Independent candidate Steve Reynolds “running for the region”

STEVE Reynolds, Muswellbrook Shire Councillor, ex-coal miner and father of three has told scone.com.au he will be running as an independent for the upcoming by-election on May 22.

The 39 year old candidate said the by-election is “the perfect storm for an independent” and he won’t be making any back-door deals with Labor or Liberal.

“If an independent wins, that means that there are further negotiation opportunities available for the the rest of the term,” Mr. Reynolds said.

“It’s a swing seat at the moment and for transparency and accountability, I don’t have to tow a party line. There’s not going to be any backdoor deals,” he said.

“At the end of the day I’m not applying for a job and going for a panel interview, this is an elected representative role,” he said.

“You don’t want someone in there that has to go a certain direction, you need someone in there to represent and shore up. Don’t say you’re going to do all this stuff and then show up at election time and then fall into your seat. Be out there, be accountable,” he said.

Mr. Reynolds said if elected, he will create wider community consultation between businesses and industry stakeholders to give every town a voice and bring money back into the electorate.

“You’ve got to have a person at the table who can talk about this land segregation between the horse industry and the mining industry and you need more consultation with the general community,” Mr. Reynolds said.

“I think that’s what has been lacking in recent times. Allowing the different industries and towns to have a voice and allowing them to get to the table, even if it means one big table to start off with and then afterward segregating it into smaller groups but still doing the one plan so everyone is communicated with,” he said.

“Singleton’s great but if you look up the northern end of Muswellbrook, Scone, Gloucester, Dungog and Quirindi, they’ve really been forgotten about so it’s time to look at the whole area and get a great tourism plan,” he said.

“The money is there to be spent but we’re not spending it in the right areas. Sydney and Newcastle, you can stick it and stop taking our money,” said Mr. Reynolds.

Mr. Reynolds said he doesn’t need to chase the mining vote, his history within the mining community speaks for itself.

“Everyone knows through my actions that I support mining, I don’t have to pretend to put on a high vis shirt and go out there and get my photo taken,” Mr. Reynolds said.

“I’ve been through the mining industry at a site level, then through EA agreements, to now being on Council and seeing their submissions go through the process,” he said.

“They [miners] do know I support them but there are other industries and small businesses in these shires that are overlooked because mining has the big money. It’s about getting back to these businesses that are going to be around long after mining,” he said.

“Had Covid-19 been more prominent in our area, there would have been far more consequences for small business so we need to bomb-proof here and support local,” Mr. Reynolds said.