Transcript of media conference with Sue Hickey regarding her candidacy for Mayor of Glenorchy City Council, Glenorchy civic plaza, 19 May 2021.
Sue Hickey
Okay. On the weekend I found myself dealing with the death of one of my constituents and some very tragic fallout from that death. And it got me thinking that I still belong in politics, I still need a platform to assist the people in this community who are so desperately in need of a good connection to government services. And so I also thought, well, a lot of people said, when one door closes another opens. This is an obvious fit for me having had such an extensive seven years in local government. And at a time when Hobart City Council was just bursting with activity, we felt a great sense of achievement. And I want the same for Glenorchy. I don’t want it to be the sad version of Hobart, I want it to be equal. It’s a city and it should be vibrant and alive. And I want to see, instead of just endless reports, I want to see activity, I wanted to see things built, I want things cleaned up, I want safety addressed. I want activity for youth, I want the sports grounds activated; my colleague Andrew Wilkie has managed to get over $15 million for sporting grounds here in Glenorchy. And we need to get them rolled out.
Journalist – unidentified
(inaudible)
Sue Hickey
Well, she’s an 80 year old lady and she died leaving behind a 59 year old son who’s struggling with some severe mental health issues. And so over the weekend, I found myself trying to clean out the house and make a way to the kitchen, just to … so now I’ve got to deal with the funeral and sort out money issues and try and connect him to NDIS and a whole lot of services that mum took care of, and this man will desperately need my help. But it just triggered in me this is why I stood for public office.
Journalist – unidentified
How many stories like that did you hear when you were in parliament? And how personally involved were you in those?
Sue Hickey
Oh very personally involved. You know, there’s a lot of people in this city that I’ve been into their houses and I’ve had to, you know, advocate or fight or help clean up or try and connect them to services. One of the things that a politician does is actually try and be the conduit between the problem and the person who doesn’t understand how to deal with government services. And that’s where I found a good skill set. That’s where I sort of thought I belonged. As difficult as it was at times.
Journalist – unidentified
Do you think being mayor would be a good place to be for that?
Sue Hickey
Well, in my case, I have the advantage of having leadership skills, high level financial skills, I’ve got a business background, I’ve got media background. I’ve worked with a team of aldermen before. I find that local government is the level of government closest to the people so it’s where you can really make a difference to things that matter to the ratepayers and residents of a community.
Tasmanian Times
It’s early days yet but what do you think might be the key issues of this Glenorchy mayoral election?
Sue Hickey
Well, I think it will be getting value for rates. People want value for rates, they just don’t want rates going up, they actually want to see things delivered. So I would like to really advocate for reversing the thinking around the transit corridor and rezoning the land and building the houses we desperately need. And then that might make a case for the light rail. I’m not against light rail. But I really think the biggest problem we’ve got facing us at the moment is the lack of houses. And secondly, I’d like to look at every single opportunity to resource share with the Hobart City Council so we can minimise costs, and, you know, maximise the value to the ratepayer, and then we can have more services.
Journalist – unidentified
Do you think your experience on Hobart City Council will (inaudible)?
Sue Hickey
Oh, without a doubt, I mean, working in a big city council on the cusp of all of the development and the exciting things that were going on, we could do lots and lots of things that had significant long term benefits for the residents of Hobart, and for the wider community for that matter. So there’s not much about local government I don’t know. And also, I worked on the Premier’s Advisory Committee, I helped create the good governance guide. My strengths are people skills, working around a board table and also delivering, but also governance. I am an absolute stickler that we be open, accountable and transparent. I’ve always advocated for big, bold, brave and accountable government.
Tasmanian Times
It’s almost like a sort of swap between Kristie Johnston and you. So you’ve got Andrew Wilkie here today, will you be seeking the endorsement of Kristie Johnston the outgoing mayor?
Sue Hickey
Oh, I’d love the friendship to continue with Kristie Johnston. I think she’s a wonderful young lady. And she’s going to be a good addition to Parliament. So yeah, no, I think Kristie and I still have the opportunity to work for the community. And I know she loves Glenorchy.
Journalist – unidentified
Is this the rise of the independents?
Sue Hickey
Well, independents traditionally have been in local government, I don’t want to see local government taken over like the other houses with a lot of party domination and factions. I think it’s really important to get individual points of view and to really challenge and debate concepts. We don’t want a whole group of group thinkers, we want people who are going to be innovative. And then you work together to refine the idea to something that’s acceptable to everybody. And that is actually outcome driven.
Journalist – unidentified
You’ll likely be running against a former advisor. Have you spoken to her?
Sue Hickey
Yes, so I did ring Bec and tell her that I was going to run. Beck’s a wonderful person. I mean, she’s a dear friend, and I’ve spent a lovely time working with her. She’s young, she’s ambitious. And she’s very enthusiastic. But I do think in this case, I have a greater depth of qualifications, experience and ability to deliver the outcomes needed for Glenorchy. At this precise time in history.
Journalist – Elliott
One of your proudest achievements is what you did with Oakley Court. What else have you done for this community?
Sue Hickey
Well, I’ve helped heaps of individuals, I’ve done a lot of fundraising out here, we’ve gained I think we’ve got something like $40,000 worth of bras for women coming out of homelessness, or in homelessness, and prisons. We did a lot of boots for Bethlehem House, we’ve done a lot of work with the Salvation Army, we are a regular visitor to the building behind me with donations of food and gifts and things like that. But hear in Glenorchy it’s a marginal seat. And it was always very difficult to get the attention of the state government to the actual needs that are here. So I’m going to be a loud and noisy protagonist if I get elected to make sure that Glenorchy gets his share of funding, both at the state and federal level.
Journalist – Elliott
Is there a difference in how you would approach a local government position as opposed to a state government position?
Sue Hickey
Yes, it is, is very different. I think it’s much more hands on in local government. And it’s more one on one with the constituents. You don’t always get that when you’re in state unless you really make the time, which I always did. But here I think you can walk through your shopping centres, you can walk through your coffee shops, and you can be seen around the city, doing the things you know. I mean, it’s not beyond me to get out there with a leaf blower or pick up the cigarette butts. I want to see a cleaner and safer city. And I think if people see that I’m accessible they can tap me on the shoulder and have a chat to me. That’s what they wanted. They want to be able to be heard.
Tasmanian Times
You said earlier you didn’t want Glenorchy to be the slightly smaller sadder version of Hobart. Can you give us a couple of ideas you have that you’d like to unroll that would change the character of Glenorchy for the better?
Sue Hickey
Well, first of all, I’d like to clean up the bus mall. I think that is a tragedy here. I also think the city needs a good overhaul of cleaning and it needs to feel a lot safer. But we can do that by activating sports grounds and having activities for youth that somehow or other find their way into trouble. We’ve got to create more jobs here. If we can build more houses along the rail corridor – which is flat serviceable land, already serviced – then we’ll get more people here. The businesses – there’s five and a half thousand small businesses here – they will be able to thrive. And I think everyone will feel that level of excitement of what all the opportunities are. People love living in Glenorchy, it is absolutely beautiful. We have so much waterfront and we have spectacular views. And I think if we can leverage off MONA, and, you know, all those sort of activities, we can really make this city thrive. And that’s what I’m about is actually getting stuff done.
Andrew Wilkie
Thanks, Sue. I’ll be very brief. Look the Tasmanian Parliament’s loss is very much the city of Glenorchy’s gain, because we now have an exceptional candidate for mayor. We have a person who has been the Telstra businesswoman of the year, she’s been the Speaker of the House of Assembly and state member for Clark, she’s been a small business person, she’s been the mayor of a capital city for heaven’s sake. I mean, the amount of experience and skills and competency is breathtaking. And to think that this candidate, that Sue is available to put herself forward, for me, is a really exciting development. Really exciting development. And I’m very excited about it. And she has my very, very strong endorsement. And I’m confident that once Sue, you know, is able to make her candidacy known, when she is able to make it known what her background is and her skills, I think the community will embrace her. She’s bound to be up against some tough competition, and some other good candidates. But at this point in time, this is the candidate that has all of the skills and competency, ability to read a balance sheet, for example, that this city desperately needs.
Journalist – unidentified
Will you be trying to talk her around to light rail?
Andrew Wilkie
Oh, Sue’s not against light rail. Sue just has a different approach to light rail. Well – I hope I’m not verballing you – you know, where as I think build the rail and the people will come, Sue’s more encourage people here and it strengthens the case for light rail. So to be absolutely clear, we are of the same mind when it comes to issues as diverse as poker machine reform, public transport in particular, the light rail in the northern suburbs. I’m hard pressed to find an area of policy where we differ and so I say to voters if you have an interest in me logically you’ll have a have an interest in Sue.
Journalist – Elliott
Inter-personal drama often comes up in councils, it’s an issue at Hobart and it’s been an issue at Glenorchy in the past. Will you be helping to keep Sue on the straight and narrow and out of out of drama?
Andrew Wilkie
Oh, Sue doesn’t need any any help from me. She’s the one who’s run a capital city council. And it was a very effective capital city council. While while Sue was the mayor of Hobart, things got done. Hobart got cleaned up, everything from the toilet blocks through to the garbage bins and everything else. And I think Sue did a very good job of holding together a very diverse group of aldermen. You know, Sue brings those personal skills, those management and crucially leadership skills that I think can result in a much more of a team, a much more collegial approach to local government here. I think that’s one of Sue’s strengths.
