Helen Dalton

Helen Jennifer Dalton is an Australian politician. She has been a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly since March 2019, representing the electoral district of Murray as an independent.[2][3][4][5][6]

Helen Dalton
MP
Member of the New South Wales Parliament
for Murray
Assumed office
23 March 2019
Preceded byAustin Evans
Personal details
Political partyIndependent (2016–2017, 2022–present)
Other political
affiliations		Nationals (2014)
Country (2015–2016)
Shooters, Fishers and Farmers (2017–2022)
ResidenceYenda[1]
OccupationPolitician
Websitehttps://helendalton.com.au/

Since her election Dalton has been a vocal critic of NSW government corruption, water mismanagement, and the under-funding of rural hospitals, mental health services, and infrastructure.[7] She has frequently clashed with government MPs in NSW Parliament, notably former Health Minister Brad Hazzard[8] and Water Minister Melinda Pavey, who has labelled Dalton a "disgrace".[9] Former Deputy Premier John Barilaro called her a "disgusting human" on Twitter.[10]

Dalton has campaigned strongly for the establishment of a public register listing all water owners in NSW.[11] She has reported a number of matters to the Independent Commission Against Corruption, including a land sale by Murray River Council[12] and the NSW Government's failure to release a report on re-opening the Narrandera to Tocumwal rail line.[13]

Dalton has been interviewed several times by YouTube comedian Friendlyjordies, whom he praised "for covering regional council corruption, water, grants and environmental issues that are being overlooked by mainstream media".[14]

Early life and career

Dalton was born in 1959 and raised on a sheep and wheat farm north of Rankin Springs in the Melbergen District.[15]

Dalton studied education and worked as a primary school teacher from 1981 to 1987. She owns a family farming business that produces maize, rice, cereals, cotton, beef cattle, wool and fat lambs.[15] In 2007, she was awarded a Nuffield Australia Farming Scholarship.[16]

Political career

Dalton ran for parliament unsuccessfully in 2015 and 2017 as an independent with the support of the Country Party of Australia[17] and for the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party, respectively. In March 2019, Dalton won the seat of Murray by a 26.2-point swing, breaking 35 years of National Party incumbency.[6] Bookmakers had her as a 9 to 1 outsider just two months before the election.

In her campaign Dalton presented a plan to address water mismanagement and corruption,[18] argued for a royal commission into the Murray Darling Basin Plan, and pushed for better rural health and hospital services.[19]

She has continued to raise these themes as a state MP. Her maiden speech in NSW parliament highlighted the rapid decline in service provision and living standards across rural NSW.[20]

Dalton has written a bill to improve transparency on who owns water in NSW[21] The Bill would have forced all state MPs to declare their water interests, and provided for a public water register allowing the public to search for the names of companies and individuals who own water.[22] The legislation passed the NSW Upper House, but was opposed by the NSW Government, who voted it down in the lower house.[23]

A parliamentary speech Dalton gave on the destruction of family farms across Australia has been viewed more than 330,000 times.[24] She has also criticised excessive foreign ownership of Australian water and farmland,[25] and campaigned for mental health services in the bush.[26]

On 3 March 2022 Dalton resigned from the Shooters Fishers and Farmers after disagreeing with the party's Legislative Council members' failure to show up to vote against a bill regarding water usage that she believed would "disadvantage communities and irrigators in the lower Darling and Murray river system".[27]

Personal life

Dalton married in 1984 and has four adult children and three grandchildren.[16]

References
  1. "Candidates - The Legislative Assembly District of Murray". Elections NSW. New South Wales Electoral Commission. Retrieved 3 April 2023.
  2. "Mrs Helen Jennifer Dalton MP". Members of the Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  3. "Dalton wins Murray". Seymour Telegraph. 27 March 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  4. "Helen Dalton wins NSW seat of Murray". Cobram Courier. 27 March 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  5. Nicholls, Sean (5 October 2017). "Meet the Shooters party candidate who 'doesn't like shooting much'". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  6. "Murray - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)". ABC News. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  7. "Alan Jones interviews Helen Dalton". Facebook.
  8. "Dalton on rural health crisis".
  9. "Pavey calls Dalton a disgrace to her community".
  10. "Twitter".
  11. "Dalton bill voted down by Liberals and Nationals". 24 September 2020.
  12. "it looks dodgy". 29 November 2020.
  13. "Prime 7 News Story". Facebook.
  14. "How to solve a problem like friendlyjordies".
  15. Dalton, Helen (2019). "Inaugural Speech" (PDF). New South Wales Government. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  16. "Helen Dalton - Member for Murray". Shooters, Farmers and Fishers Party. 2018. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  17. (13 February 2015). "Country Party moves on Murray" – The Land (Fairfax Media). Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  18. "SFF ten point plan on Water" (PDF).
  19. "regional health plan".
  20. "Dalton gives maiden speech".
  21. "Farmer tells MPs: Declare your water interests". 18 November 2019.
  22. "Water register Bill".
  23. "Dalton Bill voted down". 24 September 2020.
  24. "Destruction of family farms". Facebook.
  25. "Dalton slams foreign ownership secrecy". 18 November 2019.
  26. "Interview with Ben Fordham". Facebook.
  27. Gramenz, Jack (3 March 2022). "NSW MP quits over party no-show". Mudgee Guardian.
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