Pharmacist Mark Douglass has been named as Labor’s candidate to take on The Nationals’ Steph Cooke in the seat of Cootamundra in the 2019 state election.
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Mr Douglass lives in Harden with Lyn, his wife of 40 years. He and his family own pharmacies in Harden-Murrumburrah, Gundagai and Lockhart.
“As a pharmacist I see the disadvantage that the people in the Southwest Slopes experience in healthcare. Rural areas are under-serviced by health professionals including doctors, nurses and other allied health workers,” he said.
“There are just not enough professionals and those we have are overworked, under remunerated and underappreciated. This causes problems of access to care, increases the cost of care and increases the distances needed to travel to get care. The neglect by this government impacts adversely on rural people.
“For decades the National party representatives have taken the communities in the electorate of Cootamundra for granted. We have been neglected for decades, but the last by-election saw a swing of 20 per cent against the Nationals.
“This result forced the new local member to start porkbarrelling, throwing our money about like confetti, trying to buy votes. This is lazy politics and poor policy.
“It’s time for a change, for a better future for the people and communities in Cootamundra.”
NSW Opposition Leader Michael Daley said Mr Douglass had “the right credentials” to fight for the community and take on The Nationals in Cootamundra.
“I am proud to stand with Mark Douglass as Labor’s candidate for Cootamundra as he is someone who will serve his community well.
“As a pharmacist and health professional, Mark has seen first-hand the inequity between health services in the city and in the regions.
“Mark will hold the Nationals to account over their support for the Berejiklian-Barilaro government’s failed Sydney-centric stadium policies.”
Ms Cooke, who was elected as Member for Cootamundra after a byelection, said she welcomed the announcement of Labor’s candidate for the state election.
“The privilege to serve my community as member for Cootamundra is not one I take lightly. We hit the ground running 424 days ago, and I’m extremely proud of the outcomes we’ve achieved and the tangible investment we’ve seen in this region,” she said.
“I’ve opened new ambulance stations, operating theatres, roads and bridges and have been honoured to announce tens of millions of dollars in planned rail and freight infrastructure across the electorate.
“We’ve announced major school upgrades, TAFE infrastructure and Service NSW centres: my record speaks for itself.
“The people of Cootamundra are intelligent people – they won’t be fooled. They remember the years of shameless neglect under a Labor government who are blind to anything beyond Western Sydney.
“For a decade under Labor, NSW had the slowest economic growth and the lowest jobs growth of any mainland state in the country. Their legacy was a $30 billion infrastructure backlog.
“I’m proud of every single dollar I’ve fought for over the past year, and I trust the hardworking people of this electorate to judge all candidates and parties by their records in regional NSW.”
