Contentious statements on gender ideology, climate change and nuclear energy were among the discussion points at the Narre Warren North Town Hall forum on the evening of Saturday 29 October.
The community forum was organised by the electorate’s Independent candidate Stephen Capon, and entailed a Q and A style discussion on local and broader issues.
An open invitation to the forum was extended to the community and all Narre Warren North candidates, which saw Liberal Democrats candidate Stephen Matulec, Liberal candidate Timothy Dragan and Independent candidate Stephen Capon attend.
Greens candidate Laura McLean and Labor candidate Belinda Wilson were not in attendance due to prior commitments.
After candidates put forward their policy priorities for the 26 November election, discussion quickly turned to more vexed issues, when an online question about gender ideology was asked.
The question, from an anonymous contributor on online Q and A platform Slido, read “what are your views [on the] dangerous gender ideology being taught in our school systems?”
In response to the question, Liberal candidate Timothy Dragan said he was “100 per cent against it”.
“I think it’s very basic biology – XY male, XX female. I don’t think it needs to be disputed any further, any garbage like this should be stopped being taught in schools,” Mr Dragan said.
Mr Matulec said in the future he would “not want my kids to learn about these things”, but said it is important for parents to have the maximum choice in their children’s education.
“I believe that…as a personal view, obviously maths and English and science should be a fundamental aspect of school and learning,” the Liberal Democrat said.
“One size does not fit all for education and I would like to give the schools the [ability] to opt out of the national curriculum to give parents the maximum choice about where they send their kids and what education they would like their kids to receive.”
Mr Capon said he had a “similar stance” to his fellow candidates.
“I think there has been a dramatic shift in what information has been taught at schools and I’d probably be looking at a reversal of that, to kind of get back to focusing of education being more about…the actual history, maths, English, a lot of the basic fundamentals of teaching rather than necessarily looking into gender ideology,” he said.
When quizzed on climate change, Mr Dragan referenced dissident climatologist Dr Judith Curry to support his argument that “the current ideology behind climate change is not accurate or true”.
“Climatologist Dr Judith Curry – a real climatologist I should say – has said that climate is unpredictable and it is a waste of time trying to pretend that there are issues that don’t currently exist,” the Liberal candidate said.
“The climate is always changing, I don’t deny that fact, but there is a lot of dispute within the scientific realm about the modern ideology of climate change,” Mr Dragan said.
“We are seeing a cycle change between El Nino and La Nina, so there is that cycle of changes that I believe happen…but I think the current ideology behind climate change is not accurate or true.
Despite these statements, the 26-year old consultant maintained he is “for the environment”.
“I am for removing pollution, keeping energy clean, I don’t have an issue with that, but we’ve got to be rational.
“We’ve got to do it in a way that does not put unnecessary cost of living pressures on people and that is a developing and progressive change.”
Mr Capon disputed Mr Dragan’s claims, stating that “the scientists I’ve read say it is something that is occurring and in particular looking at the amount of carbon dioxide, methane, that it is at some of the highest levels we’ve seen in modern times”.
“We do need to take action against it, we do need to take steps and look at how we can make sure we aren’t polluting the environment,“ Mr Capon said.
Mr Matulec, on the other hand, said he does not “have a specific view on the climate change issue”, but believes legalising nuclear energy to ensure the nation has “clean energy that is cheap, reliable and abundant” is the way forward.
Mr Dragan also argued renewable energy is “not actually environmentally friendly”.
“I just don’t know why we’re having a conversation about renewables, they are not ready to deliver. They’re just not,” he said.
“I don’t know why it keeps getting pushed. Obviously the people who have got their shares in those renewable companies are pushing it, but let me tell you right now as someone who comes from that background, renewables are not ready yet.
“[Renewables] still need a whole lot more time, they take a lot of space and they’re not actually environmentally friendly – they take a lot to manufacture.
“I think it’s about time we remove the legislation [against nuclear energy], it’s about time we start building and until it gets built then our short-term solution is gas.”
Mr Capon said he was against nuclear energy for environmental impacts it poses and said renewable energy is economically efficient in addition to being environmentally friendly.
The Narre Warren North Town Hall was attended by constituents in person at Foundation Learning Centre in Narre Warren and was also live streamed on YouTube.
A recording of the forum was later posted on Mr Capon’s YouTube page, but has since been taken down.
Star News contacted the candidates involved in the forum, who said they stand by their statements.
Mr Dragan clarified that the statements he made reflect his personal views, not those of the Liberal Party policy.
