Long-serving Nationals MP Andrew Gee has spectacularly give up the social gathering, asserting he’ll sit as an Independent in federal parliament.
In an announcement on Friday, Mr Gee cited the social gathering’s opposition to the Indigenous Voice to Parliament as the rationale for his exit.
Mr Gee has held the NSW seat of Calare since 2016.
He was additionally elected to the NSW Legislative Assembly for Orange in 2011 and served because the Defence Personnel Minister from 2021 to 2022.
Mr Gee mentioned he felt the Nationals’ determination to oppose the Voice to Parliament and witnessing the devastating NSW floods “really brought home to me the importance of being able to stand up and be counted”.
“I can’t reconcile the fact that every Australian will get a free vote on the vitally important issue of the Voice, yet National Party MPs are expected to fall into line behind a party position that I fundamentally disagree with, and vote accordingly in Parliament,” he mentioned in his assertion.
“While I respect the views of my colleagues, this just isn’t right.”
More to return.
