CITY of Greater Geelong Mayor Stephanie Asher is confident that campaigning for the Liberal Party, leading the council and operating her consultancy business won\u2019t be a \u201cjuggle\u201d \u2013 more a matter of time management.<\/p>\n
The Ocean Grove resident gained Liberal pre-selection for the Federal seat of Corangamite last week and has committed to \u201chitting the ground running\u201d across the re-shaped electorate which will take in the south-east corner of Golden Plains Shire, the Bellarine, and parts of Geelong and Surf Coast Shire.<\/p>\n
Ms Asher\u2019s pre-selection to represent the Liberal Party in one of Australia\u2019s most marginal seats is an early move, with the Federal election not expected until possibly mid-2022 and just a handful of candidates nominated across Victoria at this stage.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy mission is to continue to drive an extremely positive and proactive agenda, underpinned by intellectual rigour, hard work, compassion and an absolute determination to get things done in the best interests of our community,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
In 2013 Ms Asher stood as an independent candidate in Corio and said becoming a Federal MP was an opportunity \u201cto make a real difference to people\u201d with a focus on making sure a Liberal Government was re-elected.<\/p>\n
She also said she would listen to the community’s views but believed transport, regional jobs and managing growth while protecting the environment would be among the key issues at the next election.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am very concerned about over-development which is why our council, since 2017, has directed growth into the north and western areas of Geelong and away from the Bellarine Peninsula,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhether it\u2019s caring for the most vulnerable, investing in first-class health and education or delivering the infrastructure we need to support growing communities, our community must come first.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms Asher said she was committed to \u201ccontinuing to work extremely hard as mayor\u201d and, as required, would take leave from council when the election was called.<\/p>\n
She said in the meantime, she didn\u2019t see any concerns with remaining the City\u2019s spokesperson and representing the Liberal Party, and she had a \u201cvery clear\u201d understanding of managing conflicts of interest.<\/p>\n
Ms Asher said party politics hadn\u2019t been an issue with the current council and they were all very open with each other.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have an intelligent group of councillors who are very respectful and high-performing,” she said. \u201cThe community doesn\u2019t like watching people argue.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms Asher said she would take the same approach with the election, with a campaign about \u201csticking to the issues and listening to the community\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
CITY of Greater Geelong Mayor Stephanie Asher is confident that campaigning for the Liberal Party, leading the council and operating her consultancy business won\u2019t be a \u201cjuggle\u201d \u2013 more a matter of time management. The Ocean Grove resident gained Liberal pre-selection for the Federal seat of Corangamite last week and has committed to \u201chitting the […]<\/p>\n