Hamling August 2024

Central Western Daily

Jason Hamling announces that he wont be making a return to politics

Transcript

00:00Thank you for coming today. I have a pretty big announcement to make about my

00:05local government career. I will not be seeking re-election on September 14 in

00:11the local government election as a councillor or mayor. That decision ends a

00:1720-year career in local government. It started back in 2004 when I was on the

00:25ticket of the former late Mayor John Davis. He asked me to go on on his ticket

00:32and I'd never thought that I would have been elected to Council and lo and

00:36behold a couple of days after the 2004 election I was elected to Orange City

00:42Council. I was 33 years old then. I was the youngest councillor elected to

00:47Orange City Council at that stage. I remember my first council meeting standing

00:54around the table going what have I done? I felt a little bit out of my depth but

00:57I think I've grown into being a good strong community representative as a

01:04councillor and as the mayor. Public life can be a difficult one at times and

01:10I think that I've grown into my position as mayor over the last couple of

01:15years. I've really enjoyed some of the things we've done. It's always a source

01:20of pleasure when I get to meet the Prime Minister and the Governor-General

01:25and the Premier and they always talk so highly of Orange and they love Orange

01:30and they love Orange's people. I think local government is the tier of

01:33government where you go out and you look people in the eye and you know they ask

01:37you about some of the decisions you've made and I think you know you go

01:40shopping or you go out on a dinner date or wherever you never clock off. You're

01:44always on. It doesn't matter if you're standing on the sideline watching your

01:47kids play football. You'll always have someone come up to you and ask you

01:50about certain different roles in the council and that's not only being mayor

01:54but as a councillor as well. You're always there and you know you do

01:58that for very little remuneration so I take my hat off to whoever puts their

02:04hand up to be a councillor. I think it's an important job and I

02:09think it makes the city thrive as it is at the moment. I want to thank so many

02:16people for their support. I want to thank our Deputy Mayor Councillor Power who's

02:25been very supportive. He's done a great job. You go around and there's different

02:30things being built, different infrastructure going on and I'm

02:35just super proud of where this city's come from, where I was growing up in

02:38Glenroy to where it is now. I love this city and I always will. I want to thank

02:43the late John Davis. He was my mentor. He was a second father to me and I miss him.

02:53I want to thank former CEO Gary Stiles. He was also a good part of my local

03:01media career. I want to thank the local media, my mayor or counterparts across

03:05the Central West, my councillors that I've worked with and working with at the

03:10moment and I want to thank state MPs including Phil Donato and federal

03:16MPs who I've had the pleasure of meeting and trying to get money out to build

03:20better things for Orange. I want to thank my family. 20 years is a long time. I'm

03:28not having their dad there every second Tuesday or any other day of the week.

03:33Lawson, Darcy and Mortimer, they've only grown up to know me on council. I want to

03:39thank my wife. She's allowed me to chase my passion of trying to make Orange a

03:49better place and she's been there through the thick and the thin. She's

03:54always given me some strong advice. Sometimes I didn't agree with and

03:58sometimes she quickly turned my thinking around but she has been amazing because

04:04as I said it hasn't all been roses and she's been there to pick up the

04:09pieces and help me go on. I look forward to my next chapter in life. I have a few

04:16ideas of a career paths. I'm only 53. I'm still pretty young and I'll be

04:23looking forward to every second Tuesday sitting on the lounge watching Survivor

04:27instead of coming in here playing Survivor. I just want to thank everyone

04:31and I'll take some questions.

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