There are many things I love about my job and I suppose that the best of all is being in a position where I can help people and getting out into the Electorate and getting to meet the most amazing people. We are very lucky to live in such a wonderful region and I get to travel throughout the Electorate seeing many places and faces I would otherwise not have the chance to experience. Even though I am always very busy and travelling a lot, I really love my job and I feel very proud to be the Member for Northern Tablelands.

Your local MP works from an Electorate office where expereienced staff are available to offer advice on a wide range of issues relating to the State Government. These might include questions you have with things such as the local health service, RTA, education, policing, housing and many other areas. Should it be considered necessary, your MP can write to Ministers of Government or other authorities, seeking advice. If you aren’t sure whether your MP is the right person to help you, simply contact the office of your local MP to discuss your concerns.

This opinion piece by Richard Torbay was published in the SUN-HERALD newspaper on 6 July  2008 .  It outlines  his views on  'conscience votes' and is a strong argument for consensus politics. 

Voters sick of sleazy deceit
We live in paradoxical times. The major political parties have merged philosophically but continue to behave like ideological adversaries.
People in my electorate, and in Sydney too, shake their heads at this charade and lament the loss of elected representatives driven by conviction, and accountability to their electors.
There's too much hype and spin around the political process to compensate for a lack of policies and principles.
People see through it and it's making them more cynical and less engaged.
The gulf between what people really want and see as important and what the party politicians are talking about could hardly be wider.
The perception is political leaders and their party machines will do and say anything to get elected - then do and say anything to stay in office.
Any compromises are more about retaining the prizes of incumbency than service to the people and good policies.
Opportunism, deceit and sleaze in politics continue to serve up a daily soap opera for the media.
The fusing of the major parties on policy has led to less informed debate on important public issues.
It has become more about managing the problem rather than finding the best long-term solution.
Think of the fashionable economic theory of budget surpluses which led to underinvestment in infrastructure such as roads, public transport, hospitals, schools and public housing over the past two decades.
The blinkered view that privatisation and public/private partnerships (PPPs) constitute a quick fix has itself become ideologically immutable.
It's a classic case of trying to fix problems created through one set of poor decisions with others in the same vein.
No wonder people are cynical. There has been far too little scrutiny of the sell off of public assets, which can fill the coffers of cash strapped governments. The spin that it's for the public benefit is barely challenged.
Where is the proper, informed public debate on these issues?
Where are the impact statements, the long term projections, the alternative options? Quite a number of the privatisations and PPPs have come nowhere near meeting the criteria of public benefit on one side and sound business practice on the other.
Look at the extraordinary political alliances created over the privatisation of electricity assets in NSW.
When some Labor MPs connive with the opposition to defeat their own party's legislation - policy which the coalition also has in its party platform - we're in sideshow alley.
I don't pretend to be a wide eyed idealist looking to eliminate the lively, robust, gladiatorial aspects of party politics, or politics in general, but I am convinced that what we are experiencing now is neither robust, nor gladiatorial.
It is politics on life support.
I'm not suggesting that we can deliver all things to all people but what I am suggesting as remedies are two things.
Politicians should claw back, or be granted, the right to be advocates for their communities.
They should be allowed more opportunities to cast a conscience vote on issues directly affecting their constituents and they should not be threatened with de-selection if they don't always toe the party line.
Secondly we should try solution based or consensus politics in NSW to counteract the failure of successive governments to deliver effectively on major issues such as public infrastructure.
These matters require long term planning and commitment outside the cycle of elections and continuous campaigning.
We need strategies to address the problems to be signed off by the major and minor parties and independent MPs.
It would guarantee continuity over the long haul regardless of which party held government.
It would engage the best minds in parliament regardless of their political persuasion. It would use the public service to best advantage.
It would restore some heart and soul and real excitement back into politics.
It would lift the quality of debate on these major issues and hopefully set a higher standard to re-engage our communities and lead us all into proper, long term planning.


Richard Torbay is the independent member for Northern Tablelands and the Speaker of the NSW Parliament.

By Invitation Only is a space for people of influence to have their say. Edited by Kerry-Anne Walsh.

Yes I do, but if the view of the community if different to mine, I take that into consideration when voting or speaking. I believe that MP’s are elected to represent not rule, and that is why I spend a lot of time travelling in the Electorate and speaking to people about their views on issues. I also encourage people to write to me and express their views if they strongly agree or disagree with Government policy or plans.

Richard Torbay: Speaker of the NSW Legislative Assembly and Member for Northern Tablelands

Richard Torbay is a community leader who has earned a well-deserved reputation for re-inventing himself. It is well known that he has climbed the ladder in a remarkably short time from kitchen hand to Speaker of the NSW Legislative Assembly, making him one of the most powerful politicians in the State. What distinguishes each new role he takes on is that he redefines it and stretches it to the boundaries of possibility and sometimes well beyond.

Mr Torbay is well known at the University of New England as a member of its Council since 1996 and as the former head of the UNE Union, which he served for 20 years, starting as a kitchen hand at the age of 18. In each of his promotions through the ranks of the University’s commercial services provider, he made a name for himself, becoming CEO in 1991. During that time he expanded the organisation to 170 staff, made record profits, opened the Belgrave Twin Cinema in Armidale and acquired Tattersalls Hotel as an asset for the Union.

During that period he made his first foray into politics, standing as a candidate in the 1991 Armidale City Council elections. He moved up to the position of Deputy Mayor and served as Mayor from 1995-2000. As Mayor he became chairman of the New England Local Government Group and chairman of the NSW Country Mayors Association. Amongst his achievements was the Building the Future Forum, launched by the NSW Premier, which set guidelines for Armidale’s growth and development on many fronts. Along with the late Peter Monley he guided the voluntary amalgamation of Armidale City and Dumaresq Shire Councils.

In 1999 Mr Torbay was challenged to stand for the seat of Northern Tablelands as an Independent. At the time it was considered a safe and virtually unassailable National Party seat. Come election day he romped home after a robust campaign which he won with 59 per cent of the vote following the distribution of preferences. In two subsequent elections he has increased that majority and in 2007 was second only to Premier Morris Iemma with the highest two party preferred result in the State.

As well as building a public profile, achieving record funding for the electorate and hosting more Ministers’ visits than had been seen in the Northern Tablelands for decades, he also served on several top level Parliamentary Committees. These include the Public Accounts Committee, the Speaker’s Technology Advisory Group, the Joint Committee on the Office of the Valuer-General, the Regional Investment Taskforce, the Joint Select Committee on Bushfires, the Standing Committee on Public Works and the Joint Committee on Tobacco Smoking in NSW.

Following the 2007 election he was elected unanimously as the first non-aligned Independent Speaker of the NSW Legislative Assembly and a key member of a new Rural Task Force to report to the government on issues affecting regional communities. One of his first priorities as Speaker was to change the NSW Constitution to allow him to speak, debate issues and deliver Members Statements on the floor of the House when they affect his electorate. While some commentators have seen this as just an aggregation of power for the role of Speaker, Mr Torbay has made it clear that he is primarily a representative of his local communities and he cannot see they should be disadvantaged in any way.

It also explains Richard Torbay’s success as a Member of Parliament. His focus on his family and delivering results for the communities he serves has made him a popular figure in the Northern Tablelands. His astute judgement and capacity to take on an enormous work load has won him the respect of his colleagues in Parliament from all political denominations. Richard is only 47 and whatever new roles he takes on in the future, there is no doubt he will continue to make his mark as a remarkable community leader, an astute businessman and politician, an extroverted participant in charity events and a compassionate champion of those suffering hardship.

(Biography prepared by the University of New England for the 6 October 2007 Graduation Ceremony and the awarding to Richard Torbay of an Honorary Doctorate in recognition of his contribution to the University.)