Sustainable Population Party

Andrew McNamara is former Minister for Sustainability, Climate Change and Innovation in Queensland. He argues here that the Sustainable Population Party (soon to become the Sustainable Party) was the real winner of the North Sydney by-election; that all other participants showed diminishing or one-off results.

The Liberals have claimed victory in the North Sydney by-election, but at a cost of around $1 million and with a 13% swing against them, there is not much to celebrate. Too many wins like this will send the Liberals bankrupt.

The independent Dr Stephen Ruff finished second with over 18%. It is a commendable result that will turn into a 60:40 two party preferred vote, but given there is no second prize and the good doctor will now return to doing hip replacements, his result will only be referred to ever again under the heading “Dr Who?” at future political trivia nights. Article first published at http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=17888 on Friday, 11 December 2015.

The Greens scored under16%, a minute increase of .35% on their 2013 result. With no Labor candidate in the field this time, a third place finish is a serious failure. The 20% of punters who voted Labor at the last general election went everywhere but to the Greens.

The other independent in the field, two term North Sydney Councillor Maryann Beregi finished a creditable fourth, with 3.45%. But now what? The personable Councillor needs to run again, in order to avoid the perception that voting for an independent is a WOFTAM.

The biggest loser is easy to pick. The by-election marks the death knell of the Palmer United Party, who finished dead, motherless last, with a derisory .45% of the vote. They were trounced by all the micro parties: the Arts Party, Voluntary Euthanasia Party, Australian Cyclists Party and Bullet Train for Australia, all of whom received more than double the PUP’s vote. Even the Future Party beat Palmer’s candidate home. RIP, PUP.

The Liberal Democrats scored 2.%, which given the high profile and big spend of their candidate, local storage company owner Sam Kennard, would be well below expectations. Seventh place and just a handful of votes in front of the Arts Party is a decidedly sub-prime result.

The Christian Democrats threw everything at it including the kitchen sink, and did pick up a swing of 1.5% from 2013. But sixth place on 2.5% would be a bitter disappointment for a party that has been around for so long and promoted themselves in the by-election as “the only true conservative party”. It suggests that their appeal in too narrow and they will struggle ever to break out of the minor party band of 2 to 3%.

Which leaves the big mover in the field as William Bourke, from the Sustainable Population Party. A 3% result is more than triple the Sustainables’ previous best ever result, at the Griffith by-election in 2013. They finish fifth on primaries, not only as “King of the Kids” by moving out of the micro parties grouping, but also beat home the far more established minor parties of PUP, LDP and CDP. They may even sneak into outright fourth, when preferences are distributed after all postal votes are received by the cut-off on 18 December.

With the endorsement of Australian icon Dick Smith and the financial support of rich-listers Graham Turner and Geoff Harris, the soon to be re-named Sustainable Australia has a bright future. Positioned in the centre of the Australian political spectrum, with a leftish social agenda and a rightish economic outlook, they will be well placed to draw support from across the political field.

The Liberals won the North Sydney by-election, but the only candidate still smiling after the cameras went off on election night was William Bourke of Sustainable Australia.

Sustainable Population Party finishes ahead of every other minor party in North Sydney by-election.

The North Sydney by-election count has delivered the Sustainable Population Party's best result yet, although Trent Zimmerman has already claimed the seat for the Liberal Party.

The Sustainable vote stands at around 3 per cent (over 2000 votes), with around 70 per cent of the vote counted. It will therefore stay near this level, which is roughly three times their previous best of 1 per cent in the 2014 Griffith by-election.

They finished ahead of every other minor party, including parliamentary parties like the Liberal Democrats, Christian Democrats and Palmer United.

The full count is displayed in the AEC Virtual Tally Room: CLICK HERE

Sustainable Population Party faced a number of significant challenges in the campaign, including the inability to run with their new Sustainable Australia name.

Extraordinary media apathy

There was also the assumption that the by-election was a foregone conclusion for the Liberals, resulting in extraordinary media apathy towards the campaign. For example, not once did the print edition of the Sydney Morning Herald list all of the candidates prior to polling day. This mainstream media apathy made it very difficult for any minor party to cut-through.

Fortunately SPP had over 100 volunteers that took their campaign to the people. They campaigned at local shopping centres, train stations and community hubs, as well as polling places on election day. Despite this, their volunteer effort was dwarfed by the Liberal and Greens parties, as well as the main independent Dr Stephen Ruff who has a huge local community network in and around the Royal North Shore Hospital.

In addition to SPP's volunteers, the contribution of Dick Smith in generating several major mainstream media promotions for the party was invaluable.

They have certainly raised the bar in the North Sydney by-election, but still have several key areas to greatly improve on.

The Sustainables are pleased to endorse a truly local candidate for the 2015 North Sydney by-election - our party president William Bourke. William has a background in small business, finance and marketing, as well as a passion for nature and sustainable living.
His platform in this election includes:
Saving Royal North Shore Hospital from public land sell-offs
Education and childcare places for all
Stopping our rampant overdevelopment
Housing affordability for renters and first home buyers
Reducing the rapid population growth that's part of our growing local problems

Follow William on Twitter: CLICK HERE

From William:

As a long term local resident and small business owner in North Sydney, I'm privileged to represent our community movement in our party's heartland. Our national party HQ is based in North Sydney (Crows Nest).

Unlike the professional politicians I will be up against, I have over twenty years of work/life experience. I have completed two business degrees and have real world experience in finance, federal government corporate communications and importantly, small business.

I regularly enjoy the outdoors including running and bushwalking in Sydney's national parks where it is possible to see our magnificent native wildlife including goannas, wallabies and kookaburras. We are very blessed on the North Shore, and need to conserve it for future generations.

You'll find my full bio here: CLICK HERE

There are a number of key issues I will be campaigning on for the people of North Sydney, including:

• Saving Royal North Shore Hospital from public land sell-offs
• Education and childcare places for all
• Stopping our rampant overdevelopment
• Housing affordability for renters and first home buyers
• Reducing the rapid population growth that's part of our growing local problems

All of these key issues and many more are addressed in our policies page.

I also believe that the major parties are too closely aligned to vested interests, including the big end of town and big unions. We need transparent governments that get back to focusing on the public and national interest.

I am very proud of our community movement that I founded in 2010. We reject the old left–right political spectrum, along with its fixed political positions and ideologies. Instead we pursue centrist, evidence-base policies, for all Australians.

I'd like to communicate with as many residents of North Sydney as possible. So, please contact me with your questions and any feedback.

You'll find my campaign media release here: CLICK HERE

We need to redefine 'growth' to secure a better, not bigger North Sydney and Australia.

Please give me your support and your #1 vote.

That's the only way to protest the rapid population growth policies of the Liberals and Greens (Labor didn't have the courage to run).

Vote 1 SUSTAINABLE!

Sustainable Population Party is pleased to endorse a truly local candidate for the 2015 Canning, West Australia, by-election - Angela Smith. Angela is an environmental scientist and resident of Canning, with links to the region going back 30 years.

Angela Smith - Environmental scientist, Carer, Mature-age student

From Angela:

I was born on a farm and grew up in the country. As a child migrant, I understand and appreciate the significant contribution that migration has made to Australia.

I have over thirty years of work/life experience in science and environment, health and social welfare, mining, primary production, stay-at-home caring and most recently, further study as a mature age arts/law student at Murdoch University. I also volunteer at the Mandurah Community Museum.

In my ’spare time’ I enjoy singing (amateur choir), cycling, dog walking and canoeing (the Peel Harvey Estuary and rivers), and bushwalking in Jarrah woodlands on the Darling Scarp. I'm a member of Mensa, Exit, Animals Australia, Australian Society of Authors, Copyright Agency and the Royal WA Historical Society – I am also a recent past member of National Seniors, WA Council on the Ageing and the Alzheimer’s Association.

I have a passion for sustainability, social justice (notably regarding age discrimination, sexism, racism and homophobia), animal rights and human rights. I believe in a sustainable environment for all people, plants and animals - not just the chosen few. I am a strong advocate for the increasing number of vulnerable and downtrodden.

I believe that all Australians (including mature-aged) should be supported with education and training to fill skills shortages - rather than the government and business prioritising skills through high immigration. We have the labour and talent in this country and, especially given our increasingly longer living population, it is not sustainable to continue to waste it.

I also believe the major parties are too closely aligned to vested interests (including the big end of town and big unions) and should get back to their core business of essential services for the public interest i.e. health, education, justice and infrastructure.

In recent decades our politicians have let slide Australia’s once proud ‘fair go for all’. And, while some are unquestionably better off, may more are falling through the cracks. Egalitarianism is a central objective of the Sustainable Population Party's core values.

There are a number of key issues I will be campaigning on for the people of Canning, including:

• Education
• Paid jobs
• Infrastructure
• Health care
• Renewable energy
• Housing affordability

All of these key issues and many more are addressed in our policies page.

Unlike many politicians, the late Don Randall actually listened to his constituents. I was in communication with Don - about infrastructure problems in Canning (including the NBN access and telephone reception) and worker exploitation - when he sadly passed away.

Like Don, I'd like to communicate with as many residents of Canning as possible. So, please contact me with your questions and any feedback.

We need to redefine 'growth' to secure a better, not bigger Canning.

So don't forget... Vote SUSTAINABLE

With thanks and regards,

Sustainable Population Party rejects the moral posturing and political one-upsmanship surrounding the current Syrian refugee crisis, and calls for sustainable global solutions to the human tragedy of forced migration.

In an ABC Radio interview today, World Vision CEO Reverend Tim Costello says “the [refugee] intake is the pimple on the hippopotamus” and “not really the main game.”[1]

Reverend Costello added “It's actually giving people hope in the camps that they're secure, they're going to be fed, that they don't need to flee - and above all... go back home. That's what they want to do. They just want to go back home, not come here, not go to Europe.”

William Bourke, President of the Sustainable Population Party agrees, saying “Whilst an increased intake should be considered, the current game of moral one-upmanship by politicians is unhelpful and regrettable. The government’s plans to increase the intake by 12,000 will cost a conservative $500 million, or around $40,000 per refugee.[2]

“How many people would $40,000 per year help to live safely in UN camps? According to the UNHCR, a donation of $300 per annum ‘can buy an Emergency Assistance Package to give a family the essentials for survival and shelter’.[3] If we conservatively assume a family is four people, that’s $75 per person. For every one person Australia resettles, we therefore forego the opportunity to help over 500 people in what World Vision’s Tim Costello calls ‘the main game’. Given the scale of the Syrian crisis, $500 million would be better spent helping over 6 million people than 12,000.

”Rather than simplistic moral posturing over increased permanent resettlement numbers, we align with Reverend Costello’s overriding aim to help people live safely now, and ultimately sustainably in their homeland. To achieve this ultimate goal, we also need to address underlying drivers of resource scarcity and conflict in Syria, including rapid population growth.

“Syria’s population has exploded from 3.5 million in 1950 to 23 million today. This growth dilutes natural resources like food and water, and ties into “economic problems, education costs and living costs."[4] At the current extreme growth rate, Syria will reach around 35 million by 2050. This increasing resource scarcity fuels growing conflict between militias and religious groups.

“To help address the global population crisis, Australia should also increase its total family planning and reproductive health services foreign aid from $50 million to at least $500 million immediately and to at least $1 billion by 2020, Mr Bourke added. | ENDS

[1] http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-09-09/for-australia-to-be-generous-wed-increase-our/6760476

[2] http://www.news.com.au/news/nsw/labors-19b-plan-to-open-the-door-for-refugees/story-fni0cx12-1227460948103

[3] https://www.unrefugees.org.au/donate/donate-now#monthly

Population numbers are now a democratic issue because the two big parties and the Greens are colluding to push extreme population growth. People will vote against population growth if given the opportunity because it is causing a decline in urban lifestyle. Some of the problems it is causing is severe competition for schooling, hospitals, housing and places on public transport. People are upset by the destruction of established built environment to keep pace with this imposed population growth. If we were able to achieve zero population growth over time and reduce our per capita consumption, we would use less coal, possibly even stop needing to use it and we would never need to turn on the desal plant. It's a no-brainer really.

Steven Armstrong is running in Albert Park as an independent. He is, however, supported by Sustainable Population Party, which, because it is federally registered, cannot run a candidate in a state election. Steven was a federal candidate for Sustainable Population Partyc in the last federal elections.

He says that he is running in regard to Sustainable Population Party because it would be a pity to let opportunity go by. He can offer some democratic choice to the people of Albert Park over the population issue. He can exercise the mechanisms of the party to find out what's possible when they concentrate their efforts on one electorate.

Decline in urban lifestyle a symptom of population growth

Steven thinks that people might vote for him due to their awareness of the symptoms of population growth. He gives a few examples:

There is a decline in standard of urban lifestyle:

- You can't get on tram or train in the morning.
- If you want to go from Albert Park to visit someone in Northcote, it takes an hour to get there on a Saturday afternoon. - People can't get their children into school.
- One in three houses needs to be knocked down and replaced by dual occupancy.
- It worries people to see houses knocked down.

Population numbers are a democratic issue

He says that, in Elwood high density happened in 1960s and 70s but that process is starting again and will proceed throughout the electorate. Population growth presents an issue of democracy in that Greens, ALP and Libs are all colluding in pushing extreme population growth. The populace don't have a choice except in electorates where the Sustainable Population Party runs a candidate.

What Steven would like to do if elected or if more like him were elected

He would like to hold the balance of power in a parliament and hold the government to carry out wishes of people with respect to population growth. He could then advocate for zero population growth. If he could achieve that, then any new infrastructure would represent an improvement in our lives rather than a desperate attempt to catch up with growing population. Our quality of life would improve.

He would like the future to be similar to that period in Australian history when successive generations enjoyed a better standard of living than the previous one. He observes that that process has stopped and gone into reverse. He says that we need to get it back to how it used to be. With zero population growth, this would be a place where people enjoyed enough space in the inner city parks, where they could get transport around the city, where the level of health care was not swamped by immigration and where housing was once more affordable.

The [natural] environment on which we all depend; can the decline be halted by stabilising population?

Steven says,

"If population stabilised and per capita use of the environment decreased in energy, space and waste production, then our environment would improve greatly. We would never ever have to turn on the desalination plant. We would not use more coal; we would use less of it. We may even be able to stop using it completely. So the environment would benefit greatly from a stable population."

At 2pm at the Glebe Town Hall, listen to guest speakers Jack Mundey, Jill Green of STEP, Tony Recsei of Save Our Suburbs & William Bourke of the Sustainable Population Party. They will ask: What are the risks associated with adding another 3.5 million people to Sydney? Why are sprawl and high density presented as the only options? Are extreme levels of housing unaffordability placing an unfair burden on the City's young? What will be the impacts upon our surrounding native flora and fauna? ...

Come along and ask your own questions.

#FFFF33;line-height:120%;">The Sustainable Population Party invites members and supporters to meet in Hawthorn for an informal meeting to discuss a number of key issues. 12pm for 12:15pm (lunch at 1:30pm); Glenferrie Hotel, 324 Burwood Road, Hawthorn (Glenferrie Room at rear).Please RSVP: CLICK HERE

The issues include:

- Party update from national President

- Distribution of new SPP flyers for letterboxing, etc

- Proposed formation of Victorian committee/branch

When: 12pm for 12:15pm (lunch at 1:30pm)

Where: Glenferrie Hotel, 324 Burwood Road, Hawthorn (Glenferrie Room at rear).

We look forward to seeing you.

Please RSVP: CLICK HERE

Video of William Bourke's speech inside. William Bourke is the President of the Sustainable Population Party. In this speech he covers a broad range of issues relevant to the population debate including: political donations and the power of vested interests, growth lobby spin, the world's biggest tower, GDP, Victoria's deteriorating economic base, the economic importance of natural capital, single issue politics, and a potential way forward for the population debate through a national vote by plebiscite.

You can hear more from Mr Bourke and from the other speakers and the open mic session at the "Does Melbourne have to keep growing?" forum from videos in the following article: "Melbourne must stop growing - Packed hall in Hawthorn votes for plebiscite."

The Sustainable Population Party's website is at www.populationparty.org.au

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Saturday June 14th at 2.00pm
Hawthorn Arts Centre,
360 Burwood Rd Hawthorn,
Chandelier Room (Melways 45 D10)

Public forum with Kelvin Thomson, William Burke, Sheila Newman, Clifford Hayes and numerous community groups. Sustainable Population Australia & Victoria First are hosting a panel discussion and open mike on Melbourne's population future. The event will be filmed to use as a document to show how Melbourne people feel about overpopulation. "Melbourne's population growth is treated by the media, by governments and by planners as though it is inevitable, giving the impression that the fate of Melbourne is to be a city of 7 to 8 million by mid-century. What the public seldom hears is that Melbourne's huge growth rate is not inevitable, nor that growth of the population does not magically stop at mid-century unless changes to existing trends are made. If present growth rates continued, Melbourne would be a city of about 20 million by the end of the century. The truth is that Melbourne's future could be largely in our own hands. This meeting is a chance for the people of Melbourne to question the ideology that "Melbourne must keep growing"" (Jill Quirk, President SPA Vic & Tas). "Melbourne has been growing by 200 people a day, 1,500 a week and 75,000 each year for some time now. The latest projections are that this rapid growth will escalate still further. But Melbournians are not asked whether this is what we really want for our city." (Kelvin Thomson, President, Victoria First)

Panel

Federal MP and President of Victoria First, Hon. Kelvin Thomson;
Clifford Hayes, former Bayside Mayor
Planning activist, Sheila Newman, population author and editor of candobetter.net
William Bourke, President of Sustainable Population Party.

Please come and have your say!

Contact: Jill Quirk, President, Sustainable Population Australia,VicTas branch
vic [ AT ] population.org.au ph. 0409742927 or Julianne Bell, Secretary, Victoria
First jbell5 [ AT ] bigpond.com ph. 0408022408

Does Size Matter? was the question posed by the title of Assistant Shadow Treasurer Andrew Leigh's talk to the Lowy Institute on Thursday 13th of March. The answer arrived at at the end of his talk was that the quality of people was more important than the quantity. The talk was billed as giving an economic perspective on the population debate and this is exactly what the audience got. Absent were inconvenient scientific perspectives like ecological footprint, climate change, water and energy security.

This was a talk high on optimism that technology can solve all of our problems and that more of the right kind of immigrants will give us a better chance of developing that technology.

The event promo also claimed that several myths about the population debate were going to be dispelled. Some were welcome observations such as the point that the population debate was separate to the refugee issue and that high immigration was not the answer to population aging.

Malthus also came in for a serve but you have to wonder how intelligent people can be so quick to ridicule Malthus when the UN estimates that two billion people cannot get adequate food.

The subject of infrastructure overload was mentioned but again Mr Leigh's optimism dismissed this as a mere failure to adequately plan for the future rather than laying the blame on high population growth.

The institute's namesake Frank Lowy would have given smiling approval to the thrust of this talk. Immigrants have a greater entrepreneurial spirit and benefit the Australian economy in numerous ways we were told.

In the end the idea that numbers were not important in the population debate did not ring true. Mr Leigh lives in Canberra which is the size of Australia's annual growth. You have to hope that when he drives around the city he may come to the realisation that the reason we cannot build this amount of infrastructure every year is not because of planning but because it's just a physical impossibility.

Perhaps this would be a little optimistic, however.

Kris Spike is the Vice President of the Sustainable Population Party

"..70% of Australians prefer a smaller population. They don't want a 'Big Australia' by 2050, and, none of the major parties are listening. So we're here to give the majority of Australians the choice that they want. [...] We're about the people, the citizens of Australia, who deserve a choice." Timothy Diamond Lawence, Griffith candidate.

Timothy Diamond Lawrence, Sustainable Population Party candidate for Griffith by-election on Saturday 8 February 2014. The seat of Griffith is in Brisbane, Kevin Rudd's old electorate. Now Rudd has resigned, there is a by-election. Brisbane and Queensland are the focus of unsustainable population growth; Education, roads, housing cannot keep up and the beautiful environment is being destroyed. Land and housing prices, energy and vital resources prices are all inflating due to population pressure. Homelessness, debt, despair increasing, along with unemployment. Labor and the LibNationals are equally guilty in this, having actively orchestrated overpopulation to please big business. The Greens won't touch the issue. Only the Sustainable Population Party (previously Stable Population Party) is showing courage to represent peoples' democratic wishes here. For this reason I am publicising Tim Diamond Lawrence.

For a recent earlier article on Mr Lawrence and the Sustainable Population Party, click here.