Helen Dalton
Helen Dalton | |
|---|---|
 Dalton in 2019 | |
| Member of the New South Wales Parliament for Murray | |
| Assumed office 23 March 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Austin Evans |
| Personal details | |
| Party | Independent (2016–2017, 2022–present) |
| Other political affiliations | Nationals (2014) Country (2015–2016) Shooters, Fishers and Farmers (2017–2022) |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Website | https://helendalton.com.au/ |
Helen Jennifer Dalton is an Australian politician. She has been a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly since March 2019, representing the electoral district of Murray, first as a member of the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party and since 2022 as an independent.[2][3][4][5][6]
Since her election Dalton has been a vocal critic of NSW government corruption, water mismanagement, and the under-funding of rural hospitals, mental health services, and infrastructure.[7]
Dalton has campaigned for the establishment of a public register listing all water owners in NSW.[8] She has reported a number of matters to the Independent Commission Against Corruption, including a land sale by Murray River Council[9] and the NSW Government's failure to release a report on re-opening the Narrandera to Tocumwal rail line.[10]
Early life and career
[edit]Dalton was born in 1959 and raised on a sheep and wheat farm north of Rankins Springs in the Melbergen District.[11]
Dalton studied education and worked as a primary school teacher from 1981 to 1987. She owns a family farming business that produces maize, rice, cereals, cotton, beef cattle, wool and fat lambs.[11] In 2007, she was awarded a Nuffield Australia Farming Scholarship.[12]
Political career
[edit]Dalton ran for parliament unsuccessfully in 2015 and 2017 as an independent with the support of the Country Party of Australia[13] and for the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party, respectively. In March 2019, Dalton won the seat of Murray by a 26.2-point swing, breaking 35 years of National Party incumbency.[6] Bookmakers had her as a 9 to 1 outsider just two months before the election.
In her campaign Dalton presented a plan to address water mismanagement and corruption,[14] argued for a royal commission into the Murray Darling Basin Plan, and pushed for better rural health and hospital services.[15]
She has continued to raise these themes as a state MP. Her maiden speech in NSW parliament highlighted the rapid decline in service provision and living standards across rural NSW.[16]
Dalton has written a bill to improve transparency on who owns water in NSW[17] The Bill would have forced all state MPs to declare their water interests, and provided for a public water register allowing the public to search for the names of companies and individuals who own water.[18] The legislation passed the NSW Upper House, but was opposed by the NSW Government, who voted it down in the lower house.[19]
She has frequently clashed with government MPs in state parliament, notably former Health Minister Brad Hazzard[20] and Water Minister Melinda Pavey, who has labelled Dalton a "disgrace".[21] Former Deputy Premier John Barilaro called her a "disgusting human" on Twitter.[22]
A parliamentary speech Dalton gave on the destruction of family farms across Australia has been viewed more than 330,000 times.[23] She has also criticised excessive foreign ownership of Australian water and farmland,[24] and campaigned for mental health services in the bush.[25]
On 3 March 2022, Dalton resigned from the Shooters Fishers and Farmers after disagreeing with the party's Legislative Council members' failure to show up to vote against a bill regarding water usage that she believed would "disadvantage communities and irrigators in the lower Darling and Murray river system".[26]
In February 2026, Dalton was viewed as a potential candidate for the 2026 Farrer by-election, with Dalton claiming that her mobile phone "has been burning up" since the resignation of Sussan Ley.[27]
Personal life
[edit]Dalton married in 1984 and has four adult children and three grandchildren.[12]
References
[edit]- ^ "Candidates - The Legislative Assembly District of Murray". Elections NSW. New South Wales Electoral Commission. Retrieved 3 April 2023.
- ^ "Mrs Helen Jennifer Dalton MP". Members of the Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
- ^ "Dalton wins Murray". Seymour Telegraph. 27 March 2019. Archived from the original on 29 March 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
- ^ "Helen Dalton wins NSW seat of Murray". Cobram Courier. 27 March 2019. Archived from the original on 29 March 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
- ^ Nicholls, Sean (5 October 2017). "Meet the Shooters party candidate who 'doesn't like shooting much'". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
- ^ a b "Murray - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)". ABC News. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
- ^ "Alan Jones interviews Helen Dalton". Facebook.
- ^ "Dalton bill voted down by Liberals and Nationals". 24 September 2020.
- ^ "it looks dodgy". 29 November 2020.
- ^ "Prime 7 News Story". Facebook.
- ^ a b Dalton, Helen (2019). "Inaugural Speech" (PDF). New South Wales Government. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
- ^ a b "Helen Dalton - Member for Murray". Shooters, Farmers and Fishers Party. 2018. Archived from the original on 11 January 2020. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
- ^ (13 February 2015). "Country Party moves on Murray" – The Land (Fairfax Media). Retrieved 26 March 2015.
- ^ "SFF ten point plan on Water" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 May 2019. Retrieved 15 February 2020.
- ^ "regional health plan".
- ^ "Dalton gives maiden speech". 7 April 2024.
- ^ "Farmer tells MPs: Declare your water interests". 18 November 2019.
- ^ "Water register Bill".
- ^ "Dalton Bill voted down". 24 September 2020.
- ^ "Dalton on rural health crisis". 25 September 2019.
- ^ "Pavey calls Dalton a disgrace to her community".
- ^ "Twitter".
- ^ "Destruction of family farms". Facebook.
- ^ "Dalton slams foreign ownership secrecy". 18 November 2019.
- ^ "Interview with Ben Fordham". Facebook.
- ^ Gramenz, Jack (3 March 2022). "NSW MP quits over party no-show". Mudgee Guardian.
- ^ "Helen Dalton Considers Federal Leap: "My Mobile Has Been Burning Up"". Back Country Bulletin. 6 May 2023. Retrieved 13 February 2026.
- 21st-century Australian women
- Living people
- 20th-century Australian women
- 21st-century Australian politicians
- Women members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly
- Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly
- Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party politicians
- Schoolteachers from New South Wales
- 21st-century Australian women politicians