The Influencers: Leeann Watson

Make your voice heard

It’s that time again when election hoardings appear on our streets and leaflets appear in our mailboxes.

Every three years, we have the opportunity to re-elect and refresh our local representatives. It is important that voters have sufficient information to make well-informed decisions, because local government affects all of us.

Every business and every resident, on a day-to-day basis, interacts with or uses a service that is provided by a local authority.

And in the case of business, local government can both facilitate economic growth and hinder it. It is staggering that only 2 in 5 people voted in the last local election and we must strive for better.

That is why The Chamber is undertaking three initiatives in the lead up to election day to contribute to a better-informed electorate. We are pulling together candidate profiles to provide at-a-glance intelligence on where the mayoral candidates stand on the issues that matter to business. We are publishing a document outlining our expectations of local government throughout the next term, and we are hosting a Mayoral Forum featuring the two candidates that our members indicated they would most like to hear from – Phil Mauger and David Meates.

The forum will be held on Tuesday 27 September, and is free to the public to attend, and we encourage you to do so.
Voting is important – local government has a significant role to play even if many actions go unnoticed, and it is important that your voice is heard.