Yang fights to go from Mayor to Member in Chisholm

Deakin University, Bill Hansen

Labor’s candidate for Chisholm Jennifer Yang. Photo supplied by the Australian Labor Party

Name: Jennifer Yang
Gender: Female

Background:
Jennifer Yang is the current candidate for the Australian Labor Party, contesting the seat of Chisholm. She is of Chinese background and migrated to Australia in 2001 to complete an Information Technology Masters Degree at Monash University. She also has experience as a councillor and was once the Manningham Mayor, but was forced to resign when she decided to campaign for a Federal senator role in 2016. Yang currently lives in Blackburn South with her husband and two children.

Chisholm Electorate:
The seat of Chisholm is an Australian Electoral Division located in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne in Victoria. It includes suburbs Box Hill, Burwood, Ashwood, Blackburn and parts of Chadstone, Forest Hill, Glen Waverly, Mount Waverly, Nunawading, Surrey Hills and Syndal. Chisholm is also one of the most diverse electorates in Australia with about 19.7 per cent of Chisholm residents having Chinese ancestry, according to the most recent census in 2016.

Outlined in the image above is the geographical area for the seat of Chisholm.

Currently the seat is held by Julia Banks who won it as a Liberal MP in 2016. Since the Liberal leadership spill that took place in 2018, Banks decided she would not contest the seat of Chisholm and instead run as an Independent for the seat of Flinders. Experts are predicting Labor will take over the seat of Chisholm from the Liberal party due to the leadership spill and Yang’s experience in local government as a mayor.

Other candidates for the seat of Chisholm:

  • Glays Liu: Liberal Party
  • Luke Arthur: Greens Party
  • Ian Dobby: Independent
  • Angela Dorian: Rise Up Australia Party
  • Phillip Jenkins: Democratic Labor Party
  • Rosemary Lavin: Animal Justice Party
  • Anne Wicks : Derryn Hinch’s Justice Party
  • George Zoraya: United Australia Party

Issues for Chisholm:
Listed below are the policies Yang has committed to implement in the Chisholm region if Labor is elected into the federal government. D*scribe tried to contact Yang for comment on these policies but she was unavailable.

– $25 million for an upgrade to Box Hill Hospital.
– $500,000 for East Burwood Football Club for urgent upgrades.
– $750,000 to support Box Hill Rugby Union Football Club for upgrades.
– $1 million for a new Hockey Pitch at Ashwood Reserve.
– $24 million for Chisholm schools, including an $890,000 boost for Forest Hill.

Major Issues:
Listed below are the policies Yang and the Labor Party have committed to implement on the major issues in Australia if Labor is elected.

Environment:

  • More than $1 billion in new environment programs, including $100 million for the Native Species Protection fund, $62 million for the Beaches and Coastlines Climate Adaption Plan, $50 million towards environmental law reform and a new Environment Protection Authority.
  • 50 per cent of energy that is sourced to be renewable by 2030.
  • One billion battery household installations by 2025.
  • Cut Australians emissions by 43% by 2030.
  • $290 million to cut waste and boost recycling.
  • Labor has yet to comment on the Adani coal mine situation in far North Queensland, and whether it will approve of it or not.

Education:

  • $14 billion for public schools over 10 years.
  • Safe schools program implemented to reduce bullying of LGBTIQ students.
  • $200 million to upgrade TAFEs and waive upfront fees for more than 100,000 students.
  • Reintroduce funding for Pre-Schools.
  • $1 billion for Solar Systems to be put on Schools.

Health

  • $2.4 billion in a Pensioner Dental Plan promising up to three million older Australians access to free dental care.
  • $8 billion Better Hospitals Fund which will deliver more hospital beds and healthcare workers.
  • $125 million into cancer research.
  • $500 million to upgrade and expand emergency departments across Australia and slash ER waiting times.
  • $300 million in upgrades to cancer centres across the country.
  • $2.3 billion investment to dramatically slash out-of-pocket costs for cancer patients.
  • An audit into the NDIS and guaranteeing that all money is correctly going to NDIS.

More information on Labor’s campaigns and policies can be found on it website or on Jennifer Yang’s Facebook page.

The Federal Election will be held on May 18. Information on where you can vote if you are located in the electoral division of Chisholm can be accessed here: https://www.aec.gov.au/election/vic/chisholm.htm