic opportunities for regional communities in between,” he said.

“The Nationals first developed this plan, and it was the Nationals who aggressively commenced construction. In recent years, the handbrake has been applied. Construction on the northern corridor is now at snail’s pace, and I do not intend to drop the ball on this project. I will be applying as much pressure as possible to see trains moving goods to market through Parkes and Narromine, Gilgandra, Baradine, Narrabri, Moree and North Star and on to Queensland as quickly as possible.

“The views on water policy held by Australia’s two main political parties could not be further apart. There has been a lack of investment in water security and water storage in the Parkes electorate. In fact, over recent years there has been a concerted effort to take water away from our communities through water policy changes that now allow buybacks in the Murray-Darling Basin.

“How can we seriously back our farmers and regional communities unless we protect their access to water?”

During his speech, Mr Chaffey also acknowledged the long service of former member Mark Coulton.

“As I stand in parliament today, I’m conscious of the legacy of the giants of the National Party and the members who have represented the area that makes up the current Parkes electorate, and I pay tribute to the Hon. Mark Coulton, who held his role for more than 17 years with such dedication and motivation,” he said.

“I deeply appreciate the support of both Mark and Robyn, and I’m so glad that they’re here today in the gallery to share this moment.

“I come to this role with a deep sense of respect for the work of parliament in guarding and improving the lives and livelihoods of every Australian.

“I believe in the difference that can be made by implementing good policy. I want to see that reflected in the lives of people in our electorate and right across Australia.”

Mr Chaffey ended his speech thanking his family, including Judy, his wife of 32 years, children Jack, Molly, Lucy, Tom, their partners, and his grandchildren.

“You are at the heart of everything I do. Thank you,” Mr Chaffey said.