How I Vote

About

Helen Indi How I Vote Delivering for Indi

I’m committed to being fully transparent about my voting record.

It’s a privilege to represent the people of Indi in Parliament, and I work hard to ensure our voice is represented every time I step into the chamber.

As an Independent, every vote is a conscience vote.

I review each bill on its merits, and work with all sides of politics to get the best outcomes for Indi.

I am no rubber stamp for the government. When the Government puts up good laws, I back them. When they put up bad laws, I oppose them.

I'm proud of my voting record

I’ve attended a total of 1,067 votes since entering Parliament.

Parliament doesn’t just vote on new laws. It also votes on whether to take a position on certain issues, and procedural questions like whether a specific MP should be allowed to speak.

How I've Voted

Since I was elected in 2019, and re-elected in 2022, I have voted on legislation introduced by governments from both sides.

In the 46th Parliament, the government passed more than 370 laws. Most legislation is non-controversial, and I supported more than 90% of government bills.

In the 47th Parliament, the government has so far passed 191 bills, the majority of which are also non-controversial and agreed to by both sides of politics.

Whether it’s scholarships to recruit doctors and nurse practitioners to rural Australia or making it mandatory for nurses to be in residential aged care centres 24 hours a day, I’m always pleased to support the government pass new laws when they’re good for Indi.

As an independent, I’ve also got the power to oppose new laws when they don’t work for Indi.

I’ve opposed proposals like the expansion of the cashless welfare card, rolling back responsible lending laws, making political donations to the major parties more secretive, banning mobile phones in immigration detention, spending billions on fossil fuel subsidies that slow down the regional renewables boom, and watering down the Family Court and supports for families and children.

While I’m free to cross the floor, major party MPs usually have no choice but to toe the party line.

Bills and Amendments

I’ve attended 507 votes on bills, amendments and other motions which ask the Parliament to take a position on a certain political issue.

I make these decisions on a case-by-case basis, depending on what’s best for Indi.

In the 47th Parliament, I have:

Voted with the government: 52% of the time
Voted with the opposition: 26% of the time
Voted against the government and opposition: 30% of the time
(Note: sometimes the government and opposition vote together on bills)

In the 46th Parliament, I:

Voted with the government: 48% of the time
Voted with the opposition: 48% of the time
Voted against the government and opposition: 4% of the time

Gag Motions

In the 46th Parliament, I attended 342 votes on whether an MP should be allowed to speak or not.

The free and open exchange of ideas is crucial to a well-functioning democracy.

All too often, the former Government shut down debate and forced MPs to stop speaking on the floor of Parliament simply because it didn’t agree with what they were saying.

I will almost always oppose these motions. The only time I’ll support one is if I believe the MP is being too disruptive or disrespecting the Parliament.

Between 2019 and 2022, I:

Opposed the gag motion: 95% of the time
Supported the gag motion: 5% of the time

These types of votes represent around 43% of all the votes I attended in the 46th Parliament.

In the 47th Parliament I have voted against gag motions 100% of the time.

General Procedure

I’ve attended 252 votes related to general procedure.

These decide matters like what should be on the schedule for debate, or when Parliament should adjourn for the day. They’re rarely political.

I make these decisions on a case-by-case basis, depending on what I believe would allow constructive ideas and arguments to be debated in the Parliament.