Austin Evans took centre stage in NSW parliament yesterday as he was sworn in as Member for Murray.
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Mr Evans said friends and family had travelled to Sydney to witness a “momentous occasion” in his life.
”It’s an exciting day. I’ve got all my family here and a large contingent of work colleagues and friends coming up to see this momentous occasion for me,” he said.
He described the weeks since the by-election as “flat out”, but he wouldn’t have it any other way.
“People are wanting to see me all the time. Which is good, it’s what the role is about. We’re hitting the ground running, there’s no doubt about that,” he said.
“There’s no magic wand for this stuff. It’s all about hard work and delivering outcomes for the people.”
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Speaking before his maiden speech, Mr Evans laid out his list of priorities.
“We’ve got to deliver the Basin Plan without it harming our area anymore.”
Other issues on his agenda are local health, reversing decisions around restrictions River Red Gum industry and exemptions on the bullbar ban for rural people.
The Nationals beat out Shooters Fishers and Farmers candidate Helen Dalton with 39 per cent of first preference votes to the Shooters’ 31 per cent. On a two-party preferred basis, Nationals won out 53 per cent to 47 per cent.
Mr Evans said his work ethic will determine the way people will vote.
“I think it’s just a matter of doing my job and doing it well. If I do my job well, I’ll get support. If I don’t do it well, I wont.”