Liberals name their man

By Lachlan Ellis

With the state election less than 80 days away, the Liberal Party has officially announced its candidate for the new seat of Eureka – and he’s a familiar face to many in Moorabool.

Central Ward Councillor Paul Tatchell was announced as the Liberal candidate for Eureka last week, with the new seat taking in most of Moorabool Shire, Golden Plains Shire, as well as the eastern suburbs of Ballarat including Golden Point, Mount Clear, and Buninyong.

Mr Tatchell said his candidacy was about getting the voices of regional Victorians heard, with improving country roads, education, and health among his main priorities.

“We’ve been in the ‘red sea’ for at least seven of the last 20 years. In order to try and put some parity back into the discussion, it helps to have a contest. These elections create opportunities to talk about different ideas for the region. A lot of money’s been spent in Melbourne – it’s become more of a Melbourne Government than a State Government,” he told the Moorabool News.

“I think it’s incredibly important that we’re represented in that contest, especially for our region. This election is all about the future, not so much my future, but the future of the region as we mature and grow, and how we do that with balance and the correct infrastructure. We have to make sure that for the third of taxes that we pay as regional people, we get a return on that investment…we haven’t had that in the past.”

On the topic of AusNet’s Western Renewables Link, which has been a talking point for over two years, Mr Tatchell said undergrounding the powerlines, or rerouting the network using existing easement from Mortlake to Lara as is the Victorian Liberals’ official policy, are both “viable options”.

What is not viable, he argues, is the current plan proposed by AusNet.

“What’s on the table at the moment just cannot work, and it has to be stopped. The transmission lines issue needs to be taken back to square one and resolved. The draconian way that our region, in particular, has been dictated to over the last few years has left an incredibly sour taste in people’s mouths in terms of representation,” Mr Tatchell said.

“I accept that representatives have to deal with parties as well as the chamber, but ultimately, good representation is ensuring that people’s views are reflected in party decisions. I don’t think that’s happened…there’s no reason why there can’t be distinct policies for both regional areas and city regions, that can’t align without creating a problem for either.”

Mr Tatchell’s main opponent in November will be incumbent Member for Buninyong Michaela Settle, whose seat was abolished following boundary changes in 2021.

Also contesting the Eureka seat on November 26 are Sam McColl from the Greens, Wendy Morrison from the Animal Justice Party, and Independent Nicola Reid.