User:Rebecca/Drafts/Sylvia Hale

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Sylvia Phyllis Hale is an Australian politician. She has been a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council since 2003, representing the Australian Greens. A social justice campaigner and former Marrickville councillor, she has emerged as one of the most vocally left-wing and anti-development members of the New South Wales parliament.

Hale studied education and history at the University of Sydney during the early 1960s. She became involved in activism while at university, protesting on issues such as racial segregation in the United States and the beginning of the Vietnam War. Hale initially joined the Australian Labor Party, but soon shifted sharply to the left, becoming a committed Trotskyist and associating with the likes of strongly left-wing writer Hall Greenland. She married young, and founded Southwood Press, an independent publishing company, with her husband in 1965. Twelve years later, she founded a second publishing company, Hale and Iremonger, with noted publishing executive John Iremonger. Over time, she established a reputation as one of the country's most known independent publishers.

Though she had been involved in activism for several decades, Hale largely stayed away from party politics until 1994, when the single-issue No Aircraft Noise party was founded in western Sydney to oppose the expansion of Sydney Airport. Hale became involved in the new party, and the following year ran for election to the Marrickville council as a No Aircraft Noise candidate. She was ultimately successful, and became a vocal figure in local politics.

As a councillor, Hale primarily concentrated on planning issues. She advocated the sale of the Sydney Airport site for residential development to pay for a new airport located outside of the Sydney basin. She also vigorously opposed the Carr government's preferred site for a second Sydney Airport at Badgery's Creek. Hale actively fought the development of Steel Park, a key area of open space in the area, and successfully worked to halt the sale of the historic The Towers in Newtown. Hale was also involved in the successful campaigns to save Marrickville, Hunter's Hill and Erskineville schools. She also had one brief further foray into publishing, serving on the board of a new national newspaper, The Republican in early 1997. It was intended to serve as an independent equivalent of the Rupert Murdoch-owned The Australian, but was a complete failure and folded after only five months.

Hale had a particularly poor relationship with the Australian Labor Party members who dominated the Marrickville council during her time there, and this broke out into open warfare during 1997. In April, the long-serving Labor mayor of Marrickville, Barry Cotter, was reported to the Department of Local Government for investigation due to having failed to disclose interests in several companies and ownership of several properties. In the months that followed, Hale led a vocal community campaign against the mayor, only to have it backfire somewhat in July when it was discovered that she had failed to declare pecuniary interests of her own. The dispute took three years to come to a conclusion, with both parties being formally reprimanded.

After three years in local politics, Hale ran for the Australian House of Representatives electorate of Grayndler at the 1998 election as a No Aircraft Noise candidate. As a candidate of a small minor party, she had virtually no chance of winning, and she ultimately finished fourth behind Labor, the Liberal Party and the Unity Party. Hale remainded actively involved in local affairs over the next two years, but No Aircraft Noise had largely passed its peak, and by 1999 was practically defunct. The Australian Greens were growing increasingly strong in the Marrickville area by this time, and in 2000, Hale joined the larger party. The Greens' success soon meant that Hale had support on the council, although the Labor Party's continued control foiled her bid for mayor in 2001. Hale again ran for the House of Representatives at the 2001 election, this time as a Greens candidate. While she fell well short of posing a serious challenge, she polled 13% of the vote and forced incumbent member Anthony Albanese to preferences in the safe Labor seat.

Two years later, Hale decided to make a bid for statewide office, nominating as a Greens candidate for the New South Wales Legislative Council at the [[New South Wales legislative election, 2003|2003 election]. She initially hoped to win the top position on the party's ticket, but was unsuccessful and took the second position behind incumbent Ian Cohen. This was still considered winnable, as Greens were polling well at the time, having recently won their first federal House of Representatives seat in a by-election for the seat of Cunningham. They received nearly two quotas, and Hale was duly elected. She remained on Marrickville council after the election so as to prevent the cost of a by-election.

2003 - supported home-based prostitution legalising - helped it pass but ALP councillors did dodgy backflip

March 2003 - elected to Legislative Council, though remained a Marrickville councillor, supposedly to prevent cost of a by-election

for age of consent bill (May 2003) - first controversial issue

continued focusing on planning issues (ADI site - arrested in June 04, Pyrmont Point waterfront land, Luna Park) (is she Greens planning spokeswoman?)

strongly opposed staff cuts in education

Southwood debacle (June 2003) - allegations of Labor interference - her poor relationship with Labor in general

strenuously opposed council amalgamations

Dec 2003 - It found that the most active members of the cross bench were Green MPs Lee Rhiannon, Ian Cohen and Sylvia Hale, closely followed by Australian Democrat Arthur Chesterfield-Evans.

Jan 2004 - revealed daughter is dyslexic, and campaigned for government to recognise it as a disability and provide more funding to deal with it

anti-mobile phone towers

strongly criticised Carr for Orange Grove affair, helped set up parliamentary inquiry and argued centre should have never been built at all

supported vastly increasing investment in public housing - critical of government cuts and rent rises and refusal to build more in new suburbs (organising forums and attempting to push motions - on rent rise issue) - also fought plans to develop residential caravan parks and remove tenants

critical of Redfern-Waterloo urban renewal project - successfully moved a motion to make plans public, though she failed to stop it from being exempt from heritage laws

supports wind farms, against desalination plant proposals (on the grounds that they would not be ecologically sustainable) - instead argued for efficiency, recycling and rainwater tanks - also argued for a moratorium on new water bores

This meant that she was not a lone voice in the council, although the Labor Party still maintained control; while

she represented had largely passed its peak

By this time, however, No Aircraft Noise had largely passed its peak, and while Hale remained actively involved in local affairs over the next two years, the party she represented was increasingly irrelevant. In

Over the next two years, while she continued to be actively involved

at the time, and this broke out into open warfare in 1997.

Sylvia Phyllis HALE

BA DipEd 1964 (Sydney Uni? - also studied history) - Trotsky , LLB (UNSW) 1998.

Social justice, community and environmental campaigner. Past occupations include spot welder, shop assistant, clerk, teacher and book publisher. Councillor on Marrickville Council 1995 - 2004.

"Or take Sylvia Hale, another Green in the NSW upper house. Her political career began as a Trotskyite at Sydney University in the mid-'60s, where she and Hall Greenland ran a front called the ALP Club, which had nothing to do with the ALP. She later morphed into the Greens and was elected to Parliament last year." (13 Dec 2004 editorial)

Hale and Iremonger "10-year old company established by Hale, Barnes and ex-ANU Press executive John Iremonger who is now publisher at Allen and Unwin." (1987) later Southwood Press

Councillor on Marrickville Council 1995 - 2004. - initially as No Aircraft Noise (member 1994-1999) (member Greens 2000-present)

1997 - board of The Republican ("mogul-free newspaper")

1997 - Cotter/Hale declarations saga - both reprimanded in 2000

advocated selling Sydney Airport for residential development to build one out of the Sydney basin - also opposed Badgery's Creek site

anti-development (Steel Park) - opposed closure of Marrickville High, then Hunter's Hill High School and Erskineville Public School - opposed sale of historic The Towers in Newtown

- challenged Cotter for mayor in 2001, but failed - 2001 election- Green candidate in Grayndler - finished third behind Libs, but still took 13%, forcing Albanese to preferences

- Oct 2002 - anti-war, argued for the closure of Pine Gap

2003 election - went for 1st, had to settle for uncertain 2nd seat behind Cohen - was widely considered to have a good chance with Greens polling well and still celebrating from Cunningham