When times get tough, government should make life easier, not harder. That's a principle I've tried to live by in everything I've done at Boroondara Council, and it's one I'd take with me to Parliament.
Growing up, I watched my parents establish and run their own restaurants. I saw firsthand how tough and stressful that life looks like: the late nights, the paperwork load, managing staff, and the anxiety when a slow week threatens to undo everything you've worked for. Small business ownership isn't just an economic category. It's a way of life, and it takes enormous courage and dedication. That experience has stayed with me, and it shapes how I think about the economy to this day.
And it’s not just small businesses but also households across Hawthorn that are feeling the pressure. Energy bills, rent, groceries, fuel: it all adds up. Too often, economic decisions are shaped by those with the loudest voices, not the people feeling the pinch day to day. That has to change.
My Record at Boroondara
I've spent years turning this principle into practice at Council level.
I established and led the Vibrant Shopping Precincts Advisory Committee, giving our local businesses a direct voice in decisions that affect them. Because a thriving high street matters to the whole community, not just shop owners.
I helped introduce a more transparent and consultative budget process, bringing in a draft budget consultation phase before finalisation. Residents now have a real say in how public money is spent, and Council is more accountable for how your rates are spent.
I expanded rebates and support programs to help households electrify, making solar panels, batteries, heat pumps, and EVs genuinely accessible to ordinary families, not just those who can already afford them.
I supported community battery programs so that renters and apartment dwellers can share in the benefits of clean energy, not just homeowners.
And I helped establish Boroondara's first Affordable Housing Advisory Committee, shifting Council's approach from treating housing as purely a state responsibility to taking an active local role, advocating, planning, and contributing practical solutions to a growing community need.
What I'd Fight for in Parliament
The cost of living crisis isn't going to be solved by one-off actions. It needs practical, targeted action and a willingness to hold government to account on how it spends your money.
In Parliament, I'd push for public spending that is transparent, well-targeted, and genuinely accountable. I'd advocate for support that reaches the households and small businesses that need it most.
For Hawthorn: Hawthorn deserves an economy that works for everyone. Not just a few.