Politics is fixing systemic problems’ 2023

According to fresh-faced NSW MPs delivering their first parliamentary addresses, resolving entrenched issues affecting society’s most disadvantaged and tackling the cost of living crisis should be top priorities for the NSW parliament.

“Working in some of the most disenfranchised communities has given me the credentials to be an effective member of parliament,” said Donna Davis, Labor’s MP for Parramatta, on Thursday.

Former Parramatta mayor who took over the seat from the Liberal Party in the March state election previously served as a staffer for former Labor MPs Barbara Perry and Tanya Gadiel.

“Interacting with people who have lived their experiences… or a sometimes infuriatingly indifferent bureaucracy is always an opportunity to grapple with the bigger picture.” “With the way the system needs to be fixed,” she explained.

“Working on systemic issues should be at the heart of politics.”

Ms Davis reflected on her experience working with former Parramatta MP Ms Gadiel, saying that supporting individuals in modest ways had the most effect.

“The little changes you make in people’s lives give you a deep sense of satisfaction,” she explained.

“People want someone who can help them when they have nowhere else to go.”

According to Warren Kirby, Labor’s new Riverstone MP, a new class of “working poor” is forming in northwest Sydney, as many struggle to pay their obligations despite working.

“The spiralling cost of living has created the working poor,” Mr Kirby said in his first speech to parliament.

“Mortgage stress and rising rental prices have rendered many families, including those with dual incomes, unable to buy food or pay for electricity.”

“I was drawn into politics because of the frustration I felt from shouting outside this building and realizing that if I really wanted to make a difference, I needed to get a seat on the inside,” he explained.

Mr Kirby addressed the assembly, quoting Abraham Lincoln, “Now that I am here, I must do the best I can and bear the responsibility of taking the course which I feel I ought to take.”