Meander Valley councillors get the nod for Liberal Lyons

Sharon Webb

TWO MEANDER Valley councillors are in a Meander Valley top-heavy Liberal Party line-up for Lyons in the 1 May state election.

The Liberal leanings of Westbury’s Susie Bower and Chudleigh’s Stephanie Cameron have been long known in the municipality.

The two are part of a strong trend in both major parties for local government councillors to have a tilt at State politics.

Accused at the Liberal candidate launch by a journalist of raiding councils from George Town to the Huon for Liberal candidates, premier Peter Gutwein said, ‘Well, who better to represent Tasmanians than people who are already working for their local communities?’

Susie Bower said her political interest is in diversification and opportunities for job creation.

‘I have a strong focus on apprenticeships and opportunities for young people’, she said.

Cllrs Bower and Cameron almost complete a Meander Valley wipe-out of the Lyons candidate team, along with sitting members Guy Barnett and Mark Shelton.

The only two non-Meander Valley Liberal Lyons candidates are sitting member John Tucker from St Helens, elected on a recount after Rene Hidding’s resignation, and builder Justin Derkson from New Norfolk.

Cllr Bower has an outside chance of gaining a seat because of her experience in local government in Dorset and as CEO of the Bell Bay Advanced Manufacturing Zone in George Town. But voters in those locations will not help her in Lyons.

It’s more likely that like the 2018 election, Guy Barnett and Mark Shelton will gain the largest Liberal vote, bringing John Tucker into Parliament on their preferences.

Rumours that Mark Shelton would retire at this election have not eventuated but the Liberals have a large enough team to cover recount eventualities if he retires in the next term.

Guy Barnett and Mark Shelton will only be outvoted by Labor leader Rebecca White, whose over-quota votes undoubtedly will go to Labor Lyons candidates Jen Butler MHA and northern Midlands councillor Janet Lambert.

The big surprise was that Meander Valley’s mayor Wayne Johnston was not announced in the 2021 Lyons line-up.

While he’s only been in the mayoral position 18 months, he was widely expected to tread the well-worn path from mayor to politics like former MLC Greg Hall and sitting MHA Mark Shelton.

But pundits have conjectured that a majority male candidate line-up would not have been a good look for the Liberals.

It is not known whether women from other areas of the sprawling Lyons electorate put up their hand for the job.