'We deserve more': advocate for child abuse victims to run for seat of Farrer

Advocate for child abuse victims Michelle Milthorpe says her desire to give regional residents “genuine” political representation has motivated her to run for parliament at the next federal election.

The 46-year-old teacher from Jindera will contest the seat of Farrer, a giant electorate bigger in area than Great Britain, which includes Albury, takes in Griffith and extends all the way to Wentworth on the South Australian border.

Farrer is currently held by high-profile Liberal Party deputy leader Sussan Ley, who has won the seat eight times in a row since 2001 and holds it by a margin of more than 30 points. This makes it one of the most secure in the country.

Ms Millthorpe, who grew up in Cootamundra, believes she can cause what would be one of the biggest upsets in Australian political history.

“I wouldn’t be putting my family through this if I didn’t want to win,” she said.

“I want to change people’s mindset. A lot of us have come to think that minimal representation is what we deserve. But we deserve more.”

The mother of three rose to public prominence after her daughters were sexually abused by a family friend in 2013.

Realising how the court process could re-traumatise victims, she spearheaded the ‘Justice Shouldn’t Hurt’ campaign to make the trial experience more accessible for children. Her advocacy led to the NSW Government investing $64 million in a program allowing child victims to give their evidence remotely being expanded to regional areas.

“I wrote letters to representatives and it often took a long time to get a response. The campaign showed me how politicians were inaccessible to those of us in regional areas and the lack of their presence here,” Ms Milthorpe said.

“My desire was never to be a politician, but I certainly feel that good, relatable representation is what we need. We need to have someone who is prepared to speak up.”

Now on the campaign trail, Ms Milthorpe has visited towns such as Griffith and Hay this past week. She says long distance travel is giving her more of an idea of how neglected this region has been.

“The fact that you still can’t get mobile phone service in some areas is just ridiculous, but it’s been going on for years. I’ve also just put a new set of tyres on my car as I had a flat [due to poor road quality]. We have a lot of people say they’re going to do things and it doesn’t happen; there doesn’t seem to be any accountability.”

Ms Milthorpe was endorsed as a candidate by Voices for Farrer, a community-based movement whose stated goal is to improve democracy. This group is inspired by the Voices for Indi movement that helped elect independent Cathy McGowan to represent the neighbouring Victorian seat based around Wodonga in 2013.

The Farrer candidate says she is not affiliated with the so-called Teal independents – six women who won traditionally Liberal city seats at the 2022 election.

“My campaign is focused on this community … the benefit of being an independent is that you’re representing your community and not a party,” she said.

In a ‘Meet Michelle’ event at the Griffith Exies Club on Friday (27 September), she said locals relayed their concerns about government plans to buy back irrigation water, skill shortages and the lack of housing.

“Griffith is such a unique area and it’s so important in terms of our food security; I just want to get the people there to see that they deserve more.

“People should not have to travel long distances to access basic medical services.

“You are getting a beautiful new hospital, but how are you going to staff it when there’s nowhere to live?”

Ms Milthorpe said she planned to return to Griffith on Saturday 12 October for the town’s annual multicultural festival. She will continue to travel around the towns of her vast electorate over the coming months, with details posted on her Facebook page.

The date of the next federal election has not been decided but must be held before October 2025.