The first shots have been fired in what is expected to be long campaign for the seat of Gilmore, ahead of the next federal election.
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The Liberal Party has preselected a former senior minister in the NSW State Government, Andrew Constance, for his second tilt at moving into Federal Parliament.
After defeating lawyer and Shoalhaven City Councillor Paull Ell 80 votes to 69 in the preselection battle, Mr Constance said he would focus his campaign on cost of living pressures.
"I intend on being a fierce advocate on cost of living measures in our region, particularly over the course of the campaign, and obviously fighting for accountability in terms of the infrastructure that was promised and hasn't been delivered," he said.
"And laying the foundation of 10 years of economic prosperity ahead in the Shoalhaven.
"We should be the number one most livable place in Australia - get our mojo back, focus on our industry sectors, particularly with the opportunities around defence, tourism, small business and agriculture," he said.
Instead the 13 interest rates rises in 15 months had "put enormous strain on people's finances", leaving the average household having to find an extra $24,000 a year.
At the last election in May 2022, Mr Constance took a sizeable chunk out of incumbent Labor MP Fiona Phillips' vote, making Gilmore Australia's most marginal seat.
This time around he said he was again going to focus on running a positive campaign.
"I really want to try and make it a very positive campaign, all about the community, because it is about the community - it's not about politicians," Mr Constance said.
"Because everybody is just under the pump with cost of living, and facing real pressures with their mortgages, their fuel bills, their electricity, their groceries and the like, the community is not going to want politics shoved in their faces," he said.
While Mr Constance went straight to cost of living pressures as a key issue in the next election, due to be held between August 2024 and May 2025, Mrs Phillips spoke about the same issue in Federal Parliament on Monday, March 25, as she praised Labor's achievements.
She said addressing inflation and cost-of-living pressures was "my number one priority".
"I know that a lot of people are doing it tough, and that's why I'm glad that Labor's tax cuts on July 1 this year will deliver a bigger tax cut for middle Australia to help with the cost of living," Mrs Phillips said.
"We want Australians to keep more of what they earn, and our bigger tax cuts for more taxpayers will help make that happen."
Mrs Phillips said there had been others steps, including making "medicines cheaper through 60-day dispensing of scripts, which the Liberals opposed.
"We've made it easier and cheaper to see a doctor by tripling the bulk-billing incentives for pensioners, concession cardholders and students.
"We've opened a Medicare urgent care clinic at Batemans Bay," she said.
"We've made child care cheaper for around 4,800 families in Gilmore. We've expanded paid parental leave."
"Wages are rising at the fastest rate for a decade, including for minimum-wage and aged-care workers.
"We've done all this as we've delivered the first budget surplus in 15 years," Mrs Phillips said.
