By Parker McKenzie
Liberal candidate Roshena Campbell’s motivation for entering politics is underpinned by watching parents struggle as small-business owners.
“They were hit really hard by the recession in the 90s and I just remember the toll that the economy was having on families like ours,” she said.
“There were tough conversations around the dinner table, I remember tougher ones when they thought I was asleep.”
She said realising that the people who run the country make a real difference in the daily lives of families was an influence on joining the Liberal Party.
“When John Howard and Peter Costello came in, it was the first time that my parents as small business owners, who’ve been since the 70s, felt like the government had their back,” Ms Campbell said.
“The Liberal Party was a natural choice for me because I believe if you work hard to get ahead, government should help you do that.”
Ms Campbell has been a City of Melbourne councillor since November 2020 and a barrister since 2016, after completing a master’s of Law at Melbourne University in 2010.
She said as a councillor, she was proud to have supported small businesses during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Cutting fees, cutting the amount of red tape, we delivered a rates discount for every resident and ratepayer across Melbourne when other councils increased rates,” Ms Campbell said.
“As a barrister, I got the privilege of fighting for people at their lowest moment and when the stakes were the highest.”
Ms Campbell said the two biggest issues people have expressed to her while door-knocking and at pre-polling are the rising cost of living and local infrastructure projects.
“We’re supposed to have $275 off our energy bills, they’ve gone up by $800 to $900 on average around Knox and now the Victorian regulator says they’ll go up over 30 per cent more, and grocery prices keep going up,” she said.
“The cuts to road-rail in the seat, it’s making life harder when people made the case for those projects.”
Partial funding for three infrastructure projects, the Wellington Road duplication, the Dorset Road extension and the Napoleon Road upgrade, was removed by the Federal Government after the Labor Party won the 2022 federal election.
She said “the stakes are incredibly high right now,” and the voters of Aston deserve someone who has energy, experience and can deliver for them.
“It will be the greatest privilege to do that, to be able to listen to voters to understand what matters to them,” she said.
“This by-election is a chance for people to send Labor a message if the cost of living is hurting you and hurting families.”
Ms Campbell is a mother of three children and is married to Newscorp weekend political editor James Campbell.
She said the best part of being a councillor has been supporting community groups and wants to continue to do the same on a federal level.
“One of the best things over the past few weeks is getting out and meeting with community groups and sporting clubs and I think one of the most important things you can do as a local MP is supporting them,” Ms Campbell said.
“We know volunteers do such important work in communities like Knox, so I’m really excited to keep speaking to them and fighting for them.”
