Residential development growth is putting pressure on existing community and social services . How will your party address this , particularly for veterans and aged pensioners ? Since the Liberal State Government has earmarked our area for rapid population growth and development , we are now experiencing a shortfall in infrastructure and in community and social services that are crucial for our older and more vulnerable residents .

We need to invest in creating stronger , more connected communities , provide more jobs in the service sector and make planning about people , not developer profits .

We will oppose unsustainable development and greatly increase funding and services for aged care , childcare , and mental health to support our community ’ s needs . We will empower community voices and improve how grant funding is allocated so it is transparent and meets genuine community needs .

How will your party keep a district known as the Garden Shire ‘ green ’, manage its parks , waterways and green spaces with mega development constructions like the Gables , Hills Showground and Castle Towers redevelopment ?

Our community loves living in the Hills because of its leafy green gardens and strong connection to nature . We can ’ t see this

disappear . The Greens have a plan to protect and re-establish green space in our suburbs by investing $ 2b each year to regenerate wildlife habitat , and plant two billion trees by 2030 .

We recognise that protecting our natural environment and wildlife from excessive land clearing , pollution and destruction is key to our quality of life and wellbeing . We want to strengthen Environmental Protection Laws and create an independent watchdog to enforce them .

In recent years the Liberal State Government has gone ahead and approved developments that our community does not want and our local council has rejected - there needs to be stronger protection against this .

How will your party invest in keeping jobs local ?

We have many policies which are focused on local job creation . Our plan to set up a large manufacturing fund to directly invest in local industry is designed to encourage and support local jobs and stop profits from going overseas .

Tackling climate change by switching to renewable energy will create huge opportunities for local trades in solar and electric vehicle charging installation . We will create local jobs while helping people make their homes more energy efficient ( saving on energy costs ),

insulating and retrofitting houses to make them warmer in winter and cooler in summer .

Our Affordable Housing policy plans to construct a million new homes , our Economic Security policy for women supports women-led local business , our Circular Economy policy supports local councils to build industrial compostable facilities to deal with our increasing waste problem .

Many local jobs can also be created in restoration of bushland and parks and cleaning up local waterways .

How will your party protect public education funding and opportunities given the amount of exclusive , cashed up private schools in the district ?

With public money , public schools should come first . The Greens will ensure public schools are funded and resourced to meet every student ’ s needs .

The funding will upgrade and maintain infrastructure that is sustainable and accessible , and support students and teachers , providing genuinely free education for everyone .

Liberal and Labor governments have given billions to private schools while public schools remain underfunded and desperate for resources . This must change otherwise by 2023 , 99 per cent of public schools won ’ t have the minimum Schooling Resource Standard ( SRS ) funding they need . Being underresourced

has meant that public schools have had to hike out-of-pocket expenses for parents and guardians , who are in some cases even being asked to cover classroom basics .

The Greens will also make Outside School Hours Care ( OSHC ) free and universal as part of our Early Childhood Education and Care plan .

BEROWRA covers an area from Hawkesbury River in the north , to the M2 , Pennant Hills Road and North Rocks Road in the South . Osborn and Normanhurst Rd and Main Northern Railway and Belmont Parade , Cockle and Cowan Creeks in the east , Hawkesbury , Bellbird and Cattai Creeks , Boundary Road , Taylor Street , High Road , Castle Hill Road , Main Northern Railway , Old Northern Road , Gilbert Road , Merrick Way , Gawin Court and Linksley Avenue in the west . Suburbs include Annangrove , Arcadia , Berowra , Brooklyn , Cattai , Cherrybrook , Cowan , Dangar Island , Galston , Glenorie , Hornsby ( part ), Maroota , Middle Dural , Mount Colah ( part ), Mount Kuring-gai , Pennant Hills , Westleigh , West Pennant Hills and Wisemans Ferry .

MITCHELL covers an area from Nelson and Box Hill in the northwest to Northmead and North Rocks in the southeast . The main suburbs include Baulkham Hills , Beaumont Hills , Bella Vista , Box Hill , Castle Hill , Kellyville , Nelson , Northmead , North Rocks , Rouse Hill , Winston Hills and West Pennant Hills .