By Ethan Benedicto
Former Grevillea Ward council candidate Stephen Matulec has announced his candidacy for the Senate ticket at the federal election as part of the Libertarian Party.
With a focus on pushing for those other voices in parliament, Matulec is looking to balance the scales, advocating more representation from minor parties from discussions to decisions.
At this stage, Matulec saw his campaign during the council elections not as a stepping stone, but as a great opportunity to have that grounded perspective of the people.
“I never saw it as a stepping stone, I’m somebody who is interested in all levels of government and I don’t see myself using one platform to move into another,” he said.
“I think there really does need to be some big changes at all levels of government, so whatever opportunity I get to be involved in, I think that I just need to put my hand up.”
He has also emphasised proper fiscal responsibility, government accountability and the importance of individual freedoms, that “seeing what’s happening with both Liberal and Labor, they’re neglecting people, not listening, not doing their job properly”.
“We’ve seen, for a very long time now, of more than a decade of both Liberal and Labor governments spending so much money.
“The debt has been going up every year and no one’s really willing to look at that and that’s the sort of inflationary pressure that we’re seeing now.
“I think people are just sort of frustrated, especially with both major parties, there’s a lot of people that think there’s not much difference between them,” he said.
One of Matulec’s key rallying cries is addressing what he referred to as the current “oppressive tax system”, where he pointed out the excessiveness of the number of items being taxed from fuel excise to income taxes.
“We are literally getting taxed to death, the government’s being too greedy, they’re taxing us more and they’re spending more and the situation is getting worse,” he said.
“People pay income tax, people pay tax on the petrol, there’s GST on everything and if you want to invest in something there’s the capital gains tax, it just does not end.”
Matulec believes that the solution is to simplify the tax system and provide relief for everyday Australians, with the fuel excise, for example, with its goal of generating revenue and cost recovery for road infrastructure something he considered a “wrong system”.
He pointed out that middle-class Australians are hit the hardest with these, facing a barrage of taxes that prevents people from bearing the fruits of their labour.
“The middle class is getting taxed so much and all that tax they’re paying for, they’re not really seeing anything,” he said.
“Imagine if the government got rid of that, and instead of fuel being $1.65, it cost a dollar, that would help everybody, like going to the pump and actually saving money.
“It’s not just the individual or the family, it’s also the fact that everything moves with fuel; the groceries at the supermarket get moved by trucks, trucks that pay the fuel tax.
“Groceries could be cheaper but that’s a business cost that the supermarket has to pass on to the consumers.”
Building on the topic of costs, Matulec also pointed out the inadequacies of the current energy system, highlighting that not only current energy sources are getting less effective, but also that the overall concern on the country’s emissions is misplaced.
“Nuclear power has seen success, there are a lot of movements around the world, like in Scandinavia, America and in Europe, who support nuclear power because it’s one of the cleanest forms of power,” he said.
“To see the power bills going up every year, it’s ridiculous with this government policies, so we need to stop giving the subsidies out, remove the ban on nuclear power and just let the market do its thing.
“Removing the ban doesn’t mean you have to use it, but it’s letting the market have an option to work.”
While nuclear power is recognised as a low-emission energy source with high efficiency and reliability, its costs, questions around safety and economic considerations have been some of the stronger points for its non-implementation, as well as other renewables like wind and solar being currently cheaper.
As for emissions, Matulec is adamant that in the grand scheme of things, despite the per-capita rate of emissions, the fact that Australia generates only one per cent of the world’s emissions and that there are other, much bigger names such as the United States and China, has driven up costs without providing reliable alternatives.
“Will it really matter? We need to be reasonable on how we’re doing this and actually make sure of people’s prosperity and that they are able to afford what they need to buy,” he said.
Ultimately, aside from the specifics on political standpoints, Matulec believes that there is a need for the government to take some form of political accountability, accusing both major parties of “working together” to maintain a system that benefits them.
“Liberal and Labor both support big corporations, the government’s throwing millions of dollars of subsidies to these guys and that just shows that the agenda is set,” he said.
“I will stand with the Greens and other minor parties and independents on this, that the duopoly of both major parties should not see them trying to team up and pass things that hinder the potential of minor parties.
“If they are afraid of minor parties coming in to dominate, they need to show themselves that they can be better.
“I don’t just say this as someone from the Libertarian Party, but if there was less of Liberal and Labor, and more of other parties, more of everybody, I think that would be great for democracy.”
The scales have been tipped to favour one side, according to Matulec, and that balance must be met.
Having joined the party in 2022, Matulec plans to keep his feet moving, engaging with local communities and working on a grounded, people-first campaign in the lead-up to the election.
