What is your name, political party and electorate?
Lyndal Howison, Labor for Ryde
Tell us about your background both personally and professionally (max 150 words)
I’ve lived in North Ryde for 10 years with my daughter and husband. We love it here. We have been involved P&Cs, Little A’s and church. I’m now a high school teacher in Western Sydney, teaching Geography and Commerce, and I’ve also been a local government councillor, serving four years on Leichhardt Council before we moved to Ryde. That was so rewarding, I loved that experience. I also worked in NFP and corporate in communications management, but I made the jump into teaching a few years ago to follow my passion for education. I love my subjects, working with students to understand our role in society, the local and global economy, and humanity’s relationship with the natural environment. We also lived in London for five years, so I’ve travelled a fair bit. My early childhood was in Lane Cove so it feels right to be back here after some adventures.
What are some things you love about your electorate?
Ryde is spectacular in so many ways. There are many places to spend time out of doors, whether is bushwalking, exercising or playing on the swings. This is an incredibly precious feature of our electorate and we’ve got a strong history of working together to protect our open spaces. Ryde is vibrant, enterprising and so wonderfully diverse. Our community comes from so many different places, and together we make a glorious patchwork. We can try everything, from a quiet coffee at Element 6, to being in the thick of a lion dance in Eastwood. We’re enterprising too. We have mums running innovative home businesses that allow them to balance family, and people quietly writing beautiful code late at night, helping businesses flow better. Dotted across the electorate are medium and large businesses competing in global markets with the best staff. And don’t even get me started on our incredible food options!
What do you believe are the 3 main issues affecting your electorate and why?
Over-crowded schools
Our growing community needs more schools. One of the biggest issues our community is facing is overcrowded schools and overworked teachers. Sadly this has only gotten worse over the last decade. As a teacher I’ve seen so many kids struggle and in desperate need or extra attention and support. One of the biggest things I’m campaigning for is a new school in Macquarie Park. We are in desperate need of a new school and this new K-12 school will also have a co-located pre-school. I know we’ve heard similar announcements from other candidates, but those were first made in 2017 and we haven’t seen any action. Our local students can’t keep waiting. I’m also worried about the Liberal Government’s current plans at Lachlan’s Line to have shops and housing mixed with the school. I think there are a lot of problems with this approach, our schools shouldn’t be places to learn not commercial spaces. Labor will not go down this path. We have committed to ensuring the new school will not be mixed with commercial or housing, meaning our kids can get the best quality education. We will also create 10,000 new permanent teaching positions so we can urgently address the teacher shortage.
Cost of living
Ryde is under pressure from a growing population and cost of living pressures. Most young people find it incredibly hard to afford to buy in this area, and with around 40% of people in Ryde renting, we must ensure the rental market is fair and accessible for people of all ages, including families and older people. Labor has a plan to support renters in a range of ways, but I’m not going to list it all here (https://www.freshstartplan.com.au/ ?). Cost of living is a major pressure across Sydney, particularly in relation to housing but also tolls, energy prices and fresh food.
Public transport and bus privatisation
I’ve been hearing a lot about the pressures caused by cuts or cancellations of eight bus routes in our area, following the Government’s privatisation of these services. That’s a real concern when our population is growing. Chris Minns has committed to ending further privatisations of public services and that will help.
We will also complete a timetable review and bring the bus providers back to the table to look at how we can restore services like the M52.
What are the 3 key things you plan to achieve if elected?
- Building more schools and creating more school places – we will build a new K-12 school in Macquarie Park and create 10,000 new permanent teacher positions to help with the teacher shortage.
- Restoring faith in politics – it’s clear so many people have lost faith in politics and politicians (and how could you blame them.) I’m so passionate about restoring integrity to our political system. Labor will properly fund ICAC and stop the rorting of government grants.
- Protecting our open spaces – it’s so important we protect and expand our open spaces. That’s why we will get on with the job of improving spaces like ANZAC park including building BBQs, play equipment and new facilities.
(Also as a side note Labor will proceed with Ryde Hospital – another project we’ve seen announced a few times!)
What about your long term vision for the area?
When I’m asked this question, I admit that I can’t answer without considering my other roles and responsibilities, including those of a mother and a teacher. I want Ryde to be an inclusive, safe community that has as much green space as possible. I want people in Ryde to be sure of the integrity and accountability of their elected representatives. I want universal access to excellent education (primary, high school, university or TAFE), delivered by teachers that are valued and respected. I want access to reliable public transport for everyone. I want better communication between our community and our elected representatives at all levels, and meaningful input in decisions that affect them. In some ways, Ryde is the best of Sydney: multicultural, enterprising, a mix of ages and worldviews. But our strengths were hard-won and I won’t take them for granted.
Other Comments
I’ve always thought that if you care about something, you have to get involved. I have a dear friend who lives in Epping, that I have known my whole life. As a local he tried to talk me out of running because of the brutal nature of local and state politics. I reminded him that delivering a Friday afternoon lesson to 27 restless year 9 students has drawn on strength I didn’t know I had. The bear pit in Macquarie Street won’t be a piece of cake, but I’m ready.
Website: www.nswlabor.org.au/lyndal_howison
Facebook: @LyndalHowison
Instagram: @lyndalhowisonforryde
Phone: 0421 756 821
Email: lyndal.howison@nswlabor.org.au
