New South Wales must lose a seat before the next Federal Election. The number of electorates in NSW must be reduced from 47 to 46 seats; to achieve this, the seat of North Sydney has been abolished by the Australian Electoral Commission’s Redistribution Committee. The seat will remain until the next federal election – which is due to take place in 2025.
North Sydney voters will now be in Bennelong, Bradfield or Warringah. Lane Cove and Hunters Hill are now in Bennelong.
North Sydney Below Quota
New South Wales’s entitlement to electoral divisions has been reduced from 47 to 46 due to a slower population growth rate than other states and territories. Of New South Wales’ existing 47 electoral divisions, only 12 meet the two numerical requirements of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 (the Electoral Act).
Every electorate must have a quota, and the North Sydney Electorate was under quota.
Why Was the Name North Sydney Not Retained?
The report stated:
“The augmented Electoral Commission accepted that the name ‘North Sydney’ has been in use since 1901, and retaining it would be consistent with the naming guideline to retain the names of original federation electoral divisions.
The augmented Electoral Commission also noted that ‘North Sydney’ is a locality name and the name of a local government area. The augmented Electoral Commission consequently observed that retiring the name would address the guideline that stipulates locality or place names should generally be avoided. This approach is consistent with the previous retirement of the Federation names of ’South Sydney’ (retired in 1934), ‘East Sydney’ (1968), and ‘West Sydney’ (1968).”
Kylea Tink’s Statement
Kylea Tink released the following statement:
“In 2022, our community voted to change the climate in Canberra — and, with my incredible team, dedicated volunteers, and the generous donors who have supported our work, I believe we have done just that.
While I am deeply disappointed by the Australian Electoral Commission’s (AEC) final decision to abolish the federal electorate of North Sydney, I am grateful to have had the honor of serving North Sydney over the last two and a half years.
I am proud of all we have achieved together on issues like emissions reduction targets; vehicle efficiency standards; support for families and women; HECS reform; parliamentary conduct; and human rights.
But our work is not done yet. I remain absolutely committed to representing this community throughout the rest of this parliamentary term and continuing to make the most of our efforts to build a better Australia.
Hundreds of residents have contacted the AEC over the past three months to ask for our electorate to be retained.
While we did not get the outcome we had hoped for, I am deeply grateful to everyone who took the time to share their personal objections with the AEC, and to the thousands of people who signed the petition to Save North Sydney. Your commitment to our electorate has been extraordinary.”
Antony Green’s View
ABC’s election guru Antony Green, on his blog has stated”
“The changes are brought about by the abolition of Independent-held North Sydney, a flow on impact of which is to flip neighbouring Bennelong from being a marginal Labor seat to as a very marginal Liberal seat.”
Overview maps will be available on the website on Thursday, 10 October 2024, the day the redistribution is finalised with the publication of a notice in the Gazette.
Detailed maps and a report outlining the augmented Electoral Commission’s reasons for the formal determination will be tabled in the Federal Parliament and subsequently made publicly available.
Read the announcement by the AEC in full here.
Over cover photo is from Antony Green’s blog.
Background
Last year, the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) called for submissions on a redistribution.
ABC election analyst guru Antony Green said:
“Abolishing a division while bringing all divisions back within the permitted variation from quota will require major surgery to some electorates. And boundary changes will almost certainly have big political consequences.”
The AEC recently released submissions made about the proposed redistribution – you can read the submissions in full here.
Redistribution Submissions by Major Parties
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party has suggested abolishing the seat of Warringah and combining current Warringah voters with North Sydney voters. They would like the electorate to remain named North Sydney as it is a federation electorate. If this was to happen, Zali Steggal and Kylea Tink could possibly contest the same electorate.
Labor Party
Labor does not want to abolish North Sydney. Instead, they propose that the seat include Gladesville, Ryde, Putney, and some parts of Lindfield, Chatswood, Roseville, and Lindfield. They also suggest the area from Crows Nest to Kirribilli be part of the Warringah electorate.
National Party Submission
The Nationals have submitted that North Sydney be abolished, and the seat of Bennelong is moved further east than the Liberal Party’s proposal.
The Greens
The Greens want to retain North Sydney and expand its borders to include Chatswood, Castle Cove and Northbridge and parts of Lindfield to Roseville. They have submitted that the set of Bradfield should be abolished. Former Liberal minister Paul Fletcher currently holds this seat.
The Independents
Not surprisingly the independents have submitted the following:
Kylea Tink wants to keep North Sydney
Zali Steggall has suggested realigning the western boundary of Warringah into North Sydney.
Kyle Tink’s Statement
Kylea Tink released the following statement:
“Our electorate of North Sydney has existed since Federation and at its core is a strong community of interest established around the spine of the north shore rail line.
As you may be aware the federal divisions of NSW will be subject to a boundary redistribution ahead of the next election, which will abolish one seat and increase the number of voters in each electorate from 118,000 to 129,000.
Unsurprisingly, the submissions of the two major parties are driven by political self-interest that looks to carve up North Sydney into Bennelong, Bradfield and Warringah. Instead, I am arguing to preserve our community of North Sydney, taking in some modest growth to incorporate the full Willoughby and North Sydney LGA’s.
You can read my submission here, and if you want to have your say in this process you can make your own submission before November 10.
Thank you as always for the privilege of representing our community. All that I do is shaped by your feedback so please keep those emails coming!”
Help Support Local and Independent News
You can support us in three ways:
- Become an ITC reader sponsor – Feel free to be a reader sponsor if you have enjoyed our local news coverage and would like to be an ITC reader sponsor. You can sponsor us with a monthly sponsorship fee. We have reader sponsors who sponsor us for $5.00 a month and some who sponsor us for $100 a year – no amount is too small or too big. Thank you so much to the people who have already supported us via our press Patreon account. Help Us Here.
- Buy the ITC team a coffee – We now have a team, and they need to be paid – buy the ITC team a coffee (or two) and that will help us pay their wages and shout then a coffee Buy a Coffee here.
- Do you own a Lane Cove Business or a Lane Cove resident who owns a business, you can advertise with ITC – our packages start from $35 monthly fee (for a 12-month commitment). Email us here for our rates card.
