Liberal Michelle Boylan out on energy

In a bold bid to win the seat of Murray-Wellington, Michelle Boylan has come out against her party. The Liberal Party said it would shut all State-owned Collie coal power stations by 2025 for net-zero government emissions by 2030. The move not only outraged Collie residents in Mrs Boylan’s neighbouring electorate of Collie-Preston where many Murray-Wellington voters work, but also Federal Liberals — including Canning MHR Andrew Hastie. In a campaign letter to be distributed to Murray-Wellington voters, Mr Hastie voiced his support for Mrs Boylan. “She will stand up for the jobs, industry and traditional energy sources that our region depends on,” the letter stated. Mrs Boylan said: “We are the party that backs workers — so I can’t support a policy that undermines their jobs by putting reliable baseload power at risk.” “I’m standing up for my community, the same approach I’ll take into Parliament. If something is not right, I’ll listen to locals and speak up both in our party and Parliament.” When asked if she still had faith in Liberal leader Zak Kirkup, who last month conceded, Mrs Boylan said “this has nothing to do with Zak’s leadership – unlike the Labor Party, we’re able to have a contest of ideas”. “Like many locals, I see issues with this policy – reliable baseload power underpins much of our economic success as a region and countless jobs, we can’t put that at risk,” she said. “Zak has acknowledged the reality of this election. I’m putting myself forward because I’m passionate about my community and I want to represent it. “The reality is that when locals walk into their local MPs office, the member for Rockingham won’t be there to assist them – their local member will be.”