What we stand for
Integrity, Fair, Sustainable
What we stand for
Three commitments hold this together, and every policy position we develop has to sit inside them. The detail underneath is still being worked out with the community, which is the point.
Integrity
Can you say your elected representative tells you the truth? Can you say they answer your questions directly, without spin? Can you say they answer to you rather than to a party room, a donor, or a factional deal made behind closed doors?
Most people cannot answer yes to those questions, and that is a large part of why trust in the major parties has drained away. An independent has no party line to follow and no obligations that aren't on the public record. Every vote in parliament is a conscience vote, taken on the merits of the legislation and on what it means for the people who live here.
In practice that means supporting a stronger National Anti-Corruption Commission, real reform of political donations and lobbying, truth in political advertising, and transparency about who is influencing decisions and how.
Fair
Fairness means more than treating everyone the same. It means genuine opportunity, which is a harder thing to deliver and a more useful thing to measure.
It means a child growing up in Sturt can get a good education and affordable early childhood care whatever their family's circumstances. It means a young person can still reasonably expect to own a home rather than being priced out before they start. It means a small business can compete on a level field instead of one tilted toward multinationals and overseas retailers. It means older residents can reach aged care and health services with their dignity intact. And it means the way we are taxed can be defended to the people paying it.
Those conditions are what allow people to contribute in the first place, which is why we treat them as the foundation rather than as something to get to once the budget allows.
Sustainable
A safe and strong community needs an economy built for the long term, one that builds wealth, protects the income and investments people have worked for, and opens up pathways for the generation coming through. Responsible spending, fair taxation and sound financial management aren't optional extras; they're the foundation opportunity rests on. Interest rates, budget decisions and the cost of living reach every household in Sturt, and that deserves a representative who reads the detail rather than the press release.
The environment that economy depends on needs the same treatment. Climate change isn't a problem for later; it's already showing up in our homes, our hills and our household bills. A sustainable community invests in renewable energy, prepares properly for bushfire risk, protects its natural spaces and builds housing in the right places. Done well, that's an investment in how liveable Sturt stays for the next generation.
The test
Every policy we develop has to answer two questions plainly, and be able to do it in front of the people it affects.
Is it fair? Does it pass the pub test? Are burdens and benefits shared reasonably between industry and workers, between generations, and between those who earn wages and those who hold capital? Where a policy delivers a gain, who actually ends up with it?
Can it be sustained? Will it hold up over decades rather than a single electoral cycle? That covers fiscal sustainability, environmental sustainability, and population sustainability, meaning growth that infrastructure, housing and services can actually keep pace with.
The areas we're working on
These are the areas we're developing positions in, grouped by where we think the work matters most. None of them are settled, and the community consultation is what turns them into actual policy. A federal member votes on federal matters, so we keep each position to the levers that are genuinely federal rather than promising things that sit with the state or the council.
The kitchen table issues
Housing affordability and supply. Cost of living. Health and Medicare, including bulk billing, dental and mental health. Energy, climate and power prices. Tax and the economy, including how heavily the system leans on wage earners compared with almost every comparable country.
Where an independent can do something different
AI and the future economy, which reaches into nearly everything else on this list and needs regulatory certainty, honest accounting for its environmental cost, sovereign capability, and a serious answer to who captures the productivity gains. Integrity and accountability. Digital rights, privacy and tech regulation. Environment and nature law reform.
The rest of a credible platform
Education. Aged care and the NDIS. Small business and jobs. Defence and national security, which carries real weight in Adelaide given the shipbuilding program. Transport and infrastructure. Immigration and population, approached as a targeted intake matched to genuine shortfalls with infrastructure keeping pace, rather than an argument about a single number. First Nations. Women's safety and gender equality. Veterans' affairs.
Have a hand in it
None of this is finished, and it isn't meant to be finished before we've asked. Register for the consultation and tell us what you think is missing.
Register for the consultation