MANY of our politicians can point to a defining moment, which saw their interest turn to active involvement. Recently, the current crop of Federal Labor MPs reflected on how former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam was the catalyst for their pursuit of a political career. So, it comes as no surprise the member for the new seat of Euroa – and deputy Nationals Party leader – Steph Ryan can trace her growing political awareness back to a single issue – water. Stock & Land’s ANDREW MILLER sat down with Ms Ryan in Seymour, last week, to find out more about the 28-year-old MP.
STEPH Ryan's political awakening came during the worst drought North East Victoria had experienced in living memory, which hit the region in 2006.
While her parents were dairy farmers, and politically conservative, she said they were not active in a party sense.
But working as a journalist on a regional newspaper at the time, she found herself becoming increasingly frustrated with the then Labor Government's water policies.
"I understood how important water was to the region – it's a saying that gets bandied around quite a lot, but it is the lifeblood of Northern Victoria and those irrigation districts," she said.
"Labor made a series of decisions around water – including the decisions to build the north-south pipeline and unbundle water rights, effectively leaving the Commonwealth with unfettered access to the Victorian water market.
"I was frustrated by those decisions and what I saw was the erosion of security for those farms in Victoria; it was particularly difficult, coming in the context of that millennium drought where people were under enormous pressure, mentally, financially and emotionally."
She was at a crossroads; life in the city beckoned, but journalism was a hard career to crack.
Instead, she opted to enter politics – as an adviser to first the Liberals, then the Nationals.
So why not choose the Liberal Party?
"The Nationals are the party for rural and regional Victoria and they are the party for my communities – it was the Nationals who stood up and fought the north-south pipeline, it was the Nationals who fought, through the Murray Darling Basin process, to make sure we got a more balanced plan.
"I think the Nationals take a sensible, pragmatic approach to issues in regional Victoria and are the voice of country people."
In many ways, these are her twin passions; although she was energised to enter politics on a single issue, her desire to see a "fair go" for the bush sees her at her most animated.
Ms Ryan was a little more cautious when it came to questions about the influence of the National Party within the last Coalition government.
"We have our fights behind closed doors and we make our influence felt in the Coalition," she said.
And she was non-committal, when Swinburne University political commentator Professor Brian Costar's comments about the future of the Coalition were put to her.
Professor Costar suggested the Nationals should leave the Coalition, to redefine themselves and their role, before the next election.
"I think we will have those discussions in the course of the coming weeks, but I think we need to do the best thing for regional Victoria, which I think is ensuring we are in a contestable position in 2018, and in a position where we can present a real alternative."
Her greatest concern was now making sure regional Victoria was not neglected, under the current Government.
"We will have a real fight on our hands to make sure these seats, and regional Victoria, gets a fair go; you can't look at community needs from the perspective of, 'well, will we win this seat, or won't we', there are basic needs there that need to be addressed."
For the National Party to grow, it would have to show it reflected the broad demographics of regional Victoria, she said.
Ms Ryan said her pre-selection, and that of Emma Kealy in Lowan, marked significant change in attitudes in regional Victoria, "because we are pre-selected by the grassroots membership of the party".
"Certainly – not all that long ago – there would be many people who felt, not within party leadership, women could not necessarily juggle a career and a family."
The Labor Party had run a strong campaign, to win the election, and there were things the Nationals could learn, she said.
"I have watched Labor quite closely, and I think – currently – they are light years ahead of us, with their campaign strategy," Ms Ryan said.
"They have been building to this point for several elections, with phone banking, the data sets and the use of volunteers.
"They have really adopted that US presidential style of campaign, and I think one of my jobs is to look at how we can bring in more of the younger generation – who do care about regional Victoria – and motivate them to get involved."
