Local Government Elections

The Hon. L.W.K. BIGNELL (Mawson) (15:45): I rise today on an extraordinary censorship issue in South Australia by the Electoral Commission of South Australia. It involves the upcoming council elections. This should disturb anyone who has any sense of fairness around the democracy that we live in and the right to freedom of speech.

We have a candidate running for mayor in the City of Onkaparinga. Her name is Erin Thompson. She is the only one of five candidates who has not been a member of the Onkaparinga council or is currently a member of the Onkaparinga council, putting their hand up in this mayoral race. She sees herself as a cleanskin and as someone with 10 years of experience in communications in the Unley council. She has worked with business and tourism over her career and she lives in the City of Onkaparinga.

When she set out to explain who she is to the voters in the City of Onkaparinga, the Electoral Commission of South Australia actually knocked her back. They drew big lines through words as terrible as 'but', 'fresh start', 'new leadership', 're-engage', 'better', 'back on track', 'better again' and 'clean slate'. This is outrageous. What we have here is a system where, because council elections are postal votes, each of the candidates for council election and mayoral election has to write a 150-word story and that gets sent out with the ballot papers by the Electoral Commission. People should be free to say exactly what they like in those 150 words.

Let us just remember that anyone who knows anything about councils, whether you live in the council area of Onkaparinga or not, and anyone you talk to about the Onkaparinga city council will tell you that it has been dysfunctional, that spending is out of control and that there are a lot of problems with it. That happens with the people next door to me, the people in the next town and the people in the next suburb. Everyone is of that same view. When you have someone who wants to take on a very big job as part of her already busy lifestyle, those people should be commended.

I will read from the original of Erin Thompson's 150-word pitch to voters in our local area. She started by saying, 'Our city is a fantastic place, full of promise and potential.' That got the tick from the censors at the Electoral Commission of South Australia. They said that it was a positive statement but that her next sentence started with 'but', which of itself introduces a negative statement and a criticism of council. The offending sentences are set out below and I have highlighted the trigger words. This is by a fellow from the Electoral Commission. Thompson says:

But council needs a fresh start and new leadership to re-engage the community and deliver better services and facilities.

I reckon most people in the City of Onkaparinga would agree with that statement from Erin Thompson, candidate for Mayor of the City of Onkaparinga, but this fellow has taken out the words 'but', 'fresh start', 'new leadership', 're-engage' and 'better', which precede of course services and facilities. In the next paragraph, Erin Thompson, candidate for mayor, says:

I have the vision, energy and experience to get Onkaparinga back on track delivering better outcomes for you.

The words 'back on track' were censored—out. The words 'better outcomes' were out. She also goes on to say:

I will give Onkaparinga a clean slate through transparency, zero waste of ratepayers' hard-earned cash and active community engagement.

She cannot use the words 'clean slate'. You know what? As a ratepayer of Onkaparinga city council and a local resident, I know we all want a clean slate. Someone like Erin Thompson, who is putting her hand up to be mayor, should be able to engage with the voters in our area and tell them exactly what it is. It is not up to the censors at the Electoral Commission to decide what is in or out. Provided it is not illegal, people should be allowed to write whatever they want, as long it does not defame anyone. She is putting her point of view, which everyone of us in this place appreciates.

We do not always get it right when we go out and have our say, but we appreciate and respect the right of everyone in this place, and indeed people in our wider community, to stand up and say what they think. I think that this is a disgrace. I think the Electoral Commission of South Australia owes Erin Thompson, candidate for Mayor of the City of Onkaparinga, a massive apology. They should look at posting out her 150-word profile, in full, next week when the printed brochure (which I am sure has already been printed) goes out to voters across the City of Onkaparinga.