Standing for services
Labor-affiliated candidates announce push for City Hall
TWO Labor-affiliated candidates have launched their campaigns for City Hall, with services for Geelong’s elderly residents high on their agenda.
Melissa Cadwell (Brownbill) and Brent Lyons-Lee (Kardinia) yesterday announced their intentions to contest the Geelong council election, which will be held next month.
They are both Labor members but have not been officially endorsed by the party, which has a statewide policy of distancing itself from local elections.
Ms Cadwell is a public health system ethics manager from St Albans Park, who works at Melbourne Health.
A lack of council funding for the eastern suburbs over many years, despite being an area of high need, motivated her to stand for council, she said.
“My local area – Whittington, St Albans Park, Newcomb, Thomson and Breakwater – needs a lot of work to come up to the same standard as other parts of Geelong,” she said, citing the Newcomb library as an example.
“I’m also concerned about services for older residents, such as Home Care and Meals on Wheels.
“I don’t want to see a council elected that makes cuts to the services that elderly residents rely on.
“If elected, I’ll be making sure those services are not just kept to the same standard but significantly improved.”
Mr Lyons-Lee, who lives in Waurn Ponds, shares similar concerns about the future of the two aged care services. An ordained Baptist minister, Mr Lyons-Lee said he was passionate about social justice, having campaigned on pokies reform, asylum seeker rights, affordable housing and ending homelessness.
His local priorities include upgrading Barwon Heads Rd, removing level crossings, progressing an indoor sports centre in Grovedale’s Brearley Reserve, investing in libraries and upgrading bike paths.
He also wants Geelong to engage with entrepreneurs from across the globe to secure new investment.
“I will work with all levels of government to make sure that Geelong is the most attractive place for start-ups and that we will grow our small and medium enterprises to create jobs.”
On the eve of the official nomination period, opening tomorrow, there are deep fields emerging in all four wards.