Matt Sharpham is a Christian husband, father of two with a passion to serve his community. "I want to see less government interference, growth of business and industry, and keep our representatives honest."

Q. What local issues are you focusing on?

A. COVID response, lockdowns, mandates and border closures Domestic Violence and child protection Federal Corruption Commission.

Q. What do you have to say about the rising cost of living?

A. The cost of food, fuel and increasing interest rates is crippling the family budget and the flow on affect means there is less money flowing in the community.

Q. How can the government be more transparent?

A. It's really quite simple. The truth doesn't mind being questioned - speak the truth. We need integrity in the government - and it's clear there's very little of that left. The only way to change this is with our vote!!

Q. What do you have to say about how the major parties have failed Australia?

A. The major party's are not listening to their constituents. The past 2 years have proven the major parties at all levels are only there to serve their own interests. The have pushed agenda's without releasing proper documentation, created a two tier society, allowed media censoring and ignored huge numbers of people knocking on their door. The minor parties have been very receptive and have proven they listen to the voice of the people - it's almost as if the major parties have someone pulling their strings...

The sale of publicly funded assets has proven they're unable to lead without an agenda. The fact that neither party has been willing to instate a Federal Corruption Commission is proof they cannot be trusted.

Q. Do you believe the major parties have betrayed Australia? If so, how?

A. The biggest betrayal to the Australian people is the sale of public assets. As a grandson of a hard working WW2 Veteran, I think of the building of Australian infrastructure his generation did, and it's being sold off to make a quick buck, then rebuild it at 10 times it's cost? Telstra, Port of Darwin, Electricity infrastructure is only a few.

The lies over mandates and "freedoms" need to stop. The Prime Minister said "we don't have a mandatory vaccination program in this country" - yet thousands of Nurses, teachers, pilots and countless other workers are unable to go to work and provide for their family.

Q. Why should local voters vote for you?

A. As an Independent I have no one to pull my strings except the local constituents. As a local resident and spending the last 15 years travelling around the New England actively serving the community, I have listened to people's concerns, seen the issues faced during floods, drought and fire, know the conditions of the roads and have my children being educated in a local school. I have a vested interest in seeing this community become stronger than ever. It needs to start with getting people back to work, open state and international borders and remove all government enabled prejudices. One borders and restrictions are open, business needs to get back on track and be allowed to grow without fear of being restricted.

The issue of Domestic Violence needs to be acknowledged and addressed. We need to protect our mums and our children. DV comes in many shapes and sizes and the support available to those trapped is not good enough. A Federal Corruption Commission is a must - to have any politician no willing to support this only asks more questions. While I have many of my own policies, I would be willing to listed to the local community to give them a stronger voice in Parliament.

Q. What will your local community look like, when you are voted in?

A. As a community, we need to love each other. It's something that is not lost completely, but the overreach of government has broken trust between each other, strained family relationships and border closures have left people grieving and angry. We need to get back to our roots of family and community - this has to happen together and can only be done if the government is willing to let go of the reigns. The increased funding for community and sporting events, inviting parents back into schools to be part of their education and funding some of our neglected park facilities is a small way the federal government can assist in bringing the community back together.

As many businesses have suffered significant downturn over the last 2 years, it's now difficult for them to grow or sell as banks aren't lending. A federal loan program should be setup to assist these businesses expand and bring jobs, services and families to the region. Funding of roads should go to the areas that need it instead of widening a highway by a marginal amount.

Authorised by Matt Sharpham, Tamworth, NSW.